Over saying Ang Lee is a Taiwanese. http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=872502 Angelina Jolie accused of disrespecting China during 'Maleficent' promotional tour June 11, 2014, 9:11 AM EST With one answer to one question, "Maleficent" star Angelina Jolie found herself in hot water during her promotional tour in China. During a press conference, she was asked to name her favorite Chinese director. She cited "Brokeback Mountain" director Ang Lee, but then added, "I am not sure if you consider Ang Lee Chinese. He's Taiwanese, but he does many Chinese-language films with many Chinese artists and actors, and I think his works and the actors in his films are the ones I am most familiar with and very fond of." Also from TheWrap: 'Maleficent' Reviews: Angelina Jolie Delivers But Does the Rest of the Movie? Some Chinese natives were offended by Jolie's implication that Taiwan and China are separate countries, according to The Independent. In 1949, after the Chinese civil war, the Nationalists established a rival government on the island of Taiwan. While Taiwan has been independent since then, China still claims sovereignty over it. Since 2008, relations have improved between the two, but tensions have by no means been eradicated. Lee was born in Pingtung, in southern Taiwan, though he is now an American citizen. See photos: The Evolution of Angelina Jolie: From a 'Girl, Interrupted' to a Disney Villain Reconstructed The social media response in China was immediate after Jolie's comments, with some calling for a boycott of her films, according to The Independent. Others called her work "traitorous," while Jolie was dubbed a "deranged Taiwan independence supporter." "By implying that Taiwan and China are two separate countries, in a moment of excitement, a brilliant woman became a stupid laughing stock," one Chinese Weibo user said of Jolie, according to The Independent. The response in Taiwan has been the exact opposite, with one user on social media calling Jolie a "brave and brilliant woman," according to The Wall Street Journal. Another woman in Taiwan took to Facebook to add, "[Jolie's] comment about Ang Lee being Taiwanese shows she fully deserves to be the Goodwill Ambassador for the UN. She is not afraid to tell the truth." Jolie was likely not trying to incite any controversy with her answer. In fact, it could be argued that she was trying to be very careful in her choice of words, but it backfired on her. The relationship between China and Taiwan is a complicated issue, and one that's not easily understood by those looking in from the outside.
QUOTE- "By implying that Taiwan and China are two separate countries, in a moment of excitement, a brilliant woman became a stupid laughing stock," one Chinese Weibo user said of Jolie, according to The Independent. The response in Taiwan has been the exact opposite, with one user on social media calling Jolie a "brave and brilliant woman," These people are incredibly sexist. What does her gender have to do with it?
So . .. is this like someone saying their Favorite American <Insert whatever> and that person is from Puerta Rico? Technically they would be American but Puerta Rico is not exactly a state Trying to see what's the beef. Rocket River
Yeah, I'm not seeing the big deal here. If anything, she shows a bit more awareness of Taiwanese/Chinese culture and history than your average American.
She should have just said Zhang Yimou like everyone else. She was probably trying to sound smart. The best case scenario was not much different if she would have said "Werner Herzog, oh but wait he is German."
When you're in China, refer to Taiwan as part of China. When you're not in China, Taiwan is an independent sovereign nation. National pride thing - not rational.
Isn't Taiwan one of those disputed islands that Japan and China both claim? I'd take Japan in that fight
Very disrespectful to the good people of China. I hope Shanghai takes away the key to the city given to her in 2008 for her work in Kung Fu Panda.
It's disturbing that the US has supplied a random island of China with over 25 Billion in military arms sales. Why not sell the arms directly to Beijing?
It's not a big deal. There are some mainland Chinese who consider Ang Lee to be an outsider, but the affront is that a Westerner publicly called it out when Taiwan has been taught as theirs. The fact that no official was specifically cited means that it's not really a BFD and would be a BiggerFD if the Chinese government overreacted like they would've a decade ago. Maybe they paid some shills to raise interweb outrage, but the official front is subdued since the Taiwanese government has been more or less in their pockets lately.
