Talking Entertainment: Win a Guitar, Plus Gravity Passes Censors for November Release

Nick Richards | Oct 18, 2013 1:50 pm | 6 comments | 2526 reads

Fender Music had opened an office in Beijing with the intent of bringing their classic brand of American guitars, en mass, to the masses. To get things rolling, they've launched a Weibo promotion with the chance to win a beautiful white Standard Strat. To enter, all you need to do is sign in to Weibo, follow their account and repost this post.

The competition has exploded this week as guitar geeks around the country vye for a chance to win this classic instrument used by high-profile musicians the likes of John Mayer, Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton. Fender's office is nestled quietly in Ritan Park and as they work to connect with local artists we're looking forward to music events and more cool promotions from this heavy-hitting music brand in the coming months.

RELATED: World-Class Guitars, Drums, Instruments and Service in Beijing

In a follow up from last week's post on the rapidly filling foreign film quota, The Hollywood Reporter has reported that China has approved the 3D sci-fi blockbuster Gravity to much surprise. The report points out that films which celebrate US achievments in space tend not to make the cut in China and with the 34 foreign film quota almost full for the year, Gravity wasn't expected to get in cinemas here. On the flip side, the film gives nice references to Chinese technology and in one scene, Sandra Bullock's character finds safety in a Chinese ship.

Chinese interests are commonly used when analyzing the approval process for Hollywood films. This summer, speculation arose over whether Despicable Me 2 was banned due to protectionism or a character's resemblance to Jiang Zemin, although the removal of the film was later attributed a local agency mess up. Gravity is absolutely "killin' it" in international box offices and should see a release here in November.

Here are some arts and entertainment events this week:

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nickrr's picture nickrr Submitted by Guest on Fri, 10/18/2013 - 16:52

Thanks for claryfing I'm sorry you think the film is spoiled for you. I never said anything about her being "rescued" or implied that that one scene acts as a resolution to the story. I said she finds safety and that can be interpreted in many ways. And I don't see how mentioning that spoils the film.

It also supports the argument beyond Chinese technology by showing the country is regarded as friendly in the film, which may be another reason for the approval.

I'm sure there will still be plenty more in the film for you to analyze personally and draw you own conclusions. And I'd love to hear your thoughts once you do see it. Cheers.

Nick Richards, Arts & Culture Editor

Guitarist, The Beijing Dead

Tonyroc's picture Tonyroc Submitted by Guest on Fri, 10/18/2013 - 16:25

No, I don't believe that I missed your point. Regardless of where you found the information, it would have been prudent to self-edit any potential spoilers, no? In my humble opinion, knowing that Bullock's character is ultimately rescued spoils part of the film.

Self editing could have happened in one of the following simple ways:

From the blog post: "On the flip side, the film gives nice references to Chinese technology and in one scene, Sandra Bullock's character finds safety in a Chinese ship."

Potential Self-edit #1: On the flip side, the film gives nice references to Chinese technology.

You could have self-edited the spoiler out and still got your point (reasons why a film which celebrates US space achievments might get approval in China) across. Those of us reading the post would have understood that because there are positive references to Chinese technology, the film was approved by the censors. That information alone is enough for us, the readers, to understand why the film passed the censors.

While watching the movie, we would have then learned of Bullock's rescue in a Chinese ship. We enjoyed that she was indeed rescued and could have drawn further conclusions on our own. Including the information about Bullock's character being rescued by a Chinese ship in the post doesn't add anything to make the approval seem more official, it only spoils.

nickrr's picture nickrr Submitted by Guest on Fri, 10/18/2013 - 15:51

I think you missed the point Tonyroc. The Hollywood Reporter article mentions that scene as one of the reasons why a film which celebrates US space achievments might get approval in China. I was in no shape or form attempting to review or give a summary of what happens in the film, there's plenty of that out there already.

Nick Richards, Arts & Culture Editor

Guitarist, The Beijing Dead

Tonyroc's picture Tonyroc Submitted by Guest on Fri, 10/18/2013 - 15:08

It's really good to know that Sandra Bullock's character finds safety in a Chinese ship. At least we know going into the movie that she's safe and sound, and will remain that way throughout the duration of the film despite any danger that she may face. Fortunately, those of us lucky enough to have read your post won't need to feel anything for this character or really any sense of excitement, fear, or thrill for the scenes she's in throughout the movie since we already know she's safe. Much appreciated, Nick!

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