- ABC news reports that over 1100 cultural relics were unearthed last year at construction sites for Olympic venues in and around Beijing, including several tombs dating from the Ming dynasty located a few hundred yards away from the proposed site of an Olympic shooting range. So far over 700 tombs dating from the Han through to the Qing have been unearthed during Olympic construction. This week Beijing also unveiled two other temples, one dating back to the Ming dynasty. These temples have been partially restored and now sit opposite each other on either end of the Olympic Green.
- Asia Times Online looks at why so many of China’s recent big budget movies are bloody period pieces. The money quote from the article is by Wang Wu, a screenwriter who has worked with Zhang Yimou:
“Foreigners don’t want to see films about modern China,” mused Wang Wu, one of Zhang Yimou’s screenwriters. “They don’t care about our modern life because there is nothing original in it, it is a copycat of theirs. What is truly and only ours, though, is China’s ancient history. Ancient China is the only worthwhile subject for a big commercial film.”
- The People’s Daily is miffed that the Palace Museum in Taipei has changed the language of its “organic rules” from “treasures come from the Palace Museum in Beiping” to “the Chinese ancient relics into antiques from both at home and overseas.” While it’s hard to ascribe altruistic or academic motives to the KMT’s decision to grab as much loot as they could from the Forbidden City before hightailing it across the straits, the truth is that their actions saved a great deal of China’s past. Many artifacts left in the PRC after 1949 were damaged either due to neglect or a lack of experienced curators, not to mention the rampages and wanton destruction of cultural treasures by the Red Guards during the GPCR.
- A grisly bit of historical tradition persisting into present day: three men are being held for murder in Shaanxi province. One of the men bought a woman for about $1,600 and was going to resell her as a bride when he learned she would be more valuable as a “ghost bride.” According to tradition, a man who dies unmarried can have a dead woman assigned to him as a “ghost bride” to keep him company in the afterlife. The man killed the woman and sold her to an undertaker who said he could find a buyer. He then went out and killed another woman, this time a prostitute from Yan’an. According to the Legal Daily, these were not isolated incidents. Yikes.
- The internet is working again here in Tianjin. So all is (almost) alright with the world. One down note, YJ and I went to a local temple, the Da Bei Yuan here in Tianjin, for La Ba to get our free bowls of zhou only to be told that temple renovation expenses prevented them from giving away free porridge this year. 6:00 am in the freezing cold and no free porridge…what have I done to my karma and can it be fixed?
15 responses so far ↓
1 Dave // Jan 27, 2007 at 4:05 am
“Foreigners don’t want to see films about modern China,” mused Wang Wu, one of Zhang Yimou’s screenwriters. “They don’t care about our modern life because there is nothing original in it, it is a copycat of theirs. What is truly and only ours, though, is China’s ancient history. Ancient China is the only worthwhile subject for a big commercial film.”
Gosh, how many ways is this f**ked up?
First and foremost “foreigners” is not a demographic, and that goes a long way to explain why Chinese film isn’t exactly cleaning up internationally.
Second, the biggest market, the U.S., wouldn’t even get to see the big historical epics if it weren’t for Quentin Tarantino to break through the lack of distribution. And I’d point out it was because of Quentin’s distribution that I got to see Chungking Express and he pushed John Woo to go Hollywood, though I think that was a mistake.
Third, how about the international recognition for Happy Togther, Clean, Summer Palace and other films that are set in modern times? How about that Zhang Yimou made his rep on 20th century stories like Ju Dou, To Live, Red Sorghum and Happy Times?
Fourth and finally the only person here who thinks that modern China is just a cheap copycat that doesn’t belong to the Chinese is Mr. Wang. Self-hate much, Wu?
2 無名 - wu ming // Jan 28, 2007 at 3:07 am
don’t forget 洗澡，愛情麻辣湯 and 一一. modern china has tons of great material for film.
this attitude, that modern China must base its pride on its history, is what bolloxes up historical discussion, IMO.
not unlike american inability to come to grips with, say, vietnam (or in some circles, the civil war). too much at stake to speak honestly and dispassionately, without attachment.
3 Tom - Daai Tou Laam // Jan 28, 2007 at 4:54 am
In fact I put up a post today saying just the opposite about Chinese film, in part due to news about Tom Cruise’s remake of The Eye. The post quotes from Chris Doyle, cinematographer for Chungking Express and Happy Together and Hero and visual consultant for Infernal Affairs, that American film is stuck remaking Shrek3, while Asian film is doing new material and having the Americans buy it up.
And speaking of Infernal Affairs, the US remake of this movie is up for a Best Picture Oscar.
4 Chris // Jan 28, 2007 at 12:23 pm
I agree with Dave.
What China does Wang Wu live in that he thinks there’s nothing film-worthy about it? Actually, I’d love a break from over-painted historical epics.
5 yulian // Jan 28, 2007 at 12:40 pm
hmm…
the ghost bride will be a very interesting topic. Of course it is very unhuman!
There was another big thing happened in sichuan last month. You can search Dazu Yang Daili to see what happened…
6 花崗齋之愚公 // Jan 28, 2007 at 7:14 pm
I couldn’t agree with your comments more. Perhaps the Asia Times article requires its own post. I had to put that quote up there, it was just such a bizarre thing to say.
Tom, Thanks for your comments and the link. That was a great post. I heard that about The Departed nomination. though on CCTV 9’s review of ‘Oscar contenders’ they didn’t mention it once. As most have heard, it’s had a hard time getting past the Chinese censors. I liked Infernal Affairs, I also really liked The Departed. But then again, I’m from New England and grew up listening to news reports of Whitey Bulger’s exploits and, as some readers here know, my movie sensibilities became stuck somewhere when I was about 15.
I also agree with Wu Ming and Chris. Today’s China has no shortage of fascinating subjects for movie making. I wonder if film makers might be a little gun-shy about making ‘modern and meaningful’ movies for fear of censorship, I’m thinking of the problems “Summer Palace” had recently. I am glad that Zhang Yimou has apparently returned to his roots, as it were. His latest movie I’ve heard is reminiscent of his earlier work such as “我的父亲母亲” (The Road Home) and “一个都不能少” (Not One Less.”
One interesting point made by the article is the amount of overseas financing for these epics, and that the current trend may reflect investor ‘preferences’ over artistic or social concerns. Hopefully A phenomenon hardly unique to Chinese cinema.
7 花崗齋之愚公 // Jan 28, 2007 at 7:21 pm
Yulian,
YJ and I had this same discussion, there’s a lot going on in the backcountry of China that is quite surprising/shocking/interesting. I suppose one could make that claim for the backcountry anywhere (God knows, I’m from New Hampshire…)
It does seem interesting however, thinking of Philip Kuhn’s Soulstealers, hearing about a rise in reports of ’supernatural’ crimes during a time of economic growth/dislocation and increased social mobility, does it not?
8 花崗齋之愚公 // Jan 28, 2007 at 9:58 pm
Richard Spencer has an interesting take on movie subjects as well at his Telegraph China blog.
9 davesgonechina // Jan 29, 2007 at 8:21 am
I’d point out that Tom Cruise remaking The Eye is perfect for his Scientology. The tag line could be “I see thetans!”
J., what is Zhang Yimou’s next film? I thought he was on hiatus until after the Olympics and that he’s still considering projects.
10 花崗齋之愚公 // Jan 29, 2007 at 6:53 pm
Dave,
Sorry, I meant his last film before the Curse of the Golden Flower. Qian li zou dan qi (Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles). I’m looking forward to finding it on DVD. I’ve heard it’s not nearly as good as his 1990s work, but I think it’ll be a nice respite from swords and emperors.
11 davesgonechina // Jan 29, 2007 at 11:23 pm
I thought you might have meant 千里走单骑. I haven’t seen it yet either, but yeah it looks like a return to form. But I’d rather Zhang Yimou went back to being an innovator, instead.
Like the rumor that he and Spielberg have discussed doing a scifi film. I wanna see the Chinese equivalent of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, with 曾志伟 building mountains out of his 粥 and Chow Yun Fat doing his best Truffaut impression.
12 davesgonechina // Jan 29, 2007 at 11:31 pm
Oh and one more thought about Wang Wu’s comment:
“What is truly and only ours, though, is China’s ancient history.”
Uh, the history of China is also the history, to some extent, of Tibet, Mongolia, Japan, Korea, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and all the myriad of different kingdoms and empires that once existed within its current borders. This notion that history is exclusively the property of a contemporary body politic is isolationist and inaccurate. If anything, history shows how much the people of different nations are interrelated, not a bunch of pristine distinct units.
Yet another reason screenwriters should back off on history.
13 jmt // Jan 30, 2007 at 5:16 pm
For whatever it’s worth, I think Wang Wu’s comment was in reference to the fact that the only Chinese films that *really* make money in the States (not sure about overseas) are the grand historical epics- 十面埋伏， 英雄， 卧虎藏龙, etc.
Moreover, would he really consider 一一 (very Taiwanese), Chungking Express, Clean, and Happy Together (all HK, with the latter two being very international) about modern (mainland) China? Those movies that have been about modern China- the China of *today*, neither the wirefu Yuen Woo Ping choreographed epics nor the trademark ’suffering under oppression’ movies set fifty years ago mostly starring Gong Li- are few, far between, and don’t make nearly as much money as the rest, which I think makes his point that “Foreigners don’t want to see films about modern China.”
As to the ancient history stuff, well, yeah, that’s a bit of nationalism talking. But China’s hardly unique in this regard.
14 花崗齋之愚公 // Jan 31, 2007 at 1:05 am
Dave and JMT,
I think some of the trends we are seeing in China are depressingly familiar to moviegoers around the world. Investors call the shots. “Historical” movies need to rewrite history to satisfy the preconceived notions of the audience (whether to reconfirm cherished national myths or provide a kind of exoticism) and investors fear that movies about ‘real life’ tend to be boring for most people. (Though I was glad to see Little Miss Sunshine is a dark horse favorite for a statue this year. Funny, funny movie and, by the by, currently being shown by United Airlines on their USA-Asia routes.)
15 http://www.usome.com // Aug 28, 2007 at 8:30 pm
“What is truly and only ours, though, is China’s ancient history.”
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