关键协议 The Proposition (2005)

严酷的自然环境，肮脏的肉体，邪恶的灵魂，对美好的渴望
自然环境，人文历史，白人，土著人，好人与坏人。人与人的矛盾，人与自然的矛盾。挣扎与生存，文明与野蛮，凶器与人。各种因素在电影里撞击，迸发出耀眼的火花。感觉这部电影将澳洲移民发展的历史浓缩在这两个小时里，从开始到结束，从画面到音乐，展开了一幅宏大的历史画卷，浸透了演职人员对澳洲大地朴实又深沉的情感。

记者（以下简称“记”）：《关键协议》是怎么成型的？
Nick Cave（以下简称“NC”）：我和导演John Hillcoat认识有20来年了，在这20年里有18年他都在想着去拍一拍澳大利亚西部，并且由我来负责做音乐部分。我和他一起工作已经18年了，到最后，他拿了个从美国西部故事改编成的澳大利亚西部片剧本给我，其实我们都知道这根本不是我们想要的东西。他说：“好了，滚【文明用语】蛋，你来写。”就这样，我就开始干了并且在三周内完成了剧本。当时我并不想花很多时间，因为我不想花时间在我自己认为根本不可能成功的事上。但是在经过多年的困难之后，John还是成功了。

记：写这个剧本时，你受美国西部片的影响大吗？
NC：我认为John受70年代的那股反西部片风潮的影响很大。一般澳大利亚人对自己的历史的看法和美国人看待自己历史有很大不同。我们没有接触诸如黑人问题或者恶棍与英雄之类的东西。我们对历史更加有抵触心理，而且感觉到一种不确定性甚至羞耻。我认为我们基本上可以把自己的历史看成是一个失败和无能的过程。我对凯利党的印象很深。《关键协议》里的英雄比…

官兵捉强盗的游戏，玩到后来总是分不清谁是官兵，谁是强盗；谁是猎人，谁是猎物。从一场官家围剿强盗的枪战开始的好莱坞电影《猎杀》（“The Proposition”），恐怕就是这么一场官盗难分的格斗。场景，澳大利亚昆士兰内陆；时间，1880年代；背景，无边无际的荒漠，还有如血的残阳。凶悍的强盗，残暴的官兵，粗犷的土著，加上怪石嶙峋的山谷，桀骜不驯的植物，生动地构勒出一副地狱般的图像，从中爆出一群仙人掌一般的人物。







借用剧中人物所念叨的一句莎士比亚台，叫做“这是个什么样的短命地狱！” （“What fresh hell is this?”）当然，这其实不是地狱，而是一部风格雄浑的好莱坞影片。好莱坞似乎很久没有制作如此狂野的片子了，一下子上人回到了遥远的西部片时代。







比起当年的西部片，《猎杀》显然更加狂野和混沌。选择19世纪的澳大利亚内陆作背景，不是为了讲述历史，而是为了将画面做得更加原始。看惯了肥皂剧的美国观众，一定会被混沌初开式的旷野和野兽般的人物震撼得激动不已。在懒洋洋的啤酒中浸泡惯了之后，突然猛喝一口烈酒，会同时杂间火…

By Gary Sun

Notes: Hi Brigid, this article was originally written by me - Gary Sun



‘The Proposition’ And The Exploration Of The Australian Western Genre

In the nineteenth century, the Australian mainland started to be colonized by the Europeans. This period of history is composed of barbarous racial and intra-racial massacres, atrocities and countless people’s blood. The 2005 film ‘The Proposition’ directed by John Hillcoat and screen-scripted by Nick Cave is one of the rarest remarkable texts, which highlights the status of Australian Western genre in the world literature. Through the ingenious use of camera and narrative structure, ‘The Proposition’ authentically depicts the complexity and destructiveness of the modern Western civilization on Australian continent and thus leaves us to reconsider and reevaluate this specific period of history.

‘The Proposition’ tells a…

Set in the Australian outback in the 1880s, the movie follows the series of events following the horrific rape and murder of the Hopkins family, allegedly committed by the infamous Burns brothers gang.

The film opens in a brothel during a violent gunfight between the police and Charlie Burns' (Guy Pearce) gang, which ends with the deaths of all of the gang members except for Charlie and his younger brother Mikey. Captain Stanley (Ray Winstone) makes the proposition to Charlie: he and Mikey can go free of the crimes they have committed if Charlie kills his older brother, Arthur (Danny Huston). Arthur is a mercurial psychopath who has become something of a legend and is so vicious that the Aboriginal tribes refer to him as "The Dog Man" and both the police and the Aboriginals refuse to go near his camp. Captain Stanley muses that perhaps the bounty hunters will kill Arthur in time and t…

2008-10-15

　　从前我有一张Nick Cave &Bad Seeds的卡带，正听得不亦乐乎的日子里，却莫名消失了。
　　电影给人的感觉如同Nick Cave的歌曲一样，黑暗而动听。
　　澳大利亚一个荒蛮之地，连警察局长的老婆都像猪一样丑陋。但却有着非同一般美好的景致。
　　当查尔斯站着夜空下，天上的星星多的感觉很假。
　　无边无际的平原上天空总是很低，无论是夕阳还是云彩都美的让人颤抖。
　　
　　人之初性本恶，麻木的群氓在并没有证据的情况下将查尔斯的弟弟鞭挞致死，而女人，特别是女人，就是警察局长的老婆，代表了一切伪善的女人，她们在荒蛮的澳大利亚过着伦敦女人的生活，看着各种服饰的书籍，烹饪可口的火鸡，在男人面前哭哭啼啼，要为自己的闺蜜报仇，她说到婴孩的时候显得那么善良，而却逼迫身为警察局长的老公把一个未成年的男孩拖到暴民的面前鞭挞。如果不是她出面，警察局长不会妥协交出查尔斯的弟弟，最后也不会惹上灭门之祸。
　　
　　正如Nick Cave接受采访的时候说的：
　　不知道你有没有看过那些在美国的黑人接受私刑的 照片，那些…

澳大利亚西部片，我有史以来看过的最血腥的片（日本片除外）。白人杀黑人、黑人杀黑人、白人杀白人三部分组成。那种神也救不了你的感觉，英系的沉重，和以前看的“风吹稻浪”、“稻草狗”挺像。可最后那个讨厌的政客还是没有死！音乐很棒，尤其是开头的提琴女童声：There is happy land far far away~~

这个电影豆瓣上的评论都不靠谱
导演的讲故事的能力有待提高
音乐很好，电影颜色也不赖，台词值得细细品
我根本就不明白一开始的枪战片是怎么回事
寻亲复仇似乎没有逻辑
到结尾杀掉Arthur更没有道理
The Burn's Family三兄弟就这样莫名其妙地被残杀
貌似王家卫的风格，不过故事连不成串
一个叫Eliza Hopkins的poor woman
had a child in her belly
不知道谁是凶手死了
剧中暗示Micky是rapist
可是又说Arthur是一个abomination
so Charlie被派去杀他的哥哥Arthur
中间还有一个疯疯癫癫的老头
不管怎么地，冲着音乐也值得一看。

"When?" said the moon to the stars in the sky.
"Soon," said the wind that followed him home.
"Who?" said the cloud that started to cry.
"Me," said the rider, as dry as a bone.
"How?" said the sun that melted the ground.
"Why?" said the river that refused to run.
"Where?" said the thunder without a sound.
"Here," said the rider, and took up his gun.

"No," said the stars to the moon in the sky
"No," said t…

'When?' said the moon to the stars in the sky
'Soon' said the wind that followed them all

'Who?' said the cloud that started to cry
'Me' said the rider as dry as a bone

'How?' said the sun that melted the ground
and 'Why?' said the river that refused to run

and 'Where?' said the thunder without a sound
'Here' said the rider and took up his gun

'No' said the stars to the moon in the sky
'No' said the trees that started to moan

'No' said the dust that blunted its eyes
'Yes' said the rider as white as a bone

'No' said the moon that rose from his sleep
'No' said the cry of the dying sun

'No' said the planet as it started to weep
'Yes' said the rider and laid down his gun



诗一样的西部片
情节、配乐、对话、旁白都透着Nick Cave的调调


Adieu, said the bird in the branch of a tree
Farewell, said the snakes to the dying light
Adieu, said the fish in the river of sleep
Goodbye, said the…

暴力，血腥，污秽；
粗砺，蛮荒，冷冽；
荒野，落日，骑士；
优美，抒情，诗意……
女人是不合时宜的干净和优雅；
男人是暴力之后的悲哀与孤独。
这是一个善良的人讲述的暴力的故事，
历史尘封背后难以尽述的黑与白，好与坏。

看完这部电影，对《末日危途》又有了更多期待……


月亮对星星说：何时？
伴随他回家的风说：很快。
开始哭泣的乌云说：是谁？
形如枯骨的骑士说：是我。
熔化大地的太阳说：怎样？
拒绝流动的河流说：为何？
一声不响的雷神说：哪里？
拿出手枪的骑士说：这里。