Lucius (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} luciusk) wrote,@ 2007-12-26 23:45:00 |
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Bend It Like Beckham (2002)
What is it like to have parents and family culturally different from the culture of the place where you live? What is it like to have ambitious parents who want the best for you but maybe because they want to protect you from the harsh reality of the world and the suffering they had to go through to get where they are now? And how do you assert your own individual choices, find your own voice, and take responsibility for your own life? Sometimes your parents don't know what's best for you, only you can decide that for yourself. But in making your own decisions, you'll make mistakes. You'll overreact to situations when you should keep your cool. But you won't say anything at times when you should speak up. It's not as easy as doing just the opposite of what your parents expect, nor doing the opposite of what your culture expects.
This movie doesn't have an easy answer for this, though it does wrap up nicely at the end. What it does is explore these questions, and show the value of taking chances, and going out and trying for something more than what's expected. And the value of being honest with yourself and with other people. And how ultimately your family and your friends are there because they want what is best for everyone, even if they are misinformed, have misunderstandings, and have only a limited vision of the world from their perspective. Instead of condemning them for their ignorance, sometimes you let it go, and sometimes you confront it.
I've been struggling with my own identity. How my parents came here from China and still have their Chinese cultural expectations, and how it is to be brought up and live in a completely different culture which values different things, different ideals. How it is to want to be "like Beckham" and yet to live every day knowing that you're different. To have people say things that highlight how you're different, and how they don't even realize they're doing it, or worse, for them to intentionally do so to get you angry and riled up.
I think we all bring our own experiences into the interpretation of any movie, and this one is no different. My own life experiences don't get neatly resolved after two hours, nor do I have any extraordinary talents in sports, but I do confront the same situations and ask the same questions of myself.
What is it like to have parents and family culturally different from the culture of the place where you live? What is it like to have ambitious parents who want the best for you but maybe because they want to protect you from the harsh reality of the world and the suffering they had to go through to get where they are now? And how do you assert your own individual choices, find your own voice, and take responsibility for your own life? Sometimes your parents don't know what's best for you, only you can decide that for yourself. But in making your own decisions, you'll make mistakes. You'll overreact to situations when you should keep your cool. But you won't say anything at times when you should speak up. It's not as easy as doing just the opposite of what your parents expect, nor doing the opposite of what your culture expects.
This movie doesn't have an easy answer for this, though it does wrap up nicely at the end. What it does is explore these questions, and show the value of taking chances, and going out and trying for something more than what's expected. And the value of being honest with yourself and with other people. And how ultimately your family and your friends are there because they want what is best for everyone, even if they are misinformed, have misunderstandings, and have only a limited vision of the world from their perspective. Instead of condemning them for their ignorance, sometimes you let it go, and sometimes you confront it.
I've been struggling with my own identity. How my parents came here from China and still have their Chinese cultural expectations, and how it is to be brought up and live in a completely different culture which values different things, different ideals. How it is to want to be "like Beckham" and yet to live every day knowing that you're different. To have people say things that highlight how you're different, and how they don't even realize they're doing it, or worse, for them to intentionally do so to get you angry and riled up.
I think we all bring our own experiences into the interpretation of any movie, and this one is no different. My own life experiences don't get neatly resolved after two hours, nor do I have any extraordinary talents in sports, but I do confront the same situations and ask the same questions of myself.
