There are many perfect partners in the history of world cinema
Especially the tacit understanding between many great directors and talented actors is intoxicating...
For example, Chief Jia, who always uses actress Zhao Tao as the heroine;
Has been playing a daughter's Hara Setsuko in Ozu movies;
And Tony Leung, who must appear in the Wang Sunglasses movie...
These excellent actors are called the director's "royal actors".
There are many more examples of these, Liu Qingyun to Du Qifeng
Robert De Niro and Little Plum to Martin Scorsese
Samuel L. Jackson to Quentin Tarantino...
Li Kangsheng and Cai Mingliang are such a match made in heaven.
For movies, they are literally one with each other. The male protagonist of each of Cai Mingliang's films is the story of a man named "Xiaokang" played by Li Kangsheng.
What I recommend today is Cai Mingliang's Virgo "Youth Nezha", a story about a confused and restless youth, rebellious loneliness and ignorant growth.
Some netizens commented: The wet and hot lens makes people blushing. The soundtrack of "The Third Prince of Nezha is here" is addictive, I really hope this movie can be filmed in such a trivial manner, not finished...
Some people say that it is the best of all Cai Mingliang's movies, gloomy and dull but still has the throbbing of youth, pain, and freshness of the soul...
Maybe not necessarily the best, but it is one of the relatively lively ones.
This film is the key to opening the world of Cai Mingliang's film, which is very suitable.
It is said that Cai Mingliang's discovery of Li Kangsheng's deeds is very interesting: the first time I met Li Kangsheng was more than 20 years ago, a TV drama needed a high school student bad boy, and I met Li Kangsheng on the street. He graduated from high school at that time and did not go to college.
The movie "Youth Nezha" was written by Cai Mingliang based on Li Kangsheng's situation at the time and his family background. A teenager preparing to retake the university entrance exam, Li Kangsheng plays himself.
Just like this first film, many of Cai Mingliang's films are based on Li Kangsheng's situation and mood at each stage as the creative material.
The filming of "River" was because Li Kangsheng had a strange disease after the performance of "Youth Nezha", and his neck was crooked to one side. Cai Mingliang accompanied him to seek medical treatment. The process of seeing a doctor had a very impact on Cai. So he wrote a script about it.
"What Time Are You Over There" was made because Li Kangsheng became more melancholy because of the death of his father. So Cai Mingliang began to think about how to make him come out? So Cai decided to make a movie about his father's death.
In the 1990s, Ximending, Taipei.
Xiaokang, who escaped from the cram school, met the delinquent young man A Ze, and started a follow-up...
"Youth Nezha" vividly depicts the restlessness, rebellion, depression and confusion of several young people in their youth...
This film is also the first part of Cai Mingliang's "Water" trilogy.
In the film, the use of water many times is impressive.
Sewage flowing on the floor of Azer's house.
The majestic torrential rain swayed freely on a cloudy day.
The sweat on the body, the blood after being beaten...
Various images constitute an inner feeling of dampness, emptiness, depression and chaos.
The water at this time symbolizes wandering without purpose, the desire to flow freely and the dazedness of youth.
Xiaokang didn't have a good relationship with his father, and he was also facing the pressure of taking college entrance exams. He had a very depressing life, so when he was sitting on the street and saw A Ze, his peer who was riding a cool heavy plane carrying a girl, he was envious. Also jealous.
A Ze, a delinquent boy, broke Xiaokang's father's taxi camera because his father said a word to him.
After several encounters, Xiaokang decides to follow Aze.
Xiaokang overheard his mother tell his father that he was the reincarnation of Nezha, so their relationship was not good, so he deliberately pretended to be nervous to frighten his parents, but he was reprimanded by his fiery father: beast.
He threw a bowl at random, the bowl screamed in fright, Xiaokang was stunned, and did not dare to make mistakes.
Later, on a rainy night, Xiaokang completed the destruction and revenge on the Azer heavy locomotive.
And left a sign on the ground "Nezha is here".
When I saw the reflection of Azer seeing his car the next day, Xiaokang danced happily...
The two scenes of pretending to be crazy to scare the family and the carnival after revenge are too unforgettable.
Li Kangsheng, under his calm and restrained appearance, hides a volcanic commotion, which is very tense.
A Ze, who seems to be free and unrestrained, is also dissatisfied with the world around him, just like Xiaokang, so they prefer to do something rebellious: A Ze and his friends drive rumbling heavy motorcycles, play games recklessly, everywhere Find someone to play with.....
These restless young people like to spend time with exciting things to fill the empty spiritual world. Under the rebelliousness, they are actually confused and empty inside.
As when Azer hugged his lover Agui, Agui said to Azer:
【Let's get out of here, okay?
where are you going?
I have no idea! 】
Yes, where can I go if I leave here? Nowhere can escape the current predicament and confusion.
Taiwanese youth in the 1990s were full of wandering, confusion, loneliness, and joy after venting their depression, which we still face today.
Therefore, it can be said that the film is successful in focusing on the realism at the inner level.
The last scene is very interesting. The father who returned home left a gap for the son who left this time, and Xiaokang, who did not choose to go home, finally mustered up the courage to practice making friends by phone, but it kept ringing in the face. The non-stop phone calls made him hesitant to decisive, but finally he didn't answer and left...
Then, the empty shot is aimed at the night sky of the city and the flawless white clouds the next day. This is the end of the story.
At this moment, it seems that we can also feel the flow of time.
The tension between father and son seems to have been temporarily relieved.
And Xiaokang's heart seems to become more complicated and confused...
Then life goes on, but fortunately there is still hope that flows like a flawless white cloud.
In fact, people are alive, as long as they don't give up or die, there will always be hope.
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