Please Vote for Me

A free-election democracy has its ups and downs—the 2000 Bush/Gore race being a case in point. Weijun Chen's documentary Please Vote for Me—which focuses on pint-sized candidates vying for a third-grade office in an elementary school in Wuhan, China—captures these difficulties on a small scale, and actually throws them into higher relief. The contest is for the hitherto appointed post of class monitor, who helps maintain order among the students. A trio of eight-year-olds have been chosen by the teacher to run for the position: incumbent Luo Lei (son of a policeman), a talkative lad named Cheng Cheng, and timid girl Xu Xiaofei. It doesn't take long for dirty tricks and bribery to enter the picture as the kids give speeches, engage in debates, and even have a talent competition, while also chatting up their fellow students one-on-one. The candidates are egged on by their ambitious parents—virtual handlers—who coach the children in speech delivery and darker tactics, in some cases even offering suggestions for undermining the competition and helping them buy votes. Please Vote for Me serves up a good deal of charm as the tykes vie for recognition (and poignancy as the losers react to humiliation and defeat), while also suggesting the difficulties of successfully implementing democracy in a historically non-conducive environment. Highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (F. Swietek)