The Chinese film director Lu Chuan is supposed to be making a personal appearance at the Yugong Yishan music bar tonight, after a screening of his latest film Nanjing! Nanjing! (the Chinese premiere, I think, of its English-subtitled version).
Lu's name is on the two standout Chinese movies of the last few years, The Missing Gun and Kekexili (Mountain Patrol); but it's widely reckoned that he was no more than a 'front' for the temporarily blacklisted Jiang Wen on the former, and some critics even carp that he may have been less than fully responsible for the latter.
I really want to admire the man for his work - but these doubts as to whether it even is his work paradoxically come as something of a consolation.... because I've heard from a variety of sources in recent months that the man is a colossal prick - even by the standards of the movie business, and that's saying something.
Now, one of my very good friends bears a particular grudge against Lu Chuan because he did the original English translation of the script which enabled the director to shop the project around and get overseas funding, and was thus instrumental in getting the film off the ground; what's more, he claims, he didn't just have to render the rather turgid Chinese into decent English, he actually had to convert it into a screenplay format, because it had been written as a novella! And nearly two years later, he still hasn't been paid for that very substantial piece of work.
As a result of this, when Lu was looking for someone to write English sub-titles for the finished film (with typical Chinese last-minutism, this was only a couple of weeks before the film was due to make its debut at Cannes), most of the foreign translators I know refused to accept the commission. Thus, I'm rather curious to see what the sub-titles look like. I very much fear they'll have been done by a non-native speaker; perhaps even by a machine translator!!
But it's not only stroppy translators who have a gripe against Lu Chuan. A number of people have told me that he is not only habitually tight-fisted and unreliable in matters of payment, but a raging egomaniac - he seems to have got the idea that he is China's greatest living auteur (only Zhang Yimou is worthy of comparison, he seems to think; and a fairly distant 2nd), and thus treats everyone he works with like dirt.
So..... I'm hoping to enjoy the film tonight. But there could be quite a large heckling contingent at the Q & A afterwards.
I've been thinking of opening with....
"So, it seems everyone has a favourite 'Lu Chuan is such an arsehole' story. What's yours, Lu Chuan?"
8 comments:
Ah, well, he didn't show up. What a surprise! Apparently, he's in Hollywood discussing a deal for his next movie.
The Nanjing film is a bit of a mixed bag - some very well-staged crowd and battle scenes, and it's beautifully photographed; but devoid of any narrative structure and very ponderously paced.
I may find time for a fuller and more considered review in a week or two.
Earthling here
Hello Froog. Is there any chance of your area getting up of their back side to back up the rest of the area in the big earth?? In matters that I am sure you can guess I am concerned about these days. And by your area I mean the place you eat, drink and hate most of those around you.
Rather cryptic, E. You're pissed off about China's foreign policy, China's environmental policy??
Is there any chance of a change for the better any time soon? No. Sorry.
I don't hate most people here (well, only the foreigners, anyway). The Chinese I'm most very fond of, even when they're contriving to piss me off by behaving in unimaginably dumb, selfish, irresponsible ways. The 'system', however, is irredeemably SHITE. China's never going to be a responsible world power until the Communist Party 'reforms' itself out of existence. And that could take a very long time indeed.
I think it's just too big and totally out of control. My history is bad, how were they doing before the comunism came? Don't tell me, I'll go read up on google or wikipedia.
They really need a queen; I have often refered to myself as Queen of that place, and every one laughs at me. I don't understand what is so funny about wanting to rule a place that has got out of hand, and want to make it a better place. I'll start by putting a ban on smoking, spitting, chewing with open mouth, making any form of nois while eating, eating any form of meat, and finaly, all animals and moving creatures will be officially holly and protected by the higher powers everywhere in the vast land. I wonder if Froog will be so kind to read my books when I have written them, to edit and control for any form of language mistakes -not being criptic- I am just thinking of the far future. As I too have many times played with the idea of being a writer, I would need someone to proof read my material. Would you do me the honor? (if I ever finish any thing)
Earthling
Well, most of your policy shopping list, o Queen, is at the more trivial end of the spectrum, and amongst the stuff that is most obviously "culturally based". There is a problem here that general "civilized" standards of "good manners" around the world are heavily conditioned by 'Western' notions, and thus often resisted in China (and other Asian and African countries) as a patronising external imposition. Unfortunately the competing indigenous 'culture' often isn't really much more than peasant simplicity and self-interest. Uneducated farmers around the world tend to act much the same: they spit because they don't realise there's a hygiene issue; they eat their food noisily because they don't have much concept of intruding on the serenity of others; they jostle and barge to get on to the bus first because getting on to the bus is the only thing that matters to them.
I think it's really more of a 'class' and education issue. As society gets wealthier, more people can afford access to a full education, and everybody starts to become more 'refined' and 'middle class' in their behaviour. I'd say China's a good 100 years off that yet.
But really, the spitting and so on isn't such a big deal for me.
I don't think vegetarianism/veganism will find a very receptive audience in China.
I'm a bit sceptical about the whole 'queen' thing, I'm afraid. 'Enlightened despotism' is all very well in theory, but tends not to work in practice. Unless there's some democratic accountability over the civil administration, there's going to be horrible brutality and corruption; and democratic accountability isn't very compatible with having an unelected monarch at the top of the power pyramid.
But at the end of the day, it probably doesn't much matter what system of government you choose. 'China' should not exist in its current form: it is MUCH TOO BIG to be a viable nation-state in the modern world, and will, I'm sure, over the next century or so, fragment into a number of smaller states, or at least shift towards a much more decentralised, 'federal' type of organization.
Of course, most Chinese folks tend to view that as a 'hostile' view (much as the Americans would, I suppose, if you said the same sort of thing about their country). It's not. It's just an opinion based on my understanding of politics and history. (And I don't think it's impossible that the USA might split up one day; but it has a much smaller population, and a much more decentralized system of government - factors which do, I think, give it long-term viability as a nation-state in its present form.... although it is pushing the limits of the envelope on size; I have similar misgivings about the other super-large countries; Canada and Australia can only survive because of their relatively tiny populations; Russia has problems, but hangs in there because it is at least mostly unpopulated; Brazil, I fear, is probably just too large; this is one of the main reasons why I think the idea of a 'United States of Europe' is undesirable, untenable).
I don't think Chinese language and culture benefit from being homogenized under the control of a single massive super-state. I don't think they would suffer from the splitting up of that super-state. The language and the culture already transcend borders; aspects of the culture (Buddhism, Confucianism, many of the traditional festivals) are shared by other South-East and East Asian countries; and, of course, there's a massive Chinese diaspora now all round the world, and it's growing very quickly. The sense of 'Chinese' identity doesn't have to depend on the existence of the colossal nation-state conceived by the Chinese Communist Party.
And yes, Earthling, I would be quite happy to look over anything you write.
But first, you have to write it. Good luck!
1. Amazing how much time you are spending on your holiday to attend to Froogville.
2. I know there are bigger things than spitting etc. but I am not an expert and even if I knew more, I wouldn't be babeling about it here
3. The idea of Un-uniting a place which already has peace, because of the shared language and unity of national feelings etc. is not a very clever idea. I have often thought of how Africa could also bennifit from becoming united and speaking one language. But then again, I am not the history expert. I am only a psychologist. And I actually think that maybe it is time that the world was "sorted out" by other than those who are history experts, politicians and big powers. Maybe it is time to leave the planning of a society to those who know, or at least can predict what future can bring for a nation, depending on what changes are made.
The very hard works of the First Empera should not go to waist. It might be too big, but they all look in one direction and they all share all they have. If they were to be broken into several different smaller parts, then hell will break loos. I am tempted to say that I am a girl and cannot be having this conversation, and it is boring me. But it's actually my favorit subject, and the only reason I want to stop writing is because it is early morning and I have been up sins yesterday. My brain is not a Queen brain right now.
Earthling
PS. thank you for agreeing to read my stuff. It might take a few decades.
Don't joke about Chinese history, Earthling. The first Emperor was a murderous lunatic. Unsurprisingly, his "One China" fell apart within a few decades. It was only ever a tiny part of the modern PRC, anyway.
China is not particularly peaceful, nor does it enjoy a "unity of national feelings" (the majority of Tibetans and Uyghurs, and also, I think, very significant numbers of the Mongolians, Koreans, Hui, and the numerous minority peoples of the southwest are quite hostile to China and would prefer to go their own way). Even the "Han Chinese" are not really united by a common language: Mandarin is not the first language or language of daily use for the majority of ordinary Chinese, and many of the less educated ones (which is two thirds of the country) can barely speak it or read it at all.
Their present "unity" is what is causing a lot of their problems; and the longer they try to maintain it in defiance of common sense and local self-determination, the more trouble they will be storing up for themselves in the future. The present China will break apart sooner or later. I am absolutely sure of that. I think it will, in the long run at least, be a good thing for all concerned. I just hope the transition isn't too painful or disruptive.
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