Lighting Up the Stars

Lighting Up the Stars (人生大事, 2022) is a Chinese drama you can watch online on iFILM. Fresh out of prison, undertaker Mo Sanmei runs into an orphaned girl at a funeral, and the chance meeting upends the life he was used to.

Sanmei, played by Zhu Yilong, makes his living at a trade most people would rather not look at: sending strangers off for the last time. He's broke, his father disapproves, and now a stubborn little girl refuses to leave his side. What starts as annoyance slowly turns into something close to a family. Director Liu Jiangjiang built a film about death that ends up speaking about the living.

It was a box-office hit at home and lands well with viewers who like warm dramas that never tip into syrup — there are tears here, and a fair amount of unexpected comedy too. Stream Lighting Up the Stars (2022) online on iFILM.