The Human Flow Film, Ai Weiwei, Theoretical Context For Analysis

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The Human Flow
The issue of immigration is one that elicits a lot of debate. Countries never seem to agree on the course of action, and this has led to the increase in the number of refugees. In Europe, for example, the issue of immigration has been debated over time and at times almost drove the continent to points of no return. While some countries have opened its doors for immigrants, others seem cautious and want to be left out of the discussions. President Trump of the United States has also come under criticism because of his comments regarding the state of immigrants in the US. However, as it turns out, no one seems to want to open their doors for the immigrants, but everyone wants to speak about the issue. Various pictures and videos have been circulated online depicting the plight of immigrants, and while people are drawn into the issue, problems seem to emerge when forging or finding solutions to the issue. Personally, immigration for me was not an immediate issue, and I had never thought that it should be. However, over time and with the help of this course, I have come to understand why immigration is personal and an essential topic which warrants every person’s attention.
In Weiwei’s Human Flow, one is introduced to the issue of immigration and the plight of immigrants. Initially, my feelings and opinions towards immigrants were that they are poor in need of help. I saw them as the low-class people whose position in the society was not assured. Like everyone else who is unschooled in this matter, I asked myself why someone would want to leave their home. The truth is, it never occurred to me that some immigrants never had a choice and that other factors played a role in their plight. Ignorance of certain issues in the world often leads to less than adequate solutions, and this has been the norm so far. People believe immigration is a simple issue, but the truth is it is tied to certain political, social, and cultural issues. Weiwei is a man who understands the issue of immigration having been one himself at some point. Having lived away from home, for a long time, Weiwei understands how it feels to be an immigrant and to interact with other people from a different culture.
In Human Flow, Weiwei had a mission, and from the start of the film, he intends to make a difference or to approach the matter differently. According to Dargis (2017), “what Mr. Ai seeks is to go far beyond the nightly news; he wants to give you a sense of the scale of the crisis, its terrifying, world-swallowing immensity. And so, he jumps from one heartbreak to the next, passes through Gaza, drops into Pakistan, spends time in Turkey and ambles along the border separating (somewhat) Mexico and the United States, where an American border guard rather ridiculously tries to explain where Mr. Ai can and cannot go.” The truth is, the media often delivers news and provide the public with a portion of the story while also leaving a large portion out. The issue of immigration is quite huge, and Weiwei wanted to offer viewers a side of the story which the media often ignores. He makes it personal by providing viewers with stories of different families which were forced to move f...