Michael Lopez2 said:It’s not that the whole movie lacks sense—it’s just certain scenes. Probably most notably the part where the brother, sister, and dying slave are prepping to escape captivity, and the sister tells her brother to just leave her behind in the woods since she'll only slow him down, but he should take the dying woman because she doesn't want to be a burden (even though he basically has to carry her the whole way). And then the sister goes off to drown herself in a lake. That scene really sticks in my craw, mostly because the sister's sacrifice should really be the emotional core of the film, but it feels pretty half-baked to me.
Plus, some of the characters just aren't particularly fleshed out. The brother, after spending years in the camp, turns into this cynical jerk who coldly brands slaves with a hot iron and wants to stay in the camp, yet one second later, he inexplicably wants to sneak out and becomes some kind of human rights activist.
Don't get me wrong—the film is touching, beautiful, and striking and all that—but I definitely don't agree that it's one of the greatest films ever made or anything like that.
SPOILERS!
When you wrote that the plot didn't make sense, it honestly sounded a little wild...
The sister's plan was to let the brother escape while she distracted the guards, which would give him more time than they would have had if they tried running together... she figured they'd both be caught immediately. And an exhausted slave isn't exactly a heavy load, right?
As for the brother's change of heart, it isn't exactly inexplicable, it's just simple storytelling. The brother grew up into a ruthless man in the camp, adapting to his surroundings and abandoning his father's lessons on mercy. But his sister calls him out on it and judges him, which hits him hard, and when they go to bury that slave, he remembers a similar moment from their childhood (that final night before the kidnapping), and his conscience finally kicks in.
The film is elliptical and doesn't try to be overly complex or demanding narratively; it's actually crafted as a
folk tale. It's a story about cruelty and suffering... nothing more, nothing less. The characterization isn't operating at a deep psychological level, so there isn't much room for complex motivations regarding their shifts in behavior. This isn't meant to be a psychological drama.
Mizoguchi told that folk tale using his virtuosic cinematic language. In certain parts, he shows off his skill at creating a poetic atmosphere, while in others, he leans into a raw, naturalistic environment... the use of music is brilliant and evocative... the production design is also quite striking...
