Essays on Peking Opera

The Chinese epic “Farewell My Concubine” by Chen Kaige is a cinematic masterpiece. It is a spectacle of action, history, culture, views of social and political landscapes that all intertwine in a love story that spans 52 years. It won the top prize in the 1993 Cannes International Film Festival and several other accolades in its time (Canby). The movie is vastly entertaining and enthralling. It is easy to get lost in the richness of the story – consider it a cultural achievement. This is an epic that covers years 1925 through 1977 in Beijing (formerly Peking), China. It showcases ...

Question 1

One of the most conspicuous thematic elements of the films made in the Asian region is the conflict between the individuals and the social influences or practices. Many directors hailing from different Asian cultures have come forward to make films dealing with such themes. These films have also gained much critical acclamation and popularity all over the world as they are very aptly made to reach out to the emotions and aesthetic sense of the masses. If one explores a few iconic films of Asia, it would become very clear how the makers have inserted elements of dichotomy in ...

Question 1

It needs to be reckoned that the films made in Asia over the past decades have truly come to excel in the form of cinematic art, and have gained enormous popularity as well as critical acclaim all over the world. If one delves into a few of the iconic Asian films ever made in the history of cinema, it can be comprehended that these films explore the thematic content of the dichotomy between the spirit of emancipation of the individual and the constrictions of the societal norms or the cultural community. A close scrutiny of a few iconic films ...