I grew up in Houston, Texas, in case you didn't know. And as much as people tend to only hear "Texas" when I say that, and start picturing horses, big cowboy hats, broad open parries', and staunch Republicans full of attitude, Houston actually is a large urban center with some degree of culture and sophistication.
I knew that of course, I grew up there, but I didn't know anything about the story portrayed in Mao's Last Dancer. The movie is about a young man who is identified as a dancer by his communist government, brought to dance for the Houston ballet company, and faces various personal/political challenges along the way.
It was a moving story that felt so unfamiliar, and yet so close to home. It was all taking place during my lifetime, while I lived in that city. One climactic moment takes place in Miller Outdoor Theater, where I watched many a performance growing up, a stage on which I even gave my own little theatric performance once, but that's a story for another day. And yet, I had never heard about any of this going on. Perhaps it is yet another testament to my self-centered-ness, but the familiar scenes of the theaters and downtown and such really drew me into the drama of the story.
After watching the movie and seeing what a big deal the story was for Houston, it made me wonder more about Yao Ming's story. He played basketball for the Houston Rockets. Some people challenged Houston's arrangement with China in bringing Yao Ming onto the team as human slave trafficking. I wonder how much Li's story influenced or informed the reaction to Yao Ming's drafting, or if Yao Ming had a similar experience.
The emotion of the tale certainly gets you caught up into an anti-communist mood. And yet, the bias seems to be a critique against the incredibly strong propaganda and power of the Chinese government, so if you only just step back ever so slightly, you begin to feel skeptical about how you too, are being taken in.
It is funny to me how some writers make choices as they are fictionalizing true stories. In this case, there is a romantic story line that we are prompted to get wrapped up in, and then expected to allow it to be awkwardly dismissed, as if it is no big deal. Be Hollywood, or be true, just pick one.
Those critiques aside, the story is beautiful and the movie is well done. There is information you take in cognitively, about what life was like in Communist China in the 1980's for example, and cognitive data just doesn't give you a full picture like a story, and especially as a movie, can - fudging on details or not. I found the dancer's mother to be especially compelling as she wrestled with pride, necessary submission, having her son ripped away from her, being held responsible for his choices without having been given the opportunity to raise him herself, and her strength to finally fight back against injustice in the small little way that she could. The way his home is portrayed certainly has emotional power that is rose-bud-esque, if you will.
One and a half claws up for me, Lobsters! Have you seen it? Think you'll check it out? What did you think?
Shame on us for not providing you with more culture. We were rich in film, poor in live performances. Ay!! May the next generation improve on its forebears.
ReplyDeletenonsense! you took me to so many live performances!! maybe more plays than ballets, but i do distinctly remember falling asleep in a box seat while attending a ballet once ;) i was like one year old when all this was happening - its the news i was out of touch with, not so much the culture scene.
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