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Living the Land

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As China transforms, a family is caught between the weight of tradition and the pull of progress. In 1991, as China undergoes sweeping socio-economic changes that drive many to leave their rural villages in pursuit of work in the cities, 10-year-old Chuang, the third child of his family, must remain in the village due to family plans. Against the backdrop of modernization, as the advent of technology reshapes their traditional way of life, cycles of births, deaths, marriages, and funerals reveal the enduring weight of tradition and the pressures of balancing familial responsibilities with a rapidly changing world.

Critics Reviews

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Ritesh Mehta IndieWire If “Living the Land” is still extremely handsome and involving, this is because Huo isn’t simply observing, he is telling a story too, just in larger temporal units. Rated: B+ Feb 18, 2025 Full Review Jordan Mintzer The Hollywood Reporter Director Huo Meng’s Living the Land (Sheng Xi Zhi Di) immerses the viewer in a remote Chinese agricultural community with all the precision and beauty of an accomplished artist. Feb 15, 2025 Full Review Guy Lodge Variety Though it’s gently paced and narratively diffuse, “Living the Land” is never dull, thanks to a wealth of incident and the complexity of relationships in Huo’s extended family portrait. Feb 15, 2025 Full Review Diego Batlle Otroscines.com Although there are moments that contain a certain feeling of déjà vu,...the experience of Living the Land is almost always beautiful, valuable and appealing. [Full review in Spanish] Rated: 3/5 Mar 5, 2025 Full Review Clarence Tsui South China Morning Post Huo’s second feature is a visually captivating, studiously structured and ceaselessly humane account of the anguish, anxiety and agitation sweeping rural China on the cusp of the country’s turbocharged plunge into market economics. Rated: 4.5/5 Feb 20, 2025 Full Review Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com It’s a familiar human story, yet one which carves out its own fierceness as seasons change, life goes on, and new generations must contend with being unable to inherit the fruits of their parents’ toils. Rated: 3/5 Feb 15, 2025 Full Review Read all reviews

Cast & Crew

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Huo Meng

Director

Wang Shang

Chuang

Zhang Yanrong

Great Grannie

Zhang Chuwen

Xiuying

Huo Meng

Screenwriter

Zhang Fan

Producer
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Living the Land

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Movie Info

Synopsis As China transforms, a family is caught between the weight of tradition and the pull of progress. In 1991, as China undergoes sweeping socio-economic changes that drive many to leave their rural villages in pursuit of work in the cities, 10-year-old Chuang, the third child of his family, must remain in the village due to family plans. Against the backdrop of modernization, as the advent of technology reshapes their traditional way of life, cycles of births, deaths, marriages, and funerals reveal the enduring weight of tradition and the pressures of balancing familial responsibilities with a rapidly changing world.
Director
Huo Meng
Producer
Zhang Fan
Screenwriter
Huo Meng
Production Co
Shanghai Film Group, Phoenix Legend Films
Genre
Drama
Original Language
Chinese
Runtime
2h 12m