Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.0

Better Days Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 5, 2020

It may not be all that surprising, given recent global events that have spotlighted the People’s Republic of China’s unwillingness to “allow” negative reports about itself, at least within its own borders, that the nation actually evidently attempted to keep Better Days from being screened not just in its native country but kind of amazingly also at such venerable venues as the Berlin Film Festival. That may have been because Better Days is not one of the “rah rah” jingoistic historical epics that have become regular fodder from Chinese filmmakers, but is instead a rather intimate, often introspective piece, that “dares” to bring up touchy subjects like bullying and suicide within the ranks of Chinese students. It's perhaps instructive to contrast Better Days with another Asian film that has at least some of the same plot mechanics involving bullying, the interesting Korean outing The King of Pigs. As I mentioned in our The King of Pigs Blu-ray review, in both The King of Pigs and his later film The Fake, Korean filmmaker Sang-ho Yeon may have chosen to offer animated films since he's dealing with any number of troubling issues (not necessarily limited only to bullying) which probably would have been even more troubling had they been offered in a live action setting. Proof of that thesis may indeed reside in Better Days, since it doesn't shirk from detailing the trauma that bullying behavior can cause.

In a way, though, it's perhaps arguable that Better Days doesn't have the courage of its convictions, something that makes its (temporary) banning in and by China seem a little perplexing. The first part of the film is no doubt the part that got it into "trouble" with Chinese authorities, as it makes a rather powerful case that China's vaunted "group think" may not always redound to the benefit of every individual. In fact the film starts with the devastating effects of bullying, leading to the death of a kid. That in turn ends up getting focal character Chen Nian (Zhou Dongyu) embroiled in being harassed after she has the temerity to actually show some sympathy and empathy for the victim. Chen's harrowing experiences as the butt of various bad behaviors at her school give the first part of Better Days an undeniable power, albeit a rather disturbing one.

Chen reasonably reacts with pain and even torment to being so horribly bullied, especially when she's trying to muster the focus to pass what are evidently extremely rigorous college entrance exams that Chinese kids have to go through. This part of Better Days' social critique is also rather pointed, making it abundantly clear that scores of Chinese youth are being scarred by both the preparations for and the ultimate taking of the college entrance exams.

But then Better Days kind of goes off on a tangent, albeit one that is admittedly linked to everything that has gone before. Chen meets a kind of lowlife thug named Xiao Bei (Jackson Yee), and Chen more or less "recruits" him to be her protector. That ends up having some unforeseen consequences, which is when the film tips over into more of a thriller (and in fact the back cover of this release "identifies" the film as just such a property). While this section of the story has some visceral impact as well, I couldn't help but feel that it kind of cheapened the very forceful first section of the tale, and in fact may have actually undercut some of that power, simply because credulity really starts getting strained more and more as things develop.

Parts of the film kind of reminded me of so-called "juvenile delinquent" films like Rebel Without a Cause which featured supposedly "lost" youth who band together, at least in part because they have no solid parental support (or at least parental understanding). If not completely successful, Better Lives still has a rather potent emotional wallop to deliver, and it may in fact deliver it even more powerfully to "non native" audiences (meaning, non-Chinese), since it casts a light from the inside on a society which goes to extreme lengths to proffer a "practically perfect in every way" image to the outside world.

Better Days Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Better Days is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. The IMDb lists the ever popular Arri Alexa as having been utilized, with everything finished at a 2K DI. While the supposed "realism" of this film means that it doesn't have any of the CGI splendor that tends to accompany some of the Asian film market's fantasy laden vehicles, this is a consistently sharp and appealing looking presentation that offers abundant detail and fine detail levels, while also preserving a (for the most part) natural looking palette. The students' bright blue uniforms pop with considerable immediacy, and a glut of close-ups offer really nice levels of fine detail. There are a few "arty" moments, including some dappled light sequences in a car and a montage, where lighting conditions and skewed camera angles don't totally support the same levels of detail seen in the bulk of the presentation. A few of the very darkest moments have minor deficits in shadow definition, but this is by and large a very appealing looking transfer.

Better Days Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Better Days features an effective DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track in the original Mandarin, with optional English subtitles (it looks from the IMDb listing that this actually had Dolby Atmos in some of its theatrical exhibitions, though I'm frankly not sure what any "vertical" elements might have added to the presentation). This is a consistently immersive track, albeit on the subtle side at times. The noisy scenes with a bunch of unruly kids, as well as some other elements like roaring motorcycles, provide good opportunities for things like panning effects or discrete channelization. A rather nicely done score featuring piano and strings by Varqa Buehrer also wafts through the side and rear channels winningly. Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly throughout this problem free track.

Better Days Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Making Of

  Jackson Yee (1080i; 3:32)

  
  

  Zhou Dongyu (1080i; 2:43)

• Trailer A (1080p; 1:26)


• Trailer B (1080p; 1:25)


• Trailer C (1080p; 2:29)

Note: As tends to be the case with Well Go USA Blu-ray releases, the supplements have been authored to follow one another automatically (so that clicking on Jackson Yee under the Making Of menu is essentially a Play All button). After Trailer C for this film plays, the disc has been authored to automatically move on to trailers for other Well Go USA releases. Those trailers for other Well Go USA releases also play automatically at disc boot up.

Better Days Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Better Days is an emotionally roiling piece, and it will almost certainly strike a chord with anyone who has ever been on the receiving end of bullying themselves. I'm not sure the film's decision to go off into almost a "procedural" angle in its latter half is completely effective, but even in the second part of the film, there are some surprises. Dongyu Zhou is quite impressive in a role that requires her to be distraught quite a bit of the time. Technical merits are solid, and Better Days comes Recommended.