Mulan (花木蘭)
The legend of Hua Mulan returns to home soil after a spell with Disney’s animation team and is a much more sober affair. The young lady dons men’s clothes and signs up for the military in place of her sick father, rising through the ranks and encountering all manner of conflict — personal and physical. Worth a peek if you’re a fan of historical battle epics, even if this one is scaled down somewhat, but anyone looking for a feminist subtext can forget it. Stars Vickie Zhao (趙薇), a solid actress but way too good-looking to convince as a cross-dressing military genius, and directed by leading Hong Kong cinematographer Jingle Ma (馬楚成).
Hachiko: A Dog’s Story
After a string of Japanese cute animal movies, here’s an American production with possibly wider international appeal, though it is based on a Japanese legend and movie (it premiered in Japan, but its US release next week is disappointingly low-key). Richard Gere — delightful piece of casting — is a professor who adopts a stray dog. The legend is no secret: The professor dies, but the dog returns to the local railway station every day for a decade to wait for his master to come home. The surprise is that this version enjoyed strong audience feedback. Great supporting cast (Joan Allen as Gere’s wife, Jason Alexander, veteran Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) and directed by Lasse Hallstrom (appropriately enough), director of the well-loved My Life as a Dog (appropriately enough) from 1985, who has happily retained Japanese elements in the story. Warning: The word is that this movie will leave audiences in tears.
The Box
A stranger comes to the door of the home of Cameron Diaz and hubbie James Marsden, gives them a box with a button and informs them that pushing the button will make them instantly wealthy — but lead to the death of a stranger. From here things get complex, compromised and philosophical, as the protagonists’ moral compass spins ever more unsteadily. Sounds a bit like Peter Greenaway meets Hellraiser without most of the gore, though director Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko) might flinch at the comparison. Based on a story by Richard Matheson that was previously filmed as a Twilight Zone installment.
Pardon My French
The latest French comedy to hit Taiwanese screens stars Chiara Mastroianni (daughter of Marcello, also seen recently in Park Benches) as a sufferer of writer’s block so profound that she begins using a different first name. To make matters worse, she inspires an infatuation in a younger woman who just won’t stop being of use. Plot is not as important as tone and performances in this one, which should entertain Francophiles who enjoy offbeat material. Original title: Un Chat un Chat.
Ghost Train
Can’t remember the last time an Indonesian film enjoyed a commercial release in Taiwan, so this ghostly ride is special for at least one reason. Horror fans might be interested in the grafting of other Asian filmmakers’ horror motifs onto an Indonesian setting, though even more mainstream audiences might end up playing count-the-cliche. A girl disappears after boarding a late train; her sister and some dopey friends decide that they are best equipped to track her down despite paranormal activity in the paying area of the station. The Midnight Meat Train did all this better, and a lot bloodier.
The Ultimate Fight
We missed two Baixue theater offerings last week — one an apparent prequel to the German TV production Day of Disaster; the other an obscure animated film about dinosaurs (“Fantastic for all the family,” said the ad, even if the same can’t be said about the theater itself) — but if you’re desperate for some sub-DVD-standard fare in a stuffy, nearly deserted theater, then no look further than The Ultimate Fight (1998, also known as The Process), starring kickboxing icon Ernie Reyes Jr and Ernie Reyes Sr as a character called “Senior.” Reyes Jr is a foreigner who plunges into gangland violence on arrival in the US. It’s the kind of action movie that has a character called “Hitler,” but don’t knock Mr Reyes: His latest gig was stunt work on Avatar.
April 14 to April 20 In March 1947, Sising Katadrepan urged the government to drop the “high mountain people” (高山族) designation for Indigenous Taiwanese and refer to them as “Taiwan people” (台灣族). He considered the term derogatory, arguing that it made them sound like animals. The Taiwan Provincial Government agreed to stop using the term, stating that Indigenous Taiwanese suffered all sorts of discrimination and oppression under the Japanese and were forced to live in the mountains as outsiders to society. Now, under the new regime, they would be seen as equals, thus they should be henceforth
Last week, the the National Immigration Agency (NIA) told the legislature that more than 10,000 naturalized Taiwanese citizens from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) risked having their citizenship revoked if they failed to provide proof that they had renounced their Chinese household registration within the next three months. Renunciation is required under the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), as amended in 2004, though it was only a legal requirement after 2000. Prior to that, it had been only an administrative requirement since the Nationality Act (國籍法) was established in
With over 80 works on display, this is Louise Bourgeois’ first solo show in Taiwan. Visitors are invited to traverse her world of love and hate, vengeance and acceptance, trauma and reconciliation. Dominating the entrance, the nine-foot-tall Crouching Spider (2003) greets visitors. The creature looms behind the glass facade, symbolic protector and gatekeeper to the intimate journey ahead. Bourgeois, best known for her giant spider sculptures, is one of the most influential artist of the twentieth century. Blending vulnerability and defiance through themes of sexuality, trauma and identity, her work reshaped the landscape of contemporary art with fearless honesty. “People are influenced by
Three big changes have transformed the landscape of Taiwan’s local patronage factions: Increasing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) involvement, rising new factions and the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) significantly weakened control. GREEN FACTIONS It is said that “south of the Zhuoshui River (濁水溪), there is no blue-green divide,” meaning that from Yunlin County south there is no difference between KMT and DPP politicians. This is not always true, but there is more than a grain of truth to it. Traditionally, DPP factions are viewed as national entities, with their primary function to secure plum positions in the party and government. This is not unusual
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