Da Shi Jie

A dark meditation on the false promise of Chinese Communism and the lower classes’ desperate search for economic prosperity. Have a Nice Day features a wide ensemble of characters who are united in their poverty within Chinese society. The film demonstrates how, without meaningful opportunites to advance economically, there’s hardly room for the moral nuances of these characters’ survival struggle (which leaves little room for the viewer to judge.)

Characters can subscribe to the spiritual schools of Buddha, Bill Gates or Mao and still not have the means to afford quality plastic surgery (like the Koreans), let alone material bliss in the form of online ... shopping. But hey, it’s good to dream of Shangri-la, right?

The film’s quintessential scene involves one character explaining 自由 (zìyóu or freedom) using the analogy of shopping, perhaps more specifically of affording. From that story, it’s clear: None of these people are free. Freedom isn’t found in poverty - but violence is. And things are going to get real bloody.