Comedy Archives | Otaku No Culture

The Fabulous Filipino Brothers at the LAPAFF!

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

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.

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Come Join the Tiong Bahru Social Club, You’ll Be Happy…

At a glance, Ah Bee (Thomas Pang) joined a cult known as Tiong Bahru Social Club. But In reality, he joined a strata, where the complex and the people who lives there look like they are rejects from THX-1138.

Regal L.A. LIVE:
A Barco Innovation Center
Played Sep 25 6:00 pm

Please check this film’s Facebook page for future screenings.

From Fantasia 2021 to the Los Angeles Pacific Asian Film Festival, I’m sure there’ll be more stops Bee Thiam Tan Tiong Bahru Social Clubwill make a stop at as it tours the film festival circuit and recruits. At a glance, Ah Bee (Thomas Pang) joined a cult. In reality, he joined a strata, where the complex and the people who lives there look like they are rejects from THX-1138.

The concept is far from it. This film’s quirky and pastel coloured 50s sci-fi vibe permeates through half of this comedy of errors. It’s set in a not so far-off future in Singapore, where closed communities are managed by artificial intelligences and data analysts who think happiness can be easily made. But when Bee gets promoted to manage the place, he gets in over his head. Life is not as pleasing or easy.

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Many Myths Are Abound in Saint Narcisse

Saint-Narcisse, is Bruce LaBruce’s spin on a well known Grecian myth with a dash of horror and delight added on top.

Vancity Theatre beginning Sept 17, 2021 (please click link for showtimes)
1181 Seymour St
Vancouver, BC

Knowing who Bruce LaBruce is as a maverick storyteller can prepare those new to his world on what to expect. This avant-garde filmmaker is known for his very explicit sexually charged style and his movies are often about gays rather than the blending of pop culture genres. Not everyone will want to watch his take on zombies and vampires. His latest, Saint-Narcisse, is his spin on a well known Grecian myth with a dash of horror and delight added on top.

This film is an amusing expansion on the story of Narcissus. Dominic (Félix-Antoine Duval) is obsessed with his looks. He had enough sexual encounters with both genders, but after meeting a female Cyclops of sorts, he can’t help but feel something dreadful is coming. He doesn’t know who the phantom face he sees is. He’s haunted by it. Eventually, he’ll visit the sleepy town of Saint-Narcisse de-Beaurivage in Quebec to get answers.

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When is a MMO not an MMO When We Have to Free Guy?

Reynolds is a charmer in the same style as Chris Reeve’s Superman, but only done in reverse in Free Guy.

Spoiler Alert

Part of the success to Free Guy is due to the writing team of Matt Lieberman and Zak Penn. Both would’ve known about Disney’s TRON and they may have been influenced by its deeper narrative. The world Guy (Ryan Reynolds) lives in is familiar enough. I wondered if a few concepts were taken from the classic.

Our dorky hero in this movie is an artificial intelligence who is becoming self-aware. He knows there’s more to life and his job as a bank teller. He’s the target in robberies and for once, decides to fight back. I recognized elements of the beloved cult film more so in how smart Guy becomes as the film develops. Director Shawn Levy helps add even more hints by saying we need a tank here and a Recognizer (a helicopter) crash and we have a story which I’ll gladly watch repeatedly.

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[Fantasia 2021] Dreaming About “Strawberry Mansion” and those Fields too…

Strawberry Mansion is a unique film. As a viewer and analyst fascinated with how the mind makes sense of reality through dream, this movie tries to provide some food for thought.

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Writers/Directors Albert Birney and Kentucker Audley may well have been listening to The Beatles song, “Strawberry Fields Forever” when they came up with the story for Strawberry Mansion. There’s an 80s nostalgic quality in this film’s design. Part of it is because it was filmed that way, and the other with the set design. Another layer includes 50s style science fiction elements set against a 80s fantasy in a mostly character driven drama about what makes Arabella Isadora (Penny Fuller) tick.

She’s a widow, and all the dreams she’s catalogued are being audited. In the future, there’s technology which allows people to record their dreams. As for why anyone would want to, the reasons aren’t entirely clear. It’s definitely offered to those who want to look back at their lives. However, I don’t think she’s strapping the Doc Brown (Back to the Future) invention on just so she can collect all those subconscious thoughts. Neither has this film once said she’s using it herself to make sense of her past.

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[Fantasia 2021] Building a “Kratt” to Conquer Boredom

Kratt is one of those types of horror comedies that I can see underperforming because not everyone is familiar with Estonian folklore.

Fantasia Film Festival 2021
Screening Online until Aug 25, 2021
Tickets can be purchased here.

Kratt is one of those types of horror comedies that I can see underperforming because not everyone is familiar with Estonian folklore. Technically, there is no creature to fear. Instead, it’s what the kids fear as they spend a summer without technology, and at grandmother’s house! They can’t run away, but find friends to play with.

Writer/director Rasmus Merivoo crafted a wickedly funny fable which considers what tweens can do when left on their own. They’ll have to create their own entertainment and after making local friends, they find a spell book and make a golem. However, unlike the traditional Jewish servant of lore, who is inherently neutral, answering to their master’s commands, the Kratt will deviate when no further work is asked of it. It’ll turn on their master and kill.

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