I am not Pan Jinlian: How to understand this circle?

Anyone who has seen the trailer should be impressed by the circular frame in I am not Pan Jinlian. At first, many viewers thought it was just an exaggerated stunt.

But when they actually walked into the cinema to watch the feature film, a bunch of people were shocked.

It is the first time for most viewers to see such a picture in the cinema. Undoubtedly, this innovation has aroused heated discussion among film critics.

Xiaogang Feng has always been a director who likes to be unconventional, but many of his innovations have been ignored by the audience or denied by film critics.

For example, the stage scenery in the banquet and dramatic chanting.

The prototype framework adopted this time is also part of his innovative ambition.

When talking about aesthetic forms, Xiaogang Feng talked about Zhang Yimou's Autumn Chrysanthemum. In The Story of Autumn Chrysanthemum, Zhang Yimou used many avant-garde shooting techniques, such as sneak shots and shoulder shots. However, today, this form of shooting is obviously not new.

Then play big!

Xiaogang Feng will innovate from the framework. At first, he thought of a square frame. However, even the square frame has long been used by many directors.

Jia's mountains can be separated by a square frame.

Wes anderson's "The The Grand Budapest Hotel Hotel" also made a square frame, and the aspect ratio changed with the years.

Xiaogang Feng sighed: Now even the square has become a rotten street. Is it difficult to make it round?

Xiaogang Feng told everyone about this idea, and Huayi executives and the original author Liu Zhenyun expressed their opposition.

After all, this outrageous expression is not a challenge to the audience, but a provocation. At that time, only photographer Luo Pan stood on Xiaogang Feng's side. Xiaogang Feng's stubbornness finally convinced everyone.

So, what's new about this circular frame, just adding a dome?

That's not true. The innovation of circular frame is not reflected in the change from square to round, but through the transformation of the frame to build a completely different aesthetic system.

It just looks like a different frame, and the performance, lighting and scenery should match it. A circle actually subverts many old ideas.

For example, in this scene, the traditional editing method failed here.

It can even be said that the circular border is the "eye" of this film. Without understanding the round frame, it is impossible to understand I am not Pan Jinlian.

Subversion is first reflected in the viewing experience. The rectangular frame gives people a panoramic feeling and an immersive feeling. At this point, the ring curtain is more prominent, which surrounds the audience's field of vision through the arc and super-long span, further enhancing the audience's sense of presence.

However, the circular border subverts the sense of existence. Therefore, when watching "I am not Pan Jinlian", the audience will never be able to integrate into the story, and there will be a sense of alienation from the characters and plots in the play.

In order to maintain this sense of alienation, there are almost no close-ups in the film, and there are a lot of prospects and panoramic views. This kind of expression is the opposite of Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk's.

There are many close-ups in Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk. 120 frame of new technology, pores on the face and skin gradient color are extremely obvious.

In "I'm not Pan Jinlian", you can hardly even see the specific expressions of the actors.

It can be said that Ang Lee wants you to "blend in" and Xiaogang Feng wants you to "jump out".

Knowing this, we can understand why it is difficult for so many audiences to sing the character Li Xuelian.

Fan Bingbing once said that he hoped to make Li Xuelian worse and more aggrieved, and let the audience have a * * * sound for this role. The result was rejected by Xiaogang Feng.

There is no need to make the audience feel sorry for Li Xuelian.

Many people are indifferent to the characters in the play. This is not to say that the film is not strong enough, but the director's purpose is to keep you in that position, and you can just watch from a distance.

The audience is just a bystander, separated from the characters in the play by a wall. Another meaning of the round frame is "peeping".

It was dark around the screen, but there was an image in the middle, like a small hole in enough paper. The audience plays the role of a "peeping Tom" in the process of watching movies, bringing another kind of "presence", which is close at hand but separated by a wall.

As a peeping tom outside the wall, you can only cut a hole at most to see the life of people inside the wall, but you can never cross that wall.

In addition to the circular frame, there is another striking thing about the tone of the whole movie: the tone is very dark, which some people say is to reflect a sense of oppression.

This universal answer obviously shouldn't be used here. In fact, this dark gray tone is also to match the circular border. Just look at the stills and posters of I am not Pan Jinlian.

Much like Chinese painting. Because of the age of traditional Chinese painting, many papers began to turn yellow. In order to pursue the ancient meaning, many people in modern times will also choose yellowed "ancient propaganda" to paint.

And the gray tone in "I am not Pan Jinlian" also has an antique purpose.

In addition to hue, many backgrounds in the film also deliberately chose the traditional landscape of China.

The original story of "I am not Pan Jinlian" was originally set in a small town in the north, but the film moved it to Wuyuan, adding a bit of classical beauty to both architecture and landscape.

As for the story itself, there are not many highlights, from lines to details, which are basically the same as Liu Zhenyun's novel of the same name.

Different from unconventional expressions, the story of the film itself is quite normal. They all wear a realistic coat (the description of officialdom in the film is textbook-style); Inside is an absurd skin (the absurdity of Li Xuelian's behavioral motives); But in the deepest place, there is still the bone and blood of traditional realism (the expression and intervention of contemporary social demands).