Transnational Asian Identities in Pan-Pacific Cinemas by Philippa Gates Lisa Funnell

Author:Philippa Gates, Lisa Funnell [Philippa Gates, Lisa Funnell]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781136591556
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Published: 2012-03-12T00:00:00+00:00

THE BURDEN OF INTERTWINED HISTORIES

The specters of the past, both distant and close to present, seem to preclude the representation of a harmonious East Asia in contemporary popular culture. Under the umbrella “Asia,” these mega productions pander to a transnational gaze by retreating to the distant or fantastical past in the hopes that regional universality might be achieved in that imagined place. Yet, in reality, it is these intertwined histories that are far from settled. For example, Japan’s refusal to apologize for the atrocities committed during the colonial period, and for the Pacific War, continues to anger Koreans. Japan’s high-ranking politicians make regular visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, which houses the remains of the most notorious war criminals, causing diplomatic frictions (“Japanese” ¶8). Furthermore, the publication of a new Japanese History textbook in April 2001, that downplayed colonial and wartime aggression, flamed a nationalist uproar not only in Korea, but also in other parts of Asia (M. Kim ¶13). To further impair Seoul-Tokyo ties, the Japanese sovereign claim over Dokdo/Takeshima, a group of small island, off the east coast of Korea, led to a series of mass demonstrations in Korea. These rocky islands are “now axiomatic of the nation’s pride,” unveiling the lingering anxiety toward its old master (Dudden ¶8).

Similarly, Korea’s growing economic and cultural interdependence on China quickly deteriorated with the commencement of a Chinese statefunded research project, the “Northeast Project” (2002–6), which charts the peripheral region’s history and geography (Ahn, “Competing” ¶3). The area in question is China’s Northeast province, which borders not only (North) Korea and Mongolia, but also Russia. When the three ancient kingdoms of Korea—Gojoseon, Goguryeo, and Balhae—were included in this research, Koreans, who consider themselves as the rightful descendants, were infuriated. The issue here is that Goguryeo’s ambitious general and ruler, Gwanggaeto, conquered vast lands, most of what is now Manchuria. His kingdom Goguryeo, therefore, carries a more symbolic meaning in the twenty-first century as it evokes a distant memory of the large territory that once belonged to Korea. The public’s reaction against China was heated, to say the least, and, apart from the state-level tensions, ordinary citizens also participated in this history war online as ethnic bashing between the Koreans and Chinese continued (Hong 34–40).

To reiterate, when considering the fact that one of the mainstay themes of epic cinema is a nation’s founding story and its territorial expansion, it is not difficult to fathom what anxieties and pleasures the historical epic may evoke to audiences in respective countries. Yet, such issues are often glossed over in the discussion of transnational co-productions, obscured by the glamour and hype of globalization. From the critical and audience reception of the East Asian blockbusters, I find that the representation of race, the use of language, and casting decisions pose as prominent dilemmas. What language should the film speak? Where should it be set and in what period? And which (national) star should play the role of the hero, or for that matter, the villain? The decision-making process

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