Not One Less
1999·Drama·1h 46m
7.1
★
Set in the People's Republic of China during the 1990s, the film centers on a 13-year-old substitute teacher, Wei Minzhi, in the Chinese countryside. Called in to substitute for a village teacher for one month, Wei is told not to lose any students.
Directed by Zhang Yimou
class
village
mayor
mountain
promise
teacher
money
food
chalk
Trailer
IMDB
N/A
Where to Watch
Cast
Wei Minzhi
Wei Minzhi
Zhang Huike
Zhang Huike
Tian Zhenda
Village Chief
Gao Enman
Teacher Gao
Bai Mei
Juxin Restaurant Manager
Crew
Zhang Yimou
Director
San Bao
Original Music Composer
Hou Yong
Director of Photography
Zhang Zhenyan
Production Manager
Popular Reviews
28 reviews
Jota
8.0★ · 02/01/26
puro, real e cheio de emoção.
魏老师！
魏老师！
puro, real e cheio de emoção.
魏老师！
魏老师！
John Potash
6.0★ · 10/13/25
this shit piss me off ngl
this shit piss me off ngl
Louise
9.0★ · 04/24/24
reminded me of home. like. i grew up here. this was not only me, but even more my mom. my dad...and so on. he did his nine years and fled the country!! no one chased after him..
(also not loving the reductive comments that equate this/zhang yimou's/chinese realism era to iranian cinema... just doing pure disservice to both local cinemas. not good)
(also not loving the reductive comments that equate this/zhang yimou's/chinese realism era to iranian cinema... just doing pure disservice to both local cinemas. not good)
reminded me of home. like. i grew up here. this was not only me, but even more my mom. my dad...and so on. he did his nine years and fled the country!! no one chased after him..
(also not loving the reductive comments that equate this/zhang yimou's/chinese realism era to iranian cinema... just doing pure disservice to both local cinemas. not good)
(also not loving the reductive comments that equate this/zhang yimou's/chinese realism era to iranian cinema... just doing pure disservice to both local cinemas. not good)
Npu
8.3★ · 10/01/23
Jiang Zemin-era neo-realist fairy tale about how despite the widening wealth gap in the 90s, economic growth in the urban areas of China and impoverished life in rural areas can coexist in Marxist and philanthropic harmony. That harmony didn’t last, but the allure of the ideal remains powerful.
Jiang Zemin-era neo-realist fairy tale about how despite the widening wealth gap in the 90s, economic growth in the urban areas of China and impoverished life in rural areas can coexist in Marxist and philanthropic harmony. That harmony didn’t last, but the allure of the ideal remains powerful.
Lucas
9.0★ · 05/07/21
The premise of the movie sounded very interesting to me. An unqualified young girl is a substitute teacher for a bunch of poor kids and when one of them leaves to the city she goes on a long journey to find him.
The movie definitely didn't disappoint. The story is easy to follow and told in a more light-hearted way than many other of Zhang Yimous movies. Overall this is different from his usual movies in many way. Not only is Gong Li not in it, there are no professional actors. This is also the least colorful movie he has made. But it all works for the movie
The characters are fun to watch. Our protagonist is very compelling to watch. Especially in the second half when she arrives to the city. The contrast between this young confused poor girl in the big city is great. I also have to say that you can't tell that she is not an actor, because she plays the role beautifully and all the performances are great
Even though this is definitely not as serious as some other Zhang Yimou movies, doesn't mean it has nothing going for it. Underneath the relatively light-hearted dramedy there is a critique of the inequality between rich and poor. But the message is very neatly rapped in a great movie. It's just a good time watching, with a satisfying conclusion and a compelling watch throughout. Extremely enjoyable and worth a watch
Zhang Yimou ranked
The movie definitely didn't disappoint. The story is easy to follow and told in a more light-hearted way than many other of Zhang Yimous movies. Overall this is different from his usual movies in many way. Not only is Gong Li not in it, there are no professional actors. This is also the least colorful movie he has made. But it all works for the movie
The characters are fun to watch. Our protagonist is very compelling to watch. Especially in the second half when she arrives to the city. The contrast between this young confused poor girl in the big city is great. I also have to say that you can't tell that she is not an actor, because she plays the role beautifully and all the performances are great
Even though this is definitely not as serious as some other Zhang Yimou movies, doesn't mean it has nothing going for it. Underneath the relatively light-hearted dramedy there is a critique of the inequality between rich and poor. But the message is very neatly rapped in a great movie. It's just a good time watching, with a satisfying conclusion and a compelling watch throughout. Extremely enjoyable and worth a watch
Zhang Yimou ranked
The premise of the movie sounded very interesting to me. An unqualified young girl is a substitute teacher for a bunch of poor kids and when one of them leaves to the city she goes on a long journey to find him.
The movie definitely didn't disappoint. The story is easy to follow and told in a more light-hearted way than many other of Zhang Yimous movies. Overall this is different from his usual movies in many way. Not only is Gong Li not in it, there are no professional actors. This is also the least colorful movie he has made. But it all works for the movie
The characters are fun to watch. Our protagonist is very compelling to watch. Especially in the second half when she arrives to the city. The contrast between this young confused poor girl in the big city is great. I also have to say that you can't tell that she is not an actor, because she plays the role beautifully and all the performances are great
Even though this is definitely not as serious as some other Zhang Yimou movies, doesn't mean it has nothing going for it. Underneath the relatively light-hearted dramedy there is a critique of the inequality between rich and poor. But the message is very neatly rapped in a great movie. It's just a good time watching, with a satisfying conclusion and a compelling watch throughout. Extremely enjoyable and worth a watch
Zhang Yimou ranked
The movie definitely didn't disappoint. The story is easy to follow and told in a more light-hearted way than many other of Zhang Yimous movies. Overall this is different from his usual movies in many way. Not only is Gong Li not in it, there are no professional actors. This is also the least colorful movie he has made. But it all works for the movie
The characters are fun to watch. Our protagonist is very compelling to watch. Especially in the second half when she arrives to the city. The contrast between this young confused poor girl in the big city is great. I also have to say that you can't tell that she is not an actor, because she plays the role beautifully and all the performances are great
Even though this is definitely not as serious as some other Zhang Yimou movies, doesn't mean it has nothing going for it. Underneath the relatively light-hearted dramedy there is a critique of the inequality between rich and poor. But the message is very neatly rapped in a great movie. It's just a good time watching, with a satisfying conclusion and a compelling watch throughout. Extremely enjoyable and worth a watch
Zhang Yimou ranked