"Flower Drum Song" finally on DVD Nov. 7th- Page 2

[best12bars]

Posted: 10/10/06 at 10:00am

I think the bottom line is that TALENT wins out... over anything dated, "un-PC," or hokey.

You have a legendary writing team, a top-notch choreographer, and a terrific, solid cast... and that, my friends, is timeless.

[VIETgrlTerifa]

Posted: 10/10/06 at 10:08am

ITA, best12bars. That was what I was trying to say in my original post.

[Wayman_Wong]

Posted: 10/10/06 at 10:54am

As an Asian-American myself, I can see why some fellow Asian-Americans have issues with 'Flower Drum Song.' It's not a matter of being 'P.C.' The history of how Asians are portrayed in Hollywood movies is pretty horrible; many times Asian characters have been played by Caucasians in makeup (i.e., Charlie Chan, Mr. Moto, Olan in 'The Good Earth,' Fu Manchu, Ming the Merciless, etc.). Most people are appalled by blackface: Caucasians made up to look African-American. But somehow that same outrage doesn't seem to include yellowface.

In the context of how rare it was to see Asians actually playing Asians, 'Flower Drum Song' was a pioneer, especially in 1961. It's the first mainstream (I can think of) that portrays an honest-to-goodness Asian-American family, and one that's American. It's certainly the first, and possibly, the only Hollywood musical that showcases Asians who can sing and dance. (Notably, 'Sammy' was played on Broadway by Larry Blyden, a Caucasian, but on film, he was played by Jack Soo, an Asian.)

Yes, it's a musical about Asians written by two white men (Rodgers & Hammerstein), but you couldn't have asked for two more forward-thinking professionals. After all, they also wrote 'The King and I' and 'South Pacific,' and 'You've Got to Be Carefully Taught' shows you where they stood on racism. What I like about 'Flower Drum Song' is that it tries to treat Asians as 'just folks.' In the more recent revival, David Henry Hwang rewrote the book and gave it a more modern spin.

In time, I hope more Asian-Americans write musicals about Asian-Americans, and that some of them make it to Broadway.

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 10/10/06 at 11:18am

Lea Salonga talks a bit about her thoughts on the movie in this clip.

http://www.playbillmedia.com/media/audio/27salonga2.ram

[nobodyhome]

Posted: 10/10/06 at 6:17pm

I don't know of Jews objecting to or expressing discomfort with Brice's performances. It may have happened. I've never heard about it.

I'm nervous about bringing this up, but here goes: For many years, the Amos n' Andy TV series was considered shameful. Now it seems that a lot of black people feel that it was very funny and really not offensive — that it did portray stereotypes to some degree but not in an offensive way and that the actors are so funny and brilliant that it's hard not to like it.

Which is not all that different from what you're saying about FDS, VIETgrlTerifa.

Still, unlike Amos n' Andy, where it's easy to understand why people had big problems with it, I really don't understand what anyone could find offensive about FDS, unless someone is offended simply by the fact that it's written by white men. And I suppose someone might be upset by the casting of Juanita Hall in the movie.

That doesn't mean that someone would have to like it. Someone might be offended by the presence of some characters who might be viewed as a bit stereotypical. But apart from the fact that those characters (even granting the huge differences between the novel and the show and film) are based on characters in the novel, it seems to me that they are more truly universal types than they are stereotypically Asian.

As Wayman says, they are "just folks."


Updated On: 10/10/06 at 06:17 PM

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 10/10/06 at 8:25pm

I saw the 1958 Broadway production of Flower Drum Song and thoroughly enjoyed it as sheer entertainment, far more so than the movie.(I tend to dislike movies of Broadway shows in general.)The score is wonderful and I never get tired of listening to it.The terrific song "Like a God" was cut from the film.

Most of the leads were Asian Americans: Miyoshi Umeki, Juanita Hall, Keye Luke, Arabella Hong(whose song "Love,Look Away" was stunning) and Pat Suzuki. Only Larry Blyden as Sammy Fong was American. Jack Soo played the night-club MC.(The night club scene in the show was hilarious). Many of the members of the ensemble were also Asian American, including Baayork Lee!

I can understand some Asian Americans being upset by stereotyping but as an 18 year old I wasn't thinking political
correctness.

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 11/11/06 at 10:34am

Any thoughts on the DVD from people who picked it up?

[musicaltheater1]

Posted: 11/11/06 at 11:02am

Thanks for the link, MrMidwest. Awesome clip of the Broadway revival. If Lea Salonga can only do another play on Broadway.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/11/06 at 12:32pm

Sensational DVD. Just having the nicely mastered anamorphic widescreen film was worthy by itself alone, but to have ALL the extras, including Nancy Kwan and film historian Nick Redman doing the audio commentary, is more than anyone can really have asked for. Love how she's become the voice and face of the film -- and rightly so.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 11/11/06 at 12:41pm

Some individuals will be offended by the slightest thing

Amos & Andy was mentioned above. When you actually look at it, it resembles the Honeymooners in many ways

Kramden - Kingfish - Both have get rich quick schemes & both try to do it on their best buddy

Norton - Andy Brown - Both dimwitted friends

Alice - Saffire - Both love their husbands but are tired of their boneheaded schemes backfiring

The lawyer Algonquin J Calhoun was a forerunner of the Johnnie Cochrane clone on Seinfeld

[jo]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 2:40am

Thanks for the link to the clip, Mr. Midwest. Lea's voice does ring out crystal clear when she sings. She can be cast in other roles which are non-Asian, so we need not wait for another Asian musical theme. She was excellent as the French Eponine in Les Miserables.

Maybe she could be Maria in a revival of WEST SIDE STORY, as an example.

I did not know about the FDS DVD - thanks. I am great fan of Rodgers and Hammerstein and have most of their movie musicals on DVD.

[nobodyhome]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 3:20am

I think that Lea Salonga is a bit old now for Maria, and she's never been a real soprano. I think we can bet that the Bernstein estate would not permit key changes.

[ICEcreamAssassin]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 5:28am

I saw on the "new cast" recording with lea salonga from 2003 on itunes. Did anyone see this show? They say broadway cast how did I never hear of it... weird

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 9:13am

Like a huge chunk of those on this board, you're:

a) probably too young
b) you didnt't know what Broadway was back in 2003.

[musicaltheater1]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 11:13am

ICEcreamAssassin: Lea Salonga played Mei Li in the updated revival of Flower Drum Song. Go to the link below for more info.
Flower Drum Song Revival

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 12:35pm

"I think that Lea Salonga is a bit old now for Maria, and she's never been a real soprano. I think we can bet that the Bernstein estate would not permit key changes."

Listening to Mary Martin (who was about 12 years older than Lea is now when she played the role) on the cast recording, it doesn't sound to me like it was originally written as a soprano role. Is it mandatory now that it has to be performed that way in major productions? It seems to me that people underestimate Lea's voice anyway.

[musicaltheater1]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 12:57pm

Thanks, MrMidwest. Lea Salonga was personally selected to perform some of Maria's song (with John Barrowman in the duets) in the Leonard Bernstein tribute in Germany and she was able to sing it flawlessly. I've never heard of "Somewhere" done so beautifully.

[nobodyhome]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 5:59pm

I knew that Mary Martin had played a Chinese woman, I didn't know that she had a played a Puerto Rican woman.

MrMidwest, we were talking about Maria in West Side Story, not Maria in The Sound of Music. Salonga might be good for the latter, though also a bit old, but that didn't stop Martin or Luker or lots of other women who've played it. (Though I don't think we're going to see another Maria quite as old as Martin, at least not on Broadway. Times and audience expectations have changed.)

musicaltheater1, I'd forgotten about Salonga singing at that Leonard Bernstein tribute. I haven't heard her performances there. I do wonder if perhaps some of the music wasn't put in lower keys, but it certainly is possible that she's able to sing it all in the original keys. I still think she's a bit old now for Maria in a stage production of the show.

And in the show Maria only sings a brief bit of "Somewhere," which actually doesn't lie as high as some of what Maria does sing.

Again, that's not to say that Salonga couldn't sing the role. I'd be interested in hearing that concert because I do like her as a performer and I thank you for reminding me about that concert.
Updated On: 11/12/06 at 05:59 PM

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 11/12/06 at 6:06pm

Heh, I'm sorry, thanks for correcting me.

I've always wanted to see her do The Sound of Music.