1. The fateful confrontation between Tristan and "Bear"
The whole story seems to revolve around Tristan's entanglement with the "bear," whether it's the real bear, or the "bear" inside him. However, in the whole film, there are only three real bears:
The first time is in One Stab's narration (seems to be in his narration with the letters...) where he mentions that Tristan's mother left them citing the cold winter and the terrifying bear. After that, the eldest son, Alfred, often wrote letters to contact his mother, but the second son, Tristan, was reluctant to mention her. The contrast between the two brothers has been revealed here. Alfred's heart can stand the test of the world better, he understands his mother, and he is more willing to live under the baptism of modern civilization. And Tristan's heart is actually very fragile and can't accept the departure of his relatives, but he doesn't hate his mother because of this, on the contrary, he is trying to bring her back in his way, and this way represents the hunting of primitive civilization.
Coincidentally. Tristan was born in such a cold season, and One Stab wrapped him in bear skins to survive the harsh winter. This seems to have inspired Tristan: if he can kill the bear, he can use its fur to keep his mother warm and prove that he has the strength to protect her. However, he failed. And what he didn't expect was that this confrontation with the bear heralded the fate of his life.
The second time was when Tristan heard that the sheep in captivity had been attacked by bears, and went out with the crowd to prepare to shoot it.
But in the end, Tristan's hand that was about to deal the fatal blow stopped. Was it because he remembered himself not saving the calf trapped in barbed wire and shooting to end its agony not long ago? Tristan fell into a deep sense of inferiority and self-blame. He blamed himself for failing to save the calf as much as he failed to save his brother Samuel. The departure of his brother Alfred, his achievements after hard work, and the trouble his father caused by the out-of-control bar all made him feel inferior. Tristan was unable to fight the "bear" in his heart after all, and he failed again. After inadvertently drawing a knife at Susannah, Tristan realized that he might hurt her one day, so he chose to leave, and let time slowly overcome the inner "bear demon". What I didn't expect was that his departure would really hurt Susannah, and this "fight" was much longer than he thought.
The third appearance is at the end of the film and the end of Tristan's life.
Every knife Tristan wields at the bear, every cry that accompanies it, is a release, a vengeance. In the end, the tragedy of this legendary figure came to an end.
The appearance of bears in the three periods of Tristan's life symbolizes the fate of a lifetime of struggle between them.
2. Susannah's dog
Susannah was accompanied by a dog when she appeared.
Alfred asks Susannah: Do you like this exotic looking dog?
Susannah Answer: Very much, Mr.Ludlow
There seems to be a metaphor here, implying that Susannah will fall in love with Tristan, the most bizarre-looking of the three brothers.
You see, even if Tristan dresses up, he doesn't seem to be a serious social person, but a bit like a student of the Magic Academy.
3. The Mysterious Ceremony of One Stab
A total of two times in the film, One Stab draws several black lines perpendicular to the eyes on other people's faces.
Likewise, there is another element in the film that appears twice, and that is the mother. The first time was Tristan's mother and the second time was little Samuel's mother, both named Isabel.
I don't know much about Indian culture, and I don't understand what the meaning behind this pattern is. Is it fighting? Is it revenge? Or to indicate a state of life?
The first appearance is after Tristan's mother leaves.
The second time comes after the death of little Samuel's mother.
4. Tristan's boy tears
Tristan is a sensitive warrior who doesn't shy away from tears.
The first time I cried was after Samuel died, and after a few months of calm, he appeared at Samuel's grave and cried bitterly.
Here's a contrast, a scene not too long ago: brother Alfred violently woos Susannah in front of Samuel's grave. And Tristan weakly tries to reject Susannah's consolation, because it would make him more broken and guilty.
The second time I cried was when I returned from a long trip, I saw my father who had a stroke and turned white, and hugged him deeply.
The mixed feelings at this time are indescribable. Father's sentence "AM HAPPY" touched the hearts of many viewers.
The third tear was the farewell to Susannah in prison.
Thinking of the words I heard when I was a child: "Put down your arms and I can't protect you. Take up arms and I can't hug you."
Tristan really loves Susannah, but his fragile heart once made him think that Susannah would not be happy with him. To love her means to protect her, but to protect her has to stay away from her. However, the reality was the exact opposite of what he thought. The decisions he made did not produce the results he wanted, which also reflected the conflict between the primitive civilization he represented and the modern civilization.
Tristan's tears are all about the people Tristan loves: his brother Samuel, his father William and his beloved Susannah.
5. Ring for Isabel Two
Tristan later married Isabel Two, and before getting married, he gave Isabel Two a ring as a gift.
As you can see, Isabel Two can't fit the ring. Rather than saying that Tristan doesn't understand the size, it's better to say that this ring wasn't meant for her in the first place.
In the original novel The Legend of Autumn , it is stated that this is the ruby ring that Tristan is going to give his mother. Probably because Susannah was married to Alfred, Tristan gave the ring to Isabel Two on a whim.
Since the movie slightly changed Susannah's identity, I was more wishful thinking that the ring was for Susannah.
In addition, there is a comparison between Tristan and Susannah and Isabel Two. That's two sex scenes, the scene with Susannah is full of clouds and rain, but the scene with Isabel Two is light. It can be considered here that Tristan loves Susannah more, or that the latter shows Tristan's inner "bear" sleeping.
The tragedy of the two women around Tristan is related to the conflict between primitive civilization and modern civilization. Susannah died of an inner torment because she yearned for Tristan. Isbel Two died of external disturbances as she followed Tristan faithfully.
They all intervene in civilizations that are not theirs because of Tristan.
6. About "Legend"
"There are people who can hear their inner voice clearly and live their lives. Such people become lunatics or legends," the title says.
What is a lunatic? What is a legend? Here again reflects the conflict of two civilizations. Fighting bears, scalping people, running away from a lover, etc. are, in the eyes of us or most people, the actions of lunatics, because we live in modern civilization. In the eyes of One Stab, in the eyes of One Stab whose descendants were slaughtered by the swords and guns of modern civilization, this strange Tristan is a legend.
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