"Children Are Not Stupid 3" does not preach but makes people alert
2024-08-20
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Stills from "Children Are Not Stupid 3"
Director Liang Zhiqiang
The new school season is full of youthful vitality. At this time, new textbooks, new works, and new campus culture shape, guide, and place students' hearts, struggles, and dreams from different angles. There are reflections on the ups and downs of studying, and there are also entrepreneurial attempts to enter the society in the future. These examples are hot and enthusiastic. These marks of youth will eventually become the ladder of growth to lead people forward.
"I'm doing this for your own good", the classic line from the movie "Children Are Not Stupid" series appeared on the big screen again after 18 years. Starting from August 16, the new work of Singapore's national high-scoring IP, the family comedy movie "Children Are Not Stupid 3" was released in China. The film revolves around two families facing the transition from primary school to junior high school, continuing the warm comedy route of the first two films, and humorously facing the current parent-child education problems.
The film's director Liang Zhiqiang said in an interview with a Beijing Youth Daily reporter that the film did not have a didactic attitude, but parents would feel awakened after watching it, "It turns out that I have always made extremely high demands in the name of being good for the children." Many parents and children walked out of the theater hand in hand after watching the film, "They felt that many misunderstandings were resolved during the film." Liang Zhiqiang smiled and said that Chinese children are about to usher in the "school season", and he hopes that adults and children can relieve stress after watching the film. "Just study hard, don't be obsessed with grades, and don't put too much pressure on yourself."
Using comedy to dispel the heavy burden and capture people's hearts, there must be laughter and tears
The movie "I'm Not Stupid" was released in Singapore in 2002. The film directly pointed out the unreasonable class division system in Singapore's primary schools - teaching good students and poor students separately. After the release of the movie, it has stimulated people's discussion on education methods to a certain extent. Director Liang Zhiqiang said: "In fact, Singapore's education is not that competitive, but Singaporean parents have formed a tacit understanding that they are competitive. The Singapore Ministry of Education has always told parents not to compare their children's grades and scores, and encourage them to explore their children's other talents. However, the traditional psychological inertia of parents is still to ask their children to get high scores. This competitive mentality has invisibly increased the burden on students."
Many parents are not aware that they are using pressure to control their children. Liang Zhiqiang said: "Just like the line 'I am doing this for your own good', which runs through this series of movies, parents think they are caring for their children, but they don't realize that this actually stems from a one-sided selfishness."
It is worth noting that such a complex and difficult educational problem is presented humorously and easily in Liang Zhiqiang's film. Liang Zhiqiang said with a smile: "Comedy design is easy for me. I am a comedian and have launched a TV program "Funny Action" that lasted for ten years. Therefore, I am good at finding humor in real life and human touch. If a movie wants to capture people's hearts, it must have laughter and tears, take the audience on an emotional roller coaster, and have a good interactive effect with the audience."
Moreover, he thinks comedy can ease the heaviness and make others less wary. "If I teach others how to teach their children with a stern face, they will definitely get angry and resist. However, I tell the story to everyone in a very relaxed way, and everyone will be willing to absorb it. Maybe in the end they will realize, 'Hey, isn't this talking about me?' Just like in the film, Wen Ting, the mother played by Hu Jing, thinks that compared with another 'tiger mom', she is actually kind to her children. However, during the quarrel, Wen Ting suddenly realized that I was also forcing my children."
Give children appropriate space and give them a brake in the new semester
Liang Zhiqiang sincerely said: "I am a director who 'can't read'. I didn't continue to go to school after junior high school. I was very depressed at the time, but later I discovered that I was very talented in making movies, so I entered the entertainment industry. The theme of this movie is how to cultivate your own children. Every child has his or her own talents. Parents should not erase their children's talents. If you cultivate their talents well, you may reap different results."
Liang Zhiqiang is not a father who encourages his children to study hard. "When my children were in primary school, their test scores were average. I always told them that it didn't matter and I believed in them. When they reached secondary school, they gradually became smarter. I have four children, three of whom have graduated from university, and one is preparing to go to university. Of course I require them to study, but grades are not important, as long as they work hard. I still think it is more interesting to encourage them. For example, I will tell my children, I don't require you to be excellent, but are you willing to give yourself one more chance?"
The "back to school season" is coming, and Liang Zhiqiang also hopes that everyone will welcome the new semester with a relaxed attitude. "Involution is a social phenomenon worthy of deep thought. Children should be given appropriate space and given a brake. Parents and children in this circle have a harder time. Whether or not a child goes to a prestigious school cannot actually determine his or her future prospects."
Hu Jing's performance adds a lot to "Children Are Not Stupid 3"
"Kids Are Not Stupid 3" is the first time this series has landed on the big screen in China. Liang Zhiqiang is very much looking forward to the market performance, "In fact, more than 20 years ago, I always wanted to develop in China. I didn't come at that time because I felt that the script was not good enough, so I wanted to wait until I had inspiration before filming, and I didn't expect that so much time would pass. So, I hope that this time "Kids Are Not Stupid 3" can create a miracle in the Chinese film market."
Liang Zhiqiang praised Hu Jing's performance in the film, "Hu Jing adds a lot to the film. Her performance is very natural and professional. With her delicate acting skills, she portrays the image of a mother who is anxious about her children's grades and tries her best. Her every look and every movement reveals her deep love and expectations for her children. Especially the scene where she unplugs the network cable and angrily denounces the game, which not only makes people laugh, but also deeply touches the audience's heartstrings, as if they saw the mother in their own family who is also worried about the future of her children."
There are also many scenes for young actors in the film. Liang Zhiqiang is very confident in guiding the children in filming: "I always encourage them to act in their own colors and use their own words. There will be a lot of improvisation in comedy, which also makes their performances more natural in front of the camera."
Liang Zhiqiang is a versatile person. He is not only famous as a well-known director, but also a talented actor and host. In the "Children Are Not Stupid" series, he also made a guest appearance, adding a touch of color to the movie. He humorously said that he is not the most handsome, and this self-knowledge made him choose a different path and create some funny characters.
Memory
"Kids Are Not Stupid 3" filmed again after 18 years
The story of "Children Are Not Stupid 3" unfolds between Wen Ting (Hu Jing), a full-time mother from Shanghai who went to Singapore to study with her son Zihao (Zhou Yuchen), and Jayden (Jiang Songheng), a local top student, and his "tiger mom" Sophia (Liu Shengmei). On one hand, Wen Ting and her son face the challenges of studying in a foreign country, and on the other hand, Sophia's strict discipline pushes her son to the path of "study king" with the idea of "elites come from under the stick". When the fates of the two families intertwine, it not only creates a dramatic tension, but also a detailed observation of the predicament of modern family education.
Initially, the movie "Children Are Not Stupid" was released in Singapore in 2002, directly pointing out the unreasonable class division system in Singapore's primary schools - teaching good students and poor students separately. After the release of the movie, it stimulated people's discussion on educational methods to a certain extent. Five years later, the Singapore government announced the abolition of the "slacker class". Schools no longer use scores as the sole criterion for evaluating students, but introduced a more flexible evaluation system, such as a hierarchical scoring system (dividing scores into ABCDE score segments). In this regard, director Liang Zhiqiang said: "I don't think it's the credit of my movie. The movie is just the starting point for everyone to discuss this education system. Singapore's education system has been continuously improved and perfected with the efforts of many people."
"I'm Not Stupid 2" was released in 2006 and explores the generation gap between parents and children due to lack of communication between them. Both the first and second parts broke the box office record of Singaporean movies.
"Kids Are Not Stupid 3" is about the phenomenon of over-education. It was 18 years after the last film. Director Liang Zhiqiang explained: "After filming the first two films, I didn't want to stick to one theme, so I planned to put it aside. I didn't expect that 18 years would pass. During this period, I have always been concerned about the topic of education, and I think this is a field worth exploring and presenting."
This group of articles/Reporter Xiao Yang and intern Liu Lu
Co-ordinator/Li Yang Manyi
(Source: Beijing Youth Daily)
