| Amazing China | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 厉害了，我的国 | ||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 厲害了，我的國 | ||||||
| Literal meaning | Amazing, my country | ||||||
| |||||||
| Directed by | Wei Tie | ||||||
| Based on | Amazing China (2017 series) | ||||||
| Starring | Xi Jinping[1] | ||||||
Production companies | |||||||
| Distributed by | Alibaba Pictures | ||||||
Release dates |
| ||||||
Running time | 90 minutes | ||||||
| Country | China | ||||||
| Language | Standard Mandarin Chinese[1] | ||||||
Amazing China (Chinese:厉害了, 我的国) is a 2018 Chinesepropagandadocumentary film that depicts Chinese advancements in science, technology, and industry, and poverty reduction duringXi Jinping's tenure as theGeneral Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (paramount leader ofChina).[2][3]
The Chinese title of the film is "厉害了, 我的国" (pinyin:lìhaile, wǒde guó roughly translates to "Amazing, My Country"), and derives from the online slang expression "厉害了，我的哥", meaning "bravo, my brother", often used by several official social media accounts of state organizations like theCommunist Youth League of China.[4]
The content of the film is from a six-episodeTV documentary with the same English title [zh] shown in 2017 (Chinese title:辉煌中国),[5] which includes the construction of theChina Railway High-speed, theHong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge and theFive-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope.[6]
Huajian Group, a Chinese shoe making company hiring thousands of workers inEthiopia, was portrayed in the film as a model of "introducing China's experience of prosperity toAfrica." According to a report of theAssociated Press, however, the company's Ethiopian workers complained about low wages, the lack of safety equipment,forced labor and not being permitted to form atrade union.[7]
The documentary ends with "New World", a song performed by pop singerSun Nan.[8]
The film was co-produced byChina Central Television andChina Film Co., Ltd, both state-owned enterprises, and directed by Wei Tie.[9]
The film was released inMainland China on March 2, 2018, distributed byAlibaba Pictures.[10] It was reported bySouth China Morning Post that some state companies and government-affiliated organizations required employees to watch the film. On 19 April 2018, thePublicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party issued a memo requesting that Chinese websites and cinemas stop showing the film.[11][12]
The film was screened in a theater inMacao from May 9 to May 14, 2018.[13]
Douban, the leading film review website in China, disabled the commenting and rating functions on the film's page, instead showing a "media rating" of 8.5/10 and reviews written by state media includingXinhua and thePeople's Daily.[4][8][14] In 2018, theCyberspace Administration of China requested the Chinese branch of its owner, Amazon, for the film to be removed from IMDb because of the bad reviews. Shortly after the request, some negative reviews disappeared. Amazon denied that it removed the bad reviews at the request of the Chinese government.[15]
Internationally, it is widely considered to be apropaganda film, and an effort by theChinese Communist Party to increase itssoft power.[7][8][16] The film also is believed to be a significant step towards apersonality cult of Xi Jinping by some observers.[8][16][17] WhileAmazing China does demonstrate a new level of sophistication in state propaganda, along with other self-congratulatory representations of China's growth "betrays an unshakeable anxiety about the continuing legitimacy of CCP rule."[18]
