A "gambling film" that is both real and humane, only Chow Yun-fat can hold up

In recent years, Hong Kong films have basically repeated the element of police and banditry, and rarely see other genres on the screen.

For audiences who grew up watching Hong Kong movies, it is tantamount to a pity, once Hong Kong films were "all overfired, all crazy", with the disorder of barbaric growth, leaving memories for generations.

Now it can only be maintained by simplification, and it is inevitable that you will sigh, but the release of Zhou Yunfa's "Don't Call Me a "God of Gamblers" may become another possibility.

The film does not have the defiance and dashing of "God of Gamblers", replaced by a return to the original life, the story no longer repeats the routine of Hong Kong-style commercial films, but prefers a touching plot, and impresses the audience with trickling delicate feelings.

Those divine gambling skills, the fierce and indiscriminate shootouts are gone, and what comes into view is the full of human touch and down-to-earth Zhou Yunfa, which vividly interprets the most important "love" of life, fades the lead, and Hong Kong films can still make people cry.

The three words "human touch" can be seen everywhere in the film.

For example, Ah Fai fell in Hong Kong, and after arriving in Macau, Uncle Hua and Zhong Sir helped him get through the difficulties, and even though he still couldn't quit gambling, they still didn't give up and urged him to start over.

Ah Hui seems to be idle, does not care, does not care about anything, and adheres to a decent attitude to life, but when his friend is threatened by Jigo, he stands up alone regardless of danger.

The relationship with his son Ayang has changed from disgust that only looks at money to inseparable pride, even if it is just a simple bowl of love noodles, it seems to be a gentle wind.

Because the best thing to eat is never a mountain and sea delicacies, but depends on who you eat with, eat is a "love" word, with your family, everything is a delicacy.

Because the best taste is ultimately people, human favor is more chewy than food, with human favor will be cared for, and will not be easily forgotten if it is cared for, this is the real human touch.

This kind of human touch looks ordinary, and this kind of script structure that tells the human touch is also very tacky, why can "Don't Call Me "God of Gamblers" be able to penetrate people's hearts?

In fact, the reason is not complicated, because "Don't Call Me "God of Gamblers" itself is different from the current mainstream movies, most of the current films are full of commercial atmosphere, and "love" has become a false affair that takes money from the audience's pocket.

When a movie loses love, it is difficult to empathize with the audience, and the audience loses its love, and "Don't Call Me "God of Gamblers" makes the emotional transmission of "love" real and credible.

For example, the tone of the movie is not pathotic, but mainly warm, and even the tone is warm, indicating hope and warmth.

The "love" shown in the film is not abrupt or deliberately sensational, but resonates with the audience in a step-by-step way, achieving logical self-consistency and tears.

Ah Yang's mother Li Xi is in the terminal stage of cancer, and she gave her son with autism to the care of her once unruly partner Ah Hui, which has since started the mutual healing of Ah Yang and Ah Hui.

The kind and warm Ah Yang is like a warm sun shining into Ah Hui's broken life, although different from normal people, his sunlight makes the rust on Ah Hui's body begin to fall off, returning to its original bright appearance.

In this healing process, the connection between the meaning of film and reality comes to fruition.

Don't Call Me a "God of Gamblers" explores what the nature of life looks like. What are the fundamental laws of life? And how is the existence of cinema connected to reality?

The essence of life is to live well and do meaningful things, and Ah Hui can always have someone to help because he helped many people when he was young, such as returning Ari, who had gone astray, to the right path.

The fundamental law of life is existentialism, and human existence itself is meaningless, but it can become meaningful through self-achievement and self-shaping, just like Ah Hui's prodigal son turned back.

As for the connection between film and reality, it is the director who builds a bridge with down-to-earth love, so that the audience's empathy is not nothing, but a real emotion that can be felt in life.

Such as the father-son relationship between Ah Hui and Ah Yang, Ah Hui and love, family affection, and self-reconciliation, the director uses chips as visual symbols, and the change of chips is the warming of Ah Hui's relationship with his son, and it is also the process of him gradually getting better.

In the past, Ah Hui was addicted to gambling and had different intentions, ignoring his family and his wife.

Hanging all day, owing a debt, without a bit of what a man should look like, Li Xi left disappointed when he couldn't see hope.

Meeting again, Li Xi touches a prodigal son with a farewell at the cost of his life, and Ayang returns a father with simple love.

Ah Hui has experienced the ups and downs of the stage of not being able to put down the chips, giving up the chips to fulfill Li Xi's wishes, and has learned to face the bleak life and have the courage to change, which is not a heroic nature.

Finally, the montage clip formed a picture of a family reunion and Ayang's growth across time and space.

This is the redemption of Ah Hui, but also his change, and it is also the "sorry" that he has no time to say.

This kind of warmth that tries to make up for the cracks has the slowness unique to Hong Kong movies, telling the story of life, like a glass of warm water, no hot surging, no cold stimulation, but warm thoughtfulness.

It awakens not only the call to home, but also the audience's deep love for Hong Kong films, and there are many fanfty plots that can be seen at a glance in the film.

For example, Chow Yun-fat said: "Do you think I am still as beautiful as I was in Hong Kong? As soon as you hear this line, you will immediately think of the classic picture of Gao Jin entering the casino with BGM in "God of Gamblers".

and Ah Hui worships Bruce Lee, and imitates Bruce Lee's movie clips and classic actions, the appearance of holding a toothpick when eating a roadside stall with Ah Yang and the action of burning cards at the end of the film, dreaming back to the little horse brother in "The True Color of Heroes".

There is also Chow Yun-fat who wrote "must find yourself" on the wall calendar and constantly changed his fragments.

It echoes the many vows written on the mirror in "Autumn Fairy Tale", in order to make himself better in order to make the tea pot.

From "Autumn Fairy Tale" to "Don't Call Me "God of Gamblers", 36 years have passed, the tea pot has become Ayang, the years have taken away the age, the youth has been taken away, but the memories have been left, and the original feeling remains unchanged.

This sentiment is not something static, nor is it for a specific film or a specific era, and the reason why it can be moved is only because Hong Kong films have grown with us.

When I was a child, I didn't know much about society, human feelings, and the world, and I admired the righteousness and brotherhood of the rivers and lakes in Hong Kong films, so films such as "The True Color of Heroes" and "God of Gamblers" made us unforgettable.

After growing up, he tasted the variety of life, no longer pursued the jianghu qi, but cherished the rare love, and Hong Kong films also turned from romanticism to life, teaching its audience to grow and love.

It is this unchanged positive output that allows us to always maintain an expectation for Hong Kong films.

And "Don't Call Me "God of Gamblers" will definitely allow generations of Hong Kong film fans to return to the years of loving Hong Kong films!