(Everyone in this film look like grown-ups.
However, I think the man who appears to be the son in the family represents a
boy, looking at the toys in the room, and the way he looks curiously out his
window. In this analysis, I will refer to the man as a child.)
Symbols-
Toys at the very beginning of the film- youth, childishness, innocence
Bird girl (not a human)- a life with a
limit, sad but beautiful
à Although the actress is a human, I think the woman with feathers
represents a bird, from the way she was crying when a bird died (The bird that
died was probably the woman’s special companion or friend).
Windup dolls- a life that can be redone and
lasts forever
à In the video, we learn that the boy’s parents are windup dolls, from
the windup springs on their backs. However, there is never a scene where the
spring is on the son’s back as well, giving us the idea that the son is not a
doll. I also noticed that the bird that the boy falls in love with also does
not have anything on her back, so I took it as a sign that the bird girl was
something other than a windup doll as well.
Bird that died- sadness and shock of death
Forest- the hardships and decisions that
have to be made in life (a forest of decisions)
Setting-
It seems like the story is set in
somewhere that is rural, maybe in the countryside. It also looks like this
happened a while ago, because the tools and parts that the boy used to operate
on the dead bird have an antique-like feel to them.
Conflict-
The boy looks out the window one
day to catch sight of a girl, and falls in love with her. One day, he sees that
the bird girl that he loves is crying because her friend died. Sadness fills
the boy’s heart, and he thinks about how he could help her and see her happy
again.
Climax-
The man tries to help his lover by “reviving” the bird―or turning the bird into a doll that can be winded up again and again. My analysis here is that the boy knew the girl was sad because her bird friend didn’t have a life anymore, so he figured she would be happy if her friend simply got a life that would never end. However, when the boy tries to surprise her with the operated bird, his lover screams and runs away in terror.
Conflict (2)-
The man experiences emotional conflict, wondering why the bird girl wasn’t happy to receive the operated bird.
Irony-
The boy thought the girl would be happy recieving the operated bird, but instead she ran away in horror.
Theme-
I remember there
was a scene where the boy stops rewinding the springs on the backs of his
family members, and makes a burial for them. I took this as a sign that the boy
began to see value in a life with a limit―a life that
cannot be restarted again and again like a windup doll. In other words, after
the two conflicts that I mentioned above, the boy learned that although it a
very difficult thing to do, he must say goodbye to his windup doll parents, symbols
of endless lives. In the end of the film, the boy takes himself into a forest.
I understood this forest to be another symbol of a life with a limit, because a
life that cannot be restarted brings a forest of important decisions and
choices. We do not know what happened to the boy after that. However, my
analysis is that the walk into the forest was a courageous step forward that
the boy made to discover the true happiness and satisfaction real life has to
offer.
