簡單的幸福

茶泡飯的滋味

據說，這是小津自己評為 regrettably “in”successful的作品（破破的英文，哈）。大戰前1939年寫出的劇本，到戰後1952年才開拍完成，其間小津的心境必然已有所轉變，雖然在影片最後加上短短五分鐘的一段新詮釋，仍難以扭轉整部片子的基調，也難怪小津可能不滿。

之前看過小津的《秋刀魚之味》（後來才知道這是小津最後一部作品），談不上極愛，卻有種對藝術品的欣賞。直覺小津的片子就是那麼的溫潤自在，像塊質地堅韌而光滑舒適地寶玉，不是翠綠色，而是淡淡一抹紅暈。雖然《秋》片中對「魚」的著墨不多，但果真如品嚐日本烤魚一樣，必須細緻挑剔骨刺鮮肉，吃畢還是雲淡風清。小津片子向來有著一種和現代揮汗躁進截然不同的風情，《茶泡飯》亦若是。

我個人或許更偏愛《茶》片，因為主角是女子，看事情的觀點也是陰柔。那種媒妁夫妻的無奈忍讓，新時代女性的放肆熱情，都是街頭巷尾常見的事情，但卻都是女性不得不面對的考驗。丈夫出軌、丈夫憨笨、丈夫遜於自己等種種，女人可以怎麼辦？茶泡飯是不是解藥？說真的，我不認為。小津還是太保守。他推薦那種粗茶拌飯，試圖說服天下痴男怨女換換口味，嚐點平實的美好。可是他忘了，沒有吃過山珍海味，又怎能體會平凡？男女多半還是要去吃些苦頭，才能暢飲泉水的甘甜，人性就是如此。就算知曉茶泡飯的滋味，也不見得能一生一世不後悔。到頭來，還是得當自強。

小津慣用的拍攝手法，在這部片中出現不少。像是低視線（榻榻米視線）的運用，讓觀眾與劇中人物更能相融。鏡頭的不斷連接，製造日常生活的瑣碎感。運用許多空鏡頭、過渡鏡頭、長拍、戶外靜物景（又反映出小津美術水墨的背景），使整部片子鬆散而無高潮，卻格外符合市民生活的步調。小津認為家庭的各種問題起源於大時代，是結構性悲劇。升斗小民能做的就是謹守本分，珍惜點滴的韻味。聽起來很日本吧～沒錯，小津在西方世界（甚至在台灣也是）就是那麼的日本原汁原味。

The Butterfly Effect

It's really been a while since I was last surprised by a film. “The Butterfly Effect” simply did it!

Its witty plot and sudden ending strike me as cruel yet brilliant. The story begins with a flashback of our tragic hero, Aven, who seemed desperately running away from someone, or more likely, something. Before knowing better, we traveled through time to witness his childhood traumas such as accidentally bombing a baby, being sexually harassed and finally, giving up his true love, Kelly.

The grown-up Aven, now an average college student, one day discovered his rather cursed gift of time traveling. He realized he could change the past so to make the future, or at least, the present, better. He went back to change the crucial moments and to mend his regrets. However, everything went wrong in one way or another. He indeed stopped the harassment, but he didn’t prevent himself from committing a murder. Therefore, he had to go back again. This time, he stopped the bomb, but his limbs were blown off and he became a handicapped and thus Kelly was in love with someone else. So he was back again, but still no luck. He killed little Kelly.
He was sent away to prison and the doctor decided to lock him up forever. He knew if he had to start it all over, he had to get back to the very beginning, where he was still a pregnant baby in his mother’s womb. He reached there and chocked to death in the womb.

The story of Aven never existed because he was never born. His death, however, brought new beginnings for the rest of the people. Kelly grew up and married well and his mother had another baby later.

This is the most ironic and tricky part of the movie. If Aven never existed, how could there be a story? He existed to not exist! That’s the story! He figured in the end that it’s best for him to die. He ran away from his memory and from his life.

The term, “butterfly effect,” is first coined in scientific fields, meaning a small change could cause major differences. The differences are in chaos. No one can predict what might happen. The term is now borrowed by literary criticism, economic theory and even fortune-telling. The movie symbolically used the similarity of human brain X-ray pictures and butterfly wings to say that it’s all about mind and memory. Memory, which is a trace of time, is where the chaos occurs.

I recall a professor once said after seeing the film that details matter. I observe instead that memories matter. We can actually change the memory, though not literally. We can change our perspectives on things that had happened. Memories haunt us, but we can fight back.

Aven failed to stop the tragic from happening because he didn’t change his mind about things. He just wished that things go his way. In H. G. Welles’ “Time Machine,” he sharply denied the chance to change the past. It’s the future that one can really control. I agree with Welles. The purpose of life is to look forward and only turn your face back to give a big smile to the past. It’s gone and one should be grateful about that.