Before commenting on "The Later Us", I have to admit one thing
I am looking forward to this movie.
Also, it's hard for me not to be selfish about this film
Whether it is the love of Rene Liu, especially after watching Rene Liu's concert last year, this feeling is deepening.
Or to the song "Later" itself. I believe that for most people, the meaning of the song "Later" is quite weighty.
However, when evaluating whether a movie is good or bad, the off-site factors should not be brought to the table. After all, when He Jiong made "Gardenia Blossom" into a movie a few years ago, I had some fears about this type of movie.
So what is the quality of the "Later Us" now?
Maybe not too optimistic.
A very strong feeling is:
It's an emotional drama without emotion.
In my opinion, the relationship between the two protagonists, Lin Jianqing and Fang Xiaoxiao, is really nothing.
Looking back on the whole process of knowing each other, getting acquainted, falling in love, and separating from each other, it is like a deliberate arrangement step by step, just like "morning will be bright, and night will be dark", the feelings of the two people in the story are like this. One is that the necessary changes have occurred at the necessary time, without any rhythm and logic in it, and it is purely that it must happen when the story develops to a certain level. As for those so-called real emotions, it is really impossible to feel at all.
But many times the audience will not go into this matter. In their eyes, since they are the male and female protagonists, all the love and hatred between the two of them is a matter of course.
The problem is that once the relationship between the characters is too thin and unconvincing, the impact of the whole film will become extraordinarily weak.
Moreover, in terms of narrative techniques, it is also further weakening the emotions of the two people.
The film intersperses back and forth between the present and the past, hoping to give this relationship a huge and sad sense of the times. This is of course a good method. For example, in the movie "Manchester by the Sea", through repeated memories, the story of the protagonist is revealed to the audience, which is convenient for the audience to enter his heart, and at the same time, the protagonist is interacting with him. The process of past reconciliation (though no reconciliation).
In "Later Us", although a similar technique is used, it is not clever at all, but it makes people feel that this is nothing more than a little cleverness played by Rene Liu. It is not to serve the story itself, but to cover up the jumps and unsmoothness between the plots.
At the same time, Rene Liu also made a mistake that a rookie director would make: not confident.
The result of lack of self-confidence is that, knowing that you cannot impress the audience with the ability to tell a story well, you will tell a few more stories.
Although Liu Ruoying is not like this, in fact, it is similar in effect, that is, she keeps adding elements to the film. She hopes that the film will cover everything and please everyone.
In addition to the things between men and women that should have existed, this film also includes the incompatibility between father and son, the daze of young people in the north, the loneliness of empty nesters, the cramps of class reunions, the anxiety of the middle class, etc. Wait... The film can certainly discuss these topics, but it can't be targeted, and the deliberate arrangement will only make people feel too mixed.
Tell a gossip.
It is said that Chen Kexin, the director of "Sweet Honey", was very envious of Rene Liu's ability to give the film such a sad ending when he watched "Later Us". In Hong Kong at that time, it seemed impossible to be unhappy.
Personally, I don't think which ending is the point. The point is not to break up in order to create such an ending.
Reunion for the sake of reunion is of course not a good thing, and regret for the sake of regret is also not much better.
Obviously, "Later Us" belongs to the latter.
But I think since it is for the sake of it, it is understandable that "Later Us" chose the latter. The tragic ending is a cash cow. The box office, indicating that the market for this stuff is too big to imagine.
In fact, to put it bluntly, these movies are a collective and fast-food-style self-moving ceremony. No one will be picky about the plot, because this is not the point. The important thing is that there is an appropriate reason for oneself to be sad. . People are prepared for the emotions that have been accumulated for a long time, and they bury every landmine that can make them cry, and wait for the plot of the movie to step on one by one. Therefore, everything is as planned, tears burst and weep wanton.
As for the huge proposition of "later us", it has also become an empty talk without a problem. Story or not, imagine yourself as the most hurt person in the world.
It's a bit interesting to think about. It seems that every movie can use "later us". After all, time is passing all the time. From the beginning to the end of a movie two hours later, it is a process from the beginning to the end. Perhaps one of the characters in these stories can also pretend to say:
Later we...
I see, this movie should not be called "Later Us", it should be called "Ten Years".
Source: public number I am tail number 2473
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