Why should we watch Isle of Dogs ? There are many optional conditions for this answer: the director is the well-received Wes Anderson (this is his first movie released in China), the super luxurious all-star dubbing lineup (Old White, Norton, Stoudemire, Bill, Jay Husband, Tilda, Yoko, Yamada Takayuki... This is the main reason that attracts me), has performed well at the Berlin Film Festival, and has also been praised by critics and audience circles (not to mention some Bai Zuo Shanggang online )etc.
But these are all superficial factors. When we really finish watching this uncomplicated movie and the ending looks a bit "universal" at first glance, and then think back, what did we think of?
Everyone gets a different answer.
[Friendly reminder: There will be spoilers below. 】
I have to say that the setting of "Canis Island" is still very eye-catching. The director was originally a "picture control" who likes to pick up details and has obsessive-compulsive disorder. This time, the story is set in Japan, which is "traversing ancient and modern". It will be shown in the form of stop -motion animation , and friends who know the goods will definitely applaud the technical effect of the film .
However, the film will inevitably end up with the pretense of "piling up exotic cultural elements" and "too stereotyped" - the exciting drums at the beginning and the end, the haiku that freezes the history, the solemn shrine, the sumo wrestling on the stage of the superstar, the cherry blossoms that can break life and death, The strict politics, and even the freshly made sushi that made my index finger move... There are too many Japanese elements in the film, too dense, too direct, plus a lot of Japanese dialogues that are intentionally not translated, it is true Let some viewers feel "too much".
But as there is a saying: once you accept this setting, it's actually quite cute.
The dense "Eastern-style image" does not overwhelm the guest, but helps to tell the story that the core is still "Western-style".
Returning to the question at the beginning, viewers who have watched "Isle of Dogs" will have their own destination after the film ends: some people see the cuteness and generosity of dogs, and people and dogs are so affectionate enough to cry; some people see the repetition of politics And ruthless, there will be no qualitative change in the shady scenes; some people see the depth and stubbornness of servility, and they don’t know it while feeding back the power...
I have only seen two films directed by Wes Anderson before, and they are probably the two films that everyone is most familiar with, "Fantastic Daddy Fox" and "The Grand Budapest Hotel"...Although the degree varies, but My biggest impression of his work style is two words: absurd and interesting.
The same is true of "Isle of Dogs".
A major feature of this movie is the storytelling from the perspective of a dog . This is not a concept that is simply talked about, but really makes the audience feel the madness and estrangement of "inability to communicate".
The protagonist "Five Dogs", although each dog has a big name - Chief, Rex, Boss, Duke, King - but in fact, except for the leader In addition to keeping the heart of a stray dog, the other four are still domesticated people who are fond of human beings .
One person ran to the island to find Atari, a little boy who loved his dog. He "intensified" and "changed" the contradictions and concepts of the protagonist team. All four dogs were moved by Atari's behavior, and they subconsciously felt that this was a human being. With the normal relationship with the dog, he "wrapped" the reluctant leader and embarked on an escort journey.
It seems to be a very "routine", but in fact, the movie plays such a "warm" story. The leader refused to help the aliens in every possible way at first, but he ended up walking alone with Atari, and then one person and one person The dog got closer and closer, and then the other end of the story of long live friendship was born.
But I always felt that this was a ridiculous and grim story .
In my eyes, the leader has never really been "tamed" , and the four-year stray dog life is only part of it. Going to help Atari pick up sticks is not because of obedience, but because of sympathy and dismissal, and the more important point is, " It doesn't like fighting", but it has a black history of several unprovoked bites - if biting a little boy after being adopted for the first time can be attributed to "fear", then it becomes Atari's new guard dog at the end After that, his status and status have been greatly improved, and he can completely improve his "style"... But the leader still bit the person who disagreed with the new mayor Atari. know why (as before)" .
We can explain all the words, deeds and experiences of the leader, out of vigilance, gratitude, emotion, desire, etc., but we can't explain why he bites people for no reason. In the end, we can only say "wild and untamed" or "natural." "... This is the most absurd part of "Isle of Dogs", but it is also the most real part.
This principle also applies to the "male protagonist" Atari. His words and deeds also coexist reasonable and unbelievable - of course, everyone can say that an iron rod was inserted into his head and caused his "brain watts", but this is just smoke Bomb - Atari, like the leader, also does unexplainable things from time to time.
The most typical scene is that when Atari was passing by the children's playground, he insisted on playing a slide regardless of the height difference and the urging of the leader: In most cases of poor communication, Atari would even talk and gesture with the dog. Only this time, he didn't say anything, just climbed up for himself...
On the road where every second counts, I have to play this game. It seems to be very easy to understand. A sentence of "childlike innocence" can perfectly solve the puzzle, but if you really get into it, I'm afraid no one can say why. Atari just wanted to Play the slide once and there is no "why".
The ending of "Canis Island" is actually not so "warm". After all, the ancestors of dogs in the story fought against humans, and after a long circle, they had to live with their breath (the setting revealed that "people and dogs are equal" Original positioning), there is a very symbolic cage outside the little statue... After the erring mayor stepped down and put Atari in power, the dogs lived a good life again, and it didn't look like a happy ending. When someone asked him "what to do if someone treats dogs badly", Atari blurted out "death penalty", which then turned into a fine after being reminded - but I believe that "dog life is higher than human life" That's what Atari really wants to do...
In this story that finally returns to "order", there is a wild meaning of "disorder" everywhere.
Of course, this is very hidden, and Wes Anderson does not confront political metaphors and raw nature in the film, which is the director's cunning.
This article is a little messy, partly because of the "blandness" and obscurity of "Canis Island" (forcibly throwing the blame), and sometimes some things don't have to be said and come out ... just like my mind is full now A famous line from the Joker in "The Dark Knight": " I'm just a dog who only chases cars. Even if I catch up, I don't know what I'm going to do...I just want to do something. "
Special occasion.
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