Taiwan

According to the Yami (Tao) people of Orchid Island, evil spirits possess the sick. Because of this belief, the sick are seen as inauspicious, and are avoided. Many sick people become isolated and do not receive any form of medical care. This situation is particularly acute with people suffering chronic illness or among the elderly.

The director of “And Deliver Us from Evil,” Chang Shu-lan, is a native of Orchid Island, were she works as a nurse. In 1997, she initiated a program for house bound elderly people. She recruited volunteers to bathe, feed, and provide basic medical care for them. Because of the stigma attached to working with the sick, Chang decided to work through the local church, to some extent bypassing local tradition. In the three years that the program has been operating, Chang has recruited some 40 volunteers, who provide a regular service of visits to the elderly. The conflict between traditional beliefs and the need to care for isolated old people sometimes flares up, as in the case of one volunteer who works for the program against her husband’s wishes. Volunteers must deal with considerable social pressure while doing their difficult work.

After taking a course in filmmaking, this is Chang’s first documentary. With her own involvement in the volunteer work and her understanding of the issues and people, the work powerfully faces the dilemma in which traditional values are brought up against compassion.

This is the story of Ching-Wen and his family.

Building a house on their island for his parents has been Ching-wen’s long time wish. But before he could finish constructing the house, they ran out of money. So now he has to leave his home, Orchid Island (Lanyu) and return to Taiwan to make more money. The film phrases reflection with the young man’s father, his two younger brothers, his uncle, his mother, all of whom have a few things to say about him.

The Tao people believe flying fish to be a gift bestowed by the heavens. In February or March when the flying fish arrive near the coast, the Tao tribal groups carries out “flying fish summoning ceremonies” to call the fish back to their shores: “Come on back flying fish. Come back to our bay. When you get here we’ll welcome you with chicken blood and burn offerings.” This is an ancient agreement between the flying fish and the Tao people. The fish and the Tao both abide by the ancient, long-standing pledge that governs the return of the fish and the peoples’ expectations. From this sacred belief to their diligent labor, the Tao peoples’ lives portray and practice humility and sincerity with regard to heaven, the earth, and the sea. The songs of the changing seasons are altered slightly with the passing of one generation of Tao to the next. This paradigm of man and nature together exists at the heart of this song that sounds like the winds wafting and waves rising.

After working for a weather channel for two years, documentary filmmaker Huang Chi-mao picked up a camera himself and faithfully recorded bits and pieces of the Tao peoples’ lives with a camera style very close to the subject.

The sixty-one year old Lin Xin-yu and his wife of the Yeyin tribe are the main subjects in this film. Mr. Lin served before as the seventh term representative for Taitung (in the southeast of Taiwan). His crafty political career didn’t make him forget the simple, natural life of the Tao people. One afternoon, Mr. Lin said he wanted to go spear fishing. When Huang Chi-mao heard about this, already familiar to Mr. Lin, he joined him, took along his camera and shot precious images of Mr. Lin at work spearing fish. Despite the tumultuous waves, he still speared five fish with ease. At the same time, Mrs. Lin and their aunt and uncle collected shellfish on the shore. These fish, the shellfish, and sweet potatoes from the fields are the “Dishes of an Afternoon Meal” for the Lin family.

As the film begins, one Orchid Islander says, “I often feel that the more research anthropologists do on this island, the worse the island is harmed…” This work is the visual anthropologist’s recorded answer to this question.

The film director tries to use the camera to explore the disillusionment and frustration of the Tao people. She moves between the islanders and outsiders, using people of three identities and three appearances to reflect on the contradictions and conflict that follows with the meeting of the Tao people and external influences.

Fear of tourists? In the first part we observe Tao opposition to the spectators’ cameras and the perception and requirements of money. Fear of evil ghosts? The second part reveals a Bunun who volunteered as a medical doctor to serve in Orchid Island telling of his own inherent doubts and reveals the worries and frustrations vis-à-vis modern medical concepts and local traditional beliefs. Fear of the nuclear waste plant? In the third part two young local nuclear protesters face the camera directly and tell their personal reasons for their actions. They speak of their own special way of life and the threat of its destruction.