Documentaries are non-fiction films that focus on a person or event through interviews and narration. The purpose of documentary is usually to inform people. Last week in my anthropology class, I watched a documentary called “Living Broke in Boom Times: Lessons from the Movement to End Poverty”. This film is actually three separate documentaries condensed into one for educational uses. The documentary basically covers the movement of the American poor in an attempt to end poverty. It follows a group of activists (Willie Baptist, Cherie Honkala, Liz Theoharis, and many others) through a ten-year journey (1989 – 1999) of attempting to gain rights for the poor people of America.
The documentary tells the stories of regular people who become homeless due to one circumstance or another. There is a prevailing American notion that if you cannot succeed in America, it is your own fault, you must have done something wrong, you did not work hard enough, and you do not deserve help. In “Living Broke In Boom Times”, we see that these people are actually people that do have jobs but their wages are just not up to the living standards. They are getting screwed over by the system where minimum wages do not necessarily cover shelter and food and other necessities of life. We rarely hear their side of the stories because the mass media does not show it. This documentary provides an outlet for their voices to be heard.
The documentary only runs around a little more than an hour. In that hour of film, the message of the “stars” of the documentary and the filmmakers are really captured. It enlightens people who did not know about the situation before. It also appeals to the emotions of the audience when you see these interviews of people telling their tragic stories. At the same time, it can also give the audience hope when we see that some progress is being made. By telling people about the situation in an informative way and playing on their feelings, the film is a profound instrument in changing the way people think about poverty and its victims in the U.S. That is what art does. Art exist to challenge people to think in different ways and to question things. “Living Broke in Boom Times” certainly does this.

Some of the more popular collections at the museum are the Egyptian arts, Temple of Dendur, Greek and Roman Art, and Modern Art. Sometimes, the hordes of people at certain areas can be overwhelming. If you want to enjoy the art at a more subdued, quiet place, head up to the second floor Asian art wing. Specifically, the Astor Court is a calm space that transports you to another world. The court is modeled on an actual Ming dynasty scholar’s courtyard in Suzhou. The courtyard’s openings, skylights, and traditional, flaring rooftops expand the space and provide a lot of light to create a peaceful environment. The limestone rock formations, bamboos, and pond add to the atmosphere.
The court leads to a reconstructed Ming room that contains the museums’ collection of traditional Chinese hardwood furniture. There are sandalwood armchairs, wood chests, wardrobe, couch tables, instruments, and roof beams. Have a seat beside the windows and you can see the garden through the wood screens. You will truly feel like you are in another dimension; you are no longer in the hustle and bustle of New York City.
The Florence and Herbert Irving Galleries of Chinese Decorative Arts is also away from the bustle. The arts in this gallery and the environment (low lighting, soothing music, etc) itself ask for a more leisurely, contemplative viewing. Wall scrolls of natural scenery of rivers and mountains were a huge part of the collection. Looking at these scrolls, some with calligraphies of poems, makes you think of the stories behind them. If you cannot read or understand the calligraphy, you only have your own imagination to come up with what the painting is about. In doing so, you enter the worlds of your stories.
There were other more colorful items that can also induce you to come up with more tales. Tales that include all sorts of characters; characters who each wore elaborate costumes; scholars and generals in their gold robe who must be really mean to the ones in blue since they are more powerful; the queen with all her ornaments and feathers on her elaborate headdress; the princesses with their lavish silk tops adorned with stitched dragons and phoenixes; the peasants with their minimally decorated tops.
The Metropolitan Museum’s Asian Art wing is almost a museum in and of itself. Furthermore, while you are enjoying the art, you seem to be transfer to a whole another reality altogether. All the elements of peace, authenticity, and storytelling coming together to provide you with a truly unique experience.

Joe the Art of Coffee
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Tussauds New York museum dominates 42^nd st. Times Square. For $31 a ticket ($28 if you’re a student), the museum provides a decent amount of fun. It is a very interactive and accessible environment. Nothing is roped off so you can pose and do all sorts of wacky things (i.e. kicking Larry King in the testicular area, dancing with Charlie Chaplin, punching Muhammed Ali, etc) and take pictures.

        The interaction is not just limited to “meeting” and taking pictures with the stars. At the museum’s first exhibit, RuPaul’s “Opening Night Party”, you can mix music with Usher and dance your heart out. After all the dancing, you can also try your hand at singing too. And who better to sing for then Simon Cowell himself on the American Idol stage? Choose your song and brace yourself for Simon’s “helpful” critiques. Not into singing and dancing? Maybe sport is more of your thing. If so, you can always join the horde of mostly young boys in the Yankees room and play a game. Take a turn off the Yankees room and enter the world of Superman. It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s YOU! With a green screen behind you, you’re free to do some flying of your own.

          Another exhibit to enjoy is the “Chamber of Horrors”, which is like the rides at the amusement parks. You’re expecting a scare so you prepare yourself for it but with the “Chambers of Horrors” no one is prepared for the actual live actors popping out at you. Finally, you can get “hands-on” at the last stop of the museum, the gift shop, where you can buy not only expensive souvenirs but also a wax of your own hand.  

           Aside from the entertainment value, the museum is also visually appealing. RuPaul’s party is grandly decorated, even decked out with a fountain. The “History Gallery”, where all the historical wax figures of Napoleon, Gandhi, Washington, Lincoln, etc are located, is surrounded by Grecian and Roman columns that give the exhibit an air of dignity. The Pop Culture room is alive with vibrant pictures on the wall.   

           The wax figures themselves are eye-catching but in a hit-or-miss sort of way. Some of them had a real likeness to the stars (Bill Clinton, Oprah, Princess Diana, Michael Jackson). While with others, you simply couldn’t tell who they are trying to portray (Madonna, James Dean, Jon Bon Jovi). But whether or not the figures look like their namesake, the work itself is still quite impressive as they do look like real humans especially in pictures.

            Overall, Madame Tussauds Wax Museum is worth a visit at least once. The interactive and energetic environment provides you with a lot of fun. The only bad thing is that they don’t have more exhibits as it only takes about a little more than an hour to go through the whole museum. But thanks to its great location in Times Square, there’s plenty of other things for you to do.