Asian DVDs & Videos
Call No. B121 .E27 2002
The first part of the Eastern philosophy series that examines the dominant philosophical and spiritual thought of the Far East. This program covers Confucianism and Shintoism.
Call No. B121 .E272 2002
Part 2 of the Eastern philosophy series turns to south Asian schools of thought. This program covers Hinduism and Buddhism.
Call No. B121 .E2722 2002
The final part of the Eastern philosophy series examines the two most prominent religions in the Middle East, Judaism and Islam.
Call No. BQ882 .V54 2004
Chronicles the story of Prince Siddhartha and his spiritual transformation into the Buddha.
Call No. BQ8921 .K34 W44 2005
Wheel of Time is acclaimed filmmaker Werner Herzog's gorgeously photographed look at the largest Buddhist ritual in Bodh Gaya, India.
Call No. B128 .C8 C645 1999
Travel back to China's troubled feudal era to tell Confucius' dramatic story, from his impoverished childhood and down the long road to his years as a celebrated teacher.
Call No. CB311 .A53235 2004
This program describes the origins of the Samurai tradition in the twelfth century and examines how this warrior caste influenced the Japanese military until well into the twentieth century. Explores the paradox of fanaticism/aggressiveness and spiritual tranquility/self discipline.
Call No. CB311 .A53236 2004
This program traces ancient Chinese history and explores the roots of Chinese culture, from the creation legend of Panku to the demise of the Han dynasty.
Call No. CB311 .A53228 2004
This program traces the history of a civilization that is India today. Examines the religious tension between Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam, and the historical events that created the diverse cultures, peoples, religions, and artifacts, from the Mauryan Empire through the fall of the Mogul Empire.
Call No. D743.23 .W58 2000
The Battle of China (1944): Depicts Japanese aggression against China during World War II and describes Japan's plans for world conquest. Recalls Chinese development of the compass, printing, astronomy, gunpowder, and porcelain. War comes to America (1945): Briefly reviews the history of the United States and describes the characteristics, habits, and beliefs of the American people. Explains the events from 1931 to 1941 that caused the United States to enter World War II.
Call No. DS22 .G463 1996
Recounts the life and conquests of Genghis Khan.
Call No. DS383.5.A3 R47 2006
This program reports from the lawless Pakistani tribal areas along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and reveals how the area has fallen under the control of a resurgent Taliban militia which uses it as a launching pad for attacks on U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan. .
Call No. DS414.2 .H45 2005
Nina Davenport spent one year travelling throughout India with her 16mm hand-crank movie camera, capturing images of the people and the country few Westerners ever see: a jute factory straight out of the industrial age, a mosque decorated with erotic sculptures, cows stuck in traffic jams, elephants blessing people, scenes of a traveling circus, inside a school for the blind, and holy people possessed by spirits. We return now and then to the sets of Bombay's thriving film industry and to the streets themselves in a unique visual experience of India.
Call No. DS428.2 .D37 2004
Shedding new light upon issues of global diversity, this documentary focuses on the extent to which a "fairness fetish" has permeated Indian society. The preference for lighter, fairer skin is examined in various areas including the fashion industry and arranged marriages. Evidence of the fair skin ideal is traced back to the great epics of India, the Ramayana and Mahabarata, through the British Raj, up through contemporary society. With a focus on the emotional and psychological impact, this film addresses the historical and contemporary factors that contribute to the pressures thrust upon Indian women by a society obsessed with fair skin.
Call No. DS558 .H43 2002
Presents the brutality of the Vietnamese Conflict. Examines U.S. involvement in Vietnam, portraying the war as a manifestation of misguided patriotism and blind ignorance buttressed by racism, self-righteousness, and anti-communist hysteria. Chronicles the war more from a psychological than political perspective, tracing the cultural forces and attitudes that led and kept America there. Offers personal recollections from all sides of the conflict, American, French and Vietnamese. Includes interviews with General William Westmoreland, former Secretary of Defense Clark Clifford, Senator William Fulbright, Walt Rostow and Daniel Ellsberg, as well as American Vietnam veterans and Vietnamese leaders. Presidents Eisenhower, Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon are shown in rare footage.
Call No. DS558 .V475 1996
This documentary series chronicles three decades of struggle in Vietnam, providing a detailed visual and oral account of the war.
Call No. DS558 .V47522 2004
"Roots of War" examines the period of French colonial domination of Vietnam and the rise of Ho Chi Minh toward the end of World War II. Ho Chi Minh declared independence in Hanoi, but the British helped the French regain control of Saigon, effectively dividing the country. "America's mandarin" shows how the division of Vietnam brought Catholics and pro-French northerners to the South. With help from the U.S. in the form of monetary aid and military advisors, Ngo Dinh Diem established a government. This episode follows the course of Diem's presidency through the 1963 coup.
Call No. DS558 .V47523 2004
"LBJ Goes to War" tells how, following the assassination of President Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson inherited a series of coups in Saigon and how northern guerillas controlled the countryside as the South Vietnamese army disintegrated. Also looks at the Tonkin Gulf Incident and how Johnson secretly approved open-ended deployment of American troops. "America Takes Charge" describes how the Viet Minh responded to the 1.5 million American's dispatched to Vietnam by the Johnson administration. Also examines the American soldier's view of the war with a mostly unseen enemy. "America's Enemy" presents a view of the war in Vietnam as experienced by the followers of Ho Chi Minh and as described by American soldiers and P.O.W.'s. Looks at the effects of Hanoi's growing socialization of the North and the results of U.S. bombing and guerilla and conventional warfare.
Call No. DS558 .V47524 2004
"Tet" explains how the massive Tet Offensive divided President Johnson's staff about the winability of the war, while the official stance was that America had won the ground war. Peace negotiations and troop reductions were begun while the fighting went on. "Vietnamizing the War" examines president Nixon's program of gradually reducing American troops in Vietnam placed the larger share of the ground fighting on the Vietnamese, with the U.S. providing arms and air support. Discusses the social problems of the Americans in Vietnam as well as the problems caused by the presence and withdrawal of the Americans. "Cambodia and Laos" analyzes how despite attempts to remain neutral, Cambodia and Laos are drawn into the war. American involvement continues through the resultant 1975 communist Khmer Rouge victory in Cambodia, which causes an estimated 2 million peasant refugees to endure starvation, terror and eventually slaughter.
Call No. DS558 .V47525 2004
"Peace is at Hand" looks at how Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger worked to end the war in Vietnam from 1968 to 1973, increasing Vietnamization and troop withdrawal. Traces the course of the Paris Peace Talks from their inception to the final cease-fire agreement. "Homefront USA" focuses on the polarization of American opinion about U.S. involvement in Vietnam, exploring the reporting of events at home, and the expression of public policy. "End of the Tunnel" tells how, with the North Vietnamese spring offensive of 1975, the South Vietnamese Army collapsed and the American soldiers returned home to ignominy, rather than admiration.
Call No. DS559.5 .F537 2002
Documentary about the line between good and evil, focusing on the contradictory emotions that war evokes, such as terror and anger, but also seduction, fascination and excitement. Includes interviews with journalist and author Michael Herr, war photographer Eddie Adams, and other Vietnam veterans. They discuss their aversion and attraction to war and killing. These interviews are juxtaposed with scenes from the war and images of young Vietnamese and foreigners in present day Vietnam who continue to show a fascination with the war and its memory as they tour former battlefields.
Call No. DS559.62.U6 T86 2005
In October 1967, history turned a corner in a jungle in Vietnam, a Viet Cong ambush nearly wiped out an American battalion, prompting some in power to question whether the war might be unwinnable. On a campus in Wisconsin, a student protest against the war spiraled out of control, marking the first time that a campus anti-war deomonstration had turned violent. This film examines the events that took place in the fall of 1967. The emotionally wrenching parallel stories are told by the people whose lives were irrevocably changed by what happened.
Film maker Barbara Sonneborn makes a pilgrimage to the remote Vietnamese countryside where her husband died. She and translator (and fellow war widow) Xuan Ngoc Nguyen explore the meaning of war and loss on a personal level. The film weaves interviews with Vietnamese and American war widows into a vivid testament to the sorrowful legacy of war.
Call No. DS647.B2 T48 1988
Anthropologist Steve Lansing guides the viewer on an exploration of the Indonesian, temple-based, civilization of Bali, which is coming to terms with the technological West. The Balinese make artistic offerings of music, dance, poetry, and even food in order to maintain the delicate balance between the world they live in, the world of the gods, and the world of the demons. The Balinese have retained what was important to them, which is a blend of animism, Hinduism, and Buddhism into a single continuous tradition.
Call No. DS747.9.Q254 T65 1998
In 1974 a farmer discovered a huge army of terra cotta figures. The site is still being excavated today. Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum and the Museum of Qin Terra-cotta Figures are featured.
Call No. DS749.3 .C45 1993
Presents an overview of China's Tʻang dynasty, A.D. 618-907, its history, civilization, arts, culture, and its contribution to the humanistic traditions of China, Korea and Japan.
Call No. DS771 .C53 1997
Examines the background, events, and aftermath of an uprising, which saw Chinese peasants take up arms in an attempt to drive foreigners out of the country in defense of their cultural and religious traditions. The failure of the Boxer Rebellion built support for nationalism which eventually led to the revolution of 1911, the rise of Sun Yat-sen.
Call No. DS774 .C42 1997
First part in a series telling the story of the eight decades of upheaval in China which followed the fall of its last emperor in 1911. This program recounts the years between 1911 and 1949, during which China was transformed from a centuries-old empire into the world's largest Communist state. Highlights four decades of civil war, foreign invasion and the ascension of rival leaders Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai-shek. Includes interviews with people who participated in the events described and newsreel footage.
Call No. DS774 .C422 1997
Second part in a series telling the story of the eight decades of upheaval in China which followed the fall of its last emperor in 1911. This program explores the political and social history of Communist China under Mao Tse-tung. The 1st segment traces the country's early successes under Mao to its subsequent impoverishment and famine of 1959 to 1961. The 2nd segment chronicles China's recovery under the policies of Mao's chosen successor Liu Shao-ch'i, Mao's reassertion of power with the Cultural Revolution, the advent of limited captialism and opening to the world in the 1970's, and Mao's death in 1976. Includes interviews with people who participated in the events described and newsreel footage.
Call No. DS774 .C4222 1997
Third part in a series telling the story of the eight decades of upheaval in China which followed the fall of its last emperor in 1911. This program covers the years 1976-1997, following Mao's death, in which China experienced sweeping economic and social changes under Deng Xiaoping leading to to the growing student movements and the government crackdown in Tiananmen Square and its aftermath. Includes interviews with people who participated in the events described and newsreel footage.
Call No. DS779.23 .S56 2006
This film explores the maze of allegorical naming and storytelling in China and attempts to realize on screen the shifts of interpretation in contemporary Chinese culture and politics. Ponders questions of power and change, politics and culture, as refracted by the events in Tienanmen Square. The film layers Chinese popular songs and classical music, the sayings of Mao and Confucius, women's voices and the words of artists, philosophers and other cultural workers. Also discusses the Chinese film industry and censorship.
Call No. DS798.9.U57 W55 2002
Portrays contemporary life in Ulaan Bataar, a city at the crossroads of tradition and modernity, communism and global capitalism. Follows Jenya and Sasha as they search for jobs during the coldest winter on record. They try various jobs, selling everything from used mobile phones to intestines, but nothing generates the desired cash flow. The film reveals that their hopes and dreams are not so different from those of young people in other parts of the world.
Call No. DS821 .F68 2006
An examination of Japan's modern civilization; its culture, art, and social rituals. Illustrates the visual pleasure in common things, composing and decomposing the social landscape, while constructing a poetic grid of temporalities, symbolic meaning, and ritual.
Call No. DS827.S3 S26 2003
Explores the extraordinary legacy of martial artistry, ceremony, self-discipline and tenacity in battle that reaches to this day. Modern-day samurai explain the ways of life in the Bushido, while scholars detail the pivotal events in their centuries-long history. From the heyday of the Heian Period (794-1185) to the inevitable decline that followed the opening of Japan in 1853, this is the definitive study of some of world's most famous fighters.
Call No. DS835 .J32 1996
Covers 2000 years of the complex, vibrant, living history of Japan, the island nation that rose from its own ashes to become the new industrial giant of the world. Japan's richness in culture, martial arts, samurai warriors, geishas, religious traditions and various performing arts are shown.
Call No. DS917 .K67 1995
A group of 4 short films that serves as a promotional piece for the growth of South Korea in the post-World War II era, for the purpose of creating knowledge and understanding of Korea. Part 1 covers the major events in the Korean War and shows footage of the Korean War. Part 2 describes industrial and agricultural advances of the Korean nation. Part 3 and 4 examine cultural conditions in Korea including performances of court dance and music, art exhibits and the performing arts.