NOW PLAYING

Angelika Film Center

SERBIS (Philippines, 2008)

Screening daily (Showtimes)

Brillante Mendoza’s scuzzy, funny, pretty, ugly, fascinating portrait of the ecosystem of a family-run porn theater in Manila is compulsive viewing. It’s a feature film, but it shoots a day in the life of the family in fly-on-the-bathroom-wall style and feels like a slice of reality served up fresh and nasty.

(read review)

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Japan Society

TORA-SAN’S DEAR OLD HOME (Japan, 1972)

Friday, February 13 @ 7:30pm

Japan Society’s screenings of the classic Tora-san films continue with this 1972 installment from Tora-san director extraordinaire, Yoji Yamada (TWILIGHT SAMURAI), in which Japan’s long-running rogue falls in with three pretty young things in Shimabata.

(Watch the trailer)

(Buy tickets)

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SHINJUKU ECSTASY: INDEPENDENT FILMS FROM THE ART THEATER GUILD OF JAPAN

February 18 – March 1

An astounding retrospective that highlights the cream of the Art Theater Guild of Japan. Despite the clunky name, this distributor turned production company was one of the most psychedelic, crazy, insane filmmaking collectives ever to hit the planet Earth. Starting in 1967 they produced films by the likes of Nagisa Oshima, and turned Japanese moviemaking on its ear with flicks like the gay Oedipus happening, FUNERAL PARADE OF ROSES, and terrorist porn flick, ECSTASY OF ANGELS by Koji Wakamatsu (UNITED RED ARMY). If you miss the 60’s, or if you just need a heady blast of sexual trangression, freak-a-delic imagery and black-and-white celluloid dreams, then get over here.

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(Trailers for the films are available on their individual pages – check ‘em out)

(Buy tickets)

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Korea Society

MULBERRY (Korea, 1986)

Thursday, February 19 @ 6:30pm

The description for this classic Korean film is simple. It’s about, “…a neglected wife who seeks fulfillment from other women’s husbands.” Actress Lee Mi-Sook won “Best Actress” at the Asia Pacific Film Festival for her role as the man eater-upper in this down n’dirty period film.

(More info)

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Comments (0) Feb 12 2009