The poster and title of "Stoke" don't look like a suspense thriller at all.
At the beginning, it was an extremely warm scene. The heroine has a feminine name—India. Although everyone in the film calls her that, but the film’s name uses her surname—"Stoke", which in a sense not only refers to the girl, but also represents After this family, grievances, entanglements, revenge... all kinds of things.
Indiyah (I still want to call her that), a quiet and slightly shy girl who was looking for a gift hidden by her father on her birthday, was shocked by the bad news!
In the first half of the film, she followed her into the pain of bereavement, coupled with the lukewarm feeling of alienation between her and her mother; once substituting in, she agreed with the sudden emergence, despite being handsome, and her eyes would discharge. "Uncle"'s disgust and beware.
Different from ordinary suspense films, in fact, from the beginning, the problems that will arise on this "uncle" are self-evident. It can almost be guessed that he and India's father's death must be inextricably linked-the audience knows, India knows, and even her mother may feel it, but she just doesn't want to admit it.
Therefore, as the story goes deeper, what we are looking for is no longer the obvious "truth", but like a bystander, observing the changes in the situation coldly, worrying about whether the girl will be killed or deceived. However, everyone was fooled! Is it the girl who disguised her appearance too weakly? To win the sympathy of the audience, the sudden turn at the end of the film enhanced the sense of explosion and shock!
As a suspenseful film, this is truly a masterpiece. The logic is rigorous, and the details are carefully considered. At the narrative level, it jumps without chaos. On the plot line, there are often interlaced narratives between actual events and imaginary situations or "persecuted delusions", which are both true and illusion, but they are both true and false, but they are clearly distinguishable. This point is the most worthy of learning and reference in movie scripts.
In terms of editing, the director also used parallel montage and cross montage to impress. The strong sense of rhythm of the picture makes the two narrative lines of narration, memory and truth-telling alternate, but it is easy to read and understand. There is no difference between the picture and the plot. Jump away, causing the viewer to fail to understand the story.
The most noteworthy aspect of the production and shooting is the application of imagery metaphors in the film. The whole film uses large close-ups many times, and shoots some independent objects without relationship, such as beetles, spiders, shoes, etc.; there are also some objects that appear in the film as metaphors or connections between characters, such as boulders and pianos in the courtyard. , Belt and hunting scenes involved many times.
After careful analysis, every object that appears here is designed with ulterior motives and comes from the director's creative requirements, not the furnishings of art props. The explanation and promotion of story plots and character relationships have different purposes and meanings.
For example, on her birthday every year, India received a pair of flat shoes made by her father "personally", placed in a gift box, and she needed to find it by herself. But this time, she climbed up the tree so hard, but what she opened was an empty box. Then, when the uncle finally confessed the truth, he calmly took out a pair of gorgeous high-heeled shoes from his travel bag and knelt down on his knees to personally put them on for India. At this moment, from flat shoes to high heels, from simplicity and innocence to the awakening of the devil in the heart, the change of shoes is a symbol of the transformation of the girl's mind. No longer calm, but sharp!
As for the piano, I initially thought it was just like in
What "Stoke" brings to us is a kind of alternative violent aesthetics, that is a kind of power that erupts in quiet silence, and the evil thoughts hidden deep in my heart can burst out in an instant. What was most shocking was the scene where Intia raised her shotgun and shot at her uncle who was murdering her mother with a belt. Indiya picked up the shotgun, turned towards the frenzied uncle, and took aim; suddenly the camera switched to the situation where her father used to lie down in the grass with her, waiting to ambush the prey. There was no sound, the father did not speak, both of them looked forward, Inti Ya holds her breath and pulls the trigger; the next shot: the window glass is penetrated by a bullet, and the hole is radial. Just a few shots, clean, neat, nervous to quiet switching.
Latent was taught to her by her father, so when her father died suddenly, the girl was sad and refused to distrust people's false concern. He never expressed his suspicions, but secretly collected evidence to investigate the truth. Even, until the two confronted each other on the stairs, and the moment the uncle had a complete showdown, the girl remained calm and calm, and even agreed to his request to go far and high together. Perhaps at that moment, the flame of revenge for her father had already ignited in her heart, but she couldn't notice the slightest in her gentle and silent eyes.
The only thing that makes me feel a little regretful is that in terms of characterization, no one in the film is cute or even scary. Perhaps everyone has something to sympathize with, and the sentence is printed: "The poor person must have something hateful." Although the plot of the film is gripping and the production is extremely detailed; as a revenge film, it does not have "Hamlet" or "Hamlet". "American Past" and even "Old Boy" are the most affectionate and sexual; as a violent aesthetic work, its protagonist is not like those in Quentin's and Almodovar's works. Although inferior and marginal, it has its own truth. The lovely side, like Jiang Ge.
Therefore, "Stoke" can be described as an exquisite and delicate suspense plot film, which is meticulously crafted in every plot and frame; however, it lacks the side that reflects emotions and resonates.
Nothing but, it reveals a truth for people: Everyone has a demon hidden deep in their hearts. It depends on how you deal with it, suppress it, put it in Pandora's box, and never let it go; or it may touch a mechanism under strong stimulation. , Unleash this terrible demon.
The choice is a matter of thought.
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