Saturday, June 29, 9:30 pm, Roxie Theatre
唐朝綺麗男 (The Glamorous Boys of Tang), dir. 蘇匯宇 Su Hui-yu, 2019, Taiwan, 15m, no dialogue • North American Première 😐
Self Destructive Boys, dirs. Marco Leão & André Santos, 2018, Portugal, 27m, in Portuguese with subtitles • Bay Area Première 😐
Ultra pulpe (Apocalypse After), dir. Bertrand Mandico, 2018, France, 37m, in French with subtitles • Bay Area Première 👍👎🏼
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| 唐朝綺麗男 (The Glamorous Boys of Tang) |
In 1985, near the end of martial law in Taiwan, a renowned filmmaker created The Glamorous Boys of Tang, but, due to budget limitations and/or official censorship, some scenes were never committed to film. This work is a reimagining of some of those scenes, with stylized sexuality, death, and twirling umbrellas. The film itself, however, offers none of that context for its bizarre and sometimes disturbing visuals. Unless you’re a student of Taiwanese film history, you’ll probably be lost without a reference point to guide you. The cinematography is beautiful, but not enough to enthusiastically recommend it. Tepidly recommended. • IMDb • trailer (vimeo) • official •
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| Self Destructive Boys |
Self Destructive Boys
In Portugal, a photographer for an adult website takes a group of men out into the forest for a highly homoerotic shoot. The three models are nominally straight, but have to confront the limits of their sexuality versus what they’re willing to do for a job. They talk at some length, but I didn’t find the conversation very engaging. Not bad, so another tepidly recommended. • IMDb • trailer (vimeo) • official •
Ultra pulpe (Apocalypse After)
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| Ultra pulpe (Apocalypse After) |
Bizarre and intentionally disturbing imagery of a filmmaker and an actress creating and eroticizing some exceedingly dark fantasy scenes. Says the actress, “[J]e brûle de désir et de degoût.” (I burn with desire and disgust.) Says the filmmaker, “Je suis la cinéaste la plus mal-aimée de sa génération … Le cinéma est un singe qui baise sa muse, aveuglé par le projecteur.” (I am the most hated filmmaker of my generation … The cinema is a monkey that fucks its muse, blinded by the projector.) The dialogue consists of intertwined layers of French philosophy with random new topics thrown in seemingly at random. The bottom line is that if the first sentence above didn’t send you running for the exits, you’ll probably enjoy this film, and it is well done from the technical viewpoint, but for general audiences I certainly could NOT RECOMMEND.
• IMDb • teaser trailer (vimeo) •
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