1
The lives of most of us are daily lives. How to express the daily smell of fireworks in the movie, I always thought that Emano Olmi’s movie is a template, just like Ken Rocky and Abbas’s movies, but Olmi is undoubtedly a "stream of life." A forerunner of the film collection. In other words, if you are looking for a model of light and shadow of rural life before industrialization, it is not Emmano Olmi's Clogs (1978). This 186-minute movie is well-known in the international film scene and is a model of everyday movies. It can be said to be a masterpiece of a true "live stream" movie, which is often seen and updated.
What's valuable is that in this movie, Olmi has three roles as editor, director, and photographer, and used documentary techniques to shoot for a whole year. Under Olmi’s meticulous guidance and accurate interpretation by non-professional actors, the lonely scene of the northern Italian countryside at the beginning of the 20th century was reproduced, and the organic relationship between man, nature, and land was presented with a long lens. Compared with the quiet farmer, heaven and earth naturally become an important element of silence in the film. The joys, sorrows, sorrows and joys of the four farmer families have become separate chapters, and they have integrated the intensive work of farming, composting, harvesting, threshing, weaving and spinning, and going to the market for a year. It can be said that the sunset is deep, timeless, poetic and quiet, which fully reflects the director's narrative style of agriculture and documentary.
In the film, many members of these families use the "sketching" method of figure painting, cleverly and slightly control the narrative of the life flow, focusing on the most characteristic aspect of each member, and its exquisite sketching narrative method makes People are grateful. This was already the case in his movie "Work". Undoubtedly, this kind of orderly, sloppy and smooth mirror language still has its unique and advanced side. Olmi focuses on the situation of the group rather than the fate of an individual in these two works.
2
It can be said that through such a beautiful film, Olmi has effectively challenged the traditional film language and made the film occupy a unique position in the history of Italian cinema. Olmi has fully inherited the aesthetic paradigm that Visconti, Desica and Rossellini contributed to Italian and international cinema in this film. Obviously, the neo-realism of De Sika and other predecessors is rigorous and substantial, focusing on the experience of one or two people. This is different from Olmi.
Olmi’s deepening of the theme of neo-realistic films lies not only in the innovation of shooting techniques, but also in the creative intentions. He seems to prefer this kind of group sculpture-like display. What he cares about is the lives of a group of people, not just one or a few people. In "Wooden Clogs", these are a group of farmers who have nothing in their lives except for their belief in God, thus losing a core protagonist in the true sense. Even in a sense, once they lose the land they rely on for farming, they turn from farmers to homeless refugees, just like what happened to the Batty family in the film. This clearly distinguishes Olmi's work from the neo-realistic movies of Desica and other predecessors.
3
Barty's family: The title "The Clog Tree" is mainly related to this family. At the beginning of the movie, Barty and his wife are asking for matters in church, and Father Carlo urges them to let their children go to school. Batty said embarrassingly that the farmer's son went to school, what would they say. Obviously, the priest gave them confidence and dispelled their doubts. When they came out of the church, with the melodious music of the organ, the title began to come out. The fog is long and the son of man walks alone in the tiny fields of the earth. This group of empty mirrors combines the church and son of man to form the relationship between the land and religion and the peasants. This is the subtle connection between the spirit and material of the countryside.
The film specifically stated that this was the Lobady Farm. After the end of the 19th century, only 4 or 5 peasants were still living here, but their houses, land and livestock still belonged to the farmers. After all, the farmers here are just a group of people who live here and work for the farmers. Except for the food they harvest, they must be handed over to the farmer. In this way, they are actually not enough to eat after one year, and the life can only be said to be hard.
Although the life of the Batty family is difficult, the wife is virtuous and the two sons are immature and lovely. The family is happy in misery. The 6-year-old son is very smart and smart. Following the priest's instructions, Batty's son can finally go to school every day with the schoolbag sewn by his mother. Like rural Chinese women, the women here are particularly hardworking.
On a severe winter day, when Barty's wife gave birth to her third baby, Terry, the girl next door, ran into the field and called for Barty to go home, saying that your wife had given birth to a son. Batty ran home and said sadly to his wife that there is no midwife, and you dare to give birth, how can we feed him. The wife smiled slightly and said that when the angel was born, God himself would take care of him. For a mother, it seems that she has seen the baby, and all the pain is no longer pain.
This evening, when Batty's son's shoes were damaged, the child endured the pain and coldness, and he just went home from school, with six miles of land, how could the poor child bear it. This made my father very sad. The child never cried or complained. The mother called to the son in the attic, and the father told him not to tell his mother about the shoes. The son was very sensible. When my mother saw him climbing upstairs, she smiled and said to see your new brother. This warm scene is unforgettable.
In the dark, Batty secretly ran to the side of the field and drained a tree, intercepted the middle section and took it home. After the family fell asleep, he secretly chopped the wood downstairs with a machete to make a pair of clogs. . Obviously, they couldn't find the shoes, so they had to. Early the next morning, the son can still wear these clogs to school. Clogs were everywhere when I was a child. They were mainly used for short trips in snowy and muddy places, especially to carry water by the river. It worked well when stepping on solid ice. The rivets on the clogs did not slip. I can see it, but the countryside is probably gone now.
Soon, a tree was missing by the stream, and the farmer found out that it was Batty's work. He immediately recovered his livestock and drove away his family. It was the night, Barty packed up simple supplies, took two young sons, and his wife took the baby in the carriage. Their family left the home they were most familiar with silently, and this piece did not belong to them. soil of. Neighbors are all leaning over the windows and watching, and their horror and timidity are evident. After they left, they all came out to watch. This scene was distressing. With the bleak sound of the organ gradually rising, the film ended in such a quiet and depressing tone.
4
The hardest thing is the family of Luke, a peasant woman . Her husband died early and left her with 6 children. The eldest son was only 15 years old. He also had to go to work. Fortunately, there is still a grandfather to help. The grandfather in the film saves chicken manure every day. He tells his granddaughters that the more we save, the better the tomatoes will grow next year, and they will be on the market a few weeks earlier than others. Whenever I see this, I think how similar it is to the childhood I experienced. Chicken manure is the highest nutrient of all farmyard manure. In the rural areas of China in the 1960s and 1970s, picking up chicken manure became a hot commodity. At that time, he was a member of the People’s Commune. Keep your own ground because chicken manure is more fertile than pig manure. Cow dung has the worst fatness and can only be pasted on the soil wall and used as a firewood rake.
In order to support this big family, Luke always has white sheets in the small stream at home every day. Her two young daughters, Terry and Xina, push back other people's sheets every day. These children experienced the misery of life prematurely, but they enjoyed it. Father Carolli persuaded Luke to send out his two young daughters, thus reducing the burden on the family. When she discussed with her eldest son, the brother said no, let them stay at home. I would rather go to work every day. Due to malnutrition, this elder son still has the old problem of bedwetting. His mother was so angry that his mother scolded him. When you get married, I am afraid that you will have to prepare diapers for you, which makes this child very embarrassed.
The peasant's perseverance is more thoroughly reflected in Luke. The snow finally came down. Grandpa got up in the middle of the night and took the things outside the house. Grandpa said he should spread the chicken manure quickly and collect it before it snows. When the only cow in the family fell ill to the ground, the whole family was distraught. They asked the veterinarian to take a look. They also shook their heads and said that they had to wait to die. But Luke went to church to pray for God's blessing, and bought medicine to feed the cows. The next day, Luke, who was washing clothes by the stream, heard his daughter's voice and the cow got up, which made Luke very happy. A cow is a support for their family's livelihood.
The cold winter is about to pass, and the optimistic grandpa took the children knocking on the broken copper and iron, shouting that winter is gone and spring is here. Of course they look forward to spring. The bees buzzed and flew, the birds sang the flowers. Grandpa brought his granddaughter to the house while planting tomato seedlings and told her the principles of farming. Grandpa proudly said what they would be like when our tomatoes went on the market many days earlier than others. The little granddaughter said cutely that they would be dumbfounded. When the tomatoes were ripe in summer, the grandfather brought his granddaughter to the town with a basket full of tomatoes. The old man on the street yelled, “Old Anselmo’s tomatoes are always the earliest here, and the little granddaughter shows up. Tsundere's smiling face.
5
Guy and Girl: Although "The Clogs Tree" is a "live stream" movie, its artistry is second to none. In expressing love, I feel the slight invisible traces like snow, which makes my heart tremble. The girl worked in a textile workshop, went home from get off work and walked alone in the countryside, and the lads from the neighboring village followed her closely. The two walked in tandem for a while, and the girl stopped slowly, turning sideways in silence. The young man said softly that I was just thinking if I could ask you good night. The girl shyly said that if this is the case, it's nothing, and I also ask you good night.
This kind of rural love in the farming age is always so trembling, delicate and nervous at first, what a funny scene this is. The girl didn't completely turn around from start to finish, which is evident in the kind of girl's reservedness. The girl's father saw it. When the girl returned home for dinner, the father gave her mother a face and asked her to ask his daughter. The father asked about the inconvenience, which resembled the Chinese countryside. Obviously, this is a gentle, restrained and virtuous girl, and the guy's vision is really good.
Later, the young man brought his family to propose marriage. The girl was not happy, and the house was crowded with neighbors who were rubbing grains. There was no dialogue in the proposal. Instead, all the young and old in one house went outside to listen to the melodious flute sound from a distance. This is a beautiful scene in the countryside. The snow hasn't come down yet. The guy said it was cold tonight, but there were so many stars. The girl said to the boy that the water in the night was not frozen, and the water in the ditch was still cold. This is the purest and most poetic language.
Once, the girl took the initiative to come to the boy's field, and the boy excitedly asked, why are you here. The girl only smiled and said, I want to see you. The guy watched her leave in a daze. Finally at that dawn, the boy's carriage came to the girl's house. The girl bid farewell to her sad mother. Batty accompanied them to the church. The guy and the girl finished their wedding in the church, and then accompanied their family to the pier. The new couple have to take a boat to Milan.
On the streets of Milan, they saw the police escorting prisoners with chains, and the streets were blocked, which immediately made them feel nervous and murderous. Their panic and restlessness are in sharp contrast with the peaceful countryside where they live. The director's intention is self-evident, maybe they are out of touch with the real reality, but their lives are quiet.
They came to Karl's Cathedral, where Maria, the dean, was the girl's aunt. Maria told them that marriage is sacred, and may you be blessed by God! Many orphans have been adopted here. Maria hugged a one-year-old boy and said that this is a real gift from God. The girl took the little boy affectionately. When they took the little boy home, the family and neighbors were very happy. This bears witness to their kindness and fraternity. The church bell will be heard every other time in the film. This sound is the most sacred sound for them.
6
The last scene in the country: The farmer is a guy who stays in the house all day listening to music, very gloomy. At night, he peeped from the window of his wife and his son playing the piano. A room was listening. As the head of the family, he did not dare to enter the house. Obviously, this was a guy with a depressed heart. His tension corresponds to the relaxation and work of the tenant farmers. Labor brings physical and mental health, which is cleverly confirmed in the film.
The old man picked up the coin and did not dare to take it home. He placed it carefully in the horseshoe. He did not expect to lose it to the horse. This made him flog the horse in anger. The horse ran into him and scared him crazy. As a result, his wife invited a witch to give it to him. He does exorcism. It seems that the backward villages all over the world are nothing more than this. The peasants' helplessness is also reflected in the fact that they handed over the grain to the farmer. Before weighing, Batty put stones in the carriage, so that the weighing would increase the weight. This is a rare occurrence in the Chinese countryside. It is not so much forced by life as it is the habitual behavior of a small number of farmers, but on the whole they are kind and simple. They sang beautiful folk songs and worked hard to cultivate and harvest. They cared for and helped each other, but in the end they had to go their own way, such as the poor Batty's family.
In their daily lives, this group of farmers always prays and chants every day. It seems that praising the Lord has become more important than eating and sleeping. Regardless of whether they are ignorant or not, religion must be their main spiritual source and motivation. During the slack in the farm, Barty often tells stories to everyone at night, which is very similar to the storytellers in the early Chinese villages. Everyone listened with gusto, and was suddenly startled, and the little boy fell into the cow dung in fright. This is the simple and vivid fun of the barren countryside.
Every time I think of this movie, what I see in the film is very close to the scenes of the Chinese countryside that I experienced from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s, such as killing pigs during the New Year, making sweet potatoes, weaving and so on. If you find a scene similar to the Chinese countryside in this world, it will probably be Italy in the West.
"The Clogs Tree" attracts me, it is the fine mirror language that presents the country life day after day, from autumn to summer, the four seasons cycle, the year is always, not only makes people appreciate the hardships of work and life , And taste the beauty and joy of this daily life. This is very similar to the countryside described in the works of Pirandello and Chekhov. Perhaps this is the rural scene in the last farming era that we have seen in the interpretation of "Geta Tree".
After Olmi's subtle interpretation of daily life in The Tree of Wooden Clogs, he gradually shifted his perspective to the realm of literature and mythology. From a young observer who used documentaries to analyze society in his youth, to a free author who traverses history and mythology, it seems that in Olmi’s films, there are fewer and fewer real Italian scenes, and some are only abstract and allegorical images. , Became his idea of expressing his philosophy of life. Obviously, he is working hard to explore a wider space. For such a director who expresses his thoughts through movies all his life, all the choices are the most sincere manifestation of his process. Olmi, the creator of light and shadow interweaving the past, reality and future into the quietest, we only have quiet respect.
2017, July, 15
View more about The Tree of Wooden Clogs reviews
