The first black, female filmmaker to have a film shown in US cinemas was only in 1991, with Julie Dash's Daughters of the Dust, paving the way for the likes of Debbie Allen, Kasi Lemmons, and Ava Duvernay. The 1980s and 1990s saw Spike Lee's frank depictions of black life in his extensive filmography and John Singleton and Mario van Peebles (son of director/writer/star of Sweet Sweetback's Melvin van Peebles) shined a light on the criminal issues faced by modern youth in Boyz N the Hood and New Jack City, respectively. Cult hits like Blacula, Boss, and The Last Dragon were all produced in this time period. The era marked the point at which black audiences were acknowledged and represented. Throughout the 1970s, black audiences could see themselves on the silver screen as heroes, as well as realities they lived daily. These "race films" (as they were then known) were made outside of the studio system and feature generally lower budgets, but have held up every bit as well as their expensive counterparts.īlaxploitation: Shaft and Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song heralded a revolution in American cinema and genre filmmaking. Kino Lorber has the terrific collection, Pioneers of African American Cinema, a collection of nearly 30 short and feature-length films from 1915 to 1978. That's not even getting into Kurosawa, Ozu, Kar-wai, revolutionary filmmakers without whom the artform would not be the same. Chu and performers as diverse as Akwafina to Steven Yeun to THE ROCK to Temuera Morrison (yes, Boba Fett is a Pacific Islander) to Hiroyuki Sanada to Michelle Yeoh to Jamie Chung, filmmakers of Asian & Pacific Island descent are making films at every level in every genre. With greater recognition than ever, from Oscar-winning Chloe Zhao to the blockbuster-directing Jon M.
But your viewing should stop with anime! Big Fish and Begonia is a great intro to Chinese fantasy and Satellite Girl and Milk Cow is a beautifully quirky Korean sci-fi romp.
And there's lighter fare, such as the musical mermaid adventure Lu Over the Wall (Japan) and the 3D animation adaptation of the classic manga, Lupin III: The First (Japan). There's serious work like Perfect Blue (Japan), which follows an idol singer as she loses her grip on reality. And while Hayao Miyazaki's excellence cannot be overstated, there's a ton more out there. Obviously, no review of Asian cinema would be complete without mentioning the massive contributions to animation from that region of the world. The Yellow Handkerchief likewise shows the universality of the difficulties young people face. For something more potentially more relatable, Bing Liu's documentary, Minding the Gap (USA) follows a trio of friends in a desolate Illinois town as they try to make it as skateboarders. Modern master Ang Lee's Lust, Caution (Taiwan) similarly explores espionage and intrigued, but was overlooked at the time of its release by receiving a death knell label of NC-17 from the MPAA. A less bleak procedural, Park Chan-wook's JSA (Joint Security Area) (South Korea) follows the investigation of a multiple homicide in the DMZ.
Presitge: Hiroshima (Japan): A harrowing look at the effects of the Little Boy nuclear attack on the city. And the elephant in the living room: Parasite (South Korea)! If you haven't seen it, what are you waiting for? If you're looking for comedy, Taika Waititi's Jo Jo Rabbit (New Zealnd) is a scathing satire of Nazi Germany. The films cemented Jackie Chan as one of the greatest stuntmen, choreographers, and action directors of all time (and possibly, actually insane). If you're looking for more "action" than "arthouse", Criterion also released a double feature of Police Story and Police Story 2 (Hong Kong). Curated by Martin Scorsese, this collection focuses on pieces from Asia, including the seminal Insiang (Philippines) and Taipei Story (Taiwan). The place to start is definitely The Criterion Collection's, World Cinema Project No.
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