Critics reviews

Despite censorship, Zhang Yimou's tale of the power of cinema has a gorgeous eye, a droll sense of humor and a big, full celluloid heart.

Many movies are meant as love letters to cinema and One Second truly is one. It takes us back to a place and time where the magic of the cinematic experience feels fresh, where people treat films––down to the strips of plastic they’re recorded on––with ceremonial reverence.

As with many (most?) of Zhang’s films, there are stunning images in One Second that, individually, are more powerful than the film that contains them. He’s a filmmaker of moments and seconds.

Yimou was often praised for his artful use of saturated colour, but the palette in this dour Mao suit period is deliberately drab. Almost the whole film is shown in muted blues and grey and browns. Even the people’s faces are covered in grime or dust blowing in from the desert. Still, despite it all, the warmth shines through.

Whatever the behind-the-scenes obtuseness, the result remains a clear-eyed but loving tribute to film, just as Zhang always intended.

Zhang’s vision may have been compromised to a degree, but if you look to the periphery of his frames, as well as to his characters’ haunted faces and stories of the past, it’s difficult to deny that One Second isn’t haunted by that history, and that the filmmaker is nipping at the hand that feeds.

[T]he drab Maoist setting and dusty environment combine to make this one of Zhang’s less visually interesting works. It’s more reminiscent of his early work, and clearly coming from a very personal place.

“One Second” also boasts something that even Zhang’s best movies haven’t always been afforded: A delicious and deeply layered sense of irony.

Billed by the director as his tribute to cinema, One Second is affectionate and sweet – perhaps a bit too sweet, considering this premiere was much delayed after the film was held back by the Chinese government for supposed technical reasons in 2019.

A piquant blend of comedy and drama, One Second is a welcome return to personal territory for Zhang which will prove particularly delightful for ardent cineastes.