People of Western China: A documentary about life in Chengdu in
1940 Great find of the week: a short film of Chengdu and
surrounding areas in 1940. With plenty of footage of the Sichuan
basin (called "the valley" in the film) and some city scenes
shot in Chengdu, the film is a rare example of motion picture
shot in the first half of the 20th century in China. Click here
for a Youtube version As the footage of farmland rolls, the
narrator describes the Sichuanese as "people who in time of
peace have pursued their placid ways close to the friendly
earth." The city, buzzing with rickshaws and workers toting
shoulder poles, is shown next to the ancient city wall, which
was torn down during the Cultural Revolution. "For centuries,
the flow of seasons and the tides of growth have led a mellow
rhythm to their days," explains the narrator, confirming that
the reputation of Sichuanese as leading slow-paced lives is
long-standing. Li Bing, who is credited with engineering the
ingenius irrigation system more than two mi