The story appears simple on the surface, but is revealed, especially after multiple viewings, as more multi-layered and textured than Cassavetes at his best. Ostensibly it concerns a 14-year old Catholic girl, Wynne (Agutter) growing up in this post-modern wasteland, who develops a crush on her much older adoptive brother (Marshall)- a crush which perversely deepens and grows into infatuation once she starts to believe he is the local sex killer. This is in itself an idea that makes you sit up and jolt, but as the narrative develops, it continues not necessarily along a linear path but in several confusing and fascinating directions: the family's history, (detailed effectively in chilling flashback during an improvised seance) is a chequered one, and has suffered at least one major relocation and upheaval in the last ten years. At the crux, however, it's the depiction of socialal changes that make I Start Counting so fascinating and elevate its language far beyond the confines of the standard horror film. The major subtext- that teenage girls were maturing more quickly than before, and developing full sexual and romantic appetites (even if in thought rather than deed) but were not possessed of enough discretion to make the right choices- was a step forward for a genre in which its young females had previously been portrayed as bimbo victims (Cover Girl Killer and The Night Caller spring to mind), but not one that all viewers would necessarily agree with. But most striking of all, and possibly the most enduring image which the viewer will take away with them, is of the masterful symbolism with which director Greene invests every shot. Every inch of the Kinch family's world- their house, their walls, their TV, Agutters underwear, bedroom furniture and toys, Sutcliffe's clothes, Marshalls van, the local Catholic church, their town centre, their record shop) - is painted a bright, scintillating white- a white which, by inference, is slowly becoming smudged and corrupted with the dirt of the outside world. White also symbolises, of course, purity and innocence (two qualities Catholic schoolgirls are supposed to hold dear), and it is into this world of innocence that the ever-present red bus (a symbol of violation and penetration), conducted by the lecherous yet similarly juvenile Simon Ward, makes regular journeys. The allegory is further expanded in one scene where Agutter believes she sees the Christ figure in church weeping blood: by the time we acknowledge it, its gone, but the seed has already been planted. Rarely in a genre production has the use of colour and background been so important or effective in creating a uniformity of mood. I Start Counting is as near-perfect an end to a decade as one could hope for, and exactly the kind of film people should be making now- which is, of course, exactly why they never will. A genre essential. by D.R.
《2001: Rick and Ratatouille in the Mood for Love Interstella During Star Wars in Matrix》生命、宇宙以及一切的终极答案指向42还是爱。我们东亚人啊。“对一切怀有希望，不是我的天真，而是我的生存方式。”我又开始自私地在虚构人物身上寻找自己的角色。
太怪咖了我的妈呀！简直没有一处"正常"的喜剧点！无厘头、恶趣味，还有一个个奇葩的脑坑，使我每一次的"哈哈哈"都紧跟着"什么鬼!?!"。疯了整个宇宙，谁能想到，最后竟被悬崖上的两坨石头招哭了。
我。。。。已經。。。。哭了。。。。。20分鐘了。。。。。。。。。。。哭的眼睛都腫了。。。。。。鼻子都塞死了。。。。。。好想我媽。。。。。。。。。 （p. s. 國語粵語英語無縫切換 真有意思hhhhh）
明明确实没什么意义。
中式家庭伦理混搭千奇百怪类型元素，想象力超凡卓绝。场景调度/变幻、蒙太奇剪切、叙事技法炫到飞起，高概念体验式模拟人生游戏不断冲击视觉感官，包括那些插科打诨的笑料与荒腔走板的迷影致敬，最后再以极其温暖的方式回归原始母题，即家的核心是爱。见证过多元宇宙的每一种命运还义无反顾坚定当初的选择，相信所有东亚母亲都应该深有共鸣。
疯狂拼贴的极多主义炒杂碎美学，《罗拉快跑》式的因果链条、《云图》式的命运轮回、《超体》式的根茎链接、王家卫式的抽帧、周星驰式的无厘头、成龙式的功夫喜剧，各式元素信手拈来，游走在美式华裔家庭片、超级英雄电影、心智游戏电影与B级片的边界地带，或许诡异的观感正来源于在主流与独立的协商空间中不同美学与诉求的碰撞。部分桥段流于说教，采用抽象的爱作为一切问题的象征性解药，通过对于哲学理论似是而非的征用使观众获得一种参与“哲学思辨”的商品化经验，然而在其惊人的扁平性中却也生成一种与《安妮特》《方形》等作品相切近的吊诡的审美体验。另一遗憾是多元宇宙的不同分身基本依旧按照职业身份或身体机能亦即使用价值加以划分，我们即便能够想象有机物从未生成的宇宙却仍然无法想象一个社会层面alternative的宇宙。
太精彩了，啥都好，但是最后为什么一定要和解呢？用爱解决一切问题本来已经够烂了，结果还是用嘴炮让对方缴械。我在看什么日本动漫吗？
实在很无聊。nothing matters 这种简单老套的主题配上一堆并不好笑的动作。
在天马行空的想象和炫目的剪辑包装下，东亚家庭内核把握得很精准，为杨紫琼开心。爸爸那句“如果有来生，我还是会选择跟你一起，报税、开洗衣店”很戳泪点，早期华人赴美做的也就是洗衣工这些劳力工种，涵盖华裔三代人（父亲、夫妻、女儿）面貌的全宇宙。
一个有关“爱”可以对抗一切摧毁生命意义之行为的极其华丽的论证方式，发挥了内置于“多元宇宙”内部的存在主义哲学质询，看不到太多的深度。从《瑞士军刀男》到《瞬息全宇宙》，丹尼尔兄弟于我就是“猪肚鸡”的感觉，麻雀虽小，幺蛾子不少。当然是十分可口的一道菜，性价比极高，但要开饭馆还是挺难的。
疯狂拼贴的极多主义炒杂碎美学，《罗拉快跑》式的因果链条、《云图》式的命运轮回、《超体》式的根茎链接、王家卫式的抽帧、周星驰式的无厘头、成龙式的功夫喜剧，各式元素信手拈来，游走在美式华裔家庭片、超级英雄电影、心智游戏电影与B级片的边界地带，或许诡异的观感正来源于在主流与独立的协商空间中不同美学与诉求的碰撞。部分桥段流于说教，采用抽象的爱作为一切问题的象征性解药，通过对于哲学理论似是而非的征用使观众获得一种参与“哲学思辨”的商品化经验，然而在其惊人的扁平性中却也生成一种与《安妮特》《方形》等作品相切近的吊诡的审美体验。另一遗憾是多元宇宙的不同分身基本依旧按照职业身份或身体机能亦即使用价值加以划分，我们即便能够想象有机物从未生成的宇宙却仍然无法想象一个社会层面alternative的宇宙。
不過不喜歡“我是你妈”
此时很难不想起陈铭 站在宇宙中心呼唤爱
妈都figured her shit out了却还是选择be here with me，变成石头也要追我下地狱，这不是the ultimate save to everything，这是exactly逼疯我的原因
台词和动作一样密，留白空间太少；每个平行宇宙都像贵价方便面，高奢的定位速食的内核；每个你都一样，每个你们都不一样，脸谱化的频繁穿越，花拳绣腿的功夫真的精神分裂.PS.海报和漫画很喜欢.
此外补一句，美国华裔的故事是美国人的故事，和东亚家庭文化关系也不大。
"Asian lesbian will destroy the world if she is not getting along with her mom"
这，这根本就是好莱坞版《你好李焕英》吧！不过杨紫琼的角色，更加去温情化，彻头彻尾的“恶魔母亲”：否定自己的人生，放弃改变的可能，沉溺幻想的虚无……子女的不同选择，就是对她人生的全面否定，是她最害怕面对的。电影将远远称不上叛逆无非是刺青和同性恋的女儿塑造成想象中的大反派，这思路和把小孩送去给杨永信电一电就能治好不听话也没两样吧，结局却依然顺拐地走向和解与大团圆，太可怕。
我们固执地妄图逃离母亲并不断说服她去过好自己的人生，她却控制不住自己地拼命要关注我们。一切从我们诞生于世的那一刻开始无法扭转，变成无限循环的长期伤痛。hello，mom。bye，mom。
在脑洞的基础上，拥有动作喜剧的趣味性，又拥有家庭关系剖析，还在中间透露出文艺感的哲思。
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