Film produced during this era sparked a movement of expression and appeal that spoke to a greater audience then traditional film could. Hong Kong's fabled era of film production was sparked by the recovery from the second world war and the drive to establish a monopoly on the newly formed Chinese film scene. The arguably most successful production company exploited the drive to films that appeal to greater audiences by utilizing a combination of traditional stories in films and innovative techniques.
Wuxia Pian
Wuxia means basically means "Martial Tradition" which is a term used to express a genre stories of heroics in East Asian culture.The majority of these stories feature a protagonist who often on his own fights for what is right with a huge sense chivalry. The stories often follow the methods and characteristics of American Western films and the traditional tales of European Knights. Originally cinema struggled in East Asia, but soon the idea of transferring tradition tales of heroes from their original format to a feature length film drove people from their homes to the theater. These "Martial Art" films became increasingly popular but as they continued to develop and push the boundaries of what can be shown in films and what can't the city of nanjing issued a ban on the production of martial art films. Major film producers like The Shaw Brothers had to either move to a new location or face changing their style of creating films. Ultimately they chose to move to Hong Kong and continue to push the boundaries of what can be shown on film.
Notable People
Bruce Lee: Born in San Francisco, California but raised in Kowloon was considered to be the link between Chinese Cinema and Hollywood cinema, and a world revered martial artist. Bruce was a child actor but always had a love for martial arts, but never considered pursuing a life style in martial arts until he attended the University of Washington, at Seattle when he began teaching. He was sternly against acting but his father being a Cantonese Opera singer, and Bruce's constant appearance and success at conferences led to him being offered auditions,where he began acting in both Chinese and American films on top of choreographing fight scenes in Hollywood.
King Hu: A director for the Shaw Brothers, he's noted as a director for beginning to push for Wuxia in films. His movies almost exclusively featured a wuxia element
Chang Cheh: A director who focused on Wuxia, and later kung fu films. He was heavily influenced by Spaghetti Westerns and Japanese Samurai film and most importantly the concept of a lone sword man entering a room and cutting down every man in it. He was widely considered the father of Hong Kong cinema for his push for excessive violence and constant fast paced action with an undertone of brotherhood and loyalty to top off the tense action.
Jackie Chan:Originally began his acting career as kind of a back up Bruce Lee, but soon brought his own sense of energy which is close to Bruce's but had a much less serious undertone. He began to take off internationally as his sense of humor and prowess in martial arts spoke in a way that crossed cultural boundaries.Jackie Chan was almost as instrumental in unifying Hollywood and Hong Kong's film scene as Bruce Lee did.
Ann Hui:Is the most crucial Director in establishing Chinese New Wave, a genre focused on a more serious side of social commentary.Hui's films often focus on pressing cultural issues of Hong Kong like oppression and government corruption causing her to receive constant political backlash. Her film Boat People is considered one of the best films produced in China for it's depiction of the plight of people who lived during the communist take over of Vietnam.
Allen Fong: A director who introduced Italian NeoRealism to Hong Kong's films. He's critically acclaimed as being one of the better directors on the Chinese film scene despite having a small number of films created. His films showed the use of different techniques and allowed Hong Kong's films to utilize aspects of films in their production.
John Woo: He had a large impact on Hollywood film by introducing chaotic battles, use of mexican stand offs, and slow motion. His films are often considered more modern Wuxia Pian, where instead of samurai we now have gangsters, and the brotherhood that comes with it. He capitalized on the setting of neon lights in a smokey night club, or the neon backlights of a rainy ally way. He revitalized the Wuxia Pian to be used in a modern sense, no longer limiting the concept to feudal China.
Description:KIll Bill follows assassin Beatrix Kiddo on her warpath as she hunts down and kills each member of her former gang for having betrayed her. The film is considered a classic and one of Quentin Tarantino's greatest films, and has a strong cult following. The film is highly praised for it's visual aspects and recieved an 85% rating on rotten tomatoes despite being called an "overly stylized revenge flick", but goes on to say "but with style"
Observation: This scene does an excellent job at expressing a lot while also not saying anything. The constant movement and music that pumps you up, serves to captivate the viewer in an otherwise silent scene. O-ren Ishii displays confidence while facing a battered and broken yet unrelenting Beatrix Kiddo.
Analysis: The house of blue leaves showdown sets the tone for the film, and displays the theme that Beatrix will not give up. Later in the scene O-ren's confidence seems kinda foolish but the tensity and expression in the film draw back to Tarantino's roots and interest in Hong Kong film as a child.
Evaluation: The film is a classic redux of the Wuxia Pian with the tone of brotherhood driving the main character to act the way she does. Beatrix and O-ren return to the old ways of their art to settle their disputes. The films striking visual effects and constant homage to Chang Cheh's vision prove the effects of Hong Kong cinema.
Description: the film depicts the adventure of a trio of characters who are a female rebel pretending to be a man, a woman searching for her jewels and a daughter of an opera producer. In the chaos of a siege the trio take refuge in an Opera where all the roles are played by men in hopes of surviving.
Observations: The film set the standard for government satire in East Asia.The film also helped pave the way for the comedy action genre, where the rag tag group had to fight to achieve their goals.
Analysis: The film proved that you can take a shot at the government in film, even if the government you're mocking was the one in issue 60 years ago.
Evaluation: Finding a clip for a non-action film during this period was incredibly hard, but i wanted to show the extent they took to make satire. The films use of multiple characters with multiple ambitions also pushed for a greater sense of story and a broader comment on 1920s Chinese government.
Description: the movie tells the story of a poor born man who is trained in the martial arts but is often ridiculed. One day he decides to leave his school but ultimately must fight his way out, where he loses his arm. The man keeps studying martial arts and ultimately returns to the school to save his master's life. The film is considered a classic of Hong Kong film and helped propel The Shaw Brothers as the elite in Hong Kong's film scene.
Observations: The film was all shot on a set, and had cutting edge special effects for the time. It was considered Excessively graphic and even criticized of bloodletting. It's use of concepts that are controversial in North America, made it a hit because of how graphic it really was.
Analysis: This movie is considered the very essence of Chang Cheh. It propelled Chang Cheh to be a internationally renounced director.
Evaluation: The film expresses the driving idea behind Hong Kong's film industry. The use of Wuxia to drive the story and graphic push for the lone martial artist made it an instant classic.
The Effects.
Hong kong's effect on film proved the universal appeal of the a man of honor fighting for what's right, but they also paved the way for modern action movies. The films produced during this era inspired countless directors like Quentin Tarantino who still actively use concepts that were brought up. The borderline satirical gore, exciting fast paced music, profound statements and bright lights in contrasting scenes attracted an audience beyond China's borders and became a strong part of Hollywood's arsenal. The idea that California no longer dominated the film industry and that film was universal, allowing for an even greater sharing of concepts and opinions.
Hong Kong Film(1980's - 1990's)
Film produced during this era sparked a movement of expression and appeal that spoke to a greater audience then traditional film could. Hong Kong's fabled era of film production was sparked by the recovery from the second world war and the drive to establish a monopoly on the newly formed Chinese film scene. The arguably most successful production company exploited the drive to films that appeal to greater audiences by utilizing a combination of traditional stories in films and innovative techniques.
Wuxia Pian
Wuxia means basically means "Martial Tradition" which is a term used to express a genre stories of heroics in East Asian culture.The majority of these stories feature a protagonist who often on his own fights for what is right with a huge sense chivalry. The stories often follow the methods and characteristics of American Western films and the traditional tales of European Knights. Originally cinema struggled in East Asia, but soon the idea of transferring tradition tales of heroes from their original format to a feature length film drove people from their homes to the theater. These "Martial Art" films became increasingly popular but as they continued to develop and push the boundaries of what can be shown in films and what can't the city of nanjing issued a ban on the production of martial art films. Major film producers like The Shaw Brothers had to either move to a new location or face changing their style of creating films. Ultimately they chose to move to Hong Kong and continue to push the boundaries of what can be shown on film.
Notable People
Description: KIll Bill follows assassin Beatrix Kiddo on her warpath as she hunts down and kills each member of her former gang for having betrayed her. The film is considered a classic and one of Quentin Tarantino's greatest films, and has a strong cult following. The film is highly praised for it's visual aspects and recieved an 85% rating on rotten tomatoes despite being called an "overly stylized revenge flick", but goes on to say "but with style"
Observation: This scene does an excellent job at expressing a lot while also not saying anything. The constant movement and music that pumps you up, serves to captivate the viewer in an otherwise silent scene. O-ren Ishii displays confidence while facing a battered and broken yet unrelenting Beatrix Kiddo.
Analysis: The house of blue leaves showdown sets the tone for the film, and displays the theme that Beatrix will not give up. Later in the scene O-ren's confidence seems kinda foolish but the tensity and expression in the film draw back to Tarantino's roots and interest in Hong Kong film as a child.
Evaluation: The film is a classic redux of the Wuxia Pian with the tone of brotherhood driving the main character to act the way she does. Beatrix and O-ren return to the old ways of their art to settle their disputes. The films striking visual effects and constant homage to Chang Cheh's vision prove the effects of Hong Kong cinema.
Description: the film depicts the adventure of a trio of characters who are a female rebel pretending to be a man, a woman searching for her jewels and a daughter of an opera producer. In the chaos of a siege the trio take refuge in an Opera where all the roles are played by men in hopes of surviving.
Observations: The film set the standard for government satire in East Asia.The film also helped pave the way for the comedy action genre, where the rag tag group had to fight to achieve their goals.
Analysis: The film proved that you can take a shot at the government in film, even if the government you're mocking was the one in issue 60 years ago.
Evaluation: Finding a clip for a non-action film during this period was incredibly hard, but i wanted to show the extent they took to make satire. The films use of multiple characters with multiple ambitions also pushed for a greater sense of story and a broader comment on 1920s Chinese government.
Description: the movie tells the story of a poor born man who is trained in the martial arts but is often ridiculed. One day he decides to leave his school but ultimately must fight his way out, where he loses his arm. The man keeps studying martial arts and ultimately returns to the school to save his master's life. The film is considered a classic of Hong Kong film and helped propel The Shaw Brothers as the elite in Hong Kong's film scene.
Observations: The film was all shot on a set, and had cutting edge special effects for the time. It was considered Excessively graphic and even criticized of bloodletting. It's use of concepts that are controversial in North America, made it a hit because of how graphic it really was.
Analysis: This movie is considered the very essence of Chang Cheh. It propelled Chang Cheh to be a internationally renounced director.
Evaluation: The film expresses the driving idea behind Hong Kong's film industry. The use of Wuxia to drive the story and graphic push for the lone martial artist made it an instant classic.
The Effects.
Hong kong's effect on film proved the universal appeal of the a man of honor fighting for what's right, but they also paved the way for modern action movies. The films produced during this era inspired countless directors like Quentin Tarantino who still actively use concepts that were brought up. The borderline satirical gore, exciting fast paced music, profound statements and bright lights in contrasting scenes attracted an audience beyond China's borders and became a strong part of Hollywood's arsenal. The idea that California no longer dominated the film industry and that film was universal, allowing for an even greater sharing of concepts and opinions.