Chinese Mayor: Judges Should Watch American Courtroom Dramas, Action Films

5:15 AM PDT 3/13/2013 by THR Staff

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Huang Qifan, leader of mega-city Chongqing, suggests at a congressional meeting that viewing Western films will help Chinese judges make better decisions in important cases.

Chinese judges should watch more foreign action films and courtroom dramas because it will help them make better decisions in important cases -- so says one of China’s most powerful mayors.

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Huang Qifan, leader of the Chinese mega-city of Chongqing, offered this argument during a panel discussion at the National People's Congress in Beijing on Monday.

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According to a report on news portal China.com.cn, Huang specified that hero-driven foreign action films will remind judges that justice always prevails over evil, and will enhance their ability to rationally control their emotions while deciding big cases (Huang recommended no specific titles, so it’s not clear exactly what action vehicles he believes have this sobering effect).

He also urged his nation's judges to seek out Western courtroom dramas, and especially American films about jury trials that portray cunning plaintiffs and defendants trying to sway a decision.

While the mayor, by all accounts, expounded at length on the merits of movie-viewing for jurisprudence, he did have one caveat: Judges should take up their film studies during their day off, on Sundays.