Red Light Revolution

Starring: Zhao Jun, Vivid Wang, Jiang Xiduo, Masanobu Otsuka, Virgin Chen

Synopsis:

Unemployed Beijinger, Shunzi (played by Zhao Jun), fresh from being fired from his cab company and still wounded by news of his wife running away for another man, decides to risk it all and follow his friend, and opens a sex store, much to the disappointment of his parents.

At first battling with blow up dolls, and getting to grips with some of the vibrating merchandise, he soon realises that not only has he become a victim of a high pressured sales operation (with a gangster-like supplier), but his neighbourhood is very conservative and inhabited by an ageing population.

Slowly though, he starts to win them over and unites the community, but will he convert enough of them to customers to pay off the gangsters?

RED LIGHT REVOLUTION is the first feature film centered on China ’s multitude of adult stores, and the everyday people who run them and the clash of traditional Chinese etiquette with modern sexual values. It makes for an interesting juxtaposition and there’s plenty of subtext.

The movie was first shown in this country at the Terracotta Film festival, on May 8th 2011. It is now getting a limited theatrical release in the UK, and hasn’t been shown in China yet. This is maybe because, as the movie highlights, there is a “head in the sand” attitude towards sex.

Red Light Revolution is a strange one in that it is a Chinese film, directed by an Australian who currently resides in Beijing . It certainly embraces Chinese culture and themes but has a distinctive Western feel; from the Chinese ska-like songs on the soundtrack to the “Full Monty” style approach to life. Once again, the theme of someone losing their job and finding a way of making a living contrary to the local attitudes is current and unfortunately too many people can relate to it in the UK right now. The movie also mixes in the popular theme of freedom Vs repression. The town that Shunzi lives in is populated by people who are repressed but want to live their life and are forced to do it in secret. Shunzi’s initial customers visit at night to ensure that their family and neighbours don’t know that they are shopping for these types of goods.

It is made very clear to the viewer that Shunzi’s parents enjoy an active sex life; something naturally Shunzi finds embarrassing. The irony is thick in the scene where Shunzi admits, at the breakfast table, that he is running a shop full of sex toys. His Father explodes, saying that he would rather give his son his pension that have him work in a store that sells such filth. So, we have the typical situation where sex is kept hidden behind closed doors and not something to be openly admitted to.

Even in the UK, these attitudes exist. We have everyday magazines portraying the female form; companies use sex as a way of getting us to buy the most normal of products, yet we get 100 people complaining of tasteful, partial, nudity in a clever TV show.

Both Jun Zhao and Vivid Wang are likeable and watchable leads. Zhao provides much of the comedy and has a very natural acting style. This style promoted more laughter in me than any laughter track could on a comedy show. Zhao seems to have enjoyed the shoot and it comes across in his performance. The same can be said of Wang. The relationships are all very natural and credit must go to Voutas for producing an enjoyable screenplay that flows easily despite in being in a different language.

Given the subject matter, the comedy is quite light and fun and manages to avoid being sleazy and dirty. The final act (I’ll avoid using the term “climax”) even includes a couple of shots that include a place card saying that some of the material has been censored when it is clear that Shunzi has been given an erection thanks to Lilli’s Grandma’s special potion. The movie is relatively coy about addressing sexuality full on, even though that is the subject. UK viewers will appreciate and empathise at the Chinese attitudes but perhaps it is a little too coy for those that will pick the title up once it reaches home cinema. I was reminded a little of the UK sex comedies of the 70s.

Summary:

A light, fun journey that will not offend the majority but might alienate those expecting a little more spice in a movie about the sex toy industry. To me, the messages within have less to do with the products and more to do with people’s attitudes towards sex and how it is a day to day part of life we should embrace and not see as dirty. I found it a refreshing change but a little lightweight.

7 out of 10 (Wayfarer)

UK Release Date: 20th January 2012 – Opening in London & selected cities to coincide with Chinese New Year.

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