Around The World In Seven Hours: An Introduction To Foreign Film
I owe my introduction to the concept of foreign film to The Simpsons. Apu showed the Simpsons a clip from a smash hit Indian film and, in my blissful childhood ignorance, I took Apu for his word, accepting that this was the rough standard for films beyond the shores of our beloved Hollywood. Home of the femme fatale and the chiselled jaw, Hollywood has given us a ludicrous amount of truly phenomenal content over the years and most ‘Top 10 films of all time’ lists are simple shuffles of the same deck. But then, Hollywood also gave us Cats and, when you really stop and think about it, is there all that much difference between the heights of Bollywood and Hollywood action? My research tells me nay.
Despite the fact that we are being shepherded into consuming content at a rate that would keep Aldous Huxley up at night (I’ve frequently caught my housemate watching Breaking Bad on his phone at 1.5x speed whilst brushing his teeth), I do genuinely believe that we’ll begin to see a gradual increase in the reception towards international film on a mass scale, in no small part thanks to the rate at which they’re being pumped onto our home screens via various streaming platforms.
In light of the pandemic bringing a halt to any and all travel plans my girlfriend and I had, we decided we’d plug in and take a trip around the world through the wonder of the small screen so, without further ado, join us on a whistle stop tour as we take flight from LAX and head eastward bound to sample some of the sights the rest of the world has to offer. Our first stop?
Japan – Princess Mononoke
I was 19 years old when Clara first introduced me to the magic of Studio Ghibli in the form of Princess Mononoke. Coming from Springfield, I was blown away by the detail in the hand drawn animation, as well as the complexity of stories being pitched to so young an audience. Making DiCaprio’s personal top 7, Mononoke challenges its audience to view the world and all its inhabitants with ‘eyes unclouded by hate’. Ripe with beautiful dialogue and artwork to match, this film is a great entry to those looking to get into Ghibli films, though it might be a little violent for the very young audiences.
Ever the proponent of a strong female lead, Hayao Miyazaki doubles down in this battle of two titanesses, providing human faces to the battle between San’s nature and Lady Eboshi’s industry. As both are manipulated by fear of the other and driven by the end goal of trying to protect their people from the perceived threat, neither can truly be called evil which makes it so interesting when compared to the likes of James Cameron’s Avatar. Whilst that record-breaking film is indeed a visual spectacle in its own right, its story, though similar in tone, is entirely uninspired when compared to the introspective take on the conflict between man and nature that Mononoke portrays, or indeed in the craft woven through the many traditional, conservational and community inspired tales that Studio Ghibli promotes as a whole.
Having been spoon-fed the Western diet from a young age, knowing the good guys from the bad by the colour of their hat, Mononoke provided me a better class of storytelling that gives audiences young and old pause for reflection on the fundamental values we harbour. Seldom are the answers to our problems black and white and, whilst there’s nothing wrong with caricature, good overcoming evil narratives, children are often more emotionally intuitive than they’re given credit for and I for one support the promotion of more complex narratives that go beyond the clear binaries of the good and the bad.
South Korea – Parasite
A write-up on foreign film post 2019 can’t really escape Parasite, and for good reason. The film brought the thunder to awards season, cleaning up Oscars, Globes, Baftas and more in the hundreds. In his Golden Globes ‘Best Foreign Language Film’ acceptance speech, Bong Joon-Ho apprised audiences of the multitude of amazing movies hiding just beyond the ‘one-inch-tall barrier of subtitles’.
In its galactic reach and gravitational pull, Hollywood acts as the self-appointed guiding star for the home of cinematic storytelling; yet it does not hold the monopoly on, nor set the standard for what good ‘art’ is. In promoting itself as such through the numerous and ubiquitous award ceremonies that orbit Tinseltown, it creates and sustains an illusory and exclusionary experience where America prevails, and international stars rarely get to break the mould.
Whilst emotions such as love and loss are easily identifiable and universal languages, humour, as in what makes one laugh, is typically understood as being influenced by the country of origin. Most films being scripted with the English language in mind, we rarely get to experience things such as humour beyond the Anglo-American experience and, it is in this regard that Parasite put Hollywood in its place, showing us all just how funny, revered and easily consumable Korean and, by extension, international cinema can be.
Of course, it helps that a key theme throughout the film that undoubtedly aided its popularity amongst American audiences and the western world beyond was that of class disparity and the futility of trying to better oneself. Where Hollywood has historically glamorised the corrupt and exorbitant lifestyles of the Henry Hill, Gordan Gekko and Jordan Belfort types, many international films seek to remind us that not all that glistens is gold. With all its witticisms and metaphors, Parasite is already considered a masterpiece and I’m confident that, in time, the rock given to the Kim family – the film’s porous manifestation of prosperity – will be looked at as a stroke of cinematic storytelling genius akin to the green light that Jay Gatsby would reach out for after sundown.
India – The White Tiger
The White Tiger is the best film I’ve seen this year. An adaption of Aravind Adiga’s book of the same name, Ramin Bahrani’s film follows Balram, a young man determined to break free from the chains of India’s caste system, built on generational servitude and subservience. As the story is one of the pursual of self-betterment, fans of Parasite ought to feel at home here.
The relationship between the Master, Ashok, and the servant, Balram, serves as a mirror against liberal virtues revered by the west. This is perhaps best exemplified by the master’s wife, Pinky, who, whilst personifying liberal western virtues by challenging the patriarchal family structure, also maintains superficial concerns about Balram’s treatment and, in doing so, ultimately reveals her own self-perceived supremacy over Balram.
Ultimately, we bare witness to an arrogance associated to a liberal western class of living that dismisses the developing classes in India as mere things to experience rather than persons of flesh and blood with dreams and aspirations beyond a life of subjugation. Whilst the caste system is displayed as something entirely immovable, Balram knows how to operate within it and ultimately uses it to his advantage in his pursuit of a life deemed beyond his means.
The last thing to note is the film’s almost silent portrayal of Balram’s sexuality. Whilst no physical acts or confessions of homosexuality take place, Balram clearly struggles with the imposed and expected heteronormativity, from feeling jealous about Ashok’s relationship, to outright rejecting his family’s marriage arrangements. The subtlety of these portrayals however lends itself to the interpretation that for Balram to escape the ‘natural order of things’, as in the union of man and woman, is perhaps even harder than that of moving through the rigidity of the class system.
Fin… For now.
And so, our jaunt around the globe has come to an end, for now. As our imaginary plane refuels at Indira Gandhi International, Delhi, our eyes are set firmly westward towards Europe and beyond…
Written by Clara Martinelli and Martin O'Malley
Clara Martinelli
Hi, I’m Clara. I’m an International Relations and Politics graduate currently doing volunteer work in London and looking to make my corner of the world a better place one step at a time. When I’m taking a break from being existential you can find me on the sofa watching police dramas and eating stupid amounts of pasta.
Martin O'Malley
Martin is a London based English graduate, currently working as a tutor. His claim to fame is that he won the Daily Mail Harry Potter lookalike competition in 2001, a feat he is yet to top. In his down time, if he’s not losing the battle against his ever-growing watchlist, he’ll be reading one King book or another.