Movies

Some thoughts on another movie: If you haven't revisited Oliver Stone's The Joy Luck Club, now is a good time while we are studying East Asia. What a family drama this one is! The ever-engrossing clash of generations is played out in mother-daughter relationships, the older generation molded by Confucian values and painful heritage in China, and the younger generation expressing Western values. The interweaving of the symbol of the swan feather throughout the story with the daughters' failures to meet their mothers' expectations suggests how instrumental heritage is in directing the lives of progeny. The swan feather represents the conveyance of good intentions, but good intentions are never enough; it's action that expiates. The choices which were made by the mothers in the past influence almost genetically the choices made by the daughters. When June travels to China to reunite her mother's family at the end, her mother's expectations are exceeded in a way her mother could never have imagined during her life. The story comes full circle with her daughter's act of expiation for her mother when the twins are reunited with their sister.
This film may be used to teach literary elements, such as, characterization, theme, symbol and much more for the 8th grade (gifted, I think) to adult English or history classes. The film is a rich source for the classroom either in clips or otherwise.

[Edit by="tbarbarossa on Jan 8, 4:14:44 PM"][/Edit]

One more movie I want to comment on, and I'm not sure I'm doing this thread thing correctly, but here goes again.
In the 1986 film A Great Wall, Peter Wong directs and stars in this meeting-of- cultures comedy. The film crosscuts events happening in a poor section of Beijing with events occurring in upscale San Francisco. A younger brother loses his job with a computer company and is at last free to take that month's vacation with his wife and very Americanized son to visit his older sister and family in China. The film underscores lively differences in culture, but also presents universal similarities between generations, while seemingly outweighing the factor of cultural dominance. Some interesting highlights include:
*The generational gap in both cultures
*The insouciance of youth
*The wage differences of the time
*The role of discipline through exercise, i.e., Tai Chi Chuan (spelling?) vs. the fast run
*The competition between cultures represented in a championship table tennis game
*Bored teens in the classroom
*Prejudice across the board
*The importance of college entrance exams, especially in China
*Varying customs, especially in the expression of the relationship between the sexes
The movie reveals how Confucian principles guide the customs of the older generations in Beijing, but even have a residual effect on the brother, too, who has been living in America since he was ten-years-old. The Boston Globe called this film, "A comedy of culture collision," but I think the director was portraying more similarities than differences. What's your opinion? [Edit by="tbarbarossa on Jan 8, 4:15:10 PM"][/Edit]

Before I took this seminar, all I knew about China's first emperor was that he was some kind of legendary character who existed more in story than in historical record.

In that context, Hero works for me. An unwaveringly honest and principled warrior is able to defy the corrupt forces of disunity and all with really cool martial arts.

Now that I've studied Ancient China, Jet Li is utterly unconvincing as Qin Shi Huang Di. Where is the standardization of writing, the creation of a non-hereditary bureaucracy, the book burnings?

This movie is an enjoyable ride, but I’m not sure I want my students learning anything this film has to teach.

T (sorry I forgot how to spell your name)

Where are you finding all these great movies? and are they subtititled or dubbed in English?
I absolutely enjoy foreign films and have so for quite some time.

What other Asian films or directors do you suggest for a beginner?

jem

There are two new movies that became available on January 10th. They are directed by the same gentleman that directed "The Joy Luck Club" and S"moke." I have not rented either, but wanted to let everyone know, in case they are interested:
1. "Chan is Missing": Two cabbies follow the trail of a mysterious character after he disappears with $4,000. of their money. Probably more for your own personal enjoyment, then the classroom.
2. "Dim Sum": A widow faces the New Year with apprehension after it is foretold that it would be th eyear she would die. Ditto.

There are two new movies that became available on January 10th. They are directed by the same gentleman that directed "The Joy Luck Club" and "Smoke." I have not rented either, but wanted to let everyone know, in case they are interested:
1. "Chan is Missing": Two cabbies follow the trail of a mysterious character after he disappears with $4,000. of their money. Probably more for your own personal enjoyment, then the classroom.
2. "Dim Sum": A widow faces the New Year with apprehension after it is foretold that it would be the year she would die. Ditto.

Has anybody checked out Memoirs of a Geisha yet? I've seen the previews and read a few reviews, but could the film be useful for educators?

I have not yet seen Memoirs of a Geisha but understand that it is out in the theaters again. In Orange County it was down to only one theater but has reappeared after the recent academy awards. It won oscars for cinematography and costume design. I'm sure it is a sight to see on the big screen. I didn't see it earlier because I was determined to read the book before seeing the movie. What an amazing story. I hope to catch it before it leaves the theaters. - Ana

Hi Folks,
To make things a bit easier on readers, please put all movie-related posts in the "film festival" thread. Thanks!

To see the most recent posts, click on the link to the last page. Up at the right, you can also choose to display posts "most recent to oldest" instead of the "oldest to most recent" format that is the default.

I am so sorry for not responding sooner. I am definitely not adept at computer travel and didn't notice that someone had a response to my post.
Ang Lee is a favorite director of mine, so anything you can find that he has directed in his native country is wonderful. I happened upon him years ago when watching night time TV on the Independent Film Channel and also the Sundance Channel. Both these channels show foreign films often, so check it out. Some of the others I found in the foreign film section of Blockbuster on Eagle Rock Blvd. Happy hunting.

Interestingly enough the movie "The Grudge" Horror film was shot in Tokyo, Japan. The story follows an old Japanese saying that when something evil happens the evil occupies the space where it happened. It continues to say that when a person enters the evil space they become contaminated and the evil follows you until it has you!!!

Related movie: Scary Movie 4 totally mocks this movie!

Have you seen the original? It was definitely better than the american version. Much more scary. I also watched the original Ringu to compare.

Not One Less

My husband and I just watched the film Not One Less (Zhang Yimou) -- thanks to Netflix. It's a very charming movie. Some observations I made

The movie highlighted the extreme difference between the rural areas and the city. If you watched the beginning of the movie, you might think you were watching life in the early 1900's, but then the scene changed to the big city and you saw a bustling, somewhat modern environment. The small, poor, rural areas seem to exist today.

The children were taught songs about fighting on behalf of their country, etc. These little children are charming as they sing songs of fighting and loyalty to their leaders. You see how little understanding they have of the songs.

Most of the people speak in a curt, unpleasant tone of voice. There was virtually no polite, gentle conversation (except by the television interviewer when she's on camera). I had always heard that Chinese, especially women, speak shrilly and in a somewhat demanding tone. This movie seemed to reinforce that. It didn't bother the young teacher; she seemed to take it in stride and simply state her case repeatedly. That makes you think that such a manner of speaking is not unexpected.

My husband said my students should watch the movie in order to appreciate the advantages they have. The substitute teacher was 13 years old, the school was decrepid, they had only a little chalk, the teacher hadn't been paid in six months, and the teacher slept in one bed with three girls. I can't say whether the quality of their education was good or bad, but if they are learning, it would be hard to make a case that excellent environments would help our teaching efforts.

Courtney

Hi Folks,
To make it a bit easier on readers, please put feature film posts in the "film festival" thread.

There is a movie being broadcast on channel 5 KTLA today (Fri 5/19 - sorry for the short notice but I saw the commercial in the morning) at 8pm called 'Bend It Like Beckham'. It's about an Indian girl whose family has settled down in England - the parents are still hanging on to traditional Indian values and they expect their girl to learn cooking and take care of the household after she will get married. Their daughter, who is growing up in a western culture, is more interested in being a soccer superstar and idolizes Beckham (British soccer star).
The film nicely portrays the conflicts that immigrant youngsters normally go through while growing up in a 'foreign' surrounding, all the while having to bear the pressures from tradition bound parents who expect their kids to adopt traditional Indian (immigrant) culture. Just as a post script - the film has a happy ending!!
If you miss this on the TV channel, the movie is easily available for rent from video stores.
-Vimal Gairola

Greetings all,
>
>Please join us as Los Angeles Filmforum co-presents a TRIBUTE TO THE LIFE AND ART OF
>NAM JUNE PAIK AT LACMA. This will be a very special event as we honor and celebrate the
>renowned artist.
>
>TRIBUTE TO THE LIFE AND ART OF NAM JUNE PAIK AT LACMA
>AN EVENING OF REMEMBRANCES, PERFORMANCES, PROJECTED VIDEO WORKS, AND
>RARELY SEEN CLIPS
>
>Thursday June 1, 2006, 7:30 pm
>Tickets are free - see information below.
>
>The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Los Angeles Filmforum, and teh Korean
>Cultural Center, Los Angeles present a memorial tribute to the life and career of composer
>and video and performance artist Nam June Paik at the museum's Bing Theater on
>Thursday, June 1 at 7:30 pm. Video art pioneer Nam June Paik died of natural causes at his
>home in Miami, Florida, on January 29, 2006; he was seventy-three. Memorial services for
>Paik have been held worldwide and this tribute will recognize his contribution to the
>culture of Los Angeles. The early seventies brought video art to Southern California,
>notably at the Long Beach Museum of Art where David A. Ross organized an exhibition of
>Nam June Paik's work in 1974, and California Institute of the Arts School of Film and Video
>where Nam June Paik taught, and personally introduced the Paik-Abe video synthesizer in
>1970. Today, Paik's influence resonates in the acceptance of video art as a collectible art
>form, with his work in the collections of many museums in California, including LACMA.
>
>Michael Govan, LACMA's new CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director, and Byung Hyo Choi, the
>Korean Consul General, will begin the evening with an introduction to the program, which
>includes a variety of experts and devotees, such as speaker Mary Livingstone Beebe,
>Director of the Stuart Collection at the University of California, San Diego; David A. Ross,
>President of the Artist Pension Trust and former Director of the San Francisco Museum of
>Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the first curator to organize a
>museum exhibition of Paik's work in the United States; renowned video artist Bill Viola;
>and Kathy Rae Huffman, Director of Visual Arts at Cornerhouse, Manchester, England, who
>was Curator at the Long Beach Museum of Art, and director of its regional media art
>center. Ms. Huffman will be presenting rare archival footage of Picturephone, Paik's
>interactive satellite performance between Los Angeles and New York.
>
>Other highlights include the presentation of Paik's Zen for Film (1964–65) by independent
>producer and curator Julie Lazar, who organized the last large-scale composition/
>exhibition by John Cage, Rolywholyover A Circus, which included Zen for Film.
>Additionally, Los Angeles visual and sound artist Steve Roden will perform an early work,
>Primitive Music, and seminal dancer and choreographer Simone Forti will present a new
>performance based on her diary entry about Paik from her Handbook in Motion—An
>Account of an Ongoing Personal Discourse and its Manifestations in Dance (1974, the
>Press of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design). Archival video and rare footage,
>courtesy of Electronic Arts Intermix, New York, will also be screened. Technical support is
>provided by The Society for the Activation of Social Space through Art and Sound (SASSAS),
>a group that serves as a catalyst for the creation, presentation, and recognition of
>experimental art and sound practices in the Greater Los Angeles area.
>
>A Tribute to Nam June Paik is organized by Carole Ann Klonarides and presented by the
>Film and Contemporary Art departments of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, in
>association with Los Angeles Filmforum, and the Korean Cultural Center, Los Angeles.
>
>Admission is free but tickets are required and may be picked up at the box office starting
>at noon on the day of the event. Tickets must be presented at the door of the Bing Theater
>by 7:20 pm, after which time entrance to the theater is on a first come, first serve basis.
>
>About LACMA: In April 2006, Michael Govan became CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director of
>the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). He is the seventh person to hold the
>position of Director in the museum's 41-year history. Established as an independent
>institution in 1965, LACMA has assembled a permanent collection that includes
>approximately 100,000 works of art spanning the history of art from ancient times to the
>present, making it the premier encyclopedic visual arts museum in the western United
>States. Located in the heart of one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world, the
>museum uses its collection and resources to provide a variety of educational and cultural
>experiences for the people who live in, work in, and visit Los Angeles. LACMA offers an
>outstanding schedule of special exhibitions, as well as lectures, classes, family activities,
>film programs and world-class musical events.
>
>About the Korean Cultural Center, Los Angeles: The Korean Cultural Center, Los Angeles
>works under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to promote mutual cultural
>understanding between the United States and Korea. For more information about the
>Cultural Center and its programs, please visit www.kccla.org .
>
>LACMA is located at 5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles CA, 90036. For more
>information about LACMA and its programming, log on to www.lacma.org.
>
>Museum Hours: Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, noon–8 pm; Friday, noon–9 pm;
>Saturday and Sunday, 11 am–8 pm; closed Wednesday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Call
>323 857-6000, or www.lacma.org for more information.
>
>General LACMA Admission: Adults $9; students 18+ with ID and senior citizens 62+ $5.
>Admission (except to specially ticketed exhibitions) is free every evening after 5 pm, the
>second Tuesday of every month, and for children 17 and under.
>
>Please note: LACMA is free every evening after 5 pm.
>
>
>
>

On seeing excerpts from Eat Drink Man Woman at the San Fernando Valley presentation by Prof. Yang Ye on March 1st, I was struck by how familiar the dinner scene with the chef's family and the mother, daughter and grandmother felt.

I did some checking on another movie I've seen, Tortilla Soup, with Raquel Welch as the grandmother. The latter film was released several years more recently than Eat Drink Man Woman. The dinner scene was remarkably similar, both as to family composition and the unexpected announcement by the chef. I won't say more, to avoid spoiling either film for those who haven't seen them. Both films are worth seeing.