When Han Han was praised by intellectuals and the public in the past, it was not because they understood him, but because they liked what he said and could say things they couldn't. Whenever Han Han gave up the popular words and spoke his most sincere thoughts in his own way, they would say that he had changed, that he had compromised, that he had fallen.
Today is just like the Spring Festival ten years ago.
Han Han's famous work "Peeping into the Cup" tells the story of a person being influenced by society. Later, in his works, he always let the characters shout out loudly, "I am like this world, I will not change" (from the movie "No Man's Land"). The question of change or not has always been something he has been thinking about.
His works have a unified image, innocent and brave young people being influenced, insulted, and damaged by society. The confrontation between the individual and the world is originally a modern problem, a solo that is out of tune with the mainstream, but it seems that I have never seen anyone interpret it from this perspective.
Han Han does not depict a cruel youth, but the growth of brave young people and the dissonance with their environment. The so-called cruel youth comes from the hormones that have nowhere to vent, while what Han Han writes is the existential theme of human beings confronting the world. It's understandable for ordinary viewers, but have film critics never seen "A Brighter Summer Day" by Edward Yang, "In the Mood for Love" by Wong Kar-wai, "Breathless" by Jean-Luc Godard, or "The 400 Blows" by François Truffaut?
In Han Han's four films, there are similar yet different themes in the confrontation between the individual and the world.
In "The Continent", the protagonists come to the mainland with dreams, and in this real world, some people disappear, some people sink, and some people succeed.
In "Duckweed", the protagonists face time, and this world has changed, and it is the changes of the times that crush Xu Tailang.
In "Pegasus", the protagonist is destroyed by middle age, and there is no chance to change his fate. He wants to take a leap of faith again.
And in "The Taking of Tiger Mountain", it is a horror film similar to "The Mist", where the erosion and damage to the protagonist happens silently, like the world of Cthulhu. They leave their paradise-like island passively, fleeing in fear for their lives. In the end, they are devoured by the new world.
So, I think Han Han hasn't changed, and this world hasn't changed either. The contradiction between Han Han and the public is irreconcilable. He is ultimately a lonely teenager with a melancholy face disappearing into the sunset.
Han Han's loneliness has been established since the chaos in Chang'an. Han Han has never written about love. All the love in his works is more like friendship and family love, a consolation for the lonely soul. This consolation will last forever.
The male and female protagonists in his novels are so pure that they are unreal. This unreality comes from their entanglement in the mortal world. Especially the female protagonists, they should not have been contaminated by worldly karma.
Han Han is gentle to this world, and therefore, he is also arrogant. His gentleness comes from his unwillingness. He is like the protagonist in his novels, but the difference is that he is freer than the protagonist in his novels. He could have detached himself from this mortal world at any time, but he is not obligated to do so. God is already dead.
But Han Han is so unique that few people can understand what he sees and what relationship they have with what he describes. They may be mistaken for being unrealistic or arrogant. He is very much like the Happy Prince, who also has his limits.
Han Han likes to give his movies a surreal dream-like ending. In "No Man's Land", it is the island many years later. In "Duckweed", Deng Chao calls out "Mommy". In "Pegasus", the race between the car and the fighter jet is a dream of a person, as beautiful as the fleeting scenes seen by the little match girl when she rubs the matches. Eventually, grandma will take us to heaven. In "Pegasus", Han Han has already used the image of Valkyrie, and I believe he will continue to use this image in the future. Life is like a journey in the opposite direction, and living is just helping each other stumble through a short journey.
The ending of "The Taking of Tiger Mountain" is like "The Old Man and the Sea". He dreams of a lion and he has to live on his own.
Whether "The Taking of Tiger Mountain" is good or not is no longer the question. It is something to be cherished to be able to see it in the cinema. Self-expression is a luxury, and Han Han has paid a great price for it. I don't know if there will be such an opportunity anymore.
We are like Han Han, the good wind has passed, and we have come to a windless sea. It's just that many people don't have this sensitive feeling. They don't think they are writing about themselves. They are afraid of loneliness and fear of courage. They desire the collective sense of security and the beautiful dreams that come with it. He dreams of a lion, but ordinary people have never had such a dream.
Every sailor sailing on the sea is praying for a good wind. How arrogant is God, and what merits do humans have towards God? Will God respond to human prayers? The wind can be favorable or unfavorable, and it cannot be forced by human power. What can be done is to persist and survive until the day when the wind comes.
Either change position or wait for time.
When the wind rises again, we will be able to catch it.