Dongnan Chen’s hybrid documentary Whispers in May is an emotional and weighty coming-of-age film that explores the reluctant journey from childhood to adulthood for those given few options – a deeply delicate and caring film.
In the remote Liangshan Mountains, 14-year-old Qihuo and her friends Atnyop and Itgop set out to find a skirt for her rite of passage after getting her first period. What begins as a small quest to the village of Buxte drifts into a suspended space of childhood, where time slows, and the world is vast.
A story told in a documentary format, Whispers in May is at times a sad and optimistic tale of friendship and in trying to find yourself before your pre-ordained future begins. For Qihuo, it is to become a worker, either at home in a nearby village or as a migrant, a wife, and a mother, hiding her first menstruation to delay this inevitable future. Qihuo does what she can to get by. Skips school more than she should, so an adult does not find out to report back to her mother (who is away working as a migrant labourer). This secret stretches to even returning to stay at her recently deceased grandfather’s home, so no other relatives find out.
In an utterly devastating scene with her mother, Qihuo is told that boys can get married and start a family at 13, and, as she is 14, that she should already be doing that, that her duties to her own daughter are over, and that she is done with her. It’s soul-destroying to hear that and to see how defeated Qihuo is regarding her situation. She just wants to live in her childhood home, have enough food, and hang out with her friends. Yet here she is, told at just 14 to get married so her responsibility can be passed on to her future husband’s family.
The reason for this is that Qihuo’s mother wants the dowry paid to her to cover their debts and her own struggles. The ceremony allows the child to be whisked away for marriage and labour, and the parents, who are typically living in a different country or, at best, far from home in China, to make a living. It’s entirely grim, yet the tradition exists (albeit illegally). A young adolescent is expected to study, care for her siblings and keep growing food on the land of her dead grandparent. It is far too much pressure for someone so young, and that pressure takes its emotional toll on Qihuo. This tale isn’t only forced upon Qihuo, Atnyop and Itgop has it planned for them as well, and while they are more accepting of it, they are still devastated.
Yet, aside from some quiet, introspective discussions with her friends, there is a wonderful teen in Qihuo. Whispers in May isn’t solely focused on the strife she is going through; Director Dongnan Chen shows us how Qihuo still thinks about boys, how she plays with her friends, etc. You, as an audience member, are all in on her journey, and while some scenes go on a tad longer than they need to, the film’s flow is never in danger.
Whispers in May at times feels like a dream, as if the journey and adventure that Qihuo and her friends are taking isn’t all the way real, that it’s the journey they wish they could be taking across the Liangshan Mountains. That line between documentary and narrative gets awfully blurry at times, as you tell the emotions and beats of the main trio and one of their younger sisters, and it’s real. Some are looking forward to getting to work, to get away from where they are and try and do something, whereas Qihuo wants to explore, to experience life and the world before having that all lumped upon her.
Chen uses the mountains’ scenery to match the wildness of our group; there is a bondless energy with them, and this yearning for freedom is like the landscape they explore. It is free and open, everything Qihuo wishes for. Starting astonishingly strong, Chen sets the film’s tone, and the observational yet dreamy style slinks in, and you never question the reasoning behind the choice. It just makes sense to create it this way.
Interspersed throughout Whispers in May are intertitles that tell the tale of Coqotamat, who is a part of the folklore of the area. A tale for young girls to help them navigate through to adulthood. The girls talk about a story that has been passed down, and Chen utilises it to the fullest to help break the film into mini-sections. The tale of a demon who preys on young girls and wears the faces of all their potential futures, trying to lure them in, is a perfect parallel to what Chen explores here.
Whispers in May is poetically crafted, Chen’s work draws viewers into the gentle yet powerful narrative. The sheer gentleness of the film fills you with emotion as you feel for Qihuo as she and her friends take that brave first step into whatever the future holds for them. For Qihuo, there is hope, whether that is the fictional side of this documentary is up for us to decide.
★★★★ 1/2
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