As the master of American independent film, Jim Jamsh did not follow the narrative model of Hollywood movies. "Heavenly Stranger" has no bizarre plots and ups and downs. Everything is plain and unremarkable, just like Jim himself. Said: If you pause anywhere in the film and ask the audience what will happen next, they will say they don’t know.
Let us first take a look at what happened in the film. The film is divided into three parts. The first part is called "The New World". Willie's Hungarian cousin Eva came to New York and lived with him for 10 days. Basically nothing happened in these ten days, of course, this sentence can also be used to describe the entire movie. They just eat, chat for a while and watch TV. Ten days later, Eva went to Cleveland, Ohio to live with her aunt. The second part took place in Cleveland. Willie and his companion Eddie gambled out to make a fortune and went to Cleveland to see Eva. Their lives there were watching TV, playing poker with their aunt, watching a movie with Eva and her boyfriend, watching Lake Erie, and leaving. The third part takes place in Florida. Willie, Eddie and Eva live in a motel. Willie and Eddie lose almost all of their money in the dog racing. For a windfall, I am preparing to leave the United States by plane. In the end Willie got on the plane to Budapest in order to chase Eva, but Eva went back to the hotel instead. This is the end of the video.
In my opinion, "Stranger in Paradise" can sum up the theme in five words: it's the same everywhere. Whether it’s New York, Cleveland, Florida, or even Budapest (although this city did not appear in the shot, this can be seen from the final ending. Eva did not return to Budapest because there will be no fundamental difference between it and the United States) It's a barren and lifeless scene. It doesn't matter where you go. The eternal entertainment is TV, eating, and there is nothing to say.
The great thing about the film is that it uses plain black and white images to create a sense of emptiness and emptiness. The first shot is Eva's back. A plane is landing. She is standing on the ground covered with rough gravel. Looking around, the airport is not like an airport, but like a barren wasteland. Eva was walking on the way to Willy's house. I was wondering which city it was as I watched it. Later I realized that this waste paper was everywhere, and the desolate and cold city turned out to be New York. There are no high-rise buildings in that neighborhood, no people are full of voices, and it is no different from other small towns. And the most famous Lake Erie in Cleveland is white in the lens. It was winter and the lake was frozen. We saw nothing but Willie, Eddie, and Eva standing on the railing with their heads shrugged. At the edge, the wind was blowing. When they arrived in Florida, it was not much better there. The only thing that showed that it was different from the north were palm trees. They stood alone, and one seemed to have nothing to do with the other. The sea there was also white, only the sound of the waves and the calling of seabirds were heard. The three people looked at each other speechlessly, with an expression of indifferent helplessness.
The choice of these scenes actually corresponds to the character's heart. Apart from gambling to make ends meet, Willie and Eddie basically have no other activities. Before going to Cleveland, Willie said: "We can see something different." As a result, he saw nothing and life was still boring. When the two men stood on the snow-covered railroad tracks, Eddie said, "Weird, how come everything looks the same when we reach a new place?" These words were the finishing touch. They hated the severe cold in Cleveland and decided to go to sunny Florida. The car drove to Florida and stopped in front of a wall with "Welcome to Florida" written on it. Willie bought three pairs of sunglasses. After everyone put them on, Willie said, "This way we look like tourists." The first sentence is funny, on the other hand, sunglasses can't conceal everyone's fatigue and boredom, and the scenery in front of you can't be connected with a tourist attraction.
They go from one place to another, imagining that another place will bring some difference, but not only the scenery is unpleasant, but more importantly, they can never get rid of the confusion and boredom in their hearts. In this regard, I would like to express a little bit of my own experience. If a person's heart does not change, and the way he sees the world does not change, for him, there is indeed no difference. I remembered an interesting story about the experimental musician John Cage. Once, when he went to Taiwan to perform and looked at the cracked tiles on the ground, he said: "It's really beautiful." Perhaps from the eyes of those who are full of beauty, everything in the world can be associated with beauty. The key is to look at how a person's heart is, not how good external things are.
After listening to me so much, are you bored? What can I see in such a boring movie? In fact, although the theme of the movie is serious and even a little heavy, Jim Jamsh’s movie is not dull. There are all kinds of small humour in "Heavenly Stranger", which is not relying on all kinds of funny actions. Funny, the humor in the film can make you laugh, and at the same time there is a sense of absurdity. Although the people in the film do not have a humorous cell, and they do not speak and act deliberately and playfully, their actions become interesting in the eyes of the audience under certain circumstances. I will cite a few here. In the film, three stationary co-camera shots are used to take pictures of Eva and Willie watching TV. The three simple shots clearly explain the alternation of day and night and their boring state, the second of which is The lens is very comedic. There is horrible music on the TV, and because there is only light from the TV screen, there are two black shadows on the heads of Willie and Eva. If they are placed in a horror movie, this lens may be fascinating. Shocked in surprise, but at this moment, it can only make people laugh. Willie, Eddie and Eva and their boyfriend Billy went to the movies. The whole movie theater scene was shot with only one fixed front lens. Willie and Eddie sandwiched Eva and Billy was placed in the middle. Beside Eddie, I couldn't help but smile when I saw this scene. The two boys were so ignorant, they separated the two lovers. Willie and Eva’s aunt is a stubborn Hungarian, basically speaking only Hungarian. In order for Eddie to understand, she said thank you in English, but she would say thank you again in Hungarian afterwards. This is also a very clever design. One is to make the audience happy, and the other is to show both Europe and the United States. different culture. There is not much to say about cultural differences, which are actually part of the connotation and interest of the film. I think the most interesting character in the whole film is Eddie. He looks a little stupid and always restrained. The funniest part of him is his polite remarks. For example, he obviously saw Eva throw away the skirt Willie gave her. Willie asked him if the skirt looks good. Eddie replied: "Well, it's beautiful." He obviously didn't like the soup and desserts made by his aunt, but he kept saying it was delicious. The frozen Lake Erie is not beautiful, but Eddie said: "It's so snowy, so beautiful!" Eddie is used to such a polite way of speaking. He didn't mean it, but we can't be unintentional, so this language becomes It's ridiculous. There are many examples of this kind, so please look for them when you look at them.
It's the same everywhere, this is what the movie tells us. However, I have to add that if these people drifting on the road do not change their hearts, I am afraid it will be difficult to find true happiness and joy. Of course, some people will say that there is no happiness and happiness in the first place. Yes, it depends on what you think. Do you want to live a life boringly or live a life happily? You have to make the choice. It is recommended that all friends who want to make a movie on their own go to see this movie, it will let you know that such a low-cost movie, as long as you have good ideas and concepts, you can also shoot with such a personality and depth.
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