User reviews

It might be a good idea to show this film in all schools in the `civilised' world! This is, anyway, a delightful story for all the family, hugely enjoyable, simply and lovingly told, and with just the most marvellous little Chinese girl imaginable! She has to stand in for the local schoolmaster who very definitely must go and visit his mother who is ill and dying. He leaves her in the middle of about twenty kids only a couple of years younger than herself to get on with the job as best she can, so as to earn 50 yuan in a school which is falling apart.

Now you might think that such a building could not possibly be a schoolhouse in remote rural China, or anywhere else. I assure you I have seen such schools – and not in such remote areas – in Indonesia, India, Afghanistan and in what was Portuguese Timor. Even here in Spain, in rural villages high up in the sierras, my wife has worked in schools in little villages where either the floorboards were rotting under her feet in front of the blackboard, or the plumbing did not work, or the lights did not switch on when you wanted them to, or the wood-burning stove in the middle of the room gave off billows of smoke so that you had to open the windows – with 10ºC below zero outside, or the window panes had no putty in them, and so on. And this, only a few years ago, in a modern, civilised European country.

Minzhi Wei playing the part of Wei Minzhi, who is herself with her own name (in Chinese the surname is put first) is a thirteen year old who will never make it to Hollywood, but is just the most beautiful school mistress you could imagine! I will not say anything about the story: you can see it for yourself. This young girl had to do it all – she is barely ever off the screen.

Yimou Zhang has given us a little gem, a beautiful story, with such wonderful participation by all those children, as well as the fine photography and Bao San's occasional accompanying music.

How nice to see a lovely story so naturally told! Can't we do things like this in Europe and the USA without it being all violence or overladen commercialism for the hungry masses? Can't we tell a real human story without all the technological special effects? Can't we make honest cinema……….?

At the moment this art house gem of a film rates an IMDB 7.9, so obviously many of us film buffs love it. This film is innovative, delicate, and harshly authentic. If you enjoy international film festival flicks, you MUST see this film. Actually I believe this film should be required viewing for film students who aspire to be directors, cinematographers, etc.

However, if you prefer action, Hollywood formula flicks, car chases or even complex plots, then avoid this film. You will probably fall asleep or just be irritated.

If you watch this film with your heart, with a good dose of patience, you you will then understand the message. If tears do not come to you during the main character's emotional appeal, then you are probably not aligned with the spirit of this film.

Personally I was stunned by the deep impact this film had on me. Yes, it was indeed 'slow', but this allowed for the genuine portrayal of common hope and suffering. I have been a film buff for over 4 decades and this film stands out as refreshingly different. By the way, it is supposed to be a true story, and this added significantly to the film's realism. Also, it does seem that none of the people in the film were professional actors, which is amazing in spite of a sort of documentary feel at times. If you have an open heart and mind, see it!

I was moved not only by the cultural value and socio-economic perspective of the movie, but also by the themes of compassion, hope, and diligence. As a middle school teacher, I also like how it brings out the idea that meaningful learning (in the classroom and beyond) takes place through real-life commitments, situations and applications.

As a note aside, notice the credits; although this movie is based on a Chinese novel, the director selected actors and actresses from the real world to play their real-life parts—complete with their real names and titles. Thus teacher Gao really is teacher Gao! Mayor Tien really is mayor Tien, and the kids, together with Minzhi Wei, really are village children, who have no acting experience. Thus the movie really is "realistic" in a true and meaningful way. Don't miss this one!

This is the depiction of a true story with the two lead characters performed by the actual person: Wei Minzhi, 13 year old young girl who is a substitute for the village teacher, and Zhang Huike, 11 year old young boy who left school to go to the city to find work to pay for family debt.

It is DERTERMINATION personified. She is one young lady who's not worried about her looks or other people's criticism. She is truly one track minded to find the lost student and to bring him home back to the village, and does not care if others are curt with her, or impolite; she's just very focused on achieving what she came to the city for - to get Zhang Huike back to the village school - no matter what it takes!

Simple setting. Poor village, city hustles. Children interactions/reactions are always a joy to watch. Lead character is devoid of guile and her stubborn determination is direct and innocent. The hesitation in her speech, her pause and silence held her own. Her performance is guileless - plainly so - that's how precious the performance is. An occasional smile is not easy to detect, as she is so engrossed in her mission; the continuous smile towards the end is well earned. There is magic after all.

This is a rare gem from director Zhang Yimou, quite a different flavor from his film collaborations with heaven-sent leading lady Gong Li.

Not One Less (English title) is a movie that concentrated on why are there so many Chinese children who quit school. Let's face the facts of life...poverty can ruin one's plan for the future, and this was evident in the film. You'll really see how hard life in mainland China is, even though this is a movie. The story is gripping and very realistic. You'll really feel the hardness of being in poverty and having to quit what you're doing. For the characters, Wei is a substitute school teacher who would go to extremes (high determination) from handling a class to walking around the city looking for a missing person.

I highly recommend watching this Chinese movie to any movie lover out there. This film is NOT a waste of time, it is simply VERY GOOD.

There isn't much to this story, I but I still liked it. The lead character, played by Wei Minzhi, is supposed to be playing a 13-year-old girl and was really interesting to watch, as were the young students and some of the other people in this film.

Oddly, all these actors were amateurs, real-life students and people of varied professions. It's nicely filmed, too, despite the bleak background many times. I find the dialog of many Chinese films to be very pleasing. Yes, there is a lot of receptiveness, at least in the translations, but it's tolerable. There is very little profanity and plenty of good old-fashioned values and feelings of people, simply told. You don't find much of this is in modern-day movies of the Western World. The colors in here - the reds, yellows and oranges - are always a treat for the eyes and the Asian kids' faces are intriguing.

This film is very different from anything Western audiences are used to, but I recommend it for those who realize that fact and are okay with it.

Slow in parts, this is nevertheless a charming movie about a tenacious teenager teaching in rural China. The sense of disorientation when she goes to the town to find her missing pupil is a memory that will linger from this film. The slightly cheesy ending is even forgivable. Fans of Chinese cinema should make a bee-line for this film.

I suppose 'heart warming' are the first words that come to mind but lest that put anyone off, I have to say that it is the way Mr Zhang involves us from the very beginning that is the reason for the film's success. Beautifully shot with some wonderful natural light, our first glimpse of the rural backwater is astonishing. Almost immediately though we are drawn into a drama involving a thirteen year old girl being put in charge of a school of youngsters. The usual teacher has to visit sick relatives for a month and he leaves the girl behind with specific instructions to keep the schoolchildren from leaving school. Hence the film's title. Of course one goes missing and she follows to the city to try and find him, which becomes the story of the film. It is fascinating to see and believe the degree of poverty in the village and wonder as the children do at the difficulty of surviving in either place. The young girl may be acting less out of altruism than self interest but our eyes do not leave her and her concerns are ours. Seemingly non professional cast do a magnificent job, which must in no small part be down to Zhang, but then nobody seems to put a foot wrong. Excellent.

Not One Less is a charming film about a girl who just don't know when to give it a rest. It's a funny film, and the kids are very cute (though thankfully not cute in that awful Hollywood-way), but I think the pace was too slow. Or maybe I was expecting too much since I think Yimou Zhang's Raise the Red Lantern is one of the ten best movies of the 90s. Not One Less is a good film, but nowhere near the brilliance of Raise the Red Lantern. (6/10)

Long after De Sica made "Bicycle thief" and Fellini his "La Strada," neo-realist traditions grab me like no other in cinema history. The Chinese film "Not one less" made half a century after the Italian masterpieces, underlines several aspects of neo-realist traditions—non-actors can transform into great actors provided you have an intelligent script and a talented director, poverty attracts anyone with a conscience, the candid camera is a marvelous tool, and human values exist to be appreciated irrespective of national boundaries. It truly deserved the Golden Lion at the Venice film festival.

A reluctant substitute teacher taking on a job that would fetch a doubtful "50 yuan" from a village mayor with questionable priorities transforms into a national hero in less than a month as she strives hard to ensure the number of her students do not dwindle until the regular teacher returns. Her resolutions transforms the economic state of the school, makes her students into socially responsible "young adults" and teaches a lesson to the wily mayor, a gatekeeper in the city TV station who goes by rules rather than by her discretion.

The brilliance of the film is that the film hooks the audience as a thriller would until the film ends. Yet there is no sex, no violence, no beautiful face, no delightful music or engaging camera angles—only reactions caught by candid camera (at least most of the time).

The most poignant comment was the young student's comment "I loved the city but it made me beg for food" For a contemporary Chinese film made under tight censorship—the film's director Yimou Zhang seems to offer layers of comment beyond the obvious story line. Did Teacher Wei do what she did for the sake of money or as a responsible teacher? Are you likely to forget propagandist songs but recall simple songs on family values? Are individual greatness (teacher Wei) more appreciated than group actions (school as a group, nation's need for good athletes overriding permission of the parents of potential athletes)? Is the richness of rural lifestyles discounted by rising urban materialism? Does it require an individual's actions to underline the demands of the rural poor? These are hidden questions for each viewer to answer.

I have only seen one other film of director Yimou Zhang and that is "Red Sorghum". "Not one less" towers over "Red Sorghum" in every department of film-making.

I saw this Chinese film on an Indian TV channel. I only wish more such international films get shown widely on TV throughout the world. It would raise the bar of what constitutes good cinema to many who currently have little idea of good cinema except those made in their own countries. Recent mainland Chinese films like "Peacock" and "Not one less" have established their world class credentials.

P.S. I was more than amused to find Ford and Coca-Cola financed the film in part, which is probably why the school kids in a remote Chinese village know about Coke and relish rationed drops of the liquid. Who was pulling whose leg here???

I am generally not a big fan of movies made only to send a message, tending to agree with the Hollywood director who famously said, If you want to send a message, go to Western Union. And make no doubt about it: this is a message movie. And in case you might miss the message, the director flashes it across the screen at the end. That said, this is a beautiful and heart warming story about an aspect of Chinese culture one generally does not hear much about in the West: the situation at rural schools. As Zhang Yimou lets us know at the end, more than one million students drop out of schools in rural China because of poverty. From what I understand, this is a pretty accurate picture of the situation in many places in the Chinese countryside. Forget about having a computer in the classroom; this place has to worry about having enough chalk. To add to the authenticity, Zhang Yimou used real people from the Chinese countryside to play the roles (although to clear up one misperception, this is not a true story). It is certainly a different China than the economic superpower we hear about in the news. But for anyone wishing to get a more complete picture of China, this film provides a vivid depiction of the plight of rural schools in a very moving if somewhat contrived story and is highly recommended.

NOT ONE LESS (2000) *** World renowned Chinese filmmaker

Zhang Yimou's strong story telling skills come through evocatively

with an almost documentary like account of a teenage substitute

teacher (Wei Minzhi as herself) whose green tactics are put to the

tests of many endurances – spiritually, emotionally, physically –

while working as an assigned primary school teacher in a small

impoverished modern-day village and embarks on a soul-searching odyssey when one of her rebellious and obnoxious young charges is forced to move away from his family

to forced labor to work off his familial debts. What makes the film

unique is the way its humanity overspills in simplified yet

compelling terms of matter-of-factness without pandering or

plucking the audiences' emotions for cheap sentiment, but rather

of just how well off many nations truly are.

*** May contain spoilers. ***

However implausible the story, the acting in NOT ONE LESS is fresh and natural. I give all of the cast a great amount of credit because all of them -- the very young, and the very old -- go through their scenes without being distracted by, or playing to, the camera. The sincere earnest acting makes the film worth the watch.

That being said, the screenplay of this film makes no sense. What motivated this substitute teacher to be so extraordinarily determined? It made no sense for her to be motivated by money because no 13 year-old could be so repeatedly fooled by the same adults. Also, as things went on it was clear that more money could be gained from working the kids in the brickyard than what might ever come from what both old men combined had promised.

Two students leave her class. It made no sense for her to be so extraordinarily determined to return the big brat and not try to return the nice helpful girl student. Her 30 days of teaching would have been so much better without the trouble-making brat.

And leaving the classroom alone for days -- what would make her think that she would be allowed to continue as a teacher when she returned? The substitute's actions were without thought and rational planning. At almost every turn, the viewer watching this film is left thinking that no one could be so dumb yet confident. In real life, people are cautious in matters where they are ignorant.

Most of the detailed reviews here are far more rational and logical than the plot of this film.

Surprisingly, I never lost my patience or got bored while watching this, even though it is very slow, understated film in which there is a great deal of repetition and very little character development. Zhang Yimou takes us along with a 13-year-old substitute teacher, played, like the other characters, by a nonprofessional actor (the credits even tell you where each person comes from, and that most of them actually do the jobs in real life that we see them doing here).

It is fascinating to see the bonds develop between the teacher and her students almost without anyone trying. The film barely even seems like it needs a "quest," but when one develops, the teacher's plight is even more poignant. I will say that I'm not sure I got any great insights into the problem of "poverty in rural China," but the mindset of the characters as Zhang shows them – obstinate and determined – was quite captivating.

"Not One Less" tells the story of a teen girl who takes a job as a substitute elementary school teacher in a poor rural village and must keep her flock of kids in tow despite her obvious lack of qualifications. Like most traditional Chinese films, this one has a moral which is something like: A good heart and determination will lead to success even in the absence of resources and ability. The kind of film people will likely describe as quaint, sweet, charming, etc., this flick is all of those things including dreadfully slow. When all is said and done, one can only wonder if this lovely little tale was worth the time spent. Will play best with those into traditional Asian storytelling. With English subtitles and CC. (B)

Thirteen year old Wei Minzhi's face will haunt you for days after you see this film; as an early teen, she is suddenly thrust into a provincial classroom as a teacher, and early on she chooses to chase after and bring home a lost student. This untried young teacher's stoic quest is the reflection of a brave people who have often had to face near insurmountable odds to achieve an education and upward mobility. Like Wei Menzhi, they do so without complaint, merely by quietly acting, steadily enduring, doing what is right to learn and grow.

This is a film about childhood, too, without being drenched in treacle, without sappy cuteness; it demonstrates faith in the human condition, encourages us to be better than we are--and how many films sincerely make that attempt? A wonderful experience that demands patience and understanding from the viewer.

What can I say about this film? Far from being anything like a Hollywood movie, it shows realism in many aspects -- in China. The director of this film was telling a story and told it very, very well and the acting is excellent, but more than that, I loved this movie for showing me what the the director and actors may or may not have intended to show me -- about Chinese culture, about life in a small poor Chinese village and about the way people interact in China.

A couple things that are particularly fascinating to me are the very clipped and matter-of-fact interactions between people, with smiles fairly rare. Living in Texas there are smiles everywhere and all the time, to be polite if nothing else. There is no such concern for such social graces in the interactions between the characters in this film, and the result is refreshing -- and revealing, I think, of a culture very different from my own. "Reading" the face of the main character, for instance, at the beginning of the film the first time I watched it had me thinking and feeling that she was someone who was basically in a bad mood and maybe had a chip on her shoulder. However, it becomes apparent during viewing of the film that she is a most inspiring person and very caring as well; she just has different ways of communicating and presenting herself that are foreign to me.

The other thing -- and the main reason I want to watch this film again at least a few more viewings -- is because of the wonderful attitude and determination shown in this story. With what seemed like all the odds against her, she knew what she must do and she refused to falter from her purpose, no matter what the setbacks (which I won't mention in order not to give too much away) -- which were enormous.

The Chinese are known for not showing much emotion, so I was surprised just how much emotion was shown at the end of the film -- perhaps not so much in the expressions of the individual actors as in the broad-heartedness and caring portrayed by a large community of people.

This film is very well done. I can't say enough good things about it. And this teacher's story is one I think I will remember the rest of my life when times are really hard, to give me hope and to help steel my own determination when the chips are way, way down.

Other reviewers have already described this film fairly well, but what I would like to share with you is why this is one of my favorite all time movies. I got more emotional impact, more enjoyment, from Not One Less than any movie I've seen in a long time. The substitute teacher is the most incredible little girl, with the most incredible facial expressions, personality, and screen presence I have ever seen. Not One Less is a fable about persistence and Wei Minzhi is absolutely perfect playing the lead. In fact, the entire cast is perfect. Not One Less has more heart, more honesty, more truth, than most movies I've seen, ever. While I was watching this on DVD, I was constantly amazed the director was getting such wonderful performances out of these kids, and, the kids are totally charming, by the way. It was only when I was reading the credits at the end of the movie did I realize almost the entire cast was playing themselves and this is a true story. These wonderful people were not actors. That just blew me away. Zhang Yi Mou is a great director and Not One Less is a masterpiece of both cinema and the art of storytelling. This is a "must see/must have" movie and deserves a place in everyone's film library.