UAFF & Q4J: Action films get discussional

Last Saturday (07-08-2010) local guerilla filmmaker and good friend Maria Tran held an event: the Urban Action Film Forum, where a number of special guests arrived to join in the festivities and the discussions. Among them were Chris Pang (Tomorrow, When the War Began) and Wang Fei (Shanghai Lady Killer), but the honorary guest of the night was HK director, Antony Szeto whom has graced us with his presence. It was amazing that a small local suburb like Fairfield would be honoured to have Szeto’s company at this forum event, and to have him discuss his experiences in the film industry, especially in regards to the action genre itself.

The event held a number of guest speakers who joined Antony Szeto up on the panel, including:

• Craig Anderson, writer/director/actor of ABC TV series Double the Fist.
• Ali Khadim, local filmmaker and parkour artist of Team 9Lives.
• Warren Coulton, actor/stuntman/director/producer of shorts Yakka Oy! and The Transit, and managing director of Clear Vision Films.
• Igor Breakenback, actor/stuntman/filmmaker of upcoming film Good Luck With That, and managing director of Breakenback Films.
• Peter Castaldi, managing director of distributor Pack Screen.

T-Shirts anyone?

We had our laughs, but we got down to the real nitty-gritty about the action film industry, especially the prevalent (and problematic) lack of such genre films in Australia. In fact, it was the main focal point throughout the night. It did bog me down that action films don’t get any attention or say in the Australian film market, and even if they did, it would never get picked up due to the ever-prevalent ‘gods’ of the industry saying “No! You shall not pass! It’s too stressful!” It reminded me of a short conversation I had with a stranger, and with this night fueling that train of thought, it’s only given me this sense of passion and duty to write and make an action genre film… actually, that’s what I’ve been doing this whole time! I have so many ideas that they haven’t been properly written or typed down yet! What the hell am I thinking?!

But I digress, the fact that Australian funding for an action film is rare, it IS possible! Just have a look at Daybreakers and tell me that it wasn’t Australian-funded. It’s a start, but it’s possible! The decline since the late 1980’s is probably the reason why no one’s even thinking about action genre films in Australia. Perhaps the film industry needs to understand the popularity that action can bring, especially in an international market.

For most of the night, after the discussion forum, everyone mingled. Unfortunately, I had to man the front desk, but that didn’t deter the fact that I sold a number of Q4J tees on the way. At least I was useful for something, right Maria? Thanks goes to Lauren Maher for taking a snapshot of me all on my lonesome that night. And yes, those are her balloons. I know a number of familiar faces had attended the night, if not for the forum then for the media coverage for the night. It was abuzz with life, and probably the most I’ve seen people in the PYT.

After the night, it made me think about where I’ve been going with my writing, and a majority of the writings that I have written or kept in backburner in my head. I will still hold onto them dearly, but there will come a time when I want these stories to be told and made for an audience that’ll appreciate them. If not for the bad-assery laced in it, but for the complexity of story-telling itself. Action is what I’m aiming for, just for now.

At the end of the day, I say: “Good on ya Maria!” Best wishes and heaps of luck on your Quest for Jackie Chan!

… see what I did there?

Movie Review: The Karate Kid

The Karate Kid feat. Jaden Smith

Date: Tuesday 13 May 2010
Time: 9.30PM
Location: Wetherill Park Hoyts, Stocklands

Old classic reborn. Let bad-assery ensue. Times two!

Last week my entire family decided to finally watch The Karate Kid. After hearing the good, bad, and mediocre reviews about the film, I decided to wipe my mind blank before entering into the cinema complex. Needless to say, it was pretty insane! Tuesday night was packed full of people lining up in queue to watch the films they had in store. Having not eaten dinner as of yet, my father and I patiently waited in queue while the rest of the family went ahead with dinner for themselves at Pho 76. Give or take half-an-hour later, my father and I finally made our way to the counter for the 8.30PM session. Keep in mind that we got to the complex at around 7PM. You can never guess what happened.

“I’m sorry, that session’s just sold out.”

My jaw would literally drop if it weren’t held up by the sheer excitement for the film. Sold out? Really? That alone spoke volumes about the film and the numbers. Without thinking, we decided to eat dinner with the rest of the family before walking back for the 9.30PM session.

Having indulged ourselves at The Chocolate Room, we made our way half-an-hour early for the 9.30 session. Luckily for us, the hall was empty. By the time there was only ten minutes to showtime, the hall was overcrowded with an eager audience. The queue spread from the door to the stairs (and for those who know of Wetherill Park Hoyts, you know what I mean). No wonder the 8.30PM session sold out. There were even heaps of people willing to watch the 9.30PM session for this film. I can still remember my father with a grin on his face: “Y’see, that’s why it’s all sold out. This movie has to be good!”

And those words will always stick in my mind.

Put simply, I loved this film. Or better yet, I applaud the film. It stayed almost true to the original in style, narrative structure, and thematic issues. Although I was raised watching the original Karate Kid, this rebirth of an old classic had elements that were both old and new to me, and that was refreshing. I heard the audience laugh, cry, and even applaud the film. That’s right. APPLAUD. They literally clapped their hands. This film has done itself the self-righteous justice it deserved.

Young and upcoming star Jaden Smith brought life into his performance as Dre Parker. The one thing that struck me in the changes of the film is how much of a little tank he is. It only shows how dedicated he is to his role, and that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree after all. He exhibited a huge range and brought a strong performance, and that was already clear in his appearance as his own father’s son in Pursuit of Happyness. Jaden has a bright future ahead of him.

And of course, kudos to Jackie Chan and his performance as the wise yet eccentric mentor for Jaden Smith. His role was enlightening to me, being one (if not the only) Hollywood film Jackie plays a character with a serious demeanour. I thought I would never cry at any of Jackie Chan’s performances, but I was proven wrong. He delivered the most heart-wrenching, dramatic, and upsetting performance I have ever seen him act, and it touched me so hard I shed tears. I don’t know how many others were crying with me, but I know that it brought tears to my sister’s eyes, and knowing her, that’s speaks volumes. If this film is the last Hollywood film Jackie will ever star in during his career, it will be an everlasting impression on his legacy as an actor, stuntman, choreographer, and most importantly, an icon.

For the record, although it is traditionally “Kung-Fu”, I’d rather not get into the details between the martial art and the title. It delivered well with great action, great drama, and an absolutely stellar performance from the actors. The Karate Kid had touched my heart. Again. This remake, filled with the wonders of Chinese heritage, culture, and antiquity can only be described as breath-taking. It re-taught us how life is more than what we know. It’s who we are, where we come from, and learning to live without regrets.

Progress on the Forefront

You’ve probably noticed the amount of mediocre film reviews I’ve been posting lately. Well, truth be told, they’re pretty quick and easy to write up for now since a lot has been happening over the past month. I’ll be posting everything in detail as soon as I find the time to write them down, but for now, here’s just a taste of what’s been happening.

STUFF – THE DRAMA OF IT ALL

Since May 1, I’ve been undergoing an intensive film production course set up in Parramatta, having to travel there every weekend to attend the classes and create something out of it. Needless to say, when they said intensive, they really mean INTENSIVE. I’m not that much of a dramatist and I know my writing is very subtle. I’m the kind of writer that brushes things under the carpet. I hide things for people to think about. This course has been teaching me quite the opposite! You have to be loud, obvious, simple, and overall, DRAMATIC! I’m definitely not going empty-handed out of this, but I’m feeling the highs and lows of this process, which is a good thing to get me in gear.

SECRET PALACE

During May (and perhaps late April), I’ve jumped on a project sprouted from Laurent Boiteux, which has started creeping into its production phase. I don’t know what details I can say as of now, but I’ve been busy storyboarding the short film for a while now in between my casual work and the film production course. With all of this happening around me, I’ve only gotten through halfway of the script – ten minutes worth of shots… 95 shots. When you think about it, would that make over 200 shots for the entire thing? Yeesh.

REAL LIFE

Ah yes. Normal life. How has that been? Well, now that I’ve got some casual work for almost a month now, it’s been keeping me on my toes. I know though that this casual gig will expire soon (most likely this month since ‘m almost done with the task at hand) so that only lets me focus on the other two I’ve mentioned so far. Otherwise, I’ve been thinking of more ideas, which leads me to…

BRAINSTORMING

I’ve been having a lot of ideas for filmic concepts. Most of them so far have been with the help of Laurent collaborating in the co-writer seat with myself. At the moment, my typing hands will cease to mention these projects, but they’re really high concepts.

GRAPHIC DESIGN

Not only have all of this come in, Maria Tran gave me another graphics job to attend to. Now it’s a matter of getting onto Pamela’s request whenever I can.

Who notices the dwindling events, things have been going at such an alarmingly fast pace that I’m beginning to  swamp myself with work. I know I haven’t been getting enough sleep that it’s gotten to the point that my body is starting to sleep during the day. You know it’s not a good sign when your eyes will droop close on their own. While doing other things like supposedly typing scripts. Even watching television won’t keep me awake.

In fact, I’m actually tired now as I’m writing this up. The days are beginning to take a toll on me. ANYWAY! All of these things will be explained in due time whenever I can have a break. 4-6 hours of sleep isn’t quite the healthiest lifestyle right now.

Oh yes, and there are still reviews on the way all lined up in a row. Expect to hear more soon!

Movie Review: Kick-Ass

Kick-Ass w/ Big Daddy, Hit Girl, and Red Mist

Date: Saturday 15 May 2010
Time: Around 2PM
Location: Wetherill Park Hoyts, Stocklands

Spider-Man, Batman, Robin, and Batgirl…? Wannabe heroes? Hilarity ensues. Blood, guts, and guns? Badass FTW!

On a whimsical day, my sisters and I decided it was time to watch Kick-Ass. After hearing so many raves about the film, we just had to watch it for ourselves or else wait it out for the DVD. I only had one peeve about the screening (before I go onto critiquing it): the resolution was off… WAY off. Instead of the 16:9 ratio we were given a 4:3 screening. For most of the film, the heads were cut from the projector screen, which made it difficult to see. For a while, I thought I’d put up with it, but it was getting a little annoying. I was tempted to walk out and complain (or at the very least ask politely to fix the screen). Luckily, it was rectified some time into the film, at least before Hit Girl Kicked Ass (Double Entendre? Booyah!). My advice to a lot of you in the area: when choosing the movie you wish to watch, make sure to choose a time when you know staff are going to pay attention. On our part, it was almost the end of Kick-Ass’ run in cinemas, and we chose a day and time when things were empty and non-eventful. So, I part with my wisdom. Don’t do what we did.

ANYWAY!

What do I think of Kick-Ass? What do you think? It seriously kicked ass. Though it was adapted from a graphic novel, like many superhero films, it fit an entire universe without over-complicating the story. I loved the simplicity of it and how in essence it was a parody of most superhero genres in comic books and the like. It had enough action to keep you on your toes and enough hilarity to keep you on your seat. I say Aaron Johnson played a really convincing hero with his awkward geeky interpretation of Dave and his alter ego Kick-Ass, which is usually the endearing factor that pulls you in. I found him almost cute, which is the type of feel one should have for the main protagonist of superhero geekydom. Christopher Mintz-Plasse’s role as the spoilt and rich Chris D’Amico was a pleasant change in pace as well as Marc Strong’s Frank D’Amico. What superhero story is without their rich and corrupted political/economical/social figures? They’d be empty without them. Nicholas Cage’s Big Daddy was comical. Cool, but comical. Not saying that he was bad in the role, far from that. He portrayed it extremely well. I guess the ‘child’ statement was throwing me off. But at the end of the day, Chloe Moretz’s Hit Girl took the show. She was amazing! Personally, I don’t care what people criticise about her role, she literally kicked ass.

Despite all of this, and I hate to say it, but it felt… weird… half way through. No, it wasn’t because of the resolution stuff up, but I began seeing parallels between Kick-Ass and Spider-Man… Red Mist with Robin (eventually turning into a Spider-Man villain-like figure)… Hit Girl with Batgirl… and of course Big Daddy obviously was a take off of Batman. It was obvious through dialogue as well, which made it all the more amusing. Real comic book heroes exist, but only in fantasy. This was an extremely gritty, bloody, yet real take on superhero ideals from the most human perspective it can get. Now I know what the rave was all about.