January 26, 2006
Top Ten Foreign (and by foreign I mean Asian) Films Coming To US Theaters This Year.
These films may be coming to a theater near you -- although maybe only if you live in NY or LA. But shortly after that they’ll be coming to Region 1 DVD so you won’t have to import them and can rent them at Blockbuster or Netflix. Either way here are some things worth looking forward to in 2006.
1. SYMPATHY FOR LADY VENGEANCE
Tartan is planning on releasing this film on March 24th. The final film in Chan-wook Park’s Vengeance trilogy -- following SYMPATHY FOR MR. VENGEANCE and OLDBOY. The film stars Lee Yeong-ae (DAE JANG GEUM, JOINT SECURITY AREA) and evidently has cameos by some of the characters from the previous films. She’s outcast by society as a woman and a ex-con. So when she’s released from prison she has vengeance on her mind -- to get back at the man she believes is responsible for her thirteen year incarceration. Reviews indicate it may not entirely be up to it's predecessors, but that it's still 100% worth your time.
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2. TYPHOON
The new ‘most expensive movie ever made in Korea’ is supposely going to be released by Dreamworks this year. The film stars one of Korea’s biggest heartthrobs Jang Dong-gun (THE PROMISE). And it’s set box office records in Korea in it’s first week of release. Another film that explores the North-South Korean divide, Jang plays a pirate with a nuclear device and destruction on his mind. Lee Jung-jae (IL MARE) plays a South Korean agent out to stop him. I'll see just about anything with pirates in it.
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3. THE HIDDEN BLADE
Tartan claims to be releasing this film this year but doesn’t quite say when. The next film by Yoji Yamada, director of TWILIGHT SAMURAI -- a man who spent most of his career directing 40-some-odd films in a series that never got any notice in America and then took the foreign film world by storm with the amazing TWILIGHT SAMURAI, which swept Japan’s version of the Oscars (and was nominated for best foriegn film in the US Oscars as well). This film is supposedly very similar but considering how good TWILIGHT SAMURAI was, that’s probably just fine.
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4. BREAKING NEWS
Johnny To’s scathing look at media and the public relations face of cops and criminals will be released by Palm Pictures this year. It should be released on Jan. 27, 2006. The film takes place in one day as Yuan (Richie Ren) and his gang hide in an apartment building after a robbery. Inspector Cheung (Nick Cheung) is out to stop them, but Inspector Fong (Kelly Chen) spends the whole day trying to spin the story in the media (Especially after one officer looks like a coward live on television). This film is a good thriller and a good social critique (two for the price of one). Check the archives for a review.
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5. KEKEXILI
This film will now be released by Samuel Goldwyn films, presumably this year. This extremely well-reviewed picture has slowly been gaining international momentum after it’s release in China two years ago. The film concerns locals in the outlands of China who attempt to stop antelope poachers. A powerful story which is based on truth, the film is directed by Chuan Lu who had a great debut with THE MISSING GUN.
6. RIDING ALONE FOR THOUSANDS OF MILES
Zhang Yimou’s next, comparatively small film will be released by Sony Classics. No specific date is set yet. The film stars prominent Japanese actor Ken Takakura. A touching tale, or so I've heard, about a father and terminally ill son and traditional Chinese opera. I think Yimou’s small films have really been his best and the early reviews from this one seem to buoy that theory.
7. NIGHTWATCH
I feel like I’ve covered this film to death, and my next column will have my final review of the film since I’ve recently seen the Fox Searchlight print (with their wacky subtitles and all), but it’s finally coming your way February 17th. The first in a trilogy, this film has been regarded as single-handedly kickstarting the Russian film industry. But yes, more on this in the next column...
8. CASSHERN
I have no information that this will definitely be released this year, but there is an actual webpage over at Dreamwork’s Go Fish website. The latest news was that director Kiriya Kazuaki had come to re-edit it for American audiences. But with Dreamworks being bought by Paramount, it’s future is uncertain. But as long as it has a website, I’ll remain hopeful that you’ll get to see this movie this year. Many people haven’t liked it, but I did -- check the archives for a review.
9. IMPRINT
Takashi Miike’s contribution to Showtime’s MASTERS OF HORROR was too extreme even for them. But we’ll all be able to see it when it’s released in all it’s glory on DVD later this year. Miike’s segment, which stars Billy Drago and Yuki Kudoh (MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA), is about a man in search of his prostitute-love who is led to an odd island of brothels. Mike Garris, the executive producer, said in the New York Times, "Definitely, at the script stage we made comments about the aborted fetuses". Well, I’m interested.
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10. MAREBITO
Speaking of horrific, the trailer for MAREBITO weirds me out something awful. This film is Takashi Shimizu’s (JU-ON, JU-ON:THE GRUDGE, THE GRUDGE) next and will be released by Tartan this year. Masuoka (Shinya Tsukamoto, director of TETSUO) has heard about spirits haunting the subways and he goes to check it out with his digital camera. He finds a naked woman who he takes home and she drinks blood and all that. Many articles have been written lately heralding the end of J-Horror and the reviews of this film have just been so-so, but I don’t think the genre can be brushed off that easily -- especially while it’s still relatively successful.
Top 5 Films Being Released Elsewhere (largely in China) To Look Forward To This Year.
While we don’t know when and if these films will get release in the US (although about half of them absolutely will), these are films I’m excited enough to import the day they come out on DVD elsewhere.
1. FEARLESS
Jet Li’s ‘last’ martial arts film is no longer being considered his last martial arts film (who didn’t think he’d renege on that?) but it still looks pretty good nonetheless. Directed by Ronny Yu, it comes out in Hong Kong today. Reviews will certainly follow, but the buzz is good. Plus, it doesn’t take much to get me excited about a Jet Li movie. This film is a loose biopic of of Master Huo Yuanjia.
2. DAISY
Well, Pan-Asian film has extended out of Asia with DAISY -- a film directed by a Hong Kong director, starring Korean actors, shot in Amsterdam. Director Andrew Lau (INFERNAL AFFAIRS, INITIAL D) is one of my favorite directors and the word on this film is also good (I’ve read ‘this seems like it will be better than it should be’ about a thousand times). The film stars Jun Ji-hyun (MY SASSY GIRL), Jung Woo-sung (MUSA) and Jeon Ho-jin (CRYING FIST). It’s a classic Hong Kong plot -- a criminal versus a detective, this time in love with the same woman. Count me in.
3. THE BANQUET
The new film from popular Chinese director Xiaogang Feng (A WORLD WITHOUT THIEVES) is a loose adaptation of Shakespeare’s HAMLET. The film stars Daniel Wu (ONE NIGHT IN MONGKOK), Zhang Ziyi (you know who she is), Ge You (TO LIVE) and Zhou Xun (PERHAPS LOVE). The choreography is by Yuen Wo Ping (THE MATRIX, CROUCHING TIGER). This film recently wrapped shooting and I’m not sure when it’s supposed to come out. But the top notch cast and crew, along with action-packed melodramatic subject matter, sounds great to me.
4. AUTUMN REMEMBRANCE
I would see anything that starred Chow Yun Fat and Gong Li. The thought of it is almost to much to endure. The two most charismatic actors working in China (not that Chow worked in Hong Kong since it’s been returned to China) are finally doing a film together. And it’s being directed by Zhang Yimou. And reportedly there are martial arts and the choreographer is Tony Ching (HERO). This film hasn’t actually started shooting yet but if it does so soon, it should come out this year. And I'll be importing it the second it's available.
5. BANDAGE
I haven’t been that thrilled with the films of Ryuhei Kitamura (VERSUS, GODZILLA: FINAL WARS) that I’ve seen. But a movie about the 90s rock scene in Japan? I love 90s Japanese rock music. It’s written by Shuni Iwai (ALL ABOUT LILY CHOU CHOU) which is about as odd of a collaboration as I could think of (Think of Michael Bay directing a film written by Hal Hartley). But I'm willing to give it a chance.
IN TWO WEEKS: I will review NIGHTWATCH one last time, finally having seen the American version on the big screen. And I'll talk about new Russian cinema -- are they making a comeback? Have they ever gone away?
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