I Am What I Am (2021)

[Drunk Monk]

Seen on YouTube here:


This is an animated PRC film about Lion Dancing. It’s the ol’ underdog sport championship trope, so predictable, and why I’m not a fan of the sports genre. But the twist is it’s about lion dance. I’ve always thought there are great stories to come out of lion dance and here this is.

The animation is fascinating. The lions look almost real. The humans are very caricature, but the depiction of modern PRC is spot on - the poverty, the squalor, that general worn down look of it - so authentic feeling. What got me was a chipped enamel mug and a large plastic woven carrying bag, both of which I’ve seen countless times in PRC. This movie just nails that feel, slovenly destitute yet beautiful in its simplicity and hardship.

I was surprisingly moved despite its cliche predictability. It’s for anyone who’s ever got in a lion head (me & the cfs - lcf was even working on a lion danced based story at one point). This captures that lion dancing spirit so well. There’s just something about the art and culture that’s hard to understand unless you’re in it. 

Only D00M recommended for us D00M lion dancers.

[King Bob]

There is a lion dance team that practices on campus some afternoons. I don't know if they are students are not. They never have a sign or anything so I don't know who they are. Yesterday the drummers were putting out a nice crisp rhythm. when I headed home. Better than San Jose Taiko, but that's not saying much.

[Drunk Monk]

The name of their org will be on their drum and on the back of their lion head. It’s usually in Chinese tho.

Lion dance drumming is very specific. There are specific beats to tell the lion what’s happening because it’s difficult to see out of a lion head and the tail can’t see at all. Plus every team has a signature beat, or at least they’re supposed to have that but a lot of modern teams just copy another beat if they have no lineage.

[King Bob]

I didn't see anything on the drums. They had put out a vase painted gold with a single character on it. I thought that might be a clue, but of course I can't read Chinese.

[Drunk Monk]

I Am What I Am 2 (2024)

This film was amazing. We've talked about films made just for DM. Here's another. 

First of all, the title translation is stupid. The title is 雄狮少年2, which translates into Lion Boy 2. That makes a lot more sense. Lion Boy 1 was a box office blockbuster. This sequel was teased but the filmmakers claim it only came about after part 1 did so well. 

In this sequel, Gyun, Cat and Dog try to make it in Shanghai, but fail. As fate would have it, they cross paths with a struggling Kung Fu school, next door to a giant MMA school. Gyun's dad needs money so he can walk again, and there's a big tournament with a cash prize, and well, you know the rest. What makes this shine is it's all about traditional Kung Fu versus modern sport fighting. For anyone who's practiced traditional Kung Fu, this strikes straight to the heart - the training, the hardships, the endurance, and mostly, the spirit. It's a great underdog story and the fight choreo is engaging. The animation is spectacular with backgrounds and settings so real looking that it's unsettling. The characters are still cartoonish, but some of the scenes were so convincing and detailed, I couldn't but be awestruck. 

Sadly, the sequel underperformed, garnering less than a third of the original and posting a loss overall. A threequel was planned about Dragon Boat racing, but that's been shelved until it gets financiers, which is unlikely. 

Totally D00M recommended, although it may only work for DM and the cfs. While this somewhat stands on its own, I do think you should see part 1 first. It's a continuous story and several elements carry over, especially lion dance. 




Seen here: https://fawesome.tv/movies/10734506/i-am-what-i-am-2