The movie opens with the arrival of the Memories Train to 1999. This story was obviously conceived in a mood of reminiscence. The pet shop boy's "go west" and the group dance by Zhao Tao and others were like an emotional welcome ceremony, sending the audience to the part that will never come back. Not in the old days. Twenty-five or sixteen years old is full of high spirits. After the millennium, it seems that there will be different expectations. The small town of Fenyang is still full of excitement and hope. At this time, the years seem not so cold.
Therefore, we look at Tao'er, who is like a hibiscus flower. She is full of the pride of a small town flower. The left hand is love, and the right hand is friendship. Jin Sheng and Liang Zi are like two railroad tracks rooted in the ground. She thinks that happiness is to follow the track until the end of the day. However, the cruel reality has knocked on the door. The poor and the rich, the money and the ideal, the love and the friendship, must fight against each other, and the slow pace of life is quietly accelerating in the era of change. Their days went on as they always did, but they headed for a fork in the road where they parted ways.
The 50-minute drama in the first act is my personal favorite. Zhao Tao, Zhang Yi, and Liang Jingdong's acting skills don't need to be warmed up, they go straight to the state. Moreover, Jia Zhangke's personal style is distinct, and the details hidden in the background of the story are his movie symbols. The audiences are already familiar with Fenyang, Huanghe, and platforms in his shots, and the love and ideals that have been raped by reality are added with high-definition and The close-up picture, the colors are jerky and bright, but the truth here is the truth of the past. Red only favors Jinsheng and Tao'er in the festive atmosphere of welcoming spring, while Liangzi is waiting for the turning point of fate in the pathetic plain color. No matter whose life, the seeds of tragedy have been sown at his feet, waiting to take root, sprout, and bear fruit in the second and third acts.
It's a play that has a beginning and an end. Liang Zi wandered in a foreign country and said he would never come back. Using Tao'er and Jinsheng's wedding photo shoot as a ceremony, the chapter turned to 2014. It is not difficult to see that, as a "cornerstone" or "rudimentary" first-act drama, its layout is actually very mature and profound, and the direction and ending of the plot development are basically set. The fate of the three "fatties" is closely linked with their beliefs, and this belief was taught to them by the land that gave birth to them. Although the background is kept secret, there is no doubt about the reality of the country's rapid development. It seems to have a pair of wings and has already flown into the distance, and it is impossible for ordinary people to catch up with it. However, as a "coal boss" Jin Sheng, he can swing his wings to the distance.
Jinsheng, a coal boss who believes in money, is a typical character type. Power and money lead the way. Everything follows the philosophy of violence for self-interest. He can't negotiate, and he is fired. No exception. If you can't get a gun, use dynamite. If Tao hadn't stopped him, he would have been able to accomplish this, or even have escaped. In short, he will definitely find a way to make himself feel comfortable. There is no doubt that on the road to becoming rich, lawlessness must be the means he is best at and most proud of. His understanding is derived from social practice. In this way, it is not difficult to understand the intention of what he said after fleeing to Australia - "I have a gun legally, but I can't find an enemy." Yes, seeing the figure of anti-corruption, if you are willing to look deeper , and see what else can you see? Having said that, what should you think of Tao Huanhuaxi's decision to marry Jinsheng? There are actually a lot of hidden complex topics here.
Treating dignity, ideals, and love as pillars of faith will have such tragic results, which is understandable. In the rules of the game belonging to Jinsheng, Liang Zi is naturally "played", and everything Liang Zi has will not be a bonus item, but only a burden. Even though in Tao'er's father's heart, he had a little more affection than Jin Sheng, he couldn't let Tao'er's heart turn to him just because of the love in his heart. The point is that later, because of his pride, cowardice, and low self-esteem, he just stood by and longed for the goddess who was waiting for him. Gap is definitely a factor to consider.
In addition, I think Jia Zhangke has made Jinsheng and Liangzi's personalities very interesting, and they are completely different when it comes to emotions. One is steel that is easy to break, tough and cold; the other is tape with strong toughness. A single pair of scissors can destroy its power. If society and life are fair, then Tao and Liang Zi will be more happy with him?
Tao, a woman who sticks to her hometown, is like a key. Perhaps her hometown is her belief, and she is also a platform for missing, looking, returning, and parting in other people's lives. She is the daughter, the mother, the lover, the wife, the friend, everything in the land that is related to her. She is the hometown. There are good and bad, reasonable and self-contained, with restrained enthusiasm and decisive indifference. She symbolizes a stage in the relay of human civilization for thousands of years, and it is a form of survival that belongs to that land. Love, childbirth, death, perseverance, loneliness, hope, waiting, reincarnation...
In addition to the relationship between the three, in the humorous narrative atmosphere, you can also feel the cruel atmosphere of realization. The process of changing owners of small coal kilns is a process of showing a certain cross-section of society, and various problems are exposed, such as going down the well and raising the incense to worship the Buddha. Human life depends only on the blessing of the Buddha. This is the reality. If Liang Zi obeys Jin Sheng's arrangement and withdraws from the love triangle, then Liang Zi's career may be another scene of prosperity, which may be the benefit of the power and money network.
Entering the second act of the play, the whole story is about "parting", and the end of the parting is connected with the result of "died without a problem". Tao'er's father passed away, and he had unfinished thoughts. The old man wanted to see Tao'er's happy life after remarrying, but there was no result. Tao'er and his son parted. This parting will come in 2025. In the future where they can only miss each other with keys and waves, will they meet again? There is no result. Liang Zi was terminally ill (pneumoconiosis) and had to leave his dignity, ideals and love completely. He put down his pride and returned to his hometown to accept Tao'er's relief money. From Liang Zi's late marriage, his choice of such a wife as Neixiu, and the phrase "borrow the money, I'll go", it can be seen that he has put down everything for his responsibilities, but, is he dead or alive? There is no result.
In short, the second act, the story and the mood are soaked in tears. From here to the end of the movie, the story lines of all the characters will suddenly end. Without the follow-up, the movie will not explain what happened to Liang Zi? Why isn't Dollar's stepmother in Australia? It won't detail the lives of the troubled characters hiding on the Australian islands, and it won't give direct results on whether Thao and dollar, the mother and son, will be reunited. In fact, these answers are all in the viewer's own heart and hidden in the movie. Don't say it, think about it, some stories may only be told like this. Going forward, don't ask about the result, Jia Dao's intentions can't be more obvious, he will not be the omnipotent God who predicts everything, because no one can cross the river of time and go directly to the other side of time.
The third act, this scene is a big question mark, a big question mark that hesitates to speak. How can I regain my identity? How to return home? What is freedom? How to bridge the gap of poor communication? How to discuss the same thing from different ideological heights? How to integrate into that familiar and unfamiliar environment? Without doing such a deep discussion, one question can make people speechless. Without Google as a bond, how can father and son, mother and son communicate? Yes, see mother, come back! However, there are too many obstacles in the way. At this time, it may only be wise to express loneliness. Please cherish it in Ye Qianwen's songs. Obviously everything has changed. You see Tao'er dancing solo in the snow at the end, which corresponds to the cheerful group dance 25 years ago.
Actually, for me, the biggest highlight of this scene is the acting skills of Zhang Aijia and Dong Zijian. Frankly speaking, when it came to the "bed scene", because she was Zhang Aijia, I felt a little strange, but it was soon relieved in Dong Zijian's "sea of tears". Still have to say, Dong Zijian grasps the role of dollar naturally, he obviously knows the meaning of the camera to him, not to be an "idol". Not afraid of close-ups, not afraid of not handsome, in short, acting as a couple with seniors, you can even feel his "feeling".
Passing through the time tunnels of 1999, 2014, and 2025, using the time points marked as the past, present, and future as a movable screen to isolate the story space, cut them and connect them in an orderly manner to form a grotesque train with three carriages. This is the "Old Man of Mountains and Rivers". The real Jia Zhangke who does not hide or hide is still the same this time. Although the makeup process of the movie screen has experienced a three-in-one mix of nude makeup, heavy makeup and beauty makeup that Director Jia has never experienced, the practical significance of the story is always Jia Zhangke's style. Even sharper, presented in a rookie, incongruous, uncomfortable way that seems to sting even more. Because of its lameness, like the place we are in, it covers all aspects and reflects different audience groups. The fate of the characters in the play leads to an era, including the present and the near future, which belongs to each of us.
A film based on reality like "The Old Man of the Mountains and Rivers" will definitely have an interactive emotional communication zone with the audience outside the curtain, thinking that the camera is on the curtain, but in the silent advance, suddenly aiming at the audience The unwillingness to reveal the inner world, but also turned on the flash, people left cramped and embarrassing silhouettes in the panicked dance steps to avoid the camera, and the image at that moment must not be beautiful and elegant enough. However, this makes the audience inseparable from the film's story.
In fact, if you want to be faithful to life, you can't be perfect. The footprints wrapped in the pain of the times are scars, and they are not artistic totems under the hands of tattoo artists. Director Jia's skills are either dulled or intentional, so directly stacking a sandwich-style story frame has the effect of strengthening the effect of the story. One can imagine the diversity and weirdness of its flavors. This is also the social background presented by "The Old Man of the Mountains and Rivers" in the 25-year period. An indivisible whole, as it is. The fault zone of social life is also constantly branching and spreading.
Come to think of it, the story king who has been left out all the time, refuses to be left out, he should make a decision, so there are so many frames waiting to lock his story, the story king is really not easy. In fact, this kind of thing is not easy for people to say lightly, but he has to carry it hard. What's more, he told a topical story that can be discussed by everyone. Personally, I like "The Old Man of the Mountains and Rivers" very much.
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