(Ecns.cn)--As movie theatres in China are still showing the 3D American computer-animated action comedy "Kung Fu Panda 2," news about another blockbuster, "Transformers 3," opening on July 21 in China, has flooded the country.
On June 25, thousands of enthusiastic Transformers fans gathered in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province, to celebrate the coming 3D version of "Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon."
As zeal for foreign movies has surged to a high among Chinese citizens, especially young people, some people are still worried that these exotic cultures' movies will bring adverse impacts to Chinese culture, especially as adherence to certain traditional Chinese customs has been waning in recent years.
Inevitably, the rapture over foreign cultures has brought disputes and queries among those who ask: Why do people rush to worship these foreign cultural symbols? Can these symbols be labeled as a kind of cultural invasion? And finally, what attitude should society take when facing the swoon over the "Transformers 3" movie?
Cultural invasion or cooperative partnership?
On June 8, one of China's largest consumer electronics manufacturers, TCL, announced a joint partnership with Paramount Pictures, the producers of "Transformers 3," for an international joint promotion of the movie.
TCL is the only color television manufacturer that joined Paramount to promote the movie worldwide. After the 3D movie "Avatar," the 3D movie "Transformers 3" will undoubtedly bring a wave of enthusiasm for 3D movies around the world.
As its promoter, TCL is expected to be able to present itself to more people as the movie travels around the world, ushering in marketing profits and helping to take a larger share of the global market.
In this way, Chinese elements have joined foreign cultures for a worldwide spread of this movie. "In the face of international trends, some Chinese entities are adopting new methods to blend in," said Hao Xiaohui, chief editor of a Chinese luxury goods website.
Learn from others and be confident
"Spreading and accepting foreign cultures is not a black and white issue. We cannot say it is purely bad to accept other cultures," said folklorist Gao Wei.
Blindly rejecting foreign cultures shows an inner timidity. If a country's people have strong self-confidence, there is no need to be afraid of foreign things. If another country's things are indeed better than ours, we can learn from them.
Of course, there is no need to copy from others. There are good aspects to be found within our own culture as well. Yet, there is nothing contradictory about also liking certain aspects of other's culture.
For most youths of the post-80's generation, Transformers brings memories of their childhood. Transformer toys brought people of this generation a lot of fun.
"Good publicity and toy packaging methods have allowed the Transformers to be welcomed by Chinese children, which is what we should learn from," added Gao.
Elements of Chinese culture and society can be found in both movies, "Kung Fu Panda" and "Transformers 3." The hero in "Kung Fu Panda" is a Chinese panda, and Paramount chose TCL to jointly promote the "Transformers 3" movie.
"Nowadays, assimilating with international trends and simultaneously showing the nation's own spirit and culture is the way to help our country actively carry on its own traditions," added Gao. However, if we don't try to keep up with modern times, we will lose the interest of the young generation.
