Note: This article contains serious spoilers
For viewers who have not yet watched "Parrot Killing", perhaps they should first adjust their expectations. Although this film is based on the theme of "pig killing plate", it is by no means a "fun movie" and there is no so-called "anti-killing". This film doesn't even have a strong plot. The camera always focuses on the psychological state of the main characters. Therefore, it seems that there is nothing wrong with treating this film as a literary film.
This may also be doomed, and the audience's evaluation of this film will inevitably become polarized. If you are willing to follow the camera and immerse yourself in the world of images, you will be able to get the complex human nature and life situations in this film; if you are not interested in the slow pace and literary narrative, you will feel "stuffy" and "boring".
But this just shows the biggest feature of the film - it is ambiguous and ambiguous. This ambiguity and richness not only point to the emotions in the film, but also point to life outside the film.
Stills from "Parrot Killing", Zhou Dongyu as Zhou Ran
In the opening part, a conversation between Pang Ning, played by Li Meng, and the "Expert" has already laid the foundation for the entire movie: After walking at night for too long, everyone will look forward to the bright light ahead - lonely people will long for companionship, This is a common emotional need and a common emotional dilemma for human beings. In other words, this film has an allegorical nature from the beginning. It is completely different from the analysis of specific cases of telecommunications fraud in "All or Nothing", but an exploration and analysis of universal human nature.
If you don't understand this, you will continue to misunderstand the film. For example, why is the protagonist Zhou Ran, played by Zhou Dongyu, an intellectual woman, so easily deceived and giving away half a million yuan in vain? Why can Lin Zhiguang, played by Zhang Yu, and Xu Zhao, played by Zhang Youhao, be able to deceive the trust of so many women by relying on simple "local love words"? Many netizens are baffled by this, but at least in this film, the logic of these questions is established - even if you are as smart as Zhou Ran, even if you are as cunning as Lin Zhiguang, you still have the desire for emotion deep in your heart.
This leads to the central conflict of the film. How do we judge whether the feelings before us are true or false? This is the meaning of the title of the film "Parrot Killing" - when the parrot swings its left and right feet, it gives completely opposite answers. Which one should we believe?
A still from "Parrot Killing", Li Meng plays Pang Ning
It is not difficult to find that all the characters in this film are eager to find the certainty of "choosing one of the two", but in fact, they are all in the "middle state" of the two. Zhou Ran came from afar with the purpose of "revenge" and "punishment" on Lin Zhiguang, but in his heart he also had the desire to confirm how much true love there was in his lost love; Lin Zhiguang was a master at playing with emotions, and he always planned to deceive Zhou Ran's love. However, when Zhou Ran wanted to take him back to his hometown, he unconsciously fell in love with him; The reason; Pang Ning seemed to want to use the most intense and determined way to retaliate against Xu Zhao who had deceived her, but when she met Xu Zhao who fell to the ground in a car accident, the complexity in her eyes betrayed everything.
The most exciting scene in the film is when Zhou Ran, Lin Zhiguang, and Xu Zhao play truth or dare in the room. Say two sentences, one true and one false. If they are recognized, they will fail. But even they themselves cannot tell whether what they blurt out is the truth or a lie. Everyone is exchanging "truth" and "deception". ".
Stills from "Parrot Killing", Zhang Yu plays Lin Zhiguang
At this point, we can also see the strong literary nature that Shuang Xuetao has injected into this film after serving as the producer. Life does not have so many "certainties". If Lin Zhiguang successfully leaves the country with the smuggling gang, then Zhou Ran's so-called "revenge plan" will be completely in vain; life does not have so many "certainties". When Xu Zhao told Lin Zhiguang to "give the money "Take away and leave Zhou Ran behind", he thought he could control the situation just as he did when he deceived women before, but it turned out that the ending left to them in life was just chaos.
Perhaps, the only thing we can grasp in life is the "now". The discussion of "forever" between Zhou Ran and Lin Zhiguang, who reunited in a taxi, revealed the essence of "Parrot Killing" mixed with love and hatred - loving you forever does not refer to "time", but "degree" , when we say we love you forever, we mean we love you very much at this moment. In other words, this is exactly Shuang Xuetao's view of life - everyone is suffering from the "non-extreme one-way" choices, ranging from the direction of life to the feelings of dedication. No one can escape from this. Pain, this is the truth of life.
Stills of "Parrot Killing"
According to the consistent characteristics of Shuang Xuetao's novels, the movie should have ended at the moment when Lin Zhiguang tossed the coin at the train station - the next moment in life is always like the two sides of the coin, unpredictable. Or, the movie should end at the moment when Lin Zhiguang and Zhou Ran gradually get closer in front of the train window - only in these 15 minutes, they are enjoying the fleeting purity and reality of love.
But maybe, the ending of the movie also has a special charm. When Zhou Ran looked at Lin Zhiguang who had been brought to justice through the train window, her expression did not contain the relief and the joy of "revenge", because she understood that this journey of finding her "lover" was confusing. Lu failed to provide a definite answer to her life, but instead made herself become another "truth liar" to a certain extent.
Just like the bank card that Zhou Ran left for Lin Zhiguang at the station had a dual purpose - both to keep him by his side sincerely, and to seize the evidence he left behind. Which purpose is true and which purpose is false? At this moment, Zhou Ran probably couldn't tell the difference either.
Perhaps, the person who was "killed" by the "parrot" was Zhou Ran who was intoxicated when telling the sweet past of online dating with Lin Zhiguang; it was Lin Zhiguang who knew that the road ahead would be fruitless, but still packed his bags and waited for Zhou Ran at the station; it was Lin Zhiguang who put on his clothes Xu Zhao, who couldn't tell the red or green scarf, ran all the way trying to catch up with Zhou Ran; it was Pang Ning who was standing at the beach waiting for the "liar lover" to appear and push him into the sea... Of course, there is still no way to break through You and me with human limitations and emotional tragedy.
Stills from "Parrot Killing", Zhang Youhao plays Xu Zhao
"Parrot Killing" has no educational significance, but only provides motivation for us to re-understand life and examine ourselves. Some people say it is "Burning Winter" plus, which means that it is as boring and ugly as the latter. It's probably not the audience's fault. At a time when ordinary people are accused of "not working hard enough" by Li Jiaqi for no reason, people probably no longer have the leisurely interest to pay attention to their own living conditions and emotional orientation.
It's no wonder that "Parrot Killing" uses "pig-killing plate" and "love brain" as selling points, and "Burning Winter" uses "love triangle" as a gimmick. In a sense, this is also the tragedy of the times.
