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E D I T O R I A L
Alive and Kicking
Thursday, June 21 — Before I dove headlong into the HK film world late last summer, I was content with the occasional Jackie Chan movie on cable television or available on videotape. Sometimes I would brush across an Old School martial arts flick on television, or see someone execute some nifty moves or a neat stunt, and be satisfied.No more.
I spent the past week in suburban Los Angeles (which now closely resembles a cracked driveway with unmowed grass sprouting wildly upward), completely separated from the HK film world. I'm not going to complain about spending time with my family, but let me say that I very much missed watching Asian films.
On the other hand, I think I can draw parallels between watching sports on television with my Dad (basketball, golf, and baseball) and HK films. First: basketball. Here we can see a racial minority (African-Americans in America) doing incredibly acrobatic things most white people can only dream about. Sure, some white people play professional basketball, but for the most part they are relegated to bit roles -- much like the white people in HK films, when they are seen at all.
Golf (the United States Open) resembled a Jet Li Hollywood movie, in which the star (Jet Li, or Tiger Woods in golf) is put into an unaccustomed situation (Jet must speak English, Tiger has a couple of bad days). When you think about it, Tiger Woods sounds like a good name for a hero in a martial arts epic. Can't you see it? "Tiger, what shall we do now that our Sifu has been killed?" "Quiet, can't you see I'm trying to putt?"
Baseball has an Asian connection, as both Japanese and Korean players are livening up things in America. One local station in Los Angeles programs a variety of Asian shows, including a nightly sports round-up in Japanese. Needless to say, the Japanese player (whose name escapes me, plays for Seattle) received lead coverage.
OK, you're right, these things have little to do with HK films. But I hope to have more to say once I get caught up more fully this weekend (stretching into next week). Until then, your patience for new material is very much appreciated.
Upcoming reviews/Site news: Perhaps this weekend I will be able to begin a delayed dive into the films of Ringo Lam. The only Asian film I bought while in Los Angeles was The Hidden Fortress, so I'll be giving that a spin soon. Also, I'm working on an update to the site design, including some new artwork, a logo, and additional menu options to make it easier to access the ever-expanding content.
As always, please feel free to e-mail me your comments, whether positive or negative.
peter
Editor / Reviewer / Webmaster
Current Editorial | Current Index
Remakes and Rip-Offs (6/6/01)
Real Life Vs. Cinemas (5/30/01)
Dreaming in Cantonese (5/16/01)
The Echo of Small Children (5/3/01)
Hong Kong Film Awards: Who Won? (4/26/01)
A Tale of Three Directors (4/19/01)
Supermodels of the HK Film World (4/12/01)
What are you prepared to do? (4/6/01)
Academy Awards Special (3/26/01)
The Price of Success (3/19/01)
Is Jackie Chan Still the Man? part 1 (3/12/01)
Great Expectations (3/7/01)
In the Mood for Change (2/26/01)
Bronchitis on the Brain (2/12/01)
Hong Kong Sequel Blues (2/5/01)
Better or Best? (1/29/01)
To Dub or Not to Dub (1/22/01)
Scenes From a Fractured Skull (1/15/01)
Year-End Round-Up (1/7/01)
Briefly noted (12/31/00)
Wuxia Fantasies and the Black-and-White Western (12/24/00)
Raiders of the lost heart (12/17/00)
The movie week in review (12/10/00)
Redesigning A Better Tomorrow (12/3/00)
The fantasy begins again (11/26/00)
A return and a shortened work week, hurrah! (11/20/00)
That blasted job! (11/12/00)
Hollywood, Jet, Jackie, Fred, and Gene (11/6/00)
Did you want blood with that? (10/30/00)
Do you like cold pizza? (10/24/00)
Preparing for the Legend (10/16/00)
The pauper must pay (10/10/00)
A visit to Five Star Laser (10/05/00)
A brief vacation (9/25/00)
The editor's plea (8/20/00)
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