Siti (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Director: Eddie Cahyono
	Actors: Sekar Sari
	Country: RI
	Genre: Melodrama
	Conditions of visioning: 02.05.2015, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2015
Synopsis: After her husband is injured in a fishing boat accident, Siti (Sari) is constrained to sell cookies during the day and host a Karaoke at night to support her 4-member family.
Review: I so rarely watch Melodramas that I had to ask my co-blogger for a definition of the genre at some point. The situation of the main character in Siri, a woman with the same name, is so desperate that it fits well the definition. But the movie has something more to it than just showing the misery in Indonesia: it does it by following the rules of Neo-realism cinema: long shots (usually 2-5 minutes), beautiful Black&White, short time span (in that case two nights and a day), natural light... This actually reminds me of the Danish Dogma rules (see Festen). The director was thus proud to present Siri first in Italy, the birth country of neo-realism. I liked in particular the lighting (or absence thereof), the long exposing shots revealing natural actors, and the oppressing feeling of helplessness of Siri in front of her fate. The budget for the movie was small and its reach in terms of meaning limited, but it certainly has a quality that I would not have expected from Indonesia.
Rating: 7 /10

The Taking of Tiger Mountain (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Director: Tsui Hark (Once Upon a Time in China, Detective Dee)
	Actors: Hanyu Zhang, Kenny Lin, Liya Tong
	Country: CN
	Genre: War, Drama, Action
	Conditions of visioning: 02.05.2015, Teatro Nuovo, 2D, FEFF2015
Synopsis: 1946. A contingent of the People Liberation Army enters in conflict with an army of bandits that took over the ammunition reserve on top of Tiger Mountain.
Review: I have been knowing the name of the director Tsui Hark for a while but I think I have seen only Black Mask 2 (over-the-top masked hero) and the atrocious The Blade from him, still missing his more known Once Upon a Time in China, Seven Swords and the critically acclaimed Detective Dee. The man is known for his efficiency (delivery two big budget movies per year) and generosity: long movies, epic stories, lots of action and special effects. Does this pay off? In China maybe, but as part of a Western audience I find that the story is confused when trying to show too much, the reactions of the characters unrealistic and the special effects look too cheap (must you show bullet wounds in CGI instead of practical effects?). A bit like an Asylum production (Sharknado, DinoCroc vs. Supergator) but with more budget. The Taking of Tiger Mountain (shot in 3D but that I saw in 2D) is in the same line. The story is too complicated and the characters spend the first hour of the movie explaining and repeating their motivation over and over, however not filling in the most basic plot holes. I was however surprised by some good-looking hard-to-do (and a bit over-done) digital effects, like a full CGI tiger and hawk. I didn't feel involved at all in the story, even when we see some bravery display, or people fighting to save a child or a village, or some heroes dying. All flat. The music doesn't help as it often doesn't fit the action and/or is too present. The story is also uselessly linked to present times during the opening and closing scenes. The worst is maybe that the director couldn't choose between two endings: one realistic but boring, the other very exciting but totally exaggerated and out-of topic (involving the plane that can be seen on some movie posters) and in the end he shows both, one as the real story and the other as a fantasy one. After 2h20 I was glad when the brain smashing was over.
Rating: 2 /10

Parasyte (2014-2015)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014, 2015
	Director: Takashi Yamazaki (Returner, Always - Sunset on Third Street, The Eternal Zero)
	Actors: Shôta Sometani, Eri Fukatsu, Ai Hashimoto
	Country: J
	Genre: SF
	Conditions of visioning: 01.05.2015, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2015
Synopsis: Worms coming from the sea start to infect the population by entering their brain. In the case of Shin'ichi Izumi (Sometani), the parasite later named Migi had to settle for the hand, and interact with its owner to understand his role in the invasion.
Review: The first out of this two-part movie was a huge it in Japan in 2014, and we got to see at the FEFF the second part before even it is shown in its original country! The story is adapted from a successful manga (like many mainstream Japanese productions nowadays) and directed by the man who brought us the excellent Always - Sunset on Third Street (and its two sequels as I just learned) runner-up for the FEFF audience award 2006 and The Eternal Zero, winner in 2014. I hoped this renowned director could use this good SF story and add to it the characters depth that often misses in those manga adaptation (except maybe in the Death Note trilogy), and he managed to a certain extend: the (young) cast is indeed better than usual, although the best character is actually the parasite in the hand, funny most of the time. The story strongly reminds of The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and the behavior of the parasites of John Carpenter's The Thing. The visual effects, mostly of the parasite hand and the enemies, are very well done and integrated in the live action. I was impressed that CGIs were used for all shots, even the wide ones, while it could have been too easy (but noticeable) to equip the actor with a cheap prosthetic hand. The parasite attacks are well-done and quite violent (slicing through flesh). But the big problem with Parasyte (especially the second part) is that it falls into the same trap as many other Japanese movies, which is over-explanation. For example when the main character does something his side-kick parasite-hand tells the audience what is happening. Or towards the end when the head parasite explain their motivation it lasts for ten minutes of useless repetition, while there are cleverer ways to make us understand the same thing with proper editing techniques for example. Those extremely long speeches and a series of multiple ending make that the second part of Parasyte is particularly painful to watch (2/10), while the surprise effect in the first part was making it bearable (5/10). I am convinced the whole thing could have been fitted in a single 2h30 feature.
Rating: 4 /10

I am Here (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Director: Lixin Fan
	Actors: -
	Country: CN
	Genre: Documentary, Music
	Conditions of visioning: 01.05.2015, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2015
Synopsis: A documentary behind the scene of the most famous Chinese talent-searching TV shows.
Review: I was curious to learn how a Chinese documentary could criticize a popular show from the same country, and I quickly got my answer: it doesn't. OK you have a few scenes when the contestants complain about the place where they are parked and filmed all day long, and you witness the hardness of the Singing and Dancing trainers, but no more than you see on the show itself. In fact, the documentary looks like a brief summary of the 2013 season of the show, nothing more. And it is just like any of those shows you can see in France or Germany for example. So a rather useless documentary.
Rating: 2 /10

Stage Sisters (1964)

	Also Known As: Two Stage Sisters
	Year of first release: 1964
	Director: Jin Xie
	Actors: Fang Xie, Yindi Cao, Nan Deng
	Country: CN
	Genre: Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 30.04.2015, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2015
Synopsis: Escaping from forces marriages and men abuse, two sworn sisters move from the coutryside to Shangai where their acting and singing talent will make them famous.
Review: This year the FEFF was proposing some restored old movies including this one. I was quickly pleased by the quality of the images (in a 4:3 format), which reminded me that 50 years ago, China was producing movies that could look as good as the Hollywood ones. Some shots of the countryside are quite beautiful. I had a bit of trouble at the beginning differentiating between some female characters, but it didn't prevent from getting the basic plot, quite classical of that period I guess. What was interesting was to witness the opposite evolution of the two sworn sisters, in a period of China post-war and pre-cultural revolution. What spoiled it a bit was that all ends too well, and especially the final message is that the sisters should go back to the countryside to sing the greatness of the people's Republic. That looked a bit too much like propaganda to me.
Rating: 4 /10

Gangnam Blues (2015)

	Also Known As: Gangnam 1970
	Year of first release: 2015
	Director: Ha Yoo
	Actors: Min-ho Lee, Rae-won Kim, Jin-young Jung
	Country: ROK
	Genre: Thriller, Polar
	Conditions of visioning: 30.04.2015, Blu-ray
Synopsis: In the 1970's Seoul, Politicians and rival gangs fight each other for the control of the suburb area of Gangnam which will develop frantically in the next few years.
Review: Where I learned that the Gangnam that singer Psy put in our heads is the name of a Seoul suburb. Further learning about the story of its rise is what motivated me to watch this gangster movie. Also I like the 70's period. I think the main flaw in this movie is that it contains too many lead characters but didn't take time to introduce them properly, nor to differentiate them physically or with their names. You know it is difficult for us westerners to set apart two young shaved good-looking Korean guys with the same haircut and similar-sounding names. Apart from that the movie looks good and the 70's period is nicely displayed on screen. We get to see the expected rivalry between gangs and the fight scenes are as violent as they should be. But as I was already lost between the different characters, I got even more confused between the several gangs and the intricate plot the politicians and bosses put in place to beat the others to the game of real estate investment and neighbourhood control. I lost interest in the movie when I realised I didn't care about the characters anymore but just wanted to know how it would end: historical facts about the Gangnam suburbs I can find on Internet.
Rating: 3 /10

The End of the World and the Cat's Disappearance (2015)

	Also Known As: Sekai no owari no Izukoneko (original)
	Year of first release: 2015
	Director: Michihiro Takeuchi
	Actors: Akari, Jun Aonami, Shinji Imaoka
	Country: J
	Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Comedy
	Conditions of visioning: 01.05.2015, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2015
Synopsis: Tokyo was destroyed by a pandemic. The survivors now live in New-Osaka waiting for a meteor to strike and the world to end. Meanwhile, a young girl broadcasts songs and dances, and meets two Jupiterian girl and a legendary invincible cat.
Review: This is the kind of movie that makes me think: "those Japanese people are not like us", but makes me want to visit the country even more! Dare I compare it to Jupiter Ascending? The Far East Film Festival is also the only opportunity one gets to see such experimental movies. The title is strange but it seems there was no international title yet so the FEFF team made one up! I guess it was adapted from a Manga (like so many Japanese production nowadays), given the visual style of the movie: a heroin with a cat tail, all girls in school uniform, and when lacking budget, replacing action scenes (like a meteor falling) by a black and white drawing of them. This is probably a nice movie for ever-connected Japanese teenagers, and the nonsense didn't disturb me so much (although I prefer when they use it in crazy comedies), but the movie is definitely too talkative. You have to be a hard-core fan of Japan to appreciate it.
Rating: 2 /10

The Wicked (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Director: Youngseon Yoo
	Actors: Joo-hee Park, Soo-yoon Na, Mi-so Lee
	Country: ROK
	Genre: Horror, Thriller
	Conditions of visioning: 29.04.2015, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2015
Synopsis: Saeyoung is a new employee who eventually stands against Leesun, her stubborn team leader. Leesun is upset by Saeyoung's behavior, but she soon learns about ominous stories about Saeyoung.
Review: The plot of this movie didn't help me much in deciding to see it or not, so I just had to go. The beginning is rather original, showing the relationship between several office-mates, and the conflict between the boss and the new recruit. The most intriguing being the unpredictable actions by Saeyoung (why not putting my finger in the pencil-sharpener?!). But after one hour even that became repetitive and I have to admit I rested my eyes for a while. When I came to, the movie had radically changed style and was pure horror without much meaning attached. Not one that I can recommend.
Rating: 2/10

Meeting Dr. Sun (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Director: Chih-yen Yee
	Actors: Bryan Shu-Hao Chang, Hsiao-chuan Chang, Honduras
	Country: RC
	Genre: Drama, Comedy
	Conditions of visioning: 29.04.2015, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2015
Synopsis: Lefty, a high school student who cannot afford the tuition fees, gets the idea to steal an old statue and sell it for scraps.
Review: I was not very motivated to watch that movie described as "school heist-comedy", but it is not everyday one gets to see a movie made in Taiwan. The basic idea is kind of interesting, and the group of four friends sometimes funny. Unfortunately the humour often resides in ridiculous situations displayed on screen for exaggeratedly long amounts of times. The closest comparison that actually comes to my mind is the humour of Jack Black, that prevented me from watching Nacho Libre for more than 15 minutes. There are some nice funny situations (absurd humour, for those who like the style), but as I said they are often spoiled by being overstretched. And it looks like the director is at loss when he is requested to show the character's emotions. Finally one good thing about the movie is the relationship between the two "enemies" competing for stealing the statue. It turns to Black Humour when they compare their families to find which is the poorest, i.e. who deserves the money more. We then witness the confrontation between a poor kid trying to help the other, this one on the contrary ready to steal from other poor people. This could have been an interesting parabola on the Taiwanese society or the world in general, but this meaning is just lost in the rest of this average movie.
Rating: 4 /10

Uncle Victory (2014)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2014
	Director: Meng Zhang
	Actors: Haibo Huang, Xinyi Zhang, Xue Guo
	Country: CN
	Genre: Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 29.04.2015, Teatro Nuovo, FEFF2015
Synopsis: After 10 years in jail, a man ends up opening a kindergarten, but his past will catch up with him.
Review: This movie was sold to me as a good picture of contemporary China. I also though the guy would travel (maybe because of the side-car motorbike on the poster) while he is just stuck in his neighbourhood. In the end I found that there were too many ellipses and I had a hard time understanding who did what. There are some touching scenes involving the children the ex-convict is trying to educate, but too often I couldn't understand the reactions of the characters. There are also some nice settings (the kindergarten, the huge open-sky mine) and a semi-interesting slice of Chinese History seen from a small group of people trying to make a living, but not enough to keep my attention.
Rating: 3 /10