Picturing Chinatowns The Chinese-American Male in 20th Century Film.
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Transcript of Picturing Chinatowns The Chinese-American Male in 20th Century Film.
Picturing Chinatowns
The Chinese-American Male in 20th Century Film
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Presentation Outline
Project IntroductionDiscussion of the FilmsConclusion
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Presentation Outline
Project IntroductionDiscussion of the FilmsConclusion
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Project Description
Class approach: Perceptions of the Chinese-American community
through various genres of expression
Project approach: Portrayal of Chinese-American males in 20th
century cinema
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Project Significance
Why are we using film as a medium to examine the formation of identity?
Why are we studying the Chinese-American male?
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
What films are we studying?
Shadows (1922)Sixteen Candles (1984) Year of the Dragon (1985)Wedding Banquet (1993)Double Happiness (1995)Rush Hour (1998)
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
How did we choose these films?
Films cover a wide domain in cinema different time periods multiple genres Hollywood vs. Independent various director backgrounds
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Presentation Outline
Project IntroductionDiscussion of the FilmsConclusion
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Shadows (1922)
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Shadows (1922)
Meant to be a sympathetic portrayal of the Chinese-American male
Instead, reflects and perpetrates the idea of the heathen Chinese
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Sixteen Candles (1984)
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Sixteen Candles (1984)
Chinese exchange student mocked simply because of his ethnicity
Box office success signals wide appeal of such humor, even in 1980s
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Year of the Dragon (1985)
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Year of the Dragon (1985)
Chinatown as exotic, mysterious and crime-ridden
Chinese villain as charismatic but effeminate
Emphasizes inability of the Chinese-American male to assimilate
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Wedding Banquet (1993)
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Wedding Banquet (1993)
Overseas perspective on the Chinese-American immigrant experience
Depicts a liberation of the Chinese-American male
Liberation, however, comes at great cost
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Double Happiness (1995)
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Double Happiness (1995)
Directed from perspective of second generation Chinese-Canadian
Chinese-Canadian male reduced to one-dimensional notions of success
His abandonment as part of the Chinese-Canadian female’s liberation
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Rush Hour (1998)
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Rush Hour (1998)
Pairing of a crossover Hong Kong kung fu master with an African-American comedian
Acceptable ethnic stereotypingYet Chinese-American male stars
as master of an exoticized martial art
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Presentation Outline
Project IntroductionDiscussion of the FilmsConclusion
May 10, 2002 Liza Ching & Eric Wong
Themes
More complex portrayals over timeProgression from playing into
stereotypes to playing with stereotypes Continued lack of complete
representationIdentity formation as an increasingly
dynamic process
THE END