Jeonju 2013 Review: GROGGY SUMMER Teaches Us You Can't Always Get What You Want
As viewers, sometimes we take for granted the decisions made by filmmakers that affect their works. A lot is decided in pre-production, and one particularly important element is a film's shooting style. Outside of a few highly stylized works, the... More »
  

Review: TAI CHI HERO Shifts Up A Gear ... Eventually
Stephen Fung's post-modern martial arts odyssey continues, replacing some of the goofiness of Tai Chi Zero with a more complex plot, while struggling to deliver a knockout punch. Tai Chi Hero follows on immediately from its predecessor, with "freak" Yang... More »
  

Review: GRACELAND Dramatizes A Kidnapping With Chilling Reality
Marlon has been the chauffeur of the wealthy Chango family for many years. His wife lies in a hospital room waiting for an organ transplant. His daughter is friends with the daughter of his boss and will frequently get rides... More »
  

Udine 2013 Review: Despite Lame Title, HOW TO USE GUYS WITH SECRET TIPS Is a Minor Revelation
Being one of the more tired genres to litter the multiplexes, every so often romantic comedies need a little boost to remind us that they can be worthwhile. Out of all of the national industries that regularly churn them out,... More »
  

Udine 2013 Review: TOUCH OF THE LIGHT Offers A Polite Reminder Not To Abandon Your Dreams
"Presented" by Wong Kar Wai and directed by Chang Jung-chi, Touch of the Light isn't an incredibly deep or adventurous movie, but I dare you to watch it and not reflect at least once, "maybe I should give some of... More »
  

Udine 2013 Review: THE WAY WE DANCE Finds the Right Beat
The latest offering from local indie director Adam Wong strives to be Hong Kong's answer to the Step Up dance flicks, and for largely transcends its budgetary limitations to deliver a toe-tapping, unashamedly feel-good romp. High-school graduate Fleur (Cherry Ngan) lives... More »
  

Udine 2013 Review: THE LAST SUPPER Filters Bloody Power Struggles of Ancient China Through A Fragmented Mind
Lu Chuan's retelling of Liu Bang's rise to power in ancient China is filled with so much backstabbing, manipulation and fatal ambition, Shakespeare himself probably would have written it had he read up more on Chinese history. However, he certainly... More »
  

Udine 2013 Review: MARUYAMA, THE MIDDLE SCHOOLER Is A Surprisingly Endearing Comedy About Self-Fellatio
Before seeing Maruyama, The Middle Schooler, I would have said that making a two-hour comedy about a fourteen-year-old boy who's primary ambition throughout the film is to, as the omniscient narrator puts it, "to touch his own weeny with his... More »
  

Tribeca 2013 Review: HARMONY LESSONS, A Brilliantly Directed Tale of School and State Cruelty Straight Outta Kazakhstan
A village school and the surrounding area in rural Kazakhstan is the backdrop for the brutal Darwinism, of both the social variety and that found in nature, depicted in Emir Baigazin's astonishing debut feature Harmony Lessons, whose extraordinary accomplishments in... More »
  

Review: EK THI DAAYAN Is Better Than It Deserves To Be
It's been a strange few years for Bollywood's kissing bandit, Emraan Hashmi. The actor became prominent in the last decade for his willingness to plant his lips on anything that moved on screen, an action still not entirely common in Hindi... More »
By J Hurtado   
  

Review: FINDING MR. RIGHT Sees Tang Wei Back in Favour
Tang Wei scores big at the mainland box office with this comedy drama about a spoilt mistress who must hide out in the US and reconcile her lifestyle when she becomes pregnant with her lover's child.All has been forgiven, it... More »
  

Review: DRUG WAR Supplies High-Octane Entertainment
For a good time, go see Johnnie To's latest film Drug War, which features some masterfully made high-octane entertainment. Heroic cops battle villainous thugs and it all looks slick and stylish. Is it a classic? Probably not. Did I like... More »
By Ard Vijn   
  

DVD/Blu-ray Review: OBLIVION ISLAND Looks Simply Stunning

(Mirror, mirror on the wall, in one viewing you won't see it all...) In 2009, renowned Japanese anime studio Production I.G. released Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror. Instead of a regular anime, this was an experiment in which... More »
By Ard Vijn   
  

BAKEMONOGATARI Hits DVD In Australia
The Bakemonogatari anime series has been a fan favorite ever since its release in Japan a few years ago. In 2010, our correspondent Matthew Lee had the following conclusion in his review: Ultimately, for such an utter fantasy Bakemonogatari feels strikingly... More »
By Hugo Ozman   
  

Review: Korean Indie KOALA Oozes Charm
Simplicity is in rare supply in Korean cinema these days, so when a film like Koala comes along, it does so as a breath of fresh air. Nary an overwrought emotion, sad backstory nor superfluous tangent can be seen here.... More »
  

Review: Kim Yun-seok on Form in SOUTH BOUND
Normally, when a Korean film's characters decamp to the countryside, we can expect terrible things to happen. But Yim Soon-rye's new film offers a refreshing take on this standard formula. While bad things also befall the characters in South Bound,... More »
  

Brussels 2013 Review: TEBANA SANKICHI: SNOT ROCKETS Will Turn Your Brain To Mush
Writing a review of Tebana Sankichi: Snot Rockets is impossible, and probably stupid to attempt. Reviews involve structuring words and sentences in order to give the reader an idea of what a movie is like and whether it is good... More »
  

IFFLA 2013 Review: SHIP OF THESEUS [De]Constructs Identity Biologically
The ship of Theseus, also known as Theseus' paradox, is a paradox that raises the question of whether an object which has had all its component parts replaced remains fundamentally the same object. The paradox is most notably recorded by... More »
By J Hurtado   
  

Imagine 2013 Review: Anime Movie 009 RE: CYBORG 3D Dazzles And Baffles
(After seeing this film I am "Himmelhoch jauchzend, zum Tode betrübt"...) One of the great things about film festivals is that they allow people to see Japanese anime films in a cinema. Being able to do so is such a... More »
By Ard Vijn   
  

Brussels 2013 Review: CULT Is A Wacky Found-Footage Horror Oddity
Those miffed by the fact that the monsters in Apollo 18 turned out to be moon rocks with legs will likely be even more enraged by antagonists of the Japanese found-footage horror film Cult. Granted, I never actually saw the... More »
  
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Featured Articles

Hollywood Beat: Notes On Cutting The Cord And NBC's Genre Programs

I cut the cable cord last year, but I'm not always happy about it. I had to wait a year before seeing Season 2 of Game of Thrones, for example, and will have to wait to see Season 3 until next year. I only have to wait to see Mad... More »

Twitchvision: Talking STAR TREK: INTO DARKNESS, MUD and THE ICEMAN

Another Twitchvision chat with Scott Laurie, this time me gushing about J.J.'s latest Star Trek film, which I unabashedly loved.Also talked about he fabbo Mud, and the less fabbo The Iceman, both with Michael Shannon doing his thing.Video embedded below.Update: Was asked to come in today and pick a few... More »

Learning from the Masters of Cinema: Henri-Georges Clouzot's THE MURDERER LIVES AT 21

While Henri-Georges Clouzot is best remembered for many of his later films, including The Wages of Fear and Diabolique, the French filmmaker's 1942 debut has gone largely unseen by Western audiences until now. The Murderer Lives at 21 (L'Assassin Habite au 21), based on the novel by Belgian author Stanislas-Andre... More »

China Beat: What did China See in IRON MAN 3?

Much has already been written, both on these pages and many others, about the landmark Hollywood-China co-production that is Marvel and DMG Entertainment's Iron Man 3. The film, directed by Shane Black, is the third solo outing for Robert Downey Jr's Tony Stark, and has proved a phenomenal success around... More »

FEAR & LOATHING AT CANNES, PART 2: I'M IN LOVE WITH EVERYBODY'S GIRL

CHAPTER 4: THE PHILOSOPHY OF ANNA KARINA AND BUTT PLUGSI'm sitting outside at a small Café that my editor told me to meet him at. I'm a 10 minute walk from the Marche Du Film convention hall and I'm still waiting for my editor to arrive so he take guide... More »
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