The jidaigeki, or samurai period drama, has been done a thousand times in a thousand different ways, but it can still feel refreshing like Kazuya Shiraishi’s Bushido. Based on rakugo, or comic storytelling, the narrative follows Kakunoshin Yanagida (Tsuyoshi Kusanagi) a humble ronin who has fallen on hard times and lives in a small community…
Category: Asian Cinema
26th Far East Film Festival: “The Roundup: Punishment” Review
In The Roundup: Punishment Ma Dong-seok strikes again… and again, and again in this rip-roaring action thriller that’ll have everyone’s hearts pumping. The fourth film in the franchise, Punishment sees detective Ma Seok-do (Ma) try to deliver just that after young Korean man Jo Sung-jae is killed in the Philippines and his mother begs the…
26th Far East Film Festival: In Conversation with Hur Jin-ho, Director of “A Normal Family”
Hur Jin-ho, renowned as the “master of Korean melodrama”, is in his element in his latest production, A Normal Family. Drawn from the pages of the Dutch author Herman Koch’s gripping best-seller The Dinner, the film revolves around two married – and morally very different – brothers who are forced to confront a harrowing family…
26th Far East Film Festival: “The Guest” Review
The slasher genre has long been a cornerstone of horror cinema, terrifying audiences with its iconic villains, suspenseful storytelling, and gruesome kills. From the masked killers of Halloween to the supernatural terrors of A Nightmare on Elm Street, slashers continue to draw viewers into their blood-soaked worlds. At the heart of the slasher genre lies…
26th Far East Film Festival: In Conversation with Samantha Lee, Director of “Rookie” – Exclusive Interview
Volleyball can be a space for romance, at least that’s what director Samantha Lee has imagined in her Filipino coming-of-age sports film Rookie. The movie opens with Pat Tingjuy’s Ace being transferred to a new school, she may be a skilled basketball player but the nuns at her academy think the sport turns girls into…
26th Far East Film Festival: “The Midsummer’s Voice” Review
Peking Opera is a Chinese art form with a rich history spanning over hundreds of years. Drawing inspiration from diverse sources including the music and dance traditions of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), the performing arts of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the Southern Opera during the Song Dynasty (960-1279), and the Kunqu Opera in…
26th Far East Film Festival: “Exhuma” Review
What do a Feng Shui master, a mortician, and a shaman all have in common? No, this isn’t the setup for a terrible joke; instead, it’s the main plot of the Korean supernatural horror film Exhuma. Although the film starts off slowly, it effectively introduces the main characters and their backgrounds. Additionally, it provides an…
26th Far East Film Festival: In Conversation with Jang Jae-hyun, Director of “Exhuma”
Jang Jae-hyun, a South Korean film director and screenwriter, earned acclaim for his work on blockbuster films such as The Priests (2015), Svaha: The Sixth Finger (2019), and Exhuma (2024). His career took off when he worked as an assistant director on the period drama Masquerade (2012). Jang Jae-hyun was also praised for his short…
26th Far East Film Festival: In Conversation with Kim Seong-hun, Director of “Ransomed” – Exclusive Interview
Kim Seong-hun’s filmmaking journey began as an assistant director on romantic comedies before directing his first feature, which unfortunately didn’t bring fruitful results. Determined to redeem himself, he took inspiration from Pedro Almodóvar’s work and spent years making his next project, A Hard Day. Premiering at the Cannes Film Festival, it received widespread acclaim and…
26th Far East Film Festival: In Conversation with Kim Sung-soo, Jung Woo-sung, and Kim Won-kuk of “12.12. The Day” – Exclusive Interview
Kim Sung-soo, a South Korean filmmaker, is well-known for films such as Musa, Asura: The City of Madness, and City of the Rising Sun. His recent film, 12.12 The Day, is a gripping political thriller set in the aftermath of President Park’s assassination in 1979, portraying the power struggles and uncertainty that ensued. Led by…
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