I've always had kind of a love hate relationship with Chinese historical BLs. Some are genuinely excellent, but then there are others that cram in so much plot that keeping track of all the layers of betrayal and scheming gets exhausting, and I end up checking out mentally. Part of the issue is also just how much content is out there in this space, so something really has to stand out to keep me hooked. In this case, the production value is genuinely impressive, top tier stuff, but story wise, I just couldn't bring myself to actually care about these characters. There's a ton of political scheming and backstage manipulation running throughout. Somewhere in the middle of all that chaos, a hostage ends up falling for his own Prince Charming. The show runs eight episodes, each around 50 to 60 minutes long. After spending three years guarding the border, Fifth Prince Yin Qi gets called back to the capital because of a secret letter, only to end up walking straight into a deadly...
Living in a rural countryside, Daniel has painted large hybrid animals on farmsteads, barns and public spaces and the community loves him and 'tolerates' his sexual choices. He has a young boyfriend (or they are fooling around) and has been promoting self acceptance within LGBTQ folks in the community. Even the village parish priest absolves him, because he could not do otherwise. But something breaks when his friend, a young Jagoda, whom Daniel has urged to stop hiding her homosexuality, is threatened by a group of homophobic youths and she kills herself by hanging herself from a tree. Daniel Rycharski turns that tragic death into an artistic performance: he cuts down the tree on which she hanged herself and carves a cross from it, with which he wants to organise a Way of the Cross, "because Jagoda died like Christ" and "this cross speaks of a universal drama". But as expected he gets absolutely no support from anyone in his countryside. Intolerance gets the upper hand, but Daniel challenges the Church and common sense by bringing his work to a vernissage in Warsaw.
When the film started and almost till mid way, I wasn't sure if I was enjoying the film, but watching something break in Daniel after the lesbian friend kills herself changes everything for the film. It suddenly becomes a very complex film with nuances that can easily be missed. Most important thing you will notice in the film is the simplicity. Nothing is sensationalized in the film. Not Daniel's interactions, or his relationship, his religious beliefs, his art gallery exhibition for even his final installation. There is a dignity with which all of this is shown, even his interactions with his grandmother, his father or with Pagoda's mother for that matter. They are all subtle yet leave a mark. This is as much about people finding the confidence to follow their hearts as it is about religious intolerance, and as a short and punchy drama delivers quite well on that front. It reminds us that the world is made of differences, and that the fight against contempt leads to nowhere. You can see yourself in it, make an examination of conscience. The actor playing the role of Daniel is amazing. As I said before, I wasn't sure where things are headed when the film started, but there was something so devastating about his performance, the way he expresses his internalized anger and despair was too good and I have to give all the credit to the director duo who created this film. In this way, he manages to build a deep, moving portrait of a man who dares to face himself and confront his ‘fears’ – collective demons waiting to be ‘exorcised’. I should warn you that the film is extremely slow, but I wasn't expecting something so thoughtful that makes you think that we still have our demons to face everyday and of the people around us and our own surroundings. (6.5/10)
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