In 1962, Zhang Nuanxin graduated from the Directing Department of the Beijing Film Academy, and later started working there as a lecturer. She began her career as an assistant to third-generation Chinese filmmakers like Sang Hu or Xie Jin. However, in 1979, she, along with her husband and film critic Li Tuo, wrote a manifesto-like article “On the Modernization of Film Language” which led her to direct her first feature film.
While working on the script, Zhang came across Chinese table tennis player Rong Guotuan’s suicide letter in which he said that he loved honour more than his life. That quote surprised her greatly. After learning that top-level Chinese athletes possess a strong sense of honour, she decided to make this the main motif of her debut. The result of her realistic vision and in-depth research, “The Drive to Win”, won the Ministry of Culture’s Outstanding Film Award in 1981 and several awards at the 2nd national Golden Rooster Competition in 1982.
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The story focuses on Shaou (Chang Shanshan), a member of the national women’s volleyball team, who is preparing for the first international championship. She states that her dream is to beat the Japanese team and win first place. However, one day, she’s informed that she has a serious waist injury and is advised to leave the team immediately to recuperate. Otherwise, she might become disabled for the rest of her life. Nevertheless, her determination prevents her from retreating and even motivates her to strengthen the training.
Thanks to the careful treatment and the support of her fiancé, Shen Daiwei (Guo Bichuan), himself an athlete who understand her perseverance, she is eventually approved to participate in the competition. However, the result is not what she dreamed of. Although she cannot accept the loss, she realizes that she must say goodbye to playing volleyball. Hence, she decides to settle down and focus on her future life with Daiwei. Unfortunately, it seems that family life is not destined for her either.
In her films, Zhang aims to narrate the stories of alienated youth and Chinese contemporary history. This is particularly evident in her debut, where the protagonist’s bittersweet life seems to summarize the experience of several generations of people who had their dreams destroyed by the Cultural Revolution. After all, Shaou mentions in the beginning that this is the main reason why she didn’t have a chance to take part in the championship in previous years.
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The narration takes on a slightly nationalistic impression, especially due to the emphasis on the desire to beat the Japanese team. The constant stress on the importance of collective and national achievement, rather than individual aspirations, can also feel relatively propagandistic. Yet, the plot focuses first and foremost on expressing the voice of a generation whose ambitions were not fulfilled due to the ten years of turmoil. In this sense, this sport drama conveys a strongly uplifting and motivational tone.
Shot in accordance with Zhang and Li’s manifesto, “The Drive to Win” focuses on presenting the narrative in a realistic, almost documentary-like form. Instead of using conflicts between characters or certain entanglements to move the plot forward, Zhang employs them to show the richness of life. Elements that are irrelevant to the plot, are key in the process of creating multilayered characters. Moreover, through the use of mostly moving long shots, natural lighting and on-location shooting, the sense of lived experience is enhanced.
Despite her inexperience, Chang Shanshan’s movements and facial expressions feel natural and unforced. Moreover, the grounded performances of the professional cast complement the more understated style of the non-professional actors, enhancing the film’s realism, a quality Zhang emphasized from the very start.
Apart from holding an important place in the history of Chinese cinema as a groundbreaking realist film of the post-Mao era, “The Drive to Win” can also be considered a significant contribution to the feminist discourse in this country. What the viewer may pay attention to is the prominent female perspective and inspiring will to not give up despite facing multiple obstacles. Nonetheless, this approach seems to be slightly overshadowed by Zhang’s socialist ideas which, even after the Cultural Revolution, she continued to uphold. Ultimately, it is a well-crafted, female-led motivational film, which is worth giving a try.
