In film and television works, where the story that takes place around the inheritance struggle, there are indispensable elements of conspiracy, betrayal and evil, and as the plot unfolds, the greed, hypocrisy, cunning, and ferocity in human nature are also exposed to the seductive light emitted by money one by one.
In this kind of film, whether the ending is happy or sad, how justice triumphs over evil, the viewer's heart will eventually produce a feeling of standing naked in the cold autumn wind.
The Legacy Case and The Legacy Wars
At first, the editor believed that although "Sharp Blade Out of the Sheath" was labeled as the best suspense of the year, it could only be one of these films, and no matter how wonderful its plot was, it was nothing more than to depict how the detective as the protagonist played the logical thinking to a new height by cracking the perfect crime plan, and that was it.
However, I was wrong, I was really wrong! It must not be judged by such superficial and arbitrary views! After the end of the whole film, you will find that this work not only has the high standard of suspense film in terms of story structure, but also the theme idea hidden under the surface is its biggest point of view, and the core connotation it conveys is just like a pluck that gently touches the heartstrings of everyone.
"Sharp Blade Out of the Sheath" seems to expose the darkness of human nature and the indifference of family affection through a crime caused by a battle for inheritance, but in fact it is to highlight the brilliance of humanity that is enough to cleanse the filthy soul. Rather than being a crime mystery film, it is more accurate to position it as a film designed to awaken beautiful emotional suspense.
With the reversal of the plot wave after wave, we see the continuous transformation of the characters' inner thoughts, and the shining points of human nature also continue to emerge in the emotional struggles of the characters in the play.
It contains solid trust between people, the wisdom of the righteous to see good and evil, and sacrifice and salvation in the name of love.
The basic configuration of a standard crime mystery film is more or less like this: an evil genius with a complex brain + a deeply hidden criminal motive + a flawless criminal plan≤ a great detective with explosive comprehensive combat effectiveness.
"Sharp Blade Out of the Sheath" also develops in this direction in terms of plot and character setting.
Harlan. Sloomby, a billionaire crime novelist, was found to have committed suicide in his mansion on his 85th birthday, while daniel Scott was killed. Blank, a private investigator played by Craig, receives an anonymous power of attorney and a hefty offer to investigate Harlan's true cause of death. Thus began a bizarre and tortuous battle for heritage.
Let's start with a few key details to see how the film shows Blank's strong logical thinking and detection skills.
1. Blank found a faint drop of blood on her shoe when he first met Marta, Harlan's personal nurse, but didn't tell Marta until the end.
Faint blood stains
This detail can be said to be the biggest foreshadowing of the whole film, and it is also the clever arrangement of this foreshadowing that determines the style route that the film really wants to take, that is, emotional suspense. Why? I'll explain that later
2. Harlan's old mother, Vaneta, mistook Marta for Ranson and said the words "Ranson, you're back."
A key sentence
From just one of the most overlooked words of "and" in this sentence, Blank concluded that the first person to sneak into Harlan's room from the façade that night was not Marta, but Ranson. This directly locks in Harlan's grandson Ranson as the mysterious client, and makes clear Ranson's plan to kill his grandfather by exchanging the injections used by Harlan during his lifetime, and to blame Marta.
3. Blank covers the label of Harlan's injection and asks Marta to identify it.
Upon learning that Harlan's blood test report was normal, Blank quickly created a picture in his mind that shocked him, Marta, with her excellent professional skills, not only did not let Ranson's plan succeed, but also saved Harlan's life by mistake, but the misplaced label made Marta think that she had used the wrong medicine, causing Harlan to have to sacrifice herself to cover up this medical accident that did not exist.
Excellent technology
The above points are enough to highlight Blank's keen intuition and super observation as a detective. However, these are the basic operations that the great detectives who are the protagonists in the same type of film should have, all within the normal expectations of the audience. Therefore, the real attraction of this film is not here, these plots are only a bright line that promotes the development of the plot, it only plays a role in making the story perfect, and what really sets off the audience's inner waves and is shocked by it is the dark line of emotional suspense that begins with that foreshadowing.
When Blank first meets Marta, in addition to finding the drop of blood, he also learns that Marta has a special physiological phenomenon, and whenever he lies, he will vomit. In fact, Blank could have used these two points to investigate what happened on the night of Harlan's suicide, but he did not do so. Why?
First of all, let's take a look at the film's character setting for the character of Marta through the following points.
1. Lying will cause vomiting, and this distinctive physiological response speaks to the integrity of Marta's nature.
2. Harlan changes his will and gives all the property in his name to Marta, confirming that Marta has given Harlan far more warm care than his family, thus gaining Harlan's solid dependence and trust.
3. When the housekeeper Fran is murdered and her life is in danger, Marta calls for help, preferring to push herself into a difficult situation and resolutely choose kindness.
For such an upright, warm, kind girl, Blank had already made a firm judgment through his wisdom of understanding the good and evil of human nature when he first met Marta, and it was based on this wisdom that Blanc made a double choice of reason and sensibility, and in the process of finding out the truth, he did his best to protect Marta.
Near the climax of the film, Blank's very different attitude towards Marta and the Slomby family also shows his true emotions hidden deep inside.
After learning from Marta of what happened on the night of Harlan's suicide, Blank discusses with Marta, in an elderly tone, how to confess his mistakes to the Slombys and win their forgiveness in order to minimize the harm that may be done.
Be gentle
And when Blank sees that Harlan's blood test report is normal, he is once again touched by Marta's excellence, and at the same time, the anger that has been suppressed in his heart, finally cannot be restrained, he prevents Marta from taking further action, and instead sends out hysterical roars to all the members of the Slomby family present.
Roar of anger
Blank's gentle attitude towards Marta is essentially a kind of pampering for goodness, and the anger displayed in the face of the Slomby family symbolizes justice's anger against the evil of greed.
A story of justice, punishment of evil and promotion of good, finally ushered in a comfortable and happy ending for other viewers.
Marta has won Blank's absolute approval with her character and actions, and if Blank does not use the wisdom of distinguishing between good and evil, but determines the direction of action through the analysis of professional qualities, then the direction and outcome of the situation will be very different.
Recognize kindness
Speaking of the word "trust" to be interpreted in this film, the following should be the deepest hidden boss in this story, and also the biggest wise man - Harlan. Sloomby.
Harlan. Sloomby
Yes, the mastermind and promoter of the whole affair is the master of crime fiction who, based on a firm trust in Marta's personality, and through Marta's kindness, completed the last education and salvation of love for the disappointed family.
For the 85-year-old Harlan Sloomby, the birthday turned into a sacrifice day, which is really extremely sad, but what is even more tragic is that he wrote a lifelong crime novel, and finally he was forced to die by the evil plan arranged by his grandson.
Harlan's life can be described as a success, at this age, it should be a time when children and grandchildren are full of children and grandchildren, and what is his reality?
The son-in-law's betrayal of his daughter, the daughter's blackmail of himself, the son's indisputable anger, coupled with the depravity of his grandson Ranson, many facts in front of him made Harlan realize that the family had become unrecognizable, and the root cause of all this was the huge wealth he had bought with his life's hard work.
The contrast between indifference and warmth
So, is Harlan's act of amending his will and giving all his property to Marta really motivated by this warm love?
Of course not, Harlan knew too much about the character of Marta's long-lost friend, and he knew in his heart what kind of choice Marta would make in the face of this gift, and Harlan could complete a heavyweight transmission of positive energy while handing this inheritance back to his family through Marta, and he hoped that at that moment, the members of the Slomby family would truly understand the good intentions of his decisions - only people with integrity and kindness like Marta deserve this wealth.
Humanity shines
So why did Harlan inform his grandson Ranson of his decision in advance? In one sentence, you can describe his mood at that time, which is probably what is often said to be "the depth of love, the depth of responsibility". What Harlan did not expect was that Ranson, the most beloved person, had fallen to such a desperation in the face of money, and his crazy behavior made Harlan have to sacrifice himself to save Marta to ensure the smooth progress of the plan.
At the end of the film, director Ryan. Johnson uses two sets of extremely meaningful characters to look at the picture, and cleverly reveals the biggest suspense hidden in this film in front of the audience.
At the moment when Marta looks at Harlan's portrait, she deeply understands the unspeakable instructions of her late old friend, and Marta will not fail to live up to Harlan's hopes, and sincerely help this family that is on the verge of rupture according to the guidance of her heart.
Warm eyes
The Slombys look up at Marta on the balcony with a determined expression, and at this moment, they see not only Marta, but also Harlan, who is smiling and full of reproach and pity. Sloomby.
Look up to kindness
Harlan. Sloomby's life was successful, and equally lamentable, and the wealth he earned through his life's efforts eventually became the key to opening the door of death. The moment he decided to sheath the blade, it was brave and tragic, but his heart must also be filled with unspeakable desolation.
Sharp blade out of the sheath
The imperial family fights for power, and the court of the rich fights for profit. Driven by the growing desires of human beings, tragedies are repeated.
Of course, no one can deny the existence of desire, which is due to human nature, and anyone wants to create a rich and fulfilling life for themselves. But the pursuit of desire at the expense of kindness, integrity, honesty, and other bright sides of human nature is clearly not worth the loss. Just like building a small garden, the appropriate number of vegetation and flowers will make the whole scene harvest beautiful at the same time, but also appear orderly, and too much planting, and lazy to prune, over time, will be thorny, vines entangled, gradually appear desolate.
Exquisite and barren
Text/Fuqin watching the movie
Graph/Network
Thanks for reading!