EdiÂtor’s note: The text below disÂcussÂes the endÂing of the film. We recÂomÂmend that you watch “The Monk and the Fish” before readÂing.
In this charmÂing and visuÂalÂly eleÂgant film from 1994, the Dutch-born aniÂmaÂtor Michael Dudok de Wit tells the stoÂry of a sinÂgle-mindÂed monk and a very eluÂsive fish. While the setÂting and symÂbols are ChrisÂtÂian, the stoÂry proÂgresÂsion is essenÂtialÂly BudÂdhist.
“The Monk and the Fish is not a stoÂry about the soluÂtion of a conÂflict,” Dudok de Wit explained to Sarah MoliÂnoff in a 2009 interÂview for the OxonÂian Review. “It’s more about the rise above the conÂflict, the rise above dualÂiÂty.” The monk doesÂn’t catch the fish; he and the fish are unitÂed. Dudok de Wit took his inspiÂraÂtion from the Ten Ox HerdÂing PicÂtures, a series of Zen poems and images from 12th CenÂtuÂry ChiÂna, which illusÂtrate the jourÂney to enlightÂenÂment through the stoÂry of an oxherd’s strugÂgle with a wayÂward bull. He said:
The genÂeÂsis of the film was the endÂing. It was that sequence I wantÂed to creÂate, where there is a serene union between the monk and the fish. The endÂing by itself would be flat, too abstract, to pull the audiÂence in, so I clearÂly needÂed to have a build-up, to estabÂlish and feel empaÂthy with the charÂacÂter. In conÂtrast to the endÂing, in the beginÂning the monk is obsessed, obsessed, obsessed, but in the endÂing he arrives at a resÂoÂluÂtion. In a quiÂet way, not with a big act.
The LonÂdon-based artist hand-paintÂed each frame in ink and waterÂcolÂor. Like the stoÂry, the visuÂal style was inspired by the Far East. “The JapanÂese in parÂticÂuÂlar, and also the ChiÂnese and KoreÂans,” said Dudok de Wit, “have a way of using negÂaÂtive space, of not fillÂing the picÂture, which is very typÂiÂcal of the Far East and very untypÂiÂcal of the West. We can be inspired by it, but it’s proÂfoundÂly in their culture–in their genes maybe, and not so much in ours. It’s not just about the brush line, it’s also the space around the line that is inspirÂing.”
For the music, Dudok de Wit chose a clasÂsic from the WestÂern canon, La Folia, a traÂdiÂtionÂal theme that was often adaptÂed or quotÂed by comÂposers like Bach, VivalÂdi, CorelÂli, HanÂdel and Liszt. The filmÂmakÂer selectÂed a few of his favorite variations–mainly from CorelÂli and Vivaldi–and asked comÂposÂer Serge BesÂset to lisÂten to them and creÂate a new verÂsion to fit the film.
The Monk and the Fish took six months to creÂate, and was nomÂiÂnatÂed for Best Short AniÂmatÂed Film at both the AcadÂeÂmy Awards and the British AcadÂeÂmy Film Awards. You will find it listÂed in our colÂlecÂtion of 450 Free Movies Online, along with anothÂer movÂing short by Dudock de Wit, Father and DaughÂter. They appear in the AniÂmaÂtion SecÂtion.
RelatÂed ConÂtent:
Shel SilÂverÂstein’s The GivÂing Tree: The AniÂmatÂed Movie
Leave a Reply