The original meaning of "The Beguiled" is "to be deceived", but given that the male protagonist in the film - a soldier - died at the hands of a group of women, not on the battlefield, it is quite "death by peony flowers, and it is also romantic to be a ghost" Meaning, so the title of the film was translated as "Under the Peony" (1971 edition, 2017 edition) - a similar translation technique, and "Lolita" (1997) was translated as "A Tree of Pears and Begonias".
In fact, if the title of the film is "Under the Peony", the 1971 version is more appropriate. After all, this is a work narrated from a male perspective. The 2017 version is basically narrated from a female perspective, the "love" is greatly reduced, and resentment has become the dominant emotion.
Apart from the fact that the directors of the two versions are male and female, the perspectives of men and women are different. It can be seen from the scenes that Corporal McBurney's scenes in the 2017 version are significantly less than those in the 1971 version. It's also far less complex than the 1971 version—his role in the film comes close to a male vase causing a commotion among a group of women in a corner.
The director of the 2017 version, Sofia Coppola, doesn't think her film is a remake of the 1971 version, she just adapted the same novel as Don Siegel. Judging from the final presentation of the film, this statement is true. There seems to be no Chinese version of the novel "The Beguiled" at present. In this article, I will not discuss the relationship between the film and the original.
The characters and plots of the two versions of the film are quite different. For example, the 2017 version deleted the important role of the black maid and Mrs. Martha's "Love History", and the same role of Carroll (1971 version) and Alicia (2017 version). The "replacement" of Corporal McBurney (a Quaker in 1971 and a mercenary in 2017), Edwin's life experience, Lady Martha's relationship with Edwin, the role played by the Confederate Army, etc.
The details of the two versions of the film are also quite different, such as the name of the little turtle, the role of the important props of the blue cloth, Corporal McBurney's pistol, the real cause of death of Corporal McBurney, the treatment of Corporal McBurney's body, etc. Wait.
Many differences actually point to the gender perspectives of the two directors.
Sofia Coppola tries to cut down the complexity and focus on expressing the physical and psychological state of the female group in the shadow of war.
Compared with the expression of "desire" in the 1971 edition, the women in the 2017 edition are much more restrained and reserved.
The only scene in the 2017 version that was "outlier" than the 1971 version was a scene in which McBurney and Edwin got to bed. However, since Edwin in the 2017 version is set as a mature woman, rather than the "old maid" in the 1971 version, this "out of the box" scene is all too natural, and it takes a far less step than the 1971 version. It's a big step from "old maid" to kissing.
In the 1971 version, Mrs. Martha had a "love history" of incest with her brother. Sofia Coppola directly avoided such a "dog-blood" character setting, and also wanted to change Mrs. Martha from the "burning of lust" of male lust. body" to be rescued. In the 2017 edition, Mrs. Martha is just a bit of an endocrine imbalance in her long-term loneliness, and she's still essentially a more traditional lady of the South.
In the 1971 version, Carroll's "lewdness" was undisguised and unscrupulous, while Alicia in the 2017 version was at most just a little girl who was out of line. Even McBurney broke into the boudoir at night, which was "fatal temptation" in the 1971 version, and became a "girly temptation" that was diluted in the 2017 version.
In the 1971 version, the teenage Amy showed love directly to McBurney (a purer love), while in the 2017 version, Amy and McBurney's relationship was basically downgraded to "friendship".
On the other hand, McBurney was a big radish from the start in the 1971 version, kissing 12-year-old Amy in the wild. After he arrived at the women's college, he struggled with the three women, blurted out lies (including his Quaker identity and farmer skills are doubtful), and obviously used a lot of words that today seem to belong to the PUA department. The 2017 version of McBurney is a lot more sincere, and he's really a gardener, showing a few tricks in the film.
It can be seen that whether it is love or desire, the 2017 version has a lot of discounts compared to the 1971 version.
The vast majority of large-scale erotic movies are directed by male directors, and female directors generally do not go too far in expressing desire or eroticism. Such gender differences are very obvious in the 1971 edition and the 2017 edition of "Under the Peony".
In terms of narrative style and video style, the 1971 version and the 2017 version of "Under the Peony" also have significantly different "interests".
Don Siegel is respected as a "B-level film master". The 1971 version of "Under the Peony" is not "B-level" at all in terms of production level, but the narrative and video have the roughness and wildness of a B-level film. , this stylistic form lends the film an overflowing and dipping effect—hormonal or erotic go with it.
The 2017 edition of "Under the Peony" is presented in natural light, which is real, delicate and graceful. Hormones? Sexual repression? Of course there are, but it won't be as unbridled as in the male vision. It can be said that under the lens of Sofia Coppola, women's emotions are greater than desires.
After talking about the perspectives of the two versions, let's talk about the quality of the two films.
The 1971 edition of "Under the Peony" has become a classic, and it is one of Don Siegel's most unique and best works.
Aside from the gender perspective, the inner tendencies of the characters, events and images in the film are highly consistent, that is to say, the film has a very high degree of matching and completion in the self-system.
Don Siegel and Clint Eastwood have collaborated on five works, except "Under the Peony", the other four are: "Lone Walker" (1968), "The Dead Man" (1970), "Dirty" Dirty Harry (1971), Escape from Akara (1979). These four works are all genre films, but "Under the Peony" is difficult to classify, and its uniqueness also makes Don Siegel and Clint Eastwood quite complacent. Clint Eastwood once said in the documentary "The Portrait of Eastwood" that he was glad that Don Siegel took over the guide tube of "Under the Peony" (to the effect).
Clint Eastwood made his name in Sergio Leone's "The Red Dead" trilogy, but his personal relationship with Sergio Leone was vague, and his real mentor was Don Siegel . It was at the encouragement of Don Siegel that Clint Eastwood directed "The Mist" (1971), and he specially invited Don Siegel to play a role in the film. . In the documentary "Portrait of Eastwood", he also said that he learned a lot from Don Siegel.
From an artistic point of view, "Under the Peony" (1971) is definitely the "best work" of the collaboration between Don Siegel and Clint Eastwood.
Sofia Coppola has been working hard to get rid of the shadow of the 1971 version of "Under the Peony" and create her own world of eroticism and light and shadow.
Sofia Coppola did it, she pulled out the female version of "Under the Peony", she also assembled Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, Colin Farrell, Elle Fanning and other big names will interpret this story. Unlike Don Siegel, who can achieve inner unity, Sofia Coppola appears contradictory or unconvincing in some of the "designs" of characterization and event causation. As the story progresses, it becomes more and more difficult for the director to "justify it", and finally he can only "smart" to deal with it in a "blank" way-many times, "blank" is a very good narrative technique, but it is not. Applicable anytime.
Sofia Coppola achieved "differentness" but failed to achieve "self-unification", which is the biggest problem of the 2017 edition of "Under the Peony".
Death under peony flowers, is it romantic to be a ghost? This may be Don Siegel's "self-proclaimed", but it is definitely not Sofia Coppola's "heart".
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