2015 was yet another strong year for movies, so much so that we had over 100 films submitted by our numerous contributors for consideration. In the end, these are the 30 that made the cut for PopOptiq’s Best of the Year. Enjoy! 30.) Shaun the Sheep Aardman Studios is the stop-motion clay animation equivalent …
Another year, another film festival goes by. The 34th Vancouver International Film Festival was 16 days of intense film watching, as I tried to immerse myself in a fleeting atmosphere celebrating the some of the best of contemporary world cinema. And even though VIFF may not boast the prestige or media frenzy of Cannes, TIFF, …
Those coming to The Assassin, the new wuxia from Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-hsien (winner of the Best Director prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival), expecting an all-out action martial arts fest are in for a bit of a rude surprise. There certainly is action, and it carries considerable weight in the story. But rather than glorify the violence, the weight serves to magnify its importance and emphasize its effect upon those involved.
The Assassin Written By Cheng Ah, T’ien-wen Chu, Hsiao-Hien Hou, Hai-Meng Hsieh and Xing Pei Directed by Hsiao-Hsien Hou Taiwan/China/Hong Kong/France, 2015 It’s a tad misleading to define Hsiao-Hsien Hou’s The Assassin as a martial arts movie. Sure, there are moments of intense fighting by people who look like they’re trained in that form of …