When faith becomes a sword, human life becomes a fish. This is a story about the pursuit of relatives, about religious opposition, about the destruction of human nature, but the soul is reborn. The opening tone of the film is just a touch of sorrow, only sadness, no anger. When this song was included in the British alternative rock band: Radiohead, a song "You and Whose Army?" from the 2001 "Amnesia" album, as the strings gradually sounded, someone sang: Come on, come on You think you drive me crazy Come on,come on You and whose army? You and your cronies Come on,come on…… The first picture of the film is a barren mountainous land, this barren country, there is only a lonely withered yellow swaying in the wind. Coconut tree, your sight is empty. Following this, you will follow this long shot, and your eyes will be drawn back to the dilapidated window edge, the dark interior, thin and tall soldiers, standing in the corner of the wall, and pushing a few children who are only as tall as the waist in line, when the camera is Stopping moving, the screen stays at the back of a weak body, whose hair is being shaved. Accompanied by the soundtrack, the song "You can take us on" is repeated twice, and the camera shows close-ups of the children's faces in groups of three or two. In those eyes, they are pale and weak, sad and sad. They waited, stared, silent. What awaits them is the fate of the Boy Scouts, who are sitting next to them, who do not know the future, there is no right or wrong, as in the next shot. When the camera scans the army boots and the children's bare feet in turn, one child is special, with a three-point tattoo on the heel of his right foot. As the hair fell, he stood indifferently. The lens advances from the middle shot to a close-up, and in this way, he is watching you, through the lens, watching the world. He lost his hair, lost his freedom, lost his homeland, lost his relatives, and lost everything. His black eyes contained too much darkness, and the flashing light was mostly the flame of resentment in his heart. Nihad for a year. Mei-four years old. This shot is more like a second time for the audience to watch the movie, because when we were shaken by the truth of the movie’s indignation for the first time, we have long forgotten the origins of these children at the beginning, and we will go habitually. Blaming someone. And only when we really re-examine the whole process from the perspective of the person concerned, and put ourselves in the place to think, can we finally understand that the heroine: Naval Marvin, because of the oath of love, embraces all the deep compassion. This film is undoubtedly an art film, and it was nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film that year, and it deserves its name. If a commercial film is a good story packaged in movie language, it attracts the audience's attention with various methods, and makes people fall into the atmosphere created by the picture, sound, and editing. Then, the restraint of the art film is like taking off all the gorgeous coats, only presenting you the story itself, like the skinny beauty, using the lens to reproduce the real charm, revealing the deep connotation, without adding a trace of exaggeration and modification. . It is precisely because of the restraint of shooting techniques and the simplification of audiovisual language that a strong storyline and theme are needed to shock the viewer's heart and tie the audience's sight. If it is a realistic shooting technique for art films, and the story has no inheritance and transition, it is a painless route, it is testing the patience and education of the audience and the judges, not falling asleep or getting up and leaving the scene is the greatest thing to the creator Respect it. The reason for saying this is that I want to emphasize the weight of this "Scorched Earth City" as a play of the same name adapted from the French-Canadian writer: Wakidi Muawad. The connotation of the film's story itself has exceeded the dramatic conflict of ordinary movie plots, and the director Dennis. Villenueva's shooting method can be described as a family epic that makes this blood and tears, although there is no blood and wailing, it is shocking, falling to the bottom, and wanting to be sad without tears. After the close-up shot of the ruined teenager, the picture was followed by a cold archive room door, with pale light shining through the cracks of the door. After several rows of empty bookshelves, he came to a row of data cabinets against the wall, Charbel The uncle lowered his head and leaned on the cabinet shelf, as if he could not stand on his own without holding on to something. As the camera advances, his eyes are closed tightly, and he feels heavy. It took a long time to pull out a document that read: NAWAL MARWAN. He sighed deeply, no one knew how long he stood and how long he thought deeply. This is another coherent long shot, quiet and smooth, brought in by a real character's movement, just like you came to the archives room, saw the door ajar, you walked in, walked through the bookcase, and saw the uncle standing There, you take a closer look and decide to step forward, only to see your uncle's calm expression rolling over with complex emotions, and you can't bear to disturb him. After that, the film really ended and started, transferred to the arrival of the twins, the first section of the title appeared in red subtitles: Twins. After this, the film lists ten chapters, namely: Section 1: The Twins Section 2: Navarre Section 3: Up to Switzerland Section 4: South Section 5: Teresa Section 6: K Faciat Prison Section 7: The Woman Who Sings Section 8 Simon and Jenny Section 9 Nehad Section 10: Summer Settis The last eleven red subtitles are: Incendies ——The film titled 130 minutes, after ten chapters, "Scorched Earth City"/"Mother's Confession" at the 124th minute-the title appeared. The whole movie is in high-grade gray tones, without any jumping colors, cold reality and memories, this is the last wish of the deceased, the dusty history, the tears that have already dried up. The anger and resentment of the Scorched Earth City have been taken to the grave by mother Naval, leaving behind love and tolerance. This movie is a story of a pair of brothers and sisters looking for relatives, a story of a mother telling the past, and a story of a child growing up in the flames of war. Some commercial films emphasize color and tone, and tell you a truth emphatically. And art films tend to take you to see what happened with your own eyes. The seemingly ordinary story contains the horrible truth. Only when you see and listen for yourself can you experience it. The method is not good or bad, it just makes people feel different. A thunder in the flat ground is indeed heartbreaking and unbearable, and it is impossible to look directly at it. This film throws a suspense to the audience, a suspense of looking for relatives, but hidden in it is the ugly war and the cruel truth. When the facts are torn apart, the results surface, but it does not give you time and opportunity to vent. When you want to examine, question, or criticize, you discover your own superficiality and powerlessness. Especially when I think of it again, when the beginning of the film meets the eyes of countless children, it will only be silent and aphasia. (The following film appreciation talk will inevitably involve the plot. Friends who mind can go to the movie before coming back. Xiao Xuan'er recommends it. Station A can be watched online. I believe that major websites also have resources.) Regarding emotions: the film is extremely restrained expression. Whether it’s the mother Naval’s illness, or the disaster that subverted Naval’s beliefs, the pain of the brothers and sisters learning the truth, and the ending of the truth being revealed, many plots in the film are dealt with in silence. To set off the violence and cruelty inside. Three lonely souls: Naval, who was born in a traditional Christian family, was found by two brothers while fleeing with his Muslim refugee lover. They shot and killed Naval's lover on the spot. Grandma rescued Naval but locked her at home. In the cries and roars of Naval during the day, three of her closest family members, one sitting on the stone steps holding the cross and praying silently, one lonely leaning against the low wall, and one squatting on the distant stone. They believe that in the face of such a world, faith is the right way to save them. Anything that violates doctrine is an unforgivable shame. They no longer follow family and morality. Religion becomes their ruler to measure things and a weapon to judge others. Perhaps they are all asking hard in their hearts whether they have abandoned the Lord or the Lord has abandoned themselves. Why is there such a disaster? The betrayal and upholding of faith: On the way to the Muslim refugee zone across the South, Naval was on the bus and witnessed how Christians carried the cross and killed his compatriots at the muzzle with the portrait of the Virgin. Just because of different beliefs. In fact, it is difficult for us to understand such hatred and strife, but in a religious country, in that era, inter-religious conflicts and revenge were unavoidable for them. And all that Naval went through, she was looking for the child all the way, but she couldn't help anyone. She felt so helpless, whether it was a lover or a child, believing that they might have been treated the same way, those people would not even think about it, and would shoot them and kill them. Thinking that the child might have the same experience, she knelt down and hid her face with tears, until the bus was burned with kerosene, leaving only the skeleton and nothing but flesh and blood. In the deepest part of the pain, Naval was reborn with the flame of vengeance. There is a kind of person in this world who is the most terrifying-angry mother. She calmly said: "My son’s father is a Dresard refugee. My son was swallowed by the war. I have nothing. I hate the Kuomintang. My uncle Charbel thinks that words and books can promote peace. I trust him. But life taught me something else. I want to teach the enemy, what I learned." With this determination, Naval put away his anger and turned to vent through violence and assassination. With such a huge inner change and subversion of beliefs, the film uses more stills and close-ups to reveal the determination of revenge hidden in the expressionless heart of Naval. Consolation between brother and sister: When the two brothers and sisters learned from the midwife nurse that they were the twins born after their mother was raped, they stood in surprise and turned directly into the swimming pool water. Throwing into the bottom of the water in an attitude, and finally embracing each other in the cold water. The intentional treatment here has to be reminiscent, just like when they returned to the state when their mother was pregnant with them, they hugged their knees in the amniotic fluid and leaned on tightly. Only this time, it was no longer the mother's warm body temperature, but the cold water and the stinging truth. Inner Desolation and Rebellion The most critical part of the plot of the whole movie is given here: Nihad May, and father: Abu. Tarek's relationship is the truth about the identity of his brother and his father. The film only gave two location shots, one is the barren sandy land from right to left, and the other is the chaotic woods of dead branches in the snow from left to right. There is no need to explain what Nihad went through and how he changed. A barren childhood lacking love, coupled with a chaotic and contentious world, is enough to make people crazy and become an executioner who abuses everyone. Left-handed guilt and right-handed love and compassion: At the end of the film, Naval’s twin daughter finally found her father and brother, and gave him two letters from her mother. After reading the two letters, as Naval said in the first letter, silence would be the best answer. In a piece of white letter paper in his hand, there are dusty past, unrecoverable regret and regret, shaking and gratifying. In such a shot, what he was holding in his hands was unimaginably heavy, and there was no need for excessive emotional rendering. Such a picture was enough. About the world: the subtext of mathematical theory in the film. Before Jenny set out to find her father, as a university assistant, her mathematics professor gave an opening remark: "The mathematics you know so far aims to find a precise and rigorous answer, which will lead to other questions. And now you will Start a new adventure. These topics will be tricky, and will lead to more equally tricky questions. People around you will keep repeating this. What you do is useless, and you can’t refute it. It’s complicated. Exhausted, welcome to the world of theoretical mathematics." The introduction of this period of theoretical mathematics coincides with the development trend of Jenny's upcoming search for her mother and father's existence. Sometimes, many things have definite answers, but many times they don't. Here brings out Jenny's inner confusion and unknown psychological subtext. When Jenny arrived in Switzerland and saw another mathematics professor introduced to him by the professor, the professor uttered an unfocused formula: "In 1736, Euler had just solved the Seven Bridges problem in Königsberg. E^(PI*I)+1=0.”, the answer to this question is: there is no-there is no route to walk the seven bridges without repeating it and return to the starting point. This made Jenny angrily and anxiously listening, full of helplessness. Of course, she didn't want to come here from Canada all the way, and the result of all kinds of searching was 0. The plot here is used to explain the time Jenny's mother Naval spent in college, which is the era of domestic war. When the younger brother returned home after visiting the old officer of the year, he was puzzled and finally asked his sister: "1+1=2, can 1+1=1?" The sister looked at the younger brother and thought he had a fever, but soon From her younger brother's puzzled eyes, she finally understood what he meant, and took a breath. In this unknown journey of searching for relatives, the two unknown fathers and brothers were finally exposed from the perspective of mathematical formulas. Here Jenny's reaction, from incomprehension, shock, to sadness, her momentary "take a breath" is the most appropriate expression, not exaggerated, but powerful. After that, she just hid her face and whimpered, but gave people a more depressing touch. About faith: a song and an oath. In the film, the night when mother Naval gave birth to her first child, Nihad May, she sang a lullaby in her arms, swearing that no matter what happens, she will love him forever and will find him. And when she was in prison, she lived unyieldingly, still singing, and then she was praised as a singing girl. And in the last letter to her twin brothers and sisters, she wrote: My dears, where do your lives begin? When were you born? I started talking with pride. What happened to your father's birth? I want to start telling a beautiful love story. I said that your story started with an oath, and the thread of anger was broken. Thank you, I finally had the courage to do so, and the thread was finally broken. I can finally sway you in my arms, gently hum a lullaby, and lull you to sleep. There is nothing better than being with each other. I love you, your mother, Naval. After that, Naval. Malvern's name appears in the film again. The first time is the beginning of the file, and this time is the lettering on the tombstone at the end. The movie ends with Naval's eldest son standing alone in front of the tombstone in mourning, standing alone with the eldest son at the beginning, contrasting with each other, but different. This time he knew who his mother was, he had siblings, and children, and he knew that there were people who had loved him deeply. The film itself is built on a heavy novel, pointing directly to the true meaning of faith, and the restraint of repressive performance techniques highlights the tension of drama. Several original soundtracks have become soul odes, making viewers feel rights and sects, affection and hatred, and fear. A strong conflict with mercy. Re-examine the power of religion, the power of faith, and the power of oaths. When faith becomes a sword and life becomes a fish, no matter what mother Naval chooses, she believes that the true meaning of love has been rooted in her heart since she became a mother. It is better to say that she believes in truth and vows than what she believes in. I believe that this movie is a further sublimation of the novel, and it is also a strong contender for the best foreign language film at the Oscars that year. Unfortunately, it lost to "Better World". However, this film reminds us of a Canadian director: Dennis Villeneuve, a director born in the French-speaking part of Quebec, sometimes listening to his English interview is indeed a hearing test. Although his English expression is not fluent, but the film expression is skilled and sophisticated. In recent years, he has also continued to master "Reverend Enemy", "Prisoner" and "Border Killer". The future is even more promising. Even though he is gradually moving closer to large-scale productions, his films always try to explore deeper conflicts and contradictions. Like his early work "August 32", the seemingly simple storyline, the characters are burdened with life and death. . As he said, fear is sometimes the source of his inspiration. Believe that fear is also the source of more lessons in life. The album cover of "You and Whose Army?" has the same tone as the movie poster. Before Dennis Villeneuve's new film "Border Killer" has no resources for the time being, this "Scorched Earth City" that made him famous is worth reviewing and reconsidering. October 7, 2015 Toronto Xiao Xuan Er Ji －－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－ If you like my article, Before Villeneuve's new film "Border Killer" has no resources for the time being, this "Scorched Earth City" that made him famous is worth reviewing and reconsidering. October 7, 2015 Toronto Xiao Xuan Er Ji －－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－ If you like my article,
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