A short animation from academy award nominee Koji Yamamura ("Mt. Head" Oscar Nomination 2003,
Annecy 2003 Grand Prix) based on famed Jewish-Czech writer Franz Kafka's short prose of the same name from 1919.
A hapless country doctor describes with breathless urgency a night-time summons to attend a young patient. Events soon take on a surreal aspect as "unearthly horses" transport him instantaneously to the bedside. The doctor, preoccupied with personal distractions and grievances against those he is employed to care for, fails to find what is revealed to be a vile, fatal wound. He is humiliated by the villagers who are "always expecting the impossible from the doctor," and doomed to an endless return trip, losing everything.
Alternative Titles:
田舎医者
Inaka Isha
Franz Kafka: Ein Landarzt
Genre: Surreal
Format: RMVB
Episodes: Movie
Subbed by: Niizk
Uploaded by Bluephoenix for Da-Anime.org
80Mb Medium Quality: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=LLIECB5F
120Mb High Quality: Soon.
From Ureshii's website:
When a director takes on a classical piece of literature there’s always going to be one question on people’s minds. How faithful to the original work will it be? Koji Yamamura took this task head on and completed it with a master’s stroke. It’s won six animation awards so far: the Highest Honor at the Hiroshima International Animation Festival, Best Short Film at the Czech Republic’s Anifest film festival, The Japanese Ministry of Cultural Affairs’ Prize for Excellence in Animation, the Ofuji Noburo Award at the 62nd Mainichi Film Awards, and Grand Prizes at the Ottawa International Animation Festival and Italy’s I Castelli Animati festival. Now let’s discuss what makes it so special…
Like it’s namesake, the story centers around a country doctor whose presence is urgently needed at the bedside of a patient. From the first few scenes of this animation, you can see that Yamamura chose a post-impressionist or rough-hewn style which compliments Kafka’s own writing. The look and feel of this animation is one of it’s key points and you really have to take time to notice the use of subdued colors for effect, as well as sharp contrasts to bring key elements alive. The story itself is quite short spanning only six printed pages. The animation is only 21 minutes long, so another great benefit is you won’t be stuck at the screen for very long before it’s all done. To give away more parts of the story would be a disservice, so I’ll leave it up to you to watch.
I will however, provide some background material which must be offered for this piece to really shine.
* Franz Kafka was born into a German-Jewish family with a domineering father. His father was successful in business and his son’s desire to write instead of take up a ‘meaningful’ job was a source of tension and fear throughout Kafka’s life. Be sure to note the patriarchal undertones of a male as a protector and the Jewish precepts and thoughts regarding swine (being unclean, etc).
* The use of the ‘outsider/outcast’ role of which Kafka, being born a minority in a minority, would deeply understand.
* The use of the rose as an archetypal symbol equating to love and sex. The use of the name and the symbol play a role in the thoughts and fears of the doctor.
Even the first line in the movie will touch a chord deep within all of us. In our day to day lives, we work and do things to fulfill what we feel is our duty and the ‘right thing to do’. The path of our true calling is certainly one which we lose sight of from time to time. It is like a rope that hangs just above the ground and it’s purpose it seems is to cause us to falter instead of actually being walked upon (to paraphrase Franz Kafka).
0 comments:
Post a Comment