Dancing Without You (背著你跳舞)
Taiwanese director Lee Yun-chan’s (李芸嬋) third feature, following 2007’s My DNA Says I Love You (基因決定我愛你). One of a small group of rising female Taiwanese directors, Lee is not afraid to deal in the absurd, and with Dancing Without You she takes her cue from fairy tales. Singer Vivian Hsu (徐若瑄) stars as a suicidal ballerina who is mistaken for an alien by an astronomer played by Tony Yang (楊祐寧). A romance ensues, but the dancer’s longing to perform Swan Lake could ruin hopes for a beautiful friendship.
Love in a Puff (志明與春嬌)
A romance from Hong Kong built around the restrictions on smoking that came into effect in early 2007. Directed by Pang Ho-cheung (彭浩翔), the film has garnered strong reviews despite its flimsy premise. Starring emerging talents Miriam Yeung (楊千嬅) and Shawn Yeh (余文樂), the film follows two avid smokers who meet at a gathering place for office-bound smokers. A friendship transforms into a tentative romance that has the possibility of something more. Driven by dialogue and character, this exploration of accidental urban relationships is a minor masterpiece of filmmaking that has drawn comparisons with the work of Eric Rohmer.
HorrorFever 2: Halloween 2010 Horror Film Festival(萬聖熱：2010 恐怖驚選影展II)
Local film distributors CatchPlay found they were onto such a good thing with their first HorrorFever festival in August that they put together a second round in time for Halloween. This new feast of horror includes mostly US, Japanese and South Korean films, with a couple of European features thrown into the mix. Detailed information about the 14 films and their screening times can be found at www.catchplay.com. Screenings run through Nov. 11 at the Shin Kong Cineplex (台北新光影城) on 36 Xining S Rd, Taipei City (台北市西寧南路36號). Individual tickets cost NT$175 when purchased through ibon kiosks at 7-Elevens or NT$190 directly from the venue. Discounted books of five tickets are also available.
Stone
With Robert De Niro, Edward Norton and Milla Jovovich headlining, Stone is the standout crowd-pleaser in a crowded week. Norton plays a con dangling his wife (Jovovich) in front of his button-down parole officer (De Niro) in an effort to get out of prison. Stone plays with the conventions of film noir in a sophisticated manner that is likely to delight film buffs, while also providing plenty of engaging drama and a spattering of blood to keep things exciting for those who just want to be entertained.
Parade
An ensemble drama by director Isao Yukisada, Parade looks into the abyss of urban life through the relationship of four young people sharing a flat in Tokyo. From very different backgrounds, they get to know each other gradually, but the extent of their mutual knowledge is called into question when an interloper insinuates himself into their group and strange events begin to take place — a series of murders and strange people hanging around the apartment next door. Parade was nominated in the Best Film category of the Asian Film Awards and picked up the Fipresci Prize at Berlin earlier this year.
Dolan’s Cadillac
Christian Slater slums it in an adaptation from a Stephen King novel that has “straight to DVD” written all over it. Director Jeff Beesley, who has built his reputation in TV, seems to have done a workmanlike job with this atmospheric thriller. Slater’s character takes revenge for his wife’s death after she is murdered by a mobster who she inadvertently witnesses presiding over a mob execution.
Saw 3D
The best thing that can be said about Saw 3D is that it promises to be “The Final Chapter.” Like many similar horror franchises, Saw is being bled to death by the studios, who are able to offer little more than bigger sets and technical upgrades such as 3D in each succeeding installment. Fans may be interested in rounding off their Saw experience, but the film, which is based around characters from previous installments (those who survived) seeking mutual support through group therapy, offers little for those with no vested interest in the franchise.
I Saw the Devil (Akmareul boattda)
Brutal exploitation picture by South Korean director Kim Ji-woon, who gave us the highly regarded The Good, the Bad and the Weird (2008). I Saw the Devil is a revenge drama in which cop Kim So-hyun decides that death is too good for the murderer of his fiancée. He brutalizes the killer again and again in bloody torture sequences that include everything from rocks to plastic bags to fire extinguishers and fishhooks. Not for the faint of heart. Will the killer manage to turn the tables? The mayhem runs for nearly two and a half hours.
See You in September
Tightly wound Manhattanites find love when abandoned by their therapists. Cliches abound in this film by TV actress Tamara Tunie, who has considerable experience including 24, As the World Turns and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. See You in September is her first feature film, and it looks like she has raided the old tropes, drawing from all the soaps she has ever worked in. There are plenty of well-dressed and attractive people inhabiting this movie, but that’s the extent of its appeal.
Confessions (Kokuhaku)
More revenge mayhem in Tetsuya Nakashima’s film about a teacher taking vengeance on two of her students who killed her four-year-old daughter. The kids, protected as juveniles under Japan’s legal code, discover that their shy and withdrawn teacher, played by Takako Matsu, is infinitely worse than anything even the toughest judge might dish out. Although it deals with dark and depressing subject matter, the quality acting, assured direction and firm grasp of moral ambiguity make this much more than B-movie exploitation fare.
Kido Senshi Gundam (Gundam Unicorn) Episodes 1 and 2
The first two 50-minute “original video animation” episodes in a six-part series dealing with yet another dimension of the Gundam mobile suits multiverse. Produced for release on Japan’s PlayStation Network. Adapted from the Gundam Ace novel series and strictly for fans of anime and associated action figures.
The Last Summer of La Boyita (El ultimo verano de la Boyita)
Coming of age/sexual awakening drama from Argentine director Julia Solomonoff that deals sensitively yet confidently with childhood friendship, loss of innocence and the simultaneous joy and despair of being young. Jorgelina (Guadalupe Alonso) goes off with her father into the Pampas for a summer holiday and meets Mario (Nicolas Treise). At first indifferent to the young tourist, a relationship develops through the hot summer. Clothes come off and secrets come out. Excellent performances by the two young leads.
Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike
A prequel to the role-playing game Tales of Vesperia, which is the 10th release in the successful Tales series of console games begun by Namco Bandai Games in 1995. This most recent release, Tales of Vesperia, was created for XBox 360 in 2008. The science fiction/fantasy film, with its highly complex multi-strand story, is aimed squarely at gamers.
Rassvet/Zakat.
Dalai Lama 14
The day-in-the-life format taken to a documentary extreme. Russian director Vitali Mansky follows the Dalai Lama from 3am when he rises to sunset, when he retires. The film shows the Tibetan spiritual leader’s moments of private prayer and many public duties, such as the blessing of pilgrims. The Dalai Lama has been the subject of close cinematic scrutiny in recent years; Rassvet/Zakat. Dalai Lama 14 may prove to be the most intimate to date.
The 2010 Golden Horse Film Festival (2010台北金馬影展)
This year’s Golden Horse is set to show more than 260 feature, documentary, short and animation films from around the world starting Nov. 3. The lineup includes the festival’s popular LGBT and Rock ‘n’ Roll program as well as a section featuring digitally restored masterpieces including Stanley Kubrick’s The Shinin (1980) and Luis Bunuel’s Tristana (1970) starring Catherine Deneuve.
This year’s directors in focus are Japanese animation master Satoshi Kon, who passed away in August, Apichatpong Weerasethakul of Thailand and France’s Eric Rohmer.
The festival will run through Nov. 26 at Shin Kong Cineplex (新光影城), 36 Xining S Rd, Taipei City (台北市西寧南路36號), Ambassador Theatres (國賓影城) at Breeze Center (微風廣場), 7F, 39 Fuxing S Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市復興南路一段39號7樓) and Ambassador Theatres (國賓影城) at Spring Center (長春廣場), 176 Changchun Rd, Taipei City (台北市長春路176號).
Individual tickets cost NT$230 per screening (NT$200 for students with ID and people with disabilities). A booklet of tickets costs NT$1,499 for eight screenings, available through 7-Eleven ibon kiosks before Nov. 3
For more information, visit the festival’s bilingual Web site at www.goldenhorse.org.tw.
Taiwan, once relegated to the backwaters of international news media and viewed as a subset topic of “greater China,” is now a hot topic. Words associated with Taiwan include “invasion,” “contingency” and, on the more cheerful side, “semiconductors” and “tourism.” It is worth noting that while Taiwanese companies play important roles in the semiconductor industry, there is no such thing as a “Taiwan semiconductor” or a “Taiwan chip.” If crucial suppliers are included, the supply chain is in the thousands and spans the globe. Both of the variants of the so-called “silicon shield” are pure fantasy. There are four primary drivers
Japan is celebrated for its exceptional levels of customer service. But the behavior of a growing number of customers and clients leaves a lot to be desired. The rise of the abusive consumer has prompted authorities in Tokyo to introduce the country’s first ordinance — a locally approved regulation — to protect service industry staff from kasuhara — the Japanese abbreviated form of “customer harassment.” While the Tokyo ordinance, which will go into effect in April, does not carry penalties, experts hope the move will highlight a growing social problem and, perhaps, encourage people to think twice before taking out their frustrations
Two years ago my wife and I went to Orchid Island off Taitung for a few days vacation. We were shocked to realize that for what it cost us, we could have done a bike vacation in Borneo for a week or two, or taken another trip to the Philippines. Indeed, most of the places we could have gone for that vacation in neighboring countries offer a much better experience than Taiwan at a much lower price. Hence, the recent news showing that tourist visits to Pingtung County’s Kenting, long in decline, reached a 27 year low this summer came
From a Brooklyn studio that looks like a cross between a ransacked Toys R Us and a serial killer’s lair, the artist David Henry Nobody Jr is planning the first survey of his career. Held by a headless dummy strung by its heels from the ceiling are a set of photographs from the turn of the century of a then 30-year-old Nobody with the former president of the US. The snapshots are all signed by Donald Trump in gold pen (Nobody supplied the pen). They will be a central piece of the New York artist’s upcoming survey in New York. This
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