Upcoming
Summer (Original title: Sheng Xia Wei Lai) | 2021 | 1h 55m
Genre:
Drama | Country: China
Director:
Leste Chen | Writers: Yang Shen, Chen Zhan
Cast:
Zifeng Zhang, Lei Wu, Lei Hao
IMDB:
6.8
My
Rate: 8/10
Chen Chen accidentally becomes friends with Zheng Yu Xing because of a lie she made to hide the reason for her failed exam. However, the situation makes their relationship meaningful and teaches them to face the real truth.
Warning:
Violence scenes, strong language, LGBT theme
Synopsis:
Chen
Chen finds out a secret hidden by her father and mother. This affects her
mental state while she’s preparing for her college entrance exam (gaokao). She
ends up failing the exam and has to repeat school. However, Chen Chen hides the
real reason from her parents.
Zheng
Yu Xing, one of the students at Chen Chen’s school who is also known as a cyber
celebrity, also has to repeat the year because he didn’t attend the exam.
Rumors say that he left to meet his older lover. Yu Xing is also known as a
student with poor grades and even ranks last in his class.
Unable
to handle her mother’s endless questions, Chen Chen lies and makes Yu Xing the
reason for her failure. She tells her mom that she just broke up with Yu Xing,
even though there was never any relationship between them. Yu Xing finds out
about this lie when their homeroom teacher suddenly announces it in class.
From
that lie, their bond becomes even closer. Their connection looks so real that
it even brings change to their strict school environment. Each of them keeps a
secret known only between them, and they try to help one another.
Review:
Upcoming
Summer is a coming-of-age film that highlights the struggles of teenagers
facing life pressures — college entrance exams, romance, family dynamics, and
self-discovery. All of these themes are blended softly and feel very relatable
to the lives of today’s youth.
The
premise is simple yet powerful — about two teenagers trying to find themselves
amid unavoidable problems. The film presents it honestly and naturally, without
too much drama, though it slightly touches on sensitive topics. The LGBT
element, for example, is subtly shown through the character of Ming — Yu Xing’s
lover, whose gender identity is never clearly stated. The producer
intentionally leaves this open to audience interpretation, making it part of
the film’s emotional mystery rather than an issue being pushed forward.
The
beginning of the film opens strongly with the introduction of its two main
characters. Chen Chen, a calm-looking girl who secretly harbors suspicion, is
shown mysteriously as she reads messages on her mother’s laptop. Soon after,
there’s a scene where her mother meets a man who isn’t her father. The producer
cleverly plants assumptions in the audience’s mind — assumptions that will
later be flipped at the end of the story, creating a twist that changes
everything.
Meanwhile,
Yu Xing is introduced through social media, where Chen Chen watches him as a
cyber celebrity. This scene not only introduces his character but also shows
how modern teenagers connect through screens — building both distance and
strange closeness. Yet behind his free and glowing image, Yu Xing hides a
mystery: his family is rarely mentioned, and it feels like he’s always running
from something.
The
relationship between Chen Chen and Yu Xing grows slowly — not driven by
romantic love, but by a sense of shared pain. They’re both hiding from
something — from family, from pressure, from themselves. This is the film’s
biggest strength: it doesn’t force viewers to see their bond as romance, but as
a meeting between two young souls searching for a safe place to be understood.
In
the middle part, the conflict develops slowly but steadily. Their closeness
leads to openness, and every revealed secret adds emotional depth to the story.
The film gently shows how family pressure, social expectations, and identity
confusion can pile up during adolescence. They rebel not because they want to
fight, but because they want to breathe.
The
resolution is delivered softly yet touchingly. Each character gets their own
reflective moment — not in the form of a “happy ending,” but in quieter
realizations. Yu Xing finally dares to face his feelings for Ming, while Chen
Chen begins to be honest about her family and her long-hidden emotions. Both of
them choose to make peace — with their pasts and with themselves. The ending
isn’t explosive, but calm — like the start of a new summer.
The
performances of both main actors feel natural and never overdone. Their
chemistry is strong without needing big emotional scenes. Simple moments — like
Yu Xing hugging Chen Chen when she’s drunk, or their quiet moment in the middle
of a concert crowd — become the film’s most powerful emotional highlights. All
of this is wrapped in soft cinematography, harmonious music, and warm color
tones — capturing the fragile yet sincere atmosphere of youth.
Upcoming
Summer may look simple, but it manages to touch something very close to all
of us: the fear of growing up and the courage to make peace. The film reminds
us that youth isn’t just about falling in love or making big decisions — it’s
about understanding that it’s okay not to fully know who we are yet.
Memorable Scene:
When
Chen Chen finally tells her mother the real reason. It becomes such a touching
moment where both of them realize that they’ve been hiding secrets that hurt
each other. But from that, they finally learn the importance of honesty and
openness.
Memorable Dialogue:
"I wish that we can face ourselves more honestly."
Ending:
Happy EndingRecommendation:
Worth to Watch(Aluna)
 — When Youth Is About Learning to Make Peace){kind=link}
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