What better way to celebrate Chinese New Year at Sundance than selecting ‘CHINA HEAVYWEIGHT’ as my first movie of the day. Evidently that old curmudgeon Chairman Mao banned boxing in China as he said it was the sport of capitalism and thus very bad. It wasn’t until after Mohammed Ali visited China in 1979 as a goodwill ambassador that the sport was allowed, and then encouraged again.
This documentary film by Yung Chang, the award winning director of ‘UP THE YANGTZE’ follows some elementary school kids as they are selected to train at a local boxing school, also students who are about to take part in regional championships, and one of their coaches a retired boxer who feels he has one last big fight in him. All their journeys are fascinating to observe, especially when they and their families with their traditional small country village lives have to consider the impact that boxing could have in giving the young fighters a lifestyle their parents could never have ever imagined for themselves. As they all work towards their new goals, we find at the end that it is not always about winning.
Despite the title there is not one actual heavyweight in sight but this an intriguing look at how the sport can pack such a punch in changing these peasant boys lives.
(Review originally published in my SUNDANCE 12 Blog)
★★★★★★★★
