The red in the previous article was about the redness of red sorghum, but the red in this one is different, referring to repression and animal nature. The subject matter is general, but the use of lens language is interesting.
The performance of the language of the film and the setting of the content are more westernized, without the poetry of red sorghum, but adding a sense of absurd reality.
One, photography. The symmetrical plane composition of photography gives people a sense of depression, which sets off the theme of the film. Most of the pictures give people this feeling. The symmetrical and deep composition of photography deepens this feeling of depression, giving people a sense of fatality that cannot be escaped. For example, when the fourth wife and the eldest young master met in the attic, the two people looked back and shot through the door frame, giving people the feeling of being isolated and unable to touch. The use of door frames in the film has reached the extreme, all serving the theme.
Second, the lines. The lines are partial to the stage, with a lot of subtexts set up, and there are puns and emotional connotations in the lines. The conversation between the third wife and Dr. Gao was a secret sign of cheating. The dialogue between the third wife and the fourth wife in the attic is a hidden reveal of the theme and the expression of the fourth wife's personality. There is something in the words, and every sentence is not redundant.
Third, the structure. Although the reincarnation of fate is very common, the combination with the exquisite arrangement of the whole film has produced a shocking effect. This sense of fate is completely different from the film Shake, Shake, Shake to Grandma's Boat. Red is the structure serving the theme, and shaking is the structure serving the content. . Red looks refined and perfect, but it seems too symbolic, with a strong sense of criticism, which is what film festivals love.
Fourth, the symbol. Symbolism is used to the extreme in the film. The red lantern symbolizes male power, injustice, confinement, etc. Its rise and fall are all controlled by power, and the domination of women can be extended to the domination of the public. The fate of women's tragedy is the fate of human tragedy. If you just see this film as a feminist film, you can only say that your situation is too small. The symbol of the door frame is cold imprisonment. People are imprisoned here and cannot get out. People outside still want to be concubines. This reminds me of castles. People inside the castle can't recognize it, and people outside the castle want to go in. Isn't this our absurd reality?
Fifth, color. Red is the main color that fills the film. It represents repression and confinement, as well as a vivid individual. It is the keynote of the film. As the film progresses, cool tones that contrast with red fill the second half of the film, representing the process of a living person dying. Finally, when the fourth wife lit all the lanterns, red filled the world again, but it was only the last light, as if Nietzsche hugged his horse and cried, and then went crazy for the rest of his life. She can't be saved, let alone survive. She is an intellectual, and her inner sense of resistance gradually faded away. She struggled and failed, and finally became a victim.
In general, the high-hanging lens of the red lantern has richer and more refined language, but it lacks the poetry of red sorghum, that kind of externalized poetry.
View more about Raise the Red Lantern reviews
