This director loves making friends.

"Only professionals know how to find the right angle!"

Pierre-Lysent smiled as he looked at the freshly published "articles" analyzing the issues from various angles, and he was extremely satisfied.

What is the biggest difference between humans and animals? It's humanity!

The artistry of "A Bittersweet Life" can be deconstructed from three dimensions.

First, a stylized reconstruction of the aesthetics of violence; second, an existentialist dilemma of human nature; and third, a highly dynamic audiovisual language.

The violent aesthetics of "A Bittersweet Life" are different from traditional violent aesthetics. The film does not simply show the bloodshed of gang violence, but rather highly ritualizes and elevates violence, creating a unique visual contrast.

Gunfights and combat scenes are accompanied by soothing classical music, and slow motion and precise composition are used to present the killing with a cold, poetic and resolute quality.

Why is it an existential dilemma of human nature?

The story transcends the traditional gangster films' grudges and feuds, delving into philosophical themes of loyalty, free will, and destiny.

The protagonist breaks the gang's rule of absolute obedience because of a moment of infatuation, transforming from a perfect executor into a flesh-and-blood individual. This small moral choice leads to his destruction, revealing the fragility and tragedy of humanity within a rigid system.

The film is titled "A Bittersweet Life," but the ending is a cruel death. This sweetness is merely a fleeting illusion experienced by the protagonist before his death, profoundly satirizing the inherent sadness and unattainability of beautiful things.

... "

Pierre Lissent couldn't help but applaud this interpretation.

As a seasoned film selector at Cannes, Pierre Lissent can easily distinguish whether a film has artistic merit, based on a set of "formulaic" logic.

Regarding "A Bittersweet Life," he saw that it didn't delve deeply into human nature and destiny, and the film was still too commercially oriented, which is undeniable.

However, this analysis manages to "dig" into the core of the film from three aspects, interpreting what the film wants to "show," and the analysis is so logical and thought-provoking that it makes one think deeply. It can only be said that film critics are indeed remarkable.

There are even more impressive ones.

Pierre Lissent picked up another interpretation, which elaborated on the "ultimate" artistry of "La Dolce Vita" from four aspects.

"The core of 'A Bittersweet Life' lies in the director's high integration of violent aesthetics, existentialist philosophy, and extreme audiovisual language, which transcends the narrative framework of traditional gangster films and is a brand-new art form."

Firstly, the philosophical core of "A Bittersweet Life" elevates the theme from action to the pain of existence.

The film does not stop at gangster revenge, but uses the Buddhist koan "It is not the wind that moves, nor the flag that moves, but the mind of the benevolent one that moves" as a starting point to explore the paradox of fate and free will.

The Zen-inspired opening and closed-loop structure echo each other, with the dialogue between master and disciple highlighting the theme and attributing the protagonist's tragedy to the budding inner demons, thus imbuing the violent acts with a metaphysical tragic quality.

The protagonist's moment of infatuation breaks the absolute loyalty of the robot's survival rules. This instant awakening of the soft side of humanity and the subsequent cruel crushing create strong dramatic tension, reflecting the glimmer of humanity and its destruction.

Secondly, the stylized, realistic language of violence, with its almost obsessive attention to detail, reconstructs gangster action films, giving the violent scenes an independent aesthetic value.

The film employs minimalist composition and color metaphors, making extensive use of cool tones, symmetrical compositions, and close-up shots, resulting in a visually impactful experience rather than mere sensory stimulation.

The skillful use of slow motion in gunfights and fights slows down the death process, allowing the audience to focus on the characters' expressions and details of their movements, thus enhancing the solemnity of the tragedy rather than the pleasure.

Thirdly, it is a brand-new attempt to break through genre barriers, striving to balance commerce and art, and breaking down the barriers between commercial genre films and art films.

"A Bittersweet Life" borrows the detached style of French film noir, embedding a personalized nihilism and satirical attitude into a commercial narrative, giving the film a distinct auteur mark and universal emotional resonance...

Fourthly, the explosive power hidden within restraint in the performing arts.

The male lead's performance is a key pillar of the film's artistic achievement. He abandoned the exaggerated roaring of traditional gangster films and adopted an extremely restrained and introspective approach to portraying the character.

Through subtle changes such as shifty eyes and twitching lips, the film portrays the protagonist's psychological arc from absolute obedience to inner collapse, and finally to desperate revenge—a level of subtlety worthy of an award-winning actor.

... "

Pierre Lissent stroked his chin, somewhat puzzled. Was this analysis really about "La Dolce Vita"?

How could "A Bittersweet Life" actually possess such great artistic merit?

If you only read this article, it seems as if there is a huge "behind-the-scenes conspiracy" behind Cannes not awarding "La Dolce Vita".

"What a talent!"

Pierre Lissent looked through the signature of the person who wrote this film analysis.

"Li Wei?"

This appears to be a Chinese student studying at the Barbesberg Film University in Germany.

"Truly remarkable, quite impressive..."

Pierre-Lysent struggled to find a word to describe his feelings, but in the end he simply said, "Oh! La vache!"

This is a colloquial French expression, equivalent to "Wow, that's awesome!"

Pierre-Lissent decided that he must hire Li Wei to be his assistant.

After reading this insightful analysis by a Chinese international student, Pierre Lissent suddenly felt a strong urge to read Hou Xiaoxian's interpretation.

Unfortunately, Hou Xiaoxian will have to wait at least another ten days or so before he comes to France. I'll have him interpret it then too. It's true that Chinese people understand Chinese people better.

There were also several articles that argued for the artistry of "La Dolce Vita" from different perspectives. After reading them, Pierre Lissent's first thought was, "Could it be that these people watched the film that won the Palme d'Or at the 13th Cannes Film Festival in 1960?"

The two translations are still very easy to confuse.

That's impossible, of course, as Pierre Lissent was right next to these people when they watched "La Dolce Vita".

"Wait a minute, when the movie comes out, we can add subtitles thanking and paying tribute to 'La Dolce Vita,' and then have someone write a few articles comparing the 'art' of the two films. Wouldn't that subtly elevate the status of 'La Dolce Vita'?"

At that moment, Pierre Lissent was so excited he almost wanted to slap his thigh.

Countless ideas flooded my mind, inspiration came like a torrent, and publicity, press releases, journalist interviews, program booklets, recommendations from renowned directors... as long as this series of combined efforts is executed well, who can say that "A Bittersweet Life" isn't an art film?

No, no, "A Bittersweet Life" cannot be an art film.

This must be an experimental film that tries to balance commercial appeal and artistic merit!

Experimental films are the real plus.

Especially noteworthy are the debut films of young directors, films by former assistant directors of Golden Lion and Golden Bear award-winning films, and experimental films that strive for a balance between commercial appeal and artistic merit…

These titles, once they're confirmed... no, they are, not confirmed, but must be publicized this way, it's simply a fact!

With these accolades, coupled with Cannes's recent strategy of making slight compromises towards commercial films in order to achieve a balance between commercial success and artistic merit, it was almost a natural progression for "A Bittersweet Life" to be selected for the main competition.

Furthermore, winning an award is not impossible.

So Pierre-Lysent took action.

What he has in abundance is connections and drive.