In its second year, P.O.P. Cinema (
Last year P.O.P. Cinema presented five film festivals at SPOT Taipei Film House
This year, "Taiwan vs. Eastern Europe" (台灣vs.東歐影展), starting April 24, features films from both Taiwan and east European countries, specifically Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Yugoslavia.
The program is designed to put Taiwanese directors head-to-head with directors from eastern European countries: for example, Edward Yang
The opening film, Edward Yang's A Brighter Summer Day
Another opening film is Kusturica's Time of the Gypsies, a fascinating tale following the fate of a Gypsy young man lured by money.
Depicting a view of Taiwan from an angle that is different from Yang, director Hou Hsiao-hsien is showcasing his famous Taiwan Trilogy: A City of Sadness
One thing that Taiwanese and eastern European movies share is the sad theme political dictatorship. In this account, Hungarian Istvan Szabo? excels at exploring the human mentality under oppressive political systems. Mephisto is a movie about an actor gaining fame in the Nazi era who gradually loses himself to become manipulated by the regime.
As for the Polish films, two big names Krzysztof Kieslowski and Krzysztof Zanussi have, of course, been selected for the festival.
Kieslowski's The Double Life of Veronique and Zanussi's At Full Gallop are two films fans should not miss.
Czech animater Jan Svankmajer's Little Otik and Conspirator of Pleasure were two audience favorites during the Golden Horse Film Festival. Those who have missed these two quirky and imaginative film should grab the chance to see them.
Performance notes:
Tickets for P.OP. Cinema are available at CKS Cultural Center Ticketing outlets (formerly Acer Ticketing).
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