Spring film review

People often say that movies are the art of time and space, and the change of space is used to show the passage of time, or the change of time is used to show the ups and downs of space. In traditional movies, the two lines of time and space are parallel, and what happened at what time led to what results. However, Wong Kar-wai's film narrative structure is unconventional, showing a concept of breaking through the traditional time and space. When Wong Kar-wai expresses a certain theme, he breaks the linear description of time and space in traditional movies and embodies a state and an atmosphere. Fragmented paragraphs just match the protagonist's disoriented environment, giving the whole movie an illusory feeling. Next, we will analyze the creative techniques of "Spring Break Out" from the perspectives of time, space and narrative rather than narrative.

1. time

There are two completely different views on the time narration of movies. One is "objective" time, insisting on the process of time, the passage of time or the time experienced; The other is "subjective" time, and the director hints at an uncertain time with symbolic shots. Wong Kar-wai used the following techniques to express "subjective" space in the movie Sudden Spring Diarrhea.

(1) Flashback-indicates the past.

For the first time (in the previous scene), Li Yaohui accused He Baorong of stealing his things, but He Baorong denied it.

(Last shot) He rummaged through drawers and cabinets crazily.

The mutual distrust between two people.

The second time (the previous shot), He Baorong went out and Li was waiting at home.

(Last shot) When He Baorong was injured, Li Yaohui took good care of him.

The distance is widening.

The third time (the previous shot), He Baorong danced with other partners.

He Baorong and Li Yaohui are dancing in the kitchen.

Today is not what it used to be, and the past can only be recalled.

Marcel Mardam said in his book Film Language that "flashback" lens creates an independent, intrinsic and dramatic tense, which can be manipulated at will. The flashback technique in the film gives us a full understanding of the protagonist's rich inner world, their joys and sorrows. The comparison between these flashback shots and the previous shot simplifies the narrative structure to a certain extent, and clearly explains the context (the second flashback) or the comparison before and after (the third flashback).

(2) Imagination-representing the future

Difference:

(The first waterfall)-Reason: They broke up on the way to see the waterfall and failed to see the imagination behind it.

Authenticity: subjective imagination.

Character: Two people go their separate ways.

Metaphor: Break up for future reunion.

(Second Waterfall)-Reason: Li Yaohui finally reached the sacred place in his mind.

Authenticity: objective existence.

Character: Li Yaohui was in tears, and He Baorong carried the lantern alone.

Metaphor: Fate is over.

Similarities:

Scenery: Waterfalls are equally spectacular.

Music: Music with the same theme.

Lens: A long lens in aerial photography. The camera uses a long horizontal lens to show the majestic waterfall.

In principle, the future is strange and unknown to us. But some breaks can be the imaginary future of the characters. It can be confirmed by the following plot (the waterfall is equally magnificent). The imagination in the play becomes a reality, which is a future tense that can become a reality. As for the imagination of the future, we think it has great flexibility and freedom. Here is the present, and elsewhere is the past. Although the strict chronological order was disrupted, the author reconstructed it from an objective point of view. In short, this is a subjective way to guide the story (the first time the waterfall appeared in Li Yaohui's imagination, it implied that he would eventually see the real waterfall).

(3) Light-indicates transition.

When I went to see the waterfall for the second time in Li Yaohui, the lights outside the car changed from red to blue and from blue to red for ten times. Explain the time transition in Li Yaohui's journey through the change of illumination light. We can think that red light means day and blue light means night. He headed for the waterfall day and night. Although this is a single driving shot, it doesn't make us feel bored because of the change of light.

2. Spatial display

"Movie space is often composed of many fragmented fragments, and its consent is obtained by juxtaposing these fragments in a creative connection." (Selected from film language, France) Let's take a look at three kinds of spaces in Spring Sudden Diarrhea, pure conceptual and inner space.

(1) Transportation (bus, taxi)

Its biggest feature is liquidity and instability. There are many scenes in the film where Li Yaohui and He Baorong get on and off the bus, and the characters bear a heavy burden of life independently in these closed and unstable spaces.

(2) Indoor space (bedroom, bar, kitchen, public toilet, theater)

They are characterized by crowding and noise. The bedroom is a place where people rest and where "war" breaks out; Bar is a place where people communicate with each other, but it is also a place where people vent; Public toilets and theaters are public places where homosexuals meet their sexual needs. All indoor spaces are rare warmth, and the rest are impetuous and complicated. In order to better show the indifference between people, Wong Kar-wai often uses virtual focus to separate individuals from the environment. Even in public, Li Yaohui and Xiao Zhang are drinking and chatting at the front desk, and people are used to fighting against Europe in the background.

(3) Outdoor space (streets, alleys, roads, beaches, stairs, corridors)

Outdoor is characterized by emptiness and cold. Wong Kar-wai often puts the hero in an empty background, such as an empty road and a wide lake, which makes the characters unable to communicate with others (there is no one around) and can only stand still. Therefore, this blank also reflects the emptiness and helplessness of the characters.

Wong Kar-wai has a good explanation of space, which is a dialogue in "The Ashes of Time":

Dong Xie: "What will be behind this desert?"

Du; "It's not a desert yet."

What can I do if I live in Hong Kong and flee to Argentina? Wong Kar-wai's concept of time and space is self-time, which is characterized by anxiety, turbulence, individuality and uneasiness. People pursue self and affirmation in vagrancy.

3. Narrating people who are not narrated.

Traditional movies tell a story, while Wong Kar-wai's movies tell a story about people, a state of mind and a mental journey that people experience at a certain stage. In his six films, the hero has the following characteristics:

Identity consistency of (1) characters

The characteristics of the protagonist's no fixed job strengthen the identity of marginal people/strangers and further lead to emotional turmoil. These marginal social roles, because of vagrancy and ambiguity, are more eager for emotional comfort in the subconscious. However, due to the indifference of the real society, they have been hit again and again. The characters in Tuquan follow this pattern, but it increases the courage of the characters to find themselves after being hit. To some extent, it shows that the characters have gradually stepped out of the psychological cage of self-enclosure.

(2) The communication style of characters is abnormal.

Wong Kar-wai's films are bosom friends. This is what a lonely director said with the help of a lonely character in the film. The combination of the hero's inner monologue and the picture creates a special atmosphere, which makes the audience believe that the hero is sincere and can directly understand the inner world of the characters. The people in the play often talk to themselves, even pour out their feelings about things, and describe the difficulties of interpersonal communication in the city with exaggerated methods.

(3) the communication between the characters and the audience

The protagonist in the play often keeps silent and disdains to explain even if there is misunderstanding. However, people always need to talk, and will choose strangers to talk endlessly. For example, Li Zhen in The True Story of Teddy Boy poured out his heart to a stranger, A Chao. On the other hand, it is also the hero who explains the reasons to the audience (strangers). They are eager to communicate, but they are afraid of being ignored by others, so they talk to someone instead of responding. This is a creative skill similar to Brecht's method. Through this way of separation, the actor directly faces the audience like on the stage, and the audience is no longer a passive bystander, but can evaluate the whole process by virtue of their own moral standards. This is also the reason why some people in Wong Kar-wai's films are deeply moved and others are indifferent.

In the movie Spring Breeze, the interpersonal relationship took a turn for the better. A Taiwan Province man named Xiao Zhang made it possible for people to communicate. Xiao Zhang finished peeping at others with his ears. It is this unconventional method that opens the channel for people to communicate. Personal closed emotional field, inadvertently peeped by others, has been freed and relieved. Although Li Yaohui didn't say anything to Xiao Zhang, he left his crying at the ends of the earth, and Li Yaohui, who was relieved of his emotional burden, was able to go into battle lightly and face life with a dull mood.

2. Shooting skills

1. Photography style

Wong Kar-wai's films are famous for their sports scenes. In the movie Sudden Diarrhea in Spring, he adopted the following techniques:

(1) Follow the shooting

This is a technique widely used in documentaries (although the difference between feature films and non-fiction films will become smaller and smaller in the wave of future film development). The camera always moves with the action of the protagonist, such as the scene where Li Yaohui goes home drunk after saying goodbye to He Baorong. The camera was running and shooting, and the picture was shaking and swaying, which fully reflected Li Yaohui's mood at that time-depression, hard to vent, and also to get rid of He Baorong's entanglement. There is also a scene in which Li Yaohui indulges himself in looking for a gay partner in a public place. The camera is also impetuous and noisy, showing a boring life state. This technique obviously only plays a descriptive role, that is to say, the movement of the lens has no special purpose, but is used to follow the movement of the characters and let the audience understand their emotions.

(2) The application of rhythmic photography

Rhythm photography has the following characteristics:

A. Unique perspective

The director lets the camera participate in the performance, and the camera, as a unique perspective, curiously follows the inner world of the protagonist. Sometimes, the lens is just like the characters in the play, and it is everywhere, showing the audience the latest information it captures at all times, so that the film has its own rhythm. For example, in the scene where Li Yaohui goes home to get his watch, the camera shoots from the window, just like a curious outsider watching their every move.

B. Flowing pictures

Movable photography makes the space flow, and the picture is no longer a frame but a flowing space. The most obvious game is the ball game in the alley. The camera looks like a player, because he fully shows a player's sports perspective. Afternoon sunshine, gorgeous halo, the whole scene with dreamy colors. Football spreads quickly, people scramble to play, and the camera moves briskly, making the game look real and appropriate. This action shot adds a bright color to the whole movie.

(3) the rhythm brought by the change of scenery.

A scene in the hospital fully embodies the visual impact brought by the scene change brought by the lens switching.

Content characteristics of lens perspective

1 the empty prospect of the panoramic front yard of the hospital is that the rules and regulations of doors and windows are indifferent.

He Baorong was injured in the side face, with a solid prospect and a virtual close-up behind him.

3 The panoramic view of the two is positive. He Baorong wanted to sit down, and Li stood again, listening with a bad head.

Close-up of two Li Yaohui sitting next to each other, in front and behind.

5 Close-up profile of two people, two people silently shooting from different angles.

6. The front of their vision is expressionless, sitting left and drawing right, with one dark and one bright in the middle.

The six shots in this scene are all switched out, and the length of the shots is similar. Due to the change of scene and angle, combined with specific composition techniques, it gives people a strong sense of rhythm, which makes this scene a turning point in the relationship between the two people in this film.

(4) Other photographic techniques

Wong Kar-wai's breakthrough in other skills is also remarkable. This film has three completely different shooting methods.

A. Reverse photography

In order to show that Hong Kong is on the other side of the globe, Wong Kar-wai actually took pictures with a camera, which was very bold and made people feel weightless.

B. Slow photography

In order to shoot the car river and flowing lights in Argentina and Taipei, the photographer used the methods of slow shooting and normal speed projection, which made people see the vehicles flowing like rivers and the lights were blurred. This neon light is everywhere. Even if the characters flee to Argentina, this inner urban color of Hong Kong people will follow. This is also a reflection of Hong Kong culture, which is innate and lingering. It shows a post-modern industrial society, a flashy and dazzling city. People will get lost in this city if they are not careful and can't find their own direction.

C. rotary photography

At the end of the film, at the lighthouse, the camera revolves around Xiao Zhang for a whole week. Does this mean that life has circled the earth from the end to the beginning and found that its roots are still in place?

Three. Editing technology

Speaking of editing, here is mainly about the use of montage. Montage is the most unique and basic part of film language. To put it bluntly, montage is a choice and arrangement. When Wong Kar-wai was filming, there were many shooting plans, and each ending was different. Even the actors present didn't know the final ending. Wong Kar-wai chose the most satisfactory scheme from a series of permutations and combinations as the basis of editing. His research on montage is in-depth and breakthrough. Let's discuss the application of montage in the film Spring Breeze with pudovkin's classification of montage. The film "Sudden Diarrhea in Spring" mainly adopts:

1。 Contrast montage

Let's analyze the scene where Li Yaohui and He Baorong meet again in a bar.

-looking at He Baorong and his accomplices into the bar, lee's face painted with paint.

-organ transition, bar duet.

-He Baorong groggy in the bar.

-Li Yaohui is smoking outside the bar.

-He Baorong was kissing someone in a bar.

-Li Yaohui looked on coldly outside the bar.

-He Baorong applauded warmly in the bar.

-Li Yaohui is eating hamburgers outside the bar.

The duet in the bar stopped.

-Li Yaohui eats hamburgers, and He Baorong gets on the bus at the bar (depth of field lens).

-Li Yaohui walked behind the car and watched it go away.

-pull the camera, He Baorong smoking a cigarette, look back at lee.

-Li Yaohui threw away the drink can.

The above two groups of shots inside and outside the bar appear alternately, which has a direct and obvious impact on people. In just 20 seconds, He Baorong and Li Yaohui have completely different lifestyles.

2。 Parallel montage

Wong Kar-wai also arranged a parallel montage of Li Yaohui, He Baorong and Xiao Zhang at the end of the film A Spring Festival.

Table 1

Three parallel montages reflect three different life trajectories of three people. Li Yaohui finally found the root of survival, ended his wandering in a foreign land and returned to his hometown; He Baorong ended his decadent life and turned over a new leaf. He seems to be on the road that Li Yaohui once walked. Both of them are sad because of their lost feelings, but the fate is over and they can only go their separate ways. Xiao Zhang continued his travel life. Although he is wandering outside, he always knows that there is a warm home to welcome him back at any time The juxtaposition of these three groups of montages shows the different paths chosen by the three protagonists, which is the most delicate and powerful narrative montage method.

3。 Repetitive montage of themes

Table 2

Waterfalls are an important symbol and emotional witness of He Baorong and Li Yaohui. They came to Argentina from Hong Kong to see the waterfalls, and their journey also hinted at a love destination. The theme of the film has been vividly displayed so far. However, neither of them realized their wish to see the waterfall together. It seems that lovers may not be able to reach the horizon hand in hand.

4。 Connection skills in montage

The lens connection of a movie is based on the vision or thoughts of the characters or the audience. But in any case, the basic condition of montage is that each shot should be ready for the next shot, which will affect the next shot, including the content of the next shot. In short, the previous shot must be explained to the next shot or have some external and internal characteristics. In the film "Spring in Spring", there is a set of shots that show good contact skills:

Li Yaohui pushed open the door and went into the bathroom-He Baorong was reflected in the mirror-the door was closed, the black market was closed-the door opened, He Baorong went out-Li Yaohui leaned against the wall and meditated, then pushed the door and went out-He Baorong pushed open the bar door and walked to the car.

There are two doors here, one is the bathroom door, and the other is the bar door. Several transitions are connected by pushing the door and closing the door, reflecting the scene where two people pass by but never meet.

Four. Performance style

An actor's performance has three basic elements:

1。 The incarnation of faith

Faith is manifested in the fact that actors must be roles, not roles. The role of homosexuality is a test for both Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu Wai. In Wong Kar-wai's films, Leslie Cheung's personality is aloof and frustrated. Both A Fei in The True Story of A Fei and the killer in The Ashes of Time, in the film Sudden Diarrhea in Spring, besides the above characteristics, women's delicacy and willfulness are also added. And Tony Leung Chiu Wai's Chongqing Forest 663 police, silent and gentle, although a bit dull. The vagrancy in Ashes of Time is quite similar to his self-restraint and modesty, so his role in Spring is more affectionate and stubborn.

2。 Physical performance

After several collaborations in Wong Kar-wai films, the two Hong Kong actors have made great progress in body performance. In the scene where He Baorong gave the watch, Li Yaohui first threw it out-picked it up-listened to it-wiped it-and hid it. Tony Leung Chiu Wai played this series of movements with ease and fluency, and made a mentality of neither love nor hate particularly real. "Spring in Spring" deeply tapped the performance potential of Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu Wai, and made them get rid of the stereotype of handsome young people. Although they are stars in entertainment films, Wong Kar-wai has given them new artistic life.

3。 Exchange of ideas

Playing gay couples, especially in some sensational scenes in the film, requires a good exchange of ideas between the two actors. Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu Wai's performances were not in a hurry, and some proper limit made us feel the charm of mature actors.

In Wong Kar-wai's films, the stars showed unprecedented elegance. Whether it is Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu Wai in this film, Brigitte Lin in Ashes of Time and Takeshi Kaneshiro in Chongqing Forest, Wong Kar-wai is good at capturing the potential of actors. Zhang zhen, the actor of Xiao Zhang in the film, is also a newcomer, and his performance is quite appropriate. A director must be good at conveying his ideas to actors, and conveying these intentions varies from person to person. Some directors exercise strict control, while others like a relaxed atmosphere. Wong Kar-wai might prefer to be casual. Under his guidance, actors can fully enter the role and play their greatest potential. This is also an important factor in the success of this film.