2001-2010

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Fired from his part-time job in a restaurant kitchen for absenteeism, rookie boxer Tamura has a lot to be angry and frustrated about in his life. But things start to change when he’s approached at the gym by the artist Hattori, who wants to use him as the new model for the manga character Yellow Kid. Yellow Kid first appeared in an American comic in the late 19th century, and Hattori revived him as an older character a century later. What makes the proposition intriguing for Tamura is that the first model for the revived character was former WBA Lightweight champ Mikuni Tokio, the man who inspired him to take up boxing. And Mikuni now lives as a virtual recluse in what seems to be a very fraught relationship with his girlfriend Mana. And Mana, now pregnant, used to be in a relationship with the artist Hattori… — Vancounver International Film FestivalRead More »

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Saori has always disliked her gay father and has lived her life denying his existence. One rainy day she receives a visit at work from a young man called Haruhiko. He tells her that her father is dying of cancer and that the nursing home he operates is in danger of closing. Out of curiosity and debt, Saori goes to visit her father at the House of Himiko, a nursing home for gay old men. It is a sad place but filled with sardonic good cheer. Surprised but pleased, Haruhiko shows her around. The old men who live there are delighted. Saori is at first repelled by the relationship between Haruhiko and Himiko but she soon sees that their feelings are genuine. She begins taking an interest in keeping the nursing home alive…Read More »

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A story about art and educated men, and how their art and culture reveal themselves useless in the face of the harsh realities of the 20th century life.Read More »

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Both detectives on a sickening murder case struggle with being alone and childless in their 40s. As they investigate the young man found beaten and strangled to death, platonic friends Karine and Herve unravel a love story between Vincent, and Rebecca a high school girl. The teenage lovers quickly plunged into the kind of amour fou the flics fear to chance for themselves. Rebecca is missing, and unknown to her, the boy was a homosexual Internet hustler. The ordinarily blasé male investigator is appalled to find that on-line dating is a world the sexy Karine knows well. Is Rebecca the killer, another victim or?Read More »

Veteran Hong Kong screenwriter Ivy Ho (Divergence) makes his feature directorial debut with this tale about a clandestine romance between a marketing secretary and a married manager. No one in the office suspects that Pearl (Karena Lin) and Tom (Ekin Cheng) are having an affair, not even their close friends Jewel (Chucky Woo) and John (Derek Tsang). As the story begins shifting between past and present, we come to understand just how the affair came to be, and where it could be heading in the future.
~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie GuideRead More »

This historical drama, depicting different phases in the late childhood and youth of the so-called “Apostle of Cuba” José Martí, is most of the time a biopic full of commonplaces often found in this genre, directed by Fernando Pérez, one of the most respected names in Cuban cinema.

Narrated in four movements, in the first two (“Bees” and “Arias”), the 9 year old Martí (endearingly played by Damián Rodríguez) is bullied in school by schoolmates and abused by his schoolmaster, while he learns notions of justice and oppression from his father. He discovers the beauties of Mother Nature with an old slave, explores his sexuality and enters into the world of high art in a Havanan theater. The boy also becomes aware of the high price a poor child has to pay for education.Read More »

Everybody who went to college and had good friends there, or spent lots of careless time with wild and young companions, will be deeply affected by this film. Dagen Zonder Lief shows us in a glowing, slow burning way what we all know: nothing lasts forever, not even friendship. The wonderful characters in Dagen Zonder Lief were young together and had loads of fun, as the subtle flashbacks show us, but those days are over. One is married and has a little baby; another one left for New York; yet another one is about to enter the snobbish world of his snobbish girlfriend. There’s still a spark when they meet, but that’s it: just a spark. Not the burning fire of the old days. The suicide of one or their common friends and the inexplicable need to settle prevents them from truly reliving the old days. They hardly ever mention it, but you can see it in their every movement and expression.Read More »

A sanitary battalion of Italian Army is sent to Sorman oasis in Lybia during the Africa campaign in 1940. Soon an Italian missionary, living nearby, succeed to transform the occupation by Italian Army in a kind of humanitarian mission. In fact all the battalion is involved to help the local population. The war anyway goes on with no regards to human feelings. The “glorious” Fascist campaign is going to became a fast retreat.Read More »

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A flamboyant impresario and an ageing ex-wrestling champion arrive in a small town, offering a hefty award to the local challenger. In fact, the promoter wants to rinse the spectators for every penny. But, is this a good day to go fishing?Read More »