What are the artistic comments on Ning Hao's works?

On the basic characteristics of Ning-style comedy films

Nowadays, the crazy series "Crazy Racing" directed by Ning Hao has grossed over 100 million yuan nationwide, which has set off a frenzy in the whole country. Crazy Racing (hereinafter referred to as Racing) basically continues the black humorous comedy film style of Stone, and makes this style mature day by day. Careful observation and analysis of his films, especially the "crazy series", will reveal the outstanding basic characteristics of his "Ning comedy" films. Such as: complex multi-clue narrative, these clues often cross each other; Dialect and local characteristics of character dialogue; Black humorous comedy film style; Bold and novel photography style; Quick and sharp circuitous cross-editing; Pay attention to the life of the little people at the bottom of society; Small, core objects; Black elements and violent elements in movies; The "happy ending" of good and evil and so on.

Racing can be said to continue the basic characteristics of stone, while the style of Jeannin's comedy is more mature, and at the same time it has formed a brand effect. Racing is the most successful and worth learning among small and medium-sized commercial films in China.

Narrative structure

The cross narrative structure of multiple clues can be said to be the biggest feature of Ning Comedy. These multiple clues are not parallel and independent. But there is a main clue that runs through the whole play and plays a connecting role. These clues are intertwined and foreshadowing each other. Without that, the story may not go on, and there will be loopholes, thus forming a very complex narrative network. For example, in "Car Story", Geng Hao, the racer with clue 1, and his master were angry with the fake drug dealer Li Fara. Geng Hao's request for funeral expenses for the host is the main clue, which is directly or indirectly related to other clues in the whole play. Although it is sometimes weak, it is for the better development of other clues, and also for other clues to play its funny function, so Geng Hao is the first protagonist of this film. Other clues are: drug gangs from Taiwan Province Province; Thai drug dealers who come to trade; Li Fara, the owner of black-hearted health care products, and his fierce and obese wife; Two processes are devoted to making money. Oolong killer 5 is full of enthusiastic cemetery salesmen; 6 Two policemen who are bent on a big case. These clues are directly related, indirectly related, or set the stage for the development of the plot. For example, the conflict between clue 1 and 5 in the play is a good foreshadowing for the conflict between clue 1 and 2. Because Geng Hao went to buy a cemetery for his master after his death, in the process of buying a cemetery, there appeared "eighteen gifts" similar to the underworld. It's a joke here. It's actually a very important plot point. It is the existence of the "Eighteen Gifts" that led Geng Hao to mistake Tom, Tom and the Taiwanese gang for cemetery personnel, which led Geng Hao to take the US dollar by mistake and the Taiwanese gang to take the ashes by mistake. This is a key plot point and a turning point of the plot, which plays a very important role in the drama. Another example is the movie "Stone". Knife elder brother forced Xie to call his father for jade, but his father didn't believe it. This is because at the beginning of the film, Xie teaches others to lie to his family in the toilet. This plot can be said to have some effect. On the one hand, it is full of jokes and vividly reveals Xie's cynical character. More importantly, it finally made Xie ask Brother Bao for help, made Brother Dao die, and returned the stone to its original owner, which promoted the development of the plot. There are many such plots in the movie. These plots seem random and act as jokes, but they are actually foreshadowing. Will jump out at the right time, play a role in connecting various clues and promoting the development of the plot.

In addition, his multi-clue narration is different from some foreign films. For example, the multi-clue narration of Japanese films such as Babel and Love is a Bitch is often a parallel narration of several clues, which have little to do with each other and finally point to a theme. The connection between them is not like that in Ning Hao's movies. It is a complex network organization, but it is juxtaposed with each other, and finally shows some similarity between a theme or clue to achieve the function of mutual connection.

The overall style of the film.

Black humorous comedy style, out-and-out commercial film route, concern for the fate of the lower-class little people, with the elements and temperament of gangster movies and so on. Perhaps "racing" gives people the greatest overall feeling. From rocks to racing cars, Ning Hao insists on the style of black humor and comedy. I think his black humor comedy has the following distinctive features:

1. Black humorous comedies make people laugh, but at the same time, they often have the functions of revealing society, reflecting social disadvantages and reflecting the sadness of small people. It makes people laugh, which in turn causes people to reflect on some social problems. For example, in the film, about the fairness of the game. Originally, the gold medal belonged to Geng Hao, but due to the imbalance of social equity, he only took a silver medal; The proliferation of counterfeit drugs, personal and social money worship tendency; Drug trafficking reflected in the Story of the Stone and some current problems such as the closure of state-owned factories and the housing of laid-off workers and the bottom people.

2. The characters have distinct personality characteristics and the performances are in place. For example, in Racing, the Oolong killer who came to the city and wanted to make money and get married at home always advertised that he was professional and principled, but he kept changing jobs and couldn't kill anyone. Geng Hao, an unlucky racing driver, is weak and kind on the one hand. He is deceived by fake drugs but dare not pursue it, but he is also very filial. In order to give the master a good burial, he did not hesitate to look for Li Farah, and finally almost lost his life with the gangster boss for the master's ashes. Another example is The Story of the Stone, in which three thieves, Brother Dao and Brother Bao, have distinct personalities.

3. The comedy effect of the film depends more on the development of the story, and of course the dialogue of the film is also very classic. Different from "Feng's Comedy", his films rely more on humorous dialogues and exaggerated performances to create comic effects, and more on the plot development of the story itself to promote the creation of comic effects. For example, in "Racing Car", Geng Hao and the gang "traded" at the gate of the temple, and they staged a farce because they misunderstood each other. At the end of the film, when two policemen who were bent on solving a big case thought they had missed the opportunity to solve another big case, two oolong killers came to the door with electric cookers full of drugs. In The Story of the Stone, an international thief from China descended from the sky like Spider-Man, stole the jade, but hung in the air because there was no rope. Mainly rely on the story itself to create a comedy Xiaogang, of course, some lines are also very classic.

This kind of comedy effect is often full of bloody and violent factors, such as crimes, drug trafficking, murder-buying and other themes, as well as the messy and bad living environment of the characters. For example, in the movie "The Story of the Stone", the thief's black skin was locked in a sewage pit for a few days, and Brother Dao finally grabbed the bag and killed him, and the hotel bathroom was messy; Another example is the movie "Racing". At the beginning, the master and apprentice trembled hysterically in the storm, the black-hearted businessman Li Fara killed his wife, the chaotic scene of the gang detonating gas in Li Fara's home and the desperate struggle between the gang boss and Geng Hao at last, all of which made people feel the strong violent tendency and vulgar temperament in the gangster movies.

In addition, his concern for the fate of the little people at the bottom of society also makes his films make the audience laugh, and leads to thinking about a series of social problems, thus making the films have a kind of warmth and humanistic care. For example, in Stone, Bao Ge and Sambo, who are exhausted in order to protect the last hope of state-owned factories, and in Racing, Geng Hao, an unlucky racing driver at the bottom of society, is cowardly, kind, timid and deeply attached to his master.

cinematography

The photography of "Ning-style comedy" is very particular, pursuing a novel and dynamic photography, which seems to deal with random shots and is often ingenious.

For example, in The Story of the Stone, the first shot is a close-up of Bao Ge's helpless and confused expression, followed by a close-up of dripping water from the faucet, followed by a doctor in the foreground and dripping water from the faucet in the background. The opening shot has clearly introduced to the audience the helpless, depressed and depressed mental state of the protagonist when he is sick; At the end of the film, in the scene of Doug riding a motorcycle to grab jade, the three-dimensional composition of the fork, the blue tone, the close-up of Doug's face, the close-up of riding a motorcycle, and the close-up of the shadow of a motorcycle flying on the wet road after the rain all show Doug's abnormal psychology well and hint at his tragic ending of good and evil. In "Racing", from the beginning of the film, the master and apprentice fought in the rain, setting a dark gray tone for the film, which is in line with the black humor and comedy style of the film. Another example is that after Master Geng Hao became angry with Li Fara, Geng Hao sat in front of the cemetery holding the master's ashes and shook them, which was very touching. The camera moves slowly from the porcelain god of wealth to Geng Hao and the master to save money temporarily, then shakes to Geng Hao with a sad face biting a burnt-out cigarette butt, and then shakes to the broken wheelchair with the master's ashes. The audience realized why Geng Hao was sad. In the next scene, Geng Hao faces the sad sea background, the deserted cemetery behind Geng Hao, and then Geng Hao smashed the god of wealth, collected money in the wind, bought a cemetery for his master, and carried a gorgeous plane on his head. A few seemingly random shots vividly show the bitterness, helplessness and affection of the little people at the bottom of society, coupled with the cold background music, which is very real and touching.

Function of sound

Voice plays an important role in "Ning-style comedy", which not only shows the film environment, but also plays an important role in participating in the drama, promoting the development of the plot and portraying the characters' personalities.

1. sound.

Sound not only plays a role in rendering the real environment in his movies, but also plays a role in expressing the characters' personalities and feelings. For example, in the movie "Stone", the sound of dripping water from the tap is a good expression of the protagonist's anxiety, depression and helplessness. Another example is the sound of Bao Ge clicking a map on the hotel wall at night, which connects the thieves living next door very well, which is ironic and comedy. For example, in the movie "Car Story", the fighting between master and apprentice in the heavy rain at the beginning, the sound of rain and the roar of the master all seem to be indignant at Geng Hao's unfair treatment from the beginning; In the singing of Li Fala's manslaughter of his wife, shouting for money at Geng Hao and framing Geng Hao as a liar, in order to show Li Fala's guilty conscience of killing and framing, Geng didn't know, creating a tense atmosphere, and the sound played a great role. Many influences were deliberately amplified to show the tense atmosphere, such as putting a stick on the table, the sound of a knife falling to the ground, the sound of biting an apple and the sound of Geng cutting money with a knife.

Two. music

In Ning Hao's comedy films, the soundtrack is basically silent, including background music, ringtones, ringtones and so on. The songs are very ironic and conform to the black humor style of the film. For example, in the movie "Stone", the director inserted a funny "girl" in the ecstasy of Xie when he first met his girlfriend in the game hall.

In addition, the close-up of quick editing and switching shows Xie's obsession with her well, which lays a psychological motivation for Xie to finally smile for Pomeranian and then be caught by knife elder brother. At the beginning of "Racing Car", the gang boss killed the fish boss by mistake on a fishing boat. The film is "Jianghu Music". It's ironic that none of these people came back in the end. Another lyrical background music also expresses the director's sympathy and understanding of the bitterness and helplessness of the little people in the play. For example, Brother Bao, who was sick in the stone, could do nothing after the jade was replaced. In the scene where the toilet broke out, the toilet pipes were wanton, the characters screamed hysterically, and the protagonist was so weak under the camera overhead. The director added very gentle background music to express his understanding and sympathy for the little people at the lower level, which was very human.

3. Character language

Since it is a black humorous comedy, the dialogue between characters in Ning Hao's comedy films is very comic, daily and rich in connotation, and many dialogues are regarded as classics by the audience. Moreover, his dialogue between characters is always mixed with several dialects, which has distinctive local characteristics. For example, in the movie "Stone", Bao Ge and San Bao are Chongqing dialects with local characteristics, especially some local "swearing" words, which are characterized by dripping oil; There is also the international thief Mike, who can speak a little Mandarin, which shows the identity characteristics of the characters; For example, in the movie "Car Story", the protagonist Geng Hao's Jiaodong Mandarin is very attractive. The dialogue between two Oolong killers who are bent on making money from the countryside and getting married at home is more classic. They speak Shaanxi dialect, constantly flaunting their majors and stressing principles, but they can't kill people from the beginning, and they keep changing careers for economic benefits, which shows the hypocrisy of this pretentious little guy.

Film editing

In order to cooperate with the multi-clue cross-narrative structure of the film, the film editing mainly adopts the method of circuitous cross-editing, which is not common in domestic commercial films and is very clever. This editing technique is mainly used to explain the narrative of various clues to the audience, so that the audience can understand and understand.

For example, in the movie "Racing Car", a police car suddenly appeared in the course of dealing between gangs in Taiwan Province Province and drug dealers in Thailand. Then it narrates Geng Hao's claim for compensation for Li Farah in order to bury his master. He thought the police were coming to arrest him, and then the audience suddenly realized. In this way, the Oolong killer was linked with Thai drug dealers Geng Hao and Li Fala, which led to the plot that the Oolong killer killed Thai drug dealers by mistake, Geng Hao went to Li Fala's house, and Li Fala killed his wife and framed him.

This kind of editing method is also in line with the appreciation taste of modern movie audiences, because most domestic movie audiences are mainly young people born after 1980s, and this circuitous editing style is also in line with their appreciation taste, so it has also been recognized by the audience. ,

In addition, film editing pursues the fast switching and dynamic editing style of modern movies. Most of his films are quickly switched from short shots, and the editing rhythm is relatively fast, which also conforms to the basic characteristics of modern life and the absurd stories of movies. For example, in "Racing Car", the profiteer Li Fara and his fierce wife Strange strange bedfellows bought each other for murder, while the Oolong killer killed a Thai drug dealer by mistake. When Li Fake asked his wife for the final payment, Li Fala suddenly appeared, and the camera quickly flashed through the close-ups of the facial expressions of the four people, which was very ironic and funny.

Functions of the core objects (props)

In "Ning-style comedy" movies, seemingly ordinary objects (props) often appear, but in fact they often play an important role. Some are suggestive and symbolic, while others promote the development of the plot.

For example, in Racing, drugs and dollars are evil things, and at the same time they are the targets of various forces. At the end of the film, Geng Hao mistakenly buried the dollar in the ground, which was also carefully designed by the director.

Bicycle. The film begins with a bicycle race and ends with a bicycle race, which echoes well, as if it were the reincarnation of Geng Hao's fate. At the same time, bicycles are also tools for drug dealers.

lorry

In the film, the truck is the working punishment for Geng Hao and his master to survive, and finally becomes the killing space for adult Oolong killers, including the Thai killer asking people to go into the refrigerator to cool down, and finally the truck is frozen into a "frozen policeman".

Thai drug dealer chain

As soon as the hanging chain appeared, it seemed to be the murder weapon of Thai drug dealers. Later, it was this weapon that was hung on the truck by the Oolong killer, which eventually became the link between Geng Hao and the gangs in Taiwan Province Province. Therefore, this hanging chain has the function of promoting the development of the plot.

silver medal

Silver medal is an important prop in the competition. From the beginning, it dramatically changed the fate of Master Geng Hao, and eventually made Master Geng Hao fall ill and eventually died. This can be said to be a major premise of the whole story of the film, but it saved Geng Hao's life at the last minute. Start and end, the structure of the play is completed.

In the movie "Stone", "Stone" is undoubtedly the core object. This is because stone is the object of various forces fighting for and protecting each other. It is the core of the film story and the driving force to promote the development of the film story. It is because of its existence that two groups of thieves and protectors staged a farce. At the same time, the stone itself is also a symbol of wealth, which itself has rich symbolic significance. There are many such core objects in Ning Hao's comedy films. On the one hand, they are important props of the film, and more importantly, they play a role in promoting the story. They are often important plot points that span several narrative clues and play an important role in drama.

To sum up, Ning's Comedy has its own unique characteristics in narrative structure, editing style, photography and characterization. At the same time, its content is close to social life, and it also pays attention to the lives of low-level people, so that the film has a humanistic concern. It can be said that "Ning's Comedy" has formed the brand effect of its black humorous comedy, and it is also the mainstay of small and medium-sized commercial films in China. Let's look forward to the rise of small and medium-sized commercial films in China!

Zhang Baogang