Ordinary Corner

Regarding the China-Vietnam border, we often label it as “isolated,” “backward,” and “primitive,” but we rarely consider whether the people living there share the same joys and sorrows, the same loneliness, and the same sense of mobilization.

Those teenagers are like birds trapped in a predicament, constrained by the local community’s narrow understanding of education, disrespect for children’s original ideas, and the distance and functional separation between home and school. They struggle to break free and soar into the wider world. They lazily stretch, inhaling the air of freedom, the genuine life, and the anxieties of their youth. At this moment, these teenagers resemble birds taking flight, soaring through the sky, disappearing into the forest, and reaching the distance.

In fact, no matter where the border youth or adults are, they cannot escape the dictates of fate. Past joys and sorrows, forgotten and unforgettable memories, will eventually fade into the past, dissipating in the wind. Disciplinary society establishes a very clear set of norms and disciplines; if you deviate from the norms, you will be punished; if you follow them, you will be rewarded. The more you believe that reality limits you, the more you’ll act according to its demands. And the more you act according to reality’s demands, the less you’ll know what exists beyond these limitations. And without knowing how vast the world is, reality becomes everything to you—a vicious cycle.

The film motivates its characters by making them expend all their time and energy on things that are insignificant in the grand scheme of human civilization. For the border youth and young adults, who have a precious time to grow, being restricted and confined to a very limited scope creates the greatest sense of oppression.