Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks is a Chinese

Cinema of China

The Chinese-language cinema has three distinct historical threads: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China, and Cinema of Taiwan. Since 1949 the cinema of mainland China has operated under restrictions imposed by the Communist Party of China's State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television and...

 documentary film

Documentary film

Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...

 by Wang Bing

Wang Bing (director)

Wang Bing is a Chinese director, often referred to as one of the foremost figures in documentary film-making. Wang is the founder of his own production company, Wang Bing Studios, which produces most of his films...

. Over 9 hours long, the film consists of three parts, "Rust," "Remnants" and "Rails."

Tie Xi Qu was filmed over the course of two years between 1999 and 2001 and details the slow decline of Shenyang

Shenyang

Shenyang , or Mukden , is the capital and largest city of Liaoning Province in Northeast China. Currently holding sub-provincial administrative status, the city was once known as Shengjing or Fengtianfu...

's industrial Tiexi district, an area that was once a vibrant example of China's socialist economy. With the move towards other industries, however, the factories of Tiexi have all begun to be closed down, and with them, much of the district's worker-based infrastructure and social constructs.

The English subtitle "West of the Tracks" is a literal translation of "Tiexi."

"Rust"

The first portion, "Rust" follows a group of factory workers in three state-run factories: a smelting plant, an electric cable factory and a sheet metal factory. Workers at all three face sub-standard equipment, hazardous waste, and lack of safety precautions. Perhaps even worse, with the declining need for such heavy industry, the factories also face a constant lack of raw materials, leaving the workers idle and concerned for their future.

"Remnants"

The second part, "Remnants" follows the families of many of the workers in an old state-run housing block, "Rainbow Row." In particular, Wang focuses on the teenage children who concern themselves with their own lives but must also cope with their inevitable displacement as Tie Xi's factories continue to close down.

"Rails"

The third part, "Rails" narrows its focus to a single father and son who scavenge the rail yards in order to sell raw parts to the factories. With the factories closing however, their future suddenly becomes uncertain.

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