Film Picks: Minds Film Festival, Journey To The West, The Monkey King
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Journey To The West is an award-winning science-fiction comedy from China about a ragtag team of UFO enthusiasts searching for alien life.
PHOTO: THE PROJECTOR
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Journey To The West (PG)
118 minutes, limited screenings at The Projector
Winner of 18 awards at festivals in China, Japan and South Korea, Chinese film-maker Dashan Kong’s debut 2021 feature is a comedy that tells the story of Tang Zhijun (Yang Haoyu), a middle-aged man who has devoted his life to UFO research and publishing a science-fiction magazine. When he finds clues pointing to a possible alien visit, he heads to the rugged south-west of the country, with magazine employees in tow. In a remote village, they find eccentric locals and more.
After the screening on Sunday, members of the cast will appear online to discuss the film as part of a panel.
Where: 05-00 Golden Mile Tower, 6001 Beach Road theprojector.sg/films-and-events/journey-to-the-west
MRT: Nicoll Highway, Lavender
When: Sunday, 1.30pm
Tickets: $15 for standard ticket prices
Info:
Minds Film Festival
Lee Kwang-soo (left) and Shin Ha-kyun star in Inseparable Bros, a South Korean comedy about two men with different but complementary disabilities.
PHOTO: MINDS FILM FESTIVAL
Since 2017, this festival has featured films that celebrate the lives of those with intellectual disabilities. Organised by Movement for the Intellectually Disabled of Singapore (Minds) and the Singapore Film Society, the festival will be held over two Sundays, Sept 3 and 10, at two community locations.
The first of two films in the festival is Inseparable Bros (2019, PG, 114 minutes), a South Korean comedy about two unrelated men, Dong-gu (Lee Kwang-soo) and Se-ha (Shin Ha-kyun), who find they can help each other because of their different but complementary disabilities.
The documentary The Reason I Jump presents portraits of non-speaking persons with autism.
PHOTO: GOLDEN VILLAGE
The second film is the documentary The Reason I Jump (2020, PG13, 82 minutes). Based on the 2007 bestseller by Japanese author Naoki Higashida, who was diagnosed with severe autism when he was five, it presents portraits of non-speaking persons with autism, using cinematographic techniques to give viewers an impression of how the neurodivergent perceive the world.
Where: Wisma Geylang Serai, Level 1 Persada Budaya, 1 Engku Aman Turn; and Tzu Chi Humanistic Youth Centre, Level 1 The Great Hall, 30A Yishun Central 1 minds.org.sg
MRT: Paya Lebar/Yishun
When: Sept 3 (Wisma Geylang Serai), and Sept 10 (Tzu Chi Humanistic Youth Centre); from 2.15pm
Admission: Free, seating on a first-come-first-served basis
Info:
The Monkey King (PG)
92 minutes, premieres on Netflix on Friday, 3 stars
Jimmy O. Yang voices the titular character in animated film The Monkey King.
PHOTO: NETFLIX
Hong Kong superstar Stephen Chow executive produces the Monkey King’s animated quest for immortality. The deity of Chinese mythology fights gods, demons, dragons and his greatest adversary – his ego.
Hatched from a rock complete with laser eyes and magical powers, the mischievous Monkey, voiced by Jimmy O. Yang, is an outcast, lonely and unloved.
Armed with his magical staff, he sets forth to conquer 100 demons so he can become the Immortal One. Along the way, he meets a 13-year-old peasant girl (Jolie Hoang-Rappaport), who hopes Monkey will save her village from drought.
The backdrop and character design feel like the only elements that are distinctly Chinese in the Netflix Animation production helmed by Anthony Stacchi (The Boxtrolls, 2014). The fantasy action comedy with its computer-generated imagery is standard fare, from its wisecracking hero on a self-actualisation journey to its Westernised humour, despite an Asian voice cast. However, the visuals, especially the battles, are vibrant, while Stephanie Hsu as the wife of the mayor pays witty homage to Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle (2004). - Whang Yee Ling
