I can’t hide my enthusiasm for Darren Aronofsky’s work 10 years ago. From the time the Black Swan was released, to a month before and after the "Darren Aronofsky's Dream and Nightmare" film festival organized by a film organization in New York two weeks ago, I watched it. Has been nearly ten times. There has never been a movie that I can watch more than 3 times in a short period of time, but this one is as addictive as the content it promotes, and it is completely difficult to quit. What made me even more surprised was that even after watching every detail of the familiar film many times, I could still feel the same or even more shock than before when it was played. This was an unprecedented movie-watching experience.
In fact, when I was still in college, I had downloaded and watched this movie from the list of many banned movies. I quickly watched it and didn't leave much impression. The reason why I can watch it better after many years has something to do with the increase in my life experience. After I have experienced the same experience of struggling in hallucinations and dreams, I can feel the extreme excellence of the film in various aspects such as the organization of the filming and photography:
clues
This movie revolves around the three main lines of mother Sara, son Harry, and girlfriend Marion. Accompanying good friend Tyrone is regarded as a secondary line. Each line is cross-correlated with each other, but to some extent, it is very clear that they are independent. This method allows a 1 hour and 40 minute movie to have two to three times the content compared to other movies of the same time, and even if the absolute time allocated to each main line is inevitably a lot less, any line is the same There is a complete cycle of "basic character shaping-cultivating the audience and feelings with the character-caring about (entering) the choice of the character-fluctuating with the character's fate and mood-shocking the ending". Except for Darren Aronofsky, I believe that no other director can make this film so compact and efficient. Statistics can also explain one reason: the general movie consists of 600-700 clips, but there are as many as 2000 clips in this film. It can be seen how much effort the crew has put in screenwriting and editing.
human nature
Some people think that this film is a purely anti-drug propaganda film. Some people think that the description of drugs in this film is too subtle, and it turns into a drug propaganda film. How can I see people’s opinions? Many comments. After watching it many times, another point gradually came to the surface: Excluding the ingredients of drugs or medicines, every main character in the film is a very, very good person. Mother Sara has been very kind and gentle from the beginning, loving her son and her husband who died, until the last minute ETC treatment of the brain trauma, this love has not changed at all; son Harry is filial to his mother, loves his girlfriend deeply, is loyal to his friends, and is in business. After a little achievement, the first thing that comes to my mind is to buy a TV to return his mother’s love. There is no doubt about his love for his girlfriend Marion. Until the end of his serious illness and arrest, he still wanted to contact Marion. Tyrone was arrested and he did not hesitate to withdraw most of his deposits. Coming out to bail a friend is almost perfect. The only flaw is that when he was almost desperate, he asked his girlfriend to ask for money from the bald uncle; Tyrone was also worthy of Harry’s friendship, obviously because of his black identity and closer proximity The source of goods, he should have contributed more to the "business" than Harry, but he completely shared all the gains with his friends, and later his friend became ill, he did not hesitate to risk being arrested and accompanied Harry to the hospital. Even in prison, all he thinks of is a friend who can help him. This is also a near-perfect friend. Although Marion is not as outstanding as the other three in this respect, it is obvious that she has a strong sense of principle and loves her boyfriend Harry, so the huge inner struggle at the end of the film is concentrated on her. Most of the supporting actors in the film are also good people. Sara’s group of aunts and friends care about her sincerely; the uncle who receives TV; their friend Angel; the staff in the TV station Sara went to; and the police and Doctor; all are kind in the film. Even if there are a small number of negative characters, they appear in a straightforward "villain" way. This is one of the few drama films with perfect personality that is not betrayed or betrayed by anyone. And when this level of perception emerges, the viewing of the film can go further. Evaluation of the original in the preface of the book: "It is Selby'
Many people think this film is too depressing and unpleasant, but I said that the film has better humanity than other films. Can you see a trace of warmth in the dark theme? Under this circumstance, the only thing in the whole story, and its prominent discordant factors are concentrated on the drugs. The
soundtrack
music is one of the biggest highlights in this film. Darren Aronofsky's queen scorer Clint Mansell is in this film. Gives his pinnacle work. I admit that there may be other movies that I like more overall, but no other movie can beat the music, the combination of music and film. Thinking back to other favorite movies, there is rarely the feeling that the picture in my mind and the music in my ear can echo along with it, but this one can give me a complete and multi-dimensional overall impression, especially the classic repetition. Variations of the electronic combination section, that is, the rhythm repeatedly used in several overtures and the last chapter Lux Aeterna in the film, helps the screen to push the plot to the climax again and again, and it is exciting from beginning to end, so that all the audience’s attention is attracted. Inextricable. I was once deeply shocked by the black swan's soundtrack, but later realized that compared to the re-arrangement based on historical classics, the originality in the Requiem is even more admirable. I believe there are still many people who appreciate this in Hollywood, and this music has been reused in many subsequent films.
photography
Photography is another factor that makes this film the best. Like his other works, Darren took a lot of detailed shots of the actors' faces to achieve the most direct description. Most of the time, he still used his favorite method of fixing the camera on the actors. This method has an excellent effect on occasions involving direct sensory description, and this method in this section successfully simulates on the screen the effect of abnormally sensitive senses but the greatest weakening of rational thinking after taking drugs. I was deeply impressed by many of the shots in the film. For example, Marion walked out of the room and entered the elevator after going to the bald uncle to sell his body in order to ask for money. It’s my favorite footage combining pictures and music; another example is that when Sara goes to see the doctor for the second time, she stops talking from time to time, and the external voice will change at a variable speed. At the same time, there is a sense of threat and oppression from time to time. It’s me. The best imitation of drug shots I have ever seen; there are also Harry and Marion's ethereal music and quiet and quiet rotating shots after ingesting several times, which is also an expression of the same illusion in another way; and Sara after taking drugs for the first time Clean up the fast-forward shots of the room, as well as the fast-forward combination shots of Harry, Marion and Tyrone on the first party; Sara is wearing a dream red dress in the room, applying deep lip gloss, waving her hands in the room, shaking her head and shaking her head. Fragments. Not to mention that in the film, there have been countless times of powdering, inhalation, aspiration, injection, blood vessel flow, and pupil dilation. It's hard to imagine that so many different styles of photography have been adopted in one piece, and each one is well mastered and the effect is excellent.
actor
If Natalie Portman's performance in Black Swan can be given 8.5-9 points, then Ellen Brustyn's performance in this film can add an extra point. I was really convinced by her performance. In such a high-density close-up shot, I was able to perform so well to the aunt who began to suffer from loneliness and then struggled in the pills. Her talent and profound skills in interpretation Unpredictable. Personally, I feel that none of the winners of the Academy Awards for leading male and female supporting roles in the past 5 years can reach the difficulty and intensity of her performance here, and her performance was actually lost to Julia Roberts in the awards that year. It is a great pity and regret to say that the committee cannot fully address the subject of the film. In addition to the powerful performance clips under the influence of drugs, what I like the most is Harry's expression when watching her big monologue at the end: "I'm somebody now, Harry. Everybody likes me. Soon, millions of people will see me and they'll all like me. I'll tell them about you, and your father, how good he was to us. Remember? It's a reason to get up in the morning. It's a reason to lose weight , to fit in the red dress. It's a reason to smile. It makes tomorrow all right. What have I got Harry, hmm? Why should I even make the bed, or wash the dishes? I do them, but why should I? I'm alone. Your father's gone, you're gone.
One clue of the three seasons of this film is the season, which starts in summer, passes through autumn, and ends in cold winter. The pun of FALL is used in the film, which means fall as well as fall. Summer is a good day, Harry and Tyrone's business is booming, and the beginning of autumn is arranged at the moment when Tyrone is involved in a gunfight and is arrested. Winter begins when Sara officially goes mad. All are just right. It is interesting to note that there is no spring in this film, and we have reason to believe that the actual time extends from the summer of the first year to the winter of the following year. First, Tyrone mentioned to Harry at the end: "Last Summer was a motherfucking ball, huh?". Second, when Sara said that she started taking the drug in the summer, the doctor asked: "Last Summer?" The doctor should have enough of the drug cycle. The concept judges how much time can reach this level. So I believe the story of this film actually lasted for a year and a half. The reason why there is no spring is that there is no spring in the world of drugs, which is very cruel. There is also a part of the human nature excavation in the
return to human nature
film that is also thought-provoking. Sara is such a person who likes to express herself and dreams of doing everything possible to be on TV. But when she really went on TV in the later hallucinations, she was extremely ashamed and hesitated because she was taking pictures of her humble home and embarrassed appearance, and the things she wanted most suddenly became the things she feared most at the same time. I have imagined how many times I have performed the most glamorous performance under the spotlight, and when I was forced to push onto the stage unpreparedly, the dazzling spotlight turned into a monster that swallowed me. People have their predecessors' side, and they have spent their entire life trying to push their beautiful self to the front desk for others to enjoy, while the bad side uses all their strength to pull back to taste slowly and unconditionally tolerate. I have to say that this is also a kind of Great sorrow. However, how many people can escape this sorrow.
When it was screened at the Movie Society Film Festival on January 4, 2011
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