【天声人语】偉い人は撮らない 2019-05-30
偉い人は撮らない
Late filmmaker Fukuharta Tapped into beauty of conflicted souls
[日文原文]
初恋の女性を救えず悩む居酒屋店主、生き残った身を恥じる特攻隊員、少年時代の罪を引きずる刑事。先週84歳でなくなった降旗（ふるはた）康男監督の映画の主人公はそれぞれに屈折を抱える。
どんな主題でもこなせる器用な監督かと思っていたが、発注されてきっぱり断った作品がある。企業の創業者を主人公に据えた成功物語だ。「偉い人、立派な人は撮りたくない。世の中からはじき出された人の中にある美しさ、尊さを描いてこそ映画だと思う」。映画人生を貫く哲学である、
長野県松本市の生まれ。軍国主義を全身浴びて育つが、ある日、教師から「この戦争は負ける。少年志願兵に決して手を挙げるな」と告げられ、衝撃を受ける。投獄覚悟の教えに、社会を見る目が一変したと語っている。
「映画人九条の会」の主要メンバーの一人。「昨今の政治家の勇ましい言葉には危機感が募る」「日々醸成される空気が怖い」と折々に発言。安全保障関連法案の審議が進んだ４年前の夏は、高畑勲さんと共に法案反対の先頭に立った。
訃報（ふほう）に接して久々に代表作を見てみる。「駅STATION」の主人公は、先輩の命を救えずに苦悩する刑事。「鉄道員（ぽっぽや）」の駅員は、妻子を顧みずに生きて悔いに沈む。どちらも高倉健さんが静かに深く演じた。
いわゆる巨匠然とした映画人ではなかった。それでも弱く、はかなく、寂しい人間たちに寄せる共感は限りなく深い。ごく普通の人々の胸に染みわたる作品が数多く残された。
[英文译文]
May of the protagonists in films by director Yasuo Furuhata have unresolved emotional issues that haunt them years later.
An "izakaya" pub owner is tormented by his failure to save the woman who was his first love; a wartime "kamikaze" suicide squad pilot is ashamed of having survived his mission; and a police detective carries the guilt of a crime he committed as a teenager.
Furuhata died on May 20 at age 84.
I alwasys thought of him as a director who could handle any theme with ease, but I was wrong.
There was one film assignment he flatly refused to undertake. It was the success story of a resourceful founder of an enterprise.
"I do not want to make a film about any great, respectable people," he explained. "I believer a film is only worth making if it brings out the beauty and nobility inherent in people who have been rejected by society."
This was his philosophy of fimmaking throughout his career.
Born in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture, in 1934, Fukuhata grew up steeped in militarism. But one day, he was told by a school teacher: "Japan is going to lose this war. Don't ever volunteer to serve as a child soldier."
The teacher was risking imprisonment for giving such an advice.FUruhata later recalled. Deeply shocked as he was, the advice also enabled him to see Japanese society in an entirely new light.
In recent years, Furuhata was one of the main members of "Eiga-jinn 9-jo no Kai" an association of filmmakers and actors supporting pacifist Article 9 of the Constitution.
He issued messages from time to time.
On one occasion, he said, "The bellicose language of today's politicians heightens my sense of foreboding." On another, he said, "I am apprehensive of the atmosphere that is being fostered daily."
While highly contentious national security legislation was being debated in the Diet in summer 2015, he spearheaded a protest movement with fellow film director Isao Takahata.
News of Furuhata's death turned me to some of his best-known works for the first time in a while.
The protagnist of "Eki(Station)" is a police detective who broods over his failure to save the life of his superior. The lead character in "Poppoya(Railroad Man)" is a railroad worker who bitterly regrets his past as a neglectful husband and father.
Both roles were played by the late Ken Takakura with his signature depth and quiet gravitas.
Furuhata was not the type to be categorized as a "great master." But his empathy with weak, transient and sad individuals was tryly profound. He made many films that resonated deeply with "ordinary people."
[中文译文]
降旗康男导演作品中的很多人物都充满了常年难以释怀的情感纠葛。比如因为无法拯救自己的初恋而常年自责的居酒屋店主；战时特工队员在殉国任务中不幸“生还”而终身悔恨；还有警局警长一生都为自己年少时候犯下的错误而悔恨。
1934年生于长野县松本市，降旗成长在军国主义风暴最横行的那段岁月。突然有一天，老师对他说“这场战争日本要输的，你千万不要参加少年志愿军”，他特别受震惊，因为在当时的条件下，给学生提这种建议是要冒进监狱的风险的。他说，老师冒着生命危险给他的建议，也让他对于社会的看法产生了根本性的变化。
降旗在不久前的5月20日不幸逝世，享年84岁。我总是以为他是那种无论任何题材的电影都能游刃有余的天才导演。然而不然，前段时间他就坚决拒绝了一部电影。这是一部讲述创业者创业成功经历的励志成功故事。“我不想拍那些成功人士，我觉得只有那些不被社会所接受的人身上的美和尊贵，才是电影人应该捕捉的”。 这是他的电影生涯一以贯之的哲学。
最近，他成为了“电影人宪法九条会”的主要成员，这是一个电影人圈子里面要求维护宪法九条的组织。他在组织里不断发出呼吁。有一次他说“最近政治家们强硬言论让我深深感到不安和危机感”，“现在社会每天酝酿的这种空气让我深深忧虑”。在安全保障关联法案的审议进行的4年前，他和高畑勲一起带头反对。
听说了他的讣告，我突然想起翻出他的代表作来看看。《车站》这部作品的主人公就是那个因为没能救前辈的姓名而终生苦恼的警察。《铁道员》的车站工作人员，因为没能好好照顾妻儿而陷入深深的悔恨。这两部都是由高仓健静默而深情地诠释。
所以，降旗其实不是那种应该被称为”巨匠“的电影人。但即使这样，他作品里面那种柔弱的，稍纵即逝的，寂寞的人物引发的共鸣却又无限深邃。他的作品最能在内心深处契合这个社会上的大多数---普通人。
