Zhong Guo he huo ren

Never has there quite been a film which has so pointedly addressed China's complex love affair with the West as Peter Chan's latest work 'American Dreams in China', a presciently timed movie given the country's rising power on the international stage. Tapping into the contemporary Zeitgeist of the Chinese pursuit of the American dream, it sees Chan revisiting his familiar themes of love and friendship as he charts the ups and downs of three college friends over three decades who build a business empire on an English-language school.

Beginning with the end, Chan introduces us to his protagonists - Cheng Dongqing (Huang Xiaoming), Meng Xiaojun (Deng Chao) and Wang Yang (Tong Dawei) - as they are called to New York to answer allegations by the United States' Educational Testing System (ETS) that they had been using ETS material within their school curriculum without permission. Because this isn't a whodunit, there isn't any doubt that the allegations are indeed true; what remains to be seen however is how they got from chasing the American dream to selling others the pathway to make that dream a reality.

That story takes us back to their university days in the early 1980s during the era of the Economic Reform. Whereas Dongqing is a quiet and bookish country boy, his mates couldn't be more different - Xiaojun, the de facto leader of the trio, is ambitious and self-confident, while Wang Yang is carefree and hedonistic. Yet all three are united in a common desire of going to America, a land perceived to be one of equal opportunities that rewards the hardworking; nonetheless, they will soon discover that passion alone ain't enough - even after several rounds of interviews, only Xiaojun gets the student visa each one of them wants, leaving Dongqing and Wang Yang behind as he alone gets to live out their collective dreams.

Herein is where irony sets in. Still dejected from not being able to go to the United States, Dongqing instead takes up a job as an English teacher - but a not so good one at that at least at the start. With Wang Yang's financial help though, he taps on his own thirst for making that journey to America to become a stirring motivator for countless others like him, thereby turning a hole-in-the-wall teaching establishment named New Dream into a profit-making enterprise. On the other hand, Xiaojun isn't having such a good time in America, his seemingly bright and perfect future crashing down when he is sacked from his laboratory job and forced to work as a waiter at a restaurant under a bigoted Caucasian boss.

All that is packed into the first hour of the film, which uses frequent monologues and voiceovers to provide the narrative continuity necessary for such a sprawling tale. Yet even though the characters are defined well enough, their joys, disappointments and frustrations rarely stick, primarily because Zhou Zhiyong and Zhang Ji's screenplay (based upon Aubrey Lam's draft) doesn't give Chan much breathing space in between the individual ups and downs to dwell on quieter character moments. And so, though we get Chan's intention of painting a cautionary tale on ambition, idealism and reality, it ultimately rings a little too hollow, coming off more superficial than poignant.

Thankfully, the movie finds a surer dramatic footing in its second half as Xiaojun heads back to China to join his buddies to bring New Dream to greater heights. Illustrating how business interests can sometimes ruin the firmest of friendships, Chan patiently observes Dongqing and Xiaojun's conflicting goals for the company, exemplified particularly in the latter's insistence of - and the former's resistance against - an IPO launch on the New York Stock Exchange. At its most effective, Chan's story is a coming-of-age tale of three friends whose bond is tested by power, money and ambition - though it does take a longer time than it could have to reward audiences with an emotional payoff.

It is also for this reason that despite Chan's attempt to emulate the success of his 'Comrades, Almost A Love Story' - right down to framing the tale against memorable events in China's history such as the first KFC in 1992 and the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade in 1999 - this supposed true story of the Beijing New Oriental School isn't quite as accomplished. There's also no denying the political subtext of the film, expressed in no unclear terms by Dongqing in a didactic speech that in a nutshell demands that the West pay more respect to China and its people - in the hands of a lesser filmmaker, we might have excused it as ineptitude; but in Chan's case, one can only conclude the heavy- handedness comes from a deliberate attempt to pander to Mainland audiences.

Still, to give credit where that's due, Chan does get career-best performances from his Mainland stars. Made to downplay his good looks, Huang Xiaoming puts aside his swagger and is nicely understated as the shy Dongqing who comes into his own as a firm and resolute personality along the course of the film. Deng Chao projects just the right amount of poise without becoming supercilious, and surprisingly emerges as the most empathetic of the lot especially as his self-confidence takes a beating. Though he gets slightly less attention than Huang and Deng, Tong Dawei is also extremely likable as the most good-natured of the three.

In them and their characters is probably where Chan also sees himself. It's no secret that Chan now has his eyes firmly on the China market, but Chan's strengths as a filmmaker still triumph over his newfound commercial sensibilities, and even if this latest isn't as compelling as it could have been, it is at least never less than engaging.

I thought Chan Ho-sun's latest movie, American Dreams in China, would be a more masculine version of Zhao Wei's So Young. But not quite, as it turns out.

Although the film depicts a nostalgic campus life full of idealism for the future and the impulses of love, the story is more about starting out after innocent youth has faded.

Through the intertwined destinies of the movie's protagonists, the audience witnesses a triangle of friendship, career ambitions and personal dreams seemingly collapse as three best friends desperately try to tie and twist these elements together.

That's why Wang Yang (Tong Dawei), one of the three best friends, who start a business together, shares this lesson of life: "Never start a business with your best friends."

He may be right. After all, no matter how close they are, differences in their professional and personal aspirations can drive friends apart. Every individual has a distinct outlook on the world and their future, which determines the trajectory of their career and life.

Without knowing of Meng Xiaojun's (Deng Chao) struggles in the US and his disillusion toward the country, there's no way Cheng Dongqing (Huang Xiaoming) can understand why Meng is pushing all the agendas so hard. The parting of the invincible trio, to some extent, is predestined.

Even so, despite these differences, friendship always prevails. Cheng's difficulties become a podium on which the three friends stand together. It's through the emotional connection they developed over many years that they finally overcome their differences and reform the alliance.

What the film tries to convey is the triumph of brotherhood, which dates back to our naive, passionate youth when unconditional bonds of emotion are shaped.

So the film was never about business after all.

I judge whether a movie is good or not entirely based on feelings. If a drama makes me cry, it is worth 8 points or higher. The narrative at the beginning of this film is interspersed between different eras, and the editing is a bit too fast, almost making me give up watching it. But this kind of movie grammar does not affect my appreciation. The struggle and entrepreneurial history of three ordinary young people, as well as the various frustrations and insights they experienced, moved me (almost to tears).

This movie is based on the "New Oriental" company's development. Many storylines have been seen in the news related to New Oriental, and now there are three things that I feel most deeply: 1. The Chinese people yearn for a better life and define the United States as the goal of a better life. This is the initial psychological motivation for generations of Chinese to continue to study English.

2. Even if they have learned proficient English and easily passed the GRE test, their way of thinking is not necessarily independent and mature. In some cases, they can even curse the United States and insult the teachers who helped them study English. On the one hand, they may be willing to enjoy the actual benefits of an unfair advantage and quibble about it (in a sensational way), on the other hand, they may be strongly dissatisfied with Objective criticism.

3. It may be difficult to start a business in China not only because the partners are 3 best friends since live from University, but also because they may choose the wrong industry. It is said that New Oriental is no longer able to continue to engage in education and training, and is seeking a career change. The real life of the three founders after 2021 may be even more challenging.

Technically I think this movie's made very well, but its message is very nationalistic and panders to the Chinese Communist Party and the masses (which is fair enough I suppose for a commercial film).

Especially the film's latter half focuses on the rise of China, and there is a clear message that Chinese people are inherently cleverer, more moral and generally better than stupid Americans who are only economically at the top due to their aggressiveness and luck. There's also a very odd message in the film about racism in the USA, which seems quite irrelevant to the plot of the film and just another way for the film to push home the message that Chinese people are a better people than Americans.

If you don't read into the message too much (which is hard considering how hard it's pushed home), it's quite an enjoyable film of three young men's struggle and rise to the top.

Film review Film title: American dreams in China (zhong guo he huo ren) Director: peter Chan(陈可辛) Year of release: 2013

This film is about a story about the road of 3 young man build their company and achieve success and their dreams. 'What is dream? Dream is what make you insist and let you feel happiness.' This is a famous sentence of Cheng. The film uses Chinese 'American dreams' as a background, tell us a story from the reform and opening-up the 3 young man build the education group and change their life via hard work. The entire film is nostalgic, it have a perfect details of old time: the old film in cinema and television, a lot of old song. At the beginning of the reform and opening-up, many people go overseas via various way. This is a society which full of opportunity. Three characters based on this background, he relationship between them helps to describe characters in the film. Meanwhile, the film uses a flashback narrative approach, it begins from their meeting in U.S., and then back to the beginning of their story.

Those 3 characters are different and have their own dreams. From the dressing we could know their have different background and character. Meng is aggressive and always seek for change. He is the only one got American visa and went to U.S. He is a smart men, he knows what is time's requirement, he knows how to maintain his profit and he knows what he want clearly. Meng is a men with full of ambition, he believe he could change the world. However once he arrive U.S., he notice that everything is far away from his imagination. He born in a rich family but in U.S. he experience the hard and tough of life. What he want is not wealth or property. He hope U.S. to understand that Chinese students are excellent and dignified. He hope U.S. to see the raise of China. When he saw the donate name at the lab which he used to work, he cried. This is what he required for. Cheng is from Chinese country who was failed twice in college entrance examination. He know that if he failed, he will stay in the country for life. From a loser of exam to the leader of education, his responsibility play an important role. When people attack his school, he is the only one dear to stand out just like in the university he stand out to stop people chasing Meng and Wang. Cheng is a representative of many successful people from country. Because of his hard work and his insistent, their education group shall success. Wang is a rebellious man with long hair. He always by Cheng's side and back him up. He is important for their relationship, he visited Cheng along when Cheng was in hospital. He always play peacemaker between Cheng and Meng. He trade the friendship is the number one. Meanwhile, he sacrificed many for the education company but do not have any complain. When facing American, Wang performs peacefully just like he knows the victory is theirs. When Cheng has been fired by university, he encourage Cheng cheer up and start his own company. The education company could not success with Wang. There is one scene impressive me, when Cheng and Meng have different opinions with the company's share, the director arrange a table tennis game to describe. Wang is on the right side of the table, Cheng and Meng play table tennis with him respectively and chat with Wang. Cheng and Meng both play with Wang but they do not play with each other actually. Wang is the messenger between Cheng and Meng. At last Wang lied to them because he does not wish squabble and try to maintain their friendship. This scene implicate that Cheng and Meng could not reach an agreement right now. Wang is the important person of the friendship among them. In conclusion, this film is a good product. It helps many middle age Chinese remember their youth. Everyone have a definition of success. This film also remind us do not forget our dreams once we have.