Airs today and it basically doesnt exist online
Im getting annoyed with Sundance. Who runs their marketing dept?
shareI don't know, but I am guessing someone from the same company as who owns their other channels (IFC, A&E, WE, etc.), and it seems as though no one cares about Sundance anymore. It used to be an AWESOME ORIGINAL channel, but lately it seems to be suffering a lot.
And it's a shame, because what I've seen of this mini-series so far, I've liked.
SPOILERS AHEAD:
Now, I've said that I like what I've seen so far, but at the same time, while I like Mei, she does get irritating at times. She essentially throws tantrums when she doesn't get her way, and I understand her frustrations because of the situation, but it doesn't help her cause, and while I'm glad her parents lent her the money to pay the detective, I was a tiny bit annoyed that they gave in to her tantrum. It reiterated that she's an only child of a Western couple who couldn't have children and adopted one, and spoiled her as a result.
I still don't trust the detective (I've only seen the first half so far. The second half is about to air in a few minutes).
OK, on to one of the actors/actresses. Elizabeth Perkins. I think she's a wonderful actress, but I was thoroughly disappointed by her performance in this mini-series. You barely hear her speak, and when she does, it's usually to repeat what her on-screen husband has already said. It really got irritating. She's better than this, but if you've never seen her act before this, you'd wonder why she has this role. I just expected more (a lot more) from her.
Anyway, I am watching this with mixed emotions because I grew up in love with the idea of China and its people, but as I've gotten older, and learned more about the culture, its people, and most specifically, its government, my eyes have been opened over the years, and the appeal and desire to ever go there has been lost. Everything in this movie strikes a realistic chord (the corruption, the danger of speaking, whether it's over a video call, or in a park, or on the phone, and the on-going issues that the people have who live in China, thanks to the Communist Government, and said corruption, and the lack of freedom in that country), and at times it is almost painful to watch, but I keep watching because it is something that needs to be seen. People's eyes need to be opened to the things that go on in this country.
EMOTICONS ARE BACK! YAY!
Yeah, even my cable box literally said "No Description" ... other than three actors name thats it, I caught most of part2 not realizing it was a 4hour minseries... I'll see if its playing later on in the week.
Kind of sad on Sundance's part to not advertise more, unless there are Chinese backers who have a stake in the channel.
I'm assuming it was filmed in HK, can't see this being made in mainland.
I haven't had a chance to see it yet since I live in the UK, but scenes set in China were filmed in the UK as well as in Hong Kong.
Given that we were unable to film in China because of the sensitive nature of the subject matter, ONE CHILD was full of production challenges. Although it is a contemporary piece, it was more like filming a period drama, nothing outside of the frame existed in real life. Even in Hong Kong we had to change all signage as they were written in traditional text rather than simplified text as they are on mainland China. We had to flip images of driving to create the illusion of driving on the opposite side of the road, which also meant we had to dress characters in mirror image, i.e. part their hair on the opposite side of their head, wear bags and watches on opposite shoulders and wrist etc. Costumes had to be sourced for all official uniforms, hair and makeup needed to be replicated and we had to anticipate the heat levels appropriate for China as we filmed in London.
http://www.sundance.tv/series/one-child/blog/2014/11/6-questions-with- one-child-director-john-alexander share
To SateiDelen: Two points, first I cut Mei plenty of slack, thinking of her not as some spoiled kid, but a young woman who is, out of nowhere, tossed an enormous emotional burden and has to figure out what to do with it.
As for China, always keep in mind that there are at least 2 Chinas: 1) the people, roughly a billion of them, and 2) the totalitarian government (they aren't really communist anymore). The people have their lives to make the best of they can within the system set down for them by the government. The government made a deal in 1989, saying at Tienanmen Square, we will allow you economic freedoms but, no, we will not allow you political freedoms or rights, so don't ask again, ever. The military that night in June made clear the price to be paid for arguing with this new pact. Since then, the role of that government has been to foster fiscal growth and crush any hint of dissent, thereby to maintain their status as rulers which they have no interest in letting go of. There are indeed some things I like about their ancient culture, some not so much (for one thing, sexism and homophobia are even more deeply entrenched in theirs than ours), so, while there are doubtless lots of wonderful people and places to see there, it's not on my list of places to visit.
I have seen enough to know I have seen too much. -- ALOTOshare