Udine Far East Film Festival Confirms Lineup for 23rd Edition

Keeping its new summer dates, the Udine Far East Film Festival returns in a hybrid edition with physical screenings taking place this year at Visionario across multiple screens including an outdoor arena, and most of the programme also available to stream online (geographical restrictions of course apply).

China

The Eight Hundred – Guan Hu courts controversy in celebrating the heroism of nationalist forces as they hold off against the Japanese knowing all the while their cause is hopeless. Review. Online Italy only.
Anima – a young man becomes an outcast after killing a bear to save his younger brother. Online Italy only.
Back to the Wharf – A wounded young man’s attempts to start over in the shadow of his crime are doomed to failure in Li’s moody, fatalistic neo-noir. Review. Online Italy only.
Before Next Spring – drama following Chinese students in Tokyo. Online worldwide.
Cliff Walkers – taut 30s spy movie from Zhang Yimou following Communist Party agents as they attempt to extract a former prisoner who can blow the whistle on Japanese war crimes committed by Unit 731. Offline only.
Endgame – Chinese Key of Life remake directed by A Cool Fish’s Rao Xiaozhi starring Andy Lau as an amnesiac hitman who swaps places with a struggling actor. Online Italy only.
Like Father and Son – a pedlar with revenge on his mind ends up travelling with a left behind child. Online worldwide excl China, HK, Taiwan, & Macao)

Hong Kong

Coffin Homes – three-part horror anthology from Fruit Chan. Offline only.
Limbo – action drama from Soi Cheang starring Mason Lee as a rookie police officer who teams up with Gordon Lam’s maverick to catch a serial killer. Online USA/Europe only.
Shock Wave 2 – A HK bomb disposal officer finds himself putting out the fires of his own explosive resentment in a thematic sequel to Herman Yau’s high octane action drama. Review. Online Europe excl ESP/AND.
The Way We Keep Dancing – A collective of artists finds itself torn between complicity and resistance in the face of rising gentrification in Wong’s musical dance drama. Review. Online Worldwide.

Hong Kong New Talents

Drifting – drama in which a man just out of prison finds himself on the streets. Online worldwide (excl. China)
Hand Rolled Cigarette – debut feature from Chan Kin-long starring Gordon Lam as a former soldier turned triad who bonds with a young South East Asian street thief. Online Europe only.
Keep Rolling – documentary focussing on the life and career of director Ann Hui. Review. Online worldwide
JUST 1 DAY – A sketch artist suffering with ALS asks an old classmate to fulfil his last wish by being his girlfriend for just one day. Online Italy only.
One Second Champion – boxing drama in which a prize fighter discovers the ability to see one second into the future. Online worldwide (excl. China)
Sugar Street Studio – a down on his luck film director decides to open a haunted house. Online worldwide
Time – an ageing hitman takes up a new career in euthanasia in Ricky Ko’s black comedy. Online Italy only.
Zero to Hero – biopic of gold medal winning-Paralympian So Wa Wai. Online Italy only.

Macao

Madalena – urban love story.

Indonesia

Death Knot – Kids return home despite their mother’s warnings.

Japan

Blue – boxing drama from Keisuke Yoshida. Online Europe (Excl. ESP/AND)
The Goldfish: Dreaming of the Sea – drama in which a young girl raised in a foster home after her mother was convicted of a crime takes care of a new girl abused by her mum. Online Italy only.
Hold Me Back – latest from Akiko Ohku in which a happily single 31-year-old woman’s peaceful life is disrupted by romance. Online Italy only.
Ito – A shy young woman with a talent for Tsugaru shamisen grows in confidence after getting a job at a maid cafe in Satoko Yokohama’s warmhearted drama. Review. Online Europe.
Last of the Wolves – sequel to Kazuya Shiraishi’s Blood of Wolves set in 1991 in which a rogue cop attempts to keep the peace between yakuza gangs. Online Italy only.
Midnight Swan – drama from Eiji Uchida starring Tsuyoshi Kusanagi as a transgender woman who takes in a little girl neglected by her family. Online Italy only.
Jigoku-no-Hanazono OFFICE ROYALE – delinquent office lady comedy drama. Online Italy only.
Underdog pt 1 & 2: boxing drama from Masaharu Take. Online Italy only.
Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy – Silver Bear-winning three-part anthology movie from Ryusuke Hamaguchi. Online Italy only.
You’re Not Normal, Either! – comedy in which a socially awkward cram school teacher (Ryo Narita) asks for lessons in romance from a pupil in the hope of finding a wife. Online Italy only.

Malaysia

Hail, Driver! – drama following a man who becomes an illegal taxi driver following the death of his father. Online worldwide.

Myanmar

Money Has Four Legs – an aspiring film director struggling to complete a project considers robbing a bank. Online Worldwide excl France, Myanmar, China, US, Canada, Australia

The Philippines

Fan Girl – A teenage obsessive undergoes a rude awakening when she stows away and spends a night with her idol in Jadaone’s gripping takedown of a patriarchal society. Review. Online worldwide.
Son of the Macho Dancer – quasi-sequel to Lino Brocka’s 1988 LGBT film following Inno, the son of Pol. Online worldwide.

South Korea

Deliver Us From Evil – A burned spy turned hitman makes a bid for redemption when his daughter is kidnapped but finds only futility in Hong’s moody pulp noir. Review. Online Italy Only.
Night of the Undead – a wronged wife plots revenge against her husband only to discover he is a member of a near-immortal alien species. Online Italy Only.
OK! Madam – a restaurant manager and computer repair expert’s first family vacation is ruined by a hijacking. Online Italy Only.
Please Don’t Save Me – a young girl reeling from her father’s suicide makes friends with an extrovert classmate. Online Italy only.
Seobok – sci-fi drama starring Gong Yoo as a former secret agent now terminally ill with a brain tumour. Online Italy only.
Voice of Silence – A mute farmer begins to dream of a different life after being charged with minding a kidnap victim in Hong’s strangely warmhearted crime caper. Review. Online Italy only.

Taiwan

Dear Tenant – A grief-stricken man lovingly takes care of his late partner’s family but finds himself continually othered in Cheng’s melancholy familial drama. Review. Online Europe only.
Gatao: The Last Stray – spin-off prequel to the Gatao series of gangster movies. Online Italy only.
Man in Love – Taiwanese remake of the 2014 Korean film in which a debt collector falls for the daughter of a debtor. Online Italy only.
My Missing Valentine – A lovelorn woman finds herself forced to reckon with the forgotten past when she somehow misplaces Valentine’s Day in Chen’s charmingly quirky rom-com. Review. Online Italy only.

Thailand

The Con-Heartist – A scorned woman teams up with a fraudster to scam her ex only to fall for the conman in Mez Tharatorn’s crime caper rom-com. Review. Online Worldwide.
The Maid – gothic horror in which a maid is haunted by her predecessor. Online Italy only.

Documentaries

A Is for Agustin – documentary following an illiterate indigenous man who decides to go back to school at 40 to learn to read and write. Online Worldwide.
Assassins – documentary following the two women accused of assassinating Kim Jong-nam during what they believed was a variety show prank. Online Italy only.
Keep Rolling – documentary focussing on the life and career of director Ann Hui. Review. Online worldwide
Life in 24 Frames a Second – personal interviews with John Woo, Anurag Kashyap, Rithy Panh, and Lav Diaz. Online Worldwide.
Sumodo: The Successors of Samurai – documentary exploring the lives of sumo wrestlers. Online Italy only
Tough Out – documentary following a junior baseball team in Beijing. Online worldwide

Restored Classics

Execution in Autumn – Taiwanese “Healthy Realism” classic from Lee Hsing in which a condemned man marries an orphan while in prison in order to preserve the family line. Online worldwide excl China, HK, Macao
Suddenly in Dark Night – a neurotic housewife accidentally kills her maid whom she thought was trying to kill her and is thereafter plagued by nightmares! Review. Online worldwide.

Eddie Garcia: Life as a Film Epic

At the Top – 1971 showbiz drama from Ishmael Bernal in which a stripper and taxi driver become stars only to be corrupted by their newfound fame. Online worldwide.
Bwakaw – 2012 comedy from Jun Lana starring Garcia as a gay man who came out in his 70s and worries it’s too late for love. Online worldwide.
Rainbow’s Sunset – drama in which an 84-year-old man comes out to his family in order to take care of his dying lover. Online only worldwide.
Shadows – 2000 drama from Raymond Red in which a church photographer goes looking for the child who stole his camera. Online only worldwide.
Sinasamba Kita – 1982 drama directed by Garcia in which half-sisters fall for the same man. Online only worldwide.

Power and Secrets: The Cinematic World of Yoon Jong-bin

Beastie Boys – 2008 host bar drama starring Ha Jung-woo and Yoon Kye-sang. Online Italy only.
Kundo: Age of the Rampant – 2014 drama starring Ha Jung-woo as a butcher who agrees to commit a murder on behalf of a duplicitous nobleman but then finds he can’t go through with it. Online Italy only.
Nameless Gangster – 2012 gangster drama starring Choi Min-sik. Online Italy only.
The Spy Gone North – a spy poses as a sleazy businessman to try and cosy up to the North Korean elite. Review. Online Italy only.

The 23rd Udine Far East Film Festival will run at Visionario and online via www.mymovies.it from 24th June to 2nd July. Full details for all the films are available via the official website and you can keep up with all the latest news by following the festival on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and Tumblr.