Tamil Nadu Politics And Its Tryst With Filmdom

CALIFORNIA is familiar with the notion of the actor-turned-politician: think Arnold Schwarzenegger or Ronald Reagan. But even Hollywood’s home state would be a little embarrassed to turn the business of governing entirely over to resting luvvies. That, however, is what has happened in Tamil Nadu, a successful state in southern India with a population almost […]

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Films Reflect China’s Old Hate For Japan

For Chinese audiences, the extras mown down in a screen war that never ends are a powerful reminder of Japan’s brutal 14-year occupation, the climax of more than a century of humiliation at the hands of foreign powers. Japanese foreign-policy scholars say more than 200 anti-Japanese films were made last year. This well-nursed grudge is now a […]

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China And Its Soft Power Game

Chairman Mao Zedong said that power comes out of the barrel of a gun, and he knew a thing or two about power, both hard and soft. If you have enough guns, you have respect. Money is the same: if you have enough cash, you can buy guns, and respect. Israel and Saudi Arabia are examples […]

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Cinematic Reflection Of US Policy In Middle East

America’s Middle East policy has been enthusiastically endorsed. Not at the UN or Arab League, however, but by the powerbrokers of Hollywood. At the Golden Globes, there were gongs for a heroically bearded CIA spook saving hostages and American face in Iran (Argo); a heroically struggling agent tracking down Bin Laden (Zero Dark Thirty) and […]

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