《神學與生活》

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汽車總動員

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有一部份的皮克斯動畫,我看到畫風就提不起勁。《汽車總動員》是其中一部。

然而,皮克斯就有這個本事,讓你一旦看了以後就會繼續咀嚼。

「閃電麥坤」以後起之姿角逐活塞杯的冠軍席次,他意氣風發、不可一世,鄙夷老將「冠軍」跟「路霸」,幾近瘋狂的舉動雖然使他領先對手一圈,不換輪胎的代價卻是接連爆胎,差點大意失荊州。

比賽在三台車不分勝負的情況下,相約七天後再決勝負。就在前往加州賽車場的 40 號州際公路上,麥坤意外偏離航道,陰錯陽差進入 66 號公路上的油水車鎮。因為不慎毀損路面,麥坤被罰勞役重鋪柏油,然而就在短短幾天內,他的生命開始有了轉變...

皮克斯一如其他電影的拼湊手法,把賽車競技的速度感,結合了公路電影追尋自我的慢活之旅,讓整部電影在快慢之間有了張力,多了寓意。

麥坤,如同《聖經》裡頭的雅各,擁有天賦異稟,卻不知好好運用,直到遇上更難纏的對手,才發現自己的侷限。雅各是非常狡詐又只為自己著想的自私鬼,麥坤則是集三千寵愛於一身,但同樣只想到個人秀的討厭個性。雅各直到遇見與他摔跤的上帝,才驚覺自己的渺小,麥坤則是在發現「韓大夫」竟是多年前贏得三座獎盃的傳奇人物後,重新獲得審視自己的機會。

其實這類找尋自我的故事與名人不勝枚舉,但在《汽車總動員》裡,硬是添加了一些層次感:首先是架構了一個以「車」為本的世界觀,舉凡牲畜及昆蟲,無一不是以車為發想的世界,唯一的例外大概是載著「脫線」逍遙雲端的直昇機吧!

其次,充分運用 3D 效果打造出逼真的賽車實境與美西公路場景,讓浸淫此道的愛好者找到著力點;然後再是結合歷史脈絡的城鎮與道路興衰史,透過 DVD 收錄的創作靈感起源,讓觀眾瞭解真有其事的66號公路,以及過往賴以維生的各小鎮榮華與蕭條。

最後,則是呼應後美國英雄主義的反動思考,將結局收在「非」非贏不可的高潮。老實說,雖然早就預期結局可能會來個顛覆,但這種結尾也實在是別出心裁(以下小字有地雷!)。(因為韓大夫當年的一場車禍,中斷了賽車界傳奇,使麥坤看到路霸因為耍手段害冠軍發生嚴重車禍時,聯想起韓大夫的教訓,便在終點線前緊急煞車,回頭去把冠軍推往終點線,引起全場觀眾喝采。)

人終其一生追求甚麼呢?追求成功嗎?甚麼是成功?是一座又一座獎杯,還是一段又一段值得回憶的經歷?隨著電影字幕與電影片段的呈現,Brad Paisley 的歌聲,讓我們得以再一次放下腳步,走進油水車鎮,find myself.

我尤其喜歡這句歌詞:
"Cause sometimes when you lose your way, its really just as well."

Find Yourself - by Brad Paisley

When you find yourself
In some far off place
And it causes you to rethink some things
You start to sense that slowly
You're becoming someone else
And then you find yourself

When you make new friends in a brand new town
And you start to think about settlin' down
The things that would have been lost on you
Are now clear as a bell
And you find yourself
Yeah that's when you find yourself

Where you go through life
So sure of where you're headin'
And you wind up lost and it's
The best thing that could have happened
'Cause sometimes when you lose your way it's really just as well
Because you find yourself
Yeah that's when you find yourself

When you meet the one
That you've been waitin' for
And she's everything that you want and more
You look at her and you finally start to live for some one else
And then you find yourself
That's when you find yourself

When we go through life
So sure of where we're headin'
And we wind up lost and it's
The best thing that could have happened
'Cause sometimes when you lose your way it's really just as well
Because you find yourself
Yeah that's when you find yourself