Equally enraging and inspiring in turn, this documentary chronicles the life and artistic struggles of Ai Weiwei, whose subversive works have resulted in his imprisonment under “house arrest” for 81 grueling days by the Chinese government.  Rather than being beaten down, the poor treatment only further motivates Ai Weiwei to go on pushing the boundaries of his art. But the forces of oppression are up to the challenge, as they up the Kafkaesque ante of their persecution, going so far as to hit him with a massive lawsuit (the “fake case” of the title).

Meanwhile, Ai Weiwei becomes a celebrity (everyone wants a piece of him), which only complicates his life and further exhausts him to the breaking point.  Clearly not wanting to be a martyr and wanting only to be left alone, nevertheless the artist continues to embody his role as a voice of the Chinese people.