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The BFI London Film Festival returns to cinemas across the city 4th to 15th October. East Asian highlights this year include stupendous Chinese animation Deep Sea, tense Korean drama Cobweb, and the latest from Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Hirokazu Koreeda. Here’s a look at the East Asian features on offer:
China
- Deep Sea (3D) – A young girl finds herself in a whimsical fantasy world of colour and light in Tian Xiaopeng’s stupendous animation. Review.
- Only the River Flows – Sino-noir from Wei Shujun (Ripples of Life, Striding into the Wind) starring Zhu Yilong (Lost in the Stars) as a policeman investigating a small-town serial killer case.
- Self-Portrait: 47 KM 2020 – 11th instalment in Zhang Mengqi’s series of personal documentaries in which she returns to her father’s village during the pandemic.
- Youth (Spring) – documentary from Wang Bing focussing on migrant workers in the textile industry.
Hong Kong
- Expats – feature-length fifth episode of the Amazon TV series revolving around the lives of three American expats against the backdrop of the 2014 Hong Kong protests.
Japan
- The Boy and the Heron – semi-autobiographical fantasy animation from Studio Ghibli & Hayao Miyazaki.
- Evil Does Not Exist – latest from Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Drive My Car) focussing on a construction project in a peaceful rural village.
- Monster – latest from Hirokazu Koreeda starring Sakura Ando as a mother who confronts a teacher after noticing changes in her son’s behaviour.
- Perfect Days – Tokyo-set tale from Wim Wenders starring Koji Yakusho as cleaner living a simple but soulful life.
Malaysia
- Tiger Stripes – femininst pre-teen body horror in which a young woman begins to change in unexpected ways.
Mongolia
- If Only I Could Hibernate – a teenage student is determined to win a physics prize while left to care for his siblings.
Philippines
- Asog – road movie docudrama following a non-binary schoolteacher on the way to compete in a drag competition soon after surviving a typhoon.
South Korea
- Cobweb – meta drama from Kim Jee-woon set in the authoritarian 70s in which a director becomes obsessed with the idea of reshooting the ending of his completed film despite the interference of the censors.
Vietnam
- Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell – 178-minute slow cinema epic in which a man reconnects with his estranged family following the sudden death of his sister.
The BFI London Film Festival takes place at various venues across the city from 4th to 15th October 2023. Full details for all the films as well as screening times and ticketing information are available via the official website. Priority booking opens for Patrons on 4th September, for Champions on 5th September, and Members 6th September, with general ticket sales available from 12th September. You can also keep up to date with all the latest news via the festival’s Facebook page, Twitter account, Instagram, and YouTube channels.
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