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It’s the Year of the Dragon. ‘Nuff said…

As we mentioned a few weeks back, the first month of the KCCUK’s 2012 – Year of the 12 Directors season draws to a close with a Q&A with director Lee Myung-se (Nowhere To Hide, M) and a screening of Duelist.

What wasn’t clear initially was that this will not take place at the KCCUK, nor will it be free. (Shame, but this is one hell of an event?) The screening will take place at the Apollo cinema, Piccadilly Circus, and tickets can be purchased directly from their site.

Infernal Affairs meets Wall Street as the original cast and writer/directors Alan Mak and Felix Chong (The Lost Bladesman) reunite for a new, unconnected story… Read more »

We have three copies to giveaway of historical Thai martial arts epic epic Yamada: Way Of The Samurai on DVD, all you have to do is enter our competition!… Read more »

A dark and gruesome tale of revenge from director Wong Ching-Po (Jiang Hu, Let’s Go!)… Read more »

Hayao Miyazaki and team sprinkle a little Studio Ghibli magic on Mary Norton’s much-loved children’s book The Borrowers… Read more »

It’s hardly as if I’ve stopped banging on about it, but as part of BFI Southbank’s short season to bring in the Chinese New Year offer’s another chance to see A Simple Life (actually ahead of it’s Hong Kong release!)…

Directed by Ann Hui and with brilliant performances by Deanie Yip and Andy Lau, this moving film is littered with star-studded cameos – including a hilarious appearance by Tsui Hark. Unmissable for fans of Hong Kong cinema, it’ll also appeal to anyone that like intelligent filmmaking.

There’ll be two screenings in mid February. One’s a senior matinee, so I suggest getting your grey wig now in case tickets for the other showing have sold out!

The season will also include Confucius, Woman Basketball Player No. 5 (a freebie for Seniors – wtf?) a special selection of rarely seen documentaries under the banner Unseen China.

» See the BFI’s website for a full listing and details on how to book.

Cute CGI animated bugs and ultra slushy romantic tale, just who could Jacob Cheung’s (Battle Of Wits) latest be aimed at other than pre-pubescent girls…? Read more »

Well, it was never going to be better than the original – but Wilson Yip (Ip Man, Ip Man 2, S.P.L: Kill Zone) remake bucks the trend by being not ‘alf bad… Read more »

This year the Korean Cultural Centre UK’s Film Night takes a very different guise this year as they begin their 2012 – Year of the 12 Directors strand.

Each month will feature a different director, as films from their career are screened on a weekly basis culminating in a Q&A with the director himself.

First to be featured is Lee Myung-se, one of the first directors to emerge from the South Korean new wave of the 90s, his action thriller Nowhere To Hide was easily the earliest to get the scene noticed on an international scale (particularly here in the UK).

Nowhere To Hide kicked off the season last week (yep, sorry – was away in NZ!), it continues with M this Thursday (12th January) at 7pm, with Gagman the following week (19th) and finally Duelist on 26th, where the director will appear for a Q&A.

Admission is free. Places can be reserved by visiting the Film Night page on the KCCUK website and clicking on the film you wish to book.

Studio Ghibli’s marvellous Arrietty is released today on Blu-ray, DVD and a Deluxe Collector’s Double Play edition with 5 postcards by StudioCanal UK (formally Optimum Releasing) . A real return to form after the likeable but not quite classic Ponyo and disastrous Tales Of Earthsea, Ghibli head Hayao Miyazaki worked on the screenplay from Mary Norton’s much-loved children’s story, creating something really special with Hiromasa Yonebayashi taking the helm on directing.

All versions come with these extras: storyboards; trailers and japanese tv spots; interviews with Hayao Miyazaki and Hiromasa Yonebayashi; and Cecile Corbel “Arrietty’s Song” promotional video.

The slow and painful path to salvation for a hikkikomori…
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It’s been another brilliant year, both for easternKicks.com and for Asian film in the UK – until the Sony Distribution Centre fire in August… Read more »

London Korean Film Festival truly done and dusted, their Korean Film Night returns this week with the appropriately festive Happy Eros Christmas, starring Kim Sun Ah, Cha Tae-Hyun and Park Yeong-gyu, and directed by Lee Geon-dong.

The film will be screened this Thursday evening at 7pm, 15 December. Screenings are free but places must be booked in advance. Note that visitors cannot be admitted after 7.10pm.

» See the official KCCUK website for more information

Well done to the winner of our competition for a years’ digital subscription to The Dark Side. You should be contacted very soon about your prize.

We’ll have more chances to win great prizes soon, so for the rest of you stay tuned for our next competition!