The opening scene of Chungking Express shows us glimpse of Pan-Asian culture by introducing the concept of Kawaii, meaning cute in Japanese, it is closely linked to aesthetic expressions of kitsch which develop remarkably distinct features in all modernist East Asian countries. Kawaii culture bears traits of a social crisis that is most obvious in Japan, described and characterized as being all style and no substance. “An imminent disillusionment with society as well as a psychological helplessness and scrutinized perceptions of the self.” (Bornstein 2008). A critique of Kawaii culture and its focus on consumers’ values and obsessive fashion consciousness is not unlike Douglas Keller’s critique of consumerism and antique cultural signifiers …show more content…
In Days of Being Wild, Chungking Express, Fallen Angels, Happy Together and In The Mood For Love, people remain obsessively undecided. In Chungking Express, cop no.223 vows to fall in love with the first woman he walks into. In a way he is going through reality the way adolescents go through computer games, detached, full of illusions, and unprepared to have real feelings. Wong shows this dynamic even in the love relationship between two men in his film Happy Together. The characters’ perpetually recurring suggestion to start their relationship from scratch is naïve abstract and innocent. Happy Together is a provocative film on many levels and perhaps can only be made by a fiercely independent director such as Wong Kar-Wai. Strangely self-contained, almost virtual and dystopian, life exists as a dreamlike experience. Perhaps all this modern confusion is why Wong looks to the past. A simpler time where identity was more of a tangible concept than it is now. His films drenched in nostalgia are perhaps his internal attempts to come to terms with modernity and ground us in the context of history and
In every story, there is a protagonist and an antagonist, good and evil, love and hatred, one the antithesis of the other. To preserve children’s innocence, literature usually emphasizes on the notion that love is insurmountable and that it is the most beautiful and powerful force the world knows of, yet Gen’s and Carmen’s love, ever glorious, never prevails. They each have dreams of a future together, “he takes Carmen’s hand and leads her out the gate at the end of the front walkway… together they… simply walk out into the capital city of the host country. Nobody knows to stop them. They are not famous and nobody cares. They go to an airport and find a flight back to Japan and they live there, together, happily and forever” in which their love is the only matter that holds significance (261). The china
American pop culture recently received flak for cultural appropriation. Artists such as Katy Perry and Selena Gomez were criticized for superficially incorporating Asian images into their music. However, cultural appropriation and cultural tourism – and its consequences – are commonly seen in relation to traditional culture; this lack of attention towards visual representation of modern Asian subcultures – in relation to Asian Americans – dismisses the potential impact of these images. A visual analysis of Avril Lavinge’s “Hello Kitty” and Gwen Stefani’s appearances with the Harajuku Girls reveals that the use of Japan’s Harajuku subculture in American pop culture perpetuates Asian American stereotypes. Specifically, these acts contain characteristics of the submissive “lotus blossom” stereotype and the invisibility that comes from this stereotype. These characteristics result in an insidious formation of race; Avril Lavinge and Gwen Stefani’s cultural tourism constructs the concept of an American that excludes the Asian body through contrasts between themselves and the background Asian body. This racial formation relies on the idea that the two artists have become part of the Harajuku culture, yet they are clearly distinguishable from the homogenized Asian body.
In all quarters of the globe, you can see some form of popular (pop) culture shape an individual's behavior, sensibility, and perspective on life. Every culture, religion, and ethnicity has changed over time under the influence of pop culture whether it is based on food, clothing items, or simple values and beliefs. Dr. Lawrence Rubin describes popular culture as a, “...banality, it certainly seems meaningless...even potentially destructive. However, if instead we recognize that it is simply an expression of our collective experiences, its importance becomes more clear” ( Popular Culture: We are what we consume,2009). Yet, current pop culture can be seen as a heterogeneous social conception. Particularly, it is always changing and what’s new today will be old by tomorrow. Famous celebrities and latest trends of designs and
Released in 2000, and called the "…love story of the new millennium" (Time Out New York), In the Mood for Love (2000) is one of the best and most underrated foreign film. From its nostalgic depiction of the 1960s to its artistically appealing cinematography, this film has become a staple in the ever evolving, fast-paced film industry. Consequently, after having watched it I was in a daze for days, day dreaming about the characters, reimaging their fates, this movie could not leave me. I wouldn’t let it. Furthermore, I was more inclined to analyze In the Mood for Love after having watched another Wong Kar Wai masterpiece, Chung King Express (1994), because the resonating power both these films have had on me are immensely powerful. It is extremely rare when a filmmaker has the ability to really leave a mark on your life, twice. The film, In the Mood for Love is produced under the shroud of the Hong Kong New Wave movement (1978-2000), in particularly the Second Wave. This film movement analyzes major social issues grappling Hong Kong such as decolonization, social class, and the importance of women in a rising global economy. As a result the following analysis will chronicle the details of the Hong Kong Second Wave film movement, along with a detailed description of Wong Kar Wai’s film aesthetics, and a deep evaluation of the acclaimed movie, In the Mood for Love.
Cultural appropriation is a sociological concept which views the adoption or of elements of one culture by members of a different culture as a largely negative phenomenon. It has a negative connotation because cultural appropriation also refers to a particular power dynamic in which members of a dominant culture take elements from a culture of people who have been systematically oppressed by that dominant group. In Sunita Puri’s article “Cultural Identity vs. Ethnic Fashions”, she divulges in the topic of cultural appropriation, and uses ethnic and pathetic appeals to establish her credibility as an Indian American who can speak on behalf of her people to convince non-Indians to stop using the Bindi as a fashion statement. She brings forth personal experiences and examples from pop-culture and explains why appropriation is offensive.
To discover the traditional beauty of a Japan which is disappearing; to emphasise the importance of industrially produced clothes by using synthetic materials; to demonstrate the secret beauty of Japanese women. I am striving to create clothes which give paramount importance to the movement of the body. Rather than fashion that one puts on, I want to produce fashion that one takes off...for that is where the beauty of man’s primitive spirit is found. (Tokyo Vogue p44)
Love is not simple or easy. The kind of love that will last over time and overcome each obstacle it brings is actually a fair amount of work. In the film Valentine’s Day there are all different kinds of love and some of them thrive while others fail by the end of the day. All these different relationships present an opportunity to analyze how different aspects of communication help people find love and make it last.
With the criminals right in front of us, how can a police officer try to avoid getting a little dirty.” The king looks back at her with a tinge of calmed annoyance at all the ballyhoo, “Alright. I will do it already.” When he finally bends and kneels, he moans and groans when she steps on his back in her attempt to climb the wall. This Korean drama ‘’Dong Yi’’ does not make any direct exemplary and ethical statement about the relationships between love and society or the influence it can have on its victims; rather, it portrays the consequences of being in love, while at the same time, heartens humans with an impressionistic motive and goal leading to the conclusion that love is eternal and that its flame is not by all means, extinguishable.
Masayki Suo directs a film that combines social and psychological depth, with an intriguing depth and a number of comedy bits, thus managing to present a pictyre that is both highly entertaining and provides "food for thought." Along with the wonderful performances of Koji Yakusho
In the early 1800s, France was the sole fashion capital of the world; everyone who was anyone looked towards Paris for inspiration (DeJean, 35). French fashion authority was not disputed until the late twentieth century when Italy emerged as a major fashion hub (DeJean, 80). During the nineteenth century, mass produced clothing was beginning to be marketed and the appearance of department stores was on the rise (Stearns, 211). High fashion looks were being adapted and sold into “midlevel stores” so that the greater public could have what was once only available to the social elite (DeJean, 38). People were obsessed with expensive fashions; wealthy parents were advised not the let their children run around in expensive clothing. People would wait for children dressed in expensive clothing to walk by and then they would kidnap them and steal their clothes to sell for money (DeJean, 39). Accessories were another obsession of France‘s fashion; they felt no outfit was complete without something like jewelry or a shrug to finish off the look and make it all around polished (DeJean, 61). As designers put lines together, marketing began to become important to fashion in the nineteenth century; fashion plates came into use as a way to show off fashion l...
Chow and Mrs. Chan. Wong provides insights to the subtle things, that forward the relationship between Mr. Chow, and Ms. Chan broadening our understanding. The audience is able to understand Mr. Chow and Ms. Chan 's internal struggle, due to Wong 's consistency of filming areas that limit space. The limitation of space reflects Mr. Chow and Ms. Chan feelings as they feel they have no room for exploration. Furthermore, the directorial choice to implement particular colors with important emotional marks of the characters, enhances the beauty of how their emotions progress throughout the film. With minimal physical affection, and dialogue in the film, Wong 's strategy proves to be highly effective. Finally, Wong uses images that echo a common flashback, to establish the unrequited longing that takes place throughout the film, and the unrequited longing at the end where Mrs. Chan and Mr. Chow are of nothing but a memory of each other. "In the mood for love" is a unique and beautiful film where a the love between character 's is heightened through microscopic elements instead of the physical
Today, romance is one of the most popular genres to watch on television. Unlike most, romance is a genre where the plot revolves around the love between two main characters as they experience the highs and lows of love. “Common themes that revolve around romantic movies are kissing, love at first sight, tragic love, destructive love, and sentimental love” (Taylor). These themes appear in many historical films and the pattern still continues in modern films as well. Watching romantic movies has a giant negative influence on the viewer's analysis of what love and relationships should really be like. These films give the wrong impression of reality when it comes to dating, marriage, having children, and even how to manage a relationship in the first place. Even though romantic movies are commonly watched, there are many effects on personal real-life relationships after watching these types of films.
Fashion in the 21st century is a big business, as its production employs millions of people and generates billions of dollars in revenue. Fashion has for the past century been, and is still today, used as an indicator of social change and progress, as it changes with the social norms of the society and the political changes of the world (Finkelstein 3). Works Cited Finkelstein, Joanne. A.S.A. & Co. Fashion: An Introduction to Fashion. New York: New York University Press, 1998.
Mrs. Spring Fragrance, in Sui Sui Far’s The Inferior Woman, can be read as a subversive narrative as a means to comprehend the reasoning behind the rising American popularity of material Orientalism amongst white women during the 1870s and 1920s. Mari Yoshihara, a scholar in American studies with an emphasis on Asian relations, claims that “the material culture of Orientalism packaged the mixed interests Americans had about Asia—Asia as a seductive, aesthetic, refined culture, and Asia as foreign, premodern, Other—and made them into unthreatening objects for collection and consumption” (17). Mrs. Spring Fragrance subverts Yoshihara’s American and Asian dynamic by viewing white women as seductive, elusive, and foreign in an effort to turn
Lent, John A. Themes and Issues in Asian Cartooning: Cute, Cheap, Mad, and Sexy. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular, 1999. Print.