Planet Hong Kong: Popular Cinema and the Art of EntertainmentSince the 1970s, Hong Kong has been home to arguably the world's most energetic, imaginative mass-market film industry. At its peak it surpassed nearly all Western countries in number of films released, ruled the East Asian market, and produced movies (ranging from John Woo's action pictures to the comic adventures of Jackie Chan) that have thrilled global audiences and attained cult status in the West. This book offers a deeply informed and highly engaging look at how Hong Kong cinema has become one of the success stories of film history, and how it has influenced international film culture and the development of film as a medium. As sentimental and outrageous as Hong Kong films can be, David Bordwell demonstrates that they are not merely crowd-pleasing; they harbor remarkable inventiveness and careful craftsmanship and in many cases rise to the level of a rich and delightful art. Bordwell surveys the historical conditions that fueled the rise of this cinema: high output, shrewd entrepreneurship, changing world tastes, and a unique skill in action genres that cross cultural boundaries. Considering both the movies themselves and the bigger picture, he moves from deft and detailed analyses of many classics of this tradition to a broader assessment of the basic strategies and impulses of mass entertainment. |
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Common terms and phrases
Asian audience became become Better Tomorrow Bruce Lee camera Cantonese Chan's characters Cheuk-to Cheung China Chinese Ghost Story Chow Yun-fat Chungking Express climax combat comedy comic companies critics culture Ding Dragon emotional fans Faye fight film industry film's frame Gamblers gang gangster genre God of Gamblers Golden Harvest hero Hollywood Hong Kong cinema Hong Kong filmmakers Hong Kong films Hong Kong movies Hu's Huang Feihong Interview Jackie Chan Japanese John Woo Killer King Hu Kong's kung-fu films Law Kar Lee's Mainland Mandarin martial martial-arts master played plot popular cinema production reel Run Run Sammo Hung scene screens script Shanghai Shaolin Shaws shooting shot slow motion star studio style swordplay films technique Tequila theaters tion tradition triad Tsui Hark Tsui's viewers villain warrior Western woman Wong Jing Wong Kar-wai Wong's Woo's Young and Dangerous Yuen Zhang
References to this book
Creative Destruction: How Globalization Is Changing the World's Cultures Tyler Cowen Limited preview - 2004 |
Weapons of Mass Distraction: Soft Power and American Empire Matthew Fraser No preview available - 2005 |