The filmraces throughits expositionwith all the
ruthlessnessofthenewsreelinCitizenKane(Orson
Welles,1941).Withinthe first three minutes,we are told
that, firstly, sometimein the future,our sun is showing
signs of becominga red giant, threateningto engulfthe
earth;and, secondly,the world governmenthas come
up with an audaciousplan to move all the peopleto
undergroundcities and fit the planetwith giant rocket
engines,whichwill propelit out of our solar system
and into that of Alpha Centauri.This is a journeythat
will take many generations.Anyonewantingto read the
film as an allegorywouldhave little difficultyseeingit
asa responsetoChinaentering a transitional period
of mammothchange.
As with most Hollywoodepics,it is assumed
that largescale events are best understood through
small-scalefamilymelodramas.Qi (Qu Chuxiao)and
his sister,Duoduo(Zhao Jinmai),live underground
whiletheirfather,Peiqiang(WuJing),is away.Hehas
been absentfor many years,working,not in a factory
in Shenzhen,butona spacestationthatguardsand
guidesthe planetfrom afar. However,as Earth cruises
past Jupiter,thingsgo wrong(just as they go wrong
with Chinacruisingpast the US economy,perhaps?),
and the Earth is drawncalamitouslytowardsthe larger
planet.Heroesmust step up, and our teenage Chinese
rebelsfit the bill.
If one looks for a thematicdynamicin Gwo’sfilm that
is relevantto contemporaryChina,it is the attemptto
reconcilethe family and globalism.TheWanderingEarth
has been routinelycomparedtoArmageddon(Michael
Bay, 1998),^7 in which, you will recall, astronaut HarryxxxxIf onelooksfora thematicdynamicin Gwo’sfilmthat
is relevanttocontemporaryChina,it is theattemptto
reconcilethefamilyandglobalism... InGwo’snarrative,
it is thedutyofadultstosacrificethemselves for the
sake of the younger generation.72 • Metro Magazine 201 | © ATOM