If you want to say that the hottest and most suitable movies these days, it must be "1921" and "Revolutionary". Even many audiences who don't usually go to the theater will want to look at the main theme of these two films on the theme of party history.
Focusing on Li Dazhao's deeds, "Revolutionary" Yi Xuanjun brushed twice, the first time I saw it, I thought it would be a kind of flat and straightforward biographical film, but I did not expect that the scene at the beginning of 1983 when Li Dazhao's tombstone reappeared in the sky was already a big surprise. It is also a big innovation and breakthrough for a major revolutionary historical theme to be filmed so boldly, so artistically, and so stylized.
The supervising producer of this film is Guan Hu, directed by the young director Xu Zhanxiong, and it can be seen that both of them have shown enough sincerity and intention to shoot, and many of the ideas are very praised.
First of all, from the perspective of the film's narrative technique and overall structure, this film breaks the linear narrative of the same type of theme in the past, but takes eight characters who have intersected with Li Dazhao as a clue, and strings together the core character of Li Dazhao through their interactions with Li Dazhao and the different roles they played in Li Dazhao's arrest and righteousness.
These eight people are very typical: there is Shanghai newspaper boy Ah Chen, who Li Dazhao helped to redress his grievances; there is Qingzi, an underground worker who came to try to rescue Li Dazhao; there is Zhang Xueliang, who has a certain sympathetic attitude toward Li Dazhao; there is Xu San, a Beijing street thief who was inspired by Li Dazhao; there is Chiang Kai-shek, who played a certain role in Li Dazhao's murder; there is Also Li Dazhao's confidant and friend Chen Duxiu, the "Southern Chen" in "Southern Chen and Northern Li"; Mao Zedong, Li Dazhao's student in a certain sense; and Li Dazhao's lifelong partner and wife Zhao Shulan.
It is already very difficult for a movie to tell a good character, and the main characters of "Revolutionary" are Actually Li Dazhao and the eight people around him, which is a very big challenge for the screenwriter to create the script, the actor to handle the relationship between the characters, or a large number of editing involving the relationship between time and space in the later stage. Zhang Ke, one of the screenwriters of the film, once revealed that the eight people who string together Li Dazhao must write what state they were in before they met Li Dazhao, what happened between Li Dazhao and them, and what impact Li Dazhao had on some life choices in their future. I dare to make a breakthrough in the narrative technique alone, and I think the film's creator is very courageous and worthy of admiration.
Under such a narrative, we see a multi-faceted and plump image of Li Dazhao.
These eight men first summarized Li Dazhao's major contributions to the Chinese revolution and history. For example, the story of newspaper boy Ah Chen first led to Li Dazhao's earliest spread of Marxism in China, Ah Chen was shot and killed by the Russians, Li Dazhao avenged his grievances, and can show Li Dazhao's leadership and organization of the early workers' movement.
The main manifestation of li dazhao's exchanges with Chen Duxiu is the contribution of Li Dazhao as one of the main founders of the Communist Party of China.
For another example, the several confrontations between Li Dazhao and Chiang Kai-shek are written in order to elicit Sun Yat-sen and thus present Li Dazhao's historical contribution to the first cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.
After reading "The Revolutionary", even if you have no concept of modern Chinese history and Li Dazhao before, you can have a more comprehensive understanding of his important contributions and position in history.
Another highlight of "The Revolutionary" is the complete and meticulous presentation of the whole process of Li Dazhao from arrest to his inauguration, including many details.
For example, at that time, forces from all walks of life were actively rescuing Mr. Shou Chang, why the warlord Zhang Zuolin still ordered his killing, which involved the game of different interest groups, including Russia in the north, the Western powers that occupied the concession, and the warlords of the Republic of China with many factions. In this process, the film mainly tells the different attitudes of two historical figures, one is Zhang Xueliang, the other is Chiang Kai-shek, both of whom played a certain role in the murder of Li Dazhao, which reflects the dark and complex political situation of the Republic of China, which is more thought-provoking.
In the film, Li Dazhao's care for the toiling masses, his help to comrades-in-arms and students, and his perennial dedication to the revolutionary cause regardless of gains and losses let us see the greatness of a pioneer of the communist revolution. In the film, Li Dazhao has a line that "you must believe", and throughout his life, he has used speeches, articles, movements and other ways to make everyone believe in his revolutionary ideas. Judging from the people in the film who were influenced by him, from the perspective of China's earth-shaking development in the past hundred years, he did it.
"The Revolutionary" is also used for breakthroughs in audiovisual language, and many scenes are filmed poetically and romantically.
For example, in the opening of the film, Li Dazhao led the Kailuan Coal Mine Strike, workers wearing lighting hats lined up, like dominoes lying down on the rails in rows, with a sonorous momentum, allowing people to see the strength of workers. This exciting scene simply makes people dream back to "Eight Hundred" in minutes!
In order to oppose imperialist aggression, he and his students held hands in the streets of Beijing and roared as they advanced, but in the end they were bloodiedly suppressed by the Duan Qirui warlord. The patriotism of Li Dazhao and his students stood in stark contrast to the brutality of the reactionary warlords.
Another example is the film filming of Chiang Kai-shek's "April 12" coup, which uses a very good cross-edit, on the one hand, Chiang Kai-shek is calmly watching Peking Opera in the crowd, on the other hand, a large number of Communist Party members and progressives are brutally killed, and the liveliness on the stage and the bloody massacre scene form a strong dramatic tension, which makes people shudder and fully feel Chiang Kai-shek's brutality.
Even some of the details on the video, "The Revolutionary" has done a lot of small thoughts. For example, the balance on Zhang Zuolin's desk is used to show his inner trade-offs about whether to kill Li Dazhao. There is also Li Dazhao's haircut being splashed with water in prison, and the next shot is Mao Zedong taking a cold shower, which is more cleverly designed.
As far as biographical films are concerned, if the script and the level of directing determine the upper limit that the film can achieve, then the starring acting skills determine the bottom line of the film. Happily, the film's lead actors have contributed wonderful performances.
In particular, the protagonist Li Dazhao, played by Zhang Songwen, can be said to have both gods and forms. More importantly, Zhang Songwen gave up a lot of acting skills this time, and through reading a large number of literature to approach and understand Li Dazhao, into his heart.
In the film, we see Li Dazhao speaking with all his might and shouting among the people to save his life; seeing his tacit understanding with Chen Duxiu's old friends for many years, and being touched by their friendship; seeing his interaction with Mao Zedong and his teachers and friends; seeing that his face still does not change color in the face of death, and after listening to his death verdict, he can still Erlang's legs and say Zhong in the words of Hebei Leting.
Several young actors in the film also have good performances. For example, Li Yifeng, who plays Mao Zedong, I dare say that even he himself must never have thought that he could play Mao Zedong, right? But from the perspective of the film effect, the appearance and temperament are not bad, and he also performed the appearance of the young Mao Zedong.
Han Geng, on the other hand, showed Chiang Kai-shek's fierceness and depth very well, which can be regarded as his performance transformation.
In short, "Revolutionary" is a unique main theme work, all aspects have a sense of innovation, I recommend everyone to watch at this special moment, to feel Mr. Dazhao's immortal spirit of "entering the front and not caring about the back, turning his back on the darkness and going to the light".
Source Beijing Daily client · Art Bloom
Author and Editor of this issue: Yuan Yun'er
Producer: Zhou Nanyan
Process Editor Wu Yue