Film Festival

[Anonymous]

Film:Journey to the West CCTV 1986
Dir: Yang Jie
Star: Liu Xiao Ling Tong as Sun Wukong/the Monkey King
Episode 3: Monkey King Wreaks Havoc in Heaven
Episode 4: Monkey King Imprisoned in Wuhang Mountain

I admit it; I go ape over the Monkey King and so do middle school students. These two episodes of twenty-five are particularly good. The Monkey King has caused havoc in the Heavenly Kingdom after being snubbed by the Immortals. He devours the empress' peaches of immortality and Lao Tzu's pills of longevity. Attempts to subdue him result in the defeat of the Army of Heaven and its heroes. He is, after all, a master of transformations who is armed with a magic cudgel, golden chain mail, a phoenix-feather cap, and cloud-walking boots. Finally Lao Tzu uses a diamond snare to trap him. Attempts to behead him fail as does Lao Tzu's immersion of the monkey in the eight-way trigram cauldron where he is to be distilled into an elixir. The cauldron explodes and Monkey leaps out stronger than ever and able to recognize evil in any form with his fiery eyes. As the continuing battle threatens to destroy the Heavenly Kingdom, the Jade Emperor appeals to the Buddha for help. The Buddha bets Monkey that he cannot leap out of his palm. I'm not going to reveal the secret, but when Monkey loses and tries to escape the Buddha entombs him under Wuhang Moutain. There he will remain until released by Xuan Zang to accompany the monk on his quest fro Buddhist scriptures.

Students are fascinated by the story, the costumes, and the characters inhabiting heaven.

At one point in the film as Monkey is being pursued by Erlang Shen, who has a third true-seeing eye in the middle of his forehead, the cable holding the actor is clearly visible. Inevitably some student blurts that it's really fakey, and I shut the video off saying it's obviously not up to his or her standards. You can guess the upshot.

Another obvious and convenient teaching point is the appearance of the Jade Emperor, Buddha, and Lao Tzu in the Daoist heaven. It's a great place for a discussion or clarification of Chinese philosophy and religion.

Unfortunately, I only have two episodes of this version. I am fascinated by the chapter introductions and end comments which are provided by Maxine Hong Kingston. Anyone know how to locate more?

This particular production, sans Kingston, was available with English subtitles, but recently I have only been able to find it without English. Again, anyone know how to find an English subtitle version?

Year after year the Monkey King gains new adherents in my classes no matter what the medium. I usually end up with lunch hour showings and a great way to keep the students interested in all things Chinese.

[Anonymous]

Kung Fu Panda would probably make the viewing rating at our school district without the need of parental signatures. It is an animated film that can engage any audience, especially those who are visual learners.
For the purpose of the classroom, the historical Chinese traditions of the monkey, mantis, crane, tiger, and snake allow students to compare and contrast these characters. A lesson on character development would enhance certain standards on character traits, as well as selecting main versus subordinate characters. The student would construct diagrams to illustrate the contrast or similarities. The students could also place themselves in the comparison. Analysis of these diagrams would follow a class discussion on how Chinese traditions set certain foundation on setting goals or dreams. In addition, the theme of hero or heroine would be included in the discussion. The culminating writing task would assign student to give their interpretations of what each character symbolized. This would target ideas from outside the Chinese tradition but from their own backgrounds.

[Anonymous]

The Twilight Samurai
Empire Pictures 2002
Dir.: Yogi Yamada
Cast: Hiroyuki Sanad as Iguchi Seibei
Rie Miyazama as Tomoe

The setting of The Twilight Samurai is the mid-1860's in northeastern Japan where Seibei is a member of the Unasaka Clan, a fictional clan created by Shuhei Fujisawa, one of Japan's most popular writers of historical fiction. Times are hard and starvation and disease are rampant; the bodies of starved peasant children are found frequently in the river, and Seibei's wife has died of tuberculosis, the companion killer where famine stalks. The clash between the supporters of the shogun and those of the emperor is about to erupt.

Seibei is an impoverished samurai of the lowest rank of paid retainers. Most of his small salary is used to pay the debts incurred by his wife's funeral; even the sale of his katana's blade could not defer all the costs. Since he must support two young daughters and an aging mother, he leaves work immediately at the end of the day rather than going out with his fellow samurai for entertainment. For this, they derisively call him behind his back, "Twilight Seibei." At home, he gardens, thinking he may like the life of a farmer, and constructs insect cages to make ends meet. This constant work affects his grooming and the state of his dress, and he is reprimanded and embarrassed when a visiting clan dignitary notices his slothful ways.

His compatriots think he needs a wife and this drives the marital and romantic plot path of the story. The widower is reintroduced to a divorcee, one of his childhood friends. Seibei is hesitant for his financial straits and lower status lead him to believe he would dishonor her if he sought marriage. When he finally declares himself on the eve of a fight he thinks he may not win, he finds she is already engaged.

The second major plot theme is a martial one. Seibei has fought an illegal duel to help a friend. He defeats, though does not kill, his opponent with a heavy cudgel for practicing his favored weapon, the short sword. He hopes to avoid censor or sanction through the embarrassment of his opponent which will insure his silence. Instead, his reputation is enhanced by the rumor of his victory and he comes to the notice of the local clan leaders. However the nature of being samurai has changed drastically. The seventh grade social studies text, Across the Centuries by Jaqueline Cordova et al. (Houghton-Mifflin, Boston: 1999) contains these lines: "The Shogun took away the warriors' lands and instead paid them salaries for their services. The once-illiterate samuarai learned to read and write and became educated administrators." Seibei is just such a bureaucrat; a trained samurai who spends his days literally counting beans and dried fish, the seige supplies for his lord's castle. When another retainer in the clan, a famous swordsman, refuses seppuku for the clan's honor and kills the samurai sent to force him to obey, the local leaders choose Seibei, because of his skill at infighting. Seibei declines and asks to be excused for he is no longer interested in fighting and killing. When he is ordered to proceed, he answers the call of duty and honor. Confronting the swordsman and hearing his tale of sacrifice for the clan and how he is unwilling to die for it any longer, Seibei is ready to let him escape. However, when the swordsman sees Seibei has brought a katana with a wooden blade, he is insulted and defends his personal honor by attacking Seibei.

The film indicates that this is truly the era of the twilight of the samurai. Unquestioning obedience is giving way; the honor of the clan is being ceded to the honor of the individual; martial ardour is being replaced by familial tranquility; and the dominance of the Shogun will yield to the Emperor as Japan moves into the modern age. A reluctant Seibei is one of the last supporters of a way of life that will soon pass as will he as he dies fulfilling his pledge of honor.

It is this aspect of the story that I most want to use in class. Time constraints preclude showing films in their entirety so I must be content with illustrative clips. I believe I can select a couple to extract that will illustrate the tenor of the times.

[Anonymous]

The Way Home
Paramount Pictures 2002
Dir: Jeong-Hyang Lee

The Way Home is a story of transformation and redemption that is both physical and spiritual. Sang-Woo is a seven year old boy living with his mom in the city; his father left them both several years before. Sang-Woo is in limbo, the equivalent of a latch-key kid, although, as we view the relationship between mother and son, it is apparent there is no adult in the family, only two squabbling "siblings." Mom is distant, preoccupied, and annoyed by his behavior. He is assertive, spoiled (anything to shut him up), and wants to be left alone in his electronic and toy fantasy world. They are on their way to grandma's house so that mom can drop off Sang-Woo and return to the city to search for work. In the bus on-route, Sang-Woo learns the key fact that grandma is mute; he is delighted for now she will not be able to bother and nag him.

When the bus drops them on a tiny dirt road in the middle of nowhere surrounded by mountains, I was surprised that mom was wearing rather tall heels. Surely she knew where she was going. Keep this in mind as you view the last scenes of the film as grandma wends her way home from the "main" road. They trundle off with a shopping cart loaded with Sang-Woo's clothes, toys, and special foods-Spam, candy, and other junk food.

As I said this is a tale of transformation and redemption. The physical redemption is based on Sang-Woo's relationship with his own body and senses, while the spiritual redemption involves his relationship with the people around him.

I believe his physical transformation starts with toilet re-training. After a meal in which Sang-Woo rejects the food that grandma gives him and gobbles down his Spam, he is struck in the middle of the night with what is obviously an uncontrollable bowel movement. Grandma must accompany him as he sits on a chamber pot on the front porch. In the morning he will break the thundermug that grandma has just cleaned expressing his extreme displeasure. Here it seems he is literally sh*tting out the corruption of the modern processed world. When he seeks more processed food, Kentucky chicken, grandma goes to great lengths to get a live chicken and prepare boiled chicken for him which he rejects. After grandma is sleeping, he is ravenous and wolfs down the chicken only to be struck with the "I gotta go shuffle" but this time he has no chamber pot. He must venture further into the world to the outdoor latrine, but he still needs grandma to be there to watch over him. It seems that he now adapts to the household diet for grandma is renowned for the quality of her garden. I half expected another toilet scene to show that he was potty trained and could go on his own, but maybe enough was enough and the fact that he gave her one of his chocalate cakes as a surprise sufficed to show his change.

It was made clear from the beginning of the film that Sang-Woo was not a dutiful child. He had no filial piety and no sense of the Confucian order and appropriateness that was so prevalent in Korea. When mother leaves, Sang-Woo recoils from grandmother as she tries to take his hand to go home. He calls her a retard, a stupid mute, and a deaf retard while she signs, "I love you." and waves goodbye as she heads for home.

When grandma walks she looks like an inverted "L" with her legs vertical and her upper body horizontal as she slowly picks her way along. Her life is simple and traditional; she carries water in pails on a yoke from the spring, washes clothes by hand in the stream, gardens, prepares simple meals of rice and vegetables, and sews of an evening though this is getting harder as her eyesight fails. This is foreign territory for Sang-Woo, but his familiar world keeps failing him; there is no place to roller blade, the TV cannot be tuned to produce a picture, and the batteries for his toys expire and he cannot find replacements in this remote area. He must change his physical acts to cope with his surroundings. That grandma is mute is an important character trait. She cannot berate Sang-Woo, she cannot argue with him, all she can do is be patient, be timeless, and act in an appropriate manner.

The notion of right behavior also controls Sang-Woo's relationship with a neighbor boy, Cheol-Yee. At first Sang-Woo is jealous because he has met the neighbor girl, and he plays a trick
on Cheol-Yee that results in injury to the boy. Sang-Woo expects retaliation, but finds only help when he is hurt and Cheol-Yee saves him from a runaway cow. Sang-Woo has found a true older brother.

After a crying return to grandma for consolation, he finds that mom is returning to get him. He prepares cards for grandma to send so that he will know if she is sick or needs help and threads many needles so she can continue sewing. His avoidance behavior at the bus leads us to suspect that he has reverted, but as the bus leaves he rushes to the back window to sign, "I love you!" Though he is leaving Sang-Woo is home.

The film is a great soap opera that pushes all the right buttons. I will use it , in one form or another (I bought it in VHS format so I could edit it for fair use), to show the continuity of Confucian thought across a span of 2500 years. There is a novel called The Kite Fighters(Clarion Books: 2000) by Linda Sue Park that is set in Seoul, Korea in 1473 and whose main underpinning is Confucian teachings about right relationships. I am hoping to combine the two in some meaningful way.

[Anonymous]

Movie Review
I have to admit that I am soft hearted when movies portray real life and “Not One Less” made me cry. This is a movie about a 13 year old girl that is hired as a substitute teacher because the teacher’s mother is ill and he has to go help her for a month. I am always amazed about people who rise to a situation, that no matter how bad it gets rise to a higher level to help others. How this young lady of 13 had the power and strength to not only teach students almost as old as herself but also leave her comfort zone of a small dirt road village, to go to a large city and find “one” student who was not exactly the best student in her class. She had the strength to find her voice on the local TV station and get her student back. The best component of this film was that the actors where not actors and this was their very first time in front of the camera. It was absolutely wonderful. If you get a chance rent this movie. “Not One Less” I think you will be happy that you spent that time watching this true story. Neumann

[Anonymous]

China Blue
Bullfrog Films

China Blue is an expose of factories in China. The film touches on a few different themes: globalization, economics, human rights, and labor issues. The film is commenting on the hundreds of thousands of farmers and peasants, especially women, who are moving to the cities looking for jobs in factories. In addition, the film documents the unlawful work, pay and living standards that are a regular part of many factories in China. This film is specifically looking at a jean factory in Southern China. China Blue follows a young girl, Jasmine, and the friends that she makes in the factory. Jasmine leaves her home in the country and goes to work in a factory far from her family. The film documents Jasmine’s personal life and work life.

This is a fantastic film to show in Economics because it covers many of the California State Economics Standards and it is a subject that is very close to all students – clothes! All students wear jeans – after watching this film they will know where their clothes come from and who makes them. I also like this film because it follows a girl that is of high school age, so many students are able to personally connect with the main character. It is important for young people living in the United States to see what it is like for some young people in China.

This film is in Chinese with English subtitles. The issues discussed in the film are so interesting that even though the film has subtitles it is very engaging for students.

There will be a lot to discuss after watching this film with your students!

Film website - also includes a film study guide.

[Anonymous]

The movie TextNot One Less has 2 great aspects which might go unnoticed by the amateur film reviewer. The first aspect to note is that the film is directed by Zhang Yimouand the second point to remember is it is based on a true story. The message from the story line is memorable, but I think of equal importance is that the director( who can direct 2008 soldiers to drum) can also direct a smaller group of everyday people with no acting experience and get remarkable results. The film also leaves room for debate, as the phrase "not one less" refers to the student who left the group for work, but also allows for the one student who left the school with her parents. The story revolves around a small village teenager (13) who is hired to be a substitute teacher for one month in a neighboring town. She lives at the school site and has minimal supplies ( i.e. one piece of chalk per day and one book to use to write sentences on the board for the students to copy using the chalk). If she can control the students and not lose one she is to be paid 50 yuan plus 10 more at the end of the month. As with many substitute teachers, she has the initial growing pains of no control over students talking and fighting and a lack of respect for h er. SHe handles it differently than we would see....she goes outside the room, closes the door, and sits on the step. After befriending one student, the others slowly begin to treat her as their teacher. She shows amazing patience. Our heroine learns early that it is "harder to keep
kids in school than it is to teach them". When one (problem) boy leaves the school to look for work in the big city, she makes a decision to leave her position to go to the city to find him, as well as bring him back. We're left to wonder if she's going after the missing one so she can get paid, or is she genuinely concerned for his welfare. After days of endless searching and quick thinking in several situations, she is able to go onto a local talk-show and make a plea for the missing boy to meet her and return. The close up shot of her, and her dificulty to find the right words to say, is touching...to us in the audience, as well as the missing child. The film also gives some insight into the small, poor, rural China and its people. It is definately worth renting and one you will remember. It is most suitable for grades 9 and up. It lends itself easily to discussion and lessons about putting others ahead of oneself and never giving up. You could also discuss different film-making techniques from this movie.

[Anonymous]

Kikujiro was a wonderful film! It follows a young boy who befriends a yakuza and the summer adventure they take. While I would not recommend showing the entire film to a high school class because of some violence, I would encourage teachers to watch it and perhaps use clips. The relationship that develops and the friendships that can grow between strangers are depicted well. I laughed, I cried, I laughed again. This is a heartwarming film and I recommend it to all.

[Anonymous]

to clawson,

The movie was interesting and yes, it did require some editing especially when our heroine wants to see the television station's director. I was getting a bit upset when the receptionist kept going over the company's policy on gaining access. What ever happened to "the squeaky wheel gets the oil"?

Lesson learned: I will try not to miss too much school because who knows who is substituting out there. 😛

[Anonymous]

to mceballos,

Thank you for sharing your teaching ideas for this movie. I had an opportunity to watch it over the weekend at the dollar theater ($2.75). The message is a positive one; follow your dreams and believe in yourself when others fail to do so. I often come across students with low self esteem and I know that if they view movies like Kung Fu Panda they will be able to learn from characters like Po who didn't fit the mold of the Dragon Warrior yet was found worthy by the wise turtle to open the Scroll.

Kung Fu Panda has endless possibilities for teaching lessons; hey! students can actually learn about Chinese culture, perserverance, faith, and having a positive outlook on life.

[Anonymous]

Thank you so much!

However, what do I need to do to play a VCD? Is there somewhere I can go to convert the movie into a DVD or do I need to purchase a VCD player?

[Anonymous]

ageisner,
If you put an e-mail address in your profile I could contact you directly.
A VCD will play on any computer; it is a CD with video on it. If you have an s-video connection to your TV, it will show there; if you have an LCD projector, you can project it on a screen. If you are bent on conversion simply Google: vcd to dvd conversion.
wyss

[Anonymous]

The Last Samurai takes place in about 1876 to 1887. I cannot show this movie in its entirety to my six grade students. However, there are short scenes that can be shown which show the customs and daily life of the village people and the samurai. The following is some of the scenes that I can use in various lessons:
Bowing out of respect,
The 1,000 miles of railroad track
Yoshimo Province.
Men waiting for battle with guns (new to Japan).
Samurai charging on horse back.
Samurai in armor
Buddhist in meditation.
Custom of eating of rice out of ceramic bowls.
Reading
Flashes of Buddha.
Beautiful mountain village which shows men working with iron
Men practicing swords fighting
A boy doing sword rituals with father.
Men hoeing in the fields and some carrying wood on their back.
Scene of Buddhist temple built 1,000 years ago.
Warriors in red armor
Chop sticks made of wood.
Samurais wearing hair tied on behind head (hair knots).
Shows Nathan reading and making what looks like a diary.
Shows the boy working with calligraphy with his paint brush.
Shows a glimpse of the tea ceremony.
Nathan learning to speak Japanese.
Shows the recessed cooking pit in the homes.
Shows planting the rice patties.
Shows trading of money.
Cherry blossoms.
Battling with sticks and Nathan finally ties.
Shows amateur theater puppets dressed. Katsu
Depicts writing a poem of the “troubled sea”
Shows the garden of peace of the ancestors.
Shows how Tokyo has many cultures.
Shows cannons and what appears to be a tent city.

[Anonymous]

A film that I recently caught on the Independent Film Channel was "Does Your Soul Have A Cold?" about the lives of five people in modern day Tokyo who are battling depression. Last year, as part of my first year teaching training course, I had to teach a health lesson in connection to my content area (Japanese). I chose to teach about stress management, and the effects of stress on high school students. This film, with characters like Mika, who drinks vinegar every day as a way to improve discipline and has broken off numerous therapy sessions with counselors, and Takehoshi, who has attended a mental health day care for a number of years and holds out on the prospects of hope and research on his illness, is an intriguing way to show how young people's issues in Japan. Depression, along with rising levels of teen suicide (an oft-discussed topic in the film) and the phenomenon of hikikomori (chronic shut-ins) are issues that students can use to compare to their own day-to-day trials as pressures mount from parents, peers, and teachers. My lesson concludes with an activity in which students construct their own stress management schedule that is then signed by both parents and students. It's an activity that left a few students talking, but I believe that the inclusion of "Does Your Soul Have A Cold" could potentially add a new level of immediacy to the lesson for all students.

[Anonymous]

jwyss,
You are absolutely wonderful! Thank you for taking the time to read the posts and respond to the individual questions of us who are in need of a little assistance!!! I included my email address in my profile and I am assuming that you have already done so. I will take the steps that you shared with me and go from there; I do have an LCD projector so this sounds much easier than I thought. If I run into any difficulty do you mind if I send you an email?!

Thank you again!

[Author]

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