NYAFF XXIV Review: Shorts Program #1: The Kids We Were
The shorts block screened for the 24th edition of the New York Asian Film Festival
Short Reviews
NYAFF XXIV Review: Toshiaki Toyoda’s Go Seppuku Yourselves & Other Tales
Toshiaki Toyoda’s “Go Seppuku Yourselves & Other Tales” screened for the 2025 edition of the New York Asian Film Festival.
TACFEST III Shortfilm Review: Mexican Action Martial Arts Noir ANGIE Offers A Taste Of Things To Come
Keep B-Squad Acción in mind going forward. They’re cookin!
BACKMASK Review: A Terrifying, Devilishly-Tuned Proof Of Concept
BACKMASK is written and directed by Fitch/Baker stars David Shields and Charlie Rix.
A GOOD DAY WILL COME Review: Amir Zargara Dares You To Care
Iranian-Canadian filmmaker Amir Zargara is back with a new short after taking off with 2021’s Become The Wounded. I haven’t seen that one but the logline hints a great deal at the kind of filmmaker Zargara wants to be in front of the viewing public, something he remains clear about in his latest work, A Good Day Will Come. Actor and martial artist Sia Alipour plays Arash, a promising wrestler with a chance to flourish on the mat and climb the ladder as a contender for Olympic Gold. His career flourish also comes at a moment of sociopolitical upheaval with a spell of protests against the Iranian government and calls for accountability turning violent onto citizens. Additionally, Arash must contend with the potential consequences laid before him by his coach, whose own apprehension is drawn purely from political apathy. Things change however when the film takes a striking emotive turn, […]
Japan Cuts XVII Review: A Roundup Of The Short Cuts Of This Year’s Festivities
There’s a bundle of movies I wanna watch this summer, and the list is only increasing. That certainly goes for the selections I have in mind for covering Japan Cuts next month. The official line-up is here and I’ll be touting a small curtain raiser later next Monday. To start though, I thought I’d dive into the Short Cuts portion to get warmed up. The works below are pretty inspirational and intriguing, and I’ve shared my reviews and thoughts for each in the descriptions of each still below. Director Rintaro’s twenty three-minute short is as much of a revelation as it is a celebration of the work to whom it’s attributed. The animated Edo-set folkloric tale of a Japan’s answer to Robin Hood is drenched in blue tint for its night time setting, and scored to a lively and skittish swing track to capture the playful antics of a infamous […]
RIDE BABY RIDE Review: Sofie Somoroff’s Feminist Revenge Thriller Is One For The Road!
TW: This review discusses subject of rape with a supernatural context. Imagine just minding your business one day and taking an interest in fixing vintage cars. Imagine one day buying up 1978 Camaro from a couple of cads and later that evening realizing the car has something of a mind of its own. Now imagine just taking a damn seat to get a closer look at the driver-side door only to get taken captive and held akimbo by the seatbelts, and fighting for your life against a creepy hand reaching for your itty bits from within the vehicles bowels, as it sits idly while roaring its engine… That’s precisely the predicament the main character played by Celina Bernstein faces in Ride Baby Ride, a short story by filmmaker Sofie Somoroff which has been on the road for over two dozen film festivals and counting. Backed by the MovieMaker Magazine production […]
SHADOW FIST 3 Review: The Final Chapter Welcomes New Blood For An Old School Kung Fu Showdown
Shadow Fist 3 screens for the 11th Urban Action Showcase & Expo in New York City on November 11. The last decade-plus of made-for-television martial arts and action is a proven era for those keen on entertainment of a screenfighting variety. Robert Samuels’ efforts to expand on the genre via R4 Films LLC are a generous reminder of this, including the last several years he and his cohorts have spent expanding on Shadow Fist, a concept producing a ubiquitous blend of fantasy, hip-hop and multicultural and multiethnic fruition though kung fu cinema with an old-school sensibility. Samuels and fellow creatives Robert Jefferson and exec producer Tayari Casel have since reconvened to take the journey of their indie shortfilm saga for one final leg in Shadow Fist 3, making ample use of Tijuana’s locales and resident talents. That includes a cast roster featuring burgeoning actress and Hung Ga specialist Roxalinda Vazquez […]
NYAFF XXII: A Look At Some Of The Live Action Narrative Shorts Showcasing At The Festival
The 2023 edition of the New York Asian Film Festival kicks off today, and if you’re lucky, you’re going to be in for quite a few selections that are only exclusive to in-person attendees, as well as award ceremonies for stars Louis Koo and Ryohei Suzuki, and filmmaker Lee Thongkam to name a few. There will be other events permeating the festival as always, and you can learn more about them at the official website. As for coverage, movie reviews will go up as the next few weeks ensue, while friend and contributing writer Cesar Alejandro Jr. is turning in a raft of live-action narrative shortfilm write-ups to help steer things along. Feel free to follow him at Threads where he’s just getting started! All Your Fault, PD Director: Kim Sun-yeun While shooting on a small film, a producer who faces verbal abuse and unpleasant working conditions is forced to […]
SOLD Review: Jennifer Li Runs, Hides And Fights In Her Brutal New Directorial Short Debut
Tautly, carefully-crafted fourteen minutes of near non-stop, intense action and drama ensue in Jennifer Li’s directorial debut, Sold. A stunt performer by trade, Li’s inaugural filmmaking feat which recently had its Graduation screening, is the result of time well spent at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design. Li takes the mantle here with Sold, wearing multiple hats behind the lens, including that of actor for the film’s perilously inclement three-day shoot. For this, we get the story of Ming (Jennifer Li) woman who volunteers to deliver money to pick up a camera for her dear friend, Kiki (Leifennie). Her trip finds her at a remote farm whose seemingly affable sole occupant named James (Kyle Toy) finagles her into coming into his questionable abode, and the result is as terrible as you would expect. What you don’t see coming is the “why?” of it all, but that comes about […]
NIGHT CALLER Review: Make Sure You Answer This Call
If you could have any superpower what would it be? The usual answers include super strength or flight, but even more common is usually some kind of psychic or mental abilities like being able to read people’s minds (after the invention of social media, I think I’ll pass on that one) or being able to predict the future. After watching Night Caller, I think I’ll pass on that one, too. Haven’t heard of Night Caller? Here’s the official synopsis: Telephone psychic Clementine Carter is pulled into a complex web of mystery when she receives a call from a serial killer. Predicting his murders before he commits them puts her into a terrifying game of cat and mouse. Enlisting the aid of her invalid father and clairvoyant co-worker, they must use their unique abilities to stay one step ahead of a maniac whose unspeakable acts in the present are nothing compared […]
A Look At BULL With Writer/Director Paul Andrew Williams
British crime movies focused on revenge are frankly a dime a dozen. So when one comes along that separates itself from the crowd, that’s a film worthy of excitement. BULL, the new film from writer/director Paul Andrew Williams (LONDON TO BRIGHTON) is definitely that. It tells the story of a low-level enforcer, the titular Bull (Neil Maskell, PEAKY BLINDERS), who returns to town to look for his missing son and take revenge on the people, including his wife and her mob boss father (David Haskins, SID AND NANCY), who viciously double-crossed him ten years prior. Based on that synopsis, BULL may sound like a very straightforward experience however it is anything but typical. The world of the film feels akin to a waking nightmare full of dingy dwellings and dark back alleys haunted by Maskell’s ferocious, yet unassuming, boogeyman. A sense of dread hangs over every moment and when […]
2021 Reading Challenge: An Overview of my Top Reads
I spent a lot of last year immersed in books. According to Goodreads, I read 91 books. Twenty of those books were for the 2021 Reading Challenge my friend and I decided to participate in since we had so much fun doing a reading challenge the previous year. For the 2021 Reading Challenge, not only did we have to read books that fit the listed categories, but we also added the extra task of looking for authors were not white, straight males. This really added to the diversity of topics and themes of the books that we read. I won’t go over all twenty here in this article, but I will tell you some of our favorite reads. I’ve been in a High Fidelity mood lately and making a lot of Top 5 Lists, so in no particular order, here are my Top 5 Reads from My 2021 Reading Challenge: […]
HERE TO STAY And WHO IS LISTENING: Sheffield’s Latest Shorts Full of Chills and Spooky Vibes!
It is said that at this time of year, the veil between our realm and the spiritual world thins, making it easier for spirits to contact the living. Whether or not you believe the concept, it makes for a great background for some spooky films that deal with death and the afterlife. So what happens when we die? Christopher Sheffield just came out with two horror shorts that have some insight to this question: Here to Stay In this short, we meet Jude who is not really dealing with his grief of losing his friend Ben. Exhausted and not wanting to be at the funeral, Jude tries to get some rest only to be awoken by odd occurrences in this home. Is it a spirit? Is it Ben? Does he have a message for those he left behind? There is a lot packed into this under 7-minute short. It moves […]
Your Next Viewing: HELLKAT (2021)
“Fight your demons. Save your soul.” Who wouldn’t want to watch a film with this tagline? What? You still need more convincing. Okay, I guess I should continue writing a full review then. Read on: Katrina [Sarah T. Cohen] is a washed-up MMA fighter who must come back to the ring and fight in a tournament to save her son’s life. But the tournament is in hell, and she will have to fight her way past man, beasts and the demons that haunt her from within. I just have to gush for a moment and say that I liked every single thing about this film. There are many times when there is a clever concept for a film but it falls short in its execution. This is not one of those times. While the idea of fighting in a sort of demonic or evil tournament may sound familiar to some, […]
ARCHENEMY Blu-Ray Review: Superheroes, Shotgun Shells and Strangeness Abound
ARCHENEMY is hard to classify. It’s partially a superhero tale. The main character afterall, Max (played by Joe Manganiello), certainly thinks he’s one. Buy him a few drinks at the local bar and he’ll spout off tales of space cities, giant robots, and evil scientists. He’ll also tell you how he was thrown from that dimension, where he was practically a god, into ours where he is now just a powerless, broken-down wino. ARCHENEMY is also a gritty drama, at least that’s how it feels for Hamster (Skylan Brooks) and his sister, Melissa (Jessica Allain), two young adults trying to survive in a world on their own. Hamster dreams of being a journalist and Melissa- she’s only concerned with keeping food on their table, even if it means working for the local drug kingpin (Glenn Howerton). When Hamster stumbles across Max in an alley, he sees a chance at […]
Ahn Yong-Hoon’s THE LOST CHOICES, A Punishing Crime Drama With A Title That Brilliantly Says It All
Ahn Yong-hoon’s 2015 directorial debut, The Lost Choices, takes a glaring look at rape culture and the dehumanization of women and disabled. Through this lens, the premise focuses specifically on two female characters: Ji-eun (Shin Hyun-bin), a once promising champion markswoman with dreams of design, stricken by tragedy as the sole survivor of a fatal car accident that killed her parents and left her with a speech impediment, and Ja-gyun (Yoon So-yi), a cop whose resilience remarkably stands above that of several of her male colleagues. Jieun is at the end of her rope when a violent back alley rape and the misgivings of a crooked detective corner her into ensuing her own campaign of vengeance. Little does she know that while Ja-gyun is getting closer to the truth, the dogged detective is the only one who sees the blaring signs and is inherently in Ji-eun’s corner and willing to […]
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