Week 1, Fri. The Feminist Obsession.

I have many obsessions with things that I would never realize were obsessions until I was asked to consider it. For instance, I have chocolate in my kitchen at all times, a drawer full of fine tipped, colored markers in my desk, and working in a tattoo shop has been a dream in terms of being able to see all the different styles and ideas that people have permanently put into their skin. However, another obsessions I have that I would argue could be classified as more of a lifestyle at this point is a bit more complex.

It started with the social media site Tumblr. From here, I was introduced to a web of feisty, witty women who wanted change and were unashamed in their demand. Tumblr allowed me to connect with many different types of people with the same feminist enthusiasm and it gave me resources from pop culture to academic journals to art to important historic people. Very quickly, the women I followed (meaning I subscribed to their tumblr blog) led me to many different types of people who maintained personal and educational blogs about race, gender, sexuality, disability, sex positivity, class hierarchies, education/ the school systems, the prison system, and all-around super cool, inspiring people. And the influence of these blogs led me to crave this kind of subject material academically (which is how I am where I am today).

More-so than an obsession with Tumblr, I have an obsession with being a feminist. I have an obsession with challenging the ideas of the accepted “white feminism”, especially as a cis-gender, white woman. I have an obsession with feminism that includes more than just white women or just cis gender women or just my own struggle. I have an obsession with recently reclaimed femininity, which I rejected for so much of my young adult life. And while I go days without looking at tumblr or checking tumblr, I do not go a single day without writing, reading, expressing through art, or discussing this obsession.

So along with chocolate, art supplies, and tattoos there is more (like coffee and glitter and pictures of animals and sleeping in and making vegan salves!) and it has turned into a beautiful, beautiful thing.

Follow up on 47 Ronin (my thoughts)

The film 47 Ronin in my book had many pros and cons. In terms of if the film was enjoyable and entertaining to watch, I would have to say in my opinion it was. However to go further in depth I would like to share with you one of the pros and one of the cons I did have with the movie.

To begin I feel like I should first discuss the bad parts of the movie, as when asked if I want to hear the good news or the bad news first I always ask for the bad right off the bat. It gives something to look forward too in my opinion. The main problem I had with the film and almost any Hollywood blockbuster that is based on a true story is the way in which they deviate from the original story to such great lengths. In example yes the whole storyline involving the witch and the demons and mystical creatures was entertaining but I feel may be stretching a little far from the real story of the 47 Ronin.

The biggest pro I saw in the movie besides some pretty decent cinematography was that some of the Japanese and Samurai traditions were shown. Such as the ritual of seppuku (suicide by disembowelment) which allowed the 47 Ronin Samurai to die with honor. Due to this option of death being granted to the 47 Ronin in the film I realized that though it wasn’t the American idea of a happy ending with the Ronin dyeing at the end, it still allowed these great samurai to die with honor and dignity opposed to the other option of dyeing by execution which would have stripped them of their honor which they worked so hard to obtain throughout their lives.

Overall 47 Ronin was fun to watch with plenty of action, great depictions of the discipline of the Japanese people and the dignity to which they live and die by, but without a doubt could have stuck more closely to the historical portrayal of the 47 Ronin.

one more spoon of cough syrup

Post-watch impressions of 47 Ronin

Something that struck me while watching this film was the accuracy of it, from what I know of that time period and many traditions that were held at the time. I was very impressed with how traditional it was, the detail it went into, and the depth of the characters that were set up at the start of the film. Kai’s boundless devotion was admirable and heartbreaking, but perhaps more than that, so was Oishi’s.

Oishi spent the better part of a year in solitary confinement, in a pit that he had no way of even hoping to get out of. He was visibly weak when he was finally free, but he wasted no time at all. He spent no time in recovery, and instead set out immediately, leaving his loving wife behind so that he could find Kai, right his own mistakes to some extent, and save the girl he had sworn to protect, along with the legacy she carried. His character arc was absolutely splendid, and it is often rare that one has the opportunity to see so much growth.

On a more technical note, some of the cinematography in the movie was stunning, and the makeup on many of the actresses was incredibly well done. I was amazed at the transformation of Rinko Kikuchi in the film, so much so that I didn’t even recognize her until the credits were rolling and I saw her name.  Her acting was superb and made the film a delight to watch.

Impressions on 47 Ronin

After seeing 47 Ronin in 2D before, seeing it in 3D did not change much. Aside from the 3D effects at some points, the visuals were good for the setting of feudal Japan. The plot mainly followed the story of the real 47 Ronin, but with some fantasy elements thrown in such as witches and bird-eyed magic monks. The comedy relief for the movie, according to the audience, was the fat man of the group, who also earned a dramatic on-screen death later on. The thing that stood out the most though was Keanu Reeves role in the movie. I don’t know if his role was actually in the story or not, but he does play the role of the white hero who saves everyone. This reminds me of another movie called The Last Samurai in which Tom Cruise plays an American soldier who is captured by a rebellious Shogun and raised in the ways of the samurai, finally to the point where he fights alongside them and restores their honor in the end.

Despite as being flashy and having all these fight scenes, the movie was okay. Nothing too spectacular, but nothing too insignificant. Cast was alright, but the acting was a little odd at some parts. Despite the fantasy elements adding a sort of flare to the movie, it maybe could have done well without them anyways. Besides the visual entertainment, I did find the music intriguing enough for me to look up some of the songs to listen to. Strangely, the ones I found fascinating were the ones that played on both seppuku parts, which is probably due to those moments being the “powerful and dramatic” parts of the movie. Other than that, I did like the fact that this showing actually showed a trailer of Godzilla. The first one I went to showed the Hercules movie trailer first instead.

 

Note: I’m not a qualified critic.

– 47 Ronin Impressions

 

I heard this movie was released in Japan first, because it’s about Japanese history.

It’s about Japan but It’s from Hollywood, so I’m interested in the movie.

Pre 47 Ronin

Last night while puppy sitting a for a friend I watched Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure. The movie is essentially about two teenage boys who are given a time machine and travel back in time to kidnap famous leaders throughout history and interview them so they won’t fail the class. Not that any of this matters for this specific post except that Keanu Reeves plays Ted.

I don’t watch many Keanu Reeves movies nor do I know the legend behind 47 Ronin. However I haen’t heard many good reviews from either. I’m excited to see it but I don’t have the highest expectations either. I’m trying to go into it with an open mind though :)

47 Ronin impressions

Today I saw the film 47 Ronin. In my opinion the film had many problems. I really expected more from the film, but it just didn’t do anything special for me. And here’s a list of why the film didn’t work:

  1. Keanu Reeves didn’t fit in with the storyline.  I mean don’t get me wrong, Keanu Reeves is a great actor, but it was clear his part was “added” for that grand Hollywood effect. Except in this case Keanu was part of the problem.  His part just felt so random to the film and was irrelevant. The only reason he was needed was because of his special fantasy abilities. Ok… but isn’t Oishi supposed to be the main character? See that’s another problem. I just didn’t know who to focus on in the film.
  2. There were no rules in this “fantasy” version of 18th century Japan. This ultimately left more questions than answers by the end of the film.  For example; how old was the witch? Or how powerful was she truly? Why were the demons hated for their beliefs? And what were there beliefs, besides that “the only thing this world has to offer is death”?
  3. No character development. What was Lord Kira’s background that made him evil? What were the personalities of the main characters?

Before the Movie

The movie, “47 Ronin” seems like another Hollywood hyped up version of an older movie/story that relies on the actors and the special effects. While the movie is based off a true story the previews show that it take liberty with the story and adds a fantasy twist to it. It also seems to follow stereotypical portrayals of Asian females being “Dragon Ladies” that are villains with a heroic male saving the day.

47 Ronin

I wasn’t particularly sure what I was expecting to see in this film. Since I had not seen any previews or heard much about the film, I didn’t have any possible ideas.

I thought it was absolutely great to see a recent Hollywood film with almost all of the major roles filled by people of Japanese descent with such huge names. It was quite stunning cinematography, and the costuming was beautiful. I really enjoyed how it tried to blend fact and myth by adding in the mysticism and magic.

47 Ronin

I have seen 47 Ronin previous to this class. This movie was based off of a true story that occurred in feudal Japan,

 

draft