破壞與重建：《破碎人生》的拆遷美學

破壞與重建：《破碎人生》的拆遷美學


如果你是傑克•吉倫哈爾的演技粉，這一定是你預備收入片單的經典之作。身兼治癒與致鬱氣質的菁英文藝派小吉在選擇劇本上從來不會讓人失望。而你也很難說這部《破碎人生》中的導演、故事、演員和後期剪輯哪一個更出色，這是一部讓你很難找到短板的電影，只能說製片人在建組時就保證了足夠清醒的頭腦，風格明確，就樣樣精準。

如果你看過《達拉斯買傢俱樂部》（2011）並愛上了讓馬克•瓦雷的敘事和剪輯風格，你就會預先猜到自己會在電影院裡看到些什麽。無論是複雜深刻的社會問題，還是感情細膩的個人敘事，他都有自己獨特的進入方式和敘事手法，你會被導演的靈氣打動，進而慢慢沉浸在那些渡著一層憂鬱的黃綠色調的鏡頭中。導演熟練地使用各種符號和隱喻，卻不讓人覺得晦澀難懂，反而讓人找到和鏡頭後面的那個人心有靈犀的默契。這種微妙的感覺讓人慾罷不能，讓人在追逐情節的快感之外找到新的觀影樂趣。

《破碎人生》的故事發生在成功的投行工作者戴維斯•米歇爾（Davis 米契爾）身上。如果你在觀影之前有先看看影片簡介的習慣，以下內容就不算是劇透。米歇爾的妻子在一場意外車禍中喪生，故事就從這裡開始。表面上，他過著和原來一模一樣的日子，一切都是常態，而一切和原來的生活不同的小細節都在告訴他，過去的生活已經土崩瓦解、不復存在。

影片中的臺詞大多充滿隱喻意味，其中一些使故事走向難以靠常理預測的方向。導演和編劇明顯對語言符號的應用駕輕就熟，從男主角那句「從這一刻起，所有事都成了隱喻」開始，他們就大玩特玩起雙關的遊戲。影片標題「Demolition」也是如此，中文將其翻譯成《破碎人生》似乎是直切入其深層含義，但你千萬不能錯過的是片子中真正拆房子的那一組鏡頭，你會從帶著搖滾節奏的拆遷中體會到另一種暴力美學。「破壞之後重建」（Destruct & Rebuild）似乎是包括達利在內的所有後現代主義藝術家的最愛主題。如果說達拉斯是對一種特定群體社會秩序的破壞和重建，那麽這部片子就是對私人領域的破壞與重建。不要覺得世上的故事都是千篇一律，有的導演一生之中只講一個故事，而這個故事就已經是所有的故事。

當然不能忘了性別認同問題一直是導演的心頭愛，所以當你看到漂亮的小男孩時一定記得多留個心眼。其實，這部表面上在講「喪妻」的電影卻多少有些「失子」的痛苦，而孩子這個意像永遠意味著未來與希望。一部好的電影也該如此，好的講故事人從來不會讓你絕望。因為人生就算破碎也會繼續，你需要做的只是在拆房子的時候放一首自己最喜歡的搖滾，享受廢墟之下的新生。

當然，不要覺得這是一部很悶的片子，情節的處處急轉和處處安插的笑點會讓你找不到上廁所和吃爆米花的時間。100分鐘之中，電影院裡時常響起有眾一同的笑聲和噓聲，如果你想感受這種上百人的情緒共鳴，一定要記得去電影院裡觀賞這部電影。

Destruct & Rebuild: The Aesthetics of Demolition

If you are a big fan of Jake Gyllenhaal for his delicate acting, the film of 「Demolition」 would definitely be on your top list. On top of his good look with a spark of melancholy and tenderness, Gyllenhaal always chooses a movie script that he would fit in.

It is hard to say that which element contributes the most in the 「Demolition」 – the directing, the story, the acting, and the editing seem to be very balanced in the film. Hardly any part falls short, which shows that the producer has done an excellent job in coming up with a distinguished set-up that flows throughout the movie.

If you ever seen the 「達拉斯 Buyers Club」 and found yourself indulged with Jean-Marc Vallée’s style, you can possibly predict what you』ll see on the screen this time, but not all of it. For one thing, no matter faced with a complicated social problem or a piece of emotional personal narratives, Vallée always has his own way to break the story in parts then reconstruct it. The audience will be touched by the director’s sparkling talents for allowing them to dive into the yellow-green-faded moving pictures on the screen.

For another, Vallée is always good at semiotics of cinema. He is an adept in using all kinds of signs and metaphors without being too nerdy or obscure. By decoding some of the signs, you will find a tacit understanding between you and the man behind the camera, which is a fabulous feeling beyond language and one of the biggest funs for watching his movie.

「Demolition」 features a man called Davis 米契爾 (by Gyllenhaal), an investment banker living in a Mercer Island style house with his wife. If you are a person using IMDB before going to the theatre, the content below won』t be a spoiler. The story starts with the death of 米契爾’s wife in a car accident. From then on, the man lives a normal life on the surface. Nothing changed. However, every tiny abnormal detail was telling him that the old days have passed away. Something on the inside has changed, and something is no longer there.

There are many lines with meaningful metaphors in the film. Some of them direct the plot to an illogical way. The storyteller seems to be very experienced in the game of metaphors. Just as 米契爾 said in the film, 「From this moment, everything has become a metaphor.」 The film is a playground for implications and puns. The title 「Demolition」 is one of them. The Chinese translation of the title is 「破碎人生」 which literally means the broken life seems to take its inner meaning.

But as a viewer, you cannot miss the outer meaning of this word: the action sequence depicting how they demolished the house was fabulous. We find aesthetics of violence in the rock-style montages. It seems that 「destruct and rebuild」 has become a favorite theme for all the post-modern artists. If we treated 「達拉斯」 as a destruct and rebuild for the rules of a community in the public sphere, 「Demolition」 would be the theme in the private sphere. However, by no means the two have the same story. Some directors keep telling one story for their whole life, but that is also the only one worth telling.

Gender identity issues for the youth is also one of Vallée favorites. Keep that in your mind whenever you see a good-looking boy in his film. To some degree, the film also explores the father-son relationship. While the child is intended to represents hope, hope can also be smashed sometimes. But a good storyteller will never leave you in despairs. Even if everything is broken, life has to go on one way or another. If you play your favorite song while doing the demolition, you should enjoy the rebirth under the ruins.

「Demolition」 is by no means a dull film. With all the surprising turning points and witty lines, you can soon forget about the popcorn you are holding or the urge to use the restroom. Expect to be accompanied with people’s laughs and gasps during the 100-minute film.