Bolt
This Disney animated feature tells the story of Bolt, a pumped-up little doggie whose TV star persona (should that be “canina”?) in an action show is a lot less real than he thinks. When he finds himself cast astray, the challenge is not only to adapt to the new world and his newfound physical limitations but also to find his true identity. Some have likened this well-received film to The Truman Show and doggone road epics like Homeward Bound, but the most fetching comparison that leaps to mind is Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, a tale of innocence supplanted that also ends with an action sequence in Hollywood. With the voices of John Travolta as Bolt, Miley Cyrus as his owner and Malcolm McDowell as the baddie. Screening in 3D at compatible theaters.
Transporter 3
Jason Statham is back in theaters as Frank Martin, the inscrutable deliveryman of choice for organized crime in Europe. In this entry, thugs kidnap the daughter of a Ukrainian environment official (Jeroen Krabbe from The Fugitive) to force him to do their bidding, and Statham is the man they turn to to keep her out of harm’s way — for the time being. Natalya Rudakova, as the daughter, offers her services as the exotic but irritating female love interest that Taiwan’s Shu Qi (舒淇) provided in Part 1. Written and produced — again — by Luc Besson.
Elegy
Ben Kingsley is a professor of literary criticism in New York who never got over the bug for seducing students — careful seductions, so as not to jeopardize his tenure — and his next target is Penelope Cruz. The wily bugger isn’t quite prepared for his own primal jealousy, and that’s before Cruz’s Cuban character ratchets up the emotional heat. A good supporting cast (Dennis Hopper, Patricia Clarkson, Peter Saarsgard) helps to sell a story that will put off a lot of potential audiences from the get-go. The Village Voice called this adaptation of Philip Roth’s book The Dying Animal “dreary,” but other critics have been kinder. Either way, it’s got Kingsley, who has seduced movie lovers for decades, and Cruz, whose best movies have been the ones that fewer people see.
The Last Princess
This is a remake of Akira Kurosawa’s The Hidden Fortress, the rich clan warfare classic from 1958 that provided Western filmmakers with bountiful inspiration — not least George Lucas. This version of hidden gold and epic battles prefers celebrity and computer-generated special effects to characterization, which marks it as a would-be classic for the Nintendo era. Those who think depictions of samurai are falling apart on the big screen these days should check out Kurosawa’s oldies, or even the Lone Wolf and Cub series for immediate, if even more bloodthirsty, relief. Directed by Shinji Higuchi, whose last effort was The Sinking of Japan, which did reasonable business here two years ago.
The King of Ping Pong
An award-winning Swedish drama, the king of the title is a very large youngster with an odd family whose dirty laundry is more hindrance than help to his personal development. But he does have a supportive — if combative — brother, and his devotion to table tennis is a bonus. Family secrets emerge over time, and things take a turn from the slightly whimsical to the dramatic. Likened to My Life as a Dog, the classic Swedish thematic forerunner to this effort, there might also be a touch of the younger Jane Campion (Sweetie, for instance) in the way director Jens Jonsson goes about his business.
Seven hundred job applications. One interview. Marco Mascaro arrived in Taiwan last year with a PhD in engineering physics and years of experience at a European research center. He thought his Gold Card would guarantee him a foothold in Taiwan’s job market. “It’s marketed as if Taiwan really needs you,” the 33-year-old Italian says. “The reality is that companies here don’t really need us.” The Employment Gold Card was designed to fix Taiwan’s labor shortage by offering foreign professionals a combined resident visa and open work permit valid for three years. But for many, like Mascaro, the welcome mat ends at the door. A
If China attacks, will Taiwanese be willing to fight? Analysts of certain types obsess over questions like this, especially military analysts and those with an ax to grind as to whether Taiwan is worth defending, or should be cut loose to appease Beijing. Fellow columnist Michael Turton in “Notes from Central Taiwan: Willing to fight for the homeland” (Nov. 6, page 12) provides a superb analysis of this topic, how it is used and manipulated to political ends and what the underlying data shows. The problem is that most analysis is centered around polling data, which as Turton observes, “many of these
Divadlo feels like your warm neighborhood slice of home — even if you’ve only ever spent a few days in Prague, like myself. A projector is screening retro animations by Czech director Karel Zeman, the shelves are lined with books and vinyl, and the owner will sit with you to share stories over a glass of pear brandy. The food is also fantastic, not just a new cultural experience but filled with nostalgia, recipes from home and laden with soul-warming carbs, perfect as the weather turns chilly. A Prague native, Kaio Picha has been in Taipei for 13 years and
Since Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) was elected Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chair on Oct. 18, she has become a polarizing figure. Her supporters see her as a firebrand critic of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), while others, including some in her own party, have charged that she is Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) preferred candidate and that her election was possibly supported by the Chinese Communist Party’s (CPP) unit for political warfare and international influence, the “united front.” Indeed, Xi quickly congratulated Cheng upon her election. The 55-year-old former lawmaker and ex-talk show host, who was sworn in on Nov.
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