Fermented wound, molecular spectacle, plotting a dance without organs.
The Hollow in the Skull
After Jessica begins hearing that mysterious, thunderous sound, there’s a haunting scene during the early stage of her investigation: In a bio-anthropological laboratory, a skull belonging to a young girl who lived over 6000 years ago, her cranium pierced by a perfectly round hole at its center, the archaeologist speculates that this was a result of Trepanation - for an unknown ritual to release an evil spirit, hinting at linked to ancient ceremonial practices.
According to my research, scientific studies were first published in the 19th century, primarily focusing on regions such as Africa, South America, Polynesia, and the Far East. Scholars have found that, in addition to treating cranial injuries or alleviating neurological pain, ancient people may have also held unknown rituals to allow the soul to enter or leave the body. These two leading theories remain highly debated, with no final conclusion yet.
The film's content and rhythm become increasingly thought-provoking when the “Hollow in the Skull” is introduced, subtly drawing the viewer into deeper reflection. Beneath the quiet, restrained camera work with a slight sense of visual stasis, there seems to be an invisible ‘low rumble’ - a sound echoing from thousands of years ago.
Fermented wound
Director Apichatpong Weerasethakul is deeply fascinated by biology, neuroscience, extraterrestrial invasions, and spacecraft, believing they are somewhat intricately related to time and the universe. His films often explore a variety of futuristic diseases, especially those affecting the brain, such as in Syndromes and a Century(แสงศตวรรษ, 2006) and Cemetery of Splendour(รักที่ขอนแก่น, 2015), which I particularly love. In Memoria, Jessica suffers from Exploding-Head Syndrome, the same as the director had before, which is a sleep disorder caused by excessive stress and often manifests as a sudden loud bang sound in the brain.
This sound combines pathological and epic “Thunderous Bang” as MacGuffin guides Jessica slowly towards the history of violently colonized Indigenous peoples of South America.
“Like a massive metal sphere crashing onto concrete”
Apichatpong places great emphasis on the texture of sound and the acoustic experience and is also skilled at capturing and presenting the patterns of surrounding sounds through tranquil cinematography - leaves rustling, branches cracking, water-drop falling, streams flowing, and the faint chirping of cicadas, all rendered with exquisite detail. Occasionally, when I close my eyes and focus solely on the use of sound in film, I can still vividly visualize the lush, rain-soaked scenes of the tropical rainforest in my mind.
The phrase “the metal sphere crashing onto concrete” is Jessica’s first description to the audio engineer Hernán as she seeks the truth behind the thunderous noise that always rings in her ears. Hernán attempts to simulate this sound by changing the reverberation, adjusting the frequency, and expanding the sound field through various plugins to find the correct sampling.
This part also carries a longing for “using modern technology to assist nature in returning to its original beauty,” which I often experience in his other films.
The Sound Montage technique at the end emphasizes the interweaving and unique expression between sound and memory. The Organic Memory and Memory Reader (Jessica) sat face to face with plantain leaves swaying in the sunlight outside the window, followed by a series of distant sounds from the past: rain, the sounds of a person being beaten, rapid breathing, crashing waves, sudden English speaking, strange electrical noises, and that familiar ‘Bang’. The sound of the waves is ruthless, symbolizing the dawn of conquest; the ocean once served as the main passage for European colonizers, and it coarsely swept new cultures, nations, and thoughts with the waves.
Molecular spectacle
There are no dialogues between the characters; instead, the scene is marked by fixed, long takes that capture the delicate changes in their facial expressions. Each segment of the audio revealed the scars of the colonial era in South America, the violent exploitation of Indigenous peoples by various European nations, and the ultimate disappearance and forced Christianization of Indigenous civilizations(Inca and Maya, etc.). The richness of the sound content and its masterful use make the intense sorrow of the past leap to the present, while the wounds become particularly clear, the silent memories resonate powerfully.
Two organisms share a fragment of a traumatic memory under some unknown conditions, and at this moment, the character’s thoughts and the audience’s doubts erupted and resolved in silence.
The Dissonance of Time and Space
In reality, several psychological and mental illnesses share similarities with the phenomenon of “Grafted Memories” from Memoria.
¹Dissociative Identity Disorder. Individuals may experience memory exchange or confusion between different identities of states;
²Separation of Self from Others. Individuals have a sense of separation from themselves or their surrounding environment, leading to memory confusion or overlap;
³False Memory Syndrome. As the name suggests, it is generally caused by trauma. Individuals who have received false information guidance, hints, or long-term painful experiences.
This mirrors Jessica’s accidental reading of others’ memories in the film, but both evoke a strong and unfocused sense of dissonance.
From watching the black and white vintage works of Colombian artist Éver Astudillo at the art museum - to the orchid cooler saleswomen saying ‘the freshness of this product extends 30%, here, time has been paused,’ - to Hernán’s disappearance and the appearance of another Hernán with the same name - then to the person who sleeps with half opened eyes but without breathing(using the past tense to depict the present continuous) - and finally to the appearance of an alien spacecraft was in the past rather than the future… The experience of time and space being fragmented or misplaced becomes stronger and stronger, and the bonds between the present and the past, as well as the individual and the collective memory that the whole film is exploring, become deeper and deeper.
The winding ridges of the Columbia Mountains are like folds of the brain and curves of audio signals, carrying thousands of years of human memory. Like the two “car honks Symphony” in front of the attic and outside the hospital window in the film - As time flows, both past joys and traumatic memories will echo back unexpectedly and abnormally. Thanks to one of my favorite directors, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, for continuously bringing us enchanting dreams.
To conclude with a quote from the director, as he once said to the audience watching Memoria:
“For me, what you see is what you feel. Trees are trees, nothing else. Don’t overthink it, and let it flow naturally.”
🐉 Chinese Version: https://movie.douban.com/review/16202233/
Unauthorized copying, adaptation, or utilization of any part of this material for commercial or non-commercial purposes is strictly forbidden. Any infringement on these rights will be pursued to the fullest extent permitted by law. For permissions or inquiries, please contact the author directly.
© Qimei Shi
All rights reserved.
Comments