Movie Review: Environmental Protection Guardians, a Chinese family movie from 2011!

Many people outside China has probably never heard of the director Lu Yi (in fact, I only heard of him after watching his movies on Chinese sites by accident), he is a local director from Beijing the capital of China but his movies has so far never been shown outside the Chinese walls. Most of his film are political issues for example environmentalists and society criticize based plots but most of them work as any one can relate to. "Environmental Protection Guardians" is his first released movie from 2011 that has a good tone family friendly and educational idea.

Story:

A ten year old lazy boy Xiaofei (Xiaohe Ruofan) is not doing well in school, instead of earning money for a school project he spend the money on games. His father (Lu Yi) is ten times worse than his son, forcing his worker overtime despite some of them get injured and his work is not healthy he still push the limits. One day the teacher (Pian San Ming) has an idea of an educational program, to send her class out in nature and study the environment. But right after the class has arrived, Xiaofei and four of his friends (Zhang Yu Jie, Guoan Shaofeng, Liu Qang Yuan, Zhang Yu Rong) split from class and heading out in the nature. But late at night they fall a sleep in a watering cave, the drops are magical and when the drops hit the kids face they're traveling back in time 40 years ago when the environment was fresh and not polluted, the water is drinkable and the air is healthy. It's different from the timeline they are use to, Xiaofei and his team learns the beauty of healthy nature, and then Xiaofei meets his father as a young boy, now Xiaofei has changed his deeds to good and will now teach his father the right ways of the environment, the son becomes a teacher to his own father.

Overall:

After its release on January 2011, the movie did get a standing ovation in local theaters and it got claimed to be a great environmental education movie and rightfully so. Although it is mostly giggling scenes and it's never any danger feeling or any sad moment and very much a movie for kids, the idea of the story is well told, Lu Yi really shows his ambition for the purpose plot and even take the stand to play a greedy workaholic character, his heart for the environment is shown. The only thing that is strange is Xiaofei the trouble making boy turn to good boy is played by a girl actress Xiaohe Ruofan, and it's clear that it is a girl despite it's a ten year old, but Xiaohe Ruofan play the character very cute and likable so it makes it forgiving. I reward this environment Movie a 6/10, the ambition is there with a heart.