Arthouse pictures that can equally deliver exceptional visual and raw emotions are far and between these days, but One Second managed to do just that well and gracefully.
The lead actor, Zhang Yi was largely the main reason i was drawn into this movie. He first caught my attention with his shady character in more recent work of Dir. Zhang Yimou, Full River Red. He was so good in it. I went back and forth suspecting if his role was indeed the bad guy or not, I knew I had to check out his other projects.
And then there was the plot itself. "A movie fan in a remote farmland strikes a relationship with a homeless female vagabond" (as per imdb page)!? I was like, count me in. As a movie buff myself i've always intrigued to know about how others view movie from their personal standpoint and what it means in their respective lives. Coincidentally, this very feature film ticked all the boxes.
To my ultimate surprise, there was another exceptional actor, which I consider the Chinese equivalent of Koji Yakusho (sublime performance in Perfect Days btw). He's none other than the ever superb, Fan Wei (which through him, I got to experience the phenomenal cinematic work of him, The Long Season). Whoaaa.. he was indeed what Oscar winner Mark Rylance (Bridge of Speis) once described how supporting actors should've been called instead, an actor in an opposing role. Their existence isn't supposed just to assist or cheering for the leading roles, but most importantly challenge the other party's character growth. Like facing an equal opponent in a boxing ring, winning feels more rewarding when the capability of the rival who stand before you match your hard earned skill. They bring the best out of you. And that is exactly what Fan Wei was to Zhang Yi. See for yourself when you finally reached their 1 on 1 conversation in the Projection Box.
Through this movie as well, I found another fantastic actor. The natural born young actress, Liu Haocun. She blew me away with her eye acting. I mean, when she was first seen fixing her gaze on Zhang Yi's character, I could immediately tell that she surely can act. And although girl was covered in dirt like 90% of the time, I was easily convinced that she got a gorgeous face as well underneath all those dust on her face and entire clothes. Any actresses who are willing to trade their beauty for their commitment in portraying the roles they were entrusted with always deserve my utmost respect. She is indeed a Yimou Girl after all.
Never did I expect when first started watching this I would be that intensely immersed in all three main characters' personal stories. It was a beautiful journey that will stay me for a long time.
A Li & Xiao Heng are what I call each other's betters and equals.No other person in their whole wide world could…
A Li (XFF) is the only person Xiao Heng (XH) ever allows to grab him by the wrist, "question" his intelligence (when they met at the tea house for the first time), let her wear his undershirt (when they were at the mining site), gently taps his both cheeks on that rainy day, hold his fans (& tuck his chin with it), have a restful sleep at his residence, and last but not least, to have meals with him.
Xiao Heng is the only person A Li ever allows to hold her hands, hug her close, call her by the name A Li despite not being a family member (even in front of people she doesn't know well, i.e. Lady Situ during the scorpion treatment & Wu Lan at the brothel place), and also to knock some sense into her when he thought some of her plans could potentially harm her instead.
The trouble with true love is you don't know where or when it all started. You can't pinpoint the exact moment you let yourself begin to love the other person, and vice versa. Much like sleeping, the second you "wake up" & realize you're in love with someone, it usually already reached a pretty deep level.
One of many things I admire about them though is XH never babysits XFF. He allows her to choose her battles and fight back against them until she couldn't, and only when the latter happens he decided to enter the picture. He's not always there for her as it happens but when he does, she knows he always got her back no matter what. They trust each other's judgment, acknowledge each each other's capability, respect each other's advices and never doubt each other's integrity.
When XH noticed the bruise on XFF's right wrist at the tea house, I internally screamed 'ask her about it!' , but then again when he didn't, I surprisingly wasn't disappointed at all, cause that was the moment I fully fathom the depth of his love. Fully aware of the consequence upon her mental being, inquiring her about it would also mean she had to relive every second of that horrifying moment, and he knew he couldn't stand seeing her suffer again.
**That scumbag ZYB should be grateful JRY smacked him that hard he lost consciousness soon after but not quite dead yet, cause if he was still breathing fine after that SA attempt, he would instantly end up finding himself tied upside down in XH's interrogation room.**
NEVER did I ever share my thoughts over any ongoing series or movies before, I always waited until they're all done, until now. And I still don't even know why. One thing I'm sure of though, The Double is an outlier.
Been a great ride to share this journey with y'all here. ^^
A Li & Xiao Heng are what I call each other's betters and equals. No other person in their whole wide world could possibly tame their brilliant minds and mend their broken hearts the way they did to one another.
The first, main and initial reason I was drawn to Long Season was Fan Wei. Upon seeing him in Zhang Yimou's arthouse masterpiece 'One Second', I got curious about his other work because his natural acting quickly reminded me of the likes of Chow Yun Fat and Tony Leung. And boi was i glad to have decided so.
Like how I normally do with my previous movie choices before, one of the key elements that I weigh in before watching any movies or tv series would be the plot, and The Long Season was the primary example how simple narrative can serve you with some of the most complicated, twisted chills along the way.
Few years ago I saw this movie titled 'Concussion' and there was this line said by one of its main real-life characters, Prema Mutiso, that resounds in my head whenever I watch anything that falls under whodunnit category. It goes," I can't tell what you are more afraid of: what you will find or what you won't."
And so, when I caught the first sentence of the short synopsis written on this very page that reads "Wang Xiang, a taxi driver, could never expect to meet the person that he most wants or fears to meet in his entire life.", I knew instantly, I had to see this one.
Also, the look of its official main poster in which everyone can be seen genuinely smiling, and the individual ones which appear all visually colourful, bold and bright hues at that, made it seem like they represent the unexpected twist after twist of each character involved that the movie would present the audience with. Like everything so contradictory it sparked my curiosity to a whole new level.
I haven't seen anything quite like this one before. It consists like 80% comedy and 20% suspense thriller, except the latter was the bone chilling kind, you had to pause after every few episodes cause they were all outright daunting. For most part of each episode you would find yourself laughing out loud, and yet nearing the end, it would grip you with this somewhat sinister air to the entire closing sequence. And to think that everything was all done not in some secluded dark alleys, since most of the scenes even the ones situated on evenings were done under bright lights, be it in broad daylight or the pitch black nightfall setting, and yet you could still closely sense this eerie atmosphere in certain scenes, I personally find it one of the unrivaled charm of Long Season.
Only after I completed watching it that I learned about the overwhelmingly positive reception from audiences and critics alike. To even call 'Long Season' a masterpiece feels like an understatement, because it is, quite simply, a phenomenal showpiece. Brava!
First off, if you're not even familiar with more than two past projects of Toma Ikuta, or which role he's most known for, or who he is in the first place, then I'm afraid this movie may not be to your liking.
Moreover, if you haven't been well acquainted with Japanese feature films or doramas, then you're most definitely not gonna enjoy the movie at all.
BUT, if you are neither of the two, AND you're a movie buff to begin with, then Yudo is right up your street.
An arthouse movie which delights one with an exquisite cinematic experience through and through. Just when I thought Toma Ikuta alone was convincing enough for me to see this, much to my surprise, the CINEMATOGRAPHY blew me away altogether. It's fairly comparable to Perfect Days (Koji Yakusho).
The stories involved were all beautifully woven, especially about the old married couple. The convo between Toma's character and The husband gentleman in particular was easily the most endearing part of this masterpiece. not to say the other parts were not equally heartwarming or thought provoking.
I wrapped up watching this movie with heart filled warmth and the biggest smile on my face. Truly one of the finest pictures in some years now, a Japanese production at that. I will remember how this movie made me feel for quite a long while.
"Have you ever thought that the day you cheated on my Mom, you've already ruined my life?"I'd never seen any of…
It's true that Fei Ke could've chosen a different path, and yes indeed his fraud crime was completely wrong, but thing is the real, irreversible damage was majorly done to the young Li Zerui.
He was forever scarred by the betrayal of someone who was supposed to be his role model for life. If his own Dad never showed him that a husband can be faithful to his wife and a father can be responsible with his only child's life, no one could possibly convince him otherwise. It was well, deeply cemented in his heart, mind and soul. Like the cracks in concrete, there's no returning from that, unless GOD got involved (in my personal belief) and/or someone reaches out to him and tried very hard and persistent to get him out of such a situation. Be there for him when he feels abandoned or unwanted, take him for who he truly is. For a moment there He Shan was that very figure, until she wasn't.
You see, I noticed on 8th eps, there was exactly 1 (one) minute gap between the moment LZR closed his pen cap after finished the test on the final day (right after the exam invigilator announced there's only half an hour left) and the second he reopened it (soon after the past memories of everything his father and step mom had put him through suddenly rushing back and flooded his mind with dark thoughts). Showing just how much of his pent up, unspeakable anger had been kept inside.
LZR was still a kid when he moved into that house his father lived in with his despicable, hypocrite mistress and their child, I imagine, he was probably even wayyy much younger when he first found out about his father's extramarital affair given the fact he and his half brother was supposed to take the Gaokao together that year, it appeared to me that they couldn't be more than five years apart. If his father never left them for that ai, Fei Ke would've never appeared in those greedy people's lives he met along the way.
To me, Li Zerui's life froze on that afternoon at the rooftop of his high school building. Everything that young man did growing up as a Fei Ke was almost like part of his attempts at retaliating against selfish people who took spending their time with their supposedly precious ones for granted. He Shan was the only person who ever genuinely smiled at him without wanting anything at all in return, but she was also just a kid, not knowing just yet how impactful her short presence was in his life, let alone responding properly to his situation at the moment.
This series offers more moral points than it lets on. I, for one, was reminded that anybody can be a father, but it takes a decent human being to be a dad.
"Have you ever thought that the day you cheated on my Mom, you've already ruined my life?"
I'd never seen any of Jing Boran past projects prior to 'Regeneration', but it has got to be one of his finest work.
His performance as Fei Ke is almost unrivaled in suspense-thriller genre, it reminded me of the multilayered characters of Zhu Yilong's in 'Lost in the Stars' and Kim Moo Yeol in 'Forgotten'.
If the short synopsis of this incredible movie posted above didn't pique your interest enough just yet, then i'll give you another reason as to why Love Never Ends is worth a shot.
For starters this is a feature film that comes from an Oscar-nominee Director, that had once directed an actor whose previous work was also nominated for the much coveted Academy Awards.
And then, the cast. All four leading actors are multi-award winners, you'll get why later once you see the movie for yourself. On the very first moment you see each of the main characters, you would instantly think, ain't no freakin' way these old folks are renowned actors, because they morphed into their respective characters seamlessly.
Last and never least, the story. Have you ever finished a movie that left you in a complete silence, almost deafening, that while you staring at the closing credits roll out you found yourself thinking long and hard about your own life, all the choices you had made in the past and the ones you were too afraid to embrace. Both the regrets and the gratitude you kept inside the innermost part of your heart and no one in your life knows about it, except GOD of course, and a;; that began to resurface and you just started to wonder what would've happened had you decided differently. Well, this film is it.
For me, every cinematic work resembles a living person. They naturally show you both their pretty and ugly sides, and even the ugliest part of one essentially portrays the beauty of being a human.
Only few Chinese movies have managed to have had a cathartic effect on me. Some of them were: - Better Days (Zhou Dongyu; Jackson Yi) - A Sun (Chen Yi Wen, Greg Hsu) - One Second (Zhang Yi, Fan Wei)
The lead actor, Zhang Yi was largely the main reason i was drawn into this movie.
He first caught my attention with his shady character in more recent work of Dir. Zhang Yimou, Full River Red. He was so good in it. I went back and forth suspecting if his role was indeed the bad guy or not, I knew I had to check out his other projects.
And then there was the plot itself. "A movie fan in a remote farmland strikes a relationship with a homeless female vagabond" (as per imdb page)!? I was like, count me in. As a movie buff myself i've always intrigued to know about how others view movie from their personal standpoint and what it means in their respective lives. Coincidentally, this very feature film ticked all the boxes.
To my ultimate surprise, there was another exceptional actor, which I consider the Chinese equivalent of Koji Yakusho (sublime performance in Perfect Days btw). He's none other than the ever superb, Fan Wei (which through him, I got to experience the phenomenal cinematic work of him, The Long Season). Whoaaa.. he was indeed what Oscar winner Mark Rylance (Bridge of Speis) once described how supporting actors should've been called instead, an actor in an opposing role. Their existence isn't supposed just to assist or cheering for the leading roles, but most importantly challenge the other party's character growth. Like facing an equal opponent in a boxing ring, winning feels more rewarding when the capability of the rival who stand before you match your hard earned skill. They bring the best out of you. And that is exactly what Fan Wei was to Zhang Yi. See for yourself when you finally reached their 1 on 1 conversation in the Projection Box.
Through this movie as well, I found another fantastic actor. The natural born young actress, Liu Haocun. She blew me away with her eye acting. I mean, when she was first seen fixing her gaze on Zhang Yi's character, I could immediately tell that she surely can act. And although girl was covered in dirt like 90% of the time, I was easily convinced that she got a gorgeous face as well underneath all those dust on her face and entire clothes. Any actresses who are willing to trade their beauty for their commitment in portraying the roles they were entrusted with always deserve my utmost respect. She is indeed a Yimou Girl after all.
Never did I expect when first started watching this I would be that intensely immersed in all three main characters' personal stories. It was a beautiful journey that will stay me for a long time.
Xiao Heng is the only person A Li ever allows to hold her hands, hug her close, call her by the name A Li despite not being a family member (even in front of people she doesn't know well, i.e. Lady Situ during the scorpion treatment & Wu Lan at the brothel place), and also to knock some sense into her when he thought some of her plans could potentially harm her instead.
The trouble with true love is you don't know where or when it all started.
You can't pinpoint the exact moment you let yourself begin to love the other person, and vice versa.
Much like sleeping, the second you "wake up" & realize you're in love with someone, it usually already reached a pretty deep level.
One of many things I admire about them though is XH never babysits XFF. He allows her to choose her battles and fight back against them until she couldn't, and only when the latter happens he decided to enter the picture. He's not always there for her as it happens but when he does, she knows he always got her back no matter what. They trust each other's judgment, acknowledge each each other's capability, respect each other's advices and never doubt each other's integrity.
When XH noticed the bruise on XFF's right wrist at the tea house, I internally screamed 'ask her about it!' , but then again when he didn't, I surprisingly wasn't disappointed at all, cause that was the moment I fully fathom the depth of his love. Fully aware of the consequence upon her mental being, inquiring her about it would also mean she had to relive every second of that horrifying moment, and he knew he couldn't stand seeing her suffer again.
**That scumbag ZYB should be grateful JRY smacked him that hard he lost consciousness soon after but not quite dead yet, cause if he was still breathing fine after that SA attempt, he would instantly end up finding himself tied upside down in XH's interrogation room.**
NEVER did I ever share my thoughts over any ongoing series or movies before, I always waited until they're all done, until now. And I still don't even know why.
One thing I'm sure of though, The Double is an outlier.
Been a great ride to share this journey with y'all here. ^^
No other person in their whole wide world could possibly tame their brilliant minds and mend their broken hearts the way they did to one another.
Upon seeing him in Zhang Yimou's arthouse masterpiece 'One Second', I got curious about his other work because his natural acting quickly reminded me of the likes of Chow Yun Fat and Tony Leung.
And boi was i glad to have decided so.
Like how I normally do with my previous movie choices before, one of the key elements that I weigh in before watching any movies or tv series would be the plot, and The Long Season was the primary example how simple narrative can serve you with some of the most complicated, twisted chills along the way.
Few years ago I saw this movie titled 'Concussion' and there was this line said by one of its main real-life characters, Prema Mutiso, that resounds in my head whenever I watch anything that falls under whodunnit category. It goes," I can't tell what you are more afraid of: what you will find or what you won't."
And so, when I caught the first sentence of the short synopsis written on this very page that reads "Wang Xiang, a taxi driver, could never expect to meet the person that he most wants or fears to meet in his entire life.", I knew instantly, I had to see this one.
Also, the look of its official main poster in which everyone can be seen genuinely smiling, and the individual ones which appear all visually colourful, bold and bright hues at that, made it seem like they represent the unexpected twist after twist of each character involved that the movie would present the audience with. Like everything so contradictory it sparked my curiosity to a whole new level.
I haven't seen anything quite like this one before. It consists like 80% comedy and 20% suspense thriller, except the latter was the bone chilling kind, you had to pause after every few episodes cause they were all outright daunting. For most part of each episode you would find yourself laughing out loud, and yet nearing the end, it would grip you with this somewhat sinister air to the entire closing sequence. And to think that everything was all done not in some secluded dark alleys, since most of the scenes even the ones situated on evenings were done under bright lights, be it in broad daylight or the pitch black nightfall setting, and yet you could still closely sense this eerie atmosphere in certain scenes, I personally find it one of the unrivaled charm of Long Season.
Only after I completed watching it that I learned about the overwhelmingly positive reception from audiences and critics alike. To even call 'Long Season' a masterpiece feels like an understatement, because it is, quite simply, a phenomenal showpiece.
Brava!
Moreover, if you haven't been well acquainted with Japanese feature films or doramas, then you're most definitely not gonna enjoy the movie at all.
BUT, if you are neither of the two, AND you're a movie buff to begin with, then Yudo is right up your street.
An arthouse movie which delights one with an exquisite cinematic experience through and through.
Just when I thought Toma Ikuta alone was convincing enough for me to see this, much to my surprise, the CINEMATOGRAPHY blew me away altogether. It's fairly comparable to Perfect Days (Koji Yakusho).
The stories involved were all beautifully woven, especially about the old married couple.
The convo between Toma's character and The husband gentleman in particular was easily the most endearing part of this masterpiece. not to say the other parts were not equally heartwarming or thought provoking.
I wrapped up watching this movie with heart filled warmth and the biggest smile on my face.
Truly one of the finest pictures in some years now, a Japanese production at that.
I will remember how this movie made me feel for quite a long while.
He was forever scarred by the betrayal of someone who was supposed to be his role model for life. If his own Dad never showed him that a husband can be faithful to his wife and a father can be responsible with his only child's life, no one could possibly convince him otherwise. It was well, deeply cemented in his heart, mind and soul. Like the cracks in concrete, there's no returning from that, unless GOD got involved (in my personal belief) and/or someone reaches out to him and tried very hard and persistent to get him out of such a situation. Be there for him when he feels abandoned or unwanted, take him for who he truly is. For a moment there He Shan was that very figure, until she wasn't.
You see, I noticed on 8th eps, there was exactly 1 (one) minute gap between the moment LZR closed his pen cap after finished the test on the final day (right after the exam invigilator announced there's only half an hour left) and the second he reopened it (soon after the past memories of everything his father and step mom had put him through suddenly rushing back and flooded his mind with dark thoughts). Showing just how much of his pent up, unspeakable anger had been kept inside.
LZR was still a kid when he moved into that house his father lived in with his despicable, hypocrite mistress and their child, I imagine, he was probably even wayyy much younger when he first found out about his father's extramarital affair given the fact he and his half brother was supposed to take the Gaokao together that year, it appeared to me that they couldn't be more than five years apart.
If his father never left them for that ai, Fei Ke would've never appeared in those greedy people's lives he met along the way.
To me, Li Zerui's life froze on that afternoon at the rooftop of his high school building. Everything that young man did growing up as a Fei Ke was almost like part of his attempts at retaliating against selfish people who took spending their time with their supposedly precious ones for granted.
He Shan was the only person who ever genuinely smiled at him without wanting anything at all in return, but she was also just a kid, not knowing just yet how impactful her short presence was in his life, let alone responding properly to his situation at the moment.
This series offers more moral points than it lets on.
I, for one, was reminded that anybody can be a father, but it takes a decent human being to be a dad.
I'd never seen any of Jing Boran past projects prior to 'Regeneration', but it has got to be one of his finest work.
His performance as Fei Ke is almost unrivaled in suspense-thriller genre, it reminded me of the multilayered characters of Zhu Yilong's in 'Lost in the Stars' and Kim Moo Yeol in 'Forgotten'.
For starters this is a feature film that comes from an Oscar-nominee Director, that had once directed an actor whose previous work was also nominated for the much coveted Academy Awards.
And then, the cast. All four leading actors are multi-award winners, you'll get why later once you see the movie for yourself. On the very first moment you see each of the main characters, you would instantly think, ain't no freakin' way these old folks are renowned actors, because they morphed into their respective characters seamlessly.
Last and never least, the story. Have you ever finished a movie that left you in a complete silence, almost deafening, that while you staring at the closing credits roll out you found yourself thinking long and hard about your own life, all the choices you had made in the past and the ones you were too afraid to embrace. Both the regrets and the gratitude you kept inside the innermost part of your heart and no one in your life knows about it, except GOD of course, and a;; that began to resurface and you just started to wonder what would've happened had you decided differently.
Well, this film is it.
For me, every cinematic work resembles a living person. They naturally show you both their pretty and ugly sides, and even the ugliest part of one essentially portrays the beauty of being a human.
Only few Chinese movies have managed to have had a cathartic effect on me.
Some of them were:
- Better Days (Zhou Dongyu; Jackson Yi)
- A Sun (Chen Yi Wen, Greg Hsu)
- One Second (Zhang Yi, Fan Wei)
And, Love Never Ends.