The 25th Busan International Film Festival introduced 6 Open Cinema selections, which to be screened at the BIFF Theater located in Busan Cinema Center from October 21st to 30th. Open Cinema is a section that features a collection of new and internationally acclaimed films that offer both its cinematic quality and popularity. This year’s Open Cinema selections…
Category: Foreign Films
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: 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 – In Conversation with Layla Ji, Director of ‘Victim(s)’
Layla Ji has always been an ambitious individual. At the age of 18, she decided to move from China to the US to study a double major in Business Management and Radio/TV/Film Production. After four years, she proudly graduated with honours and later went on to study at Columbia University where she finished the MFA…
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: Vertigo Review
Life can often throw you curveballs, but a person can only endure so much while also trying to reach deeper into oneself to find what gives them a reason to live. Vertigo, written and directed by Jeon Gye-soo, depicts one of these emotional and complex life stories. Seo-young (Chun Woo-hee: The Wailing, Han Gong-ju) struggles with her existence;…
A Syrian Woman: Human Stories from Jordan Review
When Syria plunged into a civil war in 2011, no one could have predicted that the conflict between its own people would turn into a multi-sided battle, in which mostly civilians had suffered. Brutal slaughter, acts of terror, political and social consequences of military operations led to an unprecedented humanitarian crisis: almost half a million…
Time to Hunt Review
South Korean cinema is well-known for its perturbing thrillers such as Oldboy, Lady Vengeance, I Saw the Devil, Memories of Murder as well as the latest hit, Parasite. Although those films broke into the mainstream film market, South Korean productions are still not ‘in fashion’ like French, Scandinavian or American cinema. However, with the new…
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