These promises are far from empty \u2013 prepare yourselves for Asia’s most intriguing cinematic delicacies. Eastern Promises is back at this year\u2019s Art Film Fest, running from 16 to 23 June 2012 in Tren\u010dianske Teplice and Tren\u010d\u00edn. <\/p>\n
Fans of exotic cinema are in for a treat with films from Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand and Indonesia, acclaimed by domestic audiences and critics. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe section exposes the wilder, livelier and indeed the more passionate side of East-Asian film, more accessible to a wider audience,\u201d says section programmer Adrian \u017di\u0161ka. As usual, the line-up is all over the map genre-wise, including comedy, romance, thrillers and action.<\/p>\n
And what self-respecting showcase of Asian cinema would leave out a classic Japanese samurai flick? Not ours: we\u2019ll be screening 13 Assassins, the 2010 remake of Eiichi Kudo\u2019s 1963 cult classic. Based on actual events, this story of 13 samurai on a foolhardy quest to eradicate a despotic ruler has it all: strategic combat, contemplative righteous warriors and over-the-top action. <\/p>\n
13 Assassins is more than a masterful tribute to Kudo’s original or to the post-classical samurai films of the 1960s \u2013 Takashi Miike elevates it to an expos\u00e9 of the ills of the Edo-era political system, and ordinary people\u2019s death-defying struggles against it.<\/p>\n
In search of more martial-arts action, we head south to Indonesia with The Raid: Redemption. The film depicts an elite 20-strong police raid of a 30-storey block of flats full of drug dealers, arms dealers, thieves, killers and their target: the most feared gangster in Jakarta\u2019s underworld. For fans of beautifully choreographed hand-to-hand combat, it doesn’t get any better than this. The picture was a domestic blockbuster and a hit with audiences at the Toronto IFF.<\/p>\n
More excitement awaits audiences with Headshot, a noirish Thai thriller about a hit-man who wakes up from a coma only to find his world flipped upside-down \u2013 literally. <\/p>\n
One of the section\u2019s sexiest films is Love in the Buff, a loose sequel to Love in a Puff, screened at last year\u2019s Art Film Fest. Protagonists Jimmy and Cherrie have been together for 159 smoke-free days, but without seeing much of each other either. They break up and head separately to Beijing, where each finds a new mate; yet their paths simply can\u2019t be disentangled. With loads of insight into China’s rising influence on Hong Kong and its citizens, and a bit about modern relationships as well, Love in the Buff was a runaway success, grossing even more than Titanic 3D over Easter weekend in Hong Kong.<\/p>\n
The "minor" Chinese film Love is Not Blind provides a different perspective on relationships, focusing on a girl coming to terms with a recent breakup, prompted by discovering her boyfriend on a date with her friend. The film\u2019s 2011 premiere fell on 11 November, celebrated in China since 1990 as "Singles Day", and it was met with instant success.
Interestingly enough, the cheating couple are played by the stars\u2019 real-life partners. <\/p>\n
The South Korean Sunny and Taiwanese You Are the Apple of My Eye each whisk us into a remembered past, respectively providing a female and male perspective on adolescence.
<\/p>\n
Art Film Fest 2012 \u2013 the 20th International Tren\u010dianske Teplice\/Tren\u010d\u00edn Film Festival is made possible by the financial support of the Audiovisual Fund.<\/p>\n
Organizers: ART FILM, n.o., FORZA, a.s. <\/p>\n
Co-organizers: The Town of Tren\u010dianske Teplice, the City of Tren\u010d\u00edn, K\u00fapele Tren\u010dianske Teplice<\/p>\n
General Sponsor: KOOPERATIVA pois\u0165ov\u0148a, a.s. Vienna Insurance Group<\/p>\n
Main Sponsors: Omnia Holding SE, Slovnaft<\/p>\n
Official Transport Provider: Lancia<\/p>\n
Logistics Sponsor: DHL
Student cinepasses for only \u20ac5 provided by Prv\u00e1 stavebn\u00e1 sporite\u013e\u0148a, a. s.
Sponsors: TIPOS, Penzi\u00f3n Baske, Cinemax, Omnia Motors, Omnia 2000, DOMO Omnia, Omnia KLF<\/p>\n
Official Suppliers: Mo\u00ebt, Hotel Pax \u2013 the festival spa hotel, Esterle&Esterle, LampART, Stredn\u00e1 odborn\u00e1 \u0161kola polygrafick\u00e1
Main Media Sponsors: Slovak Radio, Slovak Television – Dvojka, Pravda, R\u00e1dio FM, zoznam.sk
Media Sponsors: telev\u00edzia JOJ, Film Europe, Central Europe Television, R\u00e1dio Europa 2, .t\u00fd\u017ede\u0148, Eurotelev\u00edzia, Pardon, OK!, Kine\u010dko, Kam do mesta, Focus, GONG SK, Boomerang Media, SITA, BlueSky, euroAWK <\/p>\n
Partners: The Tren\u010d\u00edn Self-governing Region, the European Commission Representation in Slovakia, the Slovak Film Institute, Celtima SK, Hotel Fl\u00f3ra <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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