Chapter 652 A pot of hot porridge was thrown into chaos, utter chaos.
On the same night that the film editor published this lengthy film review, another prominent film critic named Wu Alu also published a nearly 3,000-word review, launching a comprehensive and multi-faceted attack on the film "The Forest Without Flowers." Of those 3,000 words, nearly 2,000 were dedicated to attacking the character Zhao Lele.
[A film with a lesbian theme, yet the main protagonist is a villain who harms women. In *The Forest Without Flowers*, all kind, intelligent, strong, and gentle women meet tragic ends; while the selfish, foolish, malicious, and wicked protagonist manages to live a peaceful life after sacrificing others…]
[The film obliterates female solidarity and exaggerates the abuse and mutual harm among women. It forcibly imposes traits not belonging to women—such as bestiality, the Oedipus complex, abuse of power, selfishness, and tyranny—on the individual character of Zhao Lele to create a spectacle of female abuse!]
We can't help but ask, whose perspective did the director adopt? All I see is a self-centered tyrant, doing everything in her power to destroy everyone who loves, protects, and tries to save her. I don't intend to criticize the actress, but after playing heroic figures like Xiao Fengque and Li Yiming, who exemplify patriotism and dedication to their country, and Ye Xiaochu in "Happiness Street," who shows compassion for the weak and vulnerable, Ye Chu's acceptance of the director's choice to play such a viral character is nothing short of a significant regression in aesthetic appreciation.
The most ridiculous thing is that I didn't sense any pity from the director for the character Zhao Lele through her lens. This is a film that refuses to atone for its protagonist. Generation after generation of directors have tried their best to correct the image of sexual minorities in films, finally establishing a normal impression of sexual minorities in the audience: warmth, mutual help, supporting each other in the mire, but never giving up the fight. Luo Yao, however, uses the character Zhao Lele to demonize this group again. It's a complete reversal of film history. My rating: ★★☆☆☆
Following this, another film critic with millions of followers, Canghai Yisheng, shared his insights on "The Forest Without Flowers":
[A left-wing film, a truly left-wing film… Those in high positions are evil, and the higher they are, the more evil they become. Only in the lower classes can we see the virtues of humanity. The choir women are like sparrows kept by Zhao Cheng; logically, according to many films and television dramas, they should be jealous and scheming against each other. But the truth is quite the opposite; they love each other deeply and are united in spirit. When Zhao's mansion collapses like a towering building, these women bid each other farewell with tears in their eyes and flee this den of iniquity…]
The servants at the Zhao mansion looked down on Lin Fengyu because they felt she lived by selling her body, while they themselves were able to support themselves, thus making them superior. This reflected the progressive idea that labor was superior to selling oneself. The self-combed women's act of taking in Lin Fengyu and Zhao Lele was a heartwarming act of mutual assistance among the lower classes. Later, however, the self-combed women respected Lin Fengyu but looked down on Zhao Lele because Lin Fengyu was a laborer, while Zhao Lele was lazy and unwilling to work.
Lin Fengyu successfully transformed from a seller of flesh to a laborer, and thus earned respect. Zhao Lele, the parasite, failed in this transformation and was naturally abandoned by the laborers. "Labor is the most glorious"—such sincere and familiar words… In an industry that increasingly emphasizes bloodlines, the idea that someone is born noble, and that poverty breeds cunning while wealth breeds conscience, how rare is this?
The noble Zhao Cheng was ugly—hypocritical, corrupt, a predator of men and a tyrant of women, committing despicable acts in the name of purity. Zhao Cheng's colleagues were ugly; outwardly amicable, they pounced on him like hyenas after his death, devouring his estate and dividing his family's property. General Qian, wielding immense power, was ugly; the pampered Zhao Lele was ugly. Their ugliness was as natural as the beauty of their servants and the self-combing women…
[The Zhao Mansion, the Zhao Mansion, why is the Zhao family surnamed Zhao? Zhao, Qian, Sun, Li, Zhao is the first in the Hundred Family Surnames. Because the author of the Hundred Family Surnames was a Song Dynasty person, and Zhao was the surname of the reigning emperor. One character tells the whole story. "The Forest Without Flowers" is about class struggle, and the Zhao Mansion is a miniature dynasty.]
The brilliance of *The Forest Without Flowers* lies in this: it doesn't glorify Zhao Lele's oppressive nature simply because she's a woman. Class transcends gender—that's only natural. I noticed a detail in the film. After the downfall of the Zhao mansion, the choir women could only passively await their "dealing," plotting their escape with barely concealed danger. But the maids of the Zhao mansion only needed to pack their bags, their faces full of sorrow, yet freely went to find their next job.
The banners of power change on the city walls, but only through labor can one break free from the shackles of oppression. The maids, through labor, were able to break free from their constraints; the self-combing women, through labor, were able to live in a paradise; and Lin Fengyu, through labor, no longer needed to be subservient to his lover Zhao Lele, constantly trying to please her.
[What I regret is that Ye Chu's interpretation was slightly lacking. As a symbol of class oppression, she portrayed Zhao Lele as perhaps too endearing. If she had approached the role with a critical eye, depicting Zhao Lele's cruelty and ugliness as much as possible, it would have been more meaningful. If the film had offered a glimmer of hope at the end, such as the self-combing women's successful resistance and Lin Fengyu leading them to escape to another place, it would have been more inspiring. For this reason, I can only give "The Forest Without Flowers" an 8.5 out of 10. My rating: ★★★★☆]
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