Desire in that door

Bethany 2021-12-18 08:01:03

A film with an image larger than its content, strong colors, distinct light and shadow, plus a slow rhythm, even looks like a collection of pictures. The story itself is not difficult to understand, and what drives the development of the film is a kind of emotion throughout. The viewing process is confusing and confusing, just like the "Commander High" in the film wandering in the open aisle, looking at the delicate doors, but not knowing what is behind the doors.

The works of art themselves bear a personal mark. When it comes to movies, many works have the author's strong personal touch, which is puzzled by the world. The understanding of the director's intentions varies from person to person, and the image theme that first caught my attention, I interpreted as desire. Desire seems to be extremely struggling in the heart of the protagonist Julian, hovering between "seeing" and "touching." He stretched out his hand to desire, as if he would always be cut off by a judge. In the early part of the film, I couldn't find the source of this contradictory desire. It seemed that I didn't have a clue until Julian's mother appeared.

Julian’s mother was a strong woman, and she rebuked Julian’s weakness, and her eldest son, Billy, was recognized by her. It is conceivable that Julian, who seems to have an Oedipus plot, must have grown up extremely difficult. "Self" is not recognized by the mother, and the desire for the mother can only be suppressed. The act of killing the father can be understood as an attempt to get rid of the predicament.

Mother came to Bangkok, and because of Billy's death, she asked Julian to avenge her brother. Julian tried to get rid of her mother's influence and found a geisha to act as a girlfriend to have dinner with her mother, but was beaten back to her original form by her mother. Since then, the "good" in his heart and the "evil" demanded by his mother have struggled in Julian's mind. The duel with the iron-faced police officer seemed to prove to his mother that he was different from Billy, and his "self" was calling attention. Before the companion wanted to kill the little girl, the "self" awakened again. When his mother was killed, Julian opened his mother's belly and reached into his mother's body. "Look" finally became "touch", which symbolized a kind of return. The desire seemed to be vented. In the end, Julian took the initiative to accept the trial, and the film ended with the singing of the iron-faced police officer.

The iron-faced police officer played the role of the judge, always withdrawing a short knife from behind (like the protagonist of "Sacred Son" always withdrawing a pan from behind) to kill criminals. Sing afterwards.

Only God can forgive. Is it Julian's unscrupulous desire to forgive, or the violence in human nature?

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Extended Reading

Only God Forgives quotes

  • Crystal: So, tell me, Mai. What line of work are you in?

    Mai: I'm an entertainer.

    Crystal: An entertainer? And how many cocks can you entertain with that cute little cum-dumpster of yours?

  • Crystal: And what with Billy being the older brother and having a bigger cock... Julian's was never small, but Billy's was... oh, it was enormous!