New York Asian Film Festival 2013
Tickets
We’re back with the 12th edition of North America’s leading festival of popular Asian Cinema! This year we have a special focus on the Philippines with Manila Chronicles: The New Filipino Cinema and a lineup of Taiwanese “Black Movies,” the rambunctious early-80’s exploitation flicks that used to fill Taipei grindhouses with Taiwan Pulp! We’re also spotlighting audience favorite, actor Ryoo Seung-Beom, and giving special focus shout-outs to two of the festival’s oldest friends, Well Go USA (the champion of Asian film among U.S. distributors) and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York on the occasion of their 30th birthday. Co-presented with Subway Cinema.
Lineup
Tales from the Dark Part 1
Opening Night! World Premiere!
In this three-part horror omnibus based on Lilian Lee’s best-selling novel series, a young girl pays a veteran hitter to curse four villains, leading to gruesome deaths and the revelation of a chilling secret.
Secretly Greatly
Centerpiece Presentation! International Premiere! Director Jang Cheol-Soo in person for Q&A!
Three North Korean sleeper agents hiding in the South are slated for termination in this wild action-comedy based on the popular webtoon series "Covertness." Note: Grayed out screenings are currently standby only. A standby line will form at the box office one hour prior to showtime. Available tickets will be released on a first come, first served basis.
The Great War
Director Yan Yan Mak and members of Grasshopper and Softhard in person for Q&A at Gala Presentation on July 2 (special ticket price: $15). Director in person for Q&A at July 3 screening.
A surprisingly personal and revealing documentary about the concert battle between the legendary Cantopop band Grasshopper and hip hop duo Softhard.
Aberya
International Premiere!
A hedonistic boxer, a prostitute on a mission, a social climber, and a time-traveling drug dealer cross paths in this deliriously imagined occult superhero movie.
The Animals
International Premiere!
An indictment of the Filipino 1% via a decadent high-school party that degenerates into an orgy of sex, violence and class warfare.
Arahan
Ryoo Seung-Beom in person for Q&A!
A wall-busting, skyscraper demolishing, high-flying martial-arts-action date movie set in Seoul.
Behind the Camera: Why Mr. E Went to Hollywood
U.S. Premiere! Director E J-Yong in person for Q&A!
Meta to the max. Korea’s best actors play themselves (and other actors) in this send-up of carnivorous celebrity culture. Preceded by Jury (Kim Dong-Ho, 24m).
Beijing Blues
A day in the life of a Beijing cop who busts conmen and scam artists, shot run-and-gun documentary style.
The Berlin File
Star Ryoo Seung-Beom in person for Q&A!
Spies from North and South Korea square off in a gritty, high speed, post-Bourne thriller.
Bloody Tie
Star Ryoo Seung-Beom in person for Q&A!
In this hard-knuckled crimer, a corrupt detective teams up with an entrepreneurial meth dealer to bring down the local drug kingpin responsible for the death of the cop’s former partner.
The Bullet Vanishes
This stylish period thriller starring Hong Kong superstars Nick Tse and Lau Ching-wan pays homage to Holmes and Watson as a 1930s-era detective duo investigate a series of strange murders.
Catnip
International Premiere!
A hyperactive, uber-digital flick about two BFF’s and the abusive daddy who comes between them.
The Challenge of the Lady Ninja
Lovely Lady Ninja Wong Siu Wai returns to China after the death of her father, where she discovers her fiancé has betrayed her and must gather a gang of female warriors to seek vengeance.
Cold War
Winner of nine Hong Kong Film Awards, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, and Best New Performer, Cold War was Hong Kong’s 2012 box-office sensation. This cop thriller stars Aaron Kwok and Tony Leung Kar-Fai as two high-ranking officers whose rivalry leads to an intense power struggle over an explosive rescue operation.
The Concubine
North American Premiere!
A deep and dark political thriller set in the royal palace with enough court intrigue and sex to fuel an entire season of Game of Thrones.
Comrade Kim Goes Flying
New York Premiere!
Girl power North Korean style! This fun Technicolor tale follows a young miner who pursues her dream of becoming an acrobat.
Confession of Murder
North American Premiere!
A serial killer waits until the statute of limitations expires, then writes a book confessing his crimes in this slam-bang summer blockbuster.
Countdown
North American Premiere!
This take-no-prisoners, semi-experimental exploitation flick is about three Thai hipsters in NYC and the drug dealer who tortures them on New Year’s Eve.
Double Xposure
North American Premiere!
Megastar Fan Bingbing plays a woman who kills her husband’s mistress then slowly goes insane while running from the cops.
Drug War
New York Premiere!
Hong Kong’s master filmmaker Johnnie To has crafted a hardcore, boundary-pushing police thriller that’s the most savagely subversive film ever made in mainland China. Note: Grayed out screenings are currently standby only. A standby line will form at the box office one hour prior to showtime. Available tickets will be released on a first come, first served basis.
Eungyo (A Muse)
New York Premiere! Director Jung Ji-Woo and star Kim Go-Eun in person for Q&A!
A scandalicious hit about the romance between a 17-year old girl and a 70-year-old man, A Muse earned its lead actress six awards for her performance.
Enter the Dragon
Fab 5 Freddy and MC Yan in person for conversation!
Join NYAFF for a 40th anniversary screening of Bruce Lee’s legendary martial arts crossover hit, preceded by a conversation on the relationship between Kung Fu movies and early Hip Hop.
Feng Shui
New York Premiere!
The searing story of a career woman whose hard-headed race to the top destroys her family, forcing her to start over.
Forever Love
North American Premiere! Co-director Aozaru Shiao in person for Q&A at July 5 screening!
This light and frothy romantic comedy is set in the fabulous world of the 60s Taiwanese movie industry. Special appearance: Godzilla!
The Fridge
North American Premiere!
A young girl is stalked by a killer refrigerator that keeps her milk cold, her vegetables crisp, and her friends dead.
Gangster
North American Premiere!
Hailed as the Thai Goodfellas, this period crime epic is stylish, slick, and powerfully acted.
Hardcore Comedy
World Premiere! Star Dada Chen in person for Q&A!
Hong Kong’s local comedic tradition continues in this quirky post-Vulgaria, three-part omnibus.
Helter Skelter
New York Premiere!
A vicious, candy-colored fashionista horror drama about a Lady Gaga-esque singer and actress whose plastic surgery enhancements are are slowly turning as black and rotten as bruised fruit.
How to Use Guys with Secret Tips
North American Premiere! Director Lee Won-suk in person for Q&A on July 7!
Half romcom, half satire of the Korean film industry, this wacky and charming tale follows an overworked woman's attempt to improve her relationship with men using a self-help video. Preceded by One Perfect Day (Kim Jee-woon, 34m).
An Inaccurate Memoir
North American Premiere!
Part Chinese Western, part black comedy, part war movie, An Inaccurate Memoir is an action-packed, Peckinpah-esque black comedy about Chinese bandits taking on the Japanese occupation.
Ip Man: The Final Fight
North American Premiere! Director Herman Yau and screenwriter Erica Li in person for Q&A!
A slyly subversive send-up of current craze for Ip Man movies, Herman Yau’s action flick is also a myth-busting celebration of Hong Kong’s working class riots and strikes of the 1960s.
Juvenile Offender
North American Premiere!
This film festival fave follows a kid lost in the correctional system and the mom who ditched him, both looking for a new life. On July 11, screens with: Day Trip (Park Chan-Wook, Park Chan-Kyung 18m).
The Lady Avenger
In this bloody rape-revenge flick from one of Taiwan’s only female exploitation directors, a reporter goes eye-for-an-eye on her attackers, killing them by bear trap, knife, blowtorch, and meat hook.
The Last Supper
U.S. Premiere!
From the director of City of Life and Death comes this hallucinatory history of the first Chinese Dynasty as told by the dying emperor.
The Last Tycoon
North American Premiere! Producer and cinematographer Andrew Lau in person for Q&A!
Chow Yun-fat plays a real-life 1920s Shanghai gangster facing the murderous plots of the secret service.
The Legend is Born: Ip Man
Director Herman Yau in person for Q&A!
This stripped down Ip Man movie features Hong Kong’s best martial artists—Bruce Leung, Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, and Ip Man’s son, Ip Chun—and will leave you bruised, battered, and begging for more.
Lesson of the Evil
New York Premiere!
Japan’s wildest director returns to horror with this flick about a beloved high school teacher with a dark secret past and homicidal urges that can’t be contained.
A Life of Ninja
The wildest ninja flick you’ll ever see, A Life of Ninja features mud fights, professional wrestling, icicle knives, naked ladies, and plenty of freaky kung fu.
Mystery
North American Premiere!
The acclaimed arthouse director’s first film after being blacklisted in China is a murder mystery wrapped in love triangle wrapped in an existential crisis.
Never Too Late to Repent
Director Tsai Yang-Ming in person for Q&A!
This true crime thriller and surprise box office hit kicked off Taiwan’s “Black Movie” wave of exploitation outrageousness, which saw 117 hard-hitting flicks hit screens between 1979 and 1983.
The Peach Tree
North American Premiere!
From one Korea’s only female directors comes this glittering fairy tale about a guy with two heads trying to fall in love.
Rigodon
International Premiere!
A ragingly sexy, grittily realistic love triangle film about a reality TV star trying to make bank and get some nookie. Preceded by Vesuvius (Erik Matti, 10m).
Rurouni Kenshin
New York Premiere!
This live-action adaptation of the wildly popular manga follows a Meiji era assassin who leaves his life behind to become a protector of the common man.
Taiwan Black Movies
Director Hou Chi-Jan in person for Q&A!
A long lost era of filmmaking was preserved and rediscovered by this documentary, the result of a labor of love that began when the director found a stack of discarded VHS tapes in the Taiwan Film Archive.
The Unjust
New York Premiere
Director Ryoo Seung-Wan will attend.
This sprawling corruption epic is the kind of movie Sidney Lumet would have made if he was Korean.
The Unjust
This sprawling corruption epic is the kind of movie Sidney Lumet would have made if he had been Korean.
Very Ordinary Couple
International Premiere!
Korea’s other big hit this year is a hyper-realistic romantic comedy about a warring couple who work for the same company.
Warped Forest
North American Premiere!
The freaky sequel to festival hit Funky Forest: The First Contact, Variety calls it the “weirdest movie of the year.” Like Cronenberg’s Naked Lunch, only much funnier.
When a Wolf Falls in Love with a Sheep
New York Premiere! Director Hou Chi-jan in person for Q&A on July 6!
A high-octane, super-stylized, live-action cartoon of a romantic comedy about a guy looking for his lost love in Taipei’s cram school district.
Woman Revenger
Director Tsai Yang-Ming in person for Q&A!
Another of Taiwan’s mondo revenge movies from the early 80s, this brutal exploitation shocker features a gentle woman who turns into a bloodthirsty killer, bent on revenge against those who wronged her.
Young and Dangerous 1 & 2
Director Andrew Lau in person for Q&A!
A special July 4 screening of the first two movies in Hong Kong’s landmark hit crime series—shot-on-the-run flicks that captured lightning in a bottle and became cultural sensations.
Tickets
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