I’m feeling very grateful to my Netflix algorithm as I type this, because without it, I may have never discovered this movie.

And (spoiler alert), I really, really liked this movie. 🥹

Show had me laughing, crying, and basically serving up my heart to it on a plate, which is already very impressive on a normal day.

This was even more impressive than average, however, because I was feeling out of sorts, while looking for something to watch – and yet, once I started, I found myself quickly feeling completely invested, y’all.

Yes, I think this movie is quite special. 🥲

Come see why you might like to check out this movie too?

WHAT IT’S ABOUT

Mo Sanmei (Zhu Yilong), an ex-con funeral director, who’s got enough frustrations and troubles of his own, and is just trying to make a living, one day finds himself crossing paths in an indelible way, with Xiao Wen (Yang En You), a little girl who’s just lost her grandmother.

MANAGING EXPECTATIONS / THE VIEWING LENS

Here are a few things that I think would be helpful to keep in mind, to maximize your enjoyment of your watch:

1. Our story isn’t anything new

If you’ve been watching dramas or movies for a while, you’d be able to roughly chart our story, with your eyes closed.

The ex-con eventually forms a daddy-daughter type of bond with the little girl, right? Yes, exactly right.

But Show does it so well, and in such a heartfelt way, that it’s more than worthwhile.

So, adjust your expectations accordingly, and you’d be good to go.

2. Our characters are speaking the Wuhan dialect, rather than Mandarin

..because our story is set in Wuhan, and our characters are local to Wuhan.

So it might sound odd on the ears at first – particularly if you’re used to watching c-dramas, where Mandarin is the standard language spoken.

I personally found it very interesting, because, to my unfamiliar ears, much of it sounds like Mandarin – except with all the tones flipped in seemingly random ways.

I got used to it pretty fast and I expect that you would too, so just give it a little bit of time.

3. Trigger warning: brief scene of attempted sexual assault

This scene happens early in the story, and doesn’t last for more than a minute, I’d say.

It’s uncomfortable to watch, certainly, but it doesn’t happen again, and is worth pushing through, for the rest of the show (which, in my opinion, is great).

STUFF I LIKED

1. Show’s general handling and execution

My favorite thing about this show, is how tender and heartfelt its handling is, both by the director, as well as the actors themselves.

I personally felt like the sincerity in the making of this movie was so strong that it was practically tangible.

Our characters might appear rough and tough, but you can see the care and empathy with which the director and actors handle these characters, to show their vulnerability and humanity, underneath it all.

Just, wonderful.

2. Zhu Yi Long as Mo Sanmei

I have to give it to Zhu Yi Long; I didn’t even recognize him, when I watched the trailer.

I literally only realized it was him on my screen, when I looked up the cast list.

I’ve only ever seen Zhu Yi Long play scholarly types, like in The Story of Minglan (review here!) and Guardian (which I sampled a few episodes of).

And yet, here he is, completely believable as the coarse, prickly, flippant ex-con with issues that he’d much rather not talk about. He literally disappears into the character, and I am beyond impressed.

I do think that the casting of Zhu Yi Long was a stroke of brilliance, because whenever it comes time to give us a glimpse of Mo Sanmei’s vulnerability, (what I think is) Zhu Yi Long’s natural gentleness comes peeking out, and it works brilliantly well, in my opinion. 🤩

I definitely have a newfound respect for him as an actor, after seeing him in this role.

3. Yang En You as Xiao Wen

I cannot say this enough: Yang En You is just marvelous as Xiao Wen. 🤩

She effortlessly makes Xiao Wen quite feral, yet tinged with an unmistakeable innocence and vulnerability, which was a combination that I found fascinating and heart-grabby, in equal parts.

It’s hard to believe that this was Yang En You’s first main role in a production; she’s just so natural, and so good.

With some child actors, you excuse a multitude of acting shortcomings because they’re cute, but with Yang En You, I simply believed that she was Xiao Wen; her fierce determination was just as believable as her quiet, wistful tears.

So, SO good. 🤩

4. Mo Sanmei and Xiao Wen together

Of course, this daddy-daughter found family connection is the main thing that I signed up for, and Show does not disappoint.

The way Show handles the burgeoning connection between this unlikely pair, really worked for me.

Their connection is chaotic and tense, yet threaded through with important moments of empathy and vulnerability.

And every time Mo Sanmei and Xiao Wen share a playful moment or a cheeky smile, I couldn’t help but smile too. 🥲

I loved these two together, so much. 🥰

5. Show’s treatment of Mo Sanmei’s relationship with his father

When we begin our story, Mo Sanmei’s relationship with his father (Luo Jing Min) is anything but amicable, and father and son are legitimately on the verge of becoming formally estranged.

But of course, Show works to heal this relationship – this is not the surprise.

The surprise, for me, is how economically and how well Show does this.

The scenes that Mo Sanmei shares with Dad are not many, but Show makes use of these interactions to nudge this relationship towards healing and reconciliation – without making it feel like these developments are too good to be true.

That’s skillz.

The father-son scene that stays with me the most, is this one.

[SPOILER ALERT]

I really appreciated this scene, where Mo Sanmei asks Dad for help in the difficult task of reconstructing a badly mangled body, and, instead of doing the job himself, Dad coaches Mo Sanmei through it.

It was in this scene, that it became clear that Dad had always believed that San had it in him, and was capable of this very advanced and challenging task.

The way Dad slowly and calmly recites the technique and guidelines to San, as he talks San through the process, is so gently encouraging and affirming – yet so perfectly matter-of-fact.

And, in hindsight, this absolutely feels like Dad’s final gift, as a father to his son, as well as a professional endorsement of San’s skills and ability, from a master to his student.

Quite beautiful, I thought. 🥲

[END SPOILER]

THOUGHTS ON THE ENDING [SPOILERS]

Show remains pitch perfect to the very end, and I love Show all the more for it.

There is enough angst in this to make me feel invested in the stakes, and there is also just enough whimsy in this, to make me feel like there’s just – juuust – a little bit of magic at work here, that our characters have somehow earned, with their sincerity.

I was surprised-but-also-not-surprised when Bio Mom Hai Fei (Li Chun Yuan) shows up, and asks to take Xiao Wen back. To Show’s credit, I thought her explanation, that she’d been presumed dead while in prison in another country, made sense.

My feelings were all over the place, as San prepares to say goodbye, with that final parent-child event at the kindergarten (where we get that wonderfully tearful hug between daddy and daughter), and then, that night, asking Xiao Wen if she’ll ever forget him, and asking her to recite his phone number.

And then I practically lost it, when San gives a sleeping Xiao Wen back to Hai Fei; like, “Nooooo, don’t do it!!”

But also, “Ack, I understand why you’re doing it, though.” BUT STILL. “Don’t do it!” 😩

I was literally crying, as Xiao Wen screams and bawls for San, calling him, “Daddy!” as the taxi drives away, leaving a desperately running San in its wake.

Oof. My heart. 💔

And then, while San’s just trying to grapple with the fact that he’s lost Xiao Wen, he gets that phone call, informing him that Dad has passed away.

ACK. Talk about hitting a guy when he’s down. 😭

The way Show turns this around, though, into a meaningful moment of wonder, with San being inspired by that remark from his sister – that they can’t put Dad in the sky – to literally scatter Dad’s ashes via fireworks, is so great.

San’s fulfilling Dad’s wish for a simple but presentable final journey, in a way that feels rooted in San’s story to Xiao Wen, that the deceased become stars in the sky. I love that. 🥲

And then, when San gets that call from Hai Fei, that Xiao Wen’s missing, I just knew that Xiao Wen was on her way back to San.

Even then, that scene, when San first hears Xiao Wen calling out for him, and he runs to meet her, even as she’s running towards him, just hit me right in the heart.

And, I love-love-LOVE that Show makes it such that Xiao Wen doesn’t have to choose between her bio-mom and her newfound dad.

When San asks Hai Fei if she’d like to do their kind of work, I love that Hai Fei smiles in response.

She’s not daunted by the fact that this is work that deals with death and the stigma that comes with it; she’s glad for the chance to stay with her long-lost Xiao Wen, and make a new life with the newfound family that’s rallied around her.

I thought it was a perfect, PERFECT last shot, for us to see this new hodgepodge family just sitting contentedly together, gazing at the stars in the sky – the stars that they’d worked to hang. 🥲❤️

THE FINAL VERDICT:

Wonderfully heartfelt, poignant and affecting. Highly recommend.

FINAL GRADE: A

TRAILER:

WHERE TO WATCH:

Show is available to stream on Netflix and Viki.

I also found it on YouTube, with English subs:

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