In the tradition of both cinéma vérité and Italian neorealist style, it seems that the central image of the bicycle within a bleak urbanized environment has become somewhat of a motif. Dating back to De Sica’s classic Bicycle Thieves and popping up more recently in Sixth Generation director Wang Xiaoshuai’s Beijing Bicycle, it has once again seemingly appeared in Sean Baker and Shih-Ching Tsou’s social realist work, Take Out.
To not rely heavily upon comparative analysis, I’ll be brief. The continuing motif is obvious but probably irrelevant for the most part. Take Out has little to nothing to do with De Sica’s earlier work aside from genre and narrative similarities. If anything, it bears more in common with its Sixth Generation contemporaries across the globe such as Li Yang’s Blind Shaft or possibly Lou Ye’s Suzhou River.
In this manner there is a deep interest in its almost transnational cinematic relationship that seemingly parallels the subject matter of the film. Ming Ding, an illegal Chinese immigrant like most of the characters on screen, is struggling to not only earn a living, but save enough money to send back home to his awaiting family. His supposed frustration over this difficulty leads to borrowing money from a loan shark that he simply can’t pay back.
This serves as the central conflict of the film, but one that is not heavily emphasized. The two elements that probably marked this film in a unique light for me, was the sheer repetition and lapse of time that you get from the frequent and mostly monotonous deliveries Ming goes on to earn a living. The other secondary substance of the film is the more prominent interaction between Ming and his fellow coworkers.
The deliveries themselves are purposely repetitive serving to make the viewer feel like Ming, tired and constantly stressing over whether or not he will make enough by the end of the day to pay his debt. The customers themselves are also worthy of mention with most of them seemingly portrayed as balanced and understanding individuals who represent a wide spectrum across social and economic levels. Most tip and give appreciation for the delivery through rain or shine. While others, are seemingly bent on ruining Ming’s day or just causing him ill harm, ignorant of his plight. Regardless the camera work cleverly complements Ming’s own role here as almost a voyeur. Like Ming, the camera peeks behind cracked doors and hallways to glimpse into these individual’s lives.
The coworkers of the restaurant are possibly the central object of the film, more so then the deliveries or the conflict of debt. The one strong sense that comes off the fellow Chinese illegals is one of community and it almost echoes both a notion of shared experience as well as a more antiquated system of Confucian ideals, one where we look out for one’s own family. At the revelation of Ming’s financial misfortune Young, a fellow delivery man immediately hands over his cash in addition to giving all his take-outs of the day over to Ming. Other fellow workers also make similar contributions throughout the film.
Wang-Thye Lee as Big Sister is easily the most prominent of the characters who actually worked at the restaurant where the film was shot. Her completely natural discourse and demeanor with the customers is both charming and revealing of this multi-ethnic community, where the loss of English may not really be that important. One definitely gets the sense of a larger holism here that is more relative to class then language or ethnicity.
Charles Jang as Ming Ding is also somewhat surprising but works quite cleverly whether intentional or not. Despite similarities to films like Blind Shaft, Jang is quite probably the antithesis to protagonists like Yuan Fengming who hold an almost childlike innocence while being the victim in a corrupt setting.
While Ming is surely a victim of criminalization, it is hard to argue his “innocence” down to a level of ignorance. I would even go so far as to say hes not even that likable as a character. Pointing to this as a flaw though is hardly accurate. If anything it works more brilliantly for the characterization. Instead of being dynamically shifted to one side, Ming is indeed a very human character. Angst is his primary characteristic and he is fully aware of the situation he is put in. As viewers we sympathize with his troubles but at the same time fall victim to his rather off-putting angst that has markedly left the same effect on his coworkers.
I’m not sure whether or not the fact that Jang is actually a Korean American bears any constellation on his flavoring of Ming’s characterization, but what did seem apparent in viewing is a sense of outsider-ship. It could possibly draw into the notions of voyeur but more likely is hinting at the conflicting dynamic between him and his coworkers.
The conflict is readily apparent, especially when Wei messes up an order costing Ming a larger tip. The outsider-ship is thus more centered upon the fact that he is the ignorant and frustrated newcomer rather then some hapless victim; one who is beginning to realize how hard it will be to actually make money to send back home. Both Wei and Young who have seemingly been in the States longer, have the sense that they have either failed or succeeded in passing those initial years of frustration although it is hard to tell which one. Either way, the world-weariness of these older characters is lost on the younger Ming.
The general style and mise en scene of the piece is quite startling. To make an easy comparison, I am most reminded of the same Sixth Generation directors across the globe and their New Documentary Movement. Take Out is surely not a documentary nor is it true cinéma vérité. Regardless it seems to borrow heavily from these genre conventions especially in the manner in which shots are framed and composed. Most of the shooting itself is hand-held, sporadic, and somewhat chaotic. The camera rarely pulls away and is often closed in to a claustrophobic level. Often it harshly frames Ming and his customers in close proximity where little background seeps in.
In addition to this close quarters shooting, the editing itself is quite sporadic and frequent. The editing itself overall is almost contradictory to the aesthetics of cinéma vérité. Instead of long interrupted shooting, the edits are quite abundant with most cuts lasting less than a second. Jump cuts are also used which overall lends itself more to stylization rather then a notion of untainted reality. It creates an interesting dichotomy and one that I am left to ponder on.
The opening sequence of the film is one that I took great notice of. The montage depicts gangsters making their way through a seemingly maze-like living structure to get to Ming. The almost sardine can-like standards here are reminiscent of Walled City dwellers back in Kowloon years earlier with its extremely dilapidated urban setting. Cockroaches abound, with humans packed together in a small confined space.
One really gets the sense that Ming and these other dwellers are somewhat on a fringe. Partly residing here in the States, but always not belonging. It lends itself to transnational theory, with populations largely caught between two nationalities or culture, not really suscribing solely to one. The framing of many shots cleverly mirrors this; with Ming framed in the foreground by objects like doorways but always half covered or cut off, never in full clear view.
Ultimately its somewhat of a shocking film personally. The Sixth Generation’s NDM back in China has long been dead taken over by foreign market sell outs such as Hero or The Promise, so its even more surprising to see a work like Take Out emerge here. The documentary-like aesthetic works perfectly for the social realism that is being emphasized but strays far away from actually appearing cheap. The film does not at all appear improvised or half-assed. Shots are thought out and consciously montaged together to full effect.
In a way, it takes the best of both world, using the reality of cinéma vérité but the stylings of a more classic feature film narrative. The casting to say the least, is spot on which is shocking given many are non-actors, or non-Chinese. Wei as the kitchen chef hails from Singapore but really does come off as a seasoned cook. The bit roles and extras as well are almost expertly done with natural, on-the-spot dialogue. It appears non-scripted and probably wasn’t, but works to brilliant effect when supplemented with the film’s carefully crafted narrative.
External Links
Take Out Official Site
Take Out @ IMDB
Take Out @ Wikipedia
Tags: 6th generation, china, cinema verite, neorealism, sean baker, shih-ching tsou, social realism