The TV animation "Hearing the Waves" written by Ka Nakamura and directed by Mochizuki Zhiyun is the first film directed by a non-studio director (Mochizuki belongs to Asia Hall) since Studio Ghibli was founded in 1985. With the support of the studio's production team, Mochizuki's "Hearing the Waves" not only has a distinctive Ghibli art style, but also exudes Mochizuki's unique performance charm. In terms of content, "Hearing the Waves" is not only a story about youthful love, but also full of nostalgia for the past. Just like the Tosa Bay where Tosaki Taku is gazing at, in the sound of the waves, what we feel is the echo of the implicit and deep youth, the romantic echo, and the echo of the times.
Similarities and differences with the original
The animation "Hearing the Waves" is adapted from the novel "Hearing the Waves" of the same name, which was serialized in the monthly magazine "Animage" since 1990. TV "Hearing the Waves" intercepted the main plot of the first part and made appropriate deletions. The general plots of the man’s friendship, the arrival of Rikazi, the school trip, the trip to Tokyo, etc. basically follow the original story, while the animation has made major changes in the specific plot. For example, in the original book, the two people’s trip to Tokyo was finally known by the parents and the school, but the animation did not mention it at all; in the original book, Taku entrusted his younger brother to conceal the true destination from his parents, and he did not There was a conflict in the animation with that Dennis boy Okada; in the original work, Rikako attended the high school reunion, but not in the animation; and Takuya’s inner monologue in front of Kochi Castle was accompanied by Rikako in the original work. It’s not the high school classmates in the anime; the ending "The Person Sleeping in the Bathtub" and the encounter of Takuwa Rikako at Kichijoji Station are entirely the original animation of the animation; the first part of the novel also has the plot of the female second Tsumura Chisha. In the animation, it is completely deleted.
In some settings and details, some changes have also been made. For example, in the original work, the school where the protagonists are located corresponds to the actual private Tosa High School, but in the animation it is changed to a public school before pursuing hands; in the original work, Taku received a call from Feng after the part-time job, not when he was working part-time; In the protest incident, the animation failed to show the details of the other students in the original work; in the novel, before the arrival of Rigako, Taku had already planned to go to Tokyo to study at university, rather than going to Tokyo because of the former; and in the case of borrowing money, Tuo went back to the hotel room to withdraw money instead of in the elevator; the small chat on the roof of the teaching building was in Tuo’s room in the novel; and Feng’s apology was said directly in the car in the original book, and Shimizu Riko was in The remarks from the classmates were told to Li Jiazi in the novel.
In the author’s opinion, these changes made by the animation, whether due to time constraints or the author’s understanding of the original work, did not destroy the original intent of the original work. Even speaking, the emotions expressed by the animation are even more concise than the original work. ,purely. If the original novel is about a man growing up in the emotional entanglement of two women, then the animation is the infinite remembrance and remembrance of young men and women who have passed away. Combined with the era of animation production, we can even feel the unique charm of that era.
Kochi and Tokyo
Like many Japanese literary works in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the male and female protagonists of "Hearing the Waves" have completely different growth environments and personal personalities. It is caused by differences in cognition and concepts. The male protagonist Dosaki Taku and the female protagonist Muto Rikako were born in the remote Shikoku Kochi and the other was born in the metropolis Tokyo. Compared with China, they are like Beishang Guangshen and ordinary prefecture-level cities. As a social animal, the surrounding environment will inevitably affect the individual's personality and behavior.
Unlike the animation, which hides the background in the plot, the original book provides a detailed description of the environment in which Takuzutoyo lives. The city of Kochi where they live is " a small city with a population of about 300,000 ." Speaking of the school, " this is a prestigious private school that is proud of its six-year middle school and high school education. The common people know that this school has the highest enrollment rate in the county (almost the same as the provincial key middle school in China, the author's note) The students in the city regard this as a school for young masters, but there is indeed this kind of atmosphere in the school... Parents are basically university graduates and are very concerned about their children's education, and the family is indeed capable of hiring tutors. Yes, this kind of students account for the vast majority in the school. " " There are about 200 people in a grade. After six years of reclassification, they will be exposed to many different faces. Therefore, even if they are not in the same class, everyone basically knows each other, so the sense of partnership becomes quite similar. Strong ". " Because it is such a school with a strong family atmosphere and a narrow social network, the students who transfer midway will be particularly eye-catching ."
It is not difficult to see that in the presence of such a network of acquaintances and simple and closed high school life, coupled with Japan’s unique mentality of following the crowd, you must be very cautious and careful when you do things, because once you do extraordinary things Can be quickly known by other acquaintances. The gossip, the eyes of others, etc. all play an invisible normative role for the individuals in it. Because of this, individuals living in such circles must either have a deep understanding of the people around them, or they will follow everyone's actions honestly. An overly self-disciplined personality or a brazen attitude will inevitably lead to everyone's words. For some unnecessary troubles, one can only restrain one's words and deeds vigilantly.
Tuo Hefeng has a similar personality in this environment. For himself, Taku thinks so: " My personality is very honest, and I have always been a well-behaved student. I have never had any unusual ideas." "I don't think I'm a stubborn person. Normally He is always well-behaved and knows how to see the wind as the rudder. When the time arises, he can be a good boy well aware of the current affairs. In short, he is a very ordinary kid ." And Feng and Taku are similar, "Although Matsuno is a student with very good grades, he is not very eye-catching. He is neither an athletic idiot nor an athlete. Although he is serious about studying, it is not the kind of exudation. A pale and sullen nerd. Although the facial features are relatively good, but to be honest, it is not the type that makes girls tempted. " Tuo commented on him: " Just the kind of completely inconspicuous guy ." In such an environment, no one wants to be the outstanding one.
Relatively speaking, it is the Chengcheng area where Muto Rikako lives. It belongs to the Setagaya Ward of Tokyo. It has become a high-end residential area thanks to the rapid economic development in the 1970s and 1980s. It is a well-known wealthy area in Tokyo. The original book describes: The grandfather and grandmother's home was here before. This area used to be fields, but now it has become a residential area. Here, the landowner and the builder exchanged for the best one. And Li Jiazi’s father mentioned in the novel that “ actually, he is just an ordinary office worker ”. In fact, it can be seen from just a few words that Li Jiazi’s family is not really rich and wealthy, but can live in high-end apartment buildings through real estate development. To a certain extent, Li Jiazi’s family has the meaning of demolished households, and she herself is a bit like the “second generation demolished” in China.
Li Jiazi is also a typical city girl. In the intricate traffic roads in Takuya's eyes, Jia Zi walked with "usual pace". For a certain scenery or a certain corner, I like to chase trends, pay great attention to my own emotions and interpersonal relationships, and pay no attention to the attitudes and situations of other people. I hope my mother will turn a blind eye to the matter of dad looking for a mistress. Because of the divorce, it means that I and my younger brother have to be separated from their friends, which can be said to be quite self-centered. The performance personality may be the protective color she relies on in living in this city-in order to achieve her own goals, even things she dislikes can pretend to be a pleasing gesture-but her original mind is embodied by many surfaces. Cover up and become elusive.
Li Jiazi's weird character can also be found in his parents. The father is a native of Tokyo, and the household was properly demolished, and he had a derailment during the marriage. He didn't care much about Rigako's daughter; while the mother was a Kochi married away, had a strong personality, did not tolerate her partner's derailment and resolutely divorced, and insisted on getting a divorce. Take your sister and brother back to your hometown. Li Jiazi's personality and style can be said to completely inherit the characteristics of both parties. And I don’t know if it’s because of her mother’s overpowering personality, Li Jiazi is quite afraid of her mother, but has a strong sense of dependence on the opposite sex.
Manly friendship
Tuo Hefeng's friendship is one of the foundations of contradictions in the play. For the friendship between two people, the novel has a clearer description. The reason for the manly friendship between the two comes from a cousin of Taku who especially likes western films. Although he is not interested in the "story of how to become a man from a man" in western films, but "how to become a man" "A man" has become a matter of Taku's "always entangled in my heart and cannot be dispelled"-"' man', I always find this word very handsome, and it sounds very loud ." Although this plot does not appear in the animation, we can still see from the animation that as a middle school student, there is the germination of rebellion and self-consciousness that belong to this age group. And this adolescent spirit began in the cancellation of the third-year school trip in junior high school.
During the incident, classmate Takuhe uncharacteristically expressed his opinion to teacher Sayama, the head teacher, about the school’s cancellation of the third grade school trip. At the morning meeting, Takuyan raised his hand in front of the teachers and students of the school, and was still with other students. When I quit, I insisted on writing down my opinions. However, after all, he is only a third-grade kid, and Taku is not too firm about his behavior. " As a third-year junior high school student, you can only do so much. Once you are scolded, you will immediately collapse like a deflated balloon. At that time, I also felt that the protest might not be enough. That's it ". Later, Taku felt powerless and incompetent with the reality that he was being led by the school's nose—"But even if he felt that the other party's actions were cunning, he still couldn't find a suitable counterattack. I felt more and more painful that I was just a person. A weak and feeble child, so worldly, it really makes it difficult for me to tolerate it ." Finally, Taku, who wrote down his opinions in the unmanned briefing, felt the pain and sadness of isolation and helplessness.
Compared with the hesitant and timid himself, Feng's bravery and maturity made Tuo look different: First, under the school's plan and the eyes of everyone , Feng took a step faster and calmly raised his hand to express protest- "With my clenched fist. The method is different. The method of raising this hand is very formal, exactly like the feeling when the athlete representative took the oath at the sports meeting.” Second, at the briefing session where there were only two people, Feng wrote indifferently under the circumstances that the other students retreated. I made my own opinions and stood on the same front with Tuo, which made the latter feel a touch of warmth and comfort; third, compared with the opinions written by his own anger, the opinions written by Feng let Tuo I was very shocked: " I was deeply moved. This person can actually think about things ten or twenty years from now, but all I can think about is these things in front of me... ". This made Taku, who was in the third grade at the time and had a very honest personality and had never done anything extraordinary, felt: " But at this moment, I suddenly realized that he is actually a great guy. It is very difficult to reach a great level. ". " From this point of view, perhaps for me, Matsuno is a real'man '."
" Since this incident, in my mind, Matsuno has always had a different position from other friends ." Unlike the friends who make friends through class division or hobbies, Tuohefeng's friendship is more similar to the friendship of a confidant. Although the two people have never been in the same class for six years, and they are only nodding acquaintances in daily life, it is this kind of gentlemen’s friendship that makes the two people different from ordinary friends on special topics such as the opposite sex and dreams. With the possibility of in-depth communication, it is this special relationship that led to the dislocation and misunderstanding of the two people's communication and understanding, and then the romanticism between the boys was cleverly formed with Li Jiazi as the center.
Him and her
The arrival of Muto Rikako caused a huge discussion among these "countryside students". After all, " General transfer students are transferred in the third grade of junior high school and the fourth grade of high school. Later, they will be inserted into a class of about 50 students. It is very difficult to transfer to the class, because about half of the more than 50 students are They are top students. They are the fixed weight for schools to increase the admission rate of prestigious universities ." In short, the arrival of a transfer student at this time was unexpected for all teachers and students in the school. Soon, Li Jiazi caused quite a whirlwind in the school. The heroic posture on the court, the solitary character and the sudden appearance of the 12th place in the proficiency test, Rigazi not only aroused the "simple interest" of boys, but also became the object of "jealous" of girls, and also became " Topical figures in various families".
However, Feng's attitude towards Rigako is different from other boys' simple interests. At the very beginning, Feng's behavior of calling specifically made Taku aware: " He specifically called me to come out. I don't quite understand why he did this, but at the same time I always feel that I understand something. " In Obiya-cho, he asked Taku for his opinions implicitly. At this time, Takusai reacted—Feng had been fascinated by the transfer student who had just arrived. However, as Taku predicted, Rigazi could not see Feng's merits. Visiting, borrowing money, and confessing alone, Feng's love for Li Jiazi was unrequited love from beginning to end. And from the perspective of Rikako's Tokyo ex-boyfriend, she would not like the boys in Jingjing, or that Rikako didn't want to have any relationship with the boys in Kochi.
Regarding Li Jiazi, at first, Taku was just like other boys, it was just a leisurely discussion. Of course, it is undeniable that at a certain moment, Takuya had thoughts about Rigazi. When I first saw Riga and the stadium, the animation gave Taku a close-up shot. The turning point of the matter occurred during a school trip in Hawaii, but Li Jiazi, who was originally unkind, suddenly assumed a pitiful appearance and borrowed money from herself. Perhaps it was Rigako's pure and slightly feminine expression that attracted Taku's heart, or Takuya thought Rigako was interested in him. The original book describes: " What a weird guy, I lost to her in my heart, but it is precisely because of this that I think she is very interesting ." Although Jiazi's attitude in the back was somewhat unreasonable in Tuo's eyes, it was clear that Tuo really had feelings for her.
However, Yumi Obama's call made Taku understand that Rikako hadn't lost any money at all. The taxi Shangtuo felt very angry-Li Jiazi was completely deceiving herself, and also deceived Feng who silently liked her. But perhaps out of some kind of goodwill and sympathy, after understanding the ins and outs of the matter, Takuya did not ignore Rikako, who was abandoned by his companions, and instead offered to accompany her to Tokyo. " I was angry and quickly calculated in my mind. If she sees her father return the money to me, then I will have 60,000 yen to start today. It would be good to spend the money in Tokyo for two days. Anyway, back and forth. All have a plane ticket for Obama. As long as Rigako meets his father in peace, everything will be fine. After that, whether anemia or coma, it’s not something I should care about .” " Yes, anyway, it's okay to accompany her. In this way, I can also escape the guilt caused by letting Li Jiazi, who is in very poor health, go alone. Thinking of this, I reflect on not thinking about guilt or the like. Boring things ". Taku's abacus is very good. After all, it would be misunderstood if a boy and a girl high school students travel together in this small place, and Feng likes Rikako first, and he can't win the love of his friends. Therefore, Tuo kept persuading himself with very legitimate reasons in his heart: " Anyway, Li Jiazi went to see his father. And I was for money. Very pure. " (This plot animation highlights Taku's liking for Li Jiazi).
From Hawaii to Tokyo, Takuli Rigazi went one step further. The novel has a more straightforward description: " Rigazi when he said this, she put on a child-like unsuspecting face. That is one. A very cute face ". In the animation, Taku is happy to see Rigako's uplifting look, and made up his mind to go to Tokyo to go to college. Taku's emotional expression of Rigako is very reserved. There is no doubt that during the short trip to Tokyo, Taku has a secret love for Rigako.
The most important thing is that Li Jiazi revealed her inner world to strangers for the first time-perhaps even her family and ex-boyfriend have never seen her. Takuya didn't respond to or blame Rikako during the whole trip to Tokyo, but sympathized with this betrayed girl from the bottom of his heart. "The father lives with the new woman and he doesn't think much about his daughter anymore. The original friend has started a new life, and there is no caring about anything. Even so, it's not like crying and making troubles like last night, but It's a sensible contact with relatives. The word pity really suits her. Riga Zi has indeed been injured at this time. I think that this wound cannot be healed no matter who it is, no matter what method is used, no matter what method is used. " . At this time, Takuto completely stood on the side of Rigazi as a comrade.
But in Taku's mind, Matsuno's liking for Rigako is much more important than his liking for Rigako. Taku was very angry when he heard Feng's performance dropped because of his failure to confess. Seeing Li Jiazi's careless attitude, out of friendship and self-esteem, Taku slapped her hard. After that, at the campus festival, Li Jiazi once again fell into a situation of isolation and helplessness. Out of consideration of friendship and unnecessary trouble, Li Jiazi chose to sit on the sidelines. The result was a heavy slap from Li Jiazi.
Taku and Rikako's friendship in high school ends here. As Taku himself said: " However, between me and Li Jiazi, there is nothing. It's a pity, there is nothing ." I liked Li Jiazi but nothing happened to her. This is the biggest regret of Taku's youth. For the sake of friendship, Taku was willing to withdraw from this battle, but also lost the opportunity to make friends with the people he liked.
For Rigazi, the emotion of leaving home (Tokyo) has always been greater than the emotion of the opposite sex. Therefore, Rigaze also simply thinks that Feng is better for him. I don't know whether Rigaze has any more in-depth attitudes towards Feng, but it is clear that Rigaze and Feng are just ordinary classmates.
In sharp contrast to this is Li Jiazi's attitude towards Tuo. Before the trip to Tokyo, Rikako believed that Taku was in the same category as himself and had made a lot of money through part-time work, so he boldly borrowed money from him. However, during the trip to Tokyo, after the people and things that he cared very much about changed, the isolated and helpless Rigaya received Taku's care and care, and even his inner thoughts and psychological defenses were broken. In the heart of Li Jiazi at that time, perhaps he had regarded Taku as one of the few close friends in a foreign land. " What a terrible trip to Tokyo. " These words of Li Jiazi show how much shock this trip has caused her to heart-don't forget that Li Jiazi is only a 17-year-old girl.
Despite this, Rijiazi still didn't want to have any relationship with Kochi. Facing Feng's sudden confession, she immediately wanted to clear the relationship, and uttered the extremely harsh words in a fit of anger: " I hate Kochi, and even more hate men with Kochi accents. This can't be the object of love. These words really make people love. Feel the creeps ". She didn't think about the interpersonal relationship in the small place, and she didn't realize that these words caused a great insult to the self-esteem of the locals. Therefore, faced with Taku's question, Li Jiazi slapped the former without knowing it.
In the subsequent bullying incident, this Taku who had offered a helping hand turned a blind eye to it, and even used false excuses to prevaricate himself. Faced with another betrayal from others, Li Jiazi took the initiative to slap Takuya and cursed: " Idiot, you are the worst. " The complex emotions hidden in Li Jiazi's heart completely burst out at that moment.
Affectionate Thoughts of Boys and Girls
The key to cracking the relationship between characters lies in their respective moods. The core character of the whole play, Tuo, has a double complexity. On the one hand, it is his friendship with Comrade Feng, and on the other hand, he and Feng are in love with Li Jiazi. However, the notion that friendship is greater than love makes it have to keep a distance from Lijiazi while trying to contact Lijiazi. Throughout the high school period, he pretended not to care about Li Jiazi, but he usually did. Taku's first-perspective narrative, which is used in both novels and animations, actually subtly conceals Taku's attention to Rigazi. Just as Taku said frankly to Tsumura Chisha: " Yes, I have always looked at Rikako from a distance, followed her, and cared about her ." Borrowing money generously and accompany her to Tokyo, the subtle care is all out of favor with Li Jiazi. Although Taku could find a reason to prevaricate each time, in the end he was self-defeating and made Feng realize that he was letting him.
For Taku who was still 17 years old at the time, whether it was Feng or Li Jiazi, his emotions were very simple. Especially for Rikako, Taku may really have a natural interest in beautiful girls from Tokyo just out of wild boy thinking. Perhaps the story conveyed is a wonderful feeling, the audience does not need to delve into the specific reasons. In this regard, the novel Chisha Tsumura pointedly pointed out: " A love in the style of a high school student who is so innocent ." A vague and ambiguous emotional attitude, this is the truest appearance of adolescence.
Feng doesn't write much in novels and animations, but he is a key figure in the entanglement between the three. It is precisely because Feng likes first that Taku will deliberately stay away from the latter after discovering that he also likes Li Jiazi, so that he also ignores the obvious campus bullying-this is true for Feng, who has a strong principle. Intolerable. Maybe Feng is not very good at dealing with the emotions of the opposite sex, but he has a very sense of justice, which is completely different from being good at seeing the wind and making the rudder. Of course, Feng, who silently likes Rikazi, may be the same as other boys. It's just that she is tired of watching girls from the same school for five years, so she is instinctively interested in this Tokyo beauty who has suddenly transferred to school. However, compared to Tuo, Feng simply likes Li Jiazi. Although he has visited Li Jiazi and lent her money, Feng has never really walked in her heart, so he can’t understand. Her true feelings. From this point of view, Feng's feelings for Li Jiazi are as simple and simple as Taku. At the same time, Feng may have noticed Taku's true attitude towards Rigako, but he could only test it a little due to his friend's affection. But he never expected that this temptation would become the fuse for the end of the friendship between himself and Taku that had lasted for many years.
Rijiazi, who has become accustomed to city life, was brought back to the strange Shikoku Kochi by her mother together with her younger brother because her parents were divorced. In the face of Kochi who is unfamiliar with his place of life, his inability to adapt to the interpersonal relationship of small places, coupled with the rejection of local groupism in the school, after the transfer, Rikako has a strong idea of returning to Tokyo and rushes to it. Learning. Regarding group activities, emotions of the opposite sex, etc., Rijiazi chose to turn a blind eye, and even actively refused-" For me, Kochi is such a place. No matter what, it is a dislocation and annoying place ." Only Taku realized this kind of mood-when the other students were talking or teasing about Li Jiazi, he was the only one who saw her unhappy face-" That girl, she doesn't seem to be very happy. "
Whether in Hawaii or Tokyo, Takuya followed his mother's instructions and treated Rigako kindly. Facing the exclusion of classmates in Kochi, I finally returned to Tokyo but was abandoned by my girlfriend before leaving. After returning to Tokyo, my father and ex-boyfriend (both of the opposite sex) had a new love, even the walls of my room. It also became the most annoying green, and everything that I cared about changed. At that moment, the 17-year-old Li Jiazi may feel despair and helplessness. And such feelings and emotions were poured out in Tuo. As the object of confession, Tuo still calmly persuaded Rigako--a wounded girl who unexpectedly received comfort and understanding from a stranger of the opposite sex. This may explain why Tuo This is the person Rikako wants to meet in Tokyo.
In the animation, Taku even ruthlessly crushed the last face she had maintained in front of Rigako's ex-boyfriend, which may have made Rigako a lot more sober. " What a terrible trip to Tokyo " is also Rigako's self-deprecating self-deprecating self-mockery. From the beginning to the end, Taku did not point to Riga in private like other people, nor did he look up with inferiority like Feng. Instead, he held a sympathetic attitude but kept a certain distance, plus Riga. Zi herself has a little emotional dependence-even if she hates Kochi, she needs a person who can talk to like Yumi Obama, and Takuya happens to be the opposite sex who can give her a sense of security. It's no wonder that The individuals finally came together.
However, the cultural gap far exceeds the attraction between opposite sexes. Li Jiazi underestimated the role of the spread of information and gossip in small places, and also underestimated Taku's strong feelings for Kochi (the novel describes Taku's love for the small city where he lives in many places). Li Jiazi, who is a self-enclosed information channel, has no idea how people around him are ostentatious. In her eyes, such ordinary things that could be explained in one sentence were questioned by the public. Therefore, Li Jiazi, who felt offended, slapped the former angrily.
At the end of the story, in the face of the siege of the girls in the same class, Li Jiazi stiffly refuted their unprovoked accusations. Taku Chu, who had seen the whole process on the sidelines, chose to stand idly by because he took into account Feng's feelings and the gossip of the people around him. However, in Li Jiazi's mind, before such obvious campus bullying, maintaining friend's face and gossip were just small problems, and this Taku who had comforted her in the past turned a blind eye to him and even gave himself bad excuses. . The furious Li Jiazi slapped Takua a second time.
After a slap, looking at Tuo's dull and surprised expression, Li Jiazi also instantly understood the deeper reason for Tuo's sitting on the sidelines-he also likes himself. Thinking of this, Li Jiazi could no longer restrain his inner emotions, and ran out with grievances and guilt in tears, leaving Tuo standing alone.
At the reunion of high school classmates after entering university, the Shimizu Reiko who had reminded Rikako and stopped bullying at school said: " If you sit next to a nasty child, you will be completely desperate and you don't want to go to school. Because the world was too small at that time, once the disgusting child was around, it would be very nervous. Later, when you go to cram school, piano class, etc., you can't remember to care about it at all ." The self-centered Rigaya did not understand her mother's behavior, but refused to have any relationship with the land of Kochi. The culture of Kochi is completely different from that of Tokyo. The strong collective consciousness makes Rigako who is accustomed to being alone cannot adapt. The girls in the class didn't give Li Jiazi a look, and the boys didn't talk to her. The xenophobic sense of locality made it difficult for Li Jiazi to blend in. Born and raised and never left the place where they grew up, they start from their own limited life experience and experience, and will subconsciously discuss and reject people or things that are different from their own experience or cognition, and cannot truly understand the mood and feelings of others. . After going to a different place, seeing different people and things, only to find that differences are everywhere and everywhere, and then learn to tolerate and respect the mentality. The best evidence is that everyone exchanged different experiences and experiences after going to university during the cups and cups. The story perfectly depicts the psychological and cultural characteristics of this group of boys and girls. Each character image is very successful. This is the "typical character in a typical environment" mentioned by Engels.
Just as Taku Yutoyo, who was admitted to university, got back together under the light of the sunset in Kochi, just as Reiko Shimizu and Rikako released their entanglements after college. The female classmates in the novel talked very much with Rikako. Huan, even karaoke together. At the moment when everyone stared at Kochi City, all thoughts ebb and flow like the waves. The misunderstandings of youth and youth are all cleared up in adulthood. All kinds of unpleasantness and awkwardness have now become unforgettable memories, and even become an indelible mark on everyone's growth. Through the white walls and black walls of Kochi City, Rikako’s past voice echoed in his mind, as the waves spurred his thoughts, emotions and sights blended together at this moment, and the animation reached the emotional climax here. In the nostalgic, long and mellow music, what we hear and feel is not the echo of youth?
Strong stylization
As Mochizuki's initiative to propose to Suzuki Toshio, and Miyazaki did not interfere in the production process, "Hearing the Waves" has a very strong personal oversight. In fact, before that, Mochizuki had already formed a very personal image style in his past animation creations. For example, in OVA "Orange Road: I Wish to Go Back in Time" (1988), where Mochizuki served as the supervisor and sub-mirror, there are methods that are consistent with "Hearing the Waves", such as fixed shots when answering the phone, dense empty shots, Pure sound effects, as well as sailing airplanes, telephone lines, skyscrapers, bicycles, and even the famous line "I still like..." are exactly the same. What's more coincidentally, the same is a triangular relationship. In OVA "Orange Road", there are one man and two women, while in "Hearing the Waves" there are two men and one woman, and both animations focus on the emotional relationship between men and women. But at this point, we can't think of "Hearing the Waves" as a simple copy of OVA "Orange Road". In fact, in "Hearing the Waves", Mochizuki's artistic techniques are more familiar, and it can be said that he has reached the state of perfection. In his mind, Mochizuki did not stop at the pure love festival of OVA "Orange Road", but gave it to it. More realistic connotations.
At the beginning of the animation, it was the sound of train running and platform announcements, coupled with the jumping notes, the protagonist Taku caught a glimpse of a familiar figure, but the tram made the two pass by. In the long music, accompanied by the noisy airport bustle, Taku embarked on the journey back to Kochi. A photo before leaving evoked Taku’s memories at this time... In nearly two and a half minutes, there was not a word. The lines only consist of background music and environmental sounds, and the scene changes to show Taku's emotional state and environment, which set the tone of sorrow for the whole work. In the animation, there are three scenes involving the platform in the front, middle and back. The sound of machinery and equipment, crowd noises, and broadcast prompts that are unique to big cities are used extensively to construct Tokyo's urban image on the sound level, which is similar to the cicadas of Kochi. Birds cry and pure nature form a sharp contrast. The quaint Kochi and the bustling Tokyo have completed the mutual construction of images in the auditory sense.
What's interesting is that in some special scenes, the sound effects are intentionally weakened or blocked. For example, Takuya went out for a walk because Rigako wanted to meet old friends, but the noise of the city during the Golden Week holiday that should have appeared did not appear. In fact, it highlights Taku’s mentality of being attracted by Rigako’s cuteness and ignoring other things around him—“ Maybe it was because of seeing Rigako’s exhilaration that he decided to go to university in Tokyo”; the same There is also Feng's confession, the fishing boat with ups and downs in the foreground, and the faint sound of the car galloping is a completely silent sound environment, which brings out an uneasy and timid mood of Feng. After Li Jiazi categorically refused, the voice of the big truck suddenly sounded, leaving only the stupefied Feng in the picture. The audiovisual language used in these two places is very natural and appropriate.
In OVA "Orange Road", the wind chime is a token of love given by Hikari to Kyosuke, interspersed with Kyosuke’s struggle of dilemma, the sound of Jingjing Jingjing provoking Kyosuke’s emotions, until Kyosuke makes up his mind to sever the ambiguous relationship with Hikaru Then he tore off the wind chime. In another OVA "Love Story" (1992), Mochizuki's first story as a supervisor uses the hand as the image, plus the Beatles’ "I Want to Hold Your Hand" as the theme song, within ten minutes Successfully shaped the hero's determination to stop hesitating.
In "Hearing the Waves", there is also a clear image: Kochi Castle. As a symbol of Kochi, it is distinguished from the urban image of Tokyo. Mochizuki did not simply copy the description of the environment in the original work, but turned it into Kochi Castle and interspersed it in the play, using audio-visual language to describe the environment in which the characters grow up. At the beginning of Rutaku's memories, Kochi Castle first came to mind, which foreshadows the profound influence of local culture on the protagonist. The school’s very gentle towers also play a similar role: one is to shoot it from a distance with a simple looking up aerial lens; the other is to take a overhead shot with the tower as the focus, and the tower occupies the main part of the picture. No matter what the composition is, the building always takes precedence over the individual.
The most obvious is the plot of Tuo Hefeng chatting on the rooftop. From the perspective of the picture, Takuma is in the foreground of the picture, while Kochi Castle is in the foreground of the picture. Kochi Castle is on top of Taku's whole person. The latter seems to be shrouded by the former. It is a metaphor for the local cultural character infused with Taku's body, which also indicates The next episode happened: Hearing Rikazi's rejection of Feng and his dislike of Kochi, out of close friendship and pride in the land, Taku immediately rushed downstairs to find his theory. Both Kochi Castle and Hefeng Tower maintain a certain distance and size relationship with the characters. This unequal relationship actually implies the influence of local culture on everyone living in this land. It stands alone outside people’s hearts. It subtly shapes people's thoughts and ideologies. Kochi Castle, as a landmark building with rich regional colors, symbolizes the unique local culture and local consciousness of Kochi.
At the second booth of the last high school reunion, Taku and others stayed in Central Park, looking at Kochi Castle in the distance. While they were staring at Kochi Castle, Kochi Castle was staring at them. The confrontation between the two parties is actually the authentication of self-identity, and the concept of one side is to support the other. In this situation, the brightly lit Kochi city under the shadow of the trees and the night is no longer a Kochi city in the ordinary sense, but a witness to them when they were born and grew up in Sri Lanka: their personal character, growth experience and even the depths of their memories It is inevitably imprinted with the local culture.
In contrast, Tokyo’s urban image does not seem to have a unique logo, but the noise of the mechanical operation of the platform, the dazzling signs, the noisy flow of people, and the noisy broadcasts have long portrayed the look of Tokyo. The extensive public rail transit is the product of a large city, and the platform is the bloodline of this behemoth. If Kochi Castle is a landmark symbol of a small place, then the corresponding platform is a representative of the international city Tokyo. Unlike the white clouds and blue sky in Kochi, most of the scenes involving Tokyo are skyscrapers as the main body or inside buildings with no sky, semi-enclosed platforms, buildings under construction, and brightly lit urban night scenes. The natural scenery is The feeling of depression and artificiality hidden by man-made buildings is the visual impression of Tokyo. The image of Tokyo in the concrete forest and the open nature of Kochi portray the growth environment of the protagonists. (Interestingly, the anime set the room reserved by Rikako’s father to Takuya in HYATT REGENCY in Nishi-Shinjuku 2-chome, next to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Office. And this is also the Shinjuku administrative and commercial center, and it was one of the few skyscrapers at the time. A concentrated area of buildings, so it is often regarded as a symbol of Japanese urban civilization)
Various contrasts in the animation are used very frequently. After all, the contradictions in the drama are caused by the differences. The use of a large number of contrasts can more highlight the contradictions of the story. The auditory and imagery counterparts are described above. The contrast between light and shadow on the picture is particularly prominent, especially when the story takes place in the hot summer, where seasonal features, story and picture sense are integrated into one. In addition, after the university holiday, Takuto and Feng talked about the differences between the Tokyo cultural circle and the Kyoto (capital) (Greater) Han cultural circle, and the similar scenes where the two became close friends and reunited with each other are also a kind of contrast. The girl has a contrast with Rikako. In high school and university, the opposite attitude, the contrast of Kochi and Tokyo's different night scenes... …I will not expand this because of space limitations, but the role of these contrasts will be mentioned below.
At the end, the original animation plot of Taku and Rikako’s meeting on the platform is more like making up for the regrets in the original work. The first chapter of the novel says: “In a place like Tokyo, if you don’t look at the map, it’s not at all. Knowing where is where, wanting to reunite with Rigazi through chance encounters is as difficult as finding a small diamond dropped on the beach. Yes, occasional reunion is simply impossible. " The animation also said: " I really hope I can chat with Rikako in high school and enjoy Kochi Castle with Rikako. " Because of an accidental transfer student, he froze with his best friend, and his first love ended without a problem. This experience left Taku with unpleasant memories. For this emotion, Taku may have put it deep in his heart without any hope. But on the Kichijoji platform, Taku saw the familiar and fuzzy figure again. This time he ran to the opposite platform without hesitation, but the train passed by and Tuo still couldn't find the figure. Just as he was feeling lost, Yu Guang of Tuo accidentally discovered the familiar her. The two people who had been entangled in the past happened to meet again in Tokyo, and the two people who were ambiguous with each other finally had the opportunity to develop further. The story ends here.
The most commendable is the combination shot of Taku and Rigako. In OVA's "Orange Road", it is learned that Yusuke and Mitsuko are kissing Madoka alone in the room sad. In order to highlight Madoka's mood at this time, Mochizuki uses a 180-degree horizontal surround close-up shot. The reunion lens of Taku and Rigazi went a step further, using a combination of surround and panning, taking Taku’s gaze as the point of view. Between certainty and uncertainty, he suddenly looked back and realized when his eyes met. The man has been waiting quietly on the spot. All the melancholy and gloomy before have been solved here, this emotion that is about to die without a disease ushered in a turning point at the last moment, Kochi's regret was unexpectedly made up in Tokyo, and the romance has been continued-if we say that three people in high school If the story between them belongs to the romance of Kochi, then the reunion of the two on the bustling platform is the romance of Tokyo. The two romances echo each other and set off each other, this is the echo of romance. The plot at the end not only achieves the balance of the structure of the play, but also leaves a strong aftertaste to the audience. This arrangement not only conforms to the direction of the original work, but also makes up for the shortcomings of the original work. The author’s performance here is the finishing touch.
After the animation was released, some viewers commented that it was "very real", so where does this sense of reality, which is no less than that of a live-action film and television, come from? In other words, what are the characteristics of animation compared to live-action movies? " If it is a real person acting, it will inevitably take cumbersome things, like acting and background will affect the texture. The advantages of animation can just remove these cumbersome ." Supervisor Mochizuki’s words have actually revealed the characteristics of "Hearing the Waves": the true artistic life is expressed in a purer way.
Although the content is based on the daily life of middle school students, the main creator is not obsessed with describing the intense sense of movement to highlight the characteristics of the animation, but to do the opposite, dilute the body movements and magnify the facial expressions. The rich micro-expressions are used to convey the psychological activities of the characters, which fits well with the introverted and implicit emotions of the whole story, thus achieving unity in style. The movement rules of the characters in the film are very realistic, the body movements of the characters are restrained and plain, and the micro-expressions of the characters are very detailed and deliberately enlarged. For example, the momentary changes in the facial features of Takuya when he first saw Rigako, conveyed the curiosity of the Tokyo girl quite accurately. Of course, there are also the pretentious calm look of Li Jiazi’s father when he saw the sudden daughter, and the momentary change in Li Jiazi’s expression when he heard the rubbing deaf and dumb. They all portrayed very brilliantly, and the sound and picture The use of asymmetric techniques allows the emotions of the characters to be fully understood by the audience. It is worth noting that Taku's eyes were different when he was talking to himself at the airport, which is exactly the same as the actual human body structure. The so-called reality is not the reality in life, but the reality that belongs to animation art alone, so that it is more real than reality in art. Then the difference between animated performances and live performances is clear at a glance.
Although the title of the work is "Hearing the Waves", in fact, whether it is a novel or an animation, the image of the sea appears very rarely. The author believes that the wave sound here does not refer to the wave sound with substantial meaning in reality, but more of a virtual finger. Tosa Bay can be overlooked from Taku's room: " When I am tired of reading, or encounter something unpleasant, or encounter something happy, I will open the window and look at the vast sea that extends far away. As I watched it, the sound of the waves would reach my ears unknowingly. Sometimes it sounds like a train speeding on a railroad track, and sometimes it sounds like the sound of the wind. For a moment, I will have some kind of illusion. , As if I am deeply in another place at the moment ". As the saying goes, " Although the situation is divided into the heart and the object, the scenery is the love, the love is the scenery, the touch of sorrow and joy, the welcome of the glory and the haggard, and the mutual hiding of their homes ". When the memories of adolescence poured into his mind and Li Jiazi's voice and features emerged, the thoughts in Taku's heart were as moving and reverie as the waves of the waves. The color of the sea and the sound of the waves outside the window have long been turned into a source of emotions and deeply imprinted in his blood. His life is more closely connected with this hot land. At this time, the sound of the waves full of emotions can be endless. The meaning.
Emotional nested narrative
The creator used two words to describe the play. The so-called flat and straightforward narrative refers to not applying any narrative techniques, not deliberately emphasizing contradictions and conflicts, but simply telling the story, creating a calm and calm feeling in the perception and emotional experience. However, from the perspective of the structure of the play, the story mode used in the animation is very old-school: Feng He Taku's meeting (contradictory basis)-transfer student arrival (contradictory development)-the bond between the three (contradiction deepening)-the split of the three (Contradiction climax)-class reunion (contradiction resolution). This kind of drama structure can be said to be stable and mature, and it is a very dramatic narrative structure. So where does the so-called flat narrative come from? The key is that most of the animations are in the first-person recollection state of Taku, and most of the plot development is carried out with Taku’s subjective emotional filter, which is a kind of emotional presupposition, and this presupposition is based on the narrative of memories. Determined by the angle, it is trivial, selective, and emotional, and strong emotions become the first storytelling rather than objective rationality. This is the charm of first-person narrative. The basis of this presupposition is that the whole story tells the knot of regret for youth in Taku's heart. This kind of heart knot runs through the whole play. A photo that was dropped accidentally triggers memories, and it ends with "I really like her" until the last moment. The so-called constant heat refers to the lingering and hidden emotions brought by this kind of heart knot: regret for youth, regret for first love, and nostalgia for the past. It is permeated in the whole play and hidden in the story, like a stream flowing slowly through the chest in summer, so warm and so cold. Therefore, Taku's perspective, memories, and Kochi stage constitute the three interlocking elements of the story. Without one point, the texture of the story will drop a lot.
The animation uses a more complicated narrative technique. The animation begins with Taku's life in Tokyo. The picture of Rikako is used as a clue to trigger Taku's memories. Then he and Feng's meeting are inserted in the flashback, and finally it is back. In reality, one ring is surrounded by one ring, forming a nested meditation. In order to avoid the chaos of the timeline, the animation uses many methods to remind the audience, such as Taku's voice-over (memories) will appear in a certain paragraph or the turning point of the plot, and the zoom in and zoom out of the screen to create a sense of distance. Everyone's viewing process follows Tuo's memories, so the audience's emotions are not independent of the story, but are at the same frequency as Tuo, which produces a strong resonance effect, and the emotional rendering ability of the drama is greatly enhanced. In addition, the main creative is to subtly integrate the emotion of Taku Duhai into the structure of the drama. In the narrative structure, the whole film does not adopt the ups and downs of the soap opera plot, but presents the fragments in the memory through the oral narration of Taku, as if standing on the shore watching the waves slowly push toward the beach. Unconsciously let the audience immerse themselves in the story. "For a child who grew up in Kochi, the sea is the source of strength. It allows me to walk busy in Tokyo without losing the character cultivated in the small town of Tosa. In a word, with the sea, I will not I will forget my hometown". The so-called hearing the sound of the waves pointed to is the continuous memory of the ups and downs in the heart like a tide. The sea, which has long been turned into a symbol of hometown, was extended by the main creator, turning it into a narrative rhythm, achieving a high degree of composite image and story, thus producing an excellent artistic effect. The clever combination of narrative, imagery and emotion is another highlight of the animation adaptation.
The composition of romanticism
The youth novel "Hearing the Waves" was published in February 1990. It was the peak of the Japanese economic bubble and the period of counter-urbanization. It was also an era when personal mobile phones, personal computers, and the Internet were gradually popularized. At that time, after 40 years of development after the war, Japan had become the world's second largest economy after the United States. Tokyo quickly became an international super city thanks to the siphon effect. A large number of young people went to Tokyo to seek their dreams. The so-called "Tokyo one pole concentration"; but other places in Japan still maintain a traditional appearance due to population loss and economic fatigue, as is the case in the Shikoku region where Takuma is located. The huge gap in social development makes the development of the story established. A little analysis of the social background of the novel reveals that the actual factors that constitute the romanticism and contradictions of the drama are the differences in regional development, the closedness of information, and the locality of culture.
Takuya deliberately keeps a distance from Rikako because of the country-style friendship is greater than love. The girls who have a strong sense of collective honor and Rikako who advocates individualism constitute a contradiction in the school bullying incident. "" and Rigako’s dislike of Kochi; Taku’s mother’s approval of Rigako’s mother, who is also a fellow villager, compared with Rigako’s tolerance for her father’s derailment, and her sensitive taboo on gender topics compared to changing friends of the opposite sex. Relaxed and casual, the Kochi dialect and tone full of ancient dramas are just like the Tokyo accent of deliberate quarrels, ubiquitous gossip and unscrupulous personal life; modern noisy Tokyo and quaint and quiet Kochi, busy cities and laid-back towns … …In various differences and misunderstandings, in the collision of different ideas, the story between boys and girls unfolded naturally. However, with the penetration of urbanization into localities and the advent of the information age, these elements of romanticism have gradually faded.
Kochi Castle is no longer a landmark building in the hearts of young people in the small town, because high-rise buildings have long been commonplace; the popularity of chain stores and the arrival of the commodity society mean that both Tokyo and Kochi can enjoy the same services, buy the same industrialized products, and local culture. The uniqueness is greatly weakened. Similarly, with the advent of the information age, what kind of information you want to know, such as gender knowledge, local customs, etc., can be immediately known by searching on the Internet. The cultural gap and the perception of the difference between men and women are gradually dissipating; The various knowledge available makes the cognitive gap narrow, and the mystery of “Tokyo Girls” disappears; the increase and complexity of information acquisition channels have led to the continuous increase of individual differences, and the role of the individual as an individual has become more and more prominent. Or the dependence of the family is greatly reduced, and the local consciousness will fall apart. Then, the soil of romanticism no longer exists. After returning to Kochi from Tokyo, Taku and Feng shared their new life experiences. At the reunion of high school classmates, everyone exchanged various information with each other. Such scenes may only be turned into memories of the past.
"Ghost in the Shell" (Shirou Masamune, 1989), a year before "Hear the Sound of the Waves" was published, also showed this trend of the times. Optoelectronics, networking, and artificial intelligence have penetrated everywhere in life. There is no difference between robots, bionics, and humans made up of information. In fact, intelligence and mechanization have become a part of humans. Memories and emotions have become electronic signals that can be stored, modified and replaced at will. The boundary between simulation and reality is becoming more and more blurred, or the reality is simulation, and simulation is reality. So, what is the meaning of life?
However, in terms of drama and setting, "Hearing the Waves" and "Tokyo Love Story" (Fun Shiamon, 1990) are more similar: the hometown of Ehime and Kochi of the male protagonist Nagao Wanji are both Shikoku regions (Shikoku is considered to be the development of Japan. One of the more backward areas). Both of them are from a very typical small place, with a pure and simple personality, but also honest and conservative; while the heroine Akina Rika grew up abroad and has a strong personality like Muto Rikako. Both of them pay much attention to self-emotion; Both stories use men as the main perspective, and focus on depicting the encounter between two parties with completely different cultural characters and values; the comparison between Tokyo and Ehime/Kochi is also shown; both have plots that span time nodes . The difference is that the stages of the two stories are completely opposite: in the ending, the male and female protagonists of different backgrounds in "The Sound of the Waves" finally come together because of their spiritual fit, while the "East Love" has a different style and personality for Lixiang. Unsuitability makes Wan Zhi retired to the former dream lover Rimi. Therefore, the styles of the two works are quite different-"Ting Tao" is a youth story depicting the emotional entanglement of boys and girls, full of idealization and romanticization; "East Love" depicts young people with different cultural values The choices on the road of life are more cruel realism love stories. The high degree of similarity between the two works is not accidental, but a common aspiration of the Japanese society at that time. Both parties accurately portrayed the social outlook at the time of the change of times in their own way, and then completed the writing of the common era. At this level, both can be called masterpieces of the times.
However, the point that the animation "Ting Tao" is better than "East Love" is the strong sense of homesickness mentioned above. Putting it on the historical coordinates of the 90s, we can find the faint sadness conveyed in "Ting Tao", just as Taku who left a small place and came to a big city in the novel lamented: " This is really full of It's a season of faint sorrows "! In the same way, this is also a time of parting and sadness. In the land with sparse flow and information isolation, the contradiction caused by the differences in concept, value and culture, for us at the other end of the convenient transportation and information explosion, exudes a unique romantic atmosphere-yes, this The breath that seems to have happened yesterd
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