乒乓球
July 8, 2009 § 1 Comment
Out of sheer boredom, I decided to choose one of my many bookmarked movies to watch after brushing my teeth last night. I randomly chose Ping Pong Playa — I had never heard of it before coming across it while browsing the site, but a friend recently mentioned that he liked it, so I gave it a try.
Despite the cheesy trailer, I was richly rewarded for the next 1.5 hours. This is, hands down, one of the best Asian-American movies that I have ever seen, as well as one of the funniest films I’ve watched in a long time. I was seriously afraid that I would wake up my family with my laughing.
One thing I greatly appreciated is that everybody speaks the same kind of Chinese to an understandable extent, which is very rare in films that are produced in America. Some of the reviews on Facebook bemoan the use of cliché stereotypes, and I would agree that they are definitely in there. However, there is a difference in the way that they are used in Ping Pong Playa, which is from a viewpoint that understands the stereotype. After all, stereotypes are usually based in some truth, and I did not feel like the Chinese characters misrepresented Chinese people [the douchebag villain and his stupid sidekick were kind of pushing it, but it is a comedy after all]. More successful siblings, gossiping mothers, filial pride and shame — these are a part of the daily life of a 1.5 or 2nd generation Chinese-American, and they are all present in the movie.
On a more personal note, I was very relieved that there was not a big romantic subplot. My love for this film would have decreased by 50%. Also, a friend told me that the protagonist, Jimmy Tsai, is in his 40s [the internet cannot confirm this]. I would believe it, though, having just recently learned that John Cho is freaking 37 [he could pass as 24]. I love that Asians age well; that is a stereotype in which I would be glad to participate.
Why Did I Fall In Love With You?
June 19, 2009 § 2 Comments
One reason I like listening to foreign music is because I can freely imagine what the lyrics say based on how the song sounds, but sometimes the actual lyrics speak my thoughts just as well.
Shoes Off In The House
June 1, 2009 § Leave a comment
Unless I’m dead tired, it’s pretty easy to make me laugh in the wee hours of the night. This is simply a delight, especially considering how repetitive and stupid the original song is [and how much I love parodies]:
Somebody spread the word, please: living with an Asian person usually means that shoes come off at the door. It hasn’t been easy these past two years at college, living with Roomie #1 and #2, who are both white and do not come from families where shoe removal is required.
I laughed at the first appearance of the two ripped guys in tank tops [0:32] — totally unexpected, and they look so serious! That definitely drew me in [yum Asian boys with big guns]. Then I could not stop laughing at 2:45 during the little interlude; such shenanigans are reminiscent of the Back Dorm Boys. The one in the black tank top [is it okay for me to call it that? I don’t like the term “wifebeater”] is really cute, which makes me happy that there are more videos! This one is also hilarious:
Their dancing/hip thrusting reduces me to LOLs every time. Also, why does the one in the grey shirt look so unnaturally orange when he eats rice?
When Violence Is An Answer
May 25, 2009 § 3 Comments
My parents and I went to go watch my brother march in our town’s annual Memorial Day parade today. All middle school band kids are required to participate, although the lazy little turd has yet to actually play his instrument [percussion] in the parade, since he’s too apathetic to audition for drumline — he’s always been shouldering a [fake] rifle or something extraneous like that. Even though I was incredibly tired, the parade provided an unexpectedly good source of amusement.
Here I am with my mother:
Seeing all the veterans roused feelings of gratitude in me for these men and women who gave their time to serve their country, whether voluntarily or not. Most of them have probably lost friends and endured many hardships, and I was genuinely glad that they were being given the day to be honored.
The gun salute:
Vodpod videos no longer available.
This band director actually made me laugh out loud. He looked so cartoonish:
This is probably because my marching band experience is limited to the required years in middle school, but I thought these miniature music stands were the coolest thing ever:
Memorial Day is definitely the day for Americans to trot out their vintage vehicles. This one was particularly sweet:
I have never seen an orchestra traveling on foot before. I didn’t even know they could play while walking [a truckload of the bigger string instruments followed behind].
There was a squad of bagpipe players. Are they always men? I don’t seem to recall every seeing a female bagpiper. Bagpipist? They sounded really good, but that didn’t keep me from chuckling at their garb. Men in pleated skirts is always a funny sight, and their ankle coverings made them look like clomping Clydesdales:
Here is my brother in the center of his school banner, trying his best to ignore my parents’ cheers and my delighted cackles:
Marching bands always sound better from the audience than when I’m marching in the row struggling to maintain my embouchure and worrying that my thumb will fall off from supporting the weight of my clarinet. I like the shiny instruments too:
As usual, I took care to notice all of the Asian children marching in the parade [Kennedy Junior High had a TON. Little nerds]. I observed that in almost every Boy/Cub Scout pack, there was at least one Asian boy. But in all of the Girl/Brownie Scout troupes, there was nary an Asian girl to be seen. Why is this? Hmmm. [Of course I would take a post about Memorial Day and put an Asian spin on it somehow. Of course.]
auradis 