Almost Buddhist - 戲‧論

★★☆☆☆ 女主角為男主角坐了五年牢，出獄後千里迢迢去找他，重逢當晚問他：覺得世上甚麼東西最重要？他說了一大堆，簡單說就是名利、地位、金錢！女方顯然不同意，在她心中，情義才是最重要的。事實上，人可以沒名沒利沒地位甚至沒錢，都可以活，因為只有人間有情，就能讓人繼續奮鬥下去！試問，無情的人、你想交往嗎？無情的家、你想回嗎？無情的地方、你想呆嗎？無情的世界其實就是地獄，沒有人會想活在地獄裡吧！ 最近聽友人說：人是會長大的！這句話無疑隱含種種無奈和感慨！我們從孩童時期的天真無邪不記仇，被江湖慢慢磨練成世故算計、有仇必報的「君子」，這種無奈的轉變，確實令人心酸！但，我們是不是真的完全沒有選擇？是不是必須變得跟人家一樣奸詐，甚至更狠更絕，才能在這個江湖打滾？「天下無賊」不是說這個世界真的無賊，而是你選擇相信這個世界無賊。「人在江湖，身不由己」也不是先有了個所謂的江湖，才讓你身不由己，而是大家都選擇了身不由己，才成就了奸險的江湖！有人的地方，才有江湖啊，不是嗎？ 電影本身並不可觀！節奏緩慢，劇情沉悶，沒有張力。明明是一部寫實情感片，卻配了科幻片的音樂，古怪突兀，不過還真出乎你意料，劇中真有 UFO 出現！一些明明是嚴肅的場面，卻搞得人哭笑不得，都不知自己在看喜劇還是悲劇！就算是所謂的黑幫片，動作場面當然也不會是重點，因為這是中國新生代導演賈樟柯的作品，他拍的是文藝小眾片，在國際上他是屢屢獲獎的，外國人看可能覺得新鮮，但就真的不是我的那杯茶，唯一欣賞的就只是某些長鏡頭運用和演員演技。 這位仁兄的作品，我想，以後可免了！ 昨天下午，曾經教我下象棋的大姨丈去世了！我記起了他之前經常掛在嘴邊的「四句偈」：春冰薄，人情更薄；登天難，求人更難；黃蓮苦，貧窮更苦；江湖險，人心更險。當初覺得他說的挺對，現在我覺得，人始終是可以選擇不被這個世界改變的，是可以拒絕「長大」的，不是這個世界如何，你就要如何，而是你用甚麼心去看待這個世界。他家是信佛的，但他本人好像並不虔誠，無論如何，願阿彌陀佛慈悲，帶他 ( 暫時 ) 離開這個沒有最凶險只有更凶險的江湖，回歸心中那個清澈高遠的自由的世界，不用再繼續學習「長大」！

★★★☆☆ It’s been a real while, as I’ve become pickier about which film to check out, and there isn’t much I want to say here either, even if I do. These days, people can hardly get by without the Internet. And they don’t seem to need to memorize anything while they have Mr. Google all around to help! Is this a good sign or a bad? The film doesn’t have an opinion about that but like I said, every coin has two sides. Technology, like anything else, is nothing good or evil. It all depends how you look at it and make use of it to either benefit or destroy. No matter what, keep in mind that it’s always you, not things outside you! ‘Searching’ is a crime thriller that somehow feels like a melancholy drama. It’s refreshing and intriguing as the whole event is presented via cameras on various devices like computers, smart phones and TVs. It’s fast paced, and has several plot twists that may not be so much of a surprise after all if you’ve seen films like ‘The Unusual Suspect’ where you...

★★★☆☆ Oh my, I’ve watched all episodes of the series so far though I’m not quite into it as a matter of fact, except for ‘M.I. 1’, which I consider an action spy classic that none of its sequels can surpass! ‘M.I. 2’, ‘3’ and ‘ 4 ’ are handled by different directors in an attempt to, I guess, showcase various styles of action choreography and storytelling, but the outcome is more or less a letdown. ‘M.I. 5’ is more like it but still not as intriguing and gripping! In the latest ‘M.I. 6’ aka ‘Fallout’, Tom Cruise, though much older now, continues to do what he’s best at, daring stunts, on his own, without a double! The series has been concentrating more and more on brawn than brains, which is no longer my cup of tea. Like expected, Cruise is pulling more realistic yet pretty awesome stunts here than ever, and he wastes no time. The two-hour-and-a-half film is basically of action, a (boring) plot twist, action, another (boring) plot twist, action, and a happy ending as usual. Et...

★★☆☆☆ ‘Destination Wedding’ is basically of talk, talk and talk some more, non-stop! And the only ones talking are Winona Ryder’s Lindsay and Keanu Reeves’s Frank. Others are just like cardboard figures in the back being talked about. If you’re fond of a drama of non-stop cynical, sarcastic talks, and awkwardly fun moments at times, this is the film for you. If you’re looking for some sort of romance or sentimentality instead, you might as well skip it. The only reason I checked it out is Keanu Reeves, who appears to be not so amusing as I expected him to be in a comedy after all! I wonder sometimes, why things nowadays like films or stuff have to be made so atypical or unconventional in order just to stand out. What’s wrong about being typical or old school? Why would filmmakers have to make a film as weird and never before seen as possible just to try to please and refresh us in a sense? Why wouldn’t they come up with decent characters telling a decent story? I’m not saying ...

★★☆☆☆ Since I’m kind of immune to horror films or stuff, films that I consider truly scary are very rare. I can’t even remember when was the last time I checked out a real good one! Plus, I always feel like men are a whole lot scarier than ghosts or spirits or any kind in terms of perverted behaviors and perceptions. And as a Buddhist, I don’t believe that ghosts some claim they see sometimes are those from the Hungry Ghost Realm in Buddhism. What they actually see is merely the reflections of their distorted views or thinking. So, what they should really be scared of, or beware of, are not ghosts they see out there, but their own mind inside! The film is highly praised by most critics saying it’s the scariest film of the year! Is it visually scary or gross like most of the horror films out there tend to be? No, I don’t think so! Atmospherically? A little bit! To be honest, I don’t quite get what’s really going on there, but I don’t really care either! It tries to sound scary ...

★★★☆☆ Deadpool tends to make a joke out of almost everything in any situation at any time probably because of his immortality, which could be a curse or a blessing. It all depends how you look at it. If he wasn’t immortal, he wouldn’t be that mad and bitchy I guess. But less bitchy, less fun! I mean, why so serious while everything you know is going to fall apart in the end, and nothing stays indeed! Yet I can’t help but feel a little bit sad considering that everything in this world, not just family that Wade emphasizes in the film, is basically a F-word! But I know it’s no need to be so cynical or melancholy here either, since life is not about what you get in the end. It’s what you give! ‘ Deadpool ’ is not my cup of tea! I don’t know. Maybe it came at a wrong time when I didn’t have the right mood to feel it right, and I have no interest at all to check it out again. This sequel is, I gotta say, much more entertaining and hilarious in light of better action choreography, s...

★★★★☆ If you’re curious, First Reformed is the name of a historical church where Ethan Hawke’s Toller is given a job as a pastor. He looks organized and restrained, but deep down he’s wrestling with his religious beliefs and some unbearable pain from the past. It’s like the film itself where things seem so clean and neat on the surface, but underneath it’s a rather disturbing and twisted story going on! I don’t feel like this is a film intending to provoke with religious and ethical debates though it may sound like it as there’re loads of conversations and narrations about that. It’s more like a story of a broken soul never being able to be unbroken no matter how. Well, I guess you should never have an intention of making the broken unbroken, because you can never undo what’s done no matter how willing you’re to try and sacrifice for it. Suffering happens when you’re not accepting who you are, better or worse, but attempting to be who you once were, and be so called normal aga...

★★★☆☆ In case you wonder, Tully is a night nanny to help Charlize Theron’s Marlo, a mother of two already including a ‘quirky’ one, to take care of her newborn daughter at nights so that she’d have energy to do things in the daytime. Tully is, like Marlo describes to her husband at the first night she comes to help, kind of weird, because she seems to be able to blend in immediately like no stranger at all. She looks too young to be an experienced nanny, yet she’s amicable, enthusiastic, and passionate for what she’s doing. And guess what, she’s willing to do more than just babysitting. Turns out she’s a game changer that’s much of a surprise to the family! I don’t know, ‘Tully’ feels like a heart-warming, delightful, and healing drama to see though it gets us to experience the hardship of motherhood on a daily basis. There’s always an aspect of optimism when things seem to be about to spin out of control and break down or blow up if you will. So, nope, there’s nothing so over...

★★☆☆☆ 別被戲名誤導，〈我想吃掉你的胰臟〉不是甚麼變態恐怖片，相反、是一齣「純愛」戲。甚麼叫「純愛」，就是劇情沒有一絲暴力色情，戲中人沒有丁點邪思歪念，場景多數陽光浪漫，主題絕對正面勵志，而為了增加戲劇性，戲中男女主角某一方預設有絕症或意外，總之有情人終不能成眷屬！也難怪，愛要純，則不能去盡，盡了則不純，因為會慘雜太多的私心計算在其中！如此電視劇般的電影，算不算吸引？不算！有沒存在的必要？絕對有！起碼它提醒我們：做一個好人，永遠都不會太遲！ 如果活著的意義，只是戲中女主角最後所說的那樣，我就覺得未免太過單一狹隘。愛是我們活著的動力，但並非活著的唯一目的。人生的目的到底為何？實在也沒有一個標準答案，因為在人生的不同階段，我們所追求的都不會一樣。很多時候，在還未搞清楚人生到底是怎麼一回事之前，我們就已經被所謂的人生目的累死了！影片拖拖拉拉差不多兩個小時，最後只是為了勸告我們：珍惜眼前人，活在當下。但可悲的是，我們都習慣活在過去或未來，不習慣亦不屑活在當下，所以我們依然憧憬有個人生之目的可以最終完滿，儘管我們可能也知道它是多麼的虛無飄渺！ 原著漫畫在日本大賣，電影票房也大收，動畫版也即將上映。在 IMDB 上，這部電影的評分也算高，證明其實我們都喜歡這類「純愛」電影。作為一個佛子，我堅信：不論我們外在表現出來是何等邪惡，內裡我們壓根兒都是一個天真無邪的小孩，只是這個小孩沉睡了太久，已經不懂得醒來！

Who: Snow Patrol Where: Ireland What: Indie/Alternative Rock When: 2018 Been listening to this album from time to time. And this is not the one you’d have to take just one listen to get hooked up to, since there’s only few catchy tunes but no bulk of catchy songs that Snow Patrol used to come up with in their works like ‘Final Straw’ or ‘Eyes Open’. ‘Wildness’ marks the longest gap since their last studio full-length effort ‘Fallen Empires’ from almost 8 years ago! Well, the longest doesn’t necessarily mean this is the best of theirs of course. There’s one or two songs that I can’t feel connected to no matter how, yet it’s the best album I’ve been listening to so far this year. As I thought they’d probably follow the footsteps of another pop rock band like Coldplay, they’ve proved with ‘Wildness’ that they’re still the Snow Patrol that I used to adore for the sentimentality and sincerity they put into their music!

★☆☆☆☆ ‘Truth Or Dare’ is preposterous! I mean who else knows if you’re telling the truth but you if it’s a secret you keep to yourself, and so what if you don’t do what they dare you to. All right then, to make it not so stupid, here comes the Demon or the Death if you will! And when you wonder, what if they keep choosing ‘Truth’ over ‘Dare’, then they don’t have to do dangerous stunts and get killed, there goes a new rule: there must be a ‘Dare’ after two times of ‘Truth’! Well, the more rules it sets up to execute those kids one by one to try to outsmart and thrill us, the stupider it seems. At times I wonder if I’m watching ‘Final Destination’ instead, which is much better than this in fact, because at least it doesn’t pretend to be as smart. Truth or dare is a stupid game already, and so is the film itself. I dare you to go catch it even if you’re a die hard fan of horror films. Haha!

★☆☆☆☆ I’ve been a fan of Tomb Raider games since I don’t know, probably ‘ TR4: The Last Revelation ’ back in 1999. Whoa, that was almost 20 years ago! It was such a long challenging game indeed that truly exhausted but also amazed me so much! Even the latest reboot of the franchise can no longer give me the thrills that I used to have while playing TR 4, which is the best of the best, hands down! Just because TR games are exhilarating to play doesn’t mean TR films are nice to catch. Like the ‘ Assassin’s Creed ’ film from two years ago that came with a very pleasing trailer but the film itself simply sucks. ‘Tomb Raider’, too, has a very exciting trailer but the film is not at all exciting like expected. The action scenes are casual and dumb. Lara’s change is sudden and awkward. The plot is by no means juicy! ‘ Tomb Raider ’ and ‘ Rise of the Tomb Raider ’ are definitely worth your while, but this film, to be honest, is too carefree to be watchable! ‘ Shadow of the Tomb Ra...

★★★☆☆ 不知那位翻譯戲名的仁兄有沒考究過「鳥獸行」的出處？《周禮‧夏官‧大司馬》：外內亂，鳥獸行，則滅亡。是比喻等同禽獸行為的亂倫。但這齣戲並非講亂倫，而戲中人的行為，我覺得又未達禽獸級令人作嘔，大抵只是各人各取所需罷了。或者你不明白為何他們如此玩殘作賤自己，情況好似明知前面是一幅牆，都選擇撞上去，就算頭破血流，也在所不惜、樂此不疲。這算不算自虐我不清楚，但我知道每個人的業報不同，對同一事物的看法感受也不同，你眼中的賤格爛渣，他人眼中可能是崇高偉大！ 這個世界有 渣男，當然也有渣女。基本上這是一個渣女的故事，她（蒼井優）如何渣，就留待閣下自己去看吧。其實令我覺得有點不舒服的，不是她如何渣，而是就算她渣到不可原諒，就算她的同居男友知道她是這樣，這位男友（阿部貞夫）都選擇對她不離不棄，呵護有加，包吃包住！聽起來是不是有點變態？更加變態的是最後揭盅的真相，以及他對她說的一番話：如果我不能讓你生下孩子，讓你幸福，那你就把我生下來吧。看到這裡，我是起雞皮疙瘩的。愛，有必要如此變態嗎？或者不是他變態，而是我們不明白他們之間的業力糾纏，正如我們不明白英國王子查理斯，當初為何會說，就算要他做情婦卡米拉的衛生棉，他也愿意！愛到盡頭是殘忍，執著盡頭是變態，人與人之間需要的是慈悲，而不是擁有或被擁有！ 愛和慈悲是有分別的。當你看到一朵花，如果你愛它，你會把它摘下來，據為己有；如果你慈悲，你不會想去擁有它、傷害它，只會欣賞它、澆灌它，讓它健康成長。慈悲是真正的「愛」，因為它沒有自私的成分，它給對方的是百分百的自由和幸福。或者你會覺得那位男友最後的做法好似也挺無私，但認真想想，其實那只不過是自私假扮成無私的狡猾而已！

★★☆☆☆ The film’s based on one of the ancient Greek plays where a family member must be sacrificed to save the whole no matter what. It’s like, to be or not to be, make the choice scenario. I don’t know. It reminds me of ‘ Mother ’, a film of religious symbolism that you can interpret however you want it, which is also why I don’t like it. ‘The Killing Of A Sacred Deer’ is much less head-scratching though! You may wonder at first, what’s going on between the doctor and the boy, but no worries, you’ll soon be told about that, and then be quite shocked in the middle to see how sinister and creepy the boy turns. That’s when it starts to turn me off then! What I don’t like about it is, it never explains how the boy manages to get it done (go check out for yourself if you wonder what it is that I’m talking here); and why he’s doing it seems so lame to me as a matter of fact! Maybe we’re not here to expect it to make any sense because we’re unable to make sense of anything after ...

★★★☆☆ I’m sort of immune to horror films. Most of them are like a comedy to me but not this one. ‘A Quiet Place’ is overall decent, sometimes terrifying, potentially a tearjerker to some who value the value of family! It’s more like a melancholy drama than a typical horror film out there. It’s got a smart setup like the one in ‘ Don’t Breathe ’, where you make sounds you get killed! So it basically plays out in silence with mostly sign languages plus subtitles, and very few dialogues. It’d better be seen in a cinema with lights out and respectful audiences around not making a single sound! The film’s overall watchable but there’re head-scratching flaws like how come a sister would carelessly leave her little brother behind to do what he wants without making sure that the toy is safe for him to play; why the parents are still risking to have a baby afterwards knowing that it would inevitably cause them so much trouble and danger; how come they even bother to take precautions wh...

★★★★☆ 這部俄羅斯電影確實令人難受。難受的其中一個原因是它的拍攝手法，有別於時下節奏明快、緊張刺激的商業電影。電影裡充斥長鏡，而很多長鏡都是長時間的寂靜畫面，煽情鏡頭極少，看似沉悶，但當你慢慢沉溺，細心感受的時候，你會驟然覺得震撼非常，情況好似漸漸失去麻醉藥效的手術傷口，開頭好像沒有什麼，但你會感覺它越來越痛！ 難受另一個原因是它的題材。故事講述一個男孩的雙親正在搞離婚，目的是為了落實各自心目中「真正的幸福」！男孩本是不討好的「意外產物」，在此情況下，他成為雙親的「氣袋」。在一次雙親激烈爭吵之後，痛哭流涕的他決定不再回到這個無愛的家。於是，本來已反目成仇的雙親，被迫一起配合警方尋找失蹤的兒子……我不知道過程中他們是帶著多少的悔恨，而最終的結果又為他們帶來多少的反省，事件有沒有令他們變成一個「比較好」的人……或者當你永遠失去一樣東西的時候，才來悔恨、才來反省、才來開始懂得珍惜，其實又有何用？ 導演運用令人難受的拍攝技巧，拍出一個令人難受的故事，抨擊了個人主義膨脹，缺乏愛和關懷的現代社會！就連電影裡頭那些本來可能會令人面紅耳赤的性愛鏡頭，看上去也覺得噁心。沒錯，的確令人有點作嘔的感覺，因為我看到的不是甚麼高潮或浪漫，而是悲慘和顛倒的輪迴！ 有時細心想想，就會發覺這個現代社會其實越來越畸形變態。你發脾氣罵人的時候，你又要求被你罵的人冷靜；你對人吝嗇，但你又想人家對你慷慨；你對人冷漠，但你又期望人家對你熱情；你自私，但又期望人家無私；你自己都沒有愛，但又抱怨這個社會沒有愛！人人都想得到幸福，但為何好似人人尋尋覓覓一生，到了最後一刻都覺得沒有得到？孰不知真正幸福的是在你放下「自我」和「貪婪」之後！有人說這是只有在俄羅斯才會發生的典型故事，但我覺得電影裡頭的那種冷漠是普世的！其實不是一個地方讓人變得怎樣，而是有怎樣的人就會造就出怎樣的地方！與其抱怨這個世界沒有愛，不如你先撫心自問：自己是不是一個有愛的人？ 這是一齣令人悲痛的電影！但悲傷的情緒是不是完全沒有價值？一味追求開心是不是就是正常？或者悲傷過，你才更加懂得珍惜開心的時刻，但也不要忘記，你之所以會悲傷，是你曾經開心過！悲傷和開心其實是一體的兩面，太過逃避側重一面都不是正確的人生態度。「悲觀負面」電影如〈雙親不相愛〉者，不是完全沒有意義的，至少，它讓我反省並下定決心，要做一個有愛...

★★★☆☆ Simply put, if not for money, nothing would’ve happened here. No doubt money would make you feel safe but it could also be quite destructive when you just want to keep it safe, or you feel like you need more of it than necessary. Some say money is the root of all evil, but you know it never is. It’s the way of thinking so that is! Nothing is going to hurt as long as you don’t feel attached to it. You use money but it’ll start to feel like the other way round when you get greedy! The thing is, you’re actually losing control when you think you have it! I don’t know since when Liam Neeson became an action hero! Probably since he was ‘ Taken ’. I don’t know why either, he’s been so addicted doing it ever since, as in fact he could pull off so well in serious dramas like ‘Schindler’s List’. I’m not implying that ‘The Commuter’ sucks here. On the contrary, it’s quite a decent piece of entertainment where supposedly an easy catch of cash turns out a pretty ugly conspiracy! The ...

★★★★☆ This is a horror film disguising as a love story! It seems romantic, graceful and elegant but the core of it is indeed very sick! Not that there’s any ghosts or spirits to scare the shit out of you, but as the truth gets revealed in the end, you’ll feel like throwing up a bit as it sort of contradicts what you think it is. It’s no doubt a perfect demonstration of madness and cruelty of love going pathetically extreme and dangerous, pushing the so-called S&M to a whole new level and therefore making ‘Fifty Shades’ look like child’s play! To be honest, if not for Daniel Day-Lewis, I wouldn’t have checked out such a film. ‘Phantom Thread’ is a story about a renowned dress designer who deliberately prevents himself from getting into serious relationships so as to keep his inspirations running, till later on he comes across a waitress who is destined to turn his world upside down and his guts inside out! I have a bad taste in fashion but the film doesn’t leave a bad taste...

★★☆☆☆ ‘Lady Bird’ is a coming of age story that well, gives me no tears or pleasure or anything that I expected from it in the first place. There’s a moment or two with songs playing in the back that seemed to be stirring up my emotions but it didn’t last long enough to allow me to feel it so. Again, I guess it’s not the film itself. It’s just me that my senses have been dulled by trying to stay in the comfort zone for too long, and keep up a decent life like I’m expected to! The film, though it seems totally irrelevant, reminds me of one of the quotes from ‘Fortress Besieged’, the one and only marvelous novel by the highly respected Qian Zhongshu, ‘Marriage (not just marriage as you might’ve already figured) is like a fortress besieged. Those who are outside want to get in. Those who are inside want to get out’. It’s a hopeless truth that we all kind of live in contradictions to and fro. We want attentions but at the same time we don’t like to be disturbed. We all want to be ...

★★☆☆☆ 一部 2D 國產動畫長片，說長不長，也就七十幾分鐘，就算剪成六十分鐘其實也無礙故事的表達。當中有很多靜止畫面，和一兩段令人摸不著頭腦的「無聊」過場，嚴肅得來帶點荒謬詼諧的對白，加上線條簡單粗暴至極的畫風，如此有風格的動畫，確實並非人人那杯茶！故事講述一袋錢引發的血案風波，交織幾個人物的命運，點出「你改變命運，還是命運改變你」的主題。 有人說這是塔倫天奴〈 Pulp Fiction 〉的動畫版，我覺得是名過其實。可能外國人喜歡，因為他們未曾見過這麼「有型」的中國動畫，而事實上中國又好似真是未曾出產過這麼「有型」的動畫。但如果你說〈大世界〉的背景很有中國特色，可能我有留意國情，也見慣不怪了；你說當中的對白很絕、很黑色、很幽默，我只是覺得無聊加無奈，而且真的很悶；你說敘事很巧妙，可能這類命運交集的劇本看多了，也覺得沒甚麼新奇。唯一欣賞其中的音樂和音效，在開頭的時候確實帶給我少許期望！若然你對黑色喜劇感冒，多年前的〈瘋狂的石頭〉你反而真的應該試試！ 電影裡頭說，當一個人貪念起，他就已經失去了自由！這是真理，當大家忙於追求自由的時候，都沒有覺悟到「追求自由」本身也是一種「貪」！越想得到自由，你就是離自由越遠。人人都想控制自己的命運，但就是這種「想控制命運」的「貪」令人反過來被命運控制。真正改變命運的方法，其實就是覺悟並沒有所謂的命運你可以去控制或改變。是不是覺得好像在講廢話？沒錯，真理就是如此簡單，簡單到大家都覺得很廢，因此人人都去追求複雜，到頭來就成為命運的奴隷，包括我！