Asian Film Festival of Dallas retrospective- Part 3
Wherein Elizabeth is done with all these artsy movies and just wants to be entertained.
This is my last retrospective round-up for the Asian Film Festival of Dallas. I will cap off this series with a review of Tokyo Cowboy, a film that debuted at the festival and should be released to theaters at the end of the month. I don’t know whether or not it will come to the DFW area, but if it does be sure and catch it while you can. Read my full thoughts next time.
For now I want to leave you with some treats and one dubious “classic.” Every year at AFFD there are several showcase films which are usually shown in the early evening and are general all-around crowd pleasers. Three of the four films here were signature showings that I highly recommend. I also went back and watched Police Story which was a post-COVID film pick to round out the schedule when there just wasn’t much to choose from. They actually showed Police Story 2 as well, but I decided if you want to annoy yourself with more Police Story that will be on you and not me.
Ip Man- Hong Kong (2008)
Directed by Wilson Yip
This was the first film I ever saw at AFFD and I believe it was the only film I saw during that year’s festival in 2009. I don’t know what made me go because at the time I was much more into Japanese cinema than Asian cinema as a whole, but this is the film that started it all. The theater was full, the crowd was cheering, and from that moment on I was hooked. I don’t have much to say about Ip Man because it isn’t deep in the slightest, but don’t let that stop you from watching it. Donnie Yen plays Ip Man, a martial arts master who was the mentor of Bruce Lee in real life. This fictional version of him is 100% lawful good all of the time, and I wouldn’t have it any other way for the purposes of this film.
The movie focuses on a period just before World War II when Japan is invading China during the Sino-Japanese War. Ip Man rises from a local martial arts teacher to a defender of the Chinese people. The action sequences are gripping and numerous and you will learn about Wing Chun, the style of Chinese Kung Fu that Ip Man was known for. It emphasizes close combat using your opponent’s body weight and momentum against them. In this version of reality, Wing Chun is so easy and universal that Ip Man is able to teach the village factory workers, who are mostly normal middle-aged women, how to defend themselves against the invading soldiers. It’s all so earnest you can’t help but cheer when Ip Man pulls off another amazing win against all odds. If you still aren’t convinced, watch this extremely corny trailer on IMDB and then go watch the film in its original language. Ip Man is distributed in the US by Well Go USA which is a local distribution company of Asian films and a long time sponsor of the festival. All praise to the sponsor! Seriously, they’re fine folks, and they’ve brought many great Asian films to the US. You can watch Ip Man on their streaming service Hi-Ya! as well as Peacock, Roku, Tubi, Freevee, and a handful of other streamers.
Too Cool to Kill- China (2022)
Directed by Xing Wenxiong
In Too Cool to Kill a brother and sister duo (a director and actress) find themselves in deep trouble with a local gangster who will only leave them alone if they can arrange a meeting between the gang and a legendary hitman named Karl. Because no one knows what Karl looks like, the siblings are able to trick an amateur actor into pretending to be Karl by telling him he will be starring in an improvised gangster movie filmed by hidden cameras. Got it so far? It sounds convoluted on paper, but somehow it all works with the help of multiple comedic twists and recurring jokes. Too Cool to Kill is a remake of a popular 2008 Japanese film called The Magic Hour which I unfortunately haven’t been able to track down in the US.
This was a signature screening that I missed because of work or some other nonsense so I wasn’t able to enjoy this the way it should be enjoyed- in a theater with a bunch of other movie fans. But even at home this is a charming and consistently entertaining watch in the style of Kung Fu Hustle. Where that movie was both a spoof and an homage to martial arts films, this one pays loving tribute to classic Hollywood tropes while also poking fun at the fakery of film making. The entire thing takes place on a vaguely 1940s American-style movie set than none of the characters acknowledge is a movie set. Keep a sharp eye out for the funny business names in the background. I actually watched this film twice within a couple of weeks because I enjoyed it so much that I had to share it with a friend. The attention that the creators paid to the small background details really shows over multiple viewings.
This is both a directorial debut for Xing Wenxiong and a lead role debut for Wei Xiang who plays the amateur actor. Everyone involved was clearly committed to making this silly set up work and the humor translates well for an international audience. Be sure to watch the credits for some endearing behind the scenes footage of actors pretending to be actors and having a ton of fun while doing so. This is another Well Go USA distributed film. See, I told you they were good folks. Or at least they have good taste in movies. Watch Too Cool to Kill on Peacock, Roku, Tubi, and a handful of other streaming services.
The Night Owl- Korea (2022)
Directed by Tae-Jin Ahn
This solid historical thriller elegantly incorporates modern ideas about disability, class struggles, and political power into a story loosely based on real Korean history of the 1640s. Gyeong-su is a talented commoner invited to serve as an acupuncturist alongside the royal physician in the palace of King Injo. It is a tense moment in the palace and everyone who has power is afraid of someone else taking it away. Gyeong-su happens to have a type of visual impairment where he can see a little bit if it’s completely dark, but any amount of light renders him completely blind. Because this is difficult to explain to others (and most of the time there is some light around) he is assumed to be completely blind all of the time which leads to Gyeong-su seeing things that others assume he can’t, including the murder of the Crown Prince. This sets off a chain of events he is ultimately powerless to stop.
It’s to the film’s credit that Gyeong-su is not the noble peasant who can right all wrongs. The creators of this film were clearly more interested in what it meant, and what it still means, to be a moral but powerless person within a system that is amoral and designed to benefit the powerful. It’s an interesting tweaking of the formula that Gyeong-su is twice disabled in a way, both because he has an actual physical disability and because he has no social clout to effect positive change on the disaster unfolding all around him. Gyeon-su is a sympathetic and relatable character that you are rooting for the whole time, and the film keeps you on your toes wondering what small successes he will eke out of the dangerous game he’s fallen into. The Night Owl can be streamed on Roku, Hoopla, Vudu, and other streamers.
Police Story- Hong Kong (1985)
Directed by Jackie Chan
With apologies to everyone who likes this movie, I’m going to put Police Story in the “mildly interesting historical artifact” pile. This was Jackie Chan’s first directorial attempt at making a film for the international market, and while it was a hit in Europe it took a while for it to gain popularity in the United States. Chan plays Ka-Kui a police officer who is a menace to men, women, the profession of policing, and any location that he happens to be in. I know I’m not supposed to take this film seriously, but I had no idea who this character was because he seemed to be whatever the script needed him to be at the moment. One minute he’s a superstar cop doing a police recruitment photo shoot and the next he’s a loose cannon holding the police chief hostage at gun point. In one scene he’s a serious martial artist/acrobat and in another he’s tangled up in phone cords like a doofus. I think I was supposed to read 80% of this movie as a comedy, but most of it just didn’t land with me especially when it comes to how terribly the two women are treated.
It is a treat to see the consumerism and technology of the 80s in all its dubious glory, and the final action sequence in a shopping mall is a sight to behold. The stunt glass budget in this film must have been through the roof. But there isn’t nearly enough action in this film for me to understand why this is still considered one of the best action films of all time. To be fair, in a time before special effects the pure practical stunt work is impressive. However, that’s the kind of thing that YouTube is for- watching the one great scene from a movie so you don’t have to sit through the rest of it. So unless you’re a huge fan of action films and want to see how this seven film franchise (!) got started, feel free to search for “Police Story mall scene” on YouTube and leave it at that. It would also be a good pick for a party where everyone is going to get a little buzzed and razz on a movie MST3K style. As an aside, do the youngs know what MST3K is? If you’re reading this and you don’t understand that reference, I have another YouTube mission for you. For those who do want to subject themselves to the whole thing, you can find Police Story streaming on Criterion and Max.