"Between God and Man" is a French film in 2010, which won the Cannes Film Festival Jury Award and the French Caesar Award for Best Film. Since the Cannes Film Festival that year awarded the Palme d’Or to the Thai work "Uncle Bomi’s Past and Present", which few people understand, the second place "Between God and Man" has attracted the attention of the audience. Many countries have made brilliant sales records.
"Between God and Man" is directed by the 43-year-old French director Zavier-Bois. The story is adapted from a real incident in North Africa and Algeria in 1996, the "Tiberias Incident", when Algeria was plunged into civil strife and Islamic Jihad There was fierce fighting between the organization and the local military government. Eight French Catholic monks ignored the French authorities' order to evacuate overseas Chinese and insisted on staying there. Later, seven of them were kidnapped and killed. Why these missionaries who got along well with the local residents insisted on staying there and who killed them is still a mystery. The movie "Between God and Man" attempts to restore the situation at the time of the incident.
"Between Man and God" is a very difficult work. The difficulty lies in the fact that the incident involved two high-level issues of religion and politics, not only involving the positions of Islam and Catholicism, but also involving the Algerian government and the French government. Therefore, when interpreting and understanding this shocking international incident, a little carelessness may cause an uproar. In the end, the film was cut from the perspective of "humanity" and observed the entire process of events from a height beyond religion and politics. As a result, not only did the French people highly approve of this work, but the Holy See also strongly applauded it. It is one of the few film works. It is a part of achieving balance and identification between film critics and audiences, and between religious people and ordinary people.
■Algeria is located in North Africa and is the second largest economy in Africa, second only to South Africa. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the whole of Algeria was included in the colonial scope of France. It was not until 1962, after 7 and a half years of national liberation war, that it separated from France and became an independent country. Therefore, France has a lot of blood debts in Algeria, where Islam is the state religion. Director Michael Haneke won the Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival, "Hidden Video", which alluded to this blood debt.
Although there are historical entanglements between Algeria and the French authorities, the eight Catholic monks involved in the Tiberias incident have a very harmonious relationship with the local residents. The eight monks live in the village’s monastery and are self-sufficient on farming. On weekdays, he focuses on cleaning and repairs and provides free medical and academic help to the villagers. Although the villagers never participate in their worship activities, they often exchange various personal issues with them and invite them to participate in family activities. The eight monks never mind participating in Islamic activities and listening to the villagers reciting Islamic scriptures.
The peaceful lives of the eight monks were later disrupted by the local Islamic Jihad organization. The Islamic Jihad organization advocates to restore the doctrines and doctrines in the Koran, and use extremely radical methods to deal with people who do not abide by the doctrine and foreigners. The situation of civil unrest in Algeria became more and more tense, and soon spread to the village where the monks were. A foreigner who worked for the monks was arrested and cut his throat. The French authorities quickly issued an order to evacuate the Chinese, and officials were asked to contact the monks directly, asking them to evacuate as soon as possible.
The positions of the eight monks are very complicated. Although the residents of the village are all followers of Islam and never come to the Catholic service, the villagers rely on the monks for all kinds of help, including medical treatment. After they evacuated, the villagers’ lives will fall into helplessness and hardship. When a villager asked if the monks were leaving, the monks said: We are the birds on the branches and we are still watching. The villager replied: We are the birds and you are the branches under our feet. Once you are gone, we will have no place to stand. Before the civil strife, the monks had to see nearly 100 patients a day. After the civil strife began, the number of people who went to see a doctor increased to more than 150. If the monks left, what should these people do?
From the day they decided to become a monk, the monks knew clearly that they were no longer secular people, but the spokesperson of God in the world, and they were instead of God to convey love and faith. They should not be based on reason. Abandon these villagers. However, after all, they are humans and not gods, and they have to feel scared in their hearts for the immediate crisis and the death that may come at any time. The opinions of the eight monks were not consistent. Some felt that they should evacuate immediately, some felt that it should not, and some were still hesitating. Whenever they encounter such difficult problems, the monks will gather in the chapel and sing chants in unison, letting God's words soothe their hearts.
The military government once proposed to send troops to protect the monastery, but it was rejected by the monastery chief Christine. In this regard, some of the monks felt incomprehensible, but Christine believed that letting the corrupt military government send soldiers to protect it would create a barrier between the monastery and the villagers, and it would lose the meaning of staying here. Later, members of the jihadist organization came to ask for medical supplies at night, but Christine refused. He said that they should not fund the guerrillas and should not be involved with them. In this way, the monks maintained a politically neutral attitude under Christine's insistence, but they also offended both sides to some extent.
The situation is getting more and more critical, and the monks must immediately decide whether to evacuate, otherwise they will not be able to evacuate if they want to. At this juncture, everyone has decided to stay. After all, although they are terrified in their hearts and understand that staying is embracing death, they must choose to deviate from their decades of faith in the presence of the Lord and brothers. It is a more difficult choice.
Before long, the various medicines and supplements brought to them by a monk from outside also brought news that the road was blocked and the danger was imminent. That night, nine monks shared dinner at the table. At this point, they took out their drinks and made an exception to not recite scriptures or sing hymns, but instead played a song from the tape recorder. It was Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake." In the fierce selection of the storm, the monks were speechless and silent, their uncontrollable tears were brought out of their eyes by the fear and sadness in their hearts. Although he is walking on the path of his own choice, the vast abyss before him still makes people feel sad. The strong courage to guard the Islamic village at this moment still gives way to the struggle and fear in the heart.
In the night, the guerrillas of the jihadist organization came, and they took all the medicines and the seven monks. Two of them escaped their capture by chance. Each of the seven monks was recorded in a recording, indicating that they were in good condition, and passed the request of the jihadist organization in the recording, and used them to exchange hostages. After that, I saw the guerrillas walking in the vast snow with seven monks, walking step by step towards the forest, and finally disappeared before people's eyes.
In the narration, I heard Christine’s voice, slowly narrating his last words. Although he didn’t understand the purpose and significance of all these things, he did not regret his choice. He believed that after all this. , I will return to the embrace of God. And this is the meaning of his life.
■ More than two months after being kidnapped, the bodies of seven monks were found. At that time, no one party came forward to admit responsibility. Generally believed to be the work of the jihadist organization, but documents from the French secret agency show that the seven monks were killed by mistake when the Algerian military government tried to rescue them. Although the cause of death of the monks is not described in the film, the guerrillas are respectful and friendly to the monks in the film, but the attitude of the government forces is jealous and suspicious. It also implies the public's speculation about the cause of the monk's death.
What is the truth of the Tiberias incident and whether the positions of the parties are right or wrong are actually not important anymore. Just like the problem between Islam and Western countries today, it is almost impossible to find the original source of the matter. Rather than exploring the root cause, it is more important to find a solution. And this is exactly the meaning of the film "Between God and Man". Only love and mutual tolerance can make people completely let go of their hatred. The villagers of Islam accept the Catholic monks wholeheartedly. They don’t pay attention to the difference between them in their beliefs and their own nationalities. They only use their hearts to appreciate their goodwill and their own. Good deeds. The Catholic monks never thought that the purpose of spreading their faith was to let people abandon their ideas and walk into their own churches. Instead, they understood them with their sincerity, helped them, and let them gain them. What you need in life. If there is a god in the world, aren't these the attitudes that a god will hold?
The shooting technique of "Between God and Man" is somewhat religious. After all, it tells the story of the Catholic monks, especially the scene where the monks ate their last meal, alluding to the "Last Supper" of Christ and the inner struggle of the characters. It also symbolizes that when Christ faced death, he struggled out of the fear of human nature, and finally chose the love of God and the love of God for the world, so he resolutely died. In addition, we can see the director’s deliberate efforts to reduce the religious color, whether it is in the light of the scene in the monastery or in the interaction between the villagers and the monks, they have created a simple, sincere and authentic atmosphere, even the monks. The part of the chorus is also sung by the actors in a cappella, instead of using the general mass music as the soundtrack.
The subtle and low tone is a key factor in the success of the film "Between God and Man". As mentioned at the beginning, the topic of the film is extremely sensitive. It is necessary to find a position from multiple positions that everyone can accept and can It is not easy to move and experience the perspective. Therefore, in the control of color and rhythm, it must be not stunned. After all the edges and conflicts are erased, it can still make people feel. It can only rely on truth and simplicity.
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