Loved this from start to finish! Although I probably loved the start just a little bit more as I live in Beijing and it felt so authentic and familiar seeing the main character Tang in his dingy apartment, his messy office (complete with Hello Kitty air-purifier) and scooting around the city while the CCTV-building looms ever-threateningly in the background. The opening space suit scene is peak comedy, expertly set up and executed through smart editing and sharp acting. But it also has the perfect portion of pathos, for dear Tang, who having to impress the reps from a visiting company and needing to close the much-needed advertising deal to save his fledgling space-exploration magazine (an actual magazine in China in the 80's and 90's called 飞碟探索) dons his precious space suit and, well, you’ll have to see for yourself.

It is this first scene’s laugh out loud hilarity intertwined with deep-rooted despair that sets the stage for the anomalous journey of Tang and his motley, half willing half-unwilling, crew to the West (of Chengdu) to investigate a very real video he found on the internet.

The themes and existential musings of big budget sci-fi spectacles like Arrival, Interstellar, The Wandering Earth and (especially ) are easy to recognize here, and while it might not be the most original story, I prefer the young director, Kong Dashan's, low-budget, grounded approach that’s less cinematic, and more personable. If we can imagine those blockbusters strutting around all aloof, serious and dramatic without an ounce of relatability or moments of levity then Journey to the West ambles along awkwardly, just like we do in real life. Tang’s journey is a sad one but we find balance in the honest, humorous, human moments along the way and I appreciate that. It feels more real.

Another reason I eagerly endure Tang’s increasingly desperate pursuit is the wonderful performance by the actor playing Tang, Haoyu Yang, who plays him with a constant earnestness and manages to keep us rooting for him even when it seems his blind faith will lead them to possible starvation or incineration.  All the ing actors do a great job also and I appreciate how peripheral they stay to Tang's journey.

The film looks beautiful and I see, again, how the constraints of a smaller budget can be beneficial in the hands of a competent filmmaker and crew who know how to choose a location, light and frame it, and stage the actors.

I have two minor gripes. One being the addition of narcolepsy to a character has never been justified to me in any films and I feel the same here. Another is the title. Would it perhaps have been better to leave it up to the audience to recognize the similarity to the ancient tale? Two main characters’ names already hint as much… 唐 and 孙.

But here’s one last thing that I loved! And I should’ve put this little anecdote at the top of this review cause it’s pretty great and who reads this far but anyway… I don’t believe this gives too much away but if you’re very spoiler-careful come back and read this after seeing the film…

So in the film Tang decides to sell his space suit to pay for his mission. The buyer is a movie director who is hesitant at first but then buys it, saying “It’s for a sci-fi movie”. The buyer is played by Frant Gwo, the actual director of The Wandering Earth 1 & 2, and his studio invested in Journey to the West ensuring that the movie could be made. So as Kong Dashan was able to make his movie thanks to Frant Gwo so was Tang able to pursue his ion thanks to Frant Gwo’s character buying the space suit! So that’s some nice art imitating life right there. There’s a noteworthy shot of Tang looking through the window at him and it lingers for a while longer, and I like to think of it as a thank you. A thank you to Gwo for ing original, indie filmmakers.

Go see this movie if you can find it.