Not One Less (1999)

Synopsis: NOT ONE LESS is the heartwarming tale of a 13-year-old girl, Wei Minzi (Wei), who is a substitute teacher living in a poor village in rural China. She is given a month-long assignment to teach a... NOT ONE LESS is the heartwarming tale of a 13-year-old girl, Wei Minzi (Wei), who is a substitute teacher living in a poor village in rural China. She is given a month-long assignment to teach a classroom of 28 students, ages 6 through 10, with instructions to make sure that all the students, "not one less," stay in school. Wei approaches the job as any 13-year-old might--like a sullen teenager--but because she's close in age to her students, they respond to her with playful attentiveness. This film is a clear departure from director Yimou's dramatic and controversial earlier films JU DOU (1990), and RAISE THE RED LANTERN (1991). In NOT ONE LESS, Zhang uses a straightforward documentary style enriched with scenic shots of Wei walking over the dusty footpaths of her village, backed by lush, cascading mountains. The children, including Wei, are non-actors who play themselves. As the story goes, Zhang Huike (Zhang), the class troublemaker, is sent to the city to find work and pay off his parents' debts. Teacher Wei sets out to find him and bring him back. Wei puts herself on the line for her tiny school and its impoverished community, and miraculously, her message travels farther than she'd ever imagined it might. [More]

Starring: Minzhi Wei, Huike Zhang

Starring: Minzhi Wei, Huike Zhang

Director: Yimou Zhang

Director: Yimou Zhang
Screenwriter: Xiangsheng Shi
Producer: Yu Zhao
Composer: Bao San

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