Final- (excuse lateness)

Eastern Asian film- final

By, Melvin Ellis

Topic: Roles of gender, politics, as well as culture vs. individual

Countries: China, Japan, and Korea

Chinese films:

1-

FAREWELL MY CONCUBINE

China and Hong Kong, 1993

Mandarin with English subtitles

Color and black and white, 171 min.

Aspect ratio:  1:1.85

Production Company: Tomson Films (Hong Kong) and Beijing Film Studio

Director:                       CHEN Kaige—directed Yellow Earth

2

-CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON

Taiwan/Hong Kong/United States/China, 2000

Color, Mandarin, 120 min.

Aspect ratio:     2.35:1

Director:                       LEE Ang

Screenplay:                   WANG Hui-Ling, James Schamus, TSAI Guo-Jung

Based on a book by:     WANG Du Lu

Cinematography:           Peter Pau

Japan films:

1-

SANDAKAN 8  （サンダカン八番娼館：望郷：Sandakan hachiban shoukan:  boukyou）

Japan, 1974

Color, 121 min.

Aspect ratio:  2.35:1

Japanese with English subtitles

Director:                       KUMAI Kei

Written by:                   KUMAI Kei, HIROZAWA Sakae, YAMAZAKI Tomoko (story)

Cinematography:           KANEO Mitsuji

Studio:                          Tōho; Haiyūza

Korean Films-

JSA: JOINT SECURITY AREA

South Korea, 2000

Color, 110 min.

Aspect ratio:  2.35:1

In Korean, English, French and German (with English subtitles)

Director:                       PARK Chan-wook

Screenplay:                   PARK Chan-wook and 3 others

Based on the novel DMZ by PARK Sang-yeon

Cinematography:           KIM Seong-bok

Studio:              Myung Films, distributed by C J Entertainment

CHINA-1 : FMC

Farewell my concubine is an extremely powerful film. It offers topics of gender politics, culture, and political standings, all while following a team of child friends all the way through their adulthood. The film’s credibility comes not only from its brilliant acting, but from the fact that it encapsulated powerful Chinese history into such a digestible portion.

Topics of gender politics are found very visibly early on, when Dieyi (like many feminine-looking young boys in opera) was raised and trained to be a women. Furthermore, the industry of Beijing Opera School and companies, barred the employment of women. The men who are raised as women (those shone who were dedicated), take on a specific persona. As seen by Dieyi’s actions off stage, he remains in character as, what he has been thought a woman is. It is apparent that this interpretation of a women is a stereotypical one; graceful, elegant, obedient, loves expensive shiny things. Even Master Yuan, who is so immersed in the individual culture of opera, that he has sexual encounters with Dieyi, as if he is a women. This is not to say that they were homosexual, moreover, Dieyi, in the culture of the opera was a concubine and was treated as such. The individual vs. society comes into full swing once the film progresses to the period of communized china. This is a prime example of soul-crushing society baring down onto the individual- as communism appeared as little more than peer pressure. Their opera appeared as plugs for their political party. In total, brain washing, macerated as “the people’s country.

                                                CHINA 2- CTHD

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, employs a successful cast, consisting of mostly women. Thusly, the female aspect in terms of what the film tells us in rather strong. Due to the nature of the women individually, we also get a good glance of the culture of the time and politics.

The overall film follows the passage of Jen Li Mu Bai, and Shu Lein, with supporting roles from Jade fox, and the detectives. Li Mu Bai and Shu Lein are Wushu Warriors and comrades. Having been friends for so long, they have built up a huge trust level, along with mutual sexual tension. Li Mu Bai tells of the depressing place he found when meditating, foreshadowing for the end of the film. In this culture, a wushu warrior is seen as a man of respect. Their training is their life. The film also has heavy Buddhist tones as it explains how Li Mu Bai’s last breath should be used to meditate. His deep love for Shu Lein, is realized when he tells her he would rather spend his last breath on her. Instead of gaining enlightenment, he desires to be a ghost, forever hovering around Shu Lein.

Jen, appears in the film as the quintessential spoiled rich girl. She is in fact, the mayor’s daughter and fulfills much of that stereotype. This is until, it is revealed that  she is Jade fox’s decibel, a master thief at this young age. She goes on a torrent of emotions and lessons, and after causing the de death of Li Mu Bai, she returns to life, for what she thinks she wants. After spending a night with her love Dark Cloud, she plunges herself into the white abyss (described in Li Mu Bai’s dream). She realizes that just as she desired freedom from her father, she could not be contained by the mansion, or her current existence. Women in this film appear graceful, beautiful, and clever. Yet, they also appeal as strong (in body and character), independent, and important to the plot.

                                                            JAPAN 1- Sandakan 8

            Sandakan 8 is an epic piece of cinema. Mainly because, it presents a side of Japan, traditionally brushed aside. The relationship between Osake and  Keiko mirrors that of a mother and daughter. The role of women in this film is shown in two areas: Osaki’s flashback. In this area, it is found that women are basically currency. In order to save her brother from poverty, Osake is hired to become a maid in a distant island. Working at the brothel, Osake sees the suffering women, herself taking comfort in the fact that she is only a maid and may return home in due time. Only to have herself forced into the life of one of those prostitutes. Her first customer is a large, brutish darker man (adding an undertone to it as in yellow earth with the dark skinned man raping the main women on her wedding night). After which, Osake stands in the rain, metaphorically attempting to cleanse herself as many rape victims do. She adopts an attitude of determination to pay back her debt. Learning the local language, to get as many customers as possible, meanwhile the manager offers the girls new kimonos, to expand their debt.

            The relation of the individual to the society is very clear and distinct in this film.  The nation japan allowed its women to be bought and sold into sexual slavery. After the revolution, they were set free. Nevertheless, they are shunning upon return. It has become distressful to have a former prostitute (willing or unwilling, similar to FMC)in the family. To the Japanese public (as seen in the film) returning to your homeland is the most important thing to you in terms of death. When Keiko sees that the prostitute cemetery faces away from Japan, the gravity of the events stun her to the core.

                                                            Korea- 1 JSA

            Joint Security Area, is less about gender politics, and more about politics and culture in general. The subject of gender to appear in small part, through Major Sophie. A military woman, working with the Swedish military in order to investigate an incident between North and South Korea. Being that this is not a particularly artsy or contemplative film, the characters involved remain steadily the same throughout. Yet, in this film, an abundance of character development is not needed. Major Sophie Is a professional, strong willed women. She goes slightly beyond the binds of her assignment, to get to the truth of what happened on the border. Sergeant LEE Soo-hyeok has a friendship with Sergeant OH Kyeong-pil, after he is saved from a land mine. LEE and OH bond over this event and begin eventually LEE is invited to the north outpost for some fun. Nervous at first, the relationship expands past the restrictions of borders, as Private First Class NAM Sung-shik and Private JEONG (JUNG) Woo-jin get into the loop. The four play games, hop around, drink, listen to music, and not once consider their military betrayals, until OH gives a speech about “the best damn Choco-pies on the peninsula”.

            The death of Private First Class NAM Sung-shik and Lieutenant CHOI, force the three remaining friends apart, at the hands of their countries. (although south troops appear more stylish). This forces LEE and Private NAM to choose suicide. LEE could not deal with betraying his friends. NAM feared the truth would get out, and only desired for the world to return to how the four friends once were. In total, all of this was caused by the feud between the north and south. 

Japanese Blossay (repost)

3^rd blossay- Japan

Content analysis & Formal analyss

Content analysis topic: Person in relation to the people & mortality

1-

IKIRU (生きる, aka “To Live”)

Japan, 1952

Black and white, 143 min.

Aspect ratio:  1.33:1

Director:               KUROSAWA Akira

Content- This film in almost entirely consisting of the relation of the individual to the populous, this is effected by Watanabe’s mortality. The fact that he is a bureaucrat and a public relations office plays out as a paradox, which sets the stage for his true story (not to be confused with his life up until he found out he had cancer). A bureaucrat operates in a field of bylaws and regulating, and with having to deal with the public, it’s made even more apparent. The paradox being, the man who is supposed to work and communicate with the public to solve their problems cannot do anything regarding his own work, thus creating a moot point for the occupation to exist in this state. Once his mortality is put onto a clock, he decides to aid the struggling women in their request to get a park built. Although, the process by which he gets to this decision was a tedious and morbid process. In a nutshell, it was his search for life and how to live to the fullest. For these answers, he went on a night-long adventure with his attractive author friend. That ended in vomiting, reminding him of his cancer.

His search to live was also focused on Toyo, as she simply, blissfully lives every day out. Watanabe, after being rejected for another date with her, focuses his energy on fulfilling the request of the women who wanted a park built. His dogged approach toward his fellow bureaucrats amazed them all. This lead to a drunken epiphany at his funeral yet warranted no changes in their actions.  This serves as another example as how the individual relates to the specialty; overall they were all just too set in the norms. Watanabe‘s experience with his occupation, doubled with the death of his wife causes conflict with Mistuo.  Their strained relationship, making the son appears as a cold-hearted greedy child waiting for inheritance. Upon farther inspection, it is seen that Watanabe has left him all his life (both actual ant metaphorical). After Watanabe’s death, Mitsuo begins to remember how much he loved his father, and how much he pushed for the park to be built.

2-

LATE SPRING (晩春：Banshun)

Japan, 1954

Black and white, 108 minutes

Aspect ratio:                  1.33:1

In Japanese with English subtitles

Director:               OZU Yasujirō

Content- Late spring is more on the topic of the individual relating to the whole. Taking place in Japan, 1954 it was a period of post-war. The nation having gone through horrific events craved for a state of normalcy. None better than the traditions do just that. With SOMIYA Shūkichi (father) and his sister TAGUCHI Masa being from the older generation, Noriko was already deadlocked into a future in marriage. The film displayed the playful father-daughter dynamic they shared early on, in the scene where Noriko maker Somiya continue his work b before playing shogi. He grumpily replies “oi, ochya” in a pouty manor. At the time, it is apparent that their relationship has evolved to that of a more mature almost husband-wife dynamic, most likely due to the early death of Noriko’s mother. She was moved into the protective female figure of the household.

          Noriko wanted nothing in the least to do with marrying, arranged or otherwise (although she did share a rather long bake ride with HATTORI ). Noriko is still a young women, nearing 25 (last year’s Christmas cake) and has no desire to lead a life differing from her current simple one. The pressure increases and Noriko’s condition worsens as KITAGAWA pushes her to get married, despite being divorced herself. The conversation about MIWA later on was a bit strange, apparently they have a thing for American baseball players. Point being, that after Noriko’s traumatic experience at the Noh play, she , she begins to come to term s with the idea.

The matter of mortality also touches this story. It is seen less extremely as in Ikiru, yet still present. Mainly on the subject of Noriko’s father. He has no immediate health concerns that we are told of, yet Noriko is hesitant to leave him. The main reason being, that he is an old man. In that day and age, it was the norm for the wife to take care of the husband. This brings me to the next point being- the scheming between the father and aunt. By alerting Noriko that he would remarry, after she leaves influences her decision to marry. The fact that her father would get along without hermakes her feel useless as a women. As seen in the beginning, when he returns home from work, he leaves his jacket, tie, and shirt on the floor, he then precedes to go wash his face. At which point, Noriko fallows behind him to pick up his clothes, hang them on hangers, and gives him a towel. Noriko has obviously adapted to this routine, and cannot image a life differing, nor can she imagine a scenario featuring another women doing this for him.