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36 matchs for korea:
36 matchs for korea:
I watched two good films last night. la ceremonie - a violent tale directed by Claude Chabrol in his usual detached style. Issabelle Huppert and Sandrine Bonnaire are excellent. Huppert is hyper-energetic and hilarious, especially in the scenes where the two ransack the house of their victims, an upper-class family in a small town.
I watched the first half a couple of years ago but must have dozed off before the real action started.
And another violent flick pitting the help against the family - The Housemaid, directed by Kim Ki-young • 1960 • South Korea. Reminded me a bit more of Whatever Happend to Baby Jane than Bunuel's surrealism, which it sometimes gets compared to. Lots of camera moves and a very deliberate style overall. Over the top and twisted.
I found both movies on Criterion via the channel's interviews with Bong Joon Ho.
16 years ago, Kellogg's ran survey asking Koreans for new flavour for Chex cereal. Green onion won by far. Kellogg's snubbed decision, created super choco flavour instead. Now "so sorry". Green onion Chex out July 1. This ad feat. trot singer Tae Jin-ah 😂pic.twitter.com/UvZrMixLNU
— Raphael Rashid (@koryodynasty) June 27, 2020
korean baseball league uses stuffed animals behind plate in lieu of fans.
MUST EAT HERE!!
Atomix
Key players: Junghyun ‘JP’ Park, Ellia Park
Target open: April
Modern Korean banchan-inspired restaurant Atoboy quickly became a hit when it opened in 2016, run by chef JP Park, an alum of Michelin-starred Jungsik, and partner Ellia Park. For their sophomore restaurant, the duo will be going even more upscale with a Japanese tasting menu-style restaurant and cocktail bar at Atomix in Kips Bay. The kaiseki menu, though inspired by the hyper-seasonal dinners common in Japan, will still focus on Korean fare — in hopes of expanding New Yorkers’ idea of what food from the country can look like. 104 East 30th St., between Park Avenue South and Lexington Avenue, Kips Bay
Currently on Netf1ix MOTHER dir. by Bong Joon Ho (The Host, Memories of Murder, Snowpiercer)
A murder rocks a small South Korean town and suspicion quickly falls on a reclusive, mentally challenged -- and alibi-free -- young man.
Exploring many of the same themes as Memories of Murder but from the point of view of the mother of the accused. Worth watching for the opening credits sequence alone.
the big game today at noon. i expect to be despondent by 12:05 and then i will turn on the tv and start watching the game. i already have a headache so im confident i can make this happen.
in other good news, the field is supposed to be drenched from torrential rains. not sure who that could ultimately help. also, in the other game ghana has some turmoil on their side as one of its better players had it out with the coach and was sent home. and another top player is suspended due to yellow card accumulation. so a weakened side might help tip the balance in favor of portugal and as we recall a portugal win means the us advance automatically.
the final set of matches has belgium (already through) v. south korea and algeria v. russia. algeria is in the best position to advance with three points going into the match while south korea and russia have one. i havent seen alot of these teams but lets just hope that the us and algeria advance along with germany and belgium as the odds would suggest.
also, suarez was banned from soccer for four months including his club soccer in england. he plays for liverpool (at the moment). i believe they might say that throws a spanner in the works, or more likely, something far less tame. didnt know fifa had the authority outside of the international events but outside of liverpool and uruguay he will have few supporters crying foul.
Previously unaware of Period of Adjustment, Tennessee Williams serious comedy. An odd lot in the casting dept and an odd time in the post Korean war pre Beatles suburban American south. wiki / imdb on Tcm this morning.
been watching Thumbs Up on netfl1x. into season 2 now. two korean americans hitch hike and hop trains across the us, accepting all rides.
OECD report
Here are the US rankings out of the 30 OECD countries (1 is best; 30 is worst -- worst as in Somalia-like). The names of the countries even more Somalian than the US appear in parens.
Infant Deaths: 28 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey).
Life Expectancy: 24 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey, Hungary, Poland, Czech & Slovak Republics).
Health Expenditures: 1 out of 30.
Poverty Rates: 28 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey).
Child Poverty: 27 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey, Poland).
Income Inequality: 27 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey, Portugal).
Obesity: 30 out of 30.
Incarceration: 30 out of 30.
Work Hours (ranked in ascending order): 30 out of 30.
Height (women): 25 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey, Korea, Portugal, Japan).
Height (men): 24 out of 30 (Italy, Spain, Mexico, Portugal, Korea, Japan).
Here are the US rankings out of the 30 OECD countries (1 is best; 30 is worst -- worst as in Somalia-like). The names of the countries even more Somalian than the US appear in parens.
Infant Deaths: 28 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey).
Life Expectancy: 24 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey, Hungary, Poland, Czech & Slovak Republics).
Health Expenditures: 1 out of 30.
Poverty Rates: 28 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey).
Child Poverty: 27 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey, Poland).
Income Inequality: 27 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey, Portugal).
Obesity: 30 out of 30.
Incarceration: 30 out of 30.
Work Hours (ranked in ascending order): 30 out of 30.
Height (women): 25 out of 30 (Mexico, Turkey, Korea, Portugal, Japan).
Height (men): 24 out of 30 (Italy, Spain, Mexico, Portugal, Korea, Japan).
via opinionatedaboutdining.com
David Chang, Chef/Owner, Momofuku, New York, NY
Meal of the Year – Corton,, New York, NY
Michael Psilakis, Chef/Owner, Anthos, New York, NY
Meal of the Year – Corton, New York, NY
Paul Liebrandt, Executive Chef, Corton
Meal of the Year – Pierre Gagniere, Seoul, Korea
Tom Collicchio, Host, Top Chef, Chef/Owner Craft & Damon Wise, Executive Chef, Craft
Meal of the Year – Soto, New York, NY “His giant squid with quail egg was the best dish I had this year"
Wylie Dufresne Chef/Owner WD-50, New York, NY
Best Meal – (Tie) Mugaritz, Errenteria, Spain, Noma, Copenhagen, Denmark
David Chang, Chef/Owner, Momofuku, New York, NY
Meal of the Year – Corton,, New York, NY
Michael Psilakis, Chef/Owner, Anthos, New York, NY
Meal of the Year – Corton, New York, NY
Paul Liebrandt, Executive Chef, Corton
Meal of the Year – Pierre Gagniere, Seoul, Korea
Tom Collicchio, Host, Top Chef, Chef/Owner Craft & Damon Wise, Executive Chef, Craft
Meal of the Year – Soto, New York, NY “His giant squid with quail egg was the best dish I had this year"
Wylie Dufresne Chef/Owner WD-50, New York, NY
Best Meal – (Tie) Mugaritz, Errenteria, Spain, Noma, Copenhagen, Denmark
an article about a company that makes blu-ray mastering equipment
The part that caught my eye was the comment about neither blu-ray nor hd-dvd winning the format war. It will be all about downloads. It would be a shame if the video disc goes the way of the dodo. There is absolutely no form of video available to consumers that is anywhere near the quality of a well-mastered high def digital disc. Until we get fat pipes like they have in Korea, downloads will be much lower bit rate, and visibly lower quality.
If enough people get big ass displays, which will allow the average consumer to see the difference, physical media may retain a foothold.
The part that caught my eye was the comment about neither blu-ray nor hd-dvd winning the format war. It will be all about downloads. It would be a shame if the video disc goes the way of the dodo. There is absolutely no form of video available to consumers that is anywhere near the quality of a well-mastered high def digital disc. Until we get fat pipes like they have in Korea, downloads will be much lower bit rate, and visibly lower quality.
If enough people get big ass displays, which will allow the average consumer to see the difference, physical media may retain a foothold.
ryley and i decided this is worth top spot on our netflix queue: Doggy Poo
This charmingly eccentric cartoon from Korea features a little mound of dog poo on a quest to find meaning and purpose in his life. Left all alone on the side of the road and feeling abandoned and helpless, he believes his life is without value. Luckily, the despondent poo is befriended by a dandelion sprite who helps him recognize his worth.
This charmingly eccentric cartoon from Korea features a little mound of dog poo on a quest to find meaning and purpose in his life. Left all alone on the side of the road and feeling abandoned and helpless, he believes his life is without value. Luckily, the despondent poo is befriended by a dandelion sprite who helps him recognize his worth.
someone recommended this korean-california frozen yogurt chain which now has 4 nyc locations - pinkberry.
skinny recommended Woochon, at 10 W 36th a while back. Still good? any recommendations of Korean restaurants in that vicinity?
Sony's Internet Video Link Anchors BRAVIA Line
From the article:
I'm not sure that crappy, low res internet video will be compelling on an HD television set. Also, there's no mention of a hard disk. In the US market HD content is going to need caching on disk. We're not like S. Korea with their 100 Mbps internet. Akimbo and Apple TV seem more like the right kind of "internet TV" devices for the average U.S. consumer.
From the article:
The linchpin to Sony's video strategy is the Bravia Internet Video Link. When connected to the back of a compatible Sony TV, the device will allow it to receive video programming from a number of online services, including AOL, Yahoo! and Grouper, as well as Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony BMG Music, for free. RSS feeds are also supported. Video sharing services, such as YouTube, Revver, or Soapbox, were not mentioned, although a Sony spokesman said the company was in discussions with sites "like" YouTube.
"Stay tuned," he said.
The Internet Video Link will begin selling in July for about $300, Sony said.
I'm not sure that crappy, low res internet video will be compelling on an HD television set. Also, there's no mention of a hard disk. In the US market HD content is going to need caching on disk. We're not like S. Korea with their 100 Mbps internet. Akimbo and Apple TV seem more like the right kind of "internet TV" devices for the average U.S. consumer.
Favorite $6ish lunch spot.....Woorijip 12 W 32nd: its a Korean "deli" (or as they call it Meals "To Go") with kimchee rolls $3, noodles $3, etc
Mtn. View WiFi net being tested by 100 users
GOOGLE SAYS ENTIRE CITY COULD GO ONLINE IN ABOUT TWO MONTHS
Anti-net neutrality types cite systems such as this as evidence of free competition. That's why my arguments focus on high-speed broadband. If the average S. Korean apartment can get 8 Mbps, and has service sufficient to support MPEG-2 SD video, then kinda sorta 1 Mbps under ideal conditions doesn't cut it. This capability is very cool, but should not be taken as evidence for a competitive market for high-speed broadband.
GOOGLE SAYS ENTIRE CITY COULD GO ONLINE IN ABOUT TWO MONTHS
Anti-net neutrality types cite systems such as this as evidence of free competition. That's why my arguments focus on high-speed broadband. If the average S. Korean apartment can get 8 Mbps, and has service sufficient to support MPEG-2 SD video, then kinda sorta 1 Mbps under ideal conditions doesn't cut it. This capability is very cool, but should not be taken as evidence for a competitive market for high-speed broadband.
Korea Rising ... I'm shopping to replace a dead Panasonic DVD player, and a Samsung DVD/VHS recorder has risen to the top of the heap. While DVD recorders have gotten dirt cheap, huge feature gaps remain. The Samsung unit works with every DVD format (except DVD Audio). Why is that so frickin' hard, Philips, Sony, Panasonic and Toshiba? I'm hoping this is the last SD-only DVD gizmo I ever have to get.
Rising China TV spec may sink DVB-H
Mike Clendenin
EE Times
(07/03/2006 9:00 AM EDT)
Shanghai, China -- As China prepares a digital terrestrial TV standard suitable for fixed and mobile terminals, uncertainty is growing over the future of rival mobile-TV standards here.
China has been experimenting with two competing mobile-TV broadcast standards: Digital Video Broadcast-based DVB-Handheld and a South Korean derivative of Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) known as Terrestrial-Digital Multimedia Broadcasting. However, now that China's own digital TV standard is close to finished, authorities here are giving it priority, threatening the viability of European-invented DVB-H and DAB-based T-DMB.
Mike Clendenin
EE Times
(07/03/2006 9:00 AM EDT)
Shanghai, China -- As China prepares a digital terrestrial TV standard suitable for fixed and mobile terminals, uncertainty is growing over the future of rival mobile-TV standards here.
China has been experimenting with two competing mobile-TV broadcast standards: Digital Video Broadcast-based DVB-Handheld and a South Korean derivative of Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) known as Terrestrial-Digital Multimedia Broadcasting. However, now that China's own digital TV standard is close to finished, authorities here are giving it priority, threatening the viability of European-invented DVB-H and DAB-based T-DMB.
need to eat here
Using His Noodle
Before he opened Momofuku Noodle Bar, David Chang spent months cooking and eating in Japan, where he learned that ramen is as diverse as American barbecue, and that variations are just as passionately debated among connoisseurs. So rather than attempt the impossible—making “real ramen” far from its authentic Japanese context—he’s come up with his own style, using ingredients like miso compound butter, eggs slowly poached in their shells, Greenmarket corn, and Berkshire pork. The result is a gently priced menu rooted in tradition but not enslaved by it, with a Pan-Asian twist in the form of additions like cold Korean buckwheat noodles and Chinese pork buns.
163 First Avenue
212-475-7899
((skinny))
Using His Noodle
Before he opened Momofuku Noodle Bar, David Chang spent months cooking and eating in Japan, where he learned that ramen is as diverse as American barbecue, and that variations are just as passionately debated among connoisseurs. So rather than attempt the impossible—making “real ramen” far from its authentic Japanese context—he’s come up with his own style, using ingredients like miso compound butter, eggs slowly poached in their shells, Greenmarket corn, and Berkshire pork. The result is a gently priced menu rooted in tradition but not enslaved by it, with a Pan-Asian twist in the form of additions like cold Korean buckwheat noodles and Chinese pork buns.
163 First Avenue
212-475-7899
((skinny))
Using His Noodle
Before he opened Momofuku Noodle Bar, David Chang spent months cooking and eating in Japan, where he learned that ramen is as diverse as American barbecue, and that variations are just as passionately debated among connoisseurs. So rather than attempt the impossible—making “real ramen” far from its authentic Japanese context—he’s come up with his own style, using ingredients like miso compound butter, eggs slowly poached in their shells, Greenmarket corn, and Berkshire pork. The result is a gently priced menu rooted in tradition but not enslaved by it, with a Pan-Asian twist in the form of additions like cold Korean buckwheat noodles and Chinese pork buns.
163 First Avenue
212-475-7899
Before he opened Momofuku Noodle Bar, David Chang spent months cooking and eating in Japan, where he learned that ramen is as diverse as American barbecue, and that variations are just as passionately debated among connoisseurs. So rather than attempt the impossible—making “real ramen” far from its authentic Japanese context—he’s come up with his own style, using ingredients like miso compound butter, eggs slowly poached in their shells, Greenmarket corn, and Berkshire pork. The result is a gently priced menu rooted in tradition but not enslaved by it, with a Pan-Asian twist in the form of additions like cold Korean buckwheat noodles and Chinese pork buns.
163 First Avenue
212-475-7899
Kim Jong Il's eating habits:
The North Korean leader might be one of the world's most enigmatic figures, but thanks to a growing and eclectic body of books and articles that detail Kim's epicurean habits, more is known about what he eats than nearly any other head of state.
EAT SHORT RIBS @ 36-92 (5 W 36)......great Korean BBQ....
Hangawi's new place was nothing special (Franchia 34/35 Park), we were not full so we went to another Korean for meat and nothing special (32nd St right off Bway, south side).....stick to Hangawi or WOOCHON (IMHO)
Spring??.....lately for many weeks I am falling in love with the Korean family at the Green Market, in the cold of winter they have had these yummy tiny tomatoes, greenhouse I assume, but they get my #1 vote....yesterday they had some bok choy rabe (they have great bok choy always), thin small cucumbers, and an expanded herb selection.....ORGANIC also:>)
Number one in a series: half baked political theory quiz.
Why would the U.S. ignore North Korea in light of the general agreement that they are making nuclear bombs (maybe around 6 by the summer is one estimate I heard,) and have missles capable of reaching the U.S.? Please answer in two words.
Why would the U.S. ignore North Korea in light of the general agreement that they are making nuclear bombs (maybe around 6 by the summer is one estimate I heard,) and have missles capable of reaching the U.S.? Please answer in two words.
Scary interview with Sy Hersh on Now with Bill Moyers. Pakistan sharing nuke tech with North Korea, others?
Finally found a super Korean spot, I have tried many and this is it IMHO, and the company of Steve and Erin was special:>)....WOOCHON 10 W 36.....
WOOCHON 1*
WOOCHON 1*
Cho Dang Gol, excellent Korean, was 2* in NYT in 1998 (Ruth I assume), daily tofu made, different and a worthy stop....55W35 / near 6th....
At Jewel Bako they serve live octopi!!!!
Octo-wussy By Jecinta Noble
Always check it's dead. Like these are
Always check your food is dead before you tuck in.
A man from South Korea probably wished he hadn't eaten a live octopus that ended up killing him.
The 62-year-old Seoul resident liked eating live octopi for some strange reason - perhaps he had a death wish.
The diner covered the squirming dish in vinegar and red pepper paste, but it still continued to struggle.
Thinking it was on his last few legs, he stuffed the octopus into his mouth.
But this little blighter was a fighter who decided to use its tentacles to push himself off the man's teeth, dive down his throat and spread itself out.
The man quickly began to choke prompting his wife to come to his aid.
"I slapped him on the back, but it didn't work," she told The Korea Herald.
Clearly.The emergency services managed to pull the octopus from the man's throat, finding it still alive.
But the diner was dead.
Never mess with a feisty hor's d'oeuvre
Octo-wussy By Jecinta Noble
Always check it's dead. Like these are
Always check your food is dead before you tuck in.
A man from South Korea probably wished he hadn't eaten a live octopus that ended up killing him.
The 62-year-old Seoul resident liked eating live octopi for some strange reason - perhaps he had a death wish.
The diner covered the squirming dish in vinegar and red pepper paste, but it still continued to struggle.
Thinking it was on his last few legs, he stuffed the octopus into his mouth.
But this little blighter was a fighter who decided to use its tentacles to push himself off the man's teeth, dive down his throat and spread itself out.
The man quickly began to choke prompting his wife to come to his aid.
"I slapped him on the back, but it didn't work," she told The Korea Herald.
Clearly.The emergency services managed to pull the octopus from the man's throat, finding it still alive.
But the diner was dead.
Never mess with a feisty hor's d'oeuvre
Charlotte Morman
" I had no difficulty being Korean in America. We were thinking in terms of numbers. This virgin land here was so big that I didn’t have a problem. I could go anywhere. I wanted to do everything. I was like an elephant in a china shop. I could break everything. I was very excited about a revolution with Charlotte Mormon and me. In Germany I was making a kind of “sexable music” and I couldn’t find in Germany an instrumentalist girl who would play nude for me. In Japan I was looking for some nude girls, but at that time, classical music was a middle class thing in Japan. So they were very prudent. So they didn’t understand what I wanted. But Charlotte Mormon was wild oats, a tough girl. So she was a very tough girl; she knew what I was trying to do. America had become a very important art country by then. America was invading Germany and France already and I needed a homeland, to homestead. When I was in New York I came here to SoHo. I lived on Canal street for almost 10 years." -NJP
Fame Exchange
" I had no difficulty being Korean in America. We were thinking in terms of numbers. This virgin land here was so big that I didn’t have a problem. I could go anywhere. I wanted to do everything. I was like an elephant in a china shop. I could break everything. I was very excited about a revolution with Charlotte Mormon and me. In Germany I was making a kind of “sexable music” and I couldn’t find in Germany an instrumentalist girl who would play nude for me. In Japan I was looking for some nude girls, but at that time, classical music was a middle class thing in Japan. So they were very prudent. So they didn’t understand what I wanted. But Charlotte Mormon was wild oats, a tough girl. So she was a very tough girl; she knew what I was trying to do. America had become a very important art country by then. America was invading Germany and France already and I needed a homeland, to homestead. When I was in New York I came here to SoHo. I lived on Canal street for almost 10 years." -NJP
Fame Exchange
It's All In The Swagger
May 7, 2001 (NYT) News Analysis: To European Eyes, It's America the Ugly
By ROGER COHEN
BERLIN, May 6 — Before becoming president, George W. Bush seemed acutely aware of the need for a country as powerful as the United States to show restraint. "If we are an arrogant nation, they will resent us," he said. "If we're a humble nation, but strong, they'll welcome us."
The words appear to have been forgotten. A torrent of hostile articles in Europe has greeted Mr. Bush's first three months in office. Their chief theme has been the arrogance of what the German weekly Der Spiegel recently called "the snarling, ugly Americans."
On its Web site, the respected Munich daily Süddeutsche Zeitung lists seven articles summing up the themes of Mr. Bush's first 100 days. They are not unrepresentative of widespread European views.
The titles include: "Selling Weapons to Taiwan: Bush Throws His Weight Around in the Pacific"; "North Korea: Bush Irritates the Asians"; "World Court: No Support From United States"; "Iraq: Bombing Instead of Diplomacy"; and "Climate Agreement: The United States Abandons the Kyoto Protocol."
cont.
May 7, 2001 (NYT) News Analysis: To European Eyes, It's America the Ugly
By ROGER COHEN
BERLIN, May 6 — Before becoming president, George W. Bush seemed acutely aware of the need for a country as powerful as the United States to show restraint. "If we are an arrogant nation, they will resent us," he said. "If we're a humble nation, but strong, they'll welcome us."
The words appear to have been forgotten. A torrent of hostile articles in Europe has greeted Mr. Bush's first three months in office. Their chief theme has been the arrogance of what the German weekly Der Spiegel recently called "the snarling, ugly Americans."
On its Web site, the respected Munich daily Süddeutsche Zeitung lists seven articles summing up the themes of Mr. Bush's first 100 days. They are not unrepresentative of widespread European views.
The titles include: "Selling Weapons to Taiwan: Bush Throws His Weight Around in the Pacific"; "North Korea: Bush Irritates the Asians"; "World Court: No Support From United States"; "Iraq: Bombing Instead of Diplomacy"; and "Climate Agreement: The United States Abandons the Kyoto Protocol."
cont.
Rushdie's two cents :
Can Hollywood See the Tiger?
By SALMAN RUSHDIE for nyt
"LOS ANGELES -- Without Hollywood, they say, Los Angeles would just be Phoenix with a coastline. This year, as deadlines approach for strikes by actors and writers, L. A. is facing the possibility of becoming, for a time, a characterless, movieless sprawl.
Rumors are flying: The studios actually want the strikes; the actors don't, though their representatives are talking tough. And the writers? Well, they're only writers, after all. Talks keep breaking down an inch away from agreement. Television companies are preparing to flood the schedules with even more reality-TV programming — it's cheap! it's popular! it's not unionized! — to fill the holes created by The Strike. There's plenty of bad feeling in the air, and a growing sense of inevitability. The shutdown is "going to happen" (which means it either will or won't).
And in the midst of this uncertainty, the movie community awaits its annual festival of big business interests disguised as individual achievements. The lobbying season is over. The city is no longer being bombarded by "for your consideration" videotapes. Rock stars are no longer playing impromptu gigs in old folks' homes in the hope of garnering a few votes for Best Song from elderly members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The votes are in. The Oscars are coming.
The movies are Los Angeles's culture. At the weekend, big audiences go to the new pictures the way the opera-loving Milanese go to an opening at La Scala. I haven't seen such enthusiastically participatory audiences anywhere else outside the Indian subcontinent.
This can get irritating: for example, when a man comments loudly every time Penelope Cruz appears on screen in "All the Pretty Horses" — "She's so beautiful! Oh, oh, he's going to fall for her! Uh-oh, here comes trouble!" — or when a 5-year-old insistently asks her parents during "Cast Away," "Mommy, when is the volleyball going to talk?"
Angeleno enthusiasm can, however, also be thrilling. In a packed theater on La Brea, the whooping and cheering at an afternoon showing of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was astonishing even by L.A.'s standards. The audience knew it was sharing in the arrival of a great, classic film and was simply transported by the movie's brilliance. Anyone who thinks DVD's will someday replace moviegoing should have been there. Those killjoys who have denigrated "Crouching Tiger" as a piece of latter-day Orientalism, a Western appropriation of Eastern manner and material, would have seen an audience as diverse as America itself — Korean-Americans, Chinese-Americans, Hispanic Americans and African-Americans easily outnumbered any WASP-y Orientalists who might have been there enjoying the film for the wrong reasons. It was evident to the audience that Ang Lee's beautiful, intimate epic is a luminous work of art.
In the context of the Academy Awards and the shadow of the strike, the success of "Crouching Tiger" is especially significant. It's being talked about as the breakthrough movie that has taught Americans to accept subtitled foreign films into the giant cineplexes where the big money is made. And this is why the various players — and the studios above all — may be making a big mistake if they think they can ride out the strike without losing their stranglehold on the market.
In the 1960's and early 1970's, a flood of great non-American filmmakers pried Hollywood's fingers off the cinema's throat for a few years. The result was a golden age, the time of the great films of Akira Kurosawa and Satyajit Ray; of the French New Wave; of Federico Fellini and Ingmar Bergman. Now, once again, world cinema is blossoming — in China, in Iran, in Britain. And it may just be that the mass audience is ready, at long last, to enjoy rather more diversity in its cultural diet. After all, there are plenty of dreadful American films we could all cheerfully do without.
The Oscars usually show us how Hollywood sees itself. Ridley Scott's technically brilliant but woodenly scripted "Gladiator" is the big-studio candidate for honors, just as the latest sentimental Miramax confection, "Chocolat," leads the charge of the smaller companies. Comedy comes off badly, as usual — the Coen brothers have to be content with screenplay and cinematography nominations for the wonderful "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" There's no nomination for Renee Zellweger's moving, subtle work in the title role of "Nurse Betty." But behind all this familiar maneuvering, the tiger is crouching, the dragon hides.
And if by some chance the one genuinely great movie to have been nominated this year runs away with the big prizes, it may just be the wake-up call that Hollywood needs. When the world's finest filmmakers are coming after your audience, it may not be such a smart idea to shut your industry down.
Salman Rushdie is the author of ``The Satanic Verses'' and ``The Ground Beneath Her Feet.''
Can Hollywood See the Tiger?
By SALMAN RUSHDIE for nyt
"LOS ANGELES -- Without Hollywood, they say, Los Angeles would just be Phoenix with a coastline. This year, as deadlines approach for strikes by actors and writers, L. A. is facing the possibility of becoming, for a time, a characterless, movieless sprawl.
Rumors are flying: The studios actually want the strikes; the actors don't, though their representatives are talking tough. And the writers? Well, they're only writers, after all. Talks keep breaking down an inch away from agreement. Television companies are preparing to flood the schedules with even more reality-TV programming — it's cheap! it's popular! it's not unionized! — to fill the holes created by The Strike. There's plenty of bad feeling in the air, and a growing sense of inevitability. The shutdown is "going to happen" (which means it either will or won't).
And in the midst of this uncertainty, the movie community awaits its annual festival of big business interests disguised as individual achievements. The lobbying season is over. The city is no longer being bombarded by "for your consideration" videotapes. Rock stars are no longer playing impromptu gigs in old folks' homes in the hope of garnering a few votes for Best Song from elderly members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The votes are in. The Oscars are coming.
The movies are Los Angeles's culture. At the weekend, big audiences go to the new pictures the way the opera-loving Milanese go to an opening at La Scala. I haven't seen such enthusiastically participatory audiences anywhere else outside the Indian subcontinent.
This can get irritating: for example, when a man comments loudly every time Penelope Cruz appears on screen in "All the Pretty Horses" — "She's so beautiful! Oh, oh, he's going to fall for her! Uh-oh, here comes trouble!" — or when a 5-year-old insistently asks her parents during "Cast Away," "Mommy, when is the volleyball going to talk?"
Angeleno enthusiasm can, however, also be thrilling. In a packed theater on La Brea, the whooping and cheering at an afternoon showing of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was astonishing even by L.A.'s standards. The audience knew it was sharing in the arrival of a great, classic film and was simply transported by the movie's brilliance. Anyone who thinks DVD's will someday replace moviegoing should have been there. Those killjoys who have denigrated "Crouching Tiger" as a piece of latter-day Orientalism, a Western appropriation of Eastern manner and material, would have seen an audience as diverse as America itself — Korean-Americans, Chinese-Americans, Hispanic Americans and African-Americans easily outnumbered any WASP-y Orientalists who might have been there enjoying the film for the wrong reasons. It was evident to the audience that Ang Lee's beautiful, intimate epic is a luminous work of art.
In the context of the Academy Awards and the shadow of the strike, the success of "Crouching Tiger" is especially significant. It's being talked about as the breakthrough movie that has taught Americans to accept subtitled foreign films into the giant cineplexes where the big money is made. And this is why the various players — and the studios above all — may be making a big mistake if they think they can ride out the strike without losing their stranglehold on the market.
In the 1960's and early 1970's, a flood of great non-American filmmakers pried Hollywood's fingers off the cinema's throat for a few years. The result was a golden age, the time of the great films of Akira Kurosawa and Satyajit Ray; of the French New Wave; of Federico Fellini and Ingmar Bergman. Now, once again, world cinema is blossoming — in China, in Iran, in Britain. And it may just be that the mass audience is ready, at long last, to enjoy rather more diversity in its cultural diet. After all, there are plenty of dreadful American films we could all cheerfully do without.
The Oscars usually show us how Hollywood sees itself. Ridley Scott's technically brilliant but woodenly scripted "Gladiator" is the big-studio candidate for honors, just as the latest sentimental Miramax confection, "Chocolat," leads the charge of the smaller companies. Comedy comes off badly, as usual — the Coen brothers have to be content with screenplay and cinematography nominations for the wonderful "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" There's no nomination for Renee Zellweger's moving, subtle work in the title role of "Nurse Betty." But behind all this familiar maneuvering, the tiger is crouching, the dragon hides.
And if by some chance the one genuinely great movie to have been nominated this year runs away with the big prizes, it may just be the wake-up call that Hollywood needs. When the world's finest filmmakers are coming after your audience, it may not be such a smart idea to shut your industry down.
Salman Rushdie is the author of ``The Satanic Verses'' and ``The Ground Beneath Her Feet.''
