I've watched this movie made in 2003 countless times. I store it on my computer, and every time I watch it, I'll have a different feeling. I'm not a fan of Japanese culture, and the storyline is not worthy of such a close-up, just because the words and pictures that make people "Zen" in the movie made me linger for a long time, and the aftertaste is hard to return.
Speaking of this film, this film can be divided into two parts. The first part is the fierce conflict generated by Eastern and Western cultures, and the second part is the fierce collision of old and new cultures. The former is a blend of each other, while the latter has Inevitably, the encounter is only to give birth to a new era. The conflict of the former shows a kind of gentle tolerance, while the collision of the latter is a bloody way to exchange the roles of the times.
Let's start with the first part. When Captain Agren played by Tom Tom was ordered to train a modern army for Japan, he may not have known that his fate would change so dramatically. Agren, a valiant and adept captain of the Knights, a soldier who made the Indians fearful, and an alcoholic who had nothing to do after the war, was commissioned by Omura, the representative of Japan's "revolutionaries", to train recruits for the Japanese government with a high salary. Omura, a minister who controls the emperor and urgently needs to bring Japan into a new era, and because he saw Aglen's military exploits, he traveled thousands of miles to the United States to invite him to go out. In this way, under the premise that the price is right, Both sides reached a consensus.
Set off.
"July 12, 1876, the endless sea is reassuring, there is no past, no future, but I am also bewildered by the current state of affairs, and I have been hired to destroy another rebel army, which seems to be the best fit for me Work, my life is full of irony."
In this way, Agren set foot on the cruise ship to Japan, but the psychological trauma left by the Indian battle has been tormenting him. Everything, he must keep in his heart, this is his job, the mission he was born for is to constantly find the meaning of life in the war, until this trip to the East, it still looks like that. Normal, no waves.
The first stop in the East was to meet the Emperor of Japan. Along the way, Agren saw the different cultural "packages" of the East and the West. Under the introduction of the translator, Glenn, I briefly learned some Japanese etiquette when meeting the emperor. This is Agren's first study of Japanese culture. The Emperor of Japan also heard a little about the Captain America's deeds. After inquiring about the Indian campaign, Agren simply gave "they are brave", but he didn't know the opponent he was about to face. , is also "very brave".
Three years' pay for just six months of training recruits, a job that might seem like a good deal, but it's actually very difficult. In addition to training, Agren had to learn about his opponents and fight against his inner nightmare. Day after day, until a certain time during training, Omura suddenly received news that the "rebels" were destroying the railway. Such behavior has to be stopped, and a group of recruits who do not meet the standards will be used, and the results are predictable.
As Omura's opponent, Katsumoto (played by Ken Watanabe), the "rebel" leader, is a charismatic monarch. In his own words, he is loyal to the emperor, but the emperor is only a puppet in the hands of Omura. The affairs are arranged by him alone. After the emperor was powerless to break this pattern, persistence and reform have actually reached a situation where they are on the verge of breaking out, just waiting for the fuse to be completely ignited.
In the battle in the jungle, Agren and the others finally realized the power of the Japanese samurai. They were really a group of fierce and well-trained fighters. Although they were backward in equipment, they showed that they defended their honor. This kind of situation really surprised the Yankees a lot. Of course, Agron could be excluded. He was a general who had seen the world, and at the moment of Agren's life and death, Katsumoto finally appeared.
Maybe Katsumoto saw his own shadow in Agron, maybe Katsumoto wanted to find out the truth of the matter, in short, Katsumoto didn't kill him, even if he stabbed his brother-in-law Hirotaro. Katsumoto took him back to the territory of his son Nobuyoshi, and "lodged" Agron in the house of Hirotaro, who died under his sword, and was looked after by Hirotaro's daughter-in-law, Katsumoto's sister Taka. In the process of being captured, he saw the result of the failure of the former samurai Hasegawa. This was the first time that Captain Agren had real contact with Bushido after he came to Japan. The translated materials should be vivid and authentic.
Speaking of this, I have to mention Shengyuan's younger sister Duoxiang. She is under pressure that ordinary people can't imagine to take care of this husband-killing enemy. Lian Shengyuan's subordinate, Shio, asked him to slap him with a knife, but was blocked by Shengyuan, because he knew that knowing oneself and knowing each other can win every battle, not to mention his experience with this "friend" who came from afar It is also full of interest. Since they are all students on the battlefield, why not get a comprehensive understanding through this fate-arranged "meeting".
The period of being "captured" was the most important period in Agren's life, and that period was also a process of fermenting Eastern and Western cultures. Although at the beginning, from his dialogue with Katsumoto, he could feel Controversy of dissent arising from the views of the two cultures on the same thing, for example, in the treatment of Hasegawa, a prisoner of war, for example, in the way General Custer fought, but a small daily practice dialogue, unknowingly In this world, he slowly merged two different cultures, and then, on this land full of Zen, Agron saw a different scene from the world he knew. Here, all the people sunrise While working and resting at sunset, everyone consciously does what they should do. Here, time has become unconscious, and people's hearts have become more and more quiet. Although there are still many problems that cannot be explained, people But it has become practical, and this has become the place where he has stayed the longest so far. Here, he learned samurai swordsmanship, learned about oriental culture, and was accepted by the Japanese living in this land. Of course, the most important thing is that I think he has completely liked it and regarded it as a place Family.
"What is the true meaning of Bushido? Constraining myself to obey the moral code? Pursuing inner peace? Practicing the katana? There is so much here that I will never understand, I have never believed in religion, and war makes me more suspicious of God, but , here is full of the power of God. Although I may never be able to understand it, I am aware of this power, and here I can sleep peacefully for the first time."
When Agron said this, the charm of oriental culture had penetrated into his heart, until the depths of his soul, and it was at this moment that the eastern and western cultures were truly integrated and sublimated.
But it didn't all go well. The incompatibility at the beginning made this foreigner like a stray dog, and when he learned that the woman who took care of him was the daughter-in-law of the samurai Hirotaro who was stabbed to death by him, this made Agren feel guilty. He always wanted to do something to make up for Taka but couldn't do it. Later, he slowly learned to communicate in short Japanese, played with children, taught them American baseball, etc. He was slowly integrating, and the people in this small village were not learning and integrating Western culture. Ujio didn't let him touch the wood carving knife at first, and then practiced the knife technique together. In fact, the people in the small village were slowly accepting him, getting to know him, understanding him, and trusting him.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry for killing your husband Hirotaro."
"He did his duty, you did your duty, and I accept your apology."
In the end, Taka accepted Agron's apology. She knew that it was Hirotaro's life and nothing else mattered, and Agron also let go of her heart and said "I'm sorry" to relieve both of them, and also for the future "Stockholm Syndrome" The style of love laid the foreshadowing.
A premeditated assassination brought Katsumoto and Agron together, and from enemy to friend, one night was enough. From this, Agron really learned that Katsumoto's enemy was not the Emperor, but Omura. Only then did Agron truly understand the connotation of Bushido. In that small cherry blossom courtyard, it was like a ceremony of entering the church, baptizing him. .
"Every time you take a breath, drink a cup of tea, and kill a person, you can understand life. This is the way of Bushido."
Being allowed to return to Tokyo by the emperor means that Katsumoto can have a direct dialogue with the emperor. However, this timeless dialogue, in addition to proving that the emperor is just a puppet, also keeps Katsumoto's son Nobuyada in Tokyo forever. Katsumoto has been disheartened more than once, and he thought of dying to thank the world.
"We want the Emperor to hear your voice."
Agren's words made Katsumoto cheer up. Since dying on the battlefield is an honor, then see you on the battlefield.
The big battle is coming soon, everyone is making the final preparations, and with the help of Taka, Agren put on the red armor of Hirotaro. Taka took off Agron's clothes with familiarity. This same action was performed on Hirotaro countless times, but now it was replaced by the man who stabbed Hirotaro to death, but Taka's heart was still the same as before, I hope that the soldier in the armor can return safely. At this time, Agren was very uneasy in his heart. He was the one who assassinated the owner of the armor back then, and he is today again, but he became the owner of the armor, doing the same thing as Hirotaro who was stabbed to death by him. Just a matter.
When he appeared in that armor, he was no longer "American", he had been accepted by the people of this small village and became a part of them. He took the sword that Katsumoto handed to him. "There are people with lofty ideals in the present and ancient times." The film translates as "I am a samurai who combines tradition and modernity." In my opinion, Agron is actually an Eastern and A warrior who combines the West, a warrior who comprehends Eastern tradition and Western modernity.
"Do you believe that one person can change fate?"
"One can only go all out and wait for fate to reveal the answer."
This dialogue in the film captured me. This sentence has become the creed of my life and has never been changed. And the unfinished epic Battle of Thermobili ended with an acceptable outcome for Katsumoto. As a soldier, it is lucky that he can die on the battlefield, and Katsumoto hopes that he himself, this student of war, can "graduate" in the ultimate duel.
The final confrontation between the samurai and the army is truly tragic. At this moment, the old and new cultures are handed over, and history is rewritten in a bloody way. Since then, the era of samurai has come to an end. The huge gap in the number of people and the huge difference in weapons and equipment made them fall into a great passive, but their purpose was achieved. Aglen also personally killed his former boss in the decisive battle and fulfilled his "wish". You must know that at the beginning of the film, the two had already forged a relationship because of the Indian battle. Agron also once said , hoping to kill him for free, and today, he did.
But the result is cruel. Seeing the picture of the warhorse armored samurai sword being vulnerable in front of those "new weapons", I believe that the historical process still chose the latter, but the former has left a heavy stroke in the depths of the historical process. There is nothing more tragic than this, watching bullets pierce through the armor, watching the warriors turn their backs, until at last Agren and Katsumoto were left gasping for breath on the ground. It's over, it's over, Katsumoto must accept the "Bushido Creed", not because of shame, not because of failure, but because he finished, reached, of course, it's time to "wither", even the Japanese soldiers finally His death, kneeling down for their splendor.
Is this the samurai's last honor? Is this the honor a samurai should have? To die on the battlefield is the highest honor for a samurai. For life, the result is not perfect, but for the samurai, they are like cherry blossoms, carving zero at the most beautiful moment, they have won dignity, they have painted a complete picture for their own era, for their own beliefs period.
nice! ! !
"Tell me how Katsumoto died."
"I'll tell you how he lived".
Finally, when the dialogue between the emperor and Agron was revealed, the proposition of the film was suddenly activated. The former, Katsumoto is dead, this is a fact; the latter, the soul is immortal, it is the spirit. This passage also allowed the emperor to regain the belief that the Japanese should have. He turned down all orders for American equipment and regained his dignity as an emperor. After that, Agren returned to the small village, to the home where he stayed the longest. Here, everyone still lives peacefully, nothing has changed, as if nothing has happened, only Taka and Agron's "Love Story" just started in ordinary.
The end of the play.
This is a story, a story about an American Captain who traveled thousands of miles to the East. Of course, this is a story about a group of Japanese samurai who used their bodies to defend their faith and honor. Maybe, this is just an ordinary movie. Different people have different feelings. Or maybe it’s just that I am too nostalgic for the quiet life in the countryside and put too much emotion into it, so I have been drinking and meditating in it all the time.
There are gods and people with lofty ideals in the present and ancient times, but no one has dreamed of spring and autumn in the future.
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