 Wei Minzhi 's character received mixed reactions : Scott described her as a " heroic " character who demonstrates how obstinacy can be a virtue , whereas Richard Corliss of Time says she is " no brighter or more resourceful than [ her students ] " . Reactions to the city portion of the movie were also mixed : while Zhang describes the second half of the film as an eloquent commentary on China 's urban @-@ rural divide and Kevin Lally calls it " startling " , Kemp criticizes it for being a predictable " Victorian cliché " . 
