The Cinemanila International Film Festival

The country's "Festival of Festivals," the Cinemanila International
Film Festival, announces its exciting line-up of films. Some of the
titles to look out for include:

CLEAN (2004, France) by Olivier Assayas
Awards: Best Actress Winner, Cannes Film Festival 2004, Technical
Grand Prize Winner, Cannes Film Festival 2004
Maggie Cheung, in her Cannes winning performance, essays the role of
a woman torn between reaching for her dreams as a singer and facing
reality with a dead husband and a son estranged from her. But Emily
Wang must first find herself before she can make a choice. Clean
follows Emily to Hamilton, Paris, London and San Francisco and in
three languages (English, French and Cantonese), as she battles for
a place in a world reluctant to forget the woman she has been and
unwilling to accept her as the woman she longs to be.

HIDDEN BLADE (2004, Japan) by Yamada Yoji
Hidden Blade is a story about love, friendship and human frailties
set in conflict-torn mid-nineteenth century Japan. The decline of
the warring Shogun and Samurai caste has even affected Unasaka, a
small fiefdom on the country's northwest coast. Three friends,
Yaichiro, Munezo and Samon, with their love ones are caught in
between. Samon marries Munezo's younger sister. Kie is in love with
a married woman. And Yaichiro is to be assassinated by his closest
friend.

THE KING (2005, USA) by James Marsh
Awards: Un Certain Regard, Cannes 2005
Gael Garcia Bernal first gained international recognition in the
film "Y Tu Mama Tambien". He exhibits his dramatic flair once again
in the intense drama, "The King". He is Elvis Sandow, a 21 year old
in search of the father he never knew. His father, David, now lives
the perfect life and wants to have nothing to Elvis. As the story
unfolds, Elvis begin to infiltrate the family, and the stage is set
for the unleashing of violence and tragedy of truly biblical
proportions.

UNTOLD SCANDAL (2005, Korea) by E J-Yong
The country's notorious playboy, played by Winter Sonata Heartthrob
Bae Yong Joon, sets out to conquer the most virtuous woman in the
land. Based on the novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses, "Untold Scandal"
is set in aristocratic18th century Korea at the end of the Chosun
Dynasty. The temptress Lady Cho and the irresistible Jo-won play
their games of seduction and deceit with the innocent Soh-ok and the
virtuous Lady Sook as pawns.

JOINT SECURITY AREA (2000, Korea) by Chan-wook Park
Awards: Golden Berlin Bear-Nominated, Berlin International Film
Festival, 2001
Said to be the biggest blockbuster in Korea, this Korean thriller
mines the historic tension between North and South Korea over
activity in the JSA, the Joint Security Area, a region guarded by
armies from both counties. When two North Korean soldiers are found
dead there, it sets off a political chain of events that threatens
to plunge the countries into war.

THE ISLE (2000, Korea) by Kim Ki Duk
Awards: Netpac Award-Special Mention Winner, Venice Film Festival
2000
The Isle is a dark fantasy that deals in the extremes of obsession,
the vulgar energy that keeps such emotions intense to the point of
sadomasochistic mutilation and the Shangri-la we all desire to find
for sexual bliss, yet retreat from as soon as we become familiar
with it.

BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (2005, USA) by Ang Lee
Awards: Golden Lion Winner, Venice International Film Festival 2005
A raw, powerful story of two young men (played by Hollywood stars
Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal) a Wyoming ranch hand and a rodeo
cowboy, who meet in the summer of 1963 sheepherding in the harsh,
high grasslands of contemporary Wyoming and form an unorthodox yet
life-long bond--by turns ecstatic, bitter and conflicted.

BETTER LUCK TOMORROW (2004, USA) by Justin Lin
Never underestimate an overachiever. Produced by MTV Films, "Better
Luck Tomorrow" tells story of Ben, the perfect Asian American high
school teen. His life takes a sudden turn as he and his friends
tumble into a downward spiral of excitement, excess, fun and lurking
danger. Ben's life careens into an intoxicating mix of sex, drugs
and crime, leading to a surprising end that will leave audiences
ultimately disturbed.

DEAR WENDY (2005, Denmark) by Thomas Vinterberg
Dear Wendy is a story about the young loner Dick who lives in the
poor mining town of Estherslope. When he happens upon a small
handgun one day, he finds himself strangely drawn to it, despite his
fervent pacifist views. Together with his newfound partner he soon
convinces the other young outcasts in the town to join him in a
secret club he calls The Dandies. A club based on the principals of
pacifism and guns. Despite their firm belief in the most important
Dandy rule of all-never draw your weapon-they soon find themselves
in a predicament where they realize that rules are made to be broken.

COLOR BLOSSOMS (2004, Hong Kong) by Yonfan
Set in Hong Kong in the present, Color Blossoms uses the story of a
love affair with sado-masochistic and transsexual elements to
explore themes of desire, suffering, innocence and seduction. The
beautiful Meili. The mysterious Madame Umeki. The bewitching Police
Officer Number 4708. The ethereal Kim. Their twisted affair is
becoming more bizarre by the minute.

TAEGUKGI (2004, Korea) by Je-gyu Kang
A drama about the fate of brothers forced to fight in the Korean
War. Jin-Seok and Jin-Tae, Jin-Seok's brother, are young men who
suddenly find themselves catapulted into a bloody world so different
from their quiet, rural lives. As the war progresses, the war begins
to poison Jin-Tae's mind. Jin-Seok is lost when he finds that he no
longer knows who his brother is.

WAR PHOTOGRAPHER (2001, Switzerland) by Christian Frei
In one of the world's countless crisis areas, surrounded by
suffering, death, violence and chaos, photographer James Nachtwey
searches for the picture he thinks he can publish. A film about a
committed, shy man, who is considered one of the bravest and most
important war photographers of our time - but hardly fits the cliché
of the hard-boiled war veteran.

THE PRESIDENT'S LAST BANG (2005, Korea) by Sang-soo Im
Awards: Cannes Directors' Fortnight Program 2005
This black comedy recreates a private party held at the president's
secret quarters on Octocer 26th, 1979, where Kim Jae-kyu, then chief
of the Korea Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) shot and killed the
president. The film was heavily censored in Korea that drew massive
protests from Korean filmmakers and freedom of speech activists.

These are just some of the featured films at the 7th Cinemanila
International Film Festival. Other titles to anticipate include
Ousmane Sembene's "Moolaade", Mohamed Asli's "In Casablanca Angels
Don't Fly" and the re-screening of Cinemanila classics Fernando
Mereilles' "City of God", Niki Caro's "Whale Rider" and Elia
Suleiman "Divine Intervention".

The 7th Cinemanila International Film Festival, presented by the
City of Manila and the Independent Cinema Association of the
Philippines, runs from October 12 to 25 at SM and Robinson cinemas
in Manila and at selected Metro Manila theaters.