In a world full of information, how do you figure out what’s truly important?  How do you make sure you learn about the world if there are parts of that world that are hidden from view?  Artist and political/social dissident Ai Weiwei (as his name is Chinese, his “surname” is first, and his “first” name is second, got it?) shines a harsh light on the Chinese Government’s corruption, cover-ups and lies, at great personal risk.  All the while creating art that is as breathtaking in it’s complexity as is the man himself.  Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry takes viewers through the most harrowing years of Ai’s life, showing not only the man but the injustice that lead him to act.  It’s a powerful, thought-provoking film that demands to be watched.

You may not remember hearing about Ai Weiwei, but if you’re a fan of the Olympics (and right now, who isn’t), you’ll remember the beautiful “Bird’s Nest” stadium from the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China.  Ai was the artistic consultant for that stadium, and it’s a beautiful representation of his work.  Ai works with many different mediums, including film, photography, sculpture and installations.  But as Ai saw the people of China being oppressed and left in the dark by their own Government, Ai’s art became more and more about getting information to the people, and making political statements.

When the Sichuan earthquake in 2008 led to the deaths of thousands of children — mainly because schools the children attended were built with shoddy “tofu construction”  .  The Chinese government rushed to cover up the exact number of deaths, and Ai Weiwei took action.  He went from place to place, asking families about children that had died, gathering names, and adding them to a list.  By the first year anniversary of the tragedy, he had collected a wall full of names, a heartbreaking work of courage on the part of Ai and the volunteers that assisted him on this project.  Shortly thereafter, the Chinese government shut down Ai’s personal blog.  Ai then took to Twitter as his way of getting his message across.  Getting more into his story won’t necessarily lessen the impact of this film (hello, internet), but let’s just say things go from bad to worse, to hospitalization and arrest.  At the end of this film I had to stop, look up, and say “thanks for being cool, America.”  Because whatever your political bent, America lets us all fly our personal freak flags, and the First Amendment has our backs.  It’s tough to remember that not all people in the world enjoy this same ability.

Director Alison Klayman follows the artist, his assistants, his family and his friends and paints her own picture of a man whose efforts to truly give China back to the people seems like a struggle against overwhelming odds.  I immediately thought of the old xeroxed meme “The Last Great Act of Defiance”.  Apt, since Ai Weiwei has done many photographs where his middle finger is the star (“A Study of Perspective”, 1995-2003).    I hope that the odds are more in his favor than they were for the mouse.  Only time will tell.

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry has so much information about the man and the problems that stirred him to action that it’s almost overwhelming.  Luckily, it’s absolutely fascinating, and the information slips into the consciousness of the viewer easily.  You can’t see this film and not be moved and amazed by the man.  Plus, as an artist his work is breathtaking (note: I’m a huge fan of conceptual art).  Ai Weiwei was shown at this year’s SilverDocs Festival in Silver Spring, and I hope it will come to Baltimore theaters soon (the film opens in limited release July 27th.)  See this film however you can.

Ai Weiwei’s Twitter page: https://twitter.com/aiww
Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AWWNeverSorry/
Free Ai Weiwei on Twitter: https://twitter.com/freeaiww

FULL DISCLOSURE: I received a screener copy of this film instead of viewing it in the theater.  I didn’t receive any free swag, nor was I plied with free booze.  (Dammit!)