Prophet and townsman

【Screen Notes】

One

The Argentine film Elciu-dadanoilustre (2016) pushes the lens to the selfishness and ignorance of the people at the bottom, reviving the critical position of early writers to examine national nature– as we discussed in the Danish film The Hunt (Jagten, 2012). Films with this kind of realistic edge are often seen outside of Hollywood today. The coincidence in the conception of the two films is that the male protagonists were finally shot with black guns and both survived.

The protagonist of Outstanding Citizen, Daniel Mantwani (Oscar Martinez), is an Argentine novelist who has just won the Nobel Prize in Literature. Adding a voiceover about this character setting may not be superfluous: Argentines often have a special sneer when it comes to the Nobel Prize in Literature, similar to Chinese jokingly referring to the national football team as the World Cup champion. It is true that the two are different in the object of ridicule, and when we mention the national football team that has repeatedly lost many battles, it is mainly out of self-deprecation and self-deprecation, and very few people blame the difficulties of the international community. The Argentines' ridicule is unanimous, and the reasons are equally strong. Unlike other countries that have never won the Nobel Prize in Literature, Argentina has a great literary master, Jorge Borges. When Borges was alive, every year after the Nobel Prize season, it would cause a complaint and sigh in the global literary circles, and it was widely believed that the failure only showed the aesthetic defects and outdated concepts of the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, and did not affect the literary brilliance of Borges. The Argentines, disappointed, naturally accumulated a lot of resentment, and probably formed the following consensus among the elite: the Nobel Prize in Literature should never be overly respected; on the contrary, waiting for the opportunity to taunt the Swedish Academy of Letters is a necessary etiquette, a basic cultivation of a "literary citizen". Although the function of literature does not include revenge, when revenge helps to highlight literary justice, it can be opened.

Combined with the above narration, I smile from time to time when I look at the words and deeds of the protagonist before and after the award. As the film shows, when the protagonist goes to Sweden to accept the award, with a kind of arrogance between decency and recklessness, he refuses the organizers' dress code for tuxedo, and also refuses to bow to the king and queen of Sweden under the exaggerated excuse of "opposing the monarchy". In his acceptance speech, he made an offensive statement, saying that "the unanimous approval of the judges, including the king, means that the work is no longer innovative and impactful." Writers should question with their works, they should be unpleasant, so the award almost proves the depravity of the winner." Viewed in isolation, this is a scrappy insight, and when combined with the identity of the speaker, Mantwani appears to have insufficient emotional intelligence. Fortunately, he was An argentinian, and Argentine writers clearly had the right to pat the table at the Swedish Academy of Letters; and Argentine audiences mostly thought that the recipient was seeking lost literary justice for Borges.

Also out of respect for Borges, Mantovani must treat the award with an attitude of indifference, and he should not show the slightest shame. When the captain congratulated the honorary passenger on the radio and the passengers applauded, the novelist coldly put on the blindfold and did not even smile in thanks. When the female secretary introduced him one by one to invitations from around the world for visits and lectures, he appeared extremely impatient, as if he had been asked to clean the toilet. He only shows a strange expression when the female secretary mentions an invitation to his hometown - of course, the contempt for the Nobel Prize in Literature also shows the author's arrogant and upright character, and without this introduction, the story behind it is difficult to establish.

Mandowani, like the famous literary predecessors Thomas Hardy and William Faulkner or The Chinese Nobel Laureate Mr. Mo Yan, is dedicated to depicting a postage stamp-sized homeland. The writer left his hometown in his 20s and stayed in Europe for 40 years, during which he never returned to his hometown once, and the background and characters of his novels have always been rooted in his hometown, and he has never written about Europe. He said: "My characters can never leave, and I can never go back. All my life I've done was to escape that place. Why? His hometown Salles gave Mantowani endless inspiration and passion, but his feelings for his hometown were full of contempt and hatred. The literary prestige of the writer has made Salles famous, but those are two different kinds of reputations, and the greater the reputation of the writer, the uglier the reputation of his hometown: with the help of the writer's many works, Salles has become a literary landmark focusing on the despicable nature of human nature, a dark attraction similar to the biblical city of Sodom. This constitutes a paradoxical and dangerous scene, the hometown people want to share the glory of the writer, must also bear the writer's denigration and harm to themselves, and the Salles people can do it, which is equivalent to declaring the failure of the writer. Only a wise, open-minded, confident and cheerful populace can accept this kind of criticism, and Mandevani should not expect the old family members who have been portrayed so badly by himself to suddenly ignore their previous suspicions and give themselves a hug.

Therefore, as long as the writer is still sober, he should not go back to his hometown to receive the medal of honor that symbolizes "outstanding citizen". However, man is complex, and even if this high-looking writer had a brilliant mind and an open mind, it is difficult to say that he was not burned by vanity—he later admitted this, saying: "Paper, pen, vanity, without these, you can't write anything." After all, letting the old family see that they have more interest is also a psychological desire that is not easy to dispel, not to mention that there is a first love in the hometown. In short, he had ten thousand reasons to refuse, but just a faint call from within was enough to change his decision.

He went back, flying back to his hometown from Barcelona, thousands of miles away, alone, without a secretary or reporter, and walked alone into a situation that was destined to be full of human tension and dramatic conflict, with inexplicable anticipation, trepidation and fear.

Two

In the film's character landscape, the writer also occupies a small territory. It is true that the serious work of writers is always avoided by filmmakers, and the writers seen by the audience on the screen, in addition to having writing genius, are often useless, and obedience and perversion almost constitute the norm of their lives. In fact, if the choreographer wants to portray an incurable drunkard, playboy, sexual pervert, and deranged murderer, they don't have to bother to describe the character as a writer; portraying the writer as a poetic villain is always the least criticized. As I say this, my mind flashes to Films like The LostWeek-end (1945), Henry & June (1990), BitterMoon (1992), and The Shining (1980).

In contrast, Mandevani is a writer who is too normal and healthy in body and mind, he does not drink, smoke, and do not touch drugs; he is single, but his private life is quite clean, and he once refused to pretend to be a girl who was a fan and gave hugs, and solemnly reminded the other party that "my age can be your father.". A few life habits that at first glance look like quirks, in fact, there is nothing wrong with it, such as asking the hotel to provide a latex mattress, not accepting a spring bed: he is old after all, and may still suffer from insomnia, so even if the whole Sales can't find a latex mattress, it does not mean that the big writer is playing tricks; he is willing to shake hands with people instead of hugging, and it is only a little private reticence - he is afraid that he has to be counted as an exiled writer, and the exile writer will inevitably have some quirks; as for asking the host to provide steamed fish instead of Argentine barbecue, Not to mention the quirks, the elderly pursue a light diet, what is wrong? Moreover, if the other side was difficult, he did not pull down his face on the spot, and mayor Salles gave him a wild hug full of Pampas eagle momentum when he saw the writer, and he only smiled lightly. He hated pomp and circumstance, saying that he was not a football star and did not have to participate in the float parade, but when the mayor of the old slipper asked him to understand the mood of the firefighters who had been rehearsing and the town's beauty queen, he obediently boarded the fire truck and awkwardly greeted passers-by. Of course, that look is not at all like a triumphant general, but like a parade in the streets.

A father with a sly face, with his handicapped son, came to the writer with his disabled son and, in a tone of humor and solemnity— he mentioned his son's love and warrior steel qualities, and his son's love of football and poetry — asked the writer to pay $9,800 to buy an imported wheelchair for his son. Mandevani was really angry, flatly refused, and pointed out to his face that the other party was not right in his heart, and used nostalgia to blackmail. He added: "If I help you, I am like God, like a savior, who can miraculously determine the faith of others." I don't want to pretend to be a savior. In short, it is a depraved attitude that deviates from my principles. It's not a question of money. The words were sonorous and powerful, but they were also clearly out of touch, and could not be understood by the father who was obsessed with calculating other people's pockets. Curiously, the writer's kindness actually triumphed over the "principle", and he quietly ordered the wheelchair before leaving.

The hotel he stayed in looked even more chilling than the township guest house in China today, and he didn't think much of it, and took the time to read the literary works handed by a young waiter. When he checked out, he enthusiastically affirmed the talent of the waiter, and as a sign of sincerity, he not only promised to compile the work into a collection, but also prepaid a fee for the young man. He gave literary speeches to the locals, the audience was mostly elderly, could not see how much love for literature, the last time only five people came, he did not think it was wrong, seriously replied to those childish questions. His noble opinions, expressed out of his own literary attainments (such as denying that "sadness is the best state of literary creation"), are similar to those of Kutani Footnote, and obviously cannot be expected to be answered.

A local who misreads the novel and believes that the character is based on his father, he believes that he has the right to issue an "invitation to dinner at home" to the writer, as if he were a creditor of the writer. Mandevani smiled wryly and told him, "I am not an object of your discretion, see? ”

The guy certainly wouldn't understand. Due to the long years of living in Europe, coupled with excellent qualifications and superior insights, Mantowani has opened up the gap with the hometown people in all aspects from the values, morals and daily life customs, and the communication between the two sides is often separated by the summer worm language. The writer parachuted into Salles like an advanced humanistic instrument, but upon arrival found that the instrument could not find the corresponding socket. The difference between the two sides stems from the underlying knowledge structure, similar to the use of different voltages, the implementation of different traffic laws, forced contact, easy to electrocute and fire, causing psychological accidents. At the same time, the two sides lack consensus on honor, and the determination to defend honor is on a par, resulting in their own reasons, no matter how impeccable they think they are, will always be interpreted as hypocrisy and despicable in each other's ears.

The writer has long shown prejudice through his works, he can be degraded on the surface, pretend to be approachable, but in his heart he cannot get rid of the feeling of superiority. He did look down on the Salles, and the greatness of his work was partly rooted in contempt for his hometown. Similarly, the hometown people have specific prejudices about this famous writer, if the writer is complete and smiling, the Salles people can also be proud of him, after all, as villagers, they can also "share" some spiritual benefits; on the other hand, if the writer does not know how to lift up and refuses to cooperate, the townspeople will stare at him with hatred, and they are ready to pose as victims.

Three

The writer wandered alone in casual sweatshirts on the street, and some Salles citizens silently trailed, holding up their mobile phones to secretly take pictures, as if intending to share them on social media. No one offered to shake his hand and hug him, and no one specifically offended the writer — at least not for the first three days, after all, the Nobel laureate's reputation is still very convincing. There are indications that as long as the writer is interested and meets the brutal demands of the mayor and individual citizens, Mr. Mandevani could have successfully survived four days and gone.

However, his integrity constituted an obstacle.

The mayor of Salles, who is full of smirkiness in the city, certainly has no intentions for writers. He hoped that the writer's visit would whitewash his political achievements, but it was best for the writer to provide only his own image and name, and not to attach ideas. He erected a statue of the writer and gave him a medal of "Outstanding Citizen", implicitly demanding that the writer reciprocate and give him a laurel of grace and dignity. He ostensibly asked the writer to identify the winner of a local grassroots painting competition, but privately asked the writer not to take it too seriously, shelved aesthetic judgments, and listed his internal works as excellent. What he said to the writer was: "You big writer will pat your ass tomorrow and leave, and I, the mayor, will have to deal with the locals for a long time. "Originally, a painting competition in a remote town was no big deal, as long as the writer put some and gave the mayor a little face, he could have the best of both worlds and have fun with the guests and hosts." However, the Mayor is unaware that for a dignified literary scholar, artistic judgment related to aesthetics is his greatest personality, and he defends it to no less extent than the old-fashioned women protect chastity. The writer sternly rebelled against the mayor's will, and with an open-minded attitude, he publicly ridiculed the mayor's calculations. He emphasized loudly and eloquently:

The best cultural policy is that there is no policy at all. People always see culture as a weak and fragile thing that needs to be taken care of, protected, promoted, funded, but in fact, culture is indestructible, even in the worst situation, it can still survive.

The writer told the public that the winning works did not represent his judgment, and that the works he recommended had been illegally excluded. The mayor must belong to the kind of grassroots politician who silently recites "small and unbearable is chaotic and big plot" all day long, and he will not have a seizure on the spot. But a local thorn-headed painter named Romero is not easy to deal with, he roared at the writer because of the failure of his work, and instantly became a rogue who could provoke trouble at any time and place. Through his manic voice, the writer finally figured out his true image in the eyes of the townspeople. Romero had apparently read the writer's work carefully, and when he came to smash the field, he held up the writer's book to show that his words must be based. He ridiculed writers for selling out their hometowns to "lick the ass of Europeans and make some bounty." There is nothing else but to treat us like garbage." He quoted the poet Dante as cursing Mantovani as a "traitor, at the bottom of hell." When the writer is forced to huddle behind the podium in order to avoid Romero's violence, Romero's stupid passion reaches a climax, and he orders the writer to stand up and go out into the street alone with him, solving problems like a man. Romero, though long gone, is at least 20 years younger than the writer. His manhood is equivalent to that when someone argued that Hawking, a great scientist in a wheelchair, proposed to use a fight to decide right and wrong. The courage of the loser always leads to cowardice.

The writer expresses the idea that even if there is no chance of victory, it is still necessary to oppose all intimidation. Furiously returning the Distinguished Citizen medal, he sneaked out the back door with the help of a fat driver. His bad luck was not over, and Antonio, the only old acquaintance he regarded as a friend in the local area, suddenly transformed into a bigger enemy and waited outside with a shotgun.

This stems from a slightly dramatic coincidence. The girl who threw herself into the arms before, her father happened to be the writer's old friend Antonio, who married a woman who happened to be the writer's first love, and she still maintained a silent affection for the writer and read all the works of the writer. The relationship is too tangled, and Antonio's psychological shadow area may be even wider than the territory of Argentina. Antonio, a cunning man with a Salles style, had just claimed to have "slept through the night" with his wife, and in the blink of an eye showed off to the writer that he had slept with all the waitresses of a nightclub. In other words, he has no established view of love and pursues a tricky attitude that goes deep into the marrow. He knew that his daughter had taken the initiative to tease the writer, but at this time he needed to stir up a cloud of anger, and he needed to play a father who had suffered a huge grievance, so that the psychological depression that had accumulated for many years could be famously vented. Our poor writer was held hostage by two men (the other was Antonio's son-in-law) in a place blinded by black lights, like a hunting ground, more like a cemetery, and Antonio shot at the writer's heel continuously, forcing the writer to make a ridiculous escape like a goat, and his son-in-law's mischievous psychology was not so strong, and he shot directly at the writer.

Fortunately, the writer escaped death, and after escaping from his homeland, he wrote the autobiographical work of "Outstanding Citizen". This, of course, belongs to the narrative gimmick of the choreographer.

The poster for the English version of Outstanding Citizen reads: "No one is a prophet in his hometown, even if he wins a Nobel Prize." This sentence actually has a biblical etymology, "the prophet is not accepted by the family" as a bitter human tragedy, has been repeated in the long history of time and space, the Chinese old saying "heroes are afraid to see the old neighborhood", is similar to the tragic city circle.

Mantowani's experience is purely fictional, and the national critical spirit that the choreographer intends to convey has a strong sense of reality. The film is outstanding, the narrative is simple, the rhythm is refined, and the actors' performances contain a natural thickness that is awe-inspiring. But I would also like to point out that when artists engage in national criticism, they often instinctively reinforce regional characteristics, as if the despicable public sentiment is only popular in the remote town of Salles. This is a bit extreme and inaccurate. Take the Japanese director Akira Kurosawa's business card "Seven Samurai" (七人の侍, 1954) as an example, in the film, in addition to summoning the soul of the lost Bushido, the director also shows the selfish and ugly peasant consciousness very sharply. Of course, it was aimed at the ancient Japanese peasants, who also had a strange hairstyle with a high degree of recognition, but the Chinese audience still seemed to have a strong sense of familiarity and identity. A few years later, the Americans twice adapted it under the name "The Magnifi-centSeven", moving to the western United States and Mexico, respectively, but inheriting Akira Kurosawa's display and criticism of peasant character— although somewhat weakened, indicating that Westerners did not consider that peasant nature to be unique to Japan. As for the seven heroes in the film, whether they are Japanese samurai or American gunmen, after helping the peasants defeat the robbers, they leave the bodies of four comrades-in-arms and leave with interest, and only the ungrateful farmers on the screen are celebrating the harvest. This theme, also belonging to the "Prophets and Townspeople" series, should never exist, will never disappear, and is always worth reproducing.