8 Asians

  • About us
  • Write for 8Asians
  • Podcast
  • Events
Do Asian Women Have The Smallest Vaginas?Do Asian Women Have The Smallest Vaginas?
12 Year old New York Filipina Cites Cyberbulling in her Suicide Note12 Year old New York Filipina Cites Cyberbulling in her Suicide Note
Report: Asian-American Subgroups Among Nation’s PoorestReport: Asian-American Subgroups Among Nation’s Poorest
Giveaway: ‘Man of Steel’ Prize PackageGiveaway: ‘Man of Steel’ Prize Package

Hollywood Chinese

By Tim | Wednesday, May 27, 2009 | 9 Comments

thirteen promo 20090430 amms2202 Hollywood Chinese

Most PBS stations will air tonight (May 27, 2009) a 90 minute showing of American Masters, titled Hollywood Chinese, produced in 2008. The film covers a century of Chinese involvement in Hollywood cinema. The film is produced, directed, written and edited by Academy Award nominated filmmaker Arthur Dong (former San Franciscan and current resident of Los Angeles).

A short description from the PBS website:

American feature films often portray the Chinese as exotic and devious characters – or simply the “other” – reflecting the entertainment industry’s inherent racial prejudices as well as its fascination with the Far East. Hollywood Chinese features candid interviews and back lot stories from artists in front of and behind the camera, including Joan Chen, James Hong, David Henry Hwang, Nancy Kwan, Ang Lee, Christopher Lee, Justin Lin, Luise Rainer, Amy Tan, Wayne Wang, and BD Wong.

The documentary chronicles the full gamut of Chinese representation in Hollywood. It brings to light the controversial yellowface casting of Luise Rainer in The Good Earth (1937) and the stereotyped caricatures played by Chinese American actors such as James Hong in Bloodsport 2 & 3 (1996 and 1996). It also addresses the eventual trend of Asian empowerment in films such as Flower Drum Song (1961) staring Nancy Kwan and the film-adaptation of Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club (1993) directed by Wayne Wang.

This documentary has already received positive reviews, and should be well worth watching if you have an interest in Asians in cinema.

Thanks for rating this! Now tell the world how you feel - Share this on Twitter and on Facebook.
(Nah, it's cool; just take me back.)
MOODTHINGY
How does this post make you feel?
  • Excited
  • Fascinated
  • Amused
  • Bored
  • Sad
  • Angry

Categories:

AnnouncementsCurrent EventsMoviesReviewsSan Francisco Bay AreaSouthern California
Tweet

NOTE: 8Asians.com is a community, and we thank you for being a part of it. While we welcome and appreciate differences in opinion, if you're rude or you're promoting spam, we have a right to edit or delete your comment. Read our comment policy for more information.

If you see a comment that violates the 8Asians.com comment policy, you may flag the comment by mousing over the comment and clicking "FLAG."

Facebook Comments (Beta)

  • http://www.jozjozjoz.com jozjozjoz

    I saw this last year when it was released theatrically at a screening with a Q&A with Arthur Dong.

    I looked up the review I put on Flixster:

    I thoroughly enjoyed this complex, well-researched and nicely put-together film. Arthur Dong did an amazing job of interviewing the subjects and telling a fascinating story of 100 years of Asians (Chinese) in Hollywood. Particularly compelling interviewees were Joan Chen, Ang Lee, B.D. Wong, Nancy Kwan and Justin Lin.

    Also, Arthur somehow got ahold of footage from the infamous Sundance shouting match at the end of the BETTER LUCK TOMORROW screening where Roger Ebert stands up and defends the Asian Americans for portraying Asian Americans on film however they wanted to do so. Worth watching this film for this alone.

    Sadly, tonight is the end of the theatrical run in NY, SF, and LA, but jump if you get a chance to watch it when it comes out on DVD (or hopefully) PBS. :)

  • http://www.jozjozjoz.com jozjozjoz

    PS – This isn’t about “Asian cinema,” which would imply movies made in/by Asians (in Asia).

    This is a documentary chronicling Asian American (specifically Chinese Americans) in the Hollywood system, including a really interesting delve into the earliest known Chinese American film made in 1916.

  • http://gayparenthood.blogspot.com Tim

    @Joz: I fixed the post to read “Asians in cinema”

    I was able to catch this showing tonight, and have to say it was impressive in its coverage of Chinese in Hollywood Cinema. It brought up a lot of films I’ve known about but haven’t seen and now have a desire to watch. There was one quote by B.D.Wong I’d like to write an entire post about, and will save it for a future article. The other surprising thing about watching it, was that it was followed immediately with a screening of the “The Slanted Screen: Asian Men in Film and Television”, the 2006 documentary by Jeff Adachi

  • http://www.jozjozjoz.com jozjozjoz

    Glad you caught it. You’re lucky that you’re in the Bay Area where they did that “double feature.”

    I thought THE SLANTED SCREEN was also quite good. It’s great to see more recent documentaries about Asians in the media. Quite a lot has happened since the late 90s.

    And I got tired of seeing SLAYING THE DRAGON (1988) over and over again in my Asian American Studies classes.

  • JC

    Things aren’t any better today. Don’t they usually make a documentary when things are vastly different today?

  • johns

    Why would any “asian”use the title “Slanted Screen”? A real Japanese or Chinese or Korean should sue Adachi, just as native Americans sued a football team for using “Redskins”.

  • Pingback: 8Asians.com » Popular Posts in the Past 15 Days

  • Pingback: Why Roger Ebert is One of My Asian American Heroes | Entertainment | 8Asians.com | An Asian American collaborative blog

  • Pingback: Why Roger Ebert is an Asian American Hero « jozjozjoz.com

 
Google
Custom Search
Advertise on 8Asians
Recent Posts
  • 8Questions with 8Asians Writer Mihee Kim-Kort
  • 12 Year old New York Filipina Cites Cyberbulling in her Suicide Note
  • Anime Review: Bamboo Blade
  • The Guillotines: Film Review
  • Anime Review: Psycho-Pass
  • Giveaway: ‘Man of Steel’ Prize Package
  • Report: Asian-American Subgroups Among Nation’s Poorest
Recent Comments
  • XXXMafia: Funny you tell that story. As a lifelong resident of Alabama, I've always heard the story of Asians in America were viewed as colored, not... – What Do White Supremacists Think of Asians?
  • A_Lee: I'm actually very sympathetic to the plight of the average nerdy white straight single male, who is basically the only acceptable target of universal hate... – Hip to be Asian American?
  • timat8asians: LOL, I get asked about my "wife" all the time. I've never been asked about my "husband" (unless that person knew I was gay because... – Asian American Dad: Is Your Daughter Adopted?
  • zdrav: You make some excellent points. I agree that appreciating a culture's literature is a real sign of true appreciation due to the amount of effort... – Hip to be Asian American?
  • gwumpycat: You're probably not as subtle/straight-acting as you think you are. – Asian American Dad: Is Your Daughter Adopted?
  • Raiden: Considering Weta workshop was originally hired to work on a live action NGE (before it fell into production hell following the Controversy over both Last... – New Giant Robot Film "Pacific Rim" Eerily Like Anime Evangelion

APA Events

  • Feb 21: (San Jose, CA) New Stories from the Edge of Asia: This/That
  • Apr 26: (New York, NY) Front Row: Chinese American Designers
  • May 9: (Los Angeles, CA) East West Players presents CHESS
  • Jun 6: (San Jose, CA) Questions from the Sky: New work from Hung Liu
  • Jun 19: (Aptos, CA) LYF Camp 2013: “Choose Your Own Adventure”
  • Jun 23: (San Jose, CA) San Jose Taiko Public Workshop
  • Jun 29: (Los Angeles, CA) Makoto Taiko Annual Concert
  • Jul 13: (San Jose, CA) San Jose Obon Festival 2013
Add Your Event
www.8asians.com

Staff and Contributors

  • Editors
  • Jocelyn "Joz" Wang

    Editor-in-chief/CEO
  • Moye Ishimoto

    Editor-at-large
  • Contributors
  • Tina Tsai

    LATEST POST: Anime Review: Bamboo Blade
  • Tim Chiu

    LATEST POST: Report: Asian-American Subgroups Among Nation’s Poorest
  • Koji Steven Sakai

    LATEST POST: Hip to be Asian American?
  • Mitchell Dwyer

    LATEST POST: Film Review: ‘Masquerade’ (2012)
  • akrypti

    LATEST POST: Meet the 8Asians: Shako
  • Xxxtine Miguel

    LATEST POST: The Guillotines: Film Review
  • Jeff S.

    LATEST POST: 12 Year old New York Filipina Cites Cyberbulling in her Suicide Note
  • Shako Liu

    LATEST POST: Letter From Pyongyang: More Like A Home Video
View all Authors

Other Links

  • Get your very own 8Asians merchandise here!
Advertise | Contact Us | Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Privacy Policy