羅丹的情人 (Camille Claudel)

天才總會被誤解?! 法國電影'羅丹的情人'(Camille Claudel)將會在2019年1月12日和1月20日在香港重映,是由'著魔'的演技爆裂女神Isabelle Adjani主演。她看來很擅長演這些極端角色,就像日本的木村佳乃一樣! 故事講述才華洋溢的雕刻家Camille Claudel一生的經歷,談她如何成為自己時代的受難者。值得一看的經典!

by Ed Law

Film Analysis

Wall-E, Part 2

  

In the first part of this series, I have described Wall-E’s absurd condition on Earth and his attempts to cope with the stress that originated from this situation. Though merely an instrument for the service of humanity, Wall E seemed to have developed attributes comparable to Nietzsche’s Ubermensch, and could still be able to lead a happy life despite the fact that he was utterly alone. What is great about this cute yellow fella is that he did not allow the nominal aspects of his life to define and constrain him – for example, the fact that he was merely a trash compactor and nobody really cared about him – and instead he strived for what he really wanted in his existence. In an existentialist’s point of view, Wall E has lived an authentic life, because he was honest to face his situation and has attempted to find out his own meaning from that, rather than the other way around.  

  

Yet, that is not the end of the story. No matter Hollywood or not, the most important aspect for any drama, or indeed our existence in general, is self-actualization. That is a certain point that we have to prove our worth, to show that we can meet up with our potential to achieve. Whatever the outcome will be, the fact that we have at least tried our best will relieve the psychological burden inherent in this aspect, and generate a peace of mind because we will have no regrets about we have given up the chance. So far, Wall E has proven himself to be an existential hero, yet he has not got an opportunity to prove his own worth. Then that opportunity came with the arrival of a female robot and her mothership – in the name of EVE. 

  

The relationship between Wall E and Eve is possibly one of the greatest aspects of the whole film, as it has moved way beyond the clichés of modern rom-com or the ‘love stories’ which rely on sentimentality to create a tear-jerking experience. When you watch Wall E and Eve’s story, you kind of think of films like Charlie Chaplin’s ‘City Lights’, and in fact there are quite a number of parallels between these two films too. While Chaplin’s films are supposed to be funny, there are moments that the audience will tear up rather than laugh, and there are a few of those cases in his silent classic. Wall E is certainly intended for kids because there are quite a lot of slapstick scenes, yet what makes the film so powerful is really the bittersweet parts. Those are the moments when a genuine emotional experience is possible and the audience member can identify with the characters.   

  

I have repeatedly stressed that 'Wall E' is a love story, and indeed it is a very well-done one. I would like to go back to the analogy of Chaplin's 'City Lights' again, because I can see a lot of parallels between the two films. If one only looks at the funny actions by Chaplin in the film, he will surely miss the power of the classic film itself. Because the Chaplin classic is a love story - even without the funny parts the story is powerful by itself. Though people have different opinions about the meaning of the title, I always feel that 'City Lights' refer to Chaplin's character - because he is the light that selflessly helped the blind girl to navigate around the harsh city and attempted to find happiness for her. I suppose that is exactly the same scenario in Wall E. The little robot needed to deliver actions to prove himself for other's respect, and pass on his optimistic outlook of life onto others.   

Let's talk about our female protagonist, EVE. The wonderful aspect about EVE is that she is not merely a damsel-in-distress in the simplistic manner. EVE is just as resourceful and intelligent as Wall E, and also has a strong sense of herself. Though she is merely a robot from a large corporation, she can be qualified as a Disney princess, and I would add probably one of the coolest. When I look at EVE, I cannot stop myself comparing her to Kei in Katsuhiro Otomo's 'Akira' (1988). I think they belong to the same character type, the kind of girls who want to engage their male counterparts a run for the money! And, Wall E, just like Kaneda in 'Akira', cannot probably just impress their respective lasses simply by sweet talk alone. They have to prove their worth to her - to show their courage and resourcefulness when dealing with the nasty situations the screenwriters can think of. 

When Wall E and EVE first met, EVE was staged in the foreground, with a high angle towards Wall E, which showed himself further in the background. The scene exaggerated EVE's size and made Wall E a much smaller robot - which in a sense he was. I guess this arrangement put the audience into Wall E's perspective, because that was a love at first sight and that would motivate Wall E's actions for the rest of the story. After a surprised greeting - which landed Wall E flat on the floor - the two robots introduced themselves to each other and they headed back to Wall E's place. Without any human (or robot) connection for a long time, and with Barbra Streisand (on the screen) as his only experience with women, Wall E led EVE around the house and introduced passionately about all the antiques he has hoarded for quite some time. It was exactly that innocence from Wall E that could melt anyone's heart. True, Wall E may be considered as a simple-minded robot, yet his compassion and willingness to connect with others are the reasons why he will become popular around people. One does not need to pretend to be edgy or special, or search for pickup lines from the PUA websites, to ask other people to like you. The most important secret is compassion, to show that you care about others and want to connect. At least, Wall E succeeded in this pursuit and EVE was certainly smiling and tilting her head (if she had the ability to). Their relationship would be challenged a couple of times soon after, due to Wall E's occasional lapses into the sloppy end, yet this little yellow fellow would self-actualize by showing its true self. 

The second part of the film became more mainstream-oriented because it fell back to the usual Hollywood plots, and the critique of the modern life was very similar to that of ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’. Things were becoming clinical and cold calculations predominated the various parties in the second act of the film, while the first half was spontaneous to the true feeling of the protagonist. At the end, Wall E demonstrated the power of sacrifice – he risked his neck to save the day, and ended up losing all the previous memories and fruitful life experience as a robot. 

I feel that Pixar has been conscientious regarding the ending of the story because the creators of the story did not want to alienate audience by offering a dark ending, though that was absolutely reasonable given the serious tone of the story – I would say Wall E is probably one of the most realistic Pixar films when compared against the human condition. When EVE was in a state of despair of not being able to restore Wall E’s memory, Wall E’s hand suddenly held on EVE’s, and this simple symbolism of human connection (OK they are robots I know) worth more than a thousand words. Wall E finally remembered everything, and the two robots reconciled and could live happily ever after. Personally, I feel an open ending will be a more powerful one in this case (much like what I feel about the film ‘Passengers’), when the outcome is left to the viewer’s imaginations. Though for such an ‘European’ or Antonioni-esque ending the animation studio might find it too risky to do so.    

With the combination of a nice plot and a deep message, ‘Wall E’ will be acclaimed as a modern classic in the field of animated feature.

(2/2)

by Ed Law

Film Analysis

A Star is Born

Recently, Lady Gaga’s ‘A Star is Born’ and Ryan Gosling’s ‘First Man’ were released in cinemas around the world. Both are exciting films for 2018. ‘A Star is Born’ has already been remade a few time, most notably in 1976 starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson. This time, Bradley Cooper served as the writer-director-actor for the film with Lady Gaga in a potentially Oscar-worthy performance. That certainly will be our generation’s response to such an iconic film! On the other hand, ‘First Man’, which is directed by Damien Chazelle, the filmmaker for ‘Whiplash’ and ‘La La Land’, explored the life and experience of Neil Armstrong, the astronaut widely known as the first man on the moon. This new film recalls another famous film that is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year – Philip Kaufmann’s ‘The Right Stuff’ (1983), which is one I highly recommend to everyone. The 1983 film was more concerned with the preliminary and fundamental research and experiments, especially those related to Chuck Yeager, before the mission to moon. It is an iconic film because not only of the first-rate technical aspects – this was the film that beat ‘Return of the Jedi’ in 3 Oscar categories – and also because of Sam Shepard’s fantastic portrayal of Chuck Yeager, for which he received an Oscar nomination. Shepard, who has achieved tremendously as a playwright, also worked as an actor in a number of films, and ‘The Right Stuff’ was probably one of this most memorable performance. So I guess I will talk about these films in this article. 

While ‘A Star is Born’ and ‘First Man’ seemed to be dealing with different topics, it is the common aspect between the 2 films I want to concentrate on. The common theme is the way how ordinary people can strive and have the big chance to become a superstar, and the potential pitfalls when that status is reached. The great thing about ‘A Star is Born’ is that it has a nice contrast regarding the 2 key characters in the story. The male protagonist has already been established himself as a famed musician, yet he has a lot of pressure due to his celebrity status, and while looking for ways to counteract that, he has fallen into a self-destructive pathway. The female protagonist, by contrast, is more of an underdog character and has brief stints as a singer in a bar – which is often the clichéd way of showing someone with potential as a star, but not quite there yet. Through the help of the rock star, the female protagonist has stolen the limelight and has started to develop her own fame. Yet, the two characters eventually came into conflict because of their very different personalities. While the ending for the 2018 film is similar in terms of the idea as the 1976 film, I think it is a more realistic ending compared to its predecessor, because that is a likely psychological consequence for a depressed and self-destructive individual. The 1976 ending was more about fate and coincidence, which was closer to the attitude of the style from the 1970s.

Another great point about the 2018 version is that both Cooper and Lady Gaga make the film as actors rather than a musician. Well, while the 1976 film is quite an engaging film, it did not get to a critical top shot because the film treated Streisand and Kristofferson as famed musicians, and much of the charisma from the film originated from their songs, rather than a great story or their acting skills. While that may be spectacular for a MTV, that should certainly compromise those members of audience who comes for a great movie. Lady Gaga has achieved tremendously as a musician throughout the years, and this time what she has done rather well is to focus herself as an actress in this film about music. She has proved that she can act well, and I really hope that she will be nominated for an Oscar for her performance!    

For Gosling’s ‘First Man’, it also deals with similar themes. Even if the astronauts are detached from Earth when they are exploring in space, they are just human beings when they come back to their everyday lives. The pressure and stress from fame, relationships, and the various issues from life will test them just like anyone. When we look at ‘The Right Stuff’, there is also close to this point. While the astronauts can travel in space, they are just as comfortable to blend in as ordinary citizens in their familiar surroundings. Indeed, one of the memorable scenes I like in the film is with Sam Shepard’s character with Barbara Hershey’s character in a bar. It is just a beautiful image, and because that emphasizes the humanity of this ‘superstar’ and the human connections they need. What makes these people special is their will and perseverance to explore for new things, even when others think it is more of a pipe dream and never possible to achieve. I guess when the astronauts are working on their plans, there are many ‘nay-sayers’ hanging around and they will ridicule this ‘space-travelers’. The key is to have a strong confidence and resilience from these pressure and just concentrate on what you believe in. ‘The Right Stuff’ has explored how these men were willing to work hard to fulfill the larger-than-life dream, and also explored the inevitable turmoil they experienced as humans. This is a key point to look at in Chazelle’s ‘First Man’ - to explore the cosmological, as well as psychological, journeys of Neil Armstrong’s developed as a successful astronaut.

by Ed Law

Film Analysis

向金庸先生致敬

查良鏞先生仙遊了。

在諸多金庸先生的佳作當中 ，我最喜歡鹿鼎記。 這本書是查先生最為成熟的作品 - 是要經歷過大半生，將自己對現實世界的洞察和體會凝聚，才能夠寫成。大俠即使身懷絕技，也不一定能在殘酷和功利的世界中生存到! 金庸先生在作品裏建構着自己憧憬的理想國度時 ， 亦有對人的本性作出訕笑和反諷 。這些作品都流露着他對讀者的期盼: 即使英雄只是屬於虛構世界， 我們亦要有着對道德的承擔 ，不要成為現實世界的下一個岳不群!

R.I.P.

Predator

Recently, 'The Predator' (2018) has been showing in the cinemas, leading to a renewed interest in this iconic monster from the cinema. The whole story of 'Predator' started with John McTiernen's 1987 film, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in one of his most famous roles. Now is the brilliant opportunity to look at the iconic film that starts it all!

As you may have noticed, the name 'Arnold' has already been mentioned a number of times in my previous articles. Well, I would always admit that Arnold Schwarzenegger is my favorite actor of all time. Ever since I have started watching most of his key films in my teenage years, Arnold has always been a sort of cinematic superego (in the Freudian sense) for me. True, I will never be as muscular as him - though I do go to gym often - I want to be someone as humorous, open-minded and charismatic as him. Personally, I think Arnold is an underrated actor - because people tends to focus on what he cannot do as an actor instead of what he has achieved. While I will never compare his performance to the greatest actors in cinema, there is no doubt that Arnold has chosen and starred in some of the most iconic films in the 20th century  - The Terminator series, Total Recall, Predator, True Lies, Conan the Barbarian, Commando, even comedy like Kindergarten Cop and Junior. Not only these films have shaped the way we look at modern action cinema, they have buried so deep into the culture of our generation. Arnold is the god of 'cheesy one liners', and I definitely love them! If you think they are silly, then just observe how many time you hear quotes like 'I'll be back', 'Let off some steam' and the joke 'Phased Plasma Rifle in the 40 watt range' recurs in so many comments on the web. If you still need one more example of Arnold's intelligence, dodge this - when he was in politics, in one occasion a commoner threw an egg onto his face, expecting him to be embarrassed. 'Now you owe me bacon', that was Arnold's response. With such a simple and improvised 'cheesy one liner', Arnold defused the whole situation with a sense of humor. He will always be remembered as someone significant in the history of cinema.

Indeed, 'Predator' (1987) turned out to be one of Arnold's most iconic films. In the film, he had to fight with something beyond human - an extra-terrestrial organism known as 'Predator'. I believe some of you may already have heard of this alien before, but I will give the most important info about this species. The predators are advanced organisms with a high intelligence, and they possessed a number of advanced technologies, have camouflage ability, and are comfortable with space travel. They have advanced visions, based on infrared and detect the thermal signature of other species. One of their most sophisticated equipment is a bio-mask which helps them to visualize things with a higher resolution and aids their mission. It also serves as a portal to relay data back to the Predator clan, to the head quarter’s server so they can analyze the information and experience of the individual members - that kind of cloud computing.

Their most signature aspect, however, is their innate aggression and the strong will to fight. The predators have pride in their ability to hunt other organisms, and they are even proud of the fact that they can hunt down those they believe are worthy opponents. I wonder that if there is a UFC in the universe, the predators would probably be like the Gracie family in this universe MMA championship. In fact, for many young predators, a successful hunt is a rite of passage for them, their way to show to the others they have grown up. Believing in a strong sense of honor, if a predator failed in a hunting mission, or was severely wounded by their enemies, they would commit a honorable suicide by activating the self-destruction program on their portable computers, an idea quite similar to seppuku in the culture of Bushido. Able to travel around space in their spaceships, predators have come to various parts of the universe for hunting trips, to hunt down various kinds of species they find challenging. Humans, unfortunately, have always been one of their targets, and the story of the 1987 film is about Jungle Hunter, a predator who attempted to kill a number of soldiers and military officers.

When the story commenced, a spaceship was seen travelling close to Earth and ejected an object through the atmosphere. That was not a mere dot - it was Jungle Hunter, a predator who planned to conduct some hunting trips on our planet. Finding a paradise in a tropical Central American forest for his violent rampage, Jungle Hunter has haunted many villagers around that area, because of both his brutality and the added advantage he could render invisible to human vision during his hunting attempts, making him an unseen and threatening enemy. Soon after, a military rescue team, led by a veteran major Dutch (Schwarzenegger), arrived there for a rescue mission. It turned out that Dutch's supervisor, Dillon, has further intentions than using them as a rescue team - they are used as instruments to carry out assassinations on a number insurgent fighters around that area. After learning the truth of their mission, Dutch was really upset because he could not believe Dillon, an old friend of his, has such a nefarious purpose. But that's not the end of the story. Because an invisible enemy - the Jungle Hunter - has already set his sight on this team of worthy opponents and started stalking on them. Very soon, the platoon was aware that they have been followed by some unknown enemy. The jungle became an arena for a game of elimination, and eventually who could become the equal match to this warrior from another universe?

Predator is certainly a film about plenty of action, yet people often overlook the cleverness of the plot. John McTiernen's heroes are not only strong, but they are also very intelligent when they deal with crisis, especially when they are alone. The more you look at a film like 'Predator', you start to see the intelligence behind the film. Dutch is not only a muscular man with brawn, he also possessed leadership skills, problem-solving skills, and a tremendous ability of resilience. These aspects are what I will concentrate on here (sorry, not the muscle!).

As I have pointed out before, while individualism is often celebrated in McTiernen's films, the filmmaker does not undermine the effectiveness of team work. The hero will often have to blend in nicely to the team to bring the action forward. At the point an unknown enemy was identified, Dutch called into the action an organized hunt to find out their enemy. It was clear that Dutch's team worked as an effective one, because they have successfully killed all the insurgent in a very short span of time. Thus, when the body count started to increase in Dutch's side, it was not necessarily their incompetency. At the starting part of their encounter, the Predator had a number of advantages against Dutch's team. First, he was rendered invisible during their first encounters, and the Jungle Hunter has successfully killed two members in the platoon before a massive fire fight broke out between the 2 parties. By hiding and jumping effectively through trees, he successfully sniped a number of Dutch's men with his advanced plasma weapon. True, someone can argue this is an unsportsmanlike behavior (see later), yet from a military and pragmatic point of view, the Jungle Hunter won this round because he would let the environment become his advantage, and Dutch's men was stranded by Jungle Hunter's control of the situation.  The heavy gun fire wounded the Predator on his arm, and he bled with some luminescent green blood. Later when the team investigate this weird material, Dutch uttered the one of the most iconic one-liners in all of the Schwarzenegger cinema:

DUTCH

If it bleeds, we can kill it.

This line has become an iconic line and it has been parodied or distorted by many. To me, we don't need to over-analyze this, because the meaning is plain and simple. Dutch was showing his neat problem-solving skill. The only way to crack a problem is to identify the key point that leads to the solution. Isn't that the way we are often taught when dealing with exams? There is a certain point that you have to identify the keywords and the implications behind that. Then comes the Eureka moment that will lead you to the direction for the solution. This is not simplistic or silly, indeed Arnold has used such a simple and memorable statement to show us the golden rule of solving problems. If bleeding is the key, then just make him bleed more! Yes I know it sounds like a trash talking line from John Travolta's character in 'Broken Arrow', but that's the case.

After this realization, the team played with their next strategy - setting traps around the forest to catch their enemy out. Not only the attempt led to the demise of a wild pig, more characters were injured or eventually killed. Dutch soon found himself alone in this ordeal, and he also came to the recognition that his enemy only picked worthy men as opponents, hence the girl they have captured have never been targeted throughout the process. Soon after the Jungle Hunter got his hands on Dutch and wounded him. Desperately Dutch asked the girl to 'gettttt to the CHOPPERRRRR!!' and he had to face this other-worldly enemy alone.  While in the hot pursuit, Dutch accidentally fell into a river and the mud has covered Dutch. Because that reduced his thermal signature, the Predator could not see Dutch clearly through his infrared vision with the bio-mask. Escaping the Predator, Dutch immediately picked up this knowledge and knew the mud would be useful for him against the Predator.

Now utterly alone, Dutch has already learnt a lot from his experience. He understood that the firearms the team has got was not effective enough to deal with the Jungle Hunter, and he had to play the game with stealth because that was a strategy the Predator has been using a lot during the encounter - a face to face encounter would not give humanity any advantage in this case. Dutch started to get prepared for the final showdown and he made a lot of traps and more primitive weapons to deal with this situation. Knowing the mud would provide camouflage, he covered himself with mud. He went as far to set fire and give a war cry - a signal of challenge. Yes that might sound a bit corny but at least the Predator liked it that way.  

The final showdown broke out between the two and that was as intense as any skirmish. Dutch has successfully disabled Jungle Hunter's portable device, but to the Predator, Dutch was just a piece of cake. Soon the alien gained an upper hand and cornered Dutch - literally nowhere to run. Seeing the whole situation as a matter of honor, Jungle Hunter decided to give Dutch one last final round. He took off all the weapons that could give him advantages and engaged Dutch in a hand-to-hand combat (that's why I mention UFC before). Clearly Dutch was no match for this alien and he was knocked around by the Jungle Hunter. The affirmative thing, though, was that even facing with such an unsurmountable rival, Dutch had plenty of perseverance and resilience to come back, and he was calm enough to see that the Jungle Hunter might step into the trap. With a sense of ego and hubris, the Predator certainly thought he could squash Dutch like a grapefruit, and he started to be over-confident and made careless mistakes. Indeed, Jungle Hunter could have easily defeated Dutch using his advanced weapons and sniping skills, yet the inflated ego of the alien meant that he saw all these unsportsmanlike, and he wanted to beat Dutch in a fair fight. From these, Jungle Hunter underestimated humanity’s potential and led to his own downfall. Dutch eventually saw an opportunity and released a counterweight onto Jungle Hunter, and that completely destroyed him! Bleeding profusely and dying on the floor, Dutch inquired 'What the hell are you' to this ugly motherfxxker (that's a fair statement sadly), but Jungle Hunter refused to comply. Displaying a final sense of honor, he activated his self-destruction device and committed suicide - yet he decided to die with Dutch together. Sensing an out-of-proportion explosion was brewing through the Predator's creepy laughter, Dutch dashed away the faster he could manage and escaped from the mushroom cloud that resulted from this massive explosion.   

Humanity has affirmed themselves by defeating such a formidable opponent from another universe. This feat has then inspired more Predators to try their luck on the Earth, yet we know that humanity will be up for the challenge!

by Ed Law

Film Analysis