Uncle Shi wanted to introduce a somewhat special police action movie, saying that it was special because of its rare use of pseudo-documentary shooting methods.
This 2012 film is through this live-like lens style, allowing the audience to experience the daily life of a Los Angeles Patrol at zero distance:
"The End of Vigilance"
As a well-known city in the United States, Los Angeles has also seen a lot of criminal problems because of the legality of gun purchases.
Also set in Los Angeles, "The Thief's Nest", which was released a year later than the film, illustrates this problem in detail:
"(On average) 2,400 times a year, 44 times a week, 9 times a day, there is one bank robbery every 48 minutes."
"This is Los Angeles, the world's capital of bank robbery."
So if you want to shoot in a pseudo-documentary way, it is inevitable to show this pressure when the police are on duty.
In the opening segment of the car camera, there is a small episode in which the patrol chased the car and killed the gang members.
The sound of the windshield being shattered by bullets was heard in his ears, and Uncle Shi couldn't help but shrink his head.
The film's director and screenwriter David Meyer, who laid the groundwork for this realistic style, is also his second self-written and self-directed film.
He has not only directed Extraordinary Times and Keanu Reeves' King of the Streets, but also written screenplays for films such as Training Day and Fast and Furious.
For the routines and processes of police films, he himself naturally knows well, and therefore feels difficult about how to improve and break through this theme.
When talking about why he chose the pseudo-documentary shooting method, director David said: "I think it must be interesting that such a story is filmed in a documentary way. ”
In fact, whenever pseudo-documentary-style films are mentioned, "Blair the Witch" will inevitably be brought up to say things.
But as a police action movie, the film can't win like "Blair the Witch" by scaring the audience, which is why Uncle Shi will say that the film is special at the beginning.
In order to ensure the feasibility of shooting, the director installed several cameras in the police car driven by the protagonist.
At the same time, the male protagonist camera is not separated from his hand, so that there are multiple angles and viewability of the lens, and the shooting is convincing.
Since the male protagonist is mentioned, I have to say it.
You never imagined that this little police officer with a shaved head and chattering at the camera would be Jack Gyllenhaal, who played Heath Ledger in Brokeback Mountain.
Although Jack shaved his head, it made his face look more threatening.
But Uncle Shi still felt that he with a hair looked more pleasant.
Then again, the plot of the film can be simply divided into two, and half of it is used to tell the story of the line of fire between the white police officer Taylor played by Jack and the Mexican police officer Savala played by Michael Pena, and the gang members.
The other half is used to tell the story of the brotherhood that the two have established in their family and each mission.
In the film, the neighborhood they patrol every day is a place with a unique foreign character that belongs to the slums.
The neighborhood is predominantly inhabited by blacks and Mexicans, and the two gangs have always had irreconcilable conflicts over their interests.
The Mexican gang was powerful and constantly eroded the territory of the black gang.
Although the two men are in this dangerous neighborhood, they still adhere to the oath they made when they joined the police force, they must fulfill their service and protection.
But in the problems encountered in this neighborhood, there was not a single time that uncle Shi's whole head was not seen.
There are black fathers who, because of mental problems, have tied their young children to the closet with tape.
There are also Mexican gangs who, after being stopped, suddenly pull out their pistols and open fire.
There are even Mexican snakeheads that lock smugglers into a cage, and drug dealers who are extremely cruel.
Doing things in such an environment, the women of the two protagonists have worried about their lives more than once.
But Uncle Shi heard from Taylor's Bible-like monologue that they would not waver easily:
No matter how much you defend me, clever words or attempts to ask for my sympathy will not stop me
Incidentally, the wife of officer Taylor is played by Anna Kendrick, who was nominated for an Oscar for supporting actress for "In the Clouds".
In the film, she is still very beautiful.
The woman who played Zavala's wife was Natalie Martinez, the heroine who played Jason Statham's "Death Bike".
In the film, the wife she played who dared to open the yellow section simply made Uncle Shi dare not believe his eyes:
This is the same person as the sexy beauty in Death Speed!
When you turn your eyes back to the male protagonist, you can find a small detail in the creation of the film script.
Most movies pay little attention to the details of time change, or are lazy and express it directly with subtitles.
"End of Vigilance" does this very nicely because it cleverly integrates time changes into the plot.
In the daily small talk in the police car, Taylor was also a single dog at first, but he told his good brother Savara that he had found a good girl himself.
As a married man, Savara, as a brother, made Taylor cautious in this matter.
However, he still helped Taylor take the opportunity to attend his sister's birthday party and hitched a ride with the girl.
Later, when Taylor said in the police car that he was really moved and wanted to marry the girl, Savara, as the person who came over, couldn't help but pour cold water on his brother.
The phrase "Can you live without her" is simply a torture of Taylor's soul.
But at the end of the day, Savara is a tough guy.
When Taylor married the girl, Savara was still very happy to take her wife and offer her heartfelt blessings for the happiness of her brother.
And at the wedding banquet, he revealed to Taylor a heartfelt word that only a good brother can have:
You're my best brother, and while you're a jerk, I'll take care of your kids if something goes wrong.
The whole process not only subtly expresses the passage of time, but also undoubtedly shows the brotherly friendship between the two people.
For the era background of the whole movie, the film uses a subtitle that pays tribute to "Once Upon a Time in the West", mischievously and cleverly covering up the past.
Of course, without the wonderful interpretation of the rivalry between Jack and Michael, I believe that the charm of the film will be greatly reduced.
As a comment on Rotten Tomatoes about the duo's performance put it:
Gyllenhaal and Pena's performances are very interesting, whether it is the sparks that burst out of the opponent's play or the personal leadership temperament, they are amazing.
Because of this, when Michael used his life to block the bullet of gang revenge for Taylor, everyone felt a sudden heartache.
The good brothers who could still giggle and take care of each other together suddenly disappeared.
Taylor, who choked up at the funeral, and a thousand words to Michael, finally converged into one sentence:
"He's my brother."
As soon as these words came out, Uncle Shi burst into tears.
There is no protagonist aura, no bullet time, and some pseudo-documentaries that draw viewers into the first scene of the crime.
Relying only on the wonderful plot and excellent shooting methods, the film has earned a global box office of 48 million at a small production cost of $7 million, and has also received 85% freshness praise from the media on Rotten Tomatoes, and the popcorn index has reached 86%
For this sad song dedicated to the police, this is probably the best result.
Uncle Shi believes that if he had the chance, Taylor would be tempted to say this to Michael:
Brother, the alert is over, hurry home.
Bluestone Film Editorial Office | Uncle Shi