http://www.21stcentury.com.cn/newspaper/content/20010301/2001030165.htm[/url]
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'Gua Sha' opens in China
Dai Limin， 21ST CENTURY STAFF
"THE Gua Sha Treatment," a movie starring Hong Kong actor Tony Ka Fai Leung and Chinese actress Jiang Wenli, opened on the screen in China last week.
The movie exposes the life of a Chinese family in contemporary American society.
Datong Hsui (Leung) is a software designer in St Louis, Missouri. Eight year's struggle earns him the feeling of being at home in the US and the respect of its people.
His father, a traditional old Chinese man, visits him and takes care of his 5-year-old son, Dennis. The old man does "Gua Sha treatment" to his grandson to cure his stomach pain. The Chinese treatment benefits a person's inner system, but hurts the skin painlessly. However, the scar on the boy's back was regarded as evidence of mistreatment.
This creates all kinds of troubles for Hsui: the separation of father and son, the break up of Hsui and his close friend, the loss of his admirable job...
The film was directed by Chinese director Zheng Xiaolong, who resides in the US. The movie is committed to expose the conflict between Chinese and American culture and tries to find a common ground.
"I was inspired by a true'Gua Sha' event in '90s America, which stirred up the US media," Zheng said. "I noticed that Chinese immigrants who are eager to enter the mainstream American society are quite interested in how to survive the fierce cultural conflict."
Zheng was famous for directing the TV series "Beijingers in New York" in 1993, which depicted the struggles of Chinese immigrants who arrive in America.
He admitted the spirit carried through in "Gua Sha" was similar to that of the TV series, but he thinks he made some improvements in the new film.
"Although'Beijingers in New York' impressed audiences and got much praise, it lacked the description and analysis of cultural conflict. Instead, it focused on Chinese immigrants' material life," Zheng said. "But culture is the very base of spirit and of life."
"There are cultural conflicts in'Beijingers,' which serve as background, but it is face-to-face, more fierce and tangible in'Gua Sha.'"
Four main characters in "Gua Sha" represent four kinds of Chinese living in the US: The grandfather (Zhu Xu) is totally fresh to the new country and culture. Hsui makes great achievements in his career with his intelligence, but was not aware of the cultural conflict.
Jenny (Jiang Wenli), Hsui's wife, is aware of the conflict and tries her best to adapt. Son Dennis lives in between and reflects the conflict unconsciously.
The director exposed the cultural conflict with abundant examples of social value.
"It's a thorough reflection of divergence and should send people of both countries into deep thinking," commented Song Weicai, a film major at Beijing Normal University.
However, he doesn't think it is perfect, noting that the director took it for granted that the cultural conflict can be compromised.
"It's too difficult, even impossible, to solve the cultural conflict. But the director achieves it in the movie," Song said.
Because the movie was made in the US, it's heavily affected by the typical Hollywood mold, with truck racing and adventure. Some people think it is an excellent combination.
"The movie is about cultural divergence, but it combines Chinese and Hollywood movie culture well," said Huang Qifeng, a Beijing audience member, after the premier. "The movie itself is a way out of the conflict."
But some don't agree.
"I don't think the use of modern stunts works well with the topic," Song said.
