The Killing Fields (1984), directed by Roland Joffé received multitude accolades with 13 BAFTAS and 7 Oscar nominations, with Dr. Haing S. Ngor winning best supporting actor for his role as Dith Pran. The Killing Fields is a biographical film depicting the struggles of Cambodia during the regime of the Khmer Rouge, members of the Communist Party led mainly by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). If you wanted to place this film categorically, it would also fit under historical drama.
Not only does the film encapsulate the monstrosities of war but it also tells a true story between two journalists and centers around each of their perspectives. Sydney Schanberg and Dith Pran, have very differing stories. One is an American journalist from New York City who escapes Cambodia and the other, also a journalist, but is forced to stay behind and lose his identity to survive the bloodbath of the Khmer Rouge.
I’d like to think the film occurs in five parts: the initial work-centered relationship between the two men, a departure of characters, post-departure life of Sydney and Dith Pran, and the reunion. A concept I think was shown in this film, as well as embodied through Dith Pran is the perseverance of the human spirit. He has this innate ability to love and forgive even while having endured such an atrocity that would break the strongest man until his soul and body were nothing.
During 1975–1979, Richard Nixon’s presidency, mass genocide of the Cambodian people occurred at the hands of the Red Cambodians, otherwise known as the Khmer Rouge. An objective of the Khmer Rouge was to force the Cambodian people, as a collective group, into “a self-sufficient agrarian community based on an extreme reading of Maoist political philosophy.” Maoist political philosophy is a combination of Marxism and Leninism. Marxism-Leninism, in simple terms, is a communist ideology confronting the basis of capitalism and its effect on workers. More specifically, Maoist ideology is “a form of communism developed by Mao Tse Tung”, also known as Mao Zedong, the Chinese communist leader who founded the People’s Republic of China.
The power of the Khmer Rouge slowly overtook the nation starting with the alliance of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, the head of state in 1970. Support followed and control of the Khmer Rouge was dispersed throughout cities and spanning to the countryside. In 1975, control of the nation was solidified by the overtaking of Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. During the Khmer Rouge regime, large numbers of Cambodian were forced into labor. 1.5–2 million were murdered. Executions were saved for the educated and literate. Doctors, those who held degrees, journalists, and more were to be eradicated. It was the purge of the intellects. Dith Pran, being aware of this objective, pretended to not know French (a sign of the literate and elite) and lied about his occupation saying he was simply a taxi driver. This move was clever yet came with an immense sense of pressure to uphold a fake image to avoid death.
The traumas and horrors inflicted by the Khmer Rouge were nothing short of horrific. Families died of starvation, executions, and forced labor. The Killing Fields, rightfully so, includes very violent scenes, almost the entire movie is violent, and I think it’s important to show it that way. It is necessary to represent history accurately. Dead bodies, overflowing hospitals with dying children, and with executions, it’s a lot to handle when watching on screen for some. What used to be towns are now transformed into craters of destruction lined with rubble and corpses. The real Dith Pran described the dumping grounds of his country as “being pitted with water wells full of corpses, like soup bones in broth.” Dith Pran’s experience living under the regime is a representation of what the Cambodian people endured. The only difference was that he was able to survive and reunite with his family. Millions would never get a chance at life again.
Sydney Schanberg and Dith Pran’s relationship molds into a bond only brothers have. Each put their life on the line for the other. Utilizing his Cambodain identity and knowledge of the Khmer language, Dith Pran saved Sydney and fellow journalists from execution. Because of their love for each other and the desire to see to it that safety is achieved, Sydney tries to smuggle Dith Pran into the US using a fake passport. When the plan fails, Sydney must come to terms with feelings of guilt for leaving his friend behind. The stark contrast between Sydney’s successful life as a journalist in New York City and Dith Pran’s survival in the labor fields of rural Cambodia is a testament to the consequences of war and an unfortunate reality. To make matters worse, Sydney is bombarded by other journalists for leaving Dith Pran behind, claiming they would have stayed and died with him. With the rewards and accolades received by Sydney, he finds it difficult to accept them for work he and Dith Pran did together, yet he is the one gaining recognition. Scarifies were made and their need to protect one another came above anything else.
I question why journalists intentionally place themselves into dangerous, even life-threating situations. Sydney’s job, in his mind, is to get the story and to tell it truthfully. His need for the whole story and to expose the horrors of Cambodia to the world overrides his need for safety. So many of us, myself included, cannot imagine giving up a sense of security and well-being to bring to light atrocities across the globe. That is an admirable quality to have an an individual and it speaks to his character and values. I believe Sydney and Dith Pran recognized that as their mission. They aimed to fulfill their duties as journalists by putting themselves amid conflict to show the true story and not a toned-down, digestible version.
Cinematography is an art as well as a tool. Cinematography is also the integration of elements. It encompasses many factors in a scene. Lighting, location, the type of camera lens, shot techniques, effects, and more are considered. The job of a cinematographer is to achieve the image aesthetic set by the director. A scene I found to be compelling and that presented Sydney’s desperation for the war to end is when the camera cuts between the tv in Sydney’s living room and his face. Each time a camera cut occurs, the sound of the television becomes seemingly louder. It’s the same feeling any of us get while watching the news. We watch the world entrenched in more conflict and a never-ending economic crisis.
While this film depicts violence, many Cambodians who watched felt as though it was not violent enough. Overall, the film was done well and depicted a story between brothers, war, and of the downfall of Cambodia. An effort towards some sort of mental preparation should be made before deciding to watch the film for its emotionally exhausting and shocking. After watching, I had a newfound sense of gratitude for not having been born in a time or place of such conflict. I realized how untouched and detached my life seems compared to the Cambodian families that endured atrocities and layers of grief. Dith Pran is an example of how resilient the Cambodian people are even after the crumbling of their nation due to the Khemer Rouge and the loss of their normal lives and identities.
References:
Culture Trip, “Killing Fields: Artistic Responses to the Khmer Rouge”, Culture Trip, Jan 4. 2017, https://theculturetrip.com/asia/cambodia/articles/killing-fields-artistic-responses-to-the-khmer-rouge/
https://www.mha.gov.in/sites/default/files/LWE_FAQS_22012016.pdf
Alex Von Tunzelmann, “The Killing Fields: authentically good”, The Guardian, March 12. 2009, https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/mar/11/the-killing-fields-reel-history
