better tomorrow is not a great movie but has legendary status in hong
kong(and perhaps among most chinese). it also has cult status in the
cinephile community in the US. john woo--and other hongkongers--also
enjoyed commercial success in hollywood.
on one level, better tomorrow is universally accessible. gangster
movies are popular all over, and better tomorrow delivers the goods.
yet, on some levels, it is uniquely chinese or, at least, uniquely
hongkongese. and these elements
prolly don't translate well into other cultures--though their
perculiarity may have some 'exoticist' appeal in which case better
tomorrow is the suzie wong of gangster films. for this reason, many
mistakenly see the movie as intentional camp when it offers very
earnest drama.
better tomorrow is essentially a soap opera gangster movie for men.
it is far softer--if not exactly feminine--than most gangster movies.
the movie says pull out your guns and get our your hankerchiefs. from
my understanding, soap operas are far more im****tant in asian and
latin american countries than in the US. in the US, soap is daytime
fare for housewives. in places like japan, taiwan, hong kong, mexico,
brazil, argentina, etc, they are prime time affairs; soap operas are
the most popular shows in some countries. and, their main focus isn't
necessarily salacious ***, lewd relation****ps, and the shenanigans of
rich folks--though there's surely some of that. more often, they are
stories about realistic people with realistic problems related to
family, work, and such. some are even historical. ian buruma once
wrote a long chapter on the japanese soap opera called O****n which is
about some jap girl who lives thru the WWII period.
so, these non-american soap operas can be emotive, intimate, and even
tragic in ways that american soap operas usually are not. also, while
american soap opera audience is almost entirely female, my guess is
there is cross-over appeal for many asian soap operas(and maybe latin
american ones too).
perhaps the greater appeal of soap opera in places like asia and latin
america is due to fewer economic op****tunities, weaker sense of
individualism, and a culture of social obligations. soap operas are
very popular among poor brazilians--many of them non-white--who peer
into the fantasy world inhabited by rich beautiful blonde people. same
is true in mexico. but, the fact that soap opera appeals MOST to
women in less developed countries--section of the population with
least freedom and op****tunities--also indicates its worth as an outlet
for those whose individualities have been stifled. so, an asian or
latin american housewife stuck at home may feel empowered--or at least
justified or recognized--by the machinations of rich powerful women or
tear-jerking self-pitying 'tragedies' in the soaps.
there is the voyeuristic or fantasistic appeal of gaining access to
the Rich world, but there is also the opposite appeal of social
traditionalism in soaps. notice that as glamorous rich women in soaps
tend to be *****es. viewers love to hate them(to love them). on the
one hand, female viewers enjoy the fantasy of looking at and being in
the shoes of a rich powerful beautiful *****. but, another part of
their psyche, brought up under christian or con****ian patriarchal
system, clings to the notion that a woman must be kind, good, modest,
and decent(or use those virtues as excuse of lack of personal
freedoms--since a woman is supposed to sacrifice for her hubby and
kids.)
so, these soaps will have good not-so-fortunate-nor-rich women who are
wronged at every turn, misunderstood by everyone, and persecuted by
the world. and so, viewers can identify with the noble hearted
character and indulge in self-aggrandizing self-pity. 'nobody knows
the trouble i seen, nobody knows but jesus and the soap opera lady'.
it's no wonder that diane selwyn in Mulholland Dr. auditions for a
soap opera gig in her deranged fantasy. diane selwyn sees everything
in her life in the way that an housewife sees the world thru the prism
of the soap opera.
well, guys need a good cry too, i guess. in the US, there was robert
bly's Men's Movement where guys got bare-assed, went into the woods,
beat on drums, hugged one another, and cried like babies. and, i guess
better tomorrow was a kind of Men's Movement for hong kong men--which
spread to men across asia--and then even to america.
though the gangster genre was perfected in the US, it underwent
drastic changes in other nations. eventually, these changes influenced
the american gangster film in turn.(of course, considering the
influence of expatriate european filmmakers on hollywood in the 30s
and 40s, it could be argued that the american gangster movie was never
all that american to begin with.) in some cases, the gangster film
was revamped thru a fusion with other genres. godfather is like a
family movie/art film/historical period film/gangster movie. the
french gangster films tended to be more cerebral and sophisticated.
the yakuza films of japan tended to focus on clan honor. (to be sure,
the japanese gangster film underwent changes like genres elsewhere.
the original yakuza genre focused on hierarchy, and its basic morality
deemed loyalty as the highest honor. then the existential yakuza film
came along--best exemplified by Tokyo Drifter; here the only honor
worthy of its name was that of the individual; even the boss couldn't
be trusted. then came the nihilistic gangster film of the 70s which
were morally and stylistically anarchic; one couldn't even trust
oneself; the ONLY point of life was to kill and get killed.)
but generally speaking, the western gangster film focused on the
individual. in the classical american gangster film, the gangster
individuals were hyper, crazy, driven, and obsessed. they could be
mama's boys but they acted like they didn't care for nuttin. it was
cagney, muni, or robinson shooting their way thru everything to get
what they wanted. the french gangster was no less individualistic but
more 'philosophical' and 'intellectual'--or intellectually conceived.
his individualism was less obvious, less ****dly aggressive. but, we
knew there was a dark hidden corner of his soul that belonged to
hisself and no one else; he was kinda like a monastic killer; such was
best exemplified by alain delon in le samourai.
one could point to The Godfather as a family centered gangster film.
but, for starters, it doesn't really belong in the gangster film
genre. it's more a family movie about gangsters, or a period film
about gangsters. it's more realistic about the gangster world or
appears so to many viewers. but, even The Godfather shares one thing
with other gangster films. in the end, michael corleone succeeds
alone. either due to enemies or michael's own machinations or
failings, he ends up losing or alienating everyone around him. though
solemn and muted, michael corleone at the end of Godfather II is like
the classic american gangster hood. he's a loner. unlike most other
gangster hoods, michael wins and survives, but he loses his soul.
and, we can accept that.
SUCH is not the appeal of better tomorrow. to begin with, it's a
rather childish movie without any subtlety or emotional shading. john
woo's spiritual/moral utterances about the movie notwithstanding,
better tomorrow caters to young hong kong males in the same way ET
panders to little kids. john woo has declared himself a serious
christian but he's little more than a populist preacher whose main
goal is to make people weep, feel purged of guilt and inspired enough
to face a new day--and make a larger donation. he baptizes us with
blood and tears and uses gongs and firecrackers to perform handel's
messiah.
better tomorrow is christian teachings blended with con****ian moral
codes, and this probably accounts for its wild success in hong kong.
in a fast changing world, people wanna hold onto the past but they
can't go home again. they wanna--indeed must--embrace the new, but
much of the new is alienating, strange, and confusing. in Better
Tomorrow, there is both an appeal to con****ian--old--and christian--
new--values that turned out to be appetizing for many asian folks.
this may have been especially meaningful to hongkongese because hong
kong has been where the east and west has met successfully but not
without tension--especially with big fat mainland dragon breathing
down its neck. it must have been strange to live in hong kong. on the
one hand, status of hong kong under british rule signified old
imperialism whereas communist china signified national independence
and 'progress'. yet, it was british rule that brought forth modernity
and progress whereas communist china was just another imperial
dynasty.
in Better Tomato, the father of one of the gangsters is old and
feeble; he represents the kinder side of old china. he's a good man
but no longer relevant in a world where money, glamour, and power are
king. the new is dazzling and seductive, but is that all that matters
in life--money and power? the gangster is arrested and his reputation
is ruined--both as a gangster and as an older brother and as son. he
can't go back to old ways; the old gangster ways, which had some
degree of honor-among-thieves-ness is dead like his father(killed by
youthful/nihilistic greed and bloodlust). when released from prison,
he cannot accept the new way of greed and power and has no desire to
return to any kind of criminal life. so, he's in a kind of limbo...
until he comes upon a bunch of cabbies who are starting new lives
doing honest decent work. though they are not spelled out as
christians, they represent christian values. within this
organization, there is both a sense of equality--western--and
brotherhood--asian. unlike the western gangster, this guy isn't just
a loner. some things matter more than me, me, me. he is defined thru
his relation****ps and bonds.
because of these issues, emotional crisis erupts in relation to his
younger brother and with his younger colleague. in asian culture,
the elder-brother figure is supposed to the honorable role model and
leader. his younger brother is an honest cop and ashamed of his
brother who he had once respected; worse, he blames the older brother
for the death of the father. so, the elder-brother feels great guilt
in relation to his sibling; he feels he must redeem his name not only
for himself but for the whole family. so, the older brother wants to
be gooder than good. he wants to be straighter than straight; this is
all very difficult since the younger brother's hatred is hard as
stone. this is further complicated because this gangster guy feels he
owes something to his younger colleague. when the older guy was busted
and arrested--due to betrayal by other hoods--, the young guy--chow
yun fat--took it upon himself to avenge his friend. in the melee he
ended up with a bum leg. also, he's been demoted in the gangster
hierarchy and has been patiently waiting for the release of his friend
so they can rise once again in the ganster world. but, it's not so
easy. the older gangster guy is reformed and gone straight; he even
admonishes chow yun fat--younger gangster--for holding onto false
dreams. chow isn't happy about this. and, the older gangster guy
isn't too happy either. he knows he owes something to chow but the
only way to repay this debt is by becoming a gangster again--something
he refuses to do. so, the older guy feels guilt in relation to his
brother--because of his gangster past and suspicions on the part of
the younger brother that he's returned to gangsterism upon release--
and to his gangster friend chow--because he's gone straight and
narrow.
but, this is further complicated because feelings of guilt flow both
ways. in asian culture, the younger brother or friend is supposed to
defer, honor, trust, and forgive the older guy. the younger brother
is too bitter to forgive his brother; at one point, he even beats his
older brother up. and, the younger gangster--chow yun fat--talks like
money/power is more im****tant than friend****p(bad bad stuff according
to con****ian ethics, especially when one's dealing with one's
elders). so, what we have is a kind of emotional soap opera triangle--
or an emotional triad, given the cultural context. we have a sense of
betrayal from elder to younger but also from younger to elder but also
from friend to friend. because asian values emphasize loyalty,
obligation, trust, honor, family, and friend****p more than the west
which values individualism and a certain 'cold' detachment, the
gangster themes of Better Tomorrow are markedly different from such in
most American gangster films. just compare Scarface--original and
remake--with better tomorrow. (of course the strangest gangster film
is Once Upon a Time in America, a kind of Mulholland Dr-like fantasy
swirling out of leone's psyche. if most gangster heroes are hyper
aggressive, noodles is mostly hyper passive, kinda like a turtle
withdrawing inside its shell. it has elements of both american values
and italian values, the latter served by a stronger sense of
brotherhood among the hoods than in most gangster films. it's also
interesting that while most gangsters in the classic genre are proud
to be hoodlums with short lifespans, max in 'once upon a time in
america' and michael corleone in 'the godfather' both hunger for
longevity and respectability). in scarface, tony camonte or montana
wants to be the top guy, the only guy. he'll kill anyone who stands
in the way. to be sure, he's protective of his sister, but it's a
perverse kind of love beyond conventional morality. nothing and no one
can be redeemed in this world. killers are killers and the straight
world doesn't seem much better. the shame is in losing.
in better tomorrow, there really is a sense of a good world and the
possibility for goodness. how many gangster films have an oh-so-
wonderful girlfriend of an honest/honorable cop? how many have a
perfectly gentle and honorable ailing patriarch? and, how many have
heroes who get teary eyed every so often? how many have a bunch of
kids singing some song about the hope for a new future? (the muppet
gangster movie?). the world of goodness may not offer EVERTYHING that
we crave in life, but it offers something priceless--peace of mind and
honor. goo goo and thumbsuckapoo. this is what the older gangster
understands and the younger gangster does. and though the younger
brother is good, his all torn inside because he can't bury the
emotional hatchet.
this is why it all comes to the famous ending where the older guy
tries to kill two birds with one stone. he wants to prove his
goodness to his young brother by doing the right thing and he wants to
help his friend get a *****load of cash. thru various machinations,
he's able to do both. but, things get screwy. his brother is held
hostage by the bad guys and must be traded with the villain. (by the
way, the villain is especially bad because he had been well-treated by
the two gangster heroes but turned on them to grab all the power.
he's bad because ALL he cares about is power/money; because he's a
young punk with no respect for elders; and because he feels zero
gratitude or remorse whatsoever; he even lacks honor among thieves
kind of moral code). so, they swap hostages and a gun battle ensues
between bad guys and good guys made only of older and younger brother.
even so, the good guys are not totally reconciled because the younger
brother still doesn't trust his older brother; from the younger
brother's angle, the alliance is only strategic. at any rate, you
can't construct a moral triangle with only two sides. this is where
chow yun fat's change of heart takes on meaning. he's got the cash
and he can cruise away on his motorboat to paradise. he looks at the
glitter of the hongkong skyline--everything he wanted--but figures
what really matters is being true to his friend. so, he goes back to
join in the fight. the cynical guy becomes the truest hero--like
mifune in seven samurai. there is finally reconciliation between the
friends, and his death makes the reconciliation between the brothers
possible. it's all hammy soap-opera-ishness but it works for some
reason.
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