If anyone wants to follow me, he should deny himself and take up his cross every day to follow me.
-"Bible" Luke 9:23
The cross, a religious symbol, represents salvation and love.
Today, I would like to share with you a new violent aesthetic film "Game in Cell No. 99" with these three points (Cross, Redemption, Love) as the topic. Let us discuss the "Road to the Cross" together.
American movie "Brawl in Cell Block 99"
Type of work: crime, action
Main actors: Vince Vaughn (playing Bradley), Jennifer Carpenter (playing wife Lauren)
Story summary: It tells the story of Bradley, a former fighter who was arrested for drug trafficking. In order to save the lives of his wife and unborn daughter living alone, he reached an agreement with the drug dealer boss to get rid of someone from the "Hongye" prison in exchange for the safety of his wife and daughter. .
Release time: Released in the U.S. on October 6, 2017
Not much gossip, simple and rude, go directly to the film review, let us take a look at the road of the cross the protagonist Bradley walked!
I, a new movement against the mainstream
Violent Aesthetics
From the beginning to the end of the film, violent scenes abound, and bloody shots are repeated!
Smashing car windows, knocking on car lights, and removing engine covers with bare hands
↓↓
Critical attack, broken prison guard arm, KO police officer with gun
↓↓
Haibian prisoner, trampled off Eleazar's head
Scenes, scenes after scenes, the audience was frightened but couldn't stop, it was so exciting!
II, the controversial plot structure
The story is simple and interesting!
The narrative is too long and lethargic!
The above two points of view are my first impression of this work after watching the movie. They are very intuitive and mean!
Simple story
The main line is easy to understand.
In order to let his wife live a happy life, Bradley took the risk and re-emerged on the road of drug trafficking. As a result, he met a "pig teammate" and went to jail.
In prison, he was told by the big boss to kill someone in the most guarded "Hongye" prison (actually this person does not exist at all, this is all Eleazar's conspiracy, the purpose is to get rid of Bradley), In exchange for the lives of his wife and his daughter in the womb. There is no choice, Bradley can only embark on a journey of purgatory for Lauren and his unborn daughter.
Long narrative
Just show the viewer this content for more than 2 hours of video? !
Two dark prisons + a bald man + a bunch of scumbags
Yes! That's it on the surface! For more than 120 minutes, the director just presented a "Macho Show" to everyone. but! When we look through the back of the male protagonist, the inner meaning of the film begins to appear.
In the seemingly slow and procrastinating rhythm of the work, the director vividly shows us a prisoner who is struggling inside. Depressed, desperate, helpless, compromised, and relieved, Bradley's mood slowly changed as the story unfolded.
In my opinion, the director deliberately lengthened the narrative time, with the intention of allowing the audience to more intuitively understand the fermentation and transformation of the male protagonist's heart. Very thoughtful.
III, The Way of the Cross
The most fascinating thing about the whole film, in addition to the "violent aesthetics", there is also a cross tattoo on the male protagonist's bald head. In the author's opinion, this "referential" tattoo design is far more talkative than the violent elements in the story.
First of all, the cross is a sign of faith!
Does the hero in the film have religious beliefs? We don't know. But his love for his wife is obvious to the audience! For Bradley, this is his belief-deep love.
Secondly, the cross is a symbol of salvation!
At the end of the film, Bradley was shot and killed by the warden, and before the result, he did two things. One, killed Eleazar (the big boss); two, talked with the rescued Lauren on the phone. What is the connection between these two scenes and Bradley's voluntary death? What does it mean again? Talk about my humble opinion.
1. Crime and Punishment
In order to save Lauren, Bradley assaulted the police and killed people in prison. His crimes cannot be forgiven. At the last minute, when he learned that his wife had been rescued, he was willing to be slaughtered and accepted punishment.
Bradley used his actions to prove the true meaning of "the wages of crime is death".
2. The release of the mind
When Bradley was talking with Lauren, the hero couldn't help crying. Believe that at this moment, he is full of mixed feelings, regret, sad, happy, hopeless, calm, relieved, and mixed with various emotions!
But if we link this scene with the calmness of the male lead after the call, what can we interpret?
It is "Bradley no longer has sinful entanglement in his heart, only the desire for'new life', his soul is finally released."
3. The salvation of love
what is love"?
Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous; love is not boasting, not arrogant, not doing shy things, not seeking self-interest, not prone to anger, not counting people’s evil, not liking unrighteousness, only Like the truth; tolerate everything, believe everything, hope everything, and endure everything. Love never stops.
Although the love shown by Bradley in the film is not as long, wide and deep as Paul portrayed in 1 Corinthians, it is also moving enough. Everything he did was for Lauren, for his life, his death, his guilt, his laughter, his sorrow, his relief. For Bradley, Lauren's love is the driving force for him to move forward. , Is his living hope, is his only salvation.
I’ve been talking a lot, and it’s already late, so I'll just leave the pen next, see you tomorrow.
Director ★★★★☆ (another masterpiece after "Tomahawk Bones", inheriting the mantle of violent aesthetics)
Actor ★★★★☆ (Vince Vaughn gave up comedy, switched to thriller and crime film, and succeeded in a strong transformation)
Plot ★★★★☆ (Direct, depressing, and violent, but without losing the tenderness and profound connotation)
Visual effects★★★★★ (dark wind, somewhat charming)
Sound effect ★★★☆☆ (BGM is properly 4 stars, but after listening to ED, I feel a little disappointed, minus 1 star)
Recommendation ★★★★☆ (A very refreshing action movie, but unfortunately not everyone can accept it. Minors must be accompanied by their parents to watch)
More film reviews + stills are first published on the WeChat public account " The Journey Collection of floyd and helen ", thank you
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