“BANR”

With its devastatingly beautiful portrait of love and loss, “BANR” is not an easy watch, but it’s certainly a touching one. Director Erica Xia-Hou’s has crafted a raw, immersive, and deeply affecting meditation on love, memory, and the inevitable passage of time. Set in a real nursing home in China and featuring non-professional actors, the film blurs the line between fiction and reality, making it feel all the more poignant and authentic.

At the heart of the film is an elderly couple who have shared 40 years together. When the husband dies of a sudden heart attack, his wife, already battling the early stages of Alzheimer’s, is left to navigate a world that no longer makes sense. Her mind becomes a maze of fading memories and confusion as she desperately searches for her family, even as love and familiarity slip through her grasp.

Rather than following a traditional narrative structure, the film unfolds in a fragmented non-linear style that mirrors the protagonist’s disoriented state. Scenes shift between past and present, between moments of clarity and heartbreaking forgetfulness. It’s a storytelling choice that demands patience, but it pays off by fully immersing the audience in the experience of what Alzheimer’s can do to a person.

Visually, the film’s documentary-style realism adds to its emotional weight. The use of non-professional actors and the nursing home setting make everything feel achingly real, as if we’re witnessing actual lives rather than performances. There are no overly dramatic flourishes or forced sentimentality, just quiet, devastating truths about aging, care giving, and the slow erosion of identity.

The film also has a deeply rooted cultural perspective. Through small, nuanced moments (unspoken gestures, acts of duty, the weight of responsibility), Xia-Hou captures the unique ways love and devotion are expressed within traditional Asian families. There’s beauty in this restraint, in the sacrifices made, in the persistence of love even when it’s no longer recognized.

That being said, the movie is trying and is really difficult to get through. Dialogue-heavy, the storytelling often focuses on mundane life and activities like cooking, cleaning, and organizing photo albums. This doesn’t make for the most entertaining experience, and it’s boring despite empathetic performances and characters.

While I didn’t love “BANR” due to its lack of entertainment value, it’s still a haunting, emotionally shattering film about loss and the resilience of love.

By: Louisa Moore