Butterfly : A Romantic Drama Directed By David Cronenberg

Ang Lee’s Crouching tiger Hidden Dragon is probably one of the most successful foreign films to ever be screened in America. Being the number one film of the year in 2000. On the other hand it was reportedly considered a flop in China. While it was influenced by American film styles, it still kept true to many aspects of its Chinese film heritage. With very apparent love story, it lacked the Extreme amount of Kung Fu fight scenes eastern audiences have come to enjoy. This is a stunning love story between a monk and widow. While it does have its share of over the top fight scenes, when you start to dig deeper the films many social implications become apparent. With ties to subjects such as religion, martial arts, philosophy, love, and even gender issues. This film is a representation of the modern era and how long practiced traditions are being challenged. Each character and plot line allows a glimpse into the Social and Traditional understanding of a culture.

Farewell My Concubine follows the lives of Diouzi Deiyi and Shitou Xiaolou as they perfect performing traditional Peking opera through cultural, political, and personal upheaval. The film covers decades of modern Chinese history while taking a focus on the cultural significance of Peking opera. Several themes are explored and depicted in Farewell My Concubine. Of those regarding the Peking opera, the persistent presence and preservation of the opera despite challenging conditions and the contrast between the wide acceptance of the opera as culturally important and the subpar treatment of the performers, are concepts that stand out throughout the film.

The issue of cultural stereotypes and misconceptions thematically runs throughout David Henry Hwang’s play M. Butterfly. The play is inspired by a 1986 newspaper story about a former French diplomat and a Chinese opera singer, who turns out to be a spy and a man. Hwang used the newspaper story and deconstructed it into Madame Butterfly to help breakdown the stereotypes that are present between the East and the West. Hwang’s play overall breaks down the sexist and racist clichés that the East-West have against each other that reaffirm the Western male culture ideas. The stereotypes presented in the play revolve around the two main characters, Gallimard and Song. The play itself begins in the present with Gallimard, a French diplomat who has

In David Hwang’s play, M. Butterfly, the story covers the superior attitude that Western white men hold toward Eastern oriental women which is shown through Rene Gallimard’s experiences. Throughout the story, Gallimard constantly brings up his favorite play, M. Butterfly, where an oriental woman, Butterfly, gives up and loses everything including her life for the white man she loves, Pinkerton, and despite Butterfly’s efforts, Pinkerton ends up marrying another woman causing Butterfly to commit suicide. Many white men enjoy this play because it portrays white men to look superior and gives them the assumption that oriental women would do and give up anything for a white man. Gallimard is also one of the white men who believe they are superior to oriental women and that no matter what he does, an oriental woman would never leave his side. Gallimard 's belief of racial superiority is what led him to his control over Song as if Gallimard was Pinkerton and Song was his Butterfly, this fantasy that Gallimard created for himself was false because in reality, Gallimard was the Butterfly and Song was the Pinkerton.

Drawing on the two films “Farewell my Concubine” and “The King and the Clown” will further explore how homosexuality is represented among China and South Korea. The film, “Farewell my Concubine” was one of the first and most significant discussions towards homosexuality being depicted on screen. It was released in the year 1993, covering the period of the Chinese social upheavals between the 1920s through to the 1970s in the setting of the Beijing Opera. The film raises the attitude of homosexuality in the most painful period of the traditional Chinese history, for the Chinese and Western viewers (Lau 1995, 22). According to Lau, this film was an opportunity to stimulate the inherent of the Beijing Opera in relation to the homosexual practices that were tolerated during the era (Lau 1995, 22). Zheng further suggested that the film was also a chance to understand the homophobic anxiety of the historical and political brutality in Chinese history (Zhang 1999, 101). The film attempts to illustrate that the Chinese cultural connections and homosexuality cannot coexist. The main protagonist, Cheng Dieyi, sense of identity is heavily reinforced by the power structure within the environment through harsh symbolic rapes. Lau suggested that the symbolic rapes, such as the loss of finger and getting a pipe forced into the mouth are indications of homosexuality (Lau 1995, 23). According to Zheng, the scene when Dieyi gets raped by the eunuch has exhibited Dieyi’s disruption towards the

M.Butterfly by David Henry Hqang is a drama full of perception and stereotypes of race and gender. Both of these stereotypes are not those of fact or observation, but rather “othering.” Hwang uses “othering” and the exact opposite in M.Butterfly. Orientalism advocates the idea that the West perceives the East as weak and feminine. In reference to Madame Butterfly, speaking of Butterfly, Gallimard as Pinkerton says, “when I leave, she’ll know what it’s like to have loved a real man” (11). This suggest the idea that there aren’t any “real men” in the East because they’re all supposedly feminine; and although Gallimard isn’t the ideal handsome & perfect man, he believes that he’s desired by all the beautiful Oriental women. He goes on to say that,

In both Rear Window and Ali: Fear Eats the Soul give a contrasting view of gender roles in relationships to the social norm and give different forms of women in society. With the readings of Hillary Neroni’s The Feminist Theory Julio Garcia Espinosa’s For an Imperfect Cinema and Sergei Eisenstein's Film Form: Essays in Film Theory, I’ll be examining the gender roles within the films of Rear Window and Ali: Fear Eats the Soul.

Gender is an important part of this film. The performance of gender, in particular, is stressed.

M butterfly a play by David Henry Hwang has captivated audiences for many years! I love story with many twist and turns M butterfly describes an affair between a Chinese “women” and a French diplomat that caries on for 20 years only to discover that the Women was actually a man. A spy for the communist party sent to get information on the Vietnam war, but Gillard was to stubborn to see it until Liling the Chinese opera singer is sent to France where she is found to be a man in court. Through this we can see the relationship between Gender, capitalism and ethnicity/ nationality and sexuality.

In subsequent years following the establishment of the People’s Republic of China came a revolutionary new approach to not only producing films, but also film’s very role in communist society. During this period the state gained complete control of the filmmaking industry, decreeing that the utilitarian functions of art and literature were to become a powerful weapon in serving the revolutionary struggle. In an otherwise artistically stifling period in which socialist realism pervaded all creative outlets, Xie Jin managed to retain some autonomy and emerged as one of the cleverest Chinese directors in the early 1960s. In his 1961 film Red Detachment of Women, Jin provides a classic revolutionary melodrama, yet also displays elements of formalism so that the viewer becomes conscious of the manipulations of his film technique. To analyze this film, I will use Mao Zedong’s 1942 “Talks at the Yan 'an Forum on Literature and Art,” clip #10 “Landmark 2,” and clip #6 “We are joining the red army” to elaborate on the major themes and cinematic style that distinguish Xie Jin’s work from his contemporaries.

The film, Farewell My Concubine, directed by Chen Kaige drew the attention of the western world onto Chinese Opera at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival by winning the Palme d’Or award that year. Farewell My Concubine is one of the most famous plays in Beijing Opera in which the loyalty of Yu Ji (Beauty Yu) is contested by the King of Chu when his state is defeated. The main character, Cheng Dieyi, mirrors both Mei Langfan and Yu Ji. Mei Langfan is considered the most representative artist in Beijing Opera because of his perfection as a female impersonator. Cheng Dieyi, much like Mei Langfan, is the most popular male dan(female role) at the time in the film. The most intriguing aspect of the film is the similarity between Yu Ji’s life and

For the third summary paper, the film being summarized is Butterfly directed by José Luis Cuerda. The film takes place in Galicia (north-western Spain) in the year 1936 as the Spanish civil war is looming over the country. The film follows a boy named Moncho and his teacher Don Gregorio as they develop a close relationship with one another. The film introduces Moncho wide awake in bed while everyone else is asleep. He is excited to go to school for the first time tomorrow and is too tired to sleep because of it. Moncho is introduced as a shy, innocent boy in the beginning of the film. The teacher Don Gregorio is introduced as an innocent, kind teacher who takes Moncho under his wing to teach him about life. The major theme of the film is loss

There are plenty of movies that bring an educational value to individuals. Individuals can learn the meaning behind horror. However, one tends to think, is horror just based on torture, slasher or murder? I believe that horror could also be mental. Meaning that an individual can experience horror by themselves. Imagine the type of torture an individual goes through and no one can help them. Reason being they do not know what is happening to the other person.

Prof. Jack Gender identity in the Raise the Red Lantern and The Wedding Banquet Raise the Red Lantern (1991) by Yimou Zhang and The Wedding Banquet (1993) by Ang Lee specifically demonstrate perceptions of gender identity through a Chinese narrative. Zhang’s film examines the persecution of women and its harming effects. While Lee aims to create an accepting story of homosexual characters Yet, he progresses in his portray of women. This paper will examine the issues of gender identity (specifically female identity ) and discuss the aspects of modernity in the films.

Kat spoke to Levi. “I’d like to ride over to a place called Calf Creek. Jake mentioned it’s close to the canyon we use for branding. Would you accompany me?” Jake wouldn’t approve of her exploring with Levi, but she didn’t care. His accusations still burned into her memory. After the commotion from the night before, she doubted if he’d miss her anyway. She intended to enjoy Levi’s easy-going friendship, and in the process, she’d have a look around starting with canyon near Calf Creek. Maybe they’d spot Sam and George. Let Jake think what he wanted, she couldn’t change his opinion of her anyway.