Title: Review of "Dragon and Freckled Princess": Are they not trying to play "narrative tricks"?
Date: 2022-04-28 20:44:19
Tags:
- Discourse
- Film
- Makoto Shinkai
Categories:
- Miscellaneous
ID: 47
Alias: 20220428283
In "Children of the Sea" and "Wolf Children: Rain and Snow," the fantasy elements ultimately serve purely as a means to serve the plot's main purpose.
The virtual world in "Summer Wars" also falls within the category of "fantasy." Whether it was in 2009 or now, even in a few years, the setting is still "outrageous."
"I discovered these few films on Bilibili and thought about revisiting them one day. The night before writing this article, I watched 'Dragon and Freckled Princess,' and then today I decisively watched 'Summer Wars,' even though the barrage was a bit annoying."
Although "Mirai" also has a fantasy setting involving time travel, it feels off. The resolution of the main conflict relies solely on the protagonist's parents' unknown fantastical experiences. In reality, there is no time travel, but there are real children who do not have a surreal fantasy experience to help them overcome certain hardships.
Below are some comments I made while watching "Dragon and Freckled Princess" on Mastodon:
[https://wxw.moe/@wdssmq/108204980889755690](https://wxw.moe/@wdssmq/108204980889755690 "Chen Bing Fu Shui: '1. 'Dragon and Freckled Princess' feels awkward, completely different from 'Summer Wars' back then... 2. 'If happiness has an answer, there would be no need to rush around...' Not exactly preaching, but it feels like trying not to preach...' 3. I suggest renaming it 'Box Opening Battle'; 4. The opening song has a Disney vibe, and when they reached the castle, I realized it's just like 'Beauty and the Beast.' The protagonist's name is Suzu, and her online name is directly translated as 'bell.' It seems like a platform where you can have the same name, after all, it has 5 billion users; After watching the whole movie, my feelings are quite complicated. I won't take back the first four comments, but I don't know what to write for the fifth one... Let me try to express it. The following content contains spoilers... This movie feels like it's forcefully divided into three parts: Three: The last part is the protagonist going alone to confront the antagonist, and in the end, she makes the same choice as her mother, leading to reconciliation or something similar. This is quite common, but following the usual pattern, shouldn't she have made necessary preparations this time, even though it's just as urgent as before? Two: The second part starts with the protagonist's home being invaded in the virtual world and gradually reveals the identity of the dragon. In the end, the protagonist chooses to reveal herself, and at the same time, it finally 'reveals' the core theme that this work attempts to discuss - 'others in distress.' The mother's choices and experiences are not just a 'prelude,' but rather an exploration of how to deal with similar events again. It is reasonable for the plot to reach the point of self-revelation, but the result of the discussion is just another repetition? The dragon's identity is somewhat foreshadowed (the theater aunt's study abroad experience), and Rui actually liking the rowing guy is also a way to tell the audience 'Is what you think really correct?' But isn't misleading the audience into thinking that there will be a white learning process also your doing? Is it just a tool for creating a couple? One: The first part: 'Box Opening Battle' + 'Beauty and the Beast' In this virtual world, the characters are generated based on their personal information. It seems that if there are injuries or illnesses, they will be reflected on the body. I wonder if it's possible to regenerate if one is dissatisfied with the generated character. Is there a limit to the number of times? Through a device similar to headphones, a truly immersive VR experience is achieved. So, isn't it dangerous for the protagonist to log in while rushing on the road? Apart from these aspects, is there any difference between this and the internet in reality? Before entering the second part, from the audience's perspective, the protagonist is the 'person in distress.' However, apart from her mother's passing, she has a wealthy and technologically advanced girlfriend who helps her become a popular musician in the music district and a cool childhood friend... It's hard to empathize... Under such circumstances, it's just full of awkwardness. Of course, this is not a problem with the characters, but rather the story's author... Going back to the title, I even wondered if the earlier awkwardness was intentionally created to create a contrast, a so-called 'narrative trick,' because after revealing the theme, part of the logic does make sense, but only part of it; In conclusion, 'Dragon and Freckled Princess' is slightly better than 'Mirai,' and that's about it... By the way, I recently watched 'The House of Lost Souls' and felt a bit disappointed... I recommend 'Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop' for now..."
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