Film festival has it all: sex, mystery, myths and more

• Movie schedule for the Hawai'i International Film Festival at Signature Dole Cannery Theatres

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Editor

"Pistol Opera," a film from Japan, is one of the features to be shown at the Hawai'i International Film Festival Spring Film Festival, opening tonight at the Signature Dole Cannery Theatres. It's an abstract caper, a sequel to director Seijun Suzuki's 1960s hit, "Branded to Kill," borrowing European film elements. The festival offers an array of films catering to different tastes. HIFF Spring Film Festival Today through Thursday Various times; see schedule on Page 18 Signature Dole Cannery Theatres $7 general, $6 HIFF 'Ohana members 528-3456, ext. 18; www.hiff.org Also: In a "Can(-nes) Film Festival" promotion, film-goers who donate five canned goods will earn admission to matinees Saturday ("Under the Moonlight") and Sunday ("Roots & Branches"). Donations will go to the Hawai'i Foodbank. The Third Annual Hawai'i Student Film Festival follows, April 26-28, showcasing new films by students (kindergarten to college); $5 general, $3 children under 12; Paul Booth at 823-9208 or www.hiff.org

These are parts of a whole that make up the Hawai'i International Film Festival's Spring Film Festival, which opens tonight at the Signature Dole Cannery Theatres.

With fewer titles (21) than the larger Fall Film Festival (150 titles) and virtually no stars or luminaries on the red carpet to hype attendance, the Spring Film depends on the merits of individual films to woo an audience.

OK, "Dogtown & Z-Boys," is an exception; its producer, Agi Orsi, will be in attendance at Sunday's screening, along with two dudes from the original Zephyr Boys who now live here. You'll appreciate their accomplishments — they are stars, you'll see — after you see their movie. You'll see why it was voted the Audience Favorite at last year's Sundance Film Festival.

"Dogtown" is more of a summer mall flick than film festival fare, but anyone remotely interested in skateboarding (because, one, you were one; two, you lived with or near one; or three, your car was dinged by one) should not let this goodie skate by. It's culture, it's history, it's entertainment, it's rad.

The movie clues you in on how, why and when skateboarding went vertical. (The Z-Boys, in the heat of a 1976 California drought, discovered the vertical walls of empty swimming pools, and the skateboarding plane has not been the same since.)

"Dogtown" is but one of the flicks that gives the festival its cutting edge. The attitude is kick-butt, roll-with-the-flow, and the film is crammed with lively details and an unbridled, frisky flavor, with occasional home-movie feel (grainy, handheld vintage footage) coupled with cloying nostalgia (historical black-and-white photographs).

"We've got just about any kind of film you can think of," said Chuck Boller, HIFF executive director, about the veritable mixed plate on the viewing menu. Think sex, romance, mystery, myths, rites of spring, biographies and more.

Some titles are mainstream finds, such as tonight's opening night headliner, "The Cat's Meow," the latest endeavor from Peter Bogdanovich, in kind of his Hollywood comeback. "It was the perfect film for us to go after," Boller said. "Bogdanovich hasn't had a big hit for a while; this is not a big Hollywood movie. For us, it's perfect."

The film has a measure of controversy, dealing with a still-unsolved murder aboard William Randolph Hearst's private yacht in 1924. It boasts traditional film stars (Kirsten Dunst as Marion Davies, Edward Hermann as Hearst, Eddie Izzard as Charlie Chaplin), so it suits the Hollywood profile.

But there's a lot more heat, and certainly a lot more potential hysteria, in a Mexican/U.S.A. hot tamale, "Y Tu Mama Tambien (And Your Mother, Too)," showing on the festival's closing night. It's kind of a "Bill and Ted's (S)excellent Adventure," in which two sex-craved 17-year-olds, Julio (Gael Garc’a Bernal) and Tenoch (Diego Luna), meet, befriend and hit the road with a 28-year-old woman, Luisa (Maribel Verdœ), in search of a mythical Mexican beach they actually discover — along with painful truths about each other.

There are poignant and funny acts of seduction, copulation, self-gratification and personal revelations — on beds, in cars, in swimming pools — all depicted with graphic realism and honesty by director Alfonso Cuar—n. But if you think about the bigger picture, there are political roots to the sexual candor.

Coincidentally, in a Korean film, "Flower Island" directed by Song Il-Gon, the "road movie" concept lives — it's about three women searching for solace on a mythical island.

Like minds, different concepts, universal quests.

Where sex was the centerpiece of "Tambien," Jae-eun Jeong, a director from South Korea, avoids the sexual platform in her coming-of-age entry, "Take Care of My Cat," in which she probes the world of the modern Korean single working woman. It's compelling for its focused tone and it suits the HIFF dossier well, with its universal concerns and conclusions.

While there are American and English-language vehicles, the imports — foreign art films, if you will — are favored. Titles unlikely to show in your nearby multiplex.

And happily, the foreign films are being presented in their native tongues, with English subtitles.

"It's always so important that the films are shown in the language intended," Boller said. "In Milan, some of these films were dubbed. In Hawai'i, so many speak the language (especially among the Asian communities), that you need to have the real McCoy."

Santosh Sivan's "Asoka," which redefines the Hollywood epic, could be one of the festival's surprises. This Indian melodrama, grand in scope and ambition, tracks the life of a favored icon in Indian history, Prince Asoka, whose jealousy and strength lead him on a path of frustration and self-destruction. It is a specimen of the prevailing Bollywood manner, witnessed in films such as "Monsoon Wedding" and "Lagaan," where everything from MTV-type musical vignettes and choreographed martial arts-type sword fights are juxtaposed with cast-of-thousands war marches and even comedy.

Cinemaphiles may also appreciate an appetizer from Japan ("The Princess Blade"), kind of a Nihonji take on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," in which a young maiden tries to save the world. There's also a delightful entry from Singapore ("Chicken Rice War") that retells the "Romeo and Juliet" Shakespearean tale of dueling families, this time about common folks who operate chicken and rice restaurants.

"While we focus on Asian films in the fall, we use the Spring Festival to bring in other films from other countries," Boller said.

So films like "Mystic Masseur," by Ismail Merchant, of "Howard's End" and "Remains of the Day" success, have origins in unlikely countries. In this case, it's Trinidad, and it's based on a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by V.S. Naipaul.

Another, "Markova: Comfort Gay," Gil Portes' biography from the Philippines, is a true tale of a gay man forced to provide the services of a "comfort man" for Japanese armed forces during the World War II occupation of the Philippines. It could stir controversy for its unflinching portrayal of bias and brutality.

"Lan Yu," a Chinese film by Stanley Kwan, is a romance amid tumultuous times, specifically the era leading toward the Tiananmen Square massacre of the 1980s. Its impact is not diminished by the fact that it has a gay orientation.

For a poetic mood, Paul Cox's "Nijinsky," an Australian film with actual images of the dancer and recreations of his immortal moves, may seem too cerebral and meditative for nondance fans.

And from Japan, "Pistol Opera," directed by Seijun Suzuki, is cultish and psychedelic, an explosive escape for the eyes and ears, with hip characters (assassins and victims) set against a booming soundtrack.

Interestingly, there is a lone Iranian film, "Under the Moonlight," in the lineup. Said Boller: "After 9/11, none of the Iranian films were distributed." It might be dubbed "the one that got away." And HIFF's got it.

Movie schedule for the Hawai'i International Film Festival at Signature Dole Cannery Theatres

Here's the roster of films in HIFF's Spring Film Festival (all screenings at the Signature Dole Cannery Theatres):

Today

• "The Cat's Meow" (USA, 2001), 6:30 p.m. — Directed by Peter Bogdanovich.
• "Take Care of My Cat" (South Korea, 2001), 8:45 p.m. — Directed by Jae-eun Jeong. Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema Award winner for Best Asian Feature at the Pusan Film Festival.

Saturday

• "Asoka" (India, 2001), noon — Directed by Santosh Sivan.
• "Nijinsky" (Australia 2001), 1 p.m. — Directed by Paul Cox. Visceral and abstract, this film interprets the diary entries of the famous dancer during his nervous breakdown in 1917.
• "Under the Moonlight" (Iran, 2001), 3:15 p.m. — Directed by Reza Mir-Karimi. In his search for a thief, a future mullah discovers a side of society he did not know existed.
• "How Harry Became a Tree" (Ireland/United Kingdom/France/Italy), 3:30 p.m. — Directed by Goran Paskaljevic. Harry (Colm Meany), a poor farmer, loses his wife and son during the Irish civil war. He believes that to define a life, one must have a sworn enemy, and decides to focus his hatred toward George, the village publican and shopkeeper.
• "Cherish" (USA, 2001), 6:30 p.m. — Directed by Finn Taylor. An attention-getter at the Sundance Film Festival, this movie has a rocking '80s soundtrack and a script filled with "Memento"-type twists and turns. Robin Tunney stars as a woman under house arrest, who concocts weird schemes to escape her "tower."
• "Agitator" (Japan, 2001), 8:45 p.m. — Directed by Takashi Miike. A yakuza leader seeks a merger of rival gangs.

Sunday

• "The Mystic Masseur" (Trinidad, 2001), 1 p.m. — Directed by Ismail Merchant. Ganesh is determined to write a book. He sets up shop as a masseur while pursuing his dream, but becomes an expert in Hinduism and mystical healing.
• "Chicken Rice Wars" (Singapore, 2001), 1:15 p.m. — Directed by CheeK. A hip, hilarious take on "Romeo and Juliet," pitting the Wongs against the Changs.
• "Markova: Comfort Gay" (The Philippines, 2001), 3 p.m. — Directed by Gil Portes. This is a true story of Markova, a gay man forced to become a "comfort man" for Japanese armed forces during World War II occupation in the Philippines.
• "Roots and Branches" (China, 2001), 3:30 p.m. — Directed by Yu Zhong. A tragic accident leaves the four Qi children as orphans, and the children are separated. Eldest daughter Sitian, an accomplished music conductor, returns to China for her first concert and a mission to search for her siblings.
• "Dogtown & Z-Boys" (USA, 2001), 6:30 p.m. — Directed by Stacy Peralta. See story on Page 17.
• "Lan Yu" (China/Hong Kong, 2001), 8:45 p.m. — Directed by Stanley Kwan. Based on an Internet novel, this love story is set against the turbulent and political '80s in China.
• "The Princess Blade" (Japan, 2001), 9 p.m. — Directed by Shinsuke Sato. Yuki uses her sword to cut through more than her foes — like her past — to find her way to true destiny as she seeks happiness with Takashi.

Monday

• "What Time Is It There?" (Taiwan, 2001), 6:30 p.m. — Directed by Ming-Liang Tsai. After the death of the family patriarch, his wife and son become the victims of the mundane and repetitive; mother prays constantly for the return of her husband's spirit, while son Hsiao Kang sells watches in the streets of Taipei.
• "Rain" (New Zealand, 2001), 8:45 p.m. — Directed by Christine Jeffs. It's 1972, and Janey (Alicia Fulford-Wierzbicki) has traveled to the beach for a long, lazy summer with her family. She teaches her little brother to swim, while their Scotch-sedated parents wallow in their messy marriage.

Tuesday

• "Chicken Rice Wars," 6 p.m. See Sunday listing.
• "Roots and Branches," 6:30 p.m. See Sunday listing.
• "Flower Island" (South Korea, 2001), 8:45 p.m. — Directed by Song Il-Gon. A Pusan Film Festival winner, a road movie of three wounded women in search of a mythical island.

Wednesday

• "How Harry Became a Tree," 6 p.m. See Saturday listing.
• "Under the Moonlight," 6:30 p.m. See Saturday listing.
• "Pistol Opera" (Japan, 2001), 8:45 p.m. — Directed by Seijun Suzuki. This is a sequel to the '60s cult classic "Branded to Kill," and follows the exploits of Killer No. 3, the Stray Cat.

Thursday

• "La Spagnola" (Australia, 2001), 6:30 p.m. — Directed by Steve Jacobs. Lola and her daughter live in squalor after Ricardo, the former patriarch, runs off with his new lover Wendy, and buys a flashy sports car with the last of the family savings. When Ricardo expires, Lola seeks revenge.
• "Y Tu Mama Tambien" (Mexico/USA, 200), 8:45 p.m. — Directed by Alfonso Cuaron.