Must Buy - (Asia) Far East
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- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsJung Eun-chaeLee Sun-kyunYoo Joon-sangThe secret relationship between a student and a teacher, will their love last?Nobody's Daughter Haewon 누구의 딸도 아닌 해원 ; Cahiers du cinema 2013
- DirectorKore-eda HirokazuStarsMasaharu FukuyamaMachiko OnoYôko MakiRyota is a successful workaholic businessman. When he learns that his biological son was switched with another boy after birth, he faces the difficult decision to choose his true son or the boy he and his wife have raised as their own.Like Father, Like Son そして父になる ; Prix du jury du Festival de Cannes 2013
- DirectorShangjun CaiStarsJianbin ChenHong TaoXiubo WuA man is tracking down the murderer of his brother and this journey in many places made him facing his own troubles.People Mountain People Sea 人山人海 ; Il Leone d'Argento - Premio speciale per la regia 2011
- DirectorWayne WangStarsJeremy IronsGong LiMaggie CheungThe story of Hong Kong, from New Year's Day to June 30th, 1997, when the British left their colony and turned it over to the People's Republic of China.Nominated Leone D'Oro 1997
- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsIsabelle HuppertYoo Joon-sangJung Yu-miA three-tiered story centered on a trio of French tourists visiting the same seaside resort.In Another Country 다른 나라에서 ; Nominated Palme d'Or 2012 ; Cahiers du cinema 2012
- DirectorHsiao-Hsien HouStarsAnnie Shizuka InohGiong LimJack KaoIntended as the concluding film in the trilogy on the modern history of Taiwan began with Beiqing Chengshi (1989), this film reveals the story through three levels: a film within a film as well as the past and present as linked by a young woman, Liang Ching. She is being persecuted by an anonymous man who calls her repeatedly but does not speak. He has stolen her diary and faxes her pages daily. Liang is also rehearsing for a new film that is due to go into production soon. The film, entitled Haonan Haonu, is about a couple Chiang Bi-yu and Chung Hao-tung who returns to China to participate in the anti-Japanese movement in China in the 1940s and are arrested as communists when they go back to Taiwan.Good Men, Good Women 好男好女 ; Nominated Palme d'Or 1995 (HK Cine Fan)
- DirectorNaomi KawaseStarsShigeki UdaMachiko OnoKanako MasudaA care-giver at a small retirement home takes one of her patients for a drive to the country, but the two wind up stranded in a forest where they embark on an exhausting and enlightening two-day journey.The Mourning Forest 殯の森 Mogari no mori ; Grand prix du Festival de Cannes 2007
- DirectorKôhei OguriStarsKeiko MatsuzakaIttoku KishibeMidori KiuchiPeriod drama set in the 1950's about a couple isolating themselves from the outside world as they attempt to salvage their faltering marriage, no matter what the costs, after the husband has an affair.The Sting of Death 死の棘 ; Grand prix du Festival de Cannes 1990
- DirectorXiaoshuai WangStarsYuanyuan GaoBin LiHao QinIn the 1980s, encouraged by the government, a large number of families leave Chinese cities to settle in the poorer regions of the country, in order to develop local industry. The film's main character is a 19 years old girl who lives in the Guizhou province, where her parents have settled. That's where she has grown up, where her friends are and where she first experiences love. But her father believes that their future lies in Shanghai. How can they all keep on living together when they don't share the same dreams ?Shangai Dreams 青红 ; Prix du jury du Festival de Cannes 2005
- DirectorYuan ZhangStarsLin LiuBingbing LiYeding LiTao Lan and Yu Xiaoqin are teenage stepsisters. They go to the same high school, sleep in the same bedroom, but couldn't be more different. The first is wild, a bit of a vagabond, while the other is diligent and studies hard. One day Yu Xiaoqin steals money from her father and puts the blame on Tao Lin, who accidentally kills her sister while attempting to prove her innocence, and is put in jail. 17 years later, a woman by now, she is allowed out and is escorted by a guard to find her home long demolished. The two go to the new address of the ageing parents, and the guard becomes an eyewitness to the difficult reunion and the girl's remorse, the anxiety and fear of the mother and the stepfather's silent struggle to rise above his pain and find forgiveness.Seventeen Years 过年回家 ; Il Leone d'Argento - Premio speciale per la regia 1999
- DirectorTsai Ming-liangStarsMiao TienKang-sheng LeeYi-ching LuA young man develops severe neck pain after swimming in a polluted river; his dysfunctional parents are unable to provide any relief for him or themselves.The River 河流 ; Silberner Bär 1997 ; Cahiers du cinema 1997
- DirectorZiniu WuStarsChong PeipeiQi ZhaoRuolei LiuFive Eighth-Route army soldiers induce a isolated Japanese squad to capitulate.Evening Bell 晚钟 ; Silberner Bär/Großer Preis der Jury 1989
- DirectorKim Ki-dukStarsLee EolKwak Ji-minHan Yeo-reumJae-Young is an amateur prostitute who sleeps with men while her best friend Yeo-Jin "manages" her, fixing dates, taking care of the money and making sure the coast is clear. When Jae-Young falls in love with one of those man she suppresses her feelings towards him in respect of her friend who's jealous.Samaritan Girl 사마리아 ; Silver Berlin Bear Best Director 2004
- DirectorHiroshi TeshigaharaStarsEiji OkadaKyôko KishidaKôji MitsuiAn entomologist on vacation is trapped by local villagers into living with a woman whose life task is shoveling sand for them.The Woman in the Dunes 砂の女 (CC)
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsMasayuki MoriMachiko KyôKinuyo TanakaA tale of ambition, family, love, and war set in the midst of the Japanese Civil Wars of the sixteenth century.Ugetsu Monogatari 雨月物語 ; Cahiers du cinema 1959 (CC)
- DirectorTadashi ImaiStarsKinnosuke NakamuraEijirô TônoKyôko KishidaAfter a salary-man's fiancée attempts suicide, he remembers his gruesome family history, which sees his ancestors sacrificing themselves for the sake of their cruel lords, and realizes that he's about to repeat their mistakes.Bushido, Samurai Saga 武士道残酷物語 ; Goldener Bär 1963
- DirectorRentarô MikuniStarsJunkyu MoriyamaMichiyo YasudaAkoIn the 12th century, a young man explores the different schools of Buddhism.Shinran: Path to Purity 親鸞 白い道 ; Prix du jury du Festival de Cannes 1987
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsMachiko KyôMasayuki MoriSô YamamuraIn 8th-century China, the Emperor is grieving over the death of his wife. The Yang family wants to provide the Emperor with a consort so that they may consolidate their influence over the court. General An Lushan finds a close relative working in their kitchen whom they groom to present to the Emperor. The Emperor falls in love with her and she becomes the Princess Yang Kwei-fei. The Yangs are then appointed important ministers, though An Lushan is not given the court position he covets. The ministers misuse their power so much that there is a popular revolt against all the Yangs, fueled by An Lushan.Princess Yang Kwei Fei 楊貴妃 ; Cahiers du cinema 1959
- DirectorKenji MizoguchiStarsNarutoshi HayashiRaizô IchikawaTatsuya IshiguroAfter his father is not rewarded for his military achievements, Taira Kiyomori rebels against the court and the monks who rule the country. He also falls in love with Tokiko and discovers unsettling revelations about his parentage.Shin Heike Monogatari 新・平家物語 ; Cahiers du cinema 1961
- DirectorShôhei ImamuraStarsYoshiko TanakaKazuo KitamuraEtsuko IchiharaThe story of the aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing, based on Masuji Ibuse's novel.Black Rain 黒い雨 ; Cahiers du cinema 1989
- DirectorAkira KurosawaIshirô HondaStarsAkira TeraoMitsuko BaishôToshie NegishiA collection of tales based upon eight of director Akira Kurosawa's recurring dreams.Dreams 夢 ; Cahiers du cinema 1990
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsSachiko MuraseRichard GereHisashi IgawaThree generations' responses to the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.Rhapsody in August 八月の狂詩曲 ; Cahiers du cinema 1991
- DirectorEdward YangStarsChang ChenLisa YangKuo-Chu ChangBased on a true story, primarily on a conflict between two youth gangs, a 14-year-old boy's girlfriend conflicts with the head of one gang for an unclear reason, until finally the conflict comes to a violent climax.A Brighter Summer Day 牯岭街少年杀人事件 ; Cahiers du cinéma 1992
- DirectorTakeshi KitanoStarsTakeshi KitanoAya KokumaiTetsu WatanabeSeveral yakuza from Tokyo are sent to Okinawa to help end a gang war. The war then escalates and the Tokyo drifters decide to lay low at the beach.Sonatine ソナチネ ; Cahiers du cinéma 1995
- DirectorTakeshi KitanoStarsTakeshi KitanoKayoko KishimotoRen ÔsugiNishi leaves the police in the face of harrowing personal and professional difficulties. Spiraling into depression, he makes questionable decisions.Hana-bi はなび ; Leone d'oro 1997 ; Cahiers du cinema 1997
- DirectorHsiao-Hsien HouStarsJieh-Wen KingKuei-Ying HsuAnnie Shizuka InohA glimpse at the lives of two petty criminals in Taipei.Goodbye South, Goodbye 南国再见,南国 ; Cahiers du cinema 1997
- DirectorShôhei ImamuraStarsKoji YakushoMisa ShimizuMitsuko BaishôA businessman kills his adulterous wife and is sent to prison. After the release, he opens a barbershop and meets new people, talking almost to no one except an eel he befriended while in prison.The Eel うなぎ ; Palme d'Or 1997 ; Cahiers du cinema 1997
- DirectorHsiao-Hsien HouStarsTony Leung Chiu-waiMichiko HadaMichelle ReisIn the "flower houses" (upscale brothels) of Shanghai, various interweaving stories of love, loyalty, and deceit play out subtly.Flowers of Shanghai 海上花 ; Cahiers du cinema 1998
- DirectorShôhei ImamuraStarsAkira EmotoKumiko AsôJacques GamblinAt the end of WWII, Japanese doctor Akagi searches for the cure for hepatitis in the prisoner-of-war camp.Kanzô sensei - Dr. Akagi カンゾー先生 ; Cahiers du cinema 1998
- DirectorWang BingThe impact of the decline of heavy industry on workers and their families in the Tiexi district of Shenyang, China, at the turn of the 21st century, documented unflinchingly by a fly-on-the-wall camera.Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks 铁西区 ; Cahiers du cinema 2004, 2000s
- DirectorNaomi KawaseStarsKohei FukungagaYuka HyyoudoNaomi KawaseThe Aso family live in the old town of Nara. One Day, Kei, one of the Aso's twin boys suddenly disappears. Five years later seventeen-year old Shun, the remaining twin, is an art student. He now has to move forward with his life, together with his childhood friend, Yu.Shara 沙羅双樹 ; Cahiers du cinema 2004
- DirectorHsiao-Hsien HouStarsYo HitotoTadanobu AsanoMasato HagiwaraThe story revolves around Yoko Inoue, a pregnant woman in search of a cafe that was frequented by a Taiwanese composer whose life she is researching.Café Lumière 珈琲時光 ; Cahiers du cinema 2004
- DirectorHsiao-Hsien HouStarsShu QiChang ChenFang MeiThree stories set in three times, 1911, 1966 and 2005. Two actors play the two main characters in each story.Three Times 最好的時光 ; Cahiers du cinema 2005
- DirectorZhangke JiaStarsTao ZhaoTaishen ChengJue JingAn exploration on the impact of urbanization and globalization on a traditional culture.The World 世界 ; Cahiers du cinema 2005
- DirectorNobuhiro SuwaStarsTomokazu MiuraMakiko WatanabeRyudai TakahashiTetsuro is living with his young girlfriend Aki in a pleasant house in Tokyo. They both spend a lot of time at their jobs. However their routine is upset when Tetsuro brings his 8 year old son Shun to live with them, while his ex-wife recovers from a car accident. Aki is annoyed because she was not asked, and she knows that she will have to do the bulk of the work in caring for him. This forces Aki to reevaluate her relationship, and decide whether she is to remain a modern working woman, or become a mother.Cahiers du cinema 2000
- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsKim Sang-kyungUhm Ji-wonLee Ki-wooIn Seoul, a suicidal student meets a young woman who decides to join him in his fatal gesture. Tongsu, an unsuccessful filmmaker, spots a beautiful young woman, who happens to be the lead actress in the film he has just seen.Tale of Cinema 극장전 ; Cahiers du cinema 2005
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsSong Kang-hoByun Hee-BongPark Hae-ilA monster emerges from Seoul's Han River and begins attacking people. One victim's loving family does what it can to rescue her from its clutches.괴물 ; Cahiers du cinema 2006, 2000s
- DirectorNobuhiro SuwaStarsValeria Bruni TedeschiBruno TodeschiniNathalie BoutefeuAfter several years of coexistence in Lisbon (Portugal), Nicolas and Marie are about to divorce. However, they decide to go together to Paris for the wedding of one of their best friends. As soon as they arrive, they announce their separation, news that surprises immensely to all, because they were considered the ideal couple.A Perfect Couple 諏訪 敦彦 ; Cahiers du cinema 2006
- DirectorZhangke JiaStarsTao ZhaoZhou LanSanming HanA town in Fengjie county is gradually being demolished and flooded to make way for the Three Gorges Dam. A man and woman visit the town to locate their estranged spouses, and become witness to the societal changes.三峡好人 ; Leone d'oro 2006 ; Cahiers du cinema 2007
- DirectorTsai Ming-liangStarsKang-sheng LeeShiang-chyi ChenNorman AtunA day laborer is badly beaten, and a young man nurses him back to health.I Don't Want to Sleep Alone 黑眼圈 ; Cahiers du cinema 2007
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsKim Hye-jaWon BinJin GooA mother desperately searches for the killer who framed her son for a girl's horrific murder.마더 ; Cahiers du cinema 2010
- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsJung Yu-miLee Sun-kyunJeong Jae-yeongA young woman returning to her old school to visit her professor also runs into her old boyfriend and her senior, each of whom has a past with her.Our Sunhi 우리 선희 ; Cahiers du cinema 2014
- DirectorKiyoshi KurosawaStarsEri FukatsuTadanobu AsanoMasao KomatsuMizuki's husband Yusuke drowned at sea three years ago. When he suddenly comes back home, she is not that surprised. Instead, Mizuki is wondering what took him so long. She agrees to let Yusuke take her on a journey.Journey to the Shore 岸辺の旅 ; Cahiers du cinema 2015
- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsYunhee ChoKwon Hae-hyoKi JoabangThe married Bongwan leaves home in the dark morning and sets off to work. The memories of the woman who left weigh down on him. That day Bongwan's wife finds a love note, bursts into the office, and mistakes Areum for the woman who left.The Day After 그 후 ; Cahiers du cinema 2017
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsYoo Ah-inSteven YeunJeon Jong-seoJong-su bumps into a girl who used to live in the same neighborhood, who asks him to look after her cat while she's on a trip to Africa. When back, she introduces Ben, a mysterious guy she met there, who confesses his secret hobby.Burning 버닝 ; Cahiers du cinema 2018
- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsKim Min-heeSeo Young-hwaJeong Jae-yeongAn actress wanders around a seaside town, pondering her relationship with a married man.On the Beach at Night Alone 밤의 해변에서 혼자 ; Cahiers du cinema 2018
- DirectorYimou ZhangStarsYou GeGong LiBen NiuAfter Fugui and Jiazhen lose their personal fortunes, they raise a family and survive difficult cultural changes during 1940s to 1970s China.To live 活著 ; Grand prix du Festival de Cannes 1994 ; BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language 1995
- DirectorYimou ZhangStarsGong LiPeiqi LiuLiuchun YangA peasant woman seeks justice after the headman of her village has kicked her husband in the groin.The Story of Qiu Ju 秋菊打官司 ; Leone d'oro 1992
- DirectorYimou ZhangStarsMinzhi WeiHuike ZhangZhenda Tian13-year old Wei Minzhi is the new substitute teacher of a mountain village school. She is told not to lose any of her pupils under any circumstances.Not One Less 一个都不能少 ; Leone d'oro 1999
- DirectorHiroshi InagakiStarsToshirô MifuneHideko TakamineHiroshi AkutagawaA poor rickshaw driver finds himself helping a young woman and her son after the woman's husband dies suddenly.Rickshaw Man 無法松の一生 ; Leone d'oro 1958
- DirectorHsiao-Hsien HouStarsTony Leung Chiu-waiShu-Fen HsinSung-Young ChenThe story of a family embroiled in the "White Terror" that was wrought on the Taiwanese people by the Kuomintang government after their arrival from mainland China in the late 1940s.A City of Sadness 悲情城市 ; Leone d'oro 1989
- DirectorTsai Ming-liangStarsChen Chao-jungKang-sheng LeeKuei-Mei YangThree lonely young denizens of Taipei unknowingly share an apartment used for sexual trysts.Vive L'Amour 愛情萬歲 ; Leone d'oro 1994
- DirectorYimou ZhangStarsGong LiWen JiangRujun TengWhen a leprous winery owner in 1930s China dies a few days after his arranged marriage, his young widow is forced to run the winery to make a living while contending with bandits, her drunkard lover, and the invading Japanese army.Red Sorghum 红高粱 ; Goldener Bär 1988
- DirectorFei XieStarsSiqin GaowaYujuan WuKesheng LeiThe tragedies of two Chinese country women: a wealthy sesame oil seller and her daughter-in-law, married to her son.Woman Sesame Oil Maker 香魂女 ; Goldener Bär 1993
- DirectorQuan'an WangStarsNan YuBa'toerSen'geSet in Inner Mongolia, a physical setback causes a young woman to choose a suitor who can take care of her, as well as her disabled husband.Tuya's Marriage 图雅的婚事 ; Goldener Bär 2007
- DirectorKei KumaiStarsEiji OkudaKen WatanabeTakahiro TamuraDowned American fliers in WWII are vivisected by Japanese surgeons in cruel medical experiments.The Sea and Poison 海と毒薬 ; Silberner Bär/Großer Preis der Jury 1987
- DirectorChangwei GuStarsJing AnLi FengChangwei GuChina in the late 1970s and early 1980s: the life of an ordinary working family as seen through its three siblings.Peacock 孔雀 ; Silberner Bär/Großer Preis der Jury 2005
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsSol Kyung-guMoon So-riAhn Nae-sangAn irresponsible and childish ex-con befriends a girl with cerebral palsy and develops a progressively stronger bond with her.Oasis 오아시스 ; Il Leone d'Argento - Premio speciale per la regia 2002
- DirectorKim Ki-dukStarsLee Seung-yunJae HeeHyuk-ho KwonA transient young man breaks into empty homes to partake of the vacationing residents' lives for a few days.3-Iron 빈집 ; Il Leone d'Argento - Premio speciale per la regia 2004
- DirectorTsai Ming-liangStarsKang-sheng LeeKuei-Mei YangYi-ching LuAn alcoholic man and his two young children barely survive in Taipei. They cross path with a lonely grocery clerk who might help them make a better life.Stray Dogs ˈ郊遊 ; Leone d'argento - Gran premio della giuria 2013
- DirectorYôjirô TakitaStarsMasahiro MotokiRyôko HirosueTsutomu YamazakiSoon after buying an expensive cello, Daigo learns that his orchestra is disbanding. He moves back to his hometown with his wife, where he answers an ad for what Daigo thinks is a travel agency but is, in actuality, a mortuary.Departures おくりびと ; Academy Award winner for Best International Feature Film 2008
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsKim Min-heeHa Jung-wooCho Jin-woongA woman is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, but secretly she is involved in a plot to defraud her.The Handmaiden 아가씨 ; BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language 2018
- DirectorEric KhooStarsTheresa Poh Lin ChanChiew Sung ChingLawrence Yong"Be with Me" consists of three stories of love vs. solitude : 1) An aging, lonesome shopkeeper doesn't believe in life anymore, ever since his wife died. But he is saved from desperation by reading an autobiographical book and meeting its author, a deaf and blind woman of his own age. 2) Fatty, a security guard in his fifties, lives for two things: good food and love for a pretty executive living in his block of flats. But, if it is easy to satisfy his first need, winning the heart of the distant belle is a horse of another color. 3) Two teenage schoolgirls get to know each other on the Internet. Soon they fall in love.Cahiers du cinema 2005
- DirectorApichatpong WeerasethakulStarsNantarat SawaddikulJaruchai IamaramSophon PukanokStory about director Apichatpong Weerasethakul's parents, who were both doctors, and the director's memories about growing up in the hospital environment.Syndromes and a Century แสงศตวรรษ ; Cahiers du cinema 2007
- DirectorApichatpong WeerasethakulStarsBanlop LomnoiSakda KaewbuadeeHuai DessomA romance between a soldier and a country boy, wrapped around a Thai folk-tale involving a shaman with shape-shifting abilities.Tropical Malady ; Prix du jury du Festival de Cannes 2004 ; Cahiers du cinema 2004, 2000s
- DirectorApichatpong WeerasethakulStarsJenjira PongpasBanlop LomnoiJarinpattra RueangramA group of soldiers in a small town on the Mekong River in northern Thailand are struck with a bizarre sleeping illness.Cemetery of Splendour รักที่ขอนแก่น ; Cahiers du cinema 2015
- DirectorApichatpong WeerasethakulStarsKanokporn TongaramMin OoJenjira PongpasThe story of a love affair that begins during a picnic on the Thai-Burmese border.Blissfully Yours สุดเสน่หา ; Cahiers du cinema 2002
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsChishû RyûChieko HigashiyamaSô YamamuraAn old couple visit their children and grandchildren in the city, but receive little attention.Tokyo Story 東京物語 ; Sight & Sound Critics' Top Ten Poll 2002, 2012 ; Sight & Sound Greatest Films of All Time 2012 (3)
- DirectorYasujirô OzuStarsChishû RyûSetsuko HaraYumeji TsukiokaSeveral people try to talk 27-year-old Noriko into marrying, but all she wants is to keep on caring for her widowed father.Late Spring 晩春 ; Sight & Sound Greatest Films of All Time 2012 (15)
- DirectorAnh Hung TranStarsLe Van LocTony Leung Chiu-waiNu Yên-Khê TranWhen a poor bicycle-taxi driver has his cyclo stolen, he is forced into a life of crime. Meanwhile, his sister becomes a sex worker.Il Leone d'oro 1995
- DirectorShuo WangStarsXiaogang FengXiaopei HuFan XuA middle-aged man raises his son all by himself. He works as the chairman of the labor union and acts the way of putting on airs and cocky style both at work and home. He tries to build good relations with son but it does not work.Golden Leopard 2000
- DirectorXiaolu GuoStarsLu HuangYibo WeiGeoffrey HutchingsThis is the story of Mei, a young woman on a trip from East to West after her escape from her provincial Chinese village. Beginning in Chongqing and a disastrous factory job, Mei soon heads out for London and a marriage to an older man where her entrapment begins anew.Golden Leopard 2009
- DirectorKar-Wai WongStarsTony Leung Chiu-waiZiyi ZhangFaye WongSeveral women enter a science fiction author's life over the course of a few years, after the author has lost the woman he considers his one true love.