The Nail

The story

Jiang Zhi's The Nail documents a sensational and controversial episode in the urban development of Chongqing, dubbed the “Nail House”. When developers knocked on their door, Wu Ping and her husband refused to sell their house, and the husband moved back into the house in fierce resistance. The court case dragged on from 2003 to 2007, and whilst the couple refused any settlement offer from the property developer, the land surrounding the house turned into a construction site, and water and electricity were cut off, while the “nail house” stood tall and alone like a fortress under siege. Nearing the final days of final official appeal, hordes of journalists and locals gathered around the site, while the protagonist, Wu Ping, valiantly defended her property rights under the rule of law. The “Nail House” was ultimately demolished.