The Academy Awards are like the Super Bowl to me, and year after year I am always disappointed about the results. I was pleasantly surprised in early 2020 when Jane Fonda opened the Best Picture envelope and it read Parasite. Parasite winning Best Picture, Best Director, and other accolades was a win for South Korean and Asian cinema. However, Parasite is not the first and certainly not the last Asian film that is groundbreaking and Oscar-worthy.
I was introduced to the world of East Asian cinema by way of my favorite app Letterboxd. And to be honest, at first I was mostly attracted to the colorful, futuristic, and aesthetically pleasing film posters. Although East Asian films often have beautiful cinematography and intriguing color palettes, their themes reflect the discourse and politics of difficult and uncomfortable subjects. I am personally not Asian, but these stories being told are often universal to anyone watching them.
Civil war, censorship, unrequited love, identity, the realities of poverty, revenge, and much more. If you watch any of these films that I mention being prepared to be chewed up and spit out… emotionally.
My first East Asian Cinema experience after watching Parasite was Memories of Murder, directed and written by the same genius Bong Joon Ho. What I loved most about Memories of Murder and most Bong films is that they are not afraid to accuse and convict society of its wrongdoings without shoving it down the audience’s throat. Issues are never black and white in his films, as individuals are deeply flawed so societal systems we create are deeply flawed as well.
Humans have understandable desires, but they are impossible because of our damaged world. This theme is ever-present in Memories of Murder, which portrays themes of justice being a facade and that control is impossible. The film is not an easy watch, as it does not stray away from the horrors of violent crime and the justice system, but it teaches the audience an important lesson that no matter how hard we attempt to control situations they just turn into chaos.
One of my favorite films ever is Sympathy for Lady Vengeance directed by Park Chan-Wook. This is not just because of the main character’s amazing eye makeup and fabulous overcoat, it is because of the film’s attitude towards revenge and redemption. The film follows Lee Geum-ja, a woman who has just been released from her 13-year imprisonment for the kidnap and murder of a boy; a crime she did not commit. She starts seeking revenge on the man that was really responsible for the boy’s death. Revenge does not console or relieve one of their grievances, it rather rips your heart out and leaves your life a colorless void (literally).
Wong Kar-Wai is probably my all-time favorite director. Not just because of his futuristic, lush, and romantic visuals. But because of his ability to convey themes of unrequited love, memory, and alienation unlike anyone else. Often collaborating with legendary actors like Tony Leung and Takeshi Kaneshiro, Wai’s films are stylistic masterpieces.
Chungking Express and In the Mood for Love are staples in Wai’s filmography. Although both films have pretty much the exact opposite color palettes they also are both gloriously shot, with a melancholy haze that seeps into the viewer. I love films about being lost because I can relate to them. As a college freshman, I am inherently lost… trying to find a connection to someone or something but struggling with how to work that connection. Almost every character in both films experiences the same struggle. Unsentimental and completely romantic- themes that are antitheses of each other but are the reality of many relationships.
Funeral Parade of Roses is my favorite Japanese film, and let me tell you it was so incredibly hard to pick just one. The film is about the trans and queer people of the 60s in Tokyo, and the film’s topic is through the lens of a positive light, which at the time and even now is uncommon. Funeral Parade of Roses does not follow a single traditional rule of filmmaking, and it is what I loved most about it. Romantic and chivalric cinema is nice and enjoyable, but that type of genre does not explore what it means to be human grappling with identity.
The films I mentioned are just scratching the surface of what East Asian Cinema has to offer. These films tackle the giant that is the human spirit, and not all of them are enjoyable to watch, but they are saying important things that could be mandated that apply to your life.
“If memories could be canned, would they also have expiration dates? If so, I hope they last for centuries.” Chungking Express, 1994