Film Festival

[Anonymous]

let me defend one of my favorite movies. the most important part of this movie for me is that the dialectic between the samurai and farmers is shown. most period pieces have heroic, romantic samurai and rarely show them having a negative effect on the farmers they control and oppress. The farmers too are shown in a fair and hardly romantic light. they are greedy and petty at times. but the order that the samurai are supposed to have given the country is absent and the farmers reap no benefits from supporting them with rice tax. there's another film with nakadai tatsuya (is it sword of doom or hara-kiri?) where he says something along the lines that the samurai are just a bunch of murderers. the truth lies somewhere in between but like one poster on this site said about last samurai, the rights and culture of the samurai were not open to all.

dan

[Anonymous]

Ong Bak Thai warrior is a film I enjoyed and it shows the deep devotion that Thais have for the Buddha image. It's packed with action and has a lot of good fighting scenes. If you're looking to be entertained by run ins with the mob, gangs, and drug lords I'm sure you'll enjoy this action packed story of a country boy overcoming great obstacles trying to get his Buddha back.

[clay dube]

Hi Folks,
Please remember to put the title(s) of the film you are discussing in the subject line of your post. It's a clunky process (sorry, about that), but not difficult. If you are replying to a post with the title in the subject line, it's no problem. But if you are discussing a different film, please delete the RE:film festival (or whatever) subject and drop in your own. This helps folks scanning the forum for particular titles and also makes the forum's search engine feature work a bit better.

THANKS!

[clay dube]

This program first aired a couple of weeks ago. It will be broadcast again on March 4. At the time of the first broadcast, Discovery's website didn't have many supporting features. Now it does. Head over to http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/firstemperor/firstemperor.html. The site has pages devoted to "how would you rule China?" and other questions, plus video clips and more.

If any of you have already seen the documentary (featuring reenactments), please let us know what you think of it.

[Anonymous]

I watched the Disney movie Mulan and had such a different take on it than I did the first time I saw the movie. I felt so aware and perceptive to all of the symbolism in the Chinese culture. The first time I saw it was for entertainment while babysitting, but this time, I saw more purpose and value in it. Although, I must say, the dragon (Eddie Murphy) was a little much for me. He kind of ruined some of the significance and took the plot to a whole different level. I definitely think this could be used as a supplemental teaching resource in the classroom. I took particular notice to the treatment of women. Mulan’s father constantly talked of her as just a bride and making sure she bring honor to “our” soul. She was to be ready to please her in-laws with sense of dignity, poise, and respect. This is the same image of women that we have been reading about. In order to be honorable, she was to sing, study poetry, recite rules, and show a sense of balance. When Mulan’s identity was revealed, the other male warriors said, “She is a woman. She will never be worth anything.” Another thing I noticed in Mulan was that women were to hold their tongues in the presence of a man. I think this would be a great way to introduce the way women were treated and the oppression that still remains. I could tie this in with Ban Zhao’s Lessons for Women and compare the Western treatment of women. The kids would be fascinated, I think.

[Anonymous]

I recently watched Disney’s movie, Mulan. The movie portrays aspects of Chinese culture seen through a Western view. This movie portrays a young Chinese girl growing up in a traditional Chinese society. There is a focus on young women to have proper manners and act graceful around others. There is an emphasis on upholding family honor. It also portrays a society that women are judged on by their appearance, their ability to recite rules and traditions of culture. Women are expected to pour tea to future in-laws in a manner that portrays a sense of poise and silence. The women are not supposed to speak unless permission is granted to them. These traditions and customs are apparent at the beginning of the movie. Mulan becomes frustrated with her role in society. She feels inadequate to meets the needs of society. She is struggling with the ideas of becoming a Chinese woman who would be worthy of marriage. She feels that she needs to her find her own way. As Mulan struggles to adjust to this, her father tells her the most important lesson. He tells Mulan a story about a flower having difficulty blooming but, says when it blooms it will be the most beautiful of all.
In second grade we focus on family and people who make a difference. The students are able to explore family history over time throughout the year. Students have to compare and contrast their daily lives with those of their parents and grandparents. It would be interesting for the students to additionally explore differences between the American girl verse a Chinese girl growing up in today’s society.
It would also be interesting to explore the importance of individual action and character with students. Mulan was portrayed as a hero in the movie. It would be interesting to research additional heroes that have influenced the history of China. Students could compare and contrast traits from American and Chinese heroes

[Anonymous]

Well, I finally watched Hero. I got it at the same time I got Iron Monkey (similar style in the fighting scenes). It must have slid under the car seat--I just found it--it was due back several weeks ago! I did enjoy the movie, especially the visual effects/photograpy. Jet Li was the lead actor, but there were a number of "co-leads" that were also very good (I think the servant girl was also in Geisha?). It was an interesting "take", the way the movie went through different "scenarios" of the way things "could have taken place", before reveiling how they really transpired. Lots of themes/ symbolism/traditional-cultural ideals--this would be a treasure-trove for an English writing assignment.
I enjoy watching these movies myself, but I need to find more modern-day themes for my High School history class. Does anyone have any good suggestions for movies WW1 and after that are appropriate for the classroom?

[Anonymous]

I showed Mulan to my students after we studied China and they were able to see those patterns of women's role and ancestor worship as well. In the 6th grade curriculum, we study Emperor Qin, so my students were puzzled by the Emperor figure in the movie. The villain says that the emperor "invited me here when he built this wall" which would mean Emperor Qin. However, Qin was a harsh legalist who would never have behaved in the very Confuciust fashion that he did. Also, I don't think fireworks were invented by that time as well. (Of course, scholars believe the story of Mulan comes from a later time period anyway.) This was a great way to make my students feel "smart" as they could pick apart the story as they saw historical/cultural accuracies and innacuracies. I provided them with a copy of the original poem and they were suprised how short it was and how different the movie was. Good compare/contrast opportunity.

[Anonymous]

I recently purchased a PBS Nova series on population entitled World in the Balance and was quite pleased. It discussed the serious population changes occurring in Japan. I used it in a new unit on global population but could have easily incorporated it into my Asia curriculum. The video compares population changes in Japan, India, and Subsaharan Africa. The information was clearly presented, easy to understand, and very current.

I was amazed at Japan's decreasing fertility rate and the new attitudes of modern Japanese women. Japan also faces a rapidly growing elderly population which raises concerns that there may some day be a shortage of working-aged adults to support the economy.

Included in the DVD was a special episode on China's population, a teacher's guide, and a link to the companion website. The teacher materials were fantastic for use in a variety of subject matters.

This DVD is great for anyone teaching about Japan and China regardless of the grade or subject matter.

Ana[Edit by="amitchell on Mar 22, 8:12:31 PM"][/Edit]
[Edit by="amitchell on Mar 22, 8:13:04 PM"][/Edit]

[Anonymous]

I thoroughly enjoyed Spirited Away. I would have loved to show this film in my class, but it is not rated "G" (darn elementary school rules). So, for those of you that have lesser restrictions, i highly recommend this movie if you'd like your students to learn about Japanese religious beliefs and culture.

The movie is about a Japanese girl (Shihiro) that gets trapped in the spirit world. The majority of the film takes place in a bath house for spirits where Shihiro is forced to work. The movie is rich in symbolism, spirits, underlying messages about manners and work ethic, and visually stunning as well.

I wish I had more knowledge of the spirits that come to life in this movie. I think that would have allowed me to understand the movie on a deeper level. One scene I loved is when a horrible, stinky muck-covered blob enters the bath house and Shihiro, because she is the low woman on the totem pole is forced to attend to it. All the bath house attendants think it is a stink spirit, for obvious reasons. Shihiro slips into the tub with it and realizes that he has a thorn in its side and she thinks that he will be more comfortable if she removes it. Finally, after tugging and tugging, the thorn comes out along with a huge wave of muck: dirty water, an old bicycle, bowling pins, a refrigerator and tons of other odd trash. When all is released, the real spirit is revealed; she wasn't taking care of a stink spirit, but rather a rich and powerful river spirit. The trash of course that was released was a reminder of all the pollution that had ruined it.

This is one small scene in a rich and intriguing movie; definitely worth the rental fee.

[Anonymous]

I watched this over the weekend. Enjoyable historical movie. I'm not sure if it's factual, but if it is, it showed how the role of women changed as the needs arose.
Suriyothai was a minor princess who made many sacrifices, shown throughout the movie. Often ignoring her wants/needs to help her country, family, others.
The movie was set in the mid 1500's. Not quite appropriate for the classroom, due to some minor nudity and violence, yet it is all w/in the context of the film.
A nice film to rent to get a perspective on Thai/Burma history.

[Anonymous]

Hello,

The Discovery Times Channel has an new series called China Rising. I haven't been able to watch it yet , but tivoed quite a few episodes.

Here are some that looked interesting:

China Rising: "Party Games" 2006 Documentary about how Beijing is preparting for the 2008 Olympic Summer Games.

China Rising: "Getting Rich" 2006 Documentary about the impacts of China's rapid economic growth on the country's poor.

"A Decent Factory" documentary that follows a manufactorer who sends ethical advisors to inspect conditions at a cell phone factory in China.

"Secrets of the Great Wall" 1999 Documentary about the Great Wall during the Qin and Han dynasties.

I will try to watch them this week and share my thoughts. Would love to hear what others thought of them as well.

Looking forward to meeting fellow study tour participants in a few weeks-Dana

[Anonymous]

I caught part of that series last night and enjoyed the quality of the visual elements. It was interesting, as they profiled different individuals in China. One was a young college student trying to become a part of the communist party. One was the son of a famous poet who is an artist helping to design the stadium for the opening ceremonies of the olympics. I look forward to watching more.

[Anonymous]

Film review on Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

This movie is an older animation movie with a really good theme about the balance of pollution and it's effect on the environment. It shows how ignorance can cause a lot of pain and sorrow between people groups, but there is a happy ending. There are a lot of original ideas in the film and the artwork is excellent. It's a classic film that all Anime lovers should watch.

[Anonymous]

This is a fairly new Korean movie by Kim Ki-Duk about a Buddhist monk and his protégé. The movie gives a present day spin on the life of a Korean holy man and his young understudy. The movie provides a unique perspective of the mind of a Buddhist monk as well as insights into how Buddhism interfaces with the lives of ordinary Koreans. The movie is worth a view for it’s Asian imagery and natural beauty alone, but it also has a believable storyline, which is about how a young monk falls from grace and reawakens to return to the simple life on a floating monastery. The struggle of ones mind and body is vividly portrayed through the life of the young monk who eventually is able to overcome the pitfall of “desire” by subjecting himself to rigorous physical discipline. From a laymen’s perspective, the movie provides a realistic portrayal of Buddhist thought and how it influences a culture and the behavior of people who seek to live in harmony with their surroundings and overcome misery in it’s various manifestations. The movie includes a love story and has a few scenes of nudity and love making which make it not fit for family viewing during those scenes, but other than that, it could have been rated PG-13. I rented it at Blockbuster.
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.spiritualityhealth.com/shimages/film/springsummerfallwinterlrg.jpg
[Edit by="jashworth on Apr 20, 6:56:27 PM"][/Edit]
[Edit by="jashworth on Apr 20, 7:00:46 PM"][/Edit]

[Author]

Posts