One Second

"A mere second at its shortest, a whole lifetime at its longest."

2020 1h 44m ZH

👍

7.3

SOLID

🔥

100%

CERTIFIED FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

7.1

IMDB

★7.3TMDB · 132🍅100%Rotten Tomatoes●79Metacritic★7.1IMDB · 3,488

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A movie fan escapes from a labour camp during the Chinese Cultural Revolution and strikes up a relationship with a homeless female vagabond.

“A mere second at its shortest, a whole lifetime at its longest.”

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Cast

Zhang Yi
Fugitive
Liu Haocun
Orphan Liu
Fan Wei
Mr. Movie
Li Yan
Yang He
Yang Tiecheng
Worker
Li Xiaochuan
Cook
Yu Yang
Truck Driver
Wang Bing
Restaurant Waiter

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Zhang Yimou
Writers: Zhang Yimou, Zou Jingzhi
Languages: Mandarin
Countries: China, Hong Kong

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.3M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 8.6× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 6 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: China, Hong Kong.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Zhang Yimou, shot by Zhao Xiaoding. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Loudboy. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Zhang Yi and Liu Haocun and Fan Wei carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A mere second at its shortest, a whole lifetime at its longest.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Zhang Yimou directs. Zhao Xiaoding behind the camera. Loudboy scores. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in China, Hong Kong. Dialogue in Mandarin.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.3M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Made its money back 8.6× over at the box office.
3Released 6 years ago.
4International production across 2 countries: China, Hong Kong.
5Directed by Zhang Yimou, shot by Zhao Xiaoding. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Loudboy. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Zhang Yi and Liu Haocun and Fan Wei carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "A mere second at its shortest, a whole lifetime at its longest.".
9IMDB entry: tt8959680 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Released under 26 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Zhao Xiaoding
Original score: Loudboy
Runtime: 104 min · 1h 44m
Status: Released
Budget: $1,250,000
Box office: $10,791,301
Return: 863% of budget
Original language: ZH
IMDB: One Second (2020)
Rotten Tomatoes: 100% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 79/100
IMDB rating: 7.1/10 · 3,488 votes

Awards

34 wins & 37 nominations total

Also by

Zhang Yimou

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2025-04-16
★ 7/10
“Zhang” (Yi Zhang) manages to escape from a forced labour camp just as the Chinese cultural revolution is in full swing. His plan is to make it back to his remote home where he hopes to see a screening of a short propaganda newsreel extolling the merits of socialism that features his young daughter. The thing about these multi-reel movies, though, is that they are constantly being circulated, damaged, stopped and stolen - so actually finding it in a working condition near somewhere capable of exhibiting it is no mean feat for this increasingly malnourished and frustrated gent. Then he encounters the wandering “Liu” (Haocun Liu) who also requires the film - but for an entirely different, and probably more practical purpose, so whilst trying to obtain it from her and stay one step ahead of the pursuing authorities, his work is cut out for him. As his quest proceeds, we are introduced by way of flashbacks, to just who he is, who she is, and why we are all chasing this moment encapsulated in nitrate. This reminded me, in many ways, of “Cinema Paradiso” (1988) insofar as it really emphasises just how important cinema was to a small town community. At how revered, almost, the projectionist- in this case “Mr. Movie” (Wei Fan) - was, and despite the fact that the screen was little better than a king sized bed sheet, and just how the population gathered to see whatever the authorities deemed fit for their consumption with eagerness and zeal. It’s thinly veiled critique on all things “party” is disguised in some really quite dark humour with some down right disrespectful dialogue that ridicules the very principles of any one doctrine state, ostensibly benign or just plain authoritarian. The scenes with Wei Fan, especially towards the end, do raise a smile and then there’s the slight futility to it that works well, too. At times the photography gives up quite a powerful degree of intimacy and at other times it stands back and allows us to enjoy, or query, this man’s travails as you begin to wonder will he ever see the film and just what did he ever do to merit such persistent attempts to recapture him! It can be a little sluggish at times, but the last half hour make it worth a watch.
CinemaSerf2025-04-16
★ 7/10
“Zhang” (Yi Zhang) manages to escape from a forced labour camp just as the Chinese cultural revolution is in full swing. His plan is to make it back to his remote home where he hopes to see a screening of a short propaganda newsreel extolling the merits of socialism that features his young daughter. The thing about these multi-reel movies, though, is that they are constantly being circulated, damaged, stolen and even covered in sand, so actually finding one in a working condition near somewhere capable of exhibiting it is no mean feat for this increasingly malnourished and frustrated gent. Then he encounters the wandering “Liu” (Haocun Liu) who also requires the film - but for an entirely different, and probably more practical purpose, so whilst trying to obtain it from her and stay one step ahead of the pursuing authorities, his work is cut out for him. As his quest proceeds, we are introduced by way of flashbacks, to just who he is, who she is, and why we are all chasing this moment encapsulated in nitrate and both actors deliver well. This reminded me, in many ways, of “Cinema Paradiso” (1988) insofar as it also really emphasises just how important cinema was to a small town community. At how revered, almost, the projectionist - in this case “Mr. Movie” (Wei Fan) - was, and despite the fact that the screen was little better than a king-sized bed sheet, at just how the population gathered to see whatever the authorities deemed fit for their consumption with eagerness and zeal. It’s thinly veiled critique on all things “party” is disguised in some really quite dark humour with some down right disrespectful dialogue that ridicules the very principles of any one doctrine state: ostensibly benign or just plain authoritarian, things very rarely changed for the people scraping a living the same way they’d done for centuries. The scenes with Wei Fan, especially towards the end, do raise a smile and then there’s the slight futility to it that works well, too. At times the photography gives us quite a powerful degree of intimacy and at other times it stands back and allows us to enjoy, or query, this man’s purpose as you begin to wonder will he ever see the film and just what did he ever do to merit such persistent attempts to recapture him! It can be a little sluggish at times, but the last half hour makes it worth a watch.