City of God

The slum of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil is given the name “city of god”. It is a place where even demon will turn around and sigh when seeing it. The narrator of the story is a boy called Rocket who witnesses the twenty years of chaotic gangster war which ends in a disaster.

The main focus is on Caleleia who formed a gang called the Tender Trio. With his best friend, Bené, they become the crime lords over a decade. Bené is considered the coolest gangster in the city, but he is accidentally killed before he can retire. Lil' Zé decides to take revenge and take out his enemy, Sandro Cenoura. However, Sandro forms alliance with a young gangster named Mane and starts a gang war with Lil' Zé. The amateur photographer Rocket records the brutal fight with his camera and makes the story famous.

Everything here lives under a different code. Life is a bet, and living is a coincidence. Guns become a daily necessity. In the first scene of the movie, there is a running chicken, and a crowd of gangsters chasing it with guns. In the city of god, you can choose to live ordinary like the chicken and wait to be chased after and get robbed. Otherwise, you can choose to be a robber and wait to be shot. It seems both paths are not leading you to a bright future. However, lots of people choose the latter, because being shot by a gun only pain once.

When Lil' Zé is still a child, he never hesitates to kill people and sometimes for no reason. Why is a naïve child turning into a blood thirst beast? Brutality can grow inside a child if he is always being bullied. In an environment filled with fear, children only have two choices. One is to hide somewhere, just like Rocket, and watch. One is to be the boss yourself and bully others. Violence is what Lil' Zé choose. Besides wild ambitions, there is also fear deep inside his heart. The best way to overcome that fear is to point the gun at others before they point it at him.

“City of God” is hopeless. There are shadows everywhere. The police is either powerless or corruptible. Those who dream to live on a farm will only die early. Even Bené have to accept his fatality. He may be cool. He may have a pretty girl friend and lots of friends, but he has no life to enjoy it. He is killed by a bullet which suppose to kill Lil' Zé.

The film is based on a real story. It reveals a country filled with contradictions. Passion and ruthlessness, belief and slaughter have learned to coexist in this place. In fact, contradictions exist in every society. If you want to live a more comfortable lfe, then better be cool and realistic. Like the narrator Rocket in the story, try to survive, take pictures of reality, and sell them to the newspaper office. Maybe you can’t change the environment, but you can change yourself and find the best way out.

the Band's Visit

In the opening scene, several mid-aged men in neat uniforms stand in a straight line at an Israeli airport. They are an orchestra coming from Egypt, the Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra. They are asked to play at the opening of an Arab Cultural Center. The members of the orchestra are at a pivotal time in their careers. It’s not just the political nature of an Arab military police band playing traditional Arab music in Israel that makes this event so important; budget cuts and many reorganizations have threatened the continued existence of the Orchestra. Faced with the heavy burden of this assignment, the stoic conductor Tewfiq is determined not to foul their excursion.

Despite all Tewfiqs efforts, it’s not long before problems arise. The band arrives at the airport with no one there to greet them. Stranded and unable to contact their Israeli hosts or the Egyptian consulate for help, Tewfiq decides that the Orchestra will persevere with its assignment and orders, and designates Khaled to ask for directions. Khaled and the station agent struggle in English, Arabic and Hebrew to communicate, but despite their best efforts, the Orchestra is sent to the outskirts of a small forgotten Israeli town in the desert.

the Syrian Bride

Mona is a25-year old Syrian girl, but, strictly speaking, she doesn’t belong to any country, because she has no nationality on her passport. She lives in a village called Galon, which is a Druze community. The village used to be a part of Syria, but it was taken over by Israel since 1976. In consequence she is not a Syrian. At least, Israel doesn’t think she is. Mona’s fiancé is a Syrian actor and her family wants her to marry a Syrian, not an Israeli. However, the problem is if she marries to Syria she can never return to Golan Heights, because her nationality will then be changed to Syrian and will no longer be accepted by Israel again. Her wedding is a little sentimental and looks rather like a farewell party.

There are four other major characters in the film. Hammed is Mona’s father who openly supports the reunification with Syria and has just been released on bail from an Israeli prison. On the day of Mona’s wedding, he insists to march for Syrian newly elected president. Hattem is Mona’s eldest brother. He marries an Russian girl, which is strongly against the village’s custom, so he leaves his village and lives in Russia with his wife. He returns after 8 years for Mona’s wedding, but is not welcomed by his village. Marwen, Mona’s second brother, does business in Italy. He is obviously a womanizer, yet nobody seems to object to his slightly unsettled lifestyle, which is quite a contrast to his brother who is only greeted by his mother and siblings. Mona’s sister Amal has a unhappy marriage, but she has a strong character and never gives in to life.

The Middle of the World

The Middle of the World is an 85-minute Brazilian movie. Rose and Roao together with five children are traveling across the country. Road scene makes up most part of the movie. The vehicles they have are four bicycles, and they ride 3,200 kilometers from a poor region Paraiba to Riode Janeiro, a large city in southeast. Roao has some unrealistic high standards for himself. He is looking for a job that can pay him 1000 reais. Along the way, they face physical and emotional hardship and bear witness to the many ways in which the nation they knew is changing.

Changes do not only take place on the outside but inside the family as well. Rose and Roao’s oldest son, Antonio, is getting close to full adulthood. He has become openly defiant of his parents and tries to prove himself a man. He feels tired of traveling and tires to find his own place in the world. After several trials he finally leaves his parents and works as a builder.

It is fairly easy to notice that there are a large percentage of people under poverty in this country. There seems to be no middle class. The only two parties are the rich and the poor. The fat rich guy looking for things to enjoy himself and the poor family searching for food and shelter form a sharp contrast. This is not a particular case but a common phenomenon that exists in the Brazilian society.

The film shows the natural beauty of Brazil. Big blue sky, clean white clouds, vast green grassland, and a happy family soaring on their bicycles together makes up a beautiful and peaceful picture. The weather is quite warm as the equator goes across the country. There are some heavy rainfalls in the movie which is typical for a tropical climate. In one scene, the family takes shelter in a discarded bus. The next morning they wake up, they find the place totally flooded after a night of rain.

Life is definitely not easy for impoverished people. Besides adversity, the movie shows the happiness of the poor. The journey is filled with laughter and happy songs. It is hope that makes them strong. They believe better things lie around the corner and that gives them the determination to travel thousands of miles by bicycle. It is already a miracle when they reach their destination. Even though the movie doesn’t tell us if Roao finds a job at last, there is always hope.

Tsotsi

A young gangster named Tsotsi has grown up on the slum of Johannesburg, South Africa. He spends his time leading a small group of punks in various criminal activities around town. After a conflict with one of his subordinates, Tsotsi leaves his neighborhood in a fit of rage and ends up in a violent encounter with a suburban woman. The encounter ends with Tsotsi driving away in the woman's car, finding a secluded area of town, and rummaging through the vehicle for valuables. Tsotsi is presented with an unexpected surprise in the back seat — the woman's baby. Lacking the callousness to leave the baby behind, Tsotsi carries it home with him. Throughout the next six days of his life, the plot's duration, the young gangster is forced to face the consequences of his violent lifestyle and reevaluate his own moral code.

Boston emphasizes the word decency in the movie many times. But his argument is weak and he is not able to defend it himself. In fact, all the people under poverty are trying to find decency. Tsotsi and Boston are also looking for answers, but it seems poverty has driven decency far away from their lives, because their daily routine is to consider how to get themselves fed. The old beggar who Tsotsi follows helps him redefine decency. From their talk, Tsotsi comes to realize decency is not about getting rid of poverty but about the attitude of life. Tsotsi saw a dog whose legs were broken by his father when he was young. The old beggar reminds him of that poor dog, and that experience is a nightmare for Tsotsi. He doesn’t want to live like the dog that his father wounded, and that’s why he ran away from home and lives by himself.

The woman Miriam who is forced to feed the baby has changed Tsotsi. Miriam’s husband is gone by accident, but the woman still has the passion and hope for life. She raises the baby on her own and makes wind bells for a living. Life is hard but she refuses Tsotsi money. The people living in adversity in the movie all have a reason for life. Tsosti sees the hope of life in their eyes and learns what real decency is.

Tears are a good expression of one’s emotions. Years of life as cruel gangsters has turned Tsotsi into a beast without emotions. He can feel the pain that faith brings him, but he won’t cry. He learns to fight and revenge the world which is so unfair to him. After he saw the tears of the beggar, the crying baby, the tears in Miriam’s eyes, he finds the warmth in this world again. He begins to learn about love. When he says sorry to his brother Boston, his eyes begins to cloud with tears. When he returns the baby to his parents, tears are streaming down his face. At that moment, he is crying like a boy, and that’s when his emotional world revives.

Yesterday

The movie Yesterday tells us a simple story. Yesterday is the name of a woman who raises her daughter, Beauty, in a Zulu village. Their life is simple, and every day they wake up, clean the house, fetch water from the well, and enjoy the sun shine of South Africa. Her husband has gone to a big city. He sends back money from his labor in the mines, but he is away for months at a time.　

A blood test reveals that Yesterday is HIV-positive after a routine visit to the district doctor. She is told to contact her husband in Johannesburg as quickly as possible. Confused, helpless, and determined to fight for her life Yesterday and her husband will have to learn how to live with the biggest threat the African continent has ever faced- the AIDS pandemic.

The condition under which people are living in the village is shocking. There is only one well for the whole village. Electricity is scarce and people have to depend largely on candle light. It takes a two-hour walk to get to the nearest doctor. The only “doctor” in the village is an old lady whose treatment is based on superstition. The land is very wide, but most of it is impoverished. I didn’t even see any farmland or crops in the movie. Before watching the movie, Africa gives me the impression of high heat. The images linked to Africa are lions, giraffes, and vast grassland. On the contrary, this Zulu village is in a place where there are four seasons. When I see the strong wind blowing though the walls of the little house and Yesterday’s husband shivering with pain, I can feel the coldness as if I were in that that little room as well.

The main themes of the movie are about courage, compassion, and determination. It’s a story of humanity defined by mother’s love. Besides these, however, I think the director is giving us a message of segregation. The village itself is on some point segregated from the outside world. People inside the village don’t like outsiders. It takes half a year for the villagers to accept Yesterday when she was first married into the village. They strongly abhor people who get infected by HIV. Yesterday’s husband is driven out and ends up dead in a little house outside the village. It makes me think that sometimes it’s not the physical illness that really hurts but the distance between people’s hearts.

If we can live healthy, we should always face life with a smile. After watching the movie, what impresses me most is the smile on Yesterday’s face. No matter how tired or sad she is, she always has a kind, lovely smile on her face. It’s really touching me at the moment, and it’s probably because I was suffering from a cough for quite a while and was feeling really low. Her smile cheers me up and fills me with warmth. She makes me realize that we should have our body and soul shower in the sunlight every day.

Crying Ladies

Let’s meet the last professional mourners of Manila's Chinatown. Smart Stella dreams of a better job to be able to get back the custody of her beloved son from her ex-husband. Then there is Doray, a bit player of the '70's whose life revolves around the glory days of her B-movies career. Choleng is a religious and naive woman who simply cannot resist the sexual advances of her best friend's husband. They all accept a part-time job as the professional mourners for a traditional Chinese funeral and they have to cry for 5 days!

The story of these three women is given life in the context of a funeral wake. Against all odds in life, they survive and emerge victorious in the many little ways that make up real life. First-time director Mark Meily brings a heartwarming comedy that moves the audience to tears and laughter.

Traditional Chinese funeral has appeared in both Crying Ladies and Singapore Dreaming. The influence of Chinese culture is strong in both countries, so I think it’s necessary to shed some light on the traditional Chinese funeral.

First of all, Chinese understand death in a different way. It’s a traditional belief that soul exists inside the body, and when the body dies the soul will still be with the body for several days. After that, it will leave and go to the nether world. A funeral is a big event for the whole family, and during the funeral people actually think the dead is watching what they are doing. It’s not good to hold one’s feelings at a Chinese funeral. The right way is to cry them out, and it shows how you miss and care about the decedent. In order to show full respect, sometimes people will hire outside professional mourners for cry their loved ones. They cry for days, but, unlike in the movie, they also talk to the decedent when they are crying. The content is usually similar to some kind of confession which involves feeling sorry for not treating the decedent well enough when he is alive and asking for forgiveness. The tradition may be a little different from place to place, because mourners in other places may sing songs when they are crying.

In some scenes, things made of paper are burnt during the funeral. This is considered as an essential part, and the items that are burnt is believed to be transformed into things that can be used by the decedent in the nether world. A lot of things are burnt in the film including houses, vehicles, TVs, etc. The most common thing Chinese burn at a funeral, however, is a kind of false paper money specially “used” for the dead. People will burn them at a certain time every year to the decedent they miss and love hoping that his or her life in the other world is happy.

Singapore Dreaming

The story of this Singapore family brings out a question on how to seek happiness in ordinary life. The Poh’s family in this movie well represents a typical Singapore family.

The host of the family named Poh Huat works as a lawyer’s clerk. His dream is to enter the upper social class and enjoy luxury life. Being disappointed by his current status, he forms the habit of buying lottery tickets in the hope of winning and making his dream come true. Poh’s wife is a typical Chinese housewife. Her daily routine is buying groceries, cooking, cleaning, and making herbal tea. She sacrifices her own life for the good of the whole family. Besides financial problems, small conflicts exist among the family members. The hope of family, their much loved son, lies and spends most of his parents’ money. He doesn’t even come close to success and have difficulty finding a job. The daughter is not satisfied with her family apparent favoritism for the son. When Poh strikes the lottery and wins two million dollars, it seems all the problems can be fixed. However, it is a test given by god to the family on how to seek true happiness in life.

The favoritism for a son is quite common in the older days, and it is still currently practiced by some conservative families. The reason for this phenomenon can be traced back to thousands of years ago when farming is the major production power of the society. A son can provide more labor to a family while a girl will increase a family’s burden. The idea has come into existence for so long and it has been deeply rooted in people’s minds. In modern days, a lot of Chinese families may still favor a son. It’s an old custom, and people do it without a rational reason. I think only the solution to this problem is to leave it to time. The Chinese society is changing fast and some of the people are probably not ready yet.

It is very interesting to hear a mixture of four different languages when the family is sitting around the dinner table. The family members mostly speak Fu Jian dialect and English. Sometimes they use Mandarin as well. Later I find out there is a forth language called Singlish. The pronunciation and grammar are different from standard English. It is based on English, but it is also influenced by Malaysian language, Fu Jian dialect, Cantonese, and Mandarin. The language is formed during the long years of many different ethic groups living together.

It surprises me that some Chinese customs can be better preserved in Singapore than in China mainland and Taiwan. Old and new both exist in this internationalized country. Different cultures keep influencing on each other and form the unique culture of Singapore.

Once Were Warriors

The movie we watched last Thursday was very unusual. By only looking at the tile “Once Were Warriors”, it’s hard to know what to expect from the movie, because it sounds like a war or science fiction film. Nevertheless, when you start the movie, better fasten a seat belt, and be ready for the shock wave.

At first, for a little while, I think it is peaceful. A man and a woman are in love. They have some kids. It looks like a seemingly happy family. There is no danger, but, the next moment, I become so upset that I can’t stop thinking HELP THAT POOR WOMAN!! Oh my goodness! The man is devil! He should not be categorized as human, and I spend the following hour worrying about whether the woman is going to get beaten again.

New Zealand is a beautiful country in my impression, but the movie reveals something not so beautiful. Domestic violence is not a new topic, but it is striking me so fierce when seeing it on the screen. The strength of men ought to be used to build and protect his family, but this, on the contrary, becomes the origin of destruction in this movie. Beth, who gets beaten by his husband Jake, wants to fight back, but, maybe terrified by his violence or in the hope to save love, she thinks things will better if she gives Jake another chance. Things do not turn out as she wishes, though. Jake let her down every time.

Violence is not the only theme of the movie. Moreover, there is love, the love of a mother, which is also a nature of human, or more expansively, the whole live species. Beth has a Maori heritage and the influence of her culture is strong. Her strengths lie in her devotion to her family and her heritage. Jake, sometimes, also shows his love to the family. He works to feed the family when he is not drunk; he brings back seafood for his children.

That is little comfort, though, as their daughter is struggling to accept adulthood, their youngest son is heading towards juvenile detention, and their oldest son is fast on his way to joining a brutal gang. Worst of all, Jake is a heavy drinker. Various problems arise and they are tearing the family apart. Beth does her best to hold the family together, but she can hardly make a change which is because of Jake's drinking and carelessness of his family's dissipation. Jake insists it's best to drink away the problems and quit being so "soft" on the kids. These finally lead to a terrible strategy.

The movie is bloody and gloomy as my professor warned us before class. I still think it’s worth watch. I’ve watched many movies, and a lot has already faded out of my memory, but this one is going to stay with me for long.

Rabbit-proof Fence

Rabbit-proof Fence, which is based on a true story, discovers the dark history of the aboriginal people in Australia from 1910 to 1970. What the government is trying to do at that time is to “save” the “half-caste” children from their aboriginal identity and help them fit in the white society. The government forcibly takes the “half-caste” children away from their parents, and put them in the special detention centers which are set up for training. There they are trained very strictly. They are forced not to speak their own language or perform their own custom. They are even told they have no parents, and any child who breaks the rules will receive punishment in a little wooden house.

Molly feels sick of the life in the Moore River Native Settlement. She manages to escape with her two sisters Daisy and Grace. Neville, head of the detention center, is very pissed off. He desperately sends out trackers and police to capture the three girls. The girls’ journey is tough, but fortunately they meet some kind hearted people who offer them food and even shelter some times. Due to Molly’s cleverness and determination, Neville’s “perfect” plans never work out. They successfully hide from the tracker every time. Almost near the end of the journey, however, Grace is cheated by a stranger and is caught by the trackers. There Molly and Daisy missed Grace forever. Following the rabbit-proof fence, the two girls travel 1500 miles and finally get home.

During their scene of escape, the director also gives us an overview of the Austrian vast landscape. The environmental change from coastal region to deeper inland is huge. At the beginning of their escape, there are forest and rivers. Gradually, the green color vanishes, and it is substituted by almost yellow. Where Molly and her sisters live is a semi desert. Not a lot of plants can be found except some dry trees. Water is quite scarce as well. From what I have seen, life of the aborigines is in great harmony with the nature. They hunt for animals that can be found around, like lizards. Sometimes, they also live on birds’ eggs. I think nature is sacred for them, since I see them admire eagles a lot.

What are you going to do when the government kidnapped your children? It’s truly a heart breaking time for thousands and thousands of aboriginal parents. Molly and her sisters are only the lucky ones, but tens of thousands of children remain separate from their mothers. During the long 60 years, they are educated by the white and even forget who they are and the origin of their culture. Body injuries can be cured by medicine. Broken hearts can be cured by time. Lost of self identity is the biggest harm, because it can never be found back again.

Eat, Drink, Man, Woman

Eat, Drink, Man, Woman is one piece from Ang Lee’s “family trilogy”. Ang Lee is a famous director from Taiwan who has won many international awards. He is famous for Brokeback Mountain and Lust, Caution. Both of his movies receive lots of criticism, but it also wins him great fame. I think they are all probably banned in China mainland. When these movies came out, they occupied the front page of ever newspaper, and that’s where I know the name Ang Lee.

The movie tells the story of an old chef Chu who is beginning to face the embarrassment of life after retirement. The big get-together dinner he cooks every weekend can no longer attract his three daughters. They have all grown up, and there are things for them more important than eating with their dad. The death of his old friend is big shock for Chu and takes him long to recover. Though his three daughters are very busy, they care about Chu’s later years in life. When they are planning to find Chu a new love, they are all rocked by the news that Chu is actually in love with Jinrong who is considered as the “forth daughter” in their family.

This is the first movie I saw which is directed by Ang Lee. I think it’s a good one. He shows us that he is not ordinary by using hints, symbolism and other movie making techniques in the film. You have to think when watching in order to get a better understanding of the theme. The story mainly focused on food which is important for every culture and especially important for Chinese. As a country with a history of thousands of years, Chinese culture can be largely represented by its food culture. The food diversifies from place to place. Almost every province has its own eating habits. The diversity increases by distance. For example, people in the north eat bread (steam bread) and wheat, and people in the south seldom eat any steam bread at all. Their staple is mainly rice. What’s more, in western part of China people eat extremely spicy food, but, on the east side, people prefer mild. Climate differences also contribute to food diversifications. The old generation in Taiwan is mostly from the main land. I think their food is more similar to Guang Dong food judging from what they eat in the movie.

Chinese food is also very popular in America. Many times, people ask me whether the food here still taste Chinese. To be honest, the answer is a big negative no. Chinese food in America has been greatly affected by American fast food culture. In order to survive in business, the food making procedure is greatly changed and so does the flavor. In fact, cooking Chinese food is very time consuming. It probably takes me an hour to cook one dish and I know there are some that may require half a day. It gives me a good reason for eating outside!!

Beijing Bicycle

This movie is quite typical which reminds me of several other Chinese movies, like “In the Heat of the Sun”, etc. “Beijing Bicycle” is banned in China main land probably because it truly reveals the social conflicts in China. Some violence is also involved.

The movie gives us a good picture of what Beijing is like. It is an old city with modern architecture. Here the old and the new can coexist well which makes the city very unique. It’s definitely one of the fastest developing cities in the world. The speed of change surprises me every time when I went back to China. It changed most significantly during the year 2008 due to the Olympics. There are so many building under construction. When you are in the city, you can feel by yourself that the city is booming every day.

“Beijing Bicycle”, however, reminds us that, besides the skyscrapers, there are also people under poverty living in little brick houses. The seventeen-year-old Gui is one of those people from outside Beijing. He finds a job from a courier company and is promised that he will own his new bike after he earns six hundred RMB. He works really hard, but when his dream is about to come true, his bike is lost. Gui drops into desperation.

On the other side of the story, Xian is a school boy from Beijng who is the same age as Gui. Because of a poor family background, he feels inferior sometimes though acting proud. After his father misses his words for several times, and also as a way to win “face” in front of his friends, Xian steals money from his family and buys a second hand bike. He doesn’t know the bike is actually the one that Gui lost. The story approaches a climax when Gui finds out the bike he lives on is “stolen” by Xian. He tries his best to get his precious back, and there starts the struggle between the two boys who are trying to guard their own dreams.

The movie can be defined as a movie of youth, but it also explores some other social issues. A small portion of people in Beijing are not only physically poor, but also mentally stressed. They struggle hard to fit in the city life, but most of the times they feel unwelcome and even receive discrimination from other social class. People under such status deserve more care from the society and that is what the director trying to tell us here. The boy from the countryside, the school boy, the babysitter, the grocery store owner, and the boss of the courier company actually share a common destiny, but are only presented in different ways.

Veer Zaara

Honestly speaking, I’ve never seen an Indian movie before. It may sound a little weird as our countries are so close and their movies are so famous. I really appreciate it to have a chance to watch my first Indian movie in class, and I love it so much. I am so impressed by their music. It sometimes sounds mysterious and sometimes burst into happiness and joy. There are about six to seven pieces of songs throughout the whole movie, which makes it more like a song and dance drama. It seems everyone in the movie can sing and dance well. I know movie magnifies things, but it is sure that music is an essential part of the Indian people’s lives. Being a guy who looks clumsy when dancing, I do envy these people.

“Veer Zaara” is telling us a love story beyond the borders. The two lovers, Zaara and Veer, are separated apart for twenty two years. Veer, who is an Indian Air Force official, quits his job and spends twenty two years in the prison of Pakistan to protect Zaara’s reputation. Zaara, the daughter of a Pakistan politician, stays in India for twenty two years to fulfill Veer’s dream. With the help of an idealistic Pakistani layer named Saamiya, the two in love are finally reunited, and they returns to India together. Things have changed a lot. Veer turns from a young handsome man to an old man who has suffered great pain. Zaara is no longer a young pretty girl, but a middle age woman with gray hair. However, what has never changed is their love, which was found in two happy days twenty two years ago.

The conflict between Pakistan and India is a historical problem. There are injuries and deaths on both sides. Are there other ways to solve the problem besides by political and military force? Maybe the movie “Veer and Zaara” is giving people another message. When Veer is wrongly put in prison for twenty two years and when the judge releases Veer from prison and apologizes on behalf of Pakistan, he doesn’t show any sign of anger and nor does he complain. He chooses to forgive. What power can support the friendship between man, between countries, and between civilizations? It is the willingness to forgive. Forgiving requires courage. A man who never knows to forgive will never learn to love. That’s the lesson I learn from this Indian movie.

Run Lola Run

“Run Lola Run” is a fast pacing, game like movie. The mission for Lola is to get 10,000 marks in 20 minutes and save Manni. The game is played three times and has three endings. In the first trial, Lora fails to get the money and has to help Manni rob the supermarket, and ends up shot by the police. Mission fails. In the second game, Lola succeeds in robbing her father’s bank and gets the money, but Manni is run over by an ambulance, so mission fails. In the third round, Lola wins consecutively in the casino and earns more than 10,000 marks. Meanwhile, Manni gets back the money he lost. Manni is saved and they become rich. This time mission complete!

It is surprising how little things can change the rest of one’s life. This reminds me of the movie Butterfly Effect. They both have the idea of changing a little in the past which will lead to changing a person’s whole life track. The movie also shares some ideas of the Eastern cyclical belief. In the east, it is believed that people’s spirit will come back to life again after death but in different forms. Next time you wake up. You may be a man, but you can also be a cat, a dog or even a bug. Then the whole life cycle starts again. I think people in the east won’t be too surprised by the concept when watching the movie.

This movie can also be defined as a love rescuing movie, but, mostly, it is men rescuing women where heroism stands out. Here we see Lora, a skinny girl, rescuing his big man! It is telling us time has changed. The traditional characters can be switched, so here is a clear declaration of feminism. In the movie, we find that woman is always running, thinking and finding ways to solve the problem. Man, however, remains at rest. It seems man in this movie can’t change a thing and all he can do is to wait for his fatality. Woman is trying to change everything and she is even using time magic! In reality, the roles played by men and women are changing significantly. As time goes by, changes may become so significant that maybe one day man will really need women to rescue!

Good Bye Lenin

“Good Bye Lenin” tells the story about a son named Alex trying to save his mother’s life by telling lies. His mother, a dedicated party activist, has a heart attack when she witnesses his son in the middle of a parade against the government. She falls into coma and stays unconscious for eight moths. Lots of things have taken place when she is in bed. Germany welcomes its reunification and her beloved East Germany is gone forever. Her sudden awake one morning brings Alex great pleasure, but this is also the starting point of a new problem. His mother’s doctor tells him that the shock of East Germany’s downfall may bring her a fatal heart attack this time. Alex has to build up an “East Germany” for his mother, and keep her away from the outside world. The process is hard, but, in return, his mother spends “rest of her life” in peace.

It is quite ironic that Alex is one of those people who push down the Berlin Wall, but he has to keep on telling lies that East Germany still exists. It’s a problem like whether to tell a patient that he is dying, and it’s hard to tell right or wrong. More ironically, they later find out both sides are actually living in lies, because Alex’s mother is lying about his father for years. Anyway, I believe there are good lies. When Alex’s mother finally finds out the truth, she doesn’t panic, and she even pretends to listen to the false news that Alex makes for her, because she knows there is someone in the world that loves her so much.

When watching the movie, I feel there is a kind of link with my life, because I am also very familiar with the term “Lenin”. China is by definition socialism. We are taught about Lenin in primary schools. However, this term has faded out of our lives for years, because the media never mentions this name again and none of his pictures can be found today. Interestingly, we even don’t know when this is happening. The movie is like a hint to me. Unlike Germany, we are also saying good bye to Lenin, only in a different way…

My Sassy Girl

I saw the movie My Sassy Girl long ago. It was extremely popular in Korea, Japan and China when it first came out. There were lots and lots of girls who were crazy about the story, and the Jun Ji-hyun’s style became what thousands of girls follow after. The movie is no doubt a classical one and probably every teenager in these countries is very familiar with the piece “I believe” which is the theme music. There is also a popular joke: “whenever your auntie introduces you to a girl friend, just go!” This may reveal the popularity of the movie in Asian countries.

The movie is an unpredictable and enjoyable love story which differs a lot from the traditional. The first encounter of the guy and the girl is anything but a pleasant experience. The drunken girl uses rude language, throws up on an old man and passes out in the public. It is the nerdy guy who has to take care of her. As the story goes on, the guy slowly finds out how crazy and abusive this girl is, but, interestingly, everything works out. The guy falls in love with her and does all the crazy things to please her. Even if the guy suffers physically and mentally, he really thinks that this beautiful girl have some sorrow in her and he really wants to help her to get better.

The ending of the story when the guy and his sassy girl meet again in his auntie’s house is an obvious symbol of the karma. That’s something I have discussed in my article on Train Man, but there are more things we can learn from this movie. I find the way people express themselves in eastern countries varies from the west. You seldom hear the three words “I love you” in an Asian movie while that’s probably what you hear throughout a movie in the west. I think this is due to the context of our language, because the language used in Asian countries like Korea and Japan is of high context, which means people prefer to express themselves in a more indirect way. However, the western language, say English, is low in context and this means they speak out what comes into their minds in a direct manner. For instance, the first thing I came to America is to learn to say no, because saying no in eastern culture is concerned rude. So far as I know, Japan has more than twenty ways to say something that means a “no”, and it is much the same in China. Culture may cause variances, but I think that’s not a problem for us to communicate with one another.

Train Man

Train Man is a very relaxing comedy movie and definitely a fairy tale for geeks. The story is about a geeky man named Takayuki Yamada who spends all his spare time in the world of toys, movies and online chatting. He probably never ever dreams himself to be a hero of a lovely woman one day. This romantic yet a little embarrassing heroism takes place on a train and that’s how he later gets his name “train man”. The woman appreciates his great courage and asks for his address to thank him for his good deed. Being energized by this encounter he posts his story on a message board and this earns him a team of faithful readers. By the numerous advices given by his readers, train man successfully ask the woman out. Everything goes on quite smoothly in a pretty much unexpected way. After a few more happy dates, the train man finally decide to tell the woman his real feelings about her, but near the end of the movie he gets frustrated by their different social status and once again loses his courage. Thanks to his warmhearted supporters, train man finally goes through pain and sorrow, and determines to face the woman he loves. The ending of the story is a happy one. Train man and the woman he “saved” become lovers and promise each other to be together for ever.

What impresses me most is the number of times train man is saying sorry. That’s not because he feels guilty or what, but because being polite is a very essential part of the Japanese culture. The extent of politeness in Japanese culture probably stands out in the whole eastern culture. As a neighbor of Japan, we have a lot in common. For instance, we both bow. In China people only bow to the old or the people they respect, and they bow only once and that’s it. However, in Japan people bow more frequently and it seems the most suitable number is the more the better. In some comedy shows, you can see two Japanese keeping bowing to each other when they say goodbye. I guess that’s maybe a little exaggerating but it certainly reflect the importance of politeness to Japanese.

At the end of the movie, there is a scene that train man picks up a license which he thinks belongs to a little girl, but it turns out to be the heroine’s. That’s a sign of karma. Karma is very significant in Asian culture. It comes from the influence of Buddhism. People believe even the people who walk by you in the streets needs karma, because there are billions of people out there in the world, but it is karma that makes this very person to walk by. For lovers, karma has an even more miraculous effect. All the love stories in Asian culture have something to do with karma, and that explains why Asian movies are more likely to focus on the story of how young people fall in love while western movies are more concerned about the stories of people after they became lovers.

Le Grande Seduction

The story takes place in a small fishing village of St. Marie-La-Mauderne, Quebec. The people there used to live happily on fishing until one day fishing is banned by the government and everyone then has to live on monthly welfare checks. Everyday men wander aimlessly from their home to local bars. They know jobs are needed to feed their family, and some of them are already moving to cities to make a living. The little village with a hundred and twenty five residents is facing a danger of declining. This worries the mayor a lot.

When a small company finally considers building a factory on the island, the mayor sees a chance to bring back the village its former glory. The only problem is the factory cannot be built without a resident doctor, which is one of the things that the small town does not possess. The mayor sends out tons of letters in the hope of attracting a doctor to his island, but it doesn’t work at all.

One night, the young Dr Lewis, caught for speeding and carrying some cocaine, is sent to the island for a one month trial period. Leading by the mayor, villagers tries everything that can please the doctor and make him stay. The entire village works together to convince Dr Lewis that their village is an ideal place to live. They change their food menu, pretend to play cricket and love jazz music, adjust the women’s dress code and even limit the number of patient everyday. The old mayor brings the young doctor to fish everyday and treats him warmly like his own son.

After a period of time, Dr Lewis feels that the village does need a doctor desperately. When he is still hesitating whether to stay or not, he learns the news that his girlfriend has lied to him for years. This ought to be good news for the village people, because Dr Lewis’s last bound to the outside world is cut. However, the mayor starts to think what this young man will feel when he finds out everything is based on lies. Finally, the mayor decides to tell him the truth. Lewis is shocked at the first moment, but, moved by what the major and the villagers have done for him, he decides to stay at last. At the end of the story, a factory is set up and the happy village comes back to life again.

The movie shed some light on people’s life style in the southeast islands of Canada. The villagers are isolated from the outside world on a certain extent and some of them never step out of their small world for their entire life. What people do most in the daytime will be fishing and worshiping in church. The church also serves another function which is for village meeting. At night, they like to go to the local bars for a drink and watch their favorite games on TV. People live in different ways depending on their different attitudes about life. For the folks in this little fishing village, an easy and peaceful life is what they choose to live.

The Little Girl Who Sold the Sun

The forty-minute short movie gives us a view of the people’s life in Senegal. On a different landscape and under a different culture, people do and react to things probably in a different way, but there are also things that we have in common. In the opening scene, a woman is arrested in the marketplace. She screams and kicks like crazy because she is wrongly accused. The man who accuses her for theft looks like a jerk to me. He keeps putting his hand into her handbag and even tears her clothes off. The market people surround her, watch her humiliation, but do nothing to assist her. I think there’s a correlation between us as viewers and the crowd of people in the marketplace. If we are right there on the scene, are we able to jump out of our comfort zone and give her our helping hand? This may not only be the problem for people in Senegal, but also a problem for everyone else. For instance, when we watch news and heard about tragic things, most of us probably think it’s none of our business. Calling the audience to be more sympathetic and less detached is what Mambety trying to do here.

The main story is about a poor little girl whose name is Sili. She lives on the street of Dakar and moves with crutches. Though Sili is physically handicapped, she is very bold and determined. Instead of begging, she becomes a newspaper vendor which is a trade dominated by boys. She never gets scared by the intimidations from some older boys. Even when they push her and make her fall, I see no frustration or anger on her face. She never forgets to smile after someone helps her climb up. She also has the kindest heart. When she receives a large sum of money from a stranger, she buys the singing woman a large umbrella and gives every beggar a little change.

After watching the movie, I noticed there are a lot of contradictory elements. There aren’t much bright colors like green or red. The hot, dry and dusty land gives me an impression of lifelessness, and it seems that the people have to struggle really hard to survive. It is difficult to imagine what kind of life people are having inside those shabby houses made up by a mixture of mud, plastic and fabric. Ironically, I see a sign of modern technology. There are cars running on the road and a plane taking off from a distance far away. It puzzled me how the things from the modern world can coexist with the people under great poverty. The kind-hearted girl and the watching crowd form another sharp contrast. This reminds me of the fable that Sili tells her friend and she says the youngest are the wisest. It doesn’t make much sense to me at first, but after a second thought that’s very true. Sili is a very good example and she is giving us new hope that changes are taking place from the bottom of the society.