Oct. 26/28

"Hou Hsiao-Hsien reviewed"

1. "If the reviews of Hou's films did not sell Hous's films, what were they actually selling?" Since Hou's movies were hardly screened in the countries in which the magazines reviewing Hou's films came from, besides small art cinema screenings, the magazines use these reviews to to create guidelines or "manuals" of how to view these films in their domestic market. ( I had trouble finding a clear answer for this question)

3. The point Vitali is trying to prove by showing the extended Assayas example is the French filmmakers animosity towards Hollywood. Assayas is trying to portray Hollywood as a poisonous, imperialist industry taking over Taiwan just as it did after the national cinemas of France and Britain became overwhelmed with the mass global exhibition of Hollywood.

4. The term "propose injunctions not to" is very awkwardly worded, and I take it as Vitali claiming that the critics who "propose injunctions not to take into account historical references" are wrong because the majority of people do not know the historical facts which allows for a special experience for those who do know. Vitali also claims that critics falsely label Hou's style as strictly Taiwanese and untainted by foreign cinemas such as Hollywood, but in reality Hou shares the same filmic language as most filmmakers with his own unique style.

"The times of subjectivity and social reproduction"

1. Willemen does not love Hou's films complexity because he believes that even though a film may be complex it does not automatically make the film good. He says that bad films can also be complex. I agree with Willemen on this issue because I believe, as he does, if you look hard enough into any piece of art you can find meanings and "fascinating topics" that may have not originally meant to be there (I like to call them happy accidents).

2. Willemen does not love Hou's films because of their "Tawianness" because he feels that Hou only offers one glimpse of Taiwanese culture. For critics to say his films depict the identity of Taiwan is ridiculous because it is such a limited view. Willemen says if he wants to get an idea of the culture of Taiwan he isn't going to watch a Hou movie because their are many more aspects of the culture that aren't depicted in his films.