tai seng

[ngokfei]

am involved with a distrubtion company who is getting access to the Tai Seng library.

They are going to hold movie weeks throughout the country covering 3 topics.

Gangster Movies

Old style Kung Fu movies versus the Modern Versions

lets just say "zen and sex"

What is your preferences for each of these catagories that you would want to see or you feel should be included.

thanx.

[WanderingMonk]

Gangster Movies

* A Better Tomorrow (illustrating "Jiang Hu" in terms of gangsters). The John Woo piece that started the HK gangster movie crazed.
* The series on Chinese mainlander working as mercenaries for HK gangster (I don't know the English name for the series). Very bloody and show the social-economical disparity which lead to desperation.
*Hard Boiled - the John Woo's stylistic interpretation of gunfights or wuxia-ification of gunfights (if there is such of word).


Old style Kung Fu movies versus the Modern Versions

*36th chambers - illustration of the old style kf movie. hard bridge, hard horse, not much wire-fu. shows kung-fu as an outlet to re-address political "wrongs" (overthowing the ching).

*Fong sai Yuk - Jet Li's piece and modern kf. great wire-fu, still preserve the old political rebellion outlet, more comedy sequence (result of Jackie Chan-ification of CMA films).

* Drunken Master I & II, Jackie Chan's interpretation of Wong Fei Hong separated by fifteen years. I can't remember much of DK I, I saw it when I was like three. But, I am sure, you'll be able to see a great contrast. Begining of Jackie Chan's career. The beginning of Kung-fu action/comedy genre.

lets just say "zen and sex"

avoid it if possible.

wm

[WanderingMonk]

One more thing, depending on your targeted audience, you want to review these movies to see if there will be any cultural sensitivity issues.

Here's two example:

I showed "OUTIC II" to my buddies back in colleges in early 90s. There was a scene about the boxer rebellions and how the British were holed up in their Consulate building. Anyways, my American friends objected to some of the depiction about how the Englishmen were protrayed as powerless under the situation and seem to depend on Wong Fei-hong's help. Basically, they objected to how Asian cinema protrayed Westerners as cartoon caricatures and how they are preceived from the Asian perspective. Of course, since this is a Chinese movie, it was aimed to pump up the Chinese. Since my friends identify themselves differently, they resented the protrayal.

example two:

I was watching the 007 film with Michelle Yeoh as the female lead. Anyways, at the end of the movie, it ends with Michelle falling for James Bond. Well, at that point, I was kind of queasy. I was think well you know Chinese girl don't have loose moral and don't do stuff like that. But, I didn't object when I watched other 007 filmes when James Bond swept girls from all other nationalities off their feet. So, I would be sensitive to the audience's ethnic identification and perception.

wm

[GeneChing]

... you need to show them Jet Li's Born to Defense. It's the only film Li directed :p