8/13/2019 Pinoy Sunday

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F R I D A Y , M A Y 7 , 2 0 1 0 T A I P E I T I M E S

16 A R O U N D T O W N

BYIAN BARTHOLOMEW

STAFF REPORTER

Daybreakers, despite its

disastrous finish, has plentyto offer in its new take on thevampire genre. To begin with, thevampires are the establishmentwho hunt and farm humans for

their blood, and regular people,those who dont require a constantsupply of human blood to survive,

are on the run.Being in control has itsdownside, which in the case ofDaybreakersis that the supply offresh human blood has becomestrictly limited as humans arehunted to extinction, and thoseon the poverty line of vampiresociety are not getting enough.Being undead a categoryof beings such as vampires,ghouls, mummies, all of which

are familiar to the fantasy gamingfraternity and thereforeimmortal, they cannot simplydie of starvation. Instead theytransform into sub-vampiresof enormous strength and

ferociousness, that are bothpathetic and terrifying, and

which prey on respectablevampire society.

The Spierig Brothershave turned the vampire

movie into an allegory for theblood-sucking tendencies ofmodern consumerist society,

but they remain true to the rulesof the horror genre, and thissocial agenda is kept firmly inthe background for those whowant it. Otherwise,Daybreakersworks perfectly well as a regularhorror flick, and there is plenty ofspurting blood and disembodiedlimbs to keep gore-fest fans happy.

Ethan Hawke is EdwardDalton, a vampire hematologistsearching for a blood substitutefor vampires so they can stoppreying on the dwindling humanpopulation. He has a soft spot forhumans, having been betrayedinto his vampire existence byhis brother, who has joined thevampire military elite. This littlesubplot is of minor interest, andits attempts to become the mainemotional engine of the movie aresomething of a failure.

Human society is represented

by Willem Dafoe as Lionel Cormacand Claudia Karvan as AudreyBennett, survivors of the vampireholocaust who are working tore-form human communities. Dafoeapplies his considerable dramatictalents to making this humanresistance fighter something a littlemore than a cipher, and Karvan

gives tank tops and jeans a speciesof counter-culture chic. She alsoknows how to handle a crossbow.

The original conceit, whichhas vampire society searchingfor a dwindling supply of humanblood and dealing with a crisis ofblood-deprived sub-siders, whoinhabit the subway and drainage

system of the city, is cleverand well-realized. It helps thatvampires are generally the best

dressed of the undead Goth-style white foundation, ruby redlips and just the hint of fangsmake for an interesting fashionstatement. The strong openingraises expectations, but theseare not realized as the SpierigBrothers veer into the predictablecliches of a guy-meets-girlromance, father-finds-daughtertragedy, and a final twist thatfollows a straight and narrowscript-writing 101 formula.

The lazy ending is not helpedby the fact that a sequel is beingset up the creative energyofDaybreakerswas expendedafter about the first hour of thefilm. Its definitely worth seeingfor science fiction and horrorfans, but despite a more seriousveneer, this film should not bemistaken for more than a bit oflight entertainment.

You show me a bloodsucker, and Ill show you a capitalistThe high-concept Daybreakers skirts B-movie territory with skill until wiping out in the final quarter, though its still good value both for splatter and ideas

F I L M R E V I E W

F I L M R E V I E W

The Cove

A documentary about an industry thatkills thousands of dolphins every yearthat combines elements of the heistmovie with agitprop. National Geographicphotographer Louie Psihoyos makes hisfilmmaking debut with this Oscar-winningmovie in which a team infiltrates a cove on the coast of Japan wheredolphins are captured for sale to aquariums, or slaughtered for meat.

Beautifully photographed using military-grade surveillance equipment,and features Richard OBarry, the dolphin-trainer from theFlipperTVseries who is now a passionate dolphin activist.

Venerable Jian Zhen ()

This animation, produced by DaAiTelevision (), a Buddhistbroadcaster affiliated with the BuddhistCompassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation (), has already receiveda huge reception in pre-release screenings,admittedly mostly among the faithful. The story is interesting and littleknown, dealing with the Tang Dynasty monk Jian Zhen (), who iscredited as one of the most important transmitters of Buddhist teachingto Japan. His epic six attempts to get to Japan, in which he lost hissight and a number of close followers, is regarded as second only to thejourney of Tripitaka to India in the annals of great sojourns made byBuddhist monks. The production is based on five years of painstakingresearch, and features more than 130 characters, many based on originaldescriptions, all in an effort to give as accurate an historical account aspossible. In addition to bolstering Buddhism as part of Japans religiousestablishment, Jian Zhen is credited with inspiring the formation ofJapans Ritsu school of Buddhism and introducing many aspects of TangDynasty science and culture to Japan.

Ricky

A film about a child who sprouts wingsmight sound like a comedy, but in the caseofRicky, by art house director FrancoisOzon, it is anything but. With Ricky, Ozon,who has created dense and thoughtfulwork such as 8 Femmes(2002) and TheSwimming Pool(2003), pushes further off into the deep end. Thedirectors attempt to blend a gritty, realist portrait of working-classparenthood and an allegorical tale of a child who is forever taking offfor the freedom of the skies is not without some very grave problems,yet its sense of ambiguity and some fine acting makes Rickyappealing.

Hot Tub Time Machine

This week sees a number of comedyreleases, but not many laughs. The bestof the bunch is probablyHot Tub TimeMachine, which might get the votes ofthe type of audience members who gotoff on The Hangover.Hot Tub TimeMachinereturns to the 1980s, and nostalgia for the clothes, haircutsand music of that period could work for the over 30s r evisiting theirmisspent youths. John Cusack, among others, gets to do just that, as

the filmmakers exploit virtually every paradox and social awkwardnessthat can be generated from a well-worn time travel scenario. This isfar from the height of Cusacks generally strong track record, but for abuddy movie over a couple of beers, you could do worse.

The Backup Plan

Jennifer Lopez is still trying to make itback into mainstream cinema, but this newrelease reveals that she is in more needthan ever of a backup plan to kick-starther celluloid career. The whole conceptof The Backup Plan, which presents J-Loas a single woman who finalizes her artificial insemination plans onthe same day that she meets the man of her dreams i n this caseAustralian hunk Alex OLoughlin seems off-puttingly gynecological,and is only made worse by a script and acting that has made-for-TVwritten all over them. Some good supporting performances, but nochemistry in the lead roles.

Furry Vengeance

More attempts at comedy, this timewith animals and Brendan Fraser. In athrowback to Over the Hedge(2006), thefilm follows a bunch of animals trying tosurvive in the face of human encroachmentinto their natural habitat. This time theanimals are real, though much assisted by CGI technology, and theydo not talk. Thats left to Fraser and Brooke Shields, who are planningto build a green community, at the expense of most of the green andthe animals in the area. The humor in Furry Vengeanceseems tolargely rely on Fraser coming off worst in increasingly absurd run-inswith various species of animal. Children over 5 are likely to find theirintelligence insulted.

OTHER RELEASESCOMPILED BY IAN BARTHOLOMEW

DAYBREAKERS

DIRECTED BY:

THE SPIERIG BROTHERS

STARRING:

ETHAN HAWKE (EDWARD DALTON),

WILLEM DAFOE (LIONEL CORMAC),

CLAUDIA KARVAN (AUDREY

BENNETT), MICHAEL DORMAN

(FRANKIE DALTON), VINCE COLOSIMO

(CHRISTOPHER CARUSO), ISABEL

LUCAS (ALISON BROMLEY) AND SAM

NEILL (CHARLES BROMLEY)

RUNNING TIME:

98 MINUTES

TAIWAN RELEASE:

TODAY

Hidden in plain sight

The tables are turned in this novel sl ant on the vampire genre. PHOTOS COURTESYOF VIEVISIONPICTURES

Born and raised inMalaysia, educated inNorth America andhaving worked andlived in Taipei for the

past nine years, Ho Wi-ding () knows what it is to be anoutsider. This no doubt is partof the reason why the directorspent the past four yearspreparing, raising money forand makingPinoy Sunday(), a humorous tongue-in-cheek peek at the life ofoverseas Filipino workers(OFWs) in Taipei whose storiesare rarely told.

The film centers on Manuel(Epy Quizon) and Dado (BayaniAgbayani), two Filipinos whowork in a bicycle factory ina Taipei suburb. Their life atthe plant entails six days ofdrudgery. Then there is Sunday.Like other Filipino migrantworkers, the two friends makelong bus trips to Taipeis LittleManila on Zhongshan NorthRoad () where they goto church, hang out with theirfellow countrymen, have funand flirt with girls.

On one particular Sunday,Manuel and Dado discover asofa thats been discarded on asidewalk. Excited about how thecouch could bring a measure of

comfort to their drab dormitorylife, the pair decide to carry, onfoot, their precious find acrosstown, out of the city and back tothe factory.

What is supposed to be

a day of rest turns into anadventure in which the twowayfarers encounter variouscharacters as they trek throughTaipeis urban hinterland.

Pinoy Sundayshows adifferent side of Taipei that isforeign to most of the citysinhabitants. Instead of Sogodepartment stores and Eslitebookstores, our protagonistsvisit St Christophers CatholicChurch and Chin Wan Wan() market, where OFWshang out, shop and seekentertainment. On their returnjourney, they pass by junkyardsand public housing complexesin Taipeis desolate outskirtsen route to their home in thecitys fringe, which is far awayfrom Taipei 101, as Bayanischaracter points out.

Through the lens of Americancinematographer Jack Pollack,the image of two men carrying abright red couch against a sparserural/urban backdrop deliversa visual contrast that is bothamusing and absurd.

To me, this image is verythird-world-country, and it canhappen anywhere in the world.Imagine two Mexicans or acouple of poor foreign studentscarrying a sofa on the streetsof Los Angeles, said Ho, who

has also made two shorts withPollack,Respire(, 2005),which won two awards atCannes, andSummer Afternoon(, 2008). The two havebeen friends since their days as

students at New York University.When Ho decided to bring to

life an image inspired by RomanPolanskis 1958 short Two Menand a Wardrobethrough a taleof Filipino migrant workers,he embarked on an intenseyear-long research project thatinvolved hanging out with OFWsat Taipeis Little Manila andsimilar communities. It is likean ethnographic film project.You go into a tribe, observe,collect facts and make a report,Ho told the Taipei Times.

But instead of making a slice-of-life portrait or poignant socialcritique like film critic-turned-director Rich Lee () does inDetours to Paradise(),Ho goes for a lighthearted andhumorous tone, opting to depictthe sunnier side of the livesof migrant workers, who singkaraoke, laugh, relax and can bethemselves on their days off.

The discrimination and otherforms of injustice inflicted onthem by Taiwanese societydo lurk beneath the surface,nevertheless, and are oftenrendered in comic absurdity.One example can be found inthe films most poetic moment,when Manuel and Dado, lostand exhausted on a riversideat dusk, panic over the thought

of missing the factorys curfew,which could lead to them beingdeported. A dreamlike musicalsequence follows, showing thetwo friends floating down theriver, singing, drumming and

playing guitar on their couch asif they were taking a boat tripback to their seaside hometown.

The film may be upbeatin tone, but the prospect ofit reaching a great number ofaudiences is not. Despite thefavorable reviews the film hasreceived after it premieredat the Taipei Golden HorseFantastic Film Festival () last month, only twomovie theaters, Spot TaipeiFilm House () and VieShow Cinemas Xinyi (), have agreed to showPinoySunday. Most movie theatershung back when they heard thestory is about OFWs, and staffat one theater went so far asto say they didnt want foreignmigrant workers hangingaround in front of the theater,according to Ho.

Moreover, the dominantFilipino language spoken bythe leading characters alsomade the film, a recipient ofthe governments SubsidyFor Film Production (), run into trouble with theGovernment Information Office(GIO,), which issuesthe money. Because one ofthe subsidys rules states thatChinese dialects should be thedominant languages spoken

in government-funded films,an additional copy of the filmwas dubbed in Taiwanese, andseveral commercial screeningsof it are required.

I think it comes down

to whether the GIO wantsto encourage creativity orbureaucracy. Wed like todiscuss with the [GIO] howto make the r egulations moreflexible for movies about newimmigrants, Ho said.

Foreign migrant workerswith ID cards can buy movietickets at a discount price ofNT$150. Visit pinoysunday.pixnet.net/blog/post/6207639to find out which six theatersare screeningPinoy SundayinTaipei, Jhongli (), Tainan,Douliu () and Kaohsiung.

PINOY SUNDAY

DIRECTED BY:

HO WI-DING ( )

STARRING:

EPY QUIZON (MANUEL),

BAYANI AGBAYANI (DADO),

ALESSANDRA DE ROSSI (CECILIA),

MERYLL SORIANO (ANNA)

RUNNING TIME:

85 MINUTES

LANGUAGE:TAGALOG, ILONGGO, ENGLISH,

TAIWANESE AND MANDARIN WITH

CHINESE AND ENGLISH SUBTITLES

TAIWAN RELEASE:

TODAY

Pinoy Sunday will most likely not be playing at a theater near you because its subject is Taiwans

migrant workers a topic most cinemas think will be of little interest to mainstream audiences

BY HO YI

STAFF REPORTER

Bayani Agbayani, left, andEpy Quizon star in PinoySunday, directed by HoWi-ding.

PHOTO COURTESYOF GOODDAYS FILM