Douban 8.4, another sci-fi masterpiece after "The Wandering Earth", is fascinating

At the Pingyao Film Festival the year before last, everyone was brushed by a movie that suddenly came out of nowhere.

This film not only exploded in word of mouth, which made it difficult to find a vote on the scene, but also let the entire fan circle know its director Kong Dashan. At last year's Beijing International Film Festival, this film appeared again, and with the support of countless fans who came to admire, its screening tickets were sold out again, and once again left countless expectations for fans who did not watch it.

It is - "Space Exploration Editorial Office".

"Shooting into Science" "The Story of the Editorial Office"

What makes Space Exploration Editorial so fascinating is first and foremost its stylistic uniqueness and curious perspective.

This film is made in the form of a pseudo-documentary that is loved by many fans, using techniques such as handheld photography to bring the audience closer to the viewing experience, which is very present.

However, for the audience in the front row of the theater, the film's "immersive" viewing experience is not so friendly: a large number of follow-up shaking shots make it very easy for the audience in the front row to dazzle the effect. Only this, director Kong Dashan also apologized to the audience in the front row when running the roadshow, and suggested that everyone try to choose the seats in the middle and back rows when watching the movie in the future.

This shooting method leads to the final presentation effect of this film is like a documentary science program, which is very much "Approaching Science".

Director Kong even revealed that the original inspiration for the film came from a real news that happened in Binzhou, Shandong Province in 2013, where a local villager made an alien prosthesis with silicone and steel wire and put it in his freezer, claiming that he had found aliens.

Director Kong immediately felt that this news was too funny after reading it, and immediately decided to adapt this matter into a movie, that is, the "cosmic merit box" bridge of the "alien stationed on Earth" that we saw in the film.

At the same time, in terms of subject matter, the film also chooses the topic of alien life exploration and folk mysterious phenomena that are very easy to attract the attention of the public, and shows it through the similar background of the popular "Story of the Editorial Office", which can be said to seize the advantages of the plot setting at the beginning - however, "Space Exploration Editorial Department" shows all these topics with an absurd and ingenious self-ridicule, using a playful perspective and tone to dissolve the grandeur of the meaning of space exploration, thus giving the entire film a unique temperament.

Successfully transformed the crew of "The Wandering Earth"

A big behind-the-scenes anecdote of this film is its relationship with the domestic sci-fi benchmark "The Wandering Earth" series - as early as the Pingyao Film Festival first appeared, fans noticed the two big names listed on the poster - Guo Fan and Gong Ge, the director and producer of the "The Wandering Earth" series.

This time, they not only made a cameo appearance in "Space Exploration Editorial Department", but also served as the producer of this film; Not only provided meticulous help in terms of pre-preparation and post-editing, but also memorized the sci-fi color of the film.

Since the Spring Festival in 2023, Guo Fan should be the hottest director in China - with the two "The Wandering Earth" brilliant "Huayuan" experience, from small and medium-sized workshops to central enterprises heavy industry and countless foreign aid, Guo Fan is known as the "master of science fiction".

But this time, he with profound skills in "Huayuan" was also "transformed" by the crew of "Space Exploration Editorial Department" with a set of spacesuits, which is exactly the set in which Tang Zhijun was stuck in the opening scene of the film. This spacesuit is exactly the prop suit worn by Wu Jing in the first "The Wandering Earth", and according to Gong Ge, this spacesuit was actually borrowed from Ning Hao's "Crazy Alien" crew.

In the film, Guo Fan and Gong Geer appear as the director and producer of the movie "Wandering Ball", collecting sci-fi props that can be used in the folk. Seeing the disrepair spacesuit in the editorial office, Guo Fan looked disgusted, but Gong Ge suggested that he take it cheaply and take it back to use. The two men disagreed and finally solved the problem with a very rigorous scientific method.

For being able to participate in promoting the birth of "Space Exploration Editorial Department" and witnessing the hand of three generations of domestic science fiction films handed down by that spacesuit, Guo Fan himself also said with emotion: "So making movies will not be lonely." ”

A Westward Journey film without a Westward Journey IP

The English title of "Space Exploration Editorial Office" is "Journey to the West", which is the official translation of "Journey to the West". According to Director Kong, this is deliberately done from the script creation stage, and it is from a modern perspective to interpret a certain spiritual core of "Journey to the West": "The story of the movie is similar to the essence of "Journey to the West", both are about a person with a grand wish, with his partner, and their own confusion to embark on a journey to find answers. ”

Considering the journey of the main characters in the film all the way west to explore the clues of extraterrestrial civilizations, the film's same name as "Journey to the West" seems reasonable - even the characters in it can have clever or implicit correspondences with the four masters and apprentices on the westbound road.

The most obvious is naturally the two core characters of the journey, Tang Zhijun and Sun Yitong - from the surname, you can see their respective corresponding roles of members of the west.

Tang Zhijun, who is obsessed with the exploration of alien civilizations and almost obsessed, has an unshakable belief, which is a vivid portrayal of Tang monks;

And Sun Yitong, who wears a "tight hoop curse" and holds a "golden hoop rod" that can be long or short, and is always exploring the way forward, is also inexplicably consistent with the image of Sun Walker that we are familiar with; The latter's mysterious ability and transcendent way of thinking are also his unique "mana" among all the characters.

Qin Cairong, who accompanied Tang Zhijun, her belief in westward exploration is the least firm in the team, and her first consideration in the face of anything is interests, and her image of fear of hardship and greed for comfort corresponds to Zhu Bajie, which represents the desire of mortal dust; On the other hand, Su and volunteer Xiaoxiao, who took on the burden and logistical needs for the team, assumed the role of a sand monk.

As for the donkey that haunts from time to time, and finally took him across the river under Tang Zhijun's repeated attempts, is it the image of the white dragon horse?

For this question, Director Kong's explanation is that this donkey is more like the big turtle in "Journey to the West" that carries the four masters and apprentices across the river - because there is the hanging carrot in front of him, it is obviously asking for something; Just as the big turtle in "Journey to the West" finally failed to know his lifespan, the donkey failed to eat the carrot, and the extraterrestrial civilization that Tang Zhijun was struggling to pursue was also answered in a way that did not have an answer.

The difference is that Tang Zhijun finally comprehended the mystery of the cosmic meaning of cause and effect, calmly faced the heart knot left by his daughter, and truly achieved "calling for love at the end of the universe". On this trip to the west, he was the only one who obtained the "Mahayana Dharma" that could cross others and themselves.

The unique temperament and far-reaching connotation of "Space Exploration Editorial Department" is a work that should not be missed by mainland theaters in the near future. If you've ever looked up at the stars and thought about the meaning of being human, if you've ever had an obsession with a concept that is difficult for ordinary people to understand, or even if you've ever thought about the meaning behind the snowflake spot on your TV at home, then it's the movie for you.