Looking at the hot crime dramas in the US and the UK in recent years, it is easy to come to the conclusion that police officers without mental problems are not good detectives.
From Sherlock Sherlock, the peerless "high-functioning sociopath" Holmes, to Detective Chandler with OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) in "Whitechapel"; from "Hannibal", he can have a relationship with a perverted killer Will, the FBI consultant with the "empathy" effect, and Jane, who relies on extraordinary psychological perception to control the situation in "Super Detective"; People with mental problems have become prosperous. Even the anti-terrorist drama "Homeland Security", which was recommended by Obama's five-star, is also played by a CIA agent with familial manic depression and a PTSD (post-traumatic psychological stress). Catatonia) and Stockholm Syndrome starring the former GI. In the face of this full screen of psychological terms, I just want to say: these days, if no one has a resume of entering a mental hospital, I am really embarrassed to be in the detective circle.
HBO's newest crime drama, True Detective, once again lives up to this definition of the detective scene. Matthew McConaughey, who was just nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in "Dallas Buyers Club," plays Rust, the detective and mentally ill man. In terms of looks and temperament, the pony is indeed suitable for this type of role. There is a gloomy look that cannot be ignored in his handsomeness, and with his shiny blonde hair, he is even more melancholy than the black-haired Keanu Reeves.
The story takes place in 2012, and the former partners, who have parted ways, detectives Rust and Marty, are questioned separately for a murder case they jointly solved seventeen years ago, because the current police station has encountered another murder in 1995. Cases with a high degree of similarity, but the dossier of that year was destroyed by the hurricane. The footage alternates between an interrogation room in 2012 and Louisiana in 1995, where a murder of a prostitute who is tortured to death and posed with antlers and bizarre poses unfolds. Compared with "Criminal Minds", "Hannibal" and other dramas that specialize in perverted serial killers, the murder in "True Detective" is not shocking, but in 1995, when high-tech detection methods were still relatively scarce, police The detection of cases by detectives also relies more on traditional evidence collection, inquiries from relevant persons and logical reasoning. So, if you're used to chasing crime dramas with exciting plot twists and creative killers, my advice is to just drop the show, because the slow pace of this movie is enough to drive you crazy. It felt like expecting to see Bao Xiaoqiang carrying an AK-47 to turn the tide in "Homeland Security", only to find that most of the time he didn't find a pistol.
But that's not to give True Detective a bad review. On the contrary, after watching the first three episodes, I was a little shocked by HBO's ambition - this is not a story about solving a case at all, but a story that explores human nature, even "what is life", "are we Really exists" episodes of fundamental philosophical questions like this. Rust, played by Matthew McConaughey, has the sharpness and pessimism of a philosopher. His daughter died unexpectedly, his marriage broke down, he was undercover, he was addicted to drugs, he killed people, and he was in a mental hospital. High-quality philosophical thinking that emerged from time to time Even across the computer screen, it is frightening, so it is natural that the two police officers investigating the new case regard it as a suspect in the new case. Rust's former Louisiana partner, Marty, is played by Woody Harrelson. With Rust as a reference, Marty is ordinary in every way, but Woody Harrelson plays this role as a foil without too many highlights. God, whether it's his inability to deal with Rust, or the confusion between his wife and his mistress, is very substituting, and, gradually, Woody Harrelson will make people want to know more. Marty's life, I want to see the relationship between him and Rust develop after this big case. The screenwriter also buried more clues at this time-why did Rust part ways with Marty? Why is the murder of 1995 repeated 17 years later? Where did Rust "disappear" in the eight years? Moreover, little by little, Marty's wife Maggie appeared more between Rust and Marty, constantly stirring up the audience's speculation about the relationship between the main characters of the show.
A suspense drama with murder as the main line, two completely different lives are intertwined. The process of hunting down the murderer is also a collision between Rust, who is trying to see the truth of life painfully, and Marty, one of the hardworking people. There is no doubt about the acting skills of the two leading actors. Next, it depends on whether the plot itself can tell the story well in 8 episodes to achieve the pattern expected by the audience.
In the first three episodes, aside from some poignant philosophical summaries, the most impressive thing should be the notebook that Rust carries with him. In an era when there were no iPhones and iPads to record crime scenes at any time, Rust drew extremely precise scenes in a notebook. He seemed to have a natural intuition to guide him to make the correct selection among the numerous details and evidence.
Seeing this, I am reminded of a book I read last year called "Seven Days to Cure Procrastination". The author Ding Xiaoyun mentioned the issue of "positive energy" and "negative energy" in the book. Today, advocates of "positive energy" can be seen everywhere. Ordinary people, or "normal people", are pursuing and spreading the so-called "positive energy", but as Ding Xiaoyun summed up, what really enables people to gain vitality and unique advantages is the dark negative energy that comes from the heart.
This conclusion seems to be specially prepared for "policemen without mental problems can't make good detectives". For example, we can almost certainly say that Sherlock Holmes would not have been a perceptive genius without a "highly functioning sociopath", and that Sherlock's "deficiencies" in social interaction happened to allow him to avoid the interference of sensibility with the mind. , A mind that thinks with absolute rationality makes the unique Sherlock Holmes. For another example, if Will loses the ability to "empathize" with the perverted killer, let alone helping the FBI solve major cases, in the face of such a powerful opponent as Hannibal, he can only be a lamb to be slaughtered.
At the same time, the existence of negative energy also makes life always a process of subtraction for detectives. They either actively or were forced to give up the pleasures of ordinary people, and finally focused on the process of solving the puzzle. On Rust, even more so. After the separation of his wife and family and the loss of his family, his life no longer has anything to do except solving cases. For him, finding the murderer is not a job, not a responsibility, but the only direction of life. This is very similar to Jane in Super Sense Detective. From the very beginning, Jane entered the CBI team to pursue the serial killer "Bloody John" who killed his wife and daughter, and the screenwriter used this clue for six seasons! It can be seen that even the screenwriter himself has tacitly agreed that chasing the murderer is the sole purpose of Jane's life. Admittedly, such a life would be extremely cruel to anyone, but it also unquestionably fulfills Rust's mission as a "True Detective". To say that the title of the play is also very good, Rust is more than a real police detective who solves a murder case? He is also a true detective who pursues the truth, a true detective who abandons all illusions of life and experiences life with the most fearless truth.
In the end, I want to say that what is even stranger than these detectives' bizarre mental problems is that it is these mentally challenged patients who have won the audience's heartfelt approval. Think about it a little bit, do we like to be curious, or are we bored to death in our daily life and need to escape into the world of these mentally ill people to feel the truth?
View more about True Detective reviews
