Tag: 2021

Tim Curry to Headline Emerald City Comic Con!

Tim Curry - Sonic RetroDec 2 to 5, 2021
Washington State Convention Center

The winter edition of Emerald City Comic Con is certainly heating up! In about three weeks, Tim Curry will grace the green stage with stories and fond memories of his work in films like The Rocky Horror Picture Show, IT and many more.

Despite a stroke which left him partially paralyzed and affected his ability to speak, he’s still able to perform and focuses more on voice-acting than being in front of the camera. This talent has been in the forefront of many fond animated works in the past and continues to do more work in the present. He was Mr. Curry in Paddington Bear, offered the occasional pain to Peter Pan and the Pirates as Captain James T. Hook and voiced Konk in Pirates of the Dark Water. He often continued to be a ‘mad doctor’ of sorts in many a cartoon, like Doctor Moroco in Transformers: Rescue Bots.

But its the live action works he’s best and fondly remembered for.

Those able to make it to Seattle’s seminal fandom exposition will be in for a thrill. Though not many remember his time in the recording studio making music, it’ll always be his forays into this scene that defined this man as a true entertainer.

 

Tanagokoro: A Culinary Portrait on Changing the Fishing Industry

After Devour! Film Festival, Tanagokoro: A Culinary Portrait is headed to the Vancouver Asian Film Festival, and it’s message needs to keep spreading.

TanagokoroBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Vancouver Asian Film Festival
Nov 4-13, 2021
International Shorts Program
Available to watch anywhere in Canada from 11/11/2021 11:00 am to 11/13/2021 11:59 pm

Japanese chef Yoshinori Ishii is more than a trendsetter. He’s out to change the industry in Tanagokoro: A Culinary Portrait.

After a terrific introduction to the man and how he earned his Michelin star (while he was in tenure in London’s Umu), the reason he earned massive respect is because he gives everyone some wisdom. That is, to be a top masterchef, he’ll only ethically harvest food the traditional Japanese way. 

The United Kingdom’s transition to a new method of catch and slaughter was not overnight. He wrote many letters and chatted with various fishmongers and leaders in industry to change how things are done. He used his passion and gift of gab to sway heads, and that’s the true focus of this documentary. This gentle man is the embodiment of Buddha and he’s done more than started change in one country. His teachings are spreading and hopefully soon, there’ll be more converts.

Continue reading “Tanagokoro: A Culinary Portrait on Changing the Fishing Industry”

The Fabulous Filipino Brothers at the LAPAFF!

The stories within a story take place with a wrapping narrative of someone getting married.

Items- Rukus Avenue Music GroupBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Aratani Theatre @ JACCC
Oct 2, 2021
8:00 pm

Dante Basco‘s wicked sense of humour, or love of his own family dynamic in The Fabulous Filipino Brothers, defines much of his life in the streets of Pittsburg, California. The question of how much was real life versus fictionalized has me wondering how this Wonder Years type of film came about. Or should that be Malcolm in the Middle? They’re definitely boyz n the hood, in the non-traditional New York sense, with a touch of hip hop in an excellent soundtrack that I hope gets an album release.

This slice of life comedy about four Filipino brothers is very likable. I want to be part of their pamilya. Between their independence and dependence, their stories look at different sides of dealing with life’s many hurdles. A lot of it deals with inter-personal relationships outside of the homestead. I doubt they are parodies of themselves, but Dante, Dionysio, Derek, and Darion Basco are distinct personalities, and it wonderfully gets played up through the eyes of a camera lens.

Continue reading “The Fabulous Filipino Brothers at the LAPAFF!”

A Closer Look at LAAPFF’s Spirited Away Program

This unique set of eclectic works do more than define humanity’s relationship with Nature. There’s spirits, wisdom and counter-culture to be found in each.

Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival - FilmFreewayBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Regal L.A. LIVE:
A Barco Innovation Center
1000 W Olympic Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90015

Sept 29, 2021
9:00 pm

Thematically, the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival’s Spirited Away shorts program is an apt title to describe a set of works that deals with spirituality. It’s a topic few understand when they are about philosophies from smaller regional areas.

Udval Altangerel is a Mongolian filmmaker whose works explore anthropological subjects, and to introduce this group of films, she wrote for the program guide, “Guided by shamans and ancestral spirits, we traverse the line between the living and the dead, tradition and transformation, fiction and nonfiction.”

This unique set of eclectic works do more than define humanity’s relationship with Nature. There’s spirits, wisdom and counter-culture to be found in each. Fans of slam poetry will like Hinga. This piece argues for change. Unlike the fight to keep Fairy Creek pristine in my neck of the woods, this performance theatre is captured onto film and explores the complexity of what the Filipinx people in the Bay Area are passionate about. They want a utopia that transcends political and geographical barriers. Their message isn’t hard to follow, but it’s the rhythm which sets an unusual pace.

Continue reading “A Closer Look at LAAPFF’s Spirited Away Program”

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3

Sailing Down “The Silent River” Isn’t Easy…

Silent River (2021) - IMDbBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

L.A. Asian Pacifc Film Festival
Regal L.A. LIVE:
A Barco Innovation Center
Sept 25, 2021
5:30 pm

Spoiler Alert

Eliott (West Liang) looks like a man on the run in Chris Chan Lee’s Silent River. After a long drive into the Mojave Desert, he holes up at a motel and is simply waiting. While there, he meets Gretta (Amy Tsang) and she’s a mystery. Not only does she resemble someone he is looking for, but her agenda is straight out of time. She’s from the future and searching for Patrick. Their separate agendas collide, and their reluctance to help each other out makes for a very intriguing film.

Although this work is billed as science fiction, I’m enjoying the supernatural bits more. Eliott hears things, and he doesn’t know where they come from. He can see things others don’t, and we’re uncertain if he’s going crazy or not. Liang plays up the apocryphal Lovecraftian type of character, someone too curious for his own good; and the suggestion that others have “moved on” makes me think I’m watching a very unconventional ghost story.

Continue reading “Sailing Down “The Silent River” Isn’t Easy…”

%d bloggers like this: