Mhgoi

Closure in Hong Kong

2009-11-03T01:28:00.011+08:00

It's been more than six months since my last post. My wife and I have left Hong Kong and have settled back in NY. There's definitely less sunshine and no trips to exotic destinations in our new life. But we've been blessed with a new addition, our newborn son ISAIAH PARK.

Moreover, thanks to all who followed through and made requests, the Hong Kong Public Library has recently added my first novel BOY GENIUS to its holdings. If you're curious about this novel, you can now get it for free from the public library.

Click to view HKPL catalog listing

My life is vastly different now from what it was in Hong Kong. I've taken a brief break from blogging and shooting films to help take care of our son. There are definitely plenty of times when we miss Hong Kong, but we're also very happy to be back in NY. And I try to keep up my Cantonese by listening to the Cantonese radio--1480 AM--here.

Anyway, that's my two bits for this final post. I'm so happy that a part of me--this blog and my novel BOY GENIUS--remains in HK. Thank you again.

That's all for now. BYE BYE!!!

Day 30, Film 30. My Magnum Opus

2009-03-04T16:13:00.024+08:00

I somehow kept this going for 30 days. Whether good or bad, that's a full month of short films... which is just enough to provide me timely closure.

SPECIAL REQUEST
Please, please, please help bring my novels BOY GENIUS and LAS CUCARACHAS to the Hong Kong Public Library by clicking on this link and filling out the web form.

BOY GENIUS by Yongsoo Park (Akashic Books, NYC, 2002) ISBN No.: 978-1888451245

LAS CUCARACHAS by Yongsoo Park (Akashic Books, NYC, 2004) ISBN No.: 978-1888451566

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NOW, having said all that, here is my 30th and final short film in this series: MY MAGNUM OPUS

Enjoy!!!

It's been great fun.

I want to thank everyone who's visited this blog.

I also want to say special thanks to Hong Kong Blogs Review, which provides an excellent and comprehensive overview of HK blogs, for a very kind and generous review. Thank you again for your kind words.

I SHOT HONG KONG!
Here is a compilation of my own favorites (total 10 minutes). You can see these films individually as well on the right side of this blog. Enjoy!

Marathon in Hong Kong MTR (a film haiku)

2009-03-03T20:06:00.012+08:00

Day 29, Film 29.

This film haiku was shot all over Hong Kong during a marathon ride on the MTR.

Enjoy!!!

What China Fears Most

2009-03-02T21:07:00.001+08:00

Day 28, Film 28.

This is a film koan about what the leaders of China's government fear most. It was shot at Wah Fu Estate in southwest Hong Kong, above the Wah Fu Estate bus terminal and across the street from the Wah Fu Shopping Center.

I think I may have startled a handful of people while shooting this.

Whatever the case, enjoy!!!

My Favorite Hong Kong Corporate Shill

2009-03-01T18:39:00.004+08:00

Day 27, Film 27.

Here's a very short film haiku about the smog and corporate presence in Hong Kong. Some will no doubt put one and one together and conclude that one is connected with the other, but I will not make such pro-pinko proclamations here.

Enjoy!!!

Dreaming of China and Tibet

2009-02-28T20:10:00.008+08:00

Day 26. Film 26.

Low energy today. Something about weekends brings out the sloth in you, I guess.

Still, I didn't want to throw in the towel at 25.5 films, such a strange number. So, I pressed forward and made this short film koan.

Enjoy!

One Two Three Cantonese (one film, two versions)

2009-02-27T19:49:00.012+08:00

Day 25, Film 25.5.

To commemorate 25 days, here's something different. Two versions of the same film. Both start the same way, but end in two completely different places.

Both were shot at the Ferry Pier in Central. No English subtitles needed for the intro. I'm only saying very basic things. I'm sure anyone can follow it.

I've posted Chinese subtitles, though I have no idea whether they are correct. I just like the idea that one can write in a language that one doesn't know thanks to the Web. Very cool.

The first one is the G version. The second is the PG-13 version. Or in HK terms, the first is I and the second is II. I started shooting w/ the G version in mind, but the shots and reality led me to the PG-13 version.

Enjoy!!!

G Version

PG-13 Version

Track Meet in Wanchai (a film haiku)

2009-02-26T22:09:00.009+08:00

Day 24, Film 24.

This is a film haiku shot at Wanchai Sports Ground. It's dedicated to the members of my junior high track team, some of whom were very fast.

The Chinese titles were done by our friend Maggie. She also fixed the titles on WHAT I BELIEVED ABOUT THE CHINESE WHEN I WAS LITTLE. Thank you, Maggie. You rock!!

Enjoy!!!

Fanling Theater, Hong Kong's Coolest Movie Theater (Part 2)

2009-02-25T20:23:00.010+08:00

DAY 23, FILM 23.

Here is the follow-up to yesterday's short film.

This is a tour of the Fanling Theater, the coolest movie theater, by far, in Hong Kong.

Thank you again, Mr. Ming Wan for showing me around. Your theater and you both rock!!!

If you want to experience something special, go to the Fanling Theater. It is a very special theater that oozes history and atmosphere.

It is on 1 Luen Fat Street in Luen Wo Hui, Fanling, just a 15-minute walk or a 5-minute minibus ride (52K) from the Fanling Train Station.

Enjoy!!!

Oldest Movie Theater in Hong Kong

2009-02-24T23:00:00.008+08:00

The Oscars this year was very heavy on nostalgia, trying desperately to connect contemporary movies with classics of yesteryear.

What better way to continue in that spirit than to pay a visit to the oldest movie theater that's still showing movies here in Hong Kong, a place that seems at times to be the antithesis of anything old?

Hence, this short film about a theater that opened back in the 1950s. I made a mistake in my narration. This theater opened in 1959, not 1958. The theater was showing VALKYRIE and LOVE CONNECTED in its two screens when I went.

Day 22, Film 22.

Sorry about the hard-to-read subtitles. I can't make clearer subtitles on Windows Moviemaker. And sorry about my bad tones and poor Cantonese. Still, I love the Wah, and will plow on, knowing full well that I'm saying things wrong.

Enjoy!!!

A longer film that shows the inside of the theater will follow. This is just an introduction posted to keep the streak alive before the clock strikes 12.

I want to thank Mr. Ming Wan, the manager of this movie theater, who was so extremely helpful and gave me a special tour of the place.

Thank you, Mr. Wan. You and your movie theater rock!!!

18 Views of Wah Fu Estate. #19

2009-02-23T19:03:00.017+08:00

DAY 21, FILM 21.

Sick today. Fever and congestion. Did not step out of the apartment. Still, did not want to see my streak end. That's the power of turning something into a habit, I guess.

So, here is a short film shot from my tiny balcony overlooking Wah Fu Estate and Waterfall Bay.

And yes, the title of this post is a homage to Jim Feldman's excellent series of paintings of the ICC.

Enjoy!!!

Three Shorts in One Day

2009-02-22T22:04:00.012+08:00

Day 20, Film 20.

You're in for a treat today.

I've been giving you one short per day. But today, we're going to make history.

Today, I offer you not one, but three shorts all from Wah Fu Estate. Don't ask me how I find the energy. It's just how I roll. Moreover, Wah Fu is a treasure trove of inspiration and other delights. There's no limit to the things one can find there just by strolling about...

If you have not been there, you really need to go. It is one of the oldest and nicest government housing projects in Hong Kong. It's also a good place to play basketball, and there are amazing views of the sea.

Enjoy!!!

Papillon in Hong Kong

2009-02-21T22:03:00.011+08:00

Day 19, Film 19

It'd be great if these short films found their audience. But ultimately, we write and make movies for ourselves. And I'm cool with that. I just can't believe how long I've been able to keep this going.

Thank you, So Jene, for encouraging me today and going with me all the way to Lantau. You are awesome!!!

This was shot in Tai O, Lantau Island.

Enjoy!!!

What I Believed About the Chinese When I Was Little

2009-02-20T18:03:00.016+08:00

Day 18, Film 18.

Not much energy today. But I really wanted to keep my streak alive. So, I made a film that pays tribute to a film made by Jonny Stranger, with whom I've had the good fortune to make half a dozen films.

Like they say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The Chinese titles were done by our friend Maggie Lee. Thank you again, Maggie. You rock!!

Here is my film:

Here is Jonny Stranger's original:

Enjoy!!!

Alone in Tin Shui Wai (a film koan)

2009-02-19T18:26:00.013+08:00

Day 17, Film 17

I'm not sure what people are making of this series of short films, but I'm having a blast. This is the first time I've shot so much stuff with no crew and no other actors. I didn't even know one could make films like this.

Not that this is the m.o. I want to follow from now on or anything--I'm simply making do with what I have for the time being. I'm available as a camera operator and an actor, and I haven't found actors in HK, hence these solo films. But I'm a little surprised that this can even be done, though I have to say that it's not easy. Working alone with a camera definitely has its hazards.

ALONE IN TIN SHUI WAI, the 17th short film in this series, reminds me of YOU CAN'T LEARN TO PLOW BY READING bOOKS, the feature film that Richard Linklater made before SLACKER. He shot it on Super-8. It is mostly of him doing mundane everyday stuff and riding the train through Texas. Very boring stuff, but he later said making that film, which he financed with an inheritance, was his film school.

This isn't my film school, but I've been reminded of little things here and there that I've forgotten over the years about how to frame shots and put shots together. Mostly, I'm enjoying this. They say that suckers do art for art's sake, and real artists do it for money.

That's a complex topic, which I don't want to get into, but I'll say this much. Obviously, I'm not making a cent from any of these short films. That sponsorship deal from Tsingtao never materialized. But, there are lots of dumber ways to waste one's time. I'm enjoying doing these films and seeing parts of Hong Kong that I wouldn't otherwise see.

Some of these short films are good. Others are not. Many people will think that these films and making them is pointless, especially since I'm not getting any money from them. This may be. But then again, what in this world, whether money is involved or not, really is that important in the big picture?

Anyway, that's way too much jabbering... Here's the film koan. It's about the perils of working alone when shooting a film. It's a little long, but stick with it. The ending is worth it.

Enjoy!!!

Tin Shui Wai a.k.a. City of Sadness

2009-02-18T18:38:00.020+08:00

Day 16, Film 16

Laurence Lau's CITY BESIEGED and Ann Hui's THE WAY WE ARE, two diametrically-opposed films about life in Tin Shui Wai, prompted me to go to this often-villified new town in the New Territories and take a look for myself.

For those not in the know, Tin Shui Wai, which is often referred to as the City of Sadness, is basically Hong Kong's most notorious 'projects,' where all sorts of unspeakable horrors are said to exist.

In fact, like many 'villified 'hoods,' it's also a place where tens of thousands of ordinary working people live with the humdrum routine of daily life.

If you haven't been there, it's worth making a trip. The light rail at Tin Shui Wai is very cool. There's one that runs in a circle. I rode the loop three times. Very pleasant.

This is my film koan about Tin Shui Wai, shot at Tin Yiu Estate.

Enjoy!!!

Cecilie Gamst Berg's BLONDE LOTUS

2009-02-17T21:28:00.012+08:00

Day 15, Film 15

This is a short film about the novel BLONDE LOTUS, which was penned by Cecilie Gamst Berg, one of the most original and interesting people in Hong Kong and a terrific blogger (China Droll). I read this novel and enjoyed it very much. It is heartfelt and gushing with emotion.

This film was shot in Chungking Mansion, where parts of the book take place.
It is my thank-you to Cecilie Gamst Berg for encouraging people in Hong Kong and elsewhere to learn Cantonese. Check out her excellent Cantocourse series on Youtube.

As for my own quest to learn Cantonese, my tones are bad, I talk like a three-year-old, and I often butcher the language, but learning a language, by definition, means making mistakes. And as a student of Cantonese and other languages, I have to say Cantonese is so very beautiful, elegant, and logical. It's without doubt, the most fun language I've ever studied.

Learning Cantonese and chatting with local people in my broken Cantonese has been such a source of joy for me. My life in Hong Kong would be so much duller without this gift.

So, Cecilie. Doje leih. You rock!!

Enjoy!!!

Best Beach in Hong Kong

2009-02-16T18:10:00.019+08:00

Day 14, Film 14

This was shot at the park at the foot of Wah Fu Estate, where I often find myself without even realizing it. So far, to my utter delight, I've made more than a half dozen short films about this place.

It's where I play ball, buy a lot of my groceries, go to the library, sometimes swim, and shoot films.

So, even though I live in Bel Air, which costs way too much and has a huge indoor pool that goes nearly always underused, when we eventually leave Hong Kong, what I'll miss will be Wah Fu Estate, the folks I play b-ball with there, Waterfall Bay, and learning and speaking my broken Cantonese.

That said, I present this film and give respect to Wah Fu Estate and Tsingtao, which I'd rather drink out of a can straight from the Circle-K any day over some fine wine that costs something obscene... You both rock!!!

P.S. I'm no Michael Phelps, but if anyone over at Tsingtao is mesmerized by this film and wants to sign me up as a spokesperson, please know that I work cheap...very cheap... dirt cheap.

Enjoy!!!

Zhang Fei of Wah Fu Estate

2009-02-15T14:08:00.002+08:00

Day 13, Film 13

Enjoy!!!

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T14:52:00.003+08:00

Day 12, Film 12.

Enjoy!!!

Patriotism on the Ap Lei Chau Ferry

2009-02-13T17:09:00.011+08:00

One of those days. Very little energy or inspiration.

Still, I do not want to break my streak. And anyway, just about anything is better than nothing.

Hence, Day 11, Film 11.

Enjoy!!!

Repulse Bay Secret History

2009-02-13T01:21:00.009+08:00

I don't know if it's my computer, connection, whatnot... but I had the most difficult time trying to upload this on YouTube.

Moreover, since our laptop was lost in November, I've had to make do with the built-in Windows Moviemaker to edit these videos instead of Adobe Premiere. Hence, the poor sound, inability to finetune edits, fuzzy subtitles...

Anyway, that's enough venting...

Day 10, Film 10.

Note: 90% of this film is true.

Enjoy!!!

Super Handy Octopus Card

2009-02-11T15:47:00.004+08:00

Day 9, Film 9

Enjoy!!!

Dangerous Hong Kong Hike

2009-02-10T20:02:00.005+08:00

Day 8, Film 8

Enjoy!!!

How to Blog Without a Computer

2009-02-09T18:11:00.012+08:00

Day 7, Film 7.

HOW TO BLOG WITHOUT A COMPUTER (a film about what blogging is really about)

Enjoy!!!

Secret Hong Kong Kung Fu

2009-02-08T19:25:00.009+08:00

Day #6, Film #6.

This was especially fun to make because So Jene gave me a hand. She's awesome!!!

Forget the doom and gloom. Stay positive and smile. At least we have a roof over our heads...

SECRET HONG KONG KUNG FU (a short film about a martial art that is uniquely Hong Kong)

Enjoy!!!

Coolest Bar in Hong Kong

2009-02-07T22:13:00.006+08:00

Spent the morning doing freelance translating. Spent the rest of the day out with So Jene. Great day. Ate tons of tasty treats.

By the time we got home, it was dark out and it looked like my streak of making short films in consecutive days would end with four.

But, four is such an unlucky number, especially in Hong Kong.

So, I rushed out and shot this at Waterfall Bay Park next to Wah Fu Estate, startling a bunch of gawking barbecuers nearby. I can't exactly blame them. I do come across like a madman most of the time.

The film is sort of a downer, but short. And I'm sure plenty of people have felt this way at one time or another...

Enjoy!!!

41 Cumberland Road

2009-02-07T06:17:00.002+08:00

Here is Short Film #4

Shot in Kowloon Tong

Enjoy!!!

Thank You Vojtech Jasny

2009-02-05T19:33:00.013+08:00

I'm still looking for actors to get a feature film on its feet here in Hong Kong... In the meantime, I've started making short films to see how many consecutive days I can go making one short film per day. Many of these will be duds. Some will be good. This is #3 on day three, shot at Aberdeen Country Park. I was inspired to do this by the great Vojtech Jasny. Enjoy!!!

Here's a video response to this short film from the filmmaker Jonny Stranger. Thank you, Jonny. Like Vojtech, you also rock!!!

Hong Kong Apartment For Rent

2009-02-05T06:49:00.005+08:00

For anyone looking for the perfect Hong Kong apartment, boy have I got a deal for you...

Enjoy!!!

China Welcomes the World!!!

2009-02-04T21:27:00.001+08:00

Here is a film koan about China.

Enjoy!!!

The Economy, Empty Malls & Revolutionary Road

2009-02-03T04:37:00.026+08:00

We have returned from a much-needed but also thoroughly exhausting trip to New York. The flight seems to get more draining every time, and going from warm weather to frigid cold is a real shock to the system.

Due to the wintry conditions and a bout with a nasty cold, So Jene and I didn't get to do as much as we would have liked. But call us doe-eyed losers, just being in the city reinvigorates us somehow. The cliche about distance allowing for clearer vision and truer appreciation applies in our case. NY is absolutely the most diverse city in the world with the most energetic and edgy people.

Seeing DEFIANCE at the Ziegfeld was a treat, not so much for the movie but the Ziegfeld itself, which seems ever more special as large single-screen theaters all but disappear from nearly much of the industrialized world. We also caught an Indonesian film called THE PHOTOGRAPH at the MoMA, which is a great place to see films. It was the first movie from Indonesia I've ever seen.

The general feeling from seeing friends and our brief stay seems to be the same as what must be in other financial capitals. People are anxious about the economy, many people have lost jobs, and there's less foot traffic in stores. But cities are, by definition, crowded places, so the impact of a recession may not be as obvious.

This was far from the case in a small town about 2 hours north of NYC. We went to a small mall just to walk around. Granted this mall was always a small one and never drew huge crowds, but it seemed to have less shoppers than stores at 11AM on a Sunday morning. We wandered into a rather large OLD NAVY and found just 2 other shoppers. This emptiness actually spooked us a bit and spoke volumes about the current recession.

The downturn in the economy impacts everybody, and we've definitely been affected. Fortunately, we have long lived beneath our means, and I rarely buy things. I'm just not as hung up on things as the average person. I'm not into gadgets at all. I honestly couldn't care less what our furniture looks like, what car we drive, etc. And on those rare occasions when I do go to malls or stores, I'm never gripped by an intense desire to buy anything.

So what?
The last thing I want to do is preach to anyone about the evils of materialism or tell them what to do with their money---I'm just a schmuck with a typewriter, after all, and the only money advice I have for anyone is for them to give their money to me.

So what's the point of all this? Simple. Sam Mendes' REVOLUTIONARY ROAD, which I also saw during the trip, is a piece of crap.

Sure Leonardo DiCaprio is a great actor, and ditto for Kate Winslet. I've long been a fan, and they have plenty of other movies, in which they show off their acting chops. But they stink in this movie because the movie tells a story that's without substance.

SUMMARY OF REVOLUTIONARY ROAD
Winslet's character gave up acting to be a housewife. DiCaprio's character works as a marketing guy for the same company his old man worked for and hates it. After some domestic disputes fueled by resentment and dissatisfaction with their dull middle-class existence in 1950s suburbia, Leo and Kate decide they will leave their familiar life in the 'burbs behind and go live in Paris, where they can be true to themselves. They vow to pursue passion & whim, and escape the drudgery of middle-class suffocation & convention. This plan seems so perfect, however social pressure and lack of courage ultimately derail it. They never get to live in Paris. The wife is devastated. Husband is also sad.

THREE REASONS IT SUCKED
I'm sure plenty of people found the picture to be poignant. God knows there are more than enough people who hate their jobs and being in the rat race. Still, I found the film to be cloying, irritating, and disingenuous. Here are three reasons why:

First, its structure is as follows: Characters are miserable, miserable, miserable, miserable, and then they die.

Second, its central conflict is hinged on pseudo-angst.

What do I mean by that? This is all a bit difficult to describe clearly, so I'll use an analogy. This film is like people who say that they would have been 'artists' but were dissuaded by their parents from pursuing their dream, and thus were forced to settle for a more stable and secure profession.

Both the film and such people cling to reasoning that is, at a certain level, disingenous.

The truth is, no person can dissuade or persuade anyone else to go into or out of the arts (that is unless they hold a gun to the other person's head). People become artists because they simply do (for a million+ reasons). It's not because someone persuaded or dissuaded them.

Likewise, if a person really wants to move to Paris, he or she will do so. (This is especially so for bourgeois Americans at a time when the dollar was so much stronger than the franc.) And if a person really doesn't want to, he or she won't. That's all fine. But it becomes annoying when the person, and a rather privileged one at that, doesn't, and then the blame is placed on 'society'.

Third, the film makes its rather obvious point in a clumsy manner.

It actually takes itself so damn seriously and thinks its message is so damn profound and above the audience's head that it uses a supporting character, a neighbor's grown-son recently released from a stint at a mental hospital, to spell out over and over (profundity apparently needs to be translated for mass consumption) the ennui the couple is going through. He declares, "You two are being stifled by this empty existence..."

The scene that follows is even more inane and has the couple reflect on their encounter with this clear-seeing madman. They tell each other: "He is the only one who sees things as we do. The madman is the only one who understands us..."

Some of this clumsy storytelling has to do with adapting a book, but this truth-seeing madman character could have been dropped, or at the least, the ensuing scene (described above) should have been cut.

Having trashed this movie thus, I'll add that for whatever it's worth, all this is not to discount stifling conformity of 1950s life and real social pressure. Peer pressure and conformity are real and powerful social forces. No one questions this. Conformity was stifling in 1950s American suburbs for many people who were really creative on the inside and is still resonant today. We get it.

Just don't try to pass off a nothing-of-a-movie that's mostly about bourgeois whining as if it's saying something new, poignant, or... (sorry, can't help myself here)...revolutionary.

A BUG'S LIFE (a review of LAS CUCARACHAS)

2009-02-01T08:14:00.006+08:00

The Following is a review of my second novel LAS CUCARACHAS from the FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW (Sept. 9, 2004)

Please click on the scanned document to enlarge it for reading on a new screen.

Here is another review in Japanese of my novel BOY GENIUS and a reading I did at the Calabash International Literary Festival in Jamaica.

from Mighty Mules' Bookstore Home

カラバッシュ・フェスティバル2004　レポート（最終日）

　とうとう最終日。朝10時から「Akashic Books Presents」というセッションがスタート。前々から楽しみにしていたニーナ・レヴォイラはじめ、韓国系アメリカ人のヨンゴス・パークの朗読が印象的だった。　まず第一にレヴォイラは日系アメリカ人で「Necessary Hunger」「Southland」と続けて日系をテーマにした作品を書いている。

彼女自身の生まれ育ったロスのクレンショーに対する愛情、思いは作家として成功した今もなぜ彼女をつかんではなさないのか非常に興味があったし、日系アメリカ人の作家がカラバッシュに参加していることも同じ日本の血を分かつ者として誇らしかった。ヨンゴス・パークも同様。話し方、身のこなしは完璧なニューヨーカーだが、実はわたし、彼がステージに上がるまでずっと日本人オーディエンスの一人だと思っていた。（笑）アジア系が二人もカリブの文学祭に出ているとはとても嬉しい。と同時にカラバッシュのコンセプトに広がりを感じたのもこの時である。年を重ねるごとに出演者の国籍、バックグラウンドが多様になっているこの文学祭だが、ジャマイカ人アーチストを除けばそのほとんどが移民／ディアスポラの作家。これは何かの偶然だろうか。

　まずは韓国系アメリカ人ヨンゴス・パーク Yongsoo Parkの朗読から。

彼は2001年の作品「Boy Genius」と新作「Las Cucarachas」を披露。どちらも8才から12才の韓国系少年を主人公にしているので、「たぶんオレがまだ子供だからかな？」と冗談を言いつつ、自らも7歳のときＮＹへ移住し、それまでの韓国時代の経験とアメリカでの生活がどのように作品に投影されているかについて触れる。意外にも今回のカラバッシュで作品の背景や作家自らのことを話して朗読に入ったのはパークだけだったので、30分という持ち時間の使い方がうまいなと思った。フェスティバルに来ている人の中から「ずっと朗読を聞くのはちょっと退屈」という声もチラホラ聞いていたので、自分の経験をプロのスタンダップ・コメディアン並に笑わせながら話すパークのイントロや流れ作りは際立っていた。そして作者と作品の関連性を聞けた分、オーディエンスもより朗読される内容に関心が高まったことは言うまでもない。

実際「Boy Genius」も「Las Cucarachas」も頭のよい少年が少し過激とも思える行動をとったり、調子のよいくらいに自分の立場をコロコロ変えるので「まったくもう。。。」と失笑させられるのだが、前者では国がスポンサーとしてついているテレビ番組で天才として持ち上げられているボーイ・ジーニアスがアメリカの影響力色濃い韓国でいかにサバイバルしていくかという真摯なテーマを扱っているところが素晴らしい。韓国と日本。全く状況は違うだろうが共感できる部分はとても多かった。丁度第二次大戦後の日本社会といった感じ。そして新作「Las Cucarachas」は舞台をアメリカのＮＹに移し、主人公ピーター・キムが韓国系移民として人種・貧困の問題が残るプロジェクトでいかに戦っていくかをブラックユーモアを交えて描かれている。

　どちらも作者パーク自身の経験や思いが100％そのまま書かれているとは思わないが、両作品に通じるプロットも多く、彼自身のバックグラウンドや年代の重なりを考慮してもパークと主人公達につながりがあることは間違いないだろう。韓国では「アメリカ万歳！」と国に見離されたボーイ・ジーニアスが極端なアメリカ支持者になり、在留軍人につきまといながらいろんな品物（タバコ、チョコレートなど）や人脈を手に入れていく。そして実際アメリカに移ったピーター・キムは「ブルジョアなんて嘘くせぇ！」とでも言わんばかりに、韓国で知った「アメリカ」と「実際のアメリカ」の違いに激していくのだ。

　作者パークは気のきいた笑いでプロのコメディアンかと見まごうような才能のほとばしりをみせたが、今後の楽しみなアーチストとなる。今回読んだ作品はどちらも日本で人気のでそうな予感。

Here is a rough translation from the web:

カラバッシュ festival 2004 report (last day)

　Finally last day. Morning the session, "Akashic Books Presents" starts from 10 o'clock. The ニーナレヴォイラ beginning and the recitation of the ヨンゴス park of the Korean type American which beforehand have been enjoyed were impressive. First レヴォイラ continuing with "Necessary Hunger" "Southland" with the Japanese-American, has written the work which designates Nikkei as theme.

As for love and the thinking for クレンショー of the loss where she herself grows why grasping her who succeeds as a writer even now, whether you do not release there was an interest very it was proud and, the writer of the Japanese-American participating in カラバッシュ the same Japanese blood as an amount and a person.

Also the ヨンゴス park is similar. Way of talking, without the body saw it is the perfect New Yorker, but until to tell the truth you transfer, he rises to stage, you thought that directly it is the one of the Japanese audiences. (Laughing) the Asian system as many as two has appeared in the Caribbean literature festival with very is delightful. With also what the extent is felt simultaneously in concept of カラバッシュ is this time. Whenever year is repeated, nationality of the performer, the background becomes various it is this literature festival where, but if you exclude the Jamaican human artist, most the writer of immigration/ディアスポラ. Is this something probably accidental?

　First from recitation of the Korean type American ヨンゴス park Yongsoo Park.
As for him work 2001 "Boy Genius"With new work"Las Cucarachas"It announces. Because both from 8 years old has designated the Korean type boy of 12 years old as the protagonist, therefore "perhaps I still the child, kana? While "with saying joke, also the self at the time of 7 years old immigrates to NY, concerning Korean age and the life in America how are projected to the work to experience of that, it comments.

Speaking the background of the work and the thing individual of the writer even unexpectedly with latest カラバッシュ, because those where it enters into recitation were just the park, method of using the time limit, 30 minutes is good, you thought that is. Because "that directly recitation is heard, it had heard also the voice, just a little boredom" sporadically from midst of the person who has come to the festival, your own experience amuse in like the stand-up comedian of the professional, introduction and the flow making of the park which you speak had been prominent.

And the amount which can inquire about the connection of the writer and the work, from the audience until you say, interest has not increased in the contents which are recited. Actually "Boy Genius" also the action which the boy where "Las Cucarachas" the head is good can think also radical a little is taken, being the roller roller to change his own standpoint in the extent whose condition is good "completely another. . . "

With you can laugh, but the place where the true 摯 theme is handled with former the country with the television program which has been attached as the sponsor boy ジーニアス which is raised as the genius keeps doing how the survival in the American influence color dense Korea, is splendid. Korea and Japan. Completely, circumstance probably will be different, but as for the part which you can sympathize it was very many. The feeling such as the Japanese society of after the second next great war exactly. Mixing black and new work "Las Cucarachas" moves the stage to American NY, protagonist Peter キム how keeps fighting with the project where problem of race poverty remains as the Korean type immigration, humor, it is drawn.

　Neither writer park itself experience and the thinking think 100% are written with that way, but as for plotting which leads to both works being many, considering his himself background and the pile of age, it being being connected in the park and the protagonist you probably will not be wrong. In Korea "the American hurray! "With you see in the country and you become the American supporter whose boy ジーニアス which is separated is extreme, while hang on in the residency soldier, the various article (the tobacco and the chocolate etc.) and you keep obtaining connections. And as for Peter キム which really moved to America "the bourgeoise how lie habit ぇ! "With with as if to say, you knew in Korea, it keeps encouraging in the difference" of America "and" actual America ".

　As for the writer park whether with the laughing where the air is effective the professional comedian you saw and you showed the gushing out of the talent the まう way, but you become the future pleasantly everyone artist. Both work which this time was read so, being popularity in Japan, foreboding.

Please help get my novels BOY GENIUS and LAS CUCARACHAS into the Hong Kong public library by filling out an on-line request. You can do so by clicking on the prompt on the upper right corner of this blog. Thank you.

SHAMELESS PLUG for Fellow Writer and Actor

2009-01-29T01:26:00.004+08:00

I'm still in the old Mei Gwok. It's cold but comfortable. Biggest cliche in the world, but true. There's no place like New York...

Recently heard from an old friend, another talented writer from NYU, who is now in Ventura, CA. Her name is Tania Weissberg and she wrote this episode of SUSHI PACK, a cartoon on cable TV.

I also found out that NELSAN ELLIS, an amazing actor who was in my experimental short film ANTIGONE 5000, is not only a regular on Cable TV's TRUE BLOOD but will appear in a major supporting role in THE SOLOIST, a feature film starring JAMIE FOXX and ROBERT DOWNEY Jr.

I thank him for his amazing gung-ho attitude doing ANTIGONE 5000 with me back in the day. We ran the production out of my living room and shot it in the woods out in Jersey over the GW Bridge. He never once complained even when we were shooting in the freezing cold. Out of all the actors I've worked with, he's the one whom So Jene, my wife, pegged to be a star. And he's clearly on his way. The guy is amazing.

Anyway, here's to those of us who keep plugging away at writing and acting and making personal movies despite and against all the odds.

I've also finished up a screenplay to shoot as soon as I'm back in the U.S. It's a script I wrote about five years ago and just sat on looking for perfect conditions and waiting for money to materialize. What a stupid of waste of time that was. The material is good. I just reread and polished it up today. It reads well, which makes me wonder what the hell I was doing just sitting on it all this time.

My hiatus in Hong Kong has given me renewed perspective. This time around, I'll shoot with a goddamn camcorder if I have to.

Anyway, kudos to you, Tania and Nelsan. You guys rock!!!!

Four Predictions for the Near Future aka Joys of Going Home

2009-01-15T15:54:00.012+08:00

Notice to all those who have stumbled upon this site by the vagaries that govern the blogosphere of Hong Kong:

I shall be radio silent once again for the next few weeks due to a trip back to the MEI GWOK.

My time in Hong Kong to date has filled me with amazing feng shui and other uncanny supernatural powers that allow me to gaze into the near future and see what will be before they are.

Here is a Youtube video that provides a glimpse of this most unnatural of dark powers:

That said, I will now make four and only four predictions concerning momentously unmomentous events of the near future as we plod bovinely to the Year of the Ox:

1) The Eagles will win the Conference Final, and then advance to and emerge victorious in the Super Bowl, sending shockwaves of euphoria to that great city of Philadelphia, my second heimat, which ranks in my esteemed book, just below NY for hipster living.

2) There will be partying in the streets at Obama's inauguration. Strangers will hug and cry and dance and sing.

3) It will be colder in much of the U.S. during the next few weeks than it is here in Hong Kong.

4) Yours truly will return to the Big Lychee in a few weeks, having put on the now customary 10 pounds from having stuffed his face silly w/ pizza, tacos, gyros, fried chicken, and other healthy American delicacies.

Here's to going home...

Will return to posting in a few weeks, heavier and happier...

'Till then, I now take time to bestow on you a VIRTUAL LAISEE packet and bid you.....a fond.... JOY GIN!!!!

Eat Kimchi a.k.a. B-ball at Wah Fu Estate

2009-01-11T20:43:00.030+08:00

I'm still working on the movie. It's coming along somewhat slowly. In the meantime, to unwind a bit, I've also begun easing back into playing ball. I've been unable to play for 4+ months due to a really bad ankle sprain from back in August.

I played last Sunday morning and again this morning. My ankle still doesn't feel 100%, and I can't jump as well as before--which isn't saying much 'cuz I could never really jump high to begin with. I was the shortest guy on my high school team, but also the slowest and the one with the least ups.

Whatever the case, it was great to play again and to return to what had been a regular game for me before my injury. The same group of regulars, who range in age from early 20s to mid 50s, was there. And they were glad to see me back. It's always a good feeling to be welcomed back to a place.

Playing ball in Hong Kong has been great fun and one of the few ways to really feel a sense of belonging with the local people. I like these guys at Wah Fu so much more than the stuffed shirt types I meet elsewhere all over Hong Kong.

The style of play may be different, but basketball is basketball. It also gives me a good chance to practice speaking the Wah. I can still only say very basic things, and my tones are usually wrong, but I'm getting more comfortable and confident about speaking, which is always a good first step.

As for my jumpshot, it's pretty much shot after my long hiatus. But I can still get by with a lot of fakes and totally anachronistic spin moves that I picked up as a kid from oldtimers at my home court back in Jackson Heights. God, I sometimes miss playing ball back in NY so much...

Anyway, I hope this video gives you a sense of some of the antics that make playing ball in Hong Kong fun, a lot of which is the off-court shenanigans. I know it's juvenile male bonding stuff, but there's something to be said about that. It's why I'd rather play ball any day than just go to the gym.

**NOTE: I've fixed the English subtitles on the clip. There was a portion I couldn't understand, but a very helpful and informed reader (thank you!) filled me in on what one guy was actually saying: "Cheating is allowed..."

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that this is likely a universal truth that applies to all oldtimer games be they in Harlem, Hong Kong, or Honduras... **

***I'm not sure why the Comment link below doesn't work. If you really want to write a comment, please click the individual link for this post under the BLOG ARCHIVE on the right-hand column (you need to scroll down a tad). It will take you to another page for this post, in which the Comment function works. I have no idea what this glitch is about.... Sorry.***

WRITING STEP OUTLINE and Talking to Actors

2009-01-06T12:46:00.023+08:00

I've started getting more inquiries about film collaboration in Hong Kong. Most are from actors/artists/performers. Some with experience. Others with just enthusiasm, which can make up for so much. But many who are contacting me are doing so from far away. It's difficult to collaborate w/ actors who don't share proximity. Exchanging e-mails is okay for a short while, but making films requires face-to-face interaction.

I've also gotten some inquiries from people telling me they are IT specialists, computer effects guys, or management consultants asking me if they can be of some help toward my "project."

I am grateful for this interest and support, but their particular skill set doesn't really fit my needs right now, so I tell them I'm looking for actors, people who want to act on camera, or people who can show up and hold the camera or microphone, so if they're willing to do something physical and concrete, then they're welcome.

I think this is a good way to separate people who are focused and really interested in making a film from those who just have a general vague interest and like the idea of being affiliated with something creative and would like to just be there to watch. That's fine and dandy, but a bare bones production like mine really can't afford to have the extra weight.

I remember back when I was shooting my first film, I always had 10-12 people just hanging around the set doing nothing. Thinking back, I think I invited and welcomed that as a kind of security blanket and chorus just so I'd feel more secure about making a movie.

Now, I know better. I'm looking for people who can get behind the camera and/or in front of the camera and so something real and physical. The truth is that most filmmakers can also act. Once you do a couple of these things, the whole process becomes demystified. Shooting, lighting, recording audio, acting, writing... all these things become activities that one can do, and not some complex thing that only experts can do.

A major lesson that I learned back in film school was from Lorenzo Semple Jr., who taught a screenwriting class. I'm not sure if he's still alive. He was quite old even back when I was taking his class. He wrote the screenplay for various classic movies from the 60s and 70s, including one of my all-time favorites, PAPILLON. He also wrote the scripts for the campy TV show BATMAN, for which he told us he got death threats from hardcore purist fans who didn't like how he'd camped up the superhero and sidekick.

One of the coolest things he did for us students besides being completely blunt about whether what we'd written was good or not was to let us vote on his behalf for the Academy Awards. He was an Academy member of long standing, but no longer thought much of the direction movies had gone with their increasing emphasis on special effects and decreasing emphasis on story. Whatever the reason, he let the class (there were about a half dozen of us) pick the selections on his ballot for that year and had us mail it in. It demystified the whole film industry machine for us. It also taught us that a certain amount of irreverence was healthy.

Back to my present struggle. So far, I've exchanged e-mails w/ a couple of interested actors and have run into the same familiar difficulties of scheduling meetings w/ interested people. In comparison to the response I would have gotten back in New York, the HK response is a mere trickle. The same amount of postings about an indie feature production in NYC would have gotten me 30-50 headshots easy.

Here, I've gotten only about a half dozen. Again, this is simply an observation and a factual accounting, not a gripe that HK is not NY. I'm so over that. I don't even get worked up now about crowds and people encroaching on my personal space. In fact, all the usual trivial gripes that nearly all foreigners have about HK no longer faze me at all. This is HK, and it needn't be a carbon copy of NY or London or what have you.

In the meantime, I've got an original story for the film and am writing a step outline, with specific situations and parameters from which actors can come up with their own dialog. Improvisation is difficult without goals and guidelines. It's like when people do "brainstorming" sessions without specific parameters and end up with nothing. Ditto for actors and improvisation. You have to have a start and a finish to a scene.

I'm now focused mainly on polishing the story and looking for actors that can fit the pieces of the puzzle together. I'm very excited that this is starting to come along.

More imporantly, I've had a breakthrough in the way I look at my situation. I guess it's somewhat perverse, but I'm actually very pleased that so few film productions (be they industry or independent) are going on in Hong Kong and so very few good films came out of Hong Kong in 2008.

Why?

Because all this will make our film stand out even more and provide even greater sense of accomplishment once it's all done. I'm feeling great about this film. I can't wait to start shooting.

I've also been getting renewed inspiration from Melvin Van Peebles, a Chicagoan whose first feature film LA PERMISSION (1968) was made in France, after years of not being able to make a film in the U.S.

The road I face is much less arduous than his. He had to write and make films in French. HK is much more English-friendly, though I definitely plan to work some Cantonese into the film. Thank you, Mr. Van Peebles!!! You are a true independent!

125 Years Isn't That Old, Is It? (From Ibsen to BLIND SHAFT (2003))

2008-12-31T09:03:00.037+08:00

I’m busy translating a bunch of business contracts. The work is tedious, but money’s money, even if it’s the Korean won, which has depreciated so much in recent months that I've actually started turning down some jobs after doing the money calculation. Still, it's a way to earn a little money that also allows me the flexible schedule and large blocks of free time needed to work on my novel and make films.

As for making the feature film, in search of ideas for a story, I’ve begun to do what I often do when I can’t come up with an original idea of my own for whatever reason. I’ve turned to works from the past that are in the public domain to see whether any of them can be updated to the contemporary Hong Kong setting. This is a very common practice. George Lucas’s STAR WARS series is basically a Japanese samurai film set in space. Val Lewton and Jacques Tourneur’s I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE (1943) is a retelling of JANE EYRE.

Nearly all novels or plays that were published prior to 1923 is in the public domain. This doesn’t mean, however that filmmakers can have a field day. Many of these literary works that are in the public domain aren’t well-suited for modern audiences. And those that are (Jane Austen & some Shakespeare) have already been done over and over.

In addition, literary and dramatic conventions from the past are often very different from contemporary ones, which means they don’t always help the cause of providing fodder for a medium, narrative film, which requires accessible storytelling.

The last time I ventured into the fascinating world of the public domain, I ended up with a short film based on Sophocles’ ANTIGONE, which in its original is compelling even if its form is so unlike any that we modern audiences are used to. In my hands, it turned into a straightforward drama with added exposition scenes between Antigone and Creon. The outcome was disappointing at best and very much a strange baby that was neither here nor there.

That said, I’ve begun to seriously consider doing a contemporary version of Henrik Ibsen’s THE WILD DUCK set in Hong Kong as part of a series of feature films about Hong Kong. To do so requires some modification. As great a contribution to modern theater that Ibsen has made (which is absolutely in no doubt as any self-respecting Norwegian will happily tell you and many did during my two-day stint as a street book peddler near Columbia University before our move to HK (which is another story)), much of the original play, which was written in 1884 and is in five acts, now seems clunky and dull. A contemporary adaptation could benefit from slimming the story into 3 acts and losing many ancillary characters and some story elements.

I’ve begun doing a quick outline of this adaptation. It could serve as the basis of a somewhat talky but could-be-compelling-depending-on-execution film focused on two main characters : GREGERS and HJALMAR from the original. The story still has a lot to say about life everywhere, but could be tweaked to say volumes about life in Hong Kong.

It helps that the original play isn't that well known. Many people, even those who know who Ibsen is, aren't that familiar with this play. And for whatever reason, deserved or not, this play as well as many of Ibsens' other works, are now relegated to the category of literary and dramatic works that are thought to be amazing but read only because some teacher at school assigned it or as part of some acting class. I believe the same can be said of much of Chekhov. (This is just an observation. I don't have a strong opinion on whether this is good or bad.)

I'm mostly concerned with pragmatic aspects of doing such an adaptation. Another plus is that there haven't been many screen adaptations of this play. The most recent and famous one being by Henri Safran in 1983 starring Liv Ullmann and Jeremy Irons. (This is a good thing and a bad thing. The bad is that there are probably good reasons why there haven't been more screen adaptations of this play.)

On a different note, I've just seen BLIND SHAFT (2003) by Yang Li. I’d caught bits of this film earlier in NY, when it aired on a local public TV channel. I didn't know much about the film or the filmmaker then.

Having just seen this film in its entirety, I was startled that such a bleak and dark film about contemporary life made its way past the Chinese censors. In fact, I learned from a little research that the filmmaker is based in Germany and circumvented Chinese censors by making the film outside the established filmmaking procedures and conrols by registering it as a foreign production originating in Germany and Hong Kong.

It is, in fact, one of the best films to come out of China that I’ve ever seen. (*It's at least 20,000 times better than the tired loosely-historical epics with 20,000 PLA extras that have now become a major staple of Chinese cinema and which function as de facto propaganda for China's superpower greatness -- Yes, the same critique can be applied to vast spectacles from the U.S., only the U.S. government doesn't play such an overtly direct role in film production. But of course, those films suck just as much.)

Yang Li's ugly little lump of coal of a film is intense for its entire 85 minutes while delivering many little truths about the price of modern life.

My only quibble is that were I the producer, I would have strongly urged Yang Li to cut the first two minutes from the film so that the film would then start from a completely different place and deliver even more of a jolt than it already does. Once you see the film, you’ll know exactly what I mean.

The Korean Wave and Women in Hong Kong, Singapore, & Japan

2008-12-28T19:42:00.025+08:00

I've already written about how the typical Hong Kong Chinese response upon learning that I am Korean is to smile and shout, "Daaih Chuuhng Gam!"

This is, in its own way, a manifestation of the "Korean Wave," the term used to describe the proliferation of popular culture (pop songs, movies, TV shows) from South Korea to the rest of Asia in the past decade. For the Chinese-dominant part of Asia, the embodiment of this Korean Wave is "Daaih Chuuhng Gam" aka JEWEL IN THE PALACE (2003). For Japan, it is the TV soap WINTER SONATA (2003).

Indeed, the Korean Wave has been such a big phenomenon that it has already elicited its share of backlash in China, Japan, and Taiwan, in the form of published tirades, netizen attacks, rants from jingoist politicians, and even some local performers publicly lashing out against their South Korean counterparts. Chang Zhen-yue, a Taiwanese rapper, even has a song that excoriates Bae Yong Joon (the star of WINTER SONATA) and Korean boy bands.

I have just read a book called EAST ASIAN POP CULTURE: Analysing the Korean Wave (2008) edited by Chua Beng Huat and Koichi Iwabuchi. It is a collection of academic essays regarding the phenomenon approached from various academic angles.

Here are some interesting tidbits:

1)a) An essay that examines views of women viewers of Korean soaps in HK and Singapore revealed that 30% of HK women subjects thought there is some discrimination against women in Hong Kong, while nearly 50% of Singapore women believed there was discrimination against women in Singapore.

b) Given the statement: "I have to be married to be happy.", 39.1% of HK women subjects disagreed w/ this while just 10% of Singaporean women subjects disagreed.

**The author of the essay used a very small sample of women and did not try to draw big generalizations or conclusions. Still, the numbers are interesting.**

2) Women viewers of TV soaps in HK, Singapore, and Taiwan nearly unilaterally stated that they did not like graphic or overly sexualized scenes and situations portrayed in American TV shows like DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES and SEX IN THE CITY and cited the lack of such overt sexual content in South Korean TV soaps as one of the reasons they liked the shows.

3) Before the Korean Wave, Japanese TV soaps were very popular in many Chinese-speaking parts of Asia. Many TV programmers in Taiwan and other parts of Asia were initially drawn to Korean soaps in the late 1990s because they were cheaper to purchase than Japanese TV soaps. Japanese TV soaps have lost favor in many Asian TV markets since then.

As for the popularity of HK and/or Chinese-language soaps in non-Chinese Asian nations, to date, no HK or Chinese-language TV soap opera has been broadcast on network TV in Japan. (**There was no mention of it in the book, but my guess is that this is also true for South Korea.**) Various reasons are cited for this, but primarily, lack of production value.

4) Another essay examined the viewing practices of middle-aged women viewers of WINTER SONATA in Japan. This demographic of fans has often been derided and belittled for their outward enthusiasm in the mainstream press and by Japanese men in particular. I too shared this prejudice. Lonely women in their 40s and 50s swooning over a sensitive young soap star. The whole thing seemed rather silly to me.

But the essay, Winter Sonata and Cultural Practices of Active Fans in Japan: Considering Middle-aged Women as Cultural Agents, written by Yoshitaka Mori made me see this phenomenon in a totally new light.

Driven by this TV soap, many middle-aged women have taken initiative and have gone out in the world to do very cool things. They weren't merely passive viewers, who due to loneliness and misery, were being duped or manipulated by TV producers. Not at all. They were finding an active meaning in their life and in some cases, were duping the media. A subject cited in the essay stated how she'd hoodwinked the press by performing or acting the role of a zealous fan to get her photo in the newspapers.

Moreover, these women were taking initiative and expanding their mundane routines. Many had learned to use the computer and the Internet to learn more about the show and to interact with other women like them. Others had travelled, many for the first time, to South Korea, a country whose culture they did not know much about.

They did so not in search of cute young men, as they're often derided by the mainstream press, but to learn about Korean culture and to see things for themselves. This is after many decades of having a very biased and limited knowledge of Korea, given the already enmeshed and complex relationship that the two nations have of each other.

Not that any and all exchange of culture ought to be accepted uncritically as something transcendant and positive, but these middle-aged women were doing cool things and not simply being older versions of silly school girls. The essay even cited an example, in which these middle aged women viewers of WINTER SONATA were doing more to solve international political friction than conventional government institutions.

The point is, the relationship of middle-aged Japanese women fans of WINTER SONATA to the Korean Wave is much more complex and interesting than what has been usually described in the mainstream media in Japan, South Korea, and elsewhere. In other words, don't mess with and don't underestimate middle-aged women.

Lowlife Jerk and Top 10 Films of 2008

2008-12-25T18:52:00.032+08:00

Another year is coming to a close, and I'm feeling a little down.

I've gotten a total of 4 responses from posting notices here and on various Hong Kong public forums seeking people interested in collaborating on films. And that's counting the one loser who actually took time out of his miserable life to e-mail me, a complete stranger, just to say he could tell from my ad that I was "a lowlife jerk."

It seems I've come quite a long way since being a promising young filmmaker generating real buzz. Four guys from my circle at NYU, have since directed commercial films that won theatrical releases. One guy, whom I'd pegged as being the least talented among us, has directed half a dozen commercial films, including one of the highest-grossing films in Korean film history.

In contrast, I'm here in Hong Kong without a single contact, posting lame on-line classified ads practically begging people to work with me. (I think Peter Kubelka, who made some wacky experimental films, including UNSERE AFRIKAREISE, also had to beg and rope people in to make films for practically all of his career.)

My rational side tells me I'm still young enough not to panic and need not get down on myself about this general sad state-of-being. This side also tells me to keep plugging away, stay upbeat, and focus on my successes: two published novels that won some critical acclaim, some plays that were produced, a screenplay that was sold, and a string of short films...

But there's another part of me that can't help but get a bit negative. I've wasted so many opportunities in the past for whatever reason, and now, this stint in Hong Kong feels like I'm serving time in filmmaking purgatory. I've become a fish-out-of-water struggling to make a film under the least favorable conditions.

It doesn't help that our life here brings us into contact for the most part with people who have absolutely no interest in films and novels. It doesn't startle me at all now to hear people say with all seriousness that the best movie they've ever seen in their life is HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 3 or THE MUMMY--which wasn't a bad film at all, but how could that be any grown-up's best film ever?

Anyway, that's enough whining. Sorry!

Here is my list of the TOP 10 FILMS OF 2008 with country of origin and brief category description.

A few titles were actually originally released in 2007, but are being included in the list because they played in many theaters in 2008. For the most part, except for the two South Korean films and TROPIC THUNDER, which I believe doesn't get the credit it deserves because it's so easy to dismiss, these films were included in the major big movie lists.

The glaring omission from my list is the Romanian film FOUR MONTHS, THREE WEEKS & TWO DAYS by Cristian Mungju, which has been heralded by nearly every major film critic in the West, but which didn't impress me at all. I thought the film, a slice-of-life that follows two young women on the day one helps the other get a back alley abortion in a repressive Romania of the 1980s, works only conceptually but not at all as a film.

The film makes its point, in a very dull and clumsy manner, that life was bad in Romania and back-alley abortions are gruesome. But is that really a point that's hard to make? Even as a staunch supporter of a woman's right to choose, I still found the film tedious at best.

No Hong Kong or Chinese films made my list this year. It was definitely not a good year for Hong Kong films. Rather sad.

TOP 10 FILMS OF 2008

1. THE CHASER by Na Hong-jin (South Korea) *Commercial thriller/Subverted policier*

2. THE DARK KNIGHT by Christopher Nolan (USA) *Commercial thriller*

3. THE EDGE OF HEAVEN by Fatih Akin (Germany) *Serious Drama/Social Commentary*

4. ROUGH CUT by Jang Hoon & written by Kim Ki-duk (South Korea) *Commercial thriller/Subverted Gangster Film*

5. BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD by Sydney Lumet (USA) *Subverted Heist Film/Morality Tale/Modern Greek Tragedy*

6. THERE WILL BE BLOOD by Paul Thomas Anderson (USA) *Serious Drama/Social Expose*

7. CHOP SHOP by Ramin Bahrani (USA) *Social Commentary/Gritty Human Drama*

8. THE VISITOR by Thomas McCarthy (USA) *Social Commentary/Message Film about 9.11 and Its Impact on Immigrants*

9. IRON MAN by Jon Favreau (USA) *Fluff Fun*

10. TROPIC THUNDER by Ben Stiller (USA) *Fluff Fun*

HONORABLE MENTION: KUNGFU PANDA and WALL-E

**THE CHASER is the best film of the year by far. See it if you haven't done so. You're in for a treat.**

To put things in context, here are the films that are currently playing in nearly all theaters in Hong Kong (granted it's Christmas season):

TWILIGHT

TALES OF DESPEREAUX

MADAGASCAR 2

POKEMON MOVIE 10

BEDTIME STORIES

ONG BAK 2

IP MAN

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL

FOUR CHRISTMASES

Palace IFC, in the fanciest mall in Hong Kong is also playing

AUSTRALIA

And the one "arthouse theater" in HK is playing the following films in addition to the above titles:

FOREVER ENTHRALLED (China)

IF YOU ARE THE ONE (China)

TOKYO!

TRUE WOMEN FOR SALE (Hong Kong)

MIAO MIAO (Taiwan)

TWILIGHT (2008) aka Book Proves Secret Fear of Writers to be True

2008-12-22T09:31:00.026+08:00

There are some immensely popular books that seem to be fluff but are so well written that even if the material isn't one's cup of laai cha, one can’t help but feel a begrudging respect. For me, the Harry Potter series is an example of this. I just don't care for wizards, magic and spells. It's a matter of personal preference. Still, it's clear those books are writen extremely well.

Then there is TWILIGHT, a bestseller by Stephenie Meyer which has now spurned a film adaptation. So Jene, who loves the Harry Potter series and has introduced me to many books that I would have otherwise skipped, suggested I read the book as an exercise to see how it would be adapted for the screen.

Adapting a very popular novel to the screen is always difficult since a strong fan base demands that the film not deviate from the book even if this strict adhesion to the source material works against the film. On the other hand, it also means a minimum x number of fans of the book will flock to theaters regardless of how the adaptation is done.

At the risk of being called out for sour grapes (which I must harbor at some level since my own books haven't sold well), my main impression of the novel is that it seems to have been written by an 11-year-old for other 11-year-olds. The sentences are clunky and scenes go on for much too long. The vampire story seems to be rehashed from existing works of that genre and there's very little that could be called complex or sophisticated. I can't quite understand how any grown-up could derive enjoyment from this piece of junk.

The remarkable success of a book like this makes me question my own sanity. To me, it's so evident that this book is so unbelievably lacking in every way, yet it has somehow won the praise of hundreds of thousands of readers. It's enough to make a writer lose faith in the reader and wonder why he or she even bothers.

Whenever I read a complete piece of rubbish like this that's sold millions of copies, I can't help but think back to the writers I've known in my life (most whom I met when I was in university or freshly out of university). In their unguarded moments, nearly every writer I know has told me that as cynical as it sounds, deep down he or she has come to accept that the worst most talentless writers are the ones who make it commercially.

I don't agree with this view since it's a blanket statement and it's clear that there are exceptions. But TWILIGHT certainly seems to providence ammunition for such a claim. Sure not every novel has to say something serious or important, and there is a place in this world for fluff. But this book isn't even good fluff.

That said, the only sense I can make for how and why this book works(and rather well obviously given its success) is that it does, in its inane, childish and clumsy way, try to tell an earnest story of incredibly intense first love. BELLA, the narrator and main character, sees and studies the beautiful EDWARD, who is actually a vampire, as no one else at her school does. The bulk of the book is long passages of Bella obsessing and agonizing over the meaning behind Edward's tiniest gestures, words, and actions.

As for the film adaptation, this is precisely where it fails. Without the film equivalent of Bella's obsessing over the object of her first love, the intensity of the obsession/first love doesn't come through on screen. It also doesn't help that the film treats these scenes of fascination-turning-to-obsession-to-purest love quickly and as merely a means to get to some special-effects-driven good vampire vs. bad vampire fight sequences.

Despite this shift in focus, which I can only guess must have been made to try to add production value to the film and make it feel more like a movie, the special effects are poor and there’s very little to distinguish the film from a small TV show except that Robert Pattison plays the moody vampire. Overall, the film plays worse than most recent TV shows about supernatural elements mixing with the ordinary populace set in high schools, which as a TV genre, tends to be far more witty and sophisticated.

The classic BUFFY THE VAMPIRE series, which also featured a moody vampire love story, epitomizes this. The genius of that series and its creator Joss Whedon is that each episode also worked as social commentary about familiar issues in high school life (eg. Eating disorders, cliques, losing one’s virginity…)

Lacking this sophistication in the source material, the film adaptation of TWILIGHT also disappoints because it fails to show the earnest obsessive intensity of first love that is the book's focus and main strength.

Seeking Collaborators for Independent Film in Hong Kong

2008-12-21T16:42:00.009+08:00

I posted an ad on Gumtree for actors and other people to collaborate on an independent film here in Hong Kong.

CLICK TO SEE GUMTREE AD

I'm looking for actors, writers, filmmakers, or creative people in general who are just interested in making an independent film and can invest their time and energy to collaborate on a film.

The key is to not try to follow the production model that is used by big-budget mainstream films. Trying to replicate a mainstream film on a miniscule budget leads only to disappointment as I've learned on numerous occasions in the past. Instead, make a film that mainstream film production can't make due to the fact that they are hindered by number one motive of recouping investments. This film will be like THE PUFFY CHAIR, MUTUAL APPRECIATION, KISSING ON THE MOUTH, QUIET CITY, etc. what film festival programmers and critics have labeled Mumblecore.

If any of you are or know actors or creative people who aren't shy but have a general open and brave persona and are willing to do new things, please let them know about me and my independent film.

Race, ethnicity, language ability, stupid things like this do not matter. What matters is energy and general openness and willingness to invest time and effort to collaborate on film as actor, writer, or cameraperson, or best, all of these things. Experience in traditional film production or acting doesn't matter. This is not a mainstream production. we're looking for interesting creative people who are up for something different and want to seize this opportunity to make a cool interesting film about life in Hong Kong.

The best thing about making independent films is the collaboration and the willingness to experiment and try something new. Again, this is a small no-budget film that's more like a theater workshop. We'll see who shows up, collaborate to finetune a story and script and go from there. This will be a very low-budget film, so don't think of a traditional studio set. This is guerilla filmmaking.

No guarantees of fame or wealth. But I can guarantee a feature film will be made, and it will be interesting. Something that has true passion and life. Something that you'll be proud of.

Please pass this along to those who might be interested.

Beginnings of Pre-Production aka Thank You Val Lewton

2008-12-19T17:23:00.012+08:00

So I'm really at the beginning of what I'm sure will be a long process to make an independent feature film in HK.

I've checked with film labs. I've gone over my equipment. I've compiled a small budget. I've even built a poor man's steadicam with plans found on the Internet from the famous Johnny Chung. By the way, he has become a youtube superstar lately with his 3-D subvert tutorial of the Nintendo wii.

I got the parts from a hardware store in Aberdeen and was able to put together the poor man's steadicam in a couple of hours. I can't believe how well the poor man's steadicam works. If only I'd had this when I was shooting FREE COUNTRY. Oh well.

Anyway, all I need now are actors. And more importantly, some idea, a story to hang scenes on.

I have really nothing as of yet, just a bunch of unrelated ideas and sketches and lots and lots of notes. So I spent part of the day looking for inspiration in the classics.

What do I mean by classics?

I read the screenplay for the Val Lewton-produced classic, THE SEVENTH VICTIM (1943). I've seen this film a few times, including once at a screening with live organ accompaniment at the classic restored movie house off of the Stanford campus in Palo Alto.

I'd forgotten a lot of details from that film. The only scene I remembered was the unforgettable famous scene with the gang of pacifist Satanists. (It's really in the film.)

I couldn't believe some of the things I was reading. It was one hell of a screenplay and gave me some good ideas.

I don't know much about Val Lewton except that he was from the Ukraine and was the apotheosis of the low-budget producer but with a knack for storytelling and mood setting. I remember being so impressed after seeing CAT PEOPLE (1942) and BEDLAM (1946), which was one of his bigger-budget pictures. You can't help but recognize the talent despite the unbelievably low production values in some of his films.

Anyway, this is a start. We'll see how it goes from here. I do miss NY though. That's a city that's filled with actors

THE EDGE OF HEAVEN (2008), aka This Film Makes Us See with New Eyes

2008-12-17T11:41:00.027+08:00

For whatever reason, at some point in their careers, many writers stop reading other people's books. There are too many books in the world. They don't want to be influenced or contaminated by other writers.

This is also the case with filmmakers. At a certain point, many filmmakers stop watching other people's films, especially new films.

I'm not like this. I no longer read nearly as much as I did or should, but I continue to actively watch new films, devouring them when given the opportunity, and not just "quality" films. Despite being, for a lack of a better term, a film snob, I watch many different types of movies and have no qualms about watching what many would dismiss as junk (eg. YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN, MADE OF HONOR, HAROLD AND KUMAR ESCAPE FROM GUANTANAMO...)

Why do I not discriminate so?

Because most movies, whether they are branded mainstream or independent arthouse, are bad. I know not to expect otherwise.

To see a truly good film is a rare event. That's why I am so pleased to write this post.

THE EDGE OF HEAVEN (2008), whose German title is AUF DER ANDEREN SEITE (lit. On the Other Side) and was written and directed by Fatih Akin, has startled me with its masterfulness.

I should have checked out this director earlier as one of his previous films, GEGEN DIE WAND (2004), a.k.a. HEAD-ON, was talked up quite a bit a few years back in NY. I passed on seeing that film then, but will soon remedy this.

This young German director of Turkish descent has created a stunning film in THE EDGE OF HEAVEN. It's no surprise that the film has received critical acclaim at prestigious international film festivals, including Best Screenplay at Cannes, and is on many film critics' TOP 10 FILMS of 2008 lists.

Instead of a clunky description of the story, I will point out two examples of masterful filmmaking from the film.

Example #1: The iconic German actress Hanna Schygulla plays the aged mother of one of the main characters. Her daughter, a German university student with an idealistic streak, brings a Turkish woman whom she has just met, to stay in their house. The daughter wants to help the Turkish woman, who is homeless and an illegal immigrant. The mother seems to project quiet disapproval and warns the daughter about harboring an illegal alien. In this manner, the film makes the viewer think he or she is seeing a contrast between the staid mother and the bohemian rebellious daughter.

Later, however, the film reveals that this staid mother is not who the viewer has come to think she is. In her youth, she was also a free spirit and a bit of a bohemian who hitchhiked to India. She shows herself to be someone so different than who she seemed to be.

Thus, the viewer's very perception is challenged and this character is revealed to be complex and truly human and not the "type" that the viewer has pegged her to be. In other words, the film challenges and undermines the viewers' perception to provide true insight.

Example #2: The opening scene of the film is of a car driving into a gas station in rural Turkey. A man gets out of the car, asks the gas station attendant to fill it up, then goes inside to the little convenience store, where he buys some snacks and exchanges small talk with the shopkeeper about a song that is playing on the radio. The shopkeeper says the singer is from the region but died of cancer due to fallout from Chernobyl that's only revealing itself to the public now. The man pays for his stuff and the scene ends. It's a two-minute scene. No tension. No conflict. No nothing. Completely mundane. Something that could happen to anyone.

Ninety-minutes of the film later, the same scene is replayed in exactly the same form. No changes. But the film has revealed the events that have led up to this man's setting foot in that gas station. It's the same scene. The same two minutes. But now, it's filled with tension, true pathos, and an abundance of meaning.

Again, this is an example where the film shows us something, makes us think we see it, only to reveal that what we think we're seeing is not so. It challenges the expectations and perception of the viewer. It makes us see with new eyes.

These two examples are just the tip of the iceberg for this remarkable film. This film is a wonder to behold. The performances are superb. The storytelling is quietly confident even as it takes the viewer on an emotional journey. It is a drama of the best kind. A must see.

As for Year-End Best lists, many of which contain this film, many people dislike such lists and dismiss them outright. Although I often think these lists contain egregiously bad films, I find that such lists can sometimes help bring attention to deserving films.

Many excellent films peter out without seeing the light of day because they don't register on people's radar. Even people who haven't seen QUANTUM OF SOLACE will have heard of it because of the ridiculous amount of money used to market this piece of junk, but this is just not so with even THE EDGE OF HEAVEN or even smaller films without the marketing dollars to promote them.

The Goethe Institute in Hong Kong is promoting a screening of this film in March 2009 that will take place at the Hong Kong Film Archive. For more info, please click on the title of this post.

Shooting Film in Hong Kong a.k.a. My Run-In with Run Run

2008-12-15T14:56:00.029+08:00

I'm preparing to shoot an independent feature film here in Hong Kong.

As part of this process, I call a bunch of film labs to find out where I can get 16mm film processed in Hong Kong. I'm calling to find out what film stocks can be processed and what the rates are. The person who answers the phone at Mandarin Labs in Kwun Tong connects me to a different person, who passes me on to someone else. Eventually, I get the ear of a film technician named Paul Wong.

I tell him I am an independent filmmaker. He gets me right away and gives me the scoop and a rate. He tells me that Mandarin is the only lab in Hong Kong that handles 16mm. He also tells me there is no film lab in Shenzhen but there is one in Guangzhou. He adds that they probably don't do 16mm. As for reversal film, this cannot be processed in Hong Kong any more and suggests I look at labs in Australia or the U.S.

Overall, the guy is informative and down-to-earth. I'm talking to a human being and not a robot or a recording. The experience is the same as if I'd called up a small mom-and-pop film lab in the States. (These are mostly dying out, by the way...)

Then, I call a bunch of other labs to see whether Paul Wong is on the level about his lab's being the only lab that does 16mm processing. Some other lab tells me to try Shaw Brothers Lab in Sai Kung.

So I do, only to find that the receptionist who fields the call is completely confused by my inquiry. She keeps asking me what company I'm calling from and I keep repeating that I am an independent filmmaker, which just confuses her more. I tell her that I produce and shoot my own films. This baffles her. It's not the English that confuses her, but the concept, as the woman's English is quite good.

I ask her over and over if Shaw Brothers Labs processes 16mm film. Instead of giving me an answer, she asks what country I'm from. I ask, why does that matter? She says it doesn't, but keeps asking what country?

Finally, after talking in circles for too long, she gives me another number to call. I do and get a person who tells me she is "the one who can handle (my)inquiry." I ask her whether her lab does 16mm negative processing, and if so, how much it costs per foot. Most film labs in the U.S. have that info on their web site. And if they don't, that's what the phone is there for.

The Shaw Brothers Lab woman says she cannot tell me this information over the phone and tells me I must first make a formal written inquiry.

I can't help but shiver. It's as if she's used some special kind of Sai Kung feng shui to read my mind and knows that I'm about to make an epic film, my magnum opus celebrating the life and times of his true majesty, the one and only Dalai Lama. --- (For those without a sense of humor and the 30,000+ Chinese censors trolling the Internet at this very moment for objectionable content, that was a joke. I am not making such a film.)

I explain again to the lab person that all I need is a YES or NO and a figure per foot as I'm trying to estimate a budget for a small film shoot.

She says, "I understand. But it's better you make an official request in writing."

Finally, I give up and ask if it's okay to e-mail such a request. She says fine and gives me her e-mail.

I e-mail a request because frankly, what choice do I have?

I find the whole experience a bit strange. Granted there probably aren't that many people calling about 16mm processing, but a film lab is a film lab. And this is Hong Kong, an alledged world city with a proud filmmaking tradition.

All I can say is, Sir Run Run or whoever is running the empire over at Shaw Brothers has created quite a bizarre institution.

Of course, having sent out a formal request in writing as instructed, a part of me already knows what will inevitably happen next.

In a day or two, I'll get an e-mail in official-sounding yet slightly-botched and stilted Queen's English from some stiff at Shaw Brothers Labs "regretfully" informing me that they "no longer process 16mm film, especially for any production that portrays the Dalai Lama in a positive light."--( Note to censors: That was another bad joke.)

Anyway, if anyone else out there is thinking of shooting 16mm in Hong Kong, this is the low-down on available labs. One lab. One system.

POSTSCRIPT: I called back a few times the next day, and again talked to the same person, who this time told me she had received my e-mail request but "couldn't respond because I hadn't included my phone number."

She then asked that I submit dates when I wanted the processing done because "the price depends on the schedule."

After getting off the phone with this ridiculous person, I got fed up and called back on a different extension and finally got someone on the phone who instantly gave me the info I needed.

$1.20 HKD/ ft. She then explained she'd been out of the office and someone else had been getting her calls for her.

Basically, the joker who I'd talked to initially had had me jump through hoops instead of simply saying, "I don't know. The person who knows is out of the office. Please call back."

Is it that hard to say, "I don't know"? I say this all the time. Geez!

BELLA by Alejandro Monteverde (How is this film in Hong Kong?)

2008-12-13T19:43:00.017+08:00

BELLA (2006), written and directed by Alejandro Monteverde, is in theaters now in Hong Kong after making its rounds in film festivals. For a so-called independent film, it is shot beautifully and has some real production value. It looks slick like a film that must have cost about $500K to $1 million U.S. dollars.

It's an earnest work that clearly has good intentions. Despite this, the film suffers from a very poor script and doesn't transcend that fundamental flaw.

Basically, the film is a long introduction to two characters, a chef and a waitress, who have experienced sadness and grief. For the first 50 minutes, the film trudges along as an "I've got a secret" story. It's clear the protagonist is still agonizing about some dark event from his past and that is why he is drawn to the pregnant waitress.

Until the dark secret about his past is revealed, the film is content to show the two main characters mosey about during the course of a day at various iconic settings in and around NYC (riding the subway, walking through a street fair, talking to a homeless man...) talking to each other.

By the time that dark secret is finally revealed, the audience has lost all interest. The film and its characters don't give the viewer any reason to care other than that one is pregnant and the other broods a lot and once was a star soccer player. It's a shame because the character of the fallen soccer hero is one that holds real possibility for drama.

Ultimately, this film manages to bore and insult the audience. Insult how? An independent movie should show some truth. This movie fails to do that.

The only thing that rings true in this film is the portrayal of a hectic high-stress kitchen of a Mexican restaurant in NYC. Nearly every other detail rings false. Just because a film has sadness and grief as its topic and doesn't have explosions doesn't automatically make it some kind of independent film gem. This film is clear evidence of that.

How this film managed to cross the Pacific and reach Hong Kong screens while far worthier independent films that deserve to be seen and gain recognition never manage to do so is a real mystery and a shame.

LIST OF MOVIES Made by independent filmmakers for less than $100K that are more compelling and show real vision that have yet to win theatrical release or wide distribution and definitely have not played in Hong Kong:

1) AFTER THE APOCALYPSE (2004) by Yasuaki Nakjima

2) YORICK (2002) by Jonny Stranger

3) FUNNY HA HA (2002) by Andrew Bujalski

WINDS OF SEPTEMBER (2008) by Tom Shu-yu Lin, (How a Film Just Missed Being Spectacular)

2008-12-10T15:30:00.032+08:00

Say It Ain’t So, Tom. Say It Ain’t So.

WINDS OF SEPTEMBER (2008), Tom Shu-yu Lin’s feature debut, is not a film that’s shy about its earnestness as it well shouldn’t. After all, it's a movie about young people and that’s what being young is. The film, which is in Mandarin and is playing now in Hong Kong, tells an episodic coming-of-age story set in 1996 in a provincial town in Taiwan, and follows a tight-knit pack of seven high school boys in the months leading up to graduation.

The film is best in its early moments as it relishes in its episodic storytelling and leisurely shows the boys engrossed in their youthful adventures. They go to professional baseball games and cheer on their heroes, one of whom is the slugger Liao Min-hsung. They break into a swimming pool at night and go skinny-dipping. They ride around in motorcycles. They horse around and crack jokes. They cut school. They smoke, curse, and drink beer. They get chewed out by the school disciplinarian. Through it all, the camaraderie and joy of youth comes across loud and clear. This may not provide dramatic thrust in the conventional sense, but the energy and charm in these scenes more than make up for this.

Meanwhile, the film gradually focuses on two boys in the group: Yen (Rhydian Vaughan), the handsome playboy, and his best friend Tang (Chang Cheh), a shy boy with a more serious outlook than the others. It’s a familiar dynamic seen often in high school stories—I don't know why, but the film kept reminding me of John Knowles’ A SEPARATE PEACE.

After Yen’s womanizing causes problems for the boys as well as Yen’s girlfriend, Yen and Tang grow apart. Each starts to suspect the other has betrayed him. Overall, the performances of these young actors are convincing. And the script skillfully shows how minor things can be the catalyst for big emotions during adolescence.

But the final third of the film loses steam, precisely because of a contrived narrative device, which then becomes the vehicle on which the story is towed rather clumsily to the finish line.

What is this contrived narrative device?

*WARNING. SPOILER HERE.*

It's clear that the point of the movie is to show the disillusionment of young men and the repercussion of that disillusionment on a so-called band of brothers. But must that disillusionment stem from a totally contrived motorcycle accident and a boy falling into a coma? Can't adolescents grow disillusioned simply from seeing the grown-up world at large?

The motorcycle accident scene rings false on so many levels that I won't even try to list them here. Put simply, the scene is when this movie morphs from a promising film into a Korean soap opera of the worst kind--the kind in which main characters spontaneously combust and suffer from amnesia, cancer, and blindness all at the same time, and then learn that they are actually related to their lovers. It's phony and contrived tragedy that startles momentarily but ultimately precludes the outpouring of any real empathy with the characters.

Since this misplaced and wholly unnecessary inciting narrative device is false, every narrative beat depicting its consequences also rings false and the performance of the actors falters drastically in the scenes that follow. I’m not saying that all bad acting is due to a flaw in the script, just that most is. Whatever the case, it’s a shame the film takes this direction, since it clearly didn’t need to.

Meanwhile, interspersed throughout the film are news clips of another betrayal, a baseball scandal, in which professional players, including Liao, are revealed to have thrown games for money. It’s abundantly clear the film means for the baseball scandal to echo and heighten the "loss-of-innocence,"--I hate using this term but couldn't think of an adequate substitute--that the young characters experience. But this only works in theory. Indeed, it's truly amazing how one wrong turn in the story can destroy a movie and make it so difficult for audiences to empathize with the characters on screen.

In the end, despite all the outbursts of intense emotion from the ensemble cast over what true friendship means, the film fails to pack an emotional punch. It’s really too bad because with a few small modifications in the script, this film could have been something spectacular.

THE WAY WE ARE (2008), a HK movie that's unlike any other

2008-12-10T09:07:00.032+08:00

THE WAY WE ARE (2008) by Ann Hui

Ann Hui is one of those directors whose reputation has been cemented decades ago. She's written about with respect in nearly every serious book about Hong Kong cinema. Her most famous films are SONGS OF EXILE, JULY'S RHAPSODY, STORY OF WOO VIET, and BOAT PEOPLE...

I have yet to see these films, but after seeing THE WAY WE ARE, will quickly remedy this. THE WAY WE ARE caught me completely by surprise. I was startled that such a small film with absolutely no commercial value was made and released in Hong Kong.

The Chinese title of this movie is "Tin Shui Wai Days and Nights," and it's a fitting one. The film is set in Tin Shui Wai, a.k.a. The City of Sadness, and follows a hard-working mother and her teenaged son over a few months.

She works at the supermarket. He hangs out with friends but doesn't get into trouble. He's waiting to find out the result of his Form 6 test. They visit their relatives, who are wealthier than them. The boy's grandmother gets sick and is hospitalized. The mother says she is too busy to visit the grandmother at the hospital.

In effect, the movie trudges along on the strength of a handful of false leads. Is there some dark family secret behind the mother's not visiting the grandmother at the hospital? Will the boy get into Form 6? Will the mother eventually lose it and unleash the pent-up anger and resentment from the sacrifices she's had to make all her life? Will the boy be led astray by his friends and commit some horrific crime?

But none of these things take place.

**WARNING. FILM CONTAINS NO FODDER FOR SPOILERS.**

Instead, the major event in the movie is that the mother and son befriend a neighbor, an elderly woman who is alone in the world, and form their own family unit.

This film has won critical acclaim and has been praised for its integrity of vision, subtlety, and refusal to depict a troubled slum in a negative or sensationalistic manner as other films have done.

Indeed, whether the slum is in Hong Kong's New Territories or in inner-city Baltimore, films that are set in the ghetto usually follow one of two main trajectories:

1) nihilistic hell-on-earth story in which crime, violence, and drugs prevail and all hope goes out the window.

2) quiet dignity of individuals despite the odds socially-conscious story - these films are usually about community activists or young people who find a way out of the ghetto and often contain brief snippets of 1) nihilistic hell-on-earth to contrast and heighten their protagonist's dignity.

THE WAY WE ARE definitely falls into the second category.

But what's noteworthy is that unlike other movies of this type that are made elsewhere, THE WAY WE ARE categorically refuses to point the finger of blame for the plight of its protagonists at any social or government institutions, individuals, or even deities.

The two protagonists are not angry at anything. They don't fault any of the usual suspects, namely the school system, the government, the housing estate, gangs, drugs, the media, their relatives, friends, one another...

It seems as if the two main characters have no problems whatsoever. And the only complaint the mother ever voices is that the newspaper stand guy was mean and didn't give her the free pack of tissues that the convenience store guy gives. I don't know what to make of this lack of finger-pointing. I simply found it to be unique.

Also as an outsider, I found great interest in the film's numerous depictions of the minutiae of daily life, and the film worked for me also on the level of anthropology. But above all, the film struck a chord in me by being so very different from other Hong Kong movies.

On top of all that, seeing the elderly third character in the film deal with her loneliness made me pick up the phone and give my parents a call.

If that's not a testament to the power of cinema, I don't know what is.

First Interview in Cantonese

2008-12-09T15:37:00.017+08:00

Here is my first live interview in Hong Kong carried out in my broken Cantonese. I know my tones are bad, and I'm butchering the Cantonese.

But it will get better.

After all, I'm not giving up and the Wa is a beautiful language.

Enjoy!

The subject is Mrs. Siu who runs the drycleaners at Wah Fu Estate.

Chased Out of Wah Fu

2008-12-09T12:10:00.034+08:00

I try hard not to succumb to the dark side and simply use this blog to vent the usual frustrations that stem from a displaced existence in Hong Kong. I understand HK is its own place with its own culture and to fault it for not being something else is about as useful as faulting a dog for not being a cat.

That said, I still need to gripe a bit. About what?

I bring my camcorder to the wet market today, thinking innocently that maybe I can tape some footage or maybe even interview some people in my limited Cantonese.

But, when I get there, the moment I take out my camera and fiddle around with the buttons, two shopkeepers descend on me, demanding to know who I am and what I am doing and what I have taped. I have not yet pointed the camera at a single soul or taped anything. (I always ask people for their okay before pointing the camera at them, unless it's just random street footage of crowds.)

I tell them that I've taped nothing, and then in my stilted Cantonese, provide an explanation for myself--I'm a Korean person studying Cantonese. I want to take some shots to show my friends Hong Kong life and culture.

This doesn't fly. Finally, the question-and-answer turns into a mini argument, with me repeating I have taken no video and even offering to let them examine the camera and the tape so that they can see for themselves.

Eventually, the scene peters out. The two shopkeepers mosey away and I'm left standing there like some lunatic foreigner, which I guess I am.

Then, another shopkeeper, a calmer one who's witnessed the blow-up, calls me over to lecture me (though in a calm and gentle manner) in Cantonese about the dangers of taking videos at wet markets. She says the others are afraid that I might be someone sent by the newspapers or the government. (And what if I was? What's there to hide? After all, the wet market at Wah Fu looks like every other one in Hong Kong. What am I not seeing?) She then tells me the other shopkeers might even call the police so I better be careful.

I know there are people everywhere who are wary of strangers taking photos or videos of them, and I can't do that good a job of explaining myself in Cantonese to assuage people's suspicions. But what would prompt anyone to go through the trouble of calling the police because someone was taking pictures?

Sure, in NY, after 9-11, the city banned photo-taking in the subway system and people taking photos of trains, bridges and such were nabbed and questioned. But, taking videos of vegetable stalls?

I understand the above incident is an isolated one and most likely can best be explained as being the result of chance that put two nosey and meddlesome people in my path.

Be that as it may, I asked a Chinese student, with whom I do language exchange, about local people seeming to be distrustful of outsiders. He thinks this is because there are many conmen and crooks in Hong Kong and because Chinese people are taught by the family not to trust outsiders. He said that since he was a kid, his grandmother has told him over and over that only the family can be trusted. He then said that this was also because of her experience of having lived through the Japanese Occupation of Hong Kong.

That sort of makes sense, and sort of doesn't. After all, does that mean that Chinese people trusted outsiders and non-family members before the Japanese Occupation? And then only grew distrusting because of the Japanese?

What am I not getting here?

Hong Kong Covered Walkways (another film haiku about Hong Kong)

2008-12-08T14:59:00.027+08:00

Maybe it's the air pollution. Maybe it's the unforgiving summer heat. Maybe it's the lack of land. Maybe it's just a ploy to ferry people from one mall to the next. Maybe it's all these things or none of these thing...

For whatever reason, Hong Kong has many covered walkways and other footpaths that connect one building to the next.

I'm ambivalent about such walkways. On the one hand, it's nice to be able to walk about. On the other, these walkways are a bit artificial and far removed from actual city life. Walking on them is just not the same as walking through a real neighborhood.

Whatever the case, as an experiment, I set out to see just how far I could get using Hong Kong covered walkways without touching real ground. The walk, which I did on a Monday afternoon just before peak lunch hour, took just under 20 minutes at a rather brisk pace and took me from Western Market in Sheung Wan to the Battery Path in Central.

I think the total distance was about 1.5 miles, but I'm sure that had I gone into the main part of IFC mall, I could have walked around for hours, or maybe even days...

Who needs the Lantau Trail?

A word of caution. The camera shakes a lot, so those of you with sensitive constitutions, please remember your Dramamine.

The accompanying music is The Cure. The idea for the video came from So Jene.

Enjoy!

Here is my itinerary:

START: Western Market...
through Shun Tak Center
then on covered Walkway to...
IFC Mall...
Central Walkway past Exchange Square
then into Chater House
and Alexandra House
and Prince Building
and Standard and Chartered Building
Finally, come out on to Battery Path. FINISH

THE CHASER (2008) a.k.a. Why Godard Was Wrong

2008-12-07T21:03:00.033+08:00

See THE CHASER (2008) by Na Hong-jin.

It's December and I'm catching up on my movie watching for the year.

My vote for most entertaining and gripping serial killer thriller of the year goes to THE CHASER (2008), a box-office hit from South Korea that was written and directed by Na Hong-jin.

This film, which runs two hours and played briefly in Hong Kong a few months back, is about the chase to stop a serial killer by the least likely protagonist, a former detective who was kicked out of the force for taking bribes and is now a despicable pimp. This pimp is moved to act after some of his call girls go missing. At first he thinks some lowlife out there is abducting his girls and selling them to another human trafficker. Gradually, it dawns on him that a serial killer is killing them. Meanwhile, in the background, the police are also conducting an investigation to try to catch this killer.

Of course, this description doesn't do the film justice. THE CHASER is the best kind of thriller. In addition to social commentary about various aspects of modern life, it is masterfully-crafted and executed.

What do I mean by this? As is usually the case with the best storytelling, the film places the viewer in the exact place and viewpoint of the protagonist, whose single-minded pursuit of the villain is hampered by the bungling of the very police who banished him from their midst. The film puts the viewer through all the emotions that the protagonist goes through. If you watch this film and do not find it emotionally draining, then it's time to go get a check-up because something is kaputt.

This film has its share of violence and blood, but it is not your conventional whodunnit. The killer, one of the most chilling serial killers in film histroy, is revealed very early on (in the first 20 minutes) to the audience, and soon afterwards, to the police. What follows is what grips the audience. Simply put, THE CHASER is a film that sinks its teeth into the viewer from the start and doesn't let go. It's packed with tension. Were it a book, it'd be the best page-turner. Its depiction of the serial killer is truly chilling.

If you see one movie from those that are mentioned on this blog, then see THE CHASER.

Depicting the journey of a fallen man who comes to grips with pure evil, it is an intelligent film for adults but also wholly accessible and entertaining.

WHY SO MANY KOREAN FILMS?
Am I am not aware of American and European films?

Quite the opposite. I am enamored with films from the French New Wave and the gritty in-your-face films of Pasolini, the subversive films of Fassbinder, and other European filmmakers of the 60s and 70s. Some of my favorite films are American films from the 1970s.

But that's all ancient history.

The fact is, at this point in time, South Korea is where the most interesting and gripping movies are being made. Sure like any other country, they also produce a whole lot of utter junk. But the gems are gems.

In contrast, most movies coming out of the U.S. are, in effect, special effects cartoons made for children and most movies from Europe tend to be dull little things that lack creativity. Someone, I think it might have been Catherine Deneuve, decried the sad state of French films by saying that too many French films went like this: "Jacque sleeps with Marie. Marie sleeps with Paul. Paul sleeps with Genevieve. Then, they all go to a restaurant."

It's sad but true, but it's been almost 10 years since I saw a French film that was truly exciting. England fares better. CHILDREN OF MEN (2006) is proof of this. And don't even get me started on what's happened to the once amazing Hong Kong film industry that's now but a frivolous imitation of itself.

Of course, this is all just an opinion and one that is based on huge generalities. But this view is not an isolated one. Film lovers and festival programmers throughout Europe know Kim Ki-duk, Park Chan-wook, Hong Sang-soo, among others, as well as the amazing output of films coming from South Korea.

As for why South Korea is enjoying this sudden prestige as movie capital of the world, who knows?

In an appearance on the DICK CAVETT SHOW, Godard--in the 1990s at the East Village Kim's Video, where videos were displayed on shelves under names of directors, the hipster clerks there did away with "Godard" and filed his films under "God"--suggested that of all the arts, films were unique in that they were, in effect, made by the public.

According to this reasoning, it is the public who actually guides and shapes what films get produced by supplying their input through the box office. In other words, if many people go watch a piece of junk, this encourages the continued production of junk, and vice-versa.

I don't quite agree with Godard's view on this in that I don't think there is something special about Korean moviegoers. I think it's more likely that it's just luck. A dozen or so very talented people just happened to be born in Korea at around the same time. That's all.

Whatever the case, what makes Korea's emergence as a filmmaking mecca that much more impressive is just how quickly the South Korean film industry has risen up from the ashes. In 1996, I visited a South Korean filmmaker I knew from NYU who had gotten his chance to make his feature film debut for the leading film production company in Korea at the time.

I was shocked to find just how small and amateurish Korean film production at that time was. The scale was so small and the quality of films made was so poor. Indeed, things were so not impressive and so not promising that when the film director offered me an assistant director post for his production, I said no. I just didn't think South Korean films were going anywhere. (Shows how much I know.)

Today, just a little over a decade later, filmmakers in South Korea are making the most interesting and entertaining films in the world.

If you haven't seen THE CHASER. See it. Go and get the DVD somehow. It will be the most entertaining film you see this year.

Review of SWEET RAIN (2008) a.k.a. Is a Movie Star's Goofy Smile Enough to Sustain a Picture?

2008-12-07T08:14:00.019+08:00

SWEET RAIN (2008) is a Japanese film directed by Masaya Kakei that was released about a month ago in Hong Kong. It is is about a grim reaper whose job it is to spend a few days leading human subjects to their death. In the course of the movie, he meets three such subjects and the people around them.

Edmund Lee's review in TIME OUT HK is much too generous to this little nothing of a film that plays more like 3 episodes of a dull TV series taped together and passed off as a feature film. In fact, the scenes of Chiba (the protagonist, a Grim Reaper who appears in human form, played by Takeshi Kaneshiro) inadvertently touching mortals with his ungloved hands and seeing them freeze and die temporarily is straight from the short-lived American TV series PUSHING DAISIES.

There is very little story here. And granted Kaneshiro is easy on the eyes, charming, and a movie star, one has to be a super fan of his to find this film enjoyable. Basically, the movie follows his character around as he meets a half dozen people. There's no story purpose and no conflict. Hence, no forward momentum.

Kaneshiro just mugs for the camera and tries to carry the film on what's left of his boyish charm. That may work to a certain extent, but given how overexposed the guy is--(I think China's Film Board recently passed a law that requires that Kaneshiro must appear in every so-called Chinese epic filmed on Chinese soil)--it's a flimsy excuse to justify a feature film.

The TIME OUT HK review also conveniently leaves out the presence of the main character's sidekick, a black lab, with whom Kaneshiro converses telepathically (dog gets subtitles) to provide a lot of exposition. The three separate stories are connected by the thinnest contrivance, but are spaced out over the course of a quarter century.

Basically, this film seems to have been made solely because Kaneshiro agreed to be in it. It is one of the dullest movies that is currently screening in Hong Kong. Why this film was made or distributed is a mystery to me.

By the way, the literal Japanese title is ACCURACY OF DEATH. Neither that nor SWEET RAIN is apt. A far more fitting title is WATCH TAKESHI KANESHIRO SPORT DIFFERENT HAIRSTYLES AS HE SMILES GOOFILY FOR THE Nth TIME.

ROUGH CUT (2008), an excellent movie that needs to come to Hong Kong

2008-12-05T09:28:00.033+08:00

I don't mean for this blog to become a tribute site dedicated to the contemporary Korean film director Kim Ki-duk, but this guy truly is a force of nature and the closest thing to a pure cinematic genius I've encountered in my life both among contemporary filmmakers and even among those past greats I've studied through the canon of world cinema. Indeed, I'll state for the record that even a mediocre Kim Ki-duk film is far more engaging and interesting than most other films that are being made on this planet right now.

Why the profuse praise?

I've just seen ROUGH CUT (literal Korean title is "A Movie Is a Movie"), a film released in South Korea in September of this year to resounding box-office success and which will have a very modest release on DVD in the U.S. this month. The film was scripted by Kim Ki-duk and directed by Jang Hoon, who had been an assistant director to Kim.

That Kim Ki-duk has the energy, time, and drive to write scripts in addition to making at least one feature film per year (he has written and directed all 16 of his films) is amazing enough. That he can script such an intense, compelling, and most notably, mainstream narrative film given his already well-known uniquely perverse sensibilities and tastes really blows me away.

This screenplay probably is the most mainstream of all Kim Ki-duk screenplays, and Director Jang Hoon has done a bang-up job of turning it into a substantive thought-provoking gangster picture that's also very entertaining.

The story is about a difficult young movie star who has a short fuse and a propensity to cause problems and scandals. Out of hubris that he really is as tough as the cool characters he plays in movies and due to some personal quandaries, he hires a real gangster to star opposite him in a gangster film. This set up sounds comical, but the film treats it with all seriousness and follows the premise all the way to its conclusion.

One of the film's two leads is the Korean actor (So Ji-sup). He plays the thug and gives a haunting performance. He was in the Korean weepy TV miniseries I'M SORRY I LOVE YOU (2004) and is returning to acting after doing his mandatory military service.

Aesthetically, the film is Director Jang's own and a completely different animal from a film directed by Kim Ki-duk. It features very realistic gloriously-choreographed fight sequences with fast cuts and breathtaking cinematography that's rare in your typical Kim Ki-duk film, which may feature seedy settings and delve at the underbelly of society but rarely shows violence that's entertaining. On the contrary, Kim Ki-duk's violence is brutal and grotesque.

ROUGH CUT, like most mainstream films, makes violence entertaining and cool. The stylized fight sequences are similar to ones in FIGHT CLUB and OLD BOY. So if that's not your thing, this film may not suit you.

But this stylistic difference aside, the story, its themes (one of which is about the very nature of filmmaking itself and which was explored in Kim's earlier experimental film REAL FICTION (2000)), and some moments of super-heightened intensity are clearly in the script and pure Kim Ki-duk flourishes.

For the uninitiated, this film may be a good introduction to a certain kind of gangster genre action film that has been nearly perfected in the past decade by South Korean filmmakers.

That said, given the propensity of Hollywood to buy up foreign box-office hits (these days most often from Asia) and re-make them, often shot for shot, with white American movie stars (eg. THE GRUDGE, THE DEPARTED, THE LAKE HOUSE), it is easy to picture this film being re-made and released a few years from now starring Leonardo DiCaprio and (I can't think of anyone who could play the role of the thug convincingly).

For that to happen though, the ending (rather dark) would have to be tweaked a bit. After all, it is much more acceptable for mainstream films in Korea to have pessimistic, or bittersweet endings than it is in the U.S. I'm not sure what this says, if anything, about the national characters of Koreans and Americans in general, if such a generality can even be made. I just hope that the remake isn't botched or inane as is too often the case.

I have nothing against remakes as long as the remake is inspired and is somehow a different animal (eg. SEVEN SAMURAI becoming THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN). But, an uninspired remake that is done solely to save the audience the "inconvenience" of having to read subtitles or look at foreign faces on screen (eg. INFERNAL AFFAIRS becoming THE DEPARTED) seems utterly stupid, senseless and unwarranted. Such a practice is also ultimately negative because Hollywood's release of a remake and the accompanying marketing campaign require the intentional burying of the original and prevents the original from ever being released theatrically in the U.S. and in much of the rest of the world.

I know that gauging whether a remake of a foreign film is inspired or warranted seems highly subjective. In fact, it is the most subjective. Still, it is my opinion that in order for such a remake to be warranted, the remake should, at the very least, be better than the original.

Many will disagree, but I feel this was the case with THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN, but definitely not so with THE DEPARTED.

Whatever the case, given the sad state of movies and film distribution in general, especially in Hong Kong, this film should hit theaters here in about January.... 2010.

Indeed, one of the saddest things about Hong Kong is that so many films never come here. Sure one can scrounge about and find the DVD, which is what I did and which can be very convenient, but that's never the same as seeing the film on a big screen.

Camel Traders in Causeway Bay a.k.a. Is Haggling Rude?

2008-12-04T09:20:00.016+08:00

Maybe it's hubris. Maybe it's a male thing. But I find that many men tend to see themselves as being much more handy, athletic, and ____________________ than they actually are. At least, this is true in my case when it comes to haggling or bargaining over prices.

I can't say I'm a good haggler. I usually manage to pay less than the asking price, but nearly always also end up with the nagging sensation that I didn't quite get the super deal that I thought I did. Still, having to haggle or bargain doesn't fill me with discomfort or anxiety as I've discovered it does some people.

Most recently, I haggled when we bought a computer at the Causeway Bay Fortress, where I went into haggling mode right away and put the salesman to work before discussing prices. (**The psychology of haggling requires that the buyer get the seller to invest a lot of time and effort to make the sale. This way, there is more incentive and reason for the seller to lower the price rather than have all that time and effort lead to nothing. eg. "I showed this #@%**# every feature on this damn computer. This better lead to a sale.")

Maybe it's a cultural thing. In the U.S., people are supposed to haggle for big-ticket items such as cars, but usually not for other things and especially not in chain or mall stores. Consequently, haggling isn't something most Americans get to practice that often. (**How does bargaining work in other countries? Anyone? Anyone?)**

Still, it often startles me how uncomfortable some people are with haggling. Some even say that having to make a low offer after being presented with an asking price (even at blatant tourist traps) makes them feel like they're being rude somehow.

I can see the reasoning behind such a view, but I just can't imagine always paying the asking price. Moreover, I don't think haggling is rude at all. It's just two parties talking things over to come to an agreement. After all, most haggling leads to a sale. In fact, I wouldn't bother to haggle over something that I wasn't seriously interested in buying. Haggling is work, after all.

Anyway, since having more opportunities to haggle is another perk of HK life, I hope that our stay here will help me become a better bargainer. After all, it is a life skill that comes in quite handy.

And as the old saying goes, if you can't be handsome, you better be handy.

Ladyboys of Wah Fu

2008-12-03T19:26:00.024+08:00

WARNING: The above photo of yours truly officially becoming the 214,416th person to make an ass of himself at the Peak Mall has nothing to do with the rest of this post. Read on at your own discretion. By the way, I'm not the one in the yellow leotard.

I go about once a day to the wet market at Wah Fu Estate to buy fresh produce and sometimes fish. This is one of the two choices I have to buy groceries within walking distance. The other is to walk in the opposite direction to the International at Cyberport, which is a good supermarket but not very good for produce or fish. Getting to the wet market takes just about 15 minutes at a brisk pace.

In the year so that we've been in the HK, I've been to this wet market quite a bit. It's a very small market meant really for the residents of Wah Fu Estate, so there just aren't that many stalls. The stallkeepers recognize me and we exchange basic pleasantries in Cantonese. I try to use as much Cantonese as I can when I'm there. For instance, I ask in broken Cantonese for free scallions when I buy other produce, should the seller forget to give me this very common bonus.

"Gamyaht dimgaai mouh chong ah?"--Today why no scallions?

Anyway, one of the interesting things about going to this wet market initially was that at certain times of the day, a troupe of 10 or so transvestite performers from Thailand would descend en masse to do their grocery shopping and delight the stallkeepers and other shoppers. They were shopping, but always had their make-up and hair done and were in character. One couldn't help but enjoy the show.

I did a little research. It turns out there is a movie theater in Wah Fu Estate that is no longer in business, at least not for movies. Instead, some enterprising impresario has rounded up these Thai ladyboys to perform elaborate lip-synch performances of Mandarin and Cantonese pop songs. Busloads of Mandarin tourists come on the sly to catch these "unlicensed" performances.

I was curious and went to the theater about a month ago to see how one could go about catching a show. The place was closed, but there was some Chinese writing on the wall. I have no idea what it said, and didn't get to see the show.

It's been a while since I've seen these flamboyant ladyboys sashaying through the wet market. I wonder if their show has ended. I can't help but wonder if the lagging economy or some annoying but all-too-common HK bureaucratic legal issue is somehow responsible for their sudden disappearance from Wah Fu.

The Big Three That Once Was a.k.a. Dreaming of Cadillacs

2008-12-03T07:49:00.028+08:00

I've written about cars in previous posts, but it seems timely to write more about my experience with American cars now that the Big Three American car companies, Ford, Chrysler, and GM, are on the brink of collapse and begging for the U.S. government to keep them afloat.

My wife and I, like most Americans, have been driving since we were 17 or so. Getting one's license and driving is truly a rite of passage in the U.S.

(Digression: What counterparts do HK teenagers have to look forward to as they creep towards adulthood? What such rite of passage do they get? Most don't even get to go away to university and many live at home until well into their 20s and 30s...Poor kids. I hope they get to at least smoke or drink a bit.)

Since I was a kid, I was a believer of American cars. I don't know what made me this way. But if I have to pinpoint something, it probably was a belief that was handed down from my parents, who have always bought and still only buy American cars. When I was a kid, the best and most impressive car that anyone we knew drove was a Cadillac. Back then, especially among my parents' friends and their circle of Korean immigrants, a Cadillac was a crucial component of the American Dream.

My parents never really got that Cadillac, but the view that American cars were top-notch was instilled in me firmly.

Anyway, after university, in our first years of grown-up life, So Jene and I schlepped around in a used Plymouth Laser that was handed down to her. It was a small hatchback with its share of dings and dents. Still, it suited us fine for a while until the transmission gave out at just around 70,000 miles and we were forced to ditch the car.

After that, we bought a new Saturn and drove that around for six years and a little more than 100,000 miles. During that time, so many things went wrong with it that shouldn't have that it undid my programming and preference for American cars.

What's more, every mechanic I took it to, said the same thing: "American cars are junk. They're the only cars we work on nowadays."

Even the Saturn mechanic shared this sentiment.

Sure these guys could have been exaggerating. And sure my experience could have been an anomaly, and sure there are lots of other possibilities and explanations... (After all, they could all have been on the Toyota payroll!!!)

But, the experience soured me on American cars.

So, when it came time to buy the next car, I bought a cheap little almost-20-year-old Toyota Corolla for $700 cash. It was a drastic move. But at that time, I was the only one using the car, and I figured all I needed was basic transportation.

This little Toyota, which didn't look like much--but then, neither had the Saturn-- ran better than the Saturn, which had the absolute worst turning radius, and was overall, a better car.

Ditto for the used 20-year-old Volvo and the 25-year-old Mercedes that followed. These used cars, which cost very little, were built and designed so much better than the GM Saturn. And they were far far more durable.

In fact, the Mercedes, which was the last car we had in the U.S. before we moved to Hong Kong, had 280,000 miles and was still running strong.

If an American car lasts 100,000 miles, you've had a good run.

Having said all that, I'm not saying whether the Big Three should be bailed out or not. That's a different question.

All I'm saying is cars made by these companies have proven themselves to be junk, and these companies have burned American consumers for a long long time now.

So, if a bailout is granted, it'll be for the now distant memory of the once grand American automobile industy, and absolutely not for any love that anyone has for the cheap inferior cars that these companies have been dumping on consumers for far too long.

I end this rather serious and depressing post with a completely unrelated random photo of yours truly outside the main Sumo center in Tokyo. Enjoy!

"Cantonese Has Many Slangs" and other myths about learning the Wa

2008-12-01T08:06:00.025+08:00

I've been studying Cantonese off and on for about six months now and can piece together basic sentences with my vocabulary of about 2000 or so words. I'm at a very basic level.

Here are some of my observations about learning Cantonese in HK.

Whenever local HK Chinese find out I'm learning Cantonese, they usually seem to have this notion that I'm basically wasting my time because what I'm trying to do is, to them, ultimately futile. Here are the ususal explanations I get about why it's so difficult, virtually impossible, for foreigners to learn Cantonese:

1) "Cantonese has many slangs."
It astounds me how, for some reason, Cantonese speakers seem to think their language has a monopoly on slang. Sure Cantonese has tons of colorful, creative and playful slang expressions, but then again, what language doesn't?

I'm using proper English right now, but were I in a different situation with different company, I'd switch to using more street expressions, you dig?

More importantly, I'm not trying to learn all the latest cool slang expressions. That may come much later. For now, I'm practicing basic communication. One can learn English without learning every bit of slang out there. Ditto for Cantonese, right?

I mentioned the above to So Jene, and she said that maybe the HK locals aren't talking about slang expressions, but that they might be referring to Cantonese having a formal version and an informal version. Interpreted thusly, HK locals might be saying that the Cantonese that is usually taught in books and to foreigners is a formal textbook version which is different from the actual Cantonese that is used. I sort of doubt that this is what people mean when they say "Cantonese has many slangs" because Cantonese does have many slang expressions. But who knows?

2) "Cantonese has no grammar."
I'm not sure just how this bit of misinformation got its foothold. But in my study of the language, it's clear that Cantonese has a very logical and straightforward grammar. Sure there are some exceptions to certain grammatical rules, but the syntax that holds words together to form sentences is there, clear as day.

Yet, over and over, people say Cantonese has no grammar. The only sense I can make of this claim is that they may be talking about verb conjugation? Cantonese verbs change very little to show tense, and often do not change at all if context provides enough clues about tense. But this feature seems to me to make the language easier, not more difficult. Basically, this seems clear-cut. Cantones does indeed have grammar.

3) "Learn Mandarin. Cantonese is not useful."
This argument slides into the political realm. But the claim that Cantonese is not useful is one that can be gauged only by the individual. To some Cantonese is useful. To others it's not.

Indeed, if I were learning the language to work with Mandarin-speakers down the road, Mandarin would be more useful. But, this is not the case. I am learning Cantonese because living in HK is a good opportunity to learn another language, and the language most local HK people speak is Cantonese (despite how much English there is). At the present, Mandarin has no use for me. The language I need is Cantonese.

3b) "Learn Mandarin. Cantonese is dying out."
This is a corollary of #3. Usually I get this from Mandarin speaking Chinese or Cantonese-speakers who're down on HK. It's their view that heretic Cantonese-speakers will eventually realize the error of their ways and revert back to the national language, or that Cantonese-speakers will be driven by economic incentives or too apathetic to resist the encroachment of Mandarin.

That may happen, but I also know that spoken languages, especially ones that provide a sense of personal and political identity, are damn hard to put down, especially through government policy. People are stubborn.

For instance, Japan tried to wipe out Korean and impose the Japanese language as the official language during its 30 years+ occupation of Korea. Learning Japanese carried with it economic benefits and social mobility. Using Korean was penalized and formal education was carried out in Japanese. Despite this, the Korean language survived and thrived. Cantonese will be around a lot longer than many people think no matter how omnipotent the Chinese government seems to be.

**Basically, these are the top four reactions I get from HK Chinese about learning Cantonese, and my responses. That said, I'm not saying that learning Cantonese is easy. It's not, especially for English speakers. Cantonese is indeed not easy to learn, but I've found that the bulk of that difficulty stems from the following:

a) lack of good study material - (there are tons for Mandarin, very few for Cantonese.)

b) prevalence of English in HK. - Too easy to revert back to English and too easy to not use or practice Cantonese unless you make an effort to use Cantonese.

c) general busy culture of HK - Most people are too busy to stop and take the time to speak with you. People usually are too busy, busy, busy. There's definitely very little slacker culture here. That's just how it is.

NOW FOR THE FLIP SIDE

I turn now to those on the other side of the language divide.

Many non-HK people who cannot speak Cantonese but have lived in HK for a long time usually tend to have many reasons for why they haven't learned the language. Some have no interest. Some don't want to take classes. This is all fine and dandy as I don't think language acquisition is a duty or a requirement. Just so that we're clear. I don't fault anyone for not learning anything. God knows there are so many things out there I haven't learned.

But there are some who inevitably point the finger of blame at the local culture and people for their own failing to learn Cantonese. Their argument usually goes like this:

"It's not my fault that I haven't learned Cantonese despite living here x years. The local people all speak English to me. If I had lived in France for the same x years, I'd be fluent in French by now."

The fallacy of the above claim lies in the fact that language acquisition doesn't happen through osmosis but requires active effort, no matter what the environment. Of course, children may seem to pick up languages effortlessly, but they too make active effort through schoolwork and lots of repeated informal conversation practice.

The truth is, one can live in any foreign locale and never learn the language no matter how long that person lives there whether or not the native people engage him or her in the native tongue. Such cooperation may make the learning easier, but learning a new language requires time and effort. It's ridiculous to think a person would somehow acquire a language without making the effort.

The fact is, if a person doesn't need to or has very little interest in learning a new language, he or she simply won't.

This is true of Cantonese, French, Russian... The biggest factors in learning a language seem to be personal motivation and time investment.

There are plenty of people who come to HK from other places and manage to learn Cantonese despite all the obstacles and lack of encouragement. There are plenty more who do not. And that's fine.

But let's just be honest about the why.

Anyway, that's my two bits for the day.

On a less academic note and since I've already mentioned Japanese occupation in this post, So Jene and I spent Saturday afternoon in Lamma and stumbled on the tunnels that the Japanese military had dug during WWII. What fun!!!

I'll post a photo of the Japanese caves later.

Also, I shot around for the first time in a long time Sunday afternoon at Southorn Playground in Wanchai after my Cantonese class. It felt good to be on a basketball court, dribbling and shooting. My ankle felt good and strong. It didn't swell up much at all afterwards though it still looks pretty damn disgusting.

I need to start getting back in shape to play ball again on a more regular basis.

New Creative Thanksgiving Juice

2008-11-28T10:03:00.014+08:00

I know there's a lot going on in the world right now, but life goes on and I just can't help but be concerned with realtively small things.

Today, on the day after Thanksgiving, I'm thinking mostly about these two things:

1) MOJO TANGO -- Jonny Stranger, who was at NYU with me in the MFA program and is now based in Austin, TX sent me a DVD of his second feature. I think the film is still not locked down (it's still being edited), but the version I saw blew me away.

I watched it once. Then, in the middle of the night (4AM), watched it again. It has its flaws and needs a few adjustments (some scenes need to be cut and a few scenese need to be added), but it is going to be a real crowd pleaser at festivals.

Here is one of Jonny Stranger's other works, a short animated film that is a sample of his creative visual sense. Enjoy.

As for MOJO TANGO, he has done an amazing job of making a really entertaining and hip film about two friends and their relationships with women. I've seen lots of indie no-budget films shot on digital video about floundering 20somethings and 30somethings that have since been labeled as mumblecore, most notably THE PUFFY CHAIR, FUNNY HA HA, KISSING ON THE MOUTH, and Jonny's movie is way better than all those. And those movies were reviewed in the NY TIMES.

I tip my hat to you, Jonny Stranger, for persevering and getting your second feature made under remarkable duress. You are a true independent filmmaker. I can't wait for you to experience the love of the audience at festival screenings, especially since the film also authentically captures the hipster Bohemian scene of Austin. If anyone hasn't been there, the hype is for real. It is one cool city, still great for artists and slackers in general.

Anyway, being witness to Jonny Stranger's struggle and now seeing the fruit of that struggle has been humbling and enlightening. I will follow your example.

Now, the second thing.

2) I've been busy since returning to Hong Kong doing Korean-to-English translations. I did the translation (English subtitles) for an old-school Korean television mini series (all 16 episodes). This entails watching the episodes and coming up with English dialog that has same or similar meaning but that also matches the relative length of the original. It's not that difficult, and I'm pretty good at it--I'm relatively good with languages. But it still takes time. It doesn't pay much (especially now since I get paid in Korean won and that currency has plummeted), but it's work I can do at a very flexible schedule and without having to schlepp around.

Because of that job, I really haven't had time to do much else. So, it wasn't until this morning that I realized that the laptop that was stolen from our luggage in the Maldives contained the latest file of the novel that I've been working on--more fitting description is the novel that's been kicking my butt-- for the past 3, 4 years.

I thought I'd backed it up to an external hard drive that I have at home, but it turns out I hadn't. So basically, what I do have of that novel is an old draft from about a year ago before a major rewrite.

I'm not even sure what the point of this is. I'm not really sad about it. It's more like begruding acceptance of a situation.

Basically, I didn't lose it all, so if I can go on and finish the novel, losing the laptop will make for a good making-of overcoming-obstacles story.

On the other hand, it's as if this novel, a hip mystery, is giving me a way out, tempting me to take the easy way out and abandon it.

I ought to, as I know its flaws already, but I've invested so much in it already, that I just couldn't do that.

Anyway, this is what it feels like sometimes to write a book.

On a positive note, I got an e-mail from out of the blue from some prof at UC Berkeley who tracked me down to tell me she is teaching my book BOY GENIUS to her class of 40 students this semester.

This happens to me about once a year, but this is the first time from a really big name school. Very gratifying feeling.

I guess one has to find encouragement in all things.

BACK from Paradise a.k.a. The Curse of Montezuma

2008-11-23T08:33:00.026+08:00

We're back from paradise. The radio silence comes to an end. So much to write about. Will do so slowly over the next few weeks. The trip cost a fortune, but even a seasoned tightwad like myself can't help but begrudgingly admit that it was well worth it, especially to mark our 10 year anniversary.

The Maldives truly is paradise on earth. Lots of beautiful little islands. Clear beaches. Coral reefs and amazing tropical fish. Most resorts are on their own little island with a hundred or so guests. So basically, you're secluded with your loved ones and get to snjoy the sea. It sounds rather confining, but it's not so when you're being pampered.

The Maldives was a fitting destination for us to mark our 10 years of marriage since we'd first heard about the place 10 years ago. I'd stumbled on a NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC filled with amazing pictures of the Maldives and used to look at it quite a bit back then when we were living in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. We've had an amazing 10 years since. What an adventure! We've been very lucky, knock on wood. Bottom line is, the Maldives trip is something we will treasure for a long long time...

We got to lounge about, eat well, read from time to time, watch DVDs, and swim in our own private backyard pool, complete with two crows who would stand guard and a great view of the moon peeking above the coconut trees. We also got to ride a little seaplane like the ones they had in FANTASY ISLAND.

The Plane! The Plane!

We got to scuba dive for the first time and even got certified. Yes, we had to sit in a classroom for a bit during our vacation and had to practice hand signals--my favorite is the one for "Out of air"-- and various other scuba skills in a lagoon, but we're PADI Open Water Divers now with four open sea dives notched on our weight belt, ready and itching to scuba again to a depth limit of 18 meters.

We also learned to skin dive with our snorkels. We'd done snorkeling before but always from the surface. We didn't know how to clear the snorkel underwater. We also didn't know about hyperventilating to expand our underwater dive time. I really like skindiving and am amazed by just how deep you can actually go just on your own lungs.

In addition, I got to windsurf again, which I'd first tried in Mexico about 2 years ago. It looked so easy then but was so hard. I'm sure there are lots of kids who pick it up easily, but it took me three afternoons in Mexico just to get my balance and be able to lift the sail without falling in the water. Three days of tenacious effort and lots of ropeburn on my hands only to be cursed by Montezuma with dead calm and no wind...

This time, there was enough wind. And despite the lapse, I was still able to stay on my feet and lift the sail from the getgo, no problem. In fact, by the end of our vacation, I was actually zipping along quite nicely with a 5.0 sail and had managed to figure out how to position the sail to control where I went and didn't look like a complete schmuck out there. Who says old dogs can't learn new tricks??

The only downside to our trip was that having been pampered and lulled by paradise, we forgot that there's crime and poverty in the world and stupidly put our laptop, which we'd brought with us to do a little writing and so we could watch DVDs-- in the checked baggage on our trip back--a marathon journey with stopovers in Colombo and Kuala Lampur--and came home to find that it had been stolen out of our luggage. It was naive and dumb of us to not have the computer with us as carry-on. Still, I guess such lapses happen after being in the Garden of Eden...

It was a sad coda and quite a big nuisance to lose a laptop, especially since it was our only computer and contained nearly all of our photos from the trip... But then again, even as our luggage was being rifled through, the universe did somehow balance out the minuses and threw us a bone--well, actually, more than a bone--a very much appreciated upgrade to business class for our flight from Kuala Lumpur to Hong Kong. I guess it was from having accumulated so many miles this years on Cathay.

And on top of that, when we got back to Hong Kong and were reminded instantly upon arrival by the decorations there and P.A. system music that it is now already Christmas, I found an e-mail waiting for me from Cullen Thomas, the author of BROTHER ONE CELL, an excellent book which I wrote about in one of my earlier posts. There's also a link to this book in my OTHER PEOPLE'S BOOKS list. He'd actually somehow read the post and wrote me to say hello. For those of you who haven't read that post, Cullen Thomas and I are both writers and share a link to the Bronx as well as to b-ball.

Anyway, how cool is that!!! The wonders of the Internet. Now if only I could figure out who the other 2.5 readers of this blog are.... More posts about random funny incidents and observations from this trip will follow in the next few weeks. Any similar experiences out there? re: airport theft?

I end this post with a photo of yours truly leaving a part of me in the Indian Ocean.

RADIO SILENCE in the form of a TELEGRAM

2008-11-08T00:55:00.009+08:00

Note for 3.5 people out there who rd ths blg---STOP

Will be incommunicado for nxt 2 wks ---STOP

In Mldvs 4 much-nded r&r ---STOP

Check in agn in 2wks ---STOP

Chow, HK!! ---STOP

Quantum of Solace Is One Big Mess

2008-11-07T09:35:00.017+08:00

So Jene and I saw QUANTUM OF SOLACE last night at the movie theater in Kowloon Station with the rumbling seats and glorious Shaw Sound (Thank you, Sir Run Run!).

We both loved CASINO ROYALE and became fans of Daniel Craig. So we had a certain level of expectation for the latest 007 film despite having heard that it's not as good.

That assessment turned out to be quite an understatement.

The film was a complete dud. It was more than that. It was an unadulterated mess, the type of movie that gives big-budget mainstream Hollywood movies a bad name.

Hollywood is usually excellent at delivering big-budget action movies that are slick and entertaining. Just look at any BOURNE movie, EAGLE EYE, DIE HARD...

But this one was botched to the point that it had very little redeeming about it. The movie runs about 90 minutes, but it's so clear that it was meant to be much much longer. That longer version must have been so bad that they just hacked it to make it shorter, hoping to minimize the damage.

There's very little that's good about the movie. Not one good sequence. Not one good scene. Even the trademark 007 opening credit sequence with the new Bond song was forgettable. In fact, there were exactly two things I liked about this film(and I am not being facetious here): 1) a CU shot of a lizard in a desert in Bolivia 2) a throwaway line toward the very end of the movie about someone working for "Canadian intelligence", the mere concept of which made me chuckle.

The action scenes (chase scenes) are so poorly crafted that they end up being just confusing. The TIMEOUT HK review makes it sound like this film fails because it has too many high-tech computer-generated special effects action sequences and too few dialogue amongst human scenes, when the truth is the film fails precisely because its action sequences suck. I may seem to be harping on the TIMEOUT review, but to me, those are the absolute laziest film reviews--the argument offered in such phone-it-in paint-by-numbers revies goes like this: This high tech action film is not so good and will not please "traditionalist viewers" because it is all action and does not have enough quiet sentimental human interaction scenes."

The truth is, a major reason that QUANTUM fails and thus disappoints, is precisely that its high tech action stuff doesn't deliver. Its high tech action stuff is subpar. Compare any action sequence in this film to those in CASINO ROYALE, and you'll see the difference between a mess and solid assured execution.

In addition, the villain is weak. The story and dialog are completely lackluster. Don't let the TIMEOUT reviews fool you. This is one of the worst 007 movies ever.

So Jene and I were so disappointed by how poor this film was--the only good thing about this moviegoing experience was that we shelled out the extra bucks to see it in the fancy private screening room with recliners (it was well worth it)--that even though it was late (around midnight) and we were both exhausted, as soon as we came home we watched the opening 20 minutes of CASINO ROYALE on DVD again just to confirm that what we remembered was indeed so.

Martin Campbell, the director of CASINO ROYALE did such a better job. The action sequences are shot and edited so much more crisply and solidly in that film. Script is so much more substantial. That film delivers what it's supposed to, a slick well-crafted action movie that's got real weight.

It's never clear who's at fault or why a film turns out so bad, but the director is always an easy target. I'm not really familiar with Marc Foster, the director of QUANTUM. But I know he directed THE KITE RUNNER, which I thought was okay, despite being a bit clunky in storytelling (I thought it had too many false endings, but that may have been simply to appease the fans of such a well-known book). Anyway, I'm sure Marc Foster is a talented director to even be in the position he is now, but it doesn't show in this film. There certainly were elements in it that belonged in and resembled a good action movie. For instance, the action sequences had fast-pace cutting, cross-cutting etc., but they were confusing and didn't add up to much. I think So Jene summed it up best when she said, "This guy can't make action movies."

Compare the first 20 minutes of CASINO ROYALE, or even the first 3 minutes, or any 3 minutes of that film to its counterpart in QUANTUM, and it's clear that QUANTUM is laughably lacking.

I don't know what the behind-scenes story is, but why wouldn't the people who put up the money for QUANTUM just rehire Martin Campbell after he had done such a stellar job? It's clear they know this film sucks, but are still trying so hard to recoup as much money as possible from it. I've seen Jean Claude Van Damme movies that are better scripted and have better stories.

QUANTUM is going to get very poor word-of-mouth. It leaves the viewer completely dissatisfied. Indeed, it's by far the crummiest big-budget action film we've seen in a long long time. Daniel Craig deserves better than this. The audience deserves better than this. And on top of all that, what the heck does QUANTUM of SOLACE mean exactly?

Two Films That Are Way Way Out There

2008-11-06T15:27:00.010+08:00

This comes in the wake of Barak Obama's victory in the U.S. presidential election yesterday.

I'm still feeling high from that victory. I've seen two films since. Both are films that I've been trying to see for quite a while now.

The first is Nagisa Oshima's DEATH BY HANGING(1968), which has been written up in so many books as epitomizing Japan's New Wave but is a really hard film to get to see. It's virtually impossible to find in the U.S., here in Hong Kong, and even in Japan. I looked for it at various video stores in Tokyo a few months ago to no avail.

I won't get into the logistics of how I finally got to see this film, which I first read about more than 10 years ago, but it was a treat. That said, I can't believe it was ever produced. It's one of the strangest most experimental films I've ever seen. It's divided into 7 sections. For me 2 were gripping and ridiculously intense. The others were too disjointed and anti-cinema for me. These sections were like watching Godard from the 80s and 90s where there's no effort whatsoever to accomodate the viewer.

The film is almost unclassifiable. It starts out like a documentary, then quickly turns into an absurd play. Overall, it is a treatise or interactive inspired dissertation on capital punishment and Japan's historical role and treatment of its underclass. I cannot imagine the film finding any sort of audience in Japan. I don't know the facts, but I'd be willing to bet that it made no money. It is just too intense a film, too experimental, too out-there. Indeed, it's an indictment on Japan and simultaneously a call for real soul-searching but made by a film genius.

It is definitely one of those super obscure intellectual films that you have to be a ridiculous film snob to have seen.

The second film was Kim Ki Duk's debut feature CROCODILE (1996), which was trademark Kim Ki Duk. It was bizarre but strangely compelling and original. Even though it was the first feature film the guy made, there were moments of complete originality. In fact, the film contained two things I've never seen before in my life. One, the main character dives into the river, and while underwater blows and inflates a balloon. I've never seen this before in real life or in a movie. Two, the main character picks up a turtle at the river's edge and paints its shell blue before releasing it back into the river. Again, original.

The film was clunky at times and had big gaps in narrative. Still, it had enough elements and signs of promise. The film was strong visually and told the story with pictures, which to me, is always a sign of a filmmaker using the medium. Most films are well-made and do indeed tell the story with the sound off. Try it sometimes. Park Chan Wook's OLD BOY is great to watch with the sound on mute.

Watching a movie with the sound off is also a good way to focus on the picture and see just how interesting or mundane a film truly is. I tried watching FAILURE TO LAUNCH with the sound off. The director truly took no risks in making that film. There isn't a single original or inspired shot in the picture. Instead, just the usual 'coverage' of conventional shots. They might as well have made that film on auto-pilot. Maybe they did. That film quickly dies without the sound.

The point is, CROCODILE was a treat despite its inadequacies and despite the fact that the copy I managed to get my hands on didn't have the best picture or sound quality. I can't believe anyone produced it. It was a truly bizarre film. It was clearly meant to be a low-budget quickie cheap entertainment, but Kim Ki Duk subverted it and turned it into a surreal and at-times visually stunning personal picture complete with his obsesssions and neuroses.

This guy is a true creative force. In his prolific output and sheer originality, the only person who even comes close in the history of cinema was Rainer Warner Fassbinder. And of course, both were complete originals. Not every film of both filmmakers was impressive. They each had some duds, but overall, they made more interesting and original films in a short period of manic productivity than some studios do in a lifetime.

By the way, tonight we will go see QUANTUM OF SOLACE. I can't say I'm a huge James Bond fan though I've seen my share of 007 films, but I thoroughly enjoyed the last one. So Jene loved that film. Hope this one is just as much fun.

The U.S. is Back on Track!! I Am In Tears!!!

2008-11-05T10:33:00.019+08:00

**UPDATE: It's 12:05PM Wednesday, Hong Kong time. ABCNews has just announced that it projects Obama to win California and Washington, and hence announced that he is the 44th President of the U.S.***

With that announcement, I was overcome with emotions. I am literally in tears. And I'm drinking a celebratory shot of my favorite Cuban rum. I am so proud of my country and the people there. This is one of the most amazing things I've experienced in my lifetime. I am so happy.

Anyway, here's the rest of my post that I wrote a few hours ago when it seemed evident that Obama's victory was only a matter of time.

-------------------------------------------------

It's hard to not be cynical about things as you get older. I was so upset 8 years ago with the whole recount fiasco in Florida and so disappointed and disgusted 4 years ago.

But today is completely different. I'm so proud to be an American and so happy that other Americans voted for the best candidate.

That said, for most of my life I honestly didn't believe that I'd live long enough to see a black President. I believed it would happen eventually but much later.

I've never been so happy to be wrong!!!!

Barack Obama is truly special. I wish I were there to celebrate with everyone. It's such a relief.

If you haven't lived in the U.S. and seen some of the awful things that have gone on in the inner cities there, it's hard to truly appreciate the magnitude of today's election.

A black president!!!

This is a validation that even though the U.S. is an experiment that doesn't always work, when it does work and does live up to its professed ideals, Americans have a common sense that transcends those shackles of tradition that hold so many other countries back.

Despite its many problems, the U.S. is still the most integrated, most diverse place on earth. People of so many colors and backgrounds rub shoulders together each and every day. And I'm not talking about just in so-called 'elite' cities like NY and San Francisco and L.A.

You travel around down South and in small towns, and you see that even in the most rinkydink towns in the middle of nowhere, you'll see different people interacting as part of daily life.

It's like the old saying: You can tell what a person's about by what he or she does, not what he or she says.

In the U.S., we live together despite our differences, despite the discomfort of being forced to deal with difference. It's not perfect and lots of people may lament this reality, but you can't argue against demographics. The country is diverse. And it'll only get more so and hence, better, in the future.

Academics and pundits and other experts can go on arguing about policy and ideology in their on-going culture wars, but in the streets and in the schools and in real life, people, rich or poor, are forced to deal with difference. In fact, it might be the case that poor people are forced to be more frank about race and have more interactions with people of other races than the rich, but that's another can of beans...

Anyway, as great and egalitarian a society as the ones that have been built in Japan and in Scandinavian countries, which I respect them so much for doing, theirs will never be truly exciting and dynamic as in the U.S. because of this diversity.

Diversity is the true legacy of the U.S. and what makes it the most special place on earth.

We're finally back on track!!! Thank you!!

***This is a little off-topic, but the local coverage on Pearl TV is so shabby, it's almost funny. Why do they even bother? Just send us the abcNews feed already.

It's like the 'stellar' English-language coverage of the Olympics that Pearl TV provided in which the broadcasters' utter and unbelievable lack of expertise or even basic knowledge of the sport they were covering was to the point that it was embarrassing. It's times like that that HK seems to be a small and parochial backwater and not the World Asia City that whoever is doing the PR campaign keeps claiming it to be.

Most Infuriating 'How I Became a Film Director' Story in History

2008-11-04T12:33:00.012+08:00

I, like most other people, fell in love with movies as a child by watching movies simply as a consumer enjoying entertainment. I cherished the whole popcorn and soda experience and watched anything and everything. It wasn't until I was about 19 or 20 that I was exposed to truly great movies and became more serious about this magnificent medium.

Since then, I've been fascinated with how people get their foot in the door and the circumstances under which they got to make their first feature film. I made a terrible first feature film when I was 24 called FREE COUNTRY that was lackluster on all fronts. I wrote the screenplay myself and financed it by scrounging money from my student loans. Maybe not a great move if you're a sensible person with more practical concerns, but that's a different can of beans...

Whatever the case, I must have read hundreds of books over the years about different filmmakers from the most revered to the most crass to glean how they got their first films made.

In most cases, filmmakers have had to use their own money. This was the case for Godard, who used an inheritance to make his first film. In a few cases, they are able to supplement their own money with other people's money, which was the case for the Coen Brothers and Sam Raimi.

Of course, in those places where there is less emphasis on entrepreneurship and where the state controls the film industry, a small number of filmmakers catch a break while at the national film school and the state finances their first film. This was the case for Roman Polanski, Zhang Yi Mou, and Andrei Tarkovsky...

The point it, no matter who paid for the first film, most aspiring filmmakers find it incredibly difficult to get a break and it is through extreme struggle and luck that they get a chance to helm their first picture after having desperately wanted to make a feature film for a long long time.

Given this state of affairs, I learned something so very infuriating this week in a book on IM Kwon-taek. For those of you who may not know 'IM (sorry, couldn't resist), he is an old-school film director who has also come to be regarded in some circles as the elder statesman and face of Korean cinema. His most well-known films outside South Korea are SOPYONJAE, a period film about a family of itinerant beggar singers; THE GENERAL'S SON series, about a patriotic Korean gangster who fights Japanese gangsters during the 1930s when Korea was colonized by Japan; and CHIHWASEON, a period film about an extremely talented painter who was also a maverick, a drunk, and a womanizer.

Through these films he has won critical acclaim both in South Korea and in Europe. And it is through these films, which are quite impressive, that I first learned about this director, who is in his 70s now and still working in South Korea. But it turns out this is just the tip of the iceburg. The guy has directed 100 feature films since making his feature debut in 1962. During the first half of his career, he was considered something of a hack, who robotically and rather haphazardly cranked out genre pictures as was the industry practice then. He only gained his current reputation in the past 20 years.

Be that as it may, the guy's place as the representative figure of a national cinema--whether such a thing even exists or whether the reputation is deserved is a separate issue-- is similar to AKIRA KUROSAWA's in Japan.

Here is a link to the wikipedia entry on IM Kwon-taek:

Now, here is the zinger. It turns out that the guy's becoming a film director was a complete accident. The guy didn't love movies. He didn't even watch many movies. He didn't try for years to become a film director.

So how did it happen?

During the Korean War (1950-53), he found himself an 18-year-old refugee separated from his family in the southern port city of Busan. To survive, he worked for a time as a day laborer, but quickly found out the work was just too strenuous. So, he got a job working at a shoe store, which some enterprising person had set up to sell U.S. Army issued boots in the blackmarket.

Near the end of the war, the owners of the shoe store went to Seoul, the capital, and left him in charge of the Busan store. He managed that business for another 6 months on his own. At that point, the owners told him to close up shop and come to Seoul. They wanted him to help out in their new business venture, a fledgling movie production company.

Thus began his entry into the film industry. He started out in the props department and began doing all sorts of tasks to help the fledgling movie production company, until he eventually became a film director with his first feature FAREWELL TO TUMAN RIVER (1962 B&W), whose print has since been lost.

To put it simply, IM Kwon-taek became a film director because he worked at a shoe store.

The closest to this story that I can think of is AKIRA KUROSAWA's, who as a floundering high-school graduate who had failed to get into a Japanese university, became an assistant director by answering a newspaper ad and then somehow passing the Japanese film studio's (I think it was TOHO) lengthy interview and examination process.

But even in that case, Kurosawa had already been enamored with films from having seen numerous Russian and European classics under the influence of his older brother and had harbored an ambition to make films.

With IM Kwon-taek, there was no such exposure or ambition. Initially, his working in films was akin to his working on an assembly line at some factory.

Maybe his example is what some people might call FATE or DESTINY?

Whatever the case, it must be so strange for him to see the current brouhaha about filmmaking and just how competitive and popular the film industry has become and that there are even film schools where people pay large sums of money to go to study the craft.

Amazing!!!

OASIS by Lee, Chang Dong

2008-11-03T13:28:00.007+08:00

I just read a book on the Korean director Lee, Chang Dong, which I got from the main branch of the HK public library over the weekend.

Lee, Chang Dong has made four feature films in the past 12 years. All four films were serious movies and well-received.

Prior, he was a novelist with two books and no ties whatsoever to the film industry. I have read none of his novels but have seen all four of his films. They are all pretty amazing.

That said, I learned from the book that the guy's father was a leftist intellectual who was blacklisted and persecuted in Korean society of the 1970s and 1980s. This left its mark on Lee, Chang Dong.

From reading the book, I got the impression that this director is one serious person and a real intellectual. Most film directors are not. It is a hands-on medium after all.

Still, the guy's strength as a writer is evident in all four of his films: GREEN FISH, PEPPERMINT CANDY, OASIS, and SECRET SUNSHINE. He wrote the screenplays for all four films. All are complete original works except for SECRET SUNSHINE, which is based on another author's short story. All have tight storytelling structure and form and content are excellently-crafted.

Today, I saw OASIS again. The acting is superb, but the screenplay is even better. Lee, Chang Dong is the master of the subtle exposing of hypocrisy. The film slams middle class aspirations that most people in Korean society have by focusing on two outsiders, a fuck-up ex-convict and a woman suffering from cerebal palsy. This description doesn't do the movie justice. The film is no RAIN MAN or MY LEFT FOOT. It doesn't look for redemption in some vindication of the human-spirit type of story. It's far more desperate and disturbing than that.

My favorite contemporary filmmaker is Kim, Ki Duk. But this guy, Lee, Chang Dong, is intense like Kim, Ki Duk, but only much more cerebral and cautious. The film plays like there was nothing at all left to chance. Every frame seems to have been crafted. This guy must be such a perfectionist.

I was also impressed that in the book, which contained interviews, Lee, Chang Dong repeatedly mentioned Kim, Ki Duk as a terrific filmmaker from Korea. Kudos to the guy for giving credit where credit is due.

These films aren't for everyone, especially if you haven't seen many films. It's like reading, the more you read the better a reader you become. Same thing with films, the more you watch films, the better you become at appreciating them. Of course, this is only relevant to people who have a serious respect for movies. For most people, movies are just a time filler.

Regardless, OASIS is definitely a winner. A haunting film like no other that will stay with you for a long time. The closest European equivalent is FASSBINDER, but Lee, Chang Dong's films are more carefully crafted with less theatrical cavalier quality.

OLD JOY by Kelly Reichardt

2008-11-03T13:15:00.004+08:00

I saw this film again on DVD as it is one of the 400+ DVDs that we brought with us to Hong Kong.

It is a short feature (about 70min), but beautifully shot. There's not much story or dialog. If you take away some sequences that are just scenery of Oregon woods, the film would be about 55 minutes.

I wanted to see this initially a couple of years ago after learning that it was based on a short story by Jonathan Raymond, who graduated with me from Swarthmore College.

Jonathan Raymond was one of these guys at Swat who was really serious and very smart. I'm actually a little surprised that he is now a writer. I always sort of pegged him to become an English prof.

Anyway, he has a novel called THE HALF-LIFE. He also did the screenplay for OLD JOY.

The film is a roadtrip/camping trip of two men who were old friends but have grown apart. One is a bohemian drifter. The other one is married and is expecting a child. The drifter guy comes to town and the two men go into the woods to camp out and spend some time together.

The story doesn't have classical dramatic structure. There's no conflict. Seeing it a second time, the film wouldn't work at all if it weren't for its visually stunning cinematography and the nuanced acting.

The whole movie is two guys sitting in the car, sitting by a campfire, talking about random stuff that are linked together by thinnest shared motif of having to grow up and longing for the past in a world that seems to pass by so quickly.

The film supposedly cost $30,000 U.S. to shoot. In the hands of another director, the film might have tanked without seeing the light of day. It benefits from gorgeous cinematography. I don't know the technical details eg. what cameras they shot on etc, but some scenes look lik they were shot on 35mm film. Sound is excellent, and some scenes are intense.

Overall, I checked it out to see what Jon Raymond contributed to the film. The guy knows Portland and Oregon. He was from there. I hear he now lives in Brooklyn.

Anyway, this is a contemplative small film that requires active viewing.

Kudos to a fellow Swattie for keeping it real. Where the hell are you Jon Raymond?

THE WIRE, or Not Reading Dostoevsky

2008-11-02T10:04:00.017+08:00

I feel like such a loser for finally catching THE WIRE only 5+ years after it premiered.

Again, credit goes to Philippe, who gave me a DVD of all 13 episodes of season 1. He's been telling me to see this show for a couple of years now. So have other people. And there have been those great reviews. I remember a few in particular on NPR, describing it as the best thing on TV and simply sublime.

After seeing all 13 episodes in one day (I couldn't put it down--that's almost 13 hours of DVD watching), I have to agree. It lives up to the hype and more.

I don't know about the other seasons because I have yet to see them (now I will have to get them somehow), but season 1 was epic. It felt like I was watching or reading some epic Russian novel--something heavy and serious.

It's the only show I've ever seen where cops seem real and haven't been glorified like crazy and ditto for the drug hustle in the projects. It was brilliant. Each episode, each scene was so well acted and, most importantly, so well written.

The episodes have different guest directors, but the influence of the writer is so strong, that there isn't much stylistic difference among the 13 episodes in terms of visual content.

And to the writer's credit, there is very 'little showing off' to draw attention to his obvious brilliance. Though what little showing off there is is enough to put a smile on your face.

What do I mean by the writer 'showing off'?

The best example is the scene when McNulty and Bunk go out to examine the now-empty apartment in which a young woman was killed 6 months earlier. Working from a thin file, which contains another homicide detective's shabby write-up of the same scene and a half dozen photos of the victim, McNulty and Bunk, being more thorough, observant, and better cops, figure out the angle of the bullet's trajectory and manage to find a bullet that had been lodged hidden inside the refrigerator for 6 months. They do this while a third man, the super, who has let them into the vacant apartment, is standing there watching them and being treated to a show of two really skilled cops at work.

Of course, my clunky description of the scene doesn't do it justice. Because besides serving the utilitarian function of exposition, the 5-minute scene, which might have been a part of any police procedural, is elevated to art by being played out in such a way that the progressive little discoveries that the two detectives make in piecing together what really happened in that apartment is conveyed by one detective to the other with multiple exclamations of "fuck" by McNulty and "motherfucker" by Bunk.

In other words, the only dialog in this 5-minute scene, is 15-20 "fuck"s and "motherfucker"s.

Basically, te two actors play the entire scene with the imposed limitation that each convey all the exposition by uttering only one expletive. Usually on TV shows, the same scene would have been loaded down by clunky exposition dialog of the "From the angle in the photo, the bullet must have come through the window and entered her neck and come out her back. Hey, wait a minute. Do you think it's possible that she might have had the fridge open? I'm not sure, let's take a look..."

The characters in this ensemble piece are terrific and have complex internal lives. The show is frank about homosexuality, alcohol abuse, snitching, fuck-up cops, corruption, and a dozen other things. In other words, it is true about life, without being completely pessimistic or cynical.

I know that my description of season 1 is rather vague and rambling. I'm writing this on Sunday morning after having spent all of Saturday watching the show.

One more thing. The show seemed to switch protagonists half way through the season. It starts out being about Jimmy McNulty, a white detective with a maverick streak, but then at some point in the 2nd half of the season, becomes about Lieutenant Cedric Daniels. Indeed, Lieutenant Daniels has the biggest character arc and changes the most due to the events of the story. I've never seen the actor who plays him on other TV shows or in movies. I'm guessing he must be a theater vet. The guy was amazing. His delivery of lines is so utterly unique.

Overall, watching THE WIRE was like reading CRIME AND PUNISHMENT, but without the reading.

I'd read Richard Price's CLOCKERS way back in the early 1990s when it came out. That tome was about a stuttering low-level drug crew manager in a housing project in Newark. It was a good read, if ultimately not as gripping as some other books about the drug hustle in the ghetto. Still, it was ambitious, but became a rather bad movie by Spike Lee, who is one of my favorite directors.

Compared to CLOCKERS, or other dramas set in the hood, THE WIRE shines even that much more brilliantly. I normally don't even like cop shows. I think they nearly always lie about how noble, smart, and hard-working cops are. THE WIRE is different.

If you haven't yet seen this show, you have to check it out. Don't take my word for it. Trust the next President of the United States.

According to Wikipedia, THE WIRE is Barack Obama's favorite TV show.

Rice and the Trailing Male

2008-10-31T13:07:00.012+08:00

I spent yesterday afternoon with Phillipe walking around Mui Wo and eating some good squid. I am so happy and grateful to be able to see him here in Hong Kong.

During our long walk and talk, he mentioned that there is a label for the existence that I've found myself in.

What is that label?

TRAILING MALE

I was a little surprised that there was a name like this, but also a little pleased at how clever the description was in describing my and other people's situation.

The fact is, I am in Hong Kong because my wife's career has brought us here. My VISA clearly states this reality.

But, this hasn't affected my life in quite the same way that it may have other men's.

Why?

My career was already quite non-traditional to begin with, and hence, it hasn't been derailed or disrupted in the same way that it might have been had I had a more traditional suit job.

And aside from the fact that I miss some aspects of my life back in NY, I think I've adjusted rather well to life here and to my existence as a 'trailing male.'

I'm managing to earn a few bucks doing Korean-to-English translations, am writing my third novel, and have begun making short films and keeping this blog. In addition, I've managed to learn enough Cantonese to get by and carry on simple conversations with Cantonese people who speak little or no English.

That said, do I feel lonely and isolated sometimes?

Absolutely.

Do I feel completely emasculated?

Not really.

The truth is I really don't think it's as big a deal as some other people do.

Of course, there are plenty of people out there who do think it is quite quite a big deal.

For instance, last Sunday, I went to JUSCO and bought three bags of Japanese rice before heading to my Cantonese class, which is in Wanchai and subsidized by the HK government. The class is actually quite terrific with an amazing instructor and about 500% better than the Cantonese class I took at the Tsim Sha Tsoy YMCA, which was a complete waste of time with an instructor who was excellent only at being inept.

Anyway, I was a little late to the class, and hence, ended up making an entrance, lugging the bags of rice, in front of the 25 or so other students.

The instructor saw my entrance and made a comment about how HK society had changed so much in recent years and the status of men had depreciated so much that men were now reduced to shopping for rice and lugging it home for their wives and families.

It was a semi-humorous and completely innocuous comment, especially given the fact that the class is usually conducted in a very casual, fun atmosphere with jokes exchanged in good spirit.

But then, during the rest of the class (breaks and the end of class), about half a dozen of my classmates (mostly Indians and a few Filipinos) went out of their way to tell me what a good husband I was for buying rice for my wife and how rare this was. Basically, they made such a big fuss that I couldn't help but become a little startled.

My buying rice seemed to be something completely foreign to them, when to me, I had simply bought the rice because it was convenient to do so then. I'd simply consolidated my going to class with doing an errand.

Anyway, I used to do grocery shopping all the time back in the U.S. without anyone making a big deal out of it. And here in HK, I do most of the grocery shopping and the cooking and cleaning for my wife and myself. I work from home, so I try to keep the place clean. It's just not that big a deal for me.

The point is, this business with the rice brought home two things:

1) As modern as HK and other parts of ASIA seem to be at times, the grip of tradition still lingers strong, especially when it comes to conventional gender roles. Call me naive, but the U.S. seems much more progressive on this front.

2) You can't let other people dictate how you live. That only makes people miserable.

That's my three cents for today.

Having said that, I do truly hope and pray that those 3.5 people out there who read this blog do not start to think less of me for being a.....

...trailing male.

Newspapers and Your Sense of Self

2008-10-30T11:23:00.008+08:00

Last night, we went out to dinner with Philippe, his wife, and another couple from NY.

A great dinner and a great night.

At some point, we got to talking about the LIRR and how the workers there abused the system to win disability pensions. It had been written up in a big spread in the NY TIMES a few weeks ago.

That got me thinking about newspapers.

In the almost one year we've been here, I've continued to read the TIMES as my primary newspaper. There are many reasons for this.

It's a good paper. It's easy to read on-line (no fee), and it makes me feel tethered to what's happening in NY.

I usually read the TIMES in this order: NY LOCAL News, National News, International Asia News, Opinions, Business, Sports, and Real Estate. I am most interested in NY news.

I haven't yet found myself regularly reading a HK newspaper. I've found them to be less informative and less interesting. This is especially true of the free papers they hand out on the street.

But, I'm sure this may change in the future.

I wonder what the experiences of other expats are like in regards to newspaper reading.

Do you still continue to read the paper from the U.S., Australia, England...?

Or have you switched your primary newspaper to a HK one? If so, when did this happen for you?

Anyway, this is my random musing for the day.

By the way, the most important item in today's NYTIMES is that the Phillies have won the World Series!!!!

My first allegiance is to the Mets, having grown up near that stadium, but So Jene is a life-long Phillies fan. On top of that, we both went to school just outside Philadelphia.

I am so happy for the Phillies and the great city of Philadelphia!!! What great news in this time of gloom and doom!!!

Go Phillies!!!!

Which is harder, writing a novel or making a film?

2008-10-29T08:55:00.016+08:00

My friend Philippe, who is a huge Satyajit Ray fan and is one of seven people who has actually seen the Calcutta trilogy in addition to the Apu trilogy, is in town with his wife Amanda. I met up with him yesterday and had a long talk about various things while walking around Tsim Sha Tsoy and Jordan.

At one point, he asked me, Which was harder, writing a novel or making a film?

It got me thinking...

Here is a long-winded response.

As a novelist, I guess I would be called a mid-career writer on grant applications and such due to my age, the fact that I have accomplished a few things despite how shabby these things all look to me when I get down on myself every now and then. Still, whatever the case, no matter how obscure and seemingly insignificant, the fact is I am the author of two serious novels that have won me a modicum of recognition, no matter how brief and fleeting. And as comical as my royalty checks are at times, I know that there are lots of would-be aspiring novelists out there working away on their babies who would die to get their first book published.

As a filmmaker, I have far fewer credentials. Sure I made an indie 16mm feature film back in the 1990s straight out of NYU, but that feature went nowhere and was lackluster on many fronts. Since then, I've made a couple of short films that are about 20min. long. I've written a couple of screenplays, managed to sell one for a little bit of money (it never got produced). Now, I'm in Hong Kong and I've begun making very short art films (1 min. long), which I post on this blog and on youtube.

For all intensive purposes, my claim to the title filmmaker seems tenuous at best. Still, as annoying and insignificant as making little films and posting them on youtube may seem, I do it because: a) it keeps me in practice (framing shots, shooting, editing etc.); b) These little films do get seen by a handful of people; c) It's immediate. I can shoot, edit, and post the films without having to first gain the permission of some board of self-important censors to give me their approval.

Writing is different. Unless you're writing in a journal for your eyes only (which this blog sort of is), writing entails jumping through a lot of hoops. There was a time when I was a lot more eager about accepting how things were done to make it as a writer. I was more in love with the idea of writing and being a writer in general back then. So I wrote short stories, submitted them to numerous literary journals, wrote to agents, and amassed a pile of rejection letters before a confluence of little miracles got my first novel BOY GENIUS published by an edgy small press in NY.

But boy did I get sick of all those little hoops you had to jump through. Waiting for someone else's permission gets real old real quick.

And sure, with feature films, you have to go through similar things with finding distributors and 'winning their permission', but it's different with a film.

Even the worst film ever made that doesn't win distribution and simply peters out, offers pleasant things: camaraderie with cast and crew, funny anecdotes, and some cool memories.

A failed novel is a totally different animal.

There's nothing as shabby and unpleasant as a failed novel, aka, an unpublished manuscript. All you have is a bunch of pages that's not a real book and the only memories from it is of a schmuck and a typewriter.

Just ask anyone who's tried to write a novel and is now stuck with an unpublished manuscript. It's ugly.

Anyway, that's my three cents. Writing vs. Filmmaking.

The winner is Mothra.

Not Applepicking in Hong Kong

2008-10-27T15:14:00.015+08:00

Sorry about the "Not... in Hong Kong" title.

I just couldn't resist.

Anyway, here is a short film that I edited over the weekend using footage I shot of my parents some years ago. I had the footage on Hi8, paid to have it transferred to a DVD that my computer, it turns out couldn't read. Had to search the web for a program to convert that DVD to a format that my computer could read (hence the strange white line across the screen.)

I shot it originally on a PXL-2000, aka Pixelvision, which is a toy video camera that Fisher Price made back in the 1980s. I think the original retail price in the U.S. was $99 and it used audio cassettes to record video and audio.

That camera has since spurred its own filmmaking aesthetic, in which filmmakers use it to make an anti-slick, anti-corporate statement. I think a guy even shot a feature on it, but I'm not sure about the distribution.

Filmmakers have described shooting in Pixelvision as akin to sketching while shooting with film or higher resolution video as drawing or painting.

I wasn't really making a statement or sketching. I was just curious about what Pixelvision was all about and managed to borrow the camera for a weekend from Doug Ing, an indie filmmaker who was doing a MFA at the time at City College.

It does produce an image (b&w and very low resolution) that's like nothing else.

Anyway, October makes me think more and more about my parents, as we did go applepicking with them every October. I'm not even a big fan of apples, but the apples sure were good right off the tree.

Picking apples also reminds me of the Andrei Tarkovsky film IVAN'S CHILDHOOD, in which there's a haunting scene involving apples.

Anyway, enjoy and please leave comments if you have any. I enjoy reading them.

Not Playing Ball in Hong Kong

2008-10-26T08:05:00.004+08:00

If I'm being honest with myself, the truth is that a part of the reason that I've begun this blog is that since I sprained my ankle about 3 months ago, I haven't been able to play basketball.

This is the worst sprain I've ever had in the 25+ years that I've played basketball and I've had my fair share of ankle sprains over the years. At first, it was so bad that I actually went to the hospital to have the thing x-rayed, thinking the bone had to have been broken.

Two x-rays later, the doctor at St. Paul's Hospital expressed his surprise that no bone was broken and told me to go home and rest, ice, compress, and elevate.

I've done that. It's now 3 months later, but the damn thing is still a bit swollen and I've lost range of motion on it. (Damage to tendons, muscles, ligaments what have you) So Jene has been freaked out by my getting hurt so bad and has been telling me take it easy as I am not so young any more. But I've seen guys who kept playing well into their 60s. Go to Riverside Park on West 72nd St any Sunday morning)

I tried playing again about 3 weeks ago. It felt weak. And afterwards, it swelled up ridiculously.

Basically, the whole experience has gotten me a little down and much less cavalier about playing ball.

Prior to my injury, I was having a blast playing pick-up ball in Hong Kong even though the style of play here doesn't suit me at all and the general level of play is subpar to any city in the U.S. No one drives to the hoop. There's very little one-on-one moves. People play a very soft style and are more than willing to call phantom "touch" fouls that kids used to call in 2nd grade. To a lot of HK people, any contact is a foul.

I'm used to playing people who are a lot bigger and stronger than me back in the U.S. as that's whom I played with all my life. Here, I'm not always the shortest guy on the court, but I am nearly always the most aggressive and sometimes the only guy who'll take my guy off the dribble to the hoop. I rarely ever call fouls except when guys grab my arm with both hands and yank me down to keep me from shooting. Anything else, I figure is all fair and just part of the game. After all, a typical pick-up game has a lot of grown-men running about in a pretty small space. There's going to be some contact.

I remember the first couple of times I played with a group of oldtimers at Wah Fu Estate who run a Sunday morning game, they couldn't figure me out. I look Chinese, after all, but my style of b-ball was so different from theirs. They tended to pass the ball around the perimeter endlessly before launching some set shot. It sort of felt like playing with weird old Jewish guys who'd show up sometime at random playgrounds back in NYC, only the Jewish guys had more flair and would run backdoor cuts and throw behind-the-back passes.

Mind you, I've played ball all my life and surprise a lot of people who mistakenly peg me for a chump, but as far as being good, I peaked as a high school varsity player. Why? I'm small but slow, and I can't jump at all.

Still, there are times her in Hong Kong where I feel like I'm Godzilla. Maybe it's 'cuz I weigh more than the average Hong Kong man, but it's a trip outmuscling people for rebounds.

I was talking to a Filipino guy in my Cantonese class about the HK style of play. Talk about love for basketball, if a Filipino doesn't play ball, then he is not a true pinoy. (Back when I was in junior high, I used to play ball with a group of older Filipino guys back in NYC.) This guy basically summed it up and said, "The HK Chinese do play ball. Some play a lot and are even good. But they do not have any style."

I have to say that I have to agree with him. Very little style. Most people play as if they learned how to play from some gym teacher in PE class at school. The style is also very passive. This has tended to confuse non-HK people who do not play ball when I tell them this. Their view tends to be that HK people are rude, pushy, and aggressive, and are very surprised to learn that this doesn't carry over to basketball arena. Do I have an explanation for this?

Absolutely not.

Anyway, I pitched writing a story about the pick-up ball culture in Hong Kong to TIMEOUT HK, thinking it might make interesting reading.

They passed.

I still believe basketball may be the premiere sport here. Sure there is rugby and football and badminton, but in terms of sheer numbers, basketball is one of the few sports that HK people actually play. Just go to Wanchai, North Point, Victoria Park, or parks in Mongkok. They even have courts in Peng Chau, for crying out loud.

Whatever the case, playing ball here has been a lot of fun, and it was one of the few chances to get unmediated unstructured genuine interaction with local HK people. I've found HK people to be in general very distrusting of outsiders. Their guard goes up very quick. This was not so playing ball. I got to be a regular at a regular game in Wah Fu Estate on Sunday mornings. This was a great feeling.

Anyway, no basketball for at least another month. I want to rest it until at least after our big trip in November. Anyone know of a good court to check out? I know there's a full court in a cage in Hang Hau or Tsung Kwan O that I walked past and saw locals playing. It was behind LARDO'S.

Anyone ever play there?

Not Driving for Free in Hong Kong

2008-10-25T08:30:00.005+08:00

This is along the same lines of the sentiment expressed in the HONG KONG LAUNDRY video.

I know lots of people still have cars here despite how tiny the place is, but we do not have a car. I know if we really wanted to, I could alway go and buy a used car, but there really is no use for it. And I know that not driving is better for the environment, but I still can't help it. A part of me really misses driving.

Believe it or not, even though we lived in NYC, we used our car a lot and depended on it to get around. I had a reverse commute that would have taken 1.5 hours each way on public transportation but was 30 minutes by car. And on wknds, we'd drive to Philly or to see my folks in upstate NY. Sure we could have taken public transportation but that would have turned a 2 hour trip to 5 hours (door-to-door) and a 1.5 hour trip to 3 hours (door-to-door).

Here, our trips within HK are usually at most a little over an hour. There just aren't that many places to go. And there's no real possibility of doing a long-haul road trip like the ones So Jene and I used to do back in the U.S. (NY to Key West, NY to Savannah, CA to NY).

Anyway, I'm not a gearhead, and I'm not even that into cars (new flashy cars that you see so many well-to-do HK people in), but I do miss driving, especially in our last car, a 1984 Mercedes 300D, a diesel car that I personally rigged (by changing the plumbing and installing a second fuel tank in the trunk (a converted ice box)) to run on recycled vegetable oil that I used to go pick up from the CROWN FRIED CHICKEN establishment at the corner.

Yes, folks! I was one of those people who ran their cars on recycled vegetable oil. It's a lot of work, and it's cumbersome, but it works. I drove that Mercedes on vegetable oil for around 7000 miles and then sold it right before we moved. So Jene used to hate how the exhaust would smell like fried food and did not at all appreciate how I had to keep a large barrel of recycled vegetable oil in the corner of our kitchen--what can I say? She's put up with a lot and is a saint. But she did like the leather seats, which were in good condition considering how old the car was.

That said, people who do the vegetable oil conversion on old diesel Mercedes usually tend to live out in the burbs or way out in the country. I was one of only a dozen or so nutjobs who insisted on doing it in NYC of all places. Still, it was a blast, knowing that I was beating the oil companies and driving for free on my own effort--I also got to meet some cool guys who worked at the fried chicken place. (They couldn't believe the car would run on the old fry oil!!)

The entire conversion cost me around $250 U.S. in parts and lots of my own labor. They sell kits for around $1000, U.S. but I managed to do fine without the kit. I didn't get the kit because it was more expensive than the car.

I looked into doing something similar here in Hong Kong. The tropical climate here would make it very easy to run diesel cars on vegetable oil as the main difficulty of doing so is cold weather. And I always see tons of those metal cubes of used vegetable oil piled up in backs of HK restaurants.

But sadly, there are no diesel private cars here for whatever reason. Does anyone know??

Anyway, the photos here are of that car--I wish I had better photos but I took them only to post ads when I needed to sell.

The car was an old jalopy that looked good only from about 50 feet away. I bought it from this old guy up in Scarsdale for $850 specifically to convert it to run on vegetable oil. The Mercedes Benz symbol hood ornament was so old that the inside had fallen off and was just a hoop. I hope this car is still on the road and still running strong on recycled vegetable oil.

My one regret with this car is that I didn't get to put it in a movie. I should have. It was interesting. And I got to meet many cool people while collecting recycled vegetable oil from fried chicken establishments, but that's another story...

Our Experience in HK so far (just short of a year)

2008-10-24T19:41:00.005+08:00

Here's a quick recap of our adventure in ASIA so far for the year 2008 for those who're checking this out from the U.S. and elsewhere.

I post this because these are events that took place prior to the start of this blog. We'll try to make it quick.

HAPPY NEW YEAR in Hong Kong! We got to HK just before the new year. I think this was New Year's Eve in Central, near the ferry pier.

This is So Jene inside the royal palace in Bangkok. We were there only for a weekend, but saw some sites and ate really well.

Here is another photo of Bangkok. You do see a lot of military guys in Bangkok, guarding stuff.

**We now take time out to give you a virtual Thai greeting with our hands clasped in front of our chests and bowing slightly (the angle depends on the power dynamic between the greeters.)**

This is us in Tokyo, at an exhibit inside the Edo Museum. Our rickshaw puller is our friend Akiko, who was so incredibly sweet and made our trip especially memorable.

The above is footage of tuna at Tsukiji Fish Market.

We don't have pictures, and you'll have to take our word for it, but she took us to the famous sushi place next to Tsukiji Fish Market. While we were eating sushi, the best we've ever had, in comes Bobby Valentine, former manager of the NY Mets. It turns out he's like a regular there and speaks pretty good Japanese. Go METS!!!

This is me in Phu Quoc, Vietnam, riding around like the locals on a moped on dirt roads. The locals usually ride two adults, one kid, plus cargo on one of these.

Here is also footage of Saigon and the mopeds that cover the streets there. You have to see it to believe it.

In addition, we saw Sydney, Singapore, South Korea, and Macau. The strange thing is, as close as we are to China, we have not yet gone. It was the hassle of getting a China Visa w/ the Olympic brouhaha and all that. We'll get to it, though, probably early 2009.

That's about it for now. Hong Kong is a great base to travel to the rest of Asia!!

Kim Ki Duk's DREAM at Hong Kong Asian Film Festival

2008-10-24T07:53:00.003+08:00

Like I wrote on my last post, last night So Jene and I schlepped out to Kowloon Tong AMC in Festival Walk mall to see Kim Ki Duk's DREAM, which was being screened (one-screening only) as part of the Hong Kong Asian Film Festival.

We, especially I, had very high expectations since the guy's been remarkably consistent in making truly unique films. I love COAST GUARD, BIRD CAGE, and BAD GUY. I also believe that this guy is the most-talented, most-original, filmmaker of my generation. (That is correct: He is the best most-original living filmmaker I have seen in the 30+ years that I've been watching films.)

But, it turns out the guy is only human, and this movie was less than stellar.

Here are some tidbits: The main character speaks only Japanese, but all the other Korean characters can miraculously understand him. He talks to them in Japanese. They answer back in Korean. And nothing, not even one piece of dialog, is used to explain or address this.

But this is just a minor quibble in the overall plausibility benchmark.

Granted that Kim Ki Duk movies aren't usually known for being very plausible and we knew going in not to expect a mainstream narrative, but this movie was just too much. Too much so that it prevented the development of real empathy.

So Jene termed it aptly by saying she couldn't empathize at all with the characters because the things they were doing were outright stupid.

Stupid in what way?

For instance, the main character is put in a situation where he must not sleep. So what does he do? Normal people would drink coffee. This guy starts to stab himself in the head and pound his foot with a hammer.

I actually don't think Kim Ki Duk is one of those gratuitous gore-type directors like Miike, who do gore for fore's sake.

Kim Ki Duk's 14 other movies are magnificent, equally disturbing and sublime, and even more impressive because he wrote and directed every single one of them.

I know the next Kim Ki Duk film will be amazing.

On the whole, a rather disppointing night. Still, while watching the film--the audience was mostly HK Chinese (I'd been wondering what sort of fanbase the guy has here in HK; in South Korea, his movies don't play at all)--there were scenes that really inspired me. I started thinking, I could do this. I've shot scenes like this. All it takes is two actors and a 35mm camera.

Cut to the chase, I began thinking I could make a 35mm feature film. All I need to do is write a script that has very little dialogue. That way it can be shot with novice actors with a 35mm cameral.

Sure it'll cost some money (I figure it can be done for 50-60 thousand dollars), but what the hell am I waiting for? Even a bad movie can get some light of day, and can lead to the next film.

You have to have something to show for yourself.

Hong Kong Laundry (Short Film)

2008-10-24T00:11:00.002+08:00

I've made it four for four this week by posting a youtube movie for four consecutive days.

Granted only two were films shot here in Hong Kong, but still, I feel very good about myself.

Here is the latest film called HONG KONG LAUNDRY. It is a 1-minute haiku about... Hong Kong laundry.

Enjoy!

As for the Kim Ki Duk film, I'll write more about it tomorrow.

SOMEBODY'S OLD CHEESE

2008-10-23T12:12:00.003+08:00

I forgot that I never posted SOMEBODY'S OLD CHEESE on this blog. It's an 8-minute film that prompted the response video from Jonny Stranger.

Its genesis was a trip I took to Austin, TX two summers ago. I went to visit Jonny Stranger and to make a film with him there based on one of my old plays.

That film never came through in the week I spent there. Still, Jonny and I took turns interviewing each other and thus came SOMEBODY'S OLD CHEESE.

By the way, the woman in the photo above is Elizabeth Regen, who is a terrific actor and writer. I met her when we were both writers at NYU. She played the older sister to Natalie Portman's character in Luc Besson's THE PROFESSIONAL back in the day. She appears in TV shows from time to time. Most recently, she was in the movie BEER LEAGUE.

The guy in the photo is Jerry Ongkeo, a talented rapper from NYC. I've lost touch with him. I hope he is well and wish him the best. I remember eating at his house a few times when I was very broke.

I'm doing some translation work right now. Tonight, So Jene and I will go see a Kim Ki Duk film in a movie theater in Kowloon Tong. I'm very excited. I'm a huge fan of Kim Ki Duk and believe that he is one of the most original and unique filmmakers in the world today. The closest thing to a Kim Ki Duk even in the history of cinema is Fassbinder, and Kim Ki Duk is more original, more intense, and more creative, and more maverick than Fassbinder.

Kim Ki Duk's aesthetic can best be described as most original and most disturbing but not perverse for perversion's sake. And the guy is prolific with barely any misses. Nearly all his movies are captivating. And he writes every one of his own movies. How he manages is beyond me. The guy is unbelievably talented.

That said, I've only seen Kim Ki Duk movies through DVD. Tonight will be the first time I get to see one of his movies on the big screen. It's being shown as part of an Asian Film Festival here in HK.

Jonny Stranger sends me a delightful video response

2008-10-22T14:21:00.003+08:00

This is a link to a video response that Jonny Stranger sent me after seeing SOMEBODY'S OLD CHEESE.

He looks grizzly with his beard, but his voice still has that youthful mischievous tone.

I miss him. He's a good guy.

Anyway, here it is.

Enjoy!!!!!

Jonny Stranger is an independent filmmaker based in Austin, TX. He has made two feature films: YORICK (16mm) and MOJO TANGO (2008). On top of that, he has a huge list of films on youtube. Google him!!

ANTIGONE 5000 Clip

2008-10-22T11:17:00.003+08:00

I'm not trying to flood this blog with short movies, but since I have been motivated lately to go through my old films, I used a 2-minute clip from ANTIGONE 5000 to make this short film.

I still can't quite get over just how terrific an actor Nelsan Ellis is. I so wish I'd written something for him back then.

Anyway, he's now in L.A. getting regular work on TV. He also did a movie called WARM SPRINGS about FDR's futile attempt to try to cure his polio.

Nelsan was amazing. I really should have done a better job with this film, but what's the use of Monday morning quarterbacking, right?

Anyway, here it is:

The film was shot in the woods in New Jersey. So Jene was so supportive of me. But, ultimately, I let her and everyone on the cast down by not being more thorough with the production. Still, it was a return to filmmaking after about 6 years of not touching a camera.

Reading POLANSKI book

2008-10-22T06:49:00.003+08:00

Am reading a bio of Roman Polanski by Jonh Parker that I got from the library.

Very surprised to learn how difficult the guy was. He was apparently the walking paradigm of a termmperamental artist, who'd throw tantrums and start screaming on the set.

I hadn't seen that many Polanski films.

In the past, I'd seen only the following Polanski films, in this order:

CHINATOWN
KNIFE IN THE WATER
ROSEMARY'S BABY
THE TENANT
THE LAMP (early short film Polanski made at Lodz National Film School)

I loved CHINATOWN, I'd attributed a lot of the film's impact to Jack Nicholson's performance and Robert Towne's screenplay. I remmeber being completely blown away by the picture the first time I saw it.

I thought KNIFE IN THE WATER was very impressive, especially considering that it was a debut feature film.

ROSEMARY'S BABY seemed campy to me. My wife and I kept thinking how great the apartment in the film was.

THE TENANT seemed interesting, but definitely too much like a derivative of ROSEMARY'S BABY, but set in Paris.

THE LAMP was a 3-4 minute short that was very creepy and seemed to be signature Polanski. We saw this at the MOMA when they had a screening of many great films from Lodz.

Anyway, reading the book, it reminds you just what struggle and difficulty even such successful directors like Polanski went through. You forget that they, too, were struggling artists at one point.

As ruthless and self-centered as Polanski must have been, he did manage to make some excellent films, as well as, of course, like everyone, some real duds.

I have yet to see REPULSION. I wonder if I can even find that film here in Hong Kong.

Excellent Cantonese Learning Videos

2008-10-22T06:41:00.001+08:00

I've been studying Cantonese for about ten months now. One of the best and definitely the most fun way seems to be to learn from Ceclie Gamst Berg, who teaches Cantonese and is a Hong Kong fixture.

She has recently started making video lessons on yout tube.

Please check out her web site, which is on my list of favorite sites.

Here is a sample of one of her videos.

I can listen to her and understand pretty much 90% of what she says now. She speaks street Cantonese, which is more fun and and more useful.

In other words, like they say back in the U.S., she keeps it real.

She also has a radio program called RTHK NAKED CANTONESE. That's also entertaining, but the material is more basic than these videos.

Please check out her videos.

First Short Film in Hong Kong

2008-10-21T19:26:00.001+08:00

I went out with my miniDV camera this afternoon and took a walk through Wah Fu Estate.

There, I shot about 9 minutes of footage, which became this 40-second film koan.

Here is the world premiere of WAH FU ESTATE

I can't believe I was ablt to shoot and edit the whole thing in an afternoon.

On top of which, I got to practice a little Cantonese with a couple of the old guys who were out swimming.

Then, I went to the wet market at Wah Fu Estate and bought Korean lettuce and a bag of oranges. It seems I'm a regular there now and the merchants know me as "the Korean."

Of course, every time a HK person asks me in Cantonese, "what nation person are you?"

I answer "Korean person."

It's just easier to do that. There's less to explain.

Of course, when I do answer that, 9 times out of 10, the next thing they say is:

"Daaih Jang Gam!"

The guy who cuts up roasted duck at the Wah Fu restaurant even started humming the Daaih Jang Gam theme song for me.

I know they say that in Japan, WINTER BALLAD is the premier Korean soap opera, and in fact, when So Jene and I went there a few months ago, we did see many stores selling fans with photos of Yonsama aka Bae Yong Joon on them.

But, here in HK, the premiere Korean TV drama is DAAIH JANG GAM!!

Anyway, enjoy.

Fired up by Youtube aka Zeal of a Convert

2008-10-21T12:40:00.001+08:00

Since posting my first Youtube video two days ago, I've been thrilled by the whole thing and posted two more short videos.

They are both short films I made in the past, re-edited on Adobe Premiere so that they're shorter and play better.

Whatever the case, what's important is that Youtube has a viewer counter which allows you to see how many times the video has been seen.

In two days, SOMEBODY'S OLD CHEESE has had 71 views, and INNOCENCE OF YOUTH has had 49 views in one day.

Now, I know that there are tons of youtube videos that get hundreds of thousands of views, but I find these modest numbers still absolutely thrilling.

Shoot, I've had screenings of my films at poorly-run festivals that had 5 people in the audience. I've even done book readings sometimes at places that had 4 people show up, if that many.

Here is Le Sang d'Un Politicien

Here is a link to INNOCENCE OF YOUTH (w/ surprise ending)

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=TruCdn2qF1o

The 49 people who saw INNOCENCE OF YOUTH yesterday is probably more people than who saw it at the two or three screenings where that short played at.

Basically, what I'm trying to express is my enthusiasm for Youtube.

And since, I've turned down a large translation job, which I felt just didn't pay enough and was too complicated since it was a corporate technical manual in PDF with annoying diagrams and charts, and compounded by the fact that I'd be paid in the weak Korean won, I now find myself with the afternoon free. So, I will venture out into Hong Kong with my mini-DV camera and shoot some footage of my neighborhood.

"Go make a movie about where you live!"

I always thought that was great advice to filmmakers.

Now, I will humbly obey.

Sticky Rice Eaters

2008-10-20T13:23:00.001+08:00

I often think that as different as I am from the people here in HK, it still must be easier for me to adapt to life here because, having been born Korean, I too am a rice eater.

Truth is, as much as I miss NYC pizza and don't really like the Chinese pastries here in HK, I also really like to eat rice.

That said, for the first 8 months or so, my wife and I made do with the local Thai rice bought from the nearby Wellcome. This rice was okay, but not the rice that we were used to.

Anyway, about two months ago, we finally got fed up and I schlepped to Taikoo (via minibus and MTR) to the Jusco there to buy Japanese rice. What's all this fuss about rice? Well, Koreans and Japanese eat sticky rice. Chinese, for the most part, eat rice that's not sticky.

I know it sounds silly, like splitting hairs or something like that, but I can honestly say that life is better now that we've switched rice. Sure, it's a pain in the neck to schlepp all that way just for a 5kg bag of rice, but it's worth it and I kick myself in the head for not doing so earlier.

Our meals--we usually eat dinner at home (Korean food that I make)--are so much better. The rice is so much tastier and filling. In fact, we still have a bag of Thai-Chinese rice that I'd bought prior to our going-to-Jusco days, and that rice hasn't been touched since.

By the way, I think that a major part of why I don't really like eating Chinese food at local restaurants for lunch is just this. Their rice doesn't suit me.

Anyway, those who have no idea what I'm talking about, probably won't ever understand this.

But to all those sticky-rice-eaters here in HK, I'm sure you get me.

Vietnam vs. Hong Kong

2008-10-20T12:54:00.003+08:00

This is a little late in coming, but I wanted to write down an observation about a difference between Hong Kong and Vietnam.

About a month or so ago, my wife and I took a short vacation to Phu Quoc, Vietnam. There we mostly lounged about on the beach, ate good food, and relaxed.

The highlight was going from place to place on a motorscooter that we rented from our hotel for around $7 U.S. per day.

The roads were not paved on the entire island and very muddy from the rains. It was a bit treacherous, but we figured if everyone on the island could brave riding these scooters, then so could we.

I'd had a motorcycle back in college in the U.S. The motorscooter we rented was pretty much a motorcycle, only without a clutch and hence, my easier to ride.

Whatever the case, renting them was a breeze. No license, no registration, no insurance, no deposit, no nothing. Just $7 a day.

In fact, it was so much fun that after returning to Hong Kong, I contacted the government and inquired about how I might go about getting a motorscooter to ride around in Hong Kong.

It turns out the process of getting the proper license to ride these so-easy-to-ride automatic scooters is labyrinthine in Hong Kong.

One must register for a 5-month course at an official driving school. Then, one must take a motorcycle road test. And should one pass that test, he or she gets a one-year provisional license during which time he or she cannot ride a motorcycle faster than 75kph and cannot ride with a passenger in the back.

This would be useless for me, for the whole fun of riding the motorcycle was to do so with my wife sitting behind me and holding me. That was a thrill, let me tell you.

Bottom line is, it's just not worth going through all that trouble in Hong Kong. Of course, if I had a motorcycle license from the U.S., it'd be a different story as that license could be transferred rather head-ache free to HK. I have a U.S. driver's license for cars but never got a motorcycle license there, which now I regret so much.

I guess to enjoy riding, my wife and I will simply have to go back to Vietnam. Oh well!

Another Writer from the Bronx

2008-10-20T12:33:00.003+08:00

Just reread BROTHER ONE CELL by Cullen Thomas.

It is a recollection of the 3.5 years that Thomas, an American from Long Island, spent in a South Korean prison for trying to smuggle hashish into the country.

I'd read the book back in NYC after hearing a clip about him and the book on NPR and thoroughly enjoyed it back then.

Here is a link to the amazon page for the book.

http://www.amazon.com/Brother-One-Cell-Cullen-Thomas/dp/0143113119/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1224477768&sr=8-1

Rereading it after stumbling on it at the Hong Kong Central Library, it occurred to me just how much and well Thomas really 'got' Korean culture. I guess being in uncomfortably close contact w/ Koreans inside the prison and Thomas' relatively young age at the time (he was 23? or so?) allowed for that.

On top of all that, I realized that that there is a connection between Cullen Thomas and myself.

You see, after I got my MFA from NYU and had dug myself into a financial hole by making my 16mm feature film debut w/ FREE COUNTRY, I scrambled to find some source of employment and was hired as a staff writer for CURRENT BIOGRAPHY, a reference publication that's published out of a strange building in the Bronx, some 10 minutes away from Yankee Stadium.

For the next several years, I'd trek to the Bronx every day and sit in a cubicle and write 3-5 page bios of prominent people in the news based on newspaper clippings compiled for each person. It didn't pay much, but I got to read a lot of newspapers and actually learned a lot.

I also stole time from my workday and started writing my first novel BOY GENIUS there in that little dark cubicle in a forgotten corner of the Bronx.

Anywa, to make a long story short, it turns out that Thomas, too, had worked at CURRENT BIOGRAPHY as a staff writer after serving his 3.5 years and being sent back to the U.S.

There were only about 5-6 staffwriters when I was there, and Thomas was not one of them. I can't really figure out the timing, but I have a hunch that Thomas was there just before I got there. Who knows? Maybe I got the job that he left??

Whatever the case, I've since written two novels and Cullen Thomas has published BROTHER ONE CELL.

Kudos to him!!

As for all those other aspiring writers out there, the lesson here is a simple one.

Go to NYC.

Go to the Bronx.

Get a job as a staffwriter at CURRENT BIOGRAPHY.

It's better than an MFA.

Death of a Luddite

2008-10-20T12:04:00.001+08:00

Thanks to repeated urging from my friend Jonny Stranger, a prolific indie filmmaker based in Austin, TX, with whom I had the good fortune of attending a MFA program at NYU way back, I've finally gotten my act together, joined the 21st century and uploaded my first videos to youtube.

Here is a link to Jonny's youtube channel that contains a ton of cool short films he's made over the years, including some very fascinating animation pieces.

http://uk.youtube.com/jonnystranger

It was much more easy than I'd thought it'd be. The tough part was exporting from the Adobe Premiere that I used to edit the short film. It's amazing what these relatively cheap video editing programs on computers can do, considering that I actually learned how to edit by working a Steenbeck.

Before my wife and I moved to HK, several old film archive companies in NYC were paying people $50 to take these old Steenbeck dinosaurs away. Of course, back when I was at NYU, you had to pay about $600 to rent them per month so that you could edit a 16mm workprint.

Anyway, that's enough of my rambling about how we did things back in the day. The bottom line is I have posted two short films on youtube.

Here are the links:

Innocence of Youth (1 minute+)

Somebody's Old Cheese (8 min+) (this film features Jonny Stranger, who by the way is the writer/director of YORICK, an indie feature film that is a prequel to Shakespeare's Hamlet and the upcoming indie feature film MOJO TANGO.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl2cTEwih1k

Anyway, I don't know who will ever get to read these entries, but I hope whoever you are will enjoy these.

Birth of Mhgoi.blogspot.com

2008-10-20T12:00:00.001+08:00

Hi,

This is a blog that I've started after being in HK for 10 months. It will feature random snips about life in HK for a Korean-American from NYC.

I am also a writer and indie filmmaker.

I will often post links to books and movies.

Here are links to my two novels, both published by Akashic Books in NYC.

http://www.akashicbooks.com/BoyG.htm

http://www.akashicbooks.com/lascucarachas.htm