The haunted Life After Life begins in the forest while Mingchung (Zhang Minjun) and his son Leilei (Zhang Li) are gathering firewood. Leilei is discussing with his dad his desires to get out of their current countryside existence, when he suddenly becomes possessed by the spirit of his dead mother, Xiuyung. She has crossed over in order to speak to Mingchung so she can come to peace by completing one final task: she wants him to move the three that is placed in front of their former home.
Soon we go on a journey with Mingchung and Leilei, as they try to complete this near-impossible job while visiting old relatives and revisiting their past. It’s clear that this impossible task isn’t really about the physical moving of the tree, but the reconnecting of personal relationships, and reflections on the past, as much as we’d rather move on.
Throughout their journey we see the impoverished landscapes brought on by the urbanization of China. There’s a very obvious heavy influence to the great Chinese director Jia Zhang-ke, which is no coincide as he has a producing credit.
There’s a sleepy, haunted quality to the film directed by first time Chinese director Hanyi Zhang. In this world, the fact that the dead mother has possessed her son isn’t a creepy horror moment. It’s a normal spiritual occurrence that seems a normal part of life, such as other revelations such as Mingchung visit to his parents whose spirits now rest in animals.
Zhang takes his time with its characters, featuring tons of dry long takes that may seem like a task for some. Zhang has a great eye for composition, capturing the spirit of these smaller mining towns with a steady hand. He doesn’t push the symbolic elements too hard on the audience, but they are certainly there in full force.
While some may find Zhang’s execution to be a bit sluggish or hit and miss, there’s a great deal of beauty to be found and possibly even some personal reflection, if you’re willing that is. Hey, at least you don’t have to move a tree in order to get there.
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