What is the last non martial arts Asian movie you've watched?

[DrNgor]

Raise the Red Lantern (China, 1991: Zhang Yimou) - This is one of those all-time classics of Chinese cinema that I could have rented at Blockbuster during the late 90s, but never did. I'm pretty sure I would have dismissed it as "slow" had I watched it as an HK action junkie teen. The film is well shot and well acted, but the pacing is very deliberate and that may turn some viewers off. 

The film tells the story of Songlian (Gong Li), a young woman who is forced to drop out of a university following her father's untimely death. At her stepmother's behest, she decides to get married, becoming the 4th wife of a wealthy man named Chen (Ma Jingwu). She quickly finds herself in competition with wife #3 (He Sai-Fei, whose credits include Lust, Caution and something called Double Gunned Man with a False Face), a former Opera singer, for her new husband's attentions. Wife #2, Zhuoyun (Cao Cui-Fen), is initially sympathetic toward Songlian, while wife #1 (Jin Shuyuan) has more or less resigned herself to her fate: she's probably too old for her husband to show interest in anymore. Complicating matters is the fact that Songlian's maid, Yan'er (Kong Lin, who has a supporting role in Ride On), is jealous because she thought she would become wife #4.

Raise the Red Lantern is interesting in that it concerns itself purely with the internal politics of the Chen family, specifically with the interactions of the wives, especially #2, 3 and 4. In a particularly bold movie, even the husband, for whom all the hub-bub is about, is portrayed in an almost purely abstract manner: Zhang Yimou never once gives us a close-up of Ma Jingwu's face. There is no dialog to really explain what Mr. Chen does or how he makes his money, nor is there any indication about how external events may or may not be affecting his business--the film is set around 1920, so that would place it during the Warlord Era. Zhang Yimou did something similar in Shanghai Triad, but to a lesser effect. It works here because the sexual politics of a polygamous family is the focus and is interesting in its own right, as opposed watching the machinations of a Triad family two degrees removed from the main action.

The movie suggests that polygamy in China may be good for the husband, but it is anything but for the wives. There's a lot of scheming and backbiting going on here, and these women are more than willing to do horrible things to each other to guarantee their strength over the household. Moreover, it's clear that once a woman's beauty and childbearing prowess has faded, she will receive little love and attention from her husband, who'll be too busy lavishing his love on his younger wives. If she's lucky, she'll have a son to occasionally keep her company. Songlian can see all of this from the outset and, after her initial disgust of "the game," she tries to play it to her advantage, after which she simply removes herself from the equation altogether. But that brings with it loneliness, despair and ultimately insanity. As with most Zhang Yimou films, the technical aspects are fine and the acting is good, but it is pretty depressing, especially in the last 20 minutes or so.

[masterofoneinchpunch]

19 hours ago, DrNgor said:

Raise the Red Lantern (China, 1991: Zhang Yimou) - This is one of those all-time classics of Chinese cinema that I could have rented at Blockbuster during the late 90s, but never did. I'm pretty sure I would have dismissed it as "slow" had I watched it as an HK action junkie teen. The film is well shot and well acted, but the pacing is very deliberate and that may turn some viewers off. 

...

This is a brilliant movie during Zhang's most artistically fertile period (before Shanghai Triad). Difficult sometimes, but easy to see why I feel he is one of the greatest living directors.

[Chu Liu Hsiang]

YOU SHOOT I SHOOT - wonderful black comedy about killers, movies, and basically everything else.

[DrNgor]

I collected my recent Zhang Yimou capsule reviews and posted them at the site:

https://abeautifulfilm.blogspot.com/2023/06/3-capsule-reviews-of-zhang-yimou-dramas.html

[PandaPawPaw]

School on Fire - I was expecting it to be really good but it turned out to be pretty shit. A lot of annoying characters and it tries to fit too much in which makes it messy. Roy Cheung was good at playing a total prick though and I really wanted him to get his arsed kicked!

Drug War - Excellent Johnnie To film. Really good action and suspenseful story. Louis Koo is really good in it as are all the other actors. I wasn't sure whether I should root for Koo and dislike him. He's come a long way since his bad tan days.

Seoul Raiders - I liked Tokyo Raiders so I gave this a chance but it's utter shit. Awful story, acting was meh, boring characters. Tony Leung was good with what he had to work with but the three Korean girls were crap especially with all the 'Bossy' shit! Ugh!

Specked Out - I was expecting this to be like Gimme Gimme but it's no where near it. It's eally hard to like anyone in this and lots of miserable faces. The buzz cut girl did my head in and wanted her to shut up! Acting wasn't great either.

[One Armed Boxer]

The Fox with Nine Tails (1994, South Korea) - Mainly spoken of in the context of being the first Korean production to use CGI and the debut of Jung Woo-sung, I recently got around to giving this one a first time watch. Full review over at COF - 

https://cityonfire.com/the-fox-with-nine-tails-1994-review/

[Yihetuan]

The Fourth Portrait - Dir. Chung Mong-hong [2010] (Taiwan)

I've watched all of Chung Mong-hong's films and even if he doesn't have a prodigious output (4 feature length and one omnibus story) there is certain quirkiness, irreverence & dark undertones in all of them. This one, his second feature is no exception & I think it's fantastic on so many levels. The actor who played the young boy, Xiang deserves plaudits for his performance but I was also moved by the entire ensemble cast including a very strong supporting role by Leon Dai as Xiang's step-father who puts forth a very unnerving yet nuanced performance. I ended up purchasing the Taiwanese blu ray but was disappointed that the English subs are slightly out of sync which is very annoying.

 

[Yggdrasil]

Japanese film - Go

Red spell spells red. - a nice trip back to familiar territory to a Iban community in Malaysia.

Centipede Horror - Another film shot in Malaysia.

Guts of a Virgin.

Guts of a Beauty

Rusted Body

[PandaPawPaw]

Bruce Lee in New Guinea.

The Mission. Seen it loads of times. Great film.

[Yihetuan]

Nice View - Dir. Wen Mu Ye [2022] (China)

Just a good ole' fashioned feel good movie about a sibling love, sacrificing for a cause and the unsung heroes and everyday men and women who helped make the Chinese economic miracle. Director Wen Mu Ye's debut film, Dying to Survive is a superior film but this his second feature length project is very fulfilling on so many levels. I have to say Jackson Yee might've elevated himself among the great young talents coming out of Asia today. I enjoyed his performance in Better Days and his work here just solidifies my admiration for his acting. Yes this movie has some drawn out sappy overly melodramatic scenes with the obligatory tearjerker ending but overall, the positives outweigh the negatives and I recommend this film.

 

[Yggdrasil]

Had a week off work, so started on my backlog

Skinny Tiger, fatty dragon

Cyborg

Wheels on Meals

The Executioner collection

Shaolin Invincibles

Magic Cop

Millionaires' Express

Calamity of Snakes

Tiger cage 1 & 2

Vengeance is mine, all others pay cash - Indonesian.

Cain and Abel - Philippines

Isiang - Philippines

Mr Vampire 2, 3, 4

Maynila, sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag - Philippines

[Yihetuan]

14 minutes ago, Yggdrasil said:

Had a week off work, so started on my backlog

Skinny Tiger, fatty dragon

Cyborg

Wheels on Meals

The Executioner collection

Shaolin Invincibles

Magic Cop

Millionaires' Express

Calamity of Snakes

Tiger cage 1 & 2

Vengeance is mine, all others pay cash - Indonesian.

Cain and Abel - Philippines

Isiang - Philippines

Mr Vampire 2, 3, 4

Maynila, sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag - Philippines

The 3 Filipino movies on that backlog, particularly Manilla in the Claws of Light but Insiang is close behind, are the best of that entire list.

[Yggdrasil]

6 hours ago, Yihetuan said:

The 3 Filipino movies on that backlog, particularly Manilla in the Claws of Light but Insiang is close behind, are the best of that entire list.

Still got Mnlkingpin, kisapmata and Silip to watch and once a moth, whenever it gets here @Yihetuan

Edited July 24, 2023 by Yggdrasil

[Yihetuan]

29 minutes ago, Yggdrasil said:

Still got Mnlkingpin, kisapmata and Silap to watch and once a moth, whenever it gets here @Yihetuan

You mean Silip or is that another movie?

Speaking of Once a Moth, this is the lowest pre-order price I've seen so far on Amazon. I might jump on it since the VS exclusive won't be available until August anyway.

 

[Yggdrasil]

5 hours ago, Yihetuan said:

You mean Silip or is that another movie?

Speaking of Once a Moth, this is the lowest pre-order price I've seen so far on Amazon. I might jump on it since the VS exclusive won't be available until August anyway.

 

It cost me $46 to have it posted to mine as I didn't see it on Amazon.

[Super Ninja]

20 hours ago, Yihetuan said:

The 3 Filipino movies on that backlog, particularly Manilla in the Claws of Light but Insiang is close behind, are the best of that entire list.

I've seen Manilla in the Claws of Light on the big screen and can confirm it's a fantastic movie; am I wrong or did it inspire Mean Streets? If the other two are as good, I'll have to track them down.

[Yihetuan]

18 minutes ago, Super Ninja said:

I've seen Manilla in the Claws of Light on the big screen and can confirm it's a fantastic movie; am I wrong or did it inspire Mean Streets? If the other two are as good, I'll have to track them down.

Was it the other way around because Mean Streets came out 2 years before the Lino Brocka film? The other 2 are also very good but not in the class of Manilla in the Claws of Light but definitely worth tracking down.

[Yggdrasil]

27 minutes ago, Super Ninja said:

I've seen Manilla in the Claws of Light on the big screen and can confirm it's a fantastic movie; am I wrong or did it inspire Mean Streets? If the other two are as good, I'll have to track them down.

Cain & Abel is another of Lino Brocka's films that's out on shiny blu.

[Yihetuan]

14 hours ago, Yggdrasil said:

It cost me $46 to have it posted to mine as I didn't see it on Amazon.

Amazon had it originally at it's listed price of $34.99 but it just came down this past week. I don't know how much Amazon charges for global shipping to the UK but you probably only would've saved a few bucks over VS.

[Yggdrasil]

11 minutes ago, Yihetuan said:

Amazon had it originally at it's listed price of $34.99 but it just came down this past week. I don't know how much Amazon charges for global shipping to the UK but you probably only would've saved a few bucks over VS.

Definitely, but I thought just because it sold on VS, it'll be sold elsewhere.  I didn't want to find it was permanently out of stock.

[Super Ninja]

11 hours ago, Yihetuan said:

Was it the other way around because Mean Streets came out 2 years before the Lino Brocka film? The other 2 are also very good but not in the class of Manilla in the Claws of Light but definitely worth tracking down.

You're right, my mistake. Knowing Scorsese is into Asian cinema, I kept thinking if it's possible he "borrowed" from Brocka while I was watching the movie. Obviously, if that was the case, it was the other way around. Thanks for correcting me.

Edited July 25, 2023 by Super Ninja

[Yihetuan]

31 minutes ago, Yggdrasil said:

Definitely, but I thought just because it sold on VS, it'll be sold elsewhere.  I didn't want to find it was permanently out of stock.

FOMO. That's what happened to a couple of their obscure Asian releases. You can never tell which titles will sell out.

22 minutes ago, Super Ninja said:

You're right, my mistake. Knowing Scorsese is into Asian cinema, I kept thinking if it's possible he "borrowed" from Brocka while I was watching the movie. Obviously, it that was the case, it was the other way around. Thanks for correcting me.

I found out Lino Brocka adapted that movie from a Filipino novel written in the 60s, so probably Brocka didn't even pay attention to Mean Streets but perhaps he took some inspiration from Scorsese's visual style in Mean Streets.

[DiP]

Believer (2018)

The Korean remake of Johnnie To's excellent Drug War. I think Korea did an good job trying to create a style that could rival To's. From production values, music, editing, scenery (the cities, and the overall natural landscapes gives it a more vibrant look opposed to the smoggy and "unhygient" look of To's movie), cinematography, direction, action scenes, and the acting performances (great work by lead actors Cho Jin-woong and Ryu Jun-Yeol, as well as Cha Seung-won, and Kim Ju-hyuk). And they succeed. Still, To's movie wins for me because it out-edges the remake when it comes to consistency and mood. I feel like the action scenes, no matter how well-staged and shot they are, could've been more fitting with the style of the story. It's a cat-and-mouse style of story with the cops catching a mysterious drug dealer. When shootouts and explosions starts, it becomes very intense and gripping. However, seeing the empty-handed fighting (should be gritty brawls instead for appropriation) caught me off guard and changed the mood real quickly. Overall, a good remake that entertains with alot of thrills and suspense.

[Yggdrasil]

16 hours ago, Super Ninja said:

I've seen Manilla in the Claws of Light on the big screen and can confirm it's a fantastic movie; am I wrong or did it inspire Mean Streets? If the other two are as good, I'll have to track them down.

When I watched this recently @Super Ninja, I thought maybe the subtitles were wrong. To work all day for a building site for 3 pesos a day....

I can't remember the price of things in the 70s as I was born in 72, but when you compare the prices now, 1000 pesos is roughly £16.

My filipina gf told me that in the 70's, you could buy 1 kg of rice for 1 peso. What I didn't ask her though is how much a kilo of rice is now in 2023.

[Super Ninja]

20 hours ago, Yggdrasil said:

When I watched this recently @Super Ninja, I thought maybe the subtitles were wrong. To work all day for a building site for 3 pesos a day....

I can't remember the price of things in the 70s as I was born in 72, but when you compare the prices now, 1000 pesos is roughly £16.

My filipina gf told me that in the 70's, you could buy 1 kg of rice for 1 peso. What I didn't ask her though is how much a kilo of rice is now in 2023.

I wouldn't be surprised if that's true. Even today, the difference in standards seems to be quite significant. From what I've heard, Filipino workers on container ships and oil rigs can live like royalty with the money they earn. In the West, that money can afford above average lifestyle, think a house with apartments to rent and a BMW of course as that's how you measure success around here, but you won't be able to afford a villa with a pool and two maids. 

That's at least one part of the reason why people from the Phillipines, India, Nepal and even Egypt migrate to Western countries in search for work. They will work for 500 - 700€ a month which means they'll be exploited and underpayed. While that sadly seems to be a step up for them and allows them to send money home, it's barely enough to make ends meet for the average westerner, especially by post-pandemic standards. Even with all that, countries across EU are in desperate need of workers. Not everybody can make a living as a youtuber, digital nomad, blogger, copywriter, influencer or whatnot, but a lot of people trying has its consequences.

Edited July 26, 2023 by Super Ninja