The Nightingale -- Presenting Real China to the World

According to a French film magazine survey, 100 percent of viewers were “satisfied” with this film while 69 percent of them were “very satisfied.” Another French magazine called it an awesome film that enabled audiences to dive into a modern China. Le Figaro said that this lively and emotional Chinese fable leads people on a spiritual path. The warm story, filmed by a French director in China, can be deemed as a tribute to a country in the process of reform. Les Echos wrote that in recent years, Westerners have received too many negative images of China. The Nightingale shows the bright and happy China that Westerners have long ignored.

Back to Family

Philippe Muyl now sees China as his second home, and cannot remember how many times he has visited the country. The director spent a year and half learning Chinese for the filming of The Nightingale. Every day he wrote his diary using Chinese pinyin and handed in to his Chinese teacher the next day for corrections.

Having lived in China for quite a while, Philippe Muyl is familiar with the country’s conditions. As an observer, he often reflects on China’s breakneck speed of life. People are under increasing pressure from social development and an accelerating pace of life. Many individuals and families are losing their sense of balance. “Many people are so busy that they are living in cars or on airplanes. Families become estranged and exist in name only.”

In the movie, an old man, played by veteran actor Li Baotian, wants to keep a promise to his dead wife by returning to their hometown with his only friend, an 18-year-old nightingale. But he has to bring his 8-year-old granddaughter with him as his son and daughter-in-law are taking business trips at the same time. The granddaughter, however, has no desire to travel to a strange town with her grandfather who she rarely meets. The two companions from different generations make a journey full of “surprises” and adventures.

“It’s a film that focuses on family life in a modern era. China has experienced rapid development in recent years. How does a family, the basic unit of a society, adapt to social changes?” Muyl explained the problems probed in his film. “Rapid progress in a modern society causes imbalances in people’s minds. It is necessary to return to our hearts, our families and hometowns, to search out lost roots and traditions. China and the rest of the world are all developing fast and facing the same issue of fragmented families. The film reveals a universal theme,” the director said.

Poor upbringing is the most serious problem concerning families. The granddaughter in the film has many shortcomings. Muyl agrees with traditional Chinese beliefs that morality is shaped in early childhood, reflected by their attitudes towards older generations and parents. Children learn to understand responsibility, filial piety, gratitude and devotion in the family home. “Obviously, if family education is incorrect or insufficient, it’ll be difficult for a child to grow with a good personality,” he emphasized.

Many plotlines in the film involve electronics. The granddaughter plays with her iPad during the journey and disdains her grandfather’s old-fashioned mobile phone. This is a trend that Muyl observed during his stay in China. Younger generations prefer to keep their eyes on small screens rather than on the faces of their family members or friends. “I saw piles of flowers at the door of Apple stores in Beijing on the day Steven Jobs died. It surprised me to learn that a foreigner could have so many followers in China. “

During the last days of the trip, the grandfather’s nightingale dies. The girl trades her iPad with a local boy for a similar bird in order to console her grandfather. After returning to the city, the girl completely changes and leads her parents to a different, more balanced way of life, in which family members cherish what is most valuable.

Coproduction in China’s Movie Sector

The Nightingale is the second film coproduced by China and France following a film coproduction treaty signed in 2010. China coproduced its first feature film in 1913 with an American company. But Muyl is the first foreign director to lead a Chinese coproduction over the last 100 years.

“According to treaties between China and other countries, coproduced films can be considered as homegrown films in both of the treaty countries. Unrestricted by China’s limits on import films, coproductions may expect a good box office in each participating country while investors have more ways to recover their investment,” said Ning Ning, producer of The Nightingale. These productions are expected to promote changes in China’s film industry. Before, filmmakers rarely looked abroad. But now that they are able to cooperate with their overseas peers in investment, human resources, technology, and marketing, they also expect to broaden their horizons.