India is very conservative, so you must take proper measures when making movies. Some time ago, "Queen Padmawati" annoyed conservatives because of part of the plot. So far, it has been released for no time. The leading actress and director have also been offered top prizes by politicians.
However, India also has a particularly open side, that is, you can arbitrarily black the government in the movie.
Last year, "Behind the Kidnapping" severely hacked up the corruption of the Indian government. The Minister of the Interior in the film actually said, "The government is not corrupt. The truth is that the government exists for corruption." The protagonist asked, "These are your real main businesses, right?"
There is no sei for such a black government! I once thought that this is about the highest state of the black government! ? Unexpectedly, this year the Indians took another even more powerful-"Stubborn Newton".
The protagonist's original name was Nutan, which meant a rookie, which made him often laughed at, so he chose a name with a similar pronunciation: Newton. For the master of physics, he also paid tribute to the great man he respected.
Newton is a new government employee who was assigned to an area where the rebels are active to complete the election. This is a very ideal person. He gave up a better-paid job and chose to work in a government department, just to make some contributions to this country.
Before leaving, he attended a lecture. The elderly lecturer enumerated a series of statistics, emphasizing that the election consumes a lot of money and involves the interests of many voters. Therefore, we must ensure the smooth completion of the election. If the rebels destroy the election, It must be re-elected! Newton fully demonstrated the unique characteristics of certain science students. He asked, the re-election was ruined, what should be done? The lecturer told him in very philosophical terms that he would re-election if it was broken, and it must be completed anyway.
That's how the word "stubborn" came from in the title. People with Newton's traits know the importance of elections, and the seniors taught him that he must ensure that the elections are completed. He must "mission must be achieved."
The lecturer also gave the name "Newton" a new meaning. He said Newton proved that everyone is equal before nature. Because the giant Ambani and ordinary tea vendors jumped off the cliff at the same time, they will land on the ground at the same time...This brain circuit, don't you accept it! (Ambani is the wealthy Indian businessman who has built a dozen-story mansion, and it has also been reported here in China.)
In this way, Newton also represents equality for all in the film, and equality for all is an indispensable concept in the electoral system.
Persevering in completing the (stubborn) election for everyone (Newton) is tied to the title. This is the only thing the protagonist does in the subsequent story, but he did not expect that what really hinders the election is not anti-government. Armed, this corresponds to his original name Nutan (rookie). How big a black hole election is, newcomers in the workplace don't know!
Due to the rebels and the complex terrain of the mountains and forests, Newton and a few of his men were sent to the government army camp stationed in the electoral area. They are not only familiar with the terrain, but also responsible for protecting everyone's safety.
But Newton never expected that this force that he thought would help him complete the election would boycott the election! ? The army commander obstructed in every possible way and did not want to assist in the election. The reason was that the electoral district was too dangerous... Damn it, it was because of danger that I asked you for help!
It is from here that the film begins to show vivid black humor and strong irony.
How could the stubborn Newton give up? He can be said to be quite rude: I just want to organize the election! Then, the commander actually compromised, did it feel unreasonable? This is the beauty of this film.
On the way to the electoral district, a subordinate who was about to retire, asked with a smiley face whether Newton had a very strong family background, otherwise, how could he dare to talk to the commander like this? Then we all understood, the commander who is also an officialdom veteran must think so too!
In this small section, the corruption of the Indian government was vividly portrayed, and the irony was incomplete, and the audience still found it very funny.
Newton thought that he would be able to do things as long as he stubbornly confronted the commander, but he didn't expect that what was waiting for him was an election without voters.
After the election venue was set up, everyone began to wait for voters to come and vote. The dilapidated election venue reflects the collapse of the local economy and the backward standard of living. The two subordinates were so bored that they snored loudly while sleeping. The stubborn Newton was full of energy, but it was a pity that none of the voters came! ! !
As the retiring subordinate said, "There is nothing to do here, just killing time."
And behind the house, a few soldiers are teaching others how to pretend to be anti-government militants to surrender and make money. The police actually participated in this operation...How corrupt is this? ! In the front of the house, the commander leisurely drank milk tea and watched Newton's good show.
Anyway, no one cares about the election, Newton feels a bit lonely, there is nowhere to go!
At this time, a foreign reporter from the West suddenly came to interview, breaking the silence of the electoral district! The deputy prosecutor who accompanied her ordered that she must ensure that the election goes smoothly, because it is about his reputation! ?
Suddenly, the whole style of painting suddenly changed, and the commander became the most active person in elections. He took his subordinates and traveled long distances to the residents' enclosure, arresting people from house to house to vote! The residents who were scared jumped around and didn't know, they thought it was a devil who had entered the village!
Friends, have you ever seen someone being pointed at a gun to exercise their right to vote? It's so magical!
Newton was happy at first. Someone came to vote, but found that the residents were full of resistance to the election. Some voters even asked how much a ballot was given. Newton tried his best to explain the significance of the election to the residents to no avail.
The people’s livelihood problem here has not improved because of the change of government. They realized that no one cares about the lives and lives of the people here, so they lost confidence in the election, and in order to suppress the rebels, the government troops even burned their houses to the extreme. Everyone moved to the enclosure, which made them very angry. At the same time, the rebels often came to irritate them and threatened them not to vote.
The most embarrassing thing is that because the government does not attach importance to this area, the education level here is also very low. Most residents only speak dialect and German. In order to prevent election cheating, the government customized advanced voting devices, but only marked Hindi. As a result, It is the voter who looks at the voting machine but does not recognize the voter's name. It can be seen that the government has never considered the actual situation of voters.
In the end, the commander used force to force the residents to vote blindly by choosing a picture he liked. Newton naturally refused to agree, but he had no choice but to have the command of a higher-level official, and the commander stopped buying it.
When a foreign reporter arrived at the electoral district, she was wearing a steel helmet and hat, standing in the ruins of charred houses, and through the camera, she introduced to the outside world: What a great election this is, and people risk their lives to exercise their right to vote. , This is the spirit of perseverance and democracy! On the other side, it is the voters who describe withered and expressionless faces.
After the election, Newton sat alone in the room, the camera continuously zoomed out, his figure became smaller and smaller, in front of the entire huge and decadent system, no matter how stubborn Newton was, it would not help!
The Indian government has always been proud of its system. It has always promoted that India is the world’s largest democracy. This is their last fig leaf, and "Stubborn Newton" tells us that India’s elections have no formalities, but The black rompers of the Indian government are gone.
The retiring subordinate said more incisively that the election in India will only change one thing, and that is the portrait of the leader! He even ridiculed that the government does not care whether people are hungry or not, but only cares whether people have the right to vote. However, the people always have the right to vote, but they are always being exercised in an ineffective manner. How can we talk about democracy?
Democracy cannot be achieved by applying the electoral system. The government must believe in democracy and respect democracy in order for this system to be effective. Otherwise, it is just a formality. After all, it is people, not the system, that carries the spirit of democracy.
The corruption of the Indian government has made the democracy it advertises in vain. This has actually been mentioned in "Behind the Kidnapping", but "Stubborn Newton" said it more thoroughly and more intensely. It directly pointed the finger at it. The electoral system is recognized as a symbol of democracy, and the ironic black humor is more penetrating than the direct expression of anger.
It is gratifying that in the end Newton finally waited for four voters who volunteered to vote and knew Hindi. However, in order for them to exercise their right to vote, Newton paid a high price, and the commander led his men to beat him up violently. ......
Six months after the screen was switched, Newton was sitting in the office wearing a neck guard, giving people unlimited imagination, but the stubborn Newton was still the stubborn Newton, still performing his job responsibilities conscientiously, instead of being like a lecturer. As predicted before, it becomes a vegetarian meal like everyone else.
I suddenly realized that the stubborn Newton was not only to satirize a character set up by the government, but also to represent the film's determination to maintain democracy.
What's interesting is that the Indian government actually selected this film to participate in this year's Oscars. It is an official determination! It is a pity that the first half of the film was too procrastinated. The plots of blind dates such as Newton were redundant and affected the overall perception, so it was not selected as the best foreign language film in the end.
Note: There is no singing and dancing in this film, so many people say that it is not like an Indian movie. Alas, this can only mean that you watch too few Indian movies!
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