The University of Pittsburgh's Taiwanese Student Association and Asian Studies Center will present a screening of the 2011 Taiwanese movie movie Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale (賽德克·巴萊), followed by a discussion with director Wei Te-sheng (魏德聖) on February 23. The pre-registration deadline for the movie is February 21 at midnight, and registration has been opened to the public but due to a limited number of spots, preference will be given to Pitt and CMU students, faculty, and staff.
An overview of the movie, from a 2012 New York Times review:
Its story is based on the little-known Wushe Incident in 1930, when 300 warriors of the Seediq, an aboriginal people centered in Taiwan’s interior highlands, rose up against their Japanese oppressors. A brief historical preface explains that in 1895, the island of Taiwan was ceded by China to Japan, which subdued the native population and turned them into demoralized, alcoholic slaves. Steeped in mysticism, tribal folklore and Asian machismo, the film is a two-and-a-half-hour bloodbath that fetishizes the machete as the ultimate human slicing machine.The movie starts at 5:00 pm, and the discussion at 8:30. Registration for the movie and registration for the discussion with Wei is required.
