Up the Yangtze
WATCH THE TRAILER ABOVE
Up the Yangtze is a shocking and deeply moving documentary about the lives of individual Chinese people affected by the massive Three Gorges Dam project. I was completely blown away by this film. It is absolutely one of the best documentaries ever made.
“A luxury cruise boat motors up the Yangtze — navigating the mythic waterway known in China simply as “The River.” The Yangtze is about to be transformed by the biggest hydroelectric dam in history. At the river’s edge — a young woman says goodbye to her family as the floodwaters rise towards their small homestead. The Three Gorges Dam — contested symbol of the Chinese economic miracle — provides the epic backdrop for Up the Yangtze, a dramatic feature documentary on life inside modern China.
Be sure to read this excellent Q&A with the film’s director, Yung Chang.