asian film - FilmRoot

The Propaganda Game (North Korea) – What do you Know about North Korea?

The Propaganda Game Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

How dangerous do you think North Korea is to the world? Secondly, do you think you are an open minded person? The Propaganda Game exposes life in Korea and the propaganda we and North Koreans see every day. Is one side right? Can we find the truth? Read on.

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Why Watch The Propaganda Game?

To learn about North Korea
See how powerful propaganda can be (in this case it shows the propaganda we see that shapes our view of North Korea, and also the propaganda the citizens of North Korea see)
It will open your mind as you think about Cultural Relativism: the theory that beliefs, customs, and morality exist in relation to the particular culture from which they originate and are not absolute
It’s on Netflix

The Breakdown

The Propaganda Game starts with shots of what appears to be life in a typical Asian city. There are people meditating in parks, kids roller skating over ramps, and everything looks like it comes from a tourist brochure.

The shots are of course of life in North Korea. For a nice juxtaposition, the director layers western news reporters reports of life in North Korea over the top. It is clear that something is wrong as the pictures of North Korea obviously do not match up to the propaganda pushed by western media.

This is what film maker Alvaro Longoria explores in this film: propaganda. He points out that there are two players in the propaganda game, the North Korean government, and western media. Both are perpetrating myths and both myths are pretty much opposite. I’ve set out both myths below:

The western media perpetrate a myth that North Korea is a rogue state which poses a nuclear threat to the world and subjugates all of it’s citizens against their will.
North Korea perpetrates a myth that the west (in particular the U.S.) are the fault of all the problems in the country and that the whole world idolises their leaders and look towards North Korea as a beacon of the revolution.

Though the amazing shots and interviews we get in North Korea we can make our own judgements.

Conclusion

The most important message of this film is that we should always keep an open mind. Blindly accepting a point of view we see in the news can hide the truth. This goes for both the people in North Korea and the anyone who follows western media. We are all subject to propaganda, so we must always remain vigilant in trying to find see all sides of the agenda. In this case, there is no truth. Check out the trailer below.

Beyond the Clouds (India) – Why You Watch Films on the Big Screen

Beyond the Clouds Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

Are you looking for a big film for a bit of entertainment? With music, melodrama, and some epic shots? Look no further than Majid Majidi’s Beyond the Clouds. This Iranian director is one of the best at making great family films (check out Children of Heaven). Plus, if you liked Slumdog Millionaire (another great Mumbai film made by a foreigner) you’ll love this. It’s pure entertainment.

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Why Watch Beyond the Clouds?

To be entertained! There’s big sweeping shots and beautiful colours! You’ll notice the echoes of Slumdog Millionaire
For the music composed by A R Rahman (it’s not a musical, but you’ll notice the Bollywood touch)
To learn to appreciate the NHS (and all other countries with public healthcare)
See the melting pot of Indian diversity – in this film you’ll hear Hindi, Tamil, and bits of English

The Breakdown

Beyond the Clouds opens with a wide shot of a highway bridge in Mumbai. The camera tracks downwards to show us life under the highway. As Majid Majidi (the director) states, he wanted to get under the skin of the city, and right from the start he focuses on life that has escaped modernisation.

There’s a lot going on in each shot. We meet our protagonist walk-dancing along an empty path with his friend. They both hop on the back of a motorbike and zoom off down an empty straight road like cowboys riding towards the sunset. The sweeping camera movements and dance steps make it feel like you’re watching a big film. This is pure entertainment.

You’ll also be led by Majidi’s use of colours and darkness. When Amir visits his sister, she recounts all her traumas from the shadowed darkness of her bedroom. She has been ignored, emphasised by the darkness she is left in. Likewise the white sheets left to dry outside the busy clothes washers are a perfect symbol of innocence. Innocence that is fated to be stained…

Conclusion

This is why you go to watch films on the big screen. It has the wide sweeping shots, vivid colours, music, and plenty of melodrama. Yes, there’s a little cheesiness, but not enough to put you off. If you want to be entertained for a few hours, you can’t much go wrong watching Beyond the Clouds.

The Eagle Huntress (Mongolia) – How to Train Your Eagle

The Eagle Huntress Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

For beautiful scenery, eagles, and sexism check out The Eagle Huntress. It’s the closest you’ll get to a real life version of How to Train Your Dragon. Plus you can watch it here on Amazon (free with Prime).

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Why Watch The Eagle Huntress?

If you love good documentaries
Experience nomadic life in Mongolia – complete with freezing winters
Learn how to catch, train, and hunt with an Eagle
To see a 13 year old girl beat a bunch of old men

The Breakdown

The Eagle Huntress starts with a montage of epic scenery shots. There’s the stunning snow capped mountains, the endless salt flats, and beautiful valleys. It’s a perfect opening for Mongolian tourism. However, one thing you might notice from the opening is the lack of humans and wildlife. Whilst it’s beautiful, this area isn’t made for human life. Winter temperatures often drop to -40 degrees Fahrenheit. The brutal landscape provides the perfect setting to demonstrate the strength of Aisholpan and her father.

Anyone that lives as a nomad in Mongolia has got to be pretty hardy. Therefore if any girl can train an eagle to compete against the men in the local tournament, it has got to be this girl who grew up in the bitter cold countryside watching her father train them.

You’ll be with her every step of the way to the eagle festival. First, you’ll see her father rebelliously train her up with his own eagle. Secondly, you’ll see him take her into the mountains to catch an eaglet of her own (not the best advertisement of animal rights). Then she manages to get her grandfather’s blessing to train her own eagle before she eventually enters the eagle competition. If you ever wanted to own your own bird of prey, here’s your chance to experience it.

Documentary or Drama?

Whilst this film looks like a documentary, it definitely plays up the gender narrative. Every time Aisholpan takes a new step with training the eagle the film cuts to a montage of old Mongolian/Kazakh men saying that a women’s place is in the kitchen.

The grumpy old men are edited into the film to highlight how Aisholpan is not welcome in this male-only tradition. However, none of the people she comes into contact with on camera with her eagle seem offended that she’s training an eagle (the judges of the festival, her grandfather, the other competitors). Instead, all of the controversy comes from shots edited into the documentary narrative. The director uses these shots to dramatise her ‘against-all-odds’ story.

In addition, the pop-idol style music that plays whenever Aisholpan overcomes an obstacle in her training and the English narration from Daisy Ridley take you out of the documentary intimacy and add to the drama. Whilst this is a documentary, it’s editing, music, and narration add unnecessary dramatic tension to the film which ultimately holds you back from fully immersing yourself in the film, whilst also making it feel more manufactured.

Conclusion and What to Watch Next

Don’t be put off from watching this documentary based on the documentary or drama debate above as the narrative is still great (I just thought it was dramatised unnecessarily). Plus, The Eagle Huntress is worth watching for the incredible footage alone – some parts feel like another episode of Planet Earth.

If you love the girl-power vibe then I strongly recommend you check out both The Little Girl who Sold the Sun and Wadjda. The Little Girl who Sold the Sun features a young Senegalese girl who tries selling a local newspaper to support her blind mother. Wadjda features a young Saudi Arabian girl who fights for her right to ride a bicycle in a patriarchal society.

Or if you want to see another film where someone struggles to become something they want against all odds, check out The Orator. It features a little person from Samoa who is bullied by all the regular sized locals.

Mardan (Iraq) – A Sombre Film Set in Kurdish Iraq

Mardan Film Difficulty Ranking: 4

Most of you know that Iraq has had one of the most traumatic modern histories. But when you think of why, you’d probably think of the Iraq War. So when I tell you this is a sombre Iraqi film you’d also probably think that it is about the Iraq War. But you’d be wrong. Unlike Ahlaam, Mardan is set in Kurdish Iraq, and follows the traumatic life of a border patrol guard.

Why Watch Mardan?

To see a Kurdish Iraqi film (for an Arabic Iraqi film, check out Ahlaam)
If you are up for a solemn (but well made) movie
To see the beautiful and wild mountain scenery of Iraq
For another story with a traumatic childhood (which reminded me of the Kosovan short film Shok)

The Breakdown

Mardan starts with an extreme close up of half a man’s face. The camera is focused on one of the man’s watery eyes. He is crying.

A traumatic flashback to his childhood shows us why he is crying. It should be an innocent memory of him and his brother playing by the river. But some military men raped and killed his brother, giving him a burden he has had to carry for his whole life.

Surprisingly, the introduction is the only place where the military is shown, apart from the border patrol. Instead, the film focuses on Mardan and how he deals with his harrowing childhood memory. He doesn’t seem like the nicest guy – he accepts bribes and appears pretty grumpy, but the film implies that his background is to blame for this.

His only shot at redemption is by helping a family find their relative. But don’t expect a Hollywood ending. This film is more about the journey and character development than any climactic ending.

Conclusion

Mardan is not the film you want to watch after a long day at work. It is solemn and does not offer any respite. It is a well made film, but you’d only want to watch it if you want to see a bit of life in Kurdish Iraq, some Iraqi scenery, or if you are into sombre films.