Hou Hsiao-hsien set the film's chronological background between Japan's surrender and the mainland's change of defense. In just four years, the historical situation has changed, and at the same time, the fate of the Lin brothers has also undergone drastic changes. Different from Hou Hsiao-hsien's personal and nostalgic rhythm, which he loved to pour his brush and ink into, he attempted to express his unique national consciousness and political philosophy as a Taiwanese in this two-hour-long film.
Before understanding this movie, we should first understand the "228 Incident": "On February 27, 1947, armed anti-smuggling officers of the Government Monopoly Bureau beat up a cigarette dealer in Taipei City and shot and killed a crowd of onlookers, arousing public anger Citizens immediately petitioned the police station, demanding severe punishment of the murderer, but to no avail. On the 28th, citizens walked out of the city to petition, asking for punishment, compensation, cancellation of monopoly, etc. The Kuomintang army suppressed the marching crowd. The angry crowd immediately seized The radio station called on the people of the whole province to support the people of Taipei, and the uprising storm quickly swept the whole of Taiwan. On March 1, the people of Taipei fought against the Kuomintang army and surrounded the railway management committee. On the 2nd, the people of Tainan revolted and attacked the police all over the city. The police station; the Taichung citizen assembly announced the establishment of the People's Government and the People's Army. Within a few days, the entire province, except for the heavily guarded Penghu and Keelung, Kaohsiung fortresses and a few military and political departments, were all under the control of the uprising people. On March 8, the Kuomintang The army landed in Keelung under the escort of American warships and planes, and carried out mass arrests and massacres throughout the province. On the 13th, the uprising of the Taiwanese people was suppressed.
" The eldest son is responsible for supporting the family, while the second child goes to Nanyang to fight in the war and never returns. The third child, Lin Wenliang, once worked as a translator for the Japanese army in Shanghai. With the development of the plot, the third child was arrested and imprisoned as a traitor. After being released from prison, his madness relapsed and he became a lunatic. The insurgents were arrested because of their close relationship, leaving their wives and children to live a difficult life.
Hou Hsiao-hsien, who has always been warm and affectionate, did not describe the spectacular and chaotic scenes of the uprising. He does not seem to be as keen as Yang Dechang to shock people with sudden violence, so when you watch Yang Dechang's movies, such as "Yi Yi", such as "Mahjong" ", is often overwhelmed by sudden killings, and Hou Hsiao-hsien won't make you feel that way, even in a poignant film like "City of Sadness." When it comes to uprisings, however, it is impossible not to talk about violence. Hou Hsiao-hsien used a thrilling scene to express the fierce conflict between Taiwanese and people from other provinces at that time: in the train compartment, several people from the province with sickles in their hands patrolled back and forth to find people from other provinces. After seeing Wen Qing, they suspected that he was a mainlander. , let him speak Hokkien, and then speak Japanese to him to see if he could understand. The deaf-mute Wenqing hesitated, and the Taiwanese youth with a sickle in his hand screamed and rushed forward. If it wasn't for his friend's tolerance, Wenqing would have died tragically by the sword.
In any era, there is no shortage of young people who fight for the destiny of the nation. Today’s corrupt criminal Chen Shui-bian was also a hero who was willing to give his freedom and go to prison for Taiwan’s democracy. The tolerant and literate people in the film sang the "Trilogy in Exile" generously in the tavern, and fought against the high pressure of the National Government at the cost of their lives. It is because of their bloodshed that history will continue to develop and advance. I still remember the poem in the film that encouraged young people to grasp their youth: "Sakura of the same fate, go flying, I'll come later, everyone is the same." Those heroes who gave their lives generously are just like gorgeous The cherry blossoms withered at the most beautiful time.
The boss in the film, Lin Wenxiong, once said angrily: "The people on this island are the most pitiful. One time the Japanese, and one time the Chinese. They bully everyone and ride without pain." Since it was ceded in the "Treaty of Shimonoseki", Taiwanese Living under the rule of the Japanese for half a century, Taiwanese culture and Japanese culture are still inextricably linked. love story between.
Such a sensitive subject is a kind of test for the director. If he is not careful, he will be banned because of the scale problem. The reason why "City of Sadness" has not been banned is because Hou Hsiao-hsien takes a special angle and does not directly. Criticizing the Nationalist government and focusing only on the portrayal of personal destiny, on the other hand, the film won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, which is an important reason why it survived. From 1989 to today, Taiwan's democratic movement has developed to a new height, and the multi-party ruling system has become more and more perfect. Also in 1989, the "228 Uprising" in mainland China was ruthlessly suppressed by the authorities, and since then democrats have been slaughtered. Shouldn't we be thinking about it today?
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