Review | Sister movie review: gender inequality in China explored in drama starring Zhang Zifeng
- Sister tells the story of a young woman forced to care for her six-year-old brother after their parents are killed, and to balance duty and her own happiness
- The box office hit features strong performances from all the cast and takes a progressive stance on China’s backward traditions
4/5 stars
Chinese film Sister brings together a pair of bold young female voices who address the lingering inequalities faced by young women in contemporary China.
Director Yin Ruoxi and screenwriter You Xiaoying (whose previous work, Love Education, won the Hong Kong Film Award for best screenplay) align beautifully to tell the story of a recent high school graduate forced to care for her estranged six-year-old brother after their parents are killed in a car accident.
Boasting strong performances across the board and taking a stridently progressive stance towards China’s backward traditions, Sister was a box office hit in its home market. A battle cry for a new generation, its only real failing is trying to address too many issues in its runtime.
Nineteen-year-old Zhang Zifeng carries the film commendably on her slight, yet resilient shoulders, as Ren, who is forced to live her entire life in the service of the male members of her family.
Be it to please her uncle, brother or boyfriend (Liang Jingkang as a reprehensible mummy’s boy), Ren’s own happiness is repeatedly sidelined. But when her parents die suddenly, she sees an opportunity to escape her fate.