Researching and Writing About Film

2008-09-29T17:44:00.004-06:00

Memoirs of a Geisha

2007-05-10T12:07:00.000-06:00

The film Memoirs of a Geisha, is my all time favorite film. It attempts to portray the mentality of a different society, different mentality, as well as a different culture.

Although the director did a wonderful job with the formalist persepective of the film, many were quick to criticize the fact that Chinese actresses and actors portrayed a Japanese fairytale.

''Any doubts about three Chinese actresses speaking English with Japanese accents vanish in the face of their deeply felt performances and the world Marshall conjures with magical finesse,'' said Peter Travers.

This essay dives into stereotypes, nationalism and the acting in the film among other things.

Memoirs of a Geisha

The Quentin Tarantino Effect

2007-05-04T21:06:00.000-06:00

Samuel Jackson and John Travolta in Pulp Fiction

In this article by Stanley Crouch, Quentin Tarantino is viewed as the leading young filmmakers of his time. Tarantino's movies, such as Natural Born Killers, Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, True Romance, and Jackie Brown, hard-edged, ultra violence with shots of absurd and unexpected humor. Crouch sees Quentin as adding new energy, cool, comedy, and irony, to a low age in movies.

Some of Quentin's use of irony is discussed my Crouch, who sees Quentin discussing our ethnic identity through many of his movies. Examples are given from Pulp Ficton, Jackie Brown, and Reservoir Dogs. Crouch notices that in Reservoir Dogs, blacks are referred as inferiors by the Caucasian cast, but they talk about how attractive Pam Grier (a famous black actor) is. This ironic racism Tarantino adds continues when the undercover cop's mentor turns out to be a black man.

Those alterations reach far beyond the customary racial cliches that thud upon us frame by frame and the hostile or maudlin soap box oratory that washes all possible eloquence out of dialogue.

Crouch finishes by stating Quentin's film making is recognizable yet unfamiliar: "we feel we've seen it and not seen it before."

Science fiction films and religion

2007-05-04T10:35:00.000-06:00

In this article by Anton Karl Kozlovic he discusses how he believes that there are religous ties intertwined in four science fiction films. Those films are The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), Blade Runner (1982), The Terminator (1984), and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). He argues that "SF films have frequently been the vehicles for hidden biblical characters, particularly Christ-figures." One example of this can be seen in Terminator 2: Judgment Day with the Terminator character. He is sent to save humanity. There are many more examples but it is interesting to see the similarities that he presents and how closely they are related they are to the bible itself.

300

2007-04-30T12:40:00.001-06:00

300 is based on a battle that occurred in 480 B.C. I provided a link that explains what really happened. Some say that 300 did not accurately follow the true events of which took place at the battle ofThermopylae but according to this link from wikipedia it seems very accurate. King Leonidas and his army of 300 Spartans, along with a small army of other Greeks held off the vast army of the Persian Empire, led by King Xerxes. After 3 days of battle, someone informed the Persians of a small pathway to lead them into Greece. Although all the Spartans were killed, this proved to the rest of Greece that this war could be won. It also gave Athens time to prepare for battle, which led to the dismantling of the Persian naval fleet, and eventually to the victory of Greece.

300

2007-04-30T12:40:00.000-06:00

Steven Spielberg's film style

2007-04-30T11:29:00.000-06:00

Steven Spielberg is considered the most successful director in film history. He has done many films such as Close Encounters, Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, and E.T., just to name a few. His filming style can been caried over throughout all of his movies. This link compares many of his works with one another. The link also shows his maturity as a film maker as time goes by.

Full Metal Jacket

2007-04-30T11:09:00.000-06:00

Stanley Kubrick's Film Full Metal Jacket uses a historical reference to the vietnam war. Kubrick also uses the history of the US military training. In the film the soon to be soldiers go to boot camp in order to become US soldiers. Kubrick shows the harsh nature of the commanding officers in order to remove any sense of individuality and add any information that they wish on the privates. During boot camp there is an emphasis on team work. If your team succeeds you share the benefits. If you fail you share the consequences. In the first section of Full Metal Jacket Kubrick shows a private who is unable to handle the physical and mental strain of boot camp. This private is hasseled by both the commanding officer as well as his squad. This link elaborates on US military training and what their goal is.

Lost in Translation: Sophia's Farce??

2007-04-30T09:29:00.000-06:00

The article here is only the first post from Imomus.com. The article is title "Lost on Me" and contains a great deal of insight into the acting of the characters in Sophia Coppola's Lost in Translation. The following quote is taken from the article explaining Bill Murray's comedy:

Does Murray's charisma have to come at the expense of someone else all the
time? (Let's not even talk about the portrayal of the prostitute or the
commercial director.) In a hospital scene, an old lady asks Murray why he took
this long trip to Japan. Murray responds again by playing to the gallery, miming
her as if she were doing a ludicrous choreographed song. He's the odd one out,
the foreigner, and yet he's treating those around him as if they were
foreigners. This is bad manners and bad traveller etiquette. It prompts the
question, is it possible to be American and foreign? I suspect the answer is
'No', at least if one is in an American film, wherever it may be set.

The author describes, in great detail, the other actors and actresses and they're strong points and weaknesses in the film. There is also a great deal of ideological analysis which analyzes the socialogical behavior in the film.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

2007-04-30T09:14:00.000-06:00

This is Harry's fourth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This year he finds himself facing the triwizard tournament as the fourth opponent, which breaks the rules of the tournament. This, however, was not the doing of Harry but of a more sinister force. On can feel the evil in this movie because of all of the darkness in it. Professor Alastor Moody, for example who turns out to be a traitor in disguise, is shrouded in ambiguity as a foreboding that this character would turn out evil. He is consistently dressed in dark colors and in shadows, which signify evil about him. Lord Voldemort himself is always carried in a black cloth which archetypally means death, this is fitting because Voldemort is technically dead; however, he can not die because of precautionary magic used. Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore is the exact opposite of Lord Voldemort, he is the Jesus Character in a sense whereas Voldemort would be the devil. Dumbledore is ever omnisicent and is always shrouded in the light which is an archetype for goodness. The Gryffindors colors are crimson and yellow, crimson being a color that indicates passion which tends to be true for the greater majority if not all of the gryffindors. The gray in the colors of the Slytherins represents ambiguity because one is not born evil, one is made that way. In this case it more specifically represents their stuggle of children to try to live up ti the expectations of their parent,wheter they want to or not.

spiderman ideological analysis

2007-04-30T09:10:00.000-06:00

The movie "spiderman" was directed by Sam Raimi and was released in 2002. The movie is about a high school student who gains supernatural powers when a spider bites him. He uses his power to fight the evil.

This movie claims that "with great power comes great responsibility" and those powers should be used with care and for the greater good of the world. This theme runs through the whole movie. At first Peter Parker, the main character in the movie, gains supernatural abilities, he uses his abilities for his own selfish purposes. One of the bad consequences was that his uncle gets killed by the same person whom he had helped earlier. This event makes him realizes that he shouldn't use his power for bad things. After this he uses his power to fight the evil and to protect people.

Another theme of the movie is goo vs. evil. Like many other films, this film reinforces the idea that the good always win against evil. In the end, Peter Parker who represents good survives and Norman Osborn dies in the end.

Hulk

2007-04-30T08:48:00.000-06:00

In this site you will be able to retrieve information about the film Hulk. The author Rob Raux talks about the features of the film such as the giant characters and the exiting colors. Raux states “Ang Lee? The guy who did The Ice Storm?! This guy is heavy duty! What's he doing at the helm of a superhero flick?... And yet, looking at the results of his foray into Green Giant Land, you can't help but appreciate.” Also, Raux is fascinated with the color that was used in the film. Raux mentions “Lee possesses an unparalleled visual style (helped here by DP Frederick Elmes and editor Tim Squyres) which he applies with gusto to Hulk's four-color universe. Rather than centering on the world itself, with its spandex-clad figures and distorted architecture, he conveys the experience of reading a comic book in cinematic terms.” Also Raux discusses the great tools that was used by Hulk in the movie, which in his points of view it attract him more to the film. Raux affirms “The panels on the page become the focus: the connection between the images and the way they pull us through the story. Several films (notably George A. Romero's Creepshow) have toyed with the same concept, but Hulk comes loaded with a staggering array of formalistic tools: split screens, frames within frames, wipe cuts, and fade outs of all varieties. Overall this site contain very useful information about the Hulk film.

Terminator

2007-04-30T01:00:00.000-06:00

Terminator was directed by James Cameron in 1984. This concept supposidly came to him in a dream. But, look at this review of the movie, Cyborg 2087. Now, if you ask me Cameron got his influence from this movie.

Both movies involve cyborgs that eventually take over the world in the future. Also, both movies have a cyborg go back into the past to right a wrong and save the world. It seems to me that James Cameron took his entire concept of Terminator right from this film.

In Cyborg 2087, a cyborg that is not controlled by the rest of the cyborgs is sent back in time to make sure that a scientist named Dr. Marx destroyed his new technology. This technology allows one person to take control of everyone else in the world. This in turn makes the future a place where no one is able to think freely.

In Terminator, a cyborg is sent into the past to make sure Sarah Connor stays alive. She is to produce a child that keeps the world in check.

"The Gun, the Pen, and the Cannoli: Orality and Writing in The Godfather, Part 1

2007-04-29T23:52:00.000-06:00

The Godfather is an infamous movie, known for its one-liner's, violence, and the Corleone family. David Sutton, from Southern Illinois University, and Peter Wogan, from Wilmetter University wrote an article entitled "The Gun, the Pen, and the Cannoli: Orality and Writing in The Godfather, Part 1 which analyzes The Godfather using many different approaches, including nationalism, formalism, and ideologically. I will focus on the nationalism perspective, and how the Corleone family operates differently from the U.S. government.
The authors mention how many people have discussed how The Godfather deals with capitalism. These authors agree, and will examine capitalism using " 'orality,' which stands for the gift economy, and 'writing,' which stands for capitalism and its legal arm." They use three scenes to defend their claim. The first scene is the wedding scene, which is the beginning of the movie.
The opening sentence examining the wedding scene states, "In the opening wedding scene, the symbolism of writing and food establishes a stark contrast between American and Sicilian society." The American society is exemplified through the writing aspect, where as Sicilian society is represented through orality. One example used is the way the FBI agents are writing down license plate numbers on notepads, and use their FBI identification cards as authority. Another major example the authors mention from the wedding scene of the movie is when Michael Corleone tells his girlfriend the story about the Don making a bandleader "an offer he can't refuse." It is explained how a written contract is used to trap the Don's singing star godson, but a gun held to his head by Luca Brasi over rules the contract. This is a direct contrast between writing and orality. To clarify, the authors state, "Moreover, his style of power is different. Whereas the state's power is abstract (based on laws), mediated (communicated through writing, not through face to face interaction), and supposedly inflexible (tied to the letter of the law), the Don's power is physical (the gun tot he head), personal (the Godfather-godson relationship), and flexible (allows for changes in circumstances)."
Other example from the wedding scene are seen in the Godfather's office, and how he "forms bonds with his supporters." His two guests, the undertaker, and the baker are compared as one follows American society and the other Sicilian society. Bonasera is explained to represent American society because when he asks a favor of the Don, he doesn't approach him as a friend, and offers money for the Godfather's service, where as the baker represents Sicilian society because he approaches the Godfather as as a friend, and offers a favor and friendship to the Don in return for a favor from him. The baker says "and wait till you see the beautiful wedding cake I made for your daughter," which is a friend to friend favor rather than a service, according to Wogan and Sutton. Don Corleone appreciates the baker's friendly gesture and treats him kindly, but scolds the undertaker saying "You don't ask with respect. You don't offer friendship. You don't even think to call me Godfather. Instead, you come into my house on the day my daughter is to be married and you, uh, ask me to do murder, for money." The authors relate the orality is related to cake, and friendship between the Don and the baker, whereas the writing is aspect that the money acts a contract between the Don and the undertaker. The undertaker is also said to be related to American society because his first line, and the first line of the movie for that matter is "I believe in America."
I agree with the claims these authors are making and see the relationships relating the American and Sicilian society. However, think the terms orality and writing are misleading, and don't classify all of the examples the authors are mentioning. Two more scenes are examined by the author which are Michael's Murder scene and the Moe Green Casino scene. Each gives similar examples to defend the contrasting claims about American and Sicilian society.

Desperado: A Robert Rodriguez Flick

2007-04-29T22:26:00.000-06:00

Desperado, a flick directed by Robert Rodriguez in 1995, has to be one of the most memorable films to ever grace the silver screen. I feel the reason why it is so memorable is due to the amazing shots and the attention to setting details.

From a formalist point of analysis, Desperado has plenty to offer. The film starts with a fade in on a pair of shoes. As the scene progresses, the camera slowly moves up to reveal none other than Steve Buscemi. A quick cut scene is then shown of the setting, which is a run-down bar in Mexico that is full of patrons. Robert Rodriguez gets the point across that this is not a comfortable place to be by making use of colors. The bar is presented in various tones of orange and brown. Throughout the film, the viewers can see these colors as a recurring pattern. There are very few times when colors such as blue or green are utilized. When I see the colors of orange and brown in collaboration, I automatically think of the desert and an uncomfortable setting.

Rodriguez' superb angles throughout the film keep the movie moving at an intense pace. The bar shoot-out is probably the most recognizable part of the whole film. Yet, I feel it is recognizable not because of the cool gun-slinger moves that Antonio Banderas displays, but because of the way that the entire scene is shot. Throughout the entire scene, a variety of shots are utilized. A crane shot is used to see Banderas sliding back, and the bullets zoom right into the camera. One shot is used to see through the eyes of one of the victims, played by Quentin Tarantino. The most impressive shot can be seen towards the end of the shoot-out. Banderas, in an attempt to kill an out-of-reach enemy, shoots a ceiling fan in hopes of it landing on his unfortunate foe. Rodriguez captures the fan as it's falling from the ceiling, and does so by lying down underneath the actor that is playing Banderas' enemy. The shot is very impressive, and it's very interesting to know that Rodriguez actually risked injury to get the shot.

The final thing that I would like to point out is the excellent selection of music. A major component of any Robert Rodriguez film is an intriguing musical score. Desperado features a few songs from a band known as Tito & Tarantula, which is fronted by Tito Larriva who had a small role in the film. Their music really captures the dark, up-to-no-good tones that Rodriguez tries to present. The intro of "Back to the House that Love Built", which is used as Banderas walks into the bar for the first time, really gives the audience the feeling that El Mariachi is going to take no prisoners in this tavern. The music of Los Lobos is also featured, which keeps the Mexican themes in the movie alive for its entire duration. "Bella", performed by Santana, helps to capture the more sultry side of the film.

The link that is atttached is the film's Wikipedia page, which gives some interesting trivia on the film. The video below is a clip of the shoot-out scene I mentioned earlier. As I stated before, this scene makes use of many different camera angles and showcases Robert Rodriguez' directing skills. Two of Tito & Tarantula's songs are featured in this clip as well.

Tobacco and Alcohol Use in Disney Films!

2007-04-29T22:13:00.001-06:00

According to the Journal of American Medical Association, "More than two thirds of animated children'sfilms feature tobacco or alcohol use in story plots withoutclear verbal messages of any negative long-term health effectsassociated with use of either substance." The impact of tobacco and alcohol in these G-rated films promotes the use of these substances to its underage viewers. Use of tobacco and alcohol lead to major health problems. In effort to prevent these future health problems, 50 films were reviewed to screen incidents of substance use. According to these screenings,

"34 (68%) displayed at least1 episode of tobacco or alcohol use. Twenty-eight (56%) portrayed1 or more incidences of tobacco use, including all 7 films releasedin 1996 and 1997. Twenty-five films (50%) included alcohol use.Smoking was portrayed on screen by 76 characters for more than45 minutes in duration; alcohol use was portrayed by 63 charactersfor 27 minutes. Good characters use tobacco and alcohol as frequentlyas bad characters. Cigars and wine are shown in these filmsmore often than other tobacco or alcohol substances."

For example, one film which reflects this use is Disney's Dumbo. In Disney's Dumbo, Dumbo is portrayed getting "drunk" off of the bubbles in his bath. His "drunk" hallucinations lead him into a trippy exciting daze, promoting the use of alcohol to an impressionable audience.

Gurinder Chadha - a british director

2007-04-29T22:13:00.000-06:00

I am doing an auteur approach on Gurinder Chadha. I am providing a link to the Allocine website which is a website dedicated to the history of British film and television.

From this website I learned a lot more about Chadha's previous work as well as a little about where she grew up and how she became a director. We learn that she was orginally born in Kenya and that she moved to England at the age of one. In addition, I find out that Bend it Like Beckham was not one of her first films. Instead, it turns out that that was the most successful ones and that she has done quite a few films before that with her first one releasing in 1990 . These include Nice Arrangement, Acting Our Age and Bhaji on the Beach. Although, Bend it Like Beckham was the most successful, we find out that Chadha has a common theme in all of her films, the theme being cultural diversity. She tends to focus on the British Asian scene and incorporates this idea in many of her films, especially in Bend it Like Beckham. It turns out that the main character, Jasminder, was aimed to reflect Chadha and the difficulties she faced while being an Indian and growing up in England.

Finally, the website also provides links to more information and reviews of all the films she has directed.

Cool Runnings

2007-04-29T21:21:00.000-06:00

This film takes an interesting look at couple of track stars turned bobsledders. After failing to qualify for the summer olympics in track, the track stars turn to another event. This event, which is not even part of the summer olympics but instead the winter olympics, would be a first. The group opts to get together a bobsledd team. What's the irony here? This would be the first bobsled team from Jamaica. This film filled with bright colors which consistently express hope is one to watch. Although the film's actual facts for the Jamaican team are altered, one should approuch this film with an ope mind. Made by Disney, Cool Runnings is a film worth watching by any age. Its layed back introduction to its misfortunate ending will keep viewers wanting more.

Gandhi

2007-04-29T20:19:00.000-06:00

The film Gandhi was directed by Richard Attenborough in 1982. The film was nominated and received numerous awards such as best picture, best director, and best actor (Ben Kingsley). In a historical perspective, many claimed that the film was historically inaccurate. According to the author of the article, Michael Hofland, many people criticized the portrayal of Mohammed Al Jinnah, a revolutionary in the Muslim world. Jinnah is portrayed as a terrible person, unwilling to create a cooperation between Hindus and Muslims, according to the critics. Hofland states that many people feel that Gandhi had flaws too and was not always right. The critics believe that "the film portrays him basically without a flaw, when it should show his true self." Some say that a large part film is propaganda, but nevertheless, "Gandhi was honored with many Hollywood awards and continues to be a beloved film," states Hofland.

DOOM 3 ANALYSIS

2007-04-29T20:10:00.000-06:00

DOOM 3 is a movie that takes place in the Year 2026. There are many Dark colors and shadows in this Movie. there is a lot of Blue colors, and Dark shadows. The Blood is a VERY Dark Red, and is Very little bright colors in the movie. There is also the tempo (Music), it changes from somewhat slow to Very fast when they are battling, or when they are running away. They Us Very fast paced camera shots, and move back and forth between camera angles. It would be quite and then music would start get louder and louder until that is almost all you hear. This movie Puts emphasis on the "beasts" by placing the camera at feet level and have it looking up at them.

Children of Men Analysis

2007-04-29T19:47:00.000-06:00

Children of Men is a 2006 apocalyptic science fiction film directed by Alfonso Cuaron, who also directed such films as Y tu Mama Tambien, and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

The story takes place in a dystopian society in the year 2027, where the world is cursed because infertility of humans has swept the planet. Because of this, terrorism, social collapse and millions of refugees are on the rise, across the world, especially in Britain. Society's only hope lies with the "Human Project" a secret group trying to save the human species from extermination. Suddenly a pregnant West African refugee who is stuck in Britain appears, and is helped by the Human Project because she is pregnant. While trying to save her and take her to the boarder, in order for the Human Project to successfully help her out, the main group of people also need to keep her a secret from the British government in order for her to not be exploited.

There are many themes in Children of Men one being Hope. "The film's source, the novel The Children of Men by P. D. James, describes what happens when society is unable to reproduce, using male infertility to explain this problem. The film switches the infertility to females, but never explains the cause: environmental destruction and divine punishment are considered. The "almost mythical" Human Project, with their goal of creating a new world, is turned into a 'metaphor for the possibility of the evolution of the human spirit, the evolution of human understanding.' Without dictating how the audience should feel by the end of the film, Cuarón encourages viewers to come to their own conclusions about the sense of hope depicted in the final scenes: 'We wanted the end to be a glimpse of a possibility of hope, for the audience to invest their own sense of hope into that ending. So if you're a hopeful person you'll see a lot of hope, and if you're a bleak person you'll see a complete hopelessness at the end.'"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children_of_Men

"Dreamcatcher"-A Clear Enigma

2007-04-29T17:11:00.000-06:00

Rob Vaux, a writer and editor for a small games company, analyzes the film, Dreamcatcher, for flipsidemovies.com. Considering that this film is based on a Stephen King novel and is directed by Lawrence Kasdan, Vaux discusses this film from more of an auteur approach. He describes how this film puts together all of the horrific, traumatizing elements King has ever illustrated throughout his past work. In the beginning of the film we are introduced to a group of boys who are linked together throughout their lives through a psychic bond. In the early scenes of the film, as Vaux explains, we are able to develop a better understanding of the relationships between the men through a "mental warehouse" representing one characters' mind that the director illustrates before the audience. Soon, as Vaux describes, like all King's other works, a threat that haunts the characters reveals itself as an alien invasion. Vaux explains that the director begins to lose focus as the movie develops; however, keeping in mind that this is based on the work of Stephen King, we continue to devote our undivided attention to the film with assurance that these "ridiculous" alien scenes and monsters destroying civilization will eventually come to a clean ending. As we continue to watch the film, we realize that many of King's common themes such as friendship and trust are illustrated throughout the film. While some of the ideas portrayed in the film may seem bizarre, the cinematography is "breathtaking" as Vaux describes. He says that the aliens in this film are actually scary to the point where we develop unusual thoughts in our head that cause us to actually fear aliens after watching the movie. Vaux does not give the ending of the film away, but he explains that all of the "...holy fools, stupid bad guys, over-the-top special effects..." become crystal clear in the end. This film, as Vaux describes, is definitely one of Stephen King's pieces of work.

A Historical Look at Black Hawk Down

2007-04-29T14:09:00.000-06:00

Black Hawk Down takes us back to 1993 when our government sent over 100 Army Rangers to Somalia to overthrow a powerful warlord that was performing genocide upon the citizens. A mission that was only supposed to take three weeks turned into a few months. A young man, Sergeant Eversmann, takes on a group of young men that are assigned to control a corner of Bakara Market while Delta Force, an elite and secret group of soldiers, arrests some people of interest. However, all hell breaks loose and all the men are thrown into a fight for their lives in a mission that was only supposed to take an hour turns into the most difficult night of their lives.
The director Ridley Scott (2001) did an amazing job recreating the horrific events that the soldiers had to face, and not leaving any detail untouched. All of the characters that were involved in that fateful night in Mogadishu were identified in the movie for their contributions against Mohammad Farah Aidid. Black Hawk Down was an amazing and accurate portrayal of one of the most historic military conflicts in U.S. history.

Ideological Analysis on Fracture (2007)

2007-04-28T19:04:00.000-06:00

The review that I am using to analyze the film Fracture in an Ideological method is written by Justin Chang and was published on Variety.com on Friday, April 13, 2007. My argument using Ideological Analysis is that Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling) was heroic to put his moral values before his career when he choose not to use the false evidence of the bullets in court. Instead, with his strong work ethic, found another way to get the crazy killer, Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins), behind bars. Justin Chang voices his opinion on Willy's moral dilemias throughout the film:

Willy is saddled with such ethical quandaries throughout -- at one point, a vengeful [Rob] Nunally [Billy Burke] suggests they falsify evidence -- and the story is as much invested in his personal and professional choices as it is in the trial's outcome.

In response to Justin's quote, Willy is determined to win his case due to his hard work ethic and to keep his positive reputation, so he can move on to his job offer at a private, up-scale law firm. Willy is stuck playing head games with Ted Crawford who is malicious and carries out his creative murder plan in a cool, stubborn manner. Willy is tempted to use the false evidence of a bullet that was cotton-swabbed in a lab with Ted's DNA to end the case, so he can move on to his new job offer and work under his love interest, Nikki Gardner (Rosamund Pike).

However, Willy decides against using the false evidence in court and instead uses his creative and intellectual mind to accuse Ted with homicide once Ted pulls the plug on his wife, whom he shot and was stuck in a coma, so she would not wake up and reveal that her husband was the one that shot her.

Frodo's faith - Middle-earth truths - Christian faith, hope and love in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings

2007-04-28T18:37:00.000-06:00

Lord of the Rings is definitely one of those films that can be analyzed through more than one approach. I am choosing to analyze this film through an ideological approach. Lord of the Rings may appear to be just a fantasy flick, but this film possesses a deeper meaning. One way at looking at this film is through a Christian perspective. In the article, "Frodo's faith - Middle-earth truths - Christian faith, hope and love in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings," which I found through the popular website: findarticles.com, Ralph C. Wood ties Christianity with Tolkien's amazing classic. He provides a few instances from the film which support this argument.

AT THE END of J. R. R. Tolkien's epic trilogy The Lord of the Rings, as King Aragorn is preparing to die, he utters his final words to Arwen, his elven queen--words that contain a hint of resurrection: "In sorrow must go, but not in despair. Behold! we are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory. Farewell!" The account of Arwen's own burial contains another hint of resurrection: "She laid herself to rest upon Cerin Amroth; and there is her green grave, until the world is changed." Here as elsewhere in the trilogy, Tolkien obliquely suggests a hope for radically renewed life beyond "the circles of the world."
For more information on how Christianity is incorporated in this film, click on the link. Enjoy!

Magnolia Film Analysis

2007-04-27T12:08:00.000-06:00

This movie should be classified as a psychological movie. It focuses on characters from the past and present, and which paths you may take to create your future. The film has close ties with religious issues, as well as personal issues of salvation. In this film review, Richard Stanwick goes into great detail about the characters and how they affect the themes of the film. "In the desolate modern American landscape of the human condition, tormented and incomplete people in bondage to their historical past deal with regret, are forced to confront their selves, regress, and are redeemed after various ludicrous miracles from the sky (torrential rain, the curse/blessing of Exodus frogs, falling humans, guns), by accepting themselves, their need to be saved by others and the necessity to "wise up"." The film focuses on people's choices and denial or acceptance of one's current situation. As you look into the thoughts and feelings of each character, the psychological approach can be the best way to understand the ending of the movie, and the separate plots as well.

"Losing Isaiah"

2007-04-24T19:09:00.000-06:00

The movie that I will discuss is called Losing Isaiah, directed by Stephen Gyllenhall. This film focuses on the controversial battle between a African American, played by

Halle Berry

and her fight to win back her son Isaiah from his adoptive white mother, played by

Jessica Lange

. From the six approaches to writing about film, I will focus on the ideological approach of this movie. In an article titled

Beyond `Losing Isaiah': Truth in shades of gray

, written by Lena Williams she discusses the issue of trans racial adoptions. In her article she states,

Experts in child psychology and racial identity differ widely on whether black children are harmed by being adopted by white families.

. This issue fall under the ideological approach because this film focuses on the beliefs and values of black and white in the sense of race and class. The fact that Halle Berry plays a young African American, who was an ex drug addict who is now fighting for the custody of her son who was taken in by a white mother and her family caused a huge racial custody battle of whether it was more appropriate to send the child to his natural black mother or stay with the white mother.

Collateral

2007-04-24T09:18:00.000-06:00

The video clip that I am linking is a collage of the various clips in Collateral. The reason I chose this movie is because it contains many elements of formalism that add to its genre. The genre can be thought of action, violence, good vs. evil, and so on. I believe that there are many clips of formalism in this movie that accurately portrays the genre. One bit of evidence would be the appearance of the contract killer, Tom Cruise. He is portrayed to be savvy, cool, calculating, and well-dressed; all of which depict a typical assassin. The fact that the entire film is shot during the night adds to the fact that there is little to no hope for anyone who comes across Cruise. One more bit of formalism would be the music in the movie. The music makes the movie fast-paced, just the way an assassin acts. This is one of the few good movies Tom Cruise has made. Clicking on the link above should take you to the video.

"The Matrix"

2007-04-23T23:04:00.000-06:00

The film I chose to analyze is the world wide known film,The Matrix by the Wachowski brothers. I will analyze this film in the Formalist point of view. This film was recognized for its strong editing. It won numerous Oscars, for film editing, sound effects editing, visual effects, and sound. The sophistication brought by this film made it possible for future films to open up to the new technology.

Wikipedia states that an example in technology was that, "Following The Matrix, films made abundant use of slow-motion, spinning cameras, and, often, the famed bullet time effect of a character freezing or slowing down and the camera panning around them."

Saw I, II, & III: Genre outlook

2007-04-23T20:24:00.000-06:00

All three of the Saw movies should be placed in the psychological horror. A "psychological horror" is a subgenre of horror fiction that basically gets into the movie goers minds. Wikepedia says, "Psychological horror relies on character fears, guilt, beliefs, and emotional instability to build tension and further the plot." This subgenre use gore, and a normal human being rather an ugly monster to do the horrifying.
In the Saw movies we see an older man who gets into the minds of various people, making them in the end kill themselves. These people don't know until they are in a specific predicament that they are playing a game within a game, in which will determine their destiny.
In the third Saw, "Dr. Lynn is told that she must keep the madman alive for as long as it takes Jeff, another of his victims, to complete a game of his own. Racing against the ticking clock of Jigsaw's own heartbeat, Lynn and Jeff struggle to make it through each of their vicious tests, unaware that Jigsaw and Amanda have a much bigger plan for both of them.
Saw is brilliant and I can concur that this fits well into the horror, subgenre, as a psychological horror.

Yimou's Drive for "Not One Less"

2007-04-23T19:45:00.000-06:00

Paul Chen comments on Zhang Yimou's documentary, Not One Less. Tackling the high drop-out rate in rural China as its subject, Chen believes the film seems to endorse the state-sponsored Hope Project, which aims to raise money to place drop-out rural children back in school. Set in contemporary northern China, this film tells the story of a thirteen-year-old rural substitute teacher, Wei Minzhi, stubbornly trying to keep her twenty-eight students in school. In an attempt to retrieve one boy, Zhang Huike, whose family debt forces him to quit school and seek work in a nearby city, Wei finds herself in the strange and indifferently sophisticated city crowd. Chen states that the assumption of the film's confusion is justified by Zhang use of "documentary aesthetics."

"(Zhang's documentary involves) placing the camera on the street," location shooting in this film purports to deliver a slice of life, and more specifically, to elicit and capture the amateur actors' spontaneous (re)actions in real-life settings."

Chen futhur goes into how Yimou is effectively able to convert the rural village into a spectacle.

Contemplating Hero. Wuxia or worse?

2007-04-23T12:38:00.000-06:00

Zhang Yimou’s Hero and the Globalization of Propaganda by Mark Harrison was published online for a website called "Wordpress". In the article he compares Hero to and earlier Wuxia film Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon but immediately points out that there is a lack of propaganda in the film. He says that Hero almost merges Chinese cinema with Hollywood cinema using all sorts of creative effects to propagandize the story in the film.

Contrasting with the muted, earthy colours of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon,
Hero’s imagery does indeed a deliver a stunning looking film, wholly
unrestrained in its use of saturated colour and dramatic visual forms in ways
which few films have had the audacity to attempt. Its fight sequences are
spectacularly choreographed and staged, wielding colour, form and movement with
virtuosic skill. The cast, too, is beautiful, and A-list Chinese - Zhang Ziyi,
Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung and Jet Li.
At the same time, the film has no real
plot and no character development and its dialogue is made up of declarations of
fortune-cookie clichés. This points to empty spectacle, to a Chinese version of
the worst excesses of high-concept Hollywood cinema. However, Hero is far more
than an empty exercise in visual technology and marketing.

Is Hero Offensive?

2007-04-23T10:23:00.000-06:00

Film Quarterly's critical article of Hero posted June 28, 2005 delivers applause towards the beautifully artistic martial-arts scenes, as well as questions the films intent. According to the article, the film's political stand justifies despotism, tyrannical rule, in China's history. "Viewers may leave with the impression that the film's message is simply that abandoning the attempt to kill the King of Qin was the right thing to do, for the sake of bringing an end to the chaos in China; and that, for his feat of unifying China, the first emperor deserves to be regarded as a hero." The article continues that in actual historical accounts of the first emperor, he is regarded as a tyrant. By assigning the emperor hero-like qualities conflicts arise, since the film portrays a "favorable attitude towards tyranny." In addition, the article questions, "Despite his success in unifying China, should the first emperor not be held accountable for his brutality?"

Hero Yhang Zimou

2007-04-23T09:56:00.000-06:00

This offers a brief summary of the movie going through all tghe important point and then moves into a more analytical mode to find the true meaning of Hero which is ambiguous and highly debatable.

Hero

2007-04-23T07:27:00.000-06:00

In this site, Mike Ward (author) talks about the Hero. Ward mentions his fractionation of the film. He also mention other war films and criticism them as well. Ward said “Hero" will no doubt be compared to "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." Like the Best Picture Oscar nominee, “Hero” gives its protagonists the gift of fight with flight”. In addition, Ward criticizes the truth of conversation during flash back scenes. Ward said “The film then comprises a series of flashbacks detailing the conversation between the King and Nameless. Some of these threads are true, some false, and some in the middle’. Even though Ward is not satisfied of the reality of the film, he still likes the fact of the great fight scenes

Review of Hero (2002)

2007-04-23T01:53:00.000-06:00

Blogger: Researching and Writing About Film - Create Post This movie review on Hero was written by Anthony Leong on Media Circus. The interesting history of China adds spice to this film's plot. This review discusses the plot of the movie, which took place when the kingdoms in China were fighting over reign of the country until finally China was united into the first dynasty of China. Leong relates the fight of the kindoms to the business world, which is an interesting comparison.
This review discusses the amazing cast of actors and actresses that were involved in this well-acclaimed film. According to Leong,

"...fans of Hong Kong cinema could not ask for a better dream cast."

Hero was nominated for Best Foreign Film Oscar before being released in North America in 2003.

Who's the real hero?

2007-04-23T00:55:00.000-06:00

Yimous Zhang's film creates a great balance between art and violence. The author of this article, Luke Buckmaster, speaks about the "narrative that fuses historical fiction with fantasy." This article elaborates on the fact that Australian cinematographer Christopher Doyle is one of ther real stars of this film with his luminous compositions. Buckmaster continues to draw attention to Doyle's work by saying,

Doyle’s flair for gob-smacking visuals turns Hero into the year’s most stylistically drawn action film.

Hero Review

2007-04-23T00:26:00.000-06:00

This review by Jeffrey Westhoff tells about how the director of the movie is known for his colors, which is shown during the movie. He also adds a rather interesting take on the movie stating that the only way this movie would sell after Miramax bought this movie from China would be to put Quentin Tarantino's name on the cover. All in all, this reviewer was not too pleased with the movie.

Movie Review on Hero (2002)

2007-04-23T00:17:00.000-06:00

The author of this review states that "Yimou has an artist's eye for the screen and treats it as his canvas". It also states that the film has many great features such as the rich imagery consisted of sets and costumes coated in color.

The author also discusses the nationalism of the film. The review mentions that the film is driven by the complexities of the characters who struggle with their own passions. "The film depicts the King as an idealist, when many Chinese historians will tell you the real King of Qin who became China's first Emperor, was very much a tyrant responsible for many deaths. This could lead to concerns over the film's apparent pro-Communist message that sacrificing your life and more importantly, your ideals for a government that only purportedly represents the people is noble".

A lot of what is stated in this review was discusses in class in terms of nationalism. It supports the idea that it is still difficult to determine what exactly Yimou is trying to state in terms of nationalism. Just as we discusses in class, the author also supports our claim as to how we can see why the Chinese government gave Yimou their blessing to direct the film, but the film can be also looked at in a different angle.

Hero

2007-04-22T21:40:00.000-06:00

In the movie review, Kenneth Turan claims that Hero is "the most artistically sophisticated, most formally beautiful martial arts film the genre has seen." The film is based on Chinese history involving the king of Qin, the third century BC ruler who united other six kingdoms and became the emperore of China. Turan writes that the color schemes in the movie was very impressive. The movie review qoutes, " Great emphasis is laid on intertwined cultural and moral issues: the parallels between martial arts and music, the way fighting skill can be rooted in calligraphy, even the possibility of pacifism within a martial world."

Not just a Martial Arts Movie

2007-04-22T21:35:00.000-06:00

This review credits Hero with a stunning use of colors and artistic style. If it wasn't for the use of color, and the film was left in its most "elemental state" it would have not nearly come the distance it has. Although it took 2 years to finally be released to American audiences it has gained awards and an increasing status. The symbols were noted as symbolic, each referencing a different type of mood or story. Red was said to be for imagination, blue for reality, and green for peace. The review also points out the excellent job the film did of showing the strong resemblance between calligraphy and swordsmanship. Even if your not a fan of martial arts movies, this one will be enjoyable.

HERO-Getting by on Looks Alone

2007-04-22T19:02:00.000-06:00

Carla Meyer, a chronicle movie writer, wrote an article for the San Francisco Chronicle titled, "The martial-arts movie 'Hero' kicks butt, but it's also beautiful. In director Zhang Yimou's latest, an ambitious royal epic, color is king." Meyer explains how this film is very different from other martial arts films that we are used to through its use of vibrant colors. The colors illustrated throughout the film tell a story in themselves. For example, the crimson color of the calligraphy instructor's robe and the headmistress' robe matches the ink of the calligraphy, which is shown in sensual scenes of the film. The crimson color illustrates the connection between the characters throughout the film. There exists a hot, sexual relationship between them; however, the fire that burns among them soon begins to die out.

Meyer also talks about the technical parts of the film. She explains how the director never goes overboard with the visual effects. Rather than including a computer generated form of an army of soldiers in the fight scene towards the end of the film, the director places an army composed of real people to give the scene a realistic effect.

Finally, Meyer describes the unnecessary bloodshed scenes in the film. At some points of the film, there are people fighting and killing each other for no apparent reason, or at least ones that the audience finds hard to follow. However, Meyer mentions that these points of the film work in a more ideological perspective, proposing a new idea of heroism, "...one in which dying for a lost cause is just as noble as killing for a winning one" (Meyer 1). Perhaps becoming a hero does not necessarily involve winning for a cause, but rather fighting for something that will be clear in the end.

Absence as spectacle: Zhang Yimou's Hero

2007-04-22T18:28:00.000-06:00

I know it is after 12, but please count this blog :)

I found this article from the website: http://www.chinesecinemas.org/hero.html. It was written by Yingxiong. Although this article is a review, it could also pass for a critical essay. This article, Absence as spectacle: Zhang Yimou's Hero, deals with with a variety of topics from Chinese genre to a critical analysis of the film. This following quote extracted from the article concludes Yingxiong's main argument.

"Hero celebrates absence as spectacle; it glorifies absolute renunciation and perfect non-violence as preconditions for peace. Like Nameless, it addresses authority, undermining power’s grip on narrativity."

For more information about this article, click on the link. Enjoy!

"Hero" vs. "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon"

2007-04-22T17:14:00.000-06:00

As we talked about movies that are closely related to "Hero," "Crouching TigerHidden Dragon" was the most talked about. In this article, by Neil Young, it talks about just that, the similarities between these two films. "Though its makers probably won’t welcome the comparison, Hero is bound to be received around the world as ‘Crouching Tiger 2.’" He also talks about the films storyline as well as the color schemes that are seen throughout the movie. A lot of the ideas that were mentioned in class are brought out through this article, so take a look and enjoy!

Hero- Visually stunning

2007-04-22T15:04:00.000-06:00

The author of the article, Mike Ward, agrees that Hero is full of color and beautifully crafted together. Hero gives the fighters the ability to "fight with flight." It's an amazing work of choreography and pieced throughout the movie just enough without being overexposed. The Film is comprised of a series of flashbacks with the conversation between the King and Nameless. "Hero strongly relies on its fight scenes as its backbone," says Ward. We can observe that the story is strong and compelling.

Hero

2007-04-22T14:25:00.000-06:00

When Hero was released, it was the highest grossing film in China's history. Yimou Zhang uses modern effects to create an awesome "chop-socky" epic with an emotional storyline. According to the author Andrew Wright, Hero is very closely compared to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hero is special because Zhang embraces each scene with a special Technicolor technique. Unfortunately, there were some problems during the release. Wright states that because of import DVD's and downloadable bootlegs, there is a good chance that anyone interested in this genre will already have a copy. Piracy hurt Hero's box office income.

Review of Hero

2007-04-22T13:11:00.000-06:00

This link directs us towards a review by Joshua Tyler. He seems to not really enjoy this movie refering to it as, "...outlandish mythology..." and comparing to "...the cheesiest of Romance novels..." in the United States. Tyler seems to be overly critical of all the details that Zhang Yimou added to create dramatic effect. He reflects on how Hero is to compare with Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, but he states that, " Hero is trying for something a little deeper that in some ways just never connects." The rest of this review continues on this type of criticism with Joshua Tyler pointing out all the flaws, the simplistic plot, and the overall film being an "idealized dream."

Ying xiong (Hero) Review

2007-04-22T08:27:00.000-06:00

Johnathan F. Richards reviews Ying xiong [Hero] (2002). Richards comments, "It is China's all-time box office champ." As of yet you can not tell if Richards is in favor of the film. A good reviewer can give you a review of a movie and let you decide whether you like it or not. I encourage you to read the review to see what else Richards has to say about this box office film, Hero.

The Hero sends the wrong message to its viewers

2007-04-21T16:44:00.000-06:00

I am providing a link to an article titled, "Hero, a distortion of history," which is written by Sophia Beach. It was found on the China Digital Times website.
This article discusses the political message depicted in the film. Beach criticizes the film by suggesting that the film displayed a more "politically correct," version of Chinese history. To a certain extent she feels the film is insulting the history of China and claims that it depicts the idea that the emperor was the most heroic of them all; yet, this notion was from the reality of the situation. Beach also quotes The New Republic Review to strengthen her argument.
Here is a quote that sums up the article

Director Zhang provides a revisionist reworking of history that is an insult to the collective intelligence of historians

Chinese Cinema and Zhang Yimou

2007-04-21T15:32:00.000-06:00

This article by Eleanor Hisaye Taniguchi talks about Chinese cinema, namely, Zhang Yimou's movies. Believed to be the best "fifth generation" director, Yimou movies, such as 1984's Yellow Earth and the 1987 film Red Sorghum, were huge successes in Chinese. This was not the case, Taniguchi states, for those movies banned in China and Hong Kong.

Taniguchi talks in great detail about Zhang's global-breakthrough movie, Hero.

"Zhang's true redemption in the eyes of the Chinese government however, came with the release of Hero in 2002."

The article continues to talk about how the movie was the most successful Chinese film gross around $100 million in China, America, and Hong Kong combined.

Taniguchi later touches on the color coordinated scenes, "characters float through color themed sets,... pursue one another over trees bathed with autumn gold, ride through yellow deserts with blue mountains in the background."

Many of the questions we raised in class about Hero were touched in this article.
Taniguchi believes Zhang portrayed Snow as a "unruly, destructive" female protagonist in the film, thus this film implies women are wrong, and men know better.

Also, Taniguchi thought Hero intoned that centralized government is good, which puzzled her since

"The Emperor Qin, known to every Chinese schoolchild as being a brutal tyrant who unified China"

was portrayed as a wise, somewhat emphatic ruler, with a "grand vision" for China.

Dissection of Hero

2007-04-21T15:30:00.000-06:00

This article dissects the movie into 5 parts. One part is 5 minutes in where Pruyune disscusses the black and white strategy that Zhang Yimou uses in the fight scene that takes place in the mind. Pruyne also shows the affects this scene has on the entire story. The next breakpoint is the colorful scene where Moon fights Snow. Pruyne says that this scene reiterates the theme of evolution. The next breakpoint is when the King questions Nameless about his story. The nest two breakpoints take place at the end of the movie.

Dissection of the Structure of Hero

2007-04-21T15:19:00.000-06:00

Zhang Yimou on "HERO"

2007-04-21T07:53:00.000-06:00

In the article that I found by Lisa Bear,written for indiewire.com, many different elements of the film Hero were addressed. While the article starts with a synopsis of the film, it branches out into a brief formalist look at the film, comparing both shots that were used and sounds featured in the film.

Memorable for its finely-judged performances, superlative sound design and stylized visual compositions, shot by renowned Australian cinematographer Chris Doyle, this is a martial arts film that contrasts orderly military formations in wide shot with lyrical close-ups. A volley of arrows fills the skies like a swarm of bees or plague of locusts rather than the tools of warfare. Lingering shots of gleaming metal, the sonorous hiss clang and echo of a sword being unsheathed or falling to the ground evoke harmonics and reverb rather than unsightly atrocities--torn limbs and membranes or screams of pain.

The article then goes on to recount an interview that Lisa Bear had conducted of Zhang Yimou. In the interview transcript, Yimou answers questions about the film, China, and some of the color schemes in the film.

IW: How did you come up with the color changes in the film: red, white, blue and green?

ZY: "Hero" is not a traditional martial arts movie. It's very structurally presented. I like Rashomon, and thought I could use different colors to represent different parts in the movie.

IW: Why those particular colors, red, white and blue?

ZY: There's no particular meaning to each color. I just needed the colors to represent...

IW: Points of view.

ZY: Yes, yes. Each color represents a different period and different [way of telling the] story...

Overall, it is a well written article which contains many different view on the film Hero. It gives the reader an insight into the mind of Zhang Yimou and how he wanted to make the film appeal to the audience.

Hero, visually spectacular but slight on story

2007-04-20T18:16:00.000-06:00

This review by Nev Pierce describes the film as being "slightly unsatisfying." He talks about the film being to communist and simply a Chinese take on "whiz-bang" Western cinema. He does recognize that there is some good acting present but believes the story is predictable enough that subtitles aren't needed. I disagree with his stance and think that the choreography and three different story lines adds a great deal of suspense and the color schemes are also simply amazing. Pierce believes that if you liked Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon then you would defiantly enjoy this film. This gives me the feeling that he is not a fan a Chinese cinema.

Zhang Yimou "Hero"

2007-04-19T21:10:00.001-06:00

This article, 'Hero': Easy on the eyes but a little too plodding written by Mike Clark focuses on the movie Hero. In this article the writer discusses the characters in the movie and how the movie was the most successful foreign film and also how it made a big hit in the United States.

HERO

2007-04-19T11:41:00.000-06:00

This is a review about Hero by Jurgen Fauth. I really liked it because he gives a great sumary of the movie but also explains all the great special features in the film. I liked "looking" at the movie more than the story itself. He also explains that it is a martial arts film and i think that most people would also watch it for the fighting and because it is "beautiful" to look at. He also compares the film a lot to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and looks at the work of the director. I liked this article because he brings up many diferent topics.

Ying xiong (2002)

2007-04-19T08:15:00.000-06:00

This is a review with some critical elements by Mark R. Leeper at OptOnline.net. Hero turns out to be one of the most expensive films made in China as china tries to expand its influence worldwide. The author talks about the use of colors in the movie, which are dull sometimes and sometimes very contrasting with the actors wearing bright clothes compared to the surrounding. We can see that in the scene when Moon fights with Snow (both wearing red) in a yellowish green set (the color of the leaves). The following quote very much sums up the plot 0f the movie:

"HERO combines the fantasized martial arts of CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN

DRAGON with some of the same history from the under-rated THE EMPEROR

AND THE ASSASSIN. It has neither the rousing adventure of CROUCHING

TIGER nor the historical epic sweep of THE EMPEROR AND THE ASSASSIN.

But the visual style of production designers Huo Ting Xiao and Yi Zhen

Zhou and cinematographer Christopher Doyle makes this one of the most

beautiful films that has been seen on American screens in quite a while."

One thing that was also noticed in the film is the lack of blood which the author believes is due to sensitivity of the audience in China. It is somewhat unrealistic that just a few drops of blood are seen when the fighting sequences are very intense. I believe one more thing that is missing in the film is fire. In the hollywood, we see that fire does play a role either through guns / bombs in action movies or flying arrows / burning villages in historical villages. I was surprised that the Qin soldiers weren't shown burning the villages of their enemies or using arrows of fire, like in Kingdom of Heaven, when China supposedly invented gun powder.

"Hero" Critical Article that covers almost all the perspectives

2007-04-18T18:54:00.000-06:00

I found this article in the journal Film Quarterly. Everyone should have access-just click on the PDF link or PDF Plus.

This article touches on almost all the different perspectives when it comes to writing about film and how they are portrayed in Hero. There is slight auteur analysis in the introduction of the article followed by a detailed summary on the plot. The remainder of the article analyzes Hero through the formalist, ideological, national, and historical perspective.

The formalist approach studies the infamous color use in Hero. It describes how the characters are each seen in a different colored lighting, for example, the author notes, "In the entire film, the king is the only character presented in a bluish tone." The meaning of the colors is then discussed, such as the blue possibly meaning profundity. Other than colors, certain symbols are analyzed, such as the sword hanging behind the emperor which is "indicating that is his wisdom is troubled by conflicts." The author also points out certain long shots and pays special attention to the films last shot with the sun and The Great Wall.

Nationalism is mentioned as well as historical. The historical perspective is interesting because the author researched and notes the only true, historical figure from the movie is the King of Qin, however, this movie is most likely not representing him properly. The events in Hero are also noted as being fictional. However, the majority of this analyses is through the formalist approach, as the others aren't examined as thouroghly.

Hero

2007-04-18T14:22:00.000-06:00

Hero is a film that takes place in China around the 3rd Century. At this time, China is divided into seven kingdoms all looking to control the whole land. The king of Qin, Chen Daoming, is at risk for assassinations because he is the most powerful. In he film, Broken Sword and Flying Snow are the top two assassins looking to kill the Qin King. They are undefinable till one day, Nameless, over powers them both in his own revenge to kill the king. The author of the article finds the film, "beautiful and exquisite". Each scene is made with a different color pattern and the colors reflect each different character specifically. The other aspect the author finds amazing is the camera shot during the fighting scenes. It is a movie you can see more the once because the color schemes are so pleasing. The subtitles are at times hard to follow but you can connect to the plot.

Color Code of Hero

2007-04-18T14:07:00.000-06:00

The article, Cracking the Color Code of Hero, written by Robert Mackey, tells the collaboration of Chinese director Zhang Yimou and Australian cinematographer, Christopher Doyle. Mackey says Yimou is known for quiet beauty in his composed shots, while Doyle is known for improvising with the camera and likes to 'find the film' as he is shooting it. Mackey mentions the film functions like a prism with frames of red, blue, white, green, and black. He also says the coloration is the movie's theme. The article continues with discussion about the colors; red, blue, white, and green.

HERO-Distorted History

2007-04-18T10:00:00.000-06:00

This article explains how American critics differed from Chinese critics at first glace of the film. Americans seemed to enjoy the choreography, while the Chinese critics felt the ending was politically incorrect. The article was written by Sophie Beach from China Digital Times.

3 Years Later "Hero" Makes It To the U.S.

2007-04-17T20:04:00.000-06:00

Jeff Vice, from Deseret Morning News, talks about the release of Hero in the U.S. in his article: 'Hero' finally opening in U.S. after being held for 3 years. He mentions that Hero was originally released in 2001 under the name "Ying xiong" and was nominated for Best Foreign Feature by the Academy Awards. This marks the first martial arts film for director Zhang Yimou .Vice quotes Yimou saying "I am not a martial-arts filmmaker. So I had to convince people to take a chance on me and on the movie." Vice explains how "'Hero' has some things in common with 'Crouching Tiger.'" The both the fight choreographer, Yuen Wo-ping, and the soundtrack composer, Tan Dun, on worked on these two films. He also talks about the challenges Yimou faced when directing his first martial arts film. He admitted that "To make an action film was quite a challenge for [him]." He even got help from Quentin Tarantino.

Chinese culture in Ancient China

2007-04-17T18:14:00.001-06:00

Chinese people have always put a lot of emphasis on everybody acting the right way for their position in life. They thought poor people should act different from rich people, and women should act different from men, and city people should act different from country people.

I have linked a article for the culture and nationalist attitude back in the days of Ancient China.

Chinese People

Time Line of Ancient China

2007-04-17T18:14:00.000-06:00

I have found a site that gives a general history of China, Ancient China and Imperial China.

It links to a time line of the Chinese Dynasties. The one in which the movies take place is Qin in 221-207 B.C. Pictures of China before and after the time Hero portrays are included.

http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/china/timeline.html

Critiscm of the First Gulf War in Three Kings

2007-04-17T17:56:00.000-06:00

I have linked to a criticle article on Three Kings, one that highly criticizes the United States government. This article covers the political context of Three Kings as well as give a brief history of the United States in the 1990's. After giving a brief summary of the film, the author gives what she thinks to be the emotional affect that the film has on most audience members.

Below is a passage from the article:

The filmmakers demonstrated the violence of war with their unusual use of
camera work, which included internal views of the human
body. The plot was detailed and clearly showed the
moral transformation of the soldiers. They went from being greedy, cocky and
ignorant to being empathetic toward the Iraqi people.

Critiscm of the First Gulf War in Three Kings

Chinese Cinema: Hero

2007-04-17T17:17:00.001-06:00

This critical article was written by Eleanor Hisaye Taniguchi. It discuses the globalization of Chinese cinema, and it focuses on Zhang Yimou's movie Hero. It gives a background on Zhang Yimous life and the work he has done in the past. It also talks about the Chinese governments outlook on these films and how things are changing.

Chinese Cinema: Hero

2007-04-17T17:17:00.000-06:00

Zhang Yimou's Movies Get a Thumbs Down

2007-04-17T09:59:00.000-06:00

This critical article written by Adam Graham-Silverman is entitled Why Zhang Yimou's Two Movies Shouldn't be on Top-Ten Lists: Critical Mistake. In the article, Silverman talks about two movies both directed by Zhang Yimou: Hero and House of Flying Daggers. Silverman talks about how although these two movies may be unique with their color choices and special effects, that doesn't make them good movies. Silverman goes on to say,

Critics should not mistake unique for good. Many critics are indeed snared by the surface elements of Zhang's two films: the wire-work fight scenes and the luscious use of color. But even if one examines only these formal structures, the movies still don't have much to offer.

Silverman goes on to talk about Hero by saying,

In the best classic wuxia films, the formal elements skillfully take on the functions that plot and dialogue often serve. While Zhang also focuses on these aspects, he doesn't achieve that synthesis. Like his color work, the movies look pretty but ultimately feel meaningless.

Silverman criticizes the slow-motion used in Hero by saying how it takes away from the few scenes that are interesting and making them all about the special effects instead of the plot.

Very quickly the overload becomes desensitizing and we're left feeling bored.

All in all, Silverman doesn't seem to like these two movies directed by Yimou. Not only does he criticize the overuse of special effects, but he thinks American critics are too nice towards the movies.

"Fifth to Sixth"

2007-04-17T03:26:00.000-06:00

In this interview by Tan Ye with Zhang Yimou who explains the reasoning for the use of the color "Red" in most of his films: "Red Sorghum, Red Silk, Red Lantern, Red Dress, and so on."

This article goes more in depth to explain why some of Yimou's are still banned in China, I advise reading this article to find out more. This interview adresses many important issue regarding ALL OF HIS OTHER FILMS. Tan Yen asks Zhang what is the difference between his Fifth Generation production of film compared to the new Sixth Generation, now? This Interview by Tan Ye answer most of the questions we have not gotten answered.

The Art of Battling and Recognizing One's Inner Power

2007-04-16T20:36:00.000-06:00

**I linked to Pauline Chen's article, but I have a feeling that after the "10 minute session", it will time out and the article will not appear. Here is how to access the article:
1. click here to access the UIC library's search engines: http://www.uic.edu/depts/lib/reference/resources/electronicresources.shtml
2. click on the letter "w" and select "WilsonSelectPlus Full Text"
3. type in: zhang yimou "hero" (include the quotes for Hero)
4. click on the second entry that appears, it should be titled: "hero"
5. click on "view full text in pdf" or "view HTML" and the article should come up.
6. please let me know if there are any problems, thanks!

According to Pauline Chen, author of “Hero”, she believes that although Zhang Yimou’s film, Hero, contains various battle scenes, the inclusion of martial arts in this film holds a deeper meaning that its initial combative allure. Chen’s article mainly describes how upon initial appearance, the numerous battle scenes in Hero reflect the typical conventions associated with a martial arts film. However, Chen goes on to say that, “Hero repeatedly deconstructs the breathtaking combat scenes it shows on screen, revealing them to be imagined, imagined, fabricated, or staged, their outcomes already determined by prior agreement or psychological victories.” This quote represents how Chen believes that the unique filmmaking style creates a more artistic view of fighting and she relates this art form to how the film illustrates the importance and power of calligraphy.

Another idea that Pauline Chen’s article discusses refers to how the psychological difficulties that people endure are at times more trying to them than physical feats. For instance, Chen explains that Namless’s final decision whether or not to carry on the conspiracy in murdering the King of Qin is a matter of what one perceives as the “most heroic act.” Chen further says that the flashback scenes show how Nameless was drawn to the idea of murdering the King of Qin; Chen reveals, “Each story of the past projects a different course of action in the future.” Therefore, the decisions that one must make are sometimes more stressful than defeating an opponent in battle.

Finally, Chen’s article introduces the idea that, “ironically, it is our enemies who understand us best” and she continues her argument by approaching an ideological and genre analysis of the film. Chen believes that Hero may contain an underlying message about how the U.S. society may have a tendency to be biased towards “Hollywood blockbusters”, but that films such as, Hero provide a more complete view of Chinese history and captures the audience’s attention.

Hero-movie review

2007-04-16T17:48:00.000-06:00

This website gives a little bit of a background to the history of China that occurs in the movie. It's also a movie review. All written by Anthony Leong. He talks about the movie, giving a quick summary of it and he added pictures of great shots from the movie. He also mentions other movies like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon in it as well.

Review for Hero

2007-04-16T13:20:00.000-06:00

The article that I am linking to is a critical review of Hero. The article, written by Jurgen Fauth, criticizes Hero by calling the fight scenes "more ... [like] ballet than traditional chop socky." The author also gives the movie a historical approach by comparing it to other previous movies of its kind. In a paragraph, Fauth summarizes the movie so that anyone who was confused throughout the film could understand it. The reviewer praises the mise-en-scene of the movie but also states that this gets old after a while and the boring plot does not helps its cause. Because of the redundant fight scenes and the lack of interest in the film, Fauth gives the movie 3 out of 5 stars. Clicking on the link above should take you to the article.

Consistency of a True "Hero"

2007-04-16T13:11:00.000-06:00

The definition of a hero varies between societies, nations, cultures, and more. This article by Jia-xuan Zhang a professor at New College University, explain the historical definition of the film, along with the analytically view of a "hero". Zhang explain the meaning of colors in the movie, along with why it was used. Zhang explain that it was odd for the director Yimou to do a film about the past, since he normally did films that took place in the 20th century, but it turns out Yimou decided to do this film, to tied together his history of China, that is inhibited in his films. Zhang explain that everyone in the movie is a hero, in different ways. Since the writer is Chinese he is able to understand the movie in a better detail, therefore this paper is a very vivid explanation of the mis-en-scene of the film.

Ch'in Dynasty

2007-04-16T13:04:00.000-06:00

This link is to an article about the Ch'in (Qin) Dynasty. The Ch'in dynasty was the emperor's dynasty in the movie. The Ch'in established the land mass of what is present day China, and following dynasties used its administrative system to develop their own. Between the third and second century BC, the Ch'in began to centralize power under a central government and slowly began to expand by conquering neighboring territories. "To rule this vast territory, the Ch'in instituted a rigid, authoritarian government; they standardized the writing system, standardized the measurements of length and weight and the width of highways, abolished all feudal privileges, built the Great Wall, and in 213, to halt subversive thought, ordered all books burned, except those on such utilitarian subjects as medicine." The harsh methods and staggering taxes for expansive and drawn out wars lead to rebellion and in 206 BC the dynasty was overthrown by the Han dynasty.

One of the Ch'in Dynasty's lasting legacies to China and the world.

China's Past Empires

2007-04-16T12:57:00.000-06:00

China is on of the worlds oldest civilizations. The first dynasty was the Shang dynasty. His dynasty ruled the north central region of China and it was an aristocratic type of government. They domesticated animals and were known for there bronze-work. He was overthrown by Zhou.
The Qin dynasty was the dynasty we saw in the movie. He took control of all the states of China in 221 B.C. Once Qin gained complete control over China he gave himself the title Shi Huandgi, which means first emperor. He created a central, nonhereditary bureaucracy. "To make sure there was no disagreement over the new policies and imperial rule, all dissenting people and Confucian scholars were executed and their books were burned." Qin was the man who created the Great Wall of China to defend themselves from attacking barbarians. Qin died in 210 B.C. but his empire would remain for another two thousand years.

Profile of Zhang Yimou

2007-04-16T10:47:00.000-06:00

According to publishing company Baseline, notable Chinese director Zhang Yimou significance in the film world is his development of highly artistic films that are globally successful. Also the ideology expressed by his extensive use of actress Gong Li as a main character in almost all of his films captures "...tension between the graceful surface of cultural tradition and the turbulence of youth and injustice towards women which all his films explore." The talent of this director artistically and commercially has raised so much attention that "The Chinese central government has also conscripted him to craft national propaganda: he directed videos for Beijing's Olympic bid and Shanghai's successful application to host the 2010 World Expo," which may produce the most global popularity yet.

Zhang Yimou

2007-04-16T10:23:00.000-06:00

Zhang Yimou is a director who uses a lot of historical context in his films. As seen in Hero, the fight between the emperors eventually leads to the building of the Great Wall. Yimou attempts to depict important events in his films. Also, as one can see, Yimou's work tends to focus on Chinese culture. It doesn't seem as though he has worked on anything but films that deal with Chinese culture. Yimou is also a fifth generation Chinese filmmaker. Finally, as seen in this article, Yimou has various achievements he has reached. One of his most recent films that has been see in the United States is House of Flying Daggers.

Zhang Yimou, Curse Of the Golden Flower

2007-04-16T10:19:00.000-06:00

The article im linking to today stars off by comparing this film to some of his prior films and letting the reader know that this film will not disappoint. There is a brief plot summary in order to get the reader up to speed on the movie then there is an ideological and formalist analysis

"Traditions of Meditation in Chinese Buddhism "

2007-04-16T10:15:00.000-06:00

According to the Kuroda Institute for the study of Buddhism and Human Values, Chinese Buddhism has been of growing interest to many Western cultures for personal and academic reasons. It's developing personal interest is a "vehicle for personal growth" through its implemented meditation, a central fundamental to the religion. The cultural outsourcing has developed books, movies, and classes all promoting its teachings, especially of Zen meditation. The Kuroda Institute continues that

"Zen meditation, or zazen, is often discussed or recommended as a spiritual technique free of the usual cultural and doctrinal impediments that discourage all but the most dogged or those especially drawn to the exotic."

Also, the institute continues that this growing popularity is especially attributed to Chinese Buddhism due to its less spiritually adept concepts that are easier to grasp to the unknown. The growth continues as various cultures all appeal to the special mind-to-body relationship Buddhism represents.

Zhang Yimou

2007-04-16T09:37:00.000-06:00

This article is on director Zhang Yimou and his film career. You can find a lot of information on his life and other films that he has made. They also give details about his films and how he is a unique director with his own style. He uses his heritage to create his films and is has become a very well known director in his country and around the world. His films are known for having great action and the he does a good job of using bright colors in the scenes. His films are loved because of his creativity and love for his culture.

Zhang Yimou

2007-04-16T05:32:00.000-06:00

In this site you will be able to retrieve information about Zhang Yimou. Mary Farquhar is the author who wrote this article gives information about Zhang Yimou’s education. She stated “Zhang Yimou is an internationally acclaimed director working in the People’s Republic of China. He graduated in the fifth class of the Beijing Film Academy in 1982, along with classmates such as Chen Kaige and Tian Zhuangzhuang”. Overall, this site contains information about Zhang Yimou background. “Zhang was born in Xi’an in 1951 to parents of "bad" class background and reportedly sold his own blood to buy his first camera. (1) He grew up in socialist China where class struggle dominated life and literature”(Mary Farquhar). It is a great site to look at it, becayse you will be able to learn many experiences about films from Zhang Yimou's background.

Qin Dynasty

2007-04-15T23:08:00.000-06:00

The movie Hero takes place during the time period of the Qin Dynasty. This Wikipedia page about the Qin Dynasty talks about this time period and the emperors that ruled. In the movie, Qin Shi Huang was the emperor shown. Qin Shi Huang was the first ruler during the Qin Dynasty, and the unification of China under Huang "marked the beginning of imperial China." An accomplishment the Qin achieved was when they built The Great Wall of China to fend of intruders and barbarians. After the downfall of the Qin Dynasty, and new dynasty came about, the Han Dynasty.

The Chinese Influence

2007-04-15T22:36:00.000-06:00

This is a short article found on the BBC website which covers an interview with Yimou. The author of this article is not revealed. However, the focal point of this article is that due to such directors as Yimou, the Chinese culture is changing hollywood. The concept of martial arts influencing other films is discussed especially in terms of action portrayal. The author then continues to discuss Yimou's two most successful films and how they give an insight into the Chinese culture.
Here are a few quotes

Western audiences can gain an impression of China from my films. This is an excellent channel for promoting China's culture

"Because of the influence of Chinese martial arts films, Hollywood movies are changing," Zhang told the BBC's The Culture Show

Yimou, a woman's man

2007-04-15T22:19:00.000-06:00

I found this article on the IMDiversity website. The author of this article is Lynda Lin and she is giving us an overview of her interview with Yimou. The most interesting concept of this article is the fact that Lin discusses Yimou and women. According to Lin, before Hero's success, Yimou was known as a "female director," because of the women he casts in his film. I thought it was humorous that the author refers to these women as "muses."
Aside from disussing Yimou's choice of women, Lin gives a brief filmography as well as touches upon film marketing and what that means to a director and Yimou's success as a director.
In general, I found it to be very interesting and insightful. Here are a few quotes

He picks his muses carefully and then has an extended love affair with his muses by framing them exquisitely in all his films.
Returning to the discussion on his affinity to film women, he says: “I’m always interested in female stories. Maybe it’s because it’s very easy for me to capture female depression and how they fight adversity.”

Zhang Yimou: Curse of the Golden Flower

2007-04-15T21:40:00.000-06:00

Curse of the Golden Flower is one of Zhang Yimou's most recent films and is one of the most expensive in Chinese cinema history. As with all of his previous films, Curse of the Golden Flower goes back into Chinese history, specifically to the 10th century. Zhang Yimou once again makes use of brilliant color and swordfights to ensure the success of this film. Yet, unlike the film Hero, he avoids involving China's political struggles. The link that I have provided will give you some more interesting information and opinions of the film provided by Wesley Morris. The clip below is a trailer of the film which really displays some of the great directing by Zhang Yimou.

Everything You Have Ever Wanted to Know About Zhang Yimou

2007-04-15T20:09:00.000-06:00

The link provided goes in-depth on Zhang Yimou's life as a director. It starts off by talking about his earlier career when he was just starting off in the movie business and how he got to where he is today. It also writes about each movie he helped create and gives a brief summary of each. An interesting fact about Hero was also mentioned:

Hero became one of the few foreign-language films to debut at #1 at the U.S. box office, and was one of the nominees for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2003 Academy Awards.

If you ever wanted to know anything about Zhang Yimou, this is where you will find it.

Chinese History

2007-04-15T12:29:00.001-06:00

In this blog you will learn about the ancient Chinese history. Part of the ancient history of China includes many dynasties; the Xia, Shang, Zhou, Qin, Jin, and more. "The history of China is told in traditional historical records that go back to the Three sovereigns and five emperors about 5,000 years ago, supplemented by archaeological records dating to the 16th century BC. China is one of the world's oldest continuous civilizations."

History of the Qin Dynasty

2007-04-15T11:06:00.000-06:00

This link provides a detailed account of the first dynasty to rule China, the Qin Dynasty. The Qin also known as the Ch'in seems to be the formation of China. They were the first dynasty to take control primarily because of their advances in modern warfare, implementing the calvary and the military defense mechanism - The Great Wall. Besides being a brutal war machine and tyrannical dictatorship, the Qin were able to accomplish some amazing things for China such as the standardization of language and writing. The Qin have a rich history in China and have laid a partial foundation for the modern state of China.

The Qin Dynasty

2007-04-15T08:47:00.000-06:00

I found this article from the website http://library.thinkquest.org/12255/library/dynasty/qin.html. This artcle provides a brief history of the Qin's second emperor.

"The emperor of this era wanted to conquer the warring states that the Chou dynasty had in essence created. This emperor succeeded and China was one nation once more."

Besides wanting to keep China one nation, this emperor wanted to become a god. Therefore, he sent for scientists to help him achieve this goal. Ironically, this action is what eventually lead to his demise because the medicine that he was given contained mercury. For more in-depth information, click on the link!

Enjoy!

Yimou Zhang, His History and Partners

2007-04-14T18:11:00.000-06:00

This web page offers a great variety of background information on the director himself and his relation to various different aspects of his life. With some great interviews with Yimou Zhang’s cinematographer, and other links to many other sites, this page is a good starting block for anyone interested in knowing a little more about the director and his work.

The History of "Hero".

2007-04-14T17:58:00.000-06:00

The story of Hero is set in a historically accurate time period. By 221 B.C., the Qin Dynasty came into power with the desire to unite the six divided territories of China into one country. Even with all the success that the Qin had in bringing the country together, the Qin dynasty was quickly surpassed by the Han dynasty in 206 B.C.

Zhang Yimou Interview

2007-04-14T15:22:00.000-06:00

This is the first interview Zhang Yimou did after the filming of "Hero". In this interview, he talks about why he made the script for "Hero" and why he hasn't entered the western film market as of yet. He also talks about another famous Chinese director, Ang Lee.

Qin Dynsaty

2007-04-14T15:14:00.000-06:00

The movie Hero takes place during the rule of the Qin Dynsaty. This website discusses the Qin dynasty and how Qin Shi Huang was the first emperor of China. He came to be known as a tyrant, but he also is acknowledged for unifying China. He unified the currency and the language, and started the Great Wall of China to prevent enemies from attacking in the North. It was a brutal time in a sense during the Qin dynasty because the emperor was so harsh on such issues and burned many books and killed many in the pursuit of unifying the warring states of China.

Zhang Yimou

2007-04-14T14:28:00.001-06:00

Zhang Yimou is a critically acclaimed Chinese filmmaker. He was born in China in 1951 and graduated from the Beijing Film Academy in 1982. He started his filmmaking career in 1987 with the film Red Sorghum. The theme of the resilience of Chinese people during times of hardship is celebrated in many of his films. Zhang Yimou immediately received praise from film and art experts when his debut film won the Golden Bear award at the 1988 Berlin Film Festival. His movies success would continue with each of his films to follow. The page linked is dedicated to Zhang Yimou. The page contains a biography of Zhang Yimou, information about each of his works, and links to other sites that relate to him.

Zhang Yimou

2007-04-14T14:28:00.000-06:00

Zhang Yimou is a critically acclaimed Chinese filmaker. He was born in China in 1951 and graduated from the Beijing Film Academy in 1982. He started his filmaking career in 1987 with the film Red Sorghum.

Zhang Yimou: House of Flying Daggers

2007-04-14T11:26:00.000-06:00

Zhang Yimou's House of Flying Daggers was the second major film he directed after Hero. The film has some concepts similar to those in Hero. Zhang Yimous uses a common theme of everday people becoming great heroes. Both films speak about a rebel/rebellion against the emperor. Another major theme within each of the films is the idea that love always prevails.

In the film two policemen decide to infiltrate the "House of Flying Daggers" in order to weed out there new master. Jin takes Mei into the forest in order to help her find the House of Flying Daggers. Along the way they are attacked by Jin's own police guards in order to confuse Mei. In the end they discover many things about each other and eventually the two policemen fight for Mei's love.

The link is only a Wikipedia article. It talks about major themes in the film along with aspects of genre. The plot of the film and information about Zhang Yimou is also explained.

Zhang Yimou Biography and Filmography

2007-04-14T10:26:00.000-06:00

The link is from a journal called Senses of Cinema. In this article the author, Mary Farquhar, talks about Zhang Yimou's credentials in the film industry. She is also able to incorporate some ideological ideas such as feminism and some historical ideas such as some of the history of China involved in Yimou's movies. At the end of the article, there is a complete bibliography and a Yimou's filmography.

Hero-Awesome Cultural Film

2007-04-14T03:58:00.000-06:00

So most of the reviews and links I checked out about Hero all mentioned how the film brought a great representation of China's culture during this time period. Here is a review that is somewhat credible, but held more relevant information about the film and time. "Within those ten steps holds an earth-shattering tale of love, honour and duty, a story that moves beyond the reaches of history." The rest of the review just gives an overview of the plot and the acting. It was found on themoviebox.net...

Ming-Dynastic

2007-04-14T03:55:00.000-06:00

Okay so this website I am not too sure about. It looks like the time period, however I dont remember there being a Ming in power. However, this site does give a review of the politics of the dynastic period in China. "In history, China's dynastic substitution was mostly the results of usurpation, mutiny or foreign invasion, except for Yellow Turpans of Eastern Han Dynasty and Red Turbans of Yuan Dynasty." The site gives information about the certain people in power at the time and the transitions each king/leader brought to the country. The article came from the Washington Post... ENJOY!!!

Chinese History

2007-04-14T03:52:00.000-06:00

During the time period the film was based off of, the government was in rough times. It was in a transition between republican and communism versus the dictatorship of their kings. "The dynastic system was overturned in 1911, and a weak republican form of government existed until 1949. In that year, after a long civil war, the People's Republic of China, with a Communist government, was proclaimed. " This article gives a brief history about the time period and it came from Compton's Living Encyclopedia on America Online (August 1995)