Martial arts and the globalization of US and Asial film industries

This article talks about "how globalization is affecting film industries in the USA and Asia". Due to globalization the film industries from all over the world has been coming together. People can watch Hollywood films about anywhere in the world, and Hollywood even remakes some movies from other countries. Klein notes that " a number of factors are driving Hollywood's embrace of martial arts, from a growing popular interest in many forms of Asian culture to the enthusiastic practice of martial arts by Americans across the social spectrum". Asian actresses often appear in Hollywood films, and even in the movie "Fighter in the wind" you can see couple American actors. Because of the historical background, the Korean movie "Fighter in the wind" contains three different languages.

http://journals.ohiolink.edu/ejc/pdf.cgi/Klein_Christina.pdf?issn=14775700&issue=v02i0003&article=360_maatgouaafi

Three Kims

“Kim” is probably the most popular last name in Korea, and this another Korean martial arts film tells a story about three martial arts masters who all share the same last name; Kim. One Master Kim practices Taekkyeon and he also has a little son. He is a martial arts master but he refuses to fight in any circumstances.  The other master Kim practices Kumdo, which is similar to fencing. However, he is afraid of hitting people with the sword so he purchased and stole trophys so that he can keep them in his gym. The story begins when a Kungfu master, who can actually use his martial arts skills, moves into this small town. 

Two other master Kims get up extremely upset fearing that they will lose all their students and even the landlords daughter who they have crush on. All three Master Kims compete against each other for students, the girl, and most importantly, their pride as a martial arts master. However, strange movements are occurring in this small town. All three masters gets attacked by gangsters, and people are starting to slowly move out of the town. The Kungfu master is the only one who is actually willing to fight them face to face which ultimately gets him in trouble and makes Taekkyeon master to reveal his past as a legendary fighter. 

The movie rewinds and tells the story how the Taekkyeon master was a legendary fighter who fought for justice, and lost his partner and how he determined to never fight again. The director purposely reveals his identity end of this movie to teach the lesson that real martial arts master does not use their skills to hurt people. The skills has to be used for justice, which is foundation of most of the martial arts. 

This movie ends with a kick boxing master moving into the town which provides a comic relief. You will get a lot of good laughs out of this movie while all three Master Kims trying to compete against each other. This is a martial arts film that contains actions, humor, and even a touching story in the end. 

Arahan: Urban Martial Arts Action

 A Korean martial arts film, Arahan: Urban Martial Arts Action, takes place in the capital city of Korea; Seoul. The main character Sang-hwan is a clumsy policeman who cannot even run after a thief without getting hurt. However, he wants to fight for justice in the world. When six masters of Tao meets him, they believe that he has the special power to become a Maruchi, a powerful warrior. He trains to control his heart, learns that benefiting others is more important than winning and realizes that when he can sacrifice himself he can become a powerful warrior. 

However, the evil power, Heuk-woon, accidently gets released and attacks masters while Sang-hwan fights gangsters in a restaurant. The evil power is looking for a key so that he will have the power to dominate the world. When Sang-hwan and Eui-jin faces the evil power, Sang-hwan gives him the tattoo that has strong power, and the evil power gets destroyed by it because he did not have strong enough power to handle the tattoo. 

The Tattoo symbolizes the power that could dominate the world. Only someone who will used the power to benefit others will obtain the power. The director also picks the main character to be a clumsy policeman who cannot even do his job instead of someone with some martial arts experience. It suggests that martial arts is not all about just fighting. It is all about using martial arts for the right reasons, to practice justice. 

During fight scenes, there are a lot of moments where the director slows the scene down or take all the sounds away. It dramatizes the fights and creates this fantasy-like scenes. 

This movie ends with Sang-hwan and Eui-jin fighting for justice in the city of Seoul using their power, which is kind of an ending that one can easily find in many Hollywood films. 

Martical Arts Films Affect on Culture

How has Kung Fu movies affected the American audience? Furthermore, are Kung Fu movies an accurate depiction of what Asian culture is really like? The Bruce Lee Kung Fu phenomenon resonated with middleclass Americans during a time of racial prodigious and the turmoil of the Vietnam War. The movies portrayed a strong racial minority who shows super human abilities and to demonstrate that anything is possible through personal will power. So these movies did capture the middleclass audiences of the U.S. for these reasons because it provided hope in a dark time.

Some would argue that the films have not accurately depicted Asian culture correctly simple because the type of justice did not happen in the real China. The films paint a dull picture of the governments and social life in Asia. In fact, it makes it as if what happens in Kung Fu films is all that happens in China, which is completely a false way of viewing a culture. But Bruce Lee films did show that Hong Kong was discontent of British rule. Ultimately, early Kung Fu movies portrayed a strong nationalistic and racial pride which was a captivating feature to many Americans during the 1960’s and 1970’s.

Jackie Chan ushered in a more comedic form of Kung Fu movies, which had a different affect on culture than Bruce Lee movies. Chan’s hybrid fight comedy films exploited the differences between Asian and American cultures to portray characters that were not only funny but also personal. He painted Kung Fu as a realistic fight between enemies that could potential be humorous and enjoyable. This kind of film making exploded in America and now we see so widely sold today.

http://heldref-publications.metapress.com/app/home/contribution.asp?referrer=parent&backto=issue,1,5;journal,31,56;linkingpublicationresults,1:119937,1 

Fighter in the Wind

The movie “Fighter in the Wind” is a Korean martial arts movie that is based on a actual karate competitor, Yeung-Eui Choi , who actually went across the country of Japan to defeat martial arts masters after World War II. . The movie not only shows a lot of martial arts actions but also deals with the emotion of the main character; Bae-dal Choi. 

The first half of the movie tells why Bae-dal decided to train himself and never lose a fight ever again. In the beginning, Bae-dal is a young man who dreams of being a pilot. He hides in a back of a truck to go to japan’s air force training camp. However, he gets into a fight with one of the commanders at the military base, and gets defeated but fortunately manges to escape when America attacks the base. After escaping from the military base Bae-dal works at a Japanese market with another Korean immigrant. Again he gets defeated, and humiliated by Japanese gangsters in front of towns people. Bum-soo, who is another immigrant from Korea, stops the gangsters and rescues Bae-dal which inspires him to learn martial arts from him. After learning some martial arts from Bum-soo, Bae-dal goes around town and saves Japanese women from Amercian soilders and that’s how he meets Yoko, who he develops feelings for. However, Bae-dal’s master gets mudered by gangsters, and Bae-dal also gets knocked down and there he determines that he will never lose a fight again. So he leaves the town and goes into the mountains to train himself. 

First half of the movie helps the audiences to emotionally connect with the main character Bae-dal, so that they can understand why he decided to become a fighter and never lose a fight agian. 

After he returns, he goes across the country and defeats all martial arts masters in Japan including Kato, who humiliated him in the beginning of the movie. The movie ends with a scene where Bae-dal is fighting with a bull. 

In the very beginning of the movie, Bae-dal narrates “I am afraid of fighting. I am afraid of being beaten and losing. But I am more afraid of surviving as a cripple than dying while I am fighting”. In the end, he repeats this after he beating Kato. He also adds “However, I always try to find a new enemy”.This scene helps the audience to relate themselves to the main character and also understand why becoming a fighter was so important to Bae-dal. Also by showing many close up scene’s of Bae-dal’s face expressions tells the change of emotions. 

This movie definitely deals with a lot more emotions than other martial arts films. I personally was able to connect with the main character a whole lot better which it help me to enjoy this movie lot more than other typical martial arts films filled with actions! 

Masculinity and Kung Fu Movies

 In this article, the point being made is that from what we see in traditional Kung Fu films, we find a skew view of what Asian masculinity is like. In most movies my by Bruce Li, we find that a the manly character is offer someone who is caught in a particular system in which the character has to fight his way out of to be his own man. What we realize though is it is possible to work your way from the bottom to become a man with power and authority. But to achieve this power and authority, you are to have a body of steal and a pride to go with it. In most Kung Fu movies, it can be argued that the body is a lethal weapon used for personal gain. So this is a skewed image of what masculinity could be because it is not realistic with how things happen in the real world. A man is not superior to another just by his brawn. 

Chan, Jachinson W. "Bruce Lee's Fictional Models of Masculinity." Men And Masculinities 2.4 (2000), 371-387.

Building a Hong Kong martial arts film collection-article

Rachel Pitzer

While doing research on martial arts films, I found an article that talks about martial arts in Hong Kong. I thought this would be interesting to read about since Ip Man 2 takes place in Hong Kong, and I liked the movie, so I thought it would help me better understand the culture. This article states that kung fu is used not so much for power, but to earn respect. That is exactly what Ip Man was trying to do, and he even stated that in the movie. He said that it was not about showing who is more powerful, but to show people how to respect one another. The fighting was very structured, and no one had hard feelings after they were defeated, unless they were not experienced fighters and did not follow Confucius. In this article, Bruce Lee defined kung fu as “training and discipline toward the way to the object—be it way to healthy promotion, spiritual cultivation, or to the way of self defense.” This was very evident in Ip Man. Ip Man would have friendly competitions just for fun, and in the second movie he had competitions to how that he was worthy in opening a school. In both movies, he used kung fu to defend himself, his family, and the Chinese people.

The Chinese have their own form of sword fighting called Wuxi apian. The article states that when this fighting goes on, the fighting is done as a form or heroism, and the fighters wear silk, and the fighting is very graceful. This fighting is more of a fantasy/play fighting, and costumes and make-up is worn. Fighters will put on performances, and show off their acrobatics. In Twilight Samurai, the main character had two fights: one to make a man show respect, and two he was ordered to kill someone. In samurai fighting, I think it is more about honor than about putting on a show. However, samurais do wear very nice kimonos during their fighting.

This article says that in Hong Kong martial arts films, the director “focuses on longer fight sequences, intricately crafted choreography, slow motion shots, long shots instead of close-ups, and the fast pacing of fight scenes.” For Ip Man, it follows all of those criteria except for slow motion and long shots. Parts of the fight scenes were slower, but they were not slow motion. Also, there were a lot of close-up shots during the fights, and now a lot of long shots. In Twilight Samurai, there was no slow motion, the fights were not long and intense, but they did have long shots and no close-ups.

http://journals.ohiolink.edu/ejc/pdf.cgi/Riley_Lori.pdf?issn=01604953&issue=v23i0001&article=24_bahkmafc

Chinese kung fu Market

The Hollywood film industry has become the most popular and globally dominant film market when compared to the rest of world. For instance, 90% of the films watched in Taiwan and 63% watched in Japan are labeled as foreign films coming directly from Hollywood. Laws have been created in foreign countries in order to help protect their films. The Chinese film industry must work in collaboration with Hollywood, so that their films will have a chance of achieving global recognition and fame. The development of a Hollywood group called the New International Division of Cultural Labor has resulted in some foreign films being distributed throughout the entire world. As a result of the (NICL) group three recent Chinese kung fu films have become extremely successful. The three successful films are Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Hero and House of the Flying Daggers.

It was shocking to learn how the Chinese film industry has been deteriorating rapidly ever since the 1980s. Close to 300 films were created back in the 1980s, and that number dropped dramatically to only 64 films in the year 2004. The main reason for this reduction is because Hollywood films were being distributed in China.

Hollywood has decided to add film production and marketing sites overseas to help alleviate the total cost of making a film. The success of these three well-known kung fu films prompted Hollywood to work with China and provide them with a production base.

This article explained how the film Hero has earned a tremendous amount of money because of its cinematic elements and outstanding story. It contained both originality and distinctiveness with made it stand out compared to previous kung fu films. On this blog, Mike explained more in depth about the film Hero and what was good about the film.

It was interesting to note that the films Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Hero and House of the Flying Daggers all operated in a similar manner as Hollywood when selecting their actors. The majority of the profitable Hollywood films have actors who are popular actors, which is what the Chinese film industry did also. This was due to the fact that the group NICL played a strong role in several aspects of these films. In these three films this was the first time multiple famous actors were casted to be in the same film. For example, kung fu films in the past would only cast one major actor like Jackie Chan to draw an audiences’ attention. Casting several stars in a film would ultimately increase its success rate domestically and overseas. Every step that these three films took were in line with those that Hollywood would normally follow. The article stated, “This trend indicates that the new Chinese martial arts films have become more like Hollywood films in that they are now transitional and global in terms of labor and production” (Chung, 419). It has been recognized that Chinese films do have the possibility of being distributed over the entire world and making a great deal of money in return.

Chinese kung fu films are starting to emerge more often in both the United States and in many other countries. This has only happened because of the direct intervention of Hollywood in the Chinese film industry. By collaborating with Hollywood, Chinese films are now much likely to be well produced, have a wide distribution and be profitable.

Work Cited:

Chung, Peichi. "Hollywood domination of the Chinese kung fu market." Inter-Asia Cultural Studies 8.3 (2007): 414-24. Print.

The Twilight Samurai

For my third movie, I watched The Twilight Samurai. This was a very different form of fighting, because swords were used instead of fists or kicks. There weren’t a lot of really high-tech camera shots. The camera was stationary most of the time, and if it did move, it would just zoom in or out. Also, the camera would switch back and forth from one person talking to another. I felt like the director used a lot of natural lighting in this movie. When there were scenes outside, it was very bright, but inside it was very dark. During the fighting scenes, the director used widescreen shots to show all the fighting; there were no close up shots. The main character noticed flowers blooming on the tree, and I think that was supposed to symbolize that his life was going to bloom and get better. People would always find dead bodies being carried by the river from peasants, usually children that have starved. I think the river was supposed to symbolize life in a weird way. Every time bodies were found, people were either fishing, or washing clothes, or something that were necessities of life. When the bodies were found, the people who found them would send their souls up to Buddha. Even though people died in the river, when they were found, they were sent to Buddha to start a new life and be blessed. One of the main character’s daughters was the narrator and would narrate what was going on in her head or with others during different parts of the movie. When the main character was fighting with this one samurai, I kind of felt like it was a horror film. They started fighting in the living room, but went behind this wall; the camera never moved, but you could still see the two men because the wall was made out of spaced out boards. Then they went around the corner, and you couldn’t see them because the camera stayed in the same place. While they were behind the wall, you could hear what was going on, but you couldn’t see anything. Also, one of the two men would be pushed out from behind the wall, but then they would go back behind it. It gave you the feeling of suspense and it kept you guessing.

Ip Man 2.

Rachel Pitzer

I wanted to watch Ip Man 2 to try and see if the director used the same techniques, but I did not find a lot to be similar. The plot was basically the same, but this time he was fighting a British boxer. The opening scene was a flashback of when the Japanese invaded their town, and it was in black and white and in slow motion. Then after that scene, it was the exact same as the opening scene in the first movie with him practicing on the wooden post. Also, he started his own school; after the first movie, Ip Man and his family fled to Hong Kong, and this is where this movie is taking place. Throughout this whole movie, the colors were very bright, so I got the sense that there was more hope in this movie than the first one. This time, however, when there was any kind of fighting, the coloring got very dull, and sometimes the lighting would get darker. In the first movie, there was no change in color or lighting when there was fighting taking place. There were a lot of flashbacks in this movie as well. When Ip Man was fighting the boxer, he had a flashback of when another Master fought the boxer and was killed; this gave him much inspiration to not give up and keep fighting. Also, when Ip Man saw his friend from the first movie, he discovered that he was shot in the head, and suffered severe brain damage which made him not remember anyone. During this time, the movie flashbacked to when his friend was shot, and then it made Ip Man flashback to when his friend was normal. For the fight scenes, there were still a lot of close ups like in the first movie. In this movie, Ip Man’s wife was pregnant with their second child. I think this symbolized a new beginning. She had the baby during his fight with the boxer. Then, after the fight was over, Ip Man’s friend that was shot heard Ip Man’s name on the radio and remembered him. When the fight was over, Ip Man ran home to see his wife and new baby. I think this baby symbolized that there was a new, bright beginning for them and the Chinese people.

Both Ip Man movies reminded me of American films because they were both about good defeating bad.

Ip Man.

Rachel Pitzer

For my first movie, I decided to watch Ip Man. This movie is about Chinese martial arts, and it is based off of a true story. The movie starts out with many students at a martial arts school. The one teacher—master—goes to challenge this very humble man, Master Ip; he is supposedly the best martial artist in the town. Although he is very good, he continually turns down offers to open up his own school and take in disciplines. Then, the Japanese army took over China, and killed much of the Chinese population. Martial arts was not practiced anymore, and people had to take up hard labor jobs, including the once wealthy Master Ip. However, the Japanese general that was in charge of their town would have fighting competitions. Master Ip decided to go one day after his friend had went and never returned. When he went to the competitions, he discovered how corrupt they were, and wanted to seek justice. He arranged to fight the general, and won. He did not fight to show who was better or stronger, but he wanted to fight to gain some respect back for his people.

The first thing I noticed when watching this movie is that Ip Man’s wife and the Japanese general were the tallest people in the film. I think the director made them the tallest people to show that they were the most influential people in his life. During one of Ip Man’s battles in the beginning of the movie, his wife was mad that he was fighting and did not want him to. When his opponent saw that Ip Man was hesitating on fighting because his wife was upset, he made the comment that Ip Man was scared of his wife. Ip Man came back with the comment “Men are not scared of their wives; they only show much respect for them.” This was very apparent throughout the whole movie. Ip Man tried to respect his wife’s wishes the best he could. He tried to make the best life for his wife and son, and when she presented him with a problem, he tired to accommodate to it as best as he could. So, I think the director made his wife tall to show that his decisions were made with his wife’s best interest in mind, and that she had a huge impact on his life. The general also had a huge impact on his life, but in a different way. When the Japanese invaded their town, he finally decided to start teaching so people could defend themselves.  Also, when he saw what the general was doing to his people, it made him realize what was really important, and that is why he started fighting again. Once he defeated the general, the people in his town took over the Japanese and got their lives back.

During the first half of the movie, the lighting and scenery coloring was very bright; you could tell life was good. However, when the Japanese invaded their town, the coloring became very dull and the lighting was darker. In the film, it showed the transition of when the Japanese took over. The director made this part of the film in black and white, and only the Japanese flags were in color. Also, this part of the film was in a slower motion. For the fighting scenes, there were song long shots of the camera to show the fighting, but there were a lot of close up shots of the fighters’ fists and kicking. In the very opening scene of the movie, Ip Man was practicing his fighting on this wooden post that kind of resembled a human with arms and legs sticking out. When he was fighting the general, it flashed back to when he was practicing, and the general looked like the wooden post. Ip Man fought the general the same way he practiced on the wooden post. When he would strike the general, it would flashback to the wooden post, and each time he would strike the general, he showed the exact same thing on the post.

Fearless

Jet Li's Frearless is a tale of redemption of a young up-and-coming Kung Fu master. We find the main character growing up in a competitive culture of fighters to see who can be the best fighter in the land. His rise to the top made him very prideful and foolish. At the top of his fame, he kills a rival master. Consequently his whole family is kill by the opposing side. Our hero retreats into the country side where he morns the death of the ones he truely loved. During this time he is taught by simple rice farmers the virtues of patience and self-control, which he takes back to his home region to regain his honor as Kung Fu master. He eventually forms the Jingwu Sports Federation and is challenged by Foreign Chamber of Commerce to see who is the best fighter in the world. Even though this fight will kill him, his virtues still prevailed in the end, making him the best fighter in the world.

This movie is stunning to watch. The camera captures the fluidity of the fighting along with the intensity and skill of the fighting. What we gather from just simply watching the film is a very up-close view of Kung Fu and how the fighters fought.  Also color is an important visual trope in this film. The first half of the film, though there is color, it is not vibrant at all. In fact I will argue that this was a careful choosing of the film makers to show the redemption process through out the main character's life. This is true when he is living and working in the village. The country side is much brighter and vibrant than the city, which gives the audience a inclination that there is some sort of change that will happen during his stay.

Another important visual trope in this film is the blindness of his caretaker. She was blind at birth but I know this shows a very definite truth in this film. Even though she was blind, she knew more about living and the values of life than our hero. We realize that our hero is the one who is truly blind and eventually regains his sight on what is important and what is the value of Kung Fu.

This movie is a wonderful example that Kung Fu is more than just a fighting style, is a disposition on life. Fighting is the expression of the discipline and self control of Kung Fu. This powerful film of redemption is a modern way of capturing the true essence of what particular fighting styles are for.

Globalization

When it comes to the globalization of film industries within the US and Asia, the martial arts play an important role. In the article “Martial arts and the globalization of US and Asian film industries” from Comparative American Studies, Christina Klein addresses the use of martial arts in film to reach a more global audience. The article talks about how the US and Asian industries are becoming more intertwined with one another. Both industries are moving toward each other, Hollywood is becoming more “Asianized” and Asia is becoming more “Hollywoodized.” I found this article to be extremely intriguing and important when it came in comparison to the movies that the group watched.

One major topic Klein addresses is that of Jack Chan. Chan had made an appearance in a movie that I watched, Robin-B-Hood. Chan has been popular among the Asian film industry since the 1970s and 80s with his break through to the Hollywood scene being in the 1990s. Years of hard work in the Peking Opera martial arts, self done stunts and the ability to tie comedy into it all made Chan the first Asian star to make it big in Hollywood. Another reason both US and Asian film goers find Chan so appealing is his refined athleticism and his creative use of props. There are many examples of this in Robin-B-Hood. In the movie Chan is able to make his way down a roller coaster (cars racing by him and all) while carrying a baby on his chest. Another example is his ability to make it down the side of a building by jumping from one air conditioner to another. It is this type of athleticism the Klein addresses in the article.

Another example Klein points out is the movie Hero directed by Zhang Yimou. Hero was widely accepted across Asia but exploded onto the western scene. It was nominated for four Academy Awards and was second to Titanic as the highest grossing film. The use of first class cinematography, beautiful costumes, extraordinary sets, internationally recognized actors (including Jet Li), and special effects set Hero apart from other Asian films. The elaborate fight scenes can draw in a wide audience. Klein also points out that the movie is deeply rooted in its East Asian culture but is also flexible so it can relate to a more global audience. It is this kind of movie making that can help tie together both US and Asian audiences.

Work Cited:

Klein, Christina. (2004). Martial arts and the globalization of US and Asian film industries. Compartative American Studies, 2(3), 360-384.

Four Dragons

Kinta, or better known in the United States as Four Dragons, is a visually stunning action martial arts film. Set back in the year 1881 in Kinta when large quantities of tin were discovered which was very profitable. As a result of this sudden tin discovery, hundreds of men migrated to this area in search of work and a better life. However, all these men quickly realized that they were no longer free men, but instead prisoners to Tin Sok, Master Hoong and Master Sam. Four key prisoners emerged named Dragon, Blaze, Ace and Tiger trying desperately to become free men again. This story contains elements of escape, betrayal and love intertwined perfectly throughout.

Within the first ten minutes, unique cinematic characteristics distinguish this film from other martial arts films. This film delivers a knockout punch in the area of visual effects and editing during intense fight scenes. The use of slow motion and bright, red colored blood in large quantities was utilized to make the fight scenes more intense and dramatic. I personally believe that director C.L. Hor did a terrific job of balancing the use of these visually stunning fight scenes showcasing blood. The picture below is a great example of the use of blood as a cinematic device while fighting.

Further into the film, the four prisoners, collectively known together as the four dragons, were ambushed from the order of Master Honng. This high-ranking evil official would not tolerate anybody trying to hinder his lucrative tin business. Each of the four dragons survived which led to the sudden questioning of several people. Dan Dan the daughter of Master Hoong became distant from her father because of how he was treating all of his workers. She however, falls in love with Tiger against her father’s wishes.

Blaze, who was raised by Tin Sok, eventually discovered in a letter that his father was Master Sam who abandoned him as a child. Blaze quickly grew attached with Master Sam and Master Hoong and their interests in expanding the tin business. As a result, Blaze killed his friend, Dragon, as a request from his father.

At the end of the film there is a fighting tournament with the belief that whoever is the last man standing becomes the new leader. Blaze threw himself into the cage fighting on behalf of Master Sam and Ace enters to challenge him. They both become knocked out which sets up two more contenders. The last fight scene is between Forest who is on Master Sam’s side and his opponent Tiger. Finally, Tiger who is being cheered on by Dan Dan overcomes all odds and defeats Forest to set all of the tin workers free.

Thinking that Tiger has successfully saved the day and also hundreds of lives is completely incorrect. By the year 1884, Kantin became the biggest exporter in the entire world of tin. So the unbalance of power, the struggles and hardships of all people will continue.

A narrator was used frequently throughout the course of the film, which is considered a narrative pattern. The narrator was able to provide more information pertaining to certain situations that otherwise would not have been understood. A second narrative pattern was the use of flashbacks that both Tiger and Dragon would have the night they were ambushed. These two characters would frequently dream about that night and how they barely survived.

The Warlords

If someone enjoys films that contain bravery, betrayal and dramatic action sequences then The Warlords is the perfect choice. This film begins in the year 1861 when the Taiping rebels have already obtained half of the China Empire. General Ho was the man in charge of the Taiping rebels. He and his soldiers quickly earned the reputation as being unmerciful and unintimidated. However, due to General Pang Qingyun (Jet Li) the reign of the Taipings would eventually come to an end. General Pang was determined to provide everyone with the ability to live as he or she chooses instead of being under the control of the Taipings.

In the opening scene of the film, all of the Ching soldiers were brutally killed by the Taiping rebels in battle leaving only one survivor. This one fortunate individual was General Pang. He avoided his death by pretending to be dead. He eventually found his way to a town of bandits where he became a blood brother with two other men, Er-Hu and Zhang. All three of these men took a sworn oath stating they would protect the lives of each other at all costs. When General Pang learned that the Taiping rebels had already overtaken both Nanking and Suzhou and were heading to Beijing, he knew that he and his blood brothers must overtake them. The picture below displays Pang, Er-Hu and Zhang after they have successfully become blood brothers.

As a result of General Pangs willingness and desire to defeat the Taipings, Lord Chen provided Pang with hundreds of soldiers and food. This event began several battles with the Taiping in various locations throughout China. The first battle depicted, between China and the Taipings proved to be very effective at utilizing cinematic devices. The Taibings were walking through a large canyon while Pang and his soldiers were the top of the canyon cliff looking down upon them. During this particular battle scene, the camera continuously switched angles from looking down to looking back up. In my opinion, the change in camera angles was very effective because I was able to visually see what each army was also able to see.

A narrative pattern was also depicted in this film when General Pang and his soldiers went to Nanking to take control. The screen displayed that three years had past since Pang and his troops had been at Nanking fighting. This allowed me as the observer to understand the time line of events.

Furthermore, at the start of the film General Pang is laying next to all of his dead his solders on the ground. Pang walks around and agonizes over all of the deaths that had been lost. Towards the end of the film Pang orders the assassination of more 4,000 unarmed civilians against the will or Er-Hu. After this slaughter Pang once again goes down and walks beside all of the dead bodies lying on the ground. These two scenes were a clear example of a visual trope used in the film.

However, decisions like the one just mentioned were a main factor in the blood brothers eventual betrayal of each other. Due to the Pang’s contradictions and his dishonest decisions, he was conflicted with Er-Hu and Zhang. After a shocking ending both Pang and Er-Hu died while Zhang survived suffering broken legs fighting Pang. On his way to become Governor of Nanking Pang was then killed. It was never explained what had happened to the Taiping rebels; nor did the film explain if Zhang had survived his fight with Pang.

Wu Shu Styles

During my research about Chinese film and martial arts techniques I found an article(that is the link that will take you to the article) taken from a book that I would like to share with you. It outlined a few of the basic parts of "wu shu" which is the adopted Chinese martial arts form. In this style you have the form of:

• "bare-handed exercises which include a long list of styles, such as shaoloin quan (which was used by Jet Li in his video Fist of Legend) zhaquan, huaquan,... monkey style, tiger style, eagle style, bear style and many others." This particular style I saw play out in many of the movies I watched, primarily it was present in Fist of Legend as well as in Kung Fu Hustle. Both of these movies utilized different styles in which they showcased throughout the movies.

• "Weapon exercises using spears(as seen in Legend of the Red Dragon), cudgels, swords, hooks, whips, staffs, darts, and others." This style was very visible in the movie Legend of the Red Dragon because in that movie alone, there were spears, swords, hooks, staffs, and darts used many times throughout the movie. Honestly I cannon recall a fight scene in that movie where a fight was done without weapons aside from the different times where the children were involved in the fighting.

• "Partner exercises with two ore more persons performing, either bare-handed or using weapons." This style really came to light in the movie Robin-B-Hood with Jackie Chan because of the choreographed fight scenes where Jackie would fight with his partner in the movie known as Octopus. The two men would use crazy acrobatics to make their adversaries look like fools while fighting them, which is normally the manner in which Jackie fights in his other movies which I have seen.
• "Group exercises by three or more persons, sometimes using music." This type of wu shu I observed in the movies Hero and in Kung Fu Hustle because both had some very large scale battles and a few of them did have people who were actually part of the scene playing musical instruments as an addition to the fighting
  

This clip which I am going to add from the movie Hero includes elements from both weapon exercises as well as from group exercises.


I found this article interesting because of all of the different styles that were listed of wu shu that I have actually been able to observe during my time of watching these movies outside of class. I found it pretty educational to me because in reading it I was able to identify some of the different styles and I was able to add more to my experience in watching the movies in doing so.

Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon

Honor. It’s a funny word that evokes strong emotion. It makes one do things they wouldn’t rationally do. Some kill for it. Some die for it. In some cultures it is the most important thing one could possess and losing it is worse than losing life itself. Honor is the cornerstone of the movie, Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon. In this epic directed by Daniel Lee, action star Andy Lau portrays Zhao Zilong, a man of humble beginnings who rises up to be a prized general in the Wu army. The movie is set in a divided China in 228 A.D. There are three kingdoms: Wei, Wu, and Shu. Zilong joins the Wu army in order to bring peace and start a family of his own. He fights gallantly and humbly to make himself one of the Five Tiger Generals, never taking defeat from the Cao army. However, in his older years he is the only surviving Tiger General left. He is forced to face off against the Cao army once again and this time it is a little different.

Three Kingdoms is a movie that comes full circle. The movie opens up with Zilong, hair grey with age, and his brother, Ping-An (Sammo Hung Kam-Bo) sitting on the stairs of an old building. Snow is swirling around them and the hopeless look on Zilong’s face tells the story of the state he is in. The story then begins its flashback to Zilong’s younger days. The story tells of how Zilong joins the army, fights heroically in battle, saves a baby from certain death, and becomes the only undefeated general in the nation. It then goes on to set up for the last battle against the Cao army. By this time, both Zilong and Ping-An have been in the army for 32 years. This would be Zilong’s last crusade and it would be against the granddaughter of the king he defeated so many years before. As the battle rages on, Zilong is forced back to the same fortress he had found glory in so many decades ago. This is where the opening scene is played again. Wounded and cold as the first snow begins to fall, Zilong refuses to surrender. Instead, he mounts his horse and gallops toward the enemy, preserving his honor as a war hero.

Another interesting narrative pattern the director uses is that the story is told from Ping-An’s point of view. Ping-An is a man whom Zilong considers his brother. He is an obese man who does not fit the profile of a “might warrior.” However, this does not change his heart. During a raid on an opposing army, Zilong saves his brother’s life. Once Zilong achieves the rank of general, Ping-An is left in his brother’s shadow. On two occasions when the emperor asks Zilong if he is willing to go to battle, Ping-An is off to the side saying that he is too. He never gets the glory he longs for but instead, lives it through his brother. Ping-An yearns to be a war hero but never accomplishes that goal. Yet instead of jealousy, he reacts to and talks about Zilong’s success with great pride. He tells the story through the eyes of an admiring sibling not an envious opponent. As the story concludes and Ping-An is giving his last narration, he preserves the honor of his general even though the battle was a sure loss. It is an interesting dynamic and not one that I expected to see in this film.

Robin-B-Hood

Can the beloved Jackie Chan ever play a negative character? For the first time he does in the Benny Chan comedy, Robin-B-Hood. However, I would not consider Fong (Jackie Chan) a bad guy. Sure, he is a thief who steals from the rich and then squanders all his wealth on Black Jack games and horse races but he is a gambler with a good side. When Fong and the rest of his cat burglar team, Octopus (Louis Koo) and the Landlord (Michael Hui), get caught up in a kidnapping plot involving a baby, Fong and Octopus have a change of heart. As a result, the two find themselves as interim parents fighting off the bad guys and keeping the baby safe and trying to get him home. Fong and Octopus put a new spin on childrearing in this hilarious action packed film.

One of the more profound cinematic devices the director uses is the choreography. Jackie Chan is famous for the fight scenes in his movies and in Hood he doesn’t disappoint. With the overly emphasized punches and roundhouses as scene in many Asian martial arts films, the fighting draws the audience in. The team work between Fong and Octopus makes them an unbeatable force. What makes this movie differ, however, from the other films I have watched is that many of the scenes are hilarious. The other martial arts movies I have viewed have fight scenes that take place in the middle of war and there is often bloodshed. In Hood, the fighting is laugh-out-loud funny and cleverly choreographed. Here is a link to YouTube of a video clip showing a fight scene where Fong and Octopus fight off men trying to steal the child from them: Fight Scene.

In spite of its goofiness and light heartedness, the story line of the Hood is complex. A narrative pattern that exists within the movie is that there are multiple stories that revolve around Fong and Octopus. Fong has gotten himself in deep with McDaddy—a man whom he owes thousands of dollars. Fong is being chased down by McDaddy and his possie at the same time the child thieves are after him. He also has family issues after being shunned by his father for being a “crook.” Octopus has a pregnant young wife with whom he wants nothing to do with. He is a womanizer who is too obsessed with his Ferrari. However, his wife won’t give up on him and he goes through a personal journey to seek and find what family should really be. There is also the baby’s grandfather who is behind the entire kidnapping plot. Though what he is doing is a horrible offense, once the audience learns his tragic story their heart can’t help but break for him. He is nothing more than a troubled old man who fell into psychotic turmoil after losing his family. The story lines are complex but are woven together in a way that makes it look simple and almost shallow.

Robin-B-Hood is a movie that is fully illogical, irrational, and a total blast. I found myself driven to tears because how hard I was laughing. It is a witty film filled with humor, action, and a lot of heart. It teaches about family and finding redemption despite your past. Behind its silly and ridiculous exterior, lies a story for anyone. Besides, who wouldn’t want to watch a movie with an adorable little baby in it?