It was another translation of the film that drew me to it - "Brad's Midlife Crisis".
As the plot progressed, I couldn't stop watching this so-called comedy film, and I even wanted to pull the progress bar when I encountered some scenes.
The triviality it depicts is too real, as if the detailed anatomy of real life is magnified and displayed in front of the viewer. This is clearly not a crisis for a man to reach middle age, it is a crisis for every individual in various circles in modern society.
The name of this crisis is anxiety.
He runs a non-profit organization, his wife works in the government, and his son is about to enter any elite university on the East Coast. He has a house, a car, and a happy family. By today's definition of success, he is by no means a failure. But turning the camera to Brad's point of view, as far as the eyes can see, all the close college classmates have become the White House advisers, company presidents and other figures at the top of the pyramid. He has failed completely, and the circle of friends is full of sports cars and private jets. Brad's sensitive nerves are stimulated all the time. This world, which was originally a battlefield, is a comfortable playground for some people. What the general public has is only a life that is insufficient and more than the next. It is used to fight against the strong gap. Well-intentioned persuasion teaches people to learn to look backward. , the self-deception comfort found in the disdainful laggards can not satisfy anyone, and breeds more desire to look forward.
Looking ahead, a huge gulf between contemporaries lies in front of him, insurmountable, and Brad is caught in an endless loop of rivalry with himself.
Collecting a bunch of useless membership cards, muttering about throwing it away and reluctantly putting it in my pocket; wanting to get on the plane early and being rejected, but upgrading the ticket only to find that the ticket is a discounted product. Brad's pursuit of all the little details to gain some kind of privilege to justify his superiority is, from the viewer's point of view, a silly and ridiculous struggle. After calming down and thinking about it, I found sadly that this kind of struggle, you have had it, I have had it, has subtly penetrated into daily life. Dignity and face are both abstract concepts, but the way of giving dignity and face is concrete. Who has not dreamed of the comfort of first-class cabins and the luxury of top-level suites, and who has never lingered in front of Gucci and Balenciaga’s window displays, when a certain life happens to them with a small probability, they will unconsciously be confused in their minds Put on a dreamlike veil, forming a cloud and mud difference from the original normal real life.
Over-saturated ambition and lack of execution have resulted in the dilemma of "running hard but staying put", stepping on the accelerator of crazy comparison with others. What's more, for Brad, the proud core character of his college years, The bleak after the brilliance is too unbearable. When there is nothing he can do about reality, the memory will come to his mind, and he will steal a moment of joy and continue to face the fact that he is the most unhappy situation in the circle of students. When his career When he couldn't use it for comparison, he searched for everything he could grab and put it on the balance, and his excellent son Troy became the heaviest weight in his hands. So when he learned that Troy missed the Harvard interview, he panicked and went crazy He questioned the Harvard staff as if he was trying, and used his contacts to reschedule interviews desperately. The morbid contrast would eventually turn into jealousy. Brad's smile was when he heard the anxious voice of the president's classmates following the electromagnetic waves. "Daughter I'm seriously ill and I'm going to have an operation. I'll talk later." The smile after that completely exposed the dark side of human nature under the pressure of anxiety. "You will also suffer from this bad luck. "I think that's what Brad had in his heart. The growing anti-heroism coincides with it, and the public is more inclined to support the image of superheroes who are flawed or even not a model of behavior. Substitute into the hero's desire.
Everyone envisions a heroic social personality, and one's social personality is a creation of the minds of others. So we are anxious, anxious about the perception of others, anxious about whether our own mask is just right. Brad confessed to his son "I'm worried that people will look at me and think I'm a loser." The 1975 hysterically shouts "If I'm successful, I'll love this era." Makes us love this era Yes, is it really successful? Even if he is successful, there are still mountains in front of him. Climbing to the nearest peak is an endless mountain range.
Does the anxiety that arises from looking up to others really make sense? Brad made an appointment with his old classmate and confided his inner competition as an opponent, but the old classmate was confused and at a loss, interrupting Brad's long speech, "I have never used you as an opponent, we are in different fields. Work, there is no comparison." The understated words resisted Brad's long-standing resentment and dissatisfaction, and shattered all his hypocrisy and awkwardness.
As Troy responded to Brad at the end of the film: "Everyone thinks about themselves, no one thinks about you." Words, good or bad, will not make any waves in the hearts of critics. The only thing worth paying attention to is this: I'm still alive, living a life that only I can, and I have a unique wealth that belongs to me.
Living in the memories of others has never been our purpose.
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