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Xiaochun becomes infatuated with Lili (Chen Hong), a good-natured prostitute he met at the train station. She pays him to play the violin for her but the relationship only leads to a family crisis that further complicates things for Xiaochun and his dad. At a Beijing concert hall, Cheng watches a young violin student trained by Professor Yu (Chen Kaige) gain the approval of the audience, prompting him to think he has finally found a teacher who can make his son a star. The two music teachers represent perhaps the growing dichotomy in China between classical Chinese tradition and Western values and, if this is the case, it is obvious which side the film is on. Ultimately, Xiaochun must choose between being true to his best instincts or disappointing his father, a choice that is made more poignant by a stunning disclosure late in the film. While it is true that parents in China are increasingly coming to the cities to seek a way out of rural poverty, the premise is not translated into a film that is very persuasive, floundering in a sea of sentimentality without any historical context or authenticity of time and place. The boy plays the violin with deep emotion but otherwise walks through the film with the same blank expression, and the father can charitably be described as a Chinese version of Roberto Begnini. Although Together is about playing the violin, there is no trial and error, any long hours of practice or insight into the ups and downs of what it takes to learn to play an instrument. Xiaochun talents are fully formed and he performs each bravura solo as if he was ready for Carnegie Hall. Beyond that however, the director seems to be saying that for an artist to succeed in modern China, he must relinquish his integrity. Mr. Kaige should look in the mirror. For a film that emphasizes the choice one has to make between art and commerce, he has made the wrong one, producing a slick, glossy product that will have wide audience appeal but lacks the ring of truth.
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