More film festival goodness from Kaiju Shakedown, which reports on the lineup of the 6th San Diego Asian Film Festival, Sept 29 to Oct 6.
No Anchorman quotes here. Just the facts. Among the films is Fan Chan, a feel-good hit Thai film from 2003 about a boy and a girl growing up as friends in a small town in the 1980s.
This comes as Fan Chan's six young directors are all starting to spread their wings and fly on their own. Among them, Withaya Tongyooyong and Komkrit Treewimol are either working on or have finished their first solo efforts.
Also, Fan Chan has finally been added to the RT database, so rate away and make it fresh.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Saturday, October 1, 2005
Renee eyes The Eye
Renee "You Had Me at Hello" Zellweger is looking to take the lead role in the remake of the hit Pang Bros thriller, The Eye.
The big entertainment press is all excited because it means a "reunion of sorts" with Renee's Jerry Maguire co-star, Tom Cruise, who is producing the Hollywood version of The Eye with his producing partner, Paula Wagner.
It's the latest Asian horror remake, and Renee wants to head down the same lucrative path as Naomi Watts (The Ring), Sarah Michelle Gellar (The Grudge) and Jennifer Connelly (Dark Water) (Skeleton Key with Kate Hudson doesn't count, even though it's copied from the A-suspense playbook).
The remake will even get the J-horror imprint from Ringu's Hideo Nakata, who will direct.
What's really hilarious, all these years later, is that 2002's The Eye isn't a Japanese horror film, as E! called it. Reuters says it's a Hong Kong movie, which is part right I guess.
The Eye is a Thai film! Sort of. Let's see. Danny and Oxide (as opposed to Rusty) Pang are Hong Kong born, but they have mainly worked in Thailand. The star, Angelica Lee, is Taiwanese. The film was made in Thailand, had a cast of mainly Thai actors and the soundtrack was mostly in Thai (I think). Production money came from Singapore. Okay, The Eye is a mutt.
Whatever, I think the squinty-eyed Nurse Betty star is a great choice. Let's see it.
Meanwhile, the Pang Bros are involved in their own Hollywood feature.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
The big entertainment press is all excited because it means a "reunion of sorts" with Renee's Jerry Maguire co-star, Tom Cruise, who is producing the Hollywood version of The Eye with his producing partner, Paula Wagner.
It's the latest Asian horror remake, and Renee wants to head down the same lucrative path as Naomi Watts (The Ring), Sarah Michelle Gellar (The Grudge) and Jennifer Connelly (Dark Water) (Skeleton Key with Kate Hudson doesn't count, even though it's copied from the A-suspense playbook).
The remake will even get the J-horror imprint from Ringu's Hideo Nakata, who will direct.
What's really hilarious, all these years later, is that 2002's The Eye isn't a Japanese horror film, as E! called it. Reuters says it's a Hong Kong movie, which is part right I guess.
The Eye is a Thai film! Sort of. Let's see. Danny and Oxide (as opposed to Rusty) Pang are Hong Kong born, but they have mainly worked in Thailand. The star, Angelica Lee, is Taiwanese. The film was made in Thailand, had a cast of mainly Thai actors and the soundtrack was mostly in Thai (I think). Production money came from Singapore. Okay, The Eye is a mutt.
Whatever, I think the squinty-eyed Nurse Betty star is a great choice. Let's see it.
Meanwhile, the Pang Bros are involved in their own Hollywood feature.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Tokyo Filmex lineup out
No Thai films at Tokyo Filmex, but it's still got a great lineup of Asian films.
The opening is Sha Po Lang. I don't suppose there's a chance that what appears to be the best martial-arts film of the year will play in Bangok theatres soon?
What caught my eye was Rithy Panh's The Burnt Theatre.
There's also a full-length version of Il-gon Song's Magician(s).
And there's some Japanese horror films from the 1950s, including The Mansion of the Ghost Cat, The Lady Vampire and Ghost Story of Yotsuya. There's also some Wakayama Tomasboro (Lone Wolf and Cub) films, Okatsu the Avenger and Dandy Sashichi Detective Story - Six Famous Beauties.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
The opening is Sha Po Lang. I don't suppose there's a chance that what appears to be the best martial-arts film of the year will play in Bangok theatres soon?
What caught my eye was Rithy Panh's The Burnt Theatre.
There's also a full-length version of Il-gon Song's Magician(s).
And there's some Japanese horror films from the 1950s, including The Mansion of the Ghost Cat, The Lady Vampire and Ghost Story of Yotsuya. There's also some Wakayama Tomasboro (Lone Wolf and Cub) films, Okatsu the Avenger and Dandy Sashichi Detective Story - Six Famous Beauties.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Another Fan Chan director making it 'Possible'
Withaya Thongyooyong, one of the six directors of Fan Chan (My Girl), is at work on a movie about a band, The Nation's print-only Soopsip column reports.
"It's a movie set between 1966 and 1970," says Withaya who is still working on the script. "At that time, the most famous band in Thailand was the Impossibles. That’s why it’s temporarily called The Possible, though my movie is not actually about the band at all."
The Possible may well end up being like a Thai version of Almost Famous or That Thing That You Do.
Meanwhile, his former co-directors’ works are advancing. Komkrit Treewimol is has Puean Sanit (Dear Dakanda) ready for release and Songyos Sukmakanan has a horror film called Dek Hor (Dorm) scheduled for release on December 29.
So Withaya is getting pretty tired of people hassling him about when his movie's going to be done, Soopsip says.
Producer-director Jira Maligool is backing Withaya. He says Jira calls it The Possible for another reason.
"He hopes that I'll finally finish my work, like the others," Withaya was quoted as saying.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
"It's a movie set between 1966 and 1970," says Withaya who is still working on the script. "At that time, the most famous band in Thailand was the Impossibles. That’s why it’s temporarily called The Possible, though my movie is not actually about the band at all."
The Possible may well end up being like a Thai version of Almost Famous or That Thing That You Do.
Meanwhile, his former co-directors’ works are advancing. Komkrit Treewimol is has Puean Sanit (Dear Dakanda) ready for release and Songyos Sukmakanan has a horror film called Dek Hor (Dorm) scheduled for release on December 29.
So Withaya is getting pretty tired of people hassling him about when his movie's going to be done, Soopsip says.
Producer-director Jira Maligool is backing Withaya. He says Jira calls it The Possible for another reason.
"He hopes that I'll finally finish my work, like the others," Withaya was quoted as saying.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
Iron Ladies director eyes Japanese novel
Producer-director Yongyooth Thongkongtoon, the man behind the transgendered-gay volleyball movies Satree Lex and the sequel and last year’s housemaids' adventure, Jaew (M.A.I.D.), is negotiating to buy the copyright to Colourful, a novel by Eto Mori that has already been made into a film by Shun Nakahara.
As he's explained it to Soopsip, a print-only column in The Nation, it's a "heartwarming comedy about a spirit who wins a lucky draw in heaven enabling him to come back to earth again in a new body."
Yongyooth says it's a story that deserves to be told again.
"The story is universal, and I think it can relate to what we see in Thai society. There's some connection to the economic downturn of 1997 and also the teenage problem," he was quoted as saying.
Flitting about from film festival to film festival (his Jaew is in Vancouver), Yongyuth intends to attend the Tokyo Film Festival and meet author Eto there.
"I hope she’ll let me do it!"
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
As he's explained it to Soopsip, a print-only column in The Nation, it's a "heartwarming comedy about a spirit who wins a lucky draw in heaven enabling him to come back to earth again in a new body."
Yongyooth says it's a story that deserves to be told again.
"The story is universal, and I think it can relate to what we see in Thai society. There's some connection to the economic downturn of 1997 and also the teenage problem," he was quoted as saying.
Flitting about from film festival to film festival (his Jaew is in Vancouver), Yongyuth intends to attend the Tokyo Film Festival and meet author Eto there.
"I hope she’ll let me do it!"
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Citizen Dog in Tokyo, London
Citizen Dog is moving on from the Toronto and Vancouver film festivals to Tokyo and London
Kaiju Shakedown has more on the Tokyo fest, which is also showing Midnight My Love.
(Thanks to Sebu! Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Midnight My Love added to 3rd World Film Festival
Good news from the 3rd World Film Festival of Bangkok, Midnight My Love, featuring a dramatic turn by Mum Jokmok, has been added to the schedule. Mum stars as a loner taxi driver who gets into a relationship with a beautiful massage parlor girl.
Dusit Silakong, deputy director of the festival, said he hoped the festival would give the film some more exposure to local audiences. When it played commercially earlier this year, it didn't do all that well. Seems mainstream audiences didn't care for their favorite comedian playing it straight, no matter how fantastic a job he did or how much fun the film actually was.
Anyway, after giving the fest some grief and some more grief for not programming enough Thai films, I feel a little better about the lineup.
Midnight My Love also is getting some exposure in Pusan and Tokyo. It's out on DVD in Thailand, too, but there's no English subtitles, so I hope to catch it again at 3rd World.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Monday, September 26, 2005
DVD news on Bullet Wives, Tom Yum Goong, Tin Mine
I was browsing in my local Mangpong branch and noticed Bullet Wives is out with English subtitles. So if you're into chicks with guns, there you go.
Twitch was more news about other Thai film DVD releases.
The big one of course, is Tom Yum Goong. It'll be a two-disc set with all kinds of special features, everything you could ever want, except English subtitles. But, not to fear, Twitch says a Hong Kong version will be out soon and it'll have the English subs with the original Thai cut of the film.
Then there's the Tin Mine DVD, which is extensive as well. It has two discs and comes packaged with a treasure trove of stills from the production. There's all kinds of stuff, but the info is in Thai, so help is needed to translate all this. It's nice to see the film company is going all out on this DVD release. It did poorly at the box office, but it's also Thailand's Oscar pick and was actually a good movie.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Twitch was more news about other Thai film DVD releases.
The big one of course, is Tom Yum Goong. It'll be a two-disc set with all kinds of special features, everything you could ever want, except English subtitles. But, not to fear, Twitch says a Hong Kong version will be out soon and it'll have the English subs with the original Thai cut of the film.
Then there's the Tin Mine DVD, which is extensive as well. It has two discs and comes packaged with a treasure trove of stills from the production. There's all kinds of stuff, but the info is in Thai, so help is needed to translate all this. It's nice to see the film company is going all out on this DVD release. It did poorly at the box office, but it's also Thailand's Oscar pick and was actually a good movie.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Saturday, September 24, 2005
After Fan Chan
The Bangkok Post's Real Time section catches up with Komkrit Treewimol, who was one of six directors behind the 2003 surprise hit, Fan Chan (My Girl).
The first of the six to break out on his own, Komkrit's first project after the nostalgic tale of childhood friends in the 1980s is Puen Sanit (literally "closest friend"), which is adapted from a romantic travel story by Apichat Petchleela and centers on an art student who secretly falls for his best friend at Chiang Mai University. But when the guy travels down to Pha-ngan island in the South, he forms a friendship with a local nurse, who in turn secretly falls for him.
Other Fan Chan directors at work include Nitiwat Tarathorn, who is shooting Seasons Change, a love story set in a music college, while Adisorn Treesirikasem is shooting a football comedy called Mak Tae.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
The first of the six to break out on his own, Komkrit's first project after the nostalgic tale of childhood friends in the 1980s is Puen Sanit (literally "closest friend"), which is adapted from a romantic travel story by Apichat Petchleela and centers on an art student who secretly falls for his best friend at Chiang Mai University. But when the guy travels down to Pha-ngan island in the South, he forms a friendship with a local nurse, who in turn secretly falls for him.
"I feel like I have to prove myself with this film, but I know, as does everybody in our group of six, that it's unlikely that we can pull off another 100-million-baht hit," Komkrit says. "The thing is, we don't know what we have to do exactly to make a 100-million-baht movie. So for me, I started from doing what I felt like doing, something that really got me worked up all right."
Other Fan Chan directors at work include Nitiwat Tarathorn, who is shooting Seasons Change, a love story set in a music college, while Adisorn Treesirikasem is shooting a football comedy called Mak Tae.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
Thursday, September 22, 2005
Joe's shorts in New York
The New York Film Festival starts tomorrow and runs until October 9. It is playing two short films by Apichatpong Weerasethakul in an avant garde showcase.
The films are his 1995 short, Like the Relentless Fury of the Pounding Waves and Windows from 1999.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
The films are his 1995 short, Like the Relentless Fury of the Pounding Waves and Windows from 1999.
(Cross-published at Rotten Tomatoes)
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