Critical Theory — Hegemony
Hegemony is a term used to describe the dominance or overwhelming leadership of one group over another, usually regarding a dominant country or social group.
Regarding transnational Chinese cinema, the use of foreign capital and joint productions was a way of avoiding the domestic hegemony that would arise in China as local censorship increased and the domestic market shrunk. As a means of surviving this dual pressure and film censorship, transnational filmmaking became very commonplace. One notable director who played a key role in the globalization of Chinese cinema was Yimou Zhang. His films Jou Dou (1990) and Raise the Red Lantern (1991) have been criticized for creating a new kind of orientalism that frames Third World cinema through the Orientalist gaze and exociticizes China to the West, catering to a sense of Western hegemony.
In a way, transnational cinema, specifically in China, lends itself to Western hegemony given the business model that has been constructed. Given that the Third World independent film being produced is often funded by a European agency and released in Europe, the content has to be marketable to a Western audience. While this doesn’t necessitate the film being set in a Western region or conducted in English (or another Westerm language), it does put intrinsic pressure on the filmmakers to make their films easily accessible for Western audiences since their European investors will want to see a return on their investment.
Western hegemony can be seen on a global scale, especially regarding the United States whose expansive film and media industries reach far beyond their coasts well into other countries and industries alike. Akira Kurosawa’s film High and Low demonstrates the effects of Western hegemony on multiple levels. Beginning with the director, Kurosawa himself was considered one of the most “Western” filmmakers in Japan during his time and was heavily influenced by Hollywood and western style (Criterion). This can clearly be seen in both the design and subject matter of High and Low. The mise-en-scene and set design are highly indicative of western culture from some of the clothes characters wear to the modern 1960’s set design of the apartment and the clock chiming to the tune of Big Ben. Indeed, in the early portion of the film, the only elements that clearly place the film in Japan are the characters speaking Japanese and Reiko’s traditional attire (Borrowing Tape). High and Low also touches specifically on how western cultural hegemony has become a pervasive presence not in film, but in the everyday lives of Japanese citizens following WWII and the U.S. occupation of Japan. On several levels, High and Low demonstrates the ever present Western influence and consequent hegemony not only in the film industry, but in foreign cultures as well.
Even with increased globalization, Western hegemony continues into the modern day. Parasite, a highly decorated foreign film in the U.S. awards circuit, is a prime example of how even the most successful Asian films are still subject to Western influence and catering. Though Parasite was set in Korea and featured Korean actors speaking Korean, the overall message and critique revolve around capitalism, a highly Western concept. Like High and Low, the Park family home is also very reminiscent of an affluent, American home from the same period and in many ways the film asserts the dominance and seeming superiority of Western culture through the Parks’ use of English in occasional conversation and their import of Native American toys for Da-song from the United States reinforcing the superiority of American products (Daily Princetonian). In these, and many other, ways, Parasite connects modernization and affluence with the west despite being a Korean film. This unfortunately shows that even the most successful and highly reviewed foreign films are subjected to Western hegemony and have to cater to Western audiences to even be considered for the most prestigious awards because when judged, they will be held to the Western standard rather than a global standard.
Sources:
Transnational Chinese Cinema slide deck by Fahmidul Haq
https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/33-high-and-low
https://borrowingtape.com/the-cine-files/retrospective-kurosawa-high-and-low-1963\
https://www.dailyprincetonian.com/article/2020/02/the-bittersweet-paradox-of-parasites-oscar-win
