Review of A Simple Life (2012) by Walter M — 06 Aug 2014

"A Simple Life" is one of the best Asian drama films I have seen. It is based on the real story of two real persons - one a young film producer called "Roger", the other a maid called "Ah Tao" who has raised him since childhood, and who is now nearing her end. Their relationship is simple, nothing out of the ordinary. And yet it is so meaningful, so dear, so important to them. The film illustrates well how such a typical, simple relationship can be more profound than those strange, twisted, complex relationships told so often in novels.

Throughout the film, neither Ah Tao nor Roger goes out of their ways to pursue and foster this relationship. They both continued to live their semi-separate lives, kept apart by the constraints of modern life in Hong Kong. And yet it was the small things they do to each other - not any heroic act or passionate expression - that are really meaningful. This makes the story very natural and true to our life.

In this story there is no villain. This should not be surprising. Villains are artificial constructs, and so deserve no place in a film that purports to be realistic. It is an illusion that evil deeds and bad events must be caused by villainous intentions. Most of the time they are caused by nature, social structure, and stupidity.

Above the level of personal relationship, "A Simple Life" also tells us how hard it is to be an old person in modern society. That the modern world is hostile to old people, and to family relationships, is not just conservative gibberish. It is a fact. (It need not be, but on the whole at present I think it is.).