April 23
Come See the Paradise, 1990, dir. Alan Parker
1936, Little Tokyo
Lily, nisei, second generation, struggling with father’s expectations (arranged marriage)
Jack, union advocate, projectionist for Lily’s father
challenging traditions of older generations
relationships between Japanese and non-Japanese people
movie says Jack is “trying hard to understand Japanese customs”
what is their relationship based on? “Happiness, bravery”
elope to Seattle, marriage, Jack’s union activity lands him in jail, Lily returns to LA
not sure how they’re trying to make you feel about Jack’s choices
“don’t give me that Japanese shit”
internment
Jack’s activism parallels with Lily’s growing frustration in the camps
tone kind of all over the place from scene to scene
questionable happy ending
April 24
Verisimilitude – the appearance of being true or real
Fumiko Hayashida, Bainbridge Island
1990 Gulf War
1988 Amerasian Homecoming Act
1988 Civil Liberties Act (reparations)
Alan Parker: Mississippi Burning (1988)
“Mississippi Summer of 1964”
Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner, James Chaney