"Falling Dog" is the debut work of director Quentin Calentino. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 1992. Although it is not as famous as "Pulp Fiction" and "Kill Bill", in this film, we have You can see the typical Quentin style-seemingly irrelevant broken thoughts in the opening, non-linear narrative structure, black humor that perfectly combines tricks and violent aesthetics, and a deep love for jazz and comics in the 1970s.
As a low-cost independent film, the storyline of "Falling Water Dog" is very simple: the gang boss Joe and his son planned a jewelry robbery and organized six people who did not know each other to carry it out. The result was that they were attacked by the police. The ambush caused heavy casualties, and the remaining people killed each other because of mutual suspicion. Throughout the film, there is no scene of a robbery in a jewelry store, but through the chattering dialogue between the robbers afterwards, scenes of vivid scenes have been vividly presented before our eyes.
What impressed me the most in "Falling Water Dog" was the setting and details of the characters in the film. The six robbers were named with different colors: Mr. White, Mr. Bai-loyalty, Mr Blonde, Mr. Jin-loyalty, Mr Orange, Mr. Orange-justice, Mr Pink, Mr. Pink-egoism, And Mr. Brown was just nagging in the prologue for a while, Mr. Blue is a completely soy saucer. Naming characters with colors is already an obvious hint-each person represents a position, and Quentin pays particular attention to the description of details, making everyone's character and position extremely clear.
Mr. Bai is a typical gangster iron man with tenderness. The technique of using a lighter is unique, using sunglasses under the nose to interview if Mr. Orange has died. You can see that he is an old river and lake, but he also has a tender side. Mr. Orange was his partner and was shot accidentally. He thought it was his fault. Self-blame and pity made him not only tell Mr. Orange his name and true identity, but also insisted on sending Mr. Orange to the hospital. When everyone was suspicious of each other, he kept protecting Mr. Orange, calling Mr. Orange as kid (child), at the expense of his life, until Mr. Orange fell in his arms and told him: "Sorry, I am a policeman. "
Mr. Jin is a perverted but very loyal guy. After being ambushed by the police, he didn't panic, but wore sunglasses and returned to the warehouse with a coke. As soon as the alarm bell rang in the jewelry store, he started shooting frantically. In the warehouse, he enjoyed the look of the police desperately struggling to evade under the barrel he raised. With music and dance steps, he cut off gracefully and cruelly. The police's ears. But he was extremely loyal to Joe and willingly served him in jail for 4 years without revealing a word.
Mr. Orange is a typical undercover agent. The design of this character mimics the Gao Qiu played by Chow Yun-fat in "Dragon and Tiger Storm" directed by Lin Lingdong. The part of his description before he came out of the apartment is also a detailed paragraph, hanging up the phone, wearing a coat, hiding a small pistol, holding a revolver, holding a cigarette, turning off the music, holding a key, looking for a ring, and cheering himself in the mirror. It shows his nervousness. In the warehouse, when Mr. Jin was about to burn the policeman to death, he finally fired.
Mr. Fan said the most except f**k is professional (professional), because as a thief, he is really professional. After the failed robbery, he was the first to say that there was an undercover agent. He didn't want to know Mr. Bai's name and he didn't want to kill. After he got the diamond, he didn't carry it anytime but found a safe place to hide it first. He is a person who puts his own interests first. He doesn’t want to send Mr. Orange to the hospital, and he doesn’t want to know Mr. Bai’s real name because he is afraid of getting into trouble. Before Mr. Jin appeared, he cursed his pervert and Mr. Jin appeared. Later, he turned to please him. He didn't want to tip or accept the nickname "Mr. Fan", but as soon as Joe spoke, he honestly accepted it.
So who is the real protagonist of "Falling Water Dog"? Is it the chivalrous and tender Mr. Bai, the perverted but loyal Mr. Jin or the police undercover Mr. Orange? No, in fact, the real protagonist is Mr. Fan who is easy to be ignored and despised by everyone.
Mr. Fan's postmodern strategy. Because the individual cannot be consistent with the collective at all times, and lacks authoritative truth, everyone is involved in a complex contradiction formed by the inability of beliefs to reconcile each other, and the story ends in death. Mr. Fan became the only one who survived and took the diamonds. He became the final winner. He is obviously the most wretched character in the film. He is timid and fearful. When others insist on their position, he may argue at first, but in the end he will compromise. A closer analysis reveals that he is a typical postmodern character. According to postmodern theories, it is unsolvable to be truly submerged under intricate discourse. He doesn't understand the truth, so the strategy he adopts is to "do what is best for him at all times". He does not hold any position. If he enters into conflict, he will make the "decision that is best for himself and the collective." So he became the only vested interest.
There is no established position, no authoritative words, no fixed beliefs, no principles for doing things, and only making decisions that are beneficial to oneself. From this perspective, Mr. Fan is the only person who has his own self, and everyone else is a slave to a certain authority and belief. He is also the only person whose name everyone does not know, only he belongs to him, and he controls his own destiny. Mr. Fan is a post-modern hero, a post-modern hero who flees in panic created under the shadow of countless traditional heroes. This is the purpose of "Falling Dog".
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