Do I review When the Dragon Swallowed the Sun as a film or as a message? Because I think it is a message foremost. It is a manipulation of the medium of cinema to serve a political purpose. And the message is conveyed with clarity and some sensitivity. As a film, it errs significantly. I disappointed myself, becoming increasingly agitated with this film, since the political purpose it serves so effectively is strong and honorable, and just about inarguable. But I was shocked to learn that it is just 115 minutes in length, as, truthfully, it felt like a full three hours. What can be gained through the individual discourses of the figures interviewed herein, as noted and as influential as you could ask for, is considerable. What is gained through editing them together into long, dithering strings of dry dialogue is counter-effective. The average human brain cannot remain so active for so long. An incisive director knows when our attention might be lost, and how to combat this from the outset. Non-'talking-head' sequences set to the music of Philip Glass are more involving; the mournful tones of his score for The Hours are better employed here than in Stephen Daldry's film, and Dirk Simon expertly reforms your opinion of the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the final, hideous few moments. Often, though, musical cues are intrusive and even offensive. Simon champions the advocation of absolute non-violence in his film's subject, yet he is culpable of cinematic violence in the crude way in which he over-dramatises reality with blustering soundtrack. There is plenty of material in When the Dragon Swallowed the Sun to craft an inspiring, devastating documentary, but it is so clumsily assembled that Simon inadvertently leaves room for one's mind to wander, possibly to how sore one's bottom is becoming. He never lost my sympathy, nor my interest, just my attention. What a dreadful thing, but my favourite part of this film was when the credits rolled.
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