More than one person mentioned the Coen brothers' "Thunder of the Earth" when evaluating this movie, and the implication is that it is also a story of revenge, "Wild Hunter" is beyond the reach of the dust. But after watching "Thunder in the Earth", I was very disappointed. I think whether it is placed in the works of the Coen brothers or in the context of the entire Western movie, "Thunder in the Earth" seems very mediocre... so I can't help but think about it. A few words of "defense" in "Wild Hunter".
Indeed, "Wild Hunter" is not a brilliant story, but it no longer focuses on the contradiction between whites and Indians like in previous westerns (some people think this is the biggest failure of the film, and even replaced whites. It is suspected of "whitewashing"; but showing the contradiction between the two may be just another kind of consumption), and has no intention of shaping the image of a sentimental and righteous "marksman" or "western cowboy", but to tell a person calmly A painful experience in extreme environments. In my opinion, in the category of Western films, such stories are somewhat novel.
More importantly, in my opinion, the overall production level of "Wild Hunter" far surpasses most Western films including "Land Thunder".
Take the "War of the Woods" at the beginning of the film as an example. There are many characters in the scene, the actors' positions are complicated, and the language of the shots is also very rich. The sense of messy, such a smooth group play is rare in my movie watching history. Another example is a series of subjective shots of Glass hiding under a cliff by the river and observing the Indians, and the motion shots in the chase scenes that follow are very substituting. The level of editing here is definitely at the level of a textbook...More valuable Yes, the film produced a kind of ethereal poetry and created a sense of alienation through the panoramic lens, which made people separate from the plot from time to time and realized the insignificance of human beings in history and nature. Sakamoto Ryuichi’s soundtrack also played an intensifying role, especially in the empty shots. In the dream, the music and the picture cooperated perfectly-although overall, Sakamoto Ryuichi’s soundtrack is too tragic for this film. Some.
When it comes to "spiritual poetry", I think this is precisely something that mainstream American directors lack, because Hollywood's film industry is already too mature, and it can hardly accommodate the whims or leisure of creators. All the details must be portrayed. The main line plot service, so that many movies are very "full", basically there is no white space for aftertaste.
As an "outer" in Mexico, director Inarido has won the Oscar for Best Director for "Birdman", but he still retains a little bit of his early film temperament. For example, I am obsessed with expressing some "meaningless" beauty: subjective shots in many places in the movie, and repeatedly pointed the camera at the eye of the horse (in addition to the crows and ants, it reminds me that I like to be in a drama suddenly Herzog inserted into the animal lens), the exhalation condensed into white mist on the lens, and the performance of several dreams are all "free brushes", which do not have much effect on the advancement of the plot. If deleted, the plot will be much more compact. But that clichéd "compactness" is precisely a dry rhythm in my senses, a streamlined dullness.
Of course, many people watch movies for enjoyment, pastime, and relaxation, and it is reasonable to pursue uninterrupted storytelling. You can accuse directors like Inarido of "not having the ability to tell a good story." But we may also need to believe that there are always people who make movies not entirely to tell stories, and some people enter the cinema not entirely to watch stories.
And: After the real revenge, I think it's not interesting, and the final hand-to-hand combat is also very boring. In real events, the protagonist did not choose revenge after escaping from the dead. I actually appreciate the ending even more. But if you really write or shoot that way, the protagonist's desire to survive will become more abstract (a lot of inner drama needs to be filled), the story will be more incomplete, and the audience will obviously not buy it.
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