"Small spaces can be made to be very dramatic and beautiful and affordable to pull off," [homeowner Ed McHugh] said. "Many people do not have the luxury of having large, expansive spaces."
Drug War belongs to a subgenre that’s particular to [director Johnnie] To: crime movies that blend real-world details with oddball characters and narrative left turns, resulting in something that feels both realistic and heightened. Set in the mainland city of Jinhai, Drug War follows a group of narcotics agents who score a big break when they arrest Louis Koo, a Cantonese meth supplier. Faced with the possibility of the death penalty under China’s strict drug laws, Koo becomes an informant for the police, offering them an even bigger break in exchange for clemency: the chance to nab his boss.The Pittsburgh Filmmakers website has information on showtimes, with the first screening at 8:00 on Friday and three additional showings through the weekend.
Four girls: each abandoned, each eventually adopted by an American family. Now they are teenagers in American suburbs, a world of minivans and school activities. Each is clearly confident enough to navigate her local terrain. Each is introspective about her roots, curious about her origins, though perhaps not so confident about meeting her birth family, should that possibility arise.Somewhere Between will be shown at 7:30 pm, September 16, in 1500 Posvar Hall (map) on the University of Pittsburgh campus. It's free, and include discussion from three speakers. See the flyer above for more on the screening, and the movie's official website for more on the documentary.
The movie explores the psychology of being immigrant in American society. The young women have that consciousness that minority status in America forces. Immigrants are simultaneously insiders and outsiders, always conscious of our identities. The sense of exile from all lands, living somewhere between this and that, is the norm. Many immigrants respond by trying to surrender everything that would be deemed “exotic,” whether it means overcompensation with language, makeup, or even surgery. These girls, however, seem exceptionally comfortable in their own skins. I suspect much of that has to do with the fact that their experience is an exponentially exaggerated version of the common immigrant experience. But, I suspect that just as much results from their adoptive parents' concerns in raising them. One mother learned Chinese, while all the parents seem to take their adoptive daughters back to China, almost annually.
a hypnotically beautiful dream from the Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-wai, opens with curls of smoke, eddies of water and men soaring and flying across the frame as effortlessly as silk ribbons. The men are warriors, street fighters with furious fists and winged feet, who have massed together on a dark, rainy night to take on Ip Man (Tony Leung), a still figure in a long coat and an elegant white hat. Even amid the violent whirlpools of rain and bodies, that hat never leaves his head. It’s as unyielding as its owner.Tony Normon writes today in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that Zhang Ziyi's performance was "so luminous that I considered myself lucky to be alive to enjoy [it]."
an anime, gaming, new media, and Japanese culture con taking place in Erie, Pennsylvania on September 20, 21, and 22, 2013. The location is the Reed Student Union of Behrend College, 4701 College Drive, Erie, Pennsylvania, 16563. Events include live music by the Waddledees, video gaming of all eras, an anime dance party, cosplay masquerade, geekpop karaoke, drawing, crafting, fan-run panels and more! Our focus is on creativity and participation. Passes are available at the door...$10 per day ($5 with Behrend student ID), $20 all weekend ($10 with Behrend ID).
