Freedom?

Ha Yoon-ju (codename Piglet) 

I've just had one of the most important cinematic nights of my life. One of those nights that has shed light on my wants and the flaws in what little remains of my shattered dreams. Even before my ear-trauma escalated I was already toying with the idea of switching focus from West to East. The further down this miserable path I make it the more I rely on this one last bastion of hope to get me to move forward.

So when the 24th Stockholm International Film Festival came up I decided to challenge my ears and do what felt right. I wasn't going to ignore it like last year. This year I was going to see as many Asian films I could fit into my schedule. And now? Halfway through the festival and I have managed to see 8 films so far, with 7 more screenings planned along with a short film event two days from now. The films so far have all been from the Orient and have varied in quality quite a bit. However I can without a doubt say that my favorite films so far are the ones I just finished watching as of writing this entry.

Of the Oriental countries I have (what I would at least claim myself to be) a firm grasp of the film culture, my favorite is probably South Korea. Japan may have a vast library of films both modern and historical, but there is something about the polish of South Korean thrillers that just appeals to be like few other films do. However the gap between Korea and Japan is very slim and I can only rejoice and smile at the fact that these two countries are within boating distance of one another.

The third country I have some (lesser but still noteworthy) knowledge of is of course China. I would claim that Hong Kong cinema is where my Chinese cinema knowledge lies, but I have endulged in classical mainland works, especially those made by the People's Republic's flagship directors Zhang Yimou and Ang Lee.

As far as Hong Kong cinema goes, In the Mood For Love is probably my favorite film.

Whenever I get a chance to inform someone (in very broad strokes, mind) about my impressions of Asian cinema I usually state the following: Korea make probably the best and most throughly polished thrillers in the world right now, Japan makes essentially everything from quirky comedies to badass action movies and are masters at blending genres defying Western expectations of how a movie's narrative should progress, whilst China make beautiful love stories both visually and story-wise.

Of course there are exceptions to this, China has an immense culture of Martial Arts and action movies, I've seen Korean comedies that have made me laugh so hard my sides ached and Japan is without a doubt able to spin beautiful and engaging romantic stories that ask complex questions about relationships between men, women, children and adults. I feel that having some appreciation of what I have come to get as my frame of reference, might be benefitial to comprehend what my feelings on the two films I just saw is.

The first movie I went to see is the South Korean thriller "Cold Eyes", a story about a team of government agents who specialize in reconnaissance and surveillance. The film is extremely well-made, with great use of camera movement and perspective, and is one of few Korean films I have seen where the lead is a strong, competent woman which is a pleasant surprise. The title of the movie refers to the changing structure of our society and how it is harder and harder for any of us to hide when there are cameras watching nearly everywhere in the places we share with each other. In this film the cameras are a positive presence, aiding our heroes in their attempt in apprehending a particularly cunning team of bank robbers who seem to know all the city's blind spots.

The movie blew me away and I wish I could spend this entire text speaking about how much I loved it, from its humor to the intensity of the action sequences, but the focus for this text sadly isn't that. No, instead of praising "Cold Eyes" we instead move our attention to the seonc film of the evening; the Chinese drama/thriller "Trap Street". "Trap Street" is the story of street serveyor Li Qiuming, who on a routine assignment sees a beautiful woman and becomes immediately smitten with her. As luck would have it he manages to run into her several times. After giving her a ride during a harsh rain storm she accidentally leaves a case with two USB memory sticks in the back of his truck.

Qiuming is thrilled by this golden oppurtunity to see the woman again and it does indeed work out t his benefit. The two begin to date, and despite her rather mysterious and reserved demeanor the two begin to fall in love. It is known to both Qiuming and the audience that his new girlfriend's job is top secret and lies somewhere on the street where the two met. Qiuming also realizes that that particular street is for some reason virtually invisible, not appearing on any GPS and all the data they collect while surveying comes back as corrupted or otherwise unusable.

Eventually it turns out that some of the data on the USB sticks that Qiuming came across has been leaked and that this along with his obsession with trying to figure out why the street his girlfriend works on is invisible lead to party officials stealing him away and locking him up in an apartment where they keep him for days, trying to make him confess to stealing government secrets and working against the party.

A woman, who had recently met with the film's director and writer Vivian Qu in Beijing introduced the film on her behalf and explained how the film was based on real experiences and how the film is forbidden to be put on exhibition in the People's Republic of China. The whole festival's theme is in fact "freedom" and one of the judges invited to the event is Chinese artist Ai Wei Wei, who is currently in house arrest, and therefor unable to attend the festival. He introduces every screening via a video message where he takes off his clothes and flipping the audience the bird while telling them to "be happy", and the film "Trap Street" is a great examination of fears that have struck me several times over the last few years.

It wasn't until after "Trap Street" had ended and I was on the way out of the theater that I came to realize how truly perfect the two movies fit together. Beyond the whole mental conundrum of "what Asian country should I focus on trying to move to?" both films shared themes but also served as each other's exact opposites at the same time. "Cold Eyes" revels in showing us how intelligent the infrastructure of Seoul is, and how technology can be used to stop crimes. It's highly polished, cinematic and melodramatic in its presentation and it all wraps up in a near perfect piece of cinema. It is also based on a Chinese movie called "The Eye in the Sky", which is also a good thing to remember since that is an easy way to assure the populace in the People's Republic that the government is keeping them safe with their surveillance systems while also reminding them to uphold the law.

Qiuming before the shit hits the fan.

"Trap Street" is a film that instead of going for sheen chooses to show a more dirty and down to earth world where the eye of the government is as far from beneficial as it could possibly be. In fact there is a scene in the movie where Qiuming, in an attempt to make some extra money helps his roommate to sweep hotel rooms which will be used to house party officials for hidden cameras and microphones. This scene is perfectly juxaposed with another scene where the two friends install cameras in a men's bathhouse, citing regulations from the government as the reason when patrons complain about having their privacy taken away from them.

The sombre tone in "Trap Street" fills my head with a lot of emotions and thoughts. Guilt, for turning my head the other way, choosing to begin my trek into Asian literary culture not by reading Mo Yan's "The Garlic Ballads", Chan Koonchung's "The Fat Years" or Yiyun Li's "The Vagrants", books that deal with the oppression of the Chinese populace, but by reading Koushun Takami's "Battle Royale" where the social commentary is drenched in enough science fiction to make it easier to swallow. Anger, for all people who deserve the closest thing to freedom that our world can allow, but are denied it by greedy people. Helplessness, for not knowing how to help. I've resigned my self from so many causes I secretely care for, but can this one really be surpressed with the rest of them?

But more than anything it makes me feel fear, a powerful fear that has festered within me for years now. What happens to us when the People's Republic no longer secretely stand as the true leader of the world? But when they openly do so? Can we of the "free world" remain free when the country that we answer to is not? I want to say yes, but my head whispers the answer I don't want to hear. I thought freedom may come to the Chinese people, and I still hope it will. Internet, the mixing of the races, the world is changing both technology wise and ethnically, but where I used to say that the over reliance on the internet for entertainment and comfort would bring the downfall of the western world while giving the oppressed a chance to taste what we have for so long had. I forgot something in all my dreaming though, they will have the same cameras covering their street corners, the same satellites bouncing signals through the air. The silver lining just got a little less clear to me.

I'll try to keep my hope alive, because the more I think about it the more I truly believe that my path will probably see me end up on that small peninsula by the Yellow Sea, or on that small strip of islands where so many stories of cherry blossoms and honorable warriors have been told over the years. And the closest country will be whichever country is lucky enough to not have me as a resident, along with the world's most populated country, where the government is eager to move as many millions of people as possible from the countryside to the cities. Where they are easy to count, easy to reach and easy to control.

"Cold Eyes" may have been my favorite out of the two films I saw today, but "Trap Street" has kickstarted something within me that had stalled among personal worries, sadnesses and anger. I see censorship. Barred windows. Locked doors. But the fight is everlasting within the human heart, and one day things will have to change. Somehow.

Where will I be when it does? In the ground? In the same chair I am now? In a front row seat? I don't know, but until then I guess I'll start by reading "The Garlic Ballads"!

Discovering Something New

Isn't it funny when something comes along and changes your perspective on things? It can be something as big as finding love, or making a new friend who shows you a different view of your entire life. Or it can be something as small as realizing that you actually do like peppers when you swore you didn't.
For the last couple of years each year has had a change like this occur. It happens in the spring, almost like clockwork and comes to define the next 12 months of my existence in a way that is most pleasant. It started on February 4th, 2011 with the Swedish theatrical release of Disney's 50th animated release, Tangled. I walked in expecting little, hoping that it would at least provide an enjoyable 100 minute experience and walked out of the theater with a warm joyous feeling throughout my body. I was changed permanently, and the following year was filled with a re-discovery of the love for Walt Disney's legacy I thought was lost forever, and to anyone who knows me even remotely well will, if asked about my favorite movie answer without hesitation that Tangled is that film.
Nearly 13 months later, at the end of February 2012 it was time for the next big change to appear. I was working through my back catalog of movies and just happened to put on a film named Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House starring one of my favorite actors, Cary Grant and a sadly forgotten actress named Myrna Loy, who I had only heard mentioned before seeing Mr Blandings. However after viewing the film I ordered the complete collection of the The Thin Man-series which Loy starred in with William Powell. About a week later I was hooked and Myrna Loy and William Powell-collaborations were a must-see. The following 12 months would be filled with Myrna Loy both on the screen and off with both biographies on her being acquired and an autographed photo of her finding its way into my possession. To say the least, these "months of Myrna" were very educational and looking back at the amount of times I saw her picture in stills from The Thin Man as well as the Rouben Mamoulian film Love Me Tonight in what has become my personal holy scripture 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, it feels slightly strange to think that less than a year ago as of writing this entry my now favorite actress was nothing more than just an image and a name on a page. I didn't know how she sounded, how she acted or even what her biggest roles were.
This brings me to January of 2013, a month which I think can safely say will continue the last two years tradition without fail. It actually started in the fall of 2012, with my purchasing of the first entry of Park Chan-Wook's "Vengeance-Trilogy"; Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance along with Kim Ji-Woon's A Tale of Two Sisters and A Bittersweet Life.  I've always been one of those people who easily gets invested in something he is doing and if I start down a specific path of film it is really easy for me to keep going and exploring it deeper, like a child walking further into an unknown part of a forest. This fact, along with my already relatively strong feelings toward cinema from the far east meant that once January rolled around and I actually got around to watching Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance along with the final part of Wook's trilogy, Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (having already seen the middle chapter Oldboy before) I quickly decended into a sea of Asian cinema.
They say the art of browsing, walking into a video store and glancing at the covers until you find something that catches your eye, is a dying experience since the rise of both piracy as well as online distribution of films both through iTunes, Amazon and rental services such as Netflix have made the physical stores where one can partake in such practices nearly obsolete.
This along with just the overall fact that the internet has made knowledge of what movies are available so much more convenient that for someone as engrossed in the mainstream film medium as myself, the moment where you walk into a store and don't already know what the vast majority of the stock of DVDs and Blu-Rays are extremely rare. However with this newfound curiosity for Korean and Japanese films I found myself for the first time in years being able to walk out to the foreign section of one of my regular haunts and once again just glance at covers and titles, seeing which catch my eye. In a way it is dangerous, because my enthusiasm for the browsing experience has been so amplified by how rarely I get to browse, that I can easily spend more money than I should be able to by just picking things up, checking an app on my phone which judges films based on my previous scorings and then tells me whether I probably will like the film I'm checking out or not, and then adding it to the pile that swiftly grows to a small mountain. I so excel at this practice that at the time of writing I have already started to reach the bottom of the well that are my local stores and even though I have at least 30 movies still available for me to see from South Korea, China and Japan either through movies I simply have not had time to watch, but have already bought or through Netflix, I can't help but feel a sad feeling when thinking of the inevitable end of my little side-hobby. I'm confident that, as I have already made clear, that this is a trend that will live throughout the coming year, but it's always the initial "infatuation-period" which is the best, like how it is with new love.Watching Yim Pil-sung's Hansel & Gretel and being exposed to a type of blend of styles that I can only describe as a mixture between that Twilight-episode where the kid holds his family hostage with his god-like powers, Pan's Labyrinth and yes, a demented version of the fairytale the film takes its title from, is an experience like none I have ever had before and quiet honestly is a perfect incapsulation of what is so great about watching a hefty amount of foreign films from another region in a short period of time. It gives you a more concentrated perspective on another culture and unlike just watching a single film and then returning to what is more conventional for you, it makes you view different aspects about that culture. I've seen several South Korean funerals in the last few weeks, grown to understand the relationship between teacher and student, mother and daughter and countless others and even though one could easily make the argument that a few films will hardly give great insight into what it is like to live in South Korea or Japan, it can't be claimed that is does nothing at all.
This entry is more than anything a simple statement of what may come to inspire my return, or at a few more entries over the next 12 months. I plan to make 2013 a year that counts. A year of progress. A year of knowledge. But most of all a year that more than any previous, manifests what I want to do with the remaining years of my life, and somehow I think this little hobby may be part of it. I'll make sure to write again, if only for myself.