An Elephant Sitting Still

An Elephant Sitting Still is an exquisite exploration of human despair and resilience. This Chinese drama, directed by Hu Bo, debuted in 2018 and features a cast of relatively unknown talents, including Yu Zhang, Yuchang Peng, and Uvin Wang doing incredible work under the director's meticulous vision.

The narrative is set in an unnamed city in Northern China and spans across a single day, a time frame deceptively simple for the depth of the content it undertakes. The plot, entwining the lives of four characters, is orchestrated in such a way that it reflects a universal quest for a sense of belonging and a yearning for redemption.

Hu Bo presents us with an intimate excursion into the lives of Wei Bu, a high schooler; Huang Ling, a young woman; Wang Jin, a middle-aged man; and Yu Cheng, a local hoodlum in the throes of guilt and remorse. Underneath their individual narratives, what they all share is their knowledge of an urban myth of an elephant that "sits still," unfazed by the world around it in the city of Manzhouli.

Wei Bu, performed brilliantly by Yuchang Peng, is portrayed as a teenager caught in a series of juvenile conflicts and family troubles, while Huang Ling, portrayed by Uvin Wang, is a troubled youth bearing the weight of a fraught relationship with her mother and a distressing affair with the vice-dean of her school.

On the other hand, Wang Jin, a middle-aged man played by Congxi Li, is grappling with the prospect of solitude as his family plans to send him to a nursing home while his beloved pet is threatened to be taken away. Yu Cheng, embodied by Yu Zhang, is a local gangster who is battling self-loathing and guilt stemming from his love affairs and a recent catastrophic event.

What unites their seemingly disparate lives, other than their shared knowledge of the elephant 'sitting still', is the palpable desperation, loneliness, and existential despair running through the underlying fabric of their narratives. From the first frames, Hu Bo’s debut feature transports its audience into a world of stark cold reality, cloudy skies, and urban decay, using it as a backdrop to capture the bleakness of everyday life.

Each shot in An Elephant Sitting Still is meticulously composed and the lack of brightness in the cinematography provides a fitting mirror to the dreary lives of these individuals, reinforcing their isolation, despair, and longing. The resounding melancholy of the narrative is made more poignant by the tense, persistent, and lingering camera movements that allow the scenes to breathe and the emotions to magnify.

The soundtrack is minimal, further bolstering the focus on the characters, their emotions, and their journey. Hu Bo's storytelling style delves deep into the souls of these four protagonists, taking the audience on their fraught journeys, and peeling back layers of their struggles, sharply and profoundly questioning the notions of existence and salvation.

Despite its absence from the screen, the elephant of Manzhouli serves as a significant symbolic anchor throughout the narrative. This unseen creature is shrouded with a sense of metaphysical tranquility and stubborn resilience, existing as a beacon of hope in the minds of our characters and becomes a shared objective and symbol of solace amidst the turmoil of their lives.

Although the journey of each character is distinctly personal, the shared objective of reaching the 'sitting elephant' ties these narratives together in a seamless tapestry of shared human plight. Their collision and consequent entanglement serve to deepen the exploration of despair, guilt, longing, and resilience.

In conclusion, An Elephant Sitting Still is a masterful blend of existential thought, visual storytelling, and artful cinematic techniques that deeply resonate viewers. It provides a raw, unflinching portrayal of the human condition, steeped in fragile hopes, rudimentary existence, and spiritual resilience. Hu Bo’s debut feature is a poignant exploration of sorrow, survival, and the shared human quest for sanctuary and redemption. It firmly cements his reputation as a cinematic visionary, leaving an indelible mark on viewers' hearts.