Back to 1942

Back to 1942 is set in Henan Province during the winter of 1942, as the Sino-Japanese War leaves much of China under Japanese occupation. A severe drought and failed harvests bring on a famine that drives millions from their homes, while Japanese aircraft bomb the roads crowded with refugees. Local officials remain absorbed in their own disputes rather than addressing the disaster. At the centre of the story is Fan Dianyuan, a merchant trying to keep his family alive as they join the exodus, alongside an American journalist and a diplomat who attempt to draw attention to the suffering.

Feng Xiaogang directed the film, the eighth of the thirteen features he has made in chronological order, arriving between Aftershock and I Am Not Madame Bovary. The screenplay is by Liu Zhenyun, and the large credited cast of thirty-one includes Zhang Guoli as Fan Dianyuan, Xu Fan as Hua Zhi, Zhang Hanyu as An Ximan, Chen Daoming as Jiang Jieshi and Adrien Brody as Theodore Harold White. The production was mounted by China Film Group Corporation, Media Asia Films, Huayi Brothers Pictures and Sil-Metropole Organisation.

On IMDb the film holds a modest audience rating, while critics were less favourable, with a score of 5.2/10 from eleven reviews. On TMDB it sits at 6.7/10 from eighty-seven votes, indicating a small but somewhat warmer viewer response.