MOVING THE MOUNTAIN
USA 1994 – Director: Michael Apted – Original language: English, Mandarin – Subtitles: German – Length: 83 min.
A very personal account of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, Moving the Mountain is as close and revealing a view of this pivotal event in Chinese history as one could possibly hope for. Chai Ling, Wu'er Kaixi, Wang Chaohua and Li Lu were among the student leaders placed highest on the list of dissidents drawn up by Beijingauthorities. This is their story in their own words. Since several of them are now on Beijings' long list of Most Wanted, it is told primarily from their places of refuge. It also features some of the most precious images ever seen of the unfolding drama on the streets of Beijing.
Beginning with the paranoid terror and chaos of the Cultural Revolution in the late sixties when the student leaders were born, and tracing their generation's consciousness and dissent, Michael Apted's film avoids polemics and distanced analysis. Artful dramatic reconstructions of scenes from the students' childhoods as well as fast cut footage of the demonstration on Tiananmen Squaretransform the dreadful events into pure impression and emotion. With startling immediacy we re-live the dramatic fortunes of these individuals and understand what they each face today.
Awards: IDA Award 1994; Best Documentay, Chicago 1994; Grand Award, Heartland Film Festival Indiana 1994; Ecumenical Award, Berlinale 1995
Supporter of BEST.DOKS 20/20
Writer: Michael Apted. Camera: Maryse Alberti. Sound: Scott Breindel. Editing: Susanne Rostock. Music: Liu Sola, Bill Laswell. Production: Xingu Films. Producer: Trudie Styler. Distribution: Freunde der Deutschen Kinemathek e.V..
