Though it lacked mega-blockbusters, such as Avatar, that take the movie world by storm, this has been a reasonably good year for film-lovers. The closest in impact was probably the release of Toy Story 3, which cemented the position of the Toy Story franchise as not just one of the most loved, but also critically acclaimed animation feature film series ever.
The release of the first half of the seventh Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, didn’t even come close to generating the kind of excitement expected of such a big ticket release, with many people complaining that it had left ordinary cinema-going behind, catering only to fans of the series who are familiar with the complex backstory.
Films in 3D were very much a part of the cinema landscape this year, with big releases every few weeks keeping Taipei’s growing array of super high-tech screens doing a brisk business. But on balance, it was still old-fashioned 2D that provided the most fulfilling cinematic experiences. One of the highlights was the release of Kichitaro Negishi’s film Villon’s Wife, an adaptation of a novel by Osamu Dazai that was published in 1947. It would be hard to find something more old-fashioned, but the genius of a cinematic storyteller will trump high-tech effects every time. This point was made clear by the dismal performance of the much-hyped Skyline, which despite oodles of technical wizardry, failed to bring in the punters. Audiences are sometimes a bit too easily impressed by big effects, but Skyline proved that some sort of story, or at least some high-profile faces, are still needed.
Photo: Blockbuster
Comedy did well this year. Youth in Revolt showed once again that Michael Cera is here to stay, Greenberg revealed that Ben Stiller has far greater depth as a comedian than he usually lets on and The Kids Are All Right was a splendid little alternative hit that had a nice mixture of feel-good moments, social commentary and well-honed dialogue.
The Kids also had the added attraction of Annette Bening and Julianne Moore. For more dynamic thrills, it’s sad to say that one of the most memorable action films of the year was Sylvester Stallone’s The Expendibles, but only because of its appeal to nostalgia and its ridiculously overstuffed cast of musclemen, rather than any intrinsic merit as a movie.
An increasing number of minor film festivals, such as distributor CatchPlay’s two HorrorFever festivals, brought some fun B-movies and fringe horror cinema to local screens as well.
In all, one can’t complain, as the blockbuster pap was well leavened with good independent releases.
Sept.16 to Sept. 22 The “anti-communist train” with then-president Chiang Kai-shek’s (蔣介石) face plastered on the engine puffed along the “sugar railway” (糖業鐵路) in May 1955, drawing enthusiastic crowds at 103 stops covering nearly 1,200km. An estimated 1.58 million spectators were treated to propaganda films, plays and received free sugar products. By this time, the state-run Taiwan Sugar Corporation (台糖, Taisugar) had managed to connect the previously separate east-west lines established by Japanese-era sugar factories, allowing the anti-communist train to travel easily from Taichung to Pingtung’s Donggang Township (東港). Last Sunday’s feature (Taiwan in Time: The sugar express) covered the inauguration of the
The corruption cases surrounding former Taipei Mayor and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) head Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) are just one item in the endless cycle of noise and fuss obscuring Taiwan’s deep and urgent structural and social problems. Even the case itself, as James Baron observed in an excellent piece at the Diplomat last week, is only one manifestation of the greater problem of deep-rooted corruption in land development. Last week the government announced a program to permit 25,000 foreign university students, primarily from the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia, to work in Taiwan after graduation for 2-4 years. That number is a
This year’s Michelin Gourmand Bib sported 16 new entries in the 126-strong Taiwan directory. The fight for the best braised pork rice and the crispiest scallion pancake painstakingly continued, but what stood out in the lineup this year? Pang Taqueria (胖塔可利亞); Taiwan’s first Michelin-recommended Mexican restaurant. Chef Charles Chen (陳治宇) is a self-confessed Americophile, earning his chef whites at a fine-dining Latin-American fusion restaurant. But what makes this Xinyi (信義) spot stand head and shoulders above Taipei’s existing Mexican offerings? The authenticity. The produce. The care. AUTHENTIC EATS In my time on the island, I have caved too many times to
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