A Choi Min-sik print at the New York Asian Film Festival merch table. Presumably for when he was there to introduce Oldboy in person (and for those wanting something for him to sign).
? Just got home from special 10th anniversary screening of Infernal Affairs, along with its sequel. Wasn’t part of my schedule originally, but was invited at the last minute by a pal that’s connected with Square-Enix, and given the films we’re talking about, how could I refuse? Though I’m sticking to my original plans, so don’t expect any reviews of either. How come? For starters, there’s little I could say that hasn’t been said by countless other cinephiles a thousand times already (and much better).
But for those who don’t know: Infernal Affairs 1 is about a cop who goes undercover by posing as a gangster, along with a gangster who slips behind enemy lines by posing as a cop. A simple but brilliant premise, right? It’s widely recognized as one of the finest movies ever to come from Hong Kong, and single-handedly revived its industry when it was down for the count. Though it’s mostly known for being the basis of The Departed, which finally earned Scorsese an Oscar at last.
Both movies are often considered the Hong Kong equivalents to The Godfather saga for a number of reasons, and Infernal Affairs 2 is where the comparison is most apt. As a prequel, not only do we see the two principals in their younger, more formative years, but it also explores the backgrounds of their mentors, and is simply far grander in scope. It’s also arguably better than its predecessor, much like Godfather 2.
Oh, there’s an Infernal Affairs 3 also, and much like Godfather 3, the less said the better. Anyhow, the reason why I went and the Square-Enix connection; the screening was being sponsored by the publisher, to help promote Sleeping Dogs, which borrows heavily from the film franchise.
Remember True Crimes? It’s GTA as a cop. Part three, which was cancelled a few years back, is back with a new name. Haven’t been excited by what I’ve seen thus far, so did the pre-screening panel discussion change my mind? Nope; nothing of note was revealed. Hell, they didn’t even show any footage.
At least it was a chance to see and hear from Edison Chen, who aside from being one of the breakout stars from the two movies, is a voice talent in the game. He claims that Sleeping Dogs is essentially Infernal Affairs the video game, and will show white people “how crazy us Asians are with karaoke in general.” Interesting.
Anyhow, a few other quick notes from the past week:
- Not to bitch, but it’s easy to assume that the audience at NYAFF would be a bit more cultured than the idiots that they pack like sardines at the “normal” theaters. And that’s generally the case, but there’s always exceptions to the rule. Like the couple behind me during the screening of the Shaw Brothers classic, The Swift Knight.
Never-mind the boyfriend’s obnoxious need to constantly repeat sh*t that he just saw; his woman was a hundred times worse. At a certain point, her foot kept jabbing my elbow, until she bent over and went “Excuse me, you know I’m trying to put my foot there, THAT’S VERY RUDE OF YOU!”
I basically shrugged her off, and she got all pissed, but I guess her bf convinced her to move down a seat. So I then had to witness (and smell) her nasty ass bare foot sticking between the two seats next to me. I simply couldn’t concentrate, so no review for that one either.
- So there’s a winner of the Miami Connection giveaway! The person who came up with the best explanation as to why taekwondo is the very best is? Alex Van Dorp, aka @slimegirls. Who explained:
“Taekwondo is the best because it’s only in a Taekwondo dojang that I’ve shit my pants.
Dojang, for those wondering, is the term for dojo in Korea, further demonstrating his familiarity with the topic at hand. Congrats Alex! You earned those free tickets and the chance to see Grandmaster Y.K. Kim in the flesh!
- May as well mention this here: in-between all the Asian movies, managed to catch Amazing Spider-Man. Call me crazy, but I kinda liked it? Was expecting the worst and ended up enjoying it almost as much than the first Sam Raimi flick. In ways more so! I know I’m going to get a TON of heat for saying that.
As for reasons why, it’s late, and I’d rather save my film analysis energies for the NYAFF. Though real quick: it honestly felt more like the original comic than that other Spider-Man movie, plus the acting was better, and I wasn’t nearly annoyed with Peter’s parents (though from what I hear, a lot of that stuff was edited).
Yes, the Lizard is kind of lame. Still, Willem Dafoe as Norma Osborn? Awesome. But all decked out in his Green Goblin gear? Not really. The new Spidey movie is hardly perfect, but neither was the one from ten years ago. But Spider-Man 2, now THAT’S a different story. And I still absolutely loathe the new outfit.
? Anyway, that’s enough Hollywood for now. Next time, I believe Guns & Roses and Honey Pupu? And finally, one last Instagram pic, for the poster of one of my fave NYAFF 2012 flicks thus far?
