As always, I got an hour into this film before being compelled to take a benzodiazepine-induced nap. It has essentially become a task for me to relax these days; so I make a point of watching films that I would most often avoid, ones that induce some level of introspection in the ‘empty shell’ of a soul that a friend of mine so comedically describes.

Directed & Written by Bi Gan.

The first hour of this film left me very confused, knowing I’d need to be in a position where I wasn’t magnetized to my own sporadic depressive slumber. Whilst I don’t go to great lengths to research the movies I watch; the audience score on this was low and I can understand why. The unfolding of the plot and what occurs over the two hours isn’t at all what you’d expect.

The cinematography and transitioning between settings were excellent in this film and the fictional medium in which it is presented is used to break the fourth wall on multiple occasions. Strange character interactions and their own ambivalence to what occurs in front of them make Long Day’s Journey into Night all that more oblique and leave you with a hell of a lot more questions than it does answers. Destiny/fate seems either correlational and beautiful or like plot devices, but either way, it worked for me.

Love is the central point of this movie, or maybe that of eternal infatuation; depending upon how cynically/jadedly one is to view the world. There is little sexualization involved in this movie in its own matured, innocent way; something that is all too often lacking in cinema today and probably why it isn’t given more appraisal. The question of racial identity and differentiation is pretty clear to me throughout this film too, as the protagonist holds the torch for someone who he once loved; but it’s not my place to go too far into that.

It isn’t the protagonist speaking here and little moments like these almost guarantee that this film is worth watching twice, as you’re left utterly clueless as to what’s going on for the first half, even upon reaching the conclusion on your first viewing.

Ultimately, this movie makes you think of those nostalgic, regrettable moments in your life where action or inaction can leave you forever bound to memory and truly illustrates the danger of living in the past. Although for once, I feel hopeful after reaching the conclusion of this film, which is a rarity, considering my repertoire as of late.

Strange transitions of setting and the directions in which this film took me almost guarantee I’ll watch this again eventually. I believe there’s a lot more to be garnered from this movie than what I initially observed on the surface level.

Happy birthday btw, Sam – you both should take a look at this one. It’s certainly not An Elephant Sitting Still, which is a good thing for you two, but not for me. The mission to find a superior film continues…

No context here, but what a beautifully presented scene.

Looks like I’ll be posting more frequently again, provided I don’t give myself mild serotonin syndrome for a while. That shit sucks. Thanks for reading, if you’ve got this far. I’ll make this blog more accessible (historically) for mobiles soon.

Sedlo