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Gung Ho (1986)

Rate: 7
Viewed: 6/18

GungHo
6/18: Gung Ho is a movie I remember from the 80's about business relationship and cultural differences between Americans and Japanese.

At first, I got curious if it was still racist or not, and after finishing the film, I think it's not that bad and can understand where both sides are coming from. Now, if anybody saw his reputation ruined because of the character he played, it's George Wendt. I've never forgotten how mean he was to the Japanese. That image stuck to me throughout his days of appearing in Cheers. It's a career mistake he made.

Wendt's character should've been called out during the softball game because it's illegal to run through a player who has the right to field a play. The resulting runs won't have been counted; therefore, it's a win for the Assan Motors execs. Equipped with Steve McQueen looks, Michael Keaton was a very talented actor back in the 80's, and he made funny movies. He's a natural comic relief in Gung Ho and is the primary reason to pick it up which has a lot of funny scenes because of his presence. Hunt Stevenson's speeches before the workers and how he survived in Japan are great stuff.

Recently, I read Glass House: The 1% Economy and the Shattering of the All-American Town and was thinking about the parallels between the book and the film. I have to say I don't really care much for the Americans' problems. It's true they have a reputation for making shitty products, most especially cars. So, what's the answer? It's simple: do a better job. Otherwise, I'm going to continue buying foreign products because of their superior quality. That's why I don't sympathize much with the American characters in Gung Ho.

In the meantime, it's interesting to see how the Americans and the Japanese interact with each other because of cultural differences. The former is so abrasive and chauvinistic that, according to Bloomberg Businessweek, Toyota used the film as an example of how to not manage them.

All in all, Gung Ho is a funny movie that has a lot to say about cultural differences and value systems, but I don't think it's overly racist.