Revisiting the Resplendent, Wind-Bending, Mighty Sword Clanging, and Colorful Cinematic Glory and Mastery of Zhang Yimou’s “Hero/Ying xiong” (circa 2004)
Okay, so now that we’ve got that windbag blog title out of the way (how did I do, folks?), let’s get down to the brass tacks of the matter: the iconic and often-imitated-rarely-duplicated cinematographic marvel which was once Zhang Yimou’s Hero/Ying xiong, the 2004 swashbuckling flicker picture that dazzled and titillated, yet somehow didn’t intellectually connect.
Peter Hessler Strikes Thrice…And This Time “Dangerously” Behind the Wheel
The picture above depicts how vehicular traffic is regulated on the road heading into China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region: plastic “dummy” cops standing sentinel adorning the soft-shoulder, meant to resemble the genuine article to deter traffic violators, wanton drunken driving, and reckless acts behind the wheel across the wide, flat expanses of the barren steppes of the wind-battered Mongolian plain.
Well, yesterday afternoon I finished off native-Missourian Peter Hessler’s third installment in his “angels abroad” China series, Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory, and I’m giving the book a very tall two thumbs up. This is 424pp of lean and mean non-fiction prosaic gold which you’re going to regret not reading. Did I mention you should go out and snag a copy today?
Would You Declare War Over Chocolate? Hell Yeah, Some Would!
I’m happy I listen to people when they strongly suggest titles to read. In the case of Lawrence L. Allen’s Chocolate Fortunes: The Battle for the Hearts, Minds, and Wallets of China’s Consumers, this was a particularly sweet suggestion and many thanks to Dan Harris of Harris & Moure Law, the perennial award-winning blogmeister and commentator at China Law Blog, or as we Generation Xers like to call it, CLB.
It’s Been Too Long Since Ziboy’s Last Update…
…but here’s the kaboom evidence from CNY = Chinese New Year to prove he’s still alive and kicking..
Chinese New Year | Just Like Sarajevo Out There!
Greetings and salutations to Joop for this. Good to know he made it back from there safe!
<p>Chinese New Year’s eve Shanghai, year of the tiger, 13 February 2010 from joop on Vimeo.</p>
Chinese Filmmakers Tend to Get Beaten, Don’t They?
Would really enjoy getting some feedback on what people think about the Chinese indigenous film scene. Have a look at this Murray Whyte article in the Toronto Star from late last year for all the details.
The World According to Jia Zhang-ke / 贾樟柯
Sure, I know, it took me too long enough, but I finally got around to seeing Jia’s The World last night and I’m still ruminating on how I should feel about it. I need a few more days.
In any event, today is a great opportunity to scribble a bit more about modern Mainland Chinese filmmaking styles, and why the art form is slow to make a decisive breakthrough into Western film-going markets.
Jia Zhang-ke/贾樟柯’s back story is an interesting one. His reputation as an indie Chinese filmmaker based in the PRC was fully cemented during his badboy days of shooting films outside of the State-approved film sector. Read the rest of this entry »
Is China Better Off Without Google.cn? No, Says @neokai…
Elliott Ng’s amazing CN Reviews features an excellent stepwise breakdown by the sage Kai Pan on why Google’s announced exit from China due to the alleged Gmail account breaches by Chinese intelligence services and in opposition the the PRC’s insistence on it censoring its search results is decidedly a bad thing for overall Chinese freedom. Like Kai writes eloquently towards the piece’s conclusion about G.cn’s planned exit, “…life is not black and white and sometimes we have to make the best of what we can control. You have to be in a game to win it.”
Smoking to Be Banned in 7 Chinese Cities? Or Perhaps Not…?
Damjan DeNoble of Chinese HB comments about Robert Schrader’s recent Shanghaiist piece about the delicate deliberation currently underway about the proposed smoking ban in seven large Chinese cities. So can it happen?
E-Bikes In the States | Can They Work?
Evan Osnos writes in The New Yorker yesterday about the advent of e-bikes in the States. Interesting little Q&A.
Huang Hung Goes On An Anti-Foreigner Chinese Tirade in China Daily http://post.ly/RSXf4 days ago from Posterous
Why Western Journalists Have All the Wrong Answers About China http://post.ly/RRt04 days ago from Posterous
And Of Course There's Cristoph Waltz's Acceptance Speech Too... http://post.ly/RREq4 days ago from Posterous
Kathryn Bigelow's Acceptance Speech for Best Director at the 82nd Oscars... http://post.ly/RRBT4 days ago from Posterous