1st Taiwan Film Festival Edinburgh Announces Its Ambitious Programme

The producers of Taiwan Film Festival Edinburgh are pleased to announce their plans for the first ever, free to access edition of the Festival, taking place digitally between 18 and 27 of September. Originally planned as a physical event, the Festival was repivoted to a purely digital form in light of the global pandemic of…

The Last Ferry from Grass Island Review

Amongst the 263 islands that make up Hong Kong, nestled near the Shenzhen border, sits Grass Island. Hiding away in a small fishing village on Grass Island is ex–hitman Ah Hoi (Tai-Bo). Retired from his life of crime, Ah Hoi now spends his days keeping a low profile and looking after his elderly mother, Ah…

22nd Udine Far East Film Festival: Victim(s) Review

Audiovisual texts, mainly film, are a desirable tool in the axiological education of many people. Thanks to the projection-identification mechanism, we can often relate to a film character and experience various emotional states with them, self-reflect and, like pedagogues, improve our quality of life by analysing our own emotions. There is one particular subject that…

22nd Udine Far East Film Festival: The House of Us Review

Wise upon her years, 12-year-old Lee Hana (Kim Na-yeon) is the backbone of her family; acting as a peacekeeper as she tries to calm raging arguments between her parents who are going through a divorce. Constantly cooking dinners in an attempt to bring her family back together – Hana’s gastronomic displays of affection aren’t appreciated…

22nd Udine Far East Film Festival – Life Finds a Way Review

Returning with his famous love for shooting in black and white and observing the mundane, Hirobumi Watanabe creates a refreshing and funny reflection on when it means to be a creative and what it means to create in his film Life Finds a Way. Starring as himself, Watanabe is spending the summer living at his…

22nd Udine Far East Film Festival: Ashfall Review

Recently, filmmakers have been attracted to making disaster films more than ever. Whether they show that we would be swallowed by a tsunami, a whirlwind or fires, blown away by a comet, burnt by an erupting volcano or perished by inhaling poisonous gases, the productions have become bold, filled with endless CGI, harrowing action, but…

22nd Udine Far East Film Festival: Dance with Me Review

Shizuka Suzuki (Ayaka Miyoshi) hates musicals, or at least that’s what she claims after a traumatic incident from her childhood leads her to despise the stage. So, when she decides to take her niece to visit a fair in the park and magician Machin Ueda (Akira Takarada) hypnotises her into turning all life situations into…

22nd Udine Far East Film Festival: Exit Review

Up amongst Seoul’s rollercoaster of a skyline, Yong-nam (Jo Jung-suk) and Eui-Ju (Lim Yoona) are hurdling from building to building desperately trying to outrun and outsmart the toxic fog slowly following them across the city. Opening up this year’s London East Asia Film Festival, Lee Sang-geun’s feature debut Exit is a joyful, lively but somewhat…