I saw the indie film “KJ” the other night. its a documentary on Wong Ka-Jeng, who at the age of 11 was selected to play a concert and record with the orchestra from the Czech Republic. the film interposes footage from that tour with WKJ’s life as a 17 year old trying to formulate his philosophy on music and life.
quite honestly, i found the film to be slow and the there was a nagging question in the back of my mind ‘what is the point of this movie?’ i understand that the artistic intermretation of the film is purposefully left to the viewer but this question kept gnawing at me. perhaps i lack the appreciation for this art form, but apparent so does most of the HK audience; though this film may change that. while we watched KJ at an indie arthouse cinema, it has been given greater exposure at other movie theatres around town.
i appreciated the ’swim against the system’ that KJ presented. though i did not grow up in the HK music system. I’ve heard plenty of stories of the grinding series of exams and competitions. In high school, I decided that I was done with such things and would only play for myself. I agreed with his stance that music must be appreciated for itself, not merely as a means of personal or team glory (in competition) this mindset is very rare in today’s world — not just in HK but in most places. it is a part of modern culture — this lack of appreciation for classical music and what it takes to become proficient as musicians.
because ‘KJ’ follows the main character at 11 and 17 yrs old, i found that the film did not achieve any significant goals. had KJ become an adult and was proactively influencing others, students, fellow musicians with his philosophy of music and life, then I could accept the validity of this film,. instead, we are presented with a child who seems quite unlikeable. he stands apart from his peers. even though they seem accepting/toleratant or his arrogant andoff-putting demeanor. even among his siblings, his older brother and younger sister seem far more sympathic in comparison.
The turning point in the film was the discussion of his parents divorce. at this point, KJ began to become a real human being. (another of his mantra’s: “I want to become a human being” which was not further developed.) As KJ talked about what occurred inbetween the 11yr old him and the 17 yr old him, the vulnerable and humble KJ was much more endearing and made his message much more palatable.
Indeed KJ is a tragic figure. he does not fit in with his society. he could not get into the ‘team spirit’ of his music teammates’ celebration of their victory in the competition. he seemed disconnected with is brother and sister and though he seemed closed to his father as a child, it was clear that that was no longer the case by the time he was 17.
As a christian, seeing his story does make me think that here is a person who needs to encounter the saving grace of Jesus Christ. the deep philosophical questions posed by 11yr old KJ echo in the hearts of all thoughtful men and women and history seems consistent in showing that all human conclusions to such questions become nilistic — apart from a true understanding of the grace of God.
if you have the chance to see this movie, i would encourage you to check it out. at time, it may feel like work to sit thru, but there is some entertainment value there and a good opening for deeper conversations about life, and the condition of man.
here are some links for more info:
article with director, Cheung King-Wai from BC Magazine
article from AsiaMediaWiki
entry from LoveHKfilm.com
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