Postmen in the Mountains (1999) — AI Story Visualization

Plot Analysis Summary

A father guides his son through a mountain postal route, passing on professional responsibility, communal bonds, and family memory.

Story Structure — 5 Plot Phases

The Route Begins

Son starts his first journey as a mountain postman. Father, a retired veteran with a bad knee, accompanies him to provide guidance.

Key Events

• Western Hunan Mountains — The story is set in mountainous western Hunan in the early 1980s. Location: Western Hunan
• A Veteran Retires — Father has retired from postal work because of a bad knee. Characters: Father Location: Mountainous western Hunan
• The Son Begins — Son starts his first journey as a postman in the mountainous countryside. Characters: Son Location: Mountainous rural areas
• The Father Joins — Father accompanies Son on the first postal route. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountain route
• Learning the Route — Father begins teaching Son how to handle the mountain postman's work. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountainous rural areas
• More Than Delivery — Son realizes that postal work involves more than sending letters. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountain route

Lessons Beyond Letters

Father teaches Son the practical details of the job. Son discovers that postal work involves more than simply sending letters.

Key Events

• More Than Delivery — Son realizes that postal work involves more than sending letters. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountain route
• A Villager's Trust — Father's deep friendship with local villagers becomes visible during the route. Characters: Father Location: Mountain village
• The Son Observes — Son witnesses how Father's relationships shape the meaning of his work. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountain village
• Village Encounters — The route brings Father and Son into contact with the rural communities they serve. Characters: Father, Son Location: Rural villages
• A Dong Wedding — Father and Son participate in a wedding celebration with the Dong people. Characters: Father, Son Location: Dong community village
• Shared Celebration — The wedding allows Son to experience the social world connected to Father's route. Characters: Father, Son Location: Dong community village

Villages and Celebration

Son witnesses Father's deep friendship with local villagers. They participate in a wedding celebration with the Dong people.

Key Events

• Shared Celebration — The wedding allows Son to experience the social world connected to Father's route. Characters: Father, Son Location: Dong community village
• Memories Return — Memory flashbacks interrupt the present journey and connect the route with the past. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountain route
• The Past Shapes Work — The flashbacks deepen Son's understanding of Father's long connection to the region. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountainous western Hunan
• The Transistor Radio — Son carries a transistor radio during the journey. Characters: Son Location: Mountain route
• Songs Along the Way — Pop songs play from Son's transistor radio as the journey continues. Characters: Son Location: Mountain route

Memory on the Mountain

Flashbacks connect the present route with Father's past. Music from Son's transistor radio accompanies the continuing journey.

Key Events

• Songs Along the Way — Pop songs play from Son's transistor radio as the journey continues. Characters: Son Location: Mountain route
• An Anachronistic Song — The film includes Michael Learns to Rock's song "That's Why You Go Away," despite the early-1980s setting. Characters: Son Location: Mountain route
• The Work's Meaning — Son increasingly understands the personal and communal responsibilities attached to postal work. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountainous rural areas
• A Fatherly Example — Father's conduct on the route provides Son with a model for his new professional life. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountain route

A Successor Emerges

Son absorbs Father's example and gains a deeper understanding of the postman's responsibilities. The shared first journey moves toward resolution.

Key Events

• A Fatherly Example — Father's conduct on the route provides Son with a model for his new professional life. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountain route
• The Journey Nears End — The shared first journey reaches its closing stage as Son absorbs Father's lessons. Characters: Father, Son Location: Mountainous rural areas
• A New Postman — Son emerges from the route with a fuller understanding of the postman's responsibilities. Characters: Son Location: Mountainous western Hunan

Story Breakdown

• Mountain Setting — The film establishes an early-1980s postal world in western Hunan's mountainous rural regions.
  • Western Hunan — The story takes place in the mountainous areas of western Hunan.
  • Early Eighties — The narrative is set in the early 1980s.
• A New Postman — Son begins his first journey while Father prepares to pass on his experience.
  • First Journey — Son starts working as a postman in the mountain countryside.
  • Retired Veteran — Father has retired because a bad knee prevents him from continuing normally.
• Inherited Knowledge — Father teaches Son that the postal profession carries responsibilities beyond delivering letters.
  • Practical Guidance — Father explains the details and nuances of the mountain postman's work.
  • Deeper Responsibility — Son realizes that the job involves more than simply sending letters.
• Village Connections — The route reveals Father's deep friendship with the villagers he has served.
  • Local Friendships — Son witnesses Father's strong bond with the rural communities.
  • Community Route — Postal work brings the travelers into contact with mountain villages.
• Dong Celebration — Father and Son participate in a wedding celebration with the Dong people.
  • Wedding Gathering — The journey includes participation in a local wedding celebration.
  • Cultural Encounter — Son experiences a community event connected to the people served by the route.
• Memory and Music — Flashbacks and songs from Son's transistor radio shape the film's reflective atmosphere.
  • Memory Flashbacks — The film repeatedly returns to memories connected with the journey and the past.
  • Radio Songs — Pop songs play from Son's transistor radio, including "That's Why You Go Away."
• A Family Succession — The shared route allows Son to absorb Father's example and continue the postal tradition.
  • Father's Example — Father's conduct demonstrates how the work connects with villagers.
  • Son's Understanding — Son completes the journey with a deeper understanding of his new responsibilities.

Directed by

Huo Jianqi

Key Cast

• Teng Rujun — Father
• Liu Ye — Son
• Zhao Xiuli — Mother
• Gong Yeheng — Fifth Wife
• Chen Hao — Dong Girl