Anti-Japan Dramas Turn Serial in China

Deflecting attention from problems at home, or just good entertainment? China is churning out more films and TV shows that portray the Japanese as villains.

Published

12 months ago

Categories

World, Technology

Topics

Asia, Television

Places

China, Japan

Transcript

There's nothing like a good war movie to drum up patriotism. The big enemy on Chinese screens -- the Japanese. (SOUNDBITE) (English) REUTERS REPORTER, JANE LANHEE LEE, SAYING: "We're at the set of Lang Yan Bian Di. That means 'Wolf Smoke Everywhere'. Last year about 200 anti-Japanese films were made in China." The rise in patriotic films and TV dramas comes as tensions with Japan flare up over disputed islands in the East China Sea. Jing Dong is the lead character in this drama. (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) LEAD ACTOR IN LANG YAN BIAN DI, JING DONG, SAYING: "The reason there are so many Anti-Japan themed TV dramas isn't anything to do with the Diaoyu islands or tension between the two countries. It's actually a theme that has been popular for a long time. That's a fact." Film critic Zhu Dake disagrees. He says the trend is a direct result of recent regulatory changes, with national censorship authorities making approval of anything that's not an anti-Japanese program nearly impossible (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) FILM AND CULTURAL CRITIC, TONGJI UNIVERSITY, ZHU DAKE, SAYING: "Those who produce these Anti-Japanese TV programs just want to be applauded by the narrow-minded patriots. They're using the dispute between China and Japan for their own gain." The wave of anti-Japan entertainment has created some unlikely stars. Stuntman Shi Zhongpeng has made a living playing Japanese soldiers for four years and is now a sensation after a report of him dying eight times in one day went viral. The most times he's been killed in a day -- 31. Tonight's a rare evening off of death row. But he showed us some of his moves. (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) STUNTMAN, SHI ZHONGPENG, SAYING: "I'm acting the part of shameful Japanese soldier in a way that when people watch they feel he deserves to die. I get bombed in the end. I want to show the viewers the kind of Japanese soldier that is really, really evil." While there's some sign China's new leadership may be easing up on an old rival, the flood of anti-Japan themed films and dramas is likely to keep public memory of past conflicts alive. ENDS