Film

Abstract

Natural environments play an important role in Chinese independent cinema. It not only plays an auxiliary role in the establishment of character image, but also provides a way for emotional expression. It is worth discussing how the natural landscape plays different roles in Chinese independent films and what kind of meanings are constructed. The paper explores how the natural symbol allegorizes the contemporary Chinese film from three perspectives.

Key words: Independent Chinese Cinema, Natural environments, Landscape, objective environments, Ideal Ego, urban symbolic, Urban civilization, Sentimental fabulation

Description and Methodology

In order to explore the positioning and influence of natural landscape in Chinese films, this paper mainly selects and refers to reference materials and books on Taiwanese films. It also adds and makes an example analysis based on Chinese mainland films to support the arguments. The use of natural landscape in Taiwanese films is very classic and can cover the topics that this paper expects to discuss. To make the point more convincing, it is necessary to add the support of mainland Chinese films and Hong Kong films. This paper aims to find out the value of natural landscape in Chinese independent films through the in-depth study of natural symbols on characters, urban symbols and emotional sublimation.

Literature reviews and discussion

Formation and identification of the Ego reflected in the landscape

The formation and identification of characters are created from landscape with tight relationship in Chinese independent cinema. The characters look for Ideal Ego from nature. In the Taiwan cinema Millennium Mambo(2001), Vicky lost herself for a long time who would like to get away from Taipei, the control of her boyfriend, and even lost her goal and desire. When she hands out with her friends in a village in Japan, there is a scene where they buried their heads in a snowdrift which was printed the outline of her face on the snow. The externalized appearance is captured in the snow, while is identified herself as the ideal person at the moment in subconscious. This is just like the Ideal Ego mentioned by Jacques Lacan’s Mirror stage. He raises a situation that the Ideal Ego acquires mirrored identity in the imaginary domain.("Jacques Lacan") Vicky finds and feels the perfect expression of free from the landscape and objective environments. Not only the image being sought, but also the spiritual satisfaction being formed.

However, the formation of Ego is also reflection awareness of destiny, reflected in the landscape as well. In some independent Chinese cinemas, characters are often treated as a point in natural background. At this situation, the character realized their power is small, or even lost in this world. There is a scene in Mountain may depart(2015) filmed by Jia Zhangke that Shen Tao, Zhang Jinsheng and Liangzi setting off fireworks and hang out near frozen river, and then looking into the distance. The frame is a full-wide shot. The three characters as small as three spots in vast mountains. None of them could predict what the future would look like. Facing destiny from natural landscapes, ‘Helplessness’ always forms in this relationship between human[me] and objective environment. What Yang Xiaobin cannot forget is the ending scene of the Dust in the Wind(1987) that the dialogue between A Yuan and grandfather (A Gong). After complaining about a typhoon raging, Grandpa looked at the mountain opposite with smoking and the vision of A Yuan follows the vision of Grandfather. In fact, both of them were hurt in reality who wanted to seek comfort and ego from objective environment. This is actually a kind of virtual mirroring. It is to place emotions in objective environment to expect to escape from reality and vent your sorrow.

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II. Urban culture and civilization in landscapes and urban symbolic

The second argument explores the implied meaning of the contrast between natural landscape and urban symbols. The identification of urban civilization in the natural landscape is cruel and realistic. Chinese independent cinema uses landscape and modern life to create a contrast effect, which not only conveys the geographical confrontation but also shows thoughts and living style confrontation. Li Zhenya pointed out that the "pre-modern rural Taiwan" created by Hou Hsiao-hsien who forms a kind of confrontation with the grim appearance of the city, including the difference between urban apartments and village town, crowded traffic areas and wide roads in villages, and mechanical and organic nature.(Li 265-266) In this way, cities are compared with villages and landscape. The films of Hou Hsiao-hsien are a typical example. The nature and countryside in his film forms a kind of mirrored ideal ego that can be truly identified with. Yang Xiaobin believes that there is a sense of dislocation between the symbols of modern industry and villages. One of the most obvious symbols of urban civilization is the train.(Yang 28-36) The second train scene in Goodbye South Goodbye(1996) shows Biantou squatting on the roof who is eating while looking down at the train is coming to the train station. He saw two old ladies get on train slowly. The arrival of the train metaphors that urban civilization is broke into a primitive living environment. The scene of old ladies get on train slowly also convey that there is a gap between the village and urban. Yang Xiaobin believes when urban civilization entered the village civilization, it could reflect the state of slowness, primitive and stagnation.(Yang)

There also are many symbols of urban civilization such as car. It symbolizes a kind of relationship of rupture and disintegration when the urban symbol comes into the village civilization. In Blind Mountain(2007) directed by Zhangyang, whenever a car is driven into the village, the women who are sold to the village realize that someone has run away again. But the people in the car will catch them back to the village. Similarly, when police cars are driven in the village, the man in village become vigilant. It seems to be a contrast relationship that nature and village civilization is wary and sensitive when invaded by industrial civilization, meanwhile they fear being disintegrated. On the contrary, when natural elements invade the city, they mostly symbolize society is facing survival dilemma. In The River(1997), a film by Tsai Mingliang, uncontrollable ceilings and incessant rain create an atmosphere of doomed despair. The house was flooded by rain in the film So Long, My Son(2019) by Wang Xiaoshuai represents emotion and psychological of old couple are collapsed, reflected from nature symbol. The pouring rain conveys a deep sense of loss that seems to come into the heart of the elderly parents when the adopted son begins to resist and leave. Lou Ye’s The Shadow Play(2019) envelops the whole demolition area in continuous rain, which also conveys the anxiety of villagers who is going to lose their homes. In Chinese independent films, it is obvious that no matter the symbol of urban civilization invades the countryside, or the symbol of nature invades the urban civilization, there is a state of mutual confrontation.

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III. Sentimental fabulation, pessimism and tenderness in natural landscape

This section will analyze the implied meaning of natural landscape in contemporary Chinese films from the perspective of spirit and emotion. The scholar Rey Chow explains the sentimental in her book is an emotional response. It seems to have an exaggerated intention to express sadness, frustration and even tears.(Chow) For the German writer and philosopher Friedrich Schiller, sentimentalism is an emotional state triggered by a sense of loss, especially by the realization of difference of time and the irretrievable passage of time. At the end of the film by Jia Zhangke Ash is Purest White(2018), Zhao Qiaoqiao and Bin has a dialogue in the wilderness. Bin is no longer the prestige in his Mafia period. He is gradually forgotten by people, even need to live by woman. In this vast dead grass, audiences can feel the time passing but Zhao Qiaoqiao is still love to Bin as usual. Natural landscape is changing with time, but forever, just as our emotions can be eternal, but time is passing.

Conclusion/Expected outcome

Through the analysis of literature and films, this paper mainly discusses the effects and positioning of natural landscape on three perspectives of self-identity, the comparison of urban symbols, and mental level. It can be summed up as: The natural landscape can help the people who lost themselves find the ideal ego, but also can be an identification of the self identity and recognition of the cruelty of reality. This cruelty can be extended to the conflict and contrast with urban civilization. The collision with urban civilization highlights the cultural collision that Chinese independent films hope to highlight. When end of the collision, the emotion of the change and the expectation of the loss of feeling and difference may be a kind of sentimental or a change.

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Bibliography

Hou, Hsiao-hsien. Millennium Mambo. Taiwan: N.p., 2001. film.

"Jacques Lacan." En.wikipedia.org. N.p., 2019. Web. 9 Dec. 2019.

Jia, Zhangke. Mountain May Depart 山河故人. China: N.p., 2015. film.

Hou, Hsiao-hsien. Dust In The Wind戀戀風塵. Taiwan: N.p., 1987. film.

Bi, Gan. Kaili Blues 路邊野餐. China: N.p., 2016. film.

Yang, Xiaobin. 楊小濱：《你想了解的侯孝賢、楊德昌、蔡明亮（但又沒敢問拉岡的）》,INK Literary Monthly Publishing，2019, pp.28-36

Li Zhenya. 李振亞：<從歷史的回憶道空間的想像：侯孝賢電影中的都市影像的失蹤>，劉紀蕙編：《他者之城：文化分身與再現策略》（台北：麥田，2001），頁265-266。

Hou, Hsiao-Hsien. Goodbye South Goodbye. Taiwan: N.p., 1996. film.

Zhang, Yang. Blind Mountain盲山. China: N.p., 2007. film.

Tsai, Mingliang. The River 河流. Taiwan: N.p., 1997. film.

Wang, Xiaoshuai. So Long, My Son 地久天長. China: N.p., 2019. film.

Lou, Ye. The Shadow Play風中有朵雨做的雲. China: N.p., 2019. film.

Hou, Hsiao-Hsien. Green Green Grass Of Home 在那河畔青草青. Taiwan: N.p., 1982. film.

Jia, Zhangke. Ash Is Purest White江湖兒女. China: N.p., 2018. film.

Chow, Rey. Sentimental Fabulations, Contemporary Chinese Films. Columbia University Press, 2019, pp. 37-53.