On the evening of May 16th, local time, in front of the Cannes Film Palace, on the red carpet where the world's brightest stars gathered, Aunt Su Min made a stunning appearance wearing an indigo embroidered cheongsam. This 60-year-old Chinese aunt, as the prototype of the movie "Determination to Run Away", walked into the hall of world cinema side by side with director Yin Lichuan.
Su Min is an ordinary housewife from Zhengzhou, Henan. Unable to bear the bullying and oppression in her marriage, she taught herself to drive at the age of 56 and embarked on a self-driving tour. Afterwards, she shared her experience on the Internet, which attracted a lot of attention and became a "self-driving tour aunt" with millions of fans. The story of "living for family and children in the first half of life and for oneself in the second half of life, seeing the world with one person and one car" has inspired countless women in difficult situations and is a "symbol of awakening" in the hearts of millions of Chinese women.
Su Min and Yin Lichuan, director of "Determination to Run Away"
The movie "Decision to Run Away", adapted from Aunt Su Min's experience, was released in September last year. Directed by Yin Lichuan and starring Yongmei, it earned 124 million yuan at the box office and a high score of 8.8 on Douban, becoming a veritable dark horse in Chinese films in the second half of last year.
In the film, Yongmei portrayed Aunt Su Min, who had an ordinary but rough life and constantly tolerated and compromised for the sake of her family. The creators elevated Su Min's individual marriage tragedy to a systemic dilemma that women generally empathize with and presented it - in her original family, her father asked her to give up her studies to take care of her younger brother; in her marriage, her husband's accusations and abuse made her depressed and anxious; her daughter, who had always supported and understood her, habitually asked her mother to make sacrifices when faced with career difficulties. When the protagonist in the film experienced a long wait, her anxious heart finally gave birth to the "determination to leave" in pain and depression, which resonated and reflected on by countless viewers.
Yongmei starred in "Determination to Run Away"
Before the release of "Determination to Run Away", Su Min and her daughter were among the first group of viewers to watch the film in advance. From the moment the title appeared, she couldn't stop crying. "Many scenes in the film come from my life, and there is no exaggeration at all."
Su Min talked about her feelings when she was interviewed by the media at that time: "Before, I always received messages from many young friends saying, 'Auntie, you are really a great woman.' I always felt that I only did a small thing, but that day I saw the 'me' in the movie who was lost in endless housework, the 'me' who wanted to live for myself, and the 'me' who finally decided to go out for a self-driving tour... It turns out that this is what it feels like to be 'seen.'"
Su Min's social media accounts
From the day she drove out of her home in Zhengzhou in a white Polo, Aunt Su Min's "escape" journey has led her all the way to Cannes. It is reported that Su Min and director Yin Lichuan were invited by the brand to walk the red carpet before the screening of the Cannes entry film "Eddington". Also walking on the red carpet were movie stars Natalie Portman, Rooney Mara and Chinese actresses Tang Yan and Wen Zhengrong.
On May 8, Aunt Su Min shared the good news with netizens on social media that she was about to walk the red carpet in Cannes, and said that this was "another bold departure", which won her blessings from many netizens.
On this red carpet where the most beautiful female stars in the world compete for beauty, Aunt Su Min's confident smile and calm posture interpret the true meaning of female beauty - it is not the perfect curves under the tulle skirt, nor the luxurious symbol of jewels, but an ordinary person using tenacity and courage to open up a free and vast future.
