Many people are familiar with Hugo's classic literature "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," but I watched the movie first and the novel later.
When the movie "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" was released in China, I was still in elementary school. A neighbor girl took me to see it. The movie was screened in a military compound. Of course I could only read stories at that age, and I was a little afraid of Quasimodo, the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I would close my eyes whenever he appeared. At that time, I didn’t realize how beautiful the dark-skinned Esmeralda was, because I didn’t understand yet. I admire the wild and primitive beauty, but I like Miss Lily's fair, ladylike beauty and Phoebus's knightly handsomeness.
At that time, there was a neighbor brother in the courtyard who was in middle school. One day he came back and told a joke: There was a new young female teacher in their class. As soon as she entered the classroom, these naughty and mischievous people All the boys imitated Quasimodo’s voice and said, “Beautiful——” The female teacher was so angry that she ran away crying.
The back cover of an issue of "Popular Cinema" at that time showed a still of Esmeralda and Quasimodo in red dresses, which looked like a standard scene from "Beauty and the Beast".
The period of devouring literature began in middle school. At that time, we had too many books to read, so several classmates divided the work and cooperated. One person would try to read all the big books first, and he agreed. Let’s read it carefully again. I remember that the first girl who read "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" watched the movie first. After reading the first few chapters, she frowned and said: The first few chapters describe architecture, which made my head spin. Another classmate said curiously: Let me take a look, but she took a look. Later, she was admitted to the Department of Architecture. But at that time, I only saw it briefly and did not seek to understand it deeply. Now I have no impression of it.
Later, when I was studying foreign literature in college, my teacher made this character analysis of this famous work: Esmeralda is beautiful in appearance and beautiful in heart, Phoebus is beautiful in appearance and ugly in heart, Flo is beautiful in appearance and ugly in heart. Father Luo is ugly in appearance and ugly in heart, while Quasimodo is ugly in appearance but beautiful in heart. It's like a facial analysis of the characters in this classic novel.
Once I entered a literary institution and met a science scholar who was very good at writing. Once he mentioned "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" for some reason. He pondered for a while and said: "I think Flo Father Luo deserves sympathy!" I couldn't understand it for a moment. When he made this claim again, I asked him to elaborate. He said that when he applied for college, he chose a famous polytechnic university for professional reasons, but he ignored an important point. Because the school was in an inland area, girls in big cities generally did not want to go, so female classmates at the school There are very few, and the ratio of men to women is seriously imbalanced. He went on to say: "Floros are everywhere on campus." Following his description, a scene like this appeared before my eyes: On a university campus that should have been full of youth and vigor, there were figures with gloomy faces and squinting eyes. My God, could this university that I have always admired be... Such a look! This scene was so funny that I couldn't help laughing. He said angrily: "I regret telling you!" I said: "You really have Hugo's humane spirit, and your fraternity includes everyone."< /p>
Despite the unhappy ending, I still bought a disc and watched the movie again. Maybe it was because she was an adult in her twenties that I saw Esmeralda wearing a red gypsy skirt with flying edges, a slender waist and a graceful figure. The Sensuelle dance she danced was really captivating. And pay special attention to the villain Frollo. He followed Phoebus to the appointment and repeatedly tried to stop him and begged for his mercy. When he saw the lover hugging and kissing her lover, he was tormented by jealousy and painful in his heart. He fell to the ground on the cold stone steps, and then a small knife suddenly fell from the sky. This was simply Fatalité - it was destined that his stabbing behavior was not an instinctive reaction of a male animal? Qiu Yuefeng's dubbing expresses the suppressed pain and the struggle between soul and body in a delicate, deep and tense way. After watching the whole film, Esmeralda's beautiful and uninhibited voice echoed in my ears, "No matter what, I am still very happy——"
In 1998, produced in France The musical "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" toured throughout France, with more than 5 million viewers, an unprecedented event. At that time, I had arrived in France, but I was hesitant to read this all-too-familiar story again. At this time, I saw an interview with the audience on TV. When walking out of the theater, the reporter asked a blond girl: Who is your favorite in the play? She replied: I like Quasimodo! I was surprised, and so was the reporter. I asked her: Isn’t it Phoebes? She said: "No, it's Quasimodo, because he is kind and has a heart of gold." I think of myself when I was the same age back then, and I immediately feel ashamed. At such a young age, I can already see through the appearance and see the essence. This is sowing the seeds of kindness and compassion in my children from an early age, a kind of immature humane sentiment.
The French version of the musical "Notre Dame de Paris" has a strong cast. The heroine is France's number one female singer Hélène Ségar. Her voice is soft, delicate and far-reaching, but it is a pity that it lacks a little unrestrained. Wild beauty. Quasimodo is played by Canadian singer Garou. He has a distinctive voice, which is called bean paste throat or tobacco and alcohol voice. His vocal range is also very wide. His performance is very touching.
Phoebus is played by French singer Patrick Fiori; Father Floro looks dry and sluggish, but isn't that what a person with exhausted emotions and repressed humanity is like?
One characteristic of musicals is that the protagonist’s long solos are inner monologues, like clear portraits of the soul.
What Quasimodo sings is warm attachment and helplessness, a kind of love that does not ask for, does not attack, and does not hurt.
Frollo sang Tu vas me détruire - You will destroy me. A son of God cannot have worldly desires, otherwise he will betray God, abandon his faith, and be doomed. And the passion that cannot be vented makes it suffer from double torture of soul and body, a kind of panic, confusion and fear of losing control; you may subvert my life, so you are a dangerous witch to me; your existence, my Pain; your charm could destroy me, so I had to destroy you first.
Phoebus sings Déchiré—Tear. I remember that Phoebus in the movie seemed frivolous and slippery, but in the opera he struggled a lot. If he couldn't resist the temptation, he might lose what he had at his fingertips. A prosperous life and social status.
The most touching scene in the opera is the trio of men who fall in love with the same woman: Belle - Beauty. The waves of the song are like the repeated waves of emotion, with sighs, murmurs, and There are desires and contradictions, encountering the passion of the soul, igniting the desire for life, but then falling into a dilemma, strongly feeling the restrictions from others, oneself, and the environment, hoping to gain but fearing to lose, struggling several times, After several attempts, it is difficult to break through the eternal dilemma of mankind.
Each of the three men longs for Esmeralda, but one betrays her, one destroys her, and the other can only be friendship. There is only no love that Esmeralda longs for.
Later, at a concert, I saw the three male protagonists singing in casual clothes without the heavy makeup of opera. I suddenly discovered that the actor who played Father Floro actually had a typical French eyes - shining with warmth, as if a person has finally taken off his mask in life and restored the humanity he once lost. This scene makes me extremely moved for some reason. This is France. There are discoveries, heartbeats, unexpected surprises and spiritual comfort everywhere in life, which will always keep you optimistic and hopeful about life.