Although rounders has been translated as the king of gambling kings by kitsch, its original meaning is actually a poker player, and it also has the meaning of a prodigal son. This pun image is very appropriate and expressive for this film. After reading it, you will understand that it is not about the gambling king at heart, but about holding on to your dreams, even if it means going out of line.
Through the exquisite symmetrical structure, the film strengthens the symbolic meaning of the story. From the protagonist Mike's appearance alone, there are lovers, enemies, mentors, friends/bad friends, and then farewell to friends/bad friends, mentors, enemies, and lovers. With a whole body of pain, he set off alone again. The appearance and exit of the main characters are almost perfectly symmetrical. In this neat structure, the protagonist turns around and returns to the starting point, forming a meaningful cycle, like a person floating in a sea of misery. , pleasure is just a phantom mirage, only bitterness is boundless, and it really soaks him. He has gathered and separated with all kinds of people, parted and reunited, love and friendship, favor and feud, no matter what, he has to face it again, one by one, and only in this way can he complete his practice and ascend to the other side lightly:
Mike and Joe
At the beginning, he was a gambler in Joe's eyes, unreliable, his lies were ruthlessly exposed, his excuses were scorned, he was a lifelong lover who could not be trusted, and a disgusted ex, at the end, he was Joe. The old man who pursued his dream in his eyes, because he finally faced himself honestly, so he could also face others honestly. Looking at him like this, her resentment disappeared and her attachment remained, she smiled and sent her blessings, "I wish you good luck. You're lucky! Oh, yes, you don't need luck, right?" With a little self-deprecation, there is still pity in the corner of his eyes;
Mike and Professor
In the beginning, Mike was a problem student who was talented but could not find his way in the eyes of his tutor. He seemed to have all the potential to be a good lawyer, but he did not show the enthusiasm for seeking the truth or for the future. At the end, he made up his mind, bid farewell to the stable and respected legal industry, and devoted himself to professional poker in the eyes of everyone who questioned, but this was precisely inspired by the professor, "It is fate that chose us", the professor cannot escape. His own destiny, Mike too. Perhaps in the eyes of most people, professional poker players are far less "tall" than legal elites, but in the eyes of the professor's father, it is really unfortunate that his son did not choose to serve God but devote himself to law. Rabbi, professor, poker player, which one is more "higher" than the other? Maybe there is no high or low, only the heart has its own. When Mike asked the professor for help, he also inadvertently enabled the professor to use this method to affirm his original self and repay his mother's painstaking efforts. "This is what I owe you." myself hated and rejected by my father";
Mike and the Bug
The relationship between Mike and the bug is the most complicated of all the characters, is the bug a bad friend? The answer seems to be quite obvious. The little bug goes into the casino when he leaves the cell, lies in his nature, loves the old man and likes to borrow money and then disappears. He is satisfied with all the things that can make a scum at the bottom of the society survive and be excited. However, Xiao Zong is a good friend to Mike. It was he who resisted the crime in middle school and was expelled from the school, which enabled Mike to graduate and enter the law school. For this, Mike is very grateful and thinks that he I owe him a lot. What's more, the little bug is Mike's inspiration to play poker, just as Akagi Haruko is the leader of the Sakuragi flower road to play basketball, little bug and Mike, as the only two poor children in a private school, their similar family background makes them It's easy to accept each other, I guess, maybe for the lonely Mike, a sentence from a boy with a bubbling nose, "Dude, do you want to play cards?" Just like that warm spring day, Qingzi stood slim in front of Sakuragi, sweet and sweet. Asking "Classmate, do you play basketball?" Xiao Zong did not "broke" Mike, drag him down with poker addiction, or tempt him to return to the wrong path, but led him to discover his passion and talent for poker, although Mike also tried to deceive himself, let himself go back to a regular life, and try to be a model law school graduate, but he finally recognized himself: discussing the case with his fellow lawyers in suits and sitting upright did not cheer him up at all. , "Sitting at the poker table only came alive", observing the opponent's expression, guessing the opponent's card, bluffing or pretending to show weakness, or seeing the opportunity to gamble, these can make him focus and excited, he loves playing poker, He's going to do this for a business! This is his own decision, not bewitched by the bug. Just as Sakuragi Hanamichi will eventually realize at some point that he loves basketball not because he loves Haruko, but because he loves the sport, and that's it.
But the little bug finally proved that he is not only a 100% scumbag, but also not a good friend. Although he defended Mike at the expense of his own future, various signs later showed that he may not care so much about a decent life. His life is more the result of his self-choice than an accidental product. Unlike Mike, he is addicted to gambling because fraud has become his way of living, he needs money, and he enjoys the pleasure of the trick. Chu Laoqian can just bring him both at the same time. And Mike "has a dream, always has a plan", which makes him feel ridiculous and a little resentful, and it is destined that the two of them will part ways. In Mike's journey, the worm has fulfilled the mission of the enlightener, and the rest is only drag and corruption. Since he owes the worm with all his strength, it is time to cut the table. gone. The little bug got into trouble in the way he was most familiar, and dealt with the routine he was best at, and he disappeared again. But Mike would not, he chose to face kgb.
mike and kgb
kgb is not an ordinary underworld eldest brother. He is a sloppy, gambler who loves Oreos. He is cunning and unpredictable. He laughs and curses at the poker table. , without the rules, he will only be more vicious. Whether inside or outside the game, kgb is like a wolf who is not far from Mike, and is very happy to pounce on him and devour him whenever he has a chance. His character is like an evil and crooked version of Hong Qi He was doing Ouyang Feng's work. He was stuck on Mike's way and became a veritable boss. And Mike's story starts with losing to him, and ends with defeating him. He regained his sword and confidence, and this cycle was completed.
At the end, Mike is sitting in a taxi, like the beginning of the film, once again alone, and once again revealing his heart - "Everyone thinks that is luck", everything seems to have not changed, but everything is has changed. As the car starts heading towards the airport, the meaning of starting a new life is self-evident. At this time, the color of the film faded, and the ending song baby i'm a big star now (baby, I am a big star now) gradually started to ripple in your heart, melted and spread, and the heart was wrapped under her decadent armor. There is unwillingness, mixed with the sadness of parting and the longing for departure, full of melancholy and no one to talk to, with the surging emotions that go with the plot, better than any language interpretation of the film, at this moment, the surging emotions are only You shouted and vented along with the singing: "Even though my time has been wasted, baby, I'm a big star now", you know? Does anyone know...
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