Thriller movies are often seen as popcorn commercials, or cult games that appeal to certain audiences. In short, they are insulated from serious dramas and are more difficult to enter the palace of art films. This year's Cannes opening chose a zombie movie, which can be regarded as an unprecedented precedent! However, the American independent film scene has always produced unexpectedly talented directors, in their hands even the regular family theme can shoot the taste of the horror genre, Trey Edward Shults (Trey Edward Shults and The work of the two new directors, Ari Aster, is the most representative. As it happens, the former's "Klisha", "Dark Visits" and the latter's "Hereditary Doom" are all genre experiments that take a different approach within the framework of family ethics themes. This type of thriller is definitely different from the common mindless pastimes, reflecting the director's authoring style and distinctive narrative techniques. It seems that Ari Esther Aster) this year's new work "A Midsummer Nightmare" won the praise of the French "Cinebook" for not unreasonable. The film basically got rid of the low-level means of scaring people with shocking sound effects. Although it is a thoroughly horror film, it uses a novel angle to tell the psychological process of a young girl regaining her new life after losing her family and love. . The opening part of the film seems to be no different from an ordinary film, but after a closer look, there are many strange things: photography, editing, soundtrack, and rhythm, all revealing the stylized side. The heroine was talking to the crowd at the party with an off-axis camera, and then she was directly switched to the plane bathroom after her boyfriend's apartment broke down. Until the scene where the screen was upside down when everyone was driving, the director's personal style was first revealed. in front of the audience. With these unique shooting techniques, the director subtly shaped the inner fragility and unease of the heroine, thus creating a unified style of the whole film. Another bold design is to create a terrifying and terrifying atmosphere in broad daylight, which is very rare in my impression, after all, suspense and horror can be maximized in the dark. And Esther's idea of doing the opposite is not only to subvert the "stereotype" that the genre has long given audiences, but it seems to have another layer of consideration. This secluded paradise gives a happy and peaceful atmosphere, which is in stark contrast to the haze scene where the heroine is shrouded in the death of a loved one in the first act of the film. From the perspective of outsiders, it is natural that the hero and heroine were deceived into an anti-human cult organization, and finally died as sacrifices without a place to be buried. However, from the heroine's point of view, she came to this magical "paradise", and after witnessing the brutal and bloody scenes of the sacrifice of the living, she unexpectedly realized the meaning of death and gradually healed the grief of the loss of a loved one. In the climax segment, she won the dance competition and was regarded as the queen, and at the same time she saw the true face of her useless boyfriend, and personally ended this fruitless love. From this point of view, this paradise is a veritable paradise, allowing her to successfully get rid of her pain and complete her spiritual healing. And this kind of design that actively removes the external dark environment (from the hazy family/emotion to the bright Nordic polar day), confirms the heroine's process of getting rid of the psychological shadow, which is a wonderful fusion of psychotherapy theme and horror genre. After all, this is still a horror film, and the director has also put a lot of effort into the sense of horror, not losing the previous "Hereditary Doom": churches and houses with strange shapes and structures, all kinds of strange religious ceremonies, Whether it's a bloody old couple who fell from a mountain, or a petitioner who mixes private hair with food The means of love, as well as the sacrificial puppets that were fried and dismantled, all made people feel creepy inadvertently. Ali Astor's bold genre experiments, coupled with his unique author style, give this summer's release a unique look and feel, while polarizing results among genre audiences, which is not surprising things in. Although there are still imperfections in the script, his increasingly mature and stable author style still lives up to expectations, which makes me look forward to his next work even more!
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