Ten minutes, this may be the shortest time that can present the general content of the film's story and its own temperament. Of course, every film has a temperament that is different from the others, and the breakdown of temperament is the final completion of the work of each work that makes the film shape. What is especially important is that I want to say that the film is decided within ten minutes. The main units of fineness are photography, tone, performance, and lines. The first two determine the external temperament of the film, the background environment, the sky and the light, bright and cheerful or the dark and depressed, the latter two determine the inner, conveying emotions, emotions, and meaning.
The emotions and connotations revealed by "August" are complex. A dysfunctional family, a group of family members trapped in a swamp, has always been one of Hollywood's standard configurations for exploring human nature. In this film, the father who committed suicide after leaving home, a character who left early, organizes the separated family members together again. The contradictions among the members that have been hidden or avoided all the time, surging out like a volcanic eruption, drowning life and leaving a thick ashes.
The film begins with the father’s dialogue like a monologue, before he is heard, it seems to extend the character’s presence time. It also directly creates a bitter emotional atmosphere with TS Eliot’s "Life is Long" sentence . Later, my father committed suicide, thinking about the beginning again, only to realize that these words are a kind of monologue, presenting the film's narrative perspective. The deceased father was in the sky and had the perspective of God. From this perspective, the absurd drama of the family has a panoramic view, and "Life is long" is obviously the voice of God's compassion for the world.
Life is long and suffering is long, but we still have to endure it. This is a permanent proposition, and the important thing is how to present this kind of suffering. The sheer suffering is not worth boasting, on the contrary, it brings something absurd, indescribable, and the bitterness of laughter with tears is even more memorable, just like the feeling of "August". Alcoholism, drug abuse, fishy stealing, and yelling are nothing more than manifestations of loss of control, and loss of control over one's life, and the root of loss of control may be just the exhaustion and emptiness of being born. If you can't face this cruelty, you can't treat yourself and others well, and you can't reconcile with life.
Actors are indispensable in conveying these possible meanings.
The lineup of this film is definitely strong. I watched Streep appear on the Allen show a while ago, and realized that she has long been indiscriminate. The old mother, who was mentally dysfunctional due to drug use, was nerve-sensitive, and she was interpreted as a three-pointer, and almost one person provoked the entire film. Even telling a story in a few sentences can inspire tears. The screenwriter made a clever twist to make this character more plump. It turned out that she was confused on the surface, irritable and venomous, and sharp and hateful, but in fact she was foresight and always had the initiative to reveal or hide the truth. Three daughters, four families, left one after another. I thought that only the eldest daughter Barbara and the old mother were left to guard a lot of truth, and then reconcile, just like the ending of "Diet Men and Women", but in the end, the selfish nature of the old mother still expelled the last hope from the border, it was really cold to the end. .
Except for Streep, everyone else is a realist acting in realism. What I want to talk about is Big Mouth and her "daughter" Abigail. Why is Streep holding up the whole film almost, because there is Roberts. Come to think of it, only the big mouth has the skills and courage to confront the high-pitched Streep head-on without showing weakness. Whether forbearing or breaking out, every performance is full of tension, especially the long table dinner, which is really shocking, and I am worthy of my beloved.
Everything in Abigail's role is reminiscent of the cute and silly look in "Little Beauty of the Sunshine". I want to say that she wants to say "Little Sunshine Beauty". It and "August" are two levels of the same magnet, the same proposition, but different style expressions and gravitational forces. The little girl grew up, from the orange under the "sunlight" to the overexposed paleness of "August" and the heavy black and gray of the interior of the house. Growth is cruel, truth is cruel, life is cruel.
The folk songs at the end of the film are endless, Last mile home. Tripping on the last mile home. Looking at the dust left by Barbara driving away from home, maybe home is not just a house, a concept of companionship, it is also far away. Act, bear, reflexive knowledge.
Remember what Barbara said to her mother who wanted to escape? What are you doing? Where the fuck are you going? There's no place to go. Life is long, and suffering is like this. This is our destiny.
View more about August: Osage County reviews
