You are here:

The Ozone Layer Vanishes

Name: The Ozone Layer Vanishes
Director: Feng Xiaoning
Released: 1990
Duration: 93 min

Representation Score

6.6/10

Good

1990

Director

Feng Xiaoning

Runtime

93 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

New Showbiz Analysis

The film primarily serves as a social and ecological critique rather than focusing on identity politics. Its strength lies in its subversion of progress-oriented narratives, highlighting the dangers of unchecked materialism and the wisdom of nature. While the film offers a unique perspective through a child's heightened perception and a critique of capitalist motivations, it remains limited by traditional gender roles and a lack of diverse identities. The narrative is driven by male-coded conflicts, even when female characters participate in the transgressions. Ultimately, the work challenges established social structures and the 'progress through industry' cliché, though it does not explore a broad range of human identities.

Watch this, not that →

Category Breakdown

Does The Ozone Layer Vanishes have LGBTQ+ representation?

Limited

The film does not include any LGBTQ+ characters or stories about non-assuming gender matches what was assigned at birth identities. The main relationship between Zhang Jingsheng and Lu Liping follows a conventional romantic storyline.

How does The Ozone Layer Vanishes portray gender?

Fair

Male characters dominate the central conflict through destructive actions, such as committing a robbery. However, Lu Liping's role as a co-conspirator moves her beyond traditional domestic female stereotypes.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The Ozone Layer Vanishes?

Fair

The cast is ethnically uniform, reflecting its specific Chinese cinematic setting. The film highlights environmental collapse without using non-human species as racial symbols.

How does The Ozone Layer Vanishes represent religion and culture?

Good

The narrative criticizes capitalist greed and emphasizes ecological morality over religious frameworks. It challenges social hierarchies by presenting a child's perspective against dismissive, material-focused adults.

Does The Ozone Layer Vanishes include disability representation?

Good

Zhang Ning is defined by a chronic illness that shapes his early presence. His condition allows him to communicate with animals, giving him a unique role in the story.

Present on Screen

Criticizes capitalist-driven motivations and the pursuit of wealth as a cause of destruction.
Challenges traditional progress narratives by emphasizing ecological morality over economic growth.
Offers a unique perspective by allowing a child character specialized ability to act through animal communication.

Limited or Absent

Does not represent LGBTQ+ identities or non-assuming gender matches what was assigned at birth narratives.
Depends on male-coded characters to drive the primary plot conflicts and crises.
Features an ethnically homogeneous cast typical of its specific cultural context.

Official Synopsis

A couple (Zhang Jingsheng & Lu Liping) robbed the money train for money, causing a canister truck carrying highly toxic drugs to leak gas and eventually burn through the ozone layer. At the same time, the boy (Zhang Ning) who was resting at home due to his illness suddenly found that he could understand the language of his good friend, Big White Cat. The big white cat told him that this serious accident, if not stopped in time, the living things on the earth will eventually perish. However, adults are so busy running for money that they do not believe what boys and animals say.

How are these scores produced? →