Is it the end, or the beginning?

When it comes to the finale, it is always the most exciting and anticipating moment.  In the previous episodes, we have been travelling with Stephen to look for Mr Lu – deep down underground in the mine in Wyoming and to a museum in Shanghai exploring culture and arts.  In this last episode of Ermenegildo Zegna’s short movie A Rose Reborn, we are going to Milan to a cemetery, a place indicating death.

But is death the end of everything?  When we look at the name of film, A Rose Reborn in the way as “Arose Reborn”, it suggests something rising from death into a metaphorical rebirth.  The journey of Stephen comes to an end in a cemetery.  But he has transformed and freed himself from the shell of his small, protected world, and joined the others in the outside world, signifying a new life for him.  We can also see these changes from his first class flight to the later economy flights, how he goes from being on his own to mixing with others harmoniously.

You might probably guess Stephen is eventually meeting Mr Lu in the cemetery.  In the first episode, he has developed a new technology but needs help to run it.  He then steps out to look for Mr Lu, a leader of a conglomerate Qi Huan.  His journey is actually one that culminates in a profound possibility of selflessness.

Now in this episode, after he has experienced “some sort of pain is there along with the process to get to true life or true creation” (as quoted by director Park), he no longer asks help from others, but offers to give and join hands with Mr Lu to launch a shared project through which they can benefit the entire world.  The end of his journey, the rebirth of a new man and it is a new start for our world.

This innovative movie similar to the other works of director Park Chan-wook is characterized by the use of symbolism and artistry.  He is famous for his intense thoughtfulness to the quality of imagery.  The cemetery under his camera is not anything gloomy as we might usually associate with a graveyard.  Contrasting to a place for the dead, it actually appears to be a green garden full of sunlight, energy and life.

The finale will be unveiled at the international premiere of “A Rose Reborn”, which is also the closing event of the Shanghai Fashion Week.  Full version of the short film will be available online on 23rd Oct.