Sayonara Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Sayonara - Essay Example ary to their white costars, even though, later, the film would be hailed as an all-time silent film great and classic because of Anna May Wong’s portrayal of Shosho, a dancer discovered in the kitchen of a cabaret and who gets her big break on stage in the owner’s effort to keep is audiences coming in. The film gave top billing to the white actors over Wong, whose performance would be recognized as carrying the film to the top of the list of silent film greats. Nonetheless, the acting success of Wong or her co-actor, King Hou Chang, who played the role of Jim, Shosho’s onscreen boyfriend until the club owner, and white character, played by Jameson Thomas as Valentine Wilmot wins her away from Jim. In the film, Shosho falls in love with Wilmot, even though he is still interested in Mable, the star of the cabaret, played by Gilda Gray. Even though Jim is loyal to Shosho, loves her deeply, she is prepared to lose that for white man, which reduces Jim to being portrayed as a weak Asian man who gives in to his jealous impulses and drives Shosho even further away from him. Jim has to hide his relationship with Shosho, who, unbeknownst to Jim has already lost her virginity to Wilmot. Even though Jim is a respected businessman in his own neighborhood, in London’s East end where Wilmot owns the Piccadilly, Jim must pretend to be Shosho’s musical accompanist in her act. However, Wilmot is a clever man, and he makes sure that Jim finds out that he has already been intimate with Shosho when he sends Jim to his office and Jim finds a good luck figurine he had given to Shosho. Not only is Jim portrayed as less important and less clever than Wilmot, the physicality of the actor in relationship to that of his costar is dramatically emphasized t show that the Wilmot is taller, stronger, and, therefore, presumably, more virile than Jim. This is in keeping with the stereotypical imagery that surrounded the Asian film actor during the era, 1929, when this last