Analysis: The Duel Between East and West — What The West Gets Wrong About Martial Arts Films
Martial arts films have long been a quintessential feature of Asian cinema. Interpreting the ancient arts of kung fu, wushu, and...
ANALYSIS
Analysis: What Makes Thai TV Commercials Work?
The advertising world is an industry of sharp contradictions. On one hand, they can seem philistine and sinister. On the other,...
How ‘House of Hummingbird’ Beautifully Captures Loneliness in a Coming-of-Age Story
“Everyone is fighting their own battles inside of themselves. And it’s like no one else ever understands your problems. But you...
What Does ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ Get Right and Wrong About Representation?
Disney’s first Southeast Asian princess is here in their latest film Raya and the Last Dragon. The film has been hailed...
On a Much Heavier Note: ‘200 Pounds Beauty’ and Our Obsession With Perfection
My first encounter with Korean culture came when I was nine years old (late, I know), vibing along to "Nobody" by...
Chungking Express: Love, Loss and Chance in Two Different Worlds
Spoilers for Chungking Express (1994) This month, the Asian Film Archive starts off their Retrospective series at Oldham Theatre featuring Wong...
Analysis: ‘A Land Imagined’ — The Story of The Sculptors of Our Land
Written and directed by Singaporean filmmaker Yeo Siew Hua, A Land Imagined is the Singaporean first film to win the Locarno...
Analysis: Forget the ‘Real’ India — Is There a ‘Real’ America in ‘The White Tiger’ and ‘Slumdog Millionaire’?
(Spoilers ahead for Slumdog Millionaire and The White Tiger) The release of Ramin Bharani’s The White Tiger has brought about a...
The Happy, The Sad, and The End: Why Endings in LGBTQ Films Matter
(Spoilers ahead for "Dear Tenant' (2020)", "Your Name Engraved Herein" (2020), and "Happy Together" (1997)) It’s no secret that LGBTQ films...
Film Analysis: ‘Over The Moon’ is a Masterclass in Asian Representation for the Universal Audience
Over The Moon is an American-Chinese film about a girl named Fei Fei and her journey to find the moon goddess...
SGIFF’s Singapore Panorama Programme 2 Beautifully Captures the Diverse Cultural Landscape in Singapore
From love stories taking place in East Coast Park, to a heart-wrenching story about undocumented migrant workers, the six shorts in...
On the Complex Nature of Loss in SGIFF’s Singapore Panorama Programme 1
At times raw and full of feeling, at times restrained yet thrumming with an undercurrent of tension, the 31st SGIFF’s first...