Watch An Elephant Sitting Still

An Elephant Sitting Still is a 2018 Chinese drama film directed by Hu Bo in his directorial debut. It marks the only completed work of the director as he sadly passed away before the film's release. The movie follows the story of four people living in a small town in northern China, each struggling with their own personal problems and trying to find a way to escape their bleak surroundings.

The central character is a teenage boy named Wei Bu (Peng Yuchang) who is being bullied by a fellow student named Yu Cheng (Congxi Li). Yu Cheng's bullying has driven Wei Bu's friend, Huimin (Jing Guo), to contemplate suicide. When Wei Bu retaliates against Yu Cheng, he is kicked out of school and flees to the local cement factory where his uncle (Yi Zhang) works. There, he meets his uncle's mistress, Wang Jin (Yu Zhang), who is also looking for a way out of her unhappy life.

Meanwhile, Wang Jin's husband, Lin An (Zhenghui Ling), has stolen money from his employer and is being pursued by his boss's thug, Yang Shuai (Uvin Wang). Lin An is also being chased by his own mother, who wants him to pay back the money he owes her. As Lin An tries to figure out a way to escape his troubles, he finds himself drawn back to Wang Jin and her desire to escape the town.

The film is four hours long and divided into four chapters, each named after one of the main characters. The story is told mainly through long static shots, seemingly depicting the characters as isolated and alone in their world. The camera doesn't move very much, and the characters don't say much either, creating a sense of despair and loneliness throughout the film.

While the movie is a slow burn, the tension gradually increases as each character's story unfolds and intersects with each other, leading to a climax that takes place at the titular location, the elephant statue in a nearby city.

The performances of the actors in the film are standouts, showing genuine pain and emotion in their quietness. The cinematography is also remarkable, depicting the bleakness of the industrial town and the longing for escape that grips these characters.

Overall, An Elephant Sitting Still is a powerful and thought-provoking film that delivers a poignant commentary on the struggles of life in a small town in modern-day China. It's a contemplative film that requires patience and attention, but those who give it the time it deserves will be rewarded with a beautifully crafted and engrossing story.

An Elephant Sitting Still is a 2019 drama with a runtime of 3 hours and 54 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.8 and a MetaScore of 86.