They say you never forget your first love. In this case, teenager Silvia (Luiza Kosovski) is so adamant to get back her Romeo that she turns to bloody sacrifice and revival voodoo. Brazilian filmmaker Alice Furtado’s feature-length debut is a swirling fever dream of obsession, mourning, and a cold apathy towards the world. Taking a…
72nd Cannes Film Festival: Nuestras Madres Review
Nuestras Madres – ‘Our Mothers’ in English – is a heart-rending and stirring uncovering of the trauma and anguish left behind by the Guatemalan civil war. César Díaz’s fiction-directorial debut focuses particularly on the stories of the many women survivors of the war. Everyone knows the effects of wars and the destruction they rage, but…
Fonotune: An Electric Fairytale Review
Going into Fonotune: An Electric Fairytale it’s fair to say that the deliciously vague trailer and intriguing synopsis built up a certain level of expectation to any discerning cinema-goer. The idea of a long, wonderfully soundtracked pilgrimage to a rock-and-roll gig at the end of the world would spark excitement into the heart of anyone…
SF9 Amazes Their Fans With Their Performance at the London’ Shepherd’s Bush Empire
To most Korean idols, the K-pop world is anything but a bed of roses. With the boy and girl groups being categorized into ‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘C-list’ levels depending on their popularity rankings, many of the artists have to fight hard to reach a decent place. Debuting under FNC Entertainment in 2016, SF9 has been…
21st Udine Far East Film Festival: Extreme Job Review
A fried chicken restaurant and a highly incompetent narcotic squad – what could possibly go wrong? Extreme Job is Lee Byeong-heon’s newest production that has unexpectedly become the second highest grossing film in the history of Korean cinema, with over $120 million box-office profit against a $5.8 million budget – it is no wonder that a Hollywood…
21st Udine Far East Film Festival: JK Rock Review
In the colorful world of Japanese manga live-action adaptations and musical-themed film productions, we can find a series of films that center around pop- and rock-bands that practically ooze ‘ikemen’ (good looking men) by the seams, while there is an (un)surprising lack of such films centering on female music groups. The reason for that lies…
21st Udine Far East Film Festival: In Conversation with Shunji Muguruma, director of ‘JK Rock’
Japanese director Shunji Muguruma may be on the brink of turning 50, but his work is all about the youth. He started out as a Japanese TV drama director, then switched to cinema where he both wrote and directed most of his projects. While making his 2016 production Little Performer: The Pulse of Winds, he…
21st Udine Far East Film Festival: In Conversation with Gong Hyo-jin
The entire theatre, full to the brink with fans of Asian cinema, buzzed, then started applauding with gusto as South Korean actress Gong Hyo-jin took her seat for the Udine Far East Film Festival screening of the thriller Door Lock. After the screening, the applause only got louder, reaffirming that Gong Hyo-jin is not only…
21st Udine Far East Film Festival: Door Lock Review
In a society, tightly dominated by men, is there a safe place for a woman? And what if the threat finds its way into the very hearth? Lee Kwon, who previously wrote and directed the horror-laced romantic comedy My Ordinary Love Story (2014), took on the adaptation of Jaume Balagueró’s Spanish film Sleep Tight. His…
21st Udine Far East Film Festival: Project Gutenberg Review
Felix Chong, a Hong Kong filmmaker, scriptwriter, and an actor, has been interested in cinema ever since he was a child. The filmmaker found his passion for storytelling when he co-wrote Afraid of Nothing the Jobless King with Joe Ma. With over 20 films under his belt, Felix Chong has been primarily recognised for scripting the…
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