117. De Vondeling van Ameland &...

Lyrics

Op het strand van Ameland

(On the beach of Ameland)
was hij als zuigling aangespoeld

(He washed up as an infant)
overboord gegooid

(Thrown overboard)
op een reddingsboei gebonden

(Bound on a buoy)
hij had zich op de golven

(On the waves he felt)
als in de baarmoeder gevoeld

(As in the womb)
en schreeuwde tot hij

(And he screamed)
door een jutter werd gevonden

(Until a beachcomber found him)

Ameland sprak schande van de jutter

(Ameland deemed the beachcomber a disgrace)
een zonderling die leefde van de wind

(A quaint living of the wind)
die al de raarste dingen had gevonden

(Who had already found the weirdest things)
hoe kwam die jutter nu weer aan dat kind

(How did that beachcomber come across that child)
als hij er daags op uitging om te jutten

(Every day when he went to comb the beach)
moest de vondeling altijd met hem mee

(The foundling had to join him)
en toen die na een jaar begon te praten

(And when he started speaking after a year)
was zijn eerste woordje: zee

(His first word was: sea)

Op het strand van Ameland

(On the beach of Ameland)
speelde de kleuter jarenlang

(The toddler played for years)
de jutter was zijn meester

(The beachcomber was his teacher)
die hem wijze lessen leerde

(He taught him wise lessons)
hij stond wijdbeens in het zand

(He stood on the sand, his legs wide open)
was voor de woeste zee niet bang

(Wasn't afraid of the furious sea)
en schreeuwde net zo lang

(And screamed until)
tot de vloed zich keerde

(The tide retreated)

Ameland sprak schande van de kleuter

(Ameland deemed the toddler a disgrace)
de vondeling die schreeuwde als de wind

(The foundling screaming like the wind)
hoe was het in vredesnaam toch mogelijk

(For God's sake, how was it possible)
dat de zee zich terugtrok voor een kind

(For the sea to retrat for a child)
wat hij riep zou niemand kunnen zeggen

(Nobody could say what he was yelling)
dat was uit de verte moeilijk te verstaan

(That was hard to understand from a distance)
en toen ze het de jutter vroegen zei die

(And when they asked the beachcomber, he said)
volgens mij roept hij: ik kom eraan.

(I believe he is yelling: "I am coming)

Ik kom eraan ik kom eraan

(I am coming, I am coming)
zee wind zon oceaan

(Sea, wind, sun, ocean)
ik kom eraan

(I am coming)

Op het strand van Ameland

(On the Ameland beach)
stond hij als knaap in de avondzon

(He stood as a boy in the evening sun)
hij zei geen woord

(He didn't say a word)
begon zich langzaam uit te kleden

(He started to slowly undress)
de vloed kwam hem tegemoet

(The tide was coming his way
hij zag alleen de horizon

(He only saw the horizon)
nog eenmaal draaide hij zich om

(Turned around once more)
liep toen de zee in

(And walked into the sea)

Ameland sprak schande van de jongen

(Ameland deemed the boy a disgrace)
die naakte zonderlinge vondeling

(That naked, quaint foundling)
men had zich boven op het duin verzameld

(People gathered up on the dune)
omdat men voelde dat er iets gebeuren ging

(Becuase they felt something was about to happen)
en toen begon hij plotseling te schreeuwen

(And then suddenly he started screaming)
zo hard dat het tot aan de duinen klonk

(So loud they could hear it at the dunes)
nog even zagen ze hem op het water lopen

(They saw him walk on water)
voor hij in de diepte zakte en verdronk

(Just before he drowned in the deep sea)

Ik kom eraan ik kom eraan

(I am coming, I am coming)
zee wind zon oceaan

(Sea, wind, son, ocean)
ik kom eraan

(I am coming)
Ik kom eraan

(I am coming)

It's obviously an indictment of the Dutch film industry that I had to link this song to an Irish film. It's not very surprising though. This is a laudable attempt of Boudewijn de Groot, (and cabaret performer Freek de Jonge, who wrote the lyrics) to create a Dutch folk tale. That is not a genre that has ever been very popular in Dutch culture. It's a bit of a shame. As this song shows the Netherlands' relationship with water provides plenty of opportunities to tell stories in this vein. I actually think this song is better than the movie I am about to discuss. 

The Movie: The Secret of Roan Inish (John Sayles, 1994)

This is one of the first films I saw in the cinema. It's definitely the first 'arthouse' film I've seen. I don't remember why, but in elementary school, we went on a class trip to see this film. I think I liked it a lot; I probably wouldn't have remembered it otherwise. I also probably wouldn't have remembered it if I saw it in high school. This is very much a film for young children. This does mean that I did not care that much about the film this time around, but this is a good thing. There are way too few good directors making films aimed at young kids. Pixar is sometimes criticized for not really making films for children. I think those critics do have a point. Having said that, I'd much rather re-watch Up than The Secret of Roan Inish (I'd also much rather re-watch The Looney Tunes or Tom & Jerry, than watch a Pixar film, but that's a topic for another post. For now, let's just say that films about robots and rats with feelings existed long before Pixar).

What I like most about the film is its relaxed, leisurely pace. It is no rush to get anywhere, and the first hour is mostly an excuse to tell Irish folk stories. These are literally the kinds of stories a grandfather tells to his granddaughter. They are part family history, part Irish history, but above all they are stories about the power of the sea, and the love for it. Fiona's (Jeni Courtney) grandparents used to live on the island of Roan Inish, close to the seals and the water. The war - the film is set in 1946 - and the financial problems forced them to move. Moreover, an accident caused Fiona's infant brother to disappear, making it emotionally hard for the elders to return to the island. They do long for it though, it's clear from the way they talk about it. I enjoyed some of these stories, but I have never cared much about mythical creatures. Unfortunately the key story here is about Selkies. A Selkie is half seal, half man, and the stories tell that the people of Roan Inish are their descendants. And it is said that those with dark hair still have Selkie blood in them. For that reason they are great seamen, able to navigate the waters with whatever means they have at their disposal, even an infant crib. Indeed, Fiona's infant brother was a 'darkie'. Could it be that he still lives, and is roaming around on Roan Inish?   

John Sayles tells this story with utter sincerity. He deserves a lot of credit for that, as well as for the fact that he doesn't care at all to make this story contemporary relevant. In fact, I'd say it's so old-fashioned that if the film had actually been made in 1946, it would have to be set around 1890-1900. In a couple of scenes characters speak archaic Gaelic, and you get the feeling that resisting the urge to tell the entire film like that took the film makers a lot of willpower. Of course that would made it less suitable for children, both those in the audience, and those acting. 

This is the only John Sayles film I have seen until now. I hope to see more of him, He seems like a director who would be right up my alley. In this film, it's quite interesting that he often films from a child's height. And the scene where we first learn of Roan Inish, is quite wonderfully conceived as well. Fiona's granddad points toward the horizon and tells her that the island is right of a light tower, and that only true descendants of the island can see it at the first try. Sayles than cuts to what Fiona and her granddad are watching. It's mostly water; far away on the horizon there are some fuzzy islands that are hard to discern, and I definitely could not see a light tower. Yet Fiona does see the light tower and the island. She is special, we in the audience are not.