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AnonymousAnother hard-to-genrefy Korean film is called "Old Boy." This film begins with the disappearance of the main character, Oh Dae-Su. We follow Oh Dae-Su through see his long and confusing imprisonment in what looks like a trashy hotel room. Just as confusing, he is suddenly released without any explanation. The rest of the movie shows Dae-Su searching for the person(s) who imprisoned him. There is romance, kung-fu fighting, flashbacks to Dae-Su's past, and some I-wanna-take-a-shower-now incest. It's definitely not a movie for your classroom. It is a well-made and suspenseful movie. I was pretty grossed out by the incest and the gory ending to the point that I didn't want to see it again. I reviewed "The Host" previously, and I do enjoy the way these two Korean movies don't seem to fit into a typical genre. It's definitely an interesting movie.
Anonymous"The spring of 1989 saw the largest pro-democracy demonstration in the history of China's communist regime." If you are interested in the events that led up to the Tiananmen Square events of June 3-4, 1989, Frontline did a program called The Tank Man that you can view on the web. There are links including a link to a timeline of events. This is more geared toward high school and college use. It's about an hour and 20 minutes long and can be viewed in 6 segments. It also includes 3 segments on how the country has changed/not changed since then. I found it fascinating and educational. It's a good background film to see for anyone teaching that period in Chinese history as well as the present.
AnonymousAn absolute "must own" for your Elementary School Library is a copy of "The Ballad of Mulan." Briefly, the story is about a young woman named Mulan who lived a long time ago in China. All Chinese men were being recruited to fight in the war, however Mulan believed her father was too frail to join the army. She went in his place and dressed as a man. Throughout the war, her performance as a soldier was exemplary. It was only when she returned to her family and appeared in a dress that her fellow army men realized their hero was a woman. Mulan is the story of a woman who became a brave war hero, held in great respect through-out the country of China.
There are many versions of this tale on film. The one to own is the Disney 2-Disc Special Edition set. It is available through DisneyDVD.com. The first disc is the traditional tale. Although sometimes lengthy due to the musical dancing scenes (as Disney tends to do ... ) the film is is rated "G" and will present you with no viewing dillemas in an elementary classroom. When showing my students the film, I broke it up over a two day period and fast forwarded through some of the musical numbers.
The real magic of the DVD is in the bonus features. In Disc Two, the creators of the film are interviewed as they tour China looking for authentic icons to integrate into the cartoon portion fo the film. The scenery is captivating and real. The writers explain the symbolism behind the elements of the animated film. I would show my students this portion of the DVD before they watched the film on Disc one. There is also a shorter version of The Ballad (5 minutes) that would eliminate the need for the film on disc one. This disc offers history clips of China that are easily accessed and "just enough information" as to not lose a viewers interest. Still Frame galleries offer views of China that bring the country into a student's frame of reference. Not to be overlooked is the "Disneypedia" portion that brings the history of China to life in a manner easily understood by an Elementary age group.
If you are using the 3rd Grade Houghton Mifflin Series at your school, borrow enough copies to read "The Ballad of Mulan" contained in Set One. The film is a direct match to the information found at the beginning of the story regarding Chinese history, as well as the Tale itself. Integrating this film into your instruction is a no-brainer! It offers all students multiple opportunities to experience Chinese culture and history first-hand.
Potential follow-up lessons include:
- Asking students to write and perform their own Mulan play.
- Write a sequel to the film using historical information about China.
- Research geographical areas of China where the film took place; Design a tour of major Chinese cities.
- Research the major battles of China and the reasons for these battles from as early as 221 B.C. all the way through 1945.
- Stage a class debate; Was Mulan's decision to fight in her father's place a good idea?
- Review still frames of the film. What inferences can you make about Chinese life from these photographs? Choose two or three of your ideas and look for specific evidence to support your beliefs.
- Challenge students to make connections to the film with something they have experienced or know about in real life.
- Take on the character of Mulan. Write a letter to your father explaining your decision to fight. Give examples of what your life in the battlefield is like each day. Convince your father that you made the right choice.
- Research simple Chinese Characters that may have been used to represent the ideas in Mulan. Write a simple story using the symbols you have identified.
As I watched and rewatched this film - including the bonus features, it became so obvious the number of learning opportunities that could spring from viewing this DVD. I strongly encourage you to purchase this DVD set and enjoy your own teaching discoveries that match your student interests. The pictures of China and interviews with the film's producers alone are worth the price of the video! You won't want to hunt around trying to borrow this one!
AnonymousRecently my class is watching a Chinese movie called "CJ7", which is newly released in Asia. It is directed and played by Stephen Chow, the director and star of Kung Fu Hustle and Shaolin Soccer. Basically it is a sci-fi comedy adventure about the shocking arrival of an amazing new "pet" who shakes up the lives of a poor construction worker and his son. Although Chow uses a lot of exaggerating ways to tell this story as usual, this time he delivers an important message that only when we understand each other totally and accept the differences among people, we can then live in a harmony life with a happy and peaceful mind. He also encourages all people who are living in a poor condition that there are always hopes and nothing should be ashamed about as long as we keep working hard towards right way. For this point, I have changed my impression of him and respect his efforts. Besides, the alien "pet" in this movie is really cute and the story is interesting. I think all children will love it. 😀 [Edit by="sfamekao on Apr 30, 4:52:35 PM"][/Edit]
AnonymousRecently my student lend me one film about protecting Panda. I saw it long time ago and it's still worth to see it one more time. This movie "Amazing Panda Adventure" is talking about a little boy whose father works in the panda conservation area in Sichuan, China went to visit his father during summer vacation and his adventure. He was involved into a dangerous situation and tried to save and protect a little panda from hunters' hands. When we talked about animal protection in my Chinese AP class, two students mentioned this movie right away. When I mentioned this movie in my Chinese 1 class, one student highly recommend this movie to his classmates. So, I guess I am not the only one like it; kids love it too. It's suitable for all age groups of children to watch.
AnonymousThis Japanese animation movie is directed by Miyazaki Hayao, one of the best animation directors in the world. I am Miyazaki fan. I have seen almost all his movies. He always wants to deliver a message that protecting our environment is everyone's responsibility. "Princess Mononokei" is one of my favorite. This movie is mainly talking about how people's selfishness might ruin other species who share the same environment with them. Actually people are suffering from their own mistakes that is to destroy their own living environment gradually but still don't know the possible consequences and the reasons why they are suffering. This movie helps us to reflect our situation right now. Green house effect is gradually damaging our environment but many people still don't realize that it's everyone's job to protect this earth. When we talk about this issue in my Chinese AP class, some students think in a very passive way that we cannot do anything about stopping the green house effect anyway so let's enjoy life and not to take any action about it. This kind of thinking makes me worried. If many young generation people are thinking this way, I think the problems will be getting worse rapidly. Therefore, I think it's worth to show this kind of movie to students and discuss this topic with them. Hopefully, we can at least make a difference among our students.
AnonymousThe film I watched was Eat Drink Man Woman (飲食男女). In the movie, the father was chef Chu who had three daughters. This was the story about a Chinese family in which a widower father expressed his love to his three daughters by cooking restaurant- sized meals. Although the father spent a lot of time to cook a big meal, the second daughter always criticized the cooking, and then ended the meal quickly. The father could not even taste his own cooking. They did not really communicate with each other at dinner time. Their lives were full of loneliness and had no flavor in their lives. The three daughters tried to leave their house. The second daughter Jia-Chiien was the first person who wanted to leave the family. However, she lost her apartment and lost her boyfriend. She did not get married by the end of the movie. The third daughter Jia-Ning and the first daughter Jia-Jen both suddenly married and moved out the house. It was even a shock when the father married Jia-Jen’s classmate. I like the end of the story where the father was able to taste the flavor of the soup which his second daughter cooked. This was the symbol that his life had flavor again. The second daughter touched her father’s hand and that symbolized that her resentment was released.
Students will be able to learn some Chinese culture from this movie. I am listing a few differences between Chinese culture and American culture.
1. In the traditional Chinese family of a long time ago, if a husband passed away, the wife became a widow and stayed unmarried for the rest of her life. My grandmother was a widow when she was 40 years old. She raised her two children by herself.
2. If you are not married, you still live the parents. In the film, three daughters still lived with their father when they were not married.
3. Chinese families did not express their love through words but by doing things for them. I grew up in this kind of the family myself. I understood. Chinese parents do not express their love by saying “I love you,” but doing things for them. In the movie, the father did many things for them such as cooking, doing laundry for them, putting their clothes in their closet.
4. A Chinese dining table is round. Round (圓) shape means reunion or a union.
5. A Chinese family can hide things for a long time. In the movie, the third daughter Jia-Ning and the first daughter Jia-Jen suddenly announced that they were getting married. They were moving out. The surprising and hilarious scene was when the father announced that he was getting married to his daughter Jia-Jen’s classmate.
6. Chinese students respect teachers by bowing down to the teachers and saying “Thank you teacher.”
AnonymousI have just viewed for the second time HERO it is a great movie. After our class I now understand what the ending is about. I understand that the HERO is both the King and his attempted killer. The Killer -hit man is sent for personal revenge and discovers along the way that his and the lives of those around him are not as great as the unity of China. In the end he gives the emperor his life back and in return is killed in the name of tradition. With my new understanding of the film it has become an all time classic.
AnonymousChina from the inside was a great inside look at China. I was amazed with the lack of land problem and how the solution is to cultivate once Desert land. The problems in China are the same as the problems here, the only difference is we still have a better life style and do not have a class system of urban and Rural, which we should.
AnonymousWith its “R” rating, I didn’t imagine Lust, Caution would be appropriate for my eighth grade language arts classes. However, it certainly added to my understanding of China’s cultural journey. I am a great fan of Ang Lee and appreciate the universality in all his films. Although the setting was very specific to coastal China, specifically Hong Kong and Shanghai during the 40’s, the film was as timeless as an Alfred Hitchcock thriller. However, the Western clothes, food and cars were so predominant to be questionable. Although in class we had briefly studied the West’s influence on the upper class Chinese during this period, the overt Western detailed look of the film intrigued me. Also the equal status of the upper-class young women surprised me. Our heroine seemed to be extremely modern, even to the point of being a radical assassin. All in all, the film was totally captivating, worthy of another award for director Lee. His films, whether Sense and Sensibility with its very English context or Lust, Caution in Mandarin, are indeed international films,
AnonymousAfter watching Lust, Caution, I thought I might look at something more eighth grade appropriate. I turned to Eating the Scorpion: American Teachers Bring China to the Classroom. At first I was dismayed that another teacher tour so closely paralleled our own phenomenal, I thought unique, China trip last spring. When I moved past that disappointment, I realized what a great teaching tool this film offered. In a lively interesting presentation, it continually juxtaposed the old and new China. Thus if classes were reading about the Great Wall, they could see both the artifact and contemporary people drudging up it. Similar to our trip, these teachers visited numerous schools and interviewed Chinese students on a myriad of timely topics. I think our students would enjoy and definitely benefit from a viewing of this film.[Edit by="schumacher on May 5, 2:59:48 PM"][/Edit]
AnonymousI posted previously asking if anyone had seen the film "Two Million Minutes," a documentary that compares high school students in China, India, and the United States (countries the film's website calls the superpowers of the 21st century). I got a few responses from people saying they had heard of the film while the creators were on a press tour in April, the same way I heard about the documentary. I ended up ordering the film in mid-April, with the thought that I might use it for my major lesson plan about study skills. The film finally showed up this week (the company was overwhelmed with orders after the press tour), and I watched it right away.
I think the main point of the documentary is clear in the first few moments -- the United States, India, and China are in a global competition for technology jobs, knowledge, and advancement, and the United States is the only country that does not realize this. While China and India are getting there gifted math and science learners into magnet-type schools and programs in high school, the U.S. is stuck in a somewhat politically correct bubble to create well-rounded students who play sports, have part-time jobs, do extra-curricular activities, etc. It's such an interesting documentary and not too long -- about 52 minutes running time. I think the film should be used in every classroom. My colleagues and I are creating a study skills lesson for 6th graders that uses the film in the curriculum.
AnonymousIt's not exactly a traditional Chinese film, but this movie was made in China. It is based on the book Journey to the West. It involves time travel- always fun. Jet Li and Jackie Chan are great together. The two go back in time to Ancient China- where they must defeat a powerful ruler. Now, I haven't seen the film, but after reading about it in my Teen Scholastic Magazine- I discussed it w/my students. A few of them (all boys, naturally) said they saw it and loved it. They thought it was funny, adventurous and they enjoyed the scenes from China. They thought it was kind of like a fairy tale (which we are presently studying). So, this movie's story fit into my lesson on fairy tales. I hope to get the DVD and check it out as an added addition to a fairy tale story line and a short study, albeit Hollywood's version, of Ancient China.
AnonymousYou mention in your review that India and China are placing their gifted students in magnet schools. I think those opportunities exist in this country as well for the same kind of students. In the mean time it would be worth to know what percentage of the population have the equivalent of an american 8th grade education. I am not going to ask for HS diploma b/c I think we cannot say that it is a reliable measure of education in the US. But I think we can say that the 80% of all 18 year olds (=people w/HS diplomas) meet the 8th grade academic standards. Can China or India claim the same? How many kids' basic education is sacrifice to foster the education of the gifted and the rich?
AnonymousI saw this film listed in another post regarding films. It sounds like you use this with high school students. I haven't had a chance to view it, but do you think it would also be appropriate for youngers students in elementary school or do you think the subject matter and presentation are too complex?