This new science fiction bestseller,
Chinese science fiction bestseller Three-body Problems and a story by
author Leo Sheehan portrays a fictional past, present and future where the Earth
encounters a civilization from another world.
The opening scenes of this adaptation on Netflix, of course, starts during
China's Cultural Revolution, a bloody period that authorities often avoid
discussing. And Bloomberg opinion columnist Karishma
Vaswani thinks that a series shines a light actually, on a more
complex
version of China. Karishma joins us right now to talk us
through this. It's fairly, I would say, fairly clear
to see why there's controversy around, particularly around, you know, why they
chose this to be the starting point. Because the question is, did it have to
be controversial? You know what, David?
I think it did have to be controversial in and of itself.
I don't know whether you've watched the series yet.
I watched it over the weekend with my husband.
It's it's definitely somethin
g that gets you thinking.
And it's based on a series of books, of course, that were a huge success, not
just in China, but around the world amongst some very loyal fans.
And I think it's really interesting the way the Netflix series decided to start
with that scene from the Cultural Revolution.
I don't want to give it away to people who've not watched it yet, but it is not
for the faint hearted to say the least. And I think that the fact that there has
been this controversy around it, you've got
Chinese fans who are saying, well,
why has Netflix made this such an Americanized Westernised version of the
much loved book? And then you've got global fans looking
at this. For some, it's their very first
experience of understanding this tale, this wild, strange world that the author
has created that's come out of China but doesn't look anything like the kind of
China that Xi Jinping likes to portray to the world.
And that in and of itself, David, I feel, is such an achievement because it
rea
lly portrays this idea that Xi Jinping may want to control so many
areas of public life. But when it comes to your imagination,
he really can't do that, can he? And it's interesting, as you say, right?
I mean, no spoilers, obviously. I haven't seen it yet, but you really do
sell it. Charisma.
You talk about how the show presents an alternative grow world.
Why do you think that's important? You know, Yvonne, I think it is
important because when we look at some of the fundamental issues between Ch
ina
and the US today, it's always about geopolitics.
It's always about what's happening in the Taiwan Strait, what's happening in
the South China Sea. How do we resolve the issue of trade
tariffs between these two superpower rivals?
But through this series and through the book, there is a global conversation
taking place. I mean, you know, you just have to look
at social media to see the kinds of opinions that are being reflected as a
result of what people are watching online.
I mean, I have to
say that, you know, this is not available in China, but
people are watching it through VPNs and around the world.
They're watching it on Netflix. And now you have this conversation
taking place where it's not about Taiwan and it's not about the South China Sea,
but it's about this fantastical world and this sci fi mystery.
And in a way, perhaps this is a bit idealistic, but forgive me and indulge
me a little. It allows audiences from all over the
world to talk about the same thing. And ultimatel
y, isn't that what we're
all about? We love watching stuff that makes us go,
wow, and it brings people together in a way that I don't think we've seen in
quite a while, which is a lot.
Okay, Let me let me let let me build on that.
It does useful exercises in it. You know, when you have two audiences in
your point, Chinese and American audiences discussing the same thing, but
looking at that very same thing through different lenses is that is this
bridging that gap, if you will? Yeah, I mean, Dav
id, you've put it so
beautifully, I couldn't have put it better myself.
And I think that lens should be applied even further in other aspects of
cultural film, film rather, and literary life.
You know, there are a number of sci fi books in China that could make it onto
the silver screens, despite the fact that this genre has been so heavily
regulated within China itself. It was just a few years ago, in fact,
that Xi Jinping and the government that came out with guidelines as to how to
portray th
e sci fi world around in Chinese screens, on Chinese screens, but
also as an export. And it was very much about showcasing
China's technological advancement. What I think is interesting about this
particular series is it came before that period and I think it is a way for
audiences around the world to sort of relate to each other and realize they
all like the same thing.
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