Don't think that at the end of this film, you will understand the complexities of industrialization and modernization of China. Don't think it will lay out for you the ways in which trade and capitalism exploit (or help, depending on your view) the world's poor.This film isn't that story. Instead, what we get here is a beautifully drawn and complicated portrait of one poor family, and their ambiguous relationship with the Three Gorges Dam project.I would argue that the opening quote is very telling -- Confucius offering the three different ways of learning wisdom -- as the film then shows you that the Chinese people are apparently going to have to learn about the wisdom or not of modernization (at the expense of fulfillment and connection to nature) for themselves, rather than reaping the benefits of others' experience.But that's my take on it, based on my value judgments as a person. The joy in this movie is that you can decide how the Confucius quote applies for yourself. The story isn't simple, and the filmmaker doesn't hit you over the head with some narrowly tailored point. Instead, it shows that the real world is interwoven in ways that don't always make easy moral judgments.And ultimately, this is a movie about a family. It's a human narrative, and all the other themes are simply woven in as a beautiful backdrop.

Mr. Chang and crew took me on an unforgettable journey down the foggy ruins of time......and then it hit me. Mark Twain, the River King, would be very proud. The timing of the Olympics peaked my interest in this magical and misty movie. I whistled, I wept, on the edge of my seat I sat laughing. I cannot do it justice with a full review but instead will quote here maybe the greatest lyrics ever written about change, memory, sorrow, and finally, hope. Chang is the Tambourine Man for China in this most critical moment in their modern times. This is merely the end of the beginning. Bravo! Encore!!"Then take me disappearing' through the smoke rings of my mind down the foggy ruins of time, far past the frozen leaves, the haunted, frightened trees, out to the windy beach, far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow. Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free,silhouetted by the sea, circled by the circus sands, with all memory and fate driven deep beneath the waves,let me forget about today until tomorrow.Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me I'm not sleepy and there is no place I'm going to Hey ! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me In the jingle jangle morning I'll come following' you." - Dylan

Sorry if you were looking for Wall-E or something else 'feel good', this is a documentary focusing on two young people at the center of change in China. The Three Gorges Dam, at the time of filming was beginning to flood areas where about 2 million people were being displaced, as we are told, for the good of the country, which appears a phrase parroted enough in the belief it will come true.'Jerry' is a Have, while 'Cindy' is a 'have not.' Both seek employment on a cruise ship for western tourists. Little is told of Jerry's family, which is apparently better off than Cindy's, which the film focuses on. Cindy's family are poor farmers who are doing fairly well, but know everything will change when their home and fields will be flooded. The hardship of change is clear and Cindy works hard to help support her family. Jerry doesn't show the same work ethic, which leaves the viewer to draw their own conclusion of traditional vs. modern values.Quite a lot of detail on modern China is available to the viewer, including frequent complaints of corruption. I was moved considerably by the contrasts and the snips of history, which show not all have prospered in modern China, though there is again parroted belief that anyone can succeed. It was also a bit surprising to see in China High School education is not a given for everyone.I found this to be a very informative and well done documentary and highly recommend it to anyone wishing to see the changes and impact of this dubious national project.

I was part of a tour grip visiting China a year ago last May. Part of the itinerary was the Yangtze river cruise. Had I seen this film prior to my trip, I doubt I would have been able to handle the cruise. It's one thing to know intellectually about how many people are being displaced by the project. It's altogether different - and gut wrenching - to witness the impact on one family.Because I was so intensely affected by the film, it's impossible for me to avoid some spoilers.Although it starts out slowly, this is a really powerful film that had me in tears by the end. The juxtaposition of the travelers and crew in an overly elegant setting against the farmer and his family and their humble home on the river was a perfect balance. The score is well suited to the different settings, especially near the end, as the family's home and land sink slowly but inexorably under the waters of the Yangtze. You're left imagining what the young girl from the family will be able to do with her life beyond sending her savings from the cruise ship home to enable her parents and family to eat. And this magnificent project, still underway, will produce a grand total of 2 to 3% of the country's energy needs at the expense of millions of displaced Chinese who are in the way of "progress."