A climbing Queen Elizabeth grew into the Meiwa kumquat bush, and it’s about to bloom. Long ago, I used to work on my garden every day, but since I started to write about twelve years ago, I let my gardener take care of it. So, some parts of my yards look like a jungle. But it’s okay the way it is. The jungle sends me surprises sometimes.
About surprises, I received an email from a writer. Have you seen the below video? If not, check it out! It lasts less than 2 minutes. Please read each sentence as it appears.
Here's a video
This video was created for the AARP U@50 video contest and placed second.
And the video was created based on the Argentinean Political Advertisement "The Truth" by RECREAR.
Here's a video
That’s all folks!
9 comments:
I was about to say, "Why is this on YouTube? Why can't we simply read text?" But then I saw the point.
To me the point is, reading both videos both ways, that it's empty rhetoric in any case. That one of them was a political advertisement (that over here we would call an election broadcast) is an indictment on western democracy, where any old verbal trickery is paraded.
Vincent,
The reason I added the second one is to show that the first one is not based on an original idea. It's a definite copy, and the creator added the description of the source, the Algetinean video. But it's a worthy copy and received a worthy award.
I think about it when I see arts.
Keiko, I wanted to share with you that last night I watched the film Sayonara (1957) in which Marlon Brando, a pilot in the US Air Force stationed in Korea, is ordered to Kobe where he falls in love with a Japanese musical performer.
It's a beautiful film and brings across many aspects of Japanese culture, and the ways which they have historically clashed with Western culture. Have you seen it?
IMDB has a reader review which goes thus: "There are two Sayonaras: the James Mitchner book and the Hollywood adaptation. The Major Lloyd Gruver portrayed in the book is introduced as an army brat, graduate of West Point, no-nonsense air force pilot and career officer who does not discuss personal matters with enlisted men. The Ace Gruver introduced in the film is a brooding Brando who arrives in a fighter jet instead of on a Triumph
motorcycle and whose best friend is Airman Kelly. The Japan portrayed in the Michener book is the everyday Japan of narrow streets, noodle vendors, ramen shops, yakitori stands, tatami rooms, and futon at bed time. The Japan portrayed in the film is a land of geisha, Takarazuka, kabuki, bunraku, pagoda, arched bridges, and a lot of other Japan stereotypes I have yet to encounter although I have lived in
Japan for the past 31 years and have a master's degree in Far East Asian Studies from Sophia University, Tokyo. Both Sayonaras offer something of value. One is realistic. One is a beautiful fantasy. Read the book and watch the movie and take your choice of endings."
I have not read the book, but I certainly loved the film
Vincent,
No, I haven't seen it, and I have no interest in the film for ordinary entertainment. But I'm interested to know the kind of Japanese world you and other foreigners seem to see in it.
Because of your comment, I checked Yahoo blog site using the keywords "Sayonara movie 1957." I found only one that came up on top. It was a film review, and it said nothing worthy to translate other than as follows: "Most of you do not know this film..." It's the same phenomenon as "Memoir of a Geisha."
So to show you an ordinary Japanese life, I want to recommend Kubota Mantaro, a writer, poet, and playwright because I just received from a Japanese friend of mine an invitation to her play. I'm fond of her theatre group. They're down-to-earth. The play is "Turibori nite"
written by Kubota. So I just checked on the Web, and found no information about him in English. It's so unfortunate. I think this is a big national problem. Good ones are not translated yet in my opinion. I don't know what the experts are doing.
You are inspiring me to check out Japanese films much appreciated in the West (whether or not they show "ordinary Japanese life"!)
So far I have added to my list of films to see (from LoveFilm, the rental company I subscribe to) the following:
Sansho Dayu
Gion Bayashi
Rashomon
The Realm of the Senses
I could add lots more, but I have to see how K & I like them.
We have been watching a series of classic films by the German director Fassbinder. There are so many classic films!
No, I wouldn't expect you to be interested in Sayonara at all for ordinary entertainment! It probably reflects Hollywood in 1957, and the Marlon Brando phenomenon, much more than it reflects Japan.
I liked "Ikiru" and "Sanshiro" by Kurosawa. I only like his black and white old films. And I like "Otoko wa Turaiyo," so called Torasan series by Yamada Yoji.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otoko_wa_Tsurai_yo
Once I went to see one of the tora-san movie with an American couple. They did not laugh at all. So that's my warning to you.
Tora-san is a vagabond!
Thanks Keiko. I can get Ikiru but not the others.
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