- Actors: Zhou Dongyu, Jackson Yee
- Director: Derek Tsang
- Format: Dolby, Subtitled, Surround Sound, Widescreen
- Number of discs: 1
- Rated: Not RatedNR
- Studio: Well Go Usa
- Release Date: May 5, 2020
- Run Time: 135 minutes
Narratively speaking, there is nothing particularly
original about the themes and structure of the Chinese melodrama, Better Days. In terms of being a story
taking place in high school, involving bullying that leads to both suicide and
a murder, which is presented as something of a mystery, Better Days often feels like a feature-film variation on the
Netflix series, “13 Reasons Why.” However, it is in the differences of the
narratives that Better Days finds its
distinct voice, and the film may have been more successful had those elements
been favored more.
The most obvious
difference between the two narratives is the country of origin, which in turn
has an immediate impact on the unique cultural messages. While social media
plays heavily into the pressures of both stories, it clearly has a more
immediate concern in the American TV show, while Better Days is directing a majority of focus on the pressures of
college entrance exams in China.
This is where Better Days comes off as even more impressive with the
consideration of country of origin in mind. Subtle or not, any criticism of
Chinese culture is rarely found in the heavily government-censored film
industry, and Better Days certainly
doesn’t seem to be showing the college entrance exams in the best light.
Perhaps this is hidden in the shadows of the bullying, which is depicted in
some of the film’s most difficult scenes. Tellingly, however, these instances
of bullying don’t occur in the school, and police are empathetic and proactive
in attempts to stop the harassment.
The girl being
bullied is Chen Nian (Dongyu Zhou), a hard working student from an impoverished
single-parent home. Among her tormenters (Ye Zhou, Ran Liu, and Xinyi Zhang),
at least one is shown to be extremely well off, but this doesn’t seem to be the
primary reason for the bullying. When their previous target finally killed
herself, Chen Nian was the one to cover her body before the police arrived.
That was enough to peg her as the next target by this sadistic trio of female
bullies, who go beyond online harassment to actual physical abuse.
Perhaps because
of her own experience being outnumbered, Chen Nian attempts to call the police
when she sees several young men beating a street thug named Xiao Bei (pop star,
Jackson Yee). When this action is discovered, Chen Nian’s phone is damaged to
stop the call, and she is brought into the altercation. Feeling obligated, Xiao
Bei offers to fix her phone, and eventually becomes a solution to her bullying
problem. Because nearly every incident occurs on her way home from school, Xiao
Bei begins to follow her to and from home for protection.
While I
appreciated the way that Better Days
did not always go in a completely predictable direction, there were a few
moments that feel a tad bit contrived. There are also characters (particularly
in authority figures), which seem pretty pointless, beyond offering a positive
portrayal of government employees. With that being said, Better Days is an effective melodrama, in every sense of the genre.
The acting by Dongyu Zhou in particular was extremely effective and affecting.
The Blu-ray release
for Better Days comes with very few
perks. There is a making of featurette in the special features. The disc also
has trailers for other film titles.
Entertainment Value:
6/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 8/10
Historical
Significance: 6.5/10
Special Features: 3/10
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