In addition to offering unmissable events like the afternoon masterclass by His Majesty Johnnie To and the director's cut of Patrick Tam's Nomad (a milestone of the Hong Kong New Wave!), the penultimate day of the Far East Film Festival 25 brings one of the most anticipated titles in the lineup into the spotlight: Japanese blockbuster The Legend & Butterfly by Otomo Keishi, in Udine for its international premiere. A grand (extremely grand!) story of love and war whose romantic themes are paralleled in the epic and bloody scale of its battles. Made to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Toei production company and set in 16th-century Japan, The Legend & Butterfly sumptuously traverses three decades through the complex lives of its two protagonists: warlord Oda Nobunaga (Kimura Takuya) and his wife Nohime (Ayase Haruka). A vibrant, moving relationship characterized by their witty exchanges, which transforms two
figures from the history books (and, of course, silk paintings) into living, breathing humans.
Moving from Japan to the Philippines, there's also the European preview of Where Is the Lie? by Quark Henares: a sharp, painful tale of transphobia where incurable romantic Janzen, a transgender woman whose vulnerability is exploited for a game of revenge, is subjected to lies and shameless manipulation… The film's two extraordinary protagonists – EJ Jallorina and the diva Maris Racal – will be accompanying the film onto the stage of FEFF 25 together with producer Armi Rae Cacanindin.
All the eighth day, minute by minute!
TEATRO NUOVO
09.00
PRESS REVIEW
News from Asia with Giulia Pompili (Il Foglio) and Francesco Radicioni (Radio Radicale).
9.00
NOMAD (DIRECTOR’S CUT)
Directed by Patrick TAM
(Hong Kong, 1982/Restored: 2023)
The key film of the new Hong Kong cinema returns to the FEFF in a previously unseen version re-edited by Tam himself.
11.00
INCONTRI/TALKS
Today's talks look at the new Taiwanese cinema.
11.15
YOUR LOVELY SMILE
Directed by LIM Kah Wai
(Japan, 2022)
A mockumentary that sees Watanabe Hirobumi in the role of an indie director touring the cinemas of Japan to present his film. Beneath the surreal deadpan comedy, a declaration of love for independent cinema.
14.30
WHERE IS THE LIE?
Directed by Quark HENARES
(Philippines, 2023)
Hopeless romantic Janzen, a trans woman, gets another chance at love when she meets the charming Theo through a dating app. But on the day they're
supposed to meet, Theo ghosts her. A fast-moving pop-culture drama about transphobia and social media based - unfortunately - on a true story.
16.10
THE LEGEND & BUTTERFLY
Directed by OTOMO Keishi
(Japan, 2023)
A grand tale of love and war! Japan, 1549: the marriage between Nobunaga and Nohime wasn't born under a lucky star. It's a political union, with Nobunaga so ill-regarded in noble circles that he's nicknamed "the fool" while the highly intelligent Nohime is viewed with suspicion. But when Nobunaga's territories come under attack, his wife's shrewdness proves crucial to victory.
17.45
BAMBÙ TALKS
The Return of the Divine: Religion and Power in South-East Asia. Curated and presented by Giulia Pompili and Francesco Radicioni.
19.30
LOST LOVE
Directed by KA Sing-fung
(Hong Kong, 2022)
When a couple lose their three-year-old son to an illness, the mother doesn't want to risk having another. But her desire for motherhood and family is still so strong that the couple decide to start fostering...
21.20
THE WILD
Directed by KIM Bong-han
(South Korea, 2023)
Woo-chul was a successful boxer who ended up in prison for killing an opponent during a match. Now he's been released, he wants to stay on the straight and narrow. His friend Do-sik, meanwhile, is willing to do whatever it takes to survive. But despite choosing different paths, they find themselves forced to fight and betray one another...
23.20
EMERGENCY DECLARATION
Directed by HAN Jae-rim
(South Korea, 2022)
The big screen is the natural home of the blockbuster - especially when we're talking about the kind of blockbuster that mixes disaster movie, action movie
and detective story!
***
VISIONARIO
14.00
LIFE WITHOUT PRINCIPLE
Directed by Johnnie TO
(Hong Kong, 2011)
16.45
JISEOK
Directed by KIM Young-jo
(South Korea, 2022)
18.50
DANG BIRELEY’S AND YOUNG GANGSTER
Directed by Nonzee NIMIBUTR
(Thailand, 1997)