Children of the Water

  This has actually been a short story that I've written a while back in high school that I'd still like to see one day done in film. Basically, my movie idea for "Children of the Water" takes place in a somewhat post-apocalyptic Hawaii. It's not too very far in the future, maybe a hundred years or so (not drastically futuristic). In this time period, a huge environmental change has occurred. Not too many years after present day, a huge natural disaster occurs and causes the Hawaiian islands to sink (this is reminiscent to Plato's writings of Atlantis). Due to that time period's technology however, the islands are still somewhat salvageable and most of the citizens are protected behind a shield-like "bubble" that were established around most of the major cities (one of them being Hilo). With that, the islands sank and settled not too far below the ocean's surface. As time goes by, the government starts to rebuild and add more technology to Hawaii to make it more sustainable in these "bubble cities." Football stadium-like lights were added to simulate sunlight, and a fake weather system was integrated to simulate seasons in the underwater cities. More animals were eventually re-introduced due to the natural disaster that had occurred. After most of this is settled though, Hawaii's government then made a decision to create a day in remembrance of the lives that were lost during the sinking of the islands called the "Children of the Water Day" (which is where my title comes from).

  However as Hawaii's reconstruction continued, the environmental effects grew drastically worse on the surface (a.k.a. the mainland). The air became polluted and most natural land was now replaced with industrial cities. It is then that the government starts making underwater sub "shuttles" to Hawaii from the mainland to escape from the detrimental effects of the polluted mainland (but this is only available to the higher class due to limited space); only Hawaii remains as a somewhat safer haven from the surface's environmental destruction. Which brings me to the actual plot for the story.

  It's the same way that other Hawaii movies start with: a boy coming to the islands and eventually meets a girl. Cliche, I know. The main character is a boy that comes from the mainland. His father is a big economical power in the United States. Due to his father's business deals with Hawaii's economic industry, he is forced to move to Hawaii with his family. Not too long after he moves however, he meets another main character, a girl named Isla, whose family has been in Hawaii for several generations (a true island girl). However, unlike most of the Hawaii female protagonists, she is strong-willed, independent, and some what of a tomboy. She doesn't need a man on her arm in order to do her own thing. For most of the story she shows the boy around town and they travel to other cities, where she explains about Hawaii's history and the land, and later takes him to the Children of the Water festival. She also explains the spiritualism that still exists in Hawaii. It is her opinion that the gods were basically angry (like in Plato's Atlantis) that their ancestors hadn't taken care of the land, and were therefore "punished" with the sinking of the islands.

  Not too long after though, another natural disaster is predicted to hit (a type of "super storm"). This time however, the natural disaster is a giant whirlpool that is about to wipe out most of ocean life. However, it is later suspected that the cause of this could be an ancient sleeping "curse" or ritual obligation that was never fulfilled that affected the islands in the past. It's up to them in the end to figure out what exactly caused the natural disaster in the past, before the super storm hits.

  As you can see, it's still a work in progress, but this is the basic idea of my movie's plot that I'd like to see one day. I love the sci-fi fantasy genre as well as adventure stories with strong female protagonists, which is why I wrote the story the way I did. I didn't really have any actors in mind for the roles though.. but I want most of the cast to be Hawaiian or someone local. As for format, although a live action movie with killer special effects would be really cool, I wouldn't mind also having a movie be an animate cartoon. I know definitely though that I would want Joe Hisaishi to do the musical score for the movie. His musical works and performances are excellent and add a lot of emotion.

The Descendants

  Out of the films that we have watched in class, The Descendants was definitely one of my favorites. In my opinion it was one of the films that I thought showed a very accurate representation of life in Hawaii in comparison to other films, especially the lifestyle of the locals. It didn't show any of the barbarianism in Bird of Paradise or the more "touristy" side of Hawaii. It even showed more local people too, though they were mostly just extras or minor characters (for example, Lani's mother). They also made a good point of adding in some pidgin to the way they spoke.

  Aside from that, I also really liked the plot's point of having a relatable situation developing in Hawaii. Some may think that Hawaii was just used as an "eye-catching" quality of the "regular" subject of affairs and what not. However in my opinion I think it does way more than just that. The fact that it's a relatable event breaks the stereotype of Hawaii being "paradise." It also goes to show that these same problems can also appear in the lives of those of the higher class. It's an excellent way of showing that even the problems of daily life and of the middle class can also appear in the least likeliest of places.

  Another aspect that I really enjoyed about the film was its humor. It equally surprised me that the book also had the same, if not more, humorous lines that the film had. This also made the book and the movie a lot more interesting and fun to watch, mostly because it wasn't always about the gloomier aspect of death over all.

  There were a lot of things that I liked about this film, however I thought that they could have added in more Hawaiian characters in it. The main cast mostly consisted of caucasian actors, although they did play characters that had some Hawaiian ancestry in them. It would have been nice to see more variety, but this could be because they were portraying a higher class family. In addition, although the movie was good and stayed as true as it could to the book, there were still a lot of elements from the book that were missing that would have gave the movie a different meaning. For example, Matt's wife's romantic and financial betrayal scheme. In the movie, she was portrayed as more of a character to sympathize over, whereas in the book she was portrayed as selfish. The book also gives you more insight on their marriage as well as the wife's personality that wasn't explored or described in the movie version. However, as a whole the movie was an excellent individual piece and I would recommend it to everyone to see.

  

Aloha Summer

  For the section on the "Angry Hawaiian," "Aloha Summer" was one of the films we decided to watch. Although the film was mainly a coming of age story, it featured a prominent, antagonistic portrayal of a Hawaiian character that implied racism towards "haoles." In a nutshell, all I can really say was that the movie was overall very cheesy. There were some good points in it and it was in turn very interesting, but the logic of the film was really off, especially where love was involved.

  Apart from it just being interesting, I really liked the idea of featuring several characters of different ethnicities interacting with each other positively. Sure, it has its moments of friction (namely with said antagonist), but the film really put an emphasis on the friendships that were made between them. Before this, there weren't that many films that had given a lot of screen time or shown a lot of interactions between whites and non-whites (or giving some backstory to supporting non-white roles), so it was very refreshing to see. The topic of the film was also very relatable, so it was pretty interesting to watch.

  However, the "angry Hawaiian" character's portrayal was something I had a problem with. Yeah, he threw some racist remarks and implied some racial disgust towards the tourists which makes him as a character pretty "bad." But what I think people tend to overlook that he was also reacting angrily due to  his protectiveness over his sister, which is something I think anyone would be angry with, especially if  a player was going to try and use her. Having a sibling myself, I think I would have been just as mean and angry towards someone I thought was trying to take advantage or could potentially hurt my sister. So to me, using his supposedly "unfair angry protectiveness" to justify his own death is wrong. It only annoyed me even more when his sister, after his death, decided to marry the guy that her brother had tried so hard to keep away. What was more ridiculous was the fact that this reformed player somehow got an attitude adjustment within a short time span of interacting with her.

  All in all, I think the film did a poor job in development of the character relationships, as well as creating the overall perceptions of some of the characters. 

Phineas and Ferb Hawaiian Vacation

  For the Tiki Tacky Too section, a lot of same cliches of curses and the discovery of tiki idols that bring coincidental misfortune are used time and time again in these movies. It's become a very common concept in tiki movies, such as "She Gods of Shark Reef" and the Brady Bunch in Hawaii special. The way it starts off is that same too, which is usually by removing the tiki from its sacred ground. It is then that the tiki god/idol places a "curse" on whoever removed it, and can only be lifted when said idol is returned to its original spot.
  However, after watching Phineas and Ferb's Hawaiian Vacation, I have to give it some props for making the turn out of the cliche cursed tiki idol element different from how the problem was solved in past movie plots. Though the show starts off the same way with the same cursed tiki premise, the show shows a lot more "self awareness" in the characters of the commercialized state of tikis (ex. tiki merchandise). They drove this point home when the character Candace finds out that the tiki necklace that she found was not indeed cursed (though the situations she was put in implied otherwise), but was actually a fake tiki used to tell customers when their tables were ready at a local tiki-volcano themed restaurant.
  I don't usually watch this show a lot, but from the episodes I've watched it's a good show with humor (not to mention interesting song bits). But when I found out that they made an episode that took place in Hawaii, I was kind of iffy on the turn out, but when I watched it, it wasn't that bad. I liked the twist that they put in the end, especially. The ending really set itself apart from what other shows/movies have tried and done in the past, making it kind of "refreshing" (a little) from the usual stereotypical portrayals in Hawaii films about tiki. Overall, I thought this episode was good and found it rather enjoyable.

South Pacific

  Out of all of the movie that we watched, I really enjoyed this one the most (but that could also be because I have a bias toward musicals, especially those made by Rodgers and Hammerstein). The storyline follows two couples : Lt. Cable and Liat and Emile and Nellie. Lt. Cable is a marine flying in to Bali Hai, where he meets the matriarch of the island, Bloody Mary, who plays matchmaker with him and her daughter, Liat. Emile on the other hand, is a middle-aged French plantation owner, with two half-Polynesian children, who becomes romantically involved with Nellie, a U.S. Navy nurse. However, due to the social pressures and frowned upon opinion of interracial relationships (of the marital nature), the couples end up facing many obstacles. In the end, only one couple manages to overcome this.
  This movie, I thought, made a really bold statement that other movies in the past weren't brave enough to do at the time. Though the interracial relationship between Liat and Lt. Cable didn't become successful, the movie made a valid point in the song "You Have To Be Carefully Taught." Of course people took offense to it, but it was probably because they didn't want to see the truth; society is what teaches things like racism. You're never "born" with it.
  I also thought that this movie did a good job with "softening" Lt. Cable and Liat's relationship. After reading the excerpt from Tales of the South Pacific (which is what the play was based on), the relationship seemed like it was supposed to be a lot more "physical" love than how it was portrayed in the movie. If anything I think that the movie made it seem more like a love at first sight type of romance in contrast. However, it proved to be faulty due to the fact that Lt. Cable was so taken aback by Bloody Mary's remark that they would have beautiful babies together, that he decides to tell Liat right then and there that they can't be together. And this was right after he had given her his precious pocket watch too!
  But I'll give Lt. Calbe the benefit of the doubt. Maybe Lt. Cable did love Liat in some way (but evidently not enough). I also see the relationship as kind of that with a man and his mistress (although it was not said in the movie, Lt. Cable did have a sweetheart back home that he was going to marry). He loves her to an extent, but not enough to leave his fiance/wife. Instead he gives her precious gifts to compensate or to show how much he cares.

Jungle Heat

 Jungle Heat tells the story of Roger and Ann McRae who come to Hawaii to settle some problems arising with the plantation workers. However, they find themselves uncovering a web of deceit and patriotic infidelity after the suspicious murder/death of a plantation owner..

  Like the Go For Broke clips that we watched I really enjoyed this movie, mostly for its fast-paced plot and suspense. However, the movie still had some discrepancies, such as the Japanese immigrants. The movie seemed to only focus on the immigrants and plantation workers that were Japanese in race, and basically ignored any of the other races, such as Chinese, Filipino, Hawaiian, etc. But this was mostly mostly because at the time that it took place when the Japanese were at war with America. With the Japanese as the main suspect for betrayal, it was implied that there were spies within the workers themselves, and even showed them smuggling in items in preparation for the attack. 

  There were also a lot of stereotypical Japanese portrayal in the movie as well. For instance when they introduced Kimi-chan wearing a kimono, and used distinct "Asian-styled" music in the background whenever she was in a scene. The director also made it a point to make the house decorated with different kinds of Japanese decorations or furniture. Of course, not all houses were styled that way... but they did accurately show the house slippers they used (my grandma has some) and the fact that people enter houses without their shoes, which is still done today.

  Another point of the plot that I found interesting was the marital infidelity of Roger McRae's wife, Ann, who ended up with the local doctor in the end. She knew very well that she was cheating on her husband by kissing another man but she went on ahead with it anyway, justifying that it was ok since "there was nothing between [her] and Roger anymore." Just like the movies done in the past about romance in Hawaii, it kind of draws on the idea of the visitors ditching their morals once they were away from the Mainland.

  Other than that, I thought it was an overall good, "okay" movie.

Go For Broke!

  Unlike the previous film that we had watched, I wasn't cringing at how awfully it was represented and I felt that I was able to enjoy it more because of it. Most war-related movies don't really catch my interest, but this one did. Go For Broke! was a film that re-told the story of the 442nd regiment, which consisted of Japanese American men who volunteered to help their country in the war, as well as to prove their loyalty to their country. I suppose that the fact that I myself am Japanese American contributed to how interested I was in the film.

  Though we only watched a few clips from the movie in class, I think it was a more accurate portrayal of Hawaii than how it was in Bird of Paradise. But this is probably because it was based on a true event, and not a work of romantic fiction. I especially liked how they included pidgin in the dialogue, which is something that we actually do have in Hawaii's culture unlike the stereotypical grass huts and hula girls. And I have to say.. it was a nice touch to have the actual soldiers to participate in the film, as well as have some actual footage near the end of the movie. However, it must've have been difficult (not to mention a little distressing) to have to "play pretend" and re-live war all over again, even if it was just a movie.

  In addition, I thought the message about racism and honor really stood out... I mean, the person that was assigned at first to be their leader was prejudiced against them, but in the end his opinion of them changed. Yes, hate is a powerful emotion, but it can also be overcome with time. These Japanese Americans didn't need to fight for their country; they were treated like the enemy after all, by their own country. They didn't need to fight for the people who were racially prejudiced against them. They didn't owe them anything. But they volunteered anyway to put their lives on the line to prove to their country that they were indeed loyal. And they succeeded. And yet some people still treated them like dirt... which really bugs me. But I suppose you can't change everyone's opinion.

Bird of Paradise (1932)

  The film Bird of Paradise tells the story of a sailor, Johnny, who falls in love with an island princess, Luana, who is destined to be sacrificed to the island's volcano to appease an angry goddess. Though their affair together was looked down upon by both sides, their forbidden romance flourished as they escaped (for a time) away to their own little hiding place. However, the romance ends when Johnny is wounded and Luana is convinced that she must return to the island and "accept her fate," in order to lift the volcano curse off of Johnny.

  This movie was probably one of the funniest movies I have seen about Hawaii, mostly because of how ridiculous it is. So many things were changed and added that the Hawaii that the film was trying to portray was more of a parallel universe version of it. They even went as far to create a new island called "Lani," which is probably based off of the actual island of "Lana'i." So many things were changed about the actual culture of itself that it might as well have been a fictional place instead.

  In some cases they did include some accurate bits and pieces of Hawaiian culture, as well as a had the basic idea for certain culture elements, such as hula and the goddess of volcanoes, Pele. However, in the end these concepts were only twisted and warped to fit the barbaric, savage portrayal of the people. It's true that they did include some Hawaiian words and language in the film, but only in small instances; most of it was made up gibberish, which was kind of hilarious. Hula, in turn, looked like meaningless moving and shaking with jerky movement, not at all like the graceful, story-telling that it's supposed to be.
  But the most insulting part of this movie I would have to say was how they portrayed its people. The Hawaii citizens were shown as barbaric, savage, illiterate people who practiced sacrificial rituals. All the people wore grass skirts, leis, elaborate headdresses (not to mention bone jewelry), and lived in grass shacks along the beach. It made no sense, considering that during the time that the film supposedly took place, Hawaii was already "civilized."
  Aside from the inaccuracies, the one part that actually disturbed me was how Johnny chased Luana and pinned her down on the beach, forcing himself onto her even though she clearly didn't want him to come onto her. And she was okay with it after he forced her to kiss him. It was so messed up.
  There were a lot of implications of Johnny being the superior one in the relationship, by being more intelligent or knowledgable due to how much more civilized he was. He came off as "greater than thou" in his thoughts and actions sometimes, like when he corrected Luana on her own religion, by telling her that "No, there is just one God." As if his religion was more accurate than her own.
  Overall the plot was ok for me. Forbidden love is kind of a cliche topic, but it was interesting enough and I kind of wanted them to end up together (or rather I expected them too, but that didn't end up happening). If anything it was the badly portrayed Hawaiian culture that ruined it for me, as well as how the main protagonist, Johnny, was characterized.

First Post!

 This is my film review blog for a class analyzing different films about/from Hawaii and how Hawaii is interpreted. C: