Review of Human Flow (2017) by Dennis H — 16 Sep 2017

Ai Weiwei has become one of the better-known contemporary artists to western society, perhaps mainly due to his outspokenness of criticisms against the Chinese government. His portfolio includes many documentaries, many of which comment on injustice in the legal system. Much of his recent focus has been placed on the refugee crisis, which he has done extensive investigations on. His exhibition of personal belongings collected from refugee camps and a giant sculpture of a refugee boat shows a strong concern for refugee human rights.

This documentary mainly describes the severe conditions that refugees endure on their journey, which often times lead to a dead-end at closed borders, where countries on both sides reject them. Many of these refugees recount their stories, and are often asked to stare into the camera for uncomfortably long periods of time. Sometimes these stares make them more familiar, like your neighbor or even someone in your family; other times it becomes a distracting technique. You see the refugees' homes that are completely destroyed by bombs, a young man silently weeping amidst protest calls outside the Macedonian border out of hopelessness, but also laughter outside a closed border camp when a cute cat picture is passed around on someone's phone.

While bringing some moments of sympathy and shock, the almost-two-and-a-half-hour documentary is far too shallow, merely taking a bird- eye view of the refugee crisis that is happening in the world, from Syria to Africa to Mexico and the Philippines. It is not capable of fully presenting the conditions of any refugee group, only touching the surface as it shifts around the globe. The topic is too broad there is almost no in-depth discussion on the specific issues of each region, let alone any solutions. Much footage shows the director himself recording and interacting with the refugees, but it still fails to establish any meaningful connections with the audience and may come across as pretentious.