tearjerker director

Chapter 1630 Flowers Blooming from Suffering
"Little Shoes" is not a commercial blockbuster, but an extramarital affair film. It can be said that if it weren't for Li Yi's fame, this movie would have hardly been released in theaters.

And even if it was released, there wouldn't be that many screenings, but it was enough for a movie like this.

The feedback from movie fans is still very good.

"Everything is just as the introduction says, and nothing goes beyond this story. Director Li Yi knows how to tell a touching story well, and only focuses on the story. Ali's tears, his silent expression when he won the award, and the final climax are quite touching. It's really the acting skills that only a child from heaven can have. It makes people have to imagine that maybe this is really a true documentary. The most beautiful run!"

“I’ve seen the best running performance in a movie – running silently.”

"Young love is pure and crystal clear. I think this is one of the themes of this movie. Of course, if you live with dignity, you can still have such a quiet and happy life. The movie gives adults many perspectives that they cannot see to view the world!"

"Ali's running was not about life and death, but about moving family love. I really like the director's final upscaling process, where the background sound was completely replaced by Ali's breathing, pure and simple. The price of a pair of sneakers in the film is not as much as a set of stationery. Fortunately, the father finally bought a new pair of shoes for the kind-hearted brother and sister. Fortunately, it is a relatively "happy" ending."

"Director Gou understands movies, especially the class differences in the movie. Ali's family is extremely poor, so what are the rich doing? The dean who can fire students at will is reasonable; the left-behind family living in a single-family house, the children know how to share, and the elderly are very kind. However, the landlord who scolded Ali's mother for using too much water when washing clothes at the beginning of the film built a large pool in the middle of the yard just to raise a few goldfish. The goldfish approached Ali's wounded feet, swaying leisurely. This is the last shot of the movie."

"Poverty is such a terrible enemy that even the smallest wave can turn into a huge one. The moment the brakes failed was more frightening than any Hollywood blockbuster. I always feel that once poverty becomes commonplace, any joy in life seems like a joke. The camera always jumps between the rich and the poor. Even with a gentle tone, it is still cruelly realistic. But fortunately, despite the difficulties, the brother and sister can still preserve their precious kindness and tolerance. I especially like the little girl Sarah, and I don’t want her to suffer any grievances because of her understanding. The ending is really good."

"Many people don't have a good impression of Iran, and the movies they watch are all satirical movies. Perhaps the reason why people have such a bad impression of this country is that their directors always like to make movies that satirize class conflicts and expose social problems. Director Li Yi taught them a lesson very seriously. It turns out that movies don't need satire, confrontation, or preaching. This movie is as always in the style of Director Li Yi. When the boy told his sister that his shoes were lost for the first time, I cried. When the sister dropped her shoes into the ditch and chased the water, I cried again. I deeply understand the feeling of the sky falling. I don't know whether it is overrated or not. I only know that this movie, which is far away and has alienated ethnic groups, is so close to my heart."

"We have nothing, and we have no intention of giving up. Many times, we may just be pursuing something that some people disdain, because this world is inherently unfair, but the struggle and growth in the pursuit, and the joy when we get the shoes in our hearts, are things that no one can take away from us."

“It is a simple, peaceful and clean life film. Although it presents the ups and downs of the Iranian people, it is not sentimental or artificial, and does not sell suffering or exaggerate class contradictions. The performances of the young actors are real and natural, and the various side plots and details with ethnic characteristics make the film exciting enough. The street running and racing sections are textbook-level filming, and the ending with the goldfish kissing the boy's feet is quite Zen-like.”

It can be said that this movie truly received rave reviews.

Larry Brown, a famous Hollywood film critic, also wrote a long review for this film: "To be honest, many of my impressions of Iran come from news reports and their movies.

The impression we have of Iran is war, oil, backwardness, poverty and so on. The same is true for the films of this country. There are many outstanding directors emerging internationally, but their films always give people the feeling that they are blindly satirizing, exposing and expressing various dissatisfactions, making people sincerely feel, oh, so this is what their country is like!

But this time, the miracle director from China taught them a lesson.

In fact, as for the perception of China and the impression of Chinese films, in the late 1990s and early 21st century, it can be said that to some extent they are no different from Iran.

At that time, I had never been to China. My impression of it was that it was a mysterious and ancient country. At that time, the Internet was not as developed as it is now. Many of us even thought that they still had long braids. We didn't know that their economy was developing rapidly, and there were tall buildings everywhere. There were even many cities that were no less beautiful than ours.

Back to the movie, after watching the movie "Little Shoes", I remember the clear eyes of the two little actors.

The film begins with a long shot showing the process of repairing shoes, and it is made clear from the beginning that this is a story about shoes. The film mainly tells the story of a poor family in Iran, where the elder brother Ali lost his sister's shoes. In order for his sister to have shoes to wear to school, the brother and sister took turns wearing a pair of shoes to school. In a competition, the third place winner could get a pair of sneakers, but by chance the elder brother came first. In the end, Ali's feet were soaked in water, and a group of fish swam over to kiss his feet...

As a film with a strong narrative, the number of music appearances is relatively small, but it should not be underestimated. Most of the music used in this film is pure music with a cheerful rhythm. For example, the process of the brother and sister washing shoes and blowing bubbles is accompanied by light music, which can not only show the cherishment of the two children, but also reflect the innocence of children of their age. For example, the sister looks at everyone's shoes on the playground. The use of subjective shots and soothing music can make the viewer directly realize the importance of shoes to the little girl. There are also slightly sad and helpless lyrical music in the film, such as the father and son on the way back from the gardening work, because of brake failure, they hit a tree and were pulled home by a truck. The camera first is a panoramic view and then a long shot. On the highway, the father and son seem so out of place. From the father's eyes, we can read deep helplessness.

This movie can be said to make people laugh and cry, and be moved and comforted.

First of all, the great family love permeates the whole film. Family love is the most inseparable and the greatest emotion for people.

There are also the children's unyielding pursuit and the belief of never giving up. More importantly, the director's humanistic care for the people at the bottom of society restores the face of society itself. I have always believed that watching a movie can not only understand the customs and folkways of a country or a region, but also make one's heart feel and emotions sublimate. I am very puzzled why the director's intention is to focus on shoes that are inconspicuous to us. After watching the whole film, I can see from the scene of the brother and sister running that in such an underdeveloped and closed country, boys and girls are separated in school. Girls must not only be wrapped tightly from head to toe, but also wear headscarves. After unifying the whole body, there are only shoes for you to choose, which is a symbol of sovereignty and freedom. There is also a touching clip that can reflect the goodness of human nature. Dad is making candy, and mom asks if there is any more at home? No, but don't take one, because it is for sacrifice...

Perhaps it is the director's concern for these humanities and his praise for the goodness of human nature that makes the film so unique.

Shoes are magical necessities of life. Those who are barefoot and those who wear shoes are naturally divided into two social classes. Even within the shoe-wearing class, the differences in shoe materials, workmanship, prices and maintenance conditions all clearly expose the status, power, wealth and even family relationships of the shoe owner.

In terms of theme, "Little Shoes" does not focus on the romantic supremacy of right and wrong thinking and expression as mentioned above. This Iranian film focuses on reality, small mortals, love and commitment in an almost pure attitude and method. Although the focus and care on beautiful human nature and universal values ​​is not surprising, any work that can be called a classic cannot escape this. From this perspective, "Little Shoes" is also one of the best role models.

In terms of story expression, "Little Shoes" adheres to realism to the extreme. The film begins with a description of suffering, showing the audience what the little boy Ali and his family do in the face of their miserable fate.

The more ordinary the suffering, the more tormenting it is. This so-called ordinary suffering is composed of the three most powerful negative forces in the world: poverty, disease and accidents. The nine-year-old boy Ali lives in this ordinary suffering. The movie describes the poverty and distress of the whole family through the development of the plot. The father works hard outside to make a living for the whole family, and the mother is plagued by illness and has to take care of everything at home. The little boy Ali lost his sister Sarah's only pair of pink girls' shoes because of an accident. The family's financial situation cannot tolerate such an accidental loss. Ali had to beg his sister to hide the matter from their parents. For this reason, the brother and sister had to take turns wearing Ali's pair of worn-out sneakers to go to school.

The creation of dramatic conflicts is methodical and reasonable. From then on, the lives of the brother and sister are controlled by a pair of shoes. The two children have to endure the disrupted lives and the constant misunderstandings. In order to take turns wearing shoes to go to school, every day of life becomes a relay race.

In fact, Sarah's shoes were not really missing. The brother and sister found and tracked down the shoes. At the corner of the wall, they witnessed the situation of the little girl's family of three who got the shoes. The father of the family was blind and the family lived in even more desperate poverty. The shot of Ali and Sarah looking at each other was so great, and the performances of the two untrained young actors were equally great. A kind of pure kindness made the brother and sister give up the idea of ​​pursuing the shoes. Every expression of Ali and Sarah was so convincing. This scene is one of the essences of the whole movie, and it is an important transition link in the plot. Ali has given up the idea of ​​finding the shoes, and the brother and sister and the whole family will be pushed to another line by fate.

After the film shows the piety of the poor through a religious activity, Ali's father seems to have good luck because of his honesty and piety. First, someone funded Ali's father with a set of gardening tools so that he could get a relatively better-paid gardening job. Then the father and son even got a job in the garden and were treated well by a kind-hearted rich family. More importantly, the reward given by the rich exceeded the father and son's expectations. So on the way home, the father and son began to admire the changes in their future family life. The father dreamed of bringing more things to the family, while the little boy had only one wish: to buy a new pair of shoes for his sister Sarah.

The father carried the little boy on his bicycle, and both of them had smiles on their faces. However, unfortunate fate struck again. When going down a steep slope, the father and son could not control the bicycle with broken brakes, and crashed into a big tree. The father was injured and missed work, and Ali's wish to buy a pair of shoes for his sister was about to be dashed. When he returned home at night, the injured father and the sick mother were discussing the landlord's demand for rent. Ali, who pretended to sleep, turned his back to his parents and listened to them discussing this hurdle. The close-up shot showed a pair of eyes full of fear and worry for his family.

The film's narrative is straightforward, with few clues and well-organized handling. The film's lens language is plain and unadorned, but full of fascinating magic.

The brother and sister who took turns wearing shoes to school were still running like a relay race. Ali's shoes were the baton, and through its passing, life continued to run. Of course, fate does not always tear up beautiful things to perform real tragedies. Ali's school announced a good news that the city's elementary school long-distance running competition had begun preliminaries, and the final prizes were generous. The champion prize was a three-week holiday camp and sportswear, the runner-up prize was a two-week holiday camp and a set of stationery, and the third place prize was a one-week holiday camp and a pair of sneakers.

Ali's eyes were full of the pair of sneakers that he won as the third place prize. This was the best chance for him to fulfill his promise to his sister. Ali begged the PE teacher to give him a chance to sign up, and the PE teacher gave him a chance to try running. The weak Ali started running on the playground for the first time, and the background music brought a cheerful melody. As the audience, we were moved to tears by the melody.

The plan went in the direction Ali hoped for. He finally stood on the finals. The opportunity to fulfill his promise to his sister was within reach. All Ali had to do was run, run with all his strength, and become the third person to reach the finish line. He had a weak but tough physique that poor people generally have, and the experience of running every day. While other children were fighting for honor and victory, he was fighting for his promise and responsibility.

Why shouldn't fate reward this weak but strong soul? After walking on a five-kilometer track paved with wishes and breaths, Ali finally became the first winner to cross the finish line. He became the champion, not the third place. In the flash of the camera, he lowered his head, tears were flowing, and he remained silent amid the cheers of the crowd.

It seemed that fate had once again disagreed with this child whose burden was disproportionate to his actual age.

Ali returned home frustrated and faced his hopeful sister Sarah with unspoken guilt.

Ali took off his completely broken shoes and soaked his feet, which were worn out by long-distance running, in the pool in the middle of the yard. A group of goldfish gathered around him, and the show ended. I couldn't stop crying, not out of cheap sympathy for suffering, but a purely physiological reaction to beautiful things. "

(End of this chapter)