FILM East Asian Cinemas Seminar

Keene State College

KSCommons

Fall 2010

FILM 495-01 East Asian Cinemas Seminar

Jiwon Ahn

Arts and Humanities, School of

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Seminar: East Asian Cinemas FILM 495-01

Fall 2010 Keene State College

Class meetings: Tuesdays 2-5:30 pm

Course Instructor: Jiwon Ahn (jahn@keene.edu)

Office hours: Mondays 12-3 pm, Wednesdays 2-4 pm, or by appointment @ MAC 110 (603-358-2771)

Course Description

In spite of their geographical proximity and historical correlations, East Asian nations have differing experiences of colonialism, modernization and globalization, generating undeniably diverse national cultures and cinemas. This seminar aims to interrogate major concepts of contemporary film studies in relation to a wide range of East Asian cinema.

Taking as its starting point Japanese and Chinese early cinemas produced in the early phase of modern nation-building in each country, the course investigates how the films in question articulate various responses to modernity within Asian societies. Next, it examines a variety of film schools and movements that represent different postcolonial experiences in East Asia, including Japanese occupation cinema and New Wave, New Hong Kong Cinema, Chinese Fifth and Sixth Generation cinema, New Taiwanese Cinema and New Korean Cinema. It then focuses on issues relating to postmodernism, transnationalization and globalization, looking at some of the works produced as an outcome of the increasing international collaborations of various kinds. The seminar concludes by considering the role of international art cinema and Asian cult cinema as global distribution systems and reflects upon the shifting relations between cinema and the concept of nation within the region.

Film Studies Program Learning Outcomes Upon completion of this course, students will:

 Be able to understand cinema as social practice, by studying the relations between individual film texts and their social, economic, and historical contexts of production and reception.

 Gain an understanding of the theories of the national, transnational and global cinema frameworks, well enough to be able to produce critical writings in these sub-fields of Cinema Studies.

Course Requirements

Attendance and participation (15%)

In-class presentation and written report (15%) Class journal and short viewing reports (20%) Midterm analysis paper (20%)

Final research paper (30%) Required Texts

Leon Hunt and Leung Wing-Fai, East Asian Cinemas: Exploring Transnational Connections on Film. London & New York: I. B. Tauris, 2008.

Alan Williams, ed. Film and Nationalism. New Brunswick, NJ and London: Rutgers University Press, 2002.

Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities. London and New York: Verso, 1997. Course Reader (on reserve in Mason Library)

2 Recommended Texts

Matte Hjort and Scott MacKenzie, eds. Cinema and Nation. London and New York: Routledge, 2000.

Kyung Hyun Kim and Esther Yau, ed. Asia/Pacific Cinema: A Spectral Surface (Positions: East Asia Cultures Critique, Vol.9, No.2, Fall 2001).

Wimal Dissanayake, ed. Colonialism and Nationalism in Asian Cinema. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1994.

Yingjin Zhang. Chinese National Cinema. New York and London: Routledge, 2004 Sheldon Hsia-peng Lu, ed. Transnational Chinese Cinemas: Identity, Nationhood,

Gender. Honolulu: University of Hawai‟i Press, 1997.

Nick Browne, et al. eds. New Chinese Cinemas: Forms, Identities, Politics. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1994.

Ray Chow, Primitive Passions: Visuality, Sexuality, Ethnography, and Contemporary Chinese Cinema. New York and Chichester, West Sussex: Columbia University Press, 1995.

Poshek Fu and David Desser, eds. The Cinema of Hong Kong: History, Arts, Identity. Cambridge, UK; New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

Easther C. M. Yau, ed. At Full Speed: Hong Kong Cinema in a Borderless World. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2001.

David Bordwell, Planet Hong Kong: Popular Cinema and Art of Entertainment. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2000.

Arthur Nolleti, Jr. and David Desser, eds. Reframing Japanese Cinema: Authorship, Genre, History. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 2002. David Desser, Eros Plus Massacre: An Introduction to the Japanese New Wave.

Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1988.

Mitsuhiro Yoshitomo, Kurosawa: Film Studies and Japanese Cinema. Durham: Duke University Press, 2000.

Susan Napier, Anime from Akira to Howl’s Moving Castle, Updated Edition:

Experiencing Contemporary Japanese Animation. New York: Palgrave, 2005. Steven Brown, Cinema Anime. New York: Palgrave, 2008.

Anne Allison and Gary Cross, Millennial Monsters: Japanese Toys and the Global Imagination. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2006. David James and Kyung Hyun Kim, eds. Im Kwon-Taek: the Making of a Korean

National Cinema. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 2002.

Chi-Yun Shin and Julian Stringer, eds. New Korean Cinema. New York: NYU Press, 2005.

Edward Said, Orientalism. New York: Vintage, 1979.

Matthew Bernstein and Gaylyn Studlar, eds. Visions of the East: Orientalism and in Film. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1997.

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Important things to keep in mind

Attendance

This class meets once a week, so attendance is crucial. Students are allowed one absence per semester. Two absences will drop your final grade half a letter grade. Three absences will

drop your grade a whole letter grade. Any more than three absences, for whatever reason,

and students will have to withdraw from the course (as stated in Keene State College student handbook). Come and talk to me if you have any problem in attending the class.

Readings and Assignments

Readings assigned for each week need to be done prior to the class meeting. Assignments

are due at the beginning of the class on the due date. Always submit a hard copy of your assignments. Don‟t just email your paper unless we made a separate arrangement. Discussion and participation

Class discussion (i.e. your participation) is one of the most essential parts of this class. Please come to class fully prepared—both intellectually and physically-- so you can participate in class discussions actively. Also keep in mind that we always need to work together in order to create a productive and inspiring academic environment by being polite and respectful toward other students‟ comments and ideas.

Viewing films

Viewing films in class together with other seminar members is an important part of film education. For this reason, you are expected to pay close attention and take notes while viewing the film. No eating, no napping, no chatting with friends, no walking out casually, and no use of communicative/electronic devices are allowed.

Issues with Technologies

We tend to rely heavily on computer technologies in completing our course work. Keep in mind that technologies can fail, especially when you have a pending due date. Be prepared for possible technical problems and save your files in multiple locations.

How to read difficult critical articles

You may find some of the articles on the reading list dense or dry. These are theoretical writings that even advanced researchers sometimes find difficult. Do not feel frustrated. Allow enough time for you to read certain sections slowly and repeatedly. Take a break when you are stuck with one particular section of the article. Go back to the article with a fresh perspective. Most importantly, take a note and come up with specific (critical) questions.

Academic Integrity

We understand and agree that we are participating in the process of higher education. We respect this process and will act as mature and responsible individuals in it.

Most importantly

Do not hesitate to talk to me when you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions.

4 Schedule

8/31 Introduction: major tendencies in contemporary East Asian cinemas

Readings: Wimal Dissanayake, “Nationhood, history and cinema: reflections on the Asian Scene” (hand-out); “Introduction” to East Asian Cinemas

Screening: Tokyo Story (Ozu, 1953)

Additional screenings: Café Lumiere (Hou Hsiao-Hsien, 2003); Five Dedicated to Ozu (Kiarostami, 2003); Tokyo-Ga (Wim Wenders, 1985)

9/7 Theories of National Cinema

Readings: Andrew Higson, “The Concept of National Cinema”(Film and Nationalism); Susan Hayward, “Framing National Cinemas” (Cinema and Nation); Benedict Anderson, “Introduction to Imagined Communities” (CR) Recommended: Stephen Teo, “Tsui Hark: National Style and Polemic” (At Full Speed)

Screening: Once Upon a Time in China (Tsui Hark, 1991) Assignment: Viewing Report on Tokyo Story

9/14 Traditional vs. Modern: Mizoguchi, Ozu and the Japanese studio system Readings: Donald Kirihara, “Traditions and Backgrounds” and “Modernizing Tradition” (on reserve); Hiroshi Komatsu, “The Classical Cinema in Japan” (CR) Recommended: J.L. Anderson, “Spoken Silents in Japanese Cinema” (Reframing Japanese Cinema)

Screening: Tales of Ugetsu (Mizoguchi, 1953)

9/21 Japanese occupation cinema and Akira Kurosawa

Readings: Stephen Prince, “Viewing Kurosawa” (CR); Rachael Hutchinson, “Orientalism or Occidentalism? Dynamics of appropriation in Akira Kurosawa,” David Desser, “Remaking Seven Samurai in World Cinema” (East Asian

Cinemas)

Recommended: Mitsuhiro Yoshitomo, Kurosawa.

Screening: The Seven Samurai (1954); Throne of Blood (1957) Additional viewing: Zatoichi (Takeshi Kitano, 2004)

Assignment: First journal due

9/28 China before the split: cinema and national identity

Chris Berry, “China Before 1949” (CR); Chinese National Cinema, Ch.2 & 3; Recommended reading: Transnational Chinese Cinemas, Ch.1 & 11; Fredric Jameson, “Third World Literature in the Era of Multinational Capital” (CR) Screening: The Goddess (Yonggang Wu, 1934); Center Stage (Stanley Kwan, 1992)

10/5 Modernism and Japanese cinema: the new wave

Readings: David Desser, Eros Plus Massacre, Introduction and ch.1; Dana Polan, “Politics as Process in Three Films by Nagisa Oshima” (CR)

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Recommended readings: Eros Plus Massacre, Ch. 2 & 3 (on reserve) Screening: Night and Fog in Japan (Nagisa Oshima, 1960)

Additional screening: Double Suicide (Masahiro Shinoda, 1969) 10/12 Chinese Fifth Generation

Readings: Esther Yau, “China after Revolution” (CR); Tony Rayns,

“Breakthroughs and Setbacks: the Origins of the New Chinese Cinema”; Sheldon Hsiao-peng Lu, “National Cinema, Cultural Critique, Transnational Capital: The Films of Zhang Yimou” (Transnational Chinese Cinemas);

Recommended: Chris Berry, “Neither one thing nor another: Toward a Study of the Viewing Subject and Chinese Cinema in the 1980s” (New Chinese Cinemas); Ray Chow, Primitive Passions (on reserve).

Screening: Yellow Earth (Chen Kaige, 1984) Assignment: Second journal due

10/19 Taiwanese cinema and film authorship

Readings: June Yi, “Constructing a Nation: Taiwanese History and the Films of Hou Hsiao-hsien” (Transnational Chinese Cinemas); Fredric Jameson,

“Remapping Taipei” (New Chinese Cinemas); Chinese National Cinema, ch.4 Recommended reading: William Tay, “The ideology of Initiation: The Films of Hou Hsiao-hsien” (New Chinese Cinemas)

Screening: City of Sadness (Hou Hsiao-hsien, 1989)

Additional Screening: What Time Is It There (Tsai Ming-liang, 2001) Assignment: Midterm analysis paper due

10/26 Korean national cinema, the Korean new wave and the postcolonial condition Readings: Kyung Hyun Kim, “Korean Cinema and Im Kwon-Teak: An

Overview”; Chris Howard, “Contemporary South Korean Cinema: „National Conjunction‟ and „Diversity‟” (East Asian Cinemas)

Recommended readings: Three chapters from New Korean Cinema (CR)

Screening: Sopyonje (Im Kwon-Taek, 1993); Chunhyang (Im Kwon-Taek, 2000) Recommended viewing: Take Care of My Cat (Jae-eun Chung, 2002)

11/2 Hong Kong New Wave, Chinese diaspora and Postmodernism

Readings: Sheldon Lu, “Filming Diaspora and Identity: Hong Kong and 1997” (The Cinema of Hong Kong); Charles Leary, “Electric Shadow of an Airplane: Hong Kong Cinema, World Cinema” and Leung Wing-Fai, “Infernal Affairs and Kung Fu Hustle: Panacea, Placebo and Hong Kong Cinema” (both in East Asian Cinemas); Fredric Jameson, “Postmodernism or the cultural logic of late

capitalism” (on reserve)

Recommended readings: New Chinese Cinemas, Ch. 8; At Full Speed, Ch. 1&2 Screening: 2046 (Wong Kar Wai, 2004); Kung Fu Hustle (Stephen Chow, 2004)

11/9 Anime, fan cultures, and the global media industry

Readings: Susan Napier, Anime, Ch.1&2; Leo Ching, “Imagining in the Empire of the Sun: Japanese Mass Culture in Asia”; Annalee Newitz, “Anime Otaku”

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(online); Koichi Iwabuchi, “How „Japanese‟ Is Pokemon?”; Rayna Denison, “The Language of the Blockbuster: Promotion, Princess Mononoke and the Daihitto in Japanese Film Culture” (East Asian Cinemas)

Screening: Howl’s Moving Castle (Miyazaki Hayao, 2004); Voices of a Distant Star (Makoto Shinkai, 2003)

Assignment: Third journal due

11/16 Recent developments I: The “Korean Wave” and Asian Cult Cinema

Readings: Chi-Yun Shin, “Art of Branding: Tartan „Asia Extreme‟ Films” (Jump Cut, online); Chapters from East Asian Pop Culture: Analyzing the Korean Wave (CR)

Screening: excerpts from Winter Sonata and Jewel in the Palace; Audition (Miike,1999)

Assignment: Final paper proposal due

11/23 Recent developments II: New auteurs, new genres and not so new issues; Park Chan-wook and Bong Jun-ho

Readings: Nikki Lee, “Salute to Mr Vengence!: The Making of a Transnational Auteur Park Chan-wook (East Asian Cinemas); Chris Berry, “What‟s big about the big film: „de-Westernizing‟ the blockbuster in Korea and China” (CR) Screening: Mother (Bong Jun-ho, 2009)

11/30 Conclusion: East Asian Cinemas in Globalization

Readings: Gary G. Xu, “Remaking East Asia, Outsourcing Hollywood”; Leon Hunt, Asiaphilia, Asianisation and the Gatekeeper Auteur” (both in East Asian Cinemas); Fredric Jameson, “Globalization and Hybridization” (CR)

Recommended reading: David Desser, “The Kung Fu Craze: Hong Kong Cinema‟s First American Reception”; Gina Marchetti, “Buying American, Consuming Hong Kong: Cultural Commerce, Fantasies of Identity and the Cinema” (The Cinema of Hong Kong);

Screening: 24 City (Zhang-Ke Jia, 2008); Ten Ten (2007) Assignment: Annotated bibliography for final projects due 12/7 Final Presentations; Final journal due