These days, I watched Sophia Coppola's "Under the Peony Flower", which tells the story of a wounded deserter, Mike Bernie (Colin Farrell), who was found by a girl in the woods during the American Civil War and brought back to the girls' boarding school for treatment.
During this extraordinary time, the school becomes empty, and only a few girls and women remain here, including the patriarch Miss Martha (Nicole Kidman), the sedate and reliable teacher Edwina (Kerstin Dunst), and alicia (Ellie Fanning), who is in the age of lust.
This movie has several interesting points to watch:
1. Three states in which a woman faces lust:
The three protagonists in the film present the three states of women at different stages of life: Miss Martha was married but still has charm, Edwina has a traditional, gloomy and innocent and gentle personality, and Alicia is in her youth, and lust and rebellion erupt together.
In the film, they each use their own perspective to interpret the ambiguous feelings between them and this foreign man, whether it is pretending to be calm, wanting to refuse to welcome or boldly teasing, which is very intriguing. The most interesting thing is that the innocent and cute Ellie Fanning was sent to play the carnal role, and the contrast was eye-catching.
2. Sophia Coppola's gloomy and feminine world:
Sophia Coppola's father is the famous "Godfather" director Francis Ford Coppola, in the family she grew up in a very large proportion of men, so in many interviews, Sophia Coppola mentioned that perhaps because of this growth background, she especially loves to create hazy female beauty.
Films such as "Pearlescent", "The Death of a Virgin" to "The Queen of Perfection" all use a distinct but distinct artistic aesthetic to present a strong "femininity", and the same is true of this new film "Under the Peony Flower".
Filmed in the best preserved 19th-century classical Greek architecture in the United States, the huge white stone pillars are mysterious and elegant in appearance, surrounded by lush forests, the town is full of birds and flowers, and the water vapor is like a gloomy and feminine wonderland on earth.
But behind the background, the dull shell bombardment sound is always heard in the distance, Sophia Coppola also chooses to rely on natural light and candlelight shooting, only occasionally using studio lighting, the tone of the whole film is dark, but a large number of exquisite details such as women's long skirts swinging, pearl necklaces scattered on the ground, exquisitely carved wine pots, etc., and bring the romance of women in a depressed atmosphere.
Some people will criticize Sophia Coppola's films for not being good except for the scene costumes, but I think this is not the case, a large number of artifact costumes and scene details, which accurately hint at a person's values and living habits, which is of great significance.
Moreover, each director has the freedom to choose the way to tell the story, and Sophia Coppola chooses to create an almost closed but complete aesthetic world, and uses sporadic lines and details to bring out strong emotions and plot hints, which is very enjoyable.
3. Black Humor:
"Under the Peony Blossom" is full of gentle and violent aesthetics, and men may be a little uncomfortable watching it, but the timely sense of humor lights up the dull atmosphere.
A group of women originally wore faded old clothes, but because of the arrival of fresh meat men, they instantly changed into the most beautiful clothes, slightly awkward flirting lines and actions, making people feel embarrassed for them at the same time but also can't help but laugh.
In short, people who like Sophia Coppola's narrative style recommend watching this film, but if you are only looking forward to seeing the eight-point erotic drama of spilling dog blood, don't watch it, because the focus of this film is to present the sensitive and delicate inner conflicts of women, not the American version of the harem Zhen Huan.