myonnie
[ THE PLOT ]
1. short summary
Our Times tells the story of Lin Zhenxin's youth and her first love - her school's resident bully Xu Taiyu. Originally just a socially awkward, shy wallflower who has an obsession with Andy Lau, she gets to know him through a chain letter prank. The two of them form an alliance to destroy the blossoming love of the school's popular kids Ouyang Feifan and Tao Minmin in order to get with them themselves. However things start to get complicated once Zhenxin realizes that there is more to Taiyu than just an annoying jerk with a big mouth and Taiyu on the other hand realizes that in her he has found someone he can truly trust and let his guard down with for the first time in years. Before they know it, they develop feelings for one another and are faced with the decision of either saving their friedship and being with the people they originally desired or risking everything and giving their love a chance.
2. story progression
At the end of the day, Our Times is a romance story through and though so you can't expect it to have a perfectly linear structure like for example a story-driven action movie would - we do have to take some time to explore the characters' feelings and thoughts. But considering that I think it is very well constructed and definitely able to keep your interest especially if this is your kind of genre. The plot gets tangled a bit around the final act but once the reveal hits everything makes sense again and even on my 8th watch I haven't found any continuity errors yet.
[ THE CHARACTERS ]
1. Vivian Song Yunhua as Lin Zhenxin
I know some people find socially awkward nerd characters like this annoying, but on one hand, that's the whole point - she's a weirdo and doesn't really understand social cues, of course that's frustrating - and on the other hand even with all that I actually found her really endearing. Sure, there are some slapstick moments where she makes you want to die of second-hand embarrassment but deep down you can tell she is kind and wants the best for everyone she treasures. But the important part here is that they didn't make her a perfect little Mary Sue either - she can get angry, she can get spiteful and she grows beyond her cowardly self over the course of the story and it's beautiful to see.
2. Darren Wang Dalu as Xu Taiyu
Look, I have the guy as my profile picture. If that doesn't tell you how much I love this man, allow me to elaborate. I have a weak spot for the "bad guy with a heart of gold" trope and Xu Taiyu is the actual embodiment of that trope in its most perfect form - he is the misunderstood school bully / gangster you read about in every fanfiction exept done right. The way he slowly softens up to Zhenxin once he realizes she actually cares about his feelings and how he in turn expands her horizon to see just how many possibilities she has in this world is so heartwarming. That slow yet steady transition from him being an impolite jerk that treats her like an idiot to him looking at her with this appreciative warmth like she's his whole world and how she becomes his reason to drag himself out of the hole he was digging himself into. I could go on like this forever but to make it short - he is one of my favorite male leads of all time.
3. extended cast
The most important characters exept for Zhenxin and Taiyu are their original love interests; Li Yuxi as Ouyang Feifan and Jian Tingrui as Tao Minmin. In my opinon, they both provided solid performances and the characters were believable within the context of the story, but I feel like both actors kind of missed out on the chance to make their characters uniquely "theirs". Because of this, I don't necessarily connect Ouyang to Li Yuxi or Minmin to Jian Tingrui and also their personalities simply aren't interesting enough to make them the reason someone would pick up this movie. To make it quick: These two won't be getting a spin-off movie any time soon. Apart from them, the movie really focusses on the main couple so that the rest of the supporting cast really stays just that and nothing more but it had some enjoyable performances in there nonetheless. Cai Yizhen and Wen Yiguo as Zhenxin's comic relief BFF's were a bit stereotypical but still cute and I really enjoyed Na Weixun as the crazy, choleric maths teacher, but my favorites were without a doubt Chen Yanyun and Lin Hexuan as Taiyu's gang buddies; both hilarious and genuinely endearing at the same time.
[ THE CINEMATOGRAPHY ]
1. scene design
At first I didn't think much of the backgrounds in this movie since it's for the most part set in yards, streets, shops and classrooms but what won me over at the end of the day was the attention to detail they used to craft this retro setting. Most of all the way most sets are very crammed and seemingly overloaded with tiny details and kitsch that all play into the spirit of the 1990s is so endearing to me - like Zhenxin's room for example is cluttered with plushies, Andy Lau posters and random crap scattered about. Even bigger, open spaces like the rooftop the two lovers often meet on is full of trash and graffiti supposedly left behind by Taiyu's gang, making the place not just more interesting to the eye, but also giving it some history. This kind of meticulous attention is given to basically all of the important sets throughout the whole movie and it makes for some very unique and recognizable surroundings.
2. character design & styling
What makes the character designs in Our Times so memorable to me is that they manage to tell you exactly who these people are but without leaving the realm of reality. Since the movie is set at a Taiwanese high school in the 1990s, where not having uniforms was out of the question, all visual characterization is done through hair and accessories. Especially during the more comedic first half of the movie, Zhenxin and Taiyu including their respective friend groups come close to looking like carricatures of their character archetypes. Her as the nerd with her wonky, oversized glasses and thick, rather unkempt hair and him as the gangster with his messy attempt at a pompadour and his dog tag necklace. But alongside them stepping out of their emptional comfort zones, the glasses come off and the hair goes down and they start looking more like actual people instead of parodies of themselves.
3. framing & editing
Alltogether, the movie's strong suit is the story itself rather than its presentation. The camerawork and the editing definitely take nothing away from the quality and I do believe it's competently shot , but apart from taking breaks from the actual story every once in a while to have adult Zhenxin deliver a little monologue there isn't all that much in terms of a directing style that creates a special atmosphere or anything like that. Like when I think of great cinematography I think of Something in the Rain and how its director Ahn Panseok used every bit of framing, composition and timing to create the perfect mood, leaving me wondering who the director was. With Our Times, I'd look it up once out of curiosity and then probably forget because the focus of the movie lies with its characters, the actors that play them and the story they tell within the medium - not with the way it is told in reality by the decisions of the producing staff.
[ THE MUSIC ]
Our Times's representative song is of course the movie's main theme "A Little Happiness" by Hebe Tien, which is very touching with both its lyrics and composition and is sure to stick with you even after you finish the movie but aside from this they also throw in some of Zhenxin's beloved Andy Lau to underline the retro atmosphere. As for the instrumental BGM, it very organically and subtly supports the tone of each scene and you won't really notice it, unless you go out of your way to pay attention to it, which is pretty much the point of BGM to begin with.
[ FINAL THOUGHTS ]
This is my perfect cheesy, nostalgia-enducing tearjerker romcom. I have lost count how many times I've seen it, but it's at least eight times by now and yet I still laugh at the comedy scenes, I still feel my heart beat faster out of compassion for them when the two main leads have a moment and I still cry at the final reveal at the end. I feel like everybody has this imaginary perfect story, which would be a get-together of all of their favorite tropes, elements and guilty pleasures. I have a soft spot for nerdy leads, mean-guy-turned-nice-guy love interests, retro settings and best-friends-turned-lovers relationship dynamics and in this movie I have found my holy grail. I have found my perfect story I never thought would become reality in this form and I am so happy about it. Sure, it's cheesy. Sure, it's saccharine. Sure, not everyone's taste, but it's mine. This is my taste and I'll treasure this movie for as long as I can. And if there is anything for you to take away from reading this way too long review: Give it a try, just once. If your taste is anything like mine, you'll absolutely love it.
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