"True Story" tells a story about "True"

Elenor 2022-11-15 06:48:01

The movie tells a true story. "True" means that you can't talk nonsense, and you can't make up the plot for the sake of making it exciting. Therefore, blaming the film’s ineffective plot is to destroy the foundation of the film’s narrative from an aesthetic point of view. Ironically, what this film criticizes is the act of "reconstructing facts in order to attract people." The film does its best to make the audience's aesthetic consciousness no longer stay at the initial stage of the protagonist Mike Finkel. If you fail this, the director certainly doesn't want your career to be related to any job that requires truthfulness.

From this perspective, this film is like an educational film for news media workers. It is teaching us: if you don't value the facts, you will be expelled from the unit and there is nowhere to ask. Even if you occasionally find someone who is willing to give you a second chance, the other party will still take more precautions against you, lest you be involved. This is just outside pressure. In addition, the director believes that as long as you are tainted with the "false" thing, even if you are not agreeing with him, but are just describing him, you will still lose something inherent in the process. At the end of the film Mike Finkel was asked: "Longo lost his freedom, what did you lose?" This question is actually asked to every audience. The director did not ask the protagonist to give an answer because he deliberately asked everyone to face this question. For this film, the educational nature has already squeezed the fun. The whole film wants to speak to the audience too much, and it is inevitable that some unprepared audiences will be crowded out of the play.

In fact, the only thing to be discussed in the film is "real", and the only suspense is whether Longo is lying. The film says that the reporter Finkel and the prisoner Longo are both liars, but the former lied for profit, and the heart is still upward; the latter is a complete liar, not ashamed but proud. The fun part is that at first they both thought that each other was the same as themselves, but Longo soon discovered that Finkel was naive, and Finkel didn't recognize Longo until the end. Therefore, due to the difference in the inner nature of the two, they have developed completely different life states. One no longer writes for the New York Times and lives in seclusion; the other posts articles and enjoys being watched.

Lan Lan's role in this movie is very symbolic, representing pure lies and disguise. But perhaps this kind of role is always more playful, invisibly stealing Hill's play, the film loses weight, and the duet becomes a one-man show. The last thing that suffers is the general viewing effect.

View more about True Story reviews

Extended Reading

True Story quotes

  • Christian Longo: I haven't seen a woman in so long... looking at you is like seeing the ocean.

    Jill Barker: I'm more of a pond, I think.

  • Jill Barker: [In the prison visiting room, talking to Christian Longo] Can I play you something?

    [Jill reaches for her iPhone, presses play and beautiful music is heard]

    Jill Barker: Se La Mia Morte Brami. If You Crave My Death. Carlo Gesualdo wrote it in 1611. A few years after killing his wife and newborn son. His wife had a lover so he tracked them down with a hunting knife. He stabbed her many, many times all over her body, and as she was bleeding to death on the floor, he forced the lover to strip her naked, put on her bloody nightdress and humiliate himself, before shooting him in the head. Then he went upstairs and beat his infant son to death against the side of his crib. The music is almost beautiful enough to make me forget I am listening to something written by a man who broke his baby's skull on a piece of furniture... but not quite.

    [Jill stops the music]

    Jill Barker: You see Mike wants to try and understand you. I think he believes that if he can understand you then maybe he can understand himself, but I don't wanna understand you at all. You're a murderer. You kill women and children. You're a narcissist who resents every single second of attention not given to you. I'm here to tell you that whatever else is coming to you, you will never ever escape what you are.

    [Jill stands up and leaves the visiting room]

Related Articles