I can't believe that this movie is from a Chinese female director! I didn't know about Zhao Ting's life experience, I just thought that her choice of the theme of western cowboy was a new way and her courage was commendable. The South Dakota under her lens has both the desolate and vastness of traditional western films, and the warmth of women only, and the use of natural light in a beautiful poetic way has left a distinct author's mark. Even more prominent is the use of non-professional actors, with real people playing themselves, in a documentary style that blends in with fictional narratives. If David Gordon Green's "Life Is Stronger" was to expand the biography with an antihero, this "Knight" is a documentary-style reinterpretation of the Western. Both films share similar themes, an accidental and traumatized male protagonist, and narratives revolving around broken family ties. However, this one is even better because of the non-professional actors' performances. It is difficult to tell whether they are acting or showing their real life. There is a scene where the male protagonist is tirelessly training a horse. I was particularly impressed. The director subtly captures the details of the actors' lives, and at the same time uses stylized photography to enlarge these details as much as possible. Whether it is a close-up shot or a long-lens shot, the documentary and fiction are delicately integrated. The reason why these passages are so powerful. The film's treatment of the theme is also quite innovative. In most American movies, personal dreams are always above everything else, which is obviously the core value of Americans, and the freedom to pursue dreams is a complete life. In this cowboy-led theme, the contradiction/conflict between dream and reality is the key to continuously advancing the narrative. After the accident, the protagonist was unable to gallop as before, and committed himself to the supermarket as a cashier. The former knight companion also lost his ability to take care of himself on the sickbed. When his dream was about to be shattered, he was unexpectedly understood by his family (his father bought him a horse). As a result, the choice between personal dreams and family was introduced. At the end of the film, the scene where my father and sister showed up to support made me cry, and the ending finally returned to family love. The emotional handling of the Eastern style is quite the style of director Ang Lee, and the relationship between the subjects is naturally reminiscent of "Brokeback Mountain". Zhao Ting's emotional handling of characters and narrative style give traditional westerns a different kind of room for expansion. In addition to the emotions of the characters, the director also put a lot of effort into describing the relationship between humans and animals. The close-up of the horse's eyes, the boring process of horse training, and the humane destruction of the horse due to injuries are all metaphorical images that seem to correspond to the hero's The evolution of fate, from the state of being unruly and untamed to being brave and combative, unwilling to be restrained and fleeing and finally dying, all imply the change of the hero's mentality. From this point of view, the realistic meaning of the film and the metaphorical color are combined quite well, and the film is still memorable after the film is over.
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