Five days until Pam, Camryn and I return home.
By Terry R. Cassreino
GUANGZHOU, China - Movie pirating runs rampant in China.
Despite strong efforts by the Motion Picture Association of America and others, bootleg copies of major Hollywood productions can be found just about anywhere here.
We saw it in Beijing and Nanchang; we saw it again in Guangzhou.
If you play just about any new legal DVD you buy in the United States, you likely will see a public service announcement warning people about pirated films.
Buying bootleg movies is a crime, the ad says.
Apparently, though, not in China.
A trip to a video store today in Guangzhou found copies of such current box office hits as “The Pink Panther,” “V for Vendetta,” “Basic Instinct 2” and Spike Lee’s latest “Inside Man.”
“Basic Instinct 2” opened March 31 while “Inside Man” opened March 24. Those and other recent Hollywood films sell here for the equivalent of about $1.50 each.
That’s not all. The store I visited, as well as such established high-profile stores like Wal-Mart, sold what looked like bootleg copies of major Walt Disney features.
In fact, you can find a package of DVDs at the Wal-Mart in Nanchang and Beijing that includes copies of Walt Disney films that are obviously not Walt Disney films.
One DVD I saw in China was a collection of Tom & Jerry theatrical cartoons. The box was labeled as a Disney DVD; everyone knows Tom & Jerry is an MGM cartoon.
Here’s another interesting tidbit: In Guangzhou, you can buy a multi-DVD set featuring the entire second season of “Lost” even though it hasn’t fully aired in the United States. You can also buy one entire box set of seasons 1-6 of “Seinfeld.”
Some of the pirated Hollywood DVDS had the wrong film credits on the backside of the case.
For example, a movie like “Brokeback Mountain” might list Danny DeVito as director. Taiwan native Ang Lee won the Oscar as director of the film.
But no one seems to care over here. And as long as people keep burning DVDs of pirated movies - some of whose quality is near perfect - I guess people will buy them.
And just in case you are wondering: I refuse to support the pirated DVD market. Pirated or bootlegged DVDs, whatever you call it, is wrong. It’s the same as stealing.
Shopping in Guangzhou
We took a trip to the jade and pearl market in Guangzhou today, where rows and rows of shops offered just about anything you would ever want to buy in the way of jewelry.
In fact, it looked like I was back in New Orleans at one of the Mardi Gras supply stores buying throws for the Krewe of Endymion.
But to be perfectly frank, Pam and I were not impressed. Both of us were bored beyond belief by the same, repetitious offerings at each booth.
We much preferred to hang around the hotel and shop at any of the street-side boutiques that sell knick-knacks, souvenirs and some great, high-quality Chinese clothing.
Paperwork moves forward
We completed almost all of the paperwork for Camryn’s visa application today, including snapping her photo at a local instant photo shop.
On Monday, we have a free morning to explore Shaiman Island - the section of Guangzhou where we are staying. Then it’s off to the doctor’s office for Camryn's official medical exam.
We plan to video tape and photograph her examination.
And then we head to a dim sum restaurant for a group dinner. Again, don’t ask me where we are going because I don’t speak or read Chinese very well and I simply don’t know.
On Tuesday, we will visit the Six Banyans Buddhist Temple in Guangzhou. Pam and I visited a Buddhist temple today near the jade and pearl market.
It was a quick, fascinating visit. The folks there even allowed us to take a photo of one of the statues. I’ll let you know Tuesday if this was the same temple as Six Banyans.
Photos and text copyright 2006 by Terry R. Cassreino.
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