A Better Tomorrow Film and Scene Analysis

A Better Tomorrow Film and Scene Analysis

by Matthew McMahon

Sikov First Five Chapter Analysis

There are two characters presented in this scene, Mark and Ho. The scene takes place in a garage, which is the place where Mark works as a janitor. Mark is dressed in janitors’ clothes. The shirt is an army color with a tear on the left shoulder with gray pants. In the first two frames, Mark has his right leg extended with a support strapped to his shoe, because he can no longer walk due to the shooting that occurred three years prior. He is eating some sort of cheesy, stringy food in a depressed manner. He is surprised to see his old friend, Ho, yet ashamed to be in the shape he is. Ho is dressed in a street coat, with a blue undercoat and is happy to see his old friend. He is curious as to why his old friend is ashamed. The two grab hands and embrace one another, holding onto each other. Mark is disappointed with Ho, because he no longer wants to be a criminal, so he walks away and lights a cigarette. The cigarette is ignited with a lighter, and from the cigarette comes a cloud of smoke.

                    

The scene begins with the camera tracking to the right, staring at Mark through a sort of fence. This gives off the feeling that Mark was in a prison of his own. The camera moves past a wall and suddenly cuts to a shot looking directly at Mark. The camera zooms into Mark’s face. The camera stays rather stationary during the rest of the scene, with relatively no movement. When Mark walks away from Ho, the camera stays still but turns its head. Then it tracks towards Ho, when he learns about Kit following Shing because it wants to capture Ho’s facial response to this news. Both characters are centered on screen, whether they are alone or together. The director does not want these characters to be isolated from the audience, he wants the audience to connect with these characters. He wants their embrace to evoke an emotional response. The last part of the shot has Mark placed on the right of the screen and Ho placed towards the middle.

The scene starts off in dark lighting. When the focus is on Mark, the lighting is dark and dim to show that he is in a very bad place mentally and physically. When it focuses on Ho, we see it becomes brighter to show Ho’s rebirth from prison, and second chance at life. When the two characters embrace, it is very well lit to signify the rebirth of their friendship and happiness. Towards the end, the lighting is neither bright nor dark, to symbolize the neutrality of their friendship. Although they have reunited, their ideals have shifted. We see that the camera begins focused on Mark, with Ho foggy. Then the camera fogs out Mark and makes Ho clear.

                   

When the camera looks at Ho, it is pointed upward, at a low-angle shot, to signify that he is strong and tall. The camera looks at Mark at an eye level shot, because it gives him a neutral look and the viewer is to decide whether he is still strong or if he has weakened. Two cameras are likely used, because one looks at Mark from one angle, and the other at Ho from a low angle, giving the impression that the two characters are having a conversation in which one is looking up and the other is looking down. When the characters embrace, the shot is a 180 degrees angle, with their eye-lines parallel to the degree.

                 

                                       

All the music is nondiegetic. The dialogue is diegetic. Mark’s leg seems to be nondiegetic and produced artificially but synchronized with his movement. When Mark lights the cigarette with his lighter, the sound is produced dietetically. The music starts off very somber, because it is a moment in which the viewer is to feel very sad and sympathetic towards Mark. The music starts to pick up when the two encounter each other, bring strong feeling of nostalgia and anticipation as they reconnect. When the characters grab one another and hug each other the music’s amplitude is heightened which causes a less somber tone and more of a relief and happiness that the two are one again reunited.

                   

Complete Analysis

A Better Tomorrow is an action crime film. The film focuses around two brothers on opposite sides of the law, the trials and tribulations of two friends, and betrayal and revenge. This film starts off with Ho waking up from nightmare about his brother, Kit, being shot. It is likely that Ho had the idea that he was the one who shot his brother in the back because Kit is training as a police officer and Ho is a member of the Triad. We are then introduced to a character, Mark, who is Ho’s Partner in crime and ever so elegant.  Mark and Ho seem to hold this special bond that transcends friendship. They are all but brothers. When we are introduced to Kit, we see that is rather reckless. When he brings his girlfriend, Jackie, to a music tryout, he knocks over a couple of the judges, forces them to give Jackie a chance even though they showed up late, and breaks one of the judge’s car windows. The beginning of the movie sets up this scenario where the audience loves Ho and Mark and has a distaste for Kit. Both Ho and Mark are criminals, and theoretically we should dislike them because they are bad, but we love them. Kit is in the process of becoming an officer and, we should respect that yet, we are annoyed by him.

                   

The film starts to become less happy and reaches a point of rising action when Ho is betrayed, and the father is killed. Mark goes on to avenge his friend and loses his leg because of it. When Ho gets out of jail, he stops at his brother Kit’s house who is angered at seeing his brother. Kit beats him, and the relationship that was established in the beginning of the movie has collapsed. Soon after, Ho goes to find his friend Mark to reunite with him. We are reminded of the friendship that was established early in the film. On one hand, Ho’s relationship with Kit has been destroyed, while his relationship with Mark has been restored. Ho and Mark’s ideals have separated, because Ho wants to take his second chance and live an honest life. Mark wants to get back at the people who wronged his friend Ho, and reestablish their dominance in the Triad.

For a while, Ho stays on the proper track and works as a car mechanic, but the crime life still calls him. Shing tries to get Ho to rejoin him, but Ho does not like how Shing has treated his brother and dearest friend. Even though Ho has refused the life of crime with his second chance, Kit remains angry with him.

Ultimately, Ho is unable to avoid the crime life. Kit continues to pursue Shing and receives a bullet in the arm. Shing tortures Mark and tries to force him to jump off the ledge. Then Shing sends in his cronies to attack the car mechanic place that Ho works at. All these events cause Mark and Ho to steal the money printer data from so they can topple Shing’s empire. A shootout occurs at the shipyard where Mark is killed. When Shing, Ho, and Kit are surrounded by the police, Shing turns himself in. Kit is faced with a choice between good and evil. When Kit chooses a path of evil, he is finally redeemed as a character. Ho returns to his status as a Big Brother when he takes Kit’s handcuffs and has Kit turn him into the police.

The music in this film is mostly non-diegetic. Some of the music we hear while they are in their favorite club does appears to be diegetic. The music is rather upbeat in the beginning, but still has this sentimental tone to it. It symbolizes this strong friendship between Mark and Ho and their enjoyment in their current lifestyle. Everything is tranquil in the beginning and the peace has not been disrupted. The music reaches a more chaotic tone when Mark is at the restaurant, and he is about to shoot up the betrayers. During Mark’s death scene, we see the music reach its most somber point.

                   

The main characters in this film are Ho, Kit, Mark and Shing. Ho is a character whom garners a lot of respect. In the beginning of the movie, he enjoys the criminal activity, but cannot help but feel it is wrong. He took a metaphorical bullet for Shing by choosing to go to jail and let him go, but later found out he had been back stabbed. After coming out of jail, he tries his best to stay out of crime but cannot help but protect Mark and his younger brother Kit from Shing. Ho was a man of ownership and honor as he avenged his fallen brother Mark and himself by killing Shing. Once again, the viewer is pressed to think if the ends justified the means. Is a character who is drawn to a life of crime and killing, still a good person?

 Kit is a character who starts off rather childlike. From the beginning of the movie, Kit shows great immaturity. Kit is incredibly angry, and senselessly beats his brother and talks down to him. He does not see the whole picture, only his perspective. The final scene features Kit handing his gun to Ho and allowing him to shoot down Shing, showing Kit reconnection with Ho.

Mark is a character who is elegant, everyone loves him, and he is Ho’s best friend. In the beginning Mark is mainly a smooth talker and does little but accompany Ho on crime activities. When Ho is taken to prison, Mark avenges Ho’s betrayal by killing the enemies in the restaurant. Mark loses all feeling his leg, but we see a change in Mark. He goes from a smooth talking, elegant man, to a man driven to avenge Ho’s betrayers.

Shing starts off as Mark and Ho’s driver. Shing is talked down to in the beginning and treated with little respect. Shing is eventually the one who betrays Ho and takes over Ho’s position in the Triad. Shing is the main antagonist.

The beginning of the film is very white and bright. This symbolizes the peacefulness and tranquility that is occurring in the beginning of the film. The film becomes rather dark during the scenes where the father is killed, and Ho is betrayed. The lighting is very present in this film when we look at the prevalence of the theme of good and evil. The last sequence at boating docks is shot at night time. This sets the stage for the decisions that Kit must make as to whether he gives Ho the gun or not. Kit realizes that not everything is black and white, there is a spectrum.  

Sources:

Film Studies by Ed Sikov