Archive for Historical

It’s summer, and you want to go out and watch a movie. But which one to watch? These are the newest movies to open in San Francisco this weekend.

1. Thirst

Directed by Park Chan-Wook (Oldboy, Sympathy For A Vengeance, Mr. Vengeance), Thirst is the story of Sang-hyun, a priest who will do anything to save humanity. He agrees to participate in a secret vaccine development program designed to wipe out a deadly virus. But something goes wrong and he finds out the blood he was injected with was infected, and he turns into a vampire.

2. Shrink

Written by Thomas Moffett and directed by Jonas Pate, Shrink is the story of Henry Carter, played by Kevin Spacey, a shrink who works in Hollywood and treats A-list celebrities that have left him jaded and cynical.

3. The Answer Man

John Hindman, in his directorial debut, brings us The Answer Man. Jeff Daniels plays Arlen Faber, author of Me and God, which has touched the lives of many people. Now on its 20th anniversary, people all over continue to seek him for the answers to their questions, but he’s a recluse and has succeeded in keeping himself away from the public eye.

4. 24 City

24 City is the story of three factory workers and how their lives changed when the China State-owned munitions factory they used to work for falls into ruin and is converted into a high-rise condominium building. 24 City was nominated for Best Cinematographer and Best Composer at the 2009 Asian Film Awards and Golden Palm for the 2008 Cannes Film Festival.

5. In The Loop

A British government minister, played by Tom Hollander, makes a mistake in front of a national television audience and tries to fix it.

What do you think? Which movie do you want to watch?

The Boy In The Striped Pajamas is a heartbreaking film set in World War II Germany. Starring Asa Butterfield, David Thewlis and Vera Farmiga, it’s a story about a boy who moves to the country because of his father’s (a high-ranking Nazi officer) reassignment. Having taken a vow of silence and to protect the family, his father does not inform them that they are living near a concentration camp.

The movie is told through the eyes of the little boy, Bruno. Used to living the city, discovering new things and exploring unfamiliar territory, he has a hard time adjusting to life in the country where restrictions are everywhere. He is forbidden to explore the back garden and is only allowed to wander the front yard. He discovers a nearby farm with children when he looks out his bedroom window and tries to ask permission to visit the place. He is denied by his mother, who realizes that the farm is a concentration camp.

But because of boredom and his need to explore, Bruno defies his mother’s orders and escapes to the farm, where he meets Shmuel, an 8-year-old boy who was taken to the camp with his family. They quickly form a friendship, and Bruno finds himself sneaking out almost everyday, bringing food and games for Shmuel. They developed the most unlikely friendship for that time, between a German and a Jew. But will it last?

It’s a simple story about innocence, loyalty, duty, family and friendship. Superbly acted by its lead actors, including Asa Butterfield (as Bruno) and Vera Farmiga (as Bruno’s mother, Elsa), this highly emotional drama about World War II and Hitler’s movement against the Jews will tug at the hearts of even the hardest man.

It’s a movie that one must watch at his own risk. It starts out as just an ordinary day in an ordinary city, but then the movie starts to get grim when the actions suddenly change to soldiers capturing people. We now know that the city is Berlin, and the soldiers are capturing Jews to bring to concentration camps. We see a little boy onscreen but are always aware of the dark tones of the movie’s setting. Mark Herma, who directed this film, doesn’t try to be historically accurate, only to capture the emotions of the people who had to experience it.

If you’ve decided to watch The Boy In The Striped Pajamas, good luck. It’s not going to be easy to watch. But be sure to watch it until the end because it is still one of the best movies made in cinemas today.

Jet Li has released a new movie, and this time he forms a brotherhood with Takeshi Kaneshiro (Chunking Express, House of Flying Daggers) and Andy Lau (House Of Flying Daggers, Infernal Affairs) in The War Lords.

The Warlords is set during the corrupt rule of the Qing Dynasty in China. Because of oppression suffered by Chinese people due to corruption, a group of rebels formed the Taiping Rebellion to fight for the rights of the people. Jet Li (Brother Pang) is a defeated army general fighting the rebels when they were betrayed by their ally and left for dead. Brother Pang barely survived and was saved by a group of bandits, whom he convinces to join the Chinese army to be able to take care of his family. They agree, but he must join their brotherhood. They form a brotherhood and make a pact to free all Chinese people from oppression. However, as they succeed more and more, Brother Pang becomes hungry for more power and eventually puts their brotherhood in jeopardy.

As with any good action and war movie, the setting is very fast-paced and rarely gets boring. It was direct to the point and always exciting. It was an attempt by Peter Chan to make a beautiful movie about an ugly truth. And it did work. The movie was about two hours long, and there were times when I had to go back and wonder what had just happened. But otherwise, it was a good movie that touches on brotherhood, love and commitment. It’s not a movie that excels technically since everything was so simple, but it’s a movie that borders on good and excellent because it attempts to strike a chord in people’s hearts.

Watch The Warlords, not for the action it shows, but for the message it portrays.

Hotel Rwanda is a stunning film. It is based on the true story of Paul Rusesabagina, a hero for the Tutsis of Rwanda. It is difficult to review a film that has real events. The director cannot do much to change the beginning, middle, or ending; history only happened one way. I applaud the director for his successful attempt to bring recognition to the genocide in Rwanda.

In order to understand the film, you must know a basic history of Rwanda. A few hundred years ago, the Tutsis and the Hutus were the groups that made up Rwanda. The Tutsis were the minority but held better jobs and power over the Hutus. In the early 1900s, Rwanda was annexed to Belgium. Belgium decided to give everybody in Rwanda identification cards. These cards distinguished the citizens of Rwanda as either Hutu or Tutsi. The truth was that the process for the selection was quite arbitrary. One would not really be able to tell if someone was Hutu or Tutsi just by looking at them. The Hutus, who ended up being the majority, overthrew the leading Tutsis on their way towards independence from Belgium. A civil war ensued.

The Interhamwe, a Hutu militia, created a plan to systematically wipe out all of the Tutsis. They called the Tutsis cockroaches, and tried to convince all of the Hutus that the Tutsis had no right to live. This is where Hotel Rwanda comes into play. Paul Rusesabagina is a Hutu hotel manager. When he hears of what is happening, he knows he must protect his wife and children –all Tutsis. They end up moving into the hotel where Paul works, but they are not alone. Paul is a trusted Hutu, and the Tutsi community flocks for refuge at his hotel.

It becomes Paul’s personal responsibility to provide safety for his new hotel guests. He must fight against all odds to keep the Interhamwe from destroying everyone. His story is heroic and unique. If you have not seen this movie yet, I say it is a Must-See. The movie is an intense thrill. It’s hard to keep reminding yourself that it portrays events that were real.