Movies
Malaysian director Edward Yeo has found in Japan a very fitting place to produce his dramas. The country has a strong and respected tradition making drama cinema, on the other hand it does make it quite a bit harder to stand out from the crowd. Though Yeo makes a commendable effort, I think that's where he still struggles a bit. Nana Komatsu is a perfect lead, the score and cinematography are very pleasant, and the plot creates ample opportunities for the drama to shine. The only thing missing is a level of finesse and/or nuance that makes the best Japanese dramas more palatable than the competition. It's all a bit too obvious at times, other than that a fine film.Read all
A solid drama that aims to be slightly more poetic than it can muster. Cinematography and score aren't quite strong enough to support the slow pacing and the drama gets a little overbearing because of that. There's quality here though and with a bit of fine-tuning I'm sure that over time Yeo could deliver a masterpiece. Performances are good, the cinematography is decent and the score acceptable, but it all feels a bit too safe. Just a little too predictably arthouse, which made it harder than necessary to get really invested in the characters. The potential is there though, and I'm certain to give Yeo another shot, but I expected a tad more from this one.Read all
60 Seconds of Solitude in Year Zero
Another micro-shorts anthology. They were relatively popular for a while, but they rarely lived up to their potential. With just a single minute to make an impression, directors were given a tricky challenge. One that proved a bit too daunting for most involved, as too many of the entries failed to make an impact. There are some interesting names here, but few of them stand out. The goals of the project are lofty, but it's all very conceptual and the films themselves never really match or strengthen the project's ideals. It's a good thing that the score is pretty interesting, which at least kept me going. Not all that interesting.Read all