The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
The first installment of The Hunger Games set the bar pretty high as a teen action-adventure movie, mostly due to excellent performances, but also due to its ability to weave political ideas into its fabric with commitment rather than condescension. The ideas might not be deeply sophisticated, but compared to the philosophical aspirations of many recent sci-fi efforts, The Hunger Games is way ahead of the pack. Catching Fire takes the political allegory of the story a step further than the original, focusing more on the intrigue behind the scenes, giving bigger roles to the likes of Donald Sutherland’s President Snow. Even though there is the occasional dull moment of exposition, the excellent cast, with the ever feisty Jennifer Lawrence in the lead, delivers a film that provides a solid adrenaline action rush fortified with deeper emotional and social currents. But for those looking for an action movie sequel that will outstrip the original, Catching Fire may disappoint.
The Sapphires
A lovely little movie from Downunder by director Wayne Blair might be a bit sloppy and sentimental, but it is so full of heart and soul that its faults don’t matter; not much, anyway. Based on a true story about four Australian Aboriginal women who build their hopes of a better life in forming a singing group and going to Vietnam during the Vietnam War. They find themselves a manager in the form of Dave Lovelace (Chris O’Dowd), a drunken musical promoter touring the backwoods of Australia. He reluctantly helps them achieve their dream, and saves his own soul in the process. There are some inspired takes on racism, racial identity and popular music, but the ugly racial politics of 1960s Australia (notable for the Lost Generation of Aboriginal children taken from their parents by the government), may not be handled with the subtly or sophistication that such a politically charged topic may demand. But music, dreams and committed performances by all concerned are likely to win the heart of all but the most curmudgeonly ideologue.
The Best Offer
A film built around yet another fine performance by Australian actor Geoffrey Rush in a film directed by Giuseppe Tornatore (who brought us the ageless classic Cinema Paradiso). Rush plays Virgil Oldman, a solitary, cultured man whose reluctance to engage with others, especially women, is matched only by the dogged obsessiveness with which he practices his profession as a high-end antiques auctioneer and valuer. He becomes involved with Claire (Sylvia Hoeks), an heiress with a vast collection of art to sell. Oldman does not get to see Claire, and this sparks an obsession to know more about her that takes him to the edge of madness. The central story is supported by fine performances by Donald Sutherland and Jim Sturgess, and there is plenty of talk about what is fake and what is real, in art and in love. At 131 minutes, the film often feels overlong, but Tornatore will not be rushed and effectively builds up the tension to a startling denouement that is well worth the wait.
Bends (過界)
Debut feature by Hong Kong writer-director Flora Lau (劉韻文) is a typically atmospheric film fest product that has some interesting ideas, lovely images and a profound lack of drama. The story focuses on Hui, a chauffeur who lives in China’s Shenzhen and who commutes daily to Hong Kong to work for Anna. Hui, played by Chinese matinee idol Chen Kun (陳坤) wants to smuggle his pregnant wife over the Hong Kong to give birth to their second child, and Anna, played by Hong Kong veteran Carina Lau (劉嘉玲), tries to keep up the pretense of a lavish lifestyle after her rich husband suddenly goes AWOL amid financial difficulties. Chen is not noted for his powerful acting style and is too bland for this role, leaving Bends without an anchor. Cinematographer Christopher Doyle gives the film a very attractive look, but the screenplay fails to generate any sparks in a film which is centered on a dialogue across social and economic levels.
Why Don’t You Play in Hell?
Gonzo schlock fest from the prolific Japanese director Sion Sono might be all a bit too Tarantino for some viewers, and certainly there are plenty of not particularly edifying cinematic references in what seems like a bit of pure indulgence by the director, who only last year released a surprisingly sober-minded drama addressing the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Why Don’t You Play in Hell? embarks on a drunken revel into ultra-violence in a story about a film director who decides to put himself in the middle of a gangland turf war so that he can make the ultimate movie masterpiece. Hiroki Hasegawa plays a director obsessed with moviemaking, and the film has the same cine-literate aspirations of the Tarantino oeuvre, but at the same time tends to neglect more creative developments in the interests of creating the most onscreen mayhem possible. There is much that is funny and absurd, but as a whole Why Don’t You Play in Hell? manages to be oddly formulaic and soulless.
When nature calls, Masana Izawa has followed the same routine for more than 50 years: heading out to the woods in Japan, dropping his pants and doing as bears do. “We survive by eating other living things. But you can give faeces back to nature so that organisms in the soil can decompose them,” the 74-year-old said. “This means you are giving life back. What could be a more sublime act?” “Fundo-shi” (“poop-soil master”) Izawa is something of a celebrity in Japan, publishing books, delivering lectures and appearing in a documentary. People flock to his “Poopland” and centuries-old wooden “Fundo-an” (“poop-soil house”) in
Jan 13 to Jan 19 Yang Jen-huang (楊仁煌) recalls being slapped by his father when he asked about their Sakizaya heritage, telling him to never mention it otherwise they’ll be killed. “Only then did I start learning about the Karewan Incident,” he tells Mayaw Kilang in “The social culture and ethnic identification of the Sakizaya” (撒奇萊雅族的社會文化與民族認定). “Many of our elders are reluctant to call themselves Sakizaya, and are accustomed to living in Amis (Pangcah) society. Therefore, it’s up to the younger generation to push for official recognition, because there’s still a taboo with the older people.” Although the Sakizaya became Taiwan’s 13th
Earlier this month, a Hong Kong ship, Shunxin-39, was identified as the ship that had cut telecom cables on the seabed north of Keelung. The ship, owned out of Hong Kong and variously described as registered in Cameroon (as Shunxin-39) and Tanzania (as Xinshun-39), was originally People’s Republic of China (PRC)-flagged, but changed registries in 2024, according to Maritime Executive magazine. The Financial Times published tracking data for the ship showing it crossing a number of undersea cables off northern Taiwan over the course of several days. The intent was clear. Shunxin-39, which according to the Taiwan Coast Guard was crewed
For anyone on board the train looking out the window, it must have been a strange sight. The same foreigner stood outside waving at them four different times within ten minutes, three times on the left and once on the right, his face getting redder and sweatier each time. At this unique location, it’s actually possible to beat the train up the mountain on foot, though only with extreme effort. For the average hiker, the Dulishan Trail is still a great place to get some exercise and see the train — at least once — as it makes its way
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