「我看見黑暗中的苦難」：《凱爾斯的秘密》中的怪物之眼

“I’ve Seen Suffering in the Darkness”: The Monster’s Eye in The Secret of Kells

由湯姆・摩爾及諾拉・托梅執導、並於2009年問世的奇幻動畫長片《凱爾斯的秘密》，以現代數位藝術重構愛爾蘭國寶《凱爾斯之書》的繪製過程，並勾勒出極富島嶼特色的愛爾蘭歷史和視覺文化，因而被評論家喻為愛爾蘭國族電影。然而，本文認為電影中所呈現的愛爾蘭異教神克魯姆・庫魯克一角，已然讓國族與基督教主體的可能性有別於傳統定義，而其與《凱爾斯之書》之間糾結難分的關係，挑戰了純粹性的想像，彰顯身分的流動及多重意義的跨界。在故事中，克魯姆・庫魯克之眼，既是一個為了完成基督教抄本而必需取得的物件，亦是揮之不去、與眾多視覺意象相互呼應的凝視。它猶如拉岡理論中的詭異凝視，讓主體感到焦慮不安，引領主角跨越疆界，為愛爾蘭的過往提供一個更全球化的詮釋。本文透過分析動畫片中描繪的疆界建構與解構、基督教文化與異教的關係，以及克魯姆・庫魯克及其眼睛／凝視揭露的苦難與重生，指出《凱爾斯的秘密》藉由再創《凱爾斯之書》所傳達的，並非一個單純融合基督與異教的愛爾蘭國族，而是呈現出身份內含的衝突、不穩定性，及其可能向更多元複雜的世界開放的特質。

Released in 2009, The Secret of Kells is an animated film directed by Tomm Moore and co directed by Nora Twomey. Its vivid reconstruction of the origin of the Book of Kells and artful combination of Irish history, Celtic insular art, and modern digital techniques make it an Irish national cinema. However, the role of Crom Cruach, an intriguing pagan god/monster, contests traditional conceptions of nationality and Christian selfhood. His entangled relationship with the Book of Kells highlights the fluidity of identity and the multiple possibilities of border crossing. The “Eye of Crom” is both an indispensable object in completing the Christian manuscript and a haunting gaze overlapping with various images in the film. Recalling the anxiety triggering gaze in Jacques Lacan’s theoretical framework, the eye image propels the protagonist to step beyond the border and consequently hints at a more cosmopolitan interpretation of the Irish past. By scrutinizing the (de--)construction of borders, the intertwined relationship between Christianity and paganism, and the notions of suffering and rebirth underlying Crom Cruach’s eye and the recurring gaze, this article aims to argue that the animated reproduction of the Book of Kells suggests a hybrid identity that is unsettling, conflicting, and therefore more connectible to the world of infinite complexity.