Author: Fang Hanjun
What will happen to the little girl who seduces the uncle Mansao on the island?
The truth will be serious, and of course the process will be hilarious. "Forty Shades of Uncle" (also translated as "Forty Shades of Sun" 2016) directed by Greek director Agris Paptimoprius, the front and back can be described as distinct, the upper part exudes youthful heat, very Alluring, the lower part is silent in the shadow of uncle's stubbornness, his dull eyes are scary. On the other hand, the film will have such a shocking effect, which is enough to explain the clearly visible edges and corners of the film. Even under the gloomy sky, wild lily will have spring, but will his spring really come?
Greek cinema is definitely an anomaly. Its uniqueness is like the sunshine of the Aegean Sea, as well as the magic and inconceivable of this ancient land of Greece. Its openness and coldness always make me stunned. Not to mention Angelopoulos' films, Yorgos Lanthimos, who filmed "The Lobster" alone, is eye-opening. Of course, this "Uncle's Forty Shadows" obviously has different qualities and flavors. It is not a fictional utopia, but just a trivial matter between a man and a woman. But how small things turn into big things is what makes the film attractive. This precise psychological grasp of the characters and the emotional gradient are very penetrating.
In our opinion, 42-year-old Kostis Macridis is definitely an honest man, looking a little dull, not a libertine. Maybe he was tired of living on the mainland. He came to Antiparos Island in the Aegean Sea. The mayor who picked him up said that the island has more than 800 people, is very quiet and beautiful, and usually has tourists from all over the world. Interestingly, the town hall is just next door to the Costis clinic, and the so-called town hall is just a few small bungalows.
After Kostis came, in addition to seeing a doctor, he just wandered around the island. The islanders are very enthusiastic, especially for such an "angel in white" who has come from afar without pay. One day, a group of young English-speaking men and women came in loudly. One of them, Anna, a 21-year-old girl, was scratched. They laughed and laughed without seriousness. It seems that they came to camp from abroad and completely let go of their minds and bodies. Have fun. Anna's leg was only scratched, and it was done after disinfecting and bandaging. But the enthusiastic Anna hugged Kostis and kissed him a few times, and said that you are the best doctor in the world.
It was this passionate kiss that lifted the uncle's heart that had been closed for too long. Since then, after getting off work at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, he would wander on the beach where Anna appeared, put on sunscreen, go for a few swims in the sea, and then lie on the beach, seemingly enjoying the sun, but in fact he wanted to be close to Anna. This undisclosed beach, everyone is sincere, chatting naked, bathing naked and swimming naked. The enthusiastic Anna will take the initiative to pull him to lie down beside him. Although the uncle was teased and laughed at by Anna and the group of men and women, he was also happy for the lonely Kostis. They brought him anger and hope.
This is not pure fantasy. Indeed, Anna has repeatedly placed great importance on him, at least in his opinion. At the camp, Anna was afraid that he would catch cold, so she would cover him with a small red sheet. In the sea, she would playfully stand upside down to let him see her injury, and invite him to another secluded beach for a swim. Her clarity and playfulness drew his pace tightly. She drove a big motorcycle, let him hug her tightly, and galloped on the road. She was in a good mood.
When he got to the beach, he lay on the grass on the shore and watched her go swimming naked in the sea. Anna played her handstand in the water again, making him ticklish. When she came up, the two fell in love impatiently, but he was too impatient, and quickly flashed. She smiled and said how could you do this, don't be discouraged, summer is still long.
Yes, it's still August, they're going to stay for a month, and there's time. But the strange thing is that since then, he has not been able to find Anna. Not on the beach, in the campsite, in the dance hall, anywhere she might be.
If he couldn't find Anna, he simply didn't go to work. He was really emotional. He ripped the whole island upside down and didn't see Anna's shadow. He's been like this for almost a week. No one saw the doctor in the clinic. Of course, the nest was blown up. The injured child almost died because of him. The parents said they would settle the account with you. The mayor said that he really doesn't know you. What the hell are you doing? You can't stay like this any longer. We will invite someone else over. Kostis doesn't care, he won't do it if he doesn't do it, but he must find Anna.
Sure enough, after 5 days, he found Anna. They looked at him and felt that something was wrong. In the past, he bought beer and everyone rushed over together, just like Zuo Xiaocursed "Adding One Meter to the Nameless Mountain", but now people don't. Ignore him. He questioned where she had gone. Anna said she went to Mycenae. Then why don't you tell me. She felt strange at this time, and said to him with a serious face that you completely misunderstood our relationship, should I tell you where I am going? He said affectionately that I had been through a lot of troubles before, and I was very happy to meet you. I wanted you to belong to me forever, and your friends were not serious. Anna said please leave and don't look for me again.
But he was already in it, how could he just let it go. He followed her, even in the public bathroom, which lingered like a ghost, and Anna couldn't escape safely. Before, they were shouting at the time of the day together, immersed in the full joy, she thought she was just playing with him, but he took it for real. Love became a madman, and he finally sacrificed a scalpel-like blade.
In the evening, he found her in the ballroom, but was scolded by them in the face, and then pulled out by the ballroom owner. He angrily returned to the clinic with a syringe and came to the ballroom again. He turned in through the back window, found Anna, dragged her into the bathroom, gave her an injection, she fainted, then dragged her out of the window, dragged her to the clinic, and put her on the operating table. He picked up the needle and thread and sewed her wound, but would he still use the scalpel next to him?
The film has an open ending that is thought provoking. Could it be said that this girl carved the fortieth shadow on the uncle, obviously not, in fact, it was just a variation of his wild thoughts. We can imagine that he sedated Anna, or something else, Anna fainted anyway. Even on the operating table, the girl never woke up. Next, I don't know what he's going to do, anyway, it's up to him. The young and innocent girl thought she was just hanging out with her uncle, but she didn't expect that she would meet a sick uncle, who would become her sad or dead place.
"Uncle's Forty Shadows" looks so different before and after. I thought the joy in the previous paragraph would continue forever, but I didn't expect the situation to change suddenly. Let the whole film immerse in the embarrassing situation of the two days before and after. No matter how dull Costis is, there is also a little bit of humor. I didn't expect that he would not continue to laugh at life humorously, but would be lost in Anna's smile and eyes forever. Even if Anna explained something to him, he couldn't accept it calmly and let it go, and he fell into an emotional dead end. This kind of personality split made him unable to get out of this self-imposed quagmire.
Imagine, if Kostis can take the glimpse of her and Anna as a beautiful memory in her life, or smile and wish her a smooth journey in the future, and truly find her own love, it would not be very good. Hi? And Anna, who felt strange, would not have had such a tragedy if she left the island early.
But at the end of the day, there are mental health issues involved. Therefore, integrity of personality is essential to any person in any situation. Think about it, Kostis came to the island from the mainland, which was an escape in itself. We learned about his life experience from the conversation with his college classmate Orettis. He first worked in Gennina and then went to Thessaloniki. He said that it has not been smooth.
But it's not the main thing, it doesn't even have to do with age, the key is his attitude towards personnel, more often he takes it for granted, after all, his thoughts can't replace Anna's real thoughts. Everyone experiences difficulties more or less, not to mention that the experience of life is just a process, not a stumbling block, nor a deep shadow.
As a result, once the forty shadows in this life gather and erupt, the one who burns must be an ignorant girl like Anna. There are stereotyped men like Costis everywhere in the world. They carry too many burdens, and there are many deadlocks that cannot be solved. They cannot laugh at the situation and let go. Of course, there are also willful girls like Anna, who recklessly rejoice regardless of the consequences. Regardless of gender, any frivolous and casual person may encounter someone who is too paranoid and arbitrary like Kostis, and may also lead to tragedy. This is something that must be kept in mind in any time and space.
Aside from the plot, I am still amazed at the documentary-style random images of this film. The joy in the first half corresponds to the sadness in the second half, as if it were happening, especially the gloomy second half. I feel that people are always worried about that girl. Sure enough, Kostis's hysteria broke out, but the film's preciousness is still presented in a quiet mirror language, without too much noise and noise, and its authenticity is confirmed by the director. The sincere attitude of creation, coupled with the natural and worldly customs of the island, really makes people feel like they are flying over.
2017, May, 23
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