Director Wang Bing
‘TIL MADNESS DO US PART (Feng Ai) A-
Hong Kong France Japan (228 mi) 2013 d: Wang Bing
Hong Kong France Japan (228 mi) 2013 d: Wang Bing
I wasn’t sick until
you locked me in here and made me sick.
Truly one of the saddest, most bleak experiences one could
possibly imagine, as often documentary films may be evaluated based on the
unfamiliarity with the territory, where here Chinese filmmaker Wang Bing takes
us inside a locked Chinese mental institution in rural Zhaotong, located in China’s
southwest Yunnan province, offering no commentary whatsoever, where in this
film there’s little need for explanations.
Instead, he allows viewers from all over the world exclusive inside
access to one of the world’s most troubling aspects, what to do with a
country’s undesirables, where a nation may often be judged on how it treats its
lowliest citizens. Is there such a thing
as auteurism in documentary film? If there
is, this kind of grim look at the raw edge of humanity is a rare human
endeavor, as few would walk this same path.
What elevates this film is the uncompromising nature of the artist who
made it, much like American documentarian Frederick Wiseman, as he continually
holds himself to the highest standards, refusing to allow even a hint of
artifice, creating a challenging and thoroughly demanding experience, which
makes the film all the more relevant. Admittedly
the film is not for everyone, but it’s a beacon of light in the commercial
wasteland of slight entertainment films that aren’t really worth a damn. The degree of difficulty encountered is what
sets this film apart, as it starts out with major obstacles to overcome. Except for one brief sequence, the entire
film takes place inside the cramped, claustrophobic confines of a locked
institution, where few if any of the inmates would be considered certifiably
crazy, but instead they remain locked up due to the difficulty they pose to
their families or to the state, where it’s simply easier to remove them from conventional
society and place them out of harm’s way.
It’s a frightening prospect, where few if any of these individuals feel
they actually belong here, as all feel victimized by a terrible injustice to be
involuntarily placed inside a locked facility that resembles a prison
compound. What crime did any of them
commit to get there? There are no
lawyers or judges seen arguing their cases, or even therapists or counselors
found anywhere on the premises. For that
matter, there are frightfully few doctors.
Instead the inmates are medicated daily by a medical team so that they
are not a burden to the staff, where they are drugged to intentionally make
them more compliant, spending much of their time sleeping, day and night, where
there’s absolutely nothing to look forward to or feel good about, as these are
the throwaways of Chinese society.
Some 200 men and women are housed in this enclosed facility
that resembles a concrete prison block, men and women on separate floors, with
open space in the middle, with inmates kept behind giant iron bars staring off
into the distance, where the men house the top 3rd floor where there are
sometimes 5 and 6 to a room, a chamber pot placed beneath each bed, where they
are free to roam aimlessly through all hours of the day and night, circling the
narrow grounds over and over again with no real place to go, as they are
confined to one floor where they are largely ignored unless they’re found
causing a disturbance, at which time they may be temporarily removed from the
floor. While other inmates suggest beatings
take place off camera, one man is returned in handcuffs placed behind his back
which clearly limits his ability to sleep it off or even go to the bathroom,
contending his arms grow numb after awhile, but he is left to stew in his own
discomfort well beyond the appeasement point despite his incessant pleas with
authorities, signs of a sadistic, old-fashioned practice that remains
thoroughly barbaric. Indifference is the
state of mind one constantly confronts, as inmates calling out for doctors are
routinely ignored, while those sitting in a common TV room show a similar state
of apathy and personal detachment, perhaps the most common affliction on the
premises. Another receives a potent shot
that leaves him dazed and zombie-like afterwards, where at one point he remains
fixed to the floor, barely able to move, despite constant ribbing from other
inmates who tease him on his passivity, claiming he can’t handle the
medicine. What we see are men in soiled
clothes, sleeping under heavy comforters in wool caps and heavy jackets, never
once seen changing their clothes, where there’s no concept of personal hygiene,
no one seen washing their hair or brushing their teeth, where we never once see
any evidence of soap. On the floor there
is a common spigot of water for the entire floor to use, where at one point we
see a naked man stroll past others to fill his chamber pot with water and
splash it over himself, leaving a giant puddle on the floor, which is the
closest thing we ever see to a shower.
Mostly we see men huddled under heavy blankets, which is
where they spend most of their time, where heads pop up from time to time to
see what the commotion is all about, as the presence of a filmmaker on the
floor does generate attention, where some in the TV room just stare straight at
the camera, where there isn’t an ounce of emotion expressed on their faces, instead
they are simply blank, expressionless faces.
The men hardly seem human much of the time, as the length of time spent
with these inmates feels like an eternity, where the duration of their endless
purgatory is an indicator of how their lives are spent, literally wasting away
in this hellhole, where the facility is seen as a way station for ghosts
passing in the night with no outlet or release.
The only director comment is the written identification of the name and
length of time various inmates have spent in this facility, which are
occasionally seen alongside certain individuals, where some have been there for
as long as ten or twenty years. Perhaps
the ones that have it the hardest are the newest inmates, as they can’t believe
how they ended up here, utterly stupefied by what lies in store for them, where
one man stands alone looking out over the empty space whimpering in tears all
night long. One man is heard to confess
that most men end up here due to fighting, where the police or a family member
may have them permanently sent away. One
never sees any assessment of their sentences, instead they seem to be forgotten
souls who are locked up and forgotten about, languishing alone for years or
even decades. One woman is seen
regularly visiting her husband, but he’s so outraged that she would do this to
him that he doesn’t want to have anything to do with her, remaining belligerent
throughout each visit, though clearly he’s aware of his thought process. The man simply can’t forgive her for what
she’s done. She’s immune to the plight
of his dehumanization, claiming he’s better off here, bringing him fresh fruit,
then making him share with other hangers on, even some that he obviously
despises, but what can he do? In this
facility, each inmate uniformly has no possessions. When a package arrives from home, others
hover around these lucky few like vultures, just waiting for their opportunity
to take what they can, where the men are forced to guard and consume nearly
everything all at once for fear it will be taken away from them. There is simply no concept of privacy,
instead what’s yours is also mine.
What remains off camera are the sexual practices of the men,
where one would expect a great deal of forced homosexual sex, especially taking
advantage of the weakest and most vulnerable among them. One can only imagine the extent of this
practice, which is likely identical to a prison population, as adult men of all
ages are seen on the grounds. One inmate
has a regular conversation with a female inmate on the floor below, where they
discuss sex regularly, often initiated by the woman, where he is able to walk
down a stairway to a locked entranceway where she is housed, and they can kiss
and touch each other through the iron gates, presumably even have sex. The tip-off that this is happening is he
removes the light bulb in that corner, where they can fondle each other under
cover of darkness. Throughout this
lengthy film, lights are seen turning on and off in distant corridors,
seemingly at random times, where one wonders how much of this is related to
similar behavior. No one ever seems to
sleep in the dark, as lights remain on even at night while everyone’s sleeping,
though one might expect lights are a necessity for filming, revealing the filth
and constant grime, where part of the brutality is the stark ugliness, including
the graffiti written on the walls. Occasionally
men cohabitate under the covers, where it appears some are regular partners, which
are among the only moments of tenderness or affection seen throughout the film,
while at other times men wishing to climb under the covers are soundly
rejected. In a rare inexplicable moment,
one man goes home for the New Years holiday, which feels so out of place as
inmates are routinely seen talking about family visits, but this feels like
wish fulfillment, as no one ever actually leaves. It’s the only moment where the viewer is
spared having to share confined space with the inmates, feeling like a breath
of fresh air, but once home with his wife, living in what looks like an open
aired, abandoned building, they have absolutely nothing to say to one another. Instead he’s forced to take long walks, where
it’s apparent the camera is expanding the existing space, opening up to a world
outside, but one that has little to offer, as his wife nags him that it might
be time for him to return to the asylum.
Instead he walks away, obviously with no place to go, but he walks
anyway, seen walking down a desolate highway late at night, where even in
freedom, his only destination is to lose himself in utter oblivion. Returning back to the facility afterwards, we
briefly follow what appears to be a couple, showing an awkward, unorthodox
nature, but also a unique closeness, where even in this dumping grounds,
friendships develop. In scrolling intertitles
at the end, we learn that some of the men confined were caught murdering friends
or family, yet they co-exist with alcoholics, men brought in by the police, or those
with physical or mental impairments, including one who is obviously a mute, yet
they are all treated with the same indifference and disdain, as the state
doesn’t recognize a difference in their criminal history other than they are
all considered undesirables, unfit to mix with society.
