Almost every art form has an established structure.
Unlike the obvious main chorus of popular music, many times the structure of the film may not be as clearly divided as "Pulp Fiction" and "Philharmonic City", and the general audience will not go back to explore the story structure after watching the movie, or even perceive the structure.
In fact, all movies have structure. Early drama, the ancient Greek tragedy trilogy, Shakespeare's five-act play, all have a more neat structure. As a form of drama, film is naturally indispensable in structure. The most widely used is the three-act structure.
Many of director Ron Howard's films have the shadow of a three-act play, such as 2005's "Iron Fist Man".
Title subtitles:
The opening credits can bring extra information, and Ron Howard introduces the story by quoting the original words of journalist Damon Runyon, while also "selling himself and boasting".
In 2005's "Iron Fist Man", the story of the boxer has rotted down the street. Is there really no boxer story more interesting than the life of James J. Braddock?
Whether the question's ancillary tone is questioning or surprised, as long as the viewer can enter the story with curiosity, the subtitles accomplish the task.
In addition, the opening soundtrack also implies that it will be a warm and touching story.
Build: Build james j. braddock's boxing life
In the first few minutes, the director needs to complete as many tasks as possible such as background creation, style establishment, and asking core questions. It took Ron Howard only 5 minutes to explain the time, place, people and other basic information.
Similar to the angry bull, the game's infographic subtitles indicate that the story began in 1928. James J. Braddock in the video is full of spirits, he is a powerful boxer.
Back home, he also has a beautiful wife and a happy family. Life, wonderful.
Catalytic Event: The Outbreak of the Great Depression
Friends who have watched the previous two issues of "8 points of recommendation" may soon realize that around 1930 in the United States, this point in time is not quite right. Because in 1929, the Great Depression crisis broke out in the United States, James J. Braddock was inevitably affected.
By the time we entered braddock family life, the time had come to 1933. His family was in an economic crisis and he had to go to the docks to find work to make ends meet.
The development of the first act: shaping braddock's tough guy character
From a spirited boxer to not even being able to pay for electricity, Braddock's reaction is to give up on himself or never surrender, and his character is easily shaped.
So the development of the first act focuses on how Braddock faces difficult times. Incidents such as son stealing, breaking bones, and insisting on playing are all aimed at initially shaping his tough guy personality.
The first turning point: the comeback battle
Braddock, who fights for his life, fights again in boxing, hoping to earn dollars through competitions. This is his way of life, and he has no remorse, even if the old wounds are not completely healed.
The comeback battle really brought out the taste of boxing movies, and Ron Howard copied the way "Raging Bull" was filmed, putting the camera in the ring, properly using the boxer's first perspective, trying to let the audience watch the boxing match from zero distance.
On this basis, Ron Howard also decided to add "X-ray" to the edit to show the boxer's "internal injury". Or four words to describe, looking at it hurts.
Russell Crowe, who plays braddock, also suffered a lot during the filming process, and had to undergo professional training before filming, and after the official start of filming, Russell suffered many minor concussions and fractured teeth. In order to make the picture more realistic, the actor is required to punch as close as possible to the other party, sometimes unable to control in time, often causing accidental injuries.
In 2000's Gladiator, Russell Crow was also injured several times in the play. Inside and outside the play, he is really an iron man.
It's just that no matter how iron he is, no matter how much he tries his best, in the face of the cruelty and ruthlessness of reality, everyone will seem powerless.
I wanted to have a strong comeback, but I didn't expect that my comeback battle had become a turning point in my life, and Braddock was further trapped in the predicament.
After the first turning point, Braddock's identity changed. He had completely lost the aura of his former boxing champion, and what was more desperate than the poverty was that he didn't even have the opportunity to choose his dream.
Act 2: Desperate Survival
In the first half of act II, braddock, who is in a desperate situation, is hit again.
His wife, who was too poor to bear it, did something that went beyond his bottom line. In order to make up for his wife's "mistake", Braddock completely opened up, and he could not even ask for dignity.
When watching him pull down his face to "beg", the man's bitterness was so nakedly presented.
What is it for?
For the sake of commitment.
For the sake of responsibility.
For home.
The family is the only thing Braddock has in desperate circumstances, and he must guard it at all costs, just as he fights at all costs in the ring.
Similarly, the word "admit defeat" does not exist at all.
Midpoint scene: braddock vs griffin
Agent Joe Gould, played by Paul Giamatti, is an important supporting role in driving the plot.
Seeing that his old friend Braddock was so depressed that he didn't even want dignity, Joe began to find a way to help. His help is not unfounded, based on years of friendship, plus he is touched, and later will help more and more.
Under joe's manipulation, the plot of the second act has been strongly advanced. His presence convinces the audience that Braddock still has a chance to rise again, and that a difficult comeback battle is gradually approaching.
At this time, he could not even count as a former boxing king, and he could only go to work every day to earn money, even if he had time to practice boxing. Job opportunities are so rare, in case of injury in the game, Lao Ben must have decisively fired him, lost the game, lost his job, and gained more than he lost.
Even if he really had the opportunity to stand in the ring again, would he be willing to take a risk?
There is no doubt that it will.
So the movie has a wonderful "midpoint scene", braddock vs griffin. Maybe this big battle didn't happen in the middle of the movie, not a "midpoint scene", but it had a similar effect.
In addition to dividing the story in two, the "midpoint" is also responsible for introducing new events and helping the story in the second act. Apparently, the play took on the turning point of the first act and created an opportunity for a turnaround in the second half of the second act.
The second turning point: two counter-offensive battles
Whether Braddock is willing to take risks or not is not the point. The real question the film has to answer is why he risked returning to the ring.
Then, the role of wife Mae came into play.
Originally she did not like her husband to engage in such a dangerous sport, and now she has to take such a big risk, it is normal to oppose. Braddock, who doesn't punch, is a little poor, but at least people are alive, and she doesn't have to worry about every game.
However, in Braddock's view, giving up boxing is equivalent to giving up the initiative in life, and only when the environment becomes better, they can get out of the predicament.
Whether to seek "safety" but fall into passivity, or to take the initiative, but to gamble everything. Faced with this contradictory choice, Braddock's attitude is clear.
He wanted to continue fighting, for himself, but also for his family.
At the second turning point, two consecutive counterattacks, the family and the boxing field are more and more closely linked, and the obvious sign is that the scene about the family is cut into the arena, emphasizing that braddock is fighting for the family, so he is determined. In sports, the key to victory is often the determination to win, especially when the two sides are evenly matched.
In the middle of these two big battles, I don't know whether it is the director or the cinematographer's idea, a beautiful montage, in a circle around the camera, bringing braddock directly to the next game, which can be described as a wave of uneven waves.
Act III: Showdown.
The two counterattack battles set off a small climax, but at this time, the film was only nearly two-thirds of the way through, and Ron Howard did not rush to "hit the iron while it was hot", but chose to make some suspense for the climactic part of the Armageddon and create a tragic atmosphere.
The ultimate battle with Braddock is the heavyweight champion Max Baer, who is invincible, the speed and strength are dominant, braddock fights with him, it is like an egg touching a stone.
I don't know if there is such a thing in history, or the screenwriter's oil and vinegar, max baer once directly beat his opponent to death in the ring.
The Boxing Association warned the old boxer Braddock that if you go up and fight him, you are sending him to death.
Braddock's knowledge that Baer killed two people can also be seen as a second turning point. However, since it is a boxing movie, it may be more painful to use the boxing match as a turning point.
After learning that his situation was dangerous, Braddock fell into a new contradictory choice. Risk your life to fight, or retreat.
The theme of the film is also sublimated, and the final showdown is no longer a simple question of victory or defeat, but a question of why Braddock insists on punching. This is also the central question raised by the film in the second act.
It turns out that the director is not laying the groundwork for the sake of laying the groundwork, and he still has to answer this question.
Braddock gave the answer at the press conference, risking the ring, and if he failed, he was irresponsible; but it was already a dereliction of duty to make the family poor and starve the child.
Only by choosing to fight is the way to shoulder responsibility, the way to be a man.
Climax: Braddock vs Max Baer
With the god in front of him, braddock's big battle with max baer is both suspenseful and nervous, wanting to know the result quickly, and worrying that the result will be really tragic.
The audience is not only concerned about winning or losing, but also more worried about whether braddock will be really killed.
For Braddock, it's no longer a boxing match, it's a fight for life.
He used his life to box, just as he used his life to guard his family.
Ending: Review of the characters' deeds
When the climax appears, it is best to run to the end concisely and clearly.
That's what Iron Fist Man does.
The ending part is the usual practice of biopics, looking back at the character's important journey in the real world.
"Iron Fist Man" is adapted from the real experience of james j. braddock, a famous boxer in the United States in the 20s and 30s, the story is actually a bit old-fashioned and inspirational, but with the director's first-class storytelling ability and the hard performance of the actors, the film has achieved a high reputation.
Douban 8.7, imdb 8.0, Rotten Tomatoes freshness 80%, the score can be a good reflection of the audience's affirmation.
The cliché of the story is not an excuse for the film to be badly made, and a good structure can support the whole story.
It's not about making the work look more "neat" and more like a movie, but to show the power of the story. Hollywood inspirational movies are hard to come out of date, and the fact that the script has a mature structure such as a three-act play is an important reason.
James J. Braddock's experience is indeed a good story, otherwise it would be difficult to impress the Hollywood celebrities to shoot. Under the operation of first-class filmmakers, the audience feels the power of the story, and no matter how common the narrative method is, it does not prevent "Iron Fist Man" from becoming an excellent movie.
Life is hard, but you have no reason to take something that doesn't belong to you. - "The Man in the Iron Fist"