My wife signed up for a Netflix account earlier this month. We realized that we suddenly had at our fingertips an unprecedented selection of films. I requested to see a film that I had wanted to see for quite some time, Zhang Yimou’s “Riding Alone For a Thousand Miles”.

My wife signed up for a Netflix account earlier this month. We realized that we suddenly had at our fingertips an unprecedented selection of films. I requested to see a film that I had wanted to see for quite some time, Zhang Yimou’s “Riding Alone For a Thousand Miles”.

Yimou had gone main stream with the three films previous to this one focusing on the samari warrior genre, but then returned to a much more engaging and idealistic depiction of life and death with “Riding Alone”. Actually, I am being presumptuous about his other films, as I have not see them.

In a discussion of LDS Cinema, it seems to me that the peacable works of Zhang Yimou ought to be hailed as an archetype for what we aspire to as filmmakers. I think I stand alone in this idea, but it is one that I am prepared to defend till the death, and beyond.

His films however are so refreshingly optimistic and hopeful that, in a dark world, it seems to me no mystery that these films are completely ignored — not because they are boring or not entertaining, but because they are true! Light exudes from his films. But who will comprehend this and much less point to these types of films unless they are inspired, or enlightened to do so?

We viewed this film with my five small children in their bedroom on my laptop last evening. While my oldest son protested for the first half the film, he by the end was sitting in my lap asking questions while the smaller children had fallen asleep by that point. My oldest daughter, age 7, who was able to read the subtitles, paid rapt attention to the whole film. I offer these as insights in to what engages a family as entertainment.