European Festival Premiere | In Competition
China, 2024, 133’, Mandarin
Directed by: Peng Damo & Yan Fei
Screenplay: Peng Damo, Yan Fei, Lin Bingbao
Cinematography (color): Sun Ming
Editing: Zhou Xiaolin
Music: Peng Fei
Producer: Zhang Lebin
Production Companies: Haikou Xihong Hutong Film and Television, Wanda Film and Television Media, Tianjin Maoyan Microfilm Media, Zhejiang Kaixin Mahua Film, Shanghai Ruyi Film Production, Beijing Alibaba Film, Horgos Lianrui Film, China Film Co., Ltd.
Cast: Shen Teng (Ma Chenggang), Ma Li (Chunlan), Shi Pengyuan (Ma Jiye), Xiao Bochen (Young Ma Jiye), Sa Rina (Grandma/teacher Li), Zhang Zidong (Ma Dajun), Jia Bing (President Jia), Wei Xiang (Mr.Wei), Li Jiaqi (Zhang Feifei)
Date of First Release in Territory: July 16th, 2024
Their somewhat peculiar style of comedy, which swings from demented to sentimental, has helped in no small way cement the popularity of the Mahua FunAge film and theatre production powerhouse. It reaches epic proportions in their latest feature, Successor. With over three billion RMB in box office takings, the film was the hit of the 2024 summer season. Written and directed by Yan Fei and Peng Damo, two long-standing members of Mahua, and the pair behind some of the group’s most celebrated productions, Successor is a satire that, in today’s China of rampant capitalism, takes aim at some of the fundamental pillars of Chinese culture: the value of education, filial piety and discipline.
The plot revolves around a seemingly poor but happy family: Ma Chenggang and his wife Chunlan work hard to support their son Ma Jiye and Chunlan’s mother. They live in a dilapidated building, get around in a donkey cart, are extremely thrifty, and they urge little Jiye to devote his time to his studies in the hope that, one day, he will be able to enter the prestigious Tsingbei University, and change the family’s destiny. But it is all a farce: in reality, the Ma’s are billionaires.
Ma Chenggang, a typical member of the generation that grew up in socialist China but amassed wealth after the reforms of “Chinese-style socialism”, is obsessed with the idea that his son will grow up too spoilt to manage the fortune accumulated by his father. Ma Chenggang’s eldest son leads a lavish life, which to Ma provides proof positive that spoiling children leads to disastrous results. So, with the help of his second wife Chunlan and her parents, Ma builds a virtual reality around Jiye, whose existence is monitored every second by a team charged with ensuring that he becomes a perfect example of filial piety.
Poor Jiye, unaware of what is really going on within the walls of his home – there is a complex laboratory hidden in the basement, where his father monitors and manipulates his every step – grows up carrying on his fragile shoulders the weight of a world he did not choose. Perennially tormented by guilt towards his parents, who continually preach lessons in morality, Jiye dares not allow himself a moment’s leisure or rebellion as he has responsibilities that are at odds with his age, such as managing the family’s daily expenses.
As he grows, he begins to suspect that something is amiss in his reality. Instead of becoming a strong and determined man, he begins to question whether he is living in some kind of parallel universe, controlled by supernatural forces…
Jiye’s mishaps are portrayed in the distinctive style of Mahua FunAge’s films, now synonymous with guaranteed comedy gems in both theatres and cinemas. The narrative unfolds through a series of hilarious skits, distinguished by the exuberant use of facial expressions and the gestural comedy of consummate actors such as Shen Teng and Ma Li. Thanks to their extensive theatrical careers, these actors have a visceral rapport with their public that produces performances bursting with energy. Every aspect of the film is exaggerated: the situations, the emotions and even the locations, which have ridiculous names like Spunky County and Slinky Town.
Successor leaves a bitter-sweet taste in the spectator’s mouth, as it revolves around a profound contradiction: Ma Chenggang wants his son to earn his trust by behaving with integrity, but it is he who betrays this trust, deceiving and manipulating Jiye and sacrificing his youth on the altar of his paternalistic selfishness.
The film’s moral is expressed in the song that plays over the credits: “I don’t want to be your kite, I want to be the wind.”
The blend of sentiment and wacky humour which is the speciality of production house Mahua FunAge reaches epic proportions with "Successor"! A satire targetting the pillars of Chinese culture that centres on the poor but happy Ma family, where the parents work hard to support their son. But the Mas are actually very rich, and have built a poverty-based Truman Show around their boy so as not to spoil him. Until…
GUEST:
PENG Damo, director
YAN Fei, director
MA Chi, producer
WANG Yanan, line producer
Peng Damo
Director, screenwriter and actor, he (b. 1983) is also the vice-president of the Liaoning Film Association. He graduated from the Beijing Film Academy and has been a member of Mahua FunAge since 2004.
SELECTED FILMOGRAPHY
2015 – Goodbye Mr. Loser
2018 – Hello Mr. Billionaire
2020 – My People, My Homeland (seg. The Magical Touches)
2024 – Successor
Yan Fei
Director and screenwriter, Yan (b. 1983) graduated from the PLA Academy of Art. Since 2007, he has been a member of the creative team of Mahua FunAge, a multi-format group that has been producing successful TV sketches, plays and films. With Peng Damo he co-produced the film
Too Cool to Kill (FEFF 2022).
SELECTED FILMOGRAPHY
2015 – Goodbye Mr. Loser
2018 – Hello Mr. Billionaire
2020 – My People, My Homeland (seg. The Magical Touches)
2024 – Successor