The Melbourne International FIlm Festival (21 July to 7 August this year) have unveiled the “First Glance” at their program and, as usual, films from Asia are well-represented. Here’s a short rundown — you should check their website for full details. Note that there’ll be more on the way soon… the full program is released in July, and we’ll post an update with any further announcements then!
MIFF have an “Accent on Asia” track this year, and so far we have the following films on the list:
- Norwegian Wood, an international effort in which director Tran Anh Hung adapts bestselling Japanese author Haruki Murakami’s novel to the big screen, with a soundtrack by Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood and cinematography by Mark Lee Ping-Bin.
- 13 Assassins, a samurai film from incredibly prolific (and HC favourite) Japanese director Takashi Miike. This film is a remake of Eiichi Kudo’s 1963 film of the same name, something that Miike seems to be getting into: his 3D (!) remake of 1962’s Harakiri has just screened at Cannes.
- Hi-So, a Thai drama from director Aditya Assarat (Wonderful Town) starring Ananda Everingham (who you might remember from the original Shutter).
- The Piano in a Factory, a Chinese comedy from Zhang Meng (his second film after Lucky Dog).
- The Unjust, a South Korean crime thriller from Ryoo Seung-wan. We’re lucky enough to have a review for this one already, as Liz caught it at HKIFF.
In addition, the “Next Gen” program has Under the Hawthorn Tree from heavyweight Chinese director Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Hero, many more besides). This film is a love story set in the political turmoil of 1970s China.
More info as we have it!