Orientalism In The Neo-colonial Age

From a status of cheap amusement of the low class to the seventh art form, film has undergone a long process to gain its value of art. Both formalist and realist approaches try to analyze the film art from a single point of either formal-aesthetic or social-ideological value, the two of which are actually inseparable constitutions of the film. Considering both of the two values, this paper aims to transcend the popular understanding of two films Dances with Wolves and The Last Samurai as revisionist films and unravel the new myth of Orientalism in the neo-colonial age.In the neo-colonial age, more and more films like the two concerned ones attract people's attention under the banner of revisionist films. Compared with lots of the uglified images of the Other in many films of the old colonial age, not only these so-called revisionist films renew themselves with a more realistic presentation of the Other in terms of language, casts, settings and props, but also provide more positive images of the Other in a self-critical tone. All these changes make many audiences believe that the essential progressive transformations have happen in the new age.As a social and cultural product, films can never be detached from any historical ambience. Though the films are never simple reflection of the world, some cultural factors do contribute to the changes of the two revisionist films in the neocolonial age to a certain extent. Some people yearn for the pre-industrial simple life in contrast with the empty vanity life of the post-industrial period in their eyes. The Other's life in the two concerned films possibly raises people's nostalgic feelings. Also, the popular issue of environmental protection can be reflected in some scenes of Dances with Wolves and win a lot of people's hearts. Furthermore, the sweeping counter-culture movement including Civil RightsMovement and Hippie culture exert a great influence on American society and lead to the later wave of cultural reflection and multiculturalism. Both of the minority groups' struggle and the white people's own self-reflection may result in the changing images of the Other on screens.Even though the social and cultural elements very likely account for the changes in the neo-colonial age, they cannot prove a transformation thoroughly. Taking a more careful look, people can find that there are some cracks or inconsistencies in Other's presentation in the two films. More positive images of the non-white races do appear, but there also remain some stereotypical images of them as the Other to the white. Even for the positive images of the non-white races, they are only relatively better when serving as loyal friends of the white heroes and less glamorous focus than them. The changes may just be the superficial forms of the new myth and manifest Orientalism under changing circumstances. When the cracks are torn open, the western cultural hegemony as the embodiment of latent Orientalism is fully revealed through romanticizaiton, fixization and dehumanization of the Other.Through uncovering the real motivation and meaning of the two revisionist films in the neo-colonial age, people find that the so-called progressive transformation mainly function as the variations in manifest Orientalism to keep abreast with the time. The different forms of the myth only reveal a consistent meaning: the latent Orientalism remain a western cultural hegemony, with which people still have to fight in the future.