 |
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Art+Culture / Cinema
Written by : Han Ming Jie
Sep 1, 2008
Tags :
|
|
It's tough being Woody Allen. Imagine
yourself as one the world's greatest
living directors, famed for your cutting witticisms
and intellectual clout, a heavyweight
of cinema who can secure any Hollywood
star you desire for the price of a processed
hotdog. Now imagine being equally vilified
as boring, outdated, creepy, terminally
clunky, and then having your last film, the
monumentally awful Cassandra's Dream
(2007) labeled as "the worst film in the history
of the motion picture. Ever." Like we
said, it's tough being Woody.
Most directors would pack up and head
for the gin, but what does Allen do? He
heads for Spain and makes the best romantic
comedy of the year, and maybe his best
film in 15 years. Gorgeous, sexy, wistfully
light yet always engaging, Vicky Cristina
Barcelona is a return to form with bells and
whistles on top. A trio of beautiful actors,
plus a sweet little script, swooning locations
and a sati ... ... |
| [read more] |
 |
Summer blockbusters!
Art+Culture / Cinema
Written by : Han Ming Jie
Jun 5, 2008
Tags :
new movies
|
| Sex and the City: The Movie
Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis, and Cynthia Nixon reprise their roles from the mega-successful HBO series. The show's best producer, Michael Patrick King, is both director and writer, so fear not ladies – you're in safe hands. Every woman in South China will own this movie within days, of course. Alas, for men, they'll be left either scratching their heads or echoing Marge Simpson's now legendary quip: "Sex and the City? Is that the show about four women acting like gay guys?" Available: June 3
Dark Knight
The increasingly powerful director Christopher Nolan returns to Gotham City with this sequel to his BO winner Batman Begins. Creepy joy: Batman (Christian Bale) goes toe-to-toe with his worst foe, The Joker (Heath Ledger). Creepy woe: It's going to be macabre watching Ledger up on the big screen. Available: Jul 21
&n ... ... |
| [read more] |
 |
Keeping the indy spirit flying . . .
Art+Culture / Cinema
Written by : Shane Qin
Mar 11, 2008
Tags :
|
| The 3rd ScreenOut Film Exhibition showcases the best of Chinese independent cinema
According to official statistics, in China, over 100 movies are produced each year. Many are innovative and outstanding in terms of artistic value. However, in the shadow of blockbusters by the likes of Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige, low-budget "art house" films are usually rejected by commercially-run movie houses and receive scant distribution.
This situation is now being resolved, with the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television setting up the "Chinese Film Union" (CFU) late last year in order to provide homegrown cinematic productions with greater distribution opportunities. Such a result is no coincidence. It's fair to say that the ScreenOut Film Exhibition (先锋光芒), hosted by Guangzhou-based Southern Metropolis Daily, has always been the biggest promoter, being China's first and so far only campaign to introduce art films in commercial cinemas.
Launched in D ... ... |
| [read more] |
 |
Welcome to the French
Art+Culture / Cinema
Written by : Shane Qin
Mar 11, 2008
Tags :
|
| A new documentary searches for the lost Chinese ancestors of two French-Caribbean islands. No, really.
Something strange happened two days before the Chinese New Year. At a Hakka habitat in Shenzhen's Henggang area, life became a bit more exciting than usual, not because of the upcoming festival, but by the presence of some exotic visitors who flew all the way from French Guiana and Martinique to the Pearl River Delta.
Seeing everything of this ancient oriental country with new and curious eyes, Jeanne Yang-Ting and her companions, Jacqueline Ho-A-Sim and Marc Ho-A-Chuck, were not really in the tourist's mood. In fact, they were looking for every scrap of possible information about their family origins. Hard to tell from outside, you might think, but beneath their unmistakably African appearance there runs a quarter of blood from their Cantonese ancestors.
This is no strange thing for French Guiana and Martinique, where there exists a huge number of mixed-blood people, j ... ... |
| [read more] |
|
|
