Stories Beyond Sensation, Lessons in Lenses: Reflecting on the Marcos Sr. and Mao Regimes in Liway (2018) and the Blue Kite (1993)

Abstract

Films have been a platform that allows the proliferation of stories and lessons, facilitating the process of what is remembered and recorded about the self, the society, and the nation. Such notions are critical elements in memory and history building, especially for nations like the Philippines and China, as they have traversed critical junctures of their social and political history. Through a comparative analysis, this article examines the stories and lessons on history and memory as depicted in the films Liway (Kip Oebanda, 2018) and The Blue Kite (Tian Zhuangzhuang, 1993). The discussions highlight the setting and children-characters, as well as meanings and symbolisms in the reflection process, which emphasize the need to investigate the everyday and quotidian stories of those who lived through the Philippines under Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and China under Mao Zedong. The discussions and reflections raise the need to continue upholding the overarching principles behind the Philippines’ Second Golden Age in Cinema and China’s fifth generation of filmmakers, which is to continue remembering and coming to terms with the nation’s traumatic and tragic pasts.