The first scene about the bird
The marching army song is usually sung by the newly enlisted recruits who go out for a run. When the Christmas ball at the beginning of the film cuts to the truck scene that has just been enlisted in the army, there are soldiers outside singing.
A yellow bird with a yellow bill， Was sittin on my window sill， I lured him in with a piece of bread， And then I smashed his little head。
Translation: A yellow bird with a yellow beak was standing on my windowsill, I brought it in with bread, and I burst its tiny head.
The lyrics in the movie are not the same, but they are similar, only the first two lines are sung.
Metaphor, recruit Murphy is like this yellow bird, attracted by bread,
Who knew that his head was shot, Murphy's soul died before his body (in the beginning of the river), the sergeant himself shot his head with a gun, and Brand lived like a ghost (in the beginning of the river)
Scene two about birds
Murphy's parents came to visit the camp, and before leaving to say goodbye, the camera cut a badge on the ground and flashed by. Pause to see, although it is a "black bird", the army emblem is a bald eagle with a yellow beak, which is also a yellow bird. Big English reads "Defender of Freedom"
Forerunners, teachers of justice, defend the name of liberty. But why did Murphy end up losing himself? Floating in the river to the sea to be free?
Scene three about birds
In God's Land, "the most important day of your life," after the fight, Brandon walked, looked up at the sun, heard birds chirping, and nearly fell asleep.
Only the sound of birds was heard, but no shadows were seen. The last bird passed by, but I couldn't see what kind of bird it was. Tired of fighting all night. There are many religious meanings in this battle, from the commander's lecture to the sergeant's salt, I don't understand it personally, but I will interpret it more.
Metaphor: Where are the free birds? Only hear the sound but not the shadow.
scene four about birds
Two mothers who are ill and pity each other are discussing that the bird has been touched, and the mother will not want it. Birds have no sense of smell, let alone children.
In this scene where mothers meet, a lot of "frames" are used to frame the two people. The dialogues in the room, the foreground, and the background are all frames.
Combined with the dialogue, they can't understand why the bird has been touched, and the mother can't want it. They are mothers, and they have no sense of smell to smell the touch. Why can't the little bird who participated in the war go back to its mother's arms? Why has the whole person changed?
The editing, the language of the shots, the tone, there's a lot to like about this movie.
It is called "Yellow Bird", and the title is on the point of mothers discussing little birds. It is difficult for children who have participated in the war to return to their mother's arms, what a painful realization.
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