With four unmissable films set in the ring, there’s no doubt that boxing is the main theme of the second day of FEFF 23. But – as always! – the Udinese Festival loves ranging across different genres: viewers will be offered a varied and sophisticated journey that goes from the dark Korean humour of Hong Eui-jeong’s Voice of Silence one of the year’s revelations (which Darcy Paquet will be live streaming about at 10.30!) to Herman Yau’s explosive Hong Kong actioner Shock Wave 2 (International Festival Premiere) stopping off at Soi Cheang’s ferocious thriller Limbo (also made in Hong Kong) and Emily Chan’s romantic comedy Madalena (World Premiere), which represents the very first time a film from Macau has featured in the line-up.
And let’s not forget Mez Tharatorn’s irresistible Thai comedy The Con-Heartist (Europen Premiere), Joel Lamangan’s harsh Filipino coming-of-age movie Son of the Macho Dancer (International Festival Premiere) and, of course, the spectacular Chinese war movie The Eight Hundred (European Festival Premiere) which Notorious Pictures will be distributing in Italy as 800 Eroi – the story of 800 soldiers who, in 1937, held off the Japanese army until their last breaths, just like Leonidas’ 300 Spartans.
But we were talking about boxing. The Far East Film Festival puts on its gloves, gets into the ring and gives us a royal flush: the Japanese answer to Raging Bull, Take Masaharu’s monumental Underdog (a saga split into two films – European Premiere), Yoshida Keisuke’s intense Blue (European Premiere), also from Japan, and the world premiere of Riccardo Rabacchi’s gripping biographical documentary Sioux, which tells the story of WBC Silver international champion and European middleweight champion Emanuele Blandamura. Blandamura and Rabacchi will be present in Udine (Blandamura’s hometown), both to “accompany” the screening at 16.30, and to take part in a live-streamed conversation at 11.30.
The dream of having the opportunity to fight for a victory is the narrative heart of Sioux, as well as of Blue and Underdog part 1 and part 2. That epic yet totally human dimension in which all the great stories live. And not just the ones about sports.
Visionario
8.45
Son of the Macho Dancer
Directed by Joel Lamangan
(Philippines, 2021)
8.45
Underdog, Part 1
Directed by Take Masaharu
(Japan, 2021)
10.30 – Live sessions – Streaming on Facebook
Darcy Paquet: Korean Cinema at FEFF 23.
11.00
Voice of Silence
Directed by Hong Eui-jeong
(South Korea, 2020)
11.20
Underdog, Part 2
Directed by Take Masaharu
(Japan, 2021)
11.30 – Live sessions – Streaming on Facebook
Conversation with boxers Emanuele Blandamura and Paolo Vidoz and Riccardo Rabacchi, director of the documentary Sioux.
13.30
Cliff Walkers
Directed by Zhang Yimou
(China, 2021)
14.10
Madalena
Directed by Emily Chan
(Macao and HK, 2021)
16.15
Limbo
Directed by Soi Cheang
(Hong Kong, 2021)
16.30
Sioux
Directed by Riccardo Rabacchi
(Italy, 2019)
18.45
Blue
Directed by Yoshida Keisuke
(Japan, 2021)
Visionario Open-air Cinema
21.45
Shock Wave 2
Directed by Herman Yau
(Hong Kong, 2020)
Cinema Centrale
16.30
Voice of Silence
Directed by Hong Eui-jeong
(South Korea, 2020)
19.30
The Con-Heartist
Directed by MEZ Tharatorn
(Thailand, 2020)
22.00
The Eight Hundred
Directed by GUAN Hu
(China, 2020)