This could have been a brilliant movie, because the writer/director's excessive "literary" tendencies did not give ordinary people a good impression. So that imdb has only 6.5 points.
Ben was a "lion" when he was young. He worked hard with passion and realized the typical American dream. He was on the cover of Forbes magazine. He was honest and trustworthy, and was rated as "the most honest businessman in the New York area". He used to be a good man, donated money to the university to build a beautiful library, very noble. In the film, Ben has never taken drugs, and has never spent the first half of his life. He was a model of a good businessman.
So what made him distorted? Her daughter Susan also doesn't know why Ben is out of control, and in the film she asks, "What hit the switch?". I also want to delve into this issue.
At the end of the film, BEN tells his ex-wife that he started 'deceiving' after the doctor diagnosed him with a heart attack. But just because of heart disease in old age? This is obviously not convincing.
I want to start with the friendship part and leave out women and private life.
Ben used to have many friends, in stages.
When he was young, he was full of passion, and naturally there was no shortage of friends around him. Ben was taken in by Jimmy, a classmate who opened a small restaurant, showing us the warmth of friendship. Ask yourself, we will miss those teenage friends, even if we haven't come home to party in a few years, but when we meet again, that feeling will come back soon. How does Ben understand these friends? How is it done? After Ben was beaten by the thugs, he bluntly said to Jimmy, don't talk nonsense about friendship, we haven't seen each other for 35 years, we live in different worlds, and our friends are all about the same level (to the point). This obviously hurt Jimmy, but although Jimmy was surprised, he wasn't angry because he understood that this was Ben's resentment after all the 'cold eyes', especially the old punch. Ben was telling the truth, he asked his secretary to block Jimmy's calls, and he didn't return them. Because he knew and had nothing to say, when he was so down, all he could get from Jimmy was comfort, but as a lion, he didn't give in until the end, he tried everything, trying to get agency, trying Convince the bank. This is the strong BEN in the film.
This is how I try to sum up these teenage, college-age friends, when they were congenial, excluding Bill Gates, Paul Allen, Jobs and Woz, who knew their ideals at the time and then became entrepreneurial partners. Ordinary people, our friends are really just because of the 'congeniality' at that time, we can watch girls together, we can belittle teachers who are not pleasing to the eye, we can skip classes together, and we can have fun together. After entering the adult society, there are very few of these friends left. In addition to knowing your aspirations at the time, there will be opportunities to communicate and support you in the future. I have made friends in high school, because of the simplicity of adolescence and the single goal of life, which is a bit different from college.
I mean, Ben is right on this point, my understanding is that 35 years later, what's left is not friendship, but the feeling of friendship. This feeling resonates with us warmly. (Who hasn't experienced it?)
Let's start with the two typical business friends who appear in the film. When the spring breeze is complacent, Ben's beauty is infinite, and naturally all kinds of help are indispensable. The film talks about two such friends, one is a BMW manager and the other is a bank manager. But at a low point in life, these friends will not really 'stab in the back' for you. Remember the scene where Ben was trying to sell himself at the new BMW store later, to work here? He said to Peter, the manager of BMW, "Let me join? I'll give you a spree." This friend Peter, who used to be very helpful, almost helped him get the dealership. But in this scene, it shows that their previous friendship was based on interests. When Peter judged that Ben was over and couldn't make a comeback, and that such a basis for interest did not exist, he made a sober judgment.
And Steve, the bank manager who had dinner together, said it more clearly, "It's not us that has changed, it's you that has changed." That's right, the bank has never changed, and he only does business that should be done.
So these are 'friends'? Of course, it's just that 'friends' in the adult world are not what you were when you were a teenager. What they did was right. If it was you, they would make the same decision. It is already very kind to step on the stone without falling to the ground. Therefore, friends in the adult world are more based on 'mutual benefit', on the exchange of interests, on cooperation, and it is difficult to appreciate each other emotionally and 'congenial'. (Note, it's "difficult", not "can't".)
Well, after talking about friends, now comes the hard part, but about love, I'm worried that I can't write well, so I can only speculate.
At the beginning of the film, Ben sees In the doctor's part, he also happily talked about his wife and the opening ceremony. Then what happened to his divorce, lover, and unruly? I really don't want to mention his incest plot, but I have to mention that this part is As I mentioned at the beginning, the director's excessive hope of highlighting the artistic effect completely angered the audience. Let Ben's blemish ruin more than half of the entire film. (Many girls in the film critics asked incomprehensibly, men are really like this Lower-body thinking animals?, which is definitely off-topic).
When it comes to interacting with women, Ben reminds me of Al Pacino's excellent performance in "Scent of a Woman". Have you found anything in common between them? They have experienced major setbacks, but they are confident in their interactions with women, without any timidity, and take the initiative. Ben wasn't as graceful as the Colonel, he didn't even care who the other party was, and the consequences of messing around. I have to say, attitude towards the opposite sex, confidence and even 'aggressive', 'animalistic', this is something they have in common in their personalities.
Let’s take it briefly, let’s not expand on it, I have only watched the film twice in total, and I don’t want to write an excellent film review.
Back to the main point, how did BEN change from honest businessman to notoriety? The title of the film is 'The Lonely Man', is it really just as simple as betraying relatives?
Ben was diagnosed with a heart attack by a doctor and started cheating. Why? I can only find one reasonable explanation, which is eagerness.
He was worried that time was running out and that his ambitions were not fulfilled, so he wanted to take shortcuts. Of course, it is not too much to call it 'greedy'.
Did you notice? When the police broke the news on the college campus and sold an illegal car, Ben explained that he had already compensated. When he was beaten up in the middle of the night, he thought it was a casino thug, and he specifically emphasized that all the gambling debts in Las Vegas were paid off. You see, he's not diabolical, he's not a Boiler Room junk-stock conman, he's not a "Wall Street" financial thief, he's not a modern-day liar like Madoff. He compensated the victim with his entire property, paid the fine, and avoided jail time.
So I said 'urgency' was the reason he became greedy, his desire to be more successful was so strong that he wouldn't even give in to a heart attack and stopped going to the doctor for years to come.
He is lonely when he thinks that he may die soon and his goals have not been achieved; when he makes
mistakes without any support from his partners, he is lonely;
when he shows his original charm , when he got a little physical comfort, he was lonely;
when he was getting more and more sinking, when everyone betrayed his relatives and separated, he was completely lonely ;
…
Maybe many people will not agree with my far-fetched reason, but thinking about Lan Shili, thinking about those Wenzhou businessmen who have recently struggled in the vortex of loan sharks, or jumped off buildings or went into exile, they will probably understand something. In our eyes, they were already successful and rich, so why take the risk now? I believe that many of them were in a complicated and heavy mood when they signed the usury agreement, the pressure in the market, the subordinates who were waiting for the company, the payment that should be paid, and more importantly, the confidence in the future. There is desperation that they cannot choose in the face of pressure, so that they can accept the interest that may lead to bankruptcy.
I don't know if Ben faced such despair when he made a mistake, it wasn't mentioned in the film, I just speculated on the bright side that he wanted to do more.
Finally, let me borrow some details to illustrate what the director wanted to express. When Ben was called on by the landlord, his daughter Susan came and accused him of messing with the parents of his grandson classmates and losing face. Facing Ben's stubbornness, she finally made a choice: "If you don't change your mind, stay away from my friends and my family."
Everyone has their own bottom line, remember this, even family members. Don't go against the bottom line.
Most people develop a sense of moral superiority because there is no opportunity to make mistakes.
I would like to illustrate the resonance of this film with me, to commemorate my few years of entrepreneurial time, and to thank my friends who supported me.
There are still many details to be discovered in the film, looking forward to seeing.
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