ACF 1202: BEIJING BESIEGED BY WASTE at Asia Society NY

Beijing Besieged by Waste (2011). (dGenerate Films)

 Beijing Besieged by Waste

Directed by WANG Jiuliang

China, 2011, 72 minutes, Digibeta, English Subtitles

When: Saturday, October 29, 2011 at 3:00 PM

Where: Asian Society

725 Park Avenue

New York, NY 10021

Asia Society NY's Visions of a New China documentary film series concludes this coming Saturday afternoon with this recently and timely look at the impact of waste on Beijing's environments.



Synopsis: With a population of about 20 million, the growing city of Beijing produces 30,000 tons of waste each day. Photographer/filmmaker Wang Jiuliang traveled around the city and visited 460 legal and illegal landfills from 2008 to 2010 to document the collection of garbage and excrement, the environmental calamity and the life cycles around these landfills, which include scavengers building a precarious livelihood, green spaces forming on top of waste, and livestock being fed trash. An informative and alarming portrait of urban ecology, the film has earned keen Chinese media coverage and the attention of government officials.

Interview with director WANG Jiuliang:

WANG Jiuliang was born in Anqiu, Shandong Province in 1976. He is a graduate of the Cinema-Television School at Communication University of China. Wang is also a photographer. Beijing Besieged by Waste accompanies a larger photography project.

Tickets here.

The Visions of a New China film series was curated by La Frances Hui and is supported in part by a grant from the Open Society Foundations. Additional support is provided by the Center on U.S.-China Relations and New York State Council on the Arts.

ACF 1195: FLOATING at Asia Society NY this Friday, October 21st

Floating

Directed by HUANG Weikai

China, 2005, 93 minutes, DVCAM, English Subtitles

When: Friday, October 21, 2011 at 6:45 PM

Where: Asian Society

725 Park Avenue

New York, NY 10021

Asia Society NY's Visions of a New China documentary film series continues this coming Friday evening with HUANG Weikai's Floating.

Synopsis: A 30-year-old rural-born singer brings his guitar to Guangzhou to eke out a living by performing in public spaces. Like many migrant workers who don’t possess residence permits to stay in this southern metropolis, he is constantly dodging the authorities. The camera closely follows the singer’s daily life as he performs in pedestrian underpasses and lives out his tumultuous romantic life, which involves suicide, abortion and a bad break-up. As the film progresses, we find the filmmaker, who also made the much-praised Disorder (2009), getting intimately involved with his subject’s precarious existence. Floating offers a humanist portrayal of those who drift on the fringes of society.

Black Pottery Prize and Audience Award, Yunnan Multi Culture Visual Festival, China (2005)
New Filmmaker Award, Reel China Documentary Biennial, New York, Shanghai (2006)
Hong Kong International Film Festival (2006)
The International Umbria Film Festival, Italy (2007)

Director HUANG Weikai was born in 1972 in Guangdong Province, China. He studied Chinese painting for 15 years and graduated from the Chinese Art Department of the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts. He used to work as a cinema promoter, art editor, graphic designer, movie script writer and cameraman. Since 2002, he has been directing independent films. His 2009 found-footage documentary, Disorder, has been acclaimed as "One of the most mesmerizing films I’ve seen in ages" by Hua Hsu in The Atlantic for its unflinching look at the absurdity and anarchy of urban life in contemporary China

Tickets for Floating here.

The Visions of a New China film series is supported in part by a grant from the Open Society Foundations. Additional support is provided by the Center on U.S.-China Relations and New York State Council on the Arts.

ACF 1191: CHILDREN OF THE CHINESE CIRCUS at Asia Society

 Children of the Chinese Circus
Directed by GUO Jing and KE Dingding
China/UK., 2007, 58 min. Digibeta.
When: Sunday, October 16, 2011, 3:00 pm 

Where: Asia Society 

725 Park Avenue 

New  York, NY 10021 

"Recalling the finestnonfiction achievements of Frederick Wiseman…. Fiercely intelligent." —Robert Koehler, Variety 

Visions of a New China, the nine film documentary series presented by Asia Society (NY) continues this afternoon with this fascinating and revealing movie. It's about the rigorous training to which young and teenage children are subjected in order to acquire the skills to become circus performers. In terms of who is being depicted, the film's English title would more accurately be "Children of the Shanghai Circus School," but this is not a significant matter.

Synopsis: Take a behind-the-scenes look at thetraining of some of the world’s best acrobats and circus performers. In thisShanghai circus school, a highly disciplined environment, small children endureexcruciating and dangerous training regimes. Mostly from poor families, thesechildren are sent to the school by their parents in the hope that the specialtytraining will secure them a future. While small children sustain agonizingdaily practice, the teachers are also under tremendous pressure to produceaward-winning stunts. A faculty meeting turns into a Cultural Revolution-styledcriticizing session. This film is set to change your perception of acrobaticperformances forever. 

ACF Review: The film focuses on three acts. One is a young boy who performs solo acrobatics, such as one-armed handstands. He is prone to overeating and gaining too much weight when he visits his parents, who are both mute. (He is shown practicing a headstand in the top image.)

The Threesome Handstand Group at practice

Second is the Threesome Handstand Group, which as its name suggest is a trio of acrobats. The older male does a handstand on the ground, forming the base for the performance. One girl does a handstand on his feet, then another girl does the same on the first girl's feet. We watch them and their female coach as they struggle to find the proper balance points in order to free themselves of the need for safety harnesses.

Two members of the Flying Trapeze troupe during a performance.

Lastly, there is the large group of male and female Flying Trapeze artists. They too go through a long period of struggle; in their case the problem is missed catches of the girls by the males on the trapeze swings.

The coaches are generally harsh and at times brutal with their students. Though they can also be the same with one another, as shown in an intense self-criticism session that the female coach of the handstand group undergoes. On the other hand, at times the coaches do give positive pep talks to their students, and when one young girl in the trapeze act suffers an injury, the care and concern of the coaches is clearly genuine, and even borders on tenderness.

One of the things that occurred to me while watching this film was that Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan, and Yuen Biao must have undergone much the same type of training at the China Drama Academy, the Peking Opera school they attended.

ACF Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; highly recommended.

 Children of the Chinese Circus will be shown in a double bill with Brave Father, a film about a peasant father who sacrifices for his son's college education. Brave Father will screen at 4:10 pm

ACF 1178: THE BIGGEST CHINESE RESTAURANT IN THE WORLD

The Biggest Chinese Restaurant in the World (2008). (Amber Entertainment)

The Biggest Chinese Restaurant in the World

Directed by CHEN Weijun

China/UK/Netherlands/Denmark, 2008, 80 minutes

When: Saturday, October 8th, 2011, at 3:00 PM

Where: Asia Society

725 Park Avenue

New  York, NY 10021

Asia Society NY's  documentary film series Visions of a New China continues this afternoon at 3:00 with another terrific offering, The Biggest Chinese Restaurant in the World, the massive West Lake Restaurant.

Synopsis: Situated in Changsha, Hunan is theworld’s biggest Chinese restaurant, which seats up to 5,000 diners and employs1,000 staff. A sprawling complex containing pavilions in the style oftraditional Chinese architecture, the restaurant is owned by Qin Linzi, amiddle-aged female self-starter who used to earn 30 RMB a month. Documentingthe restaurant’s day-to-day operation, the film shows routine slogan-chantingsessions intended to boost morale among the staff. A perceptive portrait ofChinese society, this engaging documentary provides a window into traditionalChinese customs that often revolve around banquets.



ACF Review:  There are many fascinating aspects to the story of West Lake Restaurant, not the least of which is that of its founder, owner and guiding force, Ms. Qin Linzi. When we first meet her, she talks about being a member of the Communist Party, explaining that someone in her position has to be. Obviously, to stay on the good side of those in power, it helps to be one of them. And the corollary of course is true as well: it always helps to be well-connected with those having power and influence. Sound familiar? Well, one of the points the film makes, at least to me, is that entrepreneurial capitalism in China isn't all that different from what it is in the United States. It's pretty much the same except that there's only one political party to deal with in China rather than the basic two in the U.S.

Mrs. Qin is a middle-aged woman with one daughter, apparently in her twenties, from her first marriage. She borrowed money from about thirty friends and family members and opened her first restaurant in 2000 in the city of Liuyang. By the end of its first year in business, she had paid back all the loans, and things just took off from there. Construction of the vast new facility in Changsha took over a year and the restaurant complex, which has five kitchens, opened in October 2004. Mrs. Qin's second husband is her former chauffeur, to whom she basically proposed. She says that she told him that since they spent so much time together, people would talk, so they might as well get married. Some years younger than her, he must be one of the most fortunate former drivers in China, if not the world.

The film does not stint on covering the day-to-day operations of West Lake, its staff, nor its food. The camera takes us to pep talks to keep up employee morale as well as meetings of managers where issues such as employee turnover are discussed and addressed. We also gain insight into the lives of some of the employees. I found the story of one young woman to be particularly touching. With her father unable to truly work, she has come to West Lake to support her family, and has thus given up her chance to go to college so that her older sister and only sibling can.

Final mention must be made about the food. One almost gets a sense of the aroma of the dishes as they are prepared and then set forth for the customers. Though truth be told, I found some items to be less than to me liking. Segments of snake that are still writhing on the serving plate is one example. Another is a dish prepared in a chef's competition for the third anniversary of the opening of the complex. Fried Live Fish is prepared by the chef holding the fishes head and dipping the tail and body into frying oil. The fish is sliced along its side and then served. For the competition, if the fish's mouth is not still moving, the dish is disqualified! I'm not sure I could handle the sight of such a preparation, let alone eat it. But maybe that's just me.

The Biggest Chinese Restaurant in the World is terrific on several levels: as an example of entrepreneurial capitalism in present day Communist China, a sociological study of a large and varied workforce, and as a gastronomical insight.

ACF Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; very highly recommended. 

For information about the Visions of a New China documentary films series, including descriptions of each film, the full schedule, and ordering tickets, click here.

ACF 1059: Blissfully Yours to close out Blissfully Thai film series tonight

Min lolls on a river bank

Blissfully Yours
Directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Thailand, 2002, 125 minutes
When: Friday, June 17th, 2011 at 6:45 PM
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC

The eight film Blissfully Thai series, presented by Asia Society in association with Cineaste, will conclude tonight with this 2002 film from recent Cannes winner Apichatpong Weerasethakul.

The film starts abruptly in a doctors office. The female doctor is examining a handsome young man, Min (the beyond belief, good-looking Min Oo), who's returned because his skin condition has worsened. He's accompanied by two women, one his age, the other closer to middle age, who speak for him supposedly because his throat hurts.

After Roong (Kanokporn Tongaram), the younger woman, leaves to go to work at a factory, the older woman, Orn (Jenjira Jansuda), tries to get the doctor to certify that Min, whom she claims is her nephew, is healthy so he can get a work permit. But the doctor firmly refuses, because they haven't brought Min's ID with them. Without seeing his ID, the doctor would be breaking the law and jeopardizing her practice by certifying him.

Clearly something else is going on than what's being alleged. Min, it turns out, is not Orn's nephew, nor is he related to her in any way; he's Roong's current boyfriend, an illegal immigrant from nearby Burma. And he can talk just fine. Roong, however, does work at a factory. Orn runs a dormitory for girls, possibly including Roong, and wants to have a child with her husband Sirote.

The remainder of the film takes place during the same day. Roong borrows Orn's car so she can drive Min to a special place he wants them to go. After a long drive and a long walk through the jungle, they arrive at a flat outcropping with a beautiful view. There they picnic, at least until their food is overrun by red ants. They relocate to the bank of a small, shallow river, where by chance they are later joined by Orn.

Blissfully Yours is quite an unusual film in several ways. There are at least two quite lengthy driving sequences, often with the camera looking out the back window. And both Min and Roong's walk to the picnic site and Orn's wanderings until she comes upon them also go on for quite awhile. Oh, and I should mention that the credits do not begin rolling until we're about 43 minutes into the story!

The film is certainly imaginative in its way, but it's definitely not for everyone, perhaps not even most. Watching a DVD screener, I frequently held down the fast-forward button to skim through the proceedings until there was some dialogue or something of visual interest going on.

ACF Rating: 2.5 out of 4 stars. A fairly good film, but as I've indicated, not to everyone's taste.

ACF 1056: "Hi-So" reviewed

Zoe (left) in bed with Ananda

Hi-So
Directed by Aditya Assarat
Thailand, 2000, 102 minutes

This simple and quiet film screened recently as part of the Blissfully Thai series, which is being presented by Asia Society in association with Cineaste.

Ananda poses with some of his female teenage fans

Zoe (Cerise Leang), a slim lovely young woman, arrives in Thailand from San Francisco to join her boyfriend Ananda (Ananda Everinghan) at a hotel near the shore. He returned to Thailand from the U.S. not too long ago and is starring in a movie being shot neaby at the ruins of another hotel. That film is about a man who became an amnesiac as a result of the Indian Ocean tsunami of a few years earlier.

While the two do get to spend some intimate time together, Zoe is mainly on her own, and she's bored. It's the off-season, and there's basically no one around during the day, while the cast and crew are at the film site, but the small staff at the hotel. Even Ananda's translating Thai into English at her request while they loll in bed cannot make up for her lonely situation. The most fun we see her having is at the informal birthday party the staff is giving for the chambermaid.

We get the feeling that her relationship with Ananda is withering. One day she tells the hotel's bartender and waiter, who speaks some English and whom she's befriended, that she's leaving the next day. But we see neither her goodbye to Ananda nor her departure itself, not from the hotel nor from Thailand.

May (left) in bed with Ananda

Some time later, Ananda has a new girlfriend. May (Sajee Apiwong) works for the production company of Ananda's recently completed film. They are pretty much living together in his apartment, which is in a building owned by his wealthy mother, whom we never meet. There he translates for May much as he did for Zoe, only in this case it's from English into Thai. (Compare the picture immediately above with the one at the top of this post.)

May takes in a lost dog. She and Ananda visit his old home on an upper floor in the building, his current apartment being on a lower level. They go to the roof where Ananda explains that this building once was the tallest one in Bangkok, whereas now there are numerous buildings, presumably both residential and business, that are at least as tall.

May and Ananda in his old home

The title refers to Thailand's high society types. And it's clear that Ananda is one of the higher of the high, though he doesn't put on airs. We get to see him giving out bonuses for the New Year to the staff of the apartment building, a scruffy prince showing his -- and his mother's -- appreciation for their efforts.

Ananda ready to travel alone

The film is a modest, low-key, slice-of-life endeavor. We are not treated to any "high drama," nor is there any real character development. We simply get to witness parts of the lives of the characters.

Yet it would be a gross oversimplification to dismiss Hi-So as a Thai feature-length film version of the television show George and Jerry pitched on Seinfeld, that is, a "show about nothing." There are moments of great poignancy, such as when the bartender/waiter tells Zoe about his visit to the United States. It consisted of only a few hours, because he was not granted a visa and was forced to return to Thailand right away. He still cannot fathom why this was so, and it clearly still troubles him.

The parallel "translating in bed" scenes are revealing, not so much for their similarity (aside from which language is being translated), but for the slight additional twist in May's explanation of why she wants Ananda to translate for her. And there is an interesting juxtaposition of the destruction wrought by the tsunami and the man-made destruction of a wing of Ananda's apartment building, supposedly for renovation purposes.

Hi-So may not be for everyone, but for those who can accept it on its own terms, it's a film certainly worth seeing.

ACF 1050: Hi-So at Asia Society tonight

Sajee Apiwong as Mai in
Hi-So (Memento Films)

Hi-So
Directed by Aditya Assarat
Thailand, 2010, 102 minutes
When: Saturday, June 11th, 2011 at 3:00 PM
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC
Post-screening Q&A with actress Cerise Leang

"An absorbing and beguilingly simple film that is beautifully haunting and effortlessly cool."
— Mark Adams, Screen Daily

The Blissfully Thai series, presented by Asia Society in association with Cineaste, continues this afternoon with Hi-So, the next to last film in the series:

Ananda (Ananda Everingham) has returned home to become an actor after living abroad. On a seaside movie set, he is visited by his girlfriend from California, Zoe (Cerise Leang). Tacitly, the two are drifting apart. Several months later, Ananda is in Bangkok living with a new girlfriend, May (Sajee Apiwong). The two share moments reminiscent of Ananda's previous relationship. A directorial follow-up to the much praised Wonderful Town (2007), Hi-So, which refers to Thailand's high society types, portrays life between languages and cultures with an eloquent grace.

Aditya Assarat (b. 1972) was born in Bangkok and left Thailand at the age of 15 to study in the United States. He studied History at New York University and earned a master's degree in film production at the University of Southern California. His feature debut Wonderful Town (2007) won the New Currents Award at Pusan International Film Festival and Tiger Award at Rotterdam International Film Festival. Director Filmography (features): Hi-So (2010), Wonderful Town (2007), 3 Friends (2005).

Major support for the Blissfully Thai film series is provide
by the New York State Council on the Arts
and the Thai-US Partnership Program
of Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs
and Thai Artists Alliance.

ACF 1049: "Tears of the Black Tiger" tonight

Mahesuan (left) and Dum (center) face-off
in one of the film's iconic images

Just a quick reminder that Tears of the Black Tiger will be shown tonight at 6:45 PM at Asia Society in New York. For my review of the film click here. In the meanwhile here are some screencaptures from my screener DVD. Hopefully they convey, albeit on a small scale, the wondrous colors and compositions in the film.

Rumpoey leaves a harmonica for Dum

Rumpoey (right) hardly looks thrilled by the prospect
of marriage to Police Captain Kumjorn (left).
That's Rumpoey's father standing behind them.

Boss Fai

Rumpoey and Dum at the shore.

ACF 1047: "Tears of the Black Tiger" at Asia Society NY tomorrow at 6:45 PM

The Black Tiger and Mahesuan carry out Fai's order

Tears of the Black Tiger
Directed by Wisit Sasanatieng
Thailand, 2000, 113 minutes
When: Friday, June 10th, 2011 at 6:45 PM
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC

I've known about Tears of the Black Tiger and have awaited an opportunity to see it for several years. So I was thrilled when I received my review screener from Asia Society where Tears will be playing tomorrow night, part of the Blissfully Thai film series. To say that it was worth the wait would be a major understatement, and I'm glad to have the opportunity to review the film here in conjunction with the wonderful and revelatory film series presented by Asia Society in association with Cineaste.

Dum (Chartchai Ngamsan), a.k.a. The Black Tiger, is the top gun in Boss Fai's gang. He and the mustached Mahesuan (Supakorn Kitsuwon) execute someone who betrayed Fai, whose simple law is, "Whoever betrays Fai dies!" Afterwards Dum rushes to meet the lovely Rumpoey (Stella Malucchi) at a gazebo called "The Sala Awaiting the Maiden," named after an old tale about a thwarted lover.

However he gets there too late. Rumpoey, who's been waiting for him, has already left, thinking that Dum has decided not to come and run off with her. She sadly returns to her father, the local governor, and her fiancé, a police captain who is intent on proving himself by subduing Fai's bandits and whom Rumpoey does not really want to marry.

Rumpoey and Dum embrace by the sea, "where the water meets the sky"

The movie employs flashbacks to tell the story of how Rumpoey, from a wealthy family, and Dum, the son of a peasant, met ten years earlier. While out in a boat on a river, he protected her from Koh, a local bully, and two of his friends. For his gallantry, Dum got a scar on his forehead in the fight and later a whipping from his father for endangering Rumpoey in the first place. On the other hand, Rumpoey fell in love with him and gave him a special harmonica. Soon thereafter she returned to Bangkok with her family.

Prior to the point in time where the movie begins, the two met again in college. Dum again came to her defense when Koh and his buddies once more accosted her. The consequence this time was Dum getting expelled from school, and eventually joining Fai's gang.

The film is a glorious mélange of genres. It's as if a colorful Douglas Sirk melodrama (meant in the best sense) was blended with a Sergio Leone "Spaghetti Western" and relocated to Thailand. The film is a visual feast for the eyes, a compelling love story, and a damn fine action film to boot. You'll flip over the replay of The Black Tiger's ricochet shot in the opening sequence and the bullet deflecting shot near the end.

Tears of the Black Tiger was the first Thai film to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival and it's a must, must see. ACF Rating: 4 out of 4 stars, highest recommendation.

I foresee a fantastic evenings entertainment at tomorrow night's screening and urge all who can attend to do so. But for those who can't, the film fortunately is available on DVD from Magnolia Pictures. Amazon.com carries both the DVD and several movie posters from the film.

ACF 1035: Mon-Rak Transistor at Asia Society NY tomorrow at 6:45 PM

Suppakorn Kitsuwan as Pan

Mon-Rak Transistor
Written and directed by Pen-ek Ratanaruang
Based on a novel by Wat Wanlayangkoon
Thailand, 2001, 115 minutes
When: Friday, June 3rd, 2011 at 6:45 PM
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC

After a week's hiatus, the Blissfully Thai film series resumes at Asia Society tomorrow night with this wonderful film, sometimes spelled Monrak Transistor and a.k.a. Transistor Love Story. The story centers on the unfortunate adventures of Pan, a poor, but charming young man and his love for Sadaw, a lovely village girl who embodies sweetness and innocence.

The film opens with Pan in a prison cell, shitting out a necklace he has swallowed. We don't actually see him, as the cell is far in the background and out-of-focus. The only object in focus is a bottle, apparently a laxative, sitting in the right foreground. After a policeman deposits the necklace, which isn't even real gold, on the table next to the bottle, the jailer, who's from Pan's village but who hadn't seen him for years, breaks the "fourth wall" and starts to directly tell the story of Pan's sad journey to his current predicament.

Siriyakorn Pukkavesa as Sadaw

In a flashback we see Pan before he became so hapless and forlorn. A talented singer in a band, he courts and wins the heart of Sadaw, overcoming the opposition of her father, Old Chuey, who occasionally has taken shots at Pan, more in an effort to drive him away than to actually injure, maim or kill him.

Things are going along fine for the two lovers, and Sadaw becomes pregnant. Unfortunately, Pan's bad luck arrives when he is conscripted to serve in the military. From that point, things go from bad to worse for him. A traveling troupe of entertainers holds a contest for singers, the best two of whom will join the company. One of the winners is the lovely Doa (Porntip Papanai, who would appear as the hotel room maid in Ratanaruang's 2007 film Ploy, which screened earlier in Blissfully Thai).

The other is Pan, who leaves the army to seek fame and fortune, but instead encounters a life of drudgery mopping floors for over two years because, unlike Doa, he doesn't have "tits and ass." When his big singing break finally comes, his "good fortune" is short-lived, and he's soon on the road again, now working on a sugar cane cutting crew.

That too doesn't last and circumstances bring the story up to date as Pan excretes the necklace that had been obtained in a "snatch and grab" orchestrated by Pan's new traveling companion Siew. Prior to this there's a hilarious, satirical scene at a fundraiser to help the poor, where the most authentically poor-looking attendee will win a prize. After he finally gets out of prison, Pan faces a final temptation to acquire financial wealth. Will he take it, or finally return and try to renew his life with Sadaw? And if he goes back, will she accept him?

Ampol Rattanawong (left) as Siew and Porntip Papanai as Doa

Director Pen-ek Ratanaruang has aptly described the movie as "A piece of candy with just a taste of satirical poison at its center." Now everyone knows that you can't have a "sweet" film with an unhappy ending, so there's no real surprise that Pan and Sadaw end up together. But, oh, what a magnificent journey getting there!

And while Suppakorn Kitsuwan is great as Pan, the real revelation for me was Siriyakorn Pukkavesa as Sadaw. She has a winsome, disarming smile that could melt even the coldest heart of the stanchest misogynist. More than that, she has a face that does wonders expressing a number of emotions, including rage, anger, disappointment, and heart-rendering despair. Hers is a simple, nuanced, and unaffected performance that's a joy to behold.

Mon-Rak Transistor is a terrific film, that well deserves its ACF Rating of 3.5 out of 4 stars, highly recommended. It's a fine example of how good Thai films can be, and I hope you'll get to see it.

And when you do, there is one scene that is almost sure to remind you of a scene in Slumdog Millionaire. Just keep in mind that Danny Boyle's film, which I love, was released roughly seven years after Transistor. I'm not suggesting that Boyle necessarily cribbed from Ratanaruang, only that one would be quite mistaken to think Ratanaruang "borrowed" from Boyle.

ACf 1029: "The Iron Ladies" at Asia Society tonight, Thursday, May 26th at 6:45 PM

Jung (Chaicharn Nimpulsawasdi)

The Iron Ladies
Directed by Yongyoot Thongkongtoon
Thailand, 2000, 104 minutes
When: Thursday, May 26th, 2011 at 6:45 PM
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC

Winner of 10 awards and nominated for two others, this is a delightful, funny sports-themed movie with a message. It's based on the true story of a male volleyball team that competed in the Thai national championships in 1996. The twist is that the men on the team were gays and transsexuals, often referred to as katoeys or ladyboys.

Jung (Chaicharn Nimpulsawasdi) sells sweet rice cakes and is totally supported in his flamboyant gayness by his parents. He's about to leave Lampang, in northern Thailand to go to Bangkok with his friend Mon (Sahaphap Tor). Mon has again failed to make a private volleyball team because he's gay. Just before their train leaves, Jung sees a poster announcing tryouts for the province's volleyball team and convinces Mon to join him in giving it a chance.

Fortunately for them, the team has just gotten a new coach (Shiriohana Hongsopon). She's gay (described as a "dyke" by some of the straights who expect to be on the team) and has no prejudices about who plays. She only wants to put together the best team possible.

Pia (Kokkorn Benjathikoon, center) returns to the team
after her boyfriend has dumped her

When Coach Bee includes Jung and Mon in her picks, all but one of the straights quit to play elsewhere. To bring the team up to the minimum of six players needed, Jung and Mon recruit some of their friends.

These include: a soldier, who's described as being built like a buffalo; Pia, a glamorous cabaret performer who's had silicone breast implants; and a closeted gay who's engaged to marry a "real" woman.

To serve as reservists, Coach Bee recruits a trio from players she's previously coached. These three look so much alike and move in unison to such a degree that one could mistake them for triplets.

Some of The Iron Ladies' fans at the finals

The Iron Ladies is a great watch. It's message of tolerance is a lofty one and is expounded in a gentle manner -- as opposed to hitting one over the head with a sledge hammer -- that befits the nature of the characters. Be sure to stick around for the end credits as they include photos and clips of the actual Iron Ladies from the 1996 team.

ACF Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars, highly recommended.

I absolutely think it'll be best seen at the Asia Society screening, but for those who can't make it, the film is available on DVD to purchase (link at amazon.com) or to rent from Netflix. The same is true for The Iron Ladies 2 (2003), a combination prequel and sequel.

Thursday's screening of The Iron Ladies is being shown as part of the Blissfully Thai film series which is co-presented by Asia Society and Cineaste.

ACF 1024: "Uncle Boonmee" coming to Asia Society on Sunday, May 22nd at 5:00 PM

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Thailand, 2010, 113 minutes
When: Sunday, May 22nd, 2011 at 5:00 PM
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC
Post-screening Q&A with director

Foreign Language Film of the Year,
London Critics Circle Film Awards 2011

"A work of unostentatious beauty and uncloying sweetness."
— J. Hoberman, The Village Voice

The Blissfully Thai film series at Asia Society continues tomorrow with this extraordinary film that won the Palme d'Or award at last year's Cannes Film Festival.

Uncle Boonmee follows the final days of a man’s life. In the lush countryside, Uncle Boonmee is visited by his loved ones, including his deceased wife appearing as a ghost and his long-lost son who has taken on a non-human form. Mysterious as it is, nothing is scary in the world of Uncle Boonmee. This peaceful and poetic film meditates on the myths and secrets of the universe.

Uncle Boonmee webpage at Asia Society

Info about the complete Blissfully Thai film series here.

ACF 1021: "I-San Special" at Asia Society tomorrow evening at 6:45 PM

I-San Special / Kuen pra chan tem doueng
Directed by Mingmonkol Sonakul
Thailand, 2002, 110 minutes
When: Friday, May 13th, 2011 at 6:45 PM
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC

The Blissfully Thai film series, presented by Asia Society in association with Cineaste, will continue tomorrow night with this film inspired by an idea of Apichatpong Weerasethakul (the director of Cannes Palme d'Or winner Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, which will be shown on Sunday, May 22nd).

The film -- whose Thai title can be literally translated as "Night of the Full Moon" -- centers on the passengers on a run-down bus as it departs from Bangkok and makes its overnight run to a small town in north-east Thailand. The film's most unusual premise is that while they are on the bus, the passengers become manifestations of the actors in a radio soap opera set in the luxurious Jarawee Hotel.

"Danny," the hotel owner, and "Phen," the young model,
in front of a pull-down screen at the back of the bus

It is only when they are off the bus -- at the bus station in Bangkok, stopping for gas or to have a flat tire fixed, and finally arriving in I-San -- that the film's actors become the "real people" in the film. For example, a young, apparently pregnant young woman becomes a glamorous model when on the bus, while a handsome young half-Thai, half-American male is the handsome hotel owner.

Mingmonkol Sonakul has done a marvelous job in keeping things visually interesting, since the overwhelming bulk of the film transpires within the small confines of the bus. The passengers -- whom I understand are non-professionals -- are perfectly cast to reflect the characters on the radio whom they portray, and whose words, unless I miss my guess, they lip-synch.

Admittedly, I-San Special will not appeal to all. But I found it to be a fascinating and intriguing cinematic experiment that succeeds remarkably well. A unique film experience that merits an ACF Rating of 3 out of 4 stars, solidly recommended

ACF 1015: "Ploy" at Asia Society tonight

Ploy (right) shares music with Wit in the hotel bar

Ploy
Directed by Pen-ek Ratananuang
Thailand, 2007, 107 min.
When: Friday, May 13th, 2011 at 6:45 PM
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC
Post-screening Q&A with the director

Blissfully Thai, a series of eight Thai films co-presented by Asia Society and Cineaste, begins tonight with this enigmatic film about a couple whose marriage is in trouble.

Wit, who owns a restaurant in America, and Dang, his wife, a former Thai movie star, arrive in Bangkok for a funeral after a 20 hour flight. Tired and jet-lagged, they check into their hotel suite, but Wit quickly leaves to get some cigarettes. Apparently in no hurry to get back upstairs, he ensconces himself in the hotel bar where he meets 19 year old Ploy, a lovely young thing, slender with Afro-like hair.

Learning that she has a several hour wait before her mother arrives from Stockholm, Wit invites her to freshen up and rest in his room. This does not sit well with Dang, who is already suspicious of her husband because, while looking for the luggage key, she found a woman's name and number written on a piece of paper in his clothing.

Dang makes a call

A goodly portion of the film takes place in two hotel rooms. In Wit and Dang's room , Ploy's presence brings out Dang's jealousy and insecurity, both of which are exacerbated by her heavy drinking and apparent drug use. There may also be an underlying mental condition, as at one point Wit urges Dang to take her medication.

The other room, recently vacated, is being used by an alluring room maid for an early-morning tryst with the hotel bartender. Their passionate relationship stands in stark contrast with that of Wit and Dang, for whom love has seemed to have past its "expiration date."

The room maid checks herself out

However, things are not necessarily as they seems in this well-crafted and mysterious exploration of human feelings. Events that are depicted realistically turn out to be fantasies or dreams, so that there is much of which the viewer cannot be sure. For example, did the black eye Dang sports near the end of the film come from the assault shown or from some other unseen event?

Ploy is a fascinating, engrossing film what is well-worth seeing. Solidly recommended with an AsianCineFest rating of 3 out of 4 stars.

The Blissfully Thai film series runs from May 13th - June 17th, 2011. Detailed information about the entire series is available here.

It's worth noting that tomorrow (Saturday) afternoon will offer a special conversation with directors Pen-ek Ratanaruang and Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives), followed by a reception. For information about this special event, click here.

ACF 1007: "Blissfully Thai" film series at Asia Society, NYC, May 13 - June 17, 2011

Asia Society in association with Cineaste presents:
Film Series: Blissfully Thai
When: May 13 – June 17, 2011
Where: Asia Society and Museum
725 Park Avenue at 70th Street, NYC

Asia Society in association with Cineaste presents a major film series that celebrates the current Thai film renaissance and the emergence of some of the world’s most original cinematic voices since the late 1990s. Directors such as Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Pen-ek Ratanaruang, and Wisit Sasanatieng have put Thai cinema on the international map. Thai films are now regular fixtures at major film festivals, garnering awards around the globe, culminating in the riveting Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or win of Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (directed by Apichatpong, 2010).

“Although these filmmakers share an innovative and kindred spirit, what is really exciting is that they embody very different artistic visions,” says La Frances Hui, curator of the series and Senior Program Officer of Cultural Programs at Asia Society. This series includes works made since 2000 by six filmmakers, all born in the 60s and 70s, and offers New York audiences a rare opportunity to sample a diverse group of films from Thailand.

For information about the film series schedule, descriptions of each film, links to trailers, and to buy tickets, simply click here.

ACF 885: Asia Society (NY) presents a tribute to Iranian filmmaker Jafar Pahahi

Image from The White Meadows

Asia Society presents a film series that honors the work of critically acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi and highlights its global artistic and social significance. The series, which begins on February 25 and runs through March 11, includes three films Panahi directed, one film he edited, and a panel discussion exploring creative expression in Iran. Panahi has received international recognition for his work, garnering Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion, Berlin Film Festival’s Silver Bear, and Cannes Film Festival’s Camera d’Or awards.

Even before he made international headlines for his recent affiliation with the Green Movement in Iran, Panahi was celebrated as one of the most influential cinematic voices in Iranian and world cinema. Panahi was recently sentenced to a six-year prison term and a twenty-year ban on filmmaking. The sentence is being appealed. (Read additional background following program schedule below.)

Panahi is known for his realistic and unflinching portrayal of contemporary Iranian life, treating his subjects, often women and people living on the margins of society, with deep humanism. Using non-professional actors to play characters very much like themselves, his films evoke a social urgency.

To view trailers and for more information on the series, visit http://asiasociety.org/jafarpanahi.

FREE ADMISSION
Tickets can be registered online and are available for pick-up on days of events. For more information, visit http://asiasociety.org/jafarpanahi or call (212) 517-ASIA.

This series is part of Creative Voices of Islam in Asia, a three-year initiative made possible by the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE (all films in Persian with English subtitles):

The White Meadows
Directed by Mohammad Rasoulof
Iran. 2009. 93min. 35mm.
Friday, February 25, 2011, 6:45 PM

In this dreamlike film, a boatman navigates the increasingly brackish waters around a coastal land, collecting the stories of heartaches and tears of its inhabitants. As he witnesses misguided attempts to appease the gods and make the land green again, whether by offering a bride to the sea or penalizing a painter who sees in different colors, the boatman remains powerless. The deeply poetic film is an allegory of intolerance, brutality and superstition. Film edited by Jafar Panahi. Director Rasoulof received a 6-year jail sentence along with Panahi. Both are appealing their sentences.

Film introduced by Hamid Dabashi, Hagop Kevorkian Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Literature, Columbia University.

Co-presented with Global Film Initiative.

Golden Seashell Award, San Sebastián International Film Festival
“A gorgeously wrought fable”-- Nick Schager, Slant Magazine
“a devastating but oblique critique of theocracy”—Henry Stewart, The L Magazine

Offside
Directed by Jafar Panahi
Iran. 2006. 93min. 35mm.
Saturday, February 26, 2011, 3:00 PM

Defying the law that prohibits women from attending sporting events, several Iranian young women disguise themselves as men to crash the qualifying game between Iran and Bahrain for the 2006 World Cup at Tehran’s Azadi Stadium. Mostly shot in real time during the actual game and featuring non-professional actors, the film, at once comedy, political allegory and suspense, is an engaging tale about lively young women fighting for freedom.

Film introduced by Negar Mottahedeh, Associate Professor of Literature, Duke University.

Silver Bear Award, 2006 Berlin International Film Festival
“Eloquent, invigorating, tightly paced, and endlessly enjoyable”— Michael Koresky, indieWIRE
“The amateur ensemble cast and superb satire make this one of the best football films going.”-- Peter Bradshaw, Guardian

Panel Discussion: A Tribute to Jafar Panahi
and Creative Expression in Iran
Wednesday, March 2, 2011, 6:45 PM

The panel highlights the cinematic achievement of filmmaker Jafar Panahi and explores the current state of creative expression in Iran.

Speakers include: Hamid Dabashi (Columbia University—Moderator), Hadi Ghaemi (International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran), Negar Mottahedeh (Duke University), Richard Peña (Film Society of Lincoln Center/Columbia University).

Crimson Gold
Directed by Jafar Panahi
Iran. 2003. 95min. 35mm.
Friday, March 4, 2011, 6:45 PM

Hussein, a pizza delivery man and Iran-Iraq war veteran, rides his motorcycle in Tehran to deliver orders. His job takes him to wealthy homes where he witnesses firsthand the life of the privileged. This day-to-day experience leaves him feeling invisible and humiliated. Circumstances lead to a violent robbery in a jewelry store, where Hussein takes on a final destructive path. Starring a real-life pizza delivery man, Crimson Gold takes a sharp look at economic disparity in a society where unrest is always waiting to explode. The screenplay, written by Abbas Kiarostami, is based on an actual event.

Film introduced by Hamid Dabashi, Hagop Kevorkian Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Literature, Columbia University.

Un Certain Regard Jury Prize, Cannes Film Festival
“[Crimson Gold] exposes the cruelties and inequities of a society sharply polarized by class and corrupted by selfishness, snobbery and cynicism.”—A.O. Scott, The New York Times
“brilliantly combines unpretentious humanism and impeccable formal values.” – J. Hoberman, The Village Voice

The Circle
Directed by Jafar Panahi
Iran. 2000. 91min. 35mm.
Friday, March 11, 2011, 6:45 PM

Several women, each having spent time in jail, find themselves in the punishing bustle of Tehran. One woman tries to return home but cannot get on a bus unaccompanied by a close male relative. Another woman seeking an abortion is threatened with violence. Others take desperate measures to find money. All are trapped in a circle of fate for women living in an oppressive society, whether in or out of jail.

Film introduced by Negar Mottahedeh, Associate Professor of Literature, Duke University.

Golden Lion Award, Venice Film Festival
“daring, despairing, beautiful work”—Richard Corliss, Time Magazine
“a stinging, tautly structured indictment of Iranian society told through its women’s eyes.”—Wesley Morris, The Boston Globe

About Jafar Panahi:

Jafar Panahi, born on July 11, 1960 in Mianeh, Iran, is one of the most influential filmmakers in Iran. After studying film directing at the College of Cinema and Television in Tehran, Panahi made several films for Iranian television and was the assistant director of Abbas Kiarostami's film Through the Olive Trees (1994). He has directed several films and won numerous awards in international film festivals such as the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, and the Camera d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

One of Iran’s most celebrated filmmakers, Panahi is known for his realistic portrayal of contemporary Iranian life. Whether he is depicting women struggling in an oppressive environment or people living on the margins of society, Panahi treats his subjects with a deep sense of humanism and compassion. Often using non-professional actors to play characters very much like themselves, his films evoke a social urgency. Feature films that Panahi has directed include Offside (2006), Crimson Gold (2003), The Circle (2000), The Mirror (1997), and The White Balloon (1995). Panahi has also worked as writer and editor for other directors’ films.

Panahi is a supporter of Iran’s Green Movement that took shape in demonstrations in June 2009 following the disputed national elections. In late July the same year, Panahi was arrested after visiting the grave of Neda Agha-Soltan, a young woman who was shot to death during a protest. He was released 8 hours later following intense media coverage. A month later, he travelled to Montreal to serve as jury president of the World Film Festival, appearing in a green scarf on the opening night.

In February 2010, Panahi was prohibited from travelling to the Berlin Film Festival to participate in a panel about Iranian cinema. In March 2010, he was taken from his home along with his wife, daughter and 15 guests, including filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof (The White Meadows). Most were released in 2 days. Rasoulof was released in 16 days, while Panahi remained in detention. The Iranian government claimed that Panahi was arrested for making a film about post-election events against the regime, a claim denied by Panahi’s family.

The Iranian film community called for his immediate release. The international film community followed by signing a petition in April 2010. Signers included Francis Ford Coppola, Robert De Niro, Ang Lee, Michael Moore, Martin Scorsese, Federation of European Film Directors, Berlin Film Festival, Toronto Film Critics Association, among many others. Panahi was named a member of the jury of the Cannes Film Festival 2010 but was unable to attend due to the imprisonment. In May 2010, Panahi started a hunger strike in prison. He was released on $200,000 bail a week later.

On December 20, 2010 after being prosecuted for “assembly and colluding with the intention to commit crimes against the country’s national security and propaganda against the Islamic Republic,” Panahi was handed a 6-year jail sentence and a 20-year ban on making films, writing, granting interviews, and traveling overseas. Film director Rasoulof also received a 6-year jail sentence. Both are appealing their sentences.

ACF 803: Free screening of "The Fort of Death" at Asia Society this Friday evening

The Fort of Death
Directed by Eiichi Kudo
Japan, 1969, 97 minutes, 35mm color
When: Friday, December 10, 2010, 6:45 pm
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC
Admission: FREE!!!
Get tickets

The joint presentation of the film series Japanese Cinema 1960s by Asia Society and Japan Foundation concludes this Friday. The final of the five films screened for free is The Fort of Death, which might most succinctly be described as a "Spaghetti Samurai" flick, since it so clearly transplants the sensibility of Sergio Leone's take on Hollywood westerns into a Japanese environment.

Peasants in a village hire a bounty hunter to rebel against a shogun who exploits them for money in order to remodel an Edo castle. The bounty hunter summons his fellow fighters to join the fight. What ensues is an epic battle involving samurai, ninjas, powerful guns and cannons. Growing up in a family that ran a horse breeding business, director Kudo has proved particularly adept at choreographing action sequences, making this Japanese version of a B-Western especially enthralling. (Toei Co., Ltd.)

"[Kudo is] an extraordinary stylist…To call him a skilled action director is to understate the power of his set-pieces."—Henry Sheehan

ACF 800: Free screening of Age Of Assassins at Asia Society this afternoon

Age of Assassins
Directed by Kihachi Okamoto
Japan, 1967, 99 minutes
When: Sunday December 5th, 2010 at 3:00
Where: Asia Society, 725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street), NYC
Japanese with English subtitles

Japanese Cinema 1960s, the series of five films jointly presented by Asia Society and Japan Foundation, will continue this afternoon with another free screening of a terrific movie from that decade of memorable cinema.

A creepy "mad scientist" who directs an insane asylum trains mental patients to become assassins. One of the targets, a vision-impaired nerd-turned-suave secret agent played by Tatsuya Nakadai, called "Japan’s most distinguished living actor," (Terrence Rafferty, The New York Times) is able to dodge all attempts on his life. This wacky, farcical chase comedy takes you on a wild ride through a surrealist landscape and a narrative filled with twists and turns. (Film also known as Epoch of Murder Madness.) (Toho Co., Ltd.)

"Dashing and angelically handsome, Tatsuya Nakadai is a screen idol to rival Toshiro Mifune."—David Fear, Time Out New York

"[a] sharp-edged lampoon that ... compares favorably with such other brilliant, tongue-in-cheek, mod sixties masterpieces as Elio Petri’s The Tenth Victim and Seijun Suzuki’s Branded to Kill."—Chris Desjardins, Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film

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