Interesting Times - Shao's Long March

Half a century after the birth of modern day China, the People's Liberation Army still attracts many young men. A large proportion of the PLA are volunteers who are recruited through large-scale campaigns. One of these recruits is Shao Zhenning, an academic failure who lies around all day, smoking in his parents home. Shao’s impoverished parents are at their wits end. 'The army is my best option', Shao shouts to a friend over a booming techno beat in the local disco. 'A child in the army brings honour to the family’, a promotion officer crows to potential new recruits. Director Wu Gong dogs Shao's footsteps during his three-month basic training .We witness Shao’s tears of despair on when he has to stand at attention in the bitter cold for an hour. We also see Shao collapsing during long forced marches, and how the young recruits cope with homesickness. A striking element is the total lack of self-consciousness in the presence of the camera. The result is beautiful scenes, that one would never witness in the Dutch army. At Chinese New Year, the recruits can’t go home and one of the boys hands toilet paper for a group cry. The collective weeping session is punctuated with a sentimental song about missing one’s home and mother, after which crying resumes in a determined fashion. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)