Since the birth of "Pulp Fiction" in 1994, independent films have truly entered the hall of elegance and become an important force in the film industry that cannot be ignored.
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At a time when large-scale studios are becoming more and more routine and lacking innovative and enterprising spirit, independent films' forge ahead and boldness have gradually become the force behind the continuous advancement of films, from "American Beauty" to "Brokeback Mountain" and then again To "No Country for Old Men", the attention of independent films is continuing to heat up. Almost every year, a batch of independent works of outstanding quality can be found, which arouses the admiration of academies and critics. For example, last year's "The Hurt Locker".
"Buried Alive" is such a typical independent film.
The story of the film is very simple. It tells about a construction contractor from the United States who was attacked while working in Iraq. After waking up, he found himself in a coffin and was buried alive. How should he escape
The most daring part of the movie is that the entire work is shot in a coffin, and no other pictures are involved at all. It starts from the coffin and ends with the coffin. The world outside the coffin and the relationship between the characters are completely outlined and completed by the lines. All the weight is on the actor.
This not only puts forward strict and ultra-high requirements for the script lines - filling the streamlined space with information, how to show what happened simultaneously inside and outside the coffin, how to express the story before and after entering the coffin, and how to restore the relationship between characters in a critical situation The original background of the game is a difficult problem; it also poses an incredible test for the actor's performance. In the extreme situation, panic, fear and despair, survival is the only instinct/ability, but the actor must show It shows the ups and downs of the whole mood, and brings the audience's thoughts into a closed confined space, avoiding the boring and boring caused by a single scene for a long time, and also avoiding the boring repetition caused by limited shot scheduling.
In fact, there are not many works that use one-man dramas to tell stories, but there are very few works like "Buried Alive" where only the male protagonist appears in the whole film. This is undoubtedly a daunting challenge, and the difficulty is unimaginable.
The similar theme "127 Hours" is also a one-man show, but the performance is a bit opportunistic. This work directed by Danny-Boyle focuses on the near-death Aaron Roston ( Aron-Ralston). During the trekking, Allen lost his footing and fell in a remote valley. As a result, his arm was crushed by a boulder and he was unable to move. He was trapped in place alone for five days and a total of 127 hours. , In the end, Allen cut off his own arm and managed to escape.
However, Danny added the cause and effect in the film, not only about the preparations before Aaron's departure, the pleasure of meeting his friends during the hike, but also about the rescue and hope after the final realization of self-redemption, and flashbacks Ways reviews Allen's life fetters.
It can be said that this is indeed a one-man show, but it is a one-man show with many people participating.
In comparison, like "Buried Alive", where all the scenes take place in a coffin, it is more experimental, more independent, and more difficult, which is precisely the most valuable part of the film.
When filming "127 Hours", Danny was a successful director. Not only did he make such an indie film as "Trainspotting", but he also won the Oscar for Best Director for "Slumdog Millionaire". Even so, Danny still did not dare to easily try the method with only one scene in the whole story, because everyone knows that this method is easy to be too boring, too monotonous, too boring, and will be criticized by the audience and film critics if you are not careful. People scolded dog blood.
"Buried Alive" did it.
The director and screenwriter of the film are all newcomers. Director Rodriguez-Cortes (Ro-Cortes) was mainly active in the field of short films before, and his ingenious conception won a lot of praise, but short films and feature films Two completely different systems, just as sprinters may not be able to perform well in long-distance running, "Buried Alive" is only his second feature film.
Screenwriter Chris-Sparling (Chris-Sparling) is an unknown newcomer, and "Buried Alive" is just his official screenplay debut.
These two newcomers who do not have much experience, but in a limited space, shot an amazing and wonderful work! The movie firmly captures the audience's attention, allowing people to follow the progress of the plot, empathize with the fate of the characters, and truly feel the complexity and ups and downs of human emotions: pain, panic, panic, calm, self-denial, violence, Fear, hope, sadness, pain, anger, fatigue, self-deprecation...and finally despair. All of this makes the viewing process a torment and a pleasure.
In comparison, "127 Hours" shows the three-dimensionality of a character in an all-round way, and extols the spirit of never giving up on human beings under the limit of life and death. This is not only inspirational, but also shows Allen's family fetters and Power, which undoubtedly further digs the core depth of the film; "Buried Alive" focuses on the struggle and pain on the edge of death, emphasizing the emotional details that are magnified to the extreme under the closed space, horror and fear throughout, which is very important to the film. It is undoubtedly a breakthrough in experimental film, but it is slightly inferior in terms of depth of thought.
It can be understood in this way that "127 Hours" is a work shot for the awards season, while "Buried Alive" is a work shot by the director to explore a new field. Once upon a time, Danny Ball showed sharpness and agility in "Trainspotting", but it has gradually disappeared, moving from independent to mainstream; and "Buried Alive" really shows the sharpness and boldness of independent films.
This can be seen from the treatment the two films received at the year-end awards ceremony. "Buried Alive" was almost ignored and did not win any nominations, let alone an award; "127 Hours" was highly praised and even more so. It was nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay at the Oscars in one fell swoop.
Of course, a very important part of the reason also comes from "Buried Alive" actor Ryan-Reynolds (Ryan-Reynolds).
The handsome Canadian actor is more often known for his handsome appearance. "Fake Marriage", "Green Lantern", "Deadpool" and other works have made him occupy a place in Hollywood, because his appearance is too eye-catching. , so that people always habitually ignore his efforts in acting, and many people even think that he is facial paralysis.
In fact, in the early stage of his actor career, Ryan has won a lot of reputation with his performances. His wonderful performances can be seen in works such as "Nine Degrees of Space" and "Blood orphan", some of which are cute, some are spoofs, Some sexy, but at the same time there is no lack of madness and fragility hidden in the eyes, the sensitivity wrapped under the coat can often move people's hearts. Maybe he is not a top actor, but when it comes to the right role, he does have two brushes.
"Buried Alive" is one such work.
In "Buried Alive", Ryan truly shows the confusion, struggle and pain that human beings breed under desperate conditions. The complex and fragile emotions firmly capture the audience's mind and make people feel immersed in the situation. It must be admitted that Ryan did his job brilliantly and became the most important piece of the "Buried Alive" puzzle.
But Ryan's work is far from amazing. If he puts his performance in "127 Hours", then maybe it is enough, because "127 Hours" is packed with a lot of flashbacks and clips to assist. The plot information is used to fill the image of the characters, and the audience will have a more direct experience of the three-dimensional sense of the characters; but there are no such parts in "Buried Alive", which leads to Ryan's performance emotions are adequate, but the extension part is lacking.
Understandably, Ryan delivers the emotion a thriller movie needs, but doesn't have the storytelling a drama movie needs. For example, when he called his wife in the movie, what happened between the two people; when he called a colleague, the attitude of the other party suggested that there was something wrong with his usual behavior; when he asked the government/government official for help, There was not much change in his attitude before and after, and his psychological ups and downs were not clear enough; at the last critical moment, what kind of content did his dying words contain
"127 Hours" completes these puzzles by recalling; "Buried Alive" requires Ryan's performance to complete, and when he fails to achieve this goal, it also affects the sublimation of the overall quality of the film.
In fact, in Renly's view, the film "Buried Alive" is not only a thriller film in a confined space, but also can be further explored. One is the family crisis of the American middle class, the contradiction between the male protagonist and his wife, the male protagonist and his wife. The opportunity for the protagonist to choose to go to work in Iraq, and the mid-life crisis he faced before the accident happened. These details all affect his subsequent calls for help, especially the reactions reflected in desperate circumstances.
The other is a condemnation of the capitalist bureaucracy. On the one hand, it is the hypocrisy and treacherousness of the company where the male protagonist works and shirk responsibility. Compared with human life, they care more about not having to pay more compensation; The slogan of "never give up any citizen's life" is loudly shouted, but the actual actions are chilling. The core idea of the supremacy of interests alludes to the fact that the United States launched the Iraq War. real purpose.
The connotation of this film is far more digging and watchable than imagined. However, compared with "127 Hours", the directors and screenwriters of "Buried Alive" are inexperienced and can only put all the burden on the actors. Once Ryan's performance is not high enough and deep enough, the overall quality of the work will be reduced. Only to go down.
In fact, this is also one of the typical characteristics of independent films. When the experimental nature is particularly strong, success is also Xiao He and Xiao He is defeated.
But this is undoubtedly a perfect fit for Renly. This is the performance opportunity he has always dreamed of: a chance to really devote himself to the performance, a chance to really challenge his own limits, a chance to really test the bottom line of his talent, a chance to truly Opportunity to interpret your acting skills heartily!