A Dive into the Psyche: Exploring Tian Xiaopeng’s “Deep Sea”
“Deep Sea,” Tian Xiaopeng’s long-awaited animated feature seven years in the making, offered a visually stunning experience despite my viewing it in a smaller, less extravagant cinema. The sheer scale and immersive nature of the animation transported me to a vibrant new world, rich with Eastern-inspired fantasy and limitless horizons. While the film’s box office performance may not reflect its artistic merit, I believe this is less a comment on the film’s quality and more an indication of a disconnect between the movie’s unique approach and current audience expectations.
The Tale Unfolds
The narrative of “Deep Sea” centers on Shenxiu, who grapples with feelings of abandonment and isolation following her parents’ divorce and her mother’s departure. Tragedy strikes during a storm-ridden cruise with her father and his new family when she falls overboard. She’s saved by a clown, but after days adrift, he dies. Shenxiu is eventually rescued by a passing vessel.
The film’s core unfolds as a dream sequence while Shenxiu lies comatose. The clown transforms into Nanhe, the ambitious owner of the Deep Sea Restaurant and captain of the ship “Deep Sea.” Burdened by debt, Nanhe endlessly strives to innovate and cater to the insatiable demands of his clientele to boost his struggling restaurant’s ratings. Shenxiu, initially an unwelcome presence, becomes labeled as “unlucky.” Nanhe unwittingly embarks on a transformative journey with Shenxiu, battling the metaphorical “bad luck ghosts” and discovering a path to personal renewal.
Emotional Resonance vs. Conventional Storytelling
“Deep Sea” prioritizes emotional depth over intricate plotting. The film eschews traditional villain archetypes and complex story arcs common in Western animation. Instead, it magnifies the anxieties and nightmares that arise from repressed emotions, allowing them to visually dominate the landscape. While this bold approach demonstrates remarkable artistic vision, it may have alienated viewers seeking a more straightforward narrative. Expectations still lean towards a satisfying storyline with clear resolutions, and “Deep Sea” challenges this norm.
Navigating the Emotional Depths of Nanhe and Shenxiu
The emotional experiences of Nanhe and Shenxiu in “Deep Sea” are intensely personal and may prove challenging for some viewers to fully embrace. They are characters grappling with survival, portrayed with vulnerabilities that generate empathy, but maintaining sustained emotional synchronicity for the film’s duration can be difficult. The dreamlike narrative of the first three-quarters of the film, in particular, can be confusing. The eventual reveal that the events are unfolding within Shenxiu’s coma-induced imagination offers some clarity. But it may not entirely dispel the disorientation or transform the initial confusion into a satisfying, cathartic realization.
There can be something of a risk involved with wholeheartedly investing in someone’s emotional turmoil. However, acknowledging the eventual illumination, one might find the poignancy associated with experiencing the inner depths of lonely and helpless characters might outweigh the initial frustration upon realizing, yet again - “it was all a dream.”
Tian Xiaopeng’s Romantic Vision
The courage to pursue this path is a demonstration of an unmistakably romantic notion. Tian Xiaopeng, known for his contributions to modern Chinese animation via “Monkey King: Hero is Back,” is indeed a romantic. Evidenced by the decision to explore the struggles of two vulnerable figures set against the dramatic and expansive backdrop of underwater realms; the choice in using vivid colors to accentuate the world’s inherent beauty, and the film’s incorporation of an ethereal and almost ‘aqueous’ essence serves to highlight the boundless magnificence of physical and emotional human nature. Although this romanticism has not perhaps resonated too loudly throughout the here and now, the characters, even with over 500 million box office admissions, the romantic ideal is still worthwhile due to its ability to inspire the romanticist and the individuals they cherish. Take Nanhe, for instance, and how he reminisces about his hometown’s mesmerizing mirrored meadows reflecting the sunlight. And how the swaying grasses ‘dazzled the eyes under sparkling snow.’ From this, the impulsive decision to save Shenxiu whilst submerged in the sea illustrates the selflessness and even the moral courage Nanhe shows as a stranger, offering some tearful sacrifice.
The decision to show the director letting Shenxiu live life to the fullest, is very powerful. To capture the comatose symptoms, trauma and distress and near-death experiences of a young girl, and to relay how her weight is the most empowering thing to help other peoples lives: such is her plight to keep on living.
This is not something only the romantics may understand, for when one is offered the opportunity of such an experience, there comes a whole arena of new experience, from infinite flow and vibrancy on the screen to emotional intelligence, love and hate, and the loss, and courage to keep on struggling.
“Deep Sea” is a journey into the unknown territory of oceans deep, and plunges us into the depths of our very own human hearts. While certain wishes perhaps may have not been fully granted, there is no going array from this, the valiant attempt that sees through such courageous display.