Sinophone Malaysian Articulations And Intergenerational Dynamics In A Malaysian Chinese Film: The Kid From The Big Apple (2016)
Keywords:
Malaysian Chinese films, Sinophone Malaysian, identity, intergenerational, transnationalAbstract
Transnational migration, a factor of modern cultural and social transformations, has induced profound changes in Chinese people individually as well as their family units. The migration process has inevitably brought about displacement of cultural identity which has profound influence on family life and structure. The Kid from the Big Apple (2016) is a Malaysian Chinese film that captures all the essence of the diasporic experience of a Malaysian Chinese family across generations, that also incorporates a transnational angle. Using concepts from Sinophone studies and Hall’s theory on cultural identity, this paper aims to explore the ways the said film – The Kid from the Big Apple (2016) – visually represents the articulation of Sinophone Malaysian identity whilst also investigate the particular experience of being Chinese in Malaysia from the perspectives of an older and younger generation. Further, this paper also demonstrates the fluidity and malleability of Chinese cultural practices as practices that can be learnt or unlearnt through meaningful dialogue as well as openness to cultural negotiation. It concludes that the film provides a significant space to reflect on emerging patterns of intergenerational interactions in multigenerational Malaysian Chinese households in the 21st century.
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