My Critical Thoughts About Mulan

Mulan is the first Asian Disney character that I believe you can kind of be cheerful about. She is included as one of Disney's princesses, but she is technically not a princess. Plus she had to pretend to be a man to do anything in the film until we get to the end of the film. Kind of seems sexist, but history has always been like that. So I don't really have a problem with Mulan cross-dressing as a man but should an Animation really be historically accurate?

I can imagine that this film helps little girls of Asian heritage that the men rule the world, you have to dress like a man to have a chance, you have to have pearly white skin, thin body, etc.  I don't think we should let children watch Disney in general as it really just shows that women need the help of a man to be rescued like we haven't seen enough of that (Zelda Series, Mario Series, Disney Films, etc). So instead of watching this, I fully support showing children Hayao Miyazaki's films.

Why? Most of His films feature a princess but each princess is kind of a badass (excuse my American). You have Nascaa who everyone kind of respects her, she's intelligent, dresses modestly, will fight if she has to, doesn't wait for a man to save her, etc.

Instead, we have a film like Mulan to show children, even a lot of Chinese people disliked the film because it was vastly different from the myths.

I'm going to stop here as Disney kind of controls the world, so I don't want to poke a bear too much especially in my situation.

Saga of Asian and Black communication in American cinema

It's no mystery to as why Asians are depicted poorly in black cinema sometimes or why Asians tend to not like black people. It's all out in the open, anyone with intellect can see.

Despite the fact that both Asians and Black people are the minority in the country. You might wonder as to why there is not more unity between the two communities. From the LA riots to the slaying of Vincent Chen. Our American brothers and sisters with Asian heritage have greatly been ignored or been cast as cliches like Mickey Rooney's depiction of a Japanese man in Breakfast at Tiffanys to the Long Duk Dong character in Sixteen Candles. A variety of Asian cultures are misrepresented and usually grouped together. There are a lot of incidences where Black people have been greatly influenced by Asian cultures and martial art films. The RZA's The Man with the Iron Fist movies are meant to be honoring the martial arts movies he saw in his life.



One of the best examples of black and Asian cultures mixing is the 2000 film Romeo Must Die starring the talented Jet Li  in his second American movie and the beautiful and talented Aaliyah in her film debut. The film itself is good and the friendship between Jet Li and Aaliyah's characters seemed so real. The problem is the film was actually supposed to be an action romance film but due to a negative screen test with an "urban" audience the romance scenes were taken out and it appeared the two characters had a non-romantic friendship. This is why the film had "Romeo" in its title as it was to have a romantic element to it.

Jet Li would also star in a film called Cradle 2 the Grave alongside rapper DMX. The film was panned, but the two actors had chemistry and I wish we could see them work together again.



Though we have negative depictions like the Koreans in Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing where a few black people attempt to burn die down a grocery store owned and operated by a Korean family after the black community burned Sal's pizza shop. The Korean man wields a broom and swings it around stating "I am black, you are black..we are the same" They don't burn the store down, but they don't acknowledge the Korean man's hand.

There's also the Korean liquor store owners in Menace II Society, where a Korean female follows two black people around a store to make sure they don't steal anything. The whole thing escalates when the Korean man behind the register says "I feel sorry for your mother" to O-Dog who takes offense to this and kills the man then his wife.This film was disgusting once I was old enough to understand what was really going on in the film. To be honest, I would feel sorry for the kid's mother too as O-Dog is  not a good man and he proves it when he shoots and kills the Korean couple.

Closing thoughts:

As I stated before I am not Asian as far as I know, I was greatly influenced by Japanese culture when I was younger. As I grew older I found myself discovering more cultures like Korean, Chinese, and Malaysian and being totally fascinated by them. I am a quarter black, so this post did affect me as I did research.

There needs to be more unity amongst the minorities, for that to happen I believe that the various Asian communities need to speak up. Did you know that the first person to touch Malcolm X after he was shot was a Chinese-American activist by the name of Grace Lee Boggs who  died on October 15, 2015, at 100 years old. There was a Japanese-American man who was a recognized member of the Black Panther Party. Asian Americans have been fighting alongside black people for a very long time, why can't anyone open their eyes to that. There needs to be unity and that unity can make our country better than ever before.

a few notable Americans with Black and Asian Heritage;

Hines Ward - Former Wide Reciever for the Pittsburgh Steelers and two-time Superbowl MVP. Half Korean and Half Black born in Seoul, South Korea.

Benson Henderson - MMA fighter with a record of 23-5 and was the UFC lightweight Champion for two years. Son of a Korean American and a Black American, he was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Ne-Yo -a grammy award winning R&B singer. He has Chinese and Black heritage

Kelly hu "China White": Arrow

The first thing you notice about China White is her white hair then it's her ruthless demeanor and finally her remarkable beauty. China White was my favorite villain on the Arrow TV show. Not only was she not a stereotypical Asian character in a TV show she was totally badass. I believe the character is still alive, as I stopped watching Arrow after finishing the second season. 

Kelly Hu was able to show off her badass side as China White is no pushover and can fight her own battles. I also like the fact that she is the leader of the Triads of Sterling City. It's rare for a woman to be the boss of a criminal organization in a TV show. So it was a nice surprise to learn of her position. China White's wardrobe isn't that of a scantily clad woman but of a modest badass. That leads me to say that besides the whole triad thing, China White appears to be a good role model for not only Asian girls but women of  all ethnicities. 

Kelly Hu: The 100 (TV Show)

I discovered this show while skimming through Netflix, I watched it for 3 episodes then stopped. One big thing I noticed was the disappearance of Kelly Hu's character Callie "CeCe" Cartwig. Callie seemed to be one of the more important characters on the space colony but after the pilot episode she is never shown again. It also no longer shows Kelly Hu as being a part of the show, It's very sketchy to me, for that and a few other reasons I took this show off of my Netflix Queue. 

Kelly Hu

Kelly Hu is an actress, model, and voice actor. From Honolulu, Hawaii Kelly's ethnic background includes Native Hawaiin, Chinese, and English.
Before she became a star she was crowned Miss Hawaii Teen USA, she became the first Asian-American to win the title of Miss Teen USA in 1985.

2 years later in 1978 she would have her acting debut in the TV show Growing Pains, she appeared in three episodes. In 1989, she would make her film debut in the godawful Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. 
Kelly would later make appearances in many TV shows like 21 Jump Street, Melrose Place, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, CSI: NY, Robot Chicken, Phineas and Ferb, and many others. She is "China White" in the CW TV show Arrow, which Kelly shows off a sexy but totally badass role as a villain. She was also in The 100 but from some reason her character disappeared from the show. It is quite weird as her character held a high position in the show.

Kelly appears to have played a lot of stereotypical roles like being the best friend to the mean girl (Friday the 13th Part VIII), various different Asian roles like Vietnamese DJ, several Japanese and Chinese characters. But those roles haven't stopped her from becoming a star on many levels.

Besides her roles in TV shows and films, Kelly has also done voice acting for video games like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II- The Sith Lords, Fracture, Afro Samurai, Sleeping Dogs, Batman: Arkham Origins, Mortal Kombat X, and a few others.

She also serves as an activist, supporting the Center for Asian Americans United for Self-Empowerment. She appears to have made appearances as a driver in a celebrity race, a celebrity host for Saving the Children, as a poker player in a celebrity tournament all for the name of charity. She also supported the shark fin ban in Hawaii and is active in protecting Hawaiin ecology.

Kelly Hu is a wonderful person, not only does she make a good example for young women and Americans but also humans all over the world. She is proof that there are good celebrities out there.


Film Credits:

Friday the 13th Part VIII
The Doors
Surf Ninjas
The Scorpion King
Cradle 2 the Grave
X2
Underclassmen
Shanghai Kiss
Dead Space: Downfall
Scooby-Doo! and the Samurai Sword
Batman: Under the Red Hood
White Frog


TV Credits:

Growing Pains
21 Jump Street
Melrose Place
Murder One
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Star Command
Nash Bridges
Martial Law
CSI: NY
Las Vegas
Afro Samurai
Phineas and ferb
Army Wives
NCIS
NCIS: Los Angeles
The Vampire Diaries
Hawaii Five-0
Castle
Arrow
Warehouse 13
The 100

Daniel Henney: Spring Waltz

Spring Waltz is the four and final TV drama in director Yoon Seok-ho's Endless Love series. It was released in 2006 and stars Seo Do-young, Han Hyo-joo, Daniel Henney, and Lee So-yeon. It run on KBS2 and was quite popular. 

Daniel Henney was nominated for a KBS Drama Award for the popularly award.

Daniel Henney stars as Phillip the global manager of the main character Lee So-ho/Yoon Jae-ha. Philip speaks a little Korean but not a whole lot. He is Korean and Austrian and he was once an musician who was expected to do great things. Philip falls in love with Seo/Park Eun-young but like most characters in a drama he doesn't get the girl he wants. 

I think his role in this drama was better than his performance in Seducing Mr. Perfect. I think he worked harder on his acting abilities and gave a stronger performance. It's nice to see that a drama can be different by casting some American who is only half Korean. It is a small change they can open doors for people who never really had a chance to act in a Korean drama. 

Daniel Henney: Seducing Mr. Perfect

Seducing Mr. Perfect is a 2006 South Korean romantic-comedy starring Daniel Henney and Uhm Jung-hwa. The premise is Uhm Jung-hwa is a businesswoman named Min Joo who discovers she has a new American boss after she is dumped by her boyfriend and accidentally hits someone's car. 

Daniel Henney plays Robin Heiden who can can understand Korean but finds it a pain to speak it. Robin is a man who doesnt take dating too seriously and he even coaches Min Joo on how to get a man and without him knowing she falls in love with him using everything he taught her to try to get Robin. 

It is nice to see that Daniel who is half Korean be treated as an equal on screen. It would be extremely difficult for him to secure the romantic lead in an Hollywood movie. Daniel was able to act well at times but he needed some improvement. He seems to enjoy it at least and had some real chemistry with Uhm. It was nice to see a Korean movie with a lot of English in it, weird as it sounds. It made his role of Robin easier to understand and to relate to. He may not have been the best actor but he proves that he can take the lead. 

Daniel Henney

Sorry for the lack of posts but I'm back to updating this blog!

Time for some new blood, you may know him you may not but here's Daniel.

Daniel Henney is a Michigan native as the son of an American (Irish) father and a Korean Adoptee mother.

Daniel's career started in 2001 as a model eventually working in Europe and Asia. He debuted in Korea by starring in a advertisement and he eventually became the co-face of several company advertisements. His career breakthrough and acting debut would be in the South Korean Drama My Lovely Sam Soon in 2005 even though he could not speak an ounce of Korean. The next year he would star in another drama called Spring Waltz. He also learned some Korean from guest starring on a few Korean variety shows.
His movie career didn't start until he starred in the Korean film Seducing Mr. Perfect. Even though he couldn't really speak Korean then, his character only spoke English while his co-star Uhm Jung-hwa only spoke Korean. The film worked and he made Korean cinema history with his second film My Father which won many awards. It was the first time that a foreigner was nominated for every best new actor award in all the major film awards. His American film debut wouldn't be until he starred in X-Men Origins: Wolverine as Agent Zero in 2009.
It appears now he is focusing his attention to his home country by doing small roles in TV shows like Hawaii Five-o, Revolution, NCIS: Los Angeles, and Criminal Minds.

Daniel will be a series regular in the new spin off Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders.

Filmography

Films:

Big Hero 6
The Spy: Undercover Operation
One Night Surprise
The Last Stand
Shanghai Calling
Papa
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
My Father
Seducing Mr. Perfect


TV SHOWS

Criminal Minds
NCIS: Los Angeles
Revolution
Hawaii Five-o
The Fugitive Plan B
Three Rivers
Spring Waltz
Hello Franceska
My Lovely Sam Soon

James Hong; R.I.P.D.

 

"A recently slain cop joins a team of undead police officers working for the Rest in Peace Department and tries to find the man who murdered him."

 

A film featuring an old school superstar and a younger rising actor fail to do anything that good in this film. Its poorly directed, edited, written and has poor special effects. What it does well is the comedy aspect. Though at times Jeff Bridge's voice was annoying and at times hard to understand. Its a movie you should skip at all costs.

 

 

James Hong has a very small role as the avatar for Ryan Reynolds star. Though I don't think he would complain much as most of his appearances are with a "hot" woman. He does some good things but he is such a small figure you might actually forget he is in the movie. It would have been cool to see him as the head of ripd or some kind of other role.

 

 

James Hong: Big Trouble in Little China

"Kurt Russell plays truck driver Jack Burton, who helps his friend Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) rescue Wang's green-eyed fiancee (Suzee Pai) from bandits in San Francisco's Chinatown. They go into the mysterious underworld beneath Chinatown, where they face an ancient sorcerer named David Lo Pan (James Hong)." - wiki

Not the best film I have ever seen nor should it really be considered "good". Its bizarre that it should be mostly about rescuing Wang Chi's fiancée but It felt like Dennis Dun didn't get a bigger role as it is Kurt Russell who steals the spotlight. The script is very bad, I wish all of the actors could have been made more important rather than just background people typical for an American movie with Asian culture heavily present. Though I don't think this was John Carpenter's idea for this movie but at least he made a movie with Asian actors playing Asians in a film heavily influenced by Asian films. He gave a lot of people a chance to work



David Lo Pan (James Hong) was a nice villain, he was entertaining to watch (to me he was the most entertaining thing about this film). James Hong did a good job, actually this might be the first movie that I have seen him have a lot of screen time. It was nice to see someone different even if I couldn't tell who he was. Villains that wear make up have a long history of success or cult like status like Beetlejuice, Heath Ledger's Joker, etc. So why does James Hong get forgotten in the mix? I think its mainly due to the poor special effects in the film. Its hard to take a villain serious if the effects are a complete waste. Sadly to say this villain is one most of us have forgotten but shouldn't we at least review James Hong's performance?

James Hong

Now this is a man that I have seen a ton of times but never knew his name until now it's James Hong

 

 

James Hong was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota, his father emigrated from Hong Kong and owned a restaurant. He would go to Hong Kong but would come back to the states when he was 10. James intended to study Civil Engineering but fell in love with acting and chose to train with Jeff Corey. He was a road engineer for a few years, acting on days off before quitting to become a full time actor. No wonder I have seen him a lot, he has 399 on camera appearances.

 

He started out dubbing soundtracks of Asian films like Godzilla, The King of Monsters. Afterwards he did a lot of stereotypical Asian roles in television like Charlie Chan's New Adventures. He is also one of the founders of the East West Players theater group which was founded in 1965. His career didn't really pick up until he made starred in the 1986 film Big Trouble In Little China.

 

His career portfolio lists tons of bit parts and supporting roles play stereotypical Asian roles. Even though he has appeared in famous movies and shows he is not that famous. He is yet another face that should be known due to his dedication to the wonderful world of film.

 

 

Selected Television Appearances

 

The New Adventures of Charlie Chan

The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin

Peter Gunn

Bonanza

Hong Kong

The Lloyd Bridges Show

Ensign O'Toole

The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

The Bill Cosby Show

The Bob Newhart Show

Hawaii Five-o

Kung Fu

Dynasty

 

 

Selected Film Appearances

 

Blade Runner

Big Trouble in Little China

The Golden Child

China Girl

Wayne's World 2

Mulan

Balls of Fury

Kung-Fu Panda

The Day the Earth Stood Still

 

 

 

 



Mako: Avatar the Last Airbender

 

A twelve year old boy named Aang is unfrozen by two children from the water tribe, they discover this twelve year old is the Avatar. The master of all the elements and the person that can change the world forever but he'll need a lot of help.

 

 

Mako happened to voice the character of Uncle Iroh, the wise knowing man who appears calm and lazy. I actually watched this series many years ago and I never for a million years thought that a man named Mako actually voiced this character. I was blown away that the same man that did Aku from Samurai Jack did Uncle Iroh. This showed me that Mako had some very talented acting skills that I hadn't seen from him in his live action performances. Is that due to the fact you don't see the person who is providing the voice? Whatever it is critics all say that Mako did a wonderful job with this character. Sadly Mako died before he could close the book on this character and was replaced by Greg Baldwin.

 

But Mako will live forever in the minds of his fans as his image and voice is ingrained in the history of movies and Television. 

Mako: Seven Years in Tibet

An autobiographical film about an Austrian man named Heinrich Harrer who joins an expedition to Nanga Parbat in the Himalayas. After being forced to turn back, the group is confronted by British soldiers who declare them prisoners of war due to Germany and England declaring war on each other. They are taken to India but Heinrich Harrer and one other choose to go to Tibet. Once there they managed to sneak into the most holy place in Tibet Lhasa where the Dalai Lama lives. They are able to find food and shelter after a kind Tibetian man by the name of Kungo Tsarong (mako).

Heinrich becomes one of the mentors of the 14th Dalai Lama, teaching him the world of the west.


I couldn't tell it was Mako at first until I heard his voice and instantly I smiled. Mako proved to me that he is a versatile actor that if given better roles could have been a bigger influence in the world of film. Sadly even though he plays an important character in modern Tibetan history, Mako is only seen a few times. Even though this was a biography film telling of Heinrich Harrer's time in Tibet, I felt like they should have added more depth to Mako's character. If you really want to see Mako act then don't watch this movie as he really doesn't get that much of a chance to.

MAKO rest in peace

Sadly I will have to end reviewing Mako's work as I haven't seen much of it. From his narration work on the shows Dexter's Laboratory and The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy to his animation roles in Samurai Jack, Avatar The Last Airbender, Duck Dodgers and What's New Scooby Doo to his live actions role in Conan the Barbarian, The Sand Pebbles, Seven Years in Tibet, Pearl Harbor, Memoirs of a Geisha, and many role. Lets make sure that this screen legend doesn't fade away from our memories.



Mako: Samurai Jack

 

Samurai Jack a tale of a samurai from feudal Japan whose empire is destroyed by the dark creature known as Aku. He manages to escape through time and now travels in order to defeat his greatest enemy.

Samurai Jack was created by Genndy Tartakovsky and aired on Cartoon Network. Jack was voiced by Phil LaMarr while Aku was voiced by Mako.

 

 

Aku is a the main antagonist on the show as you can see but by no means is he a simple villain. His whole character is very interesting to watch and serves as the direct opposite of Jack. His deep voice helps with making this character excellent, this voice belongs to Mako. Mako was wonderful, he was able to project his voice well and even could act out his character. Without Aku there would be no Samurai Jack, so lets thank him for making Cartoon network a hit show and making our viewing habits a bit better.

There would be no other actor that I could envision for this role, Mako did a wonderful job and leaves us with an everlasting character known as Aku.

The Slanted Screen

A brief of Americans of Asian descent in American film and television. There are many in depth interviews from some of the more famous American actors of Asian descent like Mako, Daniel Dae Kim, Bobby Lee, Jason Scott Lee, etc. Its a really nice Look into the lives and concerns that these actors have.
Mako appears several times, he appears to be the wise old man in the documentary as I am certain he was the oldest one interviewed. He was probably the most respected actor in this documentary as well.
I feel like this film is slight outdated plus they did not mention anything about female actors but chose to only highlight the men.

If you want to know of the history and struggle of these actors then watch this documentary.

Mako Iwamatsu

Born: Kobe, Japan

Died: Somis, California

 

Mako Iwamastsu known simply as Mako was the son of famous children book Illustrators. His parents left Japan before WWII and Mako would join them when he was 18 years old. He joined the US Army and through this he discovered a love of acting. So he gave up the idea to be an architect instead to be an actor. His first role was in 1959 in a movie called Never So Few. Mako was a lover of the theater, tired of the roles that Asians were given he started his own theater group called East West Players with a few other people.

In 1962 he made his first television show appearance on the Lloyd Bridges Show, he would go on to make appearances in TV shows like McHale's Navy, M*A*S*H, The Incredible Hulk, The A-Team, Magnum P.I., etc. He also chose to do voice acting his credits include Dexter's Laboratory, Samurai Jack, What's New Scooby Doo, Duck Dodgers, The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, etc.  

Mako earned a Golden Globe nomination for his role in 1966's The Sand Pebbles. He played a Chinese man who spoke broken English. The critics hail his performance as expanding the roles that Asians could do in American film. 

Sadly he passed away after a long battle with cancer. Hollywood gave him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

 

Mako was born in Japan, but he became an American citizen. He fought to open doors for more Americans of Asian descent to have more roles on American film. He lived and died as an American actor we should honor his memory and continue to fight for the equal rights of our Invisible American brothers. 

 

Selected Film Appearances

The Sand Pebbles

Conan the Barbarian

Robocop 3

Highlander 3

Crying Freeman

Pearl Habor

Bulletproof Monk

Memoirs of a Geisha

 

Selected Television Appearances

McHale's Navy

I Dream of Jeannie

The Green Hornet

Kung Fu

M*A*S*H

Columbo

The Incredible Hulk

Frasier

Samurai Jack

Avatar: The Last Airbender

 

 

 

 

Introduction

My name for this is Seul, I decided to start a blog about American actors with Asian heritage. Why? Because I can. Just joking but not really. I started this blog because I want to expose a different kind of American actor that we tend to forget about. Now I am not Asian but I take an Asian Experience In America class. So I am learning a lot of things that I did not know about Americans of Asian descent. Now I can't change America drastically as I am just a civilian nor I am in the film business so I can't help cast Americans with Asian descent into better roles. What I can do is try to expose these American actors the best I can.
      We may not have the same racial background but we are two important things: we are Americans and we are human.

So every week I'll highlight one actor or actress then review a few of their movies/television shows.