Kikujiro's Summer: Kitano Takeshi's Reconstruction Works, Reconciliation with the Most Important People in Life.

Kitano Takeshi used to be a Japanese crosstalk artist. He is eloquent and sharp-tongued on TV programs. However, after switching to the film industry, his performance was uncharacteristic, taciturn and expressionless. Japanese film circles have different views on Kitano Takeshi. On the one hand, Kitano Takeshi once said to Japanese film critics, "I am a cancer of Japanese movies, please fire me"; On the other hand, he enjoys a high reputation in the international film industry. He won the Golden Lion Award at Venice Film Festival and the Best Director Award at Montreal Film Festival for his self-directed performance of Fireworks, becoming the third person in Japanese history to win this honor. Even Akira Kurosawa, the Japanese "film emperor", regards Kitano Takeshi as the future of Japanese films.

Kitano Takeshi and Akira Kurosawa.

Kitano Takeshi's films have been labeled as "violent aesthetics". The protagonists in the movies are almost lonely marginal people, and most of their fate ends in death. Some critics said, "The hero of Kitano Takeshi's films reveals despair and contempt for the world, and there is a detachment and tragedy of disdain and collusion in his bones. It seems to have crossed the boundary between life and death, but it is a blessing to get rid of filth, cruelty and filth. " This is quite the "fearless death" spirit of Japanese Bushido.

However, when Kitano Takeshi experienced life and death, another kind of nostalgia and yearning for life appeared in his films. 1one night in the summer of 994, 47-year-old Kitano Takeshi had an accident riding a heavy motorcycle. After the operation, half of his face was permanently paralyzed. Fear of death haunted him all the time, and he began to re-examine the matter of "being alive".

1999, Kitano Takeshi film "Summer of Kikujiro" was released. Changing the violence and blood before, this comedy is particularly warm and clear. Although there is still a trace of sadness in the film, there is also hope and banter. Kitano Takeshi not only showed the plight of the marginalized people, but also discussed how to make life more valuable.

Describe a journey to find a relative from a child's perspective.

In Mujiro's Summer, Kitano Takeshi simulated a child's perspective with a low-key shooting technique and described a child's journey to find relatives. He divided the narrative of the film into nine chapters, imitating the Diary of Summer Photography.

Pupil, male, a little boy who always looks very wronged. He walked with his head down and his mouth pursed. When the summer vacation came, he decided to take his mother's photo and address and go alone to find his mother he had never met. The neighbor aunt of Zhengnan was not at ease, so she arranged an idle husband to accompany Zhengnan on the road.

With the participation of "adult protagonist", the theme of the film is more profound. In order to show children's understanding of the adult world, the film is also interspersed with four dreams of men.

My uncle, who was on the road with that man, just left his wife and went directly to the racecourse to bet. The figures predicted by Zhengnan helped uncle win a sum of money by gambling. Later, the uncle took the man to a bar for recreation. At night, men's dreams are full of the rushing bells on the racetrack. The woman doesn't care about the man finding his relatives, but she strongly praises him for winning a sum of money by gambling. Children can't understand adults' infatuation with money, and they are also confused about uncle's behavior of looking for a mistress.

The next day, my uncle lost all his money gambling, and when he was drinking in the pub at night, he left the man at the door of the shop. Zhengnan was almost bullied by a wretched man. The man fell asleep wronged, dreaming that the ferocious tattoo on his uncle's back vaguely distorted the image of a wretched man. The man was tied to a post, and his mother wept silently. The music in the film is weird and scary, which shows that men are insecure, have bad feelings for their uncles, and long for distant maternal love.

After the two officially set off on the road, although the uncle caused a lot of trouble along the way, he still hitchhiked to his destination. However, men and women formed a new family with a husband and children. Due south turned his back on the distance and left with tears in his eyes.

Uncle was very moved and tried his best to comfort Zhengnan. However, because of greed and cheating at night, uncle was taken away by gangsters, leaving the man waiting in place. The man fell asleep on the bench. In his dream, two gangsters turned into monsters and danced strangely. Men are afraid and wary of strangers, but they are lacking because of their uncle's departure. In a man's heart, he has become dependent on his uncle.

On the way back, there were dragonflies parked on flowers, frogs in ponds and caterpillars on lotus leaf stalks. These interesting details are the summer scenes in the eyes of children. It not only depicts the children's curiosity and yearning for nature, but also relaxes the mood of the audience and returns to the children's play mentality.

After meeting a travel writer, Mr. Chong happily camped with Mr. Bald, Mr. Masao and his uncle for three days. Although they said, "Let's play together, for the sake of that child", these four adults also gained a moment's joy and temporarily walked out of the haze of marginalized people. Zhengnan fell asleep in a tent by the river and finally had a beautiful dream. He dreamed that adults under the starry sky were changing exaggerated shapes and clumsily playing the game of "one, two, three, traffic lights" with him. At this time, Joe Hisaishi's classic soundtrack "Summer" set off a cheerful atmosphere. This also means that at the end of the journey to find relatives, men gradually overcome their inner inferiority and regain their children's innocence and optimism.

When the man was separated from his uncle, he stood on the bridge and asked, "What's your name, sir?" Uncle replied with sly eyes, "Kikujiro, fuck off".

At this point, the audience suddenly realized that Kikujiro was not the boy's name, but the uncle who was playing around. Director Kitano Takeshi throws one of the biggest jokes in the film and points out a deeper theme.

After the trip, he is a grown-up uncle.

As a "travel movie", Summer of Kikujiro is naturally inseparable from the theme of "ultimate search". In the film, Kikujiro's image at the beginning is an unemployed man who has lost himself. His experiences along the way have helped him find himself again and get out of the predicament. The turning point of all this is a man's journey of finding relatives.

Before leaving, Kikujiro listened to his wife's arrangement and stood side by side in front of the camera, with the same empty eyes and dull expression. This can't help but worry the audience, can such an immature person safely escort the children?

Sure enough, after squandering the money given by his wife, Kikujiro abruptly turned the journey into a detour: he obviously couldn't drive, but secretly drove the taxi away and stumbled until the car brayed and smoked, and broke down halfway; I couldn't swim, but I tried to be brave and jumped into the pool. In order to save face, I came back to learn swimming posture on the table. If you are refused a ride, you will break the glass and escape; While talking about "adults should sacrifice for their children", they stole rice balls from men and fell into the grass. ...

Kikujiro's exasperating and ridiculous nonsense continued until he was moved by Zhengnan's life experience. At the roadside bus shelter at night, the man was sleeping on Kikujiro's lap. Kikujiro said to himself, "So he is just like me." . After finding the parents' residence, Kikujiro saw the name "Yoshimura" written impressively on the doorplate. He didn't fly into a rage as usual, but he was as at a loss as a child who made a mistake. Perhaps, Kikujiro's life experience told him that the ending was not happy.

Zhengnan was very sad to see her mother's new family with her own eyes. Kikujiro led him to the seaside and came back alone to ask questions. But in the end, Kikujiro gave up. He came back with the stolen angel wind chimes to comfort Zhengnan. "That woman is not your mother. Your mother left you this wind chime before she moved out. If you are unhappy or in trouble, shake it and the angel will help you. "

There are many stereotypes in Kitano Takeshi's films, and he gives these things a special meaning to interpret the connotation of the film. For example, in the Summer of Mujiro, the sea is the comfort of the soul, and the wind chimes become the symbol of love. Kitano Takeshi believes that the traumatic experience of human beings urges human beings to heal themselves. Reality can't satisfy desire, so it needs a kind of spiritual sustenance. Just like Kikujiro pinned her maternal love on the wind chimes. Wind chimes not only represent men's longing for their mothers' love, but also represent Kikujiro's yearning for their mothers.

On the return trip, Kikujiro's love and attachment to the man brought Kikujiro's father's love back. He felt the preciousness of his family and faced up to the fact that he was abandoned by his mother. In the nursing home, he looked at his mother who was still arrogant and withdrawn. She was old, but her heart was quiet for a long time.

On the surface, this film tells the story of Kikujiro accompanying Zhengnan to find his mother, but in fact, it is a process in which Kikujiro, who was once in a mental dilemma, was moved by Zhengnan's innocence and kindness during his journey, and finally changed his personality, untied his heart knot, regained his lost family ties and gained survival strength. This is also the real meaning of the title "Summer of Kikujiro".

Kitano Takeshi, who is over 500 years old, used this film to reach a settlement with the most important person in his life.

The book "Kitano Takeshi's Self-Report" wrote, "Kikujiro's summer is a film that is not lacking in warmth, and it is based on my childhood. I won't pretend that the plot of this movie has nothing to do with my childhood. " In fact, this film is Kitano Takeshi's most autobiographical work. Kitano Takeshi used this film in a subtle and inclusive way to commemorate his late father Jijiro Kitano.

Kitano Takeshi's father is a painter at the bottom of society. He was cold and timid, but after drinking, he went home and punched and kicked his mother. The violence that can be seen everywhere in Kitano Takeshi's works stems from his childhood fear of his father. But once this serious and pretentious father makes a fool of himself, it makes people feel particularly funny, which is also the origin of Kitano Takeshi's banter. Just like Kitano Takeshi went to the seaside for the first time when he was a child, he was with his father, which is also the happiest memory of his father and son. However, my father, who obviously can't swim, tried to be brave and almost drowned.

Kitano Takeshi recalled, "It seems that I didn't talk to my father before I died. But in retrospect, he was really a little lonely. This movie is a bit like the feeling of filial piety and a kind of support. "

Summer of Kikujiro is a "dialogue" between Kitano Takeshi and his father, and it is also a dream of his missing childhood. He personally starred in Kikujiro, hoping to put himself in his father's shoes and feel his loneliness. In the first half of the film, Kikujiro's messy life is a portrayal of his father. In the second half, caring and accompanying men is Kitano Takeshi's desire for fatherly love.

At the end of the film, Kikujiro went to a nursing home and visited his mother for a long time. Another meaning of this shot is that Kitano Takeshi wants to make up for the time when his mother was seriously ill.

Kitano Takeshi struggled with his mother all his life. Sasaki's mother is strong. In order to get children out of poverty and get ahead, she is crazy about education. Mother is worried that playing baseball will delay Kitano Takeshi's study, so even the sight of baseball gloves will make her angry. Under the strict supervision of her mother, Kitano Takeshi was admitted to the Technical College of Meiji University.

However, in order to fight against his mother, Kitano Takeshi chose to drop out of school and leave home to become an artist. But before long, he couldn't even pay the rent. The landlord told him that it was because of his mother's silent promotion that he lived for so long. Kitano Takeshi always loses in the struggle with his mother.

After Kitano Takeshi became famous, her mother asked for money every month. If the money came slowly, she would swear. In Kitano Takeshi's eyes, mother is truly greedy and unsatisfied. Therefore, Kitano Takeshi only went to see her once when her mother was ill. Even after his mother died, he didn't want to go home to be filial.

After the funeral, Kitano Takeshi received a package from her sister, a letter and a passbook from her mother. In the passbook is the money that Kitano Takeshi sends to his mother every month, every penny. The letter said: You said you would go to Tokyo to work hard, and I was worried that you would become poor, so I kept asking you to send money home every month, on the one hand to stimulate you to earn more money, and on the other hand to save money for you. Your money is your money, make good use of it now!

Kitano Takeshi and his mother.

Every director presents a different film style, because everyone's life experience and feelings are different. Kitano Takeshi poured warmth into the silent and lonely little people, and finally turned it into a heart-wrenching liquor, which made the audience restless for a long time. Perhaps, after being over half a century old and experiencing life and death, Kitano Takeshi chose to reconcile with the most important person in his life and with himself.

Just like the classic lines in "Mujiro's Summer": picturesque scenery and beautiful melody. Life is like a journey, we will meet all kinds of scenery along the way, but in the end we will all come back.

Editor: Guo Chunyu