Sleepers from the Far East

From martial arts and Hong Kong cinema to the success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, it'd be hard to claim that Asian cinema is an unknown quantity out in these parts - but the fact is, very few films from the Far East make it into the mainstream or into the living rooms of American homes. While I'm now more hopeful that the recent resurgence will encourage Westerners to seek out Asian treasures, there are a few films in particular that I'd hate to see overlooked.

• Yi Yi (Taiwan)
  If it wasn't for Crouching Tiger being considered a Taiwanese film, Edward Yang's beautiful, thoughtful masterpiece might have been a sure-fire Best Foreign Film Oscar nomination. As it was, it made many Ten Best of 2000 lists, yet it was not widely seen or distributed across America. The story of a Taiwanese family starts with a wedding and ends with a funeral, and follows about a half dozen plot threads in between, with never anything less than grace and care - from the little boy and his camera, to the dad going through a mid-life crisis, all the characters and situations ring universally true. Don't let the three hour running time put you off - the film is beautifully shot so even when it's slow your eyes will have something to feast on and if you have a decent attention span you'll be moved throughout. Like a fresh breath of air from the East, don't miss this one. (Note: The title actually translates as "A One and a Two.")
  
  Also check out: Eat Drink Man Woman - speaking of Crouching Tiger, this was director Ang Lee's second feature and with its depiction of Taipei family life, marriage and food (don't see it on an empty stomach!), makes a worthy doubleheader with Yi Yi.

• King of Masks (China)
  Fascinating even within its simple context, this film is an almost perfect example of storytelling. An aged street performer in 1930s Sichuan realizes he has no heir to pass on his ancient tradition (and secrets)... so he purchases a son on the black market, only tyo find more than he bargained for. An extremely moving film - fascinating for its depiction of so many aspects of China unknown by Western audiences: mask-shifting performance, opera, the importance of gender, abject poverty and famine in the early 20th century, and Confucian values. All that aside, it's a sad, funny, and winning little masterpiece. (One complaint about the DVD - why no widescreen version?)
  The copyright of the article Sleepers from the Far East in Video Guide is owned by Craig Phillips. Permission to republish Sleepers from the Far East in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

  Go To Page: 1 2 3

  Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic