Although post-war France is riddled with holes, people still need to get out of the shadow of the war. Not just adults, but a bunch of war-affected children. A school called Fond de L'Etang took in a large group of troubled boys, some of whom lost their parents in the war, some who became indulgent because their parents were neglected, and some whose families were struggling financially. was also sent to this school. They are like a bunch of people who have been forgotten by society, or are destined to be eliminated. Fate is not of their own choosing, more because of the war between adults that pushes them here. And the whole society's discipline for problem students is also very simple. In the words of the principal, it is Action-action (corporal punishment for mistakes). It seems that adults have never thought about why these children are like this, and all they do is to apply the rules of the adult world to these children-a tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye. It's like bombs thrown at each other in a war, see who the last bomb hits. Under this kind of education, the whole school exudes a kind of "hostility", and music teacher Clement Mathieu smells this ominous premonition as soon as he enters the school gate. Clement Mathieu's dream is to become a great musician, but because of the war, because of the disappointment of this life, he finally broke his musician's dream and came to Fond de L'Etang, in his own words, came to life bottom of the valley. It was not the applause and cheers that greeted him at the school gate, but the school's caregiver, Old Maxence, and Pepinot, who looked forward to today's Saturday every day. In this way, Methieu met the most lost children at the most lost moment of his life.
Sure enough, as soon as he arrived at the school, the students gave him a slap in the face. A mischievous student did something on the door of Old Methieu's office. The moment the door opened, the glass shattered, and the broken glass hurt Old Maxence's eyes. The principal's thinking is very simple - if there is a problem, solve it. His solution is not to carefully investigate and find the prankster, but to call the children together. If no one admits wrong, he will just pull out a scapegoat. This seems to be the customary way of doing things in adult society, and it is still used today. In every social incident that breaks out, there are always a few common scapegoats. They are: temporary workers, stolen accounts, and mentally ill. Anyway, always pull out a back pot, so even if the problem is solved. It is conceivable that in this system, the most deserving of punishment go unpunished, while the kind-hearted are punished undeservedly. So where is the fairness?
And Mathieu's first lesson to children is to tell them that the world is fair and that everyone is responsible for their actions. After learning that Le Querrec was the kid who made the mistake, he didn't beat or scold Le Querrec directly, but asked Le Querrec to take care of Old Maxence. To a certain extent, this is better than beating and scolding, especially boys whose adolescent hormones are depressed and restless, seem to have endless energy, and do not know where to use this energy. Being mischievous is the only outlet they can exert their energy on. In their eyes, being mischievous is just playing, and they have never thought about the serious consequences of being "mischievous". That's how Mathieu teaches kids that everything you do has consequences, and you're responsible for those consequences. So when Le Querrec went to take care of Old Macence, he kept his head down and said nothing, which was more heavy than beating and scolding.
Mathieu's second lesson for children is to educate children - you are useful people. Everyone is not an isolated individual, even if they are forgotten in this unattended school, it does not mean that they are useless. In class, he asked each of the children to write down their dreams. Some of them were quite cowboys, some wanted to be engineers, and some wanted to be soldiers. From what they have done and the environment in which they grew up, it seems that these children's dreams are impossible to achieve, but this does not mean that they cannot have dreams. The pain of childhood does not represent the pain of the whole life, and the misfortune of childhood does not represent the misfortune of the whole life. Each of you is useful, and each has its own advantages. Some people are suitable for bass, some people sing middle part, and people with insufficiency can help the teacher with the score or be the teacher's assistant.
In the choir, you are not competing with me, nor are you superior and inferior, but mutual cooperation. The children who were infected by the music stopped doing those dangerous pranks, and played football and paper airplanes, and everyone had a smile on their face. The only group photo recorded the highlights of the children. And the brighter moment was in the chorus to the Countess, where Mathieu looked at the light in each child's eyes, eyes full of hope and pride. At that moment Fond de L'Etang was no longer the place that trapped them, and he was no longer the forgotten crippled youth, and the existence of the children was fully affirmed.
The third course, the helper, requires not only self-help, but also a push. God gave Morhange an angelic face and a good voice. Adolescent Morhange was very sensitive and had always been inferior because of his identity. His mother may have been a prostitute during the war, and he didn't even know who his father was. Morhange feels inferior and even resents his mother a little bit about his own identity, but he still loves his mother on the other hand. Compared with other orphans, at least he still has a mother and he still has support. So, Mathieu saw at a glance that Morhange's "badness" was fake. His nature is not as "evil" as his appearance, he wants attention from his mother and recognition of his identity. And Mathieu is the first person to recognize his ability and identity, of course, because of his love for his mother. Mathieu's pivotal boost eventually made Morhange one of the world's leading music conductors.
At the end of the story, the principal also paid the price for his actions. Mondain, a troubled teenager who was wronged by the principal, set fire to the student dormitory while the teacher and the students were out, and slapped him in the face of the principal in a naked way. And Pepinot, who waited for Saturday at the school gate every day, finally followed Mathieu on the bus to other places on Saturday. In the war, you will lose and I will win. After the war, various forces are entangled with each other, but these children are suffering the most intense pain caused by all this. Mathieu is also using this method to tell children not to repeat the mistakes of their predecessors. Mathieu loves music even when his dreams of being a musician are shattered, simply because music makes him happy and makes him feel worth living.
The first time I watched this movie was in 2004. It was also the low point of my life. I was also a problem student, fighting and scolding teachers. I still remember tears streaming down my face after watching this movie. I didn't understand some parts at the time, but I could understand some of the things I wanted to express in the film. After a lapse of 15 years, I finally wrote this film review, and I was snot and tearful again. One of my favorite episodes, the lyrics are as follows:
Cerf Volant Volant au vent Ne t'arrête pas Vers la mer Haut dans les airs Un enfant te voit Et dans la tourmente Tes ailes triomphantes N'oublie pas de revenir vers moi
Everyone is the kite who once wanted to fly, but the kite is not a purposeless flight. It always needs a thread to guide and guide the kite to fly higher and farther. This line is the ideal in your heart, and it is the person who guides you on the way as you grow.
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