If you’ve been living in the lap of luxury, you might not want to read this. Whatever privileged world you occupy cannot possibly begin to shape your perspective to realize that what you take for granted is a dream far out of reach on the other side of the world. Imagine a world where women can’t express their opinion freely. Imagine a world where men stalk you on the streets and violently take and break your possessions. Imagine a world where you’re imprisoned for fighting for equal and inherent rights. Hooligan Sparrow, a documentary directed, shot and written by Nanfu Wang, is a film that depicts the harsh reality of Ye Haiyan’s brutal struggles as a feminist and equal rights fighter in China. This film excellently communicates issues of greater importance than our own all while maintaining clean editing and fabulous cinematography for the circumstances.
I don’t know about you, but I think it’s pretty mental to brave being beaten to death just by standing on the side of the road, campaigning for a child rapist to be punished with the force of an entire nation. During key scenes in which Nanfu and Haiyan document their first protest together’s journey, Nanfu repetitively fights off hostile villagers who fear the oppressive government more than the consequences of not exposing the truth. Nanfu’s guerilla style filming gives the overall film a dangerous tone, which excellently supports the subject matter. Haiyan’s desperate and dogged efforts for female rights in China are righteous, but acutely presented as the minority opinion. The documentary accomplishes the goal of its genre well: to inform and to inspire.
What makes this film even more amazing is its existence in the first place. The Chinese government makes no attempt to hide the fact that it employs and executes a “bully” type of governance. Policemen constantly threatened Nanfu’s equipment as well as her person. The fact that she was able to bring this footage back to a safe location in order to edit is astounding. The film makes use of its interviews sparingly, never taking away from its subject matter. The story flows seamlessly, but unapologetically depicts the near hopeless nature of Haiyan’s fight with well-placed imagery of the vastness of the distances the duo traverse.
Ultimately, the cinematography is what marries the film’s cries for compassion into the audience’s hearts. “If you film us, we’ll break your camera.” These chilling words painted against the beauty of China’s many bustling cities as well as poverty-stricken country villages add to the overall ‘simple’ yet rustic nature of the film. Nanfu completely makes use of the passing environment seen from rushing trains as well as escapes deep into the night. Somehow, she steadily handles the entirety of the film’s cinematic quality on her hidden handicams, film glasses, and other secret recording devices. Her circumstances make watching this film an entirely different experience in it of itself due to the miraculous survival of all of these clips.
Overall, when you watch a documentary, you expect a type of entertainment from the film because, after all, it is a movie and one pays to be entertained by it. This film, despite its informative nature, takes that idea and turns it completely on its head. From the minute that the opening scene commences with sweet bird song, the audience never experiences another calm moment by being thrown head first into the struggle for women’s rights in China. This film is a treasure and should be viewed by anyone who dares to think that they have it ‘bad’. Fly on Hooligan Sparrow, fly on.
