Ted
There are some genuinely funny moments in this rather low-wattage comedy about a teddy bear that comes to life, and manifests himself as a foul-mouthed, weed-smoking, misogynistic companion to affable underachiever John Bennett (Mark Wahlberg). Inevitably, he also creates all kinds of trouble when Mark starts to get it on with Lori (Mila Kunis). Director Seth MacFarlane, the creator of the Family Guy animated TV series, does not seem completely at home on the big screen, and the loose string of gags in Ted would seem to be more suitable for the more casual viewing environment of the lounge room. The two human stars are both adequate, but MacFarlane, who also has a writer credit on the show, does not really give them a chance to use their talents.
The Players
French comedy made up of six shorts working round the topic of infidelity, The Players sports a strong cast, including recent Oscar winners Jean Dujardin and has Michel Hazanavicius, director of The Artist, taking on directing duties on one segment. As with all compilations, the quality of this film is largely dictated by its weakest link, and there are a few sections that vie for this honor. The closing segment, with its over-elaborate staging and extensive on-screen nudity, stands out for its lack of imagination. Hazanavicius does some good work, bringing out new depth in Dujardin’s acting, but this is not enough to save this messy melange of a film.
Detective Conan: The Eleventh Striker
The 16th feature film in the Detective Conan franchise. The story, as the title suggests, is set against a background of professional soccer, with the intrepid detective tasked to find a bomb hidden in a sports stadium. The films in this series are original stories and not adaptations of existing material for the original manga. Directed by Yasuichiro Yamamoto in his second film in this series, the presentation does not mess with the tried and tested style and format that has made Detective Conan one of the biggest manga exports from Japan.
La Delicatesse
A film based on a novel by bestselling author David Foenkinos, La Delicatesse, and starring Audrey Tautou, whose presence gives this release something of the feel of Priceless and Amelie. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t have much going for it other than Tautou’s personality, and though it is buoyant throughout, it is never willing to let loose on anything that might break the mold of harmless, inoffensive and generally bland romantic entertainment. There are some delightful moments, but the material joining it together is thin and shopworn, so that even its best moments are compromised by a sense of deja vu.
SuperClasico
A Danish movie with its own grim sense of playful fun that does not shy away from a less than PC portrayal of women and a cheerful delight in presenting racial stereotypes. It has its tongue mostly in its cheek, and the story of sad-sack wine merchant chasing after his runaway wife, a hard nosed sports agent who is looking to marry her star client, a buff football sticker, has plenty of potential. A voiceover by an unseen Mikael Bertelsen provides an ironic commentary and insight into the thoughts of the characters, as the camera makes the most of Buenos Aires. There is plenty of romantic silliness, but somehow, director Ole Christian Madsen’s joy in his story keeps the whole thing afloat.
Steve Jobs Visionary Genius
This is a cinematic hagiography of Apple computer’s visionary leader. The film seems to go out of its way to see only the positive aspects of Steve Jobs and his accomplishments. It looks both at his private and public life, but frames the story as an epic struggle of a genius fighting against the constraints of mortality, foregoing any meaningful exploration of the nuts and bolts of his achievements as a marketing whiz kid or as one of the more extraordinary human beings of the 21st century.
In late October of 1873 the government of Japan decided against sending a military expedition to Korea to force that nation to open trade relations. Across the government supporters of the expedition resigned immediately. The spectacle of revolt by disaffected samurai began to loom over Japanese politics. In January of 1874 disaffected samurai attacked a senior minister in Tokyo. A month later, a group of pro-Korea expedition and anti-foreign elements from Saga prefecture in Kyushu revolted, driven in part by high food prices stemming from poor harvests. Their leader, according to Edward Drea’s classic Japan’s Imperial Army, was a samurai
Located down a sideroad in old Wanhua District (萬華區), Waley Art (水谷藝術) has an established reputation for curating some of the more provocative indie art exhibitions in Taipei. And this month is no exception. Beyond the innocuous facade of a shophouse, the full three stories of the gallery space (including the basement) have been taken over by photographs, installation videos and abstract images courtesy of two creatives who hail from the opposite ends of the earth, Taiwan’s Hsu Yi-ting (許懿婷) and Germany’s Benjamin Janzen. “In 2019, I had an art residency in Europe,” Hsu says. “I met Benjamin in the lobby
April 22 to April 28 The true identity of the mastermind behind the Demon Gang (魔鬼黨) was undoubtedly on the minds of countless schoolchildren in late 1958. In the days leading up to the big reveal, more than 10,000 guesses were sent to Ta Hwa Publishing Co (大華文化社) for a chance to win prizes. The smash success of the comic series Great Battle Against the Demon Gang (大戰魔鬼黨) came as a surprise to author Yeh Hung-chia (葉宏甲), who had long given up on his dream after being jailed for 10 months in 1947 over political cartoons. Protagonist
Peter Brighton was amazed when he found the giant jackfruit. He had been watching it grow on his farm in far north Queensland, and when it came time to pick it from the tree, it was so heavy it needed two people to do the job. “I was surprised when we cut it off and felt how heavy it was,” he says. “I grabbed it and my wife cut it — couldn’t do it by myself, it took two of us.” Weighing in at 45 kilograms, it is the heaviest jackfruit that Brighton has ever grown on his tropical fruit farm, located