tearjerker director

Chapter 1401 The battle between reason and prejudice

"Twelve Angry Men" was officially released nationwide. In fact, Li Yi didn't have much confidence in the mainland market at the beginning.

Although it looked like it received rave reviews when it was screened, in my memory, "Twelve Citizens" also received rave reviews when it was screened before its release.

But the result?
It’s not just falling into the sand.

But the result was far beyond Li Yi's expectation. Perhaps it was because this topic happened to be hot during this period, so even though the mainland does not have a jury system, it seems that everyone is not unfamiliar with it.

After all, Hong Kong Island does have a jury system.

To a certain extent, thanks to the influence of Hong Kong films on mainland audiences, although everyone is not so clear about this system, it is not unfamiliar.

Therefore, although "Twelve Angry Men" was not a big hit, it was enough to make people jealous at the box office, and the same discussion about this movie gradually began to increase dramatically as the movie expanded its screenings.

Interestingly, the most discussed aspect of "Twelve Angry Men" in the Mainland is not the jury system or dishonest matters, but "prejudice!"

Zhou Qingquan of "Film Weekly" wrote a long review specifically focusing on "prejudice" and "rationality".

"A lot of things have been discussed in "Twelve Angry Men", but what I want to say here is that what you can see from this film is the "prejudice" that exists everywhere!
In fact, the entire film and the entire jury discussion process, in my personal opinion, is actually a battle between reason and prejudice.

From the beginning of the movie, the topic has actually started to be pointed out.

A businessman in a black suit pulled a man with glasses to express his opinion as soon as he entered the jury room.

"I almost fell asleep."

"What the lawyers said really pissed me off. It was so obvious who the murderer was."

"I think kids these days have to suffer a little bit so they don't dare to get into trouble."

This is a person who has already sentenced the boy to death in his heart. He does not care about the case itself. Any reasons given by others will be difficult to change his original intention, paving the way for a difficult reversal of the discussion.

We don't understand why he has such a firm opinion. He seems to have an aversion to children.

He is placed in the center of the shooting frame, occupying a dominant position in the picture. The diagonal lines decorated on the wall create a tense and dynamic sense, emphasizing the man's inability to calm down.

Only that person, that person standing by the window, looking at the building outside the window, smoking a cigarette, thinking silently, brought a touch of coolness to this hot and airtight environment, brought a twist of the plot, and also brought a twist to the poor man. The boy brings a glimmer of hope.

In the first round of voting, only he chose "not guilty", and everyone was instantly upset.

In fact, he was not sure whether the boy was guilty or innocent, although all the testimonies and evidence pointed to the boy as the murderer of his father.

The reason for his choice was: This sentence is related to the fate of a young man. I just think we should give him a chance.

His polite smile and unhurried explanation reflect his calmness, kindness and patience.

Chen Weijie has acted in so many movies, but in this movie, although his character does not even have a name, he is sincerely amazing.

Two people, two completely different attitudes, sounded the horn for a heated discussion.

"Prejudice" can be regarded as a person's subconscious understanding of things formed due to experience and other factors.Prejudice is common in all of us because our brains are not wired to think deeply and come up with unique insights at all times.We have become accustomed to using various labels to define various things, which is also a kind of bias. While we cannot do without bias, we also rely on bias to make decisions for us.However, it is precisely because of the existence of prejudice that many truths have been obscured and countless people have been wronged. This film well illustrates the shortcomings of prejudice.

In fact, the case of "[-] Angry Men" itself has given everyone a natural prejudice. A few hours ago, the son had an argument with his father, and a few hours later, the father was killed, and someone saw him at the scene of the crime. The son has often disobeyed his father and committed many evil deeds. He has lived in a slum since he was a child and has been influenced by evil for a long time.Based on this description alone, we would think that this son must be a cruel and evil person who hopelessly killed his father.Such thoughts come to mind almost without thinking. This is how prejudice saves brain cells on things that one thinks are meaningless.It is this kind of prejudice that permeated the entire trial process. If the juror had not raised objections, we might have believed in this knowledge for the rest of our lives.

In fact, in reality, we also have similar prejudices. Keyboard warriors who know what they are doing but don’t know why can be seen everywhere on the Internet. They always obtain certain information through the Internet, and then start to base their ideas on it. Infer what you think is a possible answer.

In fact, to a certain extent, isn’t this a prejudice?
At first, the main thought of the twelve jurors in the room was: The boy was the murderer at first glance, and the physical evidence was conclusive. There was nothing else to talk about. It was really a waste of their time. They might as well do something more meaningful. matter.I guess everyone who watched this movie thought so too.

Let’s analyze it, why can we come to a conclusion without thinking about it?Just because I think this matter is not important, the death of a little brat has nothing to do with me.This kind of thinking is very sad. A person's mind is full of interests, and he naturally needs prejudice to fill his thoughts. He has lost his original feelings. He is just a teenager. He is young because of a few random things of yours. Prejudice will be deprived of life, don't you feel the slightest guilt in your heart?What if that kid didn't kill anyone?That's why the gentleman who raised the objection cursed the big man as a murderer and executioner, without any humanity at all.

In this regard, I highly appreciate this man who was able to fight for a chance for the boy's life when everyone thought he was guilty. The justice, firmness, kindness and other human brilliance he showed finally saved the boy who was bound to be found guilty. This is something of a miracle.

During the discussion, the businessman in the black suit had taken off his coat.

He didn't change his mind at all.

"That kid is a dangerous killer."

"I know that kid has it, but he still has to pay the price."

If the previous shots prevent us from being sensitive to the word "child", then the shots here can clearly illustrate his prejudice: just because that is a child, that is a child who is considered dangerous, that is a child who is accused The child who killed his father.

Instead of giving more patience and attention to this life-related matter because he was a child, he couldn't wait to convict the child.This is an irresponsible move made by preconceptions and being influenced by one's own subconscious prejudices before fully understanding the truth of the matter.Seeing this, we can't help but wonder: Did he have any children?If so, will he still be so impatient and irresponsible when his child is behind bars?
And as the discussion progressed, it finally dawned on us: He had a child, and it was a child that broke his heart.

That's it!

A father who failed in the education of his children due to his own fault, still harbors extravagant hopes for family affection, and has an inexplicable distrust and strong prejudice against all imperfect children.

In fact, isn’t this true of ourselves?

Nowadays, there are too many parents who hope that their sons will succeed and their daughters will succeed. When their children bring disappointment and even despair to their parents, in fact, at this time, prejudice has already been engraved on their souls!

He did not realize at all that such prejudice had destroyed his moral standards as a person, and only exuded hostility.

He didn't care whether the boy was really guilty, and he didn't have the patience to explore whether he was guilty. He just wanted to convict him as soon as possible, as if only in this way could he obtain spiritual comfort and relief.

In the painting, there is a glass window next to his head, which is a symbol of vulnerability, just like his mind at the moment.

And our Mr. No. 8 still dealt with everyone patiently and refuted their self-obscuring prejudices sharply.

Although he was attacked by almost everyone, this did not affect his calmness.

"If you don't believe the child, why would you believe the woman? She's just like him, isn't she?"

"What if they're wrong? They're only human, and humans make mistakes."

His smile was filled with compassion and his rebuttal was rational.

He seemed to see through the inner world of those who were determined to be guilty, which contained various prejudices. These long-standing prejudices needed him to correct them, and these fragile and manic emotions needed him to channel them.

He is very patient and willing to do the work. He knows that if he succeeds, he will save an innocent young life.

The most prejudiced businessman, the father who was furious from beginning to end, cried hysterically after everyone stood in the "innocent" team.

Did he think of his son whom he had not contacted for a long time?Do you think of the unbearable past?Or is it just that my conscience finally found that I gave up my prejudices?

Yes, it must be the last reason, otherwise how could he say the word "not guilty"?This word that was unspeakable for him and meant another defeat?
He probably also thought of his son and the past, and he wondered if it was time for him to shake hands with them and make peace with them...

Regardless, he finally compromised.

"Prejudice always conceals the truth." This sentence is absolutely true. The seemingly seamless personal and material evidence became vulnerable under the careful scrutiny of the jury members.what is the reason?It's all about prejudice. Prejudice exists all the time in our lives. People always criticize others from the moral high ground, but they don't realize that those noble ideas are actually prejudice.I usually like to read some jokes about cheating. Once a car owner is entangled by a cheater, it is difficult to get away, because there will always be a group of people surrounding the car owner, pointing fingers at the car owner, and even wanting to seek justice. .

Isn't this the result of prejudice? When you see someone falling in front of a car, you will naturally think that the car hit the person, and then start to stand on the moral high ground and start criticizing the other person. Are they really qualified?We often have prejudices about going to school. I used to take the bus to school in the morning, and many students had to rush to school with me. The bus was very crowded. A middle-aged man complained to the people next to him: "Those XX High school students, why should they arrive at school so early after being admitted to that kind of high school? It would be better to arrive later and make room for us students who work and go to good schools.”

This is prejudice. Maybe others just failed in the exam and did not go to a good high school. However, these remarks regard everyone in this school as defective products with defective learning ability. This is not an act from the high moral ground. Criticism, does he have this right?Can he define others casually like this?

I personally hate being labeled. All my other characteristics have been wiped out, leaving only a few defined labels. So what is the meaning of my existence?Are you constantly being labeled by others?Are all the efforts being made just to change other people's perceptions of me?No one would agree, but in reality we are driven and blinded by prejudice all the time, and gradually lose our humanity and self, leaving only the labels and definitions given by others.

In fact, our lives are filled with all kinds of prejudices, and there are people full of hostility and resentment everywhere.

Those parents who have no understanding of their children, speak ill of them, and hurt each other in their children's lives and education;

Those who arbitrarily judge a stranger based only on wealth, location, appearance, education, age, and occupation;

Those who dictate other people's lives, as if they will curl their lips and roll their eyes if they don't live according to their wishes;
What is the difference between these people and the angry father in the movie?It's just that the battlefield has been changed and the object of the battle has been changed.

They always have a tendency: I am right.

There are even those who are crawling in the mire of darkness and suffering in the karmic fire of hell. They cannot see the sunshine in their own hearts, so they only think about how to force others into a blind corner and pull them into darkness.

The troll keyboard warriors who hide on the Internet, unscrupulously exude their black energy where no one else can see them.They scold whoever they catch, they criticize whoever they find unpleasant, and they never care about other people's feelings. Little do they know that words are also a knife that can kill people without blood. Or they have always known it, but they don't care, because it's not the one who is going to jail anyway. Own.

In fact, what jury members and keyboard warriors have in common is that they have nothing to do with themselves.

The difference is that they are real people sitting there discussing, while the keyboard warriors are hiding behind the Internet, but in fact, they all have the same prejudices.

Just like Juror No. 3 and Juror No. 10, they poured out their prejudices and anger during the discussion, and it turned out to be a place for them to vent their anger. The case and the defendant turned out to be the outlet for their anger. object.

Similarly, like keyboard warriors, someone is doing the same thing for something!
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(End of this chapter)