Month: July 2015

By Joe Bendel. Given the controversy that once embroiled filmmaker Victor Vu, the title of his subsequent signature franchise is certainly apt. Charges that his 2010 picture Inferno bears suspicious similarities to Wolfgang Petersen’s Shattered have not slowed down his career much from an outsider’s vantage point, while Petersen was probably just shocked anyone remembers Shattered. Regardless, his flashy exploration of fame, jealousy, and media gossip-mongering will upend many people’s preconceptions of Vietnamese film. Fittingly, Vu’s Scandal screens during the 2015 edition of New Vietnamese Cinema at the Honolulu Museum of Art.

Y Linh is an up-and-coming model-actress, who finally starts realizing her superstar dreams after her marriage to entrepreneur Hoang Kiet. Her first films are blockbusters directed by the Spielberg-esque Le Hung and produced by the slimy Thien. Unfortunately, everything changes when her husband meets the home-wrecking singer-model, Tra My. Soon Thien is openly carrying on with Tra My, who also steals the movie roles Y Linh was expecting. To make matters worse, she starts suffering from mystery maladies traditional doctors cannot diagnose, but witch doctors recognize only too well. Concluding Tra My placed a curse on her, Y Linh fights back the only place she can—in the press.

To an extent, one can hear echoes of the Jolie-Aniston tabloid affair in Scandal, but the alleged black magic adds an entirely new wrinkle, at least as far as we know. Despite all the Vietnamese film industry awards it racked up, Scandal is not exactly high art. It is glitzy, glossy, and often shamelessly lurid. Of course, all that scandalous behavior makes for good trashy entertainment.

Vân Trang and Mai Thu Huong (a.k.a. Maya) embrace their inner divas as Y Linh and Tra My, respectively. Frankly, it is just a lot of fun to watch them rage at each other. Khuong Ngoc and Mihn Thuan are not exactly shy hamming it up as the director and producer, either. Clearly, this is not a business or a film for shrinking violets.

Vu’s direction is slicker than slick, while cinematographer Nguyen K’Linh gives it all a stylishly noir sheen. In fact, Vu manages to pull off a rather clever bit of misdirection, thanks to the many extravagant distractions. The sensationalistic melodrama proved so popular it spawned a thematic sequel that will also screen as part of the 2015 New Vietnamese Cinema series. Recommended for those who appreciate vicariously indulgent morality tales, Scandal 1 screens this Friday (7/10) at the Honolulu Museum of Art, as part of their annual celebration of Vietnamese film.

LFM GRADE: B

Posted on July 9th, 2015 at 11:44pm.

By Joe Bendel. Linh is like a Vietnamese Zatoichi, except she doesn’t even use a sword. She can make do with her cane or any staff-like object that comes to hand. She is looking for the man who stole her eyes, but she is already too enlightened for revenge. However, the ruthless One-Eyed Cuong is a different story. A showdown is therefore inevitable in Luu Huynh’s Lost Eyes, which screens during the 2015 edition of New Vietnamese Cinema at the Honolulu Museum of Art.

Linh was born with supernaturally intense blue eyes. Unfortunately, Cuong, a low level thug and general underworld whipping boy, receives magical instructions from a crooked priest allowing him to steal their power to fuel his own ambitions. Even though he sort of botches the job, he still gets enough juice from the ritual to become the top kingpin. Tragically, he kills both of Linh’s parents in the process, but a convent takes in the young peasant girl, where she duly receives instruction in martial arts.

Through her own clairvoyant rituals, Linh’s teacher discovers her mother’s spirit now resides in Cuong’s heart, where she lays massive guilt trips on the savage gangster. If Linh successfully faces the man who stole her eyes, she will see her mother once again. So she does not blow into town for the sake of retribution. However, if she just so happens to get some payback as part of her loftier goal then so be it.

Lost Eyes is a throwback in the best way possible. It is mostly about gritty, grungy street-fighting, but it layers some spiritual seasoning on top, just the way we like it. Frankly, this is the sort of film that built Golden Harvest back in the day and it still works for contemporary audiences.

As Linh, Ngoc Thanh Tâm shows instant star power and profound action cred. Likewise, Binh Minh chews enough scenery to be a worthy nemesis as Cuong. Thúy Vinh (still striking looking, despite the film’s de-glamouring) nicely handles the mystical business as Linh’s priestess-guru. There are also plenty of talented stunt performers, who will get thoroughly smacked around by Linh and Cuong.

This is not a complicated narrative, but the fight scenes are pleasingly down-to-earth and super-charged, in an old school kind of way. Both Ngoc and her character wear well on viewers as the film progresses, making a potential franchise an appealing prospect. Frankly, it is just refreshing to see a new film that is so honest to the martial arts genre tradition, yet still manages to establish its own identity. Highly recommended for action fans, Lost Eyes screened this past Tuesday (7/7), as part of New Vietnamese Cinema 2015 at the Honolulu Art Museum. Anyone planning a trip to Hawaii in the near future should make a point of checking out their film program, in addition to the beaches and volcanoes.

LFM GRADE: A-

Posted on July 9th, 2015 at 11:34pm.

By Joe Bendel. It is probably safe to argue the first emperor of the Later Lý Dynasty was considerable better than his predecessor, the last king of the Anterior Lê Dynasty. The latter was only the third of a short line, who had killed the second, his brother, soon after he ascended to throne. The future emperor Ly Cong Uan witnessed all that chaos and oppression first hand, learning lessons in governance to establish a new dynasty that would last for two centuries. Ly’s rise from humble roots to the heights of royal power are chronicled in Luu Trong Ninh’s The Prince and the Pagoda Boy, which screens during the 2015 edition of New Vietnamese Cinema at the Honolulu Museum of Art.

Little is known of Ly’s mother, but it is an established fact he was raised in a pagoda as a Buddhist disciple. As a result, young Ly had mad skills that he used to defend the village children from bullies. Recognizing Ly just is not ready for enlightenment yet, his master transfers him into the king’s service. The new officer cuts quite the imposing figure, so Le Long Dinh, one of three ambitious princes vying to succeed their father, makes a point of befriending him.

However, Ly still has the same sense of righteous justice, causing friction with the prince, especially after he kills his freshly crowned older brother to claim the throne for himself. Nevertheless, Ly agrees to return to Le’s service to help unify the nation and establish security for the peasantry. Of course, their new understanding will only last so long, given Le’s duplicitous nature and Ly’s ethical principles. To top it all off, they are both attracted to the same woman.

You probably shouldn’t swear by the historical details in Pagoda. Some liberties might have been taken, especially with respects to Ly’s hardscrabble origins, but they make for a big sweeping Horatio Alger epic. However, the film will have plenty of credibility with martial arts fans thanks to the involvement of action star Johnny Tri Nguyen as the fight coordinator. There are some great battle scenes, but it is tough to top young (ten-ish) Ly laying a beatdown on a trio of thuggish twelve year olds (who surely walked away from the film with only minor bruising. After all Nguyen co-starred in Power Kids, so he must have picked up plenty of child safety tips there).

Quách Ngoc Ngoan is also a pretty convincing action star and dignified enough to be a future emperor. His size, athleticism, and a speak-softly-but-carry-a-big-stick presence have the potential to breakout with international fans if they see enough of him. Alas, that could be the tricky part (as it has been for Nguyen), considering Pagoda was released in 2010 to celebrate the millennial of Ly’s founding of Hanoi as the new Capitol city.

Likewise, the young actor playing Ly while still a Pagoda Boy has tremendous moves and similarly impressive screen charisma. Understanding the demands of villainy, Vu Dinh Toán’s prince aptly chews the scenery and preens like a peacock, embodying the absolute antithesis of the ramrod-straight Ly.

Frankly, it is strange that Pagoda has not been more widely seen on the festival circuit. Cinematographer Dominic Pereira has an eye for spectacle and Nguyen coaches a game cast through some satisfyingly cinematic combat. It is a really strong fusion of prestige historical drama with crowd pleasing action. Highly recommended for martial arts fans, The Prince and the Pagoda Boy screened this past Wednesday (7/8) and Thursday (7/9), as part of New Vietnamese Cinema 2015 at the Honolulu Art Museum.

LFM GRADE: A

Posted on July 9th, 2015 at 11:33pm.

By Joe Bendel. Welcome to a time long ago in a galaxy far, far away. However, instead of the Force, the warriors of Karazawa follow the Bushido way. Rather than medieval Europe, this fantasy world takes inspiration from feudal Japan. However, the southwestern sounding horned creature is the reluctant hero of Steven Ayromlooi’s short film, The Sun Devil and the Princess, which screens as part of the 2015 Comic Con International Independent Film Festival in San Diego.

For a short film, SD&P presents an unusually richly realized fantasy realm (one that arguably borders on science fiction, but the props consist of swords and daggers, not laser blasters). The floating fortress of the evil Moon Queen is especially impressive. Our title characters have left there in a hurry. To repay a debt of honor, Hirohawa, one of the last surviving Sun Devils of the Ashikage clan has rescued Princess Kyoko, the inspirational symbol of the resistance. Of course, the Moon Queen’s forces are in hot pursuit, resulting in some impressive swordplay and martial arts on Hirohawa’s part.

In some ways, SD&P really does share superficial parallels with what was known as Star Wars in 1977. There is indeed a “new hope” stemming from a daring mission that happened immediately before the film started. There is also a royal to save and a rebellion to inspire. Yet, the trappings are distinctively its own and the fight choreography is terrific. In fact, Hirohawa has one killer move that you have probably never seen before.

SD&P certainly looks like a proof of concept for a proposed feature film, but Ayromlooi packs it with enough action to give genre fans a warm, happy glow. His cast is also polished and professional. While the Sun Devil makeup could perhaps use further refinement, Evan Parke’s Hirohawa has big-screen presence and big-time action chops. For the film’s spiritual side, Mandy Amano portrays Princess Kyoko, the Sun Goddess worshipper, with impressive sincerity and conviction. Plus, cult movie aficionados will get a further kick out of hearing Tony Todd as the voice of the malevolent Baron.

In just half an hour, Ayrmooloi establishes a great deal of Karazawa mythology and hooks the audience on his main characters. It is an intriguing world, with first rate fight scenes, which should be more than enough to get fans psyched for a return trip. Highly recommended for sword & sorcery and martial arts fans, The Sun Devil and the Princess screens this Friday (7/10) as part of CCI-IFF ’15 at San Diego Comic Con.

LFM GRADE: A-

Posted on June 9th, 2015 at 11:09pm.

By Joe Bendel. Even in middle school, the cover-up is almost as bad as the crime. One fateful morning, Ryoko Fujino discovered a classmate’s body lying dead in the snow. The police and the school declared it a suicide and that was that, until someone started sending anonymous letters accusing the school bully of murder. The grown-ups in authority will try to paper over it again, but Fujino and her classmates will have none of it. They are determined to reveal the truth, even though they have no lofty hopes that it will set them free in Izuru Narushima’s gripping two-part, four-and-a-half-hour-plus film sequence, Solomon’s Perjury Part 1: Suspicion and Solomon’s Perjury Part 2: Judgement, which both screen as part of the 2015 New York Asian Film Festival.

On the Christmas morning in question, Fujino and a classmate trudge to Joto No. 3 Junior High School, to feed the rabbits. They are filling in for the recently absent Takuya Kashiwagi, whose body they are about to discover Fargo style. After a perfunctory investigation, the juvy division detective Reiko Sasaki concludes it was suicide and closes the case. However, a few weeks later, Fujino gets a mysterious missive claiming the thuggish Shunji Oide murdered Kashiwagi and imploring her to have her police detective father reopen the case.

Fujino is not the only person to receive such a J’accuse. Copies were also sent to the principal and Kashiwagi’s home room teacher, but the fate of the latter will become a source of great contention too complicated to explain here. Much to the frustration of the two bullied letter-writers, the police seem more concerned with ferreting out the accusers than investigating the accusations.

Of course, no matter how hard the authorities try to keep a lid on the affair, word still leaks out to the student body—and the effect is poisonous. When the ensuing paranoia leads to the death of one of the not so anonymous letter-writing girls, student outrage reaches critical mass. Resolved to discover the truth, Fujino and her friends will stage their own trial of Oide, complete with a student jury, in a deliberate departure from Japanese jurisprudence. To fairly represent the defendant, they enlist Kazuhiko Kanbara, a former primary school acquaintance of Kashiwagi, who clearly has his own murky agenda.

Without question, Solomon’s Perjury is the event of this year’s NYAFF. It starts out as a twisty turny mystery and mushrooms into a moral treatise on the nature of guilt and responsibility. In many ways, it delivers an emotional walloping similar to the original first season Broadchurch, but in contrast, it leaves the audience with a feeling of empowerment. In film terms, think of it as something like one part Tetsuya Nakashima’s Confessions and two parts Edward Yang’s Brighter Summer Day, but it has its own distinct tone.

Wisely, screenwriter Manabe Katsuiko retains the tail-end of the 1990 bubble economy setting of Miyabe Miyuki’s source novel, which is a blessing in several ways. While the perceptive kids’ jaded opinions of their ethically compromised parents retains all its bite, the lack of semi-literate text messages cluttering up the screen is a welcome relief. In fact, the existence of phone booths, now practically extinct, plays a critical role in V. 2.

The writing is smart and scrupulously realistic throughout both installments, but the way the young ensemble breathes life into the narrative is truly remarkable. If you want to see youthful actors putting on a clinic, this is your ticket. Up and down the line, they put the Harry Potter franchise to shame, led by the extraordinary Ryoko Fujino, who adopted her character’s name as her professional nom-de-guerre. Words like poise, nuance, and vulnerability do not do her justice.

Still, she does not do it alone. In particular, Mizuki Itagaki, Miu Tomita, and Haru Kuroki have moments of quiet devastation as the mysterious friend, the ill-fated accuser, and the harassed home room teacher. For the sake of our souls, Yutaka Matsushige also nicely lays down some crusty comic relief as the cooler-than-he-looks gym teacher, Kitao.

Even though it was released as separate installments in Japan it would be preferable to see Solomon’s Perjury as a complete package. Be that as it may, NYAFF is showing it over two nights, but it is worth the inconvenience and extra admission. It grabs the audience right from the start and pulls them in deeper with each revelation. Yet, it might be even more exciting to witness the arrival of so much new talent. Very highly recommended, Solomon’s Perjury Part 1 screens this Sunday (7/5) at the Walter Reade and Part 2 screens on Friday the 10th at the SVA, as part of this year’s NYAFF.

LFM GRADE: A

Posted on July 3rd, 2015 at 12:53am.