Lixin Fan's magnificent 'Last Train Home' is an observational documentary of the very highest standard. The subject is important and gripping - the experiences of migrant workers in modern China. We follow one family in particular who have left their teenage daughter and a son behind in the country while they work in the factories of the south. The skill of Lixin Fan is remarkable as he captures their experiences and this is a very moving film. There was one scene which I found particularly memorable where the father, a largely silent and disillusioned man, strikes his daughter repeatedly because he feels she does not appreciate what he and his wife have done for her. She turns to the camera and screams something like 'so you see? This is the real me'. What are we to think? Is she selfish and ungrateful or should we side with her against parents who abandoned her? I saw the film in Shanghai in June with Lixin Fan present. It was a great privilege. This is a modern documentary masterpiece and a sign of the strength of Chinese documentary film making.
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