This film follows the story of two divorced parents searching for their abducted child. One of the most interesting aspects of this film to me was the fact that there was very little character development throughout the story. The film focused a lot more on the actual plot and extreme minutia than the characters themselves. All we really know about the father of the abducted child, PengPeng, was the fact that he worked at an internet cafe. The mother? she worked in some nice building. The wife of the abductor was a farmer who became very attached to the children. We don't even meet the abductor in the film because he supposedly died. The plot line however, gets pretty complex and deep. The foster mother of PengPeng and another girl is a farmer who thinks she is infertile, because her husband told her that she was as an excuse to go sleep with other women. PengPeng's parents find him and take him back. PengPeng, his birth parents, the farmer, and the other girl are in the police station when the decision is made to give PengPeng back to his real parents. They put the girl in an orphanage and the farmer woman is determined to get her back. She manages to find a lawyer and fights PengPeng's birth mother over custody. The end of the movie is very interesting and leaves many questions unanswered. The court decision hasn't been made because PengPeng's mother is mid divorce and the farmer is believed to not be legally able to adopt a child based on income, etc. We also find out that the farmer ends up getting pregnant after sleeping with a construction worker, proving that she was indeed fertile all along and that her husband lied to her. In general, the plot was pretty confusing and hard to follow. Also, the fact that the movie was 2h15m long didn't necessarily help

I thought this movie was okay, but definitely not my favorites! I thought it was very interesting that it was based on a true story, and unlike other kidnapping movies, it was very, very unique. I thought that the actors were really talented, especially the kids. However, it was really confusing (at least for me). The movie often switched between main characters which I thought was kind of strange, but subtle. For example, there was the little boy as the main character in the beginning along with his parents, but then it switched to the lady who "adopted" him later. I felt really bad for all characters in this movie, and although Peng was returned to his real parents, there were so many problems and traumatic things that had happened that couldn't be undone. First, Peng was stolen from his family, then moved to a rural area where his name got changed, then stolen back by his real parents (whom he didn't even remember!) One thing that I didn't like was how mean the real parents were to the widow who "adopted him". Since her late husband told her that he adopted Peng, she thought he was actually hers, so she went through that loss too, of losing her child even though it wasn't actually hers and her husband had abducted him. I wish that his real parents would have bonded a little more, since they were going through the same things! Although this story followed the journey of Peng's abduction, he also had a sister that the lady's late husband supposedly "adopted" as well. (But I think that she was really abducted too). Where did she come from? Where were her parents? Why didn't the movie even touch on this? I think it would have been interesting to involve her story too, even if she wasn't returned to her parents in the end. Although I felt so badly for the fake adoptive mom and widow, I thought she was a bit annoying. She seemed to believe everything her husband told her, including that she was infertile! Also, how could she not know something was up when her husband brought home two strange kids without any paperwork or struggle? Also, part of me wishes we could have met the husband before he died, because he seemed like a very interesting and scary character. I did like the ending, even though it wasn't really much of an ending. I liked the scene of the widow crying on the hospital floor because it really showed so much emotion and despair, and I liked how the lawyer was looking back at her because he seemed like he really grew to like his client compared to the beginning of the movie.

Dearest, a Chinese made movie by director Peter Chan, tells the true story of a family who's son was abducted. The movie begins with the introduction of the family which consists of divorced parents and a single, toddler son, PengPeng. The son is promptly abducted after leaving the safety of his father. The parents spend the next three years looking for their son, and they eventually join a support group of people who also had children abducted. With the help of this group, the parents find their son in a rural, farming town. Unfortunately, the couple come to learn that their son has formed a with his abductor mother. Through legal battles and more emotional fighting, PengPeng is awarded back to the parents and the abductor mother is left fighting for her daughter, who was also abducted. This movie contains a lot of drama and sad moments. It was very sad to watch a son who both did not recognize his real mother or his father. In my opinion, the ending was very abrupt and could have used a better closing. I give this movie a 4 out of 10 rating because I really did not enjoy it overall, and it was much too slow for my tastes.

Dearest is a very good film that gives you the look on Child Abduction with a happier ending. This review will have many spoilers, but mainly focussing on what I thought was important. It all starts with a divorced husband and wife and their son. They argue with each other, and eventually, one day their son, Pengpeng is taken by an abductor who then brings him to a farm, which we later find out. The parents handle this just like everyone else would. They eventually join a group that helps with losing a child due to abduction, and that helps them cope with a joint feeling between the group members of remaining to search for their children. I am also interested to find out the number of families that actually do find their child after 3 years of searching. Anyways, when Pengpeng is finally found he does not recognize his parents anymore, and wants to go back to his abducted parent's home, which he believes to be his real home. You need to see the movie to know the rest, but I feel this movie did a great job explaining the whole process. The one thing I am questioning though is how Pengpeng's second Mom did not know of how she obtained the children that were brought to her by her husband. Dearest is a very good movie, and I recommend you see it.