和你在一起 (together with you)

is a beautiful film which sent my tears rolling and they just woudn't stop....directed by Chen Kaige, it tells a story of a cook who single-handedly brought up the little boy, XiaoChun, whom he found as a baby being left at the train station along with a violin. XiaoChun, turned out to be a musical prodigy....and in his hope to find a proper teacher to nurture XiaoChun's talent, he brought them from the suburbs to BeiJing to compete for a place in a prestigious music school.....sadly....they were to realise that talent is insufficient to secure a place....and that the differing perceptions, and desires of both father and son, as well as the aim of the whole expedition are confronted in the city that is experiencing a growing dichotomy of traditional and western values...

what is truly touching is the discovery of one's real past, and the realisation of the love that the stepfather has for XiaoChun and his aspirations for him to be successful as a musician as part of a self-asserted obligation to the unknown parents....but what XiaoChun really wanted was something more basic, to be loved and to love someone back, and quite simply, to be able to play music with all his heart.

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perhaps what strikes a chord in me is that i could appreciate the cultural dichotomy...that asians express themselves more indirectly while europeans are more forward, they embrace and hug each other more freely, while chinese tend to be more reserved in that respect. moreover, i can now comprehend a bit better why at times my parents seem to make things 'dramatic' and seem upset when i'd rather not do things their way.... i am a little rebel...individualistic in ways which are probably intensified by being in europe for so long but i still appreciate the asian subtlety and all that is unsaid. ...all these require a bit of reminding....but once they're rekindled, i can see things in a better perspective...

posted by ~overacuppa~ on Wednesday, 17 December, 2003 at 01:29 hrs