Better Days (2019)

Thought-provoking teenage bully story

This is a novel adaptation, but not strictly following the novel narration. Which I am thankful for, else movie might suffer from being too slow moving. The main plotline is maintained, just some edits to make it more interesting as a movie.

Initially i wasn't interested to watch it. I am past the young adult age group, and school theme movies are not my "cup of tea".... But there was something about the movie poster that caught my attention, so i decided to give it a watch and brought my niece along. We both love the film. It was also the last movie we watched in cinema before covid got more severe and cinemas were closed... So this review is about 10 months late.

Why i remember this movie now because I just saw iQiYi's The Long Night. I was reminded of this movie as I was watching The Long Night. But don't get me wrong! This story is not about fighting for justice, it is about bullying and how when pushed too far it can make a person snap and do something he/she would regret.

And here comes the 2nd theme of the movie:- when a good person did wrong, which was indirectly due to mental torture by the victim, should he/she take the punishment and lose his/her future?.... If you are looking for a movie to watch with a teenager, I highly recommend this. If not, well, you should still watch this movie. The movie is shot in natural (albeit a bit darker) colors, giving it a very realistic feel. The dialogues are simple and reflect real-life tones. It has a twist in the story although quite easy to guess early on. Its dark theme will haunt you for a while after you finish the movie, you would reflect on the ending. This is a movie where right and wrong is not clear-cut, not black and white but in shades of grey.

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Better days... I see better days in the movie industry...

Wow... I have to applaud everyone who participated in this movie; the Screenwriter, the Director, the Cast, the Crew and our Producers ofcourse.
This movie took me by surprise and left a very good impression on me. It was realistic—which I appreciate— and heart wretching.
The minor plot twists and the climax of the movie, the natural chemistry between the main leads and the wonderful acting skills of our overall cast made the movie one I will never forget.
Rewatch value; 7.0
Overall rating: 7.5
It's an heart wretching and meaningful movie that you wouldn't want to skip.
Go Ahead! *wink*

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you'll cry A LOT.. simply a masterpiece

i can never explain what i felt toward this exact movie.. i can't rlly
all i can say that it was beautiful...one of the most pretty things ive ever seen in my entire life.. ill always and always and forever be thankful for those who made this movie.. this type of vibes and stories that rlly needs to be known is just ✨
this type of shows is what actually makes me feel alive and reminds me of the good side of this world..every single detail about this movie made me fall in love with it even deeper.. the acting is literally isane you can even see it through their eyes.. i will never get over this movie and im sure ill rewatch it soon.. it was one of the prettiest,most touching movies I've ever and ill ever watch

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Cried from start to finish

This is the first movie where I've cried throughout the entire film. Truly a life-changing and phenomenal film. I want to commend the actors because their performances were so heartfelt and tear-jerking that I sometimes had to pause a take a break. Not to mention the cinematography that was produced because just the beauty of the scenes themselves was enough to make me cry. I want to recommend this movie to everyone I know because it deserves more hype.

Afterward, I even went on TikTok to watch every single edit I could find. Even now, I still think about the film in my daily life, although it's been months since I watched it. However, it'll take a couple more months for me to muster up the courage to watch it again and cry as much as I did once more. Because there is no way one can sit through that movie and not shed a tear. That's how powerful it is. It hits you where and when you least expect it and that feeling lingers in your heart.

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ONE OF THE BEST MOVIES I EVER WATCHED - THE HIGH RATING HERE ON MDL TOTALLY WELL DESERVED!!!

Wow, just wow. This movie is pure amazing. You HAVE to watch it, can't recommend it enough! Based on a true story, the movie tells about bullying in high school, where people are struggling for university exams. High school girl Chen Nian finds her bullied classmate lying dead on the ground on campus after suicide, and then she is subjected to severe bullying as well. She meets a tough guy from the streets, who she later asks if he can protect her, which he agrees to ... and a strong bond between the two grows, but then something dramatic happens.

This movie gave me a roller coaster full of emotions, on the deepest level! It made me so angry, sad and disturbed how people can be so cruel and heartless, many finding others in pain just amusing, something to laugh at! And it makes me speechless how people can just take photos of a dead body instead of calling the ambulance! Chen Nian was the only decent one, who covered her dead classmate's body with her jacket. But in midst of all misery, there is a glimpse of light and hope... this movie has lots of ugliness, but also lots of beauty. The most beautiful thing about Better Days, is the deep bond between Chen Nian and Xiao Bei / Bei Shan. Their bond is thicker than blood, they have a deep connection, like soulmates, it goes even deeper than that of lovers (its obvious they are in love with each other), rarely you find a special bond like this! At first, Chen Nian looked down on Xiao Bei for being poor, uneducated, having no goals in life, and just getting into fights. But when Chen Nian cannot anymore handle the severe bullying, she goes to him and ask him to protect her (which he offered her to do earlier but she declined), he agrees. And boy, he takes his "job" as protector very seriously and follows her around, walking always behind her. He is willing to go extreme lengths to keep her safe.

There is one particular scene that touched me so much, it gave me goosebumps! I don't want to spoil too much, but it was after Xiao Bei found Chen Nian all beaten up... so yeah, the scene involves Xiao Bei and Chen Nian, it was that moment that made their bond soooo deep, the deepest kind of bond! When seeing that beautiful, meaningful scene, I knew this movie would become one of my absolute favorite movies of all time and my absolute number 1 favorite asian movie!

I love that this movie is anti-bullying, it never blames the victim, all the blame goes to the bullies. I mean, this movie shows how some people puts some blame on the victim too, but the movie still manages to make it clear that how wrong it is for those kind of people to put blame on the victim. Chen Nian goes through hell, but some doesn't take it seriously and just says stuff like "they are just teenagers, they don't know any better, so let it just be". Luckily tho, not all are like that, for exemple the policeman Zheng Yi who really wants to help Chen Nian. He is speechless how people can defend the bullies, even more speechless how the bullies has not even a hint of remorse!

One evening, something very dramatic happens. And Xiao Bei's pure and deep love for Chen Nian makes him go great great lenghts for her. Better Days deals first of all about bullying, second is the relationship between Chen Nian and Xiao Bei, but I found both equally as important. The acting of Zhou Dong Yu (who potrayed as Chen Nian) and Jackson Yee (who potrayed as Xiao Bei) is amazing, the acting couldn't be more amazing. Actually, all actors did a wonderful job! And the cinematography is A++! Honestly, this movie is pure perfection that touched deeply my soul. There is absolute nothing I would wanna change. This movie made it even more impacrful because its based on a true story, wow. And can you believe this masterpiece almost was never released, because of chinese censorship?? I'm so thankful it was released, it would be like a huge crime to not release a amazing movie like this with such important message. Obs, if you decide to watch this, remember to NOT turn off the movie when the closing credits comes, there is a bit more to come. I will definitely be rewatching Better Days soon again, I can't get this art of movie out of my head.. it's just THAT great!! Everyone should watch this!

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A Solid Melodrama Hampered by Cenorship and Comrpomise

It's hard to believe that anyone watching "Better Days" would miss that the story was clearly critical (condemnatory) of the toxic culture around the education system. A system that suggests that you're weak for failing, and that it's all about not failing your parents. Not that it's own approach to learning has severely damaged its youth and their ability to empathize with their fellow peers.

At least, that's how I interpreted the suicide (of Hu Xiao Die) that's the catalyst for the film. So the hard swerve into hyper-focusing on school bullying alone, and attributing the death solely to that (while there are giant signs condemning children for not being perfect in school, contrasted against security gates lining the school balcony) was tone deaf to me. "We just gon' pretend that the school system wasn't also responsible for this?"

Reading up the film (Hollywood Reporter) certainly clarified things for me. Chen Nian's story lost a lot of context with the removal of most of her mother's subplot, which seemed to tie her directly to way Liu Bei Shan made a living in the absence of his mother.

Still, even with all this knowledge at the forefront of my mind, I don't think the film in its present form is terrible (hoping a fool's hope that an uncut version surfaces at some point). Even if the film never condemns the education, or the parents, or the financial straits that lands Chen's mother in a bad place, their actions are a damning document on how it harms the children (who act out that trauma on their peers, driving them to death, until it's eventually visited upon them).

But I suppose that kind of messaging only works if the audience intended actually sees it for what it is (and from what I read about it, that flew over everyone's heads).

If the film falls off the rails, it's when it becomes about the sudden murder of the comically cruel school bully (Wei Lai) and how the two characters deal with it. As something buffered against the hyper nationalistic "we shall prevail" exam scene, it comes out of nowhere. When did this happen? Why was this considered important enough to dwell on, but not important to actually see happen on-screen?

We don't get explanation until the last hour of the film (it was an accident spurred on by rage, and the Wei Lai's inability to leave Chen alone). The structure, for lack of a better word, throws the pacing of the film off completely because it's looking to surprise the audience with a brief whodunit. This is something we should've seen in real time (chronological order). The rest of the film is a melodramatic drag race to the conclusion of the film that sees both characters arrested (like some moralistic twist straight outta the hayes code).

What holds the film up, for the most part, are the performances of the leads (Zhou Dong Yu and Jackson Yi), and the development of their kinship. I believed these two strangers would form a rocky friendship as a means of coping their toxic environments. But for a film that's two hours and some change, I don't feel like more attention was given to their dynamic.

However strong Yu and Yi's chemistry is, Chen and Bai's relationship feels rushed. A lot of the film was really hyper-focused on how Chen was terrorized by her peers, almost gratuitously. And if they wanted me to empathize with Wei Lai, why was more time not afforded to her side of the narrative instead of dumped at the end of the film?

I wish that the director (Derek Tsang) never pursued a release in mainland China, because its sounds likes the guy's work was put through the ringer of a completely avoidable situation.

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This movie is definitely not for the weak hearted, I'd say. It touches a very sensitive topic i.e school bullying.

Story : 10/10
Chen Nian is a good student and by good student I mean the kind of student that is quiet, obedient and spends all her time studying. Even when she sees bullying taking place around her, like many others, she chooses to stay silent. At first, I hated her silence. I wanted her to fight back, report to the adults but there is only so much adults can do, only so much protection they can provide from what would come 'after'. This is exactly what is shown in this movie. Every child needs someone in their life with whom they feel safe, protected and here is where our hero comes into the story. He's also someone who was abandoned and is just living till he meets Chen Nian and wants to protect her. The second half of the movie had me in tears at realizing how honest children are in their feelings and how far they can go to protect their friends. Anyway, this movie has one of the BEST story lines ever.

Acting : 9.5/10
Whole of the cast was new for me except Zhou Dongyu who I saw in 'Sparrow' after which I'd vowed myself never to see her work again yet here I am. She proved me VERY wrong regarding her acting skills in this movie. She portrayed Chen Nian and her struggles perfectly. Honestly, she looks like a vulnerable child in this movie, enough to want viewers to protect her and root for her. Though the person who impressed me the most was Jackson Yi. His character Xiao Bei was perfect for Chen Nian and portrayal of his expressions was spot on.
P.S: HE'S ONLY 19!!!

Music: 8/10
Depressing as ever. Maybe the movie and the scenes demanded such background music but it made me even more sad than I already was while watching this.

Re-watch Value: 5/10
WHO WOULD WANT TO WATCH SUCH A SAD AND DEPRESSING MOVIE FOR 02:15 HOURS?

Overall: 9.5/10
-0.5 mainly because I was super annoyed at the camera angles. On top of it, it moved a lot in multiple scenes.

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it is a really heartbreaking story. when u feel wronged, but all people just tryna get you down. the story between lead actors really touch my heart. some of the part made me smile so brigt, but some teared me up. the way the actor built the mood get 10/10 from me. it's so realistic and relatable.

it wasn't cringe at all. we enjoy all the story and made me wanna watch it more and more. The relationship between nian and bei is beautiful yet painful. both of them try to protect each other. they try to cheer each other up. the way bei sacrifice himself is definitely teared me up again.

they always try their best but somehow the reality just punch them. good job for all the actor. i hope they'll make this kind of movies again

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A WORK OF ART!!!

As a person who has been bullied before, I give this a solid ten. It reopened the wound, however, it also gave me hope to be vulnerable. I guess that's what movies are for, to let people feel.
I've watched this a year ago, never knowing that I did not let it end at its very ending. And rewatching it, I noticed the huge difference in the emotions I've felt a year ago and this day. I was dejected towards the notion that Bei's dialogue "You protect the world, I'll protect you" happened. With that being said, I was so sad when Bei's protection had to mean him getting executed. But I was grateful that I'm able to share this movie with a friend and that I realized that I was latching onto the wrong ending. To be able to witness Bei's consistency with his feelings towards Chen Nian was heartwarming. This is where the statement "Risk it all or nothing at all" comes into being. The series of events have that touch of reality that pulls you in, to better relate to their situation whether you've been in their situation or not. When it was the nearing end there's a scene when an officer, if I'm not mistaken, is telling Zheng Yi (the detective that has encountered Chen Nian a lot of times in the movie) "Must you drag both of them down", I highly I agree with that. Already sensing what has happened and the reason behind it, you should be empathetic enough to give at least one of them a chance. I can't blame Zheng Yi though, as I was looking for a laudable ending.

I was lowkey happy that Chen Nian, did not let Bei face these things alone, instead, she received her fair share of punishment. Hence, reminding us that she still cared. She didn't feel the need to be untroubled and just move on with her life.

The ending, I should say is true to life. Perfection. Bei walking behind Chen Nian, and Chen Nian accompanying the little girl. It still elaborates Bei's dialogue "You protect the world, and I'll protect you". This is by far the best ending and the most meaningfully constructed film I've ever watched. Every scene holds a meaning. No scene should be missed.
The surge of emotions was what I expected but the mark it gave on me, even 'till this day shall remain a recognition to the superb performance of the writer, actors, director, and every cast and crew.

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I've only seen 8 chinese movies (1 is a jackie chan, 6 are for my bias idol/actors, and 1 was just too weird) so it's new grounds for me, but this was beautiful!
the production, the directing and the camera work was top notch, though I'd have preferred prettier uniforms (thanks to kdramas love of pretty uniforms xD) but overall this had great quality.

there are a few plot moves I hate, and one is unnecessary angst/crazy characters that turn psychopathic. and this thankfully handled everything well.

Jackson Yi was only 18 when he pulled that off! he was amazing! his expressions, and the control over his movements was beautiful.. tbh even though I am an idol fangirl, I only heard of the name TFBOYS but I'd have been super prejudice if I read his bio before starting this. I only looked at his age and I was blown away by his acting.
also, I cried the most over the loss of that manbun ;p

Zhou Dong Yu on the other hand was 27! and she doesn't look a day older than 17 tbh, but she also had that control and maturity in her that actually gave extra depth to the character and her emotional control rather than making their age gap obvious or weird.

the development of the story was beautiful, granted it was a little too long so I had to pause every once in a while but that's just because I didn't want to look away while watching this. the vulnerability, the friendship, the connection was just beautiful~

I wanted a little more clarification on Xiao Bei's mom. they mentioned her again but I didn't get the point. did the cops previously meet Xiao Bei becasue he was searching for her? or did the cops know her?

anyway, I did think the cops were a little conveniently "dumb" and unable to talk or get their points across, but overall it was nicely wrapped up. though I slightly needed a little "more" of that ending :)

the songs were nice and I never rewatch movies, though I'll add this to my fav movies list, and maybe even the rare gems one too~

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I will NEVER get over the fact that this didn't get the Oscar!

It's been so long since I've cried like that in a movie, I caught myself sobbing during scenes.
"Better Days" is a punch in the gut, it's heavy, heartbreaking, violent and even gruesome. But it what makes the story beautiful is the leads, it's not that common for me to love the main couple. It's just that their chemistry is so mesmerizing that we don't need a lot of dialog, they can express everything just by looking at each other. I loved everything about this movie and I'm very critical over films, but this one blew my mind.
The photography was amazing.
The directors did an incredible job in making us feel every emotion shown to us. They always captured the right moments in a way that completely fit the style of the movie, the lighting (or lack of it), the angles,etc...
I felt as if they moved the camera in a intimate way, making the movie feel familiar to us. So that we feel close to it, like we're watching it was something personal.
Well I'm just saying that you will not regret giving it a chance.
But seriously, I don't think I'll ever forget how I felt watching it for the 1st time.

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Freedom at all costs necessary

I found this movie through my Youtube video recommendations and I couldn't wait to begin it. I don't usually like bully-related media, I feel like most times it's riddled with cliches and falls flat, but this movie is not like that. I feel like it tackles the serious subject of bullying extremely well.

Better Days examines the socio-political conditions that perpetuate bullying very thoroughly, showing the viewers that bullying is a complicated problem to solve. From the intense competition and pressure the students face due to exams, through the illegal & borderline dangerous work Chen Nian's mother puts herself through in order to provide a better future and escape poverty, to Xiao Bei's life on the fringe of society, many of the characters in this movie are trapped in conditions that become tighter and tighter shackles on them as tensions rise, thus prompting them to take extreme measures to ensure their freedom.

Additionally, Chen Nian & Xiao Bei's tender romance is beautifully written, depicting two people who have nobody else but each other to depend on. Instead of depending on skinship to depict their affection for one another, this movie choses to mostly omit that and instead show their love through the actions and sacrifices they make for one another. I really appreciated this choice and I think it made their chemistry even better.

Finally, I want to highlight the beautiful cinematography of this film. It is filmed in such a way that the scenes naturally flow together, every directing choice feels deliberate to move the plot forward. I loved it so much that I plan to paint a few scenes from this film, that's how beautiful and painterly it was.

In conclusion, this is a beautiful & raw movie that I recommend to anyone. Please watch it, you will not regret it!

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