Kinematics Theory
It's interesting to note that the highly original Taiwanese BL melodrama The Ambiguous Focus is in fact a sequel to Kinematics Theory. Can this predecessor be even more fascinating than the sequel?
Summary: Childhood friends Zhang Zhe and Zhang Nan study mathematics at the same university but they are completely alienated from each other and fight constantly. On the surface, Nan is an arrogant bully, content to rely on his good looks, amazing physique (and goddamn, yes, it is indeed amazing) and his swimming prowess to get by in life. Zhe is a bookish nerd and top student but he's too introverted to make friends. But these boys are longtime friends and understand each other much better than their personalities suggest. Zhe sees Nan's morality and desire for independence under the cocky bluster, and Nan knows he can rely on Zhe's support and loyalty through any difficulty. They soon come to a truce and agree to help each other out. Their mutual support and reliance help them to understand what they really want - Nan's deep abiding love of swimming without any of the trappings of competition, and Zhe's greater ease when communicating with others. And, of course, each other.
The biggest surprise in this short movie (only one hour long) is how totally unlike The Ambiguous Focus it is. Even though the actors are the same, they might as well be completely different, they have almost nothing in common. The sequel is so forbidding, serious and even savage in its brutality, whereas Kinematics Theory (KT) is largely reliant on its half-hearted Odd Couple comedy. It's much lighter as a result, so it's difficult to understand why the writers would want to transpose the same characters into such a dark story off the back of this amiable but forgettable piece of BL comedy fluff. Nothing in KT suggests that it merits an additional, more dramatic treatment. In any case, if we focus solely on KT for the moment, and take it for what it is rather than for what it spawned, then it's easy to enjoy it as a fun, unremarkable "from hate to love" bromance.
There are a few serious moments, mostly coming later in the movie and relating to Nan's father and the pressure he places on his son to compete at the top of his game all the time. Nan is so stubborn and resentful of his father's pressure that he ends up deliberately sabotaging his own chances with the swimming team. This is where KT succeeds best - in showing us the sacrifices its main characters make in order to do the right thing by others, but at the same time coming to an understanding of how to achieve their own desires. This gives us glimpses of similar themes and ideas that are going to be re-used in its more famous sequel to much greater effect.
It's worth pointing out that there are virtually no typical BL scenes in this movie, so don't go in expecting quivering hearts and longing stares. In a way, it actually benefits from being more like a bromance, especially in its touching final scene. It's more obviously suggested that Zhe in particular might be gay, especially whenever he ogles Nan half-naked in his swimming trunks. Seriously though, the handsome, athletic actor playing Nan, John Wu, spends at least half of the movie with almost no clothes on. He is blatantly fetishised as the most obvious BL eye candy. You'll be drooling at him through every scene, just as Zhe does. I haven't seen such a hot jock actor in an Asian BL since Together With Me.
Kinematics Theory is worth an hour of your time, even though you'll probably forget all about it once it's finished. Just make sure you watch The Ambiguous Focus as well. As a passionate melodrama, it's far superior in every way.
Rating: 10 out of 20
Ending: happy
Best scene: Sitting by the pool in his swimming trunks, Nan complains that his eight-pack abs have become a six-pack, due to lack of training. Zhe stares hungrily at Nan's abs - as, of course, does the camera!!
Summary: Childhood friends Zhang Zhe and Zhang Nan study mathematics at the same university but they are completely alienated from each other and fight constantly. On the surface, Nan is an arrogant bully, content to rely on his good looks, amazing physique (and goddamn, yes, it is indeed amazing) and his swimming prowess to get by in life. Zhe is a bookish nerd and top student but he's too introverted to make friends. But these boys are longtime friends and understand each other much better than their personalities suggest. Zhe sees Nan's morality and desire for independence under the cocky bluster, and Nan knows he can rely on Zhe's support and loyalty through any difficulty. They soon come to a truce and agree to help each other out. Their mutual support and reliance help them to understand what they really want - Nan's deep abiding love of swimming without any of the trappings of competition, and Zhe's greater ease when communicating with others. And, of course, each other.
The biggest surprise in this short movie (only one hour long) is how totally unlike The Ambiguous Focus it is. Even though the actors are the same, they might as well be completely different, they have almost nothing in common. The sequel is so forbidding, serious and even savage in its brutality, whereas Kinematics Theory (KT) is largely reliant on its half-hearted Odd Couple comedy. It's much lighter as a result, so it's difficult to understand why the writers would want to transpose the same characters into such a dark story off the back of this amiable but forgettable piece of BL comedy fluff. Nothing in KT suggests that it merits an additional, more dramatic treatment. In any case, if we focus solely on KT for the moment, and take it for what it is rather than for what it spawned, then it's easy to enjoy it as a fun, unremarkable "from hate to love" bromance.
There are a few serious moments, mostly coming later in the movie and relating to Nan's father and the pressure he places on his son to compete at the top of his game all the time. Nan is so stubborn and resentful of his father's pressure that he ends up deliberately sabotaging his own chances with the swimming team. This is where KT succeeds best - in showing us the sacrifices its main characters make in order to do the right thing by others, but at the same time coming to an understanding of how to achieve their own desires. This gives us glimpses of similar themes and ideas that are going to be re-used in its more famous sequel to much greater effect.
It's worth pointing out that there are virtually no typical BL scenes in this movie, so don't go in expecting quivering hearts and longing stares. In a way, it actually benefits from being more like a bromance, especially in its touching final scene. It's more obviously suggested that Zhe in particular might be gay, especially whenever he ogles Nan half-naked in his swimming trunks. Seriously though, the handsome, athletic actor playing Nan, John Wu, spends at least half of the movie with almost no clothes on. He is blatantly fetishised as the most obvious BL eye candy. You'll be drooling at him through every scene, just as Zhe does. I haven't seen such a hot jock actor in an Asian BL since Together With Me.
Kinematics Theory is worth an hour of your time, even though you'll probably forget all about it once it's finished. Just make sure you watch The Ambiguous Focus as well. As a passionate melodrama, it's far superior in every way.
Rating: 10 out of 20
Ending: happy
Best scene: Sitting by the pool in his swimming trunks, Nan complains that his eight-pack abs have become a six-pack, due to lack of training. Zhe stares hungrily at Nan's abs - as, of course, does the camera!!
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