Bresson's shots always give people a real to the point of nothingness. In the repeated alternation of black, white and gray, all the depictions are condensed into a single line, which squeezes the characters tightly.
And this force comes from the multiple contradictions presented in the film.
◆ desire and indifference.
There are two attitudes towards life, accept it or die, and Mouchette chose the former first. At home, taking care of a terminally ill mother and a monk's infant brother, oppressed by an alcoholic father; at school, being held down by teachers to sing, and being mocked by male classmates; even when meeting a favorite at the playground, he can only Forced to leave in the face of his father.
In her heart, there is always a passion to integrate into life, which can be shown in her resistance. She hated the heavy and dull sound of the clogs, so she put on cloth shoes and trampled in the puddles fiercely; she disliked the girls who wore makeup and sat on the boys' bicycles, so after school, she ran down the dirt slope and threw dirt Blocks became a necessity of her daily life. All her envy reflects her longing for life, but this longing is always hurt by the cold water of society.
◆Love and Cruelty
Mouchette's love in the film comes from two sides, one is her mother and the other is Yassen. A mother's love is the only thread that holds her life together, and in return she chooses to endure. But when the only thread was finally cut ruthlessly by reality, and the law of life that forced her was so irreversible, she could only choose to end her life resentfully. Her ritual of death was not just her break with a society that never protected her, but a break with life itself that never met her personal demands. As for Yasen, the man who gave her warmth in the cold and dark jungle was also included in the scope of her love, to appease his epilepsy and make lies for him, but he was brutally raped.
◆Individuals and groups
As a weak individual, Mouchette is like the pheasant being chased in the mountains, fleeing everywhere, but still unable to escape the gunshots from all sides. In this society where the indifferent and numb people occupy the main body, the weak are a special existence. is not acceptable. Not only were they squeezed or even expelled in their living space, but also in their spiritual beliefs, they were also subjected to boundless suppression by powerful voices, like gunshots resounding in their ears.
All these contradictions are intertwined into an airtight net, which is overwhelmingly cast towards us, as if we have become a member of the majority. Society itself does not protect people. Those who learn to protect themselves become the majority, and those who are unable to protect themselves can only choose to accept oppression or end their existence.
Spiritual indifference and lack of communication between people will push society into a bottomless abyss, and all of us have become the invisible promoters of this car, whether you like it or not.
View more about Mouchette reviews
