WST TV

1. Young directors honoured in 2019 Hong Kong Film Critics Society awards, with top prize going to gay romance Suk Suk

   Melancholic gay romance drama Suk Suk has been voted the best Hong Kong film of 2019 by a panel of critics, the Hong Kong Film Critics Society announced on Monday.The first feature directed by filmmaker Ray Yeung in the Chinese language, Suk Suk was previously nominated in five categories at the 2019 Golden Horse Awards in Taipei, even though it came home empty-handed on that occasion. The film tells of the affair between two closeted elderly men – played by Ben Yuen Fu-wah and Tai Bo – who are…

2. ‘What’s this a tour of?’ When President Donald Trump forgot what Pearl Harbour was

   US President Donald Trump did not appear to understand the significance of the iconic Pearl Harbour memorial in Hawaii during a private tour of the USS Arizona Memorial, according to a new book by two Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters from The Washington Post.The book, A Very Stable Genius, is an account from hundreds of hours of interviews with more than 200 sources, according to the Post. Some of its details, which paint an unflattering picture of the president’s knowledge of foreign affairs,…

3. Hong Kong post-punk band David Boring talk Anthony Bourdain, their South by Southwest debut, and protest art

   Outspoken Hong Kong post-punk band David Boring perform this weekend for the first time in more than five months, a notable period of absence that coincided with some of the most intense street protests the city has seen. The group had been scheduled to perform at the Clockenflap Music Festival, Hong Kong’s biggest live-music event, in November until the festival joined a long list of events cancelled because of the civil unrest.Their show on Sunday will be the group’s first with new guitarist…

4. Hong Kong martial arts cinema: Jackie Chan on inventing his Drunken Master kung fu moves – ‘I held my breath when I was punching’

   In this regular feature series on the best of Hong Kong martial arts cinema, we examine the legacy of classic films, re-evaluate the careers of its greatest stars, and revisit some of the lesser-known aspects of the beloved genre. When it was released in 1978, Drunken Master started a new trend for kung fu comedies and made Jackie Chan a star across all of Asia. The movie was the second collaboration between Chan and director Yuen Woo-ping, and expanded on the comedic aspects of their previous…

5. Oscars 2020: how best documentary and international feature nominee Honeyland changed the life of its filmmakers

   Since they first screened Honeyland at the Sundance film festival in January 2019, directors Ljubomir Stefanov and Tamara Kotevska have toured relentlessly, bringing their documentary to dozens of film festivals around the world. Their efforts paid off this week with two Academy Award nominations, for best documentary feature and best international feature (formerly known as best foreign-language film). “We didn’t plan this,” Stefanov said of Honeyland’s success on the festival circuit, when…

6. The Chinese artist who drew Disney’s Bambi: a look at the life of the immigrant behind the illustrations

   Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist, by Julie Leung and Chris Sasaki (illustrations). Published by Schwartz & Wade. 4/5 stars Growing up in Atlanta in the US, Julie Leung didn’t have many opportunities to read about inspiring Chinese-Americans. That’s why, when she learned about Tyrus Wong – the artist who helped to create the Walt Disney film Bambi – through his New York Times obituary, she decided to tell his story. Leung’s words in Paper Son: The Inspiring…

7. BTS helps launch global art project featuring work by famous artists including Antony Gormley

   South Korean pop superstars BTS helped launch a global public art project in London on Tuesday inspired by their message of inclusivity and involving renowned artists including Antony Gormley and Tomas Saraceno.The group has teamed up with an array of artistic talent from around the world to help forge a series of contemporary exhibitions going on display in five cities across four continents.The project – “Connect, BTS” – used the boy band’s support for “diversity, love and care for the…

8. Indian photographer captures stark life in the southern US on Magnum Photos road trip along the Mississippi

   When internationally acclaimed Indian photographer Sohrab Hura was invited to join a photographic road trip in the southern United States in 2016, he remembered a text message his father had sent him: “When you get the chance, tell me what’s beyond the levee.”Hura’s father had sent him the message from a cargo ship that was steaming north up the mighty Mississippi River from Pilottown in the far south of Louisiana to Belle Chasse in New Orleans, about 115km (72 miles) away.Working as a merchant…

9. 10 of the hottest upcoming films in spring 2020, from James Bond and Black Widow to A Quiet Place Part II

   With the holidays behind us and awards season now in full swing, cinema screens will be playing host to a bounty of big-budget crowd-pleasers over the coming months.From the now obligatory antics of comic book superheroes, to fantastical animated adventures, toe-curling horror movies, and tear-jerking dramas, spring promises to be a rewarding time, whatever your cinematic persuasion.You can be guaranteed there will be something for everyone.Below are the 10 biggest blockbusters hitting screens…

10. Voodoo makes a welcome comeback in its home, Benin, after centuries of repression and misrepresentation

    In his long life, voodoo priest Kpohinto Medji has seen his religion flourish then decline, banned for years by the authorities and pressured by other faiths. Today, the ageing priest with mischievous eyes is somewhat happier.Benin is gearing for its annual voodoo festival – an event that lures an influx of visitors to the capital Porto-Novo and underscores voodoo’s comeback in the country of its birth.Houngo Hounto Square is among a number of squares, once owned by voodoo worshipping families,…