"The Story of Qiu Jiu" (1992)

(Originally released as Qiu Ju da guan si)

Starring: Gong Li, Liu Peiqi, Yang Liuchun, Lei Queshen, Ge Zhijun

First, the lowdown: A pregnant peasant registers a complaint against a village chief and bureaucralarity ensues.

There two things I was thinking of as I was watching this film. The first was: there are incredible lengths people will go to in order to prove themselves "right" about something. Some are ridiculous, others are desperate. If enough people were willing to concede a point and just let it go, things would be a lot easier in the world.

The second was: Never get into an argument with a pregnant woman. I learned that one the hard way during my ex-wife's first trimester.

The movie opens up with Qiu Ju, the wife of a chili farmer in rural China, going to a village doctor with her sister-in-law towing her husband Qinglai in a cart. The day before, Qinglai let his mouth get the better of him during an altercation with Wang, the village chief, resulting in a severe kick to Qinglai's groin. Both worried and embarrassed for her husband, Qiu Ju demands an apology from the chief, but is refused. So instead she files a complaint with the local government office. The complaint is quickly handled, with the chief being responsible for 200 yuan in lost wages and expenses. Qiu Ju tells the chief that she isn't concerned so much about the money but still demands an apology from him. The chief scoffs is more than willing to pay any fines, but scoffs at the idea of apologizing for his actions, no matter how out of place they might be. Feeling that her case was handled inadequately, Qiu Ju appeals her case to a higher office and ends up being exposed to the progressively larger cogs of government bureaucracy.

This is a very ironic comedy that is completely gag-free. There are no pratfalls, one-liners, catch-phrases, or visual gags to be seen. (Qinglai's "sacktap" happens immediately before the movie begins and is only described, never re-enacted.) If anything, what makes the movie funny is the determination of the central character Qiu Ju and the dawning realization that bureaucracy is a universal concept. With Qiu Ju being increasingly dissatisfied with how her complaint is handled, she appeals to a higher and higher court, eventually landing her in "The City", where she is completely out of her depth.

The scenes in "The City" are pretty hilarious Chinese spin on the "country bumpkin in the big city" shtick that is a staple of Western cinema. Qiu Ju and her sister-in-law, Meizi, wander the streets, trying to not look completely lost and maintain their focus toward complaining with the Public Service Board, yet finding their gaze wandering to the marvels of the urban landscape. At one point a friendly passerby recommends they change their clothes to blend in, so we cut to Qiu Ju and Meizi donning freshly-purchased "urban-looking" overcoats, and still looking completely out of place in them.

Overall, one realizes that while some of the customs, laws, and procedures may be different, government services in China seem to have the same work-avoidance philosophy that Western bureaucracies have. Watching Qiu Ju fill out paperwork yet again reminds me of being at the DMV. At one point she asks a local schoolteacher to read a court notice because she can't understand the "legalese" in it.

Bureaucracies are all the same for both the East and West.

Line of the movie: "All I wanted was an apology," Qiu Ju's request seems simple at first.

Four stars. Filled with wholesome goodness.