Film Name: 大世界 / Have a Nice Day
The opening of the film’s third act features an utterly surreal ocean scene. Perhaps that vast, endless expanse of water, rippling with gentle waves, is a dream Zhang experienced after being knocked unconscious. Only in such a dream could he find moments of tranquility and a hazy longing.
In truth, the entire film resembles an ocean. When that leather bag containing one million yuan in cash is cast into its depths, you witness the ripples it creates spreading outward in concentric waves. These ripples radiate from the center, affecting those connected to the bag and extending to those seemingly unrelated, creating a vast disturbance. Yet ultimately, they are swallowed by the vast sea, as if nothing had ever happened. This briefcase also stirs ripples within many hearts, rousing restlessness and agitation—as the film states, igniting greed.
Those tempted by this ill-gotten gain seem to meet grim fates. Yet the film transcends mere moralizing about “avoiding selfish desires” or ” be kind to others and find contentment in what you have.” Instead, it uses the small ripples caused by this million-yuan bag to reveal the existence of a deep, bottomless ocean. This ocean is our society—the one that differs from what you hear and see in the media. It encompasses a vast array of people, each seemingly insignificant yet struggling to survive.
Is this the true society surrounding us? Not necessarily, but it is the society as seen through the director’s lens. The film is almost entirely shot in dark tones, as if the director observes this world through tinted glasses. These glasses filter not only color but also emotion, leaving only the raw, instinctive struggle for survival among these diverse yet insignificant people. When confronted with such primal instincts, telling someone “don’t be greedy” feels utterly futile.
The film’s sharpest critique lies not in the actions of ordinary people swept up by that million-yuan bag, but in the stark contrast between these absurd, illegal, and criminal acts and the ubiquitous, glossy slogans and banners that surround them.
The lobby of the small hotel displays a poster proclaiming “Welcoming Guests from All Directions,” yet this very place has been the scene of multiple murders. At the school entrance, banners hang reading “Welcome Leaders at All Levels to Visit Our School,” but this institution produces students utterly disinterested in academics, eager to drop out and start businesses—only to propose opening restaurants as the “socially necessary” career path. And the ubiquitous slogans proclaiming “Honest Business Practices” seemed to strip naked above piles of illegal shops. The song “Dedicating Youth to the New Rural Areas,” adorned with visual elements reminiscent of the Great Leap Forward, had become nothing more than a joke for the punk-rockers to amuse themselves.
Some slogans are freshly painted, their ink seemingly still wet. Yet no matter how vivid their red background, they appear lifeless and dull through the director’s dark glasses. Others clearly bear years of wear, like the banner hanging on a European-style building that reads, “Warmly Celebrating Dawang Real Estate University…” The latter half of the banner is blown out of sight by the wind, yet it still faintly hints at the university’s foray into real estate. More commercial advertisements abound, some even misspelled—like “豪宅” (luxury homes) written as ‘毫宅’ (literally “millimeter homes”)—exposing the city’s culture-deprived, money-obsessed ethos.
Just as the assassin Shoupi heard the familiar jingle of “CCTV News” ringing in his ears before setting out to kill, no matter how bright the neon lights or how loud the slogans, they couldn’t mask the true state of society’s decline. These slogans formed an ironic contrast with reality, like the surface and the substance.
We once lived in a slogan-driven society, where banners, slogans, and big-character posters were everywhere—as if plastering them everywhere would magically create a thriving, peaceful era. Someday, perhaps we’ll no longer need these superficial slogans. Someday, we might finally break free from this hypocritical, slogan-driven society. Let this film serve as a memorial to that era.
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