Jefferson Morley writes on the WaPo’s blog about the animosities between Japan and its neighbors and how the "smallest issues," like Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi getting down with a Japanese actor in Memoirs of a Geisha, can get nationalist sentiment broiling:
The opening of the new movie, "Memoirs of a Geisha," for example, has stirred controversy in China because one of the country’s best known actresses, Zhang Ziyi, stars in a movie that is essentially about Japan and its culture.
"The debate over Zhang’s role in the film first started online,
perhaps with a photograph of Sayuri and her lover, The Chairman
(Japanese actor Ken Watanabe), cuddling and kissing," reports the China Daily. "That set the tongues, especially in Internet chatrooms, rolling. ""’Why did Zhang accept the role of a Japanese ‘prostitute?’ ‘Why did
she allow a Japanese man on top of her?’ These are some of the more
common questions asked in the chatrooms. The responses were equally
strong, the gist of which would be: ‘It’s an insult to national
pride.’"
For what it’s worth, Korean actress Kim Yoon-jin of ABC’s hit series Lost turned down a role in the film, refusing to play a role as a Japanese geisha.
For Korean readers, there was an article in the Herald SaengSaeng News a couple of days ago discussing Zhang’s role in Memoirs. I meant to blog it eventually, but the WaPo apparently beat me to it. Dang.
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6 Comments
People who want to feel insulted will always find ways to feel insulted. Here there is mention of Chinese being insulted by Zhang playing a ‘prostitute.’ Aren’t the Japanese at the same time insulted that a foreigner, Zhang, was chosen to play an ‘artisan’ in one of Japan’s most revered professions–a role that no non-japanese could possibly understand well enough?
Doesn’t matter to me. Zhang Ziyi is hot and long as there is a bedroom scene with her in it, I am happy. Although the babe in ‘The Last Samurai’ would have been a fine choice too. I also think Arthur Golden got undue crap from the Geisha he used for background info.
Perhaps she accepted the role because the compensation package was enough to her liking?
don’t mind me. testing this typepad thing.
Good for Zang Ziyi for taking the role, her critics be damned. Actually it took some courage for her to do it, if she imagined what kind of fallout might come of it from extremist nutbars on all sides.
Good for Zang Ziyi for taking the role, her critics be damned.
Who cares what critics say. You can’t please everybody all the time. If it isn’t this set of people with bullhorns, it’s the other set.
Who cares brain-dead with 19th century mind and hatred. The art needs the mind of freedom, which they don’t have. The only depressing point is that there are possibly 13 billions of them.
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Daily linklets 16th November
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