Support NeoGAF

[Heshinsi]

Huh.

This seems blind to some of realities of inter-national politics. I'm actually really curious what the domestic reaction in China would have been if they casted a non-Chinese POC instead of Damon. Like a Ken Watanabe or Daniel Kim.

Anyways, I wouldn't mind Damon's addition if what we've seen/heard so far didn't seem phoned in. I'm interested to see what happens with his performance.

They would have freaked the fuck out and you know it. Maybe not so much of it was a non Asian POC, but they would have lost it if a Japanese or Korean actor played Matt Damon's role.

 

[walking fiend]

They would have freaked the fuck out and you know it. Maybe not so much of it was a non Asian POC, but they would have lost it if a Japanese or Korean actor played Matt Damon's role.

Have you implicitly assumed that Chinese people can't be distinguished from Korean or Japanese people, and they can be interchangeable used? Well, all asian people look the same and are the same after all...

 

[Ratrat]

They would have freaked the fuck out and you know it. Maybe not so much of it was a non Asian POC, but they would have lost it if a Japanese or Korean actor played Matt Damon's role.

The Promise was one of the most expensive Chinese films ever and starred Korean and Japanese leads.

Last Samurai is about how a white man can be a better samurai than Japanese men.

That is half of it yes. But he has to adopt the superior culture first and become more Japanese than the average guy.

 

[patapuf]

They would have freaked the fuck out and you know it. Maybe not so much of it was a non Asian POC, but they would have lost it if a Japanese or Korean actor played Matt Damon's role.

Yeah, the Chinese being freaked out if a Japanese man would be portrayed as Chinas savior is totally not understandable. There is no valid reason for this.

 

[Timbuktu]

Hollywood made The Last Emperor, Memoirs of a Geisha, Slumdog Millionaire didn't they?

The Last Emperor was not Hollywood, it was a rather large indie with a rather small budget by today's standards. Still find it weird that it won so many Oscars and John Lone wasn't even recognised. I guess those movies would be more guilty of orientalism than racism.

 

[PdotMichael]

Geisha had the problem that it used Chinese and Korean actors like they are all the same for something deeply Japanese.

People in Asia aren't Pavlovian dogs who get triggered because there is an actor from another Asian country.

 

[Heshinsi]

Have you implicitly assumed that Chinese people can't be distinguished from Korean or Japanese people, and they can be interchangeable used? Well, all asian people look the same and are the same after all...

That's not what I said at all. I don't know how well it will go over in China having a story where the hero who saves China is a person of Japanese and or Korean heritage due to the history between these nations. I'm talking more in relation to the saving China part. Regular movie that doesn't have nationalistic implications might not be a problem.

 

[4Tran]

The Chinese side of this production puts the issue in a very different light. The problem in Hollywood for Asian actors is that they get very few opportunities and what opportunities there are have a tendency to go to white actors. Quite obviously this isn't a problem in Chinese cinema.

There, Chinese actors dominate the industry, filling at least 90% of the cast. And because the casts of this film industry is so uniform, there is a bit of a demand for foreign talent, and so it's not uncommon to see Korean and Japanese (and Hong Konger and Taiwanese) actors playing nominally Chinese characters. In a purely Chinese production this is a bit like a Hollywood film casting a black actor to play a character who would have nominally gone to a white actor. This particular film's heritage is a bit mixed, but it's still quite clear that the primary audience is meant to be in China.

Yeah, the Chinese being freaked out if a Japanese man would be portrayed as Chinas savior is totally not understandable. There is no valid reason for this.

Takeshi Kaneshiro is Taiwanese-Japanese, and he's a popular star in Chinese cinema. He even starred in the House of Flying Daggers and Red Cliff.

 

[Vigilant Walrus]

Geisha had the problem that it used Chinese and Korean actors like they are all the same for something deeply Japanese.

People in Asia aren't Pavlovian dogs who get triggered because there is an actor from another Asian country.

They also have their own racial biases to deal with;

 

[duckroll]

That is half of it yes. But he has to adopt the superior culture first and become more Japanese than the average guy.

Or rather, a talented white man can do anything if he puts his mind to it. It's a power fantasy meant to inspire all young white males watching it to believe if they tried hard enough, nothing is beyond them, not even another culture. Asians though? Sorry but you can only play the roles that history and society expects of you.

 

[D i Z]

Eh, Last Samurai and Shogun are about painting a fantastical, fetishtic view of Japan and making it the most awesomest thing ever. They are not about white supremacy over poc.
Without seeing the film, we dont know if Damon is a bystander to the awesome Chinese warrior spirit or their saviour. Both are annoying tropes but only the later is hugely problematic.

See, as soon as we agree on something, you just lose me again with some nonsense.

Okay, so its not a Chinese film. Its an American-Chinese film. So what? It should still look like the million other Chinese historic epics with only Chinese actors speaking in Chinese? We have Japanese actor doing Ghengis Khan and Korean actors in Three Kingdoms or whatever. Also Hollywood made The Last Emperor, Memoirs of a Geisha, Slumdog Millionaire didn't they? For all we know this will be a Last Samurai type asskissing fetish film about an exotic and superior culture *cough* Shogun *cough*. Because I dont think Zhang Yimou and the Chinese government will settle for anything less.


edit: Man with the Iron Fists was fun! Lucy Liu was especially awesome.

You even disagree with me agreeing with what you yourself wrote!
It's like you are dreaming up whatever you want to argue about, even if it means arguing with yourself. I'll just leave you to it then.

Salute.

 

[DrunkShogun]

We can hope it's a last samurai situation where it's Tom cruise face on the poster but Ken watanabe was the actual star of the movie.

 

[Ratrat]

The Last Emperor was not Hollywood, it was a rather large indie with a rather small budget by today's standards. Still find it weird that it won so many Oscars and John Lone wasn't even recognised. I guess those movies would be more guilty of orientalism than racism.

My bad. I remember thinking it looked expensive as hell.

See, as soon as we agree on something, you just lose me again with some nonsense.

You even disagree with me agreeing what what you yourself wrote!

It is very awkwardly phrased, but you've seemed to misinteretted what I was saying. Superior culture being Japan.

Or rather, a talented white man can do anything if he puts his mind to it. It's a power fantasy meant to inspire all young white males watching it to believe if they tried hard enough, nothing is beyond them, not even another culture. Asians though? Sorry but you can only play the roles that history and society expects of you.

Shogun was definitely like that. But there's also that draw of integrating I think. They adopt all the local customs and generally throw away everything of their past heritage. Its very bizzarre.

 

[duckroll]

The Chinese side of this production puts the issue in a very different light. The problem in Hollywood for Asian actors is that they get very few opportunities and what opportunities there are have a tendency to go to white actors. Quite obviously this isn't a problem in Chinese cinema.

There, Chinese actors dominate the industry, filling at least 90% of the cast. And because the casts of this film industry is so uniform, there is a bit of a demand for foreign talent, and so it's not uncommon to see Korean and Japanese (and Hong Konger and Taiwanese) actors playing nominally Chinese characters. In a purely Chinese production this is a bit like a Hollywood film casting a black actor to play a character who would have nominally gone to a white actor. This particular film's heritage is a bit mixed, but it's still quite clear that the primary audience is meant to be in China.

NOPE.

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/07/28/great-wall-first-look

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: This is your first time working with a Hollywood studio, Universal. What has the experience been like? Does it feel like the biggest project you’ve ever worked on?
ZHANG YIMOU: Indeed, this is the biggest film I have worked on. Working with a Hollywood studio, I have learned a lot. Hollywood studios are very experienced in filmmaking and this is worth studying. However, there are also many differences between Hollywood and Chinese filmmaking. So in order to collaborate, good communication is important. All in all, this type of partnership allows both sides to have a deeper understanding of each other. It opens the door, creates more opportunities for the future, and builds a great foundation.

How do the film’s Hollywood elements blend with its Chinese elements?
First and foremost, this is an English-language film, and a Hollywood blockbuster. It was already very clear in the script phase. This is a Hollywood monster movie and needs to be made in that style. I don’t want to change that approach, and there’s no need to do that. What I really want is to bring Chinese color and cultural background to the worldwide audience through a film language that they are familiar with.

How much did your own Chinese identity contribute to the development of the film?
A lot. This script was written by American screenwriters. So the story is really told from an American’s perspective. When I came onboard, I wanted to make sure everything Chinese in this film feels genuine.

---

You see, some people mistakenly believe this is a Chinese-language film for China with some western leads for flavor like Dragon Blade or whatever. No. This is a Chinese production made in the Hollywood system targeting the worldwide (read: western) audience, with western leads, and is entirely in English, written by Hollywood screenwriters.

 

[UnemployedVillain]

You see, some people mistakenly believe this is a Chinese-language film for China with some western leads for flavor like Dragon Blade or whatever. No. This is a Chinese production made in the Hollywood system targeting the worldwide (read: western) audience, with western leads, and is entirely in English, written by Hollywood screenwriters.

Some people who posted earlier in the thread need to read this

 

[Timbuktu]

My bad. I remember thinking it looked expensive as hell.

It did indeed, but mainly because they got to shoot on location in the forbidden city at the moment Deng first opened the doors to China. Things were really cheap back then. The good thing was that SARFT didn't exist back then and they could tell that story even with the cultural revolution that was only a couple of decades before. I wish it was in Chinese rather than English though, takes away from the authenticity of the location IMO.

It was also unlike the other films like The Ladt Samurai. If that was made today, the whole film would probably be told from the English tutor's perspective with O'Toole as protagonist. John Lone's limited career after that is a sad reflection on Asian Americans in Hollywood.

 

[4Tran]

You see, some people mistakenly believe this is a Chinese-language film for China with some western leads for flavor like Dragon Blade or whatever. No. This is a Chinese production made in the Hollywood system targeting the worldwide (read: western) audience, with western leads, and is entirely in English, written by Hollywood screenwriters.

Yeah, I know what Zhang Yimou said, but I'm still convinced that the main audience is going to be China.

 

[BreezyLimbo]

Eh its been a while but isnt it basically white people suck and come to wreck shit and Cruise ends up with respect for their culture?

all I remember is Cruise was the last samurai and I thought that was cheesy.

Why is it misplaced criticism? This is a Chinese funded production trying to be a Hollywood blockbuster. It is perpetrating the belief that to be a Hollywood blockbuster you must have western leads regardless of the setting. That is the criticism.

Right, it's China trying to pander to Western audiences just like how Hollywood panders to Chinese audiences by including scenes in China(IE Transformers) or when they make a big deal about announcing a Chinese Actress(Avengers 2 IIRC).

Except in this case, one of the principal actors is Matt Damon. Aside from him and Willem Dafoe, it's actually a diverse cast(Andy Lau, Pedro Pascal, Jing Tian). And whilst Matt Damon is the poster boy, well...Matt Damon isn't really a draw these days. Nor do we really know how big his role is.

Like if the movie comes out, and it turns into a 'matt damon saves China and the world by himself' then yeah, you can criticize it for being a white savior trope. Right now though, I just see pandering to western audiences, just like Hollywood tries to pander to Chinese audiences.

Edit-Reading Duckrools later post, it's supposed to be a world-blockbuster? That's something~ Wonder if that's possible now. Avatar was the last movie that really was successful in both the West and East, since then there haven't been any big movies like that.

 

[walking fiend]

That's not what I said at all. I don't know how well it will go over in China having a story where the hero who saves China is a person of Japanese and or Korean heritage due to the history between these nations. I'm talking more in relation to the saving China part. Regular movie that doesn't have nationalistic implications might not be a problem.

I understand your point, I was not trying to implicate you, sorry if that it what it looked like.

I was trying to note that for the people who are not familiar with people in east Asia, the actors from one country seem replaceable with the ones in the other, because the nuances in their different facial features don't stand out to them. But they can easily distinguish between even accents of English speaking actors [and tell where they come from just from that. It just shows the extent of the dominance of the western culture.

Some people who posted earlier in the thread need to read this

How is that even relevant? Because the audience 'might' be mostly white people, let's not offend them by using a Chinese person as the lead actor? And instead feed their ago by using a white lead actor?

 

[walking fiend]

edit: double post

 

[duckroll]

Yeah, I know what Zhang Yimou said, but I'm still convinced that the main audience is going to be China.

Who the main audience is going to be and who the main audience is intended to be are very different things and totally chances your point. This movie will likely bomb outside of China, but that doesn't change the fact that the reason it is even being made is to be successful outside of China. That reason is why the leads are western men. So no, it is not giving white actors a chance they wouldn't otherwise have had, it is still taking jobs away from Asian actors because the Hollywood system this is made in promotes the belief that you need a white man leading a big Hollywood blockbuster regardless of setting.

 

[D i Z]

---

You see, some people mistakenly believe this is a Chinese-language film for China with some western leads for flavor like Dragon Blade or whatever. No. This is a Chinese production made in the Hollywood system targeting the worldwide (read: western) audience, with western leads, and is entirely in English, written by Hollywood screenwriters.

I've gone blue in the face pushing this point. Maybe they'll listen to you.

Yeah, I know what Zhang Yimou said, but I'm still convinced that the main audience is going to be China.

 

[UnemployedVillain]

How is that even relevant? Because the audience 'might' be mostly white people, let's not offend them by using a Chinese person as the lead actor? And instead feed their ago by using a white lead actor?

You do realize we're on the same side, right? There were a number of people claiming this was a Chinese led production choosing Matt Damon solely for bankability, when in reality it is a mostly Western production choosing a white lead yet again to allow white people to relate (despite every other race being able to despite seeing other races in films) and because a white male is seen as the goto safe choice

 

[Ratrat]

It did indeed, but mainly because they got to shoot on location in the forbidden city at the moment Deng first opened the doors to China. Things were really cheap back then. The good thing was that SARFT didn't exist back then and they could tell that story even with the cultural revolution that was only a couple of decades before. I wish it was in Chinese rather than English though, takes away from the authenticity of the location IMO.

It was also unlike the other films like The Ladt Samurai. If that was made today, the whole film would probably be told from the English tutor's perspective with O'Toole as protagonist. John Lone's limited career after that is a sad reflection on Asian Americans in Hollywood.

I wonder if Fairwell my Concubine would have problems today...the cultural revolution depictions in there were pretty brutal.
I cant imagine a movie of that scale being made today, unless there was a popular source like Memoirs.

 

[walking fiend]

You do realize we're on the same side, right? There were a number of people claiming this was a Chinese led production choosing Matt Damon solely for bankability, when in reality it is a mostly Western production choosing a white lead yet again to allow white people to relate (despite every other race being able to despite seeing other races in films) and because a white male is seen as the goto safe choice

Haha, sorry! I didn't know know the context of your post and did not realize what you were trying to point out ><

 

[4Tran]

Who the main audience is going to be and who the main audience is intended to be are very different things and totally chances your point. This movie will likely bomb outside of China, but that doesn't change the fact that the reason it is even being made is to be successful outside of China. That reason is why the leads are western men. So no, it is not giving white actors a chance they wouldn't otherwise have had, it is still taking jobs away from Asian actors because the Hollywood system this is made in promotes the belief that you need a white man leading a big Hollywood blockbuster regardless of setting.

I'm sure that Legendary knows full well who's going to be watching their film. Even the job-stealing has lessened impact because most of the cast is from Asian cinema - it's not as if there's a lack of Chinese and other Asian actors in their respective industries.

 

[hurricanes]

A film make with only commercial interest in mind and a director who hasn't make a good film since the beginning of 21th century.

Welp, I hope they pull it off.

 

[The Hamburglar]

Yep. China doesn't have the same hang ups on Asian-American representation America has... For obvious reasons. They go out of their way to find white people at malls, put them in Chinese traditional garb (appropriation!) and laugh them on TV. It's a different place, and a different context.

While I understand what Wu is grappling with (and you have to give her props for being so outspoken when she's got a career in the business) but I don't think this is the movie to jump on for these issues.

Is this true? Why the fuck lol

 

[Vigilant Walrus]

A film make with only commercial interest in mind and a director who hasn't make a good film since the beginning of 21th century.

Welp, I hope they pull it off.

Are you refering to Hero (2002)? Because I really, really liked House of Flying Daggers too.


I'd rate them:

Hero
Crouching Tiger (Ang Lee)
House of Flying Dagger

But it still was really nice! Much better than Red Cliff and a bunch of other chinese epics we've seen in later years!

 

[Timbuktu]

I wonder if Fairwell my Concubine would have problems today...the cultural revolution depictions in there were pretty brutal.
I cant imagine a movie of that scale being made today, unless there was a popular source like Memoirs.

I think the obsession with blockbusters makes it quite difficult for that kind of film in general, both in China as well as Hollywood. When was the last time we saw anything like a David Lean historical epic? Movies of any budget has to be filled with generic cg creatures and say as little as possible loudly. The Great Wall same to be along the same line of thinking as that new King Arthur franchise and the likes of Gods of Egypt.

 

[ShemhazaiX]

Think about it though guys. To Chinese people, this movie is actually pretty progressive and diverse because it doesn't only star Chinese people.

 

[EulaCapra]

My favorite parts:

Think only a huge movie star can sell a movie? That has NEVER been a total guarantee. Why not TRY to be better? If white actors are forgiven for having a box office failure once in awhile, why can't a POC sometimes have one?

Look, I know there are lotsa POC who honestly don't care. Who think I'M being crazy. Well excuse me for caring about the images that little girls see and what that implies to them about their limitations or possibilities. If you know a kid, you should care too. Because we WERE those kids.

Why do you think it was so nice to see a nerdy white kid have girl fall in love with him? Because you WERE that nerdy white kid who felt unloved. And seeing pictures of it in Hollywood's stories made it feel possible. That's why it moved you, that's why it was a great story. Hollywood is supposed to be about making great stories. So make them.

Thank you, Constance.

In a year where Broadway's Tony Awards was sweeped by Black actors in all four categories, film's Academy Awards were #OscarsSoWhite. And the sad fact is that no matter how many Tony Awards a POC actor wins, they will never see a higher amount of film role opportunities as their talent-less white peers from the casting couch.

 

[4Tran]

Is this true? Why the fuck lol

For exoticism. Most Chinese people have no experience with foreigners, so it's amusing for them to watch non-Asians participating in their silly game shows and speaking in Mandarin. Variety shows are already fairly popular in China and this is just a slightly different take on them.

Think about it though guys. To Chinese people, this movie is actually pretty progressive and diverse because it doesn't only star Chinese people.

Not really. Non-Chinese have been pretty common in Chinese films (especially the big ones) for a long time. It's gotten to the point where SARFT mandated that of the male and female leads of any TV show or film, only one can be non-Chinese (with Taiwanese and Hong Kongers counting as non-Chinese for this purpose).

 

[Englebert3rd]

how can someone be racist against their own race?

See Brexit, it will give you the answers.

 

[norinrad]

Reminds me of the last Samurai. My Japanese friends did not like it at all.

 

[UnemployedVillain]

Thank you, Constance.

In a year where Broadway's Tony Awards was sweeped by Black actors in all four categories, film's Academy Awards were #OscarsSoWhite. And the sad fact is that no matter how many Tony Awards a POC actor wins, they will never see a higher amount of film role opportunities as their talent-less white peers from the casting couch.

I said it earlier here, but that idea of it being bankability is the biggest farce people have convinced themselves of. It's easy when you look at it the way studio execs do.

1. Production with white leads succeeds? We need more white people!
2. Production with white leads fail? Movies are inherently risky and it happens. We'll get em next time.
3. Production with minority leads fail? It's too risky to try this again. We need to stick to white people.
4. Production with minority leads succeeds? *Crickets chirping* Congrats?

 

[duckroll]

I'm sure that Legendary knows full well who's going to be watching their film. Even the job-stealing has lessened impact because most of the cast is from Asian cinema - it's not as if there's a lack of Chinese and other Asian actors in their respective industries.

Legendary overestimating the success their films could have in the US is the reason why they are now owned by a Chinese company.

Please explain to me how English speaking Asian actors in Hollywood being deprived of leading roles even when there are English blockbusters set in ancient China being made has "lessened impact" just because said films also provide opportunities for Asian actors in Asia who do not have any trouble getting leading roles in Asia? I'm not following you logic here.

You seem determined to somehow justify and write this off as a non-issue. It is very clearly an issue. The issue is not that China is making a film with white leads. The issue is that when China goes to a Hollywood studio to ask for collaboration help on conceiving a big blockbuster, the end result is what we expect - that regardless of where a film is set, if you want to make a blockbuster Hollywood style, the expectation is a white man leading the film. That mindset has to change.

 

[Famassu]

I love Constance Wu. Not only is she a great actress, too good for TV, she really does understand Asian erasure and systemic racism in deep terms.

She's absolutely right here. I've seen Dances With Wolves already.

"Too good for TV" is such a dated way of looking at things, considering the quality of TV shows nowadays.

 

[Oersted]

Whites even appropriating main character roles in Chinese movies now.

They are whitewashing their movies for us.

We made it guys!

 

[Timbuktu]

I'm sure that Legendary knows full well who's going to be watching their film. Even the job-stealing has lessened impact because most of the cast is from Asian cinema - it's not as if there's a lack of Chinese and other Asian actors in their respective industries.

That's like saying Hollywood don't need to cast white people because British, French, Italian and German cinema casts white people too. It isn't right that Asian Americans do better leaving their home country to get a break in Asia.

 

[hurricanes]

Are you refering to Hero (2002)? Because I really, really liked House of Flying Daggers too.


I'd rate them:

Hero
Crouching Tiger (Ang Lee)
House of Flying Dagger

But it still was really nice! Much better than Red Cliff and a bunch of other chinese epics we've seen in later years!

Hero was ok but how did you rate it above crouching tiger hidden dragon... HOW?

House of flying dagger is just awful.

 

[Deleted member 20920]

Hero was ok but how did you rate it above crouching tiger hidden dragon... HOW?

House of flying dagger is just awful.

I find a lot of recent China films to be very "empty", for a lack of a better word. And their treatment of female characters usually seem like an after thought.

I remember House of Flying Daggers to be style without much substance.

 

[hurricanes]

I find a lot of recent China films to be very "empty", for a lack of a better word. And their treatment of female characters usually seem like an after thought.

I remember House of Flying Daggers to be style without much substance.

You just describe basically all Chinese big commercial films in the 21th century. All "scenes!" "feels!" "moments!", zero substance.

 

[4Tran]

Reminds me of the last Samurai. My Japanese friends did not like it at all.

The Great Wall isn't going to be in the boat as the Last Samurai. The Last Samurai purported to be a fictional take on the historical Satsuma Rebellion, but it ended up being completely make-belief steeped in Orientalism. The Great Wall on the other hand is purely fantasy from the get-go and it looks so terrible that nobody is going to care if it doesn't turn out well.

Legendary overestimating the success their films could have in the US is the reason why they are now owned by a Chinese company.

Touche

Please explain to me how English speaking Asian actors in Hollywood being deprived of leading roles even when there are English blockbusters set in ancient China being made has "lessened impact" just because said films also provide opportunities for Asian actors in Asia who do not have any trouble getting leading roles in Asia? I'm not following you logic here.

It's because there are only a handful of largish roles for Asian actors in Hollywood, and every one is lost to a white actor represents a large loss in representation. However, even if they cast a Chinese actor in Matt Damon's role, it would have never have gone to someone in the Hollywood system looking for recognition. The role would have gone to one of the giants in Asian (probably either China or Hong Kong) cinema, someone who's already played dozens of leading parts.

You seem determined to somehow justify and write this off as a non-issue. It is very clearly an issue. The issue is not that China is making a film with white leads. The issue is that when China goes to a Hollywood studio to ask for collaboration help on conceiving a big blockbuster, the end result is what we expect - that regardless of where a film is set, if you want to make a blockbuster Hollywood style, the expectation is a white man leading the film. That mindset has to change.

I don't know who came up with the idea to whom, but I'd imagine that Legendary came up with the idea of a white lead for the film, and that Wanda accepted it because that kind of thing is pretty common in China. Would it have been better if Legendary started with the mindset of a Chinese lead to begin with? From the perspective of seeing better Asian representation in Hollywood, absolutely. The Hollywood mindset of only making safe casting choices is poisonous and wrong-headed. But given how its cast is pretty typical, in the sense of non-Chinese talent, for actual Chinese blockbusters I'm just not convinced that this film is the one to get up in arms about.

 

[Deleted member 20920]

You just describe basically all Chinese big commercial films in the 21th century. All "scenes!" "feels!" "moments!", zero substance.

Haha... Yes... And it's sad to see Hong Kong actors being dragged into the whole scene. Not that Hong Kong movies are doing that great. Sick of seeing movies dealing with the same old undercover/crime/everyone's a traitor kind of film, aping The Departed ad nausuem in as many ways as possible. Or the comedies that try to be like those crazy nonsensical comedies of the 80s and 90s but somehow failing.

A lot of the soundtrack's bad as well. And the same can be said for Chinese dramas. The music I hear coming out from my parents' iPads...... Que dramatic music in every scene!

 

[Timbuktu]

Haha... Yes... And it's sad to see Hong Kong actors being dragged into the whole scene. Not that Hong Kong movies are doing that great. Sick of seeing movies dealing with the same old undercover/crime/everyone's a traitor kind of film, aping The Departed ad nausuem in as many ways as possible. Or the comedies that try to be like those crazy nonsensical comedies of the 80s and 90s but somehow failing.

A lot of the soundtrack's bad as well. And the same can be said for Chinese dramas. The music I hear coming out from my parents' iPads...... Que dramatic music in every scene!

You're telling me HK movies are aping The Departed? Seriously?

 

[tolkir]

how can someone be racist against their own race?

 

[UnemployedVillain]

Haha... Yes... And it's sad to see Hong Kong actors being dragged into the whole scene. Not that Hong Kong movies are doing that great. Sick of seeing movies dealing with the same old undercover/crime/everyone's a traitor kind of film, aping The Departed ad nausuem in as many ways as possible. Or the comedies that try to be like those crazy nonsensical comedies of the 80s and 90s but somehow failing.

A lot of the soundtrack's bad as well. And the same can be said for Chinese dramas. The music I hear coming out from my parents' iPads...... Que dramatic music in every scene!

Really? That's what they're aping?

 

[Deleted member 20920]

You're telling me HK movies are aping The Departed? Seriously?

When I say The Departed, I'm referring to Infernal Affairs of course. The name escaped me for a while.

Lots of overly serious corruption centric or crime centric movies from Hong Kong these days.

I'm mostly criticising the fatigue of seeing the same material or themes repeated over and over again, often by the same pool of actors, with the same "now you see me now you don't" treatment of the female characters.

 

[linsivvi]

When I say The Departed, I'm referring to Infernal Affairs of course. The name escaped me for a while.

Lots of overly serious corruption centric or crime centric movies from Hong Kong these days.

You must be talking about the highly overrated and mediocre Cold War.