Saturday, October 21, 2006

Smile Again....再次微笑...再び笑うに...")

Watched a Korean TV Drama recently and just thought of introducing it to my readers....it has become one of my all-time favourite Korean TV Dramas now...its called 'Smile Again' and is about a girl (Kim HeeSun) and her love with this guy (Lee Donggun)....it starts with when they r in highschool and how Lee is a very poor guy whom has no parents but is very smart and determined to make a better life for himself....he befriends this girl whom comes from a family without a mother and her father is extremely abusive towards her, beating her all the time....and Kim and Lee go out together because Lee is promised funding for his university education by this rich kid if he can trick Kim into going out with him and embarassing her in front of the school....however, last minute, Lee really falls for Kim but alas, Kim is still embarassed in front of the entire school and never forgives Lee....Lee's friend, the girl, arrives and tells Lee that she has killed her father during one of the scuffles where Lee beats her father as he is abusing the girl again..thus, Lee, out of guilt and responsibility, that the girl killed her own abusive father to save him during the fight runs off to Seoul with her to evade the police and begins a life where he steals money and cons people to get money for her education...Lee thus loses his chance of getting a better life and turns into a person who has to manipulate people to survive....the girl is manipulative as well....she goes off to switzerland and he goes to visit her....they meet a rich man's son whom recently quit his famous baseball player position due to his serious arm injury and is depressed at not being able to compete anymore, having lost his direction in life...Lee and the girl try to get close to him to obtain some financial benefits...there, Lee meets Kim again whom has become a softball player....they all return to Korea and thus starts a three-way love dilemma whereby both Lee and the rich son falls for Kim whilst Lee tries to get close to the rich son...

Smile Again Chinese fan-made MTV with the fantastic theme song i really like:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Drv_mBhWmv4 (look out for the scene of Kim HeeSun where she is wearing a sleeveless dress...she looks sooo sexy in it...also look out for the rich man's son at the end of the MV, he is the really really cute guy!! There is only Lee DongGun and this guy in the MV, so u won't miss him!!)

I like this drama cos firstly, Lee Dong Gun's character is not the typical korean drama male lead of being rich and kind hearted...he is actually poor and more importantly a manipulative person whom survives through conning and using other people....i also like it cos the characters all have problems and it is quite realistic...Lee and his friend both come from troubled families or have no family and the drama shows the sad reality that not everyone is born with the same opportunities in life and how circumstances shape a person such as in Lee's case forcing him to forgo an opportunity for further education and forcing him to use people....cos sometimes being nice to people and trying as hard as u can to achieve something doesn't always lead to the consequences u want...i can understand this and thats why i really liked this drama. Further, Kim Heesun looks as young as ever and is sooooo pretty in the drama i seriously don't know how she manages to remain this youthful looking after all these years....its as if time had stopped...i mean the first time i saw Kim was in 1999 in the Korean drama 'Tomato' and she actually looks even younger now than then!! Also i like this drama cos there is this new actor whom plays the rich man's son whom is SOOOOOO SUPER CUTE k...i mean he is just so handsome that u can't not like him,a girl or otherwise...the title 'Smile Again' is definitely something i shall remember now as a motto...it truly reflects the theme of this drama...which is to persevere thru the tough times and, even if u turn bad and evil due to circumstances, it is never too late to change and become good again, like Lee in the drama, and there is always hope for success and happiness in the end ....so that anyone, including those hurting or whom have not been blessed with the same opportunities to excel or be happy in life....to SMILE AGAIN 再 次 微 笑 :):):)

Eternal Summer...盛夏光年...永遠の夏...

I have fantastic news......and i am sure many of my gay friends and gay bloggers out there will be VERY HAPPY to know that.......there is a new Gay film from Taiwan (my beloved country) again!!!!!! YEAHHHH!!!!!

It is called 'Eternal Summer' 盛夏光年 and it was just released on 13th Oct....i read in the newspapers that the box office has been very good....i found out about the movie when i was reading the Taiwanese newspapers and was brilliantly surprised....cos both the actors are so cute...eee...and one of them is one of my fav actors Zhang Xiao Quan 張孝全 when he was in 孽子 Crystal Boys (the 1st and only Taiwanese TV drama with a 100% gay theme which dealt with a group of young gay men in 1970s Taiwan)..i couldn't believe he was acting in another gay film again and this time as the main character and the guy he is acting with is sooo cute too...i mean he actually looks gay and is very believable......i am so damn excited man....i wanna see this!!!

I am much more excited over this film than the other popular Taiwanese gay film released in 2004 called 十七歲的天空 'Formula 17' as the main characters in there weren't really my kind of guys, i mean don't get me wrong....i like them and i am sure many other gay men (and girls) love them too but they were just not the kind of guys i like that much...whereas this one BOTH the actors i REALLY like so it should be good.....and furthermore...the tone of this one, as opposed to the romantic comedy of 'Formula 17' is much more serious and romantic....something i like better...AND THE BEST THING OF ALL is that i've seen the trailer and its similar to a Korean love story...i've always wanted to see a gay version of a romantic korean love story....and i never thought anyone would make one but now there is one!!!! Now﹐for those whom aren't sure of what i mean by a typical 'korean love story'...i shall explain....as any korean drama lover or korean person will be able to tell u, the ultimate korean love story is invariably about this guy and girl whom knew each other since childhood and they already were best friends then, then they move through to highschool or to work and fall in love...its always about when they were still young children as if it was fated that they would end up together....examples are Autumn Tale by Song Hye Gyo where it starts with when she was still young with her 'brother' or the Lee Young Ae film 'Last Present' in which she finds out that her husband was this boy whom she knew and loved her in primary school....
Eternal Summer has a similar storyline but obviously involving two guys....


Further, there is a girl in the movie whom is one of the main characters and i just like a female lead in gay films too, makes it all interesting.. !! The film apparently also has a daring gay sex scene too though i dun know how thats going to fit into the story cos as far as i know, one of the guys in the film is NOT gay...only one of them is gay and has a crush on the other one...the other just treats him as his best friend ever but is straight..or may be bi??....the film also touches on the 921 Great Earthquake which occurred in Taiwan a few years ago...i think it should be a fantastic film portraying a very realistic period which most gay guys go thru...falling for ur straight friend..and in this case, the straight/bi bestfriend....sigh....

Storyline:
我想 每個人 生來就不應該孤獨! 正行和守恆是鎮上小學裡的同班同學,正行是班長,但守恆卻是令人頭痛的壞小孩,一天到晚惹麻煩。某天,到台北市立天文館戶外教學,也同時轉來一位女同學──佳慧。佳慧爸媽離婚,跟著媽媽不情不願轉學到鄉下,心情已經夠糟,卻又在參觀途中,因為守恆的惡作劇,而撲倒、弄壞了天文館裡的模型。出了這麼大的糗,讓她中途從參觀途中離開,再也不肯回到班上。佳慧也就因此只做了正行和守恆一天的同學。然而,這件事卻從深深烙印在他們三人心裡。 因為這件事,守恆被醫生判定為過動兒。在深入了解守恆調皮搗蛋的原因其來有自後,老師派正行去幫忙守恆適應校園生活。正行原本不情不願,但在幫助守恆走進學習正軌的過程中,卻開啟了兩個陌生心靈、兩個差異極大的世界的交流,正行反而因此更加了解守恆稀奇古怪的世界,打開他本來被規範得好好的乖寶寶世界,一個好學生和一個壞孩子,成了好朋友。 高中時代,在正行的影響之下,加上體育成績優異,守恆也考上跟正行一樣的高中,並且度過了令人頭痛的階段,長成一個帥氣的青少年。正行仍是那麼優異斯文,在校刊社還認識了一個女性的好朋友──惠嘉,兩人間似乎有著淡淡的情愫。但也就在此同時,正行發現他自己對守恆,也開始有了超越好朋友的情份。在一次正行與惠嘉相約上台北西門町玩的過程中,惠嘉發現了正行的秘密,但她也答應幫正行保守,永不洩露出去。 正行害怕面對自己身體裡可能的真相,於是開始躲著守恆,再也不去籃球場上看守恆打球了。守恆遍尋不著正行,卻發現惠嘉出現在球場上。惠嘉因為發現正行的秘密,也對正行喜歡的對象,產生了無限好奇。三個人之間微妙的友情、愛情關係,開始產生微妙的傾斜。
English Story Outline: Zhen Xing and Shou Heng are two boys at a primary school in a coastal country town in Taiwan....one is a bad boy Shou Heng whom is isolated and the other is a good boy Zhen Xing. One day, the teacher asks the good boy Zhen Xing to be Shou Heng's friend in the hopes that SH will change to become a good boy. A girl Jia Hui moves to their school but they are only classmates for a day as for some unknown reason, JH leaves the school after just a day......thus starts the friendship and bond between ZX and SH as they become the best of friends....time passes and in the flash of an eye, both ZX and SH become handsome , young and energetic highschool boys whom both study at the same highschool...they remain the best of friends after all these years and always fool around and hang out in school....one day, ZX meets a girl in the school magazine society and the three of them become friends....one day when ZX and the girl went out to Ximenting (a young popular place hip with teens in Taipei), the girl discovers ZX secret....and a curiousity arouses within her towards the person he secretly loves....she promises to keep his secret.....

There is one scene in the trailer which i found totally romantic...its the scene when one of them calls out the other's name when he goes to pick him up for school on the bicycle...i just thought this was such a romantic scene.....(i think if any homophobic person was reading this post of mine, they would be horrified and find me perverse for thinking that a korean drama-like love story between two men was romantic!! hehehehe)...

I am always VERY proud when gay films or events come out of Asia....as it is essential to show the Western world and to give Asian gay men and lesbians an Asian Gay and Lesbian popular culture such that there is no impression that being gay is a 'Western thing'..which some Asians continue to believe regrettably.....Taiwan is one of the most progressive countries in Asia when it comes to gay and lesbian issues and rights....the Western world may only just be discovering mainstream gay film in Brokeback Mountain but Taiwan and HK have been producing MAINSTREAM gay films for a decade now....the difference b/w the West and Chinese media is that up till 'Brokebck Mountain', America only produced gay films which were known amongst the gay and lesbian community with mainstream America not having any knowledge of them. In contrast, Taiwan and HK have been producing MAINSTREAM gay themed films since 1997 and watched by the average person with mainstream actors in them...examples are Bishonen (1998), Crystal Boys(2004) [which caused quite a stir when it came out with wide media coverage in Taiwan as it was broadcast on TV and had a storyline completely focused on homosexuality], LanYu (2001) [which won the Taiwanese equivalent to the Academy Awards and widely known by everyone in Chinese speaking areas], etc...

For those unfamiliar with Taiwan or Asia, i hope the above have changed their outdated views that Asian countries are still very backwards when it comes to homosexuality cos i know just in terms of the media, the Chinese media has always been much more progressive than their Western counterparts....i mean i heard Ang Lee (again it took a Taiwanese to make America's first gay mainstream film) had difficulty finding actors for Brokeback Mountain when in HK and Taiwan many and i mean MANY mainstream actors have taken on gay roles without much controversy...examples include the cute Daniel Wu who has a strong female and gay male following in China,Taiwan and HK.He has acted as a gay man in at least 4 HK films at last count one of which included some steamy scenes....another is Zhang Xiao Quan, the guy in 'Eternal Summer' whom acted as a gay character in 2 TV dramas and now this film...or Edison Chen, a well-known HK heart-throb whom openly said in a magazine interview that he wants to act a gay character as it is challenging without any fear of being attacked as being 'gay' himself...
further, though Brokeback didn't manage to get an Oscar for Best Picture due to a conservative panel of voters...one Chinese picture managed to clinch the top prize at the Taiwanese Academy waaay bck in 2001 and there was no controversy at all that the top prize was given to a gay film .......of cos i know in Asia, really only the Chinese media is that open and can offer gay and lesb Chinese an alternative to Western gay culture (believe me u can actually ignore all gay films and culture that come from the West as there are just so many Chinese gay ones for u to pick from)....other places like Indonesia and the Phillipines dun seem to have much mainstream gay media....Korea is improving with the 'King's Man' which became one of the highest grossing Korean films of all time and became very popular amongst other gay asian men too (i know many Chinese gay friends whom have seen it or want to see it)...but it has one drawback which also reflects the backwardness of Koreans when it comes to gay and lesbian issues....the Koreans still continue to believe that gay men are effeminate and the love story in the 'King's Man' reflected this misguided belief....one of the men is very effeminate and really no different from a woman....Lee Joon Ki became popular after this role.......they are like what Taiwan and HK was like 10..15 yrs ago...nowadays, in Taiwan and HK, like in 'Eternal Summer' homosexual love and gay men are portrayed much more accurately with both men being extremely 'normal-looking' and manly...this is something koreans may wish to aim for...but it will take many more yrs i would think.

Below are links to pics from the Taiwan Gay and Lesbian Pride Parade 2006 which has been held for four yrs already i think and always gets massive media attention in Taiwan given that they parade thru the main streets of Taipei City and furthermore, the Taipei Mayor officially attended the Parade and flew the rainbow flag.....the Taipei City Council also appropriates funds towards the Taipei Pride Festival annually showing government support for it.......also posted are articles from the Taiwanese newspaper with regards to gays and the media...

Anyways, hope that those unfamiliar with gay and lesbian issues in Chinese speaking areas, specifically, Taiwan, have gained a deeper understanding of gay and lesbian issues in Asia now.....

To end, i shall quote from 'Eternal Summer'... a line which i think is meaningful...

沒 有 人 是 應 該 孤 獨 的 ﹐ 你 還 是 這 樣 相 信 嗎 ﹖ ....No one deserves to be lonely... Do you still hold on to this belief?

Taiwanese Newspaper Articles on Gay issues:


金城武、吳彥祖男男接吻 網友最想看

〔 2006.09.30 中國時報 〕
賀靜賢/台北報導

今天是「同志榮耀日」,為期2周的「hitoradio網友最想看的男男相吻組合」,票選結果也於昨天出爐。吳彥祖、金城武以732票,成為網友最想欣賞的男男吻搭檔;而且從前5名配對當中,更可以看出網友皆屬「外貌協會」!
金城武帥氣逼人,加上感情生活低調,因此同性戀、異性戀都愛他。網友認為,能配得上金城武的,則非帥哥吳彥祖莫屬。張孝全、張睿家主演的同志電影「盛夏光年」即將上檔,2人以651票拿下了第2名;可以見得外界對於同志電影的注目度的確很高!
范植偉、楊祐寧一起演過連續劇「孽子」,後來楊祐寧還演了同志電影「17歲的天空」,因此2人以551票拿下第3名。至於本身就是同志的已故男星張國榮,和梁朝偉因演過「春光乍現」,影迷仍然印象深刻並深深懷念著,以499票拿下第4名。

有趣的是,吳彥祖一直有女朋友,但他仍然得到同志的青睞,除了與金城武榮登冠軍,也有網友將他與陳冠希「配對」,以425票拿下第5名。

English Summary: Hit Radio station in Taiwan, in celebration of Taiwan Pride Festival 2006 held an online vote on which two male celebrities that listeners wished to see in gay kiss scene and no1 was Takeshi Kaneshiro and Daniel Wu, no2 the male leads of 'Eternal Summer', no3 Fan zhi Wei and Yang Yue Ning of Crystal Boys gay tv drama, no4 is Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung whom acted in the well known Wong Kar Wai gay film in 1997 and no5 is Daniel Wu and Edison Chen...for those unfamiliar with what these actors look like, do a google search of their names...

In another news article, it is reported that famous singer Coco lee wants to perform at the famous Taipei gay club 'Funky'...many Taiwanese singers perform at this gay club which is widely known in Taipei amongst even straight Taipei residents...there seems to be no stigma at performing at a gay club and indeed many female singers WANT to perform there to get the gay consumer market...recently even male singers go there, incl. Zhao Ge 曹 格 a Malaysian singer (but i seriously suspect he is gay...has anyone seen his album cover? topless with a sexy look on his face..definitely aiming for the gay crowd...haha)

Official Website of 'Eternal Summer' at:
官方網站:
http://www.wretch.cc/blog/summermovie
Pics including pics of the cast at the Taipei Gay&Lesbian Pride Parade 2006 as well as clips from the film at:
http://www.wretch.cc/album/summermovie

Official Trailer of 'Eternal Summer' at You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ajwB34Ryuo

Taiwan Pride Parade 2006: http://twpride.net (includes photos of the parade under the 'Gallery' section)

Archive posts on issues regarding Gays and Lesbians: go to my Sept 2005 archive as well as http://chinesechic.blogspot.com/2005_07_01_chinesechic_archive.html for a list of past Taiwanese gay and lesbian tv dramas n films.

Goodbye Melbourne! and my Graduation....:)...再見了 墨爾本 畢業了:) ...バイバイ メルボルンと卒業:)

Its been exactly two months since i updated.....I have been very busy settling in as well as studying the Practical Legal Training Course towards admission as a lawyer in Sydney....

I will update on what has been happening with my life since the last post....i wanted to include tons of pics of my graduation and the flowers and presents i received from friends as well as pics of the places i went to before i left Melbourne BUT for some reason the pics i uploaded to my laptop have all miraculously dissapeared!!!!!!!! ARRGHHHHH!!!!! Well, this means all the photos i took are now gone save the ones taken with my dad's camera (thankfully!!)...so this shall be a post without photos...

My family came to Melbourne and i took them around to places such as Crown Casino,Lygon St, Chapel St, St Kilda,Bourke St, and Mount Dandenongs had lunch at one of the nice teahouses there...had scones,etc....We also visited my ex-guardian and her family whom is my mother's friend's sister who immigrated to Melbourne after her studies here more than 20 years ago...i needed a guardian in my first yr here as i was only 17 when i arrived in Australia.......

My ex-guardian took us to Mount Dandenongs as well as the Brighton Beach Houses which was my first time despite having been in Melbourne for 5 1/2 years already!!!! Also had this superb lunch at St Kilda beach which is well worth it...they have a set lunch including oysters,etc which is well worth your money!! Forgot its name but its located by St Kilda Beach....:)

Anyways, my graduation came and i was extremely proud of myself that i managed to finish my law degree/arts degree after 4 1/2 years...i did summer school which meant i finished 6mths earlier than expected which saves me both time and money to do my admissions course....the whole graduation ceremony went without much fanfare and the ceremony itself was pretty boring actually...took photos with friends and family, received a bouquet of flowers and a present from friends....after the ceremony, went to have dinner with family and a family friend's daughter from Penang whom is also my friend now since she moved to Melb from adelaide earlier this year.....took my parents to the chocolate place at QV as it is where a mutual friend of mine n my mother's Penang fren's daughter works...she gave us discounts.....yeahhh.....

Anyways, i would like to recommend some restaurants and cafes i grew to like throughout the 5 1/2 years i was living in Melbourne...
(1) Great Space Cafe: Nice cafe and my favourite place for bacon and eggs on toast and also the BEST place for iced-chocolate without cream...i've tried many places and this has got to be my fav place for iced-chocolate...do give it a try if u live in Melbourne...its at Collins Place, Collins Street in the plaza where the Sofitel Hotel is located.....

(2) Don Don: Nice cheap Japanese gyudon and sashimi place.....i'm sure everyone who lives in Melbourne would know this place so no need for intros..

(3) Yong Kei Vietnamese Noodle Place: Located on Victoria Street, Richmond serving delicious Vietnamese Beef noodles soup....

(4) Kokoro Japanese Cafe: Located on Smith St, Richmond serving nice Japanese izakaya-style side dishes with a variety of Japanese cocktails,desserts and etc...

(5) Pacific Ocean House: Hong Kong style seafood restaurant at Victoria Street, Richmond and Chapel St. Nice place and i always order Pi-pa tofu there which is quite nice so do have a try Melburnians....

There are more places which i can't think off the top of my head but yeah...i shall dearly miss these places...

Flew off on Virgin Blue with my family on Sept 2nd for Sydney.....thus beginning a whole new chapter in life...having passed the studying period of my life (well...almost....the practical legal training that i am doing now is similar to uni in some ways but very different in terms of it being more hands-on and structured very differently...u have more freedom too)....
i shall post on my new Sydney life soon, i know its loooong overdue given that i've already moved to Sydney for almost 2 months now...

goodbye Melbourne, Goodbye:)