For the movie "A Better Tomorrow", the industry has given it such high praise that it has surprised countless movie fans.
""A Better Tomorrow" is the best Hong Kong gangster film!" This is the evaluation given by a well-known veteran film critic in Hong Kong Island.
You know, in the golden age of movies in Hong Kong, gangster movies were definitely a genre that had to be mentioned, and this type of movie produced many classics that are still talked about today.
In fact, after the decline of Hong Kong films, countless people have shouted that it will be difficult to produce classic gangster films in the film industry from now on!
This is indeed not a war crime, because it is linked to the times.
After the return of Hong Kong Island, the situation where gangs were once rampant has long become a thing of the past.
From a film perspective, it is difficult for creators to recreate the glory of the past.
From the perspective of movie fans, today's directors can no longer produce the same flavor as before, because the world has gone far away and today is different from the past!
Some people may also mention "Infernal Affairs" and "Dark War", but in fact, these two movies are said to be gangster movies, but they are better said to be police movies.
There is a big difference between the two.
Mainly due to the proportion of the plot.
In "Infernal Affairs", it has always revolved around police and robbers, and the two sides have always been soldiers and thieves.
There is no need to say more about "Dark War".
But "A Better Tomorrow" is different. What this movie shows is the true underworld.
Although there is also Song Zijie as a soldier, he has never been the one who leads the plot!
Some film critics analyzed why "A Better Tomorrow" had such a high score and why almost everyone who watched the movie was impressed by this film!
"A story can move people because it contains the precious things we pursue all our lives. What a hero is directed by Li Yi should contain is dignity.
The dignity shown in the movie is that you control your own destiny. In the words of Brother Ma: If you can control your own destiny, you are a god.
It’s not that I can’t bow my head in my life, but whenever I bow my head and compromise, it must be my own choice, and it can never be because of the force of others!
This point can be said to be vividly demonstrated by Brother Ma and Brother Hao. Young people look at Brother Ma, but older people may understand Brother Hao better!
Xiao Ma had compromised and bowed his head because he was willing to do so. He could once live like a dog, but after Brother Hao was released from prison, he was no longer willing to compromise or bow his head because he had compromised and bowed his head before. , because of his unwillingness to get back what he lost!
The beginning of the movie is whitewashed. This is probably because in the prosperous age of music and singing, you can only see people's skin and flesh but not their bones. We share joys and sorrows together. We are so magnificent when things go smoothly, but how miserable we are when we are reduced to nothing. It is this gorgeous arrangement that has accumulated enough power to make the word dignity appear powerful. How can you imagine that such a high-spirited underworld boss Ma Ge, who can't see the slightest displeasure, will be limping in the next scene and lowering himself to open the car door for his former younger brother who is now the eldest brother, nodding and bowing to greet him in the car without hesitation. He picked up a few bills he threw on the ground. Choosing to swallow it like this is just to "get back what I lost with my own hands."
The little Ma in the film has no family ties or blood ties. He is a pure embodiment of brotherhood and a lone heroic knight. Therefore, he lives very clearly, he only needs to shoulder his own responsibilities, one person does things and others bear the responsibility, those who are honest with each other will be rewarded with sincerity, and those who betray and plot will be killed in return.
What a joyful grudge, right and wrong.
"I swear no one can point a gun at my head again." This is not only a warrior with unique skills and clear grudges, but also a lone hero who is free and does not compromise with fate. In the setting sun of the desert, wandering with sword in hand, drinking and singing, and the anger will be repaid. Song Zihao's downfall during the short three years he was imprisoned was not forced by fate, but his own choice, waiting for his good brother to make a comeback and take revenge.
In the end, Li Yi also gave Xiao Ma a perfect ending like a martial arts. The great revenge was avenged and both died together. A fighter died on the battlefield after killing the last enemy with the last bullet. This is probably the kind of person he is. The best place to stay.
Such a hero who has no ties and controls his own destiny. He is such a dashing hero that many people want to be, but in real life, it is difficult to achieve. Family, career, morality, and public opinion are all tied up with countless ropes, and you have to consider the feelings and influences of relatives, friends, and even strangers besides yourself.
We are not the masters of destiny at all, but are trampled under our feet by fate, unable to move. We can only breathe, eat and earn money to survive step by step like a machine. We cannot make the slightest wave, let alone a huge wave that overturns the direction of life. Brother Ma's dignity is beyond our reach.
If Xiao Ma is a lone hero that countless young people imitate and pursue, then Song Zihao's character is closer to the actual situation of a normal person, with flesh and blood, relatives, friends, guilt, and pursuits.
Song Zihao's dignity is not as simple as controlling his destiny, but a web of intricate ties. On the one hand, they are worthy of their brothers and treat them with sincerity. On the one hand, it is to repay the debt owed to the family. On the one hand, it makes the enemies who oppressed them pay with their blood. When all these things come together, it is what is called fate.
All these ties are also arranged in order. The life and death friendship between brothers has been through blood and bullets together. This is a bond of loyalty. In the final analysis, you are alone in your life. If you can have someone who is not connected by blood, but can have no reservations about you, understand you, pursue your pursuit, stand up for you, never betray, and absolutely support you. , this is definitely the greatest blessing in life. And for such a brother, he must go through fire and water and respond to every request. There is no need to say too many words about such a rare and deep friendship. The tearful moment when the two met in the underground garage is already worth a thousand words.
Equally important as brotherhood is responsibility to loved ones. There is no repayment for the love of procreation, and blood is thicker than water. Because of his own choices, his father was assassinated, and his younger brother was unable to achieve his pursuit. When Song Zihao was released from prison, he had changed his mind and wanted to repay these family debts. There was only one way to repay them, to start a new life and return to the right path. He tried many times to get his brother's forgiveness, but his brother was hurt too deeply and refused to forgive him, nor could he trust his brother again. These feelings of guilt for his relatives eventually became Song Zihao's "principle". This word appeared repeatedly in Song's mouth. For Song, this principle was to insist on no longer being involved in gangs and live a normal, stable and law-abiding life.
The last one is a forced and helpless choice. Song Zihao decided to quit in order to change his mind, but his enemies kept pressing him step by step, bullying him too much, not giving him a chance to start a new life, hurting his brother, threatening his younger brother, and beating up his company workers. When he was forced to have no way out, Song Zihao's heart of repayment was still aroused. This was also because of Brother Xiao Ma's enlightenment. I don't want to prove that I am more powerful than anyone else, I just want to show my strength. What I threw away, I took back with my own hands. You keep talking about principles, but you can't lose sight of the bottom line. If you bully someone too much, you must make him pay the price. It's not that you can't have the mafia mentality of revenge, but the way of revenge and debt repayment does not require mafia methods.
As the third protagonist, Ajie, Song Zihao's younger brother, is the one most constrained by fate. Although Song and Ma have different pursuits, they can choose their own paths, but Ajie is the only one who has no choice. After his father's death, he had no choice. He chose the police career, but because his brother was involved in gangs, he could not be promoted and his future was lost. All of this comes down to the choice of his brother Song Zihao. It is his dearest brother, whose blood is thicker than water, who makes him unable to choose. The conflict between love and hate makes the character Ajie irritable and tangled!
The role of Ajie, from the perspective of an onlooker, is obviously not a likable character, but it is a pitiful character who has no choice.
Therefore, he has reason to love and even more reason to hate!
All love, hate, helplessness, fate, and opportunities all converge at the last point of fate, the gun battle at the end. Hearty and satisfying. In fact, it is a kind of helplessness. Everyone is fighting against fate, but no one can escape from the track of fate. The so-called way of heaven means that everyone cannot do what they want. A heroic knight who took pleasure in revenge paid with his life in the end. A man wants to change his mind, but the only way to get revenge and repay his debts is to use a gun and a bullet. A young man who wanted to be a good policeman finally chose to use gangster methods to deal with a bad guy.
No one gets what they want. Only family affection, brotherhood, and justice can make people live with dignity, bring enemies to justice, and unite relatives, brothers, and benefactors into an indestructible community. Society, justice, and justice are all just layers of ties, leaving honest people with no way out and kind people retreating again and again. The less principled a person is, the more likely they are to wander around. , flourishing.
What a ridiculous society this is. People who want to be good police officers will not get promotions in the end. People who want to be good people still cannot escape the suspicion and investigation of the police. However, rich and powerful evil people can get away with it and even speak out without shame. As long as I surrender, I can still be paroled in a few years and make a comeback. In the end, the way to get retribution for a villain who is hated by everyone is not to give it to the police, but to use the underworld method and give him a bullet.
At the end of the movie, in fact, no one has a choice. Destiny, a big machine made up of countless gears that operates all the time, never gives anyone the power to choose. Everything is nothing more than the choice of everyone around him, not your own choice. If you want to get rid of everything, you must have no bottom line and no conscience. Therefore, being a good person is a kind of helplessness. You shoulder many responsibilities that have nothing to do with you. You are forced by fate to go all the way to the unknown and surrender to fate.
The handcuffs in the final scene are nothing more than a little bit of good hope for this deeply despairing society.
Because reality is more cruel than movies! "
As the movie expanded its screenings, "A Better Tomorrow" once again set off a retro trend.
The lines in the movie have also begun to be forwarded by countless people.
At the same time, there were discussions about Brother Xiao Ma, Brother Hao, Song Zijie, etc.
Of course, there is no accident, Xiao Ma became the most popular one in this movie.
Many netizens commented on Brother Ma: "Wearing cool sunglasses, holding a matchstick in his mouth, wearing two guns, knocking down the last enemy and blowing the muzzle of the gun coolly, I think this is probably each of us. Have you ever had a heroic dream?"
"Brother Ma is more like the ancient Jianghu people who drew their swords in anger and relished grudges. How could each of us never think about letting go of all worries and fetters and go out into the world? Like Brother Ma, go to the Jianghu with pleasure. !”
""You can insult me, but you can't insult my friends! “I never force a friend to do something he doesn’t want to do. "I've been waiting for you for three years. After three years, I want to do it all over again!" "
These lines are really amazingly written. For a friend like Brother Ma, and a brother like this, please give me a dozen! "
As for Song Zijie, it is quite controversial.
This character, as mentioned before, is not a very likable character.
But gradually this character began to be understood by people.
Many fans began to defend the role of Ajie!
"When my eldest brother was released from prison and went to look for him, Ajie's attitude was always decisive. When I saw Brother Hao being kicked out by Ajie and standing helplessly in the heavy rain, I felt that Ajie was too heartless. Yes, he has gone too far. But, when I think about it, isn’t this the real him! As long as the identity of the brother has not changed, his attitude will never change. This is a good person who truly sticks to himself. police."
"Actually, this is what is called don't persuade others to do good without their suffering. Ajie is a policeman, his father died because of his elder brother, and because his elder brother is a criminal, his career and life have been affected.
He has so much reason to hate Song Zihao!
In fact, from our point of view, if we have a brother, we don’t need to say who he killed, but we only need to say that he was in jail or released from prison, how many people will believe that he will change his ways?
What's more, Ajie? "
Then it’s about Brother Hao.
"At first, I always thought he was quite useless, but when I think about it later, I admire him. This kind of big brother is the real big brother."
"Brother Hao always makes me feel inexplicable pain. He is a bloody man, but his identity implicated his father and was betrayed by his trusted brother and went to jail. After he was released from prison, he returned home but was betrayed by his own brother. After typing it out, I was lying alone in the rain, and the tears that Brother Hao had suppressed finally flowed out. How sentimental that scene was, it was the scene that touched me the most in the movie!"
"Everyone is talking about Brother Ma, but what I like is Brother Hao, the real big brother. "A Better Tomorrow" is about how men regain their dignity when they are down and out. Many young people are thinking about "I lost it" "I must get my things back" and the whole house cheered, and their hearts were surging for the decisive battle with bullets and bullets, but have they ever seen the undying heart of the hero in Brother Ma's eyes, and have they ever really understood the helplessness of Brother Hao's people in the world?"
(End of chapter)
