By Andrew Hamlin Northwest Asian Weekly The documentary “Somewhere Between” begins with the adoption of a tiny Chinese girl by an American family. The family turns out to be that of the director, Linda Goldstein Knowlton, who has previously worked on documentaries about cooking and “Sesame Street” as well as helped produce prominent dramatic films […]
Telling a “Tokyo Story”
By Andrew Hamlin Northwest Asian Weekly When the British Film Institute’s prestigious monthly magazine Sight & Sound published the new results of its once-a-decade poll for the title of greatest movie ever, the big news was that Alfred Hitchcock’s “Vertigo” had dethroned Orson Welles’ “Citizen Kane” in the poll of film critics — the first […]
After lifetime of martial arts, Master Yun closes school
By Zachariah Bryan For Northwest Asian Weekly When the World Martial Arts and Health Center on Market Street closed two months ago, almost no one
Filmmaker Robert Lieberman captures the life and struggles of Burmese citizens in “They Call It Myanmar”
By Shelley Seale for Northwest Asian Weekly “They Call It Myanmar” is the story of Burma, told with stunning footage shot clandestinely over a two-year period by filmmaker Robert H. Lieberman. The film provides an astonishing and intimate look at what has been one of the most isolated countries in the world, showing the everyday […]
New “Full Metal Alchemist” installment bold in story and design
By Andrew Hamlin Northwest Asian Weekly “All is of one, and one is in all.” So says an alchemist — a fancy term for magician — at the beginning of “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos,” the second feature derived from the popular Japanese manga and TV anime “Fullmetal Alchemist.” Over the course of […]
‘Outrage’ aptly portrays yakuza, but too gory
By Andrew Hamlin Northwest Asian Weekly Takeshi Kitano’s new film “Outrage” opens with the camera panning slowly across a group of men slouching against luxury cars, some fanning themselves in the heat. They are the yakuza promised in the film’s advance publicity, but they are not stylish. They do not immediately look dangerous. The filmmaker […]
BLOG: Three big-wigs in Seattle
By Assunta Ng Three important leaders were in Seattle recently. I saw two of them. Ironically, the one that I didn’t meet was the one the Northwest Asian Weekly wrote the most about.
Sept. 14: LIHI’s Gossett Place celebrates grand opening
The grand opening celebration for the Low Income Housing Institute’s (LIHI) Gossett Place took place at its location in the University District (4719 12th Ave. N.E.). Gossett Place is named in honor of King County Council chair and human rights champion Larry Gossett. Named as one of the most influential graduates of the University of […]
The Old west gets a new sci-fi twist, “Trigun”-style
By Andrew Hamlin Northwest Asian Weekly Director Satoshi Nishimura’s anime feature “Trigun: Badlands Rumble” begins with frantic police radio calls and the ringing of a burglar alarm inside a bank. We see bank employees held hostage as the robbers pillage the vault, arguing about how to divide the loot. But this is no ordinary bank […]
“Snow Flower and the Secret Fan”
By Andrew Hamlin Northwest Asian Weekly Director Wayne Wang’s new dramatic film “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan” begins with a business diner in Shanghai. The well-dressed Chinese at the table speak fluent English and toast two of their number. Nina (played by Bingbing Li) and Sebastian (Archie Kao) are to leave for New York […]