Comments on: Zhang Yimou Releases New Film to “Battle” with Hollywood http://dgeneratefilms.com/critical-essays/zhang-yimou-releases-new-film-to-%e2%80%9cbattle%e2%80%9d-with-hollywood/ Distributing the finest in Chinese independent film today Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:23:45 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Lu Chen http://dgeneratefilms.com/critical-essays/zhang-yimou-releases-new-film-to-%e2%80%9cbattle%e2%80%9d-with-hollywood/comment-page-1/#comment-1427 Lu Chen Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:34:52 +0000 http://dgeneratefilms.com/?p=2261#comment-1427 Thank you for your very interesting comment! Despite all the spotlights he continues to enjoy, I don't think Zhang Yimou still represents the frontier of Chinese cinema ever since at least Hero (2002), if not Shanghai Triad (1995). Zhang's current status as “national cultural hero” domestically and “China's most famous director” abroad actually reflects some serious limitations in the Chinese film system today. Many articles we published or reported on in this blog, especially those by Shelly Kraicer and Chris Berry, find Chinese cinema in its most lively in the independent productions by digital-generation filmmakers, which often cover refreshingly new topics of earnest social concern. (For instance, the last Chinese film I saw and quite admired, "Fujian Blue" (Jin bi hui huang, dir. Weng Shuoming, Dragons and Tigers Award 2007) is an adrift youth story against the background of the rampant smuggling and the resulting imbalanced development in the coastal Fujian Province.) Although most of these films enjoy a “shadowy” presence in China and haven't attracted the attention from mainstream western media like NPR, this blog and our company dGenerate Films are working on changing the landscape. Thank you for your very interesting comment! Despite all the spotlights he continues to enjoy, I don’t think Zhang Yimou still represents the frontier of Chinese cinema ever since at least Hero (2002), if not Shanghai Triad (1995). Zhang’s current status as “national cultural hero” domestically and “China’s most famous director” abroad actually reflects some serious limitations in the Chinese film system today. Many articles we published or reported on in this blog, especially those by Shelly Kraicer and Chris Berry, find Chinese cinema in its most lively in the independent productions by digital-generation filmmakers, which often cover refreshingly new topics of earnest social concern. (For instance, the last Chinese film I saw and quite admired, “Fujian Blue” (Jin bi hui huang, dir. Weng Shuoming, Dragons and Tigers Award 2007) is an adrift youth story against the background of the rampant smuggling and the resulting imbalanced development in the coastal Fujian Province.) Although most of these films enjoy a “shadowy” presence in China and haven’t attracted the attention from mainstream western media like NPR, this blog and our company dGenerate Films are working on changing the landscape.

]]> By: Waiguoguizi http://dgeneratefilms.com/critical-essays/zhang-yimou-releases-new-film-to-%e2%80%9cbattle%e2%80%9d-with-hollywood/comment-page-1/#comment-1407 Waiguoguizi Sat, 30 Jan 2010 12:57:39 +0000 http://dgeneratefilms.com/?p=2261#comment-1407 Has Mr Zhang considered making better movies, instead of criticizing the Chinese youth for watching Western movies? Look at Chinese movies, there are only 5 types of Chinese movie. Love story (with a kiss on the cheek as the highlight), Comedy (which is more embarrassing than funny), Kung Fu movies, Ancient heroic movies and Movies about the war (bad Japanese guys, good Chinese guys) Nothing else at all. It just repeats all the time. No wonder foreign movies are far more popular. Has Mr Zhang considered making better movies, instead of criticizing the Chinese youth for watching Western movies?

Look at Chinese movies, there are only 5 types of Chinese movie.
Love story (with a kiss on the cheek as the highlight), Comedy (which is more embarrassing than funny), Kung Fu movies, Ancient heroic movies and Movies about the war (bad Japanese guys, good Chinese guys)

Nothing else at all. It just repeats all the time. No wonder foreign movies are far more popular.

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