The media has consistently talked about China’s brutal communist dictatorship and how it persecutes people for their beliefs. However, what would it actually feel like to live in such a regime? This is probably a question many would have asked themselves. Coming for You is a movie that gives a glimpse into how scary living under Beijing’s oppressive regime can be.
The movie
The film starts off by showing divine beings in heaven discussing the worsening condition of the Three Worlds. A master Buddha leads the divine beings to reincarnate on Earth, promising to each other that they would never get entrapped in worldly illusion and will always follow the righteous path. However, once they take on the human form, the divine beings forget their true purpose and end up becoming the very thing that they feared — obsessed with material affairs.
Coming for You unfolds through the perspective of the central character named Liu Dawei, who has a very conflicting relationship with his wife. A thug by nature, he uses violence to get things done. But despite the bad things he does, we are able to see that he does have the potential for goodness. Liu gets to embrace this good side after getting into an accident with an old woman. He is surprised that the woman is unscathed even though she was hit by a motorcycle. The woman reveals that she practices Falun Dafa, which focuses on cultivating the virtues of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. Liu is intrigued.
He slowly gets involved in the practice, participating in physical exercise sessions and reading up on the Falun Gong philosophy. Over time, Liu ends up giving up his bad habits like lying, drinking, and beating people up. He realizes that being truthful and kind toward others is the true purpose of life rather than trying to dominate them. His wife sees the change in him and their relationship changes from one of conflict to something that is based on love and respect. She too practices Falun Gong along with him.
Liu becomes a kind, compassionate man after adopting Falun Dafa in ‘Coming for You.’ (Image: via NTD Films)
Everything seems to be going well for Liu for about two-thirds of the movie. It is then that the communist regime enters the picture. The government is worried about the popularity of Falun Dafa. The fact that the practice has more followers than the Communist Party rattles them. The state decides to crack down on the practice. As part of the plan, it manufactures fake stories and news that depict Falun Dafa as a violent, dangerous, and superstitious cult. Many members get arrested and taken to detention centers. Liu realizes that he has to do something. If he does not speak now, he may never be able to speak about Falun Dafa ever again.
Together with his wife and several other Falun Dafa practitioners, Liu conducts a protest against the administration at Tiananmen. They hold banners proclaiming the goodness of Falun Gong. Police arrest and take them to a facility where they are asked to sign a document affirming that they will never practice Falun Dafa. Liu, his wife, and a few others refuse. The officials decide to send them to another location.
It is in these final moments that the movie asks some hard questions. In a conversation with a police officer, Liu asks what crime he has committed to be arrested. The officer is morally conflicted and replies that Liu has committed the act of “defying the Party.” He admits that Liu is not a bad person and that his arrest has nothing to do with him being good or bad. Rather, the arrest is only due to the fact that he committed a “political mistake.”
Liu and his wife protest against the Communist Party’s persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. (Image: via NTD Films)
This particular scene is so powerful in the sense that it truly depicts why the Chinese communist regime is evil — its view of morality is solely dependent on what is good or bad for the Party and nothing else! Universal moral codes don’t apply. If the Party sees you as a threat, no matter how good a person you are, they will deem you a criminal, put you in jail, and torture you.
In the middle of their conversation, the van ends up in an accident. After everyone gets out of the wreck, the officer decides to let them go before he calls for police assistance. Liu, his wife, and other Falun Dafa practitioners walk toward the sunset. We never know their fates.
Public response
Though the movie has not had a wide release like other major films, Coming for You has succeeded in garnering praise wherever it has been screened. “I have heard about Falun Gong before, but the movie showed me that Falun Gong is truly an uplifting self-cultivation. I have a deeper understanding of it now. I know why people have chosen to practice Falun Gong and how they cultivate themselves. I can’t accept the way the [CCP’s] government has labeled it as illegal,” one viewer said to Minghui.
Practitioners of Falun Gong who have escaped China from the communist persecution can relate to the way the film depicts their struggle. For those who may be curious about Falun Gong, their appreciation for the spiritual practice has grown after watching the movie. And for people who wish to understand how completely evil the Chinese Communist Party can be, watching Coming for You should be at the top of your agenda.
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