"Mistake by the River" is an absurd realism film adapted from Yu Hua's name of the same name, directed by Wei Shujun and starring Zhu Yilong, Zeng Meihuizi, Hou Tianlai, etc. The film tells the story of a ** case by the river involving many suspects, and the captain of the criminal police, Ma Zhe, is constantly manipulated by the unspeakable truth, and gradually falls into absurdity, uneasiness and inability to distinguish between real and illusory moments and memories of the story.
This movie has aroused a lot of thinking and discussion among the audience, some people praise it as an artistic masterpiece, and some people criticize it as a nonsensical bad movie. What exactly is "Mistake by the River" trying to express? What is Ma Zhe's dream and truth? What is the role and moral of the madman?
The main line of the movie is that Ma Zhe (played by Zhu Yilong) investigates the ** case by the river, but as the case deepens, he finds that his memory and reality begin to be disconnected and confused, and he constantly wanders between dreams and truth, and finally can't tell the truth.
There are several characteristics of Ma Zhe's dreams:
His dreams are all related to the characters and events by the river, such as the fourth mother-in-law, the madman, Wang Hong, Qian Ling, Xu Liang, etc.
His dreams are all reflections of his psychological trauma and depression, such as his wife's pregnancy, his children's genetic diseases, his credit being snatched away, and his colleagues betraying him.
His dreams are all challenges to his morality and justice, such as his suspicion of the madman, his sympathy for Wang Hong and Qian Ling, his misunderstanding of Xu Liang, his questioning of himself, etc.
There are several key points in the truth of Ma Zhe:
He is a psychopath, his memory and judgment are severely impaired, and his actions and words are not credible.
His children also inherited his mental illness, and his wife chose to leave him in order to protect the children, and his children were also sent to a mental hospital.
His credit was taken away by the director, his colleagues no longer trusted him, and his career came to an end.
There is no real solution to his case, no real crime against his suspects, and no real meaning to his truth.
The opposite line of the movie is the story of a madman (played by Kang Chunlei), who is a wanderer by the river, who is taken in and taken care of by his fourth mother-in-law, but is suspected of being **, his actions and words are also unreasonable, and his identity and motives are also unknown.
The character of a madman has several characteristics:
His role is a metaphor, and he represents those who are not accepted by society, such as the masochism of the fourth mother-in-law, the teacher-student love between Wang Hong and Qian Ling, and the transvestite of Xu Liang.
His character is a contrast, he forms an inversion with Ma Zhe, he is a real madman, but closer to the truth than Ma Zhe, he is a real good person, but he is more hurt than Ma Zhe.
His role is a mystery, his appearance and disappearance are not explained, his actions and words are not explained, and his identity and motives are not revealed.
The moral of the madman has several levels:
He is a symbol of fate, he plays the role of the gods by the river, he assigns everyone their fate, and his madness is the feedback of fate.
He is the ** of human nature, he shows the many sides of human nature by the river, his kindness, innocence, loyalty, selflessness, as well as his cruelty, cunning, betrayal, selfishness.
He is a reflection on society, he reflects on the problems of society by the river, his loneliness, helplessness, injury, death, and his joy, freedom, happiness, survival.
The Mistake by the River is a film that is not easy to understand, it does not give a clear answer, but leaves it to the audience to think and interpret for themselves. It is not only a movie about the ** case, but also a movie about fate, human nature, and society. It uses absurd techniques to show the cruelty of reality, in the form of dreams, to show the helplessness of the truth, and to show the diversity of the world from the perspective of a madman.