Re: Books on Asian Film
Posted: 22 Mar 2016, 21:21
Early Images of Hong Kong & China (1995) by various authors Chinese/English
This, now rare, softcover book, was for the 19[sup]th[/sup] Hong Kong International Film Festival and presented by the Urban Council in both English and Chinese for all of the sections. For non-English writers their sections tend to be translated by Stephen Teo. The title is a bit of a misnomer because this book has a variety of essays on over a half a century of Chinese cinema including Taiwan and all of them deal with movies – when I see the term images without moving I think of still photography. Unfortunately there are a few negatives to the book: it lacks an index and the book is somewhat fragile. Otherwise it is an informative read and of great use to learning more about early Chinese cinema with the regrettable caveat that so many films have been lost. If you can get this for a reasonable price and are interested in the early cinema of Hong Kong, China and Taiwan then this is a worthy addition to your collection.
To rectify the lack of an index I am going to list the essays and the capsule reviews below. If you want any more explanation or my opinions on a particular essay please ask.
Essays:
Foreward by Lo Tak-sing
Introduction, Postscript by Law Kar
“The Introduction of the Camera to China” by Marie-Claire Quiquemelle
“Hong Kong’s Cinematic Beginnings 1896-1908” by Law Wai-ming
“Early Impressions of the Hong Kong Cinema: 1909-1915” by Law Kar
“How Cinema Came to China: Theories and Doubts” by Lee Daw-ming
“An Investigation into Taiwan’s First Ever Film Activities” by Law Wai-ming
“Tracing the Electric Shadow: A Brief History of the Early Hong Kong Cinema” by Stephen Teo
“The Patriotic Tradition in Hong Kong Cinema: A Preliminary Study of Pre-War Patriotic Films” by Yu Mo-wan
“Patriotism or Profit: Hong Kong Cinema during the Second World War” by Fu Poshek
“The Facial Index: Movie Spies Play Havoc in Hong Kong” by Ng Ho
“A Study of the Da Zhonghua (Great China) Film Company” by Cheuk Pak-tong
“Missing Links: Chinese Cinema in Shanghai and Hong Kong from the 1930s to the 1940s” by Tony Rayns
Appendixes:
1) A List of Films Made by Foreign Groups from 1896 to 1912 that are related to China and the Chinese by Lee Daw-ming
2) Chronology of Cinema Events in Hong Kong: 1896-1950 by Hong Kong Film Archive
Programme Notes (capsule reviews and director notes): Chinese Images in a Western Mirror (various shorts), Half a Century in Hong Kong (various shorts), From Revolution to War (excerpts and documentary In the Name of the Emperor (1995)), Protect my Country (incomplete and with three shorts), Journey to the Yellow Land (1932 France), The Four Hundred Million (1938 English, narrated by Fredric March), Love and Duty (1931), The Eight Hundred Heroes (1938), March of the Guerrillas (1938), Boundless Future (1941), The Pangs of Love (1946), Desire (1946), Along the Sungari River (1947), Madame X (1947), A Dream of Spring (1947), Where is My Darling? (1947), You’re Smart in One Way, I in Another (1947), An All-Consuming Love (1947), Song of a Songstress (1948), Lion-Hearted Warriors (1948), Ghost Woman of the Old Mansion (1949), Home Sweet Home (1950), The Kid (1950), Kaleidoscope (1950), Tears of the Pearl River (1950), Tragedy in Canton (1951), The Guiding Light (1953), General Kwan Seduced by Due Sim under Moonlight (1956).
This, now rare, softcover book, was for the 19[sup]th[/sup] Hong Kong International Film Festival and presented by the Urban Council in both English and Chinese for all of the sections. For non-English writers their sections tend to be translated by Stephen Teo. The title is a bit of a misnomer because this book has a variety of essays on over a half a century of Chinese cinema including Taiwan and all of them deal with movies – when I see the term images without moving I think of still photography. Unfortunately there are a few negatives to the book: it lacks an index and the book is somewhat fragile. Otherwise it is an informative read and of great use to learning more about early Chinese cinema with the regrettable caveat that so many films have been lost. If you can get this for a reasonable price and are interested in the early cinema of Hong Kong, China and Taiwan then this is a worthy addition to your collection.
To rectify the lack of an index I am going to list the essays and the capsule reviews below. If you want any more explanation or my opinions on a particular essay please ask.
Essays:
Foreward by Lo Tak-sing
Introduction, Postscript by Law Kar
“The Introduction of the Camera to China” by Marie-Claire Quiquemelle
“Hong Kong’s Cinematic Beginnings 1896-1908” by Law Wai-ming
“Early Impressions of the Hong Kong Cinema: 1909-1915” by Law Kar
“How Cinema Came to China: Theories and Doubts” by Lee Daw-ming
“An Investigation into Taiwan’s First Ever Film Activities” by Law Wai-ming
“Tracing the Electric Shadow: A Brief History of the Early Hong Kong Cinema” by Stephen Teo
“The Patriotic Tradition in Hong Kong Cinema: A Preliminary Study of Pre-War Patriotic Films” by Yu Mo-wan
“Patriotism or Profit: Hong Kong Cinema during the Second World War” by Fu Poshek
“The Facial Index: Movie Spies Play Havoc in Hong Kong” by Ng Ho
“A Study of the Da Zhonghua (Great China) Film Company” by Cheuk Pak-tong
“Missing Links: Chinese Cinema in Shanghai and Hong Kong from the 1930s to the 1940s” by Tony Rayns
Appendixes:
1) A List of Films Made by Foreign Groups from 1896 to 1912 that are related to China and the Chinese by Lee Daw-ming
2) Chronology of Cinema Events in Hong Kong: 1896-1950 by Hong Kong Film Archive
Programme Notes (capsule reviews and director notes): Chinese Images in a Western Mirror (various shorts), Half a Century in Hong Kong (various shorts), From Revolution to War (excerpts and documentary In the Name of the Emperor (1995)), Protect my Country (incomplete and with three shorts), Journey to the Yellow Land (1932 France), The Four Hundred Million (1938 English, narrated by Fredric March), Love and Duty (1931), The Eight Hundred Heroes (1938), March of the Guerrillas (1938), Boundless Future (1941), The Pangs of Love (1946), Desire (1946), Along the Sungari River (1947), Madame X (1947), A Dream of Spring (1947), Where is My Darling? (1947), You’re Smart in One Way, I in Another (1947), An All-Consuming Love (1947), Song of a Songstress (1948), Lion-Hearted Warriors (1948), Ghost Woman of the Old Mansion (1949), Home Sweet Home (1950), The Kid (1950), Kaleidoscope (1950), Tears of the Pearl River (1950), Tragedy in Canton (1951), The Guiding Light (1953), General Kwan Seduced by Due Sim under Moonlight (1956).