I thought of a title called: Schizophrenic Writer and Trauma Grandma's two or three things, but I think it's too titled! This British "Little Fresh" movie is not a cup of sweetened afternoon black tea, but a pot of rich, even bitter overnight tea. Its spoiled taste is just like the life of "Ms. Sheppard" in his later years. And the one who has kept this cup of old tea that everyone disliked for fifteen years is the playwright who lives alone: Alan Bennett. This story comes from the stage script of the British playwright of the same name: Alan Bennett. This is the second time he has moved his stage work to the big screen. Unlike the previous film "History Boys", which has a strong sense of stage, this time the film is no longer a single timeline, but interspersed between the young, middle-aged, and old life of "Ms. Sheppard" and flashbacks. The characters have also evolved from a group play in the same space to an open environment in a block, focusing on the dual relationship between the writer and the guest. The only remnants of the stage style are a large section of the author's inner monologue, which is combined in the narrative through the form of voice-over narration. It's like a writer reading a book for you, telling a story of personal experience. If the 2006 "History Boys" is a mixture of poetry, drama and history, it shows how "examination-oriented education" kills "quality education", of course, it is presented in an unexpected ending in the film. Among them, the infinite possibilities of young people and the imprisoned self of adults constantly form a sharp contrast, once again discussing the relationship between students and teachers. The sexual bias is more like the throbbing of adolescence, full of confusion and temptation. A group of high school students with excessive desires, whether it is curiosity or sexual desire, for them, Cambridge and Oxford are already in their pockets. In the future, they are destined to become lawyers and financial experts. Women and lovers will also be subdued by their own charm. Next, this is the power of youth, a kind of inviting temperament that cannot be rejected, aggressive, and those who are pursued will surely fall. Of course, in addition to theoretical knowledge and intersex emotions, this film contains more and more discussions than these, and it is more profound. It is highly recommended by interested friends. If you are in K-book at this time and need some source of motivation, then look at the top students in the British high school, what kind of life they are living, you will be full of motivation!
Although the movie is cut a lot from the original drama, the movie version of "History Boys", but for those of us who can't see the drama, it's a blessing to have a movie. In this way, the change in the drama of "The Lady Living in a Truck" also gives the work an immortal charm. After all, the drama can be performed for a long time, and the video recording can span time. Alex Jennings, who plays the author himself in the film, looks very close to the real person. Listening to him from the beginning to the end, under the flat tone, the English accent, the melodious utterance, like an auditory baptism. What's more interesting in the film is that the author is not a "person", but a pair of imaginary "brothers."
A clean and obsessive tortoise hair, deep in the simple. A soft-hearted, caring for others. They are writers: Alan Bennett’s inner double-sided mapping, one tends to be indifferent and rational, the other tends to be compassionate. These two characters are called by Alan Bennett himself: one life, one writing. One person handles life's trivial matters and communicates with others, while the other sits on the sidelines and records objectively. This makes the film full of witty self-dialogue, and justifies the author's thoughts and actions. One behaves funny and stupid, and the other speaks bitterly. It is a pair of very interesting contradictions, but they exist under the same roof, in one body, just like each of us. This is different from the two twin brothers with independent personalities in Kaufman's "Change the Script". Although they have different personalities and different ambitions, they are in charge of their own affairs and independently write their own scripts. Finally, It is also working together to solve the problem. In "The Lady Living in a Truck", one of the two imaginary brothers only stays at the psychological level of observation. The writer's role only talks to his brother. And it is the brother of another good man who handles external relations. He is the caregiver of "Ms. Sheppard" in the eyes of neighbors. As for the author, she stripped off her perceptual side and used it for self-talk to stimulate writing inspiration? Or is it a writer who is always dragged away by life, allowing himself to retain an independent and objective perspective, thus splitting his own reason? These imaginary brothers have no dominance and priority. They are a symbiosis of the writer’s psychology. The so-called splitting of another personality and dialogue with themselves, but only on the spiritual level, creative needs, in real life, he is normal. The individual: polite, humble, celibate, talkative. In the story, the relationship between the writer Alan Bennett and Ms. Sheppard is from the external connection: living in the same block to occupying the parking space of his house. The two contacted, and gradually deepened from the outside to the inside. "Ms. Sheppard" became the "your lady" in the neighbor's mouth, which gave Alan Bennett a sense of responsibility and possessiveness. This sounds strange, after all. At first, he was very resistant to cleanliness. As the mother of the writer Alan Bennett, who lived alone, became weaker and weaker, and began to lose track of who he was, he always answered the greetings from neighbors and Ms. Sheppard, just the same. And while getting along with Ms. Sheppard, although not under the same "eave", separated by a door, 15 years of relationship, although not relatives, but closer than neighbors. Even if he disliked Ms. Sheppard's taste and sloppyness, he was more willing to observe this old woman who was different from everyone else. She only lives in a dilapidated truck every day, and occasionally goes to the street to sell some pencils and music scores. If she hears someone playing music in the block, even if it is the children's instrument practice, she will rush to stop him frantically. . Few people know her past, only Alan Bennett, perhaps because of the estrangement between himself and her mother, perhaps purely because of her ease of speaking, of course, he accepted this kind of subject-object relationship and made this homeless. The old woman can have a parking space, store her small truck, and continue to live. To some extent, the film starts from the extreme life of "Ms. Sheppard" in her later years from the perspective of a third party, trying to uncover what happened to the young "Margaret". The facts are not difficult to guess. The "Diogenes Syndrome", also known as Dirty Disorder Syndrome, cannot help but reminds people of the situation of Hong Kong actress Lan Jiechang. In the film, Ms. Sheppard and her prototype, Anne Naysmith, have a similar past. She was born as a musical talent, but she also suffered life changes, interrupted her music career, and started a long-term car home and wandering life. You say she is crazy, she may be more sober and normal than anyone else, she just chose this way of life. "Margaret" used to be a nun, but she escaped in a traffic accident. Since then, she has isolated herself from society and started a long-term life of atonement. She became a "Ms. Sheppard" no longer playing the piano, fearing the police, being blackmailed, praying and repenting every day, hoping that her crimes could be forgiven. Ms. Sheppard, played by Maggie Smith, is eccentric, tricky, and full of stubborn personality characteristics. Especially as a writer: Alan Bennett witnessed the moment when she won the "Nobel Prize"-in fact, she was put into the car by an ambulance elevator. An old lady of self, a patient observer, interprets Ms. Shepherd’s past and present bit by bit. Ms. Sheppard, who was sliding and galloping on the sloping street, had no decent entertainment, no marriage and children, but she still had a life and a pious heart of atonement. The only little bit of happiness comes from having a wheelchair. She can freely lift her feet off the ground and slide on the ground. Of course, all of this needs a little help and protection from the writer: Alan Bennett. This “non-marriage” caregiving relationship may last longer than many people’s marriage relationships. Although Alan Bennett strongly denies that he is “caring for” Ms. Sheppard, he also thinks he knows enough about this lonely person. The old woman, but he still changed her direction to "take care" her, and guessed her wrongly. The plot is full of skirmishes and small laughs. Alan Bennett’s mysterious "boyfriend" comes in and out at night, and is called by Ms. Sheppard: the secret joint of the Communist Party. The childlike artist Ms. Sheppard borrowed the toilet brush from Alan Bennett's house and painted her old truck with bright yellow paint. Let the tonality of this film, no matter what kind of desolate life, the spiritual world is clear. Ms. Sheppard never had negative thoughts, and never mentioned her past. She is more like a tough stone, wandering to the door of Alan Bennett's house, only Alan Bennett can see her preciousness. The narrative of the whole movie is flowing, witty dialogue, sad narration, belated truth, and fantasy ending, which makes this somewhat weird and extreme story positive energy, full of love and humility. This "lady who lives in a truck" is an accident, but she is by no means the only case. What kind of reactions and psychology the society and people should give to them? The answers are all in the film. The writer finally completed it. In biographical novels, screenwriters have completed stage and film works, but the audience is left with countless assumptions and infinite thinking. I really like this old British drama, the national grandma: Maggie Smith. In the film, it is said that the screenwriter Alan Bennett swiped a big pen. The boys from "History Boys" all came to "Lady Living in a Truck" as guest performers, selling houses, selling vegetables, and mysterious boyfriends. , Residents, etc. More Easter eggs, it’s up to the fans to dig them out! March 14, 2016 Toronto Xiao Xuan Er Ji————————————
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