"Sorry, I wasn't even an embryo at that time." This was my answer.
American Graffiti
George Lucas's answer is "American Graffiti" ( "American Graffiti"), he told us with this form of semi-autobiographical film, in 1962 he enjoyed drag racing, rock and romance in California, Splurge on his graffiti youth.
Before "American Style Painting", Lucas had two of the most brilliant weapons in his hands-the Jedi Knight’s lightsaber in the light and the Indiana Jones’ whip in the dark, so when I was in the dark When I saw the cover of "American Style Painting" in the D-disc shop of "American Style Painting", it said "fresh and pleasant sketch" George Lucas "the most in-depth work", I couldn't help but doubt this George Lucas and that one. Is George Lucas who used to go to war on alien planets or explore mysteriously the same person?
Fortunately, Innocence is a valuable and lovely registered trademark of George Lucas.
If George Lucas is the spiritual father of "Star Wars" (1977), then we can jokingly say that "American Style Painting" is the financial father of "Star Wars". This "American Style Painting" with an investment of only 750,000 US dollars was first released in 1973 and made a huge profit of 55 million US dollars in the box office. It became the second largest box office film of Universal Studios that year, making George Lucas Able to realize his "Star Wars Project." What is interesting is that there is a key figure behind "American Style Painting"-Francis Coppola. Because he agreed to be the producer of "American Style Painting", Universal only agreed to start filming "American Style Painting". In addition, these two heroes are still entangled in "Apocalypse Now" ("Apocalypse Now").
The translation of "American Graffiti" ("American Graffiti") sounds unique, but I think it is a literal translation-"American Graffiti" is more appropriate to the tone of the movie. In the United States in 1962, Kennedy still showed a smile to the public, Marilyn Monroe still turned all living things upside down; rock music was in the pioneering era of those pioneers, and there was no such thing as the birth of Bob Dylan and the journey across the oceans of the Beatles; pure youth People use drag racing, drinking, and picking up girls to show their little rebellion, instead of smoking marijuana and wearing flowers and lying naked on the grass seeking freedom; the atmosphere of the prom is always lively, lively, and healthy. At that time, there was no fierce, violent, and subversive atmosphere. "New Left" movement. So even though Curt, Steve, John, and Terry cannot see tomorrow in the low night town, they are just graffiti on the last day of youth.
Bill Haley's "Rock around the clock" ("Rock around the clock") heralded the beginning of the rock era. "American Style Painting" opened with this significant song and opened the youth night of Curt, Steve, Terry and John.
Time: 1962, one day at dusk to dawn the next day
Location: Mels Drive-In Mels is an important venue for the beginning and end of the film, because Mels’s original concept is "Dining-in-Your-Car", so Its layout is an open large circular parking lot. From this, we can also enjoy the important props of this film-the dazzling car.
The uniform of the Mels waitress is very distinctive-short skirt, roller skates. You can see the beautiful waitresses wearing roller skates and flowers arranging the food ordered by the customers on the trays, using a hook to hang them by the windows of the customers.
The time and place of the film belong to the closed ring structure.
The main characters: Curt, Steve, Terry, John
Curt, Steve, Terry, and John disappeared after Mels met. The four clues unfolded in parallel to start the night.
Curt Henderson (Class 62)-an honors graduate, just won a $2,000 Moose scholarship.
Actor: Richard Dreyfuss Richard Dreyfuss (won the Oscar actor with "The Goodbye Girl" in 1977, and became the "Mr. Holland's Opus" in "Life Is Beautiful for You" in 1995 Mr. Holland)
Clothing: plain short hair, checked shirt
Question: Go or stay? ——Whether to leave the town with Steve to go to university in the east or stay in the town for two years of college courses before making plans.
Turning point: Wolfman Jack
famous quote: "It is not worth it to leave the old home in order to find a new home, to abandon the current life in order to find a new life, and to abandon old friends in order to make new friends." ("It doesn't make sense to leave home to look for home, to give up a life to find a new life, to say goodbye to friends you love just to find new friends.")
Ending: Moved to Canada and became a writer
Luanda: Curt is undoubtedly the most A perfect character, he is excellent, ideal, and moral, but he is also one of these people who is troubled by contradictions and entangled in pursuit. His biggest dream was to become an assistant to the president and shake hands with President Kennedy. Shaking hands with the president-is this dream familiar? Yes, there was such a scene in "Forrest Gump". This beautiful and innocent dream may be the dream of many Americans living in that golden age, because the cruel reality of the Vietnam War had not been naked before the people, it was still 1962. His ex-girlfriend Wendy used this to point out his innocence and softness of character weakness.
Curt used himself to grow up to disguise the reason why his childhood ideals had changed. But Curt's confusion about the future is not just his attachment to his hometown and friends, his lack of self-confidence, and doubts about his competitiveness are Curt's biggest weakness. Mr. Wolfe, the prom supervisor of Dewey High School, had a conversation with Curt. Mr. Wolfe said that he had given up college and returned to the town because he felt that he was not a competitive figure and because of his inner fear. The same goes for Curt's hesitation. Going to the east to go to university means accepting challenges and changes, and it also means taking on adult responsibilities. Curt felt he was not ready yet.
In addition to this problem that seriously plagued Curt that night, the blonde in the 56-year-old White Thunderbird was the biggest fuse of the night. When Curt and Terry met in the opening film, Curt said half-jokingly: "Why are the girls here not famous or ugly?" This idea is really borderless, and it has become a common problem faced by every teenager. . Ironically, what Curt got from his ex-girlfriend Wendy's friend Bobbie was that the blonde was the wife of a certain jewelry store owner, and the leader of the "Pharaoh Gang" told him that the blonde was a high-end prostitute. Is this really the reality-Xiaojiabiyu is either ugly or famous, and the beauties in the Xiangche are either brothels, famous prostitutes or married women?
In addition to her beauty, Curt's persistent pursuit of blondes also stems from her mysterious and ambiguous sentence across the car window: "I love you." Perhaps love happens inexplicably, and the process of love is a scene. The endurance run in pursuit, which is full of dramatic staggering (Curt has brushed against the white thunderbird three times), the end of love is an endless ending that requires enough luck and fate.
Curt pinned his hope of pursuing blondes on the ubiquitous super DJ Wolfman Jack. It was Wolfman Jack's manager who stayed in the studio under the pretense of telling Curt: For young people, the outside world is very exciting.
It was a strange night for Curt. In order to follow the blonde in the white thunderbirds, Curt was inexplicably involved in the "Pharaohs" dispute. The evil and cute leader of the "Pharaohs" was forced to destroy the police car and steal the shop with the "Pharaohs". Qian, was a "bad boy" for one night. George Lucas, who also had a bad youth experience (George Lucas himself was racing and picking up girls in his youth, almost all D+ in his test scores in middle school) told us-not a small madness, rebelliousness is a vain youth !
However, in the eyes of George Lucas, badness can only be a footprint of youth, and cannot be the whole of youth. Although Curt is regarded by Joe as the leader of the gang brother, in the end Curt chose to take the plane to the east. . At this point, George Lucas did not forget to show his cute childlike innocence. The aircraft's fuselage was printed with "Magic Carpet Airlines"-but the reality is not "One Thousand and One Nights". On the plane, Curt was surprised to find the white thunderbird galloping on the highway, gradually getting smaller and farther away.
Curt's final ending is the best of these four people-the writer himself is a profession that continues to pursue his dreams in reality, so why not George Lucas who became a filmmaker?
Steve Bolander (62nd class)-Curt's friend, Laurie's boyfriend, student council chairperson, smart and selfish
actor: Ron Howard (he later became "A Beautiful
Mind", "The Grinch Steal "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", "Ransom" "Ransom", "Apollo 13" "Apollo 13", "Cocoon" "Cocoon")
Costume: conservative short hair, short sleeve checked shirt
Mount: '
Turnaround: Laurie was angry and followed Falfa in a car accident.
Famous quote: "I have graduated! Don't you remember?" "I graduated last semester, remember?"
Ending: Live in California, Modesto Town (this is Lucas' own birthplace) ), Become an insurance agent
Randan: Steve is a smart boy and a capable boy. He wanted to leave this closed town, and his ambition was much more obvious than Curt. He called their home town "turkey town", and felt that the town was a closed and obliterated prison for their ideals. So when Curt revealed that he didn't want to leave, Steve, who never showed emotions easily, showed great anger. He thinks that in a small town, he can only do nothing for the rest of his life like John, while the outside world is full of opportunities, including opportunities for new love. That's why he wanted to do everything possible to persuade Laurie to accept the "law of maintaining long-term relationships"-each has the power and space to make friends.
Steve is a very realistic person, and we are full of such typical people around us. Their initiative starts with themselves, and their first rule is not to be restrained or even hurt.
Steve has never had the naive dream of shaking hands with the president like Curt. The top priority in his mind is to leave the town and start a real new life; Steve is not as unrealistic about love as Curt, and he doesn't even want to be the "main dynamic". "Although he likes Laurie, whether it is dating or kissing, Laurie always takes the initiative. What's interesting is that in Steve we can see the actual boys' demands for sex-they don't want to maintain a romantic relationship, but want to demand the last night. But he didn't want to enjoy a girlfriend who was reluctant and unwilling to have no fun, and he didn't want to accept the one-night stand sent to the door. So he may not be cute enough, but he just wants to seize the opportunity; he may not be warm enough, but he just wants to plan and manage his life.
But I still have some criticisms about Steve and Curt's dramatic exchange of attitudes to college. Will a practical boy like Steve stay for affection? His jealousy has the upper hand than his warmth. But he still stayed in the film. The subtitles at the end of the film tell us that Steve has become an insurance broker and lives in a small town in California. Maybe I shouldn't look at Steve's reality based on the reality of our time, after all, Steve lived in 1962.
I still don't like Steve, not only because Ron Howard's ordinary blonde is so pale that there is no color, but also because ordinary people's lives are so practical that there is no warmth and passion. But most of us do.
Terry
Terry Fields (63rd class)-a good friend of Curt and Steve, nicknamed "Toad", self-styled "tiger" when picking up girls, clumsy, timid, and kind
actor: Charles Martin Smith (this guy I Not very familiar, but he seems to have directed the 1997 "Air Bud")
Costume: pink shirt, four-eyed frog, duck butt head
mount: a dilapidated motorcycle
Problem: want to own My own car that pulls the wind, soaks in a beautiful chick.
Transit: Take care of Steve's car and lost Steve's car.
Famous saying: "I will use my life to defend this car. People are in the car." ("I'll love and protect this car until death do us part.") "My ID card was washed away by the flood." ("I lost my ID in a flood.")
Ending: In December 1965, disappeared during the Vietnam War
Luan Dan: Terry, what should I say to him? He is innocent and kind, yet timid and weak. If he is more delicate, he will arouse pity and love, but he is rather ugly; if he is a little cooler, God, it is because he always wants to be handsome and cool, so he looks so pitiful.
Unlike Curt and Steve's conservative good boy hairstyles, Terry's hairstyle was the most popular "duck butt head" at the time; different from Curt's ideal color and Steve's reality, Terry's dream was straightforward-cars and chicks. There is also a truth here. No matter how sorry I look, I always pursue the best hope in my heart, so Terry's dream is painted with a rosy dreamy color-a car and a beautiful chick.
The car is really a wonderful thing. It not only assumes the role of a means of transportation, but also assumes the role of a communication tool. A good car represents identity and status.
Therefore, when Terry drove the 58-year Chevrolet Impala into a car accident, he could confidently reprimand the owner of the cheap car. So when Terry who drove the 58-year Chevrolet Impala met a pretty chick, he thought he was no longer a " Terry "the toad" (Terry "the toad"), but "Terry" (Terry "the tiger"), has grown several levels of masculinity for no reason.
The borrowed ones have to be returned, the lies have to be revealed, and when Terry tells the truth, Debbie leaves him.
When Debbie left, he said to Terry, "In any case, I had a nice night."
For ordinary people like Terry who are too ordinary or even unable to handle it, the neglected life is recognized and affirmed. It was only one night. Of course they have the right to spend their entire lives dreaming of being king, but they only have one night to be a king during their lifetime, and they are still a fake.
Terry's ending is speechless-disappearing in the Vietnam War, this is the secret pain of an entire generation of Americans. For ordinary people who cannot control their own destiny, they can always only let the hands of power choke their throats.
John
John Milner (60th class)-friends of Curt, Steve and Terry, the fastest street racer in the town, very Cool
actor: Paul Ramat Paul Le Mat (Have you heard of his name? I No. With this film, he won the 1974 Golden Globe Award for the Most Promising Newcomer (Male); in real life, he really participated in the Vietnam War and won numerous medals. In addition, he was the South Pacific AAU in 1972. Welterweight boxing champion)
outfit: tight white vest, handsome and rebellious blue-collar
mount like "Marlon Brando" : '32 Ford deuce coupe
Question: How to get rid of Carol and accept Falfa's challenge.
Famous quote: "Remember Five years ago, it took several hours to make a circle, I really miss that time." ("I remember about five years ago, take you a couple of hours and a tank full of gas just to make one circuit. It was really somethin. ") "Drivin' is a serious business." ("Drivin' is a serious business.")
Ending: In December 1964, he was killed in a car accident caused by a drunk driver.
Luantan: I have always been incapable of resisting handsome bullies, especially this bullshit who is very cute and kind. I will be hopelessly confused if such a role appears in any drama, film, literature. So the following text will definitely look like a runaway car, please forgive me.
John, he is the fastest racer in this town. He can drive the sports car accurately and hold the steering wheel steadily, but he has no destination of his own, so his only pastime is to drive his super cute 32 In the year Ford deuce coupe, circling the town circle after circle. However, as time goes by, this circle gets smaller and smaller.
John was regarded by Steve as a model of failure in this closed town, so Steve took John as an example to express his dissatisfaction with Curt. But the others in this small town regarded John as an idol-because no one could be faster than him.
So John circled the town, waiting for the challenge of others. John's life became passive waiting, and then he went beyond passively waiting. But John's love of driving and racing is undoubtedly passionate. His famous saying is: "Drivin' is a serious business." So for the Falfa (Harrison Ford) who drove a black 55-year Chevrolet, he later became Captain Han Solo and the seal of the whip in his hand. Diana Jones) A provocative challenge, John didn't want to fight, because showoff and enthusiasm are not the same thing. More and more people challenged John, and he became more and more tired and lonely.
Don't think that you don't see a sense of responsibility in the bastard, John is an innocent bastard. He took Carol to see "The Graveyard of Racers", and when he was carrying Carol, he just didn't run the red light to compete with Falfa. First of all, he can value life so that he can keep the legendary fastest and stay away from the "racer's grave."
I had expected that all the gangsters would not have good results, but when I saw the final subtitles that John died in a car accident, I was a little sad. Because other people’s faults ruined the life of the fastest racer, George Lucas not only told the cruel truth about the impermanence of life, but also used John’s death to deny his youth and frivolousness (when George Lucas was young) He loves racing, but a serious car accident before entering university made him give up his dream of being a racer).
The gangster's life had no results, so John died; the gangster had no love, Curt had the blonde in the white thunderbirds, Steve had Laurie, Terry had Debbie, and John had only his 32-year Ford deuce coupe. No, it's not that desperate yet. When John sent Carol to the door of his house, didn't John give Carol his lucky gear stopper and kissed Carol's face lightly? Yes, maybe this is not love, but for Carol, this is the first and best memory of the Cardamom Years, and she will never forget it in her lifetime.
So although most people admire or even admire bullies, they don't want to be bullies. Life that ends at the beginning or life that can't be ended as soon as they fall into the trap can't be accepted by most people—the same is true for me. So I said that I like bullies, but I will not follow bullies because my youth is no longer there.
——Is this really a George Lucas movie?
——Why not? Couldn't the "motor racing complex" be lifted from the highway into space? Have you never noticed the mysterious number "1138" in "Star Wars"? Isn't George Lucas also swinging in reality and ideals?
It's just that 1962 is no longer, youth is no longer, and in a blink of an eye there is a pale and hard reality, and the same is true today after a century.
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