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The 400 Million

Name: The 400 Million
Director: Joris Ivens, John Fernhout
Released: 1939
Duration: 54 min

Representation Score

4.5/10

Fair

1939

Approved

Director

Joris Ivens, John Fernhout

Runtime

54 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

The 400 Million is a powerful anti-imperialist documentary that centers the Chinese experience during the Japanese invasion. It excels by rejecting Western-centric perspectives, instead focusing on the collective struggle of the Global South and the working class. While the film provides a nuanced view of women in industrial and wartime roles, it lacks any representation of LGBTQ+ identities or individuals with disabilities. The focus remains strictly on socioeconomic and geopolitical mobilization. Ultimately, the film's strength lies in its intentionality. By using a leftist framework, the directors challenge colonialist depictions and highlight the ability to act of a massive, mobilized population against imperialist encroachment.

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Category Breakdown

Does The 400 Million have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The documentary focuses on geopolitical struggles and mass mobilization. It does not include any characters or stories related to LGBTQ+ identities.

How does The 400 Million portray gender?

Fair

Women are shown as active participants in industrial work and wartime production. This portrayal challenges the idea of women being passive by highlighting their roles during the Chinese resistance.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The 400 Million?

Excellent

The film centers on the struggles of the Chinese people and colonized populations. It successfully shifts the focus away from Western dominance to the Global South.

How does The 400 Million represent religion and culture?

Excellent

The narrative offers a deep critique of Western industrial dominance and capitalist systems. It prioritizes a post-colonial perspective by focusing on systemic resistance.

Does The 400 Million include disability representation?

Minimal

There is no information about the portrayal of individuals with disabilities in the film.

Present on Screen

Refusal to center Anglo-Saxon or Western-centric perspectives.
Effective portrayal of women as active participants in industrial and wartime labor.
Profound critique of Western industrial dominance and capitalist structures.
Centers the struggles of colonized populations and the Global South.

Limited or Absent

Complete absence of LGBTQ+ representation or non-straight-centered narratives.
No visible focus on the representation of individuals with disabilities.

Official Synopsis

Joris Ivens’s wartime documentary of China’s resistance to the Japanese invasion, cross-cutting civilian exodus and bombing with the Nationalist state’s mobilization—schools, industry, dispersed war production, foreign relief—and guerrilla fighting. Framing an ancient nation of “400 million,” it contrasts tradition with modernization and closes on the unresolved question of victory.

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