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Rag Doll (2020)
Heartbreaking!
After watching the film, I already felt quite sad for the little girl so I did not expect to get my heart shattered even more when reading further into the story behind it. If you are reading this, I encourage you to read more into those actual stories that inspired this film, which can be found under the description section of whatever media platform that you can watch this film on.
The film uses a creative way to convey the terrible human right abuses in China in a light-hearted manner- the art of oil painting. There are many symbolisms being used- all of which can only be uncovered through learning the actual stories as mentioned above. It is ridiculous that the world has let China committed such atrocity for so long. Even to this day, there are many children that face similar situation to the one being conveyed in this film. I hope that justice will be restored in China soon.
Unsilenced (2021)
Another Hit by Leon Lee
I'm a fan of his previous work "Letter from Masanjia", which was more of a documentary. I am surprised by his flexibility as a director to be able to make a movie based on a real life event and he did a wonderful job with "Unsilenced". Overall, amazing cast, well-written dialogs, fascinating character developments, and good symbolisms.
While watching this film, one thing I easily forgot until the very end was that this is based on a real life, meaning that the main character actually exists in real life. For me personally, reality is sometimes way scarier than any fake CGI-based horror movies. I cannot imagine myself going through all of that ordeals and remains the same person.
Btw, I found a fascinating interview piece of Leon Lee with Hollywood North Magazine. Highly recommend everyone to read through it. Anyone would be surprised what the man went through to make this movie. I appreciate being able to watch it comfortably on my comfy chair way more now after reading that interview.
Letter from Masanjia (2018)
Why isn't this more popular?
I wish many more people can know about this movie and I do believe it is a must see. I was appalled by how much this man Sun Yi went through under that brutal Communist regime and was, at the same time, inspired by his courage.
Many people around me have already given up on doing the right things and speaking up because they feel like whatever good things they might do is insignificant and cannot overturn the deteriorating current around the world. I myself sometimes feel like this and hesitate to do what I believe is right when opportunities arise. After seeing this man Sun Yi made a wager on his life to make this movie, seeing how his letter written in prison led to the eventual shutting down of the brutal Chinese labor camp system, I felt like a coward and an urge to stay true to my values. Small changes do matter! Small actions that we take in our everyday life can make a difference!
Koe no katachi (2016)
Easily become one of my favorite films
I've always have this grudge against bullying. This film speaks to me so well as I know what happens in this movie happens in real life everywhere.
I have never understood why people feel the need to bully others who are different from them. This movie captures so well the herd mentality behind this. A lot of people would help bully others, despite feeling sick to their stomach themselves about their actions, because they don't want to look different, don't want to be isolated by others, or don't want to suffer some form of loss. There is no such thing as the right time to do the right thing. A lot of horrendous things such as persecution and massacre has taken place and grown because many people fear of being singled out if they were to do the right thing.
Eternal Spring (2022)
Never again is happening right now!
After the Holocaust was revealed, the whole world was shocked and exclaimed: "Never again!" However, waves after waves of brutal persecutions have been carried out in broad daylight against the people in China. Tiananmen Square protesters, Falun Gong practitioners, Uyghurs, women (1 child policy), intellectuals, etc. Are suppressed under the iron grip of the Chinese Communist Party. It is unbelievable how many people and countries continue to support this evil regime and give it the resources to continue its ruling, thereby passively supporting the persecutions and human right abuses.
This movie did a wonderful job in exploring the viewpoints of a group of Falun Gong practitioners. The beautiful 3D animation along with enticing storytelling allows me to "follow" the footsteps of those Falun Gong practitioners and experience a piece of their what they went through. Although I was just watching this movie, I can feel my hearts palpitating with fear and anxiety watching those people getting chased down by the police. I cannot imagine the level of pain and humiliation a person went through when being tortured to the extent depicted in this movie.
Those Falun Gong practitioners are true heroes. Heroes don't always appear in shiny amors on top of mighty horses. Heroes don't always punch the bad guys in the face in real life. The only difference between heroes and ordinary people is their strong and unshakeable will in following justice and doing the right things. Heroes do the right things because they're the right things and not because they know they will succeed in doing so. Those Falun Gong practitioners were willing to risk it all: their chance of seeing their families, their prides, their health, their freedom, even their very lives to bring the truths to more people. By letting more people know the truth, the persecution will lose its momentum and justification in the eyes of the public. More people will not join the CCP in carrying out the persecution or no longer support it to carry out this persecution. More people will start to protect Falun Gong practitioners. In addition, we need to remember that when the Holocaust and other genocides ended and the perpetrators got prosecuted, people who did not directly carry out the persecutions but did silently support the perpetrators were also being judged and criticized heavily. Both Japan and Germany faced heavy punishments after World War 2 and theirs people were looked down upon by the whole world. That is to say, by making more Chinese people to make a stand against the persecution of Falun Gong, those Chinese people can redeem themselves and gain back their honors before the CCP's crimes are exposed and trialed. Therefore, the sacrificing of those Falun Gong practitioners to bring the truth to more people is a heroic and noble act.
There are people that claim that these Falun Gong practitioners did break the law and that it's still wrong despite having good intentions. However, laws only have value when they're just. Unjust laws that spit on the core values of human beings should not be followed. All the countries in the world have stories praising people that made their stands against unjust laws. The United States, for example, revolted against Great Britain by dumping tea into the ocean (Boston Tea Party). Another example is the law that allow people to own slaves and to trade slaves. Should the people who break those laws be deemed as criminals as well? In fact, the CCP praised farmers that stood up and denounced the intellectuals and "capitalists" because it deems their laws were unjust towards the farmers. That is to say, the CCP only has a problem when people make a stand against it. Those Falun Gong practitioners are definitely heroes: their actions were selfless and noble. I wish them the best of luck in exposing the evil acts of the CCP and that this persecution will end soon.
Kung Fu Panda (2008)
Not a simple kid movie at all!
Up front, this is a very visually awesome movie with incredible fight choreography, effects, and beautifully animated characters.
However, the factor that makes me value this movie so much is the embedded Chinese ancient culture and wisdom within it. The conversations between Oogway and Shifu and between Oogway and Po contains wisdom and values from Buddhism and Daoism:
1. For the conversation between Oogway and Po, Oogway taught Po that the past and the future should not concern him as much as the present. Since one cannot change the past and one cannot see one's own future, only the present can be changed. I do need to remind myself of this lesson. Thinking too much about the past or the future tends to make us regretful or worrisome, rendering us unable to continue heading forward and do the things we are supposed to do. After all, the present is the only thing within our control anyway. The past can be treated as a teacher but it should not be anything more than that. We don't really know what the future will be but can only know that it will change in a positive direction if we do good in the present. By ridding our minds of unnecessary thoughts about the past and the future, we will be able to focus better and do good in the present. What's more, we'll be in a better mood and mindset in doing so.
2. For the conversation between Oogway and Shifu, Oogway taught him that there are things in life that are not within his control. If he's given a peach tree, he cannot turn it into an apple or a lemon tree. He can only change some things such as where to plant the seeds or when to collect the fruits. Now, Shifu is given a tasked to train a big, fat panda to become the Dragon Warrior by his master. He should have faith in his master, remove all doubts in his heart, and should just do what he can in his control (have faith in his master and train the panda to the best of his ability). This is how every Buddhist and Daoist masters required from their students: strong, unshakable faith in the Way or the Dao. Regardless of whether Tai Lung is loosed and that Shifu has only a few days to train the Dragon Warrior, those are factors he cannot change (his peach tree you can say). Thus, he should pay no heed to those things, have faith in his master's teachings, and focus on what he can do: training the Po. On a side note, a lot of things happened in our lives that are not within our controls: i.e. Getting robbed, people misunderstanding us, getting tons of works that required to be done before a very close deadline, having to care for someone that has fallen ill, who's going to be the President of China, your investment plummeting into nothing, the economy, etc. We should not cripple ourselves with worries and negative thoughts by things that are not even within our control in the first place. We are dealt with a number of cards that we must play through till the end. Life won't be fair for everyone and that is okay. Thinking about it, when life gives you lemon and not an apple or something else (what you cannot control), you still can make lemonade (what you can control).
Majo no takkyûbin (1989)
I now resonate with this story so much!
I watched this movie when I was still a little kid and fell in love with it. From the musics, to the animation, and to the character designs, everything was perfect. There's always that magical feelings I get with most Ghibli movies. Overall, just a great film to take me back to my childhood.
Fast forward 20 years, I can't believe how much more I relate to this movie as an international student. I'm sure that anyone who have to travel far away from home to study or to work can relate to this movie. In a sense, Kiki represents us in this movie. When we mature, we also had to leave our old friends and family behind to go to a foreign place, living on our own and stepping into new chapters of our lives. In that foreign land, we, at first, felt lost, seeing how the people there were different from folks back home, how people are seemingly cold towards us. It was hard to make friends and we did not know how to go about things. We were learning to be financially independent, afraid of spending our hard-earned money and barely scraping by eating the most basic meals every time. Then, we open ourselves up as we met good people in that foreign land. I saw myself so much in Kiki I couldn't believe. Everything that this witch girl went through resembles some of my experiences studying abroad. Definitely be talking about this movie when people ask me how I felt when studying abroad for the first time.
Coco (2017)
This is how a kid movie should be
I grew up watching many great kid movies such as "The Prince of Egypt", "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", or "Kungfu Panda". Personally, all of my favorite movies have 1 thing in common: they teach great character values and leave lessons that make me think about from time to time. "Coco" is now one of the movies in this list. Here're some of the things I really enjoyed about "Coco":
1. "Coco" reminds us about the value of family. You should cherish your family members and should not take them for granted. Do not go to bed bearing hatred towards any of them over small trivial things as you do not know how much time you have left with them. Hectór loves Mama Coco dearly. His song "Remember Me" was so forshadowing: "Though I have to say goodbye. Remember me." He could not have foreseen that it would be the last time that he saw her. It's such a coincidence that this movie dropped right before the pandemic Covid-19 hits. A lot of families were separated, and many members left forever without any chances to mend their relationships. I personally have a couple of relatives back home that were lost to the pandemics. It did not occur to me that I won't be able to say my goodbyes to them and that I should cherish them more until it was too late. I don't want to go to bed hating on anyone ever again.
2. Music is such an important part of life and is such a good story-telling platform. Ballad is a popular genre in Vietnam so I enjoy every songs in this movies. The way songs in "Coco" are used to deliver emotions and messages that words alone cannot convey is beautiful.
Forrest Gump (1994)
Really makes you think about life
This is definitely 1 of my most favorite films of all time. Sometimes, being smart and complicated can give you a grim look on life and make you more depressed. A simple mind and a kind heart like Gump's are really all you need to move on and face the many challenges life throws at you. Even with the multitude of tribulations that can break any man's will to live, Forrest can still maintain his positive attitude and treat others with kindness. I can hardly imagine myself going through half of what he's gone through. In the end, he has achieved success, wealth, and friends that many people- who are way smarter than him- can only dream of. I know that this is a romanticized ending as people like Forrest do not always manage to achieve everything there is to achieve. However, at least those with simple minds and kind hearts can still achieve that care-free attitude and true happiness by appreciating whatever they have going on for them in the present. We can definitely learn a lot from them. What's the use of being smart or being rich if we just going to be miserable in life anyway?