SLIFF 2010 Review: THE SHAFT

Review by Dane Marti

THE SHAFT  might appear dull at first, but I urge dedicated film fans to not get uptight by the slow editing, but hold on: this is a film about desperation that does not scream. Directed by Zhang Chi, this film was made in China in 2008.The visual splendor of the film is so paramount that it almost begs the editing to slow down and not be so kinetically insane, with the typical fireballs and fast-moving, Hollywood fun.   Just as all cultures are different and inimitable, all films made in different cultures are also different and distinctive: I know, this isn’t an amazingly intellectual concept, but a society’s irreplaceable perspective on themselves and the world can be seen within the context of a movie’s editing—its pacing.  Whatever the film’s locale, there can be a subtle difference: The length of time a piece of footage is on the screen is perhaps not just different due to the director’s vision, the subject matter, or a lazy editor, but because of something far more intangible, far more poetic.  Of course, directors (and unfortunately, sometimes executives) also have their own vision, pacing and juxtaposition of images for a film. The editing helps to convey the themes within a work. This is a problem some people might have with foreign films (along with the major complaint folks have of not wanting to read subtitles. “Hell, Martha! I can’t read all them big words!”), whether they are recently shot or were filmed back in the halcyon 1950’s, whether the film is ‘Wild Strawberries,’ ‘Rashomon’ or a brand new piece of cinematic invention such as this special film, ‘The Shaft.’ Another reason for a slower editing pace is simply to show off the spectacular images of Western China; In the Shaft—it almost becomes a character along with the other people. Beauty shouldn’t be overlooked.

I should mention that—of course—this film has absolutely nothing to do with the wonderful actor, Richard Roundtree, although I do appreciate his work. I even liked his small roll in ‘Earthquake.’ Hell, I even liked ‘Earthquake,’ so I might seem a strange person to be reviewing a foreign film, but I like these types of movies as well. Ha. Plus, films from around the world often try to mimic the Hollywood style, which can have disastrous results, although occasionally, as in some cool, old celluloid hybrid, it can work like fireworks on the 4^th of July:  I think of Goddard’s early work; Even Tarantino has cross-pollinated Hollywood genres in the past with fun and fascinating results.

This is an interesting film. It’s a little slice of reality that reminded me of the Pennsylvania sequences that start off  ‘The Deer Hunter,’ another amazing film about community and friendship. There is the same attention to detail within “the Shaft’s’ reality. No doubt about it: I cared about this community.

The core of this film’s focus is a family:  I know this might sound dull, but the flick handles it in an honest way. ‘Shaft’ centers on a father, his son and daughter. The son, while a thoughtful, often quiet young man, isn’t ambitious. He doesn’t believe he is intelligent enough to take exams for entering a university. He is (like young and old around the globe) a dreamer with Neon ‘D.’ Meanwhile, the daughter is supposedly caught in a love triangle at her school. Her ultimate decision is to leave the small, rural town.

The father is nearing retirement. The woman of his life, and mother to his children) left the family years ago due to how she met her husband: the heinous practice of slavery, perhaps something quite common in their country. This is a film that compels a person to investigate a country in more detail after the show is over.  I’m not sure how the dad dealt with this issue or, for that matter, how he ethically stood on this explosive and terrible topic. It is obvious that he still loves the mysterious woman. Presently, he seems like a good man in many ways—very quiet and unfortunately, not exactly the authoritative type when it comes to his children and how they behave. Not that I’m inferring that he should be a tyrant, but perhaps he could strive for a little more communication; The father’s performance, much like his children, is very naturalistic and understated, which perfectly goes with film that contains a spectacular visual pallet, breathtakingly beautiful but also objective to the point of being similar to a documentary with a smattering of Jim Jaramusch along the way.

For Western Viewers, this is a work as different as the world within Bernardo Bertolucci’s ‘The Last Emperor.”  This is a movie in which the cinematography (so clear, so vivid and often almost a collection of still images) definitely plays a major role in examining this world—a rural, mining area of western China in modern times.

We see that these folks are not that far from the trials and tribulations of the problems that Westerners have. There are the obligatory frustrations, moments of romance and anger, plus the inevitable grind of time, as the characters get older, retire from their jobs and accept the basic problems in life.

I think the film does have a bit too much disconnect from the viewer, a little too much reliance of vignettes to impressionistically communicate the lives of the characters.  However, this is nitpicking and I hate nitpicking. I probably feel this way because I was raised by Hollywood fun (along with some British product) in all of its commercial, spectacular special effects, entertainment and pabulum.

However, I still appreciate another view of reality from some other continent and culture completely different and thought provoking. See the film.

SHAFT  will play during the 19th Annual Stella Artois St. Louis International Film Festival on Wednesday, November 17th at 2:15 pm at the Plaza Frontenac Cinema.