There are many similar themes. In "Eye-Opening", the dog-like middle-class Brother Tom accidentally broke the secrets of the upper class after the stupidity and panic, although he was dressed in a coat of mystery and horror. In fact, they are similar to Joe and Rizzo who broke into the performance art party in "Midnight Cowboy". This may also be the mutation of the genes of the "American Dream" in this era when there is no real dream. There is not much Jack London-style anger in Joe’s desires, but it retains the surprising innocence of Martin Eden before his fortune. You dare to say that there is nothing in the enthusiasm to chase all the women who may become customers on the street. Is there some kind of tearful innocence? What right do you have to laugh at a young man in a small town who seriously wants to be an outstanding cowboy? After all, there is not much difference between all dreams in essence, but in the name of dreams, it is hoped to participate in the existing profit distribution pattern. The so-called disillusionment of dreams is nothing more than the fact that the world is full of absurd obstacles. They are like a matrix of nothing. Between the upper and the lower, although there are goals, there are no roads.
The goal, for Brother Tom in "Eye-Opening", may be that high-class social party with a glimpse, and for Joe in "Midnight Cowboy", it is nothing more than to become a successful cowboy. . In any case, the sense of participation in it is the most important. Joe was blackmailed by an old and declining prostitute, and fled from the perverted old man's room for a penniless student blowjob. He patiently dealt with the world again and again, looking forward to a turnaround. Isn't it Rizzo? He is a boss, seizing every opportunity to steal and abduct, bravishing needlessly in hopes of maintaining his long-broken self-esteem. In the film, Rizzo stands hopefully on the street, watching Qiao Huai pick up the list of rich women's customers that he has tried so hard to get, bluffing with the waiters in front of the high-end hotel. The plan they thought would be successful ended in Joe being lifted by the security guard and slammed onto the roadside steps. The few steps and the transparent glass door are an insurmountable obstacle for them, and no one wants to take them to play. Whenever we are desperate, we always habitually hope for the friendship between rejected people, which seems to bring some comfort. Rizzo fell down on the narrow stairs leading to the party, watching Qiao's back, Joe’s "powerlessness" at the lady’s house, and the famous phrase "Waiting for you to buy aspirin, I may be dead", which is suspected of anger. It seems to be one of the few bright colors in the film. When Joe finally decided to change out of the denim clothes, the tone of the entire film seemed to lift. The call of the Miami Beach sunshine dilutes the winter's bleakness in the abandoned buildings in the city, and also dispels the nightmare that has been lingering in Joe's mind before.
The above road begins and the above road ends. Start with hope and end with death. Although there are goals, there are no roads, after being shattered by all the obstacles, at least there is still that subtle warmth that gives people vain comfort.
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