西班牙內(nèi)戰(zhàn)時期，人們?yōu)榱颂与x獨裁統(tǒng)治而來到了法國。面對大量外來人口的突然涌入，法國當局將他們集中安置，然而生活區(qū)的條件十分艱苦。雖然有鐵絲網(wǎng)的阻隔，畫家何塞還是想盡辦法與外界溝通，尋找他失散的伴侶，并且和一位守衛(wèi)成為了好友。同時插畫家出身的導演奧雷爾，最大程度地讓何塞的畫作重新散發(fā)光彩，將其流暢地融于影片之中，著重描繪在艱難逆境中藝術(shù)的力量和頑強抗爭的精神，完美呼應了主人公之言：“美好的想法，如果不與美好的人相遇，就會消逝?！?/p>

Animation, as a visual art form, can detach itself from reality in the purest sense, those colorful, fanciful artifacts are able to escape any spatio-temporal, anthropocentric boundaries, therefore they are mostly apt for escapism, often designated to family fares. However, here are two exceptions, French cartoonist Aurel’s César Award winning feature debut JOSEP and Studio Ghibli’s enshrined classic GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES, both associate themselves with the dreadful WWII and its harsh reality,

JOSEP’s title refers to Spanish painter/writer Josep Bartolí (1910-1995), and it centers on his harrowing experiences in a French internment camp as a refugee after fought in the Spanish civil war, the point in time is early 1939, months before the commencement of that blamed war, where he is befriended by a convivial gendarme Serge, camaraderie blossoms between them under the noxious conditions. Josep is subjected to taunts, humiliations and abuse from other mean-spirited, racist, anti-communist gendarmes, one of his fellow Spanish émigrés is beaten to death for defiance. To add injury to insult, Serge finds out Josep’s pregnant fiancée is severely injured, childless and in a disfigured, catatonic state.

Not shying away from the horrendous acts, scenarist Jean-Louis Milesi also tries to squeeze levity and sensuousness into this tale of woe, even conjures up Frida Kahlo into Josep’s fantasy, to whom he will be romantically linked years later in Mexico. But told in dribs and drabs, the narrative doesn’t amp up appreciable emotional impact, Bartolí is chummy, but no character for us to empathize with. And mingled with a frame story where an old Serge, on his deathbed, inculcates his modern-day grandson to carry on with his memory, JOSEP consciously wears its heart on its sleeve, but what is remarkable about it?

Fairly speaking, JOSEP possesses a distinctively western painting style, it looks primitive à la bande-dessinée, and unfurls in a frame-by-frame rigidity which dispenses with the function of cinematography, which renders the viewing experience rather different from most of its kind, it is retro, but not in a completely alluring way, you might be astounded by Aurel’s artistic flair, but for assimilation of what is presented on the screen, it could be a very different matter, even if you are compulsively ensorcelled by Sílvia Pérez Cruz’s exotic incidental music. A blue-ribbon artisan doesn’t necessarily make for a top-line filmmaker, which Japan’s Studio Ghibli knows absolutely the best.

Directed by the studio’s co-founder Isao Takahata, GRAVES OF THE FIREFLIES earns its prestige as a sure-fire tear-jerker for decades, and just when you fully gird yourself for the stimuli of your tear gland, bam! it shakes you up roundly in the off, a strategy pays dividends because by giving away the ending, it diminishes anxiety and prepares you to the inevitability with some semblance of resignation, it is not an artisanal decision, but from the mastermind of a competent filmmaker and astute storyteller.

The story takes place is the dog-end of WWII, Kobe is beset with air raids, two young siblings, Seita, a school-kid and his four-year-old sister Setsuko, have to live off their limited means after their mother perished (while their father is a navy officer in the line of duty) and a stint of staying with their aunt turns sour. Here the underbelly of realism sneaks in (the story is adapted from Akiyuki Nosaka’s semi-biographical novel), a majority of the adults aren’t sympathetic figures who, you might take it for granted, will show partiality towards parentless kids, no, not for those who husband their sustenance in a war-ridden city, where they are benumbed and desensitized by hardship and casualty. Warfare always brings out the worst of humanity, that is a given.

If the plot is a poverty porn of the highest water, viz. young kids suffer and wither in privation, Takahata magnificently tones down the tragedy with episodes of poetry and reminiscences, even happiness (however fleeting it is), using firefly as a metaphor for evanescent lives, the whole film suffuses with exceptionally tender moments and picturesque illustrations that have been scarcely rivaled ever since. That is the simplicity and beauty of cel animation, I would even prefer this to Hayao Miyazaki’s MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO, released in the same year, not because of its technique, but of how Takahata leavens a lachrymose text with adroit considerations, especially those concerning Setsuko, her declining process is depicted with such insuperable felicity (a fruit drop can leave you feel pulverized), everything can be tactlessly fell into mawkishness or ickiness, but GRAVES OF THE FIREFLIES lends its feet victoriously in the end.

Smart, if over-smart, is Takahata’s stance on the warfare, by skipping a larger context, he evades a straight answer which may divide his audience, so you can read it as either anti-war or an anti-defeat, that doesn’t particularly of Takahata’s concern, his point seems to be, if I many conjecture, a country must always value and prioritize its citizen’s life above everything else, otherwise, war or no war, the failure is on all of us.

referential entries: Yoshifumi Kond?’s WHISPER OF THE HEART (1995, 8.2/10); Sylvain Chomet’s THE ILLUSIONIST (2010, 7.1/10); Hayao Miyazaki’s MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO (1988, 8.0/10).

Title: Josep

Year: 2020

Country: France, Spain, Belgium

Language: French, Spanish, Catalan, English

Genre: Animation, Biography, Drama

Director: Aurel

Screenwriter: Jean-Louis Milesi

Music: Sílvia Pérez Cruz

Editing: Thomas Belair

Voice Cast:

Sergi López

Bruno Solo

Fran?ois Morel

Gérard Hernandez

David Marsais

Valérie Lemercier

Alain Cauchi

Sílvia Pérez Cruz

Rating: 6.8/10

English Title: Grave of the Fireflies

Original Title: Hotaru no haka

Year: 1988

Country: Japan, USA

Language: Japanese

Genre: Animation, War, Drama

Director/Screenwriter: Isao Takahata

based on the novel by Akiyuki Nosaka

Music: Michio Mamiya

Cinematography: Nobuo Koyama

Editing: Takeshi Seyama

Voice Cast:

Tsutomu Tatsumi

Ayano Shiraishi

Akemi Tamaguchi

Rating: 8.4/10

西班牙內(nèi)戰(zhàn)時期，人們?yōu)榱颂与x獨裁統(tǒng)治而來到了法國。面對大量外來人口的突然涌入，法國當局將他們集中安置，然而生活區(qū)的條件十分艱苦。雖然有鐵絲網(wǎng)的阻隔，畫家何塞還是想盡辦法與外界溝通，尋找他失散的伴侶，并且和一位守衛(wèi)成為了好友。同時插畫家出身的導演奧雷爾，最大程度地讓何塞的畫作重新散發(fā)光彩，將其流暢地融于影片之中，著重描繪在艱難逆境中藝術(shù)的力量和頑強抗爭的精神，完美呼應了主人公之言：“美好的想法，如果不與美好的人相遇，就會消逝?！?/p>

片子里的塞內(nèi)加爾雇傭兵有哲學家色彩。

1. 如果黑色不存在，您的咖啡就是牛奶。如果白色不存在，柯拉果就是煤炭。Si le noir n'existe pas, votre café serait du lait. Si le blanc n'existe pas, la kola serait du charbon. （這果子好苦！）(C'est amer!) 萬事皆如此。如果苦味殺不死你，你就會習慣。再多嚼一會兒。慢慢嚼。Comme pour toutes choses. On s'y habitue si on n'en meurt pas. Il faut macher longtemps. Lentement.

2. 謝謝你們，女士們。C'est bien aimable à vous, mesdames.

說這話的時候他在編繩套，為后面劇情埋下伏筆。

3. 君子報仇十年不晚。Un jour tu tresses la corde, un autre tu pends le cochon, entre les deux ton corps fléchit (?).

這句話字面意思好像是從你開始編繩套那一天，到你把豬絞死那一天之間，你要卑躬屈膝?；貞懊婢幚K套的情節(jié)，像豬一樣的獄卒，以及后面的情節(jié)。

4. 我們要回營房了，德國佬那邊的局勢好像升溫了。我們會打敗他們。Dans notre caserne. Il semblait que ?a commence à se chauffer là-haut des c?tés des boches. On va les mettre à bater (?).

原文意思好像是要讓德國佬像驢一樣馱著東西走。

5. 我沒看到他走，我怎么開槍？Si je ne vois pas sortir, pourquoi je tirerai dessus? （我意識到他不會違抗命令，他只會睜一只眼閉一只眼。）(J'ai compris qu'il n'aurait pas désobéi aux ordres, mais simplement regardé ailleurs.)

開場伴隨著西班牙內(nèi)戰(zhàn)著名歌曲《到街壘去》，觀眾回到了1939年那個殘酷的冬天。

西班牙內(nèi)戰(zhàn)的失敗，使得共產(chǎn)主義者、社會主義者、安那其主義者、共和主義者不得不流亡海外。當難民們來到法國邊境，迎接他們的是冷冰冰的訓斥與一條通往難民營的道路。西班牙人從沒有這樣沮喪過——斯大林出賣了革命，與德國法西斯媾和。斯大林狗腿子西班牙共產(chǎn)黨在戰(zhàn)爭危難時刻黨同伐異，共和國的警察擁有先進的裝備，卻終日游蕩在戒嚴的街道上。沒有人想到革命的結(jié)局會是這樣。

在最后一艘法國船只駛離海岸，絕望的人們陸續(xù)舉起槍，其中不乏身材魁梧但面色憂郁的年輕人。

槍響過后，他們會上天堂嗎？或許他們從來不相信天堂，但他們曾經(jīng)相信正義、自由與理想。他們不遠萬里來到西班牙的前線。他們是工人、婦女、侍應生、作家、詩人、畫家、雕塑家和勇敢的宣傳者；他們是加拿大的醫(yī)生，美利堅的小說家、智利的詩人、英國的同性戀者、匈牙利的攝影師；他們是白求恩、海明威、聶魯達、奧登、卡帕......

他們是一切反對專制與暴政的勇者。

在這個普遍保守化的年代，每個人都應該有一點打破刻板印象的勇氣。

愿革命者的熱情永不消退。

法國動畫片向來與美國或日本有著截然不同的畫風和表現(xiàn)空間，往往融入創(chuàng)作者狂野的想象力與濃烈的個人風格，從千禧年初的《瘋狂約會美麗都》開始，五光十色的法國動畫在主流動畫之外找到獨特繁茂的存活天地?！洞髩暮偟墓适隆贰ⅰ兜消慃惖钠婊冒屠琛?、《我失去了身體》這些作品驚艷四座、讓人過目難忘，而這部入圍去年戛納官方選擇的《何塞》也同樣不讓人失望。

該片先后獲得了歐洲電影獎最佳動畫、法國“路易德·呂克”獎最佳處女作和法國電影凱撒獎最佳動畫片，影片導演奧雷爾（Aurel）是法國《世界報》和周刊LE CANARD ENCHA?Né的常駐插畫家，《何塞》是他的第一部動畫長片。故事講述西班牙流亡畫家Josep Bartolí在二戰(zhàn)爆發(fā)前夕在難民營與一位法國憲兵的一段畢生難忘的經(jīng)歷。他在難民營期間飽受歧視和虐待，更失去與未婚妻的團聚機會，之后在憲兵的幫助下逃離難民營，前往墨西哥，最后在紐約安度晚年。

▲流亡畫家與法國憲兵

導演沒有采取常規(guī)的第一人稱來敘述傳奇畫家的生平，而是采用當年他在難民營結(jié)識的法國憲兵的回憶視角展開敘事。殘酷沉重的歷史與五味雜陳的回憶相互糾纏，娓娓道出法國/西班牙邊境上的浮生百態(tài)，不僅有難民和憲兵，還有黑人和共產(chǎn)主義者。導演更將矛頭大膽指向弗朗哥獨裁暴政、法國政府默許下的種族歧視和虐待女性及難民的卑劣行為。這些復雜的歷史背景為這個人物傳記提供強有力的表現(xiàn)角度，畫家在逆境中堅持創(chuàng)作和頑強抗爭的精神令人動容。在戰(zhàn)亂和暴政的年代里，藝術(shù)或許微不足道，不能挽救生命，卻能讓畫家與憲兵建立起矢志不渝的友情，喚醒出人性中的光輝，完美呼應了主人公之言：“美好的想法，如果不與美好的人相遇，就會消逝?！?/p>

除了病榻上祖父回憶的視角，導演更頗有心思地建構(gòu)出另一層觀察視角，透過其孫子的傾聽和詢問，讓祖父這段回憶時而中斷，時而混入真假難辨的細節(jié)（從海里出現(xiàn)的女畫家弗里達），令故事變得錯落有致。更有深意的是，孫子這個同樣熱衷繪畫的角色巧妙地將過去與現(xiàn)在連結(jié)起來，從年輕一代的角度去體驗流亡畫家的經(jīng)歷。在和平年代的年輕人疏于觀察，在豐富的生活里找不著創(chuàng)作內(nèi)容，而流亡畫家在艱險的環(huán)境中，卻能捕捉到顛沛流離的人生百態(tài)，兩者形成強烈的對比。

▲何塞與弗里達

這部動畫的手繪畫風近乎簡陋，給人一種不連貫的質(zhì)感，卻意外地呼應著歷史的沉重感；人物遲緩的動作和凝滯的表情耐人尋味，像是讓觀眾緩緩撥開隱藏于塵封歷史的記憶屏障。導演更將流亡畫家的作品融入到敘事情節(jié)里，畫風隨著畫家的經(jīng)歷而變化，線條與色彩展現(xiàn)出他不同時期的風格，實則暗藏其本人內(nèi)心世界的演變。他在難民營時期用鉛筆畫素描，沒有上色，之后在墨西哥的創(chuàng)作才驚現(xiàn)濃墨重彩，卻放棄了人物線條的勾勒。這種劇烈的轉(zhuǎn)變無疑證明了何塞終于克服了戰(zhàn)爭和流亡的恐懼，徹底解開了內(nèi)心的束縛，敢于面對不堪回首的過往。

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