The story of Theeb took place in the First World War in 1916. As a member of the Bedouin tribe, Theeb is somewhat involuntarily involved in this dispute. In the Tanzhimat Reform of the Ottoman Turk Empire (1856), in order to save its shaky political system under its terrible political system, the Ottoman Empire imposed high taxes on the Bedouins through complicated land acquisition procedures, forcing a large number of Bedouins to choose semi-nomads. The life of the nation. Both Theeb and Hussein are members of the Bedouin nomads. They raise sheep for high-end cuisine, and they raise camels and live in tents in the desert.
In the First World War, Turkey was one of the Allied Powers and confronted the Allied Powers composed of Britain and Russia. The British soldiers asked the Bedouins to lead him to the vicinity of the railroad tracks in order to detonate explosives to blow up the railroad. This kind of bloody forest and the brutality of killing each other in the conflict of World War I was concentrated by this unfriendly British into the Bedouin who was homeless in the world. However, we can see the Bedouin’s warm and hospitable attitude towards the British. First they cooked the lamb (the British also found it unpalatable and threw away the lamb). Later, after separating from the British and the tribe, the two brothers were still because Don't worry about them and followed. This kind of contrast is used a lot in the film. Another example is the Bedouin people are known for their "ignorance of time." They often can't answer when they are asked about their age-but in the play, Theeb listens to the ticking sound while holding the British watch, which is another collision between things.
The film's photography, script, and actors are all to an impeccable level.
Let me briefly talk about the actors. Director Nowar spent four years shooting this film, and spent a whole year living with the Bedouins in the desert to observe their behavior and customs. The actors he chose were all Bedouins, and none of them had any drama training. For example, the actors of Theeb and Hussein are brothers in real life. Of course, this is also a big challenge in shooting. Theeb’s actor Eid is a shy little boy, and the gap between the Bedouin ethnic groups is as big as the gap between nations, so the running-in between Eid and the Mercenary actor Mutlag is used. It's been a long time.
The movie was shot from Theeb's point of view (Point of View), so the shooting position is very low. For example, when the Englishman first entered the tent, Theeb wanted to take a look at the Englishman, but he was blocked by the adult's gown, so he had to poke his head to see; and later he looked at the British and other Bedouin adults smoking from a very low angle. , Because it is observed from Theeb's perspective.
In the first half of the movie, Theeb is almost always an observer. Although his formal rite of passage was to slaughter goats after prayers, his real rite of passage had just begun at that time. The script of this movie is a classic. I think people who learn to write scripts can use the script to study it carefully. Theeb has been observing his brother's behavior - because for Bedouins, children are almost only observers in the crowd, but we can clearly notice that when Theeb buried his brother, the latter half The protagonist of the movie became him. He began to control his own destiny. First he tried his best to climb up the well, then made a living in the wilderness, and then started a relationship full of ups and downs and tension with the mercenary played by Mutlag, and finally discovered that the mercenary used to kill his own tribe and the British. He was shot and killed after he obtained the items of the British in exchange for silver coins (note that he could not pull the trigger for various reasons when facing mercenaries a few times before), and formally completed his coming-of-age ceremony. He got on the camel and made the camel get up in just one click. This is another contrast with his previous inability to get the camel to get up and walk, and it shows that he has begun to control his wandering destiny with ease. In the final scene, Theeb sits on a camel and looks at the roaring train in the distance. Modern elements and traditional elements once again collide against each other, and Bedo knows where to go because of his fate, but fate knows the answer. It is worth mentioning that Theeb means wolf, and the wolf element in his character has always been obvious. Although Bedouin is very hospitable, his attitude towards the British has always been suspicious, and the first sentence he said was "how many people did you kill". In the script, the grass snakes and gray lines are very delicate. At the beginning, my father said, "When a wolf provides a chance to be friends, don't believe it." The mercenary in the middle sang "Wolves give birth to wolves, and wolves raise you, but you eat wolves." Theeb echoed the mercenary's last move. Two sentences, especially after he said Theeb is his son (Son).
In addition to Theeb's character development (Character Development) is remarkable, the image of a mercenary played by Mutlag is by no means lacking. He is a humble character in the changing times and technology. He used to be a pilgrim guide (in his own language, he was the last one), saw the Red Sea and the Palestine Sea, and went to the holy city of Mecca. I think he is a kind person. He helped Theeb get out of the desert, shared his food with Theeb, taught Theeb how to look at the North Star, and lied to the Ottoman warlord in the final scene that Theeb was his son to save his life. . However, he is drifting with the crowd and has no ethical guidelines. When he saw the railroad tracks with a large number of corpses of Turks, he only took it lightly, and he was helpless and scornful of their ignorance of current affairs. He used the seizures obtained from killing his own kind in exchange for silver coins, and when he walked out of the warlord’s gate, he kept moving the silver coins from one hand to the other. But in any case, his death, the death of a small person who was hedged by a historical trend, was not without a trace of tragic color.
There are many more commendable things about the film. For example, Chiaroscuro (Chiaroscuro) in the shooting of night scenes, the director said it was based on the Baroque painter Caravaggio (Caravaggio). Including Hussein walking into the dark, leading from the dark scenes of the British and his people who will permanently destroy the lives of him and his brother; it also includes the scene of mercenaries struggling to move their bodies to the fireside of Theeb to keep warm. Then there is the impact and contrast between the open desert scene in the daytime and the seemingly limitless possibilities, and the confusion and depression of Theeb's desperate Bedouin's future. It's so subtle and can't be counted down.
Many stories are told because we have a story and an impulse to express. It’s your business whether you listen, my dear. I tell our story without asking you to understand it. At the moment when the heart is vivid, the story becomes the eternal memory of you and my life. I think this point is very inspiring to me. I think it may also be inspiring to the Chinese film and television industry-as long as you are willing to be patient and listen quietly.
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