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 Men Suddenly in Black: The Manifestation of Heroic Bloodshed and Triad-themed Cinema in Parody

Synopsis of The Movie
Men Suddenly in Black is a parody about a group of men, Tin, Cheung, Paul and Chao, who devise a scheme to cheat on their wives. They have twenty-four hours to sleep with a woman before their wives come back from Thailand. Unbeknown to them, their wives did not go to Thailand because they got put off the plane before it took off for making a big commotion. While trying to cheat, they face many obstacles in trying to honor their "fallen" comrade, Ninth Uncle, who got caught cheating and took the fall for the previous group of husbands that got together to cheat on their wives. When, they finally get the chance to cheat,they almost get caught, but Cheung spots the wives in the lobby of the hotel. But Tin's wife warns them of their arrival in the hotel they went to cheat at. She does this because she already knows what that her husband cheats. While trying to escape the room, the group climbs out on the ledge of hotel building. They escape with the help of Tin's high school sweetheart. The men finally decide to stop cheating on their wives and go out for lunch from then on instead. It isn't until the end of the movie that Tin actually finds out that his wife sent him the text.

Heroic Bloodshed Films
Heroic bloodshed films are a major part of Hong Kong cinema. These films are classified by their infamous gunfights and disdain towards authority figures of any kind. These films contain rapid editing and the nostalgic essence of reminiscence.

History of Triads
Triads are one of the biggest underground criminal organizations manifested in Hong Kong. This criminal organization was established in 1790 as resistance groups to retaliate against Manchu rule in the Qing Dynasty. Later on down the line, the term "triad" was coined by the British colony in reference to their usage of triangular shaped imagery. Thus, the triads were born.

Triads in Hong Kong Cinema
Triad gangs in Hong Kong action films are portrayed as lawless, ruthless thugs that have no regard of authority figures. They sacrifice themselves for the greater good of the brotherhood,they consist of a hierarchy, have some internal conflict among the members of the triad, and are always faced with the moral decision to do right.

Heroic Bloodshed and Triads as Portrayed in Men Suddenly in Black
An article entitled, “Changing a Culture of Corruption: How Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption Succeeded in Furthering a Culture of Lawfulness”, by Richard C. LaMagna, former Deputy Chief of Intelligence for the Drug Enforcement Administration, goes into depth about the triad society in Hong Kong. The article depicts how these triads actually infiltrate major corporations and businesses, as well as authority, to gain benefits, and the overall reign of organized crime in Hong Kong. Because the authority was infiltrated by triads, and because citizens were too scared to report crime, there was no lawfulness. This led the authority to become corrupt. “For generations, in Chinese society the poor and the unempowered were accustomed to being exploited, usually by government officials. Thus, many Chinese view triad influence and corruption as necessary evils... They were seen as able to deliver... justice... and swift and deliberate punishment better than any corrupt government.” Apparently, the people who indulge in this type of lifestyle are out to gain something, whether it be for themselves or the organization as a whole. They go as far as to infiltrate prominent establishments and authoritarian structure.

In Hong Kong action cinema, triads are portrayed as ruthless individuals that rule the underworld. These gangsters show an outright disrespect towards law and women. Authority figures are either corrupt, or hellbent on trying to put an end to organized crime. Triads are more concerned with what goes on in their own organization. It seems as if there is a foundation of law within these triads, meaning, they follow their own code, the abide by the rules set for themselves. Women, in these films, play the role of the foolie. Although they portray prostitutes, or act as comic relief in an otherwise serious moment, they serve no real purpose. Loyalty and brotherhood appears to be one of the major themes that surface throughout the movie. They are shown as either “tests” to prove their loyalty to the members in the triad, or a never-ending plight to show that their bond will never be broken by any means. Then, you have the internal conflict within the organization. There is either a power struggle between the bosses and the higher authority, or a conflict with in a particular group that leads to either someone leaving, or someone getting hurt. There is always some type of hierarchy or status of membership within the triad. You have the “rascals” who go out and do what their bosses say, the boss who has rank over these rascals, and the boss over the whole organization. Lastly, you have the “sacrifice”, that one member of the triad who risks his life or freedom for the others. This is considered to be an honorable act among the triad.

There is an implied understanding of brotherhood throughout the movie. The simple fact that the four characters, Tin, Cheung, Chan, and Paul, are brought together for a common reason, which is to cheat on their wives, shows that bond. The sacrifice in the movie is Ninth Uncle. He basically took the fall for the original gang of husbands so that they can carry on the tradition to cheat on their wives and have fun. The internal conflict in the “triad” is the mistrust against each other in the group. The issue was there was speculation that someone in the group ratted them out to the wives. The group tries to justify their actions to do wrong, or cheat. Paul is a virgin and his girlfriend won't have sex with him. Cheung's reason to cheat is because there is no spark in his relationship. If he does cheat on his wife, he will feel bad about it. By him feeling bad, it would make him do better by his wife. Chao wants to cheat simply because he wants to, and Tin wants to cheat in honor of Ninth Uncle. The hierarchy of the group consists of Tin, following Tin is Cheung, after Cheung is Chao, and finally Paul. There is no actual disdain towards the authority figures in this film. The wives of the group are the authority figures. Their purpose, not in the film but as the role of authority, is to “bring their husbands to justice” by catching them in the act of cheating.

Men Suddenly in Black vividly captures the essence of the triad community. It is easy to understand the structure throughout the film. In some aspect, it seems as if these men do infiltrate prominent establishments and organization. The character Cheung is a doctor in the film, yet, after work, he reverts to being a deviant cheater. In some way, it seems as if Tin's wife has infiltrated the system of authority. She knows what's going on with her husband, yet, she just goes along with the other women to find the rest of the husbands without “blowing her cover”. In a sense, she as just as guilty as the husbands because she knows what they are doing, but, warns Tin of their arrival. Heroic bloodshed films depict the struggle of law and crime through epic gun fights and rapid editing, as well the nostalgic essence of reminiscence. These films also emphasize the value, or devalorize, the disabled character. Anthony Enns' “The Spectacle of Disabled Masculinity in John Woo's 'Heroic Bloodshed' Films” elaborates on the idea of disability as a representation of one's damaged masculinity. “Disability appears constantly in this film cycle, always as the result of bullet wounds: characters frequently lose the use of their legs, hands, or sometimes even entire limbs or eyes.” Majority of the time, heroic bloodshed films, the disabled man loses his significance, deeming him less important than the female character. In some instances, depending on the nature of the situation, that individual is praised for his “sacrifice”, but is never really looked at the same. Throughout the movie, Tin tells of how Ninth Uncle sacrificed himself so that they can carry on the tradition of cheating on their wives. In these nostalgic scenes, Tin is taken back to the memory of a happier Ninth Uncle. These were times when Ninth Uncle was vibrant, happy, full of life, and agile. Now, all Tin has is the memory of the happier Ninth Uncle.

In the film, the scene where the paparazzi came to the brothel and shot pictures of the men coming out portrayed a classic “gun fight” in a historic bloodshed film. Cheung grabbed water hoses and started spraying the water at the paparazzi. The paparazzi fell back in a dramatic, slow motion form. While in the alley, both Tin and Cheung took cameras and started flashing them back at the paparazzi, simulating shooting. When Tin snapped a shot at one of the men, his camera broke and he fell back as well. All of these were shot in rapid action going from one subject to the next, but never taking away from the essence of what they film is trying to convey. In this particular film, the disabled character is Ninth Uncle. He is basically kept as prisoner in his own home because he took the fall for all the men that were cheating on their wives that night in the club. Ninth Uncle looks frail, unkempt, and lifeless. But he still remains loyal to the husbands. When the husbands go to visit him, he comes into a dark room in shackles. Tin and the rest of the husbands look at this as an honorable act, but take pity on him because of the fact that he is unable to go out and be free. In the movie, he is kept under watch by a security guard. His wife tries to bribe him with porn if he give up the rest of the husbands that were in the club cheating with him, but he refuses to give them away. In this case, Ninth Uncle's wife serves as the authority figure and his disability. She serves as the authority figure because she caught him in action. She serves as his disability simply because she is wife. She takes away his masculinity, his right to be a man. She has him imprisoned in his own home, she is no longer intimate with him, and makes his life miserable. This situation somewhat implies that marriage itself is a prison or a disability to men because they can no longer go out to clubs and pick up women or do what men do. To sum this up, it demasculinizes men. This also brings me to the scene where Cheung tells Tin that instead of meeting together to cheat on their wives with other women, why can't they meet up and just talk about their lives and how their day has been going. This draws femininity to the situation.

References