Sister starts with a tragedy when a young child, the brother, lost his parents to an accident. The brother had an older sister who had become a nurse and had her own life. The sister was not close to him or their parents, who had become a nurse and was planning on going to graduate school in a bigger city. Being the only blood relative, the sister had no choice but to keep the brother with her, while trying to find a family for adoption. However during the time they lived together, they formed a strong bound and the sister needed to make a decision when finally a lovely couple seemed to be a good fit for adoption.
A culture background will be required to understand a lot of dramatic moments. Although may no longer to the case nowadays, during the years the sister was brought up and some parts of the country when the film was set, the Chinese culture still favored boys way over girls. She was considered the less important, if not better off without. "Abuse" was not the right word, but she could certain feel all her parents wanted was a boy, - her brother.
Yet blood is always thicker, and the brother was a cute, smart and loving. He adored her and she was "all he had". We can see how the sister's attitude towards the brother change, and also how her view towards her own life.
The movie has a poetic feel. It was sad and grey for the first two thirds, but gradually became heart warming and colorful. There will be sobbing moments for sure.
Overall a touching film, beautifully made.