The market is full of phrasebooks and low-level disctionaries for the tourist. One of the best English-Thai dictionaries is the two-volume “New Model English-Thai Dictionary.” (ISBN 974-07-5042-7). It’s very comprehensive. With examples of usage, and multiiple meanings.
In terms of Thai-English there are two dictionaries that are a cut above the rest: the Mary Haas “Thai-English Student’s Dictionary” (Stanford University Press). This is a great tool for students and those learning the language. It is written for the learner of the language. Research the author Mary Haas, she has a very interesting life story.
The second dictionary I recommend is the McFarland “Thai-English Dictionary” (ISBN 0-8047-0383-3). This very detailed dictionary is primarily one for those with an advanced knowledge of the language.
When I was a student in Thailand I had a teacher who later went to write a Spanish-Thai dictionary.
“DK Eyewitness: Buddhism” (ISBN 0-7894-9833-2) is a great visual for students and adults alike. As with most DK books, it gives explanations with its multitude of pictures. But it is limited and gives more of an overview than being a refrence guide.
“Buddhism of Dummies” (ISBN-10: 0764553593) (ISBN-13: 978-0764553592 is a good book that gives quick points and information about terminology and the such.[Edit by="dcolato on Feb 2, 9:39:41 PM"][/Edit]
I spent many an hour looking for the best tourist guide book. I knew most get dated quick, and without pictures to stimulate me while I was reading, there would be no point in getting one. There are three tourist guide books for Thailand that I found very useful in terms of visuals, explanation, and history. If up-to-date information is needed, there are plenty of free guides once you get to the airport. But these three are a great for the 18 hour plane ride there:
“DK Eyewitness: Thailand” (ISBN-10: 0756601746) (ISBN-13: 978-0756601744) Great pictures, diagrams, and information covering all 4 regions.
“The National Geographic Traveler: Thailand” (ISBN 0-7922-7943-3). National Geographic said they were pros in pictures so why not take a chance with them. They were right. The book has stunning pictures and detailed information on the country, the food, climate, etc. It’s worth the premium price.
“Knopf Guides: Thailand” (ISBN 0-375-71107-4). This is a smaller book than most but the reason I bought this first is because of the history and pictures.There is a lot of detail in this book: from the different architecture styles, to the artistic styles, this book covers a lot. It could easily be enlarged and double as a textbook for a student of Thai culture.[Edit by="dcolato on Feb 2, 9:38:43 PM"][/Edit]
The Story of Mahajanaka (ISBN 974-8364-71-2) is a story (a re-telling) by King Rama IX, the current king of Thailand. Translated decently enough it involves myths and legends. The illustrations are reminisant of the traditional Thai mural paintings. Worth the quick read.
An easy Thai history book is the 2nd edition “Thailand” (ISBN 0-300-08475-7). There many other history books that are in English that I found in Thailand, but the cost is always premium overseas, even with the generous exchange rate.
There seems to be a Tarot Deck of cards for everyone. And recently a Thai version was created: “Siamese Tarot” (Jiku’s Books www.thaitarotmaster.com) is cool version to have. Ever since the HBO series Carnivale prominently displayed Tarot cards in the opening I got interested in them, and these Thai ones are beautifully illustrated with Thai traditional artwork.
When my wife first cam et came to America I thought that children’s literature would be a fun way to improve her English. So I searched the public libraries for books that dealt with her home country of Thailand...now all she reads is Nicholas Sparks...
Silent Lotus (ISBN 0-374-36911-9)
The Girl who Wore too Much (ISBN-10: 0874835038) (ISBN-13: 978-0874835038)
Hush! A Thai Lullaby (ISBN-10: 0531071669) (ISBN-13: 978-0531071663 )
Peek!Hide and Seek (ISBN-10: 0763620416) (ISBN-13: 978-0763620417 )
Once I was a Monkey (ISBN-10: 0374335486) (ISBN-13: 978-0374335489)
Concerning documentaries, the best was one done by Nova of PBS called "The Genius That Was China," a four part documentary of the technological and social history of China from ancient inventions and technology through the Opium Wars to the domination by foreign powers. The series includes an unrivaled episode, number 3, on the Meiji Empire. I do not believe that this series is available anywhere, except through load libraries. I do have the complete series; however, do to copyright laws I am reticent to distribute it. NBeck
The History Channel has been broadcasting a special on Ghengis Khan. I found it very interesting especially with the information I have been learning in the seminar.
I've just returned from seeing the Korean film, "The Host." It was a weird mix of horror movie and comedy, very uneven, overlong, but mildly entertaining. The premise is very Godzila-like. A mutant fish-lizard creature grows in the Han River--the result of chemical dumping from an American military base. The creature wreaks mayhem and captures a beach vendor's daughter. The movie, then, is his (and his family's) attempt to rescue the girl. Along the way there's references to SARS, government cover-ups, and ecological irresponsibility. The film suffers from identity crisis, I think. THe director should have full out for farce especially with such a cheesy monster. I did like the unexpected touches (such as a HAZ-MAT official trying to use the television newscast to give an official update). I understand the movie is loosely based on an actual incident that occured in Korean in 2000 when formaldehyde was dumped into the sink's in a mortician's lab. The chemicals passed through a treatment plant but there still were protests. Try this link for a trailer: www.hostmovie.com
I've recently read A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park. It is the story of Tree-ear, a Korean orphan living near what is now Seoul during the mid to late 12th century. Tree-Ear manages to get himself apprenticed to Min, a master celadon potter. The story is a Newbery winner about the artistry of the potters and the importance of celadon stoneware. This is a very accessible story that would middle school students would enjoy. It would be a great read-aloud. Park gives a great deal of detail about life in Korea and provides notes about the historical context (referencing China and its relationship to Korea) and the ancient process of making and firing celadon pottery.
THE EMPEROR'S NAKED ARMY MARCHES ON (Yuki Yukite shingun, 1987)
Los Angeles Filmforum will be screening the documentaries directed by Japanese filmmaker Kazuo Hara. This is a rare opportunity to see these remarkable films, none of which are in regular theatrical distribution in the United States. This set of four films has been touring the United States, and this will be their only Los Angeles appearance. One film, "The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On," will be coming out on DVD in March from Facets video. All of the films will challenge the viewer's ideas of decorum, personal revelation, and the possibilities of relentless cinema verité.
Screening Details: All screenings at the Spielberg Theatre at the Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Blvd. at Las Palmas. $9 general; $6 students/seniors; free for Filmforum members. Cash and check only.
Parking is available at the Hollywood & Highland complex, $2 for 4 hours with validation, available at the Egyptian Theatre. Street parking is often available as well. Or take the Red Line to Hollywood & Highland. Email us for a reservation at lafilmforum@yahoo.com. We aren't able to presell tickets, but will hold reservations until 6:45 pm.
Sunday March 18, 2007, 7:00 pm - THE EMPEROR'S NAKED ARMY MARCHES ON (Yuki Yukite shingun, 1987, 122 min.; 35mm, color)
Sunday, March 25, 2007, 7:00 pm - EXTREME PRIVATE EROS: LOVE SONG 1974 (Gokushiteki erosu: Renka 1974; 98 min,16mm, b&w )
Thursday, March 29, 2007, 7:30 pm - A DEDICATED LIFE (Zenshin shosetsuka, 1994, 157 min., 35mm, color)
"I make bitter films. I hate mainstream society." Kazuo Hara
Born in 1945, Kazuo Hara made a debut with Goodbye CP (Sayonara CP, 1972), and shocked audiences with its frank portrayal of handicapped with cerebral palsy. Two years later, Hara again sent a shock wave in the Japanese film industry with Extreme Private Eros: Love Song 1974 (Kyokushiteki erosu koiuta 1974, 1974). The film chronicled a love-triangle between Hara, and his ex-wife Takeda Miyuki (the main subject of the film). Hara's third film The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On (Yukiyukite shingun, 1987) won awards at Berlin Film Festival and Rotterdam Film Festival and it was the most talked about film of the year in Japan. Five years in the making, the film traces a crusade for truth of Okuzaki Kenzo, a radical left wing activist and also a survivor of the battlefields of New Guinea in World War II. Hara also has directed various TV documentaries and worked as assistant director in feature films such as Kei Kumai's Berlin Silver Bear winner, The Sea and Poison (Umi to Dokuyaku, 1986). The Many Faces of Chika (2005) is Hara's first fiction feature film.
Kazuo Hara has been making scandalous films about scandalous people since 1972. He made his debut with GOODBYE CP, which shocked Japanese audiences with its frank portrayal of people with cerebral palsy. He describes his work as "overstepping the boundaries set by society in order to approach my subjects in close-up." Having left the Tokyo Technical Institute of Photography because "photography only allowed me to get to know people on a superficial level," he decided instead to start an independent career which would bridge the gap between the two great extremes of documentary filmmaking of the last thirty years: the collective documentary of the 60s and the private films of the 90s. Hara's work reveals how life stories are constructed across the border between fiction and reality.
Tonight: The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On (Yuki Yukite shingun) 1987 / 122 min. / 16mm / Color Director/Cinematographer: Kazuo Hara Producer: Sachiko Kobayashi
Berlin Film Festival 1987 New Directors / New Films 1988
"THE EMPEROR'S NAKED ARMY MARCHES ON is a brilliant exploration of memory and war guilt, a subject often ignored in modern Japan. In this controversial documentary, Kazuo Hara follows Kenzo Okuzaki in his real-life struggle against Emperor Hirohito. He proudly declares that he shot BBs at the Royal Palace, distributed pornographic images of the Emperor, and once killed a man for the sake of his strange crusade. As the film progresses, Okuzaki reveals a gruesome mystery: why were some Japanese officers killing their own soldiers during WWII? What happened to their bodies? Okuzaki begs, cajoles, and occasionally beats the story out of elderly veterans. When these old men do break down and talk, their testimonies are some of the most chilling, riveting descriptions of wartime desperation ever committed to film. In his desire to unearth these horrors, Okuzaki's behavior grows increasingly extreme and bizarre. By the film's end, Hara seems to ask whether the terrible nature of this buried incident is worth the violence of Okuzaki's methods. Jonathan Crow, ALLMOVIE GUIDE
"The most invigorating thing about `The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On' is its consistent irreverence. It doesn't mean to be polite or nice or soothing. It means to provoke and disturb - and let the devil take the hindmost." - Vincent Canby, The New York Times
"SENSATIONAL IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD!... one of the most astonishing documentaries I've ever seen Absolutely not to be missed." - John Powers, LA Weekly
"The Emperor's Naked Army makes you think the incredible power of truth-seeking." - Errol Morris
REVIEWS:
The New York Times Review - Excerpt The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On By VINCENT CANBY Published: March 15, 1988, Tuesday
The New Directors/New Films festival is presenting a number of unconventional documentaries, but none as alarming and significantly lunatic as ''The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On,'' conceived by Shohei Imamura (''Vengeance Is Mine'') and directed by Kazuo Hara as his first feature.
Its central figure is Kenzo Okuzaki, 65 years old, a World War II veteran who lives in Kobe with his pliant, uncomplaining wife, whom we later learn is dying of cancer. At the start of the film, Kenzo has already spent 13 years 9 months in jail. His crimes: plotting to assassinate a former Prime Minister, attempting to hit the Emperor with lead pellets fired with a sling shot and distributing pornographic pictures of the Emperor to people outside a Tokyo department store.
Kenzo is a political activist. He's also a marriage broker. In an astonishing and funny precredit sequence, we see him delivering a wedding feast homily in which he recalls his years in jail and suggests that all countries and, indeed, all families are barriers to the true brotherhood of man. The bride and groom listen with eyes lowered, as if this were the sort of thing every bride and groom expected to hear on their wedding day.
From everything the audience sees, Kenzo Okuzaki is a certifiable psychotic, though ''The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On'' never addresses this suspicion. He's the sort of fellow who writes long, crazily incoherent letters to editors, confronts people on street corners and harangues them with a loudspeaker from his van. It could be that Mr. Hara thinks the psychotic state is the only sane response to the contradictions in contemporary Japanese society.
Whatever the film director thinks, he never says. Instead he follows Kenzo around Japan as the former soldier tries to get at the truth of something that happened more than 40 years ago - the execution of three of his army comrades when they were serving in New Guinea at the end of the war.
The audience never understands just why, at this late date, Kenzo decides to investigate these events, the details of which remain fuzzy. With Mr. Hara and a camera crew in tow, Kenzo calls on former officers and enlisted men he thinks were responsible for ordering the executions. There are suggestions that the men were condemned for desertion or for cannibalism. There's the further suggestion that they were executed to provide meat for their starving comrades.
TIME OUT LONDON REVIEW The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On
A documentary portrait of Kenzo Okuzaki, a 62-year-old WWII veteran who acquired a prison record (for killing a man and for firing pachinko balls at the Emperor) in the course of his fanatical campaign to lay the blame for Japan's conduct of the war on the Emperor. Here the self-proclaimed messenger of God seeks to uncover what truly happened in New Guinea in 1945, 23 days after the war ended, when two Japanese soldiers were killed by their colleagues in very mysterious circumstances. The outcome of his investigations is gruesomely weird (cannibalism figures heavily), but stranger still is his style of interrogation, a volatile mix of apologetic politeness, deceit (his wife and anarchist friend pose as victims' relatives), and sudden violence, so relentless that one of his many ageing interviewees, fresh from hospital, ends up in an ambulance. Kazuo Hara's fly-on-the-wall documentary fascinates both for its bizarre protagonist, and for its brutally frank portrait of a society constrained by notions of shame rather than guilt. Jigsaw-like in construction, alleviated by mad wit, the film is unlike any other: rough, raw and sometimes surprisingly moving, it's absolutely compelling. GA
Does anyone know of a good resource for finding middle school level myths and legends from Asia? I want to do a unit comparing similar stories from around the world and recognizing universal themes. I already do this unit on a small scale when studying Greek mythology, but I want to expand and include myths from all over the world - I'm hoping for book or internet site that will give me a good list to go off of.
A book that I have read that I would like to recommend is An Introduction to the Buddha and His teachings edited by Bercholz and Kohn. ( ISBN 0-7607-0636-0 ) The book uses several masters on variety topics to “Introduce” the reader to Buddha. The book is divided into four parts. The first two and the glossary are the one’s that provided to be the most helpful for me in the class. I have used it for personal enlightenment and in the classroom. I think it is the classroom use it has been the greatest use to me.
It’s in the first part is focused on the life of Buddha or Siddhartha. I have used this information and other resources to develop a project for my class to compare Siddhartha’s life to that of Jesus. The timeline of Siddhartha is just before birth to his enlightenment. As for Jesus it is just before his birth to his death as the timeline. It was not till after I read the story that I realized that both lives were so similar. My students find the lives of these two to be remarkably similar. It is in this comparison I believe the students gain a new insight that this once foreign religion may be not as strange as they once thought. I will not go into the comparisons, but to say that both believed in reincarnation in one form or another.
The second part goes into the basic teachings of Buddha. It is in this section I lecture to the students about the similar messages Jesus and Buddha had on moral conduct. I use the “Middle Way” from Buddha because it is this concept that the students can easily understand. The main message for both I believe is to be a good person.
The last two parts are on the other schools of thought, Mahayana and Vajrayana, and meditation. It is these two sections I have spent the least reading and with the class. It is the glossary I find to be the most important. It has helped me in understanding this book, but in my other readings of Buddha. I find the explanations easy to understand and it is quite comprehensive.
If you are looking for a book that focuses on the basics, written towards the novice, and has a comprehensive glossary about Buddha then this book is for you. If your desire is to have a resource for the classroom then this book can be that too. It is in reading this book that I discovered the movie Little Buddha, in which I use in conjunction with this text.
I also saw this movie this weekend in Pasadena at the Academy Theatres. It is, like the previous poster mentioned, a Korean film that has a strange mix of comedy and horror. Being a horror film fan, I thoroughly enjoyed the film, but I understand not everyone has this strange fascination with horror films. What I found most interesting was that I had never seen a Korean film before and I didn/t know what to expect. According to the New York Post writer V.A. Mussetto, it is "South Korea's biggest box-office hit ever." As of date it has surpassed two million dollars in the American theatres. There are also plans for an American remake of this tale, which will probably be much less entertaining. (At least that's been my experience with American remakes of various foreign films.) This website has various clips and trailers related to this movie. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/host/trailers.php I enjoyed the mix of horror and humor, but it was a little tiring in a psychological sense. I would definitely recommend it to anyone, especially since it is at the very least entertaining and fun. It's a good movie to watch with friends and have fun commenting on it. According to www.rottentomatoes.com, The Host "also works as a poignant family drama and a biting critique of America's invasion of Iraq." I can definitely see this being used as a discussion starter for creating analogies about the current war. The only thing is I wouldn't be able to show this rated R movie to my students. Maybe I could write a summary of certain scenes and we could discuss various analogies using this. I would definitely use it when I work with my community college students on the weekends.
Wow! "The Host" is a top seller in Korea? It makes me wonder about Korean cinema in general. Not that a "monster" movie would be number one--it has been compared to "Jaws". I just wonder about other Korean films. Do you know of any others? I've seen more than a few Japanese, Indian, and Chinese movies but I can't think of any Korean movies. I read somewhere that there's talk about remaking it in this country but "...they’ll do it all wrong, because in the end, “Gwoemul” is not a monster movie. It’s about a monster that comes between a family." I wonder about that. I bet the CGI will be more sophisticated but I wonder if the movie will retain it's weird and wonderful mixture of horror and humor.
Howl's Moving Castle is an anime film by Hayao Miyazaki, and it is one of my favorite movies he has created. Another film of his titled Spirited Away is much more popular here in the US and can be found in most major movie rental locations. I have shown this film to my students the past two years and they have been captivated by it. I use it for my after school movie club, which meets once a week and views a movie I select once a month, which is then followed by discussions and various projects, including weekly essays, reviews, character analyses, and paintings, among others. If you haven't seen this film, I highly recommend it. Not only is the story ethereal and thought provoking, it is escapism in its most beautiful form. Huh? :P I found some links to this movie on this website. Once you visit it it will take you to the first part, but all the other parts of it are also listed and you can preview the movie in its entirety before you decide to use it with your students. Since it is youtube, you can only view it on non-district computers.
I didn't know this but CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER was loosely based on the "Thunderstorm" by Cao Yu whose one of China's most celebrated twentieth century authors. Can you imagine this movie as a play. Would anyone be left standing from the audience after the play. The movie was visceral enough! The original play was set in 1930's and the main character was a coal-mining company. Yu was influenced by an ancient Greek tragedy. This play could open today in Bejing and feature the kiln factory's boss whose workers were abducted as young as eight years old for slave labor. Charles Dickens and Yu where are you when we need you? Some have reported on other threads about the labor camp. It was also reported in the Los Angeles Times on Saturday June 16,2007 on Page A-3, should anyone wish to reference the author Ching-Ching Ni. [Edit by="jcsmyth on Jun 21, 4:41:02 PM"][/Edit]
In the August 4,2007 edition of the Los Angeles Times, a young Vietnamese Physician left a very intense , emotional, and riveting diary on the period during the Vietnam War. It is on the first page of the Times. As described by Richard C. Paddock, the reviewer, it is simliar to a Vietnamese version of the "The Diary of Anne Frank". The diarist's name is Dr. Dang Thuy Tram. She was killed by American forces at the age of 27 by taking grave personal risks to her personal safety. The diary has become a runaaway bestseller in Vietnam. It may be a good book to check out for some light summer reading since Vietnam is part of East Asia and we did not have the time to devote the time to such an intersting Country. Here is a quote from the diary: "Sadness soaks into my heart just like the long days of rain soak into the earth." She writes this after treating the Viet Cong wounded. Somehow the diary disappeared and then resurfaced when former U.S. Army intelligence officer Frederic Whitehurst gave it to the Vietnam Center at Texax Tech Univerity in Lubbock. Many of the purchasers of the book are young people who did not believe their parents stories about the War. Nhan,63 said ,"Old people want to relive memories. Young people want to know how their parents lived during the war." Like I said this is some light summer reading ,or you may wish to wait for fall and introduce it to an English Literature class where one could explore points of view. [Edit by="jcsmyth on Jun 22, 3:44:47 PM"][/Edit]
This movie is a Singaporean movie which reflects Asian educational philosophy and Singaporean educational system as well as the unique political situation in Singapore. It is a sweet and bitter movie with hilarious dialogues reflecting some students’ frustration within this educational system. The story is about three Singaporean students who have low academic achievement and are considered as hopeless ones by their parents, some teachers in the school, and other people in the society. Therefore, they don’t have self-confidence and self-esteem at all. However, each of them has ones own unique talent and character that help them to earn people’s respect and to build up their confidence after they went through a lot of incidents. This movie reminds me all the time that as a teacher I should not label any child and should give all students equal opportunities to succeed. Any positive encouragement we give to students may impact their learning or even their lives. This movie is the most popular one among all my students in the Chinese classes from grade 6 all the way to seniors in the high school. Somehow they all find a way to relate this movie to their real lives. After watching the movie, many Asian students told me that their parents are very like the parents in the movie. Many students of other ethnics compared and contrasted the Asian educational system to our educational system in the US. A lot of them were curious about my educational background in Taiwan and also asked me questions about the educational situation in China. This movie increased students’ interests and curiosity in learning more about Asian education and a great class discussion arose after watching this movie. Therefore, I highly recommend teachers to watch this movie and let your students to watch it too.
After the extreme success of “I Not Stupid” in Singapore as well as in other Asian countries, the director of the movie continued to produce another one, I Not Stupid Too, to discuss the high school education in Singapore. As the first one, this movie is also a bitter sweet movie to reflect the sadness of some struggling students with low academic achievement in Singaporean educational system. This movie also focuses on the conflicts between parents and teen-aged children and the relationships between school teachers and their teen-aged students. It also reveals two sides of viewpoints about a reasonless punishment, caning in public that exists only in Singaporean educational system. When my students saw this punishment in the movie, they all had confusion and questions about why this kind of punishment still exists in such a modern society. Maybe it will be a good topic to discuss in the class after watching this movie. I highly recommend this movie to teachers who have watched “I Not Stupid” before. You will be touched by the story and will think deeply what a teacher can do to help those students who have really low self-esteem and are looked down by this society.
This novel is written by Lisa See. Although she is the fifth generation of a Chinese American family and doesn’t look like a Chinese at all, she was educated in a very traditional Chinese way and grew up hearing “When a girl, obey your father; when a wife, obey your husband; when a widow, obey your son.” Therefore, she chooses to describe a story of a traditional Chinese girl, Lily, who endured the agony of foot binding, arranged marriages, and the joys and tragedies of motherhood in nineteenth-century China. Lily, at age of six, was paired with another girl, Snow Flower, who sent Lily a silk fan on which she had written a poem in nu shu, a unique language that Chinese women in Hunan province created in order to communicate in secret, away from the influence of men. Through the back and forth nu shu, they both shared loneliness and joys and found solace, developing a bond that kept their spirits alive. However, when a misunderstanding arises, their deep friendship suddenly threatens to tear apart. While reading this story, I feel like to be drawn into a time not as ancient as it seems. I am also deeply touched by the beautiful portrait of female friendship and power in this story. The most vibrant part to me is when Lily described how she and her sister’s feet were bound when they were very young. The excruciating pains are not only their eternal pains but also a very shameful dark page in the Chinese history. As a Chinese female, I can feel those women’s pains while I am reading this chapter of Lily’s life. Although this page of history had been turned, nowadays, Chinese women are still struggling to shake off the binding from the tradition and culture to find their own positions, values, and self-esteem. There are also a lot of questions at the end of this book for readers to discuss. If the teacher wants to use this book as a required reading, these questions may be worth for students to think about and discuss in the class.
This is a wonderful and delightful comedy. The year is 1998 and the World Cup has just been kicked into high gear. But for four young monks living deep in the Himalayas, watching their favorite sport isn't only difficult-it's forbidden. As soccer fever heats up, the young monks break the rules, sneak out of their monastery and risk futures in a madcap adventure that's all for the love of the game. However, the story has a surprised but a very touching ending. This movie is full of the philosophy of Buddhism. It's a must see movie for anyone who has ever been passionate about sports, or life.
The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyong: The Autobiographical Writings of a Crown Princess of Eighteenth-Century Korea
Songs of the Kisaeng : Courtesan Poetry of the Last Korean Dynasty (New American Translations, No 10)
They're all at Amazon.com, and i look foward to building my library with these books.
In addition i've been reading the 8 volume Buddha by Osamu Tezuka. It's manga (anime) style books about the history of Buddha. there are of course some liberties to the historical accuracies and there are some sugestive themes and images which might make it only appropriate to high school or perhaps edited sections for other grade levels. You can find these books at Borders or Barnes and Nobles. Amazon has them used too.
i just got "Very Thai: everyday popular culture" by philip cornwel-smith (ISBN 974-9863-003). reasonable price. it has a lot of pictures and descriptions of the "everyday" thai culture we see in the country. This book is also very cool to show in the elementary school and up level. i've used it in 5th grade. it's hardcover and has lots of things that kids would like to know about another country: toys, street signs, school uniforms, foods, etc.
I watched Memoirs of a Geisha for the asian film that we needed to see. While I enjoyed the movie, I feel a little confused as to what Geishas exactly are. Some argue that geishas are "Classier prostitues" while ither argue they are not prostitutes at all but entertainers. After reading reviews for Memoir of a Gesisha, I expected to see a movie depicting the entertaing geisha as opposed to the prostitute. BUt as I watched the film it is quite clear that geishas are in fact prostitutes, sure they maybe have some extra talent, but at the end of the day people are paying them for sex and their virginity which is clearly prostitution. And although it was a very god movie, and quite enjoyable, I had a problem with the fact that the man fell in love with teh child he had seen many years before. I undertand this is not so rare in other countries, but for em I couldnt truly enjoy the love story because of this situation, I just couldnt look past it. I did very much apprecite the depiction of the geishas and all tehy go through including fierce competition and different types of pain.
I read the children's book, The Samurai's Daughter by Robert D. Sn Souci. The story is a retelling of a Japanese legend. The pictures are beautiful and the story is touching, Tokoyo is separated from her Samurai father and deals with many struggles on her journey to find him. A great example of a strong female character with an independent mind. I would recommend it for all ages.
I would like to recommend Still Life with Rice by Helie Lee. THis is a great book that brides the Korean American experience between immigrant Korean parents and their children who might be born in the United States. Still Life with Rice is a fictional story based on Helie Lee's grandmother's journey to America. She writes about her grandmother's life Korean and the fascinated stories that she never told her American born grand daughter.
After listening to the buzz about the upcoming release of the DVD, Rush Hour 3, starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker, from my high school ninth grade boys, I thought I would take a look at the film to decipher any 'teachable moments' from the comic stunt film. During our field study to China, it was clear that Chinese television advertisers used Jackie Chan endorsements like a dash of salt throughout their programming day. Jackie Chan, who made breaking into the U.S. Film market a personal goal, finally made a name for himself after acting and producing Shanghai Noon , Rush Hour 1 and Rush Hour 2, mostly due to his sense of comic flare with a strong physical environmental influence and his unusual choice to perform his own stunt work.
The movie is the third installment in this comic action film series and it includes, once again, the very popular African American comedian Chris Tucker. Along the same style of delivery that flavored the first two installments, slapstick and corny puns sprinkled into lively chase scenes, this plot line focuses on guarding Ambassador Han, who is about to make a major revelation about the Chinese triads, and his daughter, in the city of Paris. Amid what seemed like countless acts and punch lines centering around African American and Chinese stereotypes, a reference to the Chinese gangs, coined as triads by the British authorities in Hong Kong (due to the triangular shape of the Chinese sign for "secret society") arose as a main plot element in both text and artistic imagery - "Ah, my 'teachable moment.' " I thought.
Many of the students were drawn into the comedy and action; however, when asked just what a Chinese triad was, the classroom fell silent. As a mini cultural lesson comparing and contrasting Italian, Russian, American and Chinese gangs, I began a presentation on the creation, symbolism, purpose, initiation and practices of 'crime societies' including the Chinese triad, featured in this film.
Research shows that in the past, with the hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens coming into the U.S. from the People's Republic of China, that most of the aliens, even when caught, can escape deportation by claiming "birth control persecution." As a result, many of the United States crime investigating teams have shifted their focus to the Chinese transnational crime organization infiltration. These gangs are traffiking drugs, enabling prostitution of youths, particpating in money laundering, providing gambling rings, smuggling aliens and involved in extortion throughout China and the West. The triads, evidence reveals, were formed as resistance groups to non-Chinese invaders during the Manchu-Qing Dynasty during the seventeeth century; however, when the Qing dynasty dissolved, the gangs did not. (Bolz)
During the last 50 years, many of the triads have surfaced due to the disorganization and fragility of the Chinese nation and are operating their own illegal economies in China and in the West. One of the largest gangs, the Sun Yee On, is said to control 56,000 members worldwide (Bolz) and this is the gang that is made reference to in the Chan sequel.
The central woman figure, Kenji , who masks her shaved head bearing the names of the top members of the secret society in Chinese characters, begins as an enemy/temptress to Tucker and then becomes the very person they must protect, along with the Chinese Ambassdor Han and his daughter.
While you will probably get a better glimpse of Chan's sense of humor and use of physical environment from the Olympic Visa commercial at http://youtube.com/watch?v+RKAtwK1tOaE, there are two reasons to catch a glimpse of this culturally iconic film, to meet the students where their interests already are and to become familiar with one of the most popular Chinese actors and commercial spokespersons, Jackie Chan.
So, in to wrap this review up, sometimes it can be beneficial to meet the students on 'their turf' in order to engage them and take them to 'the next level.'
Anyhow...it worked well.
-Susan Pavelka Gregg
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Yimou Zhang's Academy Award nominated film features Yun Fat Chow as the Emperor Ping and Li Gong at the Emperess Phoenix during 10th century China. This visually rich epic brings the grandeur what would later be known as the Tang dynasty into full color. The symbolism in the film is clearly highlighted with the cinematographer capturing a glimpse of the dragon figure on the emperor's clock and the golden chrysanthemums that the Empress is creating daily. As the idea of heaven and earth are defined through the Emperor's words and the family's dining area, we are reminded of everyone's rightful place in the universe, not completely out of touch with the Elizabethan Golden Chain of Being. The costumes and set design are nothing less than spectacular along with the way the ceremonies are captured en masse with regard to the homecoming of the Emperor and the preparation for the upcoming festival of the golden flowers. As we learn the symbolism behind the festival, we see the contrast as the royal family's situation is put up against these ideals. This film slowly unveils the traditions, rules and pain that is endured to perpetuate the formalities of the dynasty under the Emperor. We learn of the underhandedness of the Emperor with regard to his first wife and first son. The film is a visual feast for the viewer and an understandable tale which defines the strain of secret lives and the repressive responsibilities of maintaining the outward appearance of perfection. The final scene of the film which is reminicent of a Greek tragedy, as the family kills one another off during the course of a bloody drama is graphic; however, the moment the war inside the Forbidden City has concluded, the cleaning begins and the stage is reset in all of its golden glow with fresh pots of chysanthemums to welcome the festival. Ironic, poignant and quite educational. A good film for discussing symbolism in the classroom.
During the holiday season, with the host of men in my family, I was encouraged to rent the film, 3:10 to Yuma, starring Russell Crowe, Cristian Bale and Peter Fonda. To my surprise, I discovered in the first scene, that one of my former conservatory students, Logan Lerman, was featured as the son of the rancher portrayed by Cristian Bale. Boy, has he grown up. As this Western continued, I was reintroduced to several locations in Arizona where I had enjoyed many family vacations, years ago. As the film progressed, the conflict of getting Wade Biggs(Crowe) to the train in Yuma intensified with the Pinkerton investigator(Fonda), the rancher(Bale) and others working their way through the lands of the Apache and coming upon...the next surprise...the Chinese railway workers. While the director does not presume that the Calvary, cowboys, railway systems and the Wells Fargo Banks all happened at the same time, he gives himself Hollywood license to conjoin the events that helped to shape the West. A featurette on the historical background behind the making of the film, includes information regarding the infamous Jesse James and his family, the Earp brothers, Doc Holiday, and the Chinese. So, the discovery seemed to be - One never knows where a few interesting insights can surface, even when you select the film at gunpoint.
Might be a good way of including some Chinese culture for the social studies teachers in the group. :-D [Edit by="spavelkagregg on Jan 11, 8:23:11 PM"][/Edit] [Edit by="spavelkagregg on Jan 12, 8:15:04 PM"][/Edit]
We saw clips of this film in our class and I had previously seen the film years ago, so I decided to rent the movie again. I think the film is a great one to teach about some of the major periods in the 20th century China. It goes through Pre and Post World War 2, civil war, and the cultural revolution. I really did not know much about the cultural revolution before seeing this film and it was a great visual as to what people in China actually experienced during this time. I would highly recommend this film to any social science teacher who is teaching about 20th century China. The film is rather long so clips of each section would be better served. I personally cant use this film in my chemistry class, but I can see it easily being integrated in most other language arts or social studies course. Thanks.
in March 2008, comic book stores will be releasing a Virgin Comics Llc publication of "Buddha Story Of Enlightenment" by Deepak Chopra. While fictional, it is an interesting way to bring into the class the love of comics with some historical / cultural themes that be used as discussion points.
I have been teaching this Akira Kurosawa film for about 6 years in my Humanities classes. I have seen several of Kurosawa's films and feel that this is his best. Maybe I am a sucker for the story, which is a spin on Shakespeare's KING LEAR. I love the way Kurosawa re-tells the Bard's story in a Japanese context.
The cinematography and direction is amazing. Kurosawa loved painting as a young man and it is evident in every shot of this film. His use of color is so carefully planned. It is no wonder that this is the one film he was given an Academy Award nomination for. The acting in the film is an obvious homage to Japanese Noh theater. The woman who plays Lady Kaede gives such a demonic performance that she puts Lady Macbeth to shame.
THE SEVEN SAMURAI is often considered Kurosawa's masterpiece, but I think people should give this film a look before making that judgement. Kurosawa has done Shakespeare before, (Throne of Blood = Macbeth), but that film pales in comparison.
It's interesting to see the degree of change that Kurosawa's directorship goes through via films. I do agree that his use of colors are carefully chosen -- the nuance of Japanese culture is subtlety but Kurosawa takes it one step further and brings a vibrancy that's tangible. He goes from Extroversion to introspection--his later films have deep layers of emotional complexity that is sometimes, better articulated by non-verbal means rather than dialog. Ran, in my opinion, is an extremely personal and emotional film.
Has anyone read Beijing Girl? I recently picked it up and am about a third of the way into reading it. It is a story about a teenage girl, kind of a rebellious, coming of age story. I will elaborate when I finish.
When I was grad school a teacher friend of mine put me onto an amazing anime called "Barefoot Gen". I have showed the film in both my world and united states history classes. It will give your students perspective on the bomb from the Japanese point of view. In addition, the film shows the horrible human and econological consequences of the bomb. My students, at all levels, have loved the film, and always want me to show the entire film. I have actually had some come in during lunch to watch the rest of the movie. Check it out and see what you think
Yes, the documentary is based on the book by Gavin Menzies. Zheng He's boats were three times the size of Columbus' boats which sailed to America 80 years later.
A former professor of mine, Robert Marks, wrote a book a few years back (which he had some seniors, myself included, help him edit) called the Origins of the Modern World. I highly recommend it. It traces Europe's rise to dominance from a "non-Eurocentric" point of view. The story begins with the Chinese removing their fleet from the Indian Ocean allowing the Portuguese to take over trade routes in that ocean and the rest is history...
In the bargain section of Barnes and Noble (Encino), I found a bunch of beautifully illustrated large-format books on the terra cotta army of the first Qin Emperor. What makes this book especially great for elementary school classrooms is that each page contains a big jigsaw puzzle of a photo from the museum housing the warriors in Xi'an. The book also contains a lot of material about the discovery and restoration of the warriors, as well as their original purpose and means of construction. The book is under $15. Check the "Bargain History" section. Similar puzzle books also exist for the Italian Renaissance and Ancient Egypt.
Although I did not see the movie, I do want to point out that the movie was a very "Hollywoodized" version of the book. The image of the actress in her kimono was not authentic--she was made to look very sensual and sexy. When she was dressed in her kimono, the way she was dressed was not dressed "correctly." When she performed her Japanese dance as part of her entertainment, the dance was not an authentic dance--it was modified to appeal to the American audience. The reason I know this is because the consultant was a member of the Japanese classical dance world of which I am familiar, and her suggestions and advice were overridden in favor of the appeal that it would have on the American movie viewer. I guess that's show business. As far as the question of prostitution, geisha were considered professional entertainers who had to study different cultural arts such as Japanese dance, tea ceremony, classical music (playing the shamisen and singing) because their role was to entertain wealthy and influential men. I've read that in the mid-1600s. geisha were considered to be elegant models of good taste, but in the 1700s, this changed. While some geisha still practiced their arts in good taste, many others lived either in special districts or on their own and prostitution was part of their business, in addition to their arts. Others, on the other hand, were not considered the true geisha because they were not culturally trained, but were simply prostitutes. So there were different classifications and levels of geisha. Some politicians even today have a geisha, sometimes a high-ranking one, as part of his "standing." [Edit by="willoughbyak on Mar 16, 9:03:37 PM"][/Edit]
I've always been a big sci-fi/fantasy book reader, so I was intriuged by a series I saw at B&N called "The Guin Saga". It was described as a top Japanese epic saga with over 100 installments thus far. The First book "The Leopard Mask" introduces the main characters, the twin child regents Rinda and Remus, and the hero Guin.
I was not entirely impressed by this first novel, and probably will not read another. The style of writing (or at least the translation), plot, dialouge...really everything...was pretty primitive as the sci-fi/fantasy genre goes. It really reminded me of the John Carter books by Edgar Rice Burroughs; very straightforeward plot, hack and slash action, the lone hero in a forigen world (except reversed, the hero is not human, the world is), so on.
The novel did make me wonder about the cultural signifigance of twins, leopards, and masks. I am also curious about the description of the twins. The twins are light skinned with platinum hair (no mention of albino type eyes though), what could be the signifigance of that? Any thoughts from others on any of those topics?
Oldboy is definately not a film for the classroom. I saw this film at a friend's house, and was absolutely floored by its level of intensity. This is a revenge thriller suspense type movie whose core revolves around an almost universal cultural taboo (I don't want to spoil it so I won't get into this). I will describe the first 20 minutes or so of the film in general terms to give you a general idea of the plot, but you HAVE to see this movie if its you're type of film.
The story begins with a pair of drunk businessman. One reminds the other that its his daughter's birthday, so they stumble over to a payphone to make a sloppy drunken happy birthday to the daughter he should have been with that night. The father says happy birthday, and buddy asks to get on the phone to give his well wishes. When the buddy turns around to pass the phone back, the father is gone. Completely and uttlerly gone.
The father wakes up in a nicely appointed and sized motel room...and the door is locked. He is there for 15 years. He goes through cycles of lucidity and insanity, and is occasionally sleep gassed when he becomes too violent, or sometimes for no reason at all.
15 years later he wakes up in a tight, dark space, and bursts out to find himself on a high rise rooftop, packed into a large suitcase, dressed in a suit, holding a cellphone, with the knowledge that he has 5 days to find out who did it to him, and why.
Completely mind blowing and "Saw" like in its violence and intensity at times, this film will keep your teeth grinding, and your butt at the edge of the seat.[Edit by="mvhudnall on Mar 19, 11:53:33 AM"][/Edit]
Anyone interested in introducing the topics of Manga and Anime to the classroom should check out the extras section of the Animatrix DVD. This was a DVD of Matrix inspired animated short films released sometime after the second or third matrix movie. There is a section that contains a 20min film on the history of Anime and Manga in Japan that is extremely interesting, and great for the classroom. Theres only one hitch. You have to record it to a tape or another source and edit out about 10 seconds worth of film that discusses how there are manga that are focused on almost any interest or lifestyle, including some racier ones. I have edited the film and used it in class with great results. Students are always interested to learn how the appearance and animation style was influenced by western standards, and the budget limitations of their local production studios.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention. This video is also GREAT because it brings up the fact that Japan is the first and only post-nuculear apocolyptic culture in the world, and that its culture since world war two heavily reflects this. Check out the film Akira for a great example of this, and as an intro to the Anime genre.[Edit by="mvhudnall on Mar 19, 12:06:32 PM"][/Edit]
I finally rented Ang Lee's "Lust Caution" that was in the theatres a few months ago. Although the original was rated NC 17, at Blockbusters they only rent out the rated R version. Blockbusters is a family video store and does not carry anything beyond rated R movies. Either way, I thought the movie was great. From what I heard, the movie sounded pornographic. Maybe it was because I rented the tamed down rated R version, but I saw the film as risque but definitely not that. Either way, the story line held up through the entire film. I'm not a film expert or even close. I know what I like and what I dont like. I liked the film a lot. Gong Li was also an amazing actress.
I rented this film thinking that it might be one I could show my 11th grade high school kids. I could definitely show them part of it and explain the rest, but the R rating is for a few sexual scenes that definitely are not appropriate.
The film is from a Korean writer and director and won awards at Sundance and the Toronto film festivals. It definitely deserved them. The film is said to be a Buddhist fable. The lessons it shows through the narrative definitely are Buddhist in origin, but have a lot to say about humanity in general.
The part of the film I would show my class and use as part of a lesson would be the beginning "Spring" where a young boy is living with a Buddhist priest/healer. The boy is a typical child who is prone to mischief in his discovery of the world. He finds it humorous to tie stones to various animals and see them struggle. He ties one to a fish, a frog, and a snake. The priest sees him do this and patiently thinks of a way to teach the boy a lesson about his actions. While the boy sleeps, he ties a heavy rock to his back. He tells the boy he must free the animals from the stones. If any of them have died, he will carry around the stone around in his heart forever. Both the fish and the snake had died. They boy cried.
I would stop the film there and talk about the literal and metaphorical meanings of the scene. I'd have the students talk about humanity's obligation to the natural world. What is our moral imperative regarding nature? I'd also have them discuss what the stones metaphorically mean. What boulders do we carry around with us through life? How can we loosen ourselves from their weight? What would it mean to free ourselves? How do we help others? Should we help others or is it their life path of discovery that must set them free?
The rest of the movie is a great lesson in the Buddhist idea of freeing oneself of earthly attachments. The priest tells the boy that the awakening of lust in one's heart leads to the awakening of murderous intentions. Sure enough the boy runs away with his new lover, ends up killing her when she has an affair, and goes to jail. The priest helps the boy when he returns by helping to set him free of his anger. The boy, now a man, takes the place of the priest when the priest dies and is entrusted with a young boy of his own to raise.
The title is obviously a reference to the cyclical continuum of life. As we go through our own life, what burdens do we carry? How do we release ourselves from them?
"What do 100,000 readers know that you don't? Learn more about this best selling, ground-breaking book, embraced by thousands who want to improve their health and their lives. Summarily ignored by the mainstream media, the ground-swell support speaks volumes about the importance of this provocative and timely book by Dr. T. Colin Campbell and Thomas M. Campbell II.
The science is clear. The results are unmistakable.
Change your diet and dramatically reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and obesity."
The market is full of phrasebooks and low-level disctionaries for the tourist. One of the best English-Thai dictionaries is the two-volume “New Model English-Thai Dictionary.” (ISBN 974-07-5042-7). It’s very comprehensive. With examples of usage, and multiiple meanings.
In terms of Thai-English there are two dictionaries that are a cut above the rest: the Mary Haas “Thai-English Student’s Dictionary” (Stanford University Press). This is a great tool for students and those learning the language. It is written for the learner of the language. Research the author Mary Haas, she has a very interesting life story.
The second dictionary I recommend is the McFarland “Thai-English Dictionary” (ISBN 0-8047-0383-3). This very detailed dictionary is primarily one for those with an advanced knowledge of the language.
When I was a student in Thailand I had a teacher who later went to write a Spanish-Thai dictionary.
“DK Eyewitness: Buddhism” (ISBN 0-7894-9833-2) is a great visual for students and adults alike. As with most DK books, it gives explanations with its multitude of pictures. But it is limited and gives more of an overview than being a refrence guide.
“Buddhism of Dummies” (ISBN-10: 0764553593)
(ISBN-13: 978-0764553592
is a good book that gives quick points and information about terminology and the such.[Edit by="dcolato on Feb 2, 9:39:41 PM"][/Edit]
I spent many an hour looking for the best tourist guide book. I knew most get dated quick, and without pictures to stimulate me while I was reading, there would be no point in getting one. There are three tourist guide books for Thailand that I found very useful in terms of visuals, explanation, and history. If up-to-date information is needed, there are plenty of free guides once you get to the airport. But these three are a great for the 18 hour plane ride there:
“DK Eyewitness: Thailand” (ISBN-10: 0756601746)
(ISBN-13: 978-0756601744)
Great pictures, diagrams, and information covering all 4 regions.
“The National Geographic Traveler: Thailand” (ISBN 0-7922-7943-3). National Geographic said they were pros in pictures so why not take a chance with them. They were right. The book has stunning pictures and detailed information on the country, the food, climate, etc. It’s worth the premium price.
“Knopf Guides: Thailand” (ISBN 0-375-71107-4). This is a smaller book than most but the reason I bought this first is because of the history and pictures.There is a lot of detail in this book: from the different architecture styles, to the artistic styles, this book covers a lot. It could easily be enlarged and double as a textbook for a student of Thai culture.[Edit by="dcolato on Feb 2, 9:38:43 PM"][/Edit]
The Story of Mahajanaka (ISBN 974-8364-71-2) is a story (a re-telling) by King Rama IX, the current king of Thailand. Translated decently enough it involves myths and legends. The illustrations are reminisant of the traditional Thai mural paintings. Worth the quick read.
There is niether time nor a desire to give a detailed synopsis of each of the following books, but suffice to say that I have enjoyed them:
The Falcon of Siam (ISBN 974-91949-7-7)
Anna and the King of Siam (ISBN 0-06-095488-4)
1421 (ISBN 0-965-73128-6)
Fire Pheasant (ISBN 0-7088-4466-9)
Swimming to Cambodia (ISBN 0-930452-50-x)
Kicking Dogs (ISBN 974-210-541-3)
Phaic Tan (ISBN -10: 0-8118-5365-9)
(ISBN -13: 978-0-8118-5365-1)
Tao Te Ching (ISBN 0-965-064759)
The Tibetan Book of the Dead (ISBN 0-965-64760)
Bangkok 8 (ISBN-10: 1400032903)
(ISBN-13: 978-1400032907)
Bangkok Tatoo (ISBN 1-4000-3291-1)
Thai Amulet (ISBN-10: 0425194876)
(ISBN-13: 978-0425194874)
The Travels of Marco Polo
An easy Thai history book is the 2nd edition “Thailand” (ISBN 0-300-08475-7). There many other history books that are in English that I found in Thailand, but the cost is always premium overseas, even with the generous exchange rate.
There seems to be a Tarot Deck of cards for everyone. And recently a Thai version was created: “Siamese Tarot” (Jiku’s Books www.thaitarotmaster.com) is cool version to have. Ever since the HBO series Carnivale prominently displayed Tarot cards in the opening I got interested in them, and these Thai ones are beautifully illustrated with Thai traditional artwork.
When my wife first cam et came to America I thought that children’s literature would be a fun way to improve her English. So I searched the public libraries for books that dealt with her home country of Thailand...now all she reads is Nicholas Sparks...
Silent Lotus (ISBN 0-374-36911-9)
The Girl who Wore too Much (ISBN-10: 0874835038)
(ISBN-13: 978-0874835038)
Hush! A Thai Lullaby (ISBN-10: 0531071669)
(ISBN-13: 978-0531071663 )
Peek!Hide and Seek (ISBN-10: 0763620416)
(ISBN-13: 978-0763620417 )
Once I was a Monkey (ISBN-10: 0374335486)
(ISBN-13: 978-0374335489)
Concerning documentaries, the best was one done by Nova of PBS called "The Genius That Was China," a four part documentary of the technological and social history of China from ancient inventions and technology through the Opium Wars to the domination by foreign powers. The series includes an unrivaled episode, number 3, on the Meiji Empire. I do not believe that this series is available anywhere, except through load libraries. I do have the complete series; however, do to copyright laws I am reticent to distribute it. NBeck
The History Channel has been broadcasting a special on Ghengis Khan. I found it very interesting especially with the information I have been learning in the seminar.
I've just returned from seeing the Korean film, "The Host." It was a weird mix of horror movie and comedy, very uneven, overlong, but mildly entertaining. The premise is very Godzila-like. A mutant fish-lizard creature grows in the Han River--the result of chemical dumping from an American military base. The creature wreaks mayhem and captures a beach vendor's daughter. The movie, then, is his (and his family's) attempt to rescue the girl. Along the way there's references to SARS, government cover-ups, and ecological irresponsibility. The film suffers from identity crisis, I think. THe director should have full out for farce especially with such a cheesy monster. I did like the unexpected touches (such as a HAZ-MAT official trying to use the television newscast to give an official update). I understand the movie is loosely based on an actual incident that occured in Korean in 2000 when formaldehyde was dumped into the sink's in a mortician's lab. The chemicals passed through a treatment plant but there still were protests. Try this link for a trailer: www.hostmovie.com
I've recently read A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park. It is the story of Tree-ear, a Korean orphan living near what is now Seoul during the mid to late 12th century. Tree-Ear manages to get himself apprenticed to Min, a master celadon potter. The story is a Newbery winner about the artistry of the potters and the importance of celadon stoneware. This is a very accessible story that would middle school students would enjoy. It would be a great read-aloud. Park gives a great deal of detail about life in Korea and provides notes about the historical context (referencing China and its relationship to Korea) and the ancient process of making and firing celadon pottery.
Sunday March 18, 2007, 7:00 pm
THE EMPEROR'S NAKED ARMY MARCHES ON (Yuki Yukite shingun, 1987)
Los Angeles Filmforum will be screening the documentaries directed by
Japanese filmmaker Kazuo Hara. This is a rare opportunity to see
these remarkable films, none of which are in regular theatrical
distribution in the United States. This set of four films has been
touring the United States, and this will be their only Los Angeles
appearance. One film, "The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On," will be
coming out on DVD in March from Facets video. All of the films will
challenge the viewer's ideas of decorum, personal revelation, and the
possibilities of relentless cinema verité.
Screening Details:
All screenings at the Spielberg Theatre at the Egyptian Theatre, 6712
Hollywood Blvd. at Las Palmas. $9 general; $6 students/seniors; free
for Filmforum members. Cash and check only.
Parking is available at the Hollywood & Highland complex, $2 for 4
hours with validation, available at the Egyptian Theatre. Street
parking is often available as well. Or take the Red Line to Hollywood
& Highland. Email us for a reservation at lafilmforum@yahoo.com. We
aren't able to presell tickets, but will hold reservations until 6:45 pm.
Sunday March 18, 2007, 7:00 pm - THE EMPEROR'S NAKED ARMY MARCHES ON
(Yuki Yukite shingun, 1987, 122 min.; 35mm, color)
Sunday, March 25, 2007, 7:00 pm - EXTREME PRIVATE EROS: LOVE SONG 1974
(Gokushiteki erosu: Renka 1974; 98 min,16mm, b&w )
Wednesday, March 28, 2007, 7:30 pm GOODBYE CP (Sayonara CP, 1972, 82
min., 16mm, b&w)
Thursday, March 29, 2007, 7:30 pm - A DEDICATED LIFE (Zenshin
shosetsuka, 1994, 157 min., 35mm, color)
"I make bitter films. I hate mainstream society." Kazuo Hara
Born in 1945, Kazuo Hara made a debut with Goodbye CP (Sayonara CP,
1972), and shocked audiences with its frank portrayal of handicapped
with cerebral palsy. Two years later, Hara again sent a shock wave in
the Japanese film industry with Extreme Private Eros: Love Song 1974
(Kyokushiteki erosu koiuta 1974, 1974). The film chronicled a
love-triangle between Hara, and his ex-wife Takeda Miyuki (the main
subject of the film). Hara's third film The Emperor's Naked Army
Marches On (Yukiyukite shingun, 1987) won awards at Berlin Film
Festival and Rotterdam Film Festival and it was the most talked about
film of the year in Japan. Five years in the making, the film traces a
crusade for truth of Okuzaki Kenzo, a radical left wing activist and
also a survivor of the battlefields of New Guinea in World War II.
Hara also has directed various TV documentaries and worked as
assistant director in feature films such as Kei Kumai's Berlin Silver
Bear winner, The Sea and Poison (Umi to Dokuyaku, 1986). The Many
Faces of Chika (2005) is Hara's first fiction feature film.
Kazuo Hara has been making scandalous films about scandalous people
since 1972. He made his debut with GOODBYE CP, which shocked Japanese
audiences with its frank portrayal of people with cerebral palsy. He
describes his work as "overstepping the boundaries set by society in
order to approach my subjects in close-up." Having left the Tokyo
Technical Institute of Photography because "photography only allowed
me to get to know people on a superficial level," he decided instead
to start an independent career which would bridge the gap between the
two great extremes of documentary filmmaking of the last thirty years:
the collective documentary of the 60s and the private films of the
90s. Hara's work reveals how life stories are constructed across the
border between fiction and reality.
Tonight:
The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On
(Yuki Yukite shingun)
1987 / 122 min. / 16mm / Color
Director/Cinematographer: Kazuo Hara
Producer: Sachiko Kobayashi
Berlin Film Festival 1987
New Directors / New Films 1988
"THE EMPEROR'S NAKED ARMY MARCHES ON is a brilliant exploration of
memory and war guilt, a subject often ignored in modern Japan. In this
controversial documentary, Kazuo Hara follows Kenzo Okuzaki in his
real-life struggle against Emperor Hirohito. He proudly declares that
he shot BBs at the Royal Palace, distributed pornographic images of
the Emperor, and once killed a man for the sake of his strange
crusade. As the film progresses, Okuzaki reveals a gruesome mystery:
why were some Japanese officers killing their own soldiers during
WWII? What happened to their bodies? Okuzaki begs, cajoles, and
occasionally beats the story out of elderly veterans. When these old
men do break down and talk, their testimonies are some of the most
chilling, riveting descriptions of wartime desperation ever committed
to film. In his desire to unearth these horrors, Okuzaki's behavior
grows increasingly extreme and bizarre. By the film's end, Hara seems
to ask whether the terrible nature of this buried incident is worth
the violence of Okuzaki's methods. Jonathan Crow, ALLMOVIE GUIDE
"The most invigorating thing about `The Emperor's Naked Army Marches
On' is its consistent irreverence. It doesn't mean to be polite or
nice or soothing. It means to provoke and disturb - and let the devil
take the hindmost."
- Vincent Canby, The New York Times
"SENSATIONAL IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD!...
one of the most astonishing documentaries I've ever seen
Absolutely not to be missed."
- John Powers, LA Weekly
"The Emperor's Naked Army makes you think the incredible power of
truth-seeking."
- Errol Morris
REVIEWS:
The New York Times Review - Excerpt
The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On
By VINCENT CANBY Published: March 15, 1988, Tuesday
The New Directors/New Films festival is presenting a number of
unconventional documentaries, but none as alarming and significantly
lunatic as ''The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On,'' conceived by
Shohei Imamura (''Vengeance Is Mine'') and directed by Kazuo Hara as
his first feature.
Its central figure is Kenzo Okuzaki, 65 years old, a World War II
veteran who lives in Kobe with his pliant, uncomplaining wife, whom we
later learn is dying of cancer. At the start of the film, Kenzo has
already spent 13 years 9 months in jail. His crimes: plotting to
assassinate a former Prime Minister, attempting to hit the Emperor
with lead pellets fired with a sling shot and distributing
pornographic pictures of the Emperor to people outside a Tokyo
department store.
Kenzo is a political activist. He's also a marriage broker. In an
astonishing and funny precredit sequence, we see him delivering a
wedding feast homily in which he recalls his years in jail and
suggests that all countries and, indeed, all families are barriers to
the true brotherhood of man. The bride and groom listen with eyes
lowered, as if this were the sort of thing every bride and groom
expected to hear on their wedding day.
From everything the audience sees, Kenzo Okuzaki is a certifiable
psychotic, though ''The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On'' never
addresses this suspicion. He's the sort of fellow who writes long,
crazily incoherent letters to editors, confronts people on street
corners and harangues them with a loudspeaker from his van. It could
be that Mr. Hara thinks the psychotic state is the only sane response
to the contradictions in contemporary Japanese society.
Whatever the film director thinks, he never says. Instead he follows
Kenzo around Japan as the former soldier tries to get at the truth of
something that happened more than 40 years ago - the execution of
three of his army comrades when they were serving in New Guinea at the
end of the war.
The audience never understands just why, at this late date, Kenzo
decides to investigate these events, the details of which remain
fuzzy. With Mr. Hara and a camera crew in tow, Kenzo calls on former
officers and enlisted men he thinks were responsible for ordering the
executions. There are suggestions that the men were condemned for
desertion or for cannibalism. There's the further suggestion that they
were executed to provide meat for their starving comrades.
TIME OUT LONDON REVIEW
The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On
A documentary portrait of Kenzo Okuzaki, a 62-year-old WWII veteran
who acquired a prison record (for killing a man and for firing
pachinko balls at the Emperor) in the course of his fanatical campaign
to lay the blame for Japan's conduct of the war on the Emperor. Here
the self-proclaimed messenger of God seeks to uncover what truly
happened in New Guinea in 1945, 23 days after the war ended, when two
Japanese soldiers were killed by their colleagues in very mysterious
circumstances. The outcome of his investigations is gruesomely weird
(cannibalism figures heavily), but stranger still is his style of
interrogation, a volatile mix of apologetic politeness, deceit (his
wife and anarchist friend pose as victims' relatives), and sudden
violence, so relentless that one of his many ageing interviewees,
fresh from hospital, ends up in an ambulance. Kazuo Hara's
fly-on-the-wall documentary fascinates both for its bizarre
protagonist, and for its brutally frank portrait of a society
constrained by notions of shame rather than guilt. Jigsaw-like in
construction, alleviated by mad wit, the film is unlike any other:
rough, raw and sometimes surprisingly moving, it's absolutely
compelling. GA
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Definitely worth recording. Students will really enjoy it. Highlights engineering feats from the beginning of the empire.
Does anyone know of a good resource for finding middle school level myths and legends from Asia? I want to do a unit comparing similar stories from around the world and recognizing universal themes. I already do this unit on a small scale when studying Greek mythology, but I want to expand and include myths from all over the world - I'm hoping for book or internet site that will give me a good list to go off of.
A book that I have read that I would like to recommend is An Introduction to the Buddha and His teachings edited by Bercholz and Kohn. ( ISBN 0-7607-0636-0 ) The book uses several masters on variety topics to “Introduce” the reader to Buddha. The book is divided into four parts. The first two and the glossary are the one’s that provided to be the most helpful for me in the class. I have used it for personal enlightenment and in the classroom. I think it is the classroom use it has been the greatest use to me.
It’s in the first part is focused on the life of Buddha or Siddhartha. I have used this information and other resources to develop a project for my class to compare Siddhartha’s life to that of Jesus. The timeline of Siddhartha is just before birth to his enlightenment. As for Jesus it is just before his birth to his death as the timeline. It was not till after I read the story that I realized that both lives were so similar. My students find the lives of these two to be remarkably similar. It is in this comparison I believe the students gain a new insight that this once foreign religion may be not as strange as they once thought. I will not go into the comparisons, but to say that both believed in reincarnation in one form or another.
The second part goes into the basic teachings of Buddha. It is in this section I lecture to the students about the similar messages Jesus and Buddha had on moral conduct. I use the “Middle Way” from Buddha because it is this concept that the students can easily understand. The main message for both I believe is to be a good person.
The last two parts are on the other schools of thought, Mahayana and Vajrayana, and meditation. It is these two sections I have spent the least reading and with the class. It is the glossary I find to be the most important. It has helped me in understanding this book, but in my other readings of Buddha. I find the explanations easy to understand and it is quite comprehensive.
If you are looking for a book that focuses on the basics, written towards the novice, and has a comprehensive glossary about Buddha then this book is for you. If your desire is to have a resource for the classroom then this book can be that too. It is in reading this book that I discovered the movie Little Buddha, in which I use in conjunction with this text.
I also saw this movie this weekend in Pasadena at the Academy Theatres. It is, like the previous poster mentioned, a Korean film that has a strange mix of comedy and horror. Being a horror film fan, I thoroughly enjoyed the film, but I understand not everyone has this strange fascination with horror films.
What I found most interesting was that I had never seen a Korean film before and I didn/t know what to expect. According to the New York Post writer V.A. Mussetto, it is "South Korea's biggest box-office hit ever." As of date it has surpassed two million dollars in the American theatres. There are also plans for an American remake of this tale, which will probably be much less entertaining. (At least that's been my experience with American remakes of various foreign films.)
This website has various clips and trailers related to this movie.
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/host/trailers.php
I enjoyed the mix of horror and humor, but it was a little tiring in a psychological sense. I would definitely recommend it to anyone, especially since it is at the very least entertaining and fun. It's a good movie to watch with friends and have fun commenting on it.
According to www.rottentomatoes.com, The Host "also works as a poignant family drama and a biting critique of America's invasion of Iraq." I can definitely see this being used as a discussion starter for creating analogies about the current war. The only thing is I wouldn't be able to show this rated R movie to my students. Maybe I could write a summary of certain scenes and we could discuss various analogies using this. I would definitely use it when I work with my community college students on the weekends.
Wow! "The Host" is a top seller in Korea? It makes me wonder about Korean cinema in general. Not that a "monster" movie would be number one--it has been compared to "Jaws". I just wonder about other Korean films. Do you know of any others? I've seen more than a few Japanese, Indian, and Chinese movies but I can't think of any Korean movies. I read somewhere that there's talk about remaking it in this country but "...they’ll do it all wrong, because in the end, “Gwoemul” is not a monster movie. It’s about a monster that comes between a family." I wonder about that. I bet the CGI will be more sophisticated but I wonder if the movie will retain it's weird and wonderful mixture of horror and humor.
Howl's Moving Castle is an anime film by Hayao Miyazaki, and it is one of my favorite movies he has created. Another film of his titled Spirited Away is much more popular here in the US and can be found in most major movie rental locations.
I have shown this film to my students the past two years and they have been captivated by it. I use it for my after school movie club, which meets once a week and views a movie I select once a month, which is then followed by discussions and various projects, including weekly essays, reviews, character analyses, and paintings, among others.
If you haven't seen this film, I highly recommend it. Not only is the story ethereal and thought provoking, it is escapism in its most beautiful form. Huh? :P
I found some links to this movie on this website. Once you visit it it will take you to the first part, but all the other parts of it are also listed and you can preview the movie in its entirety before you decide to use it with your students. Since it is youtube, you can only view it on non-district computers.
I didn't know this but CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER was loosely based on the "Thunderstorm" by Cao Yu whose one of China's most celebrated twentieth century authors. Can you imagine this movie as a play. Would anyone be left standing from the audience after the play. The movie was visceral enough! The original play was set in 1930's and the main character was a coal-mining company. Yu was influenced by an ancient Greek tragedy. This play could open today in Bejing and feature the kiln factory's boss whose workers were abducted as young as eight years old for slave labor. Charles Dickens and Yu where are you when we need you? Some have reported on other threads about the labor camp. It was also reported in the Los Angeles Times on Saturday June 16,2007 on Page A-3, should anyone wish to reference the author Ching-Ching Ni. [Edit by="jcsmyth on Jun 21, 4:41:02 PM"][/Edit]
In the August 4,2007 edition of the Los Angeles Times, a young Vietnamese Physician left a very intense , emotional, and riveting diary on the period during the Vietnam War. It is on the first page of the Times. As described by Richard C. Paddock, the reviewer, it is simliar to a Vietnamese version of the "The Diary of Anne Frank". The diarist's name is Dr. Dang Thuy Tram. She was killed by American forces at the age of 27 by taking grave personal risks to her personal safety. The diary has become a runaaway bestseller in Vietnam. It may be a good book to check out for some light summer reading since Vietnam is part of East Asia and we did not have the time to devote the time to such an intersting Country.
Here is a quote from the diary: "Sadness soaks into my heart just like the long days of rain soak into the earth." She writes this after treating the Viet Cong wounded.
Somehow the diary disappeared and then resurfaced when former U.S. Army intelligence officer Frederic Whitehurst gave it to the Vietnam Center at Texax Tech Univerity in Lubbock.
Many of the purchasers of the book are young people who did not believe their parents stories about the War. Nhan,63 said ,"Old people want to relive memories. Young people want to know how their parents lived during the war."
Like I said this is some light summer reading ,or you may wish to wait for fall and introduce it to an English Literature class where one could explore points of view. [Edit by="jcsmyth on Jun 22, 3:44:47 PM"][/Edit]
Chinese Movie Review—I Not Stupid
This movie is a Singaporean movie which reflects Asian educational philosophy and Singaporean educational system as well as the unique political situation in Singapore. It is a sweet and bitter movie with hilarious dialogues reflecting some students’ frustration within this educational system.
The story is about three Singaporean students who have low academic achievement and are considered as hopeless ones by their parents, some teachers in the school, and other people in the society. Therefore, they don’t have self-confidence and self-esteem at all. However, each of them has ones own unique talent and character that help them to earn people’s respect and to build up their confidence after they went through a lot of incidents. This movie reminds me all the time that as a teacher I should not label any child and should give all students equal opportunities to succeed. Any positive encouragement we give to students may impact their learning or even their lives.
This movie is the most popular one among all my students in the Chinese classes from grade 6 all the way to seniors in the high school. Somehow they all find a way to relate this movie to their real lives. After watching the movie, many Asian students told me that their parents are very like the parents in the movie. Many students of other ethnics compared and contrasted the Asian educational system to our educational system in the US. A lot of them were curious about my educational background in Taiwan and also asked me questions about the educational situation in China. This movie increased students’ interests and curiosity in learning more about Asian education and a great class discussion arose after watching this movie. Therefore, I highly recommend teachers to watch this movie and let your students to watch it too.
Movie Review-I Not Stupid Too
After the extreme success of “I Not Stupid” in Singapore as well as in other Asian countries, the director of the movie continued to produce another one, I Not Stupid Too, to discuss the high school education in Singapore. As the first one, this movie is also a bitter sweet movie to reflect the sadness of some struggling students with low academic achievement in Singaporean educational system. This movie also focuses on the conflicts between parents and teen-aged children and the relationships between school teachers and their teen-aged students. It also reveals two sides of viewpoints about a reasonless punishment, caning in public that exists only in Singaporean educational system. When my students saw this punishment in the movie, they all had confusion and questions about why this kind of punishment still exists in such a modern society. Maybe it will be a good topic to discuss in the class after watching this movie. I highly recommend this movie to teachers who have watched “I Not Stupid” before. You will be touched by the story and will think deeply what a teacher can do to help those students who have really low self-esteem and are looked down by this society.
This novel is written by Lisa See. Although she is the fifth generation of a Chinese American family and doesn’t look like a Chinese at all, she was educated in a very traditional Chinese way and grew up hearing “When a girl, obey your father; when a wife, obey your husband; when a widow, obey your son.” Therefore, she chooses to describe a story of a traditional Chinese girl, Lily, who endured the agony of foot binding, arranged marriages, and the joys and tragedies of motherhood in nineteenth-century China. Lily, at age of six, was paired with another girl, Snow Flower, who sent Lily a silk fan on which she had written a poem in nu shu, a unique language that Chinese women in Hunan province created in order to communicate in secret, away from the influence of men. Through the back and forth nu shu, they both shared loneliness and joys and found solace, developing a bond that kept their spirits alive. However, when a misunderstanding arises, their deep friendship suddenly threatens to tear apart.
While reading this story, I feel like to be drawn into a time not as ancient as it seems. I am also deeply touched by the beautiful portrait of female friendship and power in this story. The most vibrant part to me is when Lily described how she and her sister’s feet were bound when they were very young. The excruciating pains are not only their eternal pains but also a very shameful dark page in the Chinese history. As a Chinese female, I can feel those women’s pains while I am reading this chapter of Lily’s life. Although this page of history had been turned, nowadays, Chinese women are still struggling to shake off the binding from the tradition and culture to find their own positions, values, and self-esteem. There are also a lot of questions at the end of this book for readers to discuss. If the teacher wants to use this book as a required reading, these questions may be worth for students to think about and discuss in the class.
This is a wonderful and delightful comedy. The year is 1998 and the World Cup has just been kicked into high gear. But for four young monks living deep in the Himalayas, watching their favorite sport isn't only difficult-it's forbidden. As soccer fever heats up, the young monks break the rules, sneak out of their monastery and risk futures in a madcap adventure that's all for the love of the game. However, the story has a surprised but a very touching ending. This movie is full of the philosophy of Buddhism. It's a must see movie for anyone who has ever been passionate about sports, or life.
The Tale of Genji (Penguin Classics)
The Memoirs of Lady Hyegyong: The Autobiographical Writings of a Crown Princess of Eighteenth-Century Korea
Songs of the Kisaeng : Courtesan Poetry of the Last Korean Dynasty (New American Translations, No 10)
They're all at Amazon.com, and i look foward to building my library with these books.
In addition i've been reading the 8 volume Buddha by Osamu Tezuka. It's manga (anime) style books about the history of Buddha. there are of course some liberties to the historical accuracies and there are some sugestive themes and images which might make it only appropriate to high school or perhaps edited sections for other grade levels. You can find these books at Borders or Barnes and Nobles. Amazon has them used too.
i just got "Very Thai: everyday popular culture" by philip cornwel-smith (ISBN 974-9863-003). reasonable price. it has a lot of pictures and descriptions of the "everyday" thai culture we see in the country. This book is also very cool to show in the elementary school and up level. i've used it in 5th grade. it's hardcover and has lots of things that kids would like to know about another country: toys, street signs, school uniforms, foods, etc.
I watched Memoirs of a Geisha for the asian film that we needed to see. While I enjoyed the movie, I feel a little confused as to what Geishas exactly are. Some argue that geishas are "Classier prostitues" while ither argue they are not prostitutes at all but entertainers. After reading reviews for Memoir of a Gesisha, I expected to see a movie depicting the entertaing geisha as opposed to the prostitute. BUt as I watched the film it is quite clear that geishas are in fact prostitutes, sure they maybe have some extra talent, but at the end of the day people are paying them for sex and their virginity which is clearly prostitution. And although it was a very god movie, and quite enjoyable, I had a problem with the fact that the man fell in love with teh child he had seen many years before. I undertand this is not so rare in other countries, but for em I couldnt truly enjoy the love story because of this situation, I just couldnt look past it. I did very much apprecite the depiction of the geishas and all tehy go through including fierce competition and different types of pain.
I read the children's book, The Samurai's Daughter by Robert D. Sn Souci. The story is a retelling of a Japanese legend. The pictures are beautiful and the story is touching, Tokoyo is separated from her Samurai father and deals with many struggles on her journey to find him. A great example of a strong female character with an independent mind. I would recommend it for all ages.
I would like to recommend Still Life with Rice by Helie Lee. THis is a great book that brides the Korean American experience between immigrant Korean parents and their children who might be born in the United States. Still Life with Rice is a fictional story based on Helie Lee's grandmother's journey to America. She writes about her grandmother's life Korean and the fascinated stories that she never told her American born grand daughter.
After listening to the buzz about the upcoming release of the DVD, Rush Hour 3, starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker, from my high school ninth grade boys, I thought I would take a look at the film to decipher any 'teachable moments' from the comic stunt film. During our field study to China, it was clear that Chinese television advertisers used Jackie Chan endorsements like a dash of salt throughout their programming day. Jackie Chan, who made breaking into the U.S. Film market a personal goal, finally made a name for himself after acting and producing Shanghai Noon , Rush Hour 1 and Rush Hour 2, mostly due to his sense of comic flare with a strong physical environmental influence and his unusual choice to perform his own stunt work.
The movie is the third installment in this comic action film series and it includes, once again, the very popular African American comedian Chris Tucker. Along the same style of delivery that flavored the first two installments, slapstick and corny puns sprinkled into lively chase scenes, this plot line focuses on guarding Ambassador Han, who is about to make a major revelation about the Chinese triads, and his daughter, in the city of Paris. Amid what seemed like countless acts and punch lines centering around African American and Chinese stereotypes, a reference to the Chinese gangs, coined as triads by the British authorities in Hong Kong (due to the triangular shape of the Chinese sign for "secret society") arose as a main plot element in both text and artistic imagery - "Ah, my 'teachable moment.' " I thought.
Many of the students were drawn into the comedy and action; however, when asked just what a Chinese triad was, the classroom fell silent. As a mini cultural lesson comparing and contrasting Italian, Russian, American and Chinese gangs, I began a presentation on the creation, symbolism, purpose, initiation and practices of 'crime societies' including the Chinese triad, featured in this film.
Research shows that in the past, with the hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens coming into the U.S. from the People's Republic of China, that most of the aliens, even when caught, can escape deportation by claiming "birth control persecution." As a result, many of the United States crime investigating teams have shifted their focus to the Chinese transnational crime organization infiltration. These gangs are traffiking drugs, enabling prostitution of youths, particpating in money laundering, providing gambling rings, smuggling aliens and involved in extortion throughout China and the West. The triads, evidence reveals, were formed as resistance groups to non-Chinese invaders during the Manchu-Qing Dynasty during the seventeeth century; however, when the Qing dynasty dissolved, the gangs did not. (Bolz)
During the last 50 years, many of the triads have surfaced due to the disorganization and fragility of the Chinese nation and are operating their own illegal economies in China and in the West. One of the largest gangs, the Sun Yee On, is said to control 56,000 members worldwide (Bolz) and this is the gang that is made reference to in the Chan sequel.
The central woman figure, Kenji , who masks her shaved head bearing the names of the top members of the secret society in Chinese characters, begins as an enemy/temptress to Tucker and then becomes the very person they must protect, along with the Chinese Ambassdor Han and his daughter.
For more information on the Chinese triads, see the source for my references to the history of the triads at:
http://usinfo.state.gov/eap/Archive_Index/Chinese_Organized_Crime_and_Illegal_Alien_Traffiking_Humans_as_a_Commodity.html. Article written by Jennifer Bolz
While you will probably get a better glimpse of Chan's sense of humor and use of physical environment from the Olympic Visa commercial at http://youtube.com/watch?v+RKAtwK1tOaE, there are two reasons to catch a glimpse of this culturally iconic film, to meet the students where their interests already are and to become familiar with one of the most popular Chinese actors and commercial spokespersons, Jackie Chan.
So, in to wrap this review up, sometimes it can be beneficial to meet the students on 'their turf' in order to engage them and take them to 'the next level.'
Anyhow...it worked well.
-Susan Pavelka Gregg
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Yimou Zhang's Academy Award nominated film features Yun Fat Chow as the Emperor Ping and Li Gong at the Emperess Phoenix during 10th century China. This visually rich epic brings the grandeur what would later be known as the Tang dynasty into full color. The symbolism in the film is clearly highlighted with the cinematographer capturing a glimpse of the dragon figure on the emperor's clock and the golden chrysanthemums that the Empress is creating daily. As the idea of heaven and earth are defined through the Emperor's words and the family's dining area, we are reminded of everyone's rightful place in the universe, not completely out of touch with the Elizabethan Golden Chain of Being. The costumes and set design are nothing less than spectacular along with the way the ceremonies are captured en masse with regard to the homecoming of the Emperor and the preparation for the upcoming festival of the golden flowers. As we learn the symbolism behind the festival, we see the contrast as the royal family's situation is put up against these ideals. This film slowly unveils the traditions, rules and pain that is endured to perpetuate the formalities of the dynasty under the Emperor. We learn of the underhandedness of the Emperor with regard to his first wife and first son. The film is a visual feast for the viewer and an understandable tale which defines the strain of secret lives and the repressive responsibilities of maintaining the outward appearance of perfection. The final scene of the film which is reminicent of a Greek tragedy, as the family kills one another off during the course of a bloody drama is graphic; however, the moment the war inside the Forbidden City has concluded, the cleaning begins and the stage is reset in all of its golden glow with fresh pots of chysanthemums to welcome the festival. Ironic, poignant and quite educational. A good film for discussing symbolism in the classroom.
During the holiday season, with the host of men in my family, I was encouraged to rent the film, 3:10 to Yuma, starring Russell Crowe, Cristian Bale and Peter Fonda. To my surprise, I discovered in the first scene, that one of my former conservatory students, Logan Lerman, was featured as the son of the rancher portrayed by Cristian Bale. Boy, has he grown up. As this Western continued, I was reintroduced to several locations in Arizona where I had enjoyed many family vacations, years ago. As the film progressed, the conflict of getting Wade Biggs(Crowe) to the train in Yuma intensified with the Pinkerton investigator(Fonda), the rancher(Bale) and others working their way through the lands of the Apache and coming upon...the next surprise...the Chinese railway workers. While the director does not presume that the Calvary, cowboys, railway systems and the Wells Fargo Banks all happened at the same time, he gives himself Hollywood license to conjoin the events that helped to shape the West.
A featurette on the historical background behind the making of the film, includes information regarding the infamous Jesse James and his family, the Earp brothers, Doc Holiday, and the Chinese. So, the discovery seemed to be - One never knows where a few interesting insights can surface, even when you select the film at gunpoint.
Might be a good way of including some Chinese culture for the social studies teachers in the group. :-D [Edit by="spavelkagregg on Jan 11, 8:23:11 PM"][/Edit]
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We saw clips of this film in our class and I had previously seen the film years ago, so I decided to rent the movie again. I think the film is a great one to teach about some of the major periods in the 20th century China. It goes through Pre and Post World War 2, civil war, and the cultural revolution. I really did not know much about the cultural revolution before seeing this film and it was a great visual as to what people in China actually experienced during this time. I would highly recommend this film to any social science teacher who is teaching about 20th century China. The film is rather long so clips of each section would be better served. I personally cant use this film in my chemistry class, but I can see it easily being integrated in most other language arts or social studies course. Thanks.
in March 2008, comic book stores will be releasing a Virgin Comics Llc publication of "Buddha Story Of Enlightenment" by Deepak Chopra. While fictional, it is an interesting way to bring into the class the love of comics with some historical / cultural themes that be used as discussion points.
I have been teaching this Akira Kurosawa film for about 6 years in my Humanities classes. I have seen several of Kurosawa's films and feel that this is his best. Maybe I am a sucker for the story, which is a spin on Shakespeare's KING LEAR. I love the way Kurosawa re-tells the Bard's story in a Japanese context.
The cinematography and direction is amazing. Kurosawa loved painting as a young man and it is evident in every shot of this film. His use of color is so carefully planned. It is no wonder that this is the one film he was given an Academy Award nomination for. The acting in the film is an obvious homage to Japanese Noh theater. The woman who plays Lady Kaede gives such a demonic performance that she puts Lady Macbeth to shame.
THE SEVEN SAMURAI is often considered Kurosawa's masterpiece, but I think people should give this film a look before making that judgement. Kurosawa has done Shakespeare before, (Throne of Blood = Macbeth), but that film pales in comparison.
It's interesting to see the degree of change that Kurosawa's directorship goes through via films. I do agree that his use of colors are carefully chosen -- the nuance of Japanese culture is subtlety but Kurosawa takes it one step further and brings a vibrancy that's tangible. He goes from Extroversion to introspection--his later films have deep layers of emotional complexity that is sometimes, better articulated by non-verbal means rather than dialog. Ran, in my opinion, is an extremely personal and emotional film.
Has anyone read Beijing Girl? I recently picked it up and am about a third of the way into reading it. It is a story about a teenage girl, kind of a rebellious, coming of age story. I will elaborate when I finish.
When I was grad school a teacher friend of mine put me onto an amazing anime called "Barefoot Gen". I have showed the film in both my world and united states history classes. It will give your students perspective on the bomb from the Japanese point of view. In addition, the film shows the horrible human and econological consequences of the bomb. My students, at all levels, have loved the film, and always want me to show the entire film. I have actually had some come in during lunch to watch the rest of the movie. Check it out and see what you think
Yes, the documentary is based on the book by Gavin Menzies. Zheng He's boats were three times the size of Columbus' boats which sailed to America 80 years later.
A former professor of mine, Robert Marks, wrote a book a few years back (which he had some seniors, myself included, help him edit) called the Origins of the Modern World. I highly recommend it. It traces Europe's rise to dominance from a "non-Eurocentric" point of view. The story begins with the Chinese removing their fleet from the Indian Ocean allowing the Portuguese to take over trade routes in that ocean and the rest is history...
In the bargain section of Barnes and Noble (Encino), I found a bunch of beautifully illustrated large-format books on the terra cotta army of the first Qin Emperor. What makes this book especially great for elementary school classrooms is that each page contains a big jigsaw puzzle of a photo from the museum housing the warriors in Xi'an. The book also contains a lot of material about the discovery and restoration of the warriors, as well as their original purpose and means of construction. The book is under $15. Check the "Bargain History" section. Similar puzzle books also exist for the Italian Renaissance and Ancient Egypt.
Although I did not see the movie, I do want to point out that the movie was a very "Hollywoodized" version of the book. The image of the actress in her kimono was not authentic--she was made to look very sensual and sexy. When she was dressed in her kimono, the way she was dressed was not dressed "correctly." When she performed her Japanese dance as part of her entertainment, the dance was not an authentic dance--it was modified to appeal to the American audience. The reason I know this is because the consultant was a member of the Japanese classical dance world of which I am familiar, and her suggestions and advice were overridden in favor of the appeal that it would have on the American movie viewer. I guess that's show business. As far as the question of prostitution, geisha were considered professional entertainers who had to study different cultural arts such as Japanese dance, tea ceremony, classical music (playing the shamisen and singing) because their role was to entertain wealthy and influential men. I've read that in the mid-1600s. geisha were considered to be elegant models of good taste, but in the 1700s, this changed. While some geisha still practiced their arts in good taste, many others lived either in special districts or on their own and prostitution was part of their business, in addition to their arts. Others, on the other hand, were not considered the true geisha because they were not culturally trained, but were simply prostitutes. So there were different classifications and levels of geisha. Some politicians even today have a geisha, sometimes a high-ranking one, as part of his "standing." [Edit by="willoughbyak on Mar 16, 9:03:37 PM"][/Edit]
I've always been a big sci-fi/fantasy book reader, so I was intriuged by a series I saw at B&N called "The Guin Saga". It was described as a top Japanese epic saga with over 100 installments thus far. The First book "The Leopard Mask" introduces the main characters, the twin child regents Rinda and Remus, and the hero Guin.
I was not entirely impressed by this first novel, and probably will not read another. The style of writing (or at least the translation), plot, dialouge...really everything...was pretty primitive as the sci-fi/fantasy genre goes. It really reminded me of the John Carter books by Edgar Rice Burroughs; very straightforeward plot, hack and slash action, the lone hero in a forigen world (except reversed, the hero is not human, the world is), so on.
The novel did make me wonder about the cultural signifigance of twins, leopards, and masks. I am also curious about the description of the twins. The twins are light skinned with platinum hair (no mention of albino type eyes though), what could be the signifigance of that? Any thoughts from others on any of those topics?
Oldboy is definately not a film for the classroom. I saw this film at a friend's house, and was absolutely floored by its level of intensity. This is a revenge thriller suspense type movie whose core revolves around an almost universal cultural taboo (I don't want to spoil it so I won't get into this). I will describe the first 20 minutes or so of the film in general terms to give you a general idea of the plot, but you HAVE to see this movie if its you're type of film.
The story begins with a pair of drunk businessman. One reminds the other that its his daughter's birthday, so they stumble over to a payphone to make a sloppy drunken happy birthday to the daughter he should have been with that night. The father says happy birthday, and buddy asks to get on the phone to give his well wishes. When the buddy turns around to pass the phone back, the father is gone. Completely and uttlerly gone.
The father wakes up in a nicely appointed and sized motel room...and the door is locked. He is there for 15 years. He goes through cycles of lucidity and insanity, and is occasionally sleep gassed when he becomes too violent, or sometimes for no reason at all.
15 years later he wakes up in a tight, dark space, and bursts out to find himself on a high rise rooftop, packed into a large suitcase, dressed in a suit, holding a cellphone, with the knowledge that he has 5 days to find out who did it to him, and why.
Completely mind blowing and "Saw" like in its violence and intensity at times, this film will keep your teeth grinding, and your butt at the edge of the seat.[Edit by="mvhudnall on Mar 19, 11:53:33 AM"][/Edit]
Anyone interested in introducing the topics of Manga and Anime to the classroom should check out the extras section of the Animatrix DVD. This was a DVD of Matrix inspired animated short films released sometime after the second or third matrix movie. There is a section that contains a 20min film on the history of Anime and Manga in Japan that is extremely interesting, and great for the classroom. Theres only one hitch. You have to record it to a tape or another source and edit out about 10 seconds worth of film that discusses how there are manga that are focused on almost any interest or lifestyle, including some racier ones. I have edited the film and used it in class with great results. Students are always interested to learn how the appearance and animation style was influenced by western standards, and the budget limitations of their local production studios.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention. This video is also GREAT because it brings up the fact that Japan is the first and only post-nuculear apocolyptic culture in the world, and that its culture since world war two heavily reflects this. Check out the film Akira for a great example of this, and as an intro to the Anime genre.[Edit by="mvhudnall on Mar 19, 12:06:32 PM"][/Edit]
I finally rented Ang Lee's "Lust Caution" that was in the theatres a few months ago. Although the original was rated NC 17, at Blockbusters they only rent out the rated R version. Blockbusters is a family video store and does not carry anything beyond rated R movies. Either way, I thought the movie was great. From what I heard, the movie sounded pornographic. Maybe it was because I rented the tamed down rated R version, but I saw the film as risque but definitely not that. Either way, the story line held up through the entire film. I'm not a film expert or even close. I know what I like and what I dont like. I liked the film a lot. Gong Li was also an amazing actress.
I rented this film thinking that it might be one I could show my 11th grade high school kids. I could definitely show them part of it and explain the rest, but the R rating is for a few sexual scenes that definitely are not appropriate.
The film is from a Korean writer and director and won awards at Sundance and the Toronto film festivals. It definitely deserved them. The film is said to be a Buddhist fable. The lessons it shows through the narrative definitely are Buddhist in origin, but have a lot to say about humanity in general.
The part of the film I would show my class and use as part of a lesson would be the beginning "Spring" where a young boy is living with a Buddhist priest/healer. The boy is a typical child who is prone to mischief in his discovery of the world. He finds it humorous to tie stones to various animals and see them struggle. He ties one to a fish, a frog, and a snake. The priest sees him do this and patiently thinks of a way to teach the boy a lesson about his actions. While the boy sleeps, he ties a heavy rock to his back. He tells the boy he must free the animals from the stones. If any of them have died, he will carry around the stone around in his heart forever. Both the fish and the snake had died. They boy cried.
I would stop the film there and talk about the literal and metaphorical meanings of the scene. I'd have the students talk about humanity's obligation to the natural world. What is our moral imperative regarding nature? I'd also have them discuss what the stones metaphorically mean. What boulders do we carry around with us through life? How can we loosen ourselves from their weight? What would it mean to free ourselves? How do we help others? Should we help others or is it their life path of discovery that must set them free?
The rest of the movie is a great lesson in the Buddhist idea of freeing oneself of earthly attachments. The priest tells the boy that the awakening of lust in one's heart leads to the awakening of murderous intentions. Sure enough the boy runs away with his new lover, ends up killing her when she has an affair, and goes to jail. The priest helps the boy when he returns by helping to set him free of his anger. The boy, now a man, takes the place of the priest when the priest dies and is entrusted with a young boy of his own to raise.
The title is obviously a reference to the cyclical continuum of life. As we go through our own life, what burdens do we carry? How do we release ourselves from them?
An excellent film worth seeing!
...but it's a book tells you to change your diet and dramatically reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and obesity.
but why China Study? :-| Maybe we should find it out ourselves....
Here's the book introdution from the website http://www.thechinastudy.com/about.html
"What do 100,000 readers know that you don't? Learn more about this best selling, ground-breaking book, embraced by thousands who want to improve their health and their lives. Summarily ignored by the mainstream media, the ground-swell support speaks volumes about the importance of this provocative and timely book by Dr. T. Colin Campbell and Thomas M. Campbell II.
The science is clear. The results are unmistakable.
Change your diet and dramatically reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and obesity."
What are some of the suggestions in the book?
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