The Asian Cinema
The eastern world has a lot to offer. Filled with grace, beauty and dignity, it has all the delicacy of a Japanese garden under a calm day. There’s so much history to its name.
That’s why I’m going to China this coming Friday, boarding the plane in every attempt to explore the enriched beauty of the East. It’s making me a little nervous at times, but comfortable with broadening my knowledge of the things waiting out there. Even if I am getting a little antsy.
More importantly, I’m going to see my future wife Alina who has been the kindest person and loved one to me. She is like a breath of fresh air to me after having dated unsuccessfully in my area for nearly twenty years without much going for it.
She’s been a dear girl to me.
But this isn’t going to be the latest complaint about the dating arena here in my culture. Far from it. I am, however, going to venture into reviewing a couple of Asian movies covering the science fiction and horror realm. I won’t bore you with details of my happiness with my Chinese girl. That’s for me to enjoy.
I must tell you that the Asian point of view, when making genre films, are different from our own. They have a different way of looking at things. And that makes it easily more interesting than the latest foray of science fiction doofuses created by the American cinema. While the United States tend to make the special effects the center of the story, using it for eye candy, the Asian films usually center their films around people or families. And let the special effects advance the story when it needs to.
Casshern is a Japanese film filmed released in its native country in 2004 and should have taken the cinemas by storm here in this country. Instead it is more of a quiet storm. The effects in this film are a remarkable feat. It will crack your imagination. And then splinter your senses with its visual style.
It is also made on a $6 million dollar budget on a US level. What astounds me, when seeing this film, is the convincing effects that makes Casshern look like several times the actual budget. It’s an amazing thing. There are echoes of Blade Runner and The Matrix. Why spend so much money on the budget when you can find a short cut to it?
The movie stuns its viewers with its visual display.
Casshern is a story regarding the post-apocalyptic war zone that is Japan, dwindled and lost in pollution, the struggling of people against the craft of war. There’s so much of it. The biology weapons become more of a viable things in the future where mere people have become victims of war as well.
But the story really is about a family as established in the beginning of the film. It tells of Tetsuya, his fiancée Luna, her scientist father, and his mother. They have become the central idea of the story. And the film depicts the sadness of how a family is torn apart through anguish and death. And how silly the idea of war has become.
You may already know that in any eastern country that family is the most important thing. And the younger generation grows up to care for the elders. Such a simple notion becomes the central play in the story. And you understand why love and fear has become the soldiers of war.
And it is a beautiful film. The animated look and feel of this film, in its stark realism mixing with pure fantasy, has created a foreign world that is very lovely sight. The film is very sincere. And compelling.
The other one that comes to mind when seeking a film of horror content is “Memento Mori,” which is transcribed to the English language as Remember the Dead. It has been made in Korea around 1999 and has become part of the infamous girls’ school trilogy of horror. But it does transcend far more than a mere ghost story.
This story revolves around a very intimate and forbidden love between two girl students who are going through the motions of high school. They have feelings for each other, their beauty seems to hold no bounds, yet there can be some misunderstanding. Some of the other girls find it disgusting and they act out their hatred towards the lesbian couple.
This film, in many ways, perfectly captures the hardships, hurt of younger women during the testing stages of high school. That point of life is probably the cruelest and most upsetting: high school is the pre-test before going on to the real working world. The kids are often not very nice.
And it’s not very easy to find friends. And lovers.
At the same time, there is a third student played by Kim Min-Sun who has found the diary which chronicles the relationship between the loved, estranged couple. She gets visions. They are nightmarish, filled with pain. They are heartbreaking. When one of the lovers kill herself, the high school becomes a battleground full of haunting and spirits.
I do like the actress Kim Min-Sun who has been in other Korean films. She might not be considered altogether pretty by other men who may see this film, but I think there is an attractive quality about her. She’s very lovely. And a very good actress who is able to show her fear and wonder of the loved couple whose spirits of sadness rake through the high school.
“Memento Mori” isn’t really a horror film but it does have definite paintings of darkness throughout. It is like a beautiful canvas that has been poured on with blackness, sinking slowly, grinding terror that builds up to a powerful ending. A worthy item added to the Asian cinema. And one that is strips away human nature when there is a world of darkness that consumes. Again, this film is about people. Not effects that are overblown like a Jackson Pollack painting. But a quieter, subtle tone.
The American cinema might have something to learn from the Asian viewpoint. And that makes the Asian cinema something more beautiful to behold despite their start, burning qualities of horror.
It could be a controversial movie because of its very distinct portrayal of lesbians in the movie, though more mature audiences would see it as a niche of possible love that should be accepted culturally. It’s could be a forever thing. Some viewers might find it offensive.
I’ll be in the Eastern world with the one girl that means most to me. And it’ll be a while before I return to these pages. I’ll just have to remember that my girlfriend hates horror movies.
That’s why I’m going to China this coming Friday, boarding the plane in every attempt to explore the enriched beauty of the East. It’s making me a little nervous at times, but comfortable with broadening my knowledge of the things waiting out there. Even if I am getting a little antsy.
More importantly, I’m going to see my future wife Alina who has been the kindest person and loved one to me. She is like a breath of fresh air to me after having dated unsuccessfully in my area for nearly twenty years without much going for it.
She’s been a dear girl to me.
But this isn’t going to be the latest complaint about the dating arena here in my culture. Far from it. I am, however, going to venture into reviewing a couple of Asian movies covering the science fiction and horror realm. I won’t bore you with details of my happiness with my Chinese girl. That’s for me to enjoy.
I must tell you that the Asian point of view, when making genre films, are different from our own. They have a different way of looking at things. And that makes it easily more interesting than the latest foray of science fiction doofuses created by the American cinema. While the United States tend to make the special effects the center of the story, using it for eye candy, the Asian films usually center their films around people or families. And let the special effects advance the story when it needs to.
Casshern is a Japanese film filmed released in its native country in 2004 and should have taken the cinemas by storm here in this country. Instead it is more of a quiet storm. The effects in this film are a remarkable feat. It will crack your imagination. And then splinter your senses with its visual style.
It is also made on a $6 million dollar budget on a US level. What astounds me, when seeing this film, is the convincing effects that makes Casshern look like several times the actual budget. It’s an amazing thing. There are echoes of Blade Runner and The Matrix. Why spend so much money on the budget when you can find a short cut to it?
The movie stuns its viewers with its visual display.
Casshern is a story regarding the post-apocalyptic war zone that is Japan, dwindled and lost in pollution, the struggling of people against the craft of war. There’s so much of it. The biology weapons become more of a viable things in the future where mere people have become victims of war as well.
But the story really is about a family as established in the beginning of the film. It tells of Tetsuya, his fiancée Luna, her scientist father, and his mother. They have become the central idea of the story. And the film depicts the sadness of how a family is torn apart through anguish and death. And how silly the idea of war has become.
You may already know that in any eastern country that family is the most important thing. And the younger generation grows up to care for the elders. Such a simple notion becomes the central play in the story. And you understand why love and fear has become the soldiers of war.
And it is a beautiful film. The animated look and feel of this film, in its stark realism mixing with pure fantasy, has created a foreign world that is very lovely sight. The film is very sincere. And compelling.
The other one that comes to mind when seeking a film of horror content is “Memento Mori,” which is transcribed to the English language as Remember the Dead. It has been made in Korea around 1999 and has become part of the infamous girls’ school trilogy of horror. But it does transcend far more than a mere ghost story.
This story revolves around a very intimate and forbidden love between two girl students who are going through the motions of high school. They have feelings for each other, their beauty seems to hold no bounds, yet there can be some misunderstanding. Some of the other girls find it disgusting and they act out their hatred towards the lesbian couple.
This film, in many ways, perfectly captures the hardships, hurt of younger women during the testing stages of high school. That point of life is probably the cruelest and most upsetting: high school is the pre-test before going on to the real working world. The kids are often not very nice.
And it’s not very easy to find friends. And lovers.
At the same time, there is a third student played by Kim Min-Sun who has found the diary which chronicles the relationship between the loved, estranged couple. She gets visions. They are nightmarish, filled with pain. They are heartbreaking. When one of the lovers kill herself, the high school becomes a battleground full of haunting and spirits.
I do like the actress Kim Min-Sun who has been in other Korean films. She might not be considered altogether pretty by other men who may see this film, but I think there is an attractive quality about her. She’s very lovely. And a very good actress who is able to show her fear and wonder of the loved couple whose spirits of sadness rake through the high school.
“Memento Mori” isn’t really a horror film but it does have definite paintings of darkness throughout. It is like a beautiful canvas that has been poured on with blackness, sinking slowly, grinding terror that builds up to a powerful ending. A worthy item added to the Asian cinema. And one that is strips away human nature when there is a world of darkness that consumes. Again, this film is about people. Not effects that are overblown like a Jackson Pollack painting. But a quieter, subtle tone.
The American cinema might have something to learn from the Asian viewpoint. And that makes the Asian cinema something more beautiful to behold despite their start, burning qualities of horror.
It could be a controversial movie because of its very distinct portrayal of lesbians in the movie, though more mature audiences would see it as a niche of possible love that should be accepted culturally. It’s could be a forever thing. Some viewers might find it offensive.
I’ll be in the Eastern world with the one girl that means most to me. And it’ll be a while before I return to these pages. I’ll just have to remember that my girlfriend hates horror movies.
posted by K.M. Paters at 10:56 AM
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