The assembly
by FENG Xiaogang
China 2007, war epic
During the civil war of 1949 a platoon is sent to defend a land post against the overwhelming enemy fire. The 1st 20 minutes have a great dramatic effect for their crudeness and recalled Saving private Ryan, though this was possibly made even better. Weren’t for the final, a little too slow and commemorative, this would have been a perfect war movie.
Deathfix: die and let live
by MIKI Satoshi
Japan 2007, crazed comedy
A freelance writer is asked to get a near-death experience using a special chemical and report on the afterlife, but the plot doesn’t matter that much cause it’s just an excuse for a sequence of jokes and surreal situations. This movie is probably lots of fun but it was late at night, past midnight, and I was so tired it wasn’t funny anymore. At some point I fell asleep so I won’t cast a vote on this.
A sister’s garden
by Shin Sang-ok
South Korea 1959, drama
Another movie from the retrospective. In a post-war South Korea two sisters struggle to keep up with their lifestyle after most of their money went to pay a debt and their father died in the process. They are surrounded by men with different agendas and must swallow plenty of delusions in this newly capitalist society. Old style but still enjoyable.
Kala malam bulan mangambang
by Mamat KHALID
Malaysia 2008, noir
A black and white story with a reporter blocked in a strange village of the countryside where ghost-like events happen and every character has a bad shadow, but ironic lines and comic situations let the movie on a parody tune. There are probably references to local culture that I couldn’t get, or maybe actual consistency errors.
Adrift in Tokio
by MIKI Satoshi
Japan 2007, road movie
A debt collector and a student lagging behind stop their everyday activities to walk together through Tokio, small talking and progressively getting to know each other until they’re tied by actual relationships. A very light movie about small things important in our life.
Funuke, show some love you losers!
by YOSHIDA Daihachi
Japan 2007, black comedy
Thee brothers are forced together after their parents both died abruptly. They have very difficult and violent relationships but the most oppressed will find a way out in a very manga style. Excellent photography and surreal sequences.
The detective
by Oxide PANG
Hong-Kong 2007, thriller
A private investigator is hired to find a women who’s apparently chasing the client but he will found the story is much more complex and there are lots of things and crimes to explain. The sequence of the dropping fridge is hearth-stopping.
