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If you want to choose the best legal crime suspense film, then Luoxue must first choose "First Level of Fear". Although "Witness for the Prosecution" has a higher rating, the court trial scenes will be more boring, the overall content is more monotonous, and there is no complex and surprising feeling, so Luoxue prefers "First Degree of Fear".
"First Level of Fear" was directed by Gregory Hoblit (his screen debut), starring Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Edward Norton and others. It was released in the United States in 1996. With a cost of US$30 million, the film achieved a box office of US$56.116 million in North America (ranking 28th in North America of the year), and the global box office reached US$102 million.
At the same time, this film was the first movie in Edward Norton's life, and he won the 54th American Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for the 69th Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor., It can be said that it brought a god-level start to Norton. In addition to good box office and awards,
also has a very good reputation. On Douban, 224,000 people gave it a high score of 8.5; on imdb, 241,000 people gave it a high score of 7.7.
Judging from Luoxue's personal viewing experience, the film is very fast-paced and the overall feeling is very good. The acting skills of the actors are online, especially Edward Norton, which is indeed amazing and not at all like the acting in the first movie.
At the same time, in terms of story, although there are obvious shadows of "Witness for the Prosecution", the director has found a different approach. Although the story of focuses on the murder case, it is not just satisfied with the murder case, but reveals the good side of the underworld, the greedy side of the politicians, the ugly side of the archbishop, as well as the helplessness of the prosecutor and the grief and anger of the lawyer from multiple angles. allows the movie to present a sense of tragedy in which all parties lose, and also allows everyone to examine the law and the system again.
And if you open the brain-burning part of this film and really understand the film, you will really be amazed by the movie. Brain-burning lovers must not miss it. However, the director of this film made the film too full, making the whole film too complete and losing the opportunity for the audience to join in. It has to be said that it is a very regrettable choice.
contains serious spoilers. If you haven’t seen it, I suggest you watch the movie first and then read Luoxue’s recommendations! (Remember to turn off the barrage)
How long has it been since we have seen a surprisingly anti-traditional movie? This kind of "anti-setting" movie that breaks the tradition can subvert a person's accustomed thinking mode, let people see the world from a different perspective, and it is more conducive to brain thinking.
From "Shutter Island", "Fight Club", "Fatal ID", to Shyamalan's "Excellent Trilogy". Over the years, we have watched a lot of "fine division" movies, and we have long accepted the "fine division" setting.
But what if schizophrenia is just a way for bad people to avoid punishment for crimes? What if a movie is about schizophrenia on the surface, but actually uses schizophrenia as a guise to avoid responsibility?
The most interesting thing about this film is that it is actually a counter-routine to "sophisticated" movies, especially when watching "First Level of Fear" and "Fatal ID" together. The two movies are like opposites of each other, allowing moviegoers to break out of the "excellent and innocent" routine and get a sense of unexpected surprise ("First Degree of Fear" was earlier).
In the movie, Aaron, played by Norton, was originally the biggest suspect. However, as the story progressed and the concept of "separation" emerged, both the male protagonist and the audience thought that Aaron was responsible for the dual personality. The second person, Roy, killed someone and Aaron was not guilty. The movie ushered in the ultimate twist. It turned out that the so-called killing by the second personality was bullshit. It was a lie made up by the first personality in order to escape guilt. It not only deceived the male protagonist, but even deceived the audience.
has a sense of surprise that suddenly breaks a certain inherent perception, and this perception is completely correct. But the movie’s amazement doesn’t end there.
Even in the "excellent" suspense, the director actually set up two reversals. One is the anti-traditional use of the concept of "fine division" to escape guilt; the other is the reversal of the protagonist's image . So even though the male protagonist finally realized the "sophistication" scam, he thought there had never been Roy, not Aaron. It turns out that Aaron is the fake one and Roy is the real one.
In other words, the director actually set up two reversals on the concept of "fine division", which is dizzying. Moreover, this film has the same advantage as "Witness for the Prosecution", that is, it achieves unity inside and outside the film.
When we watch classic crime-solving dramas such as "Detective Di Renjie" and "Young Man Bao Qingtian", we will find that there will be some story content that has not been performed before in the final solving of the case. This is the asymmetry between the information inside and outside the drama. . Therefore, it is difficult for the audience to integrate into the drama/movie, and "First Level of Fear" just makes up for this.
When we accept the concept of "sophistication", the male protagonist in the movie also changed from disbelief to belief. So when the male protagonist is deceived, the audience is also deceived. For example, many people felt something was wrong when Norton said, "Please tell Miss Wei that I'm sorry and I hope her neck is okay." At this time, the male protagonist also realized the problem and formed the actors in the play. Same frequency as the audience outside the theater. This is very popular with Luoxue.
And the all-lost ending in the story makes the film achieve a stunning look and feel.
It’s not like I haven’t seen the story of the villain winning over the righteous. But like "First Level of Fear", it is rare that ends with one party winning and all other parties losing. So it is not an exaggeration to say that it is amazing.
The male protagonist did not believe Norton at first, because when his colleagues asked him whether he believed Aaron was innocent, he did not answer directly, and when Norton said that he was innocent in prison, the male protagonist said "I don't care, it doesn't matter." . However, as the investigation deepened, as the bishop's filthiness was exposed, and the high-level government officials' self-interest was discovered, a second person, Groy, appeared. At this time, the male protagonist truly believed Norton, so he tried every means to prove Aaron's innocence, and even explained the real reason why he resigned from his position as state prosecutor.
"I also believe that not all criminals are bad people. I want to know why good people do bad things."
But the final outcome was that he was deceived and his inner conscience was severely traumatized; the same was true of Janet. , even lost his job because of it, and could not really be with the male protagonist; the archbishop's dirty conduct was exposed, and the government officials' abuse of power for personal gain was discovered. It can be said that everyone except Norton lost. Compared with this, what is even more cruel is that Norton directly slaps the male protagonist in the face, allowing the male protagonist to witness his own failure. How cruel! I really like this setting!
While telling the story, this film also releases a lot of themes, including the many sides of human nature.
The many sides here include the bishop's glorious and dirty side; the government officials who serve the people and seek power for personal gain; Norton's kind side Allen and the sinister side Roy; and the male protagonist who pursues money and fame but insists on justice. one side. It can be said that this film allows people to fully see the multifaceted and complex nature of human nature through the interpretation of the four main characters in the case.
But what this film wants to express more, Luoxue believes, is actually the same theme as "Witness for the Prosecution". Whether it is a lawyer, the presiding judge, or a juror, they must think about the case itself and must not mix too much personal emotions. Because once you have self-emotion, it is likely to be biased. The real bad guys are likely to escape legal punishment.
In addition, after watching the whole film, we will find that although Norton did a story analysis at the end, it was revealed that there was no second personality or schizophrenia in the story.But it also aroused a question in Luo Xue, why did Norton kill the bishop? What's the real motivation?
If there was no twist at the end of the movie, everyone would think that Allen liked Linda and regarded her as his girlfriend. But the bishop coerced them into making a pornographic film. The woman he loved was "applauded" by others, so he felt resentful and eventually killed the bishop.
But the problem is that the movie is reversed at the end. There is no so-called second personality at all. The submissive "master personality" Allen is just an act, while the crazy Roy is actually Norton himself. Then when the male protagonist questioned Roy about Linda, Roy's answer was very interesting.
"Who the hell cares about Linda? Let me tell you, everyone has fucked that bitch, understand?" later said when revealing the truth: "That bitch deserves to die."
Roy's words revealed that Roy despised Linda deep down in his heart. Since Allen is fake, then it is also fake that Allen likes Linda. Since was not killed for love, then why? Roy never said anything, but one thing or two could be gleaned from the videotape.
Allen, Alex, and Linda played a three-person game together. Alex had no expression and Linda was very obedient, but Allen was obviously very disgusted. The bishop said "Ellen, slap her from behind" twice. The possible reasons here, , are that Allen (that is, Roy) is very resistant to Linda, the second is that Allen is very tired of being dominated by the bishop, and the third is that he may vent his anger for others. Maybe there are three reasons, so Allen killed the bishop.
Moreover, when Allen introduced the bishop, he repeatedly quoted the idea that the bishop was good to them and like a father. It is very possible that the bishop wanted to abuse them (there were no bruises on his body, it was more about domination and humiliation), and he wanted to dominate them like livestock, so he killed the bishop.
So it’s very interesting to look back at Norton’s arrest.
The feeling of the original film is that Norton couldn't run away, so he was caught and made up a schizophrenic reason to exonerate himself. However, judging from the photo of Linda in Norton's home and the words "b-32.156" on the bishop, Norton's core intention is not to escape at all. Because he hates Linda so much, how can he regard her as his girlfriend? How could the contents of the book be highlighted in the bishop's basement library? Are you still carving clues on the bishop?
Even when he killed the bishop so many times, it was actually not just to vent his anger, but for another reason!
In "The Silent Truth", why did lawyer Zhang Chao take the body to the subway station and claim that there was a bomb in the suitcase? Do you want the demolition team to open the tow truck and find Jiang Yang's body inside? is simple, in order to make things bigger.
We can see from the photos of Linda at home, the inscriptions on the bishop's body, and the books in the basement that Norton did not kill the bishop just to kill him, otherwise there would be no need to do the above. Doing this is a waste of time and unsafe. And there is no need for to kill each other in broad daylight. You can do at night (because you sneak in during the day, and since you can sneak in during the day, you can also do it at night, which is safer). You can also choose to shoot three people in the basement. During the game, find a separate opportunity to kill the opponent.
Whether it is at night or in the basement, it is actually more conducive for Norton to escape and lay out calmly. But he chose to kill people during the day, stabbed him so many times, and left so many clues. The core reason for is that he wanted to make the matter bigger, so that the bishop's sexual fetishes would be exposed, and even the state prosecutor would not be able to hide it.
The male protagonist questioned senior official Shaughnessy at the trial: "Chicago Police Department documents show that Mike O. Donnell discussed with the director of the review team for two weeks and described to him in detail Director Luo's sexual abuse of him. Mr. State Attorney General, at that time you decided not to prosecute your friend Bishop Luo?"
So can see that the whole thing was actually arranged by Norton, and it was not just a matter of using "smart points" to avoid responsibility.If is like that, you will underestimate this film. The complete chain is actually killing four birds with one stone.
The first carving is to kill the bishop and satisfy his perverted thoughts; the second carving is to expose the bishop and completely destroy him; the third carving is to expose the bishop's accomplices and destroy the other party; the fourth carving is Let yourself escape the death penalty . It can be said that the entire chain is interlocked and seamless.
Luoxue can only be described as wonderful, it is really wonderful!
However, there are still some regrets in this film, that is, the overall filming is too full. Although Norton's reversal in the end earned him an Oscar nomination. But actually it would be better to leave a little suspense. It would be perfect if it ends abruptly when the male protagonist is thoughtful, "Please tell Miss Wei that I am sorry and I hope her neck is okay."
Overall good reviews, highly recommended! There are other brain-burning movies that Luo Xue has not seen yet. You can also recommend them!
Okay, that’s all for today. I think what Luoxue said is somewhat reasonable, so please give it a thumbs up and give it a thumbs up. I want to understand a movie from different dimensions. If you want to watch a good movie, please follow Luoxue. ,Thanks!
Thanks to all the teachers for the reward. Compared with the few yuan, Luoxue is more pleased that my ideas and knowledge can be affirmed by you. In the vast sea of people, it is a rare happiness in life to be appreciated by you. I have no words to thank you, but I can only say, thank you!
recommended in the last issue: Chinese-style bad movies, only suitable for Chinese people to watch? Recommended by
in the last issue: ’s brain-burning movie that has become a god in China, the best among the best!
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