Better Days 少年的你

A beautifully depressing film with some powerhouse perfomances.

Directed by Derek Tsang

Starring: Zhou Dongyu, Jackson Yee, Zhou Ye, Yin Feng

China, 2019

Director Derek Tsang Kwok-cheung, son of famed actor Eric Tsang, makes a fantastic directional effort with Better Days. Derek Tsang has already dabbled in directing with his 2010’s Lover’s Discourse and 2016’s Soul Mate. Collaborating once again with the exceptional Zhou Dongyu who also appeared in Soul Mate, director Tsang utilizes the cast to great effect using silence and minimal dialogue to convey emotions. The film tackles a sensitive subject matter but Tsang handles it with a certain level of beauty with expert use of subtlety.

Chen Nian (Zhou Dongyu) is quiet and introverted student, she is among the top students and mostly keeps to herself. All the students at the school are partaking in revisions for the life altering exams that will define their future choices. One day a fellow student commits suicide on the school premise and for some uncontrollable reason Nian decides to cover the victims face with her jacket which in turns makes her the next target for the school bullies. Police officers begin an investigation into the cause but the senior officer feels it’s a lost cause while the younger officer Zheng (Yin Feng) feels a sense of social justice and becomes attached to the case. Knowing the culprits that resulted in the cause of death who happens to be another top student, the privileged Wai Lai (Zhou Ye), Nian decides to report her to the police. Nian’s actions results in nothing and just escalates the torment inflicted by Wai Lai and her gang of bullies. Left with no choice Nian chooses to employ petty criminal Xiao Bei (Jackson Yee), whom she met in a chance encounter prior. Soon a romance blossoms but fate has a different scenario for them as they get entangled in a murder.

The film possess subtlety and nuances in handling the blossoming romance between the two leads and there progression is filled with constant bittersweet moments that pulls at the heart strings in different directions. Each moment of serenity is juxtaposed with the horrors of the surroundings, and it is this mentality laced throughout that makes there turmoil and triumphs so engaging. The film is filled with so many beautiful instances found in the darkest of moments. Take the moment where our two protagonists sits staring at each other sobbing and smiling profusely even if the outcome of their predicament is not of good fortunes but the audience feels a sense of calm and closure. A moment near the end where Zhou and Yee have a conversation with each other and the camera is square on their faces with a bright highlight around them is majestic and relieving. Then we have a truly heartfelt moment where the two protagonists share their first true kiss which is both a painful moment of horror and a true moment of love.

Yet for all its impeccable nuances in character and plot development there are moments that threaten to derail it to realms of contrivances and caricature. Take the school bully for example who borderlines on insane with an innate need to threaten and oppress her fellow student, with multiple occasions feeling like staged events. A chase through a housing complex with nary a person in sight or when Wai Lai and a group of students assaulting Nian on the open streets but again no one in sight except a single person screaming through the window telling them to go away. Then we have a school of students who turn a blind eye to all the bullying and the teachers who are openly oblivious of everything that is happening even if it plays out in front of them and instead they spout speeches of the importance of their exam even though a student has just died of a result of bullying. The most disconnected character happens to be the officer Zhen who feels more like a plot device than a genuine character with his insane obsession with Nian and Bei, often becoming a bit too much to stomach.

None of the faults can take away from the film that showcases some truly outstanding performances from the two leads. Zhou Dongyu gives a powerhouse performance with so much expression given through her silences. Her pain and torture can be felt with every expression and her moment of joy emerging through the sadness is effectively acted. Jackson Yee is just as strong as Zhou, playing off her tortured character and demonstrating strength and confidence but hidden with his own turmoil. Both Zhou and Yee share strong chemistry and there silences together are so emotionally convincing. Director Tsang has so much confidence in their performances often thrusting the camera square on the talents faces and allowing their emotions to play out. Playing the bully is the beautiful Zhou Ye who gives a strong performance but her character is written almost as a sociopath which can be a bit distracting. Yin Feng is fine as the young police officer but does feel a bit disconnected from the rest of the film.

The film also acts as a commentary on China’s school system, with a strong emphasis of the all-important exams playing out in the background and with words of encouragement screamed at every turn to enforce the desire to achieve and significance of getting good grades. This in turn invokes dread and pressure to the students and its relevance to the Nian who is a character striving to come out of her poverty stricken environment with sheer diligence and it perfectly contrasts the other end of the spectrum, Bei who is societies misfit trying to make ends meets. As the exams take precedent over everything else it also brings about the flaws in everyone else’s nature where they would opt to focus on their immediate needs and not care for what is happening around them. Tsang smartly puts the focus on both our leads and everything else is that happens around them are consequences to their predicaments, this importance helps the film stay in focus and it never feels bloated with filler.

Better Days is fantastic film with a strong message bolstered with exceptional performances and it is definitely a must watch film.