[TV] "Dangerous Mind": The Unfinished Road of Education Reform in Taiwan

Development: Blue Production, Film Production Director: Yi Zhiyan Screenwriter: Yi Zhiyan Cinematography: Chen Dapu Actors: Huang He, Wen Shenghao, Gao Jie, Li Lie, Zhang Shuhao

"Taiwan's education reform" began in the 1990s, from the national high school basic test to the national high school examination, from the college entrance examination to the university test, from the nine-year consistent to the 12-year state education... On the way to pursue the ideal education system, education reformers They all try to break the myth of higher education, hoping that Taiwan can be liberated from the higher education system and realize a more free and open pluralistic education. But sadly, diploma supremacy, which is deeply rooted in Taiwan's social values, has been slow to catch up with the reformers. As a result, students, parents and teachers in the process of education reform have all become experimenters and victims of insufficient support during the reform period. It is difficult to get out of this oppressive situation.

"Dangerous Mind" is adapted from the novel of the same name by Taiwanese writer Hou Wenyong. The story tells that Xie Zhengjie (played by Huang He), a third-year student in the third country, was accused of illegal after-school tutoring by the teacher, Zhan Chaowei (played by Wen Shenghao), before the entrance examination. Even the exclusion of the classmates made things difficult, and the unfair treatment of Xie Zhengjie also attracted her mother (played by Li Lie) to be dissatisfied, and decided to write to the media to sue the school for its disposal.

As early as when the novel came out, "Dangerous Mind" has already aroused huge social repercussions. The book's sharp criticism of higher education, the precise description of the chaos in the media, and the shock and despair after the struggle can all show Hou Wenyong's views on Taiwan. The attitude that education hates iron is not steel, but also deeply moved those readers who were trapped in Taiwan's education system.

However, in the face of the high evaluation of the original work, the TV series "Dangerous Mind" has taken a different approach, successfully showing the value of the adapted work, and driving more readers and audiences to discuss.

Most of the plots follow the development of novels. Through the student Xie Zhengjie and his parents, the pursuit of justice and rationality depicts the pedantic mentality of the school bureaucracy. At the same time, the comic "The Godfather" is used as a spiritual indicator to describe a middle school student's attitude towards reform. cognition. However, the TV series has a lot of revisions in the character design, and this highlights the absurdity of the entire Taiwanese education system. Among them, the class instructor Zhan Chaowei made the biggest change.

In the novel, Zhan Chaowei is an older teacher with a deep sense of stoicism, but Zhan Chaowei in the TV series is quite young, and has a more impulsive personality, and even has experience in fighting the university system. This change not only helps the audience to understand the causes of Zhan Chaowei's complex character, but also makes the accusation theme of the play more clear. From the way he played small tricks on Xie Zhengjie to the process of choosing to fight side by side with Xie Zhengjie, we can find that although Zhan Chaowei looks like a villain, he is actually a victim who succumbed to social values. Don't bow your head.

For me, though, the most successful adaptation strategy for Dangerous Minds has been the way the show was filmed.

The play is mainly shot with digital cameras DV, and a large number of amateur actors are used, such as Huang He, Zhang Shuhao, Hu Huanwei, Ji Peihui, etc., so that the audience can quickly integrate into the realistic campus atmosphere and feel those jumping needles, confusion, boredom, The resentful daily life in the middle of the country resonates from the actors' performances and the storyline.

In addition, director Yi Zhiyan also makes good use of easy and repetitive plots, which not only depicts the fatigue of the entire protest process, but also mocks the ridiculousness of the school bureaucrats, so as to empathize with the positions of both students and teachers, so as not to be completely partial or critical. The magical fragment before the ending makes the play show a pessimistic attitude different from the novel, but holds a kind of expectation that "the revolution has not yet succeeded, comrades still have to work hard", and also adds a touch of unexplainable to the growth of all characters. Ambiguous atmosphere, quite worth pondering.

Up to now, the plot of "Dangerous Mind" is still sharp, and the theme of the accusation is still full of force, but in addition to confirming the classic status of novels and TV series, does it also mean that the doubts behind Taiwan's education reform still exist?

In the novel, Xie Zhengjie finally chose to transfer schools and stopped talking. In the TV series, Zhan Chaowei went to the United States for further studies and returned to Taiwan to have children, but when he was asked why he still had expectations for Taiwan's educational environment, he was speechless. ...These ending designs that move readers or viewers must also reflect the deep questions and answers of many people. I think that if the education reform lacks an overall social consensus and people who sincerely change the status quo, then there will only be more Xie Zhengjie or Zhan Chaowei in the future, who will continue to be sacrificed in confusion and confusion.

"Dangerous Mind" is like a scalpel, directly cutting open the abscess of Taiwan's education, allowing people to see the corruption and stench inside, and constantly reminding students who have the same confusion that they are not alone. Although the road to reform is far away, just like Xie Zhengjie's narration at the end of the TV series: "Is it really forgotten? Or is it remembered in the most obscure way?" Maybe reform will fail again and again, but as long as people Still remembering the need for reform, the world has a chance to be a better place.

At present, "Dangerous Mind" can be watched for free on the public TV Youtube channel, and I recommend it to everyone.