[Lee Jong-gil's Movie Reading] Ah, Gyeonsaeng...

Animation 'Hwansang-ui Marona'

The Human World Seen Through a Pet Dog’s Eyes... Yet There Is Hope

A puppy is hit by a car on the road. Marks are spray-painted on the street. Cars pass by without paying any attention. As the marks begin to fade, a monologue is heard. "This is the zero of zero. The moment of nothingness. A stain on the asphalt. No name, no past, no future..."

A girl runs onto the road, recalling the name and past. "Marona! (to the car) Stop! Help!" The girl protects Marona’s trace in the middle of the road. She lies down facing it, gently touching the mark. The monologue continues. "If everyone is okay, I want to replay the movie of my life. I heard that’s what happens when you die. Life flashes by like a movie."

The film Marona’s Fantastic Tale is an animation that looks back on Marona’s life as a dog. It views the human world through the eyes of a pet dog. Marona was born the youngest of nine siblings. Her mother gives one piece of advice to her toddling puppies: "Humans don’t need to understand our language, but we must understand theirs. To protect yourself, learn human speech."

Marona meets three owners: the acrobat Manol, the construction worker Istvan, and the adorable girl Solange. Director Anca Damian depicts each cohabitation differently. From Manol’s body, red curves extend. They dance softly, chasing romance, but when drunk and depressed, the lines become tangled and complex. Istvan’s space is filled with straight lines and hard materials. It looks more comfortable, but even Marona appears as a single material. Solange’s surroundings are tinged yellow. Innocent childhood and warm humanity are felt. However, as Solange grows into an adult, the colors gradually become murky.

The pain a pet experiences meeting various humans is also well portrayed in Robert Bresson’s Au Hasard Balthazar (1966). Balthazar grows up receiving abundant love from Marie (Anne Wiazemsky), but as her family declines, he endures hardship and humiliation. He is beaten, carries straw, performs tricks, and pulls a plow.

The sorrowful journey resembles the tragic downfall of Marie and her father Arnold (Jean-Claude Guilbert). Kind and pure Marie is toyed with by G?rard (Fran?ois Lafarge), who commits evil acts. Diligent and moral Arnold maintains his pure character to the end but fails to protect even his family. Their last possession, Balthazar, also meets a tragic fate. Used by G?rard’s evil deeds, he is shot. Balthazar endures the pain and climbs a hill. Surrounded by sheep, he quietly closes his eyes.

Director Bresson chose to tell the story through Balthazar’s eyes because he believed animal eyes are the purest. The gaze calmly observing while being whipped reveals the complex and delirious human world vividly.

Because of this, the process of dying approaches like the salvation of Jesus. The film’s characters all commit sins. Even the purest Marie falls into corruption. Balthazar is sacrificed on behalf of a world tainted by evil. In Christianity, believers are likened to sheep and priests to shepherds. "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." (John 10:11)

Marona’s Fantastic Tale, unlike Au Hasard Balthazar, has a strong self-reflective nature. The narration plays a big role, and most characters are good-hearted. They pity Marona’s situation and accept her as family. Yet even within such warmth, signs of division continue to appear. As her mother advised, it is because only the puppy tries to understand human speech.

Marona’s standard of primal happiness differs from humans. Marona wishes to settle in a warm home. Humans, on the other hand, always pursue something new. They want what they do not have and call it a dream.

Director Damian conveys the dog’s emotions through vivid imagery and design, advocating for understanding others. The conclusion may seem tragic but is sufficiently hopeful. Because Solange is facing Marona.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.