Through a non-linear narrative, the film delves into the concept that while the kingdom of God has arrived, it is not yet fully realized; the present mundane world is ruled by the devil. The inherent nature of humans is to struggle between giving in to the temptation of evil or conforming to societal expectations. This inner conflict forces individuals to make involuntarily difficult choices between good and evil, often with the consequences of Sisyphean (recurring and never-ending) alternations of good and evil.
Symbolizations:
~ The boy in the film symbolizes the Id;
~ while the apple and the devil symbolize desire and temptation, reflecting the chaotic state of human nature's pursuit of desire.
~ The cross represents divinity ;
~ and the cross with eyes and the masked mother symbolize religious surveillance, social expectations, hypocrisy, and oppression.
Storyline ( how my symbolizations progress and evolve to the next phase)
The boy craves to pursue his desires freely and succeeds in doing so, but his success leads to arrogance, which society cannot tolerate.
Religious supervision comes into play, and the boy falls from grace, eventually disappearing into the dust.
However, the pursuit of desire is a truly human trait ;
and coupled with the hypocrisy of religion and society, temptation repeatedly grows in people's hearts.
This echoes the theme of the film;
the fruit that symbolizes desire. The ( fruit/desire’s )seed breaks out of the ground, and the fruit expands and grows. Although the fruit is struck down and buried in the dust, the desire/fruit’s seed sprouts again when the surrounding environment allows it, and the cycle continues.
"The Fruit" represents an experimental cinematic endeavor that amalgamates animated filmmaking techniques with a multidisciplinary artistic approach. This fusion encompasses the integration of live performances with fictive line drawings by ToonBoon, and the melding of actuality filming and photography with two-dimensional digital artistry.
The young protagonist, a member of a church theatrical team, is portrayed alongside his biological mother, who plays the maternal role within the film. Despite the child actor's prior stage experience, the directorial process necessitates considerable patience.
The conceptual complexities, such as existential skepticism and theological dissent, as well as the intrinsic human yearning for liberation, pose interpretative challenges for an eight-year-old boy. To bridge this comprehension gap, these abstract themes were distilled into child-friendly analogies, likening divine insubordination to everyday maternal directives encountered by the young actor.
The verisimilitude of live-action footage serves not only as a rhythmic/pacing guide but also as a foundational canvas from which imaginative extrapolations are drawn to propel the narrative arc. (the 2nd & 3rd videos)
The camera's ascendant trajectory provided a temporal scaffold for animating the envisioned growth of a tree—a Gothic, skyward-reaching arboreal form symbolizing humanity's unseeing veneration of ecclesiastical authority. (the 3rd video on the left)
1.1. “Spinning = Rotation”
* In the interpretation of semiotics, a “rotating sphere” symbolizes the subject is recurring and never-ending.
* In the film, the spinning fruit serves as a metaphor for the human struggle between good and evil. This internal battle can lead to a never-ending cycle of suffering, which begins with the sprouting of desire. As humans, we often pursue our desires without limits which leads them to control us. The devil can amplify our inherent qualities of pride and greed, causing us to transform into demonic versions of ourselves. To combat this, society relies on religious and social constraints to suppress our darker impulses and desires. Unfortunately, as the devil reigns over this world, we remain vulnerable to temptation and our desires can resurface. This creates a constant tension between chasing our desires and accepting constraints, leaving us trapped in an endless cycle.
1.2. “The Fruit”
This fruit is an apple that symbolizes "original sin" and "desire" in Western religions, which is the temptation from the devil; Moreover, the fruit also metaphorizes “a consequence" or even “an aftermath” of our choices, symbolizing the eternal struggle of humanity in choosing between good and evil, akin to a Sisyphean circle.
In this film, the boy represents all living beings and embodies universal human nature - our true self.
Human nature, in its essence, is similar for all of us: When we are young, we pursue unlimitedly our desires with bold ambition. As our desires grow unchecked, the devil takes control. Then, society or religion intervenes and suppresses our desires, eliminating the devil's influence. However, the innate nature of human beings has a demonic side, and our desires resurface later again, leading us down a path of uncontrolled pursuit.
The mom symbolizes social expectations, religious constraints, and moral norms; it is the restriction of human desire and behavior by religious, traditional, or social enforcement.
It metaphors the religious power in society watching people anytime and anywhere to restrain people's transgressive behavior and unchecked desires.
It metaphors (1) the demonic side in human nature and (2) the devil itself and (3) the temptation from the devil.
6.1. The mask with a cross metaphors the hypocritical side of religion.
After being burned by fire, the transformation of the apple into a mask with a cross symbolizes the suppression of unbridled desire by religious power, this suggests that the demonic nature has been restrained, but this “being restrained" may be merely an illusion. The desire still exists, but it is concealed behind the "mask of hypocrisy.”
6.2. Additionally, the boy being forced to wear a mask signifies the need for individuals to adhere to social constraints in society. People must hide certain aspects of their true nature, such as their desires, in order to be accepted by social norms. The boy's desire to remove the mask multiple times represents the innate human nature to pursue freedom and break free from restraint.
6.3. the image of the boy on the verge of breaking free from the mask, revealing the face of a devil, symbolizes the idea that if individuals allow their desires to go unchecked, they will eventually be controlled by their desires or “devils."
Overall, these symbolic elements above highlight the intricate relationship between desire, expectation, the pursuit of freedom, religion, social constraints, the demonic side, and self-awareness in humanity.
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Tan Hui's Vision
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