Manilla in it’s Moment – Pinoy Indies

Manila newspaper headlines over-enthusiastically screamed that a Filipino director had won the Cannes film festival this year, beating Quentin Tarantino in the process. Actually the Palme d’Or went elsewhere, but Cannes jury president Isabelle Huppert is understood to have fought a massive, though ultimately unsuccessful, campaign to give the top prize to ‘Kinatay’ (‘Butchered’). Instead, its filmmaker, Brillante “Dante” Mendoza, took home the prize for best director and, in the process, stirred up a publicity frenzy for Filipino cinema that refuses to die down.

The thriller, which was shot in near real time on hand-held cameras, was too much to stomach for many commentators. But other critics who ignored his previous Cannes competition film ‘Serbis’ heralded the film a piece of stylish, gritty cinema verite and hailed Mendoza as a major new talent in world cinema. Mendoza, a youthful 48, was quickly feted as a juror at Locarno and had his next movie ‘Lola’ pulled out of the hat as a surprise film at Venice. Fast, furious and in your face seems to be the way for Mendoza, but his is far from being a lone voice. The Philippines is currently a hotbed of talent.

Fazil’s Top 100 – 90 to 81

Here’s the next installment of Fazil’s Top 100 Must Watch Movies of the Decade, following on from the previous ten from 100 to 91.

90) G.I. JOE: RISE OF COBRA

Why is it on the list?
Haha! You can’t expect me to leave this one out, can you? This made it on the list because it’s the best mindless action-packed popcorn flick of the decade. It doesn’t get any better than this. It’s a nice little blend of cheesiness and fun, with a little sprinkle of hotness, courtesy of Rachel Nichols and Sienna Miller. What you get is the perfect recipe for a perfect summer flick. As i have stated in my review, its a cheesy film based on a cheesy 80s cartoon, so you cant complain much. This is one of those movies that will make you feel like you’re 7 years old again. So if you’re a fan of the cartoon or was a kid before, this film can be nostalgic as you will be blasted back to the past.

Fazil’s Top 100 – 100 to 91

Welcome to Fazil’s 100 Must Watch Movies of the Decade. You see, I came across a lot of this sort of listing all over the Internet from time to time. Thing is, I never liked them because it always has really old movies that I have not seen; new movies, particularly from the action genre, are always omitted. So I say screw them and let me come up with my own list.

I have chosen movies of the last decade, i.e. released from the year 2000 till now, because prior to 2000, I wasn’t a movie buff and I have not seen that many films (though I am slowly catching up on them now!). Thus, I wouldn’t be the best person to provide you guys with such a listing if that be the case. Also, you will notice omissions of truly great movies released this decade as well, such as ‘Moulin Rouge!’, ‘Catch Me If You Can’, ‘Traffic’, ‘Blow’, ‘Million Dollar Baby’, ‘Chicago’ and ‘Mystic River’ just to name a few. Believe it or not, I have not actually seen these movies!

Revenge of the Box Office – Korean cinema 2009 (1st half)

Reality is much more dramatic. Despite current wave of financial crisis, Korean film industry has passed through a tumultuous, roller coaster ride during 26 weeks of the first half and produced many news. In 2009, Korean film industry started out with the unexpected mega box office successes of ‘Scandal Makers’ and ‘Old Partner’. Since then, lukewarm “thriller trio” (‘Marine Boy’, ‘The Scam’ and ‘Handphone’) passed through the box office, even though they were highly anticipated since their developmental stage. The number of Korean films screened at Cannes Film Festival broke the record with a total of 10 films (including short films), and ‘Thirst’ won Grand Jury prize.

Welcome to Malaysia! – 10 Canonised Contemporary Malaysian Movies for Foreigners

Some time ago, someone left a comment on one of the posts here, asking me to give a few recommendations of films to watch for those unfamiliar with Malaysian cinema. I spent some time thinking about it, and eventually did get back to the person personally, but I figured since I spent a fair amount of time on it, it might be fun to share with you what I wrote.

Basically, it’s a matter of considering the I’ve been thinking about this for a while, wondering not only who to recommend in terms of Malaysian films and filmmakers who are worth watching out for, but also how those outside of the country would be able to get their hands on them (legally). There is still the matter of subtitles, should less legal means be turned to; it’ll be pointless for me to put in a good word for ‘Sepet’ without others understanding a word (or three) of it.

Then I thought, “Shut up, Fikri, just write.” And so I will.

Understanding Michael Bay – The Man Behind ‘Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen’

Disclaimer: If you hate Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen to bits, then please approach this article with care, because I may be referring to you as a ‘complete buffoon’.

Now, where the hell do I start with ‘Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen’ (affectionately known as ‘ROTF’)? There are just way too many things to say about the film, Michael Bay and popcorn flicks in general that I am afraid this will explore more than just the movie itself.

Again, where to start?

What is Film?

On the surface, it seems like a simple enough question.

What is film?

It seems simple enough, primarily because as a single-line question, it masks the layers and layers of other, different kinds of questions that would inevitably arise before any sort of answer could be articulated. What kind of film? In which country? At what time? By who? For what purpose?

The Malay and Malaysian Film – Where Are We? (part 2)

Should Malay Films continue to be Malay Films?
One approach that should be continued is the furthering of Malay films as films made in Malaysia. This is because the Malay language is the national language, one that does not exist outside of the Malay Archipelago. It is one that is easily acceptable as a language that reflects Malaysia from any point of view. The non-Malay language can always be used to reflect the position of the language i.e. spoken in the community among people of the same language culture, or in telling about some background information, so long as it can enhance the cinematic impact required by a film.

To this end, the effort to produce Malaysian films should do this two-pronged approach:

• Increase the production of Malay films.
• Building the foundation of distributing Malaysian film that deals with Malaysian issues from the perspective of other races.

The Malay and Malaysian Films – Where Are We? (part 1)

Malay films have been produced for almost 80 years, and it can be said that the time has come for Malay films to truly become Malaysian films. The problem, however, lies with the very definition of the term ‘Malaysian film’. In trying to define this, further questions can be raised: what will happen to Malay films? Will Chinese- and Tamil-language films made in Malaysia also need to be defined as Malaysian films? Or is the reverse is true?

These questions have been raised extensively by the new generation of Malaysian filmmakers and filmgoers. This paper will consider the issues at hand, and the complex questions that needs answering when it comes to Malaysian films. It will also give several different viewpoints, with the hope that this can kick start a dialogue and constructive discussion to further understand the shape and image of Malaysian films, for the sake of its own development, as well as the future of national art and film appreciation.

Oscar’s List – 2009 Academy Awards

*Originally written as a Facebook post on the morning/night of the 2009 Academy Awards. Updated and reposted here, along with the winners, so we can all see how clever Fazil really is… 

Good morning fellow movie lovers,

So today’s the big day. As the Academy Awards is the most important event of the year for me, I have spent the whole of last week trying my best to watch every single film nominated for every category. This includes ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’, ‘Frost/Nixon’, ‘The Reader’, ‘Milk’, ‘Doubt’, ‘The Wrestler’, ‘Rachel Getting Married’, ‘Changeling’, ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’, ‘The Duchess’ and ‘Revolutionary Road’.