This very success has bred enemies as well as imitators. Authoritarians left and right, religious fundamentalists and cultural conservatives — whether in China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh or France — look warily at American film imports as conveyors of value disease.
But over the long run — suggests a provocative study by the Burkle Center for International Relations at the University of California,Los Angeles, the world need not fret too much. Should dynamic globalization indeed prove a two-way export-import street, other stars eventually will shine just as brightly.
The most likely candidate to challenge Hollywood for the lead is Asia. India and China together boast not only one-third of the world's population (the United States has 4 percent) but have thriving film and television industries.
Whereas Hollywood releases about 250 commercial films a year, India alone cranks out 800 to 900, though not many of the big-ticket variety which is the U.S. forte. Cinematic output and creativity also are rising in the Philippines, Iran, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore and of course, Hong Kong. The Chinese film "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" has grossed more than $100 million in the United States alone — the first foreign-language film to take in that kind of cash.
Consider surprising Iran, which many in the West dismiss as little more than a closed-minded Mars. Indeed, almost all of the cinematic products of our Hollywood infidels are banned there. But the unintended consequence of the mullahs' megalomania — or narrow-mindedness — has been to nurture an indigenous film industry that has people everywhere buzzing. Suddenly, Iranian films are hot. "The White Balloon," "The Apple" and "Children of Heaven" stir audiences everywhere. A few years ago, the Iran-made tragedy "The Taste of Cherries" copped Cannes' coveted Palm d'Or.
Should such trends worry the United States, where the film industry is such a pivotal portion of the economy? On the contrary, argues the UCLA study, "The Potential Role of the Media in Preventing Deadly Conflicts":
The increasing Asianization of the film business could represent globalization at its most desirable. Exposing a broader sector of the U.S. audience to divergent cultural and political perspectives could prove of enormous value. Rather than experiencing a fearsome and reductive "clash of civilizations," we would get a truly cosmopolitan world entertainment media (e.g., more movies might even show serious problems being solved without guns or bombs).
