What I want to say is that I watch Just stunned.
Roger Ibal pointed out that "Life Class" is the only one of the three short films in "New" that can really be called "successful". This is an indisputable fact. In my opinion, this is one of Scorsese's best works, along with (in my opinion) Taxi Driver, New York, New York, Crazy Bull, The King of Comedy, Three Midnight", "There is a Way of Thieves", "Love Outside the Heart" and "Electric Light Rolling Stone" are not comparable to each other, and they are all masterpieces.
The film is about a person's infatuation with another person (you're sensitive, you may have noticed that I deliberately didn't say it was a man with another woman) - in this case, the painter Lionel Dobie (Nick Noether) has a crush on it. The persevering pursuit of assistant Paulette (played by Lucana Arquette). Lionel has gradually entered old age, Paulette still exudes the charm of youth. Yes, to a large extent, it is a carnal desire (why not? How can love be without a carnal component?). One shot says it all: On Paulette's first night back in the studio, Lionel was restless and walked into her room in the middle of the night. (The room is on the second floor, suspended in the mid-air of the studio, like a fantasy in Lionel's head; one of the walls had a large hole cut through - was it Lionel's rage when they were arguing? Or was it a symbol Lionel's futility of all Paulette's attempts?) Scorsese uses a "circle out", "circle in" technique to photograph Lionel being distracted by Paulette's bare legs. It's an ancient technique from the silent era - Lionel's obsession with any part of Paulette's body, an ancient and abiding human desire. "Circle out" and "circle in" were originally called iris shot, which was like the opening and closing of pupils - as long as Paulette was by his side, Lionel's eyes were only her, and his eyes would never leave her. What is love, isn't that the same thing?
Love is shit. Lionel，威武、尊貴的獅子王，為了證明自己對Paulette的愛（與渴望），口口聲聲說可以為她做任何事——把那個甩掉她的蠢蛋男演員狠狠的揍一頓、放棄畢生追求The art of painting, giving a wet kiss to the cop in the police car; then, he suddenly found out: in Paulette's eyes, he turned out to be insignificant, nothing. He was lying naked on the stool with his huge and fat body. He couldn't compare to the young, muscular Latin lover. He didn't have the slightest attraction to her, even though on that noisy night, the agile gesture of his waving the brush and the gorgeous colors blooming on the canvas once made her stunned and fascinated. No, he's just a selfish monster. She didn't need his "life class". What she needs is her own life.
"Life Classroom" is surprisingly sexy. I'm not just referring to Rosanna Arquette (Martin Scorsese likes two types of women: one, the one with the great features, far from the beauty, but brilliant and cool The dead career woman is represented by Lisa Akari in "New York, New York"; the second is a coquettish goblin who is beautiful and youthful, has personality on the outside, and is superficial on the inside, but knows how to coquettish coquettishly. Arquette is a watcher), and Nick Nolte—thoughtful, sloppy, and fat, but it's no longer clear whether it's from emotional loss or from The anxiety caused by not being able to find creative inspiration, the desperate look of a hungry animal in captivity, is both scary and attractive - I call that passion. But the sexiest is Scorsese's camera and Thelma Schoonmacker's cuts. One after another close-up of the oil paint, the paintbrush is adjusting the wet paint, the splattering in the air, the liquid that landed on the wall with a violent "slap", and the stain on the nude woman photography magazine - absolutely right! If these shots make you think of ejaculation, you are not evil, but just the way it is. Ejaculation is the ultimate state of orgasm. Essence, essence also. That is, the essence of things that have been continuously refined, removed and preserved. Creation, art, isn't that what it is?
In addition, there are actually more sexual symbols and associations. Lionel knew that Paulette was still awake and couldn't bear the urge, so he picked up the basketball and shot - you see, isn't it shooting again? In the end the ball is thrown into a hole in the wall of Paulette's room (Scouse's humor is to arrange for the ball to be thrown back out of the hole). Lionel, still unwilling, threw the basketball against the wall, making a loud rumbling sound. Bang! Bang! "Bang" is another term for sex.
slow motion. Scorsese's forte. "Life Classroom" naturally has no shortage of slow motion, but this time the effect is sexy. Lionel waits for Paulette at the airport. The camera slid across his close-up with the sound of the plane taxiing. He took a puff, and the smoke floated in the air like a writhing woman. The cigarette butt fell to the ground. Lionel stomps it out with his foot, and the cigarette butt beats with the toe of his shoe—a sign of perseverance. Then came Paulette. Of course it's slow motion. Whoa!
And music. music. music. A Scorsese film couldn't have been without music. Proco Harum's "A Whiter Shade of Pale", already a legendary song, a legend about being destroyed by infatuation, is even more charming under Scorsese's sexy lens, adding a touch of vicissitudes. "Like a Rolling Stone" by Bu Dallen
Said: the classroom of life! ! !
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