The Whistleblower
The Whistleblower, an accomplished feature debut by Larysa Kondracki, has polarized critics, though the divergent opinion is largely down to how much individual critics can tolerate the inevitable simplification and dramatization of complex political situations. For some, The Whistleblower is an unpardonable dumbing down of a truly appalling situation that implicated international organizations in the sex trade, while for others, the fact that the film brings this situation to public attention is sufficient to excuse the shrill editorializing and vagueness. As usual, the truth is somewhere in between, and even the fiercest critics acknowledge the strong presence of Rachael Weisz, who plays Kathryn Bolkovac, a peacekeeper in post-war Bosnia, who brings to light the UN’s role in covering up sex scandals in the war-torn region.
The Ides of March
A political film from the hand of George Clooney, who has writer, director and actor credits. Despite its massively A-list cast, it is the ideas rather than the names that have grabbed the attention of the critics. It has been described as a darker, dirtier and more intense version of the TV series West Wing, and has cool man-of-the-moment Ryan Gosling as Stephen Meyers, a political consultant caught at the deep end of a life-or-death political struggle. Clooney is the presidential hopeful whose career will make or break the hopes and dreams not just of the American people, but the shadowy players in the corridors of power. The supporting cast includes the always unpredictable Philip Seymour Hoffman and Paul Giamatti. The abundance of talent, and the mix of mature political ideas, plus the mechanics of a gripping thriller, make The Ides of March a film of broad appeal.
Arthur Christmas 3D
Festive animations have been responsible for a number of truly dire attempts to keep the tots amused — remember Hop, this year’s big Easter movie? While Arthur Christmas 3D is unashamedly a Yuletide offering, there is just enough British cheek to set it apart from the conventional Hollywood dross. A great voice cast that includes James McAvoy as the title character, Santa’s son Arthur, with Jim Broadbent as Santa, Bill Nighy as grandpa Santa, and Hugh Laurie as Steve, the brains behind the North Pole’s annual logistical exercise to get presents to all the children in the world in a single night, with “no child left behind.” While the youngest kids might get left behind by the quite complicated story, the humor works at enough levels to appeal to kids and parents alike.
Guilty of Romance
While there are plenty of Japanese movies that revel in portraying various forms of unconventional erotic fetishes for the titillation of audiences, director Sion Sono is one who plunges into the problem of how to unnerve his audience with sexual perversion in a society in which pretty much everything has become acceptable fodder for cinematic entertainment. Sono’s style and interests share similarities with Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut, but his approach is more humorous and enigmatic, and though there are scenes of deplorable sexual violence, all masked by the niceties of social convention, Guilty of Romance has plenty to offer as a serious exploration of the more extreme ends of the spectrum of sexual desire.
Perfect Sense
An interesting idea goes badly wrong in David Mackenzie’s Perfect Sense. Mackenzie is a filmmaker who is not afraid to go high concept on a small budget. Unfortunately, in a film in which the world is succumbing to an epidemic in which loss of sensory perception, most notably loss of smell and hearing, is accompanied by feelings of grief and paranoia, the concept fails to take flight. Of course, with leads Eva Green, an improbable research scientist, and Ewan McGregor, a chef, it is obvious that love will somehow save the day, or at least make the tragedy bearable.
Road Less Traveled (樂之路)
Yet another inspirational rock music fantasy about an unknown band making it into the big time, this time from Taiwanese director Seven Li (李劭尹) with a script from musician Jimmy Hung (洪天祥), a member of the local band Tension. Joe (played by writer Hung), comes back from the US with rock ’n’ roll dreams. He meets up with a bunch of young musicians, including Mike, played by local pop idol Vanness Wu (吳建豪), after which follows a predictable story of discovery, fame, love, betrayal and so on.
Small World (Je n’ai rien oublie)
Gerard Depardieu plays Konrad Lang, who has spent his life as friend, confidant and caretaker with the Senn family. As the first symptoms of Alzheimer’s emerge, Lang develops a close friendship with the wife of the heir. His reminiscences suggest that all is not as it seems in the family, and matriarch Elvira makes clear that she does not want the official family history messed with. Depardieu’s performance is a walking cliche, but the film is partially saved by fine acting from the female cast members, particularly Alexandra Maria Lara, Francoise Fabian and Nathalie Baye.
Children Who Chase Lost Voices From Deep Below (Hoshi o ou kodomo)
A new feature animation from the hand of Makoto Shinkai, whose Speed of 5 Centimeters per Second got him noticed as a possible successor to the great Hayao Miyazaki, the creator of Spirited Away and many other classics of the Japanese animation industry. Like Miyazaki, Shinkai proves that he is able to use animation to create a world that blurs the lines between the real and the imagined to achieve an emotional depth that rivals major live-action productions.
The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake (競雄女俠 — 秋瑾)
Chinese cinema has no shortage of martial arts heroes but to have a female lead is definitely worthy of note. The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake, directed by Herman Yau (邱禮濤), who made the outstanding Ip Man prequel A Legend Is Born (葉問前傳), suffers from an excess of patriotism, as many Chinese films set at the turn of last century, which saw the painful birth of China as a modern nation, tend to do. There is also a rather heavy dose of simple-minded feminism, as the heroine Qiu Jin (秋瑾), played by Chinese actress Crystal Huang (黃奕), tells all who will listen that women have a part to play in the making of a new China, and proving it with some nattily choreographed kicks and punches. The film suffers a little from its rather inappropriate combination of biopic and rather extravagant wirework fight scenes that might be better suited to a fantasy tale.
Near Equal (NEAR EQUAL 日本當代藝術家影展)
A series of documentaries brought together by distributor Joint Entertainment International focusing on some of the top talent working in Japan’s contemporary art scene. The people featured in the series include avant-garde icon Yayoi Kusama (Tokyo Decadence), photographer Daidou Moriyama, sculptor Katsura Funakoshi, enfant terrible Makoto Aida and fantasy artist Hisashi Tenmyouya. The mini festival opens today and runs until Dec. 9, with all screenings at Spot — Taipei Film House (光點 — 台北之家). More information about the films and their subjects can be found at www.j-ent.com.tw/movie_nearequal.htm.
In the March 9 edition of the Taipei Times a piece by Ninon Godefroy ran with the headine “The quiet, gentle rhythm of Taiwan.” It started with the line “Taiwan is a small, humble place. There is no Eiffel Tower, no pyramids — no singular attraction that draws the world’s attention.” I laughed out loud at that. This was out of no disrespect for the author or the piece, which made some interesting analogies and good points about how both Din Tai Fung’s and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) meticulous attention to detail and quality are not quite up to
April 28 to May 4 During the Japanese colonial era, a city’s “first” high school typically served Japanese students, while Taiwanese attended the “second” high school. Only in Taichung was this reversed. That’s because when Taichung First High School opened its doors on May 1, 1915 to serve Taiwanese students who were previously barred from secondary education, it was the only high school in town. Former principal Hideo Azukisawa threatened to quit when the government in 1922 attempted to transfer the “first” designation to a new local high school for Japanese students, leading to this unusual situation. Prior to the Taichung First
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) hatched a bold plan to charge forward and seize the initiative when he held a protest in front of the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office. Though risky, because illegal, its success would help tackle at least six problems facing both himself and the KMT. What he did not see coming was Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (將萬安) tripping him up out of the gate. In spite of Chu being the most consequential and successful KMT chairman since the early 2010s — arguably saving the party from financial ruin and restoring its electoral viability —
The Ministry of Education last month proposed a nationwide ban on mobile devices in schools, aiming to curb concerns over student phone addiction. Under the revised regulation, which will take effect in August, teachers and schools will be required to collect mobile devices — including phones, laptops and wearables devices — for safekeeping during school hours, unless they are being used for educational purposes. For Chang Fong-ching (張鳳琴), the ban will have a positive impact. “It’s a good move,” says the professor in the department of
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