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September 21, 2007: News from Abroad

By APA Staff

Lust, Caution takes Venice, Michelle Yeoh honored by the French, and Shah Rukh Khan: not just a women's field hockey coach anymore. All this and more in the latest edition of News from Abroad.

Om Shanti Om

Farah Khan's Om Shanti Om is set to have the record for the highest number of prints any Indian movie has ever released. The film -- written, choreographed and directed by Khan -- will premiere on over 2,000 screens worldwide on Nov. 9, coinciding with the Indian festival Diwali. Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone star as Om and Shanti, respectively, in the drama about reincarnation and a romance that spans lifetimes. Red Chillies Entertainment, which is controlled by Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan, produced the film and sold the rights of Om Shanti Om (except for the music) to Indian entertainment giant, Eros International. The film is set in the movie industry, paving the way for a slew of Bollywood's biggest names, including Salman Khan, Rani Mukherjee, Kajol and Sanjay Dutt to make guest appearances. According to the film's website, nearly the entire crew, from the direction team to the hair dressers, also has bit parts in the film. Khan, who directed Main Hoon Na in 2004 (also released through Red Chillies), is internationally known for her choreography. She has choreographed for such hits as DDLJ, Monsoon Wedding, Bombay Dreams, Vanity Fair, and Perhaps Love, and has won the Filmfare Best Choreography Award four times. --Juliana Kiyan

Lust, Caution seduces Venice jury

He's done it again. Ang Lee's latest grand prize win at the Venice Film Festival makes it two in a row for the Chinese director, whose Brokeback Mountain also won the Golden Lion in 2005. English-language critics, however, weren't thrilled, noting the film's mediocre reviews in Variety and the Hollywood Reporter, and going as far as to suspect that jury head Zhang Yimou gave the award to a fellow Chinese. My guess is that the Venice Film Festival just really digs Chinese cinema (and Tony Leung). Let me just remind you of the Chinese success at the Venice Film Festival since 1989. Since then, seven films by Chinese directors have won the coveted Golden Lion: A City of Sadness (Hou Hsiao-hsien, 1989), Story of Qiu Ju (Zhang Yimou, 1992), Vive l'amour (Tsai Ming-liang, 1994), Not One Less (Zhang Yimou, 1999), Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee, 2005), Still Life (Jia Zhang-ke, 2006), Lust, Caution (Ang Lee, 2007). Throw in the fact that the 1995 winner, the Vietnamese film Cyclo, stars Tony Leung -- and you have two for Ang, two for Zhang, and three for films with Tony Leung, who starred in Lust, Cyclo, and City of Sadness. --Brian Hu

Apparently, according to Chinese censors, the title Lust, Caution wasn't enough precaution for the explicit scenes in Ang Lee's latest film. Lee has cut thirty minutes of sexual and violent scenes from the upcoming thriller to allow Chinese children to watch it. Set in World War Two Shanghai, the film featured provocative extended and sometimes brutal sex scenes. "The spirit of the film remains despite the cutting and the fluency will not be affected," Lee has said. Lust, Caution opens across China on October 26. --Ana La O' 

Kings Have Guardian Gods, Four of Them

Actor Bae Yong-joon (Winter Sonata) and company (Moon So-ri, Choi Min-soo, Lee Ji-ah, and Park Sang-won) captured an impressive 20% of the local audience for the TV premiere of the mega-drama The Four Guardian Gods of the King (Taewangsasingi). The drama takes place in ancient history during the Goguryeo era.  Produced by Kim Jong-hak and written by Song Ji-na, The Four Guardian Gods of the King is the most expensive Korean TV drama ever with a budget of $46 million. In fact, the 18 month production utilized such elaborate CG effects that it's been compared to even bigger budget feature films D-War and The Lord of the Rings. They also spent $23.7 million to build a set on Jeju Island, which is now being used as a sight-seeing attraction. The series will be playing on Wednesdays and Thursdays in Korea, and it'll begin airing in Japan in October.  --Ada Tseng

Pusan and Tokyo ready October lineups

Along with the Hong Kong International Film Festival, the Pusan and Tokyo festivals are among the biggest and most important international film festivals in Asia. Once again, Pusan is highlighting the breadth of world cinema, with a special emphasis on the best of Asia: Nobuhiro Yamashita's A Gentle Breeze in the Village, Takashi Miike's Crows-Episode 0, Edmond Pang's Exodus, Mani Ratnam's Guru, Lee Kang-sheng's Help Me Eros, Pen-ek Ratanaruang's Ploy, Cheng Wen-tang's Summer's Tail, Lin Jing-jie's The Most Distant Course, Kim Ki-duk's Breath, Lee Chang-dong's Secret Sunshine, and Jiang Wen's The Sun Also Rises. The opening night film is Feng Xiaogang's The Assembly, and closing night is the awaited Evangelion 1.0: You Are (Not) Alone. There's also a special section on new Malaysian cinema.

Just a week later is the Tokyo fest, which boasts: Johnnie To and Wai Ka-fai's Mad Detective, Mira Nair's The Namesake, Issei Oda's Kung-fu Kid, Zhang Yang's Going Home, as well as others like Exodus and The Most Distant Course, that are playing at Pusan. What makes the Tokyo fest shine is the special programming, including a comprehensive. 43-film retrospective of films depicting post-war Japan. Despite the friendly competition between the two October festivals, it's nice that both are throwing their support for late filmmaker Edward Yang, who will be receiving a special award at Pusan and a small retrospective in Tokyo.  --Brian Hu

Filipino Oscar Nominee Announced

Tis the time to choose a film to represent your country internationally to compete for the category of Best Foreign Film in the 2008 Academy Awards. The Phillippines have decided to go with Adolfo Alix Jr.'s Donsol. Donsol stars Sid Lucero as Daniel, a butanding (whale sharks) interaction officer, and Angel Aquino as Teresa, a breast cancer survivor who has recently come to Donsol -- a small fishing town in the Phillippines (and "Whale Shark Capital of the World") -- for solace. The film has picked up many awards on the festival circuit, including Best Actress, Best Cinematography, and Special Jury Prize nods. Alix Jr. has written several Filipino feature films (most notably garnering two nominations and a win for his Munting tinig, Mga screenplay), but this is his first venture as a director. --Ada Tseng

Asian star wins French honor

On October 3, actress Michelle Yeoh will receive France's Legion of Honor award in Kuala Lumpur, Malayasia. The award is France's highest civilian honor, celebrating individuals and collectives with exceptional abilities. Yeoh, famous for her roles in Tomorrow Never Dies and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, will join the ranks of other high profile entertainers including Amitabh Bachchan, Clint Eastwood, and Barbara Streisand, who received the award over this past year. Up next, Yeoh returns to her action roots in the sci-fi flick Babylon A.D., directed by French filmmaker, Mathieu Kassovitz. --Ana La O' 

Roystan Tan on Top

The musical comedy 881 by Singaporean director Royston Tan passed the $3 million mark this September, making it the highest grossing local film in Singapore this year. This is the only the fifth Singapore-made film to collect over $2 million in the box office. The colorful, glitzy, feather-filled 881 is set amongst the world of "getai," an extravagant song-stage performance commonly held during the Ghost Festival ceremony in Singapore. The film follows the personal trials and tribulations of The Papaya Sisters (played by Mindee Ong and Yeo Yann Yann), childhood friends who have formed a successful getai group. Along the way, they pick up some rivals (the Eurasian techno-singing Durian Sisters), and it all leads to what we can only imagine as a visually and aurally explosive showdown. Royston Tan, who previously made 15 and 4:30, has doven into new territory, hoping to "bring out the beauty in Hokkien songs" and "let audiences see 'getai' in a different light." 881 will be one of four films chosen for the Pusan film festival's New Gala screening section. --Ada Tseng

The Legend manga

At the talented hand of Ikeda Riyoko, the TV drama The Legend is set to be transformed into a Japanese manga. The manga version will be featured in Tokyo Isshukan and Kansai Isshukan beginning Sept. 25. Ikeda has written many historically-based shôjo manga; she is best known for her series The Rose of Versailles (1972-73), which takes place at the time of the French Revolution. The Legend (also referred to as Legend of the First King's Four Gods) premiered Sept. 10 on MBC TV and stars Korean actor Bae Yong Joon. The period drama is based on the epic story of the 19th king of Goguryeo in ancient Korean times. Regarding Ikeda's involvement, Bae said, "It is an honor that Ms. Ikeda is going to draw the manga version. I am looking forward to it." --Juliana Kiyan

Date Posted: 9/21/2007