Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was directed by Ang Lee and known as one of the famous chinese martial arts films. It is the Oascar nominated movie including best director, best music, best picture, best writing. Not only Oscar but also it won many awards as the best chinese movie in various film festivals. In the past, even though there's many different Asian countries, foreigners (people from western countries) considered Asia countries as one huge society with the same ideas and beliefs. However, People started to recognize China as world of Kung Fu as a result of efforts of people like Ang Lee who introduce their country throughout mass media.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon means to hide the strengh from others in order to continue the power of surprise in chinese character. The main characters are Yu ShuLien, Li Mubai, Lo, Jen and somehow related to each other. Shu Lien is powerful female warrior who loves Li Mubia. Li Mubai is swardsman who loves ShuLien but leave her side for revenge of his master who was murdered by Jade Fox. Jen is a daughter of governer who loves Lo but waits for the arranged marraige. Lo loves Jen but becuase of different social status they need to hide their feelings. Lu Mu Bai try to retire from the battle so he gives up his sword 'green destiny' and asks ShuLien to move the sword to the safe place then leaves. ShuLein meet Jen when she's in the city to meet Sir Te, there the green sword was dissappeared. Shulein tries to find out the theft and realizes Jen steals the sward to show her power that trained by Jade Fox. Jen wants to live her own life but ends to have arranged marriage because of her father and denies proposal of Lo.
In the end of movie, Li Mubai meet Jade Fox and revenge for the murder of his master. However, he ends up dying in front of her lover ShuLein. Jen meet Lo again and run away from her parents for freedom. In the last scene, she jump off the cliff and lo cries to watch that. We cannot see if she's dead or alive but there is possibility of Lo and Jen meet again if the legend is true which is impossible. Lo knows that Jen will not survive from the cliff because tear drops from his eyes. He lets her go because he knows that there's no way of their love is acceptable by others and knows that's the only way they stay together if she comes back like the legend.
The movie finishes with sad ending becasue of their desire of their own. Li Mubai wouldnt die if he stayed with Shu Lein instead of fighting to JadeFox for revenge. He tries to hide his feelings all the time. He's able to hide his feelings toward Shulien but fail to control the weakness such as saddness, discourage from the death of his mater. He seems like a powerful, strong hero character who can fly, walk on the surface of water, always win the battle as a strongest warrior. However, in the end he's just like the normal people like us who always trouble with controlling emotions, and confront many choices that may lead us to the good life or bad result. And the life of Jen Yu shows how women experience ignorance, discrimination by men in past China. Not only China, most Asia countries have a history of male dominant. Jen Yu live her life as a daughter of governer who stays at home just waiting for arranged marrige. If she attemps to learn kungfu or refuse the arranged marriage, she never gets support from others. Jump off the cliff is the best way to escape from the moment and gets the freedom of a real life with her lover.
I think that, especially in the movie, women were not only discriminated by men but also by themselves. I would say that the gender inequality was caused by ideology and philosophy of Chinese society rather than men discriminated women. In the movie, the mother did not let her daughter have freedom to choose her fiancé or her plans. Because women were not the only one did not get freedom to choose the fiancé but also men didn't have freedom either when parents decided their children's marriage.
ReplyDeleteI think that the movie tells about individual's freedom and social classes rather than discrimination between genders.
I've learned that historically women and men treated differently in Asia. So I only focused on Jen Yu who loved Lo but did not have freedom to marry him because of her parents. She wanted to live a life like Shu Lein but forced to marry with someone she never met. I missed the point that not only Jen but also Lo could not meet her because of his social status. And there's Shu Lein who chose her life as a warrior. I expected that Lo and Jen ran away to live together.. but she jumped off the cliff..
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