Read "Cinema and National/Regional Cultures" (Zhang 225-240) and continue reading "Film Terms and Topics for Film Analysis and Writing" (Corrigan 61-86) to help you frame your response to Woman Demon Human. Master copy of the readings for Tuesday 9/17 are available in the box outside my office (POT 1453) in case you need to make copies. Please return them to the box as soon as you are done.
Please post your well-written two-paragraph response to the film with attention to both content and form: cultural, historical, and political background as Zhang outlines in his book, as well as composition and the image, editing, and sound as Corrigan pushes us to carefully examine how a particular scene is composed.
Zhang asks in his history what makes Woman Demon Human a unique 'feminist' film from China and highlights the idea of identity as performance (Zhang, 234-5). What do you think? Do take this into careful consideration in your responses, which will be due on Monday 9/16 by 8 pm. Comments to two other responses due on Monday 9/16 by 10 pm. Feel free to raise your own question and find your unique voice in your response. Carefully edit your writings, always cite sources when you are quoting or paragraphing others to avoid plagiarizing. Cite specific scenes from the film and quotes from readings to support your argument.
In my opinion, any "heroine" or "Mulan second" reputation is not sufficient to prove the thinking in Qiuyun’s mind. To be honestly, the reverse role of Qiuyun , is doing a kind of revolt for her mom’s leaving.
ReplyDeleteI did not see so many products from Shuqin Huang, except for the , i saw , too. It was famous like filmed by Kaige Chen. Shuqin Huang also depends on famous in the world.
Recollect this movie, the and are very different with each other. The actress in the select to singing as an opera acrobatic-fighting actor. But the actor in is different with this, he wants to choose as a female role. That is the reason why actors in the stage do not distinguish the sex, like taking a veil, watch the world blurry.
The scene of is very perfect to connect with this film. Each spot is connected with peking opera, and the picture is mainly use dark as a background, and using a beam of white ray to set the stage off to influential. I do not know how let the peking opera conncet with the “bottom or peak”in this story, but the tension in this film is very overpowering, so that we can notice that Shuqing Huang has a big ability to make a film.
In this film, the relationship between mother and lover were handled very good, and it was connect with the stage. The father in this stage claimed“come to open the door”, however, the female never went to the stage. With the mad theatre fans, anything went to dark. The beginning of this scene is collect with the stage, the “stay” or “ leave” for the female, through the stage show through.
So, the theatre is the life and the life is the theatre. Until Qiuyun is old enough to act the character who mother has been acted. The pain pressed in father’s breast appeared finally. However, as mother’s leave, that is the reason why Qiuyun going as a boy.
In my opinion, i think theres nothing special about her father in her mind, there was always has a blurry shadow about her father, like the shot’s metaphor hint, there was always a figured view of her father, even though a bald head. But for the purpose that why Qiuyun choose as an opera acrobatic-fighting actor, it was confused, either.
During the dark stage, you are the only ray in this stage, you can not see the theatre fans under the stage, you only enjoy the clapping from them. Only the clapping is clear, maybe the hope of her foster father is clear, the ideas still in her mind and the profound melancholy are clearly. The final spot of this film, that daughter had a heart-to-heart talk with her father, as always, clearly like a dream in her mind.
I am a little confused why you think "the relationship between mother and lover were handled very good". I think Qiu Yun's mother elopes with another man, which brings lots of harms to her childhood. As a result of this childhood trauma, she hates the role of women in opera and wants to play male roles, ZhongKui
DeleteWell, I think the reason why Qiu Yun wants to play male role, Zhong Kui is because that she listened to Mr. Zhang. She wanted to play a female role at first, but Mr. Zhang told her that she can play a male role very effectively.
DeleteWoman, Demon, Human dances leaps and bounds past any Chinese movie I have been exposed to thus far in college. It deals with almost every aspect of life in that the movie portrays a loss of innocence, family issues, forging one's own path, overcoming adversity, and homecoming. Almost everyone on the planet can relate to one of those. Perhaps my favorite aspect of the movie, however, was the use of flash forwards. The movie begins with a scene of Qiuyun putting on make up for a performance. There is but one light beaming on her from an unknown source. Every flash forward scene after that is painted in the same way: a dark, misty stage. It seems the future is almost always unclear. Rather, perhaps much like the abyss surrounding the performers on stage, life outside the theater is foggy and unknown. Perhaps what the director is trying to say is that Qiuyun knew nothing outside of the performance. Or perhaps he means something much stronger.
ReplyDeleteLife is a performance. Or at least that is what the director wants us to get from the movie. All her life, Qiuyun plays a part that she must maintain to live. Yes, she loves to act, but it seems there is no other option for her. She is even willing to disobey her father in order to do it. Her desire to perform is so strong in fact that her father knows she must do it at all cost. Perhaps my favorite scene (forgive me not knowing the time) is when Qiuyun is leaving for the city stage and her father does not show up to say goodbye. As the car drives away a puppy approaches the father. I think the puppy represented the innocence of Qiuyun, or perhaps just innocence period. As the father walks away, perhaps in attempt to leave the innocence behind, it follows, metaphorically saying that innocence (or his daughter more specifically) will always follow him.
I thought it was a great movie, with perhaps less of a propagandistic feel than Two Stage Sisters. I'm not sure if that was intentional or not, but nonetheless a fine film.
I also like the scene when Qiuyun's father leaves without saying goodbye. It reminds me the prose "Father's Back" which is written by ZiQing Zhu.
DeleteCorrelating the puppy with the idea of innocence or innocence lost is a really interesting observation. I felt like that sequence was particularly moving in light of some of the other themes (including the recurrence of scenes in which one character leaves another, this being one of the few times when characters part and then one of the characters is immediately introduced to another, albeit in the form of an animal). Whatever the larger meaning behind the representation of the dog, it's certainly a stand out element in the film at the point in which it's introduced.
DeleteI didn't really think too much about it at first, but I agree with what you said about the dog scene. I just thought it represented the scenario between her father and her; at first her father was reluctant to let her go, just like he hesitate with the dog, but in the end her still allowed her to leave because he knows what best for her.
DeleteI watched this movie at the time, I also discovered that you are very interested in the details, "puppy followed Qiu Yun's father go," First, we can know why the dog will follow Qiu Yun's father go, because it know that this man is it good, from another perspective, we can think of, why Qiu Yun Qiu Yun's father went to the city to watch a movie, because he knows that this is good for the Qiu Yun. So that we can see his father's greatness.
DeleteI think you make a good point about Yun has nothing to do besides opera, she has to live her life, after her mom, teacher Zhang, and her husband had left her, opera is all she has.
DeleteI found it interesting how much the movie really resonated with you. Given my background and experiences I had a bit of trouble understanding what it means to really be 'performing' with an audience of people rather than just one's close friends or family members. Obviously themes like coming of age are shared between any people, but the lens through which we view them can be rather diverse.
Delete"Life is a performace." This is the exact message that I took away from the film. Qiu Yun obviously lived to perform, so much so that she felt compelled to break social boundaries in order to perform on stage. The puppy reference is certainly one I hadn't thought about, but in retrospect makes perfect sense.
DeleteI really like how you brought up the point about the puppy when talking about the "empty-nester" feelings that the father was experiencing; glad that someone else picked up on it.
Delete“Woman Demon Human” was produced in 1987 by Shuqing Huang. It is one of the best films which introduces “feminist” in the Chinese film history. The main plot of this movie talks about the three different periods of actress, Qiu Yun. Her mother elopes with another man, which brings lots of harms to her childhood. She is also shunned by other children. In the second period, regardless of her father’s stop, Qiu Yun wants to become a great performer in Chinese opera. As a result of this childhood trauma, she hates the role of women in opera and wants to play male roles, ZhongKui. During a performance, she is selected by Teacher Zhang, who is a famous performer in provincial theater. Under Zhang’s teaching, Qiu Yun becomes the number one Wu Sheng, but she also falls in love with Teacher Zhang at the same time. As the gossip spreads, Teacher Zhang does not want to hurt Qiu Yun and chooses to leave. In the third period, Qiu Yun marries with a man, and renowned at home and abroad with exquisite skill. Everything looks so good, but her husband does not support her career. Under the pressures and twists of life, she determines to devote her life to art.
ReplyDeleteSame as “Stage Sister”, “Woman Demon Human” also revolves around “feminist”. And both films talks about the life in Chinese opera. “Stage Sister” introduces the opera time from1930 to 1950, and “Woman Demon Human” is from 1950 to 1980. “Woman Demon Human” is directed by a woman. Women directors of the fourth generation differs from their male counterparts n their insistence on female subjectivity and gendered experience. A lot of things changes, but women’s life in opera was still not easy at that time. “Don’t be in Chinese opera if you’re a woman.” It is the advice a jaded father gives to his daughter when she decides to become a performer in Chinese opera. When she cutes hair and performs as a man, she is surrounded by audience member who want to know whether she is truly female by dropping her pants. When she becomes the number one Wu Sheng in the theater, she is injured by a nail during a performance. When she falls in love with Teacher Zhang, other performers satirize and laugher her under envy. When she marries with a man, her job is not supported by her husband. All the lifetime of Qiu Yun is straggling with the fate. At the begging of movie, flashbacks take place as she applies the makeup for herself, and then bring the story back to her life. As I see, uglies of human hurt Qiu Yun. Sheunderstands ghost is more real than human, and she believes she has tasted closer to a ghost. So she chooses to perform as a ghost, ZhongKui.
May be suppressed by the Cultural Revolution, variety of thoughts and emotions burst out in the 80s films. Rough experiences of each director made their film heavier and deeper at that time.
I liked that you highlighted Qiu Yun's various struggles throughout her life, be they emotional pain in the form of not finding support from her husband and the alienation/confusion she experiences due to her mother's infidelity or physical pain in the form of her intense training or the incident with the nail. The filmmakers do an excellent job of helping us to empathize with her story on multiple levels and I think that these different incidences help to put that into perspective.
DeleteYou say that QiuYun falls in love with Mr. Zhang, but I didn't get that impression myself, He confesses his passion to her, and she rejects him. Why did you think QiuYun was in love with Mr. Zhang? Can you share those details with me, maybe I missed something.
DeleteQiu Yun did fall for Mr. Zhang, however, when he confessed about his family to her she did not want to have the same fate as her mother. She knew that she could not tear a family up like that no matter how much she liked him. Awesome post.
DeleteIn some ways, Woman Demon Human (1987) is an even more fascinating historical snapshot than Stage Sisters. It's also more introspective and thoughtful in some of its presentations, starting with the young Qiu Yun and her journey into adulthood. Where Stage Sisters fought between the idea of the "realistic" female protagonist and the "ideal" female heroine, Woman Demon Human gives us one "character" to focus on, that of Qiu Yun and the multiple facets of her personality. The only reason for the comparison of the two at this point is the central theme they share, that of Chinese opera and its many, various traditions. The viewer sees many different operatic scenes, from seeing Qiu Yun's father and mother perform when she is a young girl to her adulthood as an opera actress.
ReplyDeleteThe filmmakers seem keenly aware of all these traditions, giving the viewer numerous chances to appreciate the grandeur of the operatic tradition, utilizing close ups of multiple characters - prominently Qiu Yun - to emphasize the spectacle of colors, patterns, and movements associated with the characters represented in these operas. The scene where Qiu Yun first acts on stage is a perfect example of this. It contains both close ups and long shots of the character, sometimes highlighting her swift movements across the stage and other times focusing on her standing completely still, to give us time to look at the expressions she makes. This sort of contrast works well with the overall structure of the film, which takes us back and forth in Qiu Yun's personal timeline, from her childhood to adulthood in acting. We are sometimes allowed enough time to get comfortable in one scene, but only long enough to settle in just barely before we are swept away in time yet again. It is a very effective strategy in telling this particular character's story - to highlight the different stages and facets of her life, not the least of which is her gender and others' perceptions of it.
I like you comparison between the two movies. Stage Sisters was also much easier to understand if you follow the plot, and I feel like there was not a climax in the plot of Woman Demon Human.
DeleteYou're mentioning the pauses to allow the audience to focus on her facial expressions really struck a chord with me. The face seems to be a very important factor in this film. We are never given QiuYun's father's face, but often see her expressions, with and without makeup on, and those of her father, but close ups of other characters are infrequent and short. It seems to me to emphasize the psychological nature of this film.
DeleteI also like the comparison between the two movies that you made. I agree that it's easier to see the characteristics change for one character rather than two from "The stage sisters" It's also interesting to see the difference in Qui and Chunhua. By the end, Qui seems to have some power, even as a woman. Even the way she is dressed shows that gender roles have changed due to the culture revolution. That's something we didn't get too much of in "The Stage Sisters" Interesting post!
DeleteI agree with you on your opinion of the movie being more engaging than Stage Sisters, as the performances, for me, were much more vibrant and engaging. I think we also got a more in depth look into Qiu Yan's character than any of the characters represented in Stage Sisters. We were allowed to feel her passion and her difficulties more deeply. The timeline is something I didn't give much thought, but after reading your response I see where the timeline and the portrayal of her stage movements contrast.
DeleteGreat comparison between this movie and Stage Sisters. It is an important distinction to make the difference between staring two girls (that were opposed against each other) and Woman Demon Human just featuring the one female protagonist. It really captures what is happening in China at the moment.
DeleteThe movie named ‘Woman Demon Man’ was directed in 1987s. The lead role of this movie is a girl named Qiuyun. Her parents performed ‘Zhongkui’ in a troupe. When Qiuyun was small, she always watched the play while her parents were performing the opera. So the opera had a big effect on her. However, her mother eloped with other man. This thing was known by many people. Qiuyun was bullied by her used friend. She felt so sad. But she liked opera. She wanted to perform. Her father didn’t think so. He thought the girl shouldn’t perform. Qiuyun loved opera. She insisted on staying in the troupe and practiced performing. After that, a teacher was interested in her after he watched her performance. He took her to a school to study opera. Qiuyun became the best female Wusheng in the troupe under the teacher Zhang’s practicing. And a special passion grew up between them. But Zhang had a wife. He left the troupe for Qiuhun’s future. Jealousy, satire, gossip, slander was accompanied by her. It made her feel distressed. But she still loved opera. She couldn’t act during the Cultural Revolution. She experienced many things during the Cultural Revolution. The rub of life made her so lonely. She decided to devote to art with her life in the end of film.
ReplyDeleteThis film mainly shows feminist. The social background of this film is old society. Sexist is a very terrible problem. Qiuyun’s father didn’t let her perform the opera because she is a girl. This sense shows the sexist problem. The film shows the biggest pain of Qiuyun is unable to get a woman who deserved something by her rough experience. And the director put the opera ‘Zhongkui’ into the films. That opera got through the whole film. That opera had a big effect on Qiuyuan. She always watched this opera when she was small. When she studied in the school, she still performed this opera in the troupe. After the Cultural Revolution, she back to the stage and still performed this opera. When she felt sad, she always thought this opera. She thought Zhongkui that a lead role of that opera was similar with her. She had been integrated into that opera. So she decided to devote to art with her life in the end. By the way, the film shows a special society background. That is the Cultural Revolution. It’s a China’s black times. Many people were framed and persecuted including some artists. Qiuyun couldn’t act during the Cultural Revolution. It show a black side of the Cultural Revolution. Much culture was ravaged during the Cultural Revolution. Many artists were persecuted. So we always call the Cultural Revolution is Ten Year’s Catastrophe. I hope it will not happen again forever.
I agree with some ideas of your,but the one point remains to be cleared up,that is the film's background is not "old society",the background is early of "New China".But have to admit,Qiuyun's life is not smooth,just like you say,her husband not support her job
Deleteand jealousy, satire, gossip, slander was accompanied by her.I think this is also an important reason for she wanted to devote to the stage of all her lifetime.
When talk about " women movie" , my mind first reaction is to shoot in 1987, was praised as Dai Jinhua teacher in contemporary Chinese cinema " the only one can be called " feminine movie " is "Woman • Demon • Human "
ReplyDeleteThe first time I watch this movies was my 7years old. I cannot well understand theme of the movie, but the film’s plot and fate of the characters attract me a lot. especially the play "Ghostbuster" clips and movie plot to form a good interaction of light and shadow effect , gave me a deep impression .This influence me even when I watch the movie " Farewell My Concubine" , I first think of the movie is the other vision of " Woman Demon• Human" gender awareness is raised about tragedy. The difference is "Farewell My Concubine “has their Sexual Orientation vague understanding; while the actress in” Woman • Demon • Human " Qiu Yun is a clear understanding of the pain and frustration as a female, then escape through the stage to get rid of.
Qiu Yun want a man protect her, but the reality is curly. Her mother leave her and this cast a heavy shadow on her childhood, nominally father fear she walked the old path. First do not agree with her school play, then only agreed to "play the man", resulting in a degree of her own gender confusion - until later met Zhang teacher, she's really feminine consciousness awakening, she want to find her own love, but for various reasons they didn’t be together. Though Qiu Yun married and have children, but she really disappoint with her gambling husband, such as life made her frustrated, only to devote him to theatrical performances go, lack of normal family life to become so-called "successful women."
I like your idea that compare this film with " Farewell My Concubine". I think these two movies are both great and reflect the same idea that our sex are not steady. I think our gender have both biology and sociology side. The biology part are chosen once we born but the sociology can be change in the environment.
DeleteThe main character Qiu Yin suffered many tragedies throughout her life. As a child, she was raised by her step-father because her birth mother had an affair with some other men. Being raised in a troupe, she was bullied by the children of other members of the troupe because of what her mother did. She was also scared to death when she got lost playing hide and seek with her friends, and if I am not mistaken, that is when Qui Yin had her first experience with the demon. She almost had a fall out with her step-father because she had performed without his consent. Although the performance was successful, he did not want her to perform because he knows that it will not be an easy career for her to pursue, as actresses often have a hard time performing as cross-dresser as a male (I think). She was publically humiliated as a teenager because she was mistaken as a man while using the woman restroom. She was later recruited by Mr. Zhang, the man who saved her and she probably had the best time of her life while training to become a professional under his guidance. Just like many other actresses in the troupe, Qui Yin had a crush on Mr. Zhang, who presumably is her first love, only to find out that he has been lying to her and that he has a family with four kids. As an adult, she became famous and popular, and has a family of her own, although he becomes addicted to gambling and she has to pay his debts. The movie ended with Qui Yin begging Zhong Kui, the demon she portrays on stage, not to leave her because he is the only thing she ever had.
ReplyDeleteThe movie begins with a woman putting make up on slowly with music playing, and that serves as a foreshadowing for the movie. Eventually her full make up was put on and she looks like a demon. Throughout the movie, there are different cut scenes of the demon Zhang Kui performing an opera; it may seem kind of random and out of place, but it represents the different stages of her life, as each cut scenes delivery a different meaning than the others. As I mentioned earlier, I said that the only thing she ever had was the demon Zhong Kui because acting was all she ever had, and she was willing to pursue her dream no matter what. Even her step-father, the only family she ever had was not able to stop her because he did not want to stop her. He of all people understand that as someone who cares about her, he should let her do what she wants but as her father, he was reluctant to let her do so because no parents would want their child to suffer, and he knows that the road ahead of her will be challenging. Compared to “Two stage sister”, I feel like the performers are more respected in this movie, but the actresses are still not very respected compare to actors. The last scene of the movie, you see that at first, Qui Yin was just wandering around, but she ultimately ends up on stage, “talking” Zhong Kui. It shows that no matter at what stage of life she is in (her last performance was years ago before her marriage), she is forever tied with him and the stage. Most people would be scared if they had an illusion of talking to a demon; not only was Qui Yin not scared, she begged him to stayed because she knows that “she is him”, “he is her” and they are bonded together forever. The demon left her in the end, but she was not able to let him go because she has nothing else.
I am not going to lie… I didn’t really get the movie.
Good point about the use of makeup in the beginning foreshadowing events later in the film! I remember that part now that you say it, but I didn't think to connect that event with the foreshadowing of Qui's life as an actress.
DeleteI also agree about Zhong Kui being a sort of symobl of Qui's dream and pursuit of an acting career. I thought it was very kind of Qui to let her father play the role of Zhong Kui when they reunited.
I agree with you on the part about the somewhat "out of place" cutscenes representing different stages in her life. it was a little confusing at first but it became apparent later on in the film.
DeleteWoman Demon Human was directed by Shuqing Huang and shown in 1987s. This movie mainly talks about the story of grow up of Qiuyun from 1950s to 1970s. She studied secretly from her parents how to act opera when she was a child. Her mother went away together with someone and her father wanted to bring her home. However, she was really interested in acting, her father decided to teach her how to act and she became successful. Qiuyun was chosen by Zhang who was the teacher of local province troupe after one acting. They fall in love with each other. Zhang is someone’s husband and had to leave for Qiuyun’s future. Qiuyun married and got two babies during the culture revolution and returned to the stage after the revolution. Her husband didn’t support it and left. She felt stress and devoted herself to the stage.
ReplyDeleteActually, this movie is a biography of Yanling Pei. It tells the story of her. Woman Demon Human is the only female movie in China so far. She is a female but she wants to act the male character. Her mother make a big shadow to her, she refused to become the people like her mother. She was not acting the normal male; she was acting the china traditions in the world of the ideal man. This movie very heavy pointed to a modern woman in today's society embarrassing predicament. People can’t identity gender that time, Male have the nature advantage and female should be the bottom of the society.
I agree with your point of view, Qiu Yun in order not to become like her mother like that, so choose to play male roles in opera, from that point on, we can know that the mother's departure for Qiu Yun has a deep impact. And when we Qiu Yun hopes for her father's attitude in the career point of view, we can see that in that era of Chinese women's social status does not high. Of course, it is precisely because of such external factors to success Qiu Yun successful career in the performing arts, we have to clearly aware, Qiu Yun career might be really very successful, but in life is not a so successful women, which we can learn from Qiu Yun inner cavity can be discerned.
DeleteI think that one reason why Qui wanted to act is because her mother did. She grew up all around theater and knowing nothing but theater. So it seems natural for her to get sucked into the acting. But even though she's sucked into it, I agree it is what she wants to do and she enjoys it.
Deletei think your view is correct.And your analysis is originality.Especially,This point:"Actually, this movie is a biography of Yanling Pei. It tells the story of her. Woman Demon Human is the only female movie in China so far" is incisive.So chinese film still has a long way to forward.
DeleteI believe this film is not only the biography of the actress who acted as Qiuyun. Director wants to present the deep feminism in the old society of China, and let this actress act Qiuyun might because she has the similar life experiences as Qiuyun.
DeleteWoman Demon Human The movie tells the story of the old era Chinese opera story line . I think that this film a total of two story lines , one for Qiu Yun small to large growth story ; another as Zhong Kui married sister's story . From the beginning of the film, we see that when they grow up Qiu Yun for his painting of Zhong Kui shape. Then as the film unfolds, we can see from the Qiu Yun Zhong Kui parents and sister playing on stage performing for our film launched prologue. Wait the story of the plot twists and turns, Qiu Yun suffered a mother’s departure, and the exclusion of others, flashed past few years, the growth of a young girl. Qiu Yun in youth, as an opportunity to begin to study drama, and because of his excellent acting talent, was taken to the city for training, since then, the end of adolescence Qiu Yun content. Subsequently, Qiu Yun grow into an adult, faced many difficulties, are all resolved, and eventually become a good actor. Another one main story, Zhong Kui from the outset afraid of meeting his sister, and later reunited with his sister, and then, Zhong Kui called ghosts, along with the wedding of her sister, the way many difficulties, and finally reach the goal.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a very intelligent film, because of the movie, with two very different stories, creating embraced feeling. For example, in Qiu Yun facing difficulties in life, it also happened to my sister on the way to send Zhong Kui experienced in difficult times. In the film's final, Qiu Yun and Zhong Kui stand together, Qiu Yun become a famous actor, and Zhong Kui also successfully married sister, which is a good echo each other, told the audience the story of these two binding sites. Of course, this movie also has an interesting part is that one runs through the whole film person, a fuchsia boy, from a child to grow into adults , have been appeared on the screen . I think , the director deliberately arranged for such a character , is a profound meaning , the emergence of this character tells the audience that he was the only one from beginning to end has not changed over the people, but also the only one who is always happy , and Qiu Yun there is a strong contrast that allows the audience thought.
I think you have a great point there about how the movie combined two different stories together, and have them tells one thing.
Deleteyou separate the film to two parts, it is really good for me to understand this film, especially the last sentence. He was the only one from beginning to end has not changed over the people, but also the only one who is always happy.
DeleteYou think the flim have two parts,but I don't think you understand the essential meaning of the movie!The film want to expression the information for us ,that is "Qiuyun"is not smooth in her life.Her husband not support to her job,and he to leave home; various twists and turns of life, determined her dedicated to the arts of her life. I think that is important in the film.
DeleteThe film name “Woman Demon Human” is about a female opera actor, her name is “Qiuyun” when she was young she always sing opera in secretly, but her father doesn’t know! After that her mother elopement with one guy, and this thing put her to the most serious moral crisis, some friends bully her, despise her. At last，her father found she was sing opera, he was hit her. In fact, her father hope she no opera, and he think himself was make enough money for pay her collage! Finally they decide to go back home, but “Qiuyun”stick to sing opera, then her father think that was unavoidably, so just taught her to sing opera. In a show, she was selected by teacher. Zhang，and her sing has improved quickly since she started training sing every day! Finally, “effort not too long, she pays the sweat to reap the benefits”, she becomes the first Wushen (an actor playing a martial role in Chinese operas) in the troupe of province. When Qiuyun became famous she was much distressed by the envy of others, satire, gossip, slander with her. In the“Cultural Revolution” she was lost job and get married, meanwhile she has two children! After the downfall of the “Gang of four” she back to the stage again, and boasts international reputation of depend on her exquisite skills!
ReplyDeleteAs regards to me, I think this is a unparalleled film in China, the film want to expression some information for us, as far as I know the film background is in the early days of New China, in that time the people mind was conservative they think the boy is valuable, and the girl is worthless. Not only that the China began “the Cultural Revolution” in 30 years. In this revolution a plenty of literary and art workers was persecution, so “Qiuyun” lost her job. Have to admit, this film with the subject of woman, I think this is a silence subject. Because In ancient of China, women are deprived of a voice, actually they are victims who are denied desire and expression. So the women only choice is silence and obedience in ancient of China. For example, When Qiuyun become famous many of peers began envy, gossip even slander her, thought her “like mother, like daughter” and this always make her distressed! Even if her husband was a devout gambler, do not support her career. In this bad situation, Qiuyun not only repay gambling debts for her husband but also she need to withstand pressure from public opinion. In this case, Qiuyun decide her all life to “marry to stage” and no regret. Visible, a female only choice in this situation is“forbear” and dedicated to art career. Think about it, who is not“Qiuyun” in our life? If not, I think someone at least feel her embarrass. In the eyes of the people, person should have no personalities, no talent, without pursuit……， In other words, no edges and corners of the people anyone accepted it, and what about his fact? As far as I’m concerned, the movie it sure a“ unique 'feminist' film from China and highlights the idea of identity as performance”, just like Zhang asks. In this film, the status of men and women by the director to an equal height in the artistic treatment, she will be the cause of the conflict, family and love of reinforcement is to reflect a woman made sacrifices and efforts in the life of that time, with a soft feminine angle of Feminist Interpretation of deep. Finally, I think it is a rare film to expression women’s appeal in China; this is a special case in history of Modern Chinese film.
I am not sure about what you think female as "a silence subject," cause I heard a lot of outstanding females on Chinese Opera stage, like Mulan, represented another form of feminist.
DeleteI agree with your opinion. Qiuyun decided to marry to stage in the end. It shows a kind of forbear. This film highlights feminist. It's a rare and great film.
Deletethe movie Woman-Demon-Human tells us the growth and life story of a Chinese opera actress-Qiu Yun. The story starts at the end of 1950s, when Yun was a little girl, whose dad is an opera actor, who plays the role of Zhongkui. At that time, Yun wanted to be an opera actress just like her dad. However, her dad forbid Yun to do so, because he thinks that it is not good for a girl to be on the opera stage, so Yun just learnt everything by herself from watching the performance and practicing sneakily. One day, when Yun's dad's troupe is playing Zhongkui again, the main actress, which is Yun's mom had gone with another man, in the next show, Yun's dad could not find another person to play the role of Zhao Yun, and Yun went on the stage without her dad's permission, the show was successful, Yun started to want to act men's role, and she was saw by teacher Zhang from the province troupe, teacher Zhang went talk to Yun's dad, hoping to take Yun to the province troupe. Yun's dad wanted Yun to have a brighter future, so he agreed. Yun practiced really hard in the province troupe, and she has became the most famous actress in the province troupe. However, teacher Zhang was forced to leave the troupe because of gossip between him and Yun. However, the gossip did not stop even after teacher Zhang had left, and Yun felt distressed about it. Later, the Great Cultural Revolution occurs, and Yun has got no acting jobs, so she got married. After the revolution, Yun had come back on the stage again, and she has become more famous than before, however her husband did not support her, and he left Yun, and Yun felt so upset about it, at last, Yun had overcome the bad feeling and devoted her life in to the opera.
ReplyDeleteThis movie talks about feminist, in China, from a long time ago, women were taught not to be so strong on the career, what they should do, is to find a man to get married and stay at home taking care of her husband and the children. In some poor places in China, if a family have a girl, they will try to have another kid, untill it is a boy. In this movie, there are three scenes that shocks me, first of all, Yun is not allowed to be an actress by his dad, because his dad was hurt by her mom, and he started to think that opera actress will have no good ending. Secondly, when teacher Zhang was forced to leave by the gossip. The gossip started when Yun started becoming famous, and other actors and actresses are all jealous of her. And the last thing is, when Yun's husband left her, just because that her husband did not want her to sing opera. The last scene reflects the women status in old China, actually, it is still like this in China now, there are more and more women are more success in their career than men, at last, they have to choose from family and career when they get older, they could not find a husband because they are too successful in the career, and it makes men embarrassed, I think it is unfair, love and family has nothing to do with one's career.
P.S. I could not figure out why does the movie called Women-Demon-Human, what reflects the demon in this movie?
I think the word "Demon" imply ZhongKui the role that Qiu played on the stage. Basically, women in the film is refer to Qiu and the Demon is her role Zhongkui. Through play Zhongkui, she find the missing part of herself. So, she can be a completely human.
DeleteIn my opinion, the word "Demon" in this film may not be a certain people. It could be a bad feeling of Qiuyun when she saw her mother eloped with a guy and left her and her father; it could be when Mr. Zhang quit the troupe and left her which makes her feel hopeless; and it also could be when she want to back on the stage without the support from husband. Director trying to figure the bad emotive feeling of Qiuyun as a guy to audiences.
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ReplyDelete人鬼情 is a movie about a girl who pursues her dream of acting through many obstacles. That her dream involves acting out male parts on a stage is only part of the challenge. Gaining acceptance as a girl, playing a boy's parts, and acting unladylike result in widespread alienation from her peers. It even gets to the point where someone maliciously places a nail in a way that it is driven into her hand while she is performing. Despite this, QiuYun shows her inner strength by not giving in or reacting to their provocation, waiting instead until she is alone to unleash her grief, anger and pain in a hysterical scene.
On a more abstract note, the movie focuses on the question of gender in a very explicit way while QiuYun is still growing up. From the scene where she fights with (and loses to) the other boys from the troop, to the mob that surrounds her and demands proof of her gender to the reasoned defense of Mr. Zhang, where he says, (paraphrased) "Does playing a woman make a man female? Does playing a man make a woman male? Leave her alone." Later, we see that Mr. Zhang is the object of many actresses' affections, but QiuYun approaches him in a very different manner. After some time, Mr. Zhang has fallen in love with QiuYun, but she doesn't reciprocate that affection. In the end, QiuYun decides that she most identifies with Zhong Kui, the male ghost catcher that her (acting) father played when she was young.
I think “Woman • Demon • Human and “and Wu Tianming teacher's "face" is very similar with each other. But since the director of this film is a female, we can easy connect the Woman • Demon • Human and word “feminism”. The main actress Qiu Ju is a woman but have to paly a male actor in the drama. She is really wanted to be a normal woman but the real world just let her down again and again. The story happens in the 1960s which set the culture revolution as a background. This is imply the political movement make people can’t do their own; they have to be pretend to be someone for living in that special situation.
ReplyDeleteBeauvoir's once said quote, "We are not born of women, but we will make our surroundings become a woman" In the film, Qi yun choose different way , she want to “ marry the stage” which mean the woman want to get a rid of dependence on men and pursue their own career " I thought the movie Qiu Yun lines: "I always thought, how can you meet a good man" it reflects the true heart Qiu Yun ideas and real theme, why repeated use drama movie clips the "Ghostbuster" rather than other Qiu Yun play, precisely because the director would like to tell the play's theme, woman want to find a good man, but that doesn’t mean woman have to live on men. Zhong Kui is obsessed played precisely “good man,” representative: appearance, although poor but extremely respect friendship, more importantly, there is a sense of responsibility. All Qiu Yun want or most of the women want such a good man, but it is hard to find. So, she put all her effort on this man's actor and thus in some sense to say, "I am married to the stage."
I agree with your points that women are influence a lot by their environment, specially as a chinese women. The old chinese women at the bottom of the society. This situation change recent 40 years. the more society closed, the more inequity of this society
DeleteI agreed with your point that "women want to find a good man, but that doesn't mean woman have to live on men". As women becoming more independent, some of them even reject marrying to men in order to show their superior "feminism".
DeleteIn 1950s, Qiuyun’s parents are troupe actors huring her childhood. She like drama and start learning secretly. Later, her mother eloped with a man and left she and her father. That made an indelible shadow of her father. Qiuyun was asked back home and left the troupe, but she is crazy about drama and insist to stay in the troupe even only act male characters evermore. Father had no alternative but to teach her to sing male characters; Qiuyun apprenticed hard, and became the pillar in the troupe soon. During a show, she was selected by Mr. Zhang who is a teacher in provincial theater. In 60’s, with Mr. Zhang’s teaching and talents of herself, Qiuyun had become the number one actress in the provincial troupe. Grow up as a young lady, Qiuyun had a sncere affection to Mr. Zhang. But Zhang is a married man, and has children in the country. In order to make Qiuyun’s future better, Mr. Zhang forced left the theater. After being fame, jealousy, gossip, and slander always accompanied her to make her deeply distressed. During “Cultural Revolution”, there was no show Qiuyun could play, she decided to get married and also gave birth to two children. By crushing the “Gang of Four”, Qiuyun returned to the stage and became renowned by the consummate skill within nation and abroad. Her husband does not support her career on drama and leaves home with no words. All the twists and turns of life, making her deeply numbed, and determined acting on the stage for a life time, and always dedicated to the arts.
ReplyDeleteThe film revolves around opera actress Qiuyun’s art career, reflecting the ups and downs of her experiences. Her biggest pain is unable to get a woman who should get something. Career success and in stark contrast to the inner cavity, showing the character's repressed psychological and contradictions painful state of mind. The film is also a strong feminism movie, it focuses on strengthening the negative impact of male characters.
I think you made a fantastic point in that after she became famous, jealousy, gossip and slander never left her. I think that that is important to remember because she was famous, and on and off the stage she was struggling with her life. Most times we as viewers see actresses as the people who have it all together and most of the time they don't, and I think this movie did z good job portraying that.
DeleteThe story of “Woman, Demon, Human” is a very well put together sequence of flash-forwards. When the film first starts, one notices the bright colors, and the close-up shots (along with other advanced shots) which let the viewer know that this film is a lot more advanced than previous ones; both technologically, and culturally. There are three main periods of time that the story presents: the main character as a young girl, as a teenager, and as an adult. In the first section of a movie, Qiu Yun is a young girl who travels around with her parent’s acting troupe. One first notices how close the father and daughter are. They always seem to be laughing, as well as sitting in very close proximity to one another. She is being treated well, even as a girl. However, in another scene all of the children are out in the “swampy” area, and the other children are giving her a hard time for her mother running away with another man. One could make the assumption that they are just being children, and that that is what children do. In another light, though, there are underlying gender tensions. Perhaps the boys are acting that way because that is what they see the older males do.
ReplyDeleteLater on in the movie, the girl returns to her father’s farm in order to run away from her career as an actor. At first the father is very affectionate, similar to when Qiu Yun was a girl, which leads us to believe that their relationship has not changed. However, when she tells him that she is run away, he starts to beat her, and scream at her. At first, you think that gender tensions are starting to rise. However, it can be seen that it was all out of love, so this is not an issue. As it can be seen throughout the movie, as throughout Chinese history, gender issues do improve and get better. In my opinion, this movie is simply an allegory about the social position of women in China, and how that position changes over time.
You ended your response with a really good statement that raises a few questions: How has the position changed? Has it been good, bad, or neither? And the social position of which kind of women? Finally, I am curious as to whether the father might be an allegory for something if we wanted to look at things in terms of their potential symbolism.
Delete人鬼情 Rén Guǐ Qíng is a film which explores many of the same topics we’ve covered over the last week after viewing Stage Sisters; the role of women in Chinese society, and the manifestation of their social status within the cultural medium of stage acting. Qiu Yun is abandoned by her mother after witnessing her having an affair, which may explain Qiu Yun’poor judgment of character when it comes to her love life. The emotional pain of her past and her hopeless romanticism later in her life are all mere distractions, however, from her true passion: theater. On stage she is supremely skilled and controversial at the same time, mostly for her talent in playing male characters.
ReplyDeleteQiu Yun’s best role is that of the ghostly king Zhong Kui, a demon whose life goal is the pursuit of a worthy partner for his sister. I enjoyed the irony of this situation; the fact that a pretty, young actress with a fondness for playing male characters and a penchant for seeking out inadequate lovers would excel in the role of a demon whose guidance is exactly what she needed. This role also bore the significance of being her father’s best character. The mirrors illustrate Qiu Yun’s connection with her stage persona, and they are inseparable. It’s amazing to see Qiu yun’s transformation from soft femininity to masculine demon and vice versa. I enjoyed the Rén Guǐ Qíng more than I did Stage Sisters, but that was mostly due to the fact that it was made much more recently, and the cinematic quality was higher. I found myself enjoying Beijing Opera for the first time in my life (granted, the scenes were relatively short).
Yes the quality is much better than Stage Sisters, and compared with stage sisters, this film seems to get fewer influenced by the political. The period of Cultural Revolution did not show up on the screen.
DeleteTo be honest, I do not like Peking Opera in general. But I found that the performance of ghosts are quite imaginative and I was impressed.
DeleteI resonate with the enjoyment of Beijing Opera for the first time. It was beautifully rendered in this movie. I was enthralled the whole time. One of the more inspirational movies I've watched in another language.
DeleteI am chinese but i have to say the Beijing opera is not my taste, and it is not popular in young generation. many people think it too noisy and abstract.I am not very like it
Delete'Zhongkui' is a Chinese folk tales. It has many types of drama such as Beijing Opera, Sizhou opera, Kunqu opera. They are Chinese Cultural Quintessence. If you watch these different types of 'Zhongkui', you will get different feelings.
DeleteThe movie "Woman, Demon, Human" mainly told a life story about Qiuyun, who is an opera "actress" and played the male character on the stage. Her life is not happy, when she was young, her mother, who is also an opera actress, left her and her "father" and went away with his real father. So her "father", actually her step-father, would not like her to be an actress, cause in his thought, the opera actress is the lowest occupation in the society. That is the reason why Qiuyun chose the male character, Zhongkui, which is also hard for a man. When she was a teenager, she fell in love with her teacher. However, Mr. Zhang has a wife already. The gossip made Qiuyun embarrassing and Mr. Zhang quite his job and got back home. After 10-year cultural revolution, she came back to the stage and became famous all over seas, but her husband cannot gave her a complete family.
ReplyDeleteIn general, the movie mixed the stage and real life together. We can read the real thought from the lyrics of the opera and felt the true feeling of Qiuyun. Like when she became a real opera and left her father, she just sang about the family, and we can see her eyes with dark painted filled of tears, which draw me a deep impression.(Woman, Demon, Human, 37:07) In addition, the whole film is talking about the gender, the females always in the lower occupation and in fact Qiuyun want to change this situation for herself. That is why she chose the Character, Zhongkui. The film did little about the history background. The only thing we knew is that during the cultural revolution, the opera is forbidden. The ending in the film is quite interesting, there is a dialog between Zhongkui and Qiuyun. Zhongkui asked her that do you feel tired or regret? She said no. (Woman, Demon, Human, 1:40:00) This is a kind of montage, reflected the deep feeling of Qiuyun. Yes it is a tired for a woman to play a man, and it is also tired for a woman who wants to have the same occupation with the man in the society. In my opinion, the ending part of the film made me a little bit confusing, why Qiuyun met her real father and her father did not want to see her; why she said she married the stage; what is going on with her and her husband? I guess it may need further explanation.
I love your questions you asked when you finished watching the movie, it is important to ask those vital questions. I also think that the director wanted the audience to be left not knowing all the answers, so that you can imagine and talk about why those question arose. I also think that when QinYun said that she was married to the stage, I felt that it was perfect because she was totally married to the stage way more than she was ever married to her own husband! The way she cared about the stage, acted on stage, loved the stage, grew up and continuing on the stage, is her being married to the stage. I think that in a way she couldn't separate her real life with her life on stage and she was met with great difficulty in her life because of that.
Deletei would agree with your explanation for why she said she was "married to the stage." Qiu Yun's passion and true love lies in acting and the stage. This trumps all other loves, such as her love for her father and perhaps even the teacher.
DeleteI was deeply struck by the way this film was shot. More specifically the contrast between Qiu Yuan as an on-stage persona, and viewing her life off the stage. Many scenes from the movie have idyllic nature and a multitude of life such as scene from her early childhood. The stage scenes on the other hand have her dressed up in grand, unreal costumes with demons and magic in a completely separate world with a background of stark darkness. According to Zhang there comes a time when she “seems to embrace her multiple identities by declaring to her alter ego Zhong Kui that she is happily married to the stage.” (234) I personally found the dynamic of having a stage ego with separate scenes, which didn’t include an audience, to strike a stronger chord with me than the issue of her gender itself.
ReplyDeleteHaving read Zhang’s discussion of gender’s role in the movie, I was forced to rethink things in terms of gender rather than simply personality. It’s easy to pay little attention to the gender norms we impose in our society even today, to say nothing of attempting to understand them from a different culture and different time period. As Zhang mentions, Qiu Yun “is confronted with several identities imposed on her by social discourses.” While it’s certainly believable that ‘Zhong Kui’ may be an outlet for Qiu Yuan to express herself in ways she can’t otherwise do in society, I’m curious as to what ways ‘Zhong Kui’ as a role may be imposing new identities on her off-stage during the movie.
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I too noticed the contrast between the camera shots and portrayal of Qiu's on-stage and off-stage lives. It's very interesting how Zhang chose two very opposing yet seemingly obvious aspects of Qui's life and used the camera angle, makeup, and background to portray messages to viewers about the film's theme. Without the use of these film techniques, I think viewers might be left unaware of the true hardship Qiu endured as an actress in China during that time period.
DeleteI think the first scene also depicts how Qiu Yun embraces her multiple identities. First, viewers see Qiu Yun bare faced and as she slowly applies her makeup, we see a stark transformation. Yet, this transformation to a ghost character is not too much of a contrast to her normal self. This is indicated by the 360 degree mirrors that highlight Qiu Yun's face, which is sometimes distorted and strange looking due to different lighting.
DeleteWhile “Woman, Demon, Human” clearly has a theme of what it was like to be involved in the Chinese theater, it also has a small theme of the legacy and inheritance for a child. The main character is a child – Qui – who has parents in the theater. The small family spends their entire time acting or traveling to another stage where they will act. Theater being all Qui knows, it comes to no surprise that she follows her mother’s legacy when she herself joins the theater. And acting isn’t the only thing she seems to inherit from her mother. After her mother left, people seemed to take it out on her. During the chaos of looking for Qui’s mother, Qui is asked why she wasn’t keeping an eye on her mother. Young boys taunt and tease her about her mother running away. After she starts acting, people seem to fear that she may leave just as her mother did. It’s possible that even she believes she may do so since she fears the unknown. This film seems to point out that during this time, the Chinese culture saw a parent’s success and failures as inheritable to a child.
ReplyDeleteThe film-work itself does a nice job showing the different point of views between an audience watching a show, and those involved in a show. Camera shots from the audience shows an entertaining opera show, and those in the audience are smiling and enjoying the show, as if they have no worries. But the camera shots from behind the curtains show the struggle and stress amongst the actors to get everything ready. One example is the chaos behind the curtain when Qui’s mother is missing. The audience on the other side is watching in peace, not knowing an actress won’t be showing up. When they realize something’s wrong, they start throwing food at the stage. All together, Woman Demon Human portrays what it’s really like to be in theater, and how the entertainment for others affects the families involved.
I like the contrast between onstage and "behind the curtains." There is definitely a lot of thought that went into these scenes to make it feel authentic and natural. I believe it makes the film highly relatable. That is an interesting point about Chinese culture, in which successes and failures of parents are thought to be inherited by their children.
DeleteZhang's film, "Woman, Demon, Human" captures the life of Qiuyun as she ages from a young toddler to a grown woman. Throughout the course of the film, Zhang investigates the role of feminism in Qiuyun’s life as he explores the positive and negative effects of Qiuyun’s choice to become an actress playing male parts in Chinese opera. Although Qiuyun eventually becomes famous, she endures much hardship as she leaves her beloved father (who is actually her step father) to join an acting school and troupe of opera actors and actresses. Aside from leaving her father, Qiuyun also battles with society’s view of women playing male roles in Chinese opera.
ReplyDeleteIn comparison to “Stage Sisters,” Zhang’s film concentrates more film time on actual on-stage opera scenes to show the hardship and pain that Qiuyun endures. The camera zooms in on Qiuyun’s face, and despite the mask of makeup, one can see the pain the woman endures as tears well up in her eyes. One can also see the use of zooming in on Qiuyun’s face when a group of toddler boys gang up on Qiuyun and she fights with one of them. The scene closes as the camera zooms in on Qiuyun’s crying face. Another technique that Zhang practiced with the camera was using more direct shots with the actors facing the audience for on stage scenes and less direct shots from a longer distance with the actors facing at an angle from the camera. An example of this sort of technique can be seen in the scene where Qiuyun and a group of fellow actresses are stretching on a tree before an exercise practice.
When I first thought of a feminist film I thought it would be more of the pretty, glitzy type of thing especially since a woman was the director and lots of women were in the cast. This was not what I expected in woman demon human. This movie takes drastic turns from the very beginning but being shockingly clear in what it's trying to portray. This movie took off and explained things and pictured images so clearly for the time in which it was produced.
ReplyDeleteSexuality play a huge role in this film as Qui Yun spends her time on stage in multiple different roles but mainly as a man. I didn't realize while watching the film that her role as a man on stage was to revolt her mother, but it make sense why the director would portray her in this way. Was her role solely to rebel or was there a deeper meaning in why she, as the daughter, was picked to play this role? Overall I was impressed at the movie's capability to portray things so clearly, such as the scene close to the beginning where the girl catches a couple in the woods, and maybe she knew it was her mom or maybe she didn't, but the fact that her relationship with her dad was boosted instantly. Also the parallel between Qin Yun and her mom was very clear on and off the stage.
The parallel between Qin Yun is an interesting thought. Despite not wanting to be anything like her mother, she too loves performing on stage. I thinking portraying exclusively male roles is her way of offsetting this to the point where she can convince herself that she is not her mother.
DeleteThis film Woman, Demon, Human documents the life of a successful opera actress, Qiu Yun. The first segment of the film focuses on her early childhood, as she is raised by her father after her mother leaves him for another lover; because of this, she is occasionally teased by other children. In the second segment, we follow her through her teenage years as she begins her first performance, despite her father’s disapproval. His objection of her performance stems out of fear that she would end up following the footsteps of her mother, who was also a opera actress. In her debut performance as Zhou Yu, we find that she has a talent for the performing arts. Not wanting to abandon opera and return to the family farm, Qiu Yun convinces her father to allow her to continue performing with the promise that she would only play male roles. He reluctantly accepts. Qiu’s father puts her through further rigorous physical training in preparation for such roles. In the third segment of the film, we see that Qiu Yun is recruited to a reputable theater by Mr. Zhang. She becomes one of the top performers, but her career is plagued by controversy as her mutual affection toward Mr. Zhang become known. Mr. Zhang, who is a married man with children, leaves the theater. The remainder of the film details her struggle through the cultural revolution, abandonment of theater to focus on her family, and her subsequent return to theater with newfound devotion.
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting film to say the least. It portrayed a struggling opera actress throughout her life up until after the cultural revolution. The film essentially documented the tearing down of traditional norms in which female roles were open to both male and female, but in which male roles were restricted to only men. I feel that all three of the actresses playing Qiu throughout her life did a fantastic job, as they each had matching portrayals of the character’s rebellious and determined nature. The actor playing Qiu’s father was one of the gems of the film, and his performance made many of the father-daughter moments eerily convincing. I was impressed especially at the level of physical training that went into the opera performances. Woman, Demon, Human is an enjoyable feminist film with not only talented female leads, but with a talented female director.
I think your point is correct,which is "I feel that all three of the actresses playing Qiu throughout her life did a fantastic job, as they each had matching portrayals of the character’s rebellious and determined nature".i agree this view,because this point let me think Everyone has two sides.
DeleteThis is a good movie.In my opinion,This is a real sense of feminist film of China. This movie is really complete. Qiuyun spend her whole life struggling with the fate. When she was a child, her mother left her alone and was laughed at by other boys. She dislikes female identity because of her mother. She studied drama really hard and determined to play male roles. One time, she was misunderstood Chuang female toilets and much ridiculed and responsibilities, she is not convinced yet that he is really self-defense daughter. Herself is a tangle of contradictions bobby, she can’t be male or female and simply to play a ghost- Kui Zhong.What is a ghost, at least, which is really sincere, she feel human well-being, she has tasted closer to a ghost. Have seen through her said, "do not see that is the ghost," less than human ugly ghosts do, one sham, secretly plotted to destroy, as people are talking nonsense life and life, human weak and indifferent, rumors kill people in Renyankewei in Scream struggling so hard. There are too many people in the world involuntarily, really how valuable, previously seen "Edward Scissorhands", also compared to people who have a ghost ah, they would not be more true to you, I am still clinging with their own insists that such a sincere heart, but now I do not like is I will own heart tightly wrapped up, no longer easy to bare, because this society do not eat this, is that sad or glad it? I only own stick and looking fellow human.
ReplyDeleteAlthough “Stage Sisters” was a rather straightforward film, “Woman, Demon, Human” is more complex and viewers need to strip away at its various levels to understand its multiple layers. The opening scene was incredibly interesting, as it featured a close up of an adult Qiu Yun applying her makeup for the opera. In a matter of minutes, Qiu Yun transformed from an average woman to a character with much grandeur. This scene seems to foreshadow Qiu Yun’s future, yet is also somewhat haunting to viewers. The 360 degree view of a Qiu Yun without makeup seems to distort and cast different shadows onto her face, perhaps trying to portray the different moods and parts of her personality.
ReplyDeleteThe movie has a feminist tinge to it as it displays the double standards that surround Chinese opera; women roles are disdained and frowned upon, while men actors are deemed superior. Throughout her career, Qiu Yun struggles to be accepted as a great actress, especially as she vies for male roles. The film draws from the Chinese Opera to parallel with the aspects of Qiu Yun’s life. For instance, after Qiu Yun is teased and overhears people gossiping about her presumed love affair, she paints her whole face black and red. This creates an alarmingly frightening appearance meant to symbolize her inner turmoil. In addition, the ghost comes after and talks about his misfortunes. Ultimately, the film is an incredibly interesting film about feminism.
i think its interesting you mentioned the color of her face paint and its symbolism. I did not really pay much attention to that particular detail.
DeleteThe Film "Woman, Human, Demon," Qiuyun, the protagonist goes through life as as an actress performing operas at different places in China. She travels with her dad alot and is never with her mom since her parents are separated. Qiuyun loves to perform in peras but her father does not really approve of her choice because he thinks that it is not a place for women since it is a hard profession. she eventualy convinces him to act in operas but in only male roles. This is when her carreer really starts to take off.
ReplyDeleteThis film has many feminist themes as we watch Qiuyun become a famous performer and all the hardships that she had to go through. an example would be when she was being bullied as a kid and all the boys were splashing water at her and making fun of her until she finally stands up for herself and starts fighting one of the boys. There is another instance where she is thought to be a man in a woman's restroom and is taunted by a crowed of people Until Mr. Zhang comes into save her and gives a small speech asking why is it that men can have long hair and not be accused of being a girl but when a girl cuts her hair short, she is called a man. Comparing this to Stage Sisters, i feel that both were very effective in showing the emotion of the protagonists in the shot. both zoomed in on the face, especially in our most recent film, to show their pain and sadness.
“Women Human Demon” was filmed in 1987 by Shanghai Film Company. I was shocked by the way this movie was filmed like other classmates have mentioned in their responses. The movie scene alternates between the life of “Qiu Yun” and Chinese Opera “ZhongKui Jia Mei”. “Zhong Kui Jia Mei” is an opera about how ZhongKui found a well-qualified brother in law for his sister and escorted his sister to that man. However, Qiu Yun’s life wasn’t going that smoothly. Her mom left her dad and her for another man in her childhood, which turned out to be Qiu Yun’s real father. After Qiu yun joined in the provincial opera group, she fell in love with Mr. Zhang, who turned out to be a father of four children. After her marriage, her husband didn’t support her opera career and left her, which led her decided to devote her life to the stage as a male character. The director of movie also used lots of weather condition to reflect the atmosphere of the movie. For instant, in the morning when Qiu Yun’s father wanted leave the opera group with Qiu Yun after seeing her playing on the stage, it was raining in that morning and the color of the sky was still dark.
ReplyDeleteThe movie is claimed to be a “feminist” movie. From my understanding of the movie, Qiu Yun wasn’t a feminist at the beginning of neither the movie nor her life. There was a scene in Qiu Yun’s childhood which she dressed crimson red and played as a bride character with other boys. It was because of the life experiences she had that made her have to be a “feminist”. Whether the leaving of her Mom, felling love with a dad of four, or nonsupport from her husband of her stage play all have made her to be a strong and independent woman. Also, by performing as a male character “Zhong Kui”, even though it was primarily because Mr. Zhang told her that she has more talent on male character; it reflects that Qiu Yun or women in general are able to do things just like men.