This director is vindictive.

Chapter 498 Collapses Facing the Sun, Water Margin: Special Edition - Heroines
Time goes back.

"The Great Tang Dynasty in the Northern Desert" and "Sunflower" were screened almost simultaneously.

Let's take a look at the premiere of "Sunflower".

The movie began, and the plot unfolded.

Feng Dagang's "stroke of genius" was particularly glaring—the real-life figures who inspired the film sat in the front row, with flashbulbs going off at them like they were attending a "suffering expo."

Ironically, when the footage of them being beaten and bullied was shown on screen, the camera deliberately cut to the painful and distorted expressions of these real-life figures.

One viewer couldn't stand it anymore and muttered, "This is rubbing salt into the wound! Using someone else's scars as a selling point and calling it 'realism'?"

Some people angrily denounced: "To make people who have finally climbed out of the mire relive their nightmares, I really don't understand why we would invite them to watch the movie? This is just too shameless!"

But film critics focus on more than just that.

The sworn brotherhood scene involving Guan Yu, which Chen Mo had previously criticized, also appeared on the big screen.

Many film critics were somewhat taken aback.

Looking at each other.

"No, why does this feel like a story about men disguised as a woman's?" a film critic asked, puzzled.

"No problem, all that's missing is chopping off the chicken's head and drinking its blood!"

Moreover, the movie has quite a few plot holes. For example, when the black girl is in prison, she says that she is both deaf and mute, but after helping Gao Yuexiang fight against a child trafficker's "roommate", she uses sign language to indicate that the trafficker deserves to be beaten.

One second she claimed to be deaf and mute, the next she accurately determined that she was hitting a human trafficker, and no one else noticed anything amiss.
"Isn't she deaf and mute? How did she know?" some audience members wondered.

"Does the director want her to know?" another companion said sarcastically.

Many people were stunned when they saw the ending.

The main point is that the female protagonist almost went to jail again for murder, but she was able to live a happy life after being released from prison. This kind of value system is astonishing.

After the movie ended, since it was the premiere, quite a few people gave a symbolic, polite round of applause.

However, at this very moment, public opinion had already exploded.

Unlike the previous life, in this life, thanks to the "verbal battle" between Feng Dagang and Chen Mo in the publicity and marketing, the film has indeed garnered more attention than in the previous life.

At the same time, the expectations are also higher.

This is a good thing, but it's also not a good thing.

If the movie is indeed very good, then that's naturally a good thing; but if it's not, then it becomes a bad thing.

After the premieres of the two films, public opinion was polarized.

On the other hand, in "The Northern Desert of the Tang Dynasty".

"Thumbs up for Chen Mo! I thought it would be like before, a small flower award ceremony, but I didn't expect him to invite veterans to attend! When the little boy saluted, my tears just flowed! This is not a pre-arranged plot, but a legacy engraved in his bones!"

"Chen Mo is ruthless! He used living 'Anxi Army' to slap all doubts in the face—history is never far away, and heroes are right before our eyes!"

"I am also a veteran. When I saw the veterans trembling as they pinned on their medals, I cried until I couldn't breathe... Aren't we, this generation, just like the 'modern Anxi Army'?"

"Actually, the plot of the whole movie is only so-so, and there are quite a few logical flaws, but the final battle really elevated the movie!"

"Actually, it's very good. From 'taking his pay and going home' to 'fulfilling his mission,' Chen Mo vividly portrayed the growth of an ordinary person—not a born hero, but one forced into heroism by responsibility!"

"The scene of the people crying out on the Western Regions trade route was absolutely brilliant! The Anxi army wasn't just protecting territory, they were protecting the hearts of the people!" (Screenshot: A veteran touching his medal, which overlaps with the bronze plaque on the screen)
At the same time, the name "Guo Xin" began to be known to everyone.

The hashtag "#GuoXin'sDeathIsDeification" also trended on social media.

Many netizens commented: "When Guo Xin asked, 'Is there any news from the court?', I clenched my fist until it broke! Forty years! They died without ever knowing that Chang'an had long forgotten..."

"History didn't grant the Anxi Army a miracle, but the film can—the blood-red sunset of their final battle is a dream we've fulfilled for them." (Image: White-haired soldiers charging vs. real-life veterans with tears in their eyes) "Before this, I was completely unfamiliar with this name, only knowing Guo Ziyi. Thinking about it, in terms of military achievements, he certainly wasn't as great as Guo Ziyi. But in that final battle, I want to say that his forty-two years of perseverance makes him truly deserving of the title 'great,' 'hero!'"

"Born as Han Chinese, died as soldiers of the Tang Dynasty!" This line of poetry brought tears to the eyes of the entire audience! Chen Mo used his camera to stitch together a thousand years of time and space—the Anxi army on the screen and the veterans on the scene were the same group of people.

"I thought it was a Tang Dynasty version of 'The Eight Hundred,' but it turns out to be a combination of 'The Age of Awakening' and 'The Battle at Lake Changjin'! A historical film that captures the power of faith, amazing!" (Emoji: Anxi army raising sword.jpg)

"Chen Mo used a film to tear open a crack in history, allowing us to see:"
The spirit of the Tang Dynasty's Anxi Army has never faded.

It is hidden in the medals of veterans, in the salutes of little boys, and in the hearts of every ordinary person who sheds tears for being "born a Han Chinese."

Moreover, after the premiere, state media also took a rare step by tagging "The Great Tang Desert" and saying, "When the veterans stood up and saluted, what we saw was not the end of the movie, but the immortality of the spirit."

Even the official media on the other side published a special report overnight titled "A Military Salute Across a Thousand Years: The Inheritance of Faith from the Screen to Reality," highlighting scenes of veterans shedding tears while watching the film and a little boy saluting, with the caption: "History has never gone far, and the spirit of heroes will live on forever."

Compared to "The Great Tang Dynasty in the Northern Desert", "Sunflower" is somewhat awkward.

"The difference between the two premieres is like night and day. I just don't understand why Chen Mo invited veterans to watch the film. The film's theme is the perseverance of veterans from a thousand years ago, which can perfectly connect with reality and elevate the premiere."

But what kind of film is *Sunflower*? Why have the real-life figure sitting in the front row watching scenes of her being bullied? This isn't 'realism,' it's 'rubbing salt into the wound'! This is using suffering as a selling point, exploiting the vulnerable!"

"Leaving aside the film itself, the situation at the premiere was truly incomprehensible. In psychology, this is called 'secondary trauma,' forcing victims to relive the violent scenes, which is even more cruel than the thugs in the movie!"

If the premiere's format drew considerable criticism, the film itself didn't receive much praise either.

"The black girl is deaf and mute one second, and understands the identity of a human trafficker the next? Director Feng, is your 'realism' more like magical realism?"

"Haha, I also wanted to say that the black girl's deaf-mute character setting is a bit of a mishap! How did she know her roommate was a human trafficker? Director: The plot required her to understand!"

"Does the idea that murderers can live happily ever after after being released from prison encourage crime?"

"The hardest thing to understand is, swearing brotherhood with Guan Yu? Director Feng, are you making 'Young and Dangerous: Sisters in Arms'? How about a line like, 'Do you love your sisters or gold?'"

Is this a story about a group of women?
You could say it's the outline of "Water Margin" without any problem; the core is very similar. After all, when they swore brotherhood, they all swore brotherhood with Guan Yu, so it wouldn't feel out of place if the characters were a bunch of male prisoners released from prison.

This is already the biggest failure of the film.

Of course, not everyone gave it a bad review.

There were still quite a few positive reviews! However, as soon as these positive reviews came out, many viewers raised question marks below.

These positive reviews read: "The director is highly skilled, portraying the real-life issue of ex-convicts reintegrating into society in a way that is both profound and heartwarming."

"Yao Dazui's acting is superb, perfectly portraying the resilience and helplessness of a mother from the lower class."

The comments below read: "Wow, is this what you call profound yet heartwarming? I just want to ask, the film promotes female strength and struggles to live, but in the film, there is not much depiction of how Gao Yuexiang is bullied in the workplace after her release from prison. Instead, it focuses more on her being sexually harassed in the workplace and almost being raped."

The workplace storyline, only briefly touched upon, completely lacks any sense of positive and upward mobility for people at the bottom of society. Even after Gao Yuexiang's release from prison, she continues to teeter on the edge of crime—is this what you call profound? Is this what you call not lacking warmth?

"Buying police uniforms and going to scam money and sell fake alcohol with Hei Mei, Gao Yuexiang said she loved her daughter and that everything she did was to bring her child to live with her. But the plot later turned into saving Hei Mei and liberating Hei Mei? What's going on here?"
Yao Chen's acting is good? I honestly can't tell. Even if you cast a Best Actress in this role, I'd still criticize it.

"Don't talk about reality. I'm just puzzled. Neither Gao Yuexiang's husband nor she herself felt any shame about going to jail. They even regarded prison as a retirement paradise, since it provided food and lodging, and they ate better than 'homeless people'."

Frankly speaking, does this kind of person deserve to live towards the sun?

"Thank you, Director Feng, for letting me understand what 'immersive suffering' truly means! I suggest the film's producers collaborate with a mental health clinic to launch a co-branded package, offering an emergency room appointment right after the screening—a truly thoughtful, one-stop service! #MasterOfSaltOnWounds#"

"Holy crap, now I finally understand why Chen Mo made Zhao Liying refuse to act in this movie. After watching it, I finally understand why Chen Mo criticized it as 'a men's movie disguised as a women's movie'! If you replaced the female lead with Zhang Fei drinking eighteen bowls of wine, it wouldn't feel out of place at all. I suggest renaming it 'Water Margin: 108 Heroines'!"

"As expected of a god of investment in the film industry, his vision is absolutely amazing. I was wondering why Chen Mo would team up with Xiao Gangpao for promotional purposes this time. Turns out, this was all planned out. On one hand, there's the enduring spirit, and on the other hand, the immediate consumption of suffering. What's there to compare? Just look at the trending topics. Chen Mo has won big again!"

In a column titled “Two Kinds of Realism: Who Is Gazing at the Stars?” published in the early hours of the morning, the editor-in-chief of “Culture Weekly” wrote: “When “The Great Tang Desert” illuminates the white hair of the border guards with the lights of the Tang Dynasty, “Sunflower” dissects the scars of the suffering with a searchlight.”

The former brings history into reality, while the latter reduces reality to a spectacle—this is the root cause of the precipitous difference in the two films' critical reception.

(End of this chapter)