In the summer of 2012, Gone Girl became one of the year’s biggest literary phenomena, coming second only to the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise. Given the book’s intriguing examination of long-term relationship dynamics, it came as no surprise that the film rights were bought by 20th Century Fox and Pacific Standard soon after the…
Category: Film
The 22nd Raindance Film Festival: In The Sands of Babylon Review
Raindance Film Festival, now in its 22nd year, has always had a strong legacy of showing independent films and uncovering talented filmmakers. This year’s festival brought various interesting films from all over the world, films you are unlikely to see elsewhere. The first one that caught my attention was Mohamed Al Daradji’s movie entitled In…
Japanese Animation Spotlight: Hal
Hal, Wit Studio’s first public project, is a clever and elegant depiction of grief, the nature of relationships, and the catharsis in moving on. Set in a technologically advanced and yet anachronistic society, the film briefly introduces the audience to robot Q01 before we learn of an unexpected death that separates the titular character, Hal,…
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes Review
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is the second instalment in the rebooted Planet of the Apes franchise. The film, directed by Matt Reeves, follows on a decade after the events of the first film and finds Caesar and the apes in a secluded colony near the ruins of San Francisco. Having seen no…
X-Men: Days of Future Past Review
Bryan Singer’s most recent contribution to the X-Men franchise, Days of Future Past, has just come out in cinemas, and what a wonderful return it is. Following his work on X-Men and X-Men 2, Singer took up the mantel from First Class director Matthew Vaughn, tying in the portrayal of the mutant’s past selves with the characters and events of the original trilogy….
In Conversation with Yoon Seok- ho
Yoon Seok-ho is a South Korean television director, whose status was solidified with the success of the TV dramas Autumn in My Heart in 2000 and Winter Sonata in 2002, which are both considered pioneers in Korean melodramatic series, launching the fever that is commonly referred to as the Korean Wave. For years Yoon Seok-…
The 8th London Korean Film Festival: Hope (Wish)
How much love, understanding and commitment is needed for parents to overcome a horrendous incident that happens to their child? Can the family stick together against all odds? Hope (Wish), directed by Lee Joon-ik, is set in a rural South Korean town and focuses on the story of the 8 year old girl, So-won (Lee…
The 8th London Korean Film Festival: Secretly, Greatly
Who doesn’t want to be a spy? A secret double life and all the perks that go along with the job, right? However, when it comes to Ryn-han’s (Kim Soo-hyun) character, being a spy doesn’t mean you have the glamorous life of James Bond. Instead, one lives the life of a brainless young man who…
Ilo Ilo Review
Set in Singapore, during the Great Asian Financial Crisis, Ilo Ilo, written and directed by Anthony Chen, tells the story of a relationship between a family of three: Teck (Tian Wen Chen), Hwee (Yann Yann Ye) and Jiale (Koh Jia Ler) and their Filipino maid, Teresa (striking and moving performance by Angeli Bayani) who has…
The 57th BFI London Film Festival: Lebanon Emotion
This year’s London Film Festival spoiled the audience with a great amount of Asian films including a few from South Korea. Apart from subtle drama Nobody’s Daughter Haewon by Hong Sang-soo and the comedy of manners Our Sunhi by the same filmmaker, it’s time to mention Lebanon Emotion by Jung Young-heon, a first-time director, whose…
VIEW OF THE ARTS 