Prologue: Introduction
Awards Ceremony (full film 1/20)
In flashbacks, it opens with one of the nation's highest-profile awards shows in theater, with young actress Eva receiving the Special Achievement Award, the youngest recipient of the award in 40 years. There are two main functions here:
1. Introduce the main characters of the story;
2. These characters don't seem to like the award-winning Aiwa very much, laying the groundwork.
Act 1: Begin
1.1 The protagonist appears (1/5 of the whole film)
Eva:
Eva emerges from the shadows of the stairwell, alluding to the ambiguity of her identity. She begins as a poor young widow, innocent little sheep, madly admiring the high-flying actress Margot. Later, at the airport, she took the initiative to help check her luggage, gave Margo a chance to say goodbye to her lover, showed her virtuous side, and moved into Margo's house smoothly.
Such a character is extremely pure and has no personality conflict , and it is actually difficult to attract the audience. So the film puts the conflict in her on a temporal level, in the opening flashback: In the not-too-distant future, Eva will be a far more successful actress than Margot, dressed gorgeously and proudly. This contrast can't help but make people curious: why did her character and identity change so much? How did she get the award? Is it really relying on its own strength, or secretly taking bad measures?
Margot:
Margot was already a famous actress when she came on stage, being selfish and proud in her dressing room. But after hearing about Aiwa's pitiful life experience, she was so sympathetic that she burst into tears. In fact, she was a very kind-hearted person. Saying goodbye to her lover at the airport, she was reluctant to part with her words, but also implied worry. It turned out that a proud actress would also be afraid of her lover's change of heart.
Margo is a typical "knife-mouthed tofu-hearted" image , which can easily arouse the audience's favor. Moreover, at the award ceremony at the beginning of the film, she was not happy with Eva's award, but instead held contempt, which made people question: Does Eva's superiority depend on betrayal of Margot?
1.2 Contradiction (1/4 of the whole film)
Eva:
In the beginning, she was thoughtful and thoughtful, taking care of the idol's housework and work in an orderly manner, and even eschewed the responsibilities of the old maid. But gradually exposed the other side: sneaking on Margot's dress, showing her desire for the stage; communicating with her director boyfriend (though only for work) behind Margot's back, arranging late-night birthday calls, and completely mastering Margot Go's life.
The 180-degree transformation of Eva's character finally revealed her true desire: to become a star in the drama world. But how much can she plan for this? The story here is far from being fully revealed, but with reservations to provide impetus for the subsequent development of the story.
Margot:
At first, she liked Aiwa's thoughtfulness very much. When she found out that Aiwa was stealing a skirt, she just smiled softly and didn't realize Aiwa's true heart. It wasn't until the birthday call that was arranged late at night that she discovered that Eva was actually communicating with her boyfriend behind her back, and she felt the crisis all of a sudden. When she woke up the next morning, she told Eva that Eva had manipulated herself like a puppet, fully recognizing reality.
The 180-degree change in Margot's attitude towards Eva, she felt that Eva was not just a child, but would threaten her career and, of course, more importantly, may take away her love. Character Desires: Drive Eva away . (In order not to make the change of attitude too abrupt, the film also adds the role of an old maid, constantly urging Margot to wake up.)
From then on, the war between the two women officially sounded the horn.
Act Two: The Heart of the Story
2.1 Intensified conflict, birthday party (9/20)
Eva:
Secretly looking for an opportunity to ascend: Talk to the director with the face of an innocent girl, and use the kind screenwriter's wife to become a stuntman. And chatting on the stairs, she began to clearly show her ambitions for the stage in front of everyone.
Desires and means are further upgraded, and status is also gradually rising , in contrast to Margot.
Margot:
Margot is jealous of her boyfriend, the director thinks she thinks too much, which makes her feel broken; asks a friend to help transfer Aiwa, the friend is surprised and embarrassed; the screenwriter and his wife are dissatisfied with her rude treatment of Aiwa, but Ma Go ridiculed.
Margot wants to get rid of Eva in every way, but encounters opposing forces. The more she tried to prove her opinion, the more everyone else looked down on Margo and valued Eva, which led to Margo's lower mentality, and her inner jealousy and meanness more prominent. The story goes down step by step.
2.2 Contradiction further intensifies, theatre (11/20)
Eva:
Part of the desire is fulfilled , and his acting skills have won unanimous praise from critics, directors, and screenwriters.
Margot:
When Margot learns that Eva has not moved away from herself, but instead has become a stuntman, and gained recognition, she feels the danger of being replaced one step closer, more jealous, and psychologically broken. Her estrangement from Eva turned into an actual repression, and her spats with her lover and friends turned into personal attacks. In the end, she reconciled with her boyfriend and confronted Eva and the screenwriter.
The conflict was further intensified, and after repeated pulling, Margot 's originally stable life was on the verge of being broken, and she had to have a final battle to decide the outcome.
Act Three: Climax and Ending
3.1 Climax, conflict erupts (3/5)
Eva:
By borrowing a knife to kill people, inviting reporters to report, and forming alliances with playwrights, he succeeded. Then pursued the victory and gained the status of the first heroine of the new drama. In order to further cement her career status, Eva also tried to seduce the director, failed, intimidated the screenwriter's wife and so on.
The battle is won. Unmask the appearance of the characters, show the real heart, and give the audience a shock. And the theme of the film begins to emerge.
Margot:
Margot squeezed into a small car and a noisy dining table, lamenting the fate of a woman, but she was really driven to a dead end without knowing it, and finally gave up her career and chose love, and lost the war completely. Her enemy is not Eva, but Time who cannot fight. In the end, it ended with the boudoir's laugh at the dinner party, which seemed to be a mockery of the farce in the entertainment industry.
The battle was lost. She was replaced by Aiwa in her career, but fortunately she gained sincere love. In the portrayal of the characters, there is a deeper inner heart than jealousy: peeling off the arrogant appearance, inside is the powerlessness to deal with fate. This is also the reason for her final choice.
3.2 Ending (1/1)
Eva:
Eva climbs up the ranks, and then the truth is revealed that her initial approach to Margot was a hoax. Eva forced a smile at the awards ceremony and returned to the hotel tiredly, where the new "Eva" appeared.
The truth about Eva paints the final perfect stroke for the characters, and more importantly, forms part of the story loop and reveals the theme of the film.
Margot:
Frustrated, he gradually retired from the drama world and took care of his housework with peace of mind. Even this ending was only told by the screenwriter's wife. Margot flashed by at the final awards ceremony, falling like a comet.
other
The character of each supporting character also has both positive and negative sides:
The old maid was as pungent as Margo, but she was the first to see through Eva's scheming, and kindly reminded Margo to be wary. The director's boyfriend roams the entertainment industry romantically, and is much younger than Margot, but it's actually true love. The screenwriter's eldest brother seems to be married and kind, but he is the one who is seduced. The screenwriter's wife is also cowardly and kind, but she stabbed her best friend heavily.
Overall, Margot's character has a tortuous inner journey, rich in contradictions and conflicts, and is the protagonist's plot. However, Aiwa's and her storylines overlap and are differentiated, forming a sympathy. The supporting characters' storylines are also very full, each with its own style, and they are combined to jointly promote the development of the plot, similar to the "polyphonic" in literature. novel" feeling.
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