16. Embrace Again; movie review

 

EMBRACE AGAIN

Cert TBA

125 mins

BBFC advice: TBA

We all know what life was like in our respective home towns when Covid emerged and we faced our first lockdown.

But what was the reaction of the people and the authorities in Wuhan where the outbreak began?

The excellent documentary 76 Days gives a factual, fly-on-the wall account of the speedy reaction of government and the intense pressure on medical teams.

Xue Xiaolu's new movie, Embrace Again is a feature film which shows the emergence of coronavirus through the eyes of normal people.

It is fiction based on fact.

But, while there are tragic moments, it paints a picture of people acclimatising to a difficult situation with occasional humour and even burgeoning love matches.

It hangs on four parallel stories which are set at the beginning of the outbreak and begin with a passionate volunteer (Bo Huang) who feels compelled to help the huge medical effort .

Logistics are his forte so his team become couriers for the under-pressure hospitals.

Sadly, not everyone appreciates his philanthropy. Indeed, even his wife takes a hard line towards him but he refuses to give up.

One of his volunteers is a lass (Ling Jia) who initially seems stroppy but transpires to have a heart of gold and even sniffs the scent of unlikely romance.

Meanwhile, a retired midwife has to decide between love in her latter years and risking great danger by returning to hospital to help her under-pressure former colleagues.

And finally,  there is the wealthy married couple who face the real fear of their businesses collapsing because of the pandemic.

The stories are a little stilted and are more low-key than I would have imagined life really was in Wuhan in early 2020.

But even in the darkest corner, heroes emerge and humour can be found.

Embrace Again also give an intriguing insight into how the Chinese view themselves in a crisis.

Reasons to watch: The pandemic seen through Wuhan eyes

Reasons to avoid: Surprisingly low-key

Laughs: Two

Jumps: None

Vomit: None

Nudity: None

Overall rating: 6.5/10

Did you know? As of January 9, 2022, the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 that originated in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province in China, had infected around 116,600 people and killed 4,849 in the country.

The final word. Jia Ling: "As someone from Hubei, I'm honoured to be in the movie. Through such a deeply meaningful story it's great to reflect the optimistic, brave spirit of Hubei people in the face of disaster." China Daily

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