There’s an infamous character in the much loved John Hughes classic, Sixteen Candles.  Gede Watanabe’s, Long Duk Dong.  A buffoonish, sex-crazed, Asian stereotype who only serves as a punchline.  A gong often goes off whenever he’s on screen.  Very subtle.

“I just hope you burn the sheets and mattresses after he leaves,” one character says.

It was this character that kept popping into my head during Better Luk Tomorrow.  I wonder what the actors and production team behind Better Luk Tomorrow think about this character.  I wonder how the actor who portrayed the role thought at the time and how he feels about it today.  It’s characters like Long Duk Dong, and the history of film marginalizing Asian characters that really makes Better Luk Tomorrow all that more necessary.

What do you think?  Is Lon Duk Dong racist?  Am I being overly sensitive about a joke?  Are there more recent examples of Asian stereotypes in film?  Let me know in the comments.