I have been a follower of Corrie Chen's work for many years; some of it is disappointing, some of it is great, but it is always worth watching. Tinseltown is no exception, although it is a slight film in terms of narrative. The origin of the film is interesting, as is the way it was made. Basically some photos of a Christmas goods factory is China inspired Chen to travel there with one other person, some equipment, and some money - and work the rest out later. The film was made in this way, inside a working factory and with non-actors.
The film doesn't really have a story so much as a soft commentary, but it also benefits from seeing some festive goods being slowly made by hand in rather uninspiring jobs. There is another contrast, which is the young girl seeking out such a job, and seeming to be happy at the end of her day (a day involving such very menial and endless work). There is a danger that the film reinforces that all Chinese factories are like this (I have been to about 7 or 8 from my company, and they are not like this), but at the same time it is true that in China people work very hard, and no matter the job - there are always people to do it. This comes across without ramming down our throats, and I liked that the Christmas content just added another odd level to it that highlighted the difference between my experience here, and those in that factory in China - even though we have this product connection.
Tinseltown is not a great film, but it is an interesting one, and made more interesting by the way it came together. As with a lot of Chen's work - it is worth a look.
The film doesn't really have a story so much as a soft commentary, but it also benefits from seeing some festive goods being slowly made by hand in rather uninspiring jobs. There is another contrast, which is the young girl seeking out such a job, and seeming to be happy at the end of her day (a day involving such very menial and endless work). There is a danger that the film reinforces that all Chinese factories are like this (I have been to about 7 or 8 from my company, and they are not like this), but at the same time it is true that in China people work very hard, and no matter the job - there are always people to do it. This comes across without ramming down our throats, and I liked that the Christmas content just added another odd level to it that highlighted the difference between my experience here, and those in that factory in China - even though we have this product connection.
Tinseltown is not a great film, but it is an interesting one, and made more interesting by the way it came together. As with a lot of Chen's work - it is worth a look.
