Shasha, a nomad who has moved frequently, arrives in Cascadian, Oregon. Somehow, the smell of rain here reminds her of the Himalayan foothills she originally comes from. She grows an abundant garden, yet the sky suddenly rains ashes in autumn. Wildfires have erupted all around the state, and the smog keeps seeping into her house, forcing her to evacuate. Driving through the Mad Max-esque haze, her thoughts drift back to Lijiang, her ancestral hometown in China, where her maternal Nakhi tribe celebrates Fire as a divine natural force every summer. A journey of tracing dream-like currents of memories unfolds.
“Heaven Rain Flows Sweetly” review is part of the Submit Your Film Initiative
Somewhere between a travelogue, a video essay and a visualization of a diary, Shasha Li's intimate trip through Himalayan China is as personal as it is universal. Through a combination of her own narration, photographs from the past and footage of the present, Li tries to connect her past with her present and China with the US, all the while highlighting the changes the latter has undergone during her absence.
In that regard, the fact that when she left Lijiang, its population was 50,000 but now is a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site and a tourist attraction receiving millions of visitors every year and filled with new buildings emerges as one of the most shocking aspects of the movie. Equally impressive, however, is the fact that on the deeper levels of the area the Dongba animistic traditions of the past still linger, while the agricultural lifestyle is still retained, if as an exception nowadays. Her meeting with a young man in one of those areas actually emerges as one of the most interesting parts of the whole film, with his thoughts on urbanization and returning to rural life echoing as realistic as possible.
The story of her grandmother, whom she grew up with, is also quite interesting, with the trip down memory lane both showcasing the changes that have taken place and allowing the audience to learn of the director's past in the most intimate fashion.
Through both the aforementioned aspects, the comment on climate change and the impact it has in both rural and urban areas is showcased quite eloquently, as, essentially, the main comment of the whole movie. At the same time, how progress and urbanization are practically “deleting” tradition, and conjunctively, memory, is the second main comment here, which is presented, though, subtly, and through context.
Li's one man show as cinematographer and editor is equally intricate, with the shots she has included in the movie and their combination with her soft, smooth voice resulting in a series of rather pleasant vignettes, while the joining and succession of the various cinematic elements here is quite competent. Some lingering here and there does exist, but at 67 minutes, the movie definitely does not overextend its welcome.
Despite its somewhat experimental nature, “Heaven Rain Flows Sweetly” is actually a film quite easy to watch, while Li's prowess in all the cinematic aspects of the movie becomes quite evident throughout its duration, and particularly in the presentation of her comments.
