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The New Asian Films Thread

post #1 of 395
1/29/08 at 9:34pm
Thread Starter 
The first question a lot of people will ask, is why? Why make this thread, why make a ‘new’ Asian Film Thread when there is already one.

The problem is that the Asian Film Thread is an awe inspiring beast, more Kaiju reptile than repository of information. It’s half a decade old, first post was in December of 2002, and has eight and half thousand posts. Simply but it’s a monolith and it feel it’s decline was due to the sheer level of effort a new reader would have in trying to get through it. Hopefully this thread will be able to stimulate some more discussion, even without the input of the sadly gone members who made the original thread such an incredible piece of work.

The thing which I’m hoping this thread might do is help with the popular conception of Asian Film Thread. As a symptom of the films available at the time the original thread kinda solidified the idea that all Asian cinema had to offer were samurais, ghosts, kung fu fighting and gangsters.

Maybe this new thread will flounder, maybe it’ll become so large that someone will have to start a new asian film thread in a few years time, but I’m hoping that even if we have a few contributors we might be able to get some discussion going about Asian Cinema again.

So as to make a start, I honestly feel if people are wanting to explore a non-genre side of Asian cinema there aren't two better films to start with than

9 Souls and Lily Chou Chou.

You can read my thoughts on the 2 films Here and Here
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post #2 of 395
1/29/08 at 9:41pm
Just for clarification, if you're looking for those two titles on Netflix, the second one is listed as All About Lily Chou-Chou.

And I look forward to discussing the Kurosawa films from the new Eclipse/Criterion release just as soon as I finish watching them.
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post #3 of 395
1/29/08 at 9:50pm
Train.

On it.

EDIT: Someone talk to me about Vengeance is Mine! I don't know anyone anywhere ever that has seen it. I want to pontificate, damnit!
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post #4 of 395
1/29/08 at 10:19pm
Too soon Spike!

Kidding, this is nice. If a little blasphemous.

We could discuss Bushi no Ichibun perhaps.
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post #5 of 395
1/30/08 at 10:13am
even more importantly, Sakiyuki Western Django hits DVD either February 6th or February 20th.

so that will actually be worth discussing.
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post #6 of 395
1/30/08 at 8:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheMonsterZero View Post
Train.

On it.

EDIT: Someone talk to me about Vengeance is Mine! I don't know anyone anywhere ever that has seen it. I want to pontificate, damnit!
Did you mean the version with Rosamund Kwan?

Good idea to cover other aspects of asian film, I'm all for it, although sometimes the lines get blurred especially in HK films. I especially want to know more about comedies that perhaps a westerner can enjoy.
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post #7 of 395
1/31/08 at 11:38am
Time Warner Digital Cable is showing

Pulse
Nightmare
One Missed Call

on Free Movies on Demand (as I noticed last night). I'm sure they will run for the month of February.
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post #8 of 395
2/1/08 at 11:01am


Horrible quality The Battle of Red Cliff trailer.
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post #9 of 395
2/2/08 at 4:14pm
Thread Starter 
Just got myself a copy of Bright Future which I should be watching either tonight or tomorrow. Love Kiyoshi Kurosawa, even when he's doing genre stuff he's fucking around with deeper themes than most other directors. It's why the insipid remake of Pulse was so awful, as the original was a really quite beautiful film about the effects that increased personal insolation were having on Japan as a whole.

Also not to try and plug but I have a blog in the chewers section which I'm replicating on blogger (as the chud.com's formatting for blogs is horrible and uneditable at the moment) which can be found here
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post #10 of 395
2/3/08 at 12:26pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spike Marshall View Post
The thing which I’m hoping this thread might do is help with the popular conception of Asian Film Thread. As a symptom of the films available at the time the original thread kinda solidified the idea that all Asian cinema had to offer were samurais, ghosts, kung fu fighting and gangsters.
Well,

#1 - that's what all Asian films are actually about
#2 - that thread started as more of a little place that a few guys talked about the little things that interested them, not so much as a repository of knowledge. That's why perhaps there wasn't the breadth of information that you were perhaps looking for. We just talked about the films that interested our little circle, and it wasn't always about that small spat of genres that you described. We talked about a lot of things and covered all genres. Those guys had a lot of knowledge about the films and the industries behind them.

I was a little bit sad when I saw that the other thread disappeared, but hey time to move on.
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post #11 of 395
2/4/08 at 7:55pm
I've just been jackhammered by the beauty of CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER. Not the best story, but holy Beetlejuice what a masterpiece in terms of costumes and sets. Great peformance by Gong Li.

Fuck Forbidden Kingdom, I just can't wait for THE WARLORDS and BATTLE AT THE RED CLIFF.
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post #12 of 395
2/5/08 at 10:02am
Thread Starter 
I assume you're being sarcastic Electrichead, but if not you really need to start improving your cinematic diet. There are some truly great films from Japan, China and Korea which break expectations and genre. Films like Yi-Yi, Raise the Red Lantern, Nobody Knows, Last Life in the Universe, Chungking Express are all great pieces of truly mindblowing cinema which feature none of the usual tropes.

Bright Future's an interesting little film, more allegory than film. It's beautifully shot, it amazes me how quickly and succesfully DV was used in Japan, and it has this really fragile thematic beauty which sort of counteracts against a plot which has no literal bearings. Asano is great in it, but Jo Odagari completely steals the show. It's essentially a story of the listless that young people have, a desperation to achieve something and their fight to either pursue it or be safe. It's really quite incredible.
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post #13 of 395
2/9/08 at 1:43pm
Why not divide into genre instead of continent? Just sayin'. It might be an easier read for people, if it was broken down into Martial Arts, Japanese Horror, etc. No wonder the original thread got so unweildy, if you included ALL films the Asian Market had to offer.
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post #14 of 395
2/9/08 at 8:44pm
Thread Starter 
Vengeance is Mine blew my mind, it's an incredible, incredible piece of cinema. Up there with Memories of Murder, M and Zodiac as my favourite explorations of crime in cinema.
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post #15 of 395
2/9/08 at 9:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spike Marshall View Post
Vengeance is Mine blew my mind, it's an incredible, incredible piece of cinema. Up there with Memories of Murder, M and Zodiac as my favourite explorations of crime in cinema.
I think that watching it so close to Zodiac made it even more of an incredible experience for me.
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post #16 of 395
2/9/08 at 9:13pm
Thread Starter 
I still can't believe it's two and a half hours long, it just flew by. I just love everything about the film, I love the documentary style that it takes, I love how matter of fact the killings are, I love the music (especially the Bernard Harman like main theme which crops up when they're tracking his movements) and the central performances in the film are just awe inspiring.

The lead performer is just incredible in his ability to switch from a seething placidity to over the top buffonery and still maintain fidelity to the character.
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post #17 of 395
2/10/08 at 6:29pm
Sarcasm my friend. Used to illustrate your simple dismissal of what was going on there. No big deal, I only watch dubbed kung-fu movies on the Ground Zero DVD label. They are the best.
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post #18 of 395
2/13/08 at 2:16pm


KHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITCH!!!!
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post #19 of 395
2/14/08 at 2:43am
Wesley always knows what to say.
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post #20 of 395
2/14/08 at 3:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Straxboy - An Anthony Hickox Film View Post


KHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITCH!!!!
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post #21 of 395
2/14/08 at 9:15pm
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post #22 of 395
2/15/08 at 8:30am
Now it's a thread!

So I finally got a working copy of Fong Sai Yuk the other day (after about 4 goes with faulty discs -- fcking Universe Laser. Still they cost about 30p each so it's not like it's breaking the bank, I 3> DDDhouse). I hope it was worth the wait...

Oh, and Boxer From Shantung came in the same package. The guys at Genrebusters can't keep quiet about this picture so I thought I'd give it a punt.
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post #23 of 395
2/15/08 at 9:17am
Boxer from Shantung is Chang Cheh goodness, I'm not much a fan, the man made loads of crap films but he has some gems like Vengeance, that film is like a visual mix of point blank and chinese opera, so awesome.

Any of you guys seen Tazza: High Rollers? That was the last asian film I caught and it was a pretty good movie, a little too long but good nonetheless, it also had Kim Hye-Soo as a ravishing femme fatale, christ is she hot.
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post #24 of 395
2/21/08 at 4:36pm
Man this is sweet, if I could find out where to buy it. Action figure of Shaw Bros. characters. Looks like Gordon Liu may be on my shelf.

http://www.varietyasiaonline.com/kai...ACTION-FIGURES
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post #25 of 395
2/21/08 at 4:43pm
Alright folks, I just joined Netflix. I've got a nubile, recently-legal, virginal, near empty que for probably the only time ever!

Let's rice it up.
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post #26 of 395
2/29/08 at 3:20am
Saw 13 Beloved (aka 13 Game Of Death), a Thai thriller about a down-on-his-luck salesman who gets a cellphone call out of the blue telling him he's been chosen to play a game for a chance at money. He has to complete 13 tasks, starting with the simple killing of a fly with a newspaper, that get increasingly hazardous but he's forced to go along since each task nets him more cash and he doesn't get any of it until he finishes them all.

A simple premise, which plays out in a perfectly entertaining way for most of the movie (though completely implausible, ala Fincher's The Game). But then they give you one of the stupidest possible endings they could've come up with. 12/13 of a decent film, I guess. An ideal candidate for an American remake.
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post #27 of 395
3/3/08 at 11:44am
Does anyone have a HD tv to watch Kung Fu HD? It is a very cool channel...martial arts films in HD commercial free. I saw part of Jackie Chan's Meals On Wheels the other day...very cool indeed.
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post #28 of 395
3/3/08 at 1:21pm
What service do you have? Dishnetwork or DirecTV? That sounds like it would be pretty cool. What else do they have on there?

Anyone been watching Human Weapon or Fight Quest? Two hour long shows with two dudes training and learning about different martial arts. It's actually pretty interesting.
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post #29 of 395
3/3/08 at 2:14pm
Electrichead, Kung Fu HD is on Cablevision. They have 3 or 4 films a day which they air repeats of til the next day. Some of the other films available on Kung Fu HD are Shintaro Katsu's Zatoichi films, Michelle Yeoh's Yes Madam, Chow Yun Fat's Prison on fire II, along with Jackie Chan and Samo Hung's Project A, Project A2, and Dragons Forever. Bruce Lee's Way of the Dragon airs next month.
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post #30 of 395
3/8/08 at 8:32pm
I just bought the Lone Wolf and Cub box from AnimEigo. I had only seen Shogun Asassin before, and knowing that it was edited together from parts of the first two films, I dove right in. It was interesting to see how different the first two films were in tone from SA, they're slower and a bit darker (playing up Itto's growing paranoia in the second film, for instance), and feel a lot more like the chambara I'm used to. Right now I'm on #3, Baby Cart to Hades, and I'm really loving the series so far.

As much as I like it, though, I keep thinking that it would be interesting to see a modern take on the series. The characters are very iconic, and there is a lot of material here that could be interesting to explore. I seem to remember Aronofsky's name being tossed around, am I remembering that correctly? If so, was he going to make a samurai film with Japanese actors? Because that would have been ridiculously cool.
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post #31 of 395
3/8/08 at 9:00pm
There was a futuristic take on the lone wolf character in comic book form, Lone Wolf 2100 back in '02, I never read it though.

I watched Flashpoint again last night, it's a ridiculously awesome action movie, Wilson Yip and Donnie stage some terrific action, the score is amazing, it also has some amazing visuals.
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post #32 of 395
3/8/08 at 11:10pm
I've recently been exposed to Lily Chou-chou, Pulse, Boiling Point and Fallen Angels through a film class I'm in.

Am still supposed to watch :
  • Copycat Killer
  • Suicide Club
  • The Family Game
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post #33 of 395
3/9/08 at 3:24pm
I just finished watching the fifth film in the Lone Wolf and Cub series, Baby Cart in the Land of Demons, and I'm pretty much speechless. My favorite of the series, but I still have the last one left. I honestly can't believe they had the hero beheading a 5-year old girl! That was fucked up. But the setup, with the five clansmen giving their lives to test his abilities, giving him 1/5 of the money and a small part of the whole story behind the assassination plot, that was very cool.
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post #34 of 395
3/26/08 at 3:45pm
Hey, I love asian movies, been enjoying them for awhile.

Anyone see Gozuby Takashi Miike? Or any movie directed by him? So incredibly bizarre.

The Vengeance trilogy by Park Chan-Wook is aces. Incredibly beautiful movies.
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post #35 of 395
3/26/08 at 4:35pm
Gozu really felt like Miike was aping Lynch a little too much for my liking. That said it did open with a fantastic random burst of man on dog violence.
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post #36 of 395
3/26/08 at 8:03pm
Miike was aping Lynch a bit much on Gozu but it's still pretty interesting and damn bizzare. Anything interesting up and coming from Miike? Haven't heard his name in a bit.

Also... anyone seen the Death Note live action films? Worth checking out? Am I perhaps the only Death Note fan here?

I recently saw Chan Wook Park's I'm A Cyborg But That's Ok and absolutely adored it. Some may find it a bit cutesy but it has Park's distinct visual style in every frame and has a nice tounching story. I loved it. I wanna make love to it. Always. And forever.
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post #37 of 395
3/27/08 at 8:11am
Miike's unique take on Django is still incoming. It's really fantastic.
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post #38 of 395
3/27/08 at 9:19am
2 big films come out in the next 2 weeks.

CJ7 and Kung Fu Dunk. Which should I get. I've heard Chow's CJ7 isn't that great, but I've also heard its a good family film.

I've heard Kung Fu Dunk is a Shaolin Soccer ripoff.. but the special effects look great too.

any thoughts?
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post #39 of 395
3/27/08 at 9:49am
Neaux, Kung Fu Dunk is based on the manga Slam Dunk written by Takehiko Inoue which is a 31 volume series. The anime adaption lasted over 100 episodes. If you like basketball buy Kung Fu Dunk over CJ7. If you want a family film, buy ET as CJ7 is supposedly an ET clone.

An even bigger release is Wilson Yip's Flashpoint starring Donnie Yen which gets a US release April 22nd.
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post #40 of 395
3/27/08 at 8:04pm
I haven't seen Kung Fu Dunk, but CJ7 is a weak film. It's not terrible or anything, and it has a handful of decent moments. But why bother when there are better things out there? It's certainly not the usual ambitious Stephen Chow film to which we are accustomed, and I can't believe it took him three years to turn it out. It feels more like a first draft.
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post #41 of 395
3/27/08 at 8:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by duke fleed View Post
An even bigger release is Wilson Yip's Flashpoint starring Donnie Yen which gets a US release April 22nd.
That's the one with Colin Chou right? It was pretty good. I'm starting to like Yen's way of putting a fight together. He's taking the grappling to heart now it seems, he uses it here too.
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post #42 of 395
3/27/08 at 8:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by duke fleed View Post
Neaux, Kung Fu Dunk is based on the manga Slam Dunk written by Takehiko Inoue which is a 31 volume series. The anime adaption lasted over 100 episodes.
That bore absolutely no similarities to Slam Dunk, I've read that manga. The only thing connecting them, based on the trailer, is basketball. Oh, and that film looks ass-tacular.
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post #43 of 395
3/27/08 at 8:56pm
Based on this, I'd say it's not based on the comic given that they changed the name to prevent confusion. Unless there's another comic book series called Slam Dunk.
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post #44 of 395
4/1/08 at 8:01pm
Neoolong, Thanks for the update...I have made mistakes because of similar titles before. When I was a pre teen I thought the caveman film Iceman would be about one of the first X-Men Bobby Drake aka Iceman.
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post #45 of 395
4/2/08 at 9:38am
Time Warner Cable's free movies on demand had The Great Yokai War on this past week.

While the effects are somewhat laughable, I enjoyed the actual humor of this film a lot.
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post #46 of 395
4/6/08 at 11:20pm
In the last week I saw 2 more Zatoichi films starring Shintaro Katsu...I find them compelling tales. Apparantly, Sonny Chiba must find them as compelling as he will direct a new Zatoichi film according to news from twitchfilm.net.

Does anyone else have Cablevisions channel Kung Fu HD? This week alone they are running Yes Madam, Shaolin Soccer, Exit Dragon Enter Tiger starring Bruce Li. I find it the best HD channel I have seen. Although of course I am biased being a long time martial arts film fan. Between films they have an ass kick of the day usually showing part of the fight between Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris in Way Of The Dragon. Anyways I recommend Kung Fu HD for all fans of asian films.
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post #47 of 395
4/7/08 at 1:22am
I looked into it and dishnetwork has it as part of their HD lineup, so as soon as I get my new system setup up, I'm going to try and get the HD package. Hopefully that will be within the next few months.

The guide says that they are playing Way of the Dragon, Zatoichi's Vengeance, and Yojimbo tonight. What a damn lineup that is.
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post #48 of 395
4/8/08 at 5:40pm
I recently got Exiled and PTU. I am a Johnny To ignoramus, but if they are any good I will get Election and Triad Election.
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post #49 of 395
4/9/08 at 5:11pm
You should probably check out The Mission too. But there's no reason to think you won't like Exiled.
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post #50 of 395
4/10/08 at 6:58pm
Wow, so I finally got around to watching Takeshis' last night and I'm still trying to put it all together in my head. Incoming rant!

First and foremost, this seems to be the kind of movie that.. well I wouldn't say 'requires' but it's beneficial to have prior knowledge of Takeshi Kitano's work. Just browing quickly through the IMDB discussions I can see scenes that are references or 'in' things about films he's done in the past; I'm no stranger to Takeshi's work (I've seen Violent Cop, Sonatine, Brother, Hana-bi, Gohatto, and Zatoichi), but other than lots of familiar faces and Beat doing his usual Yakuza stuff, I didn't pick up on much.

Incase you aren't up on the plot: Takeshi Kitano plays both leads - 'Beat' Takeshi, a famous movie star (basically, playing himself), and Mr. Kitano, a struggling actor who bares more than a striking resemblance to Beat. The movie initially follows Beat around with his daily activities, but after a chance encounter on a set between Beat and Kitano, suddenly the movie switches gears and follows Kitano around as he fantasizes his life as Beat. Or does it?

The movie is fairly complex and can be hard to follow if you don't have your thinking cap on; it constantly presents us with a scene, that leads into another scene, then suddenly we are back at a part of the film that happened before either and shown it was just a fantasy of Kitano's. Scenes and characters we encounter through Beat at the beginning of the film are then shown through Kitano; most or all of the actors in the film play more than one role, and we experience many scenes from both leads POV. The movie is really a feat of editing-room showmanship.

Takeshis' hits us with tons of 'duality' themes: actors playing multiple roles, a drag queen, a young boy in Kabuki-attire, obese twins, a yakuza-actor wannabe who can only deliver lines when repeating someone else, and recurring catapillar imagery we see in both Beat and Kitano's scenes, among other things. The end of the movie is especially hard for me to figure out; the assumption is the movie is about self-actualization, as Kitano starts living his life out the way Beat does in his films.. and certainly that idea is clear through much of the films running time, but at the end we aren't really left with a true idea of what was real and what was fantasy, or whose fantasies they were at all.

Anyway, to wrap this mega-ton rant off: I really enjoyed the movie, I've always loved the comedic moments Takeshi has in his films and they are in full force here. Throw in lots of his usual double-fisted gun shootouts, some familiar faces like Ren Osugi and the fantastic Susumu Terajima and you have yourself a delightful, if confusing, film experience. Recommend to any fans of the guy's work.
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