Note: This article contains spoilers

Several commercial genre films directed by Dapeng all focus on the stories of little people, and "Enthusiasm" is no exception. From the perspective of theme expression, there is a certain continuity between "Enthusiasm" and "Pancake Man" and "Sewing Machine Band". The difference is that "Enthusiasm" is more pure, and Dapeng's storytelling ability has become more proficient.

"Hot" poster

The theme of "Enthusiasm" is very clear-love. This is a common theme word in the inspirational stories of little people, but "Enthusiasm" also tries to make this word appear "novel" in the routine. The protagonist Chen Shuo (played by Wang Yibo) undertakes the task of concretizing "love".

Chen Shuo (played by Wang Yibo)

Almost everyone has something they love. However, not everything we like to do is worthy of the word "love". After all, people are inherently animal and lazy, and those things that cater to human weaknesses, such as Delicious and lazy, blindly indulging in it will only make people degenerate.

When we mention "love", it is often associated with words like "dream". The love we want to achieve often requires going through thorns, suffering, and paying blood and tears. It is also a tempering of ourselves, which can make us We have a better character, to become a better person.

In this age of utilitarianism and pragmatism, there are often specific utilitarian demands behind our love. And how many people have to give up their love in order to live and survive. We cannot say that utilitarian considerations are wrong, survival is always the first; but many times, we forget our original intention because we have gone too far. Including many film and television works, the "love" in the inspirational stories of small characters is unconsciously utilitarian when presented. The protagonist always needs a purpose to have love.

This is the novelty in the expression of "love" in "Enthusiasm". What it wants to portray and describe is a pure love that comes from the heart and is not mixed with other utilitarian demands.

Chen Shuo loves hip-hop, not to fulfill his parents' wishes—although his first knowledge of the stage and dance came from his parents; Chen Shuo loves street dance, not to win a major competition, in exchange A high bonus to repay the family’s debts—although the family was indeed in debt after treating his father’s illness, Chen Shuo has been working hard to make up for the family by doing various odd jobs... In short, he loves hip-hop dancing. Not for profit, not for getting ahead, not for fame, just the purest love, love for the publicity of hip-hop dance, love for every "knock" with the floor, love for the filling of the heart when dancing...

In order to pursue this love, Chen Shuo has never stopped practicing in every interval of part-time work. Not spacious stores, empty subways in the middle of the night, venues where theater troupes go out to perform, and abandoned theater stages are all Chen Shuo's practice On the field, he didn't think it was very difficult at all, he enjoyed it.

Anywhere can be Chen Shuo's stage

When Ding Lei (played by Huang Bo), the coach of the well-known street dance troupe Exclamation Mark, approached Chen Shuo and asked Chen Shuo to help Kevin (played by Casper), the core of the dance troupe, be a substitute during training. accepted.

Chen Shuo didn't think being a stand-in was shameful or hurt his self-esteem at all, because the exclamation point was his dream dance troupe, and he even told Ding Lei that he didn't have to pay any salary. What he thought was, if he performed well, would he There is a chance to stay.

Ding Lei said confusedly, it depends on your performance. Chen Shuo believed it was true, showing a warm and happy smile.

Chen Shuo is eager to stay in the exclamation mark

There is no smooth road once and for all in the life of the little people. Chen Shuo's love will soon face a cruel test. Kevin is not only the core of the dance troupe, but he is also the biggest financial backer of the dance troupe. If he is unhappy, he will directly withdraw from the dance troupe. In order for the dance troupe to survive, Ding Lei had no choice but to accept a commercial performance by a trash can manufacturer, and asked the members of the exclamation point to dress up as trash cans and dance. Ding Lei felt that this was too cheap, and he didn't know how to speak to the members, but Chen Shuo was willing to take the job—he loved exclamation marks, and he wanted to stay.

The more cruel moment was when Kevin returned to the exclamation mark out of jealousy and offered Ding Lei a tempting offer, but there was only one request—to fire Chen Shuo; Ding Lei at this time, the members of the exclamation mark , and already had a deep relationship with Chen Shuo, Ding Lei still decided to give up Chen Shuo out of utilitarian purposes. Even in such a situation of being abandoned, Chen Shuo's first reaction was still to fight for a chance to stay. He said that I could go and apologize to Kevin—even if he never did anything wrong.

Chen Shuo was abandoned

He is true love, pure love, for this love, it doesn't matter how much the body suffers and suffers, even if it means bowing one's head and enduring humiliation...

In real life, people as pure as Chen Shuo are probably not in the majority. In the movie, he is a vivid and specific person. Dapeng gave him a lot of preferences when shaping this role-he is sensible, filial, hard-working, and Wang Yibo, who is very good at street dancing, has more room to play; But at the same time, Chen Shuo is also like an "image" or "symbol", he is the embodiment of that kind of pure love.

As a result, the film has a double connotation. On the first level, it wants to tell the inspirational story of a young man who loves hip-hop; on the second level, it wants to explore the situation and value of love in our era.

It is difficult for people around Chen Shuo not to be attracted by his temperament, pure love has a strong appeal. Therefore, Ding Lei saw his young shadow in Chen Shuo, and he was moved by Chen Shuo's sincerity; therefore, the members of the exclamation point chose Chen Shuo between Kevin who can bring money and future and the pure Chen Shuo.

As the audience, it is actually easier for us to substitute Ding Lei's perspective. Although Chen Shuo is the "soul" of the movie, it is the existence of Ding Lei that really supports the skeleton and flesh and blood of the whole movie. Ding Lei is also the epitome of many small people in real life-we have love, but we are also very utilitarian.

Ding Lei, played by Huang Bo, is the backbone of the movie

This kind of "utility" is indeed forced by survival. To survive, a dance troupe must have a venue, and the venue must have high rents, as well as pay salaries to members... Although the dance troupe earns income from performing outside, it often cannot make ends meet. Therefore, in front of Kevin, the God of Wealth, Ding Lei, who is obviously the coach, has to be like a "grandson", humiliating, nodding and bowing...

After Kevin withdrew his capital, Ding Lei opened a box in the luxurious KTV where his ex-wife (played by Qi Xi) worked, and reunited with his brothers who used to dance street dance together. Let's borrow some money... But the burden of reality has crushed these middle-aged men without exception. They are as difficult as Ding Lei, or even harder.

However, after seeing off the brothers, all three of them in the group transferred 3,000 yuan to Ding Lei and told Ding Lei, "Jump down for us"...

So, when Kevin threw out an attractive offer, Ding Lei succumbed. "The strong make the choice, and the weak are chosen." Sometimes, it seems extravagant for the weak to talk about love.

But "Enthusiasm" still has to give "love" a chance. Ding Lei finally chose Chen Shuo again. A person with pure love is a real "strong man". The most vivid expression. The movie hopes that "love" can touch us outside the big screen like it touched Ding Lei, awaken our original aspirations for the things we love, and feel the power that pure love conveys to us.

So, pure love, do you still have it? Are you still willing to persist?

Dapeng is already a more and more mature director of commercial genre films, and "Enthusiasm" does have a good commercial appearance. It not only has the "burning" of sports genre films and inspirational films of small people, but also embellishes elements such as family affection, teacher-student relationship, friendship, love, etc., and can also bring laughter or tears to the audience; Dapeng has always had a good movie rhythm Feeling, the transition of "Enthusiasm" is quite smooth, there is no obvious link of weakness; the highlight of the hip-hop competition at the end fully utilizes the charm of the film's audio-visual language, even if you don't know hip-hop, you can still be infected by the passionate atmosphere of the competition... …

High-burning hip-hop competition

As a commercial film, there are bound to be various "calculations". The "calculation" of Dapeng's movies is also very clear, but compared to the "chicken thief" of some directors, Dapeng is more sincere. But this kind of "calculation" will inevitably make the movie very purposeful, and many people other than the protagonist will be reduced to functional existence; moreover, there are some elements in the movie, and they appear very well, but many elements are also exhausted. , leaving doubts.

For example, is it necessary for Chen Shuo's love line to exist in the movie? Is Chen Shuo's two-story roast meat shop owned by himself or rented? What is his "history" like, and how can he more accurately express the "poverty" of the little man? Rather than just filming him to do some odd jobs, this may affect the resonance of the film in the sinking market. In the group portrait of the exclamation point, apart from Chen Shuo, how many people can the audience remember? The clip of Ding Lei and his ex-wife is also a frustrated middle-aged man who always has a woman to guard him loyally, so how did he get divorced? and so on.

It's not just a problem that the film is limited and cannot be expanded, but that Dapeng made a commercial film too much like a high-scoring composition, with all the points, but it may not be natural enough when it is connected.

"Enthusiasm" does not hide its flaws. Along the way, isn't Dapeng's filmmaking experience the epitome of "love"? As long as there is that pure love, there will be better possibilities. This is true for both Dapeng and us off-screen.