The tea before me is growing colder as I struggle to write
this first post. How should I begin? Introductions have never been my strong
suit, and yet you as my audience deserve better than to be plunged head-first
into the world of high-flying wuxia films.
This will not be the first time I have seen these movies, but it has been years
since I’ve actually sat down to watch them in order to fully take in what they
have to offer.
Wuxia films hold a
certain sway over me that most American film genres do not. There is a certain
amount of pathos and angst in the
films that I will be watching, something that you can really sink your teeth
into as a viewer while you sympathize with the emotional struggle of the
protagonists and antagonists. The sideways glances, the lingering looks that
quickly snap away manage to catch me.
I’m rarely one for such dramatics in films, yet the emotional
struggle between Master Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon always manages to touch me. They are
constrained by the strict codes their world is comprised of, a world that does
not allow for a break in tradition: Jen, the primary protagonist, is ultimately
unable to realize the life she so desperately wants, and so she commits
suicide. Her bandit, the one person that stayed by her side throughout the
majority of the film, is left alone.
In Hero, Nameless,
the questionably heroic protagonist, sacrifices his need for vengeance in order
to allow for the unification of China. What is “good” and “bad” does not matter
in such films, only whether justice or lawlessness are triumphing.* And,
likewise, the protagonist Po in Kung Fu
Panda manages to find himself, the meaning of kung fu, and defeat the antagonist
in under three hours.
Whether or not you believe that Kung Fu Panda is worthy of being among these exalted titles is
beside the point: the film itself demonstrates the basics of what makes a wuxia movie, with the added bonus that
this time the characters themselves are masters of the martial arts style that
they physically embody. The characters also have a weight to them that wire-fu
users do not, which is interesting in and of itself.
Finally, there is Kung
Fu Hustle, one of my favorite Stephen Chow movies that managed to make it
to the States. There is a large amount of physical comedy in the film, but
often the struggles of the characters emotionally feel real while they attempt
to fight back first against a powerful gang, and then against increasingly potent
martial artists who are in the employ of the gang’s leader. The film itself
includes numerous commentaries and in jokes about wuxia films, such as a scene in which a man is trying to sell off
martial arts pamphlets that will unlock the secrets of kung fu, some
supernatural doings from two assassins, and amazing fight scenes from supposedly
“normal” folks. It’s not necessarily a film I expected to include, but after
much thought I am glad I did!
Check back next week for my post about Hero, the Warring States Period, and color use.
*Yes, I will spend a post un-packing that blanket statement.
No worries.
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