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“THE WOLF AT THE DOOR”:HOLLYWOOD AND THE FILM MARKET IN CHINA FROM 1994-2000(四)           ★★★ 【字体:
“THE WOLF AT THE DOOR”:HOLLYWOOD AND THE FILM MARKET IN CHINA FROM 1994-2000(四)
作者:佚名    论文来源:本站原创    点击数:    更新时间:2008-12-5    

  Far more serious was the ban on the showing of any American films from May toOctober 1999.This proved devastating to Chinese theaters ,already having a verypoor year even before the bombing.Many were reported on the verge of bankruptcy.Overall ,the film market declined 50percent compared to 1998.(45)A numberof film critics also used these results to refute those who argued that audienceswould not see Chinese movies so long as American imports were showing.Even in theabsence of the American films ,audiences were simply not interested in going tosee Chinese films.(46)But the Chinese government once again showed that commercialconsiderations were secondary to political imperatives.

  What was particularly interesting in the aftermath of the bombing was the changein press coverage of American films ,with the vilification in print lasting foraround four months.Beijing Youth Daily (Beijing qingnian bao),for example,indicted the American film industry for its complicity in paving the way,culturally,for American hegemonic interests.The most successful movies in the Chinese market-including "Titanic,""Saving Private Ryan,"and "Star Wars Episode I:The PhantomMenace"-were all seen as so-called "main melody films"(zhu xuan lu ),a termoften used for Chinese films that further the government's propaganda mission.Thesemovies were sent abroad for the purposes of cultural and economic imperialism ,presenting a worldview supportive of the United States and dominating commercialmarkets ,thereby driving out domestic films.At the same time ,the Beijing YouthDaily went on ,in the United States movies like "Red Corner"would aid Americanauthorities in creating an anti-China tide within their own market.(47)Thistheme was repeated in other publications as well.The leading trade journal forthe film industry -China Film Market (Zhongguo dianying shichang)-publishedan article entitled "Drawing Aside Hollywood's Veil"in which the author lamentsthe fact that American films have become so crucial to the survival of the Chinesetheaters.Attacking virtually every genre of American film,including science fiction,gangster,war and romance,the author concludes that it is necessary to "exposeand conduct …class repudiation of the hypocritical humanism of such films,whichmake people who watch a few of them prostrate themselves before American society."(48)

  The themes of hypocrisy and the hidden agenda deeply embedded in American culturalproducts were common ones at this time.One critic,adopting the title of the secondmost successful American film in China,wrote of "the vivid language of hegemony"(huoyu baquan)as a "true lie"that characterized American films and the "Americanspirit".The American hero always must represent the "will"of mankind,includingfreedom ,justice,and equality.American films shown in China,such as "Speed,""Waterworld,"and "True Lies"were cited as examples,although "IndependenceDay ,"too patriotic for the Chinese censors to approve as a theatrical releasebut available nevertheless in China's thriving marketplace and discussed in detailin film magazines ,came in for particular censure.The author concluded that Hollywoodfilms were like opium.Once entering the imaginary world of the film the viewerunderwent a form of hypnotherapy and was no longer capable of rational judgment.(49)Another critic saw an "invisible hand"(kanbujian de shou )behind the"dreamland"(menghuan)presented by Hollywood.He lumped Hollywood films withsuch other American icons as Coca-Cola and McDonald's as links in a chain carryingAmerican cultural imperialism throughout the world,eventually taking over theminds of the target audiences.In Hollywood's formulation every region of the worldhas its special characteristics.Africa is presented as a barbarian land with manywild animals,while Asia is a land of spies and opium smokers.The only paradiseis the United States itself ,the land where beautiful dreams really do come true.(50)

  Not surprisingly,critics also went after the easiest target ,reinterpreting"Mulan,"which before the bombing had received generally good reviews.Writingin Popular Cinema (Dazhong dianying)one critic indignantly complained about "theAmericans'disfigurement of Chinese history ,their lack of understanding of theChinese environment ,their eternal inability to understand Chinese culture,andtheir skewed comprehension of the Chinese people".(51)The scatter shot attackon the film ranged from the "scandalous"(Mulan jumps on the Emperor,hugs himand swings him around )to the bizarre (Mulan is said to look "Vietnamese"butit is also claimed that no characters in the film look "normal")。Finally,theauthor concluded that the film's disrespect for Chinese cultural traditions is "unforgivable,as was the bombing of our embassy in Yugoslavia ,no matter what highfalutin diplomaticexcuses they cook up".(52)

  CONCLUSION

  Hollywood films entered the China market at a time when the Chinese film industrywas desperate for an immediate stimulus and long-term investment in a market thathad been on a steady decline.After six years it is still too early to offer a prognosis.Has Hollywood saved the Chinese film industry or further damaged it ?With WTOentrance now close at hand,these issues are currently under intense debate inthe Chinese press.In particular,industry professionals are examining variousstrategies to compete with the Hollywood product.While a detailed analysis of thesestrategies must be left to a separate article ,it is useful to conclude by examiningin brief the current state of the Chinese domestic film industry and some of thecompeting proposals being presented.

  First ,everyone acknowledges that the large majority of films produced inChina lose money.Indeed,70percent of Chinese-made films each year fail to recovertheir copyright and printing costs.Perhaps as many as 15percent are able to showsome profit ,although even this figure is questioned by some Chinese interviewees.(53)Table 5,which reports on the box office figures for Chinese films from1997-1999,is indicative of the difficulties most films have in finding an audience.In all three years,the majority of Chinese films brought in less than 1millionyuan(about US$120,000)at the box office,in most cases much less.In 1997and 1998only a few films were able to reach the 10million yuan mark ,and someof those were clearly "main melody films"subsidized by the organized purchase ofgroup tickets by state organs.Of most interest for our purposes are the resultsfor 1999.The average production cost of each domestic film that year was 3millionyuan,although many high profile films were of course much more expensive to produce.On average each film earned 600,000yuan,although if one factors out the fourmost successful films the average take for the remaining films that year was 300,000yuan.(54)Still,as many as eight films that year attained box office resultsof at least 10million yuan.Among the most successful films we can find in microcosmthe main competing strategies of Chinese filmmakers.

  TABLE 5

  BOX OFFICE FIGURES FOR THE TOP 40CHINESE FILMS IN 1997,1998AND 1999

  199919981997

  TOP 2FILMS :EXCEEDS 30MILLION RENMINBI(RMB )

  NUMBER 3:EXCEEDS 20MILLION RMB NUMBERS 4-8:AROUND 10MILLION YUAN NUMBERS9-13:AROUND 5MILLION YUAN NUMBERS 14-20:JUST ABOVE 1MILLION YUAN NUMBERS 21-40:BELOW 500,000RMB TOP 3FILMS :AROUND 10MILLION RMB NUMBERS 4-10:EXCEEDS5MILLION RMB NUMBERS 11-13:EXCEEDS 3MILLION RMB NUMBERS 14-16:EXCEEDS 1MILLIONRMB NUMBERS 24-40:BELOW 400,000RMB TOP 5FILMS :EXCEEDS 10MILLION RMB NUMBERS6-7:EXCEEDS 3MILLION RMB NUMBERS 8-14:EXCEEDS 1MILLION RMB NUMBERS 25-40:BELOW 200,000RMB

  NOTES :

  (1)NO FIGURES WERE PROVIDED FOR NUMBERS 17-23IN 1998AND NUMBERS 15-24IN 1997.(2)ONE U.S.DOLLAR IS EQUIVALENT TO APPROXIMATELY 8.2RMB.(3)THETOP 2FILMS IN 1999WERE FENG XIAOGANG'S "BE THERE OR BE SQUARE"(BUJIAN BUSAN)AND ZHANG YIMOU'S "NOT ONE LESS"(YIGE DOU BUNENG SHAO)。

  (4)THE TOP 3FILMS FOR 1998WERE FU HONGXING'S DOCUMENTARY "ZHOU ENLAI'SDIPLOMATIC TROUBLES"(ZHOU ENLAI WAIJIAO FENGYUN),FENG XIAOGANG'S "PARTY A ,PARTY B"(JIAFANG YIFANG),AND YE YING'S "A TIME TO REMEMBER"(HONGSE LIANREN)。

  (5)THE TOP 5FILMS IN 1997WERE XIE JIN'S "YAPIAN ZHANZHENG"(THE OPIUMWAR ),FENG XIAONING'S "HONG HEGU"(RED RIVER VALLEY),WEI LIAN'S "DA ZHUANZHE"(THE TURNING POINT ),ZHANG YIMOU'S "YOUHUA,HAO HAO SHUO"(KEEP COOL ),ANDLEI XIANHE AND KANG NING'S "LIKAI LEIFENG DE RIZI"(THE DAYS WITHOUT A HERO )。

  SOURCE:FOR 1999,SEE DIANYING YISHU (FILM ART)NO.3,2000,PP.4-5;FOR 1998,SEE DIANYING YISHU (FILM ART)NO.3,1999,PP.4-5;FOR 1997,SEE DIANYING YISHU(FILM ART)NO.3,1998,PP.4-5.

  The number one film for 1999was Feng Xiaogang's Bujian busan (Be There orBe Square )。Feng has been completely unabashed in his desire to beat Hollywoodat its own game ,to make only commercial films that audiences will pay their ownmoney to see.He has thus far made three highly successful films and,despite somecritical vilification in the Chinese press regarding the "vulgarity"of his aesthetic,Feng's strategy has thus far been the most successful at the box office.(55)Onedifficulty Feng has faced is the regional appeal of his films ,marked as theyare by the extensive use of Beijing slang.They have been much less successful outsidethe north ,for example in Shanghai or Guangzhou.

  The second most successful film in 1999was Zhang Yimou's Yige dou buneng shao(Not One Less)。Zhang of course is the leading "Fifth Generation"filmmaker.His films often win prestigious international awards but have faced outright bans(for example "To Live")or critical displeasure at home.While "Not One Less"was chosen best film at the Venice International Film Festival -after being snubbedat Cannes because of its allegedly pro-government propaganda -it represents a departurefor Zhang.He is unlikely to continue making films on similar themes(an upliftingtale of a temporary teacherat a poor village school who will go to any lengthsto prevent even a single dropout)。Moreover ,given Zhang's international reputation,and his previous problems with government censors ,his financing normally is obtainedabroad."Not One Less ,"as with many recent Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige films,was supported by Columbia/Tristar.As with Feng Xiaogang,Zhang has been a frequentcontributor to the Chinese press,offering suggestions for post-WTO strategy.Eachof these leading directors has been forthright in criticizing the other's approach.

  The third most successful film in 1999was Bao lian deng(The Lotus Lantern ),an expensive animated film that China hopes will be able to compete internationallywith Japanese anime and the best of Disney animation.Leading Chinese actors,includingJiang Wen and Ning Jing ,voiced the major characters.Moreover,voices were dubbedin Japanese and English at considerable expense in an effort to tap into these majoroverseas markets.The story is based on Chinese mythology and resonated well withlocal audiences ,but the film is unlikely to be successful beyond China's borders.

  Finally ,the fourth most successful film in 1999was Guoge(National Anthem),a good example of a "main melody film"that glorifies wartime patriotism,self-sacrificeand other sterling virtues.Guoge represents the type of film the state would liketo promote,both domestically and internationally(it was one of five films chosenby the government to show as part of an exhibition of Chinese films in the UnitedStates in 1999)。Putting aside the fact that box office receipts were inflatedby subsidized ticket purchases,the film still brought in only 15million yuan ,despite winning major national awards.According to Kang Jianmin,the head of theXiaoxiang Film Studio that produced the film,Guoge cost 20million yuan.Indeed,the studio produced three films that won major national awards in 1999at a costof 24million yuan,but received only 5million yuan as their share of the totalbox office.The loss for the studio from their three most "successful"films totaledover 18million yuan.Although a number of factors were cited for this outcome,the most fundamental problem was that people simply were not interested in seeingthese films.As Kang put it ,"we emphasized ideology and art and did not pay attentionto the entertainment factor."(56)

  This issue of art vs.politics vs.commerce is likely to remain the biggestobstacle to the development of a commercial market that can compete with Hollywoodfilms.Much of the debate and criticism regarding the failure of domestic filmsto find an audience starts from this premise.Perhaps the most extreme example ofthis problem -and one pointed to by frustrated film professionals -concerns themovie "Kong Fansen,"a film depicting the life of a deceased Han cadre who devotedmany years to improving conditions in Tibet and the betterment of Sino-Tibetan relations.It proved to be the biggest box office success in 1996,pulling in 30million yuan.An analysis of the box office from 20regions suggests,however,how misleadingbox office figures can be.Nationally ,only 5percent paid their own way intotheaters.In Beijing the figure was 0.5percent ;in Sichuan it was 0.2percent.

  As the number of Hollywood films entering China increases to 20,30or 40per year,will domestic films maintain a reasonable share of the market?The resultsfrom other markets are of some interest.In Taiwan,a formerly thriving film industryhas been completely decimated.Despite having some of the world's most honored directors,including Hou Hsiao-hsien and Edward Yang ,Taiwan films simply have provided nocompetition to Hollywood in their domestic market.In Hong Kong ,one of the world'sgreat film markets and a major exporter of films to other Asian markets ,the resultsappear to have been a bit better,since the top two box office hits in 1998weremade in Hong Kong ("The Storm Riders"and "Who Am I?"),but only three of thetop ten were not from Hollywood.Moreover ,as everyone knows,many of the leadingHong Kong filmmakers,including John Woo ,Jackie Chan,Chow Yun-fat and JetLi have moved their professional careers to Hollywood.(57)

  TABLE 6

  DOMESTIC FILM SHARE OF MARKET IN SELECTED FILM-PRODUCING COUNTRIES

  COUNTRY 198819941998

  FRANCE 38.97%35%28%

  ITALY 20%(1989)

  15%N/A

  GERMANY 16.7%10.35%9.5%

  JAPAN 21%16.7%36%

  SOURCE:Zheng Dongtian ,"Shengcun,haishi huimie:jinru WTO yihou de zhongguodianying"(To Be or Not to Be:Chinese Film after Entrance to the WTO ),Beijingguancha (Beijing Observation )No.4,April 2000,p.51.

  Zheng Dongtian,one of China's leading directors and a professor at the BeijingFilm Academy,has suggested that the issue facing the Chinese film industry canbe simply stated:"To Be or Not to Be?"(58)As Table 6,from a recent articleof Zheng's reveals,the domestic market for European films has been declining between1988-1998under the onslaught from Hollywood.Only Japan has been able to increaseits domestic market in the last five years.Even there,however,only three ofthe top ten films in 1998were not from Hollywood.Zheng's solution is to make filmsHollywood is not able to make ,noting that even after American films were allowedback into China after the 6month ban in 1999,the five films released in a twomonth period earned much less than expected at the box office.By contrast,FengXiaogang's Meiwan meiliao (Sorry ,Baby )was a mega hit during the New Yearholiday.Thus ,despite much critical distaste ,Feng may be the only answer Chinahas.

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