Happy New Year 2010 to all readers from AHT!

2010…this sounds just like the future! Good thing we all survived all those third world wars, alien invasions and machine rebellions they announced in the last few decades, huh? I was hoping for personal jetpacks and flying cars, but I guess we’ll have to wait for these a bit longer as well. At least we have some good flicks to look forward to this year, maybe I’ll even manage to write down one of these best-of-2010 ranking lists as well
Personally I will be pretty busy with my job in the next few months (guess that’s a good thing in times like these) but I hope I’ll still find the time to show you some more of what’s going on with those strange little films from all over the world.

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Synopsis

Ji-won Song (Dong-won Kang) is a North Korean resident spy, is contacted by an agent “Shadow” and begins a mission to assassinate a traitor. Hot-tempered South Korean intelligence agent Han-kyu Lee (Kang-ho Song) gets to know such plot from a liaison and attempts to prosecute “Shadow” without permission but fails. As a result Han-kyu resigns from the agency. 6 years later, he operates an investigation agency and come across Ji-won once again. Wanting the bounty for bringing in a Ji-won, Han-kyu offers him a partnership to keep him close. Ji-won assumes that Han-kyu is still the agent and agrees to get rid of his false accusation of a traitor. As they work and live under one roof, they maintain a tight-rope tension but an unusual friendship.

[via Filmsmash & AsianMediaWiki]

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Studio Ghibli meets Pixar…oh, the possibilities!

[Capture taken from this video]

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For those of you who just can’t enough of Japanese cinema, the British publisher Intellect Ltd. currently offers the Directory of World Cinema: Japan film guide as a free ebook download for a limited time. It includes short reviews and synopses for an impressive amount of Japanese films from all genres and periods on over 300 pages.

From the revered classics of Akira Kurosawa to the modern marvels of Takeshi Kitano, the films that have emerged from Japan represent a national cinema that has gained worldwide admiration and appreciation. The Directory of World Cinema: Japan provides an insight into the cinema of Japan through reviews of significant titles and case studies of leading directors, alongside explorations of the cultural and industrial origins of key genres. The cinematic lineage of samurai warriors, yakuza enforcers and atomic monsters take their place alongside the politically charged works of the Japanese new wave, making this a truly unique volume.

[via @wildgrounds]

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Seems like director Mamoru Oshii has regained his love for live-action during his work on his latest film Assault Girls. According to ANN, director of titles Ghost in the Shell, The Sky Crawlers and Avalon revealed in Tokyo during a press conference for Assault Girls that his next film will be a live-action adaptation of Mitsuteru Yokoyama’s classic manga Tetsujin 28 (aka Gigantor).
Imagi Studios are currently working on a CG anime adaptation of the manga named T28, which will (according to IMDb) open in theaters in 2011. Oshii didn’t mention any dates in his announcement, but since he already directed a stage play version of Tetsujin 28-gō featuring a 500kg replica of the giant robot in January I guess we won’t have to wait too long.

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A1-Pictures has just opened the website for their upcoming (Spring 2010) espionage anime Senko no Night Raid and is currently streaming a promo teaser (see below) and a TV spot. The series is set in 1931 during the beginning of the Japanese occupation and tells the story of a special military espionage organisation called “Sakurai Kikan” that operates from Shanghai.

[via ANN]

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Good things hopefully come to those who wait. Over 1 1/2 years after the first announcement back in May 2008, the release date for Kino International’s Blu-ray Disc release of Fallen Angels has finally been revealed. According to Amazon.com, Wong Kar-Wai’s 1995 drama will hit the US shelves on March 16, 2010. Originally the film was supposed to be the first Blu-ray Disc title from the independent label to be released in Autumn 2008, but since the announcement other titles have already been released. Luckily those haven’t been region locked, so I guess/hope Fallen Angels will be region free as well.
[via Blu-ray.com Forum]

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As a small Christmas present, Japanese director, animator, voice actor and alleskönner Makoto Shinkai (Voices of a Distant Star, The Place Promised in Our Early Days and 5 Centimeters Per Second) has published two concept artworks from his next, yet unnamed animation project. He did not reveal many plot details, but the film will be about a girl heading on a journey.

[via ANN]

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Whatever festive season you may be celebrating, I hope you’ll have the chance to spend some peaceful time with your loved ones with lots of good food and maybe some nice presents. I’ll be with my family for the holidays, so things here will most likely be quieter in the next few days.

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Oh Kevin, quo vadis?

[via Cinema Beacon]

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