Before the newspaper came out the next day, many local residents in Los Angeles jokingly joked that the headline on the front page of the news the next day must be "Hugo's new work screened off a movie-watching boom" or something like "Hugo's new film is screened to set off a movie-watching boom", but to everyone's surprise, the attention of major newspapers to the film itself actually occupied the focus of attention.

In addition to "Entertainment Weekly", "USA Today", "Houston Chronicle", "New York Post", which were originally newspapers and magazines that attracted attention with their hot news, many other media commented on the movie "Death Row Walk" for the first time.

Among the many reviews, Roger Ebert's film review published in the "Chicago Sun" undoubtedly attracted the most widespread attention, not only because of Roger's authoritative influence in the film critics, but also because Roger put a lot of love into this work, which can be felt that Roger has a very deep feeling about the movie "Death Row Walk".

"This is a film based on a true story, nun Helen Pregin tells her own true experience, the original book is a book that is firmly against the death penalty, with strong religious overtones, but under the deep and fluid lens of Tim Robbins, there is a touch of calmness and objectivity, he just tells the story and gives the right to reflect to the audience.

The film tells the story between Sister Helen and the death row prisoner Matthew, Matthew always insists that he is innocent, Helen tries all kinds of efforts to try to help Matthew appeal, but with Helen's persistent efforts, Matthew confesses his crime, apologizes to the victim's family, and leaves this world peacefully and dignified.

In fact, this is a very simple story, the most legal movie, the core of its attention is not the case itself, but an inner struggle wrestling, from Matthew to Helen, from every participant in the story to every audience who walks into the cinema, this is a spiritual impact and baptism, everyone can taste different things from the story.

'Death Row Walk' was originally about the death penalty, but thanks to the delicate and explosive, real and infectious performance of the actor Hugo Lancaster, the film was further sublimated, allowing us to get a glimpse of another theme: behind the crime, in addition to the responsibility of the person concerned, should society also bear the corresponding obligations? This also divides the whole film into two core themes, the first is the death penalty, and the second is Matthew.

Why didn't Matthew plead guilty? This is probably the most direct feeling of every audience after watching the movie, Matthew is guilty, his hands are stained with blood, Matthew knows this clearly, but why does he always insist that he is innocent and is never willing to admit his guilt?

Is it because Matthew is really cold-blooded? Apparently not. We can follow the clues in Matthew's speech to find the truth of the matter.

Matthew mentions several times that he has not been treated fairly, including his rejection and dislike of the government, including his belief that rich people will not be on death row, and the way he gets along with Carl. The truth of the matter is that it was Carl who led the tragedy, although Matthew was also involved in the whole case, but it was done under Carl's instigation and even coercion, and it was Carl who violently and brutally killed Hope in the end - and this is precisely one of the keys to the death sentence of Matthew, but it was not carried out by Matthew.

From a legal point of view, Carl is the mastermind and Matthew is an accomplice, then Carl should be sentenced to death, and Matthew should be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment; From a moral point of view, both Carl and Matthew are murderers, and they should both be sentenced to equal punishment. But the result was that Carl was sentenced to prison and Matthew was sentenced to death.

Matthew is angry, his refusal to admit guilt, his persistent appeal, in fact, his roar and accusation against society.

As a socially disadvantaged group, Matthew's resistance seems too weak, his distrust of the government comes from the loopholes in the system, which makes it impossible for his hard work to be rewarded, and instead the 'lazy, opportunistic' blacks are able to live on welfare, and his hatred of the law comes from the strength of money, and the more money he hires to hire better lawyers can turn the tide - is this not an indictment of lawyers: they seek money instead of truth.

Matthew denied his crime, not because he was cold-blooded, but because he was bound by society and could not break free at all, in the eyes of politicians, lawyers, and the media, he was just a figurative 'demon', just a symbol of realizing interests, and had no vitality at all, this is his roar in the last stage of his life.

Of course, even if society has created Matthew's misfortune, this cannot be a relief for him to strangle his life, and being excluded by society must be excluded from society? Does being hurt by society mean hurting society? What's more, when Matthew has his own concept of misfortune, indifference, and hatred, there are also standards of happiness, love, and kindness, which have not disappeared from his experience, the mutual support of the family, the perseverance of the appointed lawyer, and the sincere care of the nun...... It's just that this qiē is forgotten because of his attachment to his misfortune.

When we condemn Matthew's cruelty and cold-bloodedness, we should also see that this 'demon' is not just a symbol, he is a product of society, and behind the cold society, there are thousands of such demons, which is not alarmist, but reality. One Matthew is gone, and there will be other 'Matthews', at least for now Carl is still alive.

The more Matthew refuses to confess his guilt, the more it proves that he is unwilling to be rejected by society in his heart, and the more he proves his desire for human dignity. At the same time, it also became an opportunity for him to confess his guilt.

The transformation from a person who was extremely hostile to society to this step is indeed a reflection of the humanity of Sister Helen, but this transformation was not accomplished by pure religious or moral preaching, it was subject to fierce struggles and rivalries. Judging from Matthew's refusal to admit his mistakes, it is too difficult to get Matthew to sympathize with the family of the deceased, because in his opinion, the only wish of the family of the deceased is to hope that he will die soon, so relying on the so-called scolding alone will not do anything.

Neither pure hatred nor pity can make Matthew confess his sins and restore his humanity, only true love can restore his conscience, and it is this belief in love that Helen has moved Matthew. But the point is that love is based on equality, and the meaning of love is dignity as a human being.

Tim Robbins's treatment of Helen was very successful, not making her an empty preacher, but relying on her humble and arrogant actions to win Matthew's respect, and in the face of Matthew's provocation, she said righteously, 'I'm not here for your entertainment, please respect me', 'Why?' Because you're a nun and wear a cross necklace? 'Because I'm a human being, all people deserve respect!' It was with this gesture that Helen gained Matthew's trust.

When the inner spirit and the outer action are highly unified, this is what makes Helen's persuasion of Matthew effective. The universality of dignity shows that no one is a tool to accomplish some higher end, and it is important for Matthew to truly realize in his heart that he is guilty and not that others and society have imposed on him. So, Helen said, 'Matthew, atonement is not a free way to go to heaven, Jesus is responsible for paying the price. You have to take responsibility for your own salvation, you have to work hard to atone for your sins. The Gospel of John tells us that we know the truth, and the truth will set you free...... If you're going to die, you have to die with dignity, and if you want to, you're going to have to be responsible for the deaths of Walter and Hope. ’

It was with her love that Helen touched Matthew, made Matthew truly realize her mistake, finally confessed to the crime, and sincerely apologized to the victim's family.

Matthew's death does not deserve our sympathy, because it is the judgment of the law, because behind the loss of this life is an unforgivable sin to support it; But Matthew's death is worth reflecting on, do we have the power to make sin disappear? Even if we are not nuns, we are not religious.

The recent debate over the 'Seven Deadly Sins' has led to a greater understanding of social apathy, but no solution is proposed in the film at the time, and Samose's confused and confused expression raises the question: Even if we want to fight for the world, what exactly should we do?

And this time, in the 'Death Row Walk', Matthew's experience and Helen's sincerity have allowed us to find the answer, hidden behind the indifference of society, in fact, what is needed is a sincere love, not selflessness of sacrificing oneself to achieve others, because dignity is not a tool for us to accomplish our own 'noble' goals, but to treat others sincerely, put each other in an equal position, give understanding and listen.

Perhaps it is too much to ask us to do this to a stranger, to a murderer, as Helen did; But at least we can do that to our families, to our friends. In Matthew's long life, if he had met Helen earlier, or if his mother had realized this earlier, would the tragedy not have happened? Take a look at your family and friends, and maybe we'll find an answer.

While he has produced a number of spectacular performances during his career as an actor in Lancaster, including the recent release of 'The Seven Deadly Sins', he has undoubtedly made a breakthrough. The idea of 'Death Row Walk' can be said to continue the dark style of 'Seven Deadly Sins', but Lancaster's performance shows the true master's style, using his wonderful performance to take the theme of 'Matthew' to the extreme, and then deeply interpreting the social issues left behind by 'Seven Deadly Sins', which makes people have to admire the amazing talent of this actor under the age of 30.

The death penalty, which should have been the core theme of the movie, was reduced to a supporting role because of Lancaster's epic and wonderful performance, making Matthew the protagonist through and through, and the storm of ideas caused by Matthew is now just the beginning, from the 'Seven Deadly Sins' to the 'Death Row Walk', we should see the brilliance of human nature, we should see the indifference of society, and we should see the excellence of Lancaster!

In addition to Matthew, the film also shows a unique wisdom on the core topic of the death penalty. ”