Chinese Commercial Film From A Trans-Cultural Perspective(2002-2017)

In this Doctoral Dissertation,Chinese commercial films are placed in the cross-vision of film industry studies,text studies and cultural studies.Under the framework of film history,film theory and film critics,the aim of the paper is to clarify the complicated phenomena of the Chinese commercial film image from 2002 to 2017.Firstly,this paper divides this period into different levels and inspects the developing environment and rheological status of Chinese commercial films.Secondly,the paper combines two synchronic clues of "locality" and "globality",trying to explain the main factors of the change of Chinese commercial movies and draw a rich cultural picture of it.Thirdly,by synthesizing empirical research methods,this paper tries to discuss the export of Chinese commercial films from a trans-cultural perspective and gives corresponding methodological extensions.Based on above,this paper will be divided into six parts.The introduction defines the research object and the method of this paper.By reviewing the related academic resources,this part points out that the current research lacks the centralization,theorization and systematization of Chinese commercial films and puts forward the main research framework of this paper.Chapter One,"Establishment of the Commercial Environment in Chinese Films",describes that Chinese commercial films continue the entertainment attributes of early Chinese films.They are originated in the complex context of policy-economic ecosphere,media ecosphere and cross-regional cooperative ecosphere.Based on the market economy,the policy-economic ecosphere promotes the systematic development of Chinese film industry through the establishment of joint-stock system and cinema-line system.The media ecosystem is based on the "IP transformation" in the content production field and the "Internet+movie" strategic pattern in the content circulation field.A cross-media operation mode was built in Chinese commercial films because of this.Cross-regional cooperative ecosphere makes extensive use of the advantages of funds and talents and packages Chinese commercial films as global commodities by making the "co-production" movies.Chapter Two,"The Expressions of the Ideology in Chinese Commercial Films",points out that Chinese commercial films are deeply influenced by the internal culture of the country.The interaction of the three forces of the government,the capitalists,the mess fundamentally determines the "difference" appearance and local expression in Chinese commercial films.With the fundamental purpose of exporting mainstream ideology to the public,the government,through connecting with the capitalists,promotes the "main theme" to "mainstream commercial films".From the commercial repetition of the mainstream film to the entertainment rewriting of the "model opera"(Yang Ban Xi),the mainstream discourse has changed from explicit presence to implicit presence.With commercial profit as its fundamental purpose,the capitalists build bridges between different cultural forces at the practical level and produce movies that take into account the needs of different cultures.Among them,the historical space of commercial films shows the characteristics of imaginative narrative;action films consciously practice the " interpellation" function of mainstream ideology;New Year films fully cater to popular culture and consumer context;literary films show the attitude of retreat and resistance of film art.The mess has changed from "silent persons"to a dominant force.It is under the guidance of the government and the capitalists and it also promotes the continuous flow of the film market because of its reflexivity.Film"fans" enter into all aspects of commercial film production and circulation through a kind of consultative participation.Taking "Youth Film" as the representative,the attributes of the mass groups themselves become the creative guides of the capitalists.The emergence of "new mainstream" movies not only shows that the "era-oriented" of popular culture stimulates and nurtures "phenomenal" works,but also reflects that different cultures jointly promote the image catharsis of collective desires.Chapter Three,"New Quality of Image Aesthetics in Chinese Commercial Films",points out that Chinese commercial films are guided by external cultures.Its text practice has gradually reached a consensus with the world commercial film paradigm and consciously reconstructs the modernity of image aesthetics.At the level of image symbols,Chinese commercial films "label" foreign landscapes and outline the "cultural cognitive map" on the screen.On the one hand,the emergence of a large number of Western symbols indicates the strong infiltration of Western culture;on the other hand,under the reflection of foreign culture,cross-cultural individuals also show a strong sense of returning to local culture.At the level of lens rhetoric,making images"attractive" has become the goal and way of remodeling the "cinematic" nature of Chinese commercial films."Montage" shows the speed "variation" of Chinese commercial films,while "digital long-shot" indicates the digital technology turn of Chinese commercial films.At the level of the story,Chinese commercial films have continuously differentiated,mutated and bred various types of genres in the process of the evolution of genre narration.By combining western elements and local culture,"Fantasy film" becomes a pioneer example of the genre-integration in Chinese commercial films.As a new form of transnational adaptation,"one script and more versions" highlights the possibility of deep integration of genres.At the level of motif,emotional motif,seeking motif and heroic motif constitute intertextual relationship with the trend of world film creation and point to the common value choice of human beings.Chapter Four,"Overseas Acceptance and Barriers in Chinese Commercial Films-Referring to the North American Market",discusses the real cultural barriers encountered by Chinese commercial films.The upsurge and downfall of ancient Wuxia blockbusters confirm the "selective reading" model in North American market.And"Chinese Lion" and the promotion of "Chinese Film" opens up the distribution path of various types of commercial films.However,the basic dilemma of Chinese commercial film "export" lies in the structural cultural hegemony.As "foreign language films",Chinese films are difficult to get "quasi" commercial treatment and have never been able to enter the mainstream market in North America.Another major factor of the "cold reception" in Chinese commercial movies is the difference in cultural perception between Chinese and American audiences.Based on the review of movie reviews websites,American audiences pay more attention to "form" and technology and can stand on a conscious cross-cultural point,which is different from Chinese audiences.The underlying causes of the phenomenon point to the different cultural contexts between China and the United States,that is,the general differences of high/low cultural contexts,and the different viewing modes,that is,the differences of the types/story traditions in the aesthetic mechanism.Hero and The Great Wall,as two typical texts,need to be focus on.The historical contribution of Hero to the commercialization and internationalization of Chinese movies should be re-recognized;The Great Wall marks the deepening of Sino-US cooperation,while the defects of the"hybrid" text hinder the effective dissemination of the profound world theme behind it.Chapter Five,"Refined Path of Chinese Commercial Films in International Coordinates",attempts to demand Chinese commercial films in the current historical context with higher standards.While making great progress,Chinese commercial films are always encountering various difficulties brought by the fission of local culture and the impact of foreign culture.Faced with such a complex cross-cultural context,the development direction of Chinese commercial films should be located in the world film territory,playing multiple roles like national films,cultural products and image archives.