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A memory piece in four extraordinary voices, Sébastien Lifshitz’s sharp and tender documentary reveals the secret history of an underground network created by cross-dressing men and transgender women in the 1950s and ’60s. Casa Susanna takes its title from the secluded Catskills resort that became a refuge for pathfinders from around the world at a time when many countries’ laws and social norms were aligned against them. Two of these pioneering trans woman, octogenarians at the time of filming, are interviewed for the doc, recalling the rustic retreat’s crucial role in their journey to self-realization. The other two subjects, now entering their 70s, were children during the Casa’s heyday, with family ties to the uncommon New York bungalow colony.
The French filmmaker, who has explored the transgender experience in a number of films, among them the narrative drama Wild Side...
A memory piece in four extraordinary voices, Sébastien Lifshitz’s sharp and tender documentary reveals the secret history of an underground network created by cross-dressing men and transgender women in the 1950s and ’60s. Casa Susanna takes its title from the secluded Catskills resort that became a refuge for pathfinders from around the world at a time when many countries’ laws and social norms were aligned against them. Two of these pioneering trans woman, octogenarians at the time of filming, are interviewed for the doc, recalling the rustic retreat’s crucial role in their journey to self-realization. The other two subjects, now entering their 70s, were children during the Casa’s heyday, with family ties to the uncommon New York bungalow colony.
The French filmmaker, who has explored the transgender experience in a number of films, among them the narrative drama Wild Side...
- 9/17/2022
- by Sheri Linden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Academy (Afaa) revealed the nominees for the 15th Asian Film Awards today. Thirty-six films from eight Asian regions will compete for 16 awards. China’s One Second, South Korea’s The Book of Fish, India’s The Disciple, and two Japanese films, Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy and Wife of a Spy, compete for this year’s “Best Film Award.”
Three Hong Kong films were nominated for this year’s Afa, including Drifting, directed by Jun Li, nominated for Best Supporting Actor and Actress. Limbo, directed by Cheang Pou-soi, was nominated for Best Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design and Best sound; Adam Wong’s The Way We Keep Dancing was nominated for Best Original Music.
The Afaa is honoured that legendary South Korean filmmaker Lee Chang-dong will be this year’s Jury President. Lee was the lifetime award recipient at the 13th Asian Film Awards.He won the “Best...
Three Hong Kong films were nominated for this year’s Afa, including Drifting, directed by Jun Li, nominated for Best Supporting Actor and Actress. Limbo, directed by Cheang Pou-soi, was nominated for Best Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design and Best sound; Adam Wong’s The Way We Keep Dancing was nominated for Best Original Music.
The Afaa is honoured that legendary South Korean filmmaker Lee Chang-dong will be this year’s Jury President. Lee was the lifetime award recipient at the 13th Asian Film Awards.He won the “Best...
- 9/9/2021
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Some movies spoof a sub-genre on their own. There is the term “Big Chill clone” that brings together the films about a group of school friends that went their separate ways gathering again to mourn the untimely death of one of their buddies and to take a walk down the memory lane. The Berlinale competition title “Memory Box” might eventually end up in that familiar territory, but the road to it is quite particular and with a number of side topics woven into the film’s fabric.
There are multiple reasons for it, one of them being the focus on the three generations of women of a Quebecois family of Lebanese immigrants, the second being the background of the Lebanese Civil War and the traumas it left, while the third one is the fact that this co-operation by Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige is based on the material from Hadjithomas’ personal collection of memories.
There are multiple reasons for it, one of them being the focus on the three generations of women of a Quebecois family of Lebanese immigrants, the second being the background of the Lebanese Civil War and the traumas it left, while the third one is the fact that this co-operation by Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige is based on the material from Hadjithomas’ personal collection of memories.
- 3/18/2021
- by Marko Stojiljković
- AsianMoviePulse
Albert Dopontel’s “Bye Bye Morons” (“Adieu Les Cons”) has won the top prizes at France’s Cesar Awards, taking six awards including Best Film, Best Director and Best Supporting Actor.
The black tragicomedy is about a terminally ill woman and a suicidal man on the run who team up in an attempt to locate the child the woman hasn’t seen in almost 30 years. It also won awards for Dupontel’s screenplay and for its cinematography and set design.
The only other film to win more than one award was the documentary “Adolescents,” which won in the Best Documentary and Best Editing categories.
“Bye Bye Morons” went into Friday’s Cesar Awards, France’s version of the Oscars, with 12 nominations, second only to Frederic Niedermeyer’s “Love Affair(s)”. That film won a single award, for supporting actress Emilie Dequenne.
“Two of Us,” France’s entry in this year...
The black tragicomedy is about a terminally ill woman and a suicidal man on the run who team up in an attempt to locate the child the woman hasn’t seen in almost 30 years. It also won awards for Dupontel’s screenplay and for its cinematography and set design.
The only other film to win more than one award was the documentary “Adolescents,” which won in the Best Documentary and Best Editing categories.
“Bye Bye Morons” went into Friday’s Cesar Awards, France’s version of the Oscars, with 12 nominations, second only to Frederic Niedermeyer’s “Love Affair(s)”. That film won a single award, for supporting actress Emilie Dequenne.
“Two of Us,” France’s entry in this year...
- 3/13/2021
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Emmanuel Mouret’s Les Choses Qu’On Dit, Les Choses Qu’On Fait, aka Love Affair(s), leads France’s César Award nominations with a total 13 including each of the top acting categories as well as Best Director and Best Film. The official 2020 Cannes Film Festival selection is followed by Albert Dupontel’s comedy/drama Adieu Les Cons (Bye Bye Morons) and François Ozon’s Eté 85 (Summer Of 85) with 12 each. The latter was released locally last summer and played Toronto in September.
Other titles to make the cut this morning include the Oscar shortlisted Two Of Us (Deux) from Filippo Meneghetti with Best Actress nods for leads Martine Chevallier and Barbara Sukowa as well as Best Original Screenplay and Best Debut Feature.
In the Foreign Film category are Sam Mendes’ 1917, Todd Haynes’ Dark Waters, Thomas Vinterberg’s Another Round (also Oscar shortlisted on Tuesday), Jan Komasa’s La Communion...
Other titles to make the cut this morning include the Oscar shortlisted Two Of Us (Deux) from Filippo Meneghetti with Best Actress nods for leads Martine Chevallier and Barbara Sukowa as well as Best Original Screenplay and Best Debut Feature.
In the Foreign Film category are Sam Mendes’ 1917, Todd Haynes’ Dark Waters, Thomas Vinterberg’s Another Round (also Oscar shortlisted on Tuesday), Jan Komasa’s La Communion...
- 2/10/2021
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Edmund Yeo was born in Singapore in 1984, and graduated from Waseda University. His short films “Kingyo” premiered at the Venice Film Festival 2009; “Inhalation” won the Sonje Award at the Busan International Film Festival in 2010. His debut feature “River of Exploding Durians” premiered in competition at the Tokyo International Film Festival 2014. In 2017, he returned to Tokyo with two films, “Yasmin-san” and “AQÉRAT” (We the Dead), with latter earning him the Best Director Award. “Malu” is his latest film.
On the occasion of “Malu” screening at Tokyo International Film Festival, we talk with him about the story that takes place in both Malaysia and Japan, the cinematography and the editing, working with Masatoshi Nagashe and Sherlyn Seo, and other topics.
The story you present in “Malu” is very interesting. What was the inspiration behind it and why did you choose to have it unfold in both Malaysia and Japan?
The inspiration behind...
On the occasion of “Malu” screening at Tokyo International Film Festival, we talk with him about the story that takes place in both Malaysia and Japan, the cinematography and the editing, working with Masatoshi Nagashe and Sherlyn Seo, and other topics.
The story you present in “Malu” is very interesting. What was the inspiration behind it and why did you choose to have it unfold in both Malaysia and Japan?
The inspiration behind...
- 11/6/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Being born in Singapore, growing up in Malaysia and being based in Japan, Edmund Yeo‘s films always had a pan-Asian perspective, and “Malu”, a Japan-Malaysia co production, seems to cement this approach through a narrative that shares many elements with Naomi Kawase‘s style.
Malu is screening at Tokyo International Film Festival
The story, which unfolds in non-linear fashion, revolves around two sisters, Hong and Lan, who live with their mother in a small fishing village in Malaysia. Their mother, however, is completely unstable and has suicidal tendencies, a mentality that puts much strain to the two girls, and particularly Hong, who, as the older, is also charged with taking care of Lan. One day, their alienated grandmother kidnaps Hong, and actually raises her by herself, with the two girls not meeting for 20 years, until their mother’s death brings them together for one day. A number of flashbacks...
Malu is screening at Tokyo International Film Festival
The story, which unfolds in non-linear fashion, revolves around two sisters, Hong and Lan, who live with their mother in a small fishing village in Malaysia. Their mother, however, is completely unstable and has suicidal tendencies, a mentality that puts much strain to the two girls, and particularly Hong, who, as the older, is also charged with taking care of Lan. One day, their alienated grandmother kidnaps Hong, and actually raises her by herself, with the two girls not meeting for 20 years, until their mother’s death brings them together for one day. A number of flashbacks...
- 11/5/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Due to ongoing travel restrictions, overseas guests have been in short supply at this year’s Tokyo International Film Festival. Malaysia’s Edmund Yeo is a rare exception.
The filmmaker endured two-week quarantine in order to attend the world premiere of his “Malu,” a film which tracks a long-lasting discord between beautiful sisters, and unfolds in Malaysia and Japan. Yeo also gets to prepare for another upcoming shoot in Japan.
Variety: Does it feel surreal or strange to be in Tokyo at the moment?
Things are really normal here. Aside from the fact that everyone’s wearing a mask, it feels the same.
“Malu” opens in Japanese cinemas next week. That’s a first for you, isn’t it?
It’s very exciting. My films have never even been shown in Malaysia, due to censorship, and the fact that they were arthouse stuff. And unlike Japan, there are no arthouse cinemas in Malaysia.
The filmmaker endured two-week quarantine in order to attend the world premiere of his “Malu,” a film which tracks a long-lasting discord between beautiful sisters, and unfolds in Malaysia and Japan. Yeo also gets to prepare for another upcoming shoot in Japan.
Variety: Does it feel surreal or strange to be in Tokyo at the moment?
Things are really normal here. Aside from the fact that everyone’s wearing a mask, it feels the same.
“Malu” opens in Japanese cinemas next week. That’s a first for you, isn’t it?
It’s very exciting. My films have never even been shown in Malaysia, due to censorship, and the fact that they were arthouse stuff. And unlike Japan, there are no arthouse cinemas in Malaysia.
- 11/4/2020
- by James Hadfield
- Variety Film + TV
There are cinephiles who are transported to aesthetic nirvana by Naomi Kawase’s eco-spiritualism, and there are critics who flee her cinematic ashram. Neither will be wholly satisfied with “True Mothers,” the director’s contemplation of motherhood and adoption, which is her most plot-driven but least visually lustrous film yet. Like most of her previous features, this one also made Cannes’ official selection, only this one had to wait till Toronto to premiere after Covid struck. Resembling the relationship-based “Red Bean,” this dip into less mystical waters may give the film wider reach beyond French devotees to non-art-house fans of melodrama, especially in Asia.
Kawase’s father walked out at her tender age, letting her grandmother shoulder much of her upbringing. The wounds of abandonment are lyrically evoked in her debut “Suzaku,” as well as in “Shara” and “Still the Water,” while her enduring absorption with birth and her self-perception...
Kawase’s father walked out at her tender age, letting her grandmother shoulder much of her upbringing. The wounds of abandonment are lyrically evoked in her debut “Suzaku,” as well as in “Shara” and “Still the Water,” while her enduring absorption with birth and her self-perception...
- 9/20/2020
- by Maggie Lee
- Variety Film + TV
Naomi Kawase's Sweet Bean (An)STORY70%DIRECTION67%ACTING75%VISUALS80%POSITIVESVery beautiful filmSublime acting by Kirin KikiElaboarate presentation of the Japanese way of cookingNEGATIVESThe film's major issues are not examined in depth2016-06-1773%Overall ScoreReader Rating: (0 Votes)0%
Cannes’ favourite Naomi Kawase presents another beautiful film, this time using food to present a social comment.
Tokue, a 76-year-old woman suffering from leprosy, discovers a pancake (dorayaki) stall during one of her morning walks. The owner, a bored and in debt middle-aged man named Sentaro, is searching for an assistant and the elderly woman does not hesitate to apply. Initially he refuses; however, upon her insistence and her pointing out a flaw in his recipe, he gives her a chance and ends up hiring her, impressed by her recipe for sweet red bean paste.
Tokue will live out her lifelong dream, cooking in the stall and flooding everything with her kind nature and positive energy,...
Cannes’ favourite Naomi Kawase presents another beautiful film, this time using food to present a social comment.
Tokue, a 76-year-old woman suffering from leprosy, discovers a pancake (dorayaki) stall during one of her morning walks. The owner, a bored and in debt middle-aged man named Sentaro, is searching for an assistant and the elderly woman does not hesitate to apply. Initially he refuses; however, upon her insistence and her pointing out a flaw in his recipe, he gives her a chance and ends up hiring her, impressed by her recipe for sweet red bean paste.
Tokue will live out her lifelong dream, cooking in the stall and flooding everything with her kind nature and positive energy,...
- 6/17/2016
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Welcome back to Cannes Check, In Contention's annual preview of the films in Competition at this year's Cannes Film Festival, which kicks off on May 14. Taking on different selections every day, we'll be examining what they're about, who's involved and what their chances are of snagging an award from Jane Campion's jury. Next up, the first of two female directors in the lineup: Naomi Kawase's "Still the Water." The director: Naomi Kawase (Japanese, 44 years old). It's possible for certain filmmakers to become prominent, celebrated figures within the festival circuit without making much of a dent in the real world, even in the art-house sphere. Naomi Kawase is a good example. Favored by selectors and juries alike, even her most generously awarded films have secured minimal international distribution -- making her at once a familiar and unfamiliar presence in the lineup. Born and raised in Japan's rural Nara district,...
- 5/9/2014
- by Guy Lodge
- Hitfix
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