East Asian Film

Films of East Asia:

2 comments:

Golgafrinchan_Ark_B said...

I have seen several Asian films that you might enjoy (fingers crossed!).

"3-Iron", 2004, South Korea, Ki-duk Kim, director (AKA: Bin-jip, "Empty House").

When I try to tell people about this film, they act like I've lost my mind. So I will leave it to you to watch the story unfold on your own screen. I find it a beautiful film with great subtlety. I know I must be missing some Korean cultural references, but nonetheless, it has a sustained fragility, as delicate as a soap bubble. It seems like the entire script could fit onto one sheet. (And the "ghosts" aren't meant as USA-type spooks, but represent Buddhist nothingness, I believe).)

"The Story of Qiu Ju", 1992, China, Zhang Yimou, director
(AKA: Qiu Ju da guan si, "Qiu Ju goes to court").

This is the story of a pregnant woman who feels that her family was deeply wronged by the local village chief and sets about to get justice. When the bureaucrats don't empathize with her point of view, she doesn't take "no" for an answer. There are no battling Ninjas suspended from sky-hooks and no glamor. I could not help but to empathize with this woman's David vs Goliath quest. The end is a little too pat for me, but the journey to that point is funny and effecting.

Feel free to delete this message to maintain the neatness of your page. Thank you.

The Film Sufi said...



Thanks for this. I will be reviewing The Story of Qiu Ju this year, and I will try to track down 3-Iron.