This year’s Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) felt extra special for Singapore because Singaporean director Eric Khoo’s Spirit World was chosen as the closing film for the festival! But that was not all. The 29th edition of the festival also featured 10 Singapore co-production films in its line-up, which is no mean feat for our relatively small industry.
The largest film festival in Asia, BIFF has continued to bring Korean, Asian, and global cinema together and this year, 278 films were screened over 10 days, with over 145,000 seats occupied. I personally attended 14 screenings, and one session of Actors’ House over the festival (including 5 Singapore co-productions!), and here’s a short review of each session, in order of ranking (from most to least favourite).
Epik High 20 The Movie (Korea | 2024 | Film | 116 minutes)
What it’s about: Epik High’s 20th anniversary concert with hits like ‘FLY,’ ‘FAN,’ and ‘ONE’, featuring members Tablo, Tukutz, and Mithra who continue to make Korean hip-hop history!
Review: What’s not to like about 2 hours of good music? What made it extra special was Epik High themselves coming in to perform the last two songs live! Check out the EPIK moment here.
Actors’ House: PARK Boyoung (Korea | 2024 | Special Programme | 60 minutes)
What it’s about: The Actors’ House programme features contemporary actors who are recognised not only for their acting skills but also their star qualities. In the one-hour session, these actors share about their career and works, in an honest and casual setting.
Review: This is only the second time I’ve attended the Actors’ House programme, with the first being Han Hyo Joo’s, and I always enjoy these hour-long sessions where the actors freely talk about their career so far, their inspirations, challenges, and aspirations.
Born for the Spotlight (Taiwan | 2024 | Series | 146 minutes)
What it’s about: This drama series follows the lives of women working in various roles within the show business industry in Taiwan, featuring a diverse cast across a wide age range.
Review: Let me just start by saying I love shows which feature a strong women cast, especially when it’s not focused on romance. It was very interesting to get a glimpse of the Taiwanese show business industry, and I’m already excited to catch the full series once it’s out on Netflix.
Pierce (Singapore/Taiwan/Poland | 2024 | Film | 106 minutes)
What it’s about: High school fencer Zijie’s older brother Zihan is being released early from prison. Against their mother’s wishes and attempts to bury Zihan’s existence, Zijie reconnects with his older brother. But is his older brother really the person Zihan remembers him to be?
Review: I know I didn’t rank this first but this was actually the most memorable film I watched during BIFF2024, and the sounds from the film still lingers in my mind. That’s why I wrote a full review of it.
Spirit World (France/Singapore/Japan | 2024 | Film | 94 minutes)
What it’s about: World-renowned singer Claire suddenly passes away while on tour and finds herself lingering in the world as a soul. She soon encounters the soul of an ardent fan, Yuzo, who died before he could attend her concert. Despite the lingual barrier, they naturally understand and comfort each other.
Review: I love ghost stories, so I was really looking forward to this film (other than the fact that it’s directed by Eric Khoo) and it didn’t disappoint. Right after the movie, all I could think about was how quiet and peaceful the movie felt. Again, this deserved a full review.
Mongrel (Taiwan/Singapore/France | 2024 | Film | 130 minutes)
What it’s about: Oom is part of a group of undocumented migrant workers secretly residing in the mountains of Taiwan, working as caregivers. When his situation as a caregiver becomes too much for him, he has to choose between his survival or dignity.
Review: This was such a beautiful film. It was shot so well, and despite the pace being a little slow, it didn’t feel draggy at all. I really felt so much for the main character Oom who’s basically stuck in his difficult situation with no way out in sight. It’s a very heartfelt story that I think everyone should watch.
Beyond Goodbye (Japan | 2024 | Series | 94 minutes)
What it’s about: Saeko is struggling with the loss of her boyfriend in a tragic accident and devotes herself to her job at a coffee company. Meanwhile, Naruse, who received a heart transplant from Saeko’s late boyfriend, finds himself developing a newfound obsession with coffee after his surgery, something he previously disliked. One day, Saeko and Naruse end up on the same train…
Review: The problem about going into a screening not realising it’s for a series and not a film is that you expect it to end nicely… and then it doesn’t. Anyway, this series is set to be a tearjerker, and also probably make you question your own views on love because if you love with your heart and your heart doesn’t belong to you, who does your soul actually love and does the other party actually love you for you, or because you resemble someone else?
Don’t Cry, Butterfly (Vietnam/Singapore/Philippines/Indonesia| 2024 | Film | 98 minutes)
What it’s about: Tam is an ordinary middle-aged housewife living in a suburban town in Vietnam. When she finds out her husband is cheating on her, she turns to voodoo to try and win back his heart.
Review: This was such a fun watch, full of metaphors, strong imagery, duality, sometimes incredulous happenings… I truly enjoyed the film from start to end. It was funny, heartfelt, and as a woman, a little bitter because the film reflected reality so matter-of-factly that it hurt. It was also hopeful because even if the previous generations of women believed in staying in a difficult situation, the younger generations know that they have a choice to leave. It’s scary but isn’t it scarier to live miserably?
Tiger Stripes (Malaysia/Taiwan/Singapore/France/Germany/Netherlands/Indonesia/Qatar | 2023 | Film | 96 minutes)
What it’s about: 12-year-old Zaffan is the first among her friends to hit puberty. Living with the discrimination and oppression faced by women in a conservative society, Zaffan fights back, learning to embrace the body she once feared.
Review: This was such an interesting movie about puberty! I just felt a little uncomfortable seeing all these young girls bullying one another, but that’s the reality of society that we don’t always see, I guess. Honestly though, it was a cute yet disturbing watch about how conservative societies deal with very natural things like puberty and periods, and all the different folklores surrounding these topics.
The Solitary Gourmet (Japan | 2024 | Film | 110 minutes)
What it’s about: This is a film adaptation of Solitary Gourmet, an internationally popular manga-based series. The main character, Goro, goes on a journey to recreate a mysterious soup for the grandfather of his old friend’s daughter. The elderly man had tasted this soup as a child, while living in Japan, and he wishes to drink it again before he dies. This culinary journey ends up bringing Goro on a crazy adventure through the different islands in Japan, and even to South Korea.
Review: I never watched the Solitary Gourmet series but there’s just something about Japanese shows that centres around food. There’s just a very calm and healing quality about these shows, and The Solitary Gourmet was no different. Sprinkle in a lot of funny moments, and this basically makes for a great watch for everyone. Also made me hungry throughout…
I Am Love (Korea | 2024 | Film | 81 minutes)
What it’s about: Sa-rang is infatuated with Cheol-su, who visits the pharmacy where she works every day. Unfortunately, Cheol-su’s heart is completely taken by Jong-hui, the pharmacist and Sa-rang’s cousin, who doesn’t reciprocate his affections.
Review: You know the saying – delulu is the solulu? Well in this case, it truly isn’t. Seeing Sa-rang’s reality constantly blurring with her delusions was a little unsettling, especially knowing how it feels to live in your delusions… Seeing her basically unravel made me think about all the crazy things we do in the name of “love”. If you’ve ever been in an unrequited love situation, you’ll probably relate to this movie.
Ghost Train (Korea | 2024 | Film | 95 minutes)
What it’s about: YouTuber Da-kyung specializes in finding real-life horror stories. After noticing a drop in subscribers for her channel ‘Horror Queen Da-kyung’, she decides to share stories about Gwangrim Station, a subway station where mysterious incidents reportedly occur, as told by the station master…
Review: I love horror movies that are all about the supernatural and I especially love Asian ones. It was so fun to watch all the different stories focused on one location, and some stories were really creative too! I won’t spoil them here. I guessed the plot twist early on but it was still creepy to the end. Definitely a fun watch for the horror buffs who aren’t interested in nonsense jump scares with zero plot kind of movies.
I am the Secret in Your Heart (Taiwan | 2024 | Film | 112 minutes)
What it’s about: Xiaoxia and Yuzu have been close since childhood, with everyone in school referring to Xiaoxia as “Yuzu’s wife.” But their relationship begins to get strained when a perfect transfer student named Cheng Yih arrives as Xiaoxia is instantly drawn to Cheng Yih and begins pursuing him.
Review: You can probably guess from the title and premise that this is a very typical Taiwanese high-school romance film. And it was. So if you enjoy Taiwanese coming-of-age romance films like Our Times and You Are the Apple of My Eye, this is probably your cup of tea. It was a little cringey for me but a light-hearted fluffy film is sometimes needed to balance heavier ones, especially at a film festival.
Uprising (Korea | 2024 | Film | 127 minutes)
What it’s about: Cheon-yeong is the personal servant of Jong-ryeo, the only son of a noble family with a powerful military background. The two are extremely close despite their difference in social status. Cheon-yeong longs to be free from slavery, and Jong-ryeo tries to help him. Unfortunately, the situation gets complicated and their relationship deteriorates.
Review: Korea does historical films really well so it’s no surprise that this was a great production. But since we’re currently living in the world we live in, watching a movie about injustice due to “social class” was not easy to stomach. It was a good film, but I didn’t enjoy feeling all the rage.
Ghost Cat Anzu (Japan/France | 2024 | Film | 97 minutes)
What it’s about: 5th-grader Karin is left at a temple because her father is in debt. Here, she meets Anzu, an immortal cat that talks and acts like a human. When her father, who promised to return on her mother’s death anniversary, doesn’t show up, Karin sets off on a journey to Tokyo with Anzu to find him.
Review: What’s not to like about an animation with a talking cat right? This animation was cute, but I think I expected a lot more from the story, which it didn’t deliver so that was a shame. I just felt like the movie could have been a lot more so it fell short of being “wow!” to just “okay, that was cute.”
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These films were screened at the 2024 Busan International Film Festival.