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more darkside shaolin coverage (The Real Shaolin: Documentary)

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  • more darkside shaolin coverage (The Real Shaolin: Documentary)

    check this out

    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-VyTaQNqR0"]YouTube - The Real Shaolin : Kung Fu[/ame]

  • #2
    I'm interested in watching this documentary in its entirety. Of course we already know Shaolin and Dengfeng are not immune to the general moral decline of China since 1989. But I wonder if some of the "foreign" protagonists in this film went to Shaolin with realistic expectations in the first place. Did they expect to become a shaolin monk within one year? Did they expect to have good hygiene and gourmet food in rural China? Did they expect to be treated very differently from local martial art students because they came from overseas?... I'll have to watch the whole thing to determine if these issues are treated without Western media bias.

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    • #3
      I emailed the company that deals with the sales and distribution of the film in the past week; wanted to know when/if there would be a release date in the near future. No response.

      Real shame this has been kept on the shelf for so long.

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      • #4
        Well, I'm friends with the film maker. I think I had helped him get started on this years ago (I was an "inspiration", LOL...)

        He has not sold the film yet. Which means, the film is not going to be distributed, yet. Someone has to purchase it, and then, advertise, promote and show it.

        Stay tuned to the site here. I will notify people as to when this documentary shows. It already showed in Toronto (see russbo.com main page); there was another US showing a month or so ago, I'm not aware of any future showings as of yet.

        It is an excellent documentary. It has nothing to do with unrealistic expectations, yet, it has everything to do with expectations... Anyone wanting to go to Shaolin should see this.
        Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

        "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

        (more comments in my User Profile)
        russbo.com


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        • #5
          I like the concept behind the film. It seems to want to really show what Shaolin is truly like, that is, what you're going to find when you go there for yourself. I think it'd be good for all the "I want to be a Shaolin monk"'s to see this kind of film. It's almost necessary, with the state of kung fu and Shaolin popularity, for someone to try and break through all the hype. I think that what this site tends to do as well, at least on the whole.

          Please do keep us in the know if you hear about this movie getting any distribution.
          "Winners turn to losers, losers are forgotten..." - A Tribe Called Quest

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          • #6
            i think the major reason for people coming back from shaolin let down is that they dont know how or what to look for when they go.

            first do your homework and know your people and know your stuff, also learn some chinese so you can find exactly what you're after.

            dont go to any random school in dengfeng and then be surprised not to find a "buddhist monk" there but rather people who want your money.

            it always blows my mind when i see people going to a random school and coming back talking about about how there is no real martial arts or buddhism left in shaolin.. especially when they dont speak a word of chinese or know anyone over there.

            i doubt they even have an interest in or know the first thing about buddhism anyhow. if they were after traditional martial arts, why talk about buddhism?

            its just negative feelings after being let down. but they should realize it was they who failed to find what they were looking for, due to not knowing how or where to look.

            what did they seriously expect to find searching in that way anyhow? even if they were genuinely interested in buddhist practice, you dont find a ostrich egg looking under an ox's tail, do you?!

            when i go to shaolin, the first thing is to study chan with my master. thats the basis for learning and understanding traditional shaolin wugong.

            last time we didnt do anything together by way of wugong. he shared gong'an stories, discussed sutras, and instructed me on huatou methods, and then we sat in zuochan for some time at the end of the chan class each day. afterward i had some "choors" to do until meeting the next day.

            at the beginning he said many people come there and leave feeling cheated because the teacher didnt give them anything.

            but you have to realize the teacher has nothing he can give you! he comes with his empty hands.

            you have to be clear on what you're looking for, how to go about looking for it, and where to look.

            dont know if that helps anyone... but seriously, i find it so silly.

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            • #7
              When my friend and I were watching this youtube clip, we noticed that whereas the 9-year-old Chinese kid said "Mom and dad sent me to where the master was", the subtitle said "my parents abandoned me here with a Shaolin monk". That seemed a bit liberal with the translations.

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              • #8
                for the average person, there's simply a lack of buddhism and/or traditional martial arts when they don't experience it for themselves. that's probably because the shaolin name is used and promoted in such a way to draw them in. they might also be unaware of what they are really looking for, like you said.

                however, if i went to a school, temple, or church that promoted itself as a religious institution, i'd assume that that's what i'd find there. the error is in clumping all of shaolin together, by generalizing as a result of their lack of experience, etc..

                it's shortsighted, yes. but to me it still seems quite normal for people to react in this manner.

                moreover, sometimes it's just a matter of fate....or luck...or whatever. some may look their whole lives and not find what you have. and in my opinion, that's kind of what seperates the mainstream from real tradition.

                just be content to learn from the experiences and lessons you're apart of there.
                ZhongwenMovies.com

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Lily View Post
                  When my friend and I were watching this youtube clip, we noticed that whereas the 9-year-old Chinese kid said "Mom and dad sent me to where the master was", the subtitle said "my parents abandoned me here with a Shaolin monk". That seemed a bit liberal with the translations.
                  his parents took him there and left him. thats sort of the definition of abandon, isnt it? to leave behind.

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                  • #10
                    That does not change the fact that the translation was liberal. The child might have been abandoned by the parents, however the audience does not need to have the kid's words changed by a translator to figure this out.

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                    • #11
                      unless the audience assumes taking a child some place and then leaving means the parent will come back to pick them up later.

                      like getting dropped off for class at a martial arts school. your mom will pick you up after class.... not often the case at schools in dengfeng. the new kids show up with suitcases and meet their new family.

                      the translator may have meant to be liberal in order to that fill in.

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                      • #12
                        Either way...the kid always has the option to make what he can of himself.

                        And like the little kid, the foreigners that go to Shaolin will make what they can of it. Their only impediment is Ignorance. And with Buddhist teachings, one can gain insight on how to overcome this obstacle.

                        And within the buddhism, to paraphraise LFJ, is the understanding of the foundation of the art.

                        In other words...the only way they can feel cheated here is by limiting themselves.

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                        • #13
                          Lily, I agree with you, and it is an excellent observation.

                          I view it as, the kid was abandoned, and the kid doesn't know he was abandoned. Just like he doesn't know that this qi gong guy he was left with is really not going to change his life.

                          A bullshit translation, ironically, for a kid who doesn't realize he's been abandoned to live a life of bullshit. Which is one reason why I thought this documentary was really thought provoking and hard hitting.
                          Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

                          "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

                          (more comments in my User Profile)
                          russbo.com


                          Comment


                          • #14
                            i'm pretty sure those kids who show up to schools in dengfeng with all their belongings in suitcases are fully aware that that's where they are gonna be for some time.

                            i've seen new arrivals several times, it always happens that way. they bring everything they own and their parents leave them. then they join the new family.

                            its usually because their parents cant afford to raise them and its cheaper to put them into one of those schools, some who charge them ¥3,000 per year. they may get sent a little money for snacks throughout the year, and if they're lucky the will see their family once a year for the spring festival- depending on how far away they live.

                            many of them are well aware of the fact that they were abandoned and dont like to discuss their family situation (even talk about where they are from and how many family members they have) because its hard for them.

                            this kid in the video said his "parents took him to where the master was", and "as soon as his mother left he felt very lonely and cried". why? because he knew what was happening.

                            people who are unaware of the situation of poverty in henan may not understand what was actually happening to him if they just looked at the literal translation without knowing that background.

                            so i think the liberal translation serves a purpose, told in short.

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                            • #15
                              What you said above are relevant background information which can be shared by the filmmaker by other means (such as through narration), I don't see a need to alter the translation in a way which may not reflect what the kid really meant. That only insults the intelligence of non-Chinese speaking viewers, you are taking away their rights to draw their own conclusions.

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