[Weekly Updates] February 22, 2021

Did anyone get a notification last week, telling them that Patreon may adjust currency exchange rate in the future? I can't find that notification any where. At this point, I'm starting to think I may have imagined it.

In any case, if you see your pledge amount shifted a little, that's why.

ABOUT THE CHANNEL

• Hope our last video on The Eight Hundred was interesting. It's not often I cover a good and recent Chinese film. But since you voted for it, and the film is legit pretty good, I think I should give it some respect.
• I don't think I talked about the behind the scene stuff in a while, so let's share some tidbits!
• For the HK Romance video, I really wanted to include a LGBT romance film, and replace either Love in a Puff or Turn Left, Turn Right.
• It's cleared from the beginning that Happy Together will not do. Important film for sure, but a depressing one. Too depressing for the occasion.
• My ideal pick would be All About Love, featuring Vivian Chow and Sandra Ng as two bisexual women in a messy relationship.
• I specifically remember one line from that movie: "I got really bent out of shape lately. I wanna be straight for a while".
• And much like that line, the movie is hilarious and risqué. While the film's depiction of the LGBT community is somewhat sensationalized, its heart is definitely in the right place.
• Unfortunately I couldn't find a good source of footage for the movie, and have to shelve that idea for now. Maybe one day I'll cover it, along with other LGBT media from the Chinese speaking region.
• As for The Eight Hundred, originally I wanted to talk about its reception in Taiwan. It was a complicated subject for sure.
• A lot of older population who still self-identified as ethnically Chinese love the film. But the younger generations who has no direct connection to the Republic Era China is much more neutral towards is. Although most agree it is a technically well done movie.
• Eventually, I got about 500 lines of notes about the whole situation, and at that point, I realize it will just be too big and too political of a video.
• To talk about the relatively friendly reception in Taiwan would mean I have to explain the generational and political split between Taiwanese population. But also have to explain the misconception Mainland and Taiwan have on each other. And all that is just the background information.
• And then I'll have to suss out which TV station is really representative of the Taiwanese mainstream. And that, in of itself, is a very subjective thing to do.
• What it comes down to is that by the time I finish explaining all that, this video will just be a political commentary. And that's not what anyone is here for.
• So, you got a good old textual analysis instead.

ABOUT MEDIA

• This update is long, so let's do a short media talk: What are some series you've never finished?
• I just started my Harry Potter viewing yesterday. Currently in the middle of the second film.
• I did watch Harry Potter up to Goblet of Fire when it was new. But I didn't speak English at the time, and watching something with so much lore is real confusing. By the time Order of Phoenix came out, I was lost. So I never finished it.
• Technically I finished the Lord of the Rings trilogy. But I have not read the books, so the viewing experience is somewhat sub optimal. My lack of English skill also, once again, got in the way.
• But I just can't find the motivation in my to watch The Hobbit. And as most would probably say: It's fine to just ignore them.
• I still remember watching all 6 Star Wars movies over the weekend, and how bored I get when I'm halfway through the prequels. I did eventually finished it, but I wasn't paying attention by that point. I guess I'm just not into movies with a lot of lore but not a lot of stories.
• But the sequels, oh boy. I did not have it in me to watch Rise of Skywalker. I'm not afraid of being disappointed. But I have no investment in the series by the time Last Jedi was released. I think making our Sword Fight video had killed all of my interest in the series. Even Mandalorian, as good as the show is, is barely keeping me interested.
• Fast & Furious. Only saw the first movie. It cheesed my brains out. Having seen Initial D, both the movie and the anime, and later Baby Driver, F&F just seems so... over the top yet bland. I have heard good things about the later films. But having to sit through another 3 or 4 movies just to get to the good stuff? What is this, a JRPG?
• Alight, lightning round:
• Jurassic World (Saw the Park trilogy, Only saw the first World)
• Twilight (Saw the first one, twice. Thank you film school) 
• The Godfather (Saw the first two.)
• Rocky (Saw the first two, and then Creed and Creed II)
• Rambo (Technically finished, until Last Blood came out)
• Transformers (Who gives a crap)
• Shrek, Kung Fu Panda, Ice Age, Jaws, Pirates of the Caribbean (Saw the first one)

And that's the update for this week! Have you miss out on any franchises? I assume most of you haven't seen every single Marvel movie.

Yeah I'm surprised I actually saw all of them. I'm a normie, evidently.