Cornell Cinema presents 'Revelations in Recent Asian Cinema'

Cornell Cinema presents the series "Revelations in Recent Asian Cinema," a selection of films new to U.S. shores. The series culminates with a visit by critic and filmmaker Evans Chan on Oct. 25 and 26. Admission is $4.50 general/$4 students and seniors.

Filmmaker and critic Evans Chan will introduce the new Chinese film "Platform" as part of the New York Conference on Asian Studies on Friday, Oct. 26, at 8:45 p.m. in Uris Auditorium.

Until a few years ago, new Asian films were hard to find on these shores. Now Asian films are everywhere, as the highlights of festivals around the world, with more and more titles finding homes with American film distributors. To celebrate, Cornell Cinema has partnered with the Asian studies programs here at Cornell to participate in the annual New York Conference on Asian Studies being held on campus at the end of October.

As a lead-in to the conference, Cornell Cinema will offer three new Asian films.

In "Cure" (Japan, 2001), director Kiyoshi Kurosawa defies the formulaic serial-killer movie with a film about a mysterious and unsettling bond between a police detective and a murderer. "Cure" will be shown Thursday, Oct. 11, at 9:45 p.m. in Willard Straight Theatre and Saturday, Oct. 13, at 7:30 p.m. in Uris Auditorium.

Made by Nagisa Oshima, one of Japan's greatest filmmakers, "Taboo" (Japan, 1999) probes the psychosexual tensions underwriting 1860s samurai culture on the verge of extinction. "Taboo" will be shown Friday, Oct. 12, at 9:45 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 13, at 9:45 p.m.; and Tuesday, Oct. 16, at 7:15 p.m., all screenings in Willard Straight Theatre.

A huge hit at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival, "Nowhere to Hide" (South Korea, 2000) might be last year's art-cult-foreign-crossover film. Two detectives in the Homicide Division of the Korean police force struggle with the violence of their careers as they become pulled into the complexities of an underworld drug cartel. Nowhere to Hide" will be shown Thursday, Oct. 18, at 9:30 p.m. in Willard Straight Theatre, and Saturday, Oct. 20, at 7:15 p.m. in Uris Auditorium.

Cornell Cinema welcomes filmmaker and critic Evans Chan at the Ithaca premiere of his new film, "The Map of Sex and Love" (Hong Kong, 2001). Straight from the Vancouver International Film Festival, "The Map of Sex and Love" is an unusual multi-genre Hong Kong film that mixes stories of homosexual and heterosexual love, and ruminations on a post-handover Hong Kong and Macau. Chan will introduce the film Thursday, Oct. 25, at 9:15 p.m. in Willard Straight Theatre.

Chan also will introduce the Ithaca premiere of "Platform" (China, 2000). Set in Fenyang, Shanxi Province, the film focuses on a group of amateur theater troupe performers whose fate mirrors that of the general population in China as massive socio-economic changes sweep across the mainland. The film was a highlight of last year's New York and Toronto Film Festivals and at Cornell is co-sponsored with the New York Conference on Asian Studies. Chan will introduce "Platform" on Friday, Oct. 26, at 8:45 p.m. in Uris Auditorium. It also will be shown Saturday, Oct. 27, at 7 p.m. in Uris Auditorium, and Sunday, Oct. 28, at 4:30 p.m. in Willard Straight Theatre.

The series concludes with "Himalaya" (France/Nepal, 2000). Nominated for a Best Foreign Film Oscar last year, "Himalaya" is director Eric Valli's first fictional feature, based on the real lives of two Tibetans: Tinle, a chieftain, and Norbou, a religious monk and painter. The film is co-sponsored with the New York Conference on Asian Studies and the Cornell Nepal Student Association. Anthropology Associate Professor Kathryn March will introduce a screening of "Himalaya" on Saturday, Oct. 27, at 7:30 p.m. It also will be shown Sunday, Oct. 28, at 7:30 p.m. and Tuesday, Oct. 30, at 7:15 p.m. All screenings are in Willard Straight Theatre.