ipl-logo

Analysis Of Saving Private Ryan

776 Words4 Pages

missionary Wilhelmina Vautrin’s diary accounts (1937–1940) about a young Japanese soldier with Christian background. The recognition of Kadokawa’s potential humanity effectively defuses the nationalist thrust of the classic Massacre narrative in previous Chinese cinema. The inclusion of Western histor- ical figures (John Rabe and Wilhelmina Vautrin), the documentary-style black and white images, as well as the avoidance of emotive music, exemplifies the filmmaker’s intention to not indulge in excessive lamentation, but to scrutinize the atrocity with a sense of sober detachment. The nuanced treatment of the Massacre fits into Lu Chuan’s oeuvre and embodies certain characteristics of art film, yet such artistic vision is carefully contained …show more content…

Yang the effects team of Saving Private Ryan (Spielberg 1998), cast a Hollywood star in the lead and invested in a US company for mainstream release during a Christmas holiday slot (Chen 2011). The reference to Hollywood in terms of storytelling, combat sequence and visual spectacle is underwritten by the assumption that the adoption of Hollywood aesthetics would enable the “cross- over” of the Chinese film to the world. The strategic maneuvering to reapproach the sensitive issue of the Nanjing Massacre in both films reveals the filmmakers’ desire to promote the national tragedy worldwide. At the historical moment when China is integrating with the world economically, politically and culturally, the Chinese film industry has experienced significant adjustments in order to exploit global opportunities while also operating in more localized markets. The concern for both Chinese and international audiences tends to “liberate” the cinematic narrative from the ideological grip of the clichéd self/other rhetoric. Yet controversies around these commercially successful films in China indicate a rather ambivalent reception of their rewriting of the Nanjing Massacre from the government and the audiences alike. For instance, City of Life and Death enjoyed massive promotion through various channels of mainstream media, but its nomination for the 13th Chinese Huabiao Awards was pulled from contention a week before the awards cere- mony (Kraicer 2010). When the promotional material of The Flowers of War describes the Chinese actress’s bed scene with Christian Bale, many Chinese audiences frown at the inappropriateness of focusing upon sexuality in a patrio- tic epic. At the textual level, the constant oscillation between discourses of Chinese heroism and internationalism leads to narrative tensions and moral ambivalences. City of Life and Death and The Flowers of War are confronted by two outstanding issues: the adaptation of Hollywood’s classic white savior narrative and

Show More
Related
600 Words | 3 Pages

Gene Luen Yang offers a humanistic perspective on western imperialism in China during the late nineteenth century to early twentieth century in his graphic novel Boxers, a tragic narrative about Chinese grassroots resistance against foreign occupation in which an armed revolution ultimately fails. The novel focuses on religious identity, and cultural connections in the face of invasion. Boxers highlights the negative effects of imperialism through clashes between different religions, ideologies and power structures. Therefore, the criticism of western imperialism presented in Boxers could support a world systems theory approach to international relations because it shows to exploitation through westernization and the squandering of cultural

Read More
516 Words | 3 Pages

Choosing between what is moral and choosing what is right for the nation can be two quite different decisions. In the graphic novels, Boxer and Saints, Gene Luen Yang writes and illustrates the experiences that two different Chinese people have during the Boxer’s rebellion. In the Boxer’s novel, Bao is a leader of the Big Sword Society that will lead them to rebel against the foreigners who he believes is making China evil. Through the perspective of Bao, Gene Luen Yang questions should one be willing to put aside personal autonomy to defend their national identity.

Read More
877 Words | 4 Pages

Canadian author William E. Bell’s young adult novel Forbidden City: A Novel of Modern China (1990), is set against the backdrop of the infamous Tiananmen Square massacre in Beijing. Canadian teenager Alex Jackson’s journalist father takes him to the Chinese capital city, where, father and son are caught up in the student protests in Tiananmen Square. They’re separated, and Alex finds himself on the run while in possession of video footage that the Chinese government wants to destroy. His only hope is the student protesters. Exploring themes of coming-of-age, political repression, and the importance of journalists and truth-tellers, Forbidden City was banned in China for its unflinching depiction of the regime’s brutal approach towards protesters, while it was critically acclaimed in the rest of the world.

Read More
1423 Words | 6 Pages

In pursuit of a tangible, reliable form of history, historians become entangled in a labyrinth of theoretical dichotomies and complex controversies; the bane of history, which sabotages genuine inquiry and allows for holocaust denial. For instance, the supposed Nanking Massacre of December 1937 to January 1938, a six-week carnage of Chinese soldiers and civilians by Japanese soldiers, produces a broad historical debate, revolving around the truth of what happened. This debate began with Iris Chang, a Chinese- American journalist who wrote the best- selling account of “The Rape of Nanking” in 1997. Her non-fiction prose drew international eyes and provoked numerous responses from fellow historians. Western Historians generally agreed that the atrocity had been too long a mere ‘incident’ in the historiography of World War II and deserved more concern.

Read More
1811 Words | 8 Pages

Media and Social Development in China since 1949 Term Paper Discuss and examine the female position in the film Wooden Man’s Bride [五魁] (a.k.a Checking the Body) based on the social context during the period Lydia Wong Man Ching 201214327H 2015/5/12   Introduction Acknowledged as one of the most renowned Fifth Generation filmmakers in China alongside Zhang Yi Mou and his other contemporaries, director Huang Jian Xin excels in giving a feminine spectacle in The Wooden Man’s Bride , which delves into the world of Confucian patriarchy in feudal China. The portrayal of women’s flight and aesthetic flairs in the film are highly reminiscent of Zhang’s acknowledged classics such as Raise the Red Lantern and Ju Dou , yet by placing the story

Read More
547 Words | 3 Pages

While exploring this topic, I intend to consult Edward Said’s Orientalism, debates about “otherness,” scholarly interpretations of Apocalypse Now, historical evidence about Americans’ attitudes toward the Vietnam War, and biographical information about Francis Ford Coppola.

Read More
1841 Words | 8 Pages

The novel’s fictional version of China is sometimes an unfairly bleak portrayal of the country, and its most shocking scenes cohere with false Orientalist narratives of Western imperialism and Asian inferiority. However, for an American author, Buck writes with unique authority; few Westerners in her era could match her breadth of knowledge about China, and even fewer could match her dedication to the advancement of cultural empathy with China. Despite the inescapable influences of dominant Orientalist narratives, Buck was able to craft a socially truthful, yet relatable text for Western audiences. Looking back at the outsize impact of The Good Earth, it becomes clear that it defies conventional definitions of Orientalism. Rather than assigning the ‘Orientalist’ label as a veiled accusation of racism and ignorance, scholars should instead recognize that—with the appropriate author intentionality and real-world impact—certain Orientalist works could be culturally acceptable, if not valuable

Read More
828 Words | 4 Pages

Laborer’s Love (1922), a silent film made by Chinese cinema pioneers Zhang Shichuan and Zheng Zhengqiu, is said to be “the earliest complete extant Chinese film” (Zhang, 90). Despite the film’s numerous similarities to Harold Lloyd 's Never Weaken (1921), Zhang Zhen argues in her writing that Laborer’s Love was ultimately a product of the “nascent…urban culture” and “confluence of discourses and practices of shadow-play” in Shanghai during the 1910s-1920s (100). Zhang Yingjin reiterates this notion, highlighting that since it “was a transitional moment in Chinese films, the producers threw in pieces grabbed from various sources”, resulting in “a mixture of disparate, sometimes contradictory elements” within Laborer’s Love (25). This response

Read More
872 Words | 4 Pages

Two Stage Sisters (1964) is a film made by Xie Jin, a prominent “Third Generation” Chinese director. While the film had been denounced as “a ‘poisonous weed’ that spread ideas of class compromise and bourgeois humanism” during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), it is widely considered today as “one of the best films of the era as well as Xie Jin’s masterpiece” (Zhang, 2008, p. 216; Marchetti, 1989). This response will examine Two Stage Sisters to highlight how it embodies the complexities of its time – sandwiched and negotiating between ‘tradition’ and ‘modernity’/’progressiveness’, and in pursuit of its own aesthetic in the context of enormous political pressure. Xie Jin’s use of Shaoxing opera as a backdrop for Two Stage Sisters frames the tension between ‘tradition’ and ‘modernity’/’progressiveness’ within the film.

Read More
1225 Words | 5 Pages

Throughout the entire novel, the mothers and daughters face inner struggles, family conflict, and societal collision. The divergence of cultures produces tension and miscommunication, which effectively causes the collision of American morals, beliefs, and priorities with Chinese culture which

Read More
996 Words | 4 Pages

The Patriot Sadness, hope, war and freedom The movie’s name is “The Patriot”. Mel Gibson plays the role of Benjamin Martin who is an American farmer in the 1800th century. Benjamin has the lead role in this movie. There are a lot of characters in the movie such as his son Gabriel (Heath Ledger) and his six other siblings.

Read More
1110 Words | 5 Pages

The subsequent scenes have a documentary aspect about the consequences of the atomic bomb to establish a background and feelings He and She cannot easily break away from. The Japanese man is composed, confident, and questioning. He is an architect of a city (Hiroshima) that was razed to the ground. She is sentimental, “defeated” and nice-looking.

Read More
892 Words | 4 Pages

Supporters take to the streets to celebrate the casting of Matt Damon as an Asian in ‘The Great Wall’ ‘ This is an unprecedented breakthrough in the fight against the propagation of diversity and equality in Hollywood,’ say people partying on the streets Figure 1: Supporters can be seen dressing up and celebrating on the streets on this joyous occasion LOS ANGELES— The decision to cast A-List actor, and Academy Award winner Matt Damon as a Chinese warrior in the upcoming war epic “The Great War” has been the talk of the town, leaving audiences largely polarized on whether it promotes racial stereotypes, or is a revolutionary step in cinema history. Saying it should be very clear that absolutely nothing can change their position on the matter, staunch supporters of the move told the rest of the nation Tuesday that no amount of open letters, rational arguments or ‘misleading’ statistic could sway them.

Read More
1831 Words | 8 Pages

Jiang Wen’s title itself refers to the Japanese as “devils,” since they are the primary reason for the disruption of everyday life. This is evident in the scene where two Japanese soldiers utterly ruin the function and rationality of the village dwellers, especially Ma Dasan who has been burdened with the babysitting of two Japanese prisoners. This satirical scene exhibits how the two soldiers stir chaos and disorder of normality, and the Chinese villagers are forced to comply in such ludicrous circumstances (Wen 0:36:30). The utter fear towards the Japanese military combined with the Empire’s attempt of removing Chinese culture inspire ravenous hate and tension between the two cultures, and the Japanese occupiers in this film are seen as erratic, crude, and

Read More
882 Words | 4 Pages

As human beings, we tend to know and discover what life really is. One thing I know, each one of us has his/her own definition of the word “life” such as this movie directed, starred and created by him, Robert Benigni. This is a story of some of the horrors of the Holocaust which includes a unique, almost lighthearted element, something beyond the material reality that on its face is so horrible. Benigni 's willingness to use comedy to underscore the evils of fascism is undoubtedly shocking, but it is extremely effective in conveying Benigni 's firm belief that beauty and light can be found even in the most horrible of places.

Read More

More about Analysis Of Saving Private Ryan

Related Topics

Open Document