Bench Cinema

Old Wang shivered in the cold wind, carrying his ancestral small bench. Today was the first day of the Lunar New Year, and he had managed to get away from the mahjong table to watch a movie at the newly opened "Bench Cinema" in the county town. He had heard that this cinema was unique in that it did not have seats, and audiences had to bring their own benches. When the idea first came out, Old Wang had scoffed at it, thinking it was nonsense. However, he couldn't resist the cinema's "New Year Special Offers," the tickets were surprisingly cheap, and curiosity eventually overcame his principles.

When he arrived at the cinema entrance, Old Wang realized he was not an oddity. Men and women, old and young, each carried a bench, of different colors and materials, like a bench exposition. There were plastic ones, wooden ones, and elegant folding stools. Someone even carried a small grand master chair. People sized up each other's "vehicles," with a hint of novelty and a hint of helplessness on their faces.

The ticket inspector was a young man in a sharp uniform, holding a walkie-talkie, like a traffic policeman. He meticulously checked the audience’s benches, ensuring they met "safety standards": not too high, not too low, not too sharp, not too loose. Old Wang's small bench, due to its age, had some cracks in the wood, and the ticket inspector even made a note of it, saying that it “needed to be careful about safety.”

Entering the auditorium, Old Wang finally understood the essence of this "Bench Cinema." The entire auditorium was empty, except for a huge screen at the front. The audience members found their own spots, placing their benches wherever they liked, like a group of lost sheep settling in a wilderness. Some arranged their benches in a row, as if preparing for a meeting; some formed a circle, as if having a picnic; others simply used their benches as pillows, lying straight down.

The movie began playing on the screen, a comedy released for the Spring Festival. Old Wang watched the actors on the screen laughing and scolding, but he couldn't laugh. He thought the scene was too absurd, like a large-scale performance art piece, and he was one of the actors involved. Everyone had come to watch a movie, yet they were all busy arranging their benches, afraid of sitting uncomfortably.

Halfway through the movie, Old Wang suddenly felt a backache and was sitting uncomfortably. He turned his head to look around; everyone else was pretty much the same. Some were rubbing their backs, some were patting their legs, and some were even standing up straight to stretch. This movie-watching experience was too torturous. Old Wang felt like his buttocks were sitting on a nail board. He suddenly thought of those who brought their own grand master chairs and secretly admired their foresight.

When the movie ended, the auditorium was a mess. Benches were scattered haphazardly, like the wreckage of a battlefield. The audience walked out of the cinema with tired and bewildered expressions, some even throwing their benches directly into the trash can at the entrance. Old Wang carried his ancestral small bench, filled with mixed feelings.

As he walked home, the strange-shaped benches in the cinema kept flashing in his mind. He suddenly understood that the essence of this "Bench Cinema" was not about watching movies, but about the "bench." The bench was like the rules of real society; everyone had to abide by them, even if they made you feel uncomfortable, even if they made you feel absurd. And in this absurdity, people will still find their place, find their balance, and persevere. Perhaps this was the most authentic representation of life.

In the evening, Old Wang returned to the mahjong table, discussing the movie-watching experience with his old buddies. Everyone agreed that this "Bench Cinema" was a joke and that they would never go there again. Old Wang listened quietly, with a mysterious smile on his face. He did not tell them that what he saw in the bench cinema was not just absurdity, but also an indescribable philosophy of life.

The next day, Old Wang went out with his ancestral small bench again, but this time he didn’t go to the cinema, but to the park. He placed the small bench under an old tree, sat down, and quietly observed everything around him. He suddenly felt that the world was like a huge bench cinema, where everyone had their place, and everyone had to adapt to the rules, even if those rules were so absurd.