See how the lower classes show their fangs

Micaela 2022-01-20 08:01:41

Regarding the degree of courage and shamelessness, the British film "Servant" (1963) cannot be compared with "Sweet Life" (1960), "Zoom" (1966) or "Straw Dog" (1971) in terms of popularity or shock. But as another exploration of the deep and strange subtleties of human psychology (especially sexual psychology), especially for the blond and elegant British gentlemen and indifferent and rigid British servants, it is still a precious slice of history.

"Servant" almost combines all the elements of psychological thrillers and vulgar scandals. The story is simple and complex-a depressed male servant was hired by a wealthy aristocratic youth, who was proficient in decoration and cooking, and was used to Yu lowered his breath, and soon won the trust and dependence of his master (explaining that the theory of "grab his stomach first" is not only applicable to wives). On the grounds of the need to clean the maid, he summoned the frivolous "sister" . The master’s aristocratic girlfriend has always been on guard against the male servant, but her boyfriend only regards her suggestion to dismiss this person as a trivial matter. Late one night, the "sister" who was supposed to visit her sick mother with her "brother" accidentally appeared in the kitchen. The morning before, she had taken a bath in the master's bathroom without authorization, which caused a little trouble to the master. In the evening, the host could not eat a delicious dinner and other things. When he was upset drinking in the kitchen to quench his thirst, the "sister" in a short skirt lay halfway on the kitchen table, spreading her legs slightly...

from the servant's words I called my "sister" mysteriously, and a conspiracy of fraud gradually emerged in the hearts of the audience, but "Servant" is not a Hitchcock movie. It always drifts slowly, making it difficult for people to completely enter the scene. Boring and boring, even the plot is abnormal-the "brother and sister" partner is obviously a middle-aged player, but they seem to lack a clear purpose. After being accidentally broken by the owner, they did not use this to blackmail him. Instead, they simply declared that they were about to get married. Take a burden and leave.

The splendor is in the back-the master lost his comfortable living and passionate sex life, and has never recovered from it. At this time, the male servant came to beg and said that the "sister" had also deceived him. The master accepted him again, but after being attacked by the maid, the master seemed to have lost his original psychological advantage, and could no longer do without the male servant who was "sick and pitiful" with him, eating at the same table with him, playing games in the house, and even When the male servant threatened to leave, he whispered to him. When the "sister" came to beg for some medical expenses, the master also had the idea of ​​a woman and two men living together. At this point, a well-planned psychological control game finally reveals the whole picture, and the hungry and cunning lower class finally stalks the fangs of the rich and cowardly upper class.

The second half of "The Servant" completes a wonderful transformation from a feature film to a psychological exploration film. This transformation and promotion reached a climax at the end of the prostitution. To appreciate this climax, you may need to identify some of the obscure preparations of the director, such as whether there is an ambiguous relationship between the master and the male servant? Does the wine that the servant gave his master before have a psychedelic effect? Where did the mysterious prostitutes come from? If you take a closer look, you may find that this anti-guest event is so meticulous, so exciting and full of irony (for example, the owner couldn’t restrain Chunxin late at night and called the "sister" out for a rendezvous, but we lay down when we saw the "brother" In her bed, for example, the person in the center of the lens often does not have the initiative), and is so vague, ambiguous and full of nihilism, but the expression of male sexual psychology in The Servant is so clear-compared to a dignified lady, Men love sluts more.

As an important symbol of the maturity of British art films and one of the 100 best British films, the British may be discouraged to find that although the script of "Servant" was written by Harold Pinter, the director is based on McCarthyism. Yankee who fled to Britain, but Britain seems to be a treasure for Joseph Rossi. After "The Servant", he made several excellent works, especially "Mr. Klein" in 1976, in which Alain Delon played the role. A hapless French bourgeoisie during World War II, his journey of self-discovery to prove that he was not a Jew was quite shocking.

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Extended Reading
  • Kaylee 2022-03-25 09:01:19

    Anti-customer-oriented character relationship. The water droplets from the tap and the uncontrollable lust, the winding stairs witness the relocation of master and servant, and the twisted mirror that has appeared four times is the objective eye, the transformation of the perspective of the characters and the audience. Gloomy mood, embracing nihilism in winter, the last drunken fan of the upper class

  • Jessika 2022-03-17 09:01:08

    The film was the first work jointly produced by Joseph Rossi and Harold Pinter. It was a blockbuster, and the other two works they collaborated on afterwards also achieved success. Harold Pinter is a well-known British playwright. The script he wrote inevitably has the shadow of a stage play-the meaning is far-reaching and the space is small. "When the master depends on the servant, the servant becomes the master." With such a story, we can find many cases in the Chinese court.

The Servant quotes

  • Susan: What do you want from this house?

    Hugo Barrett: Want?

    Susan: Yes. Want.

    Hugo Barrett: I'm just the servant, miss.

    Susan: Get my lunch.

  • Tony: He may be a servant but he's still a human being.