crimson flower

Hot take (from a media nerd): Boys' Love is violently popular (and prosecuted) in the PRC because it is being used as a vehicle for anti-government protest

Top left: Wu So Wei from Chai Jidan's Counter Attack (a.k.a. Revenged Love)

Top right: Wei Wuxian from MXTX's Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (a.k.a. The Untamed)

Bottom Left: Zhou Zishu from Priest's Faraway Wanderer's (a.k.a. Word of Honor)

Bottom Right: Bai Luo Yin from Chai Jidan's Addicted: Heroin

This post was inspired by the insightful and informative conversation between @theside-b and @one-2nd about the meteoric popularity of Revenged Love, how its predecessor Addicted triggered Chinese censors, and why the Chinese audience continues to patronize queer media despite the government's ban (click here to read it, I highly suggest you do). Also, some additional published readings that further illustrate this point, if you want to look into it [ 1 ], [ 2 ], [ 3 ]

If you've ever had the pleasure of reading any of the webnovels of Chinese author Chai Jidan, you'll notice that many of her main characters are defined by a single trait. Take Wu So Wei, the spunky, firecracker lead of her novel Counter Attack, or Bai Luo Yin, the level-headed genius of Addicted: Heroin. These characters are not defined by the men who pursued them or the love stories that shaped their lives.

Instead they are defined by CRIPPLING, ABJECT POVERTY.

Chai Jidan takes great pains (and many chapters) in explaining to her readers how, despite both So Wei and Luo Yin's brilliance and talent, they are hampered by the circumstances of their environment. So Wei is looked down upon in social circles because of his low education, perceived stupidity, and provincial upbringing, even though in the book he is revealed to be especially cunning, technically-skilled and business-savvy. In fact, during his pursuit of Chi Cheng, So Wei was able to discuss politics and philosophy with his more educated lover just by reading borrowed books. Meanwhile, Bai Luo Yin, valedictorian of his class and a bona fide genius, is studying at a school for low income families, lives paycheck-to-paycheck with his blue-collar father, queus up in the early morning to get government medical aid for his grandmother, and does odd jobs around the community to earn extra money for school.

Because of their upbringings, and the bullying they've experienced, both characters have developed an extreme rejection of the luxurious, socialite lifestyle touted by those around them. Luo Yin hates his mother because she left his father to marry a rich man. And So Wei goes to extreme lengths to take revenge on his former girlfriend, who ridiculed him because he is poor. Even when they entered into relationships with their (disgustingly rich) partners, both So Wei and Luo Yin continued to show aversion towards lavish possessions, often only accepting gifts from their lovers if their families will directly benefit from it in some way.

Gu Hai gifts Luo Yin's family with medical equipment and other necessities

So Wei, out of guilt, even attempts to break off his relationship with Chi Cheng multiple times after fulfilling the plot to separate him from his then girlfriend (and So Wei's ex) Yue Yue. This is done in spite of So Wei potentially losing access to the luxurious lifestyle Chi Cheng provides for him, and his growing love for his partner.

The ambition to earn just enough to provide comfortably for loved ones is actually an Asian-defiant concept.

In a country that values economic dominance, industrial competition, and capitalist sensibilities, and one that urges their workforce to do the same, brilliant people who dream of being "comfortably average" are practically committing a taboo. These are Western, liberal ideologies-- opposing bottomless "need" with "satisfaction", and prioritizing personal feelings over long-term gain. Defiant thoughts.

Speaking of defiance, let's turn to the more outright rebels of modern Chinese fiction, starting with gay martial hero Wei Wuxian--an amalgamation of the Xianxia and Danmei genres:

Wei Wuxian surrenders to Lan Wangji after freeing Wen Clan refugees from the Jin encampment

Chinese novelist Mo Xiang Tong Xiu (MXTX) often writes main characters who are pushed into oppression not by birth, but by circumstance. Wei Wuxian, the son of two highly-respected rogue cultivators (magic wielders) who died in an accident, was brought up as the third heir to the mighty Jiang clan by their leader, Jiang Fengmian. The most talented (and unruly) cultivator of his generation, Wei Wuxian develops a technique that harnesses the spirit of the dead instead of inner spiritual energy to generate combat magic-- a method perceived as heresy by the upper clans, but a boon for people born with weak or absent inner spiritual cores. Wei Wuxian's exceptional skill secured victory for the cultivators against tyrant Wen clan leader Wen Ruohan, but he becomes the collective clans' next target after he fights for the freedom of innocent Wen refugees tortured and imprisoned by the Jin clan. Killed and subsequently resurrected sixteen years later by unknown forces, he works with his lover, brother, and best friend to expose the Jin clan's corruption.

In the past, MXTX has openly discussed her story's Wen clan arc as a direct parallel to the real-life atrocities China experienced at the hands of Japanese forces during World War II. She even named the movement against Wen Ruohan as the "Sunshot Campaign", a direct allusion to the sun that features prominently in Japan's national symbols (as the Land of the Rising Sun), and the Wen colors (white and red) a direct reference to the Japanese flag.

However, her actual parallel for the Jin clan, the second oppressor, is more dangerous to discuss by comparison.

In her novels, the Jin clan serves as the cultivator world's economic superpower-- the clan with the largest population, industries, and merchants. Characterized by their golden dragon and peacock motiffs, and with a reverence for the peony flower, the Jin clan is also governed by some of the cultivator world's most ruthless police, who impose their cruel punishments beyond their clan and onto others. Though MXTX has NEVER paralleled the Jins to any government or entity in our current world, she has been constantly persecuted by the Chinese censors (and now the actual police), for allegedly mirroring her second oppressor to... someone closer to home. And by writing a character like Wei Wuxian, who openly defies extreme opulence and corruption, and works to shift power towards the more simplistic and monastic Lan clan, MXTX along with many danmei authors are now being perceived as spurring movements against modern Chinese sensibilities:

And this is not just under the lens of homosexuality and China's aversion to queer existence. Most danmei stories feature main characters actively rebelling against oppressive governmental forces-- ones that impose harsh rules to maintain power, while continuing to subjugate indigents, minorities and marginalized sectors.

Though not explicitly rebellious, these authors often incorporate wordplay, symbols and allusions that point towards a critical commentary of their own government system.

It doesn't help that PRC is plagued by issues like these, which identify top government officials as part of the country's systemic corruption:

Zhou Zishu is tortured after he refuses to rejoin Tian Chuang.

Chinese author Priest is perhaps one of the most explicitly rebellious writers of the genre (her pen name is derived from the idea of a church leader-- someone who stands for righteousness). Priest writes not just for danmei, but for het xianxia and wuxia genres as well, and she LOVES creating outright anti-government characters. Zhou Zishu, her lead in the danmei wuxia novel Faraway Wanderers, is a high-ranking government official and a member of the nobility-- nephew of the ruling emperor and cousin to the prince regent. He is leader of Tian Chuang-- a secret intelligence faction of the royal police who spies on and kills the empire's dissidents. After growing disillusioned with the Prince's corruption, he commits fatal self-flagellation and resigns to a vagrant, nomadic life. Now given mere months to live, he gets a second chance at redemption when he and the nation's most wanted criminal leader--Wen Kexing-- team up to prevent a civil war between martial sects. These leaders are committing the mass genocide of smaller sects (and each other) in search of a secret weapon-- the famed Glazed Armor that would allegedly provide them with the power to subjugate the whole martial world.

For years, and despite the growing commotion both within and outside of China, the PRC has dispelled rumors of a government-controlled spy ring that's apparently monitoring the military operations of countries in territorial dispute with China. With rumors seemingly debunked, and media censorship so brutal even chats are monitored between individuals, talks of these secret factions only persist in literature, but they are ESPECIALLY POPULAR in Danmei. I know of about two other authors besides Priest who write about these organizations: Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou (Meatbun Doesn't Eat Meat), and Shui Qian Cheng. This all came to a head last year, when Indonesia and the Philippines arrested alleged Chinese spies occupying sham government posts in their countries, and a former spy himself came forward to expose the country's operations:

The loudest outcry came from within the danmei fandoms, who've been allegedly sounding the alarm on this unconstitutional operation for years. As the rest of the world uncovers more information, and look towards the one media from China that's capable of transcending the censors and going international, it's no wonder PRC has laid down the law against Boys' Love.

Now I am NOT saying that the Danmei genre and its authors are anti-government. THEY ARE NOT ANTI-GOVERNMENT. The genre aims to promote equal rights for a marginalized community, and is serving as a safe space for LGBTQIA+ members who've been deprived of proper representation because of China's crackdown on what is perceived as "morally wrong" behaviors.

I am also not saying that all danmei are considered anti-government propagada. But the content itself IS inherently rebellious. Whether the rebellion stems from the propagation of liberal sensibilities, like in Chai Jidan's work, or the takedown of actual systemic corruption, like for MXTX and Priest, participation in this discourse constitutes freedom of expression for some, and the safest form of protest for many.

This is why PRC media often frames Danmei fandoms as depraved underaged fans fueled by lust -- a method they use to further justify the banning of the genre. They run continuous stories of fans chasing their favorite stars in airports or selling their discarded cups as merch in online stores, and release it onto fandom echo chambers as a "trend", or even as "common fandom behavior".

The Oxford Dictionary defines "echo chambers" as an environment in which a person encounters only beliefs or opinions that coincide with their own, so that their existing views are reinforced and alternative ideas are not considered.

These echo chambers also often construe false information about BL celebrities and danmei authors, and like the worst airborne virus known to mankind, fuel fandom delusion enough to warrant a mass stalking at the nearest mall. Out come the police, who blame a whole community of oppressed individuals for the unruly behavior of some fetishists.

So yes, so long as the censors continue to choke communication channels, and people are in need of a safe space to protest injustice and discrimination, Boys' Love (danmei) shall remain violently popular in the PRC. And its government will not change its mind on the ban, regardless of the money it brings in. This is more than just entertainment-- THIS is political.

I am currently working my way through Unit 4: Heartbreak Alley, the totally light-hearted, definitely not agonizing section of @bengiyo's queer cinema syllabus where I get to watch countless acts of violence be committed against queer people. Thank fuck I have Lesbians waiting for me at the end of this unit. The films in Unit 4 are: Bent (1997), Strange Fruit (2004),Boys Don’t Cry (1999), Brokeback Mountain (2005), Parting Glances (1986), Philadelphia (1993), The Living End (1992), Holding the Man (2015), Jeffery (1995), and Boys on the Side (1995).

Today i will be talking about

Philadelphia (1993) dir. Jonathan Demme 

[Run Time: 2:05, Available on: YouTube for rent, Google Play, Amazon, Lang: English]

Summary: When a man with HIV is fired by his law firm because of his condition, he hires a homophobic small time lawyer as the only willing advocate for a wrongful dismissal suit.

Cast: * Tom Hanks as Andrew Beckett * Denzel Washington as Joe Miller * Antonio Banderas as Miguel

___

To steal a comment from @lurkingshan, it has been awhile since I’ve watched a good legal thriller. Philadelphia is brilliant, and I don’t just mean in the general sense, I mean it is smart. It is smart in how it sets itself up. We start with Andy and Joe on opposites sides of a court room, we can see the rapport between them, but we set them up on opposite sides from the beginning. We move from there to Andy at the hospital, receiving his transfusions, looking across the way to a man whose karposi’s sarcoma has advanced to the end stages a look to where Andy himself will end in this film. And then to Andy’s law office where there is physical touch, after physical touch, after physical touch. Some that happen so quickly, others that linger, that the camera focuses in on, and I only wish that we’d seen Andy the day after that meeting, because I would be curious to see if and how the physical touches changed with people in the office. 

But that’s not what we get, and we don’t really need it because what is truly important is that Andy is sicker than he originally let on. The point is that the law firm set Andy up while he was away. The point is that at so many stages in this film I was mad. And that was how I was supposed to be. I was mad at all the homophobic pieces of shit that were sitting there making excuses, that based a significant portion of their legal argument about not discriminating against Andy because he was gay with HIV, by trying to discredit Andy’s character because he was gay. [and of course the law office used a woman as their representation and had a Black man at their table as well…you know they were really trying to look good]

gif by @rancidtofu

You might know by now that I love a complicated relationship, so I was really thrilled that Joe eventually decided to represent Andy. Because Joe was homophobic as fuck, and he very much did not want to take the case. But again this film is smart, we never have to hear from Joe’s mouth or anyone’s for that matter that Joe decided to work with Andy after seeing how he was being treated by the librarian, but we know there’s no way it isn’t informed by experiences of racism in Black communities. The way Joe was stared at by a library worker when he was sitting at his table, the way Andy was stared at by a library worker when he was sitting at his table. The way Andy was being suggestively ushered away to somewhere out of view to other library patrons. 

I loved that Joe was viciously homophobic because it demonstrates so well the boundary between work and personal life. Joe is able to do his job and do it well, and eventually after months of working with Andy, is able to come around, even touching Andy’s face which we know even has a lesion on it, by the end of the film. That is huge from someone that started the film literally running immediately to the doctor to make sure he didn’t have AIDS from shaking Andy’s hand. From a modern lens I can totally see how that would probably feel stereotypical or derivative or something like that but I think it is important to keep in mind that this film was one of the first Hollywood movies to feature HIV/AIDS and also portray gay people in a positive light. I haven’t actually been adding the for/by/about designations to the Heartbreak Alley films because something about doing that didn’t really sit right to me when we’re discussing the violence to and death of queer people. But this film definitely was not made for queer people, and Tom Hanks acknowledges that he was cast in the role for his “non-intimidating screen persona” and that “one of the reasons people weren’t afraid of this movie was because I was playing a gay man.” 

The casting here was strategic to further assist audiences in sympathizing with a gay, HIV positive character. 

gif by @rancidtofu

I really love all the little moments of solidarity, the smiles between the Black secretary at the law office and Joe because They Know™ about experiences of discrimination in the workplace. The solidarity between the secretary with AIDS and Andy. I loved that a Black woman was teaching Andy how to apply make up to cover his lesions. I loved that Andy’s entire family knew that he was gay, knew he had AIDS, knew he had a partner and that they all loved and accepted him, and that he had so many people in his life that truly, well, and deeply cared for him. 

And I love how that is used to deliver maximum emotional impact, at least to me, in one single stupid opera line. 

I genuinely enjoyed essentially sitting in a court room for two hours watching Joe strategize, and execute his traps for the jury to win them over. I love how you know that they have won the second that a juror repeats verbatim a line Joe had said repeatedly throughout the trial. I am grateful the film was kind enough to let Andy be awake and alert enough to know that they had won. That his one of his last acts on earth was getting to engage with the part of law he loved most: “that every once in awhile, not often, but occasionally, you get to play a part in justice being done” Justice was done here, Joe and Andy both played a role in what could potentially become another precedented case in the roster to build towards a stronger future for gay people in the workplace. I think that (though likely coupled with how much his body was beginning to fail) is what finally made him ready to go. Because for so much of this film he would hesitate when it came to death. 

gif by @rancidtofu

He froze over the line “the actual physical [death]” when quoting the line about AIDS causing a social death. He talked about planning his memorial to try to get a reaction out of Miguel, and when Miguel gave him a response he very much did not want to hear “maybe you should” he took Miguel to a party, he talked about opera instead of practicing his Q&A. 

I am grateful the film ends at his memorial, not just for the memories, though I am especially glad it ends on a video of Andy as a child (to appeal to the ‘he was somebody’s kid type of crowd) but that the memorial was not entirely gloomy. There was life, there was conversation, there were smiles, it made things feel more real. Just like all “see you tomorrow” lies everyone knew they were telling themselves felt real. 

Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington are such powerhouses of actors and I am so so grateful that they did this project together. 

Favorite Scene 

(I am acknowledging that these gifs by @antoniosbanderas have nothing to do with my listed favorite scene, but I just need you all to know that the scene of these two laying in bed was cut from the final edit of the film, so I didn't actually get to watch it, so now you know it exists if you didn't already)

My favorite scene is when the law firm is questioning Melissa Benedict, a secretary that used to work with one of the lawyers in his previous firm. Melissa was diagnosed with AIDS after a blood transfusion, and she was put on the stand to prove one of the lawyers knew what AIDS lesions looked like and therefore was able to identify that Andy had HIV a week before he was fired. 

I was ready to reach through my screen to smack a bitch when the law firm’s representation started trying to make a moral argument, that Melissa’s AIDS was acceptable AIDS to have in an office because she involuntarily contracted the disease through a medical procedure, whereas Andy had had gay sex and therefore voluntarily risked acquiring HIV. And you can just see Melissa looking over at Andy so often when the law firm is trying to make this argument, and trying to get Melissa to answer questions in a way that would make her seem like she is actually of the law firm’s opinion. 

And she doesn’t let them do that to Andy. Instead she looks right at him and she qualifies her response saying: “But I don’t consider myself any different from anyone else with this disease. I’m not guilty, I’m not innocent, I’m just trying to survive” and it is just a beautiful moment for me. Especially because this film is trying to portray queer people in a positive light, having a straight, white woman with a disease she had no way of preventing say that she was just like anyone else with AIDS is hugely important to driving that message home. 

Favorite Quote 

gif by @fran-kubelik

I am so sorry in advance for how long this quote is, and that 90% of it is technically just Andy translating an opera but: 

“‘Look the place that cradled me is burning.’ Do you hear the heartache in her voice? Can you feel it Joe? Now in come the strings and it changes everything. It’s like the music, it fills with a hope. And that’ll change again. Listen. Listen. “I bring sorrow to those who love me” oh oh that single cello. “It was during this sorrow that love came to me.” (sobbing) “A voice filled with harmony. It said, live still. I am life. Heaven is in your eyes. It’s everything around you. It’s the blood and the mud. I am divine! I am oblivion. I am the god that comes down from the heavens to the earth and makes of the earth a heaven. I am love. I am love.” 

The level of emotion, the implication behind each and every line that he translates, the way that those lines spoke to me as a queer person. “Look the place that cradled me is burning” this body, his body is failing; this life, his life is coming to an end. “I bring sorrow to those who love me” we see that with Andy’s mom, with his entire family for that matter, we see how loved he was and know that his death is going to be a devastating blow for a lot of people. “It was during sorrow love came to me” Miguel is there for all of it, through all of it. When he collapses in court, his family is the first to get to him, to try to help him. When he’s in the hospital the entire hallway is flooded with people that love him. Andy breaks at this point in his monologue, choking out the line “A voice filled with harmony. It said, live still. I am life. Heaven is in your eyes. It’s everything around you. It’s the blood and the mud.” I do not think Andy was ready to go until the very end when he finally said he was. Live still. Andy wants to live still. I am life. Heaven is in your eyes. It’s everything around you. It’s the blood and the mud. He will see Heaven soon, he is looking at the world through the lens of a dying man. “I am the god that comes down from the heavens to the earth and makes of the earth a heaven” We have one life to live, we should use it well, Andy has so much love in his life, that’s truly such a heavenly thing to have. He is seeking justice, in such a way that others might be protected the way he wasn’t. “I am love. I am love.” 

I just. 

I don’t know y’all I just really liked this film. 

Score 

9.5/10

I’m salty that Denzel wasn’t nominated for an Oscar, though I am wholly unsurprised, and I am glad Tom Hanks won and that his speech included praise of Denzel. 

““And an actor who put his film image at risk and shown because of his integrity, Mr. Denzel Washington who I very much share this with”

I love to see your analysis and thoughts on different BLs, and you always come off very well educated when it comes to cultural aspects, especially Thailand's culture.

Having this in mind, I think maybe you'll have some answer for my questions. Well, I want to know why Buddism is so heavily portrayed in BLs (like, for example, I Will Knock You). I know Buddism is the biggest religion in Thailand (please correct me if I'm wrong), but it still surprises me how prevalent it is in BLs. Also, I've seen a couple of BLs where the main character gets ordained, and from what I read on the subject, it is a pretty common thing to do, and is a sign of respect both to the religion but also to the family's believes.

Buddism in Thailand

December 2021:

Department of Religious Affairs reported that the population of Thailand identifies as:

92.5% Buddhist

5.% Muslim

1.2% Christian

In other words, a higher percentage of the population of Thailand identifies as Buddhist than the USA identifies as Christian (65% in 2019) or Catholic in Italy (79.2% in 2021).

So Buddism is in Thai BLs because it's in Thailand. It's just very prevalent. One might as well ask why there is so much Christianity in Hollywood's romantic product (oh it's there, language, swearing, modes of address, courting rituals, gendered attire, weddings, etc...).

It's probably unusual and interesting to you, so you noticed it. Also Americans (in particular) - I don't know how you identify but...) tend to be hyperaware of religious/spiritual representation in pop culture because it's so taboo, hyper-politicized, and divisive in the States.

(Appropriate dinner table conversation in different countries is one of the things that fascinates me the most. Like, what's taboo in different countries when you're visiting someone's home for a meal. In larges parts of the US, religion is generally a pretty taboo topic.)

I think it's also prevalent in BL because there's a lot of dead parents, and the death rituals of a culture come into play under those circumstances.

Anything dealing with the spiritual or paranormal, and now weddings and children and blessings and so forth we gonna see religious/spiritual belief rep. As we get more BL delving into different aspects of culture in search of story we will simply see more and more of those aspects of religion that intersect with that aspect of culture, for purely statistical reasons.

Monkhood

I would hazard a guess that the proportion of those in Thailand who chose to be ordained as a Monk is probably the same percent as any other Buddist nation.

Tharn Type 2 takes you through the entire process, if you wanna dive into that franchise.

Also I would highly recommend He's Coming to Me it's got some nifty death stuff going on. Also it's a great BL.

I have kinda talked about this before - old post:

I'm not from the States, but from South America and here in my country with the younger generation, we are taking certain european-born religions as a joke, due to how much it harmed our native people and continues to harm people who are from religions from the African diaspora. So I think that's mostly why I found it so interesting to see how Buddhism is portrayed mostly in a good sense.

(Just to tell you a bit about appropriate dinner conversation in Brazil, since you find it interesting to know) It is somewhat similar to the States, as South America is a very religious continent. You will definitely hurt some tias (unties) if you talk badly about their faith, so that is a sensitive topic to have during dinner (unless you want to stir up some fights, then it is the perfect subject). But I think the younger generation is more open to have tough conversations, and as I said before, they started to even mock some of the more conservative believers, especially (as I've observed) queer folks, due to religious trauma.

The official poster for The Last Case

Sidenote: Tay Tawan is partnered with Mark Pakin - a former National badminton player. Opponents are Sky Wongravee (Hormones, Project S, My Ambulance) and Sea Tawinan (also a badminton player).

I'm so happy that Phaya and Tharn have roles written like this. They are both smart, brave, independent, both have undergone hard training and passed the exam, both have a work ethic, are inquisitive, want to be professionals, and have ambitions. They proved that they can cooperate with each other, putting aside their own feelings. I really like that both of them are also presented as dudes, that they have their own stupid behavior, that they banter, tease each other, that they are not perfect and act silly, that they can behave like normal people. I liked how Phaya is fully aware that Tharn will allow him to do many things, but not everything, that he can kiss him, but leave it at that, not press him for more. And that Tharn, although stunned by the kiss, doesn't make a big deal of it. They are so normal, they are both freaks and clowns crazy about each other, but still very, very normal. And it drives ME crazy 🥳

All this is extremely attractive to me. Adults, self-aware people, equal, struggling with the outside world (usually it's a murder investigation 😩 ), but when it comes to romance, they're thriving and having the time of their lives (while fighting for these lives).

I like pretty much all types of BL series, but I really wish there were more series about adults, especially romances in which both lovers are equal in everything. There are so few of them and that's probably why The Sign makes such a huge impression.

Saint Suppapong revealed that he intended to present stories that reflect Thai beliefs rather than just being a Y series.

After airing 3 episodes already with the great investigative Y series "The Sign" produced by Idol Factory Co., Ltd. (IDOLFACTORY) that has invested and labored full power both in terms of production work, filming, various preparations for the actors, including CG Images that viewers admire for their realism and pay attention to details. It can be said that the work is quite perfect. To the point that every episode that aired in the series was trending on X in the Top 3 and was talked about in a positive light all the time.

At this event, "Saint-Suppapong Udomkaewkanchana" as the organizer opened up saying: "First of all, I want to thank all the fans who have followed and watched this series They like this work and always send encouragement to us. Since we intended to take the novel "Premonition" and turn it into a series, me, P'Chein, Kru A (director), and the team had a lot of discussions before the actual filming, including the most appropriate casting of actors in each role. The story itself is related to the beliefs of most Thai people. Whether It's about Garuda or not, it's good. The story of the Naga is good. Including information about traditions and culture in the Northeast, such as the Naga Rocket Festival in Nong Khai Province, which has been a tradition and belief of Thai people in the Northeast for a long time.

We were a bit overwhelmed at first with so many details, but once we were determined to do it, we came to the conclusion that we would make this series as good as IDOLFACTORY could. We spent a year preparing and working together. Both researching information in addition, the actors had to take several classes in acting, action scenes, kicking and punching lessons, shooting lessons, and diving lessons. Some of the main. actors were new actors and had never acted before.

It took time to prepare. Prepare everyone reasonably.