#ESSENTIALFILM Asian
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- DirectorEdward YangStarsNien-Jen WuElaine JinIssei OgataEach member of a middle-class Taipei family seeks to reconcile past and present relationships within their daily lives.
- DirectorAnn HuiStarsAndy LauDeannie IpHailu QinAfter suffering a stroke, an altruistic maid announces that she wants to quit her job and move into an old people's home.
- DirectorBo HuStarsYu ZhangYuchang PengUvin WangFour people in a Chinese city live through a complicated day as their lives intersect.
- DirectorLu ZhangStarsHan YeriYang Ik-joonPark Jung-bumThis is a story about a girl which three insignificant men care deeply about. The men look up to the girl considering her to be an idol of their own. But one day, a new guy appears in her life.
- DirectorAndrea SegreStarsTao ZhaoRade SerbedzijaMarco PaoliniA study of the friendship between a Chinese woman and a fisherman who came to Italy from Yugoslavia many years ago, who live in a small city-island in the Veneto lagoon.
- DirectorLee Su-jinStarsChun Woo-heeJung In-sunKim So-youngHan Gong-Ju transfers to a new school to escape her past. It takes a long time for her troubled past to catch up with her but when it does, the revelation is devastating.
- DirectorSim F.StarsLaura BasukiDion WiyokoJenny ChangSusi Susanti rises through the rank to become Indonesia's most beloved athlete. In time of economic turmoil, Susi seizes the opportunity to show her country and the world that heroism is measured by the depth of one's sacrifice.
- DirectorKang Hyeong-cheolStarsA.J. SimmonsOh Jung-seDo Kyung-sooThe story of Ro Gi Soo, a tap dancing North Korean soldier who was held captive in the Geoje prison camp during the Korean War.
- DirectorHun JangStarsSong Kang-hoThomas KretschmannYoo Hae-jinA widowed father and taxi driver who drives a German reporter from Seoul to Gwangju to cover the 1980 uprising, soon finds himself regretting his decision after being caught in the violence around him.
- DirectorJae-young KwakStarsCha Tae-hyunJun Ji-hyunIn-mun KimA young man sees a drunk, cute woman standing too close to the tracks at a metro station in Seoul and pulls her back. She ends up getting him into trouble repeatedly after that, starting on the train.
- DirectorJae-eun JeongStarsBae DoonaLee Yo-wonOk Ji-youngIn the port city of Icheon, five female friends struggle to stay close while forging a life for themselves after high school. When one of the group, upwardly-mobile Hae-ju, moves to Seoul, the other girls deal with the loss in different ways. Feeling most rejected, shy Ji-yeong finds comfort in her new friendship with rebel Tae-hee.
- DirectorBora KimStarsPark Ji-huKim Sae-byeokJeong In-giSeoul 1994, in the year the Seongsu Bridge collapsed, 14-year-old Eunhee wanders the city searching for love.
- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsJeong Jae-yeongKim Min-heeYoun Yuh-jungA married film director falls for a young painter - twice.
- DirectorKim Ki-youngStarsKim Jin-kyuJeung-nyeo JuEun-shim LeeA composer and his wife are thrown into turmoil when a housemaid becomes more than they bargained for.
- DirectorKim Ki-dukStarsKim Ki-dukOh Yeong-suJong-ho KimA boy is raised by a Buddhist monk in an isolated floating temple where the years pass like the seasons.
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsSong Kang-hoByun Hee-BongPark Hae-ilA monster emerges from Seoul's Han River and begins attacking people. One victim's loving family does what it can to rescue her from its clutches.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsKim Min-heeHa Jung-wooCho Jin-woongA woman is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, but secretly she is involved in a plot to defraud her.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsLim Soo-jungRainPark Byeong-eunA girl who thinks she is a combat cyborg checks into a mental hospital, where she encounters other psychotics. Eventually, she falls for a man who thinks he can steal people's souls.
- DirectorDerek TsangStarsDongyu ZhouSichun MaToby LeeTwo women who have been close friends since adolescence must cope with the changes that maturity brings.
- DirectorJohnnie ToKa-Fai WaiStarsAndy LauSammi ChengFiona LeungWah and Kinki both working at a computer company. Both of them are not getting on very well initially, but friendship develops into romance when they get to know each other after a while.
- DirectorAndrew LauAlan MakStarsAndy LauTony Leung Chiu-waiAnthony Chau-Sang WongA story between a mole in the police department and an undercover cop. Their objectives are the same: to find out who is the mole, and who is the cop.
- DirectorKaige ChenStarsLeslie CheungFengyi ZhangGong LiTwo boys meet at an opera training school in Peking in 1924. Their resulting friendship will span nearly 70 years and endure some of the most troublesome times in China's history.
- DirectorAndrew LauAlan MakStarsEdison ChenShawn YueAnthony Chau-Sang WongIn this prequel to Mou gaan dou (2002), Chan Wing Yan has just become an undercover cop in the triads while Lau Kin Ming joins the police force. Both the triads and the police find an enemy in a rival crime boss.
- DirectorAndrew LauAlan MakStarsTony Leung Chiu-waiAndy LauLeon LaiMonths after the events of the original film, Ming suspects a police superintendent as being a new mole for the triads, while years earlier, Yan embarks on his first mission.
- DirectorStephen ChowStarsStephen ChowWah YuenQiu YuenIn Shanghai, China in the 1940s, a wannabe gangster aspires to join the notorious "Axe Gang" while residents of a housing complex exhibit extraordinary powers in defending their turf.
- DirectorBi GanStarsTang WeiJue HuangSylvia ChangA man went back to Guizhou, found the tracks of a mysterious woman. He recalls the summer he spent with her twenty years ago.
- DirectorYoon Ga-eunStarsChoi Soo-inHye-in SeolSeo-Yeon LeeA bullied girl becomes friends with a new kid during a break, but when classes start up again, their new friendship is nearly ruined when the bullying continues.
- DirectorMira NairStarsShafiq SyedAnjaanAmrit PatelYoung Krishna struggles to survive among the drug dealers, pimps, and prostitutes in the back alleys and gutters of India.
- DirectorHae-Young LeeStarsJoo Bo-biPark Bo-youngKim Dong-hyeonA girl is transferred to a mysterious boarding school, where she is forced to discover its secrets to survive.
- DirectorHwi KimStarsYunjin KimMa Dong-seokKim Sae-ronResidents of a mansion live in fear when a young girl is murdered. They suspect their neighbor for the crime, and a battle erupts to protect the next victim.
- DirectorKang Hyeong-cheolStarsYoo Ho-jeongShim Eun-kyungJin Hee-kyungSeven girls become good friends in high school, then events pull them apart for 25 years. When one of the friends lies dying in a hospital, she wishes to see each of them one last time.
- DirectorKim Ki-dukStarsLee Seung-yunJae HeeHyuk-ho KwonA transient young man breaks into empty homes to partake of the vacationing residents' lives for a few days.
- DirectorKim Ki-dukStarsLee EolKwak Ji-minHan Yeo-reumJae-Young is an amateur prostitute who sleeps with men while her best friend Yeo-Jin "manages" her, fixing dates, taking care of the money and making sure the coast is clear. When Jae-Young falls in love with one of those man she suppresses her feelings towards him in respect of her friend who's jealous.
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsKim Hye-jaWon BinJin GooA mother desperately searches for the killer who framed her son for a girl's horrific murder.
- DirectorLeos CaraxMichel GondryBong Joon HoStarsAyako FujitaniRyô KaseAyumi ItoA triptych examines the nature of one unforgettable city as it's shaped by the disparate people who live, work (and even run amok) inside one enormous, constantly evolving, densely populated megalopolis, the ravishing and inimitable Tokyo.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsSong Kang-hoKim Ok-binChoi Hee-jinThrough a failed medical experiment, a priest is stricken with vampirism and is forced to abandon his ascetic ways.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsNam-mi KangJeong-nam ChoiHye-Sook GoAfter being wrongfully imprisoned for thirteen years and having her child taken away from her, a woman seeks revenge through increasingly brutal means.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsSong Kang-hoShin Ha-kyunBae DoonaA recently laid off factory worker kidnaps his former boss' friend's daughter, hoping to use the ransom money to pay for his sister's kidney transplant.
- DirectorJae-young KwakStarsHaruka AyaseKeisuke KoideRisa AiA lonely university student develops a romance with a beautiful interesting woman, who turns out to be a cyborg from the future.
- DirectorJae-young KwakStarsJun Ji-hyunJang HyukKim Soo-roThe heart-warming romance story between Kyungjin and Myungwoo. Even though he has passed away, he will be always with Kyungwoo forever.
- DirectorYun-su JeonStarsCha Tae-hyunSong Hye-kyoSong Chang-uiBeautiful student Su-Eun prevents her fellow student Su-Ho to drown in the ocean. Su-Ho however, does not know who saved him, until Su-Eun tells him after a while. The love between them starts to grow, seemingly infinite. But then something terrible happens.
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsSol Kyung-guKim Yeo-jinMoon So-riFollowing a man's suicide, time traverses back to reveal six chapters of his life on why he committed suicide.
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsYun Jeong-hieLee Da-witKim Hee-raA sixty-something woman, faced with the discovery of a heinous family crime and in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, finds strength and purpose when she enrolls in a poetry class.
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsYoo Ah-inSteven YeunJeon Jong-seoJong-su bumps into a girl who used to live in the same neighborhood, who asks him to look after her cat while she's on a trip to Africa. When back, she introduces Ben, a mysterious guy she met there, who confesses his secret hobby.
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsJeon Do-yeonSong Kang-hoLee Dong-yongA woman moves to the town where her dead husband was born. As she tries to fit in, another tragic event overturns her life.
- DirectorHan Jae-rimStarsPark Hae-ilLee Dae-yeonKang Hye-jeongAn introvert, indifferent woman joins a high school as a student teacher, under supervision of a shameless, nymphomaniac man who is a year younger than her. On a school trip, the supervisor tells the trainee that he wants to have sex with her. The movie deals with the woman willing yet indifferent to indulge in physical relationship with her professional senior. Ethics, morals, feelings, love show up and are turned down.
- DirectorHur Jin-hoStarsLee Yeong-aeYoo Ji-taeSang-hui BaekA sound engineer falls in love with a radio show host after they work together on a project capturing natural sounds.
- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsEun-ju LeeMoon Sung-KeunJeong Bo-seokRelationship filled with pitfalls between a pleasant female video producer and a gallery owner as they become embroiled in their self-spun web of illusions. Bitter-sweet serenade to modern courtship.
- DirectorApichatpong WeerasethakulStarsThanapat SaisaymarJenjira PongpasSakda KaewbuadeeDying of kidney disease, a man spends his last, somber days with family, including the ghost of his wife and a forest spirit who used to be his son, on a rural northern Thailand farm.
- DirectorAsghar FarhadiStarsPayman MaadiLeila HatamiSareh BayatA married couple are faced with a difficult decision - to improve the life of their child by moving to another country or to stay in Iran and look after a deteriorating parent who has Alzheimer's disease.
- DirectorAbbas KiarostamiStarsHomayoun ErshadiAbdolhosein BagheriAfshin Khorshid BakhtiariAn Iranian man drives his car in search of someone who will quietly bury him under a cherry tree after he commits suicide.
- DirectorAbbas KiarostamiStarsMohamad Ali KeshavarzFarhad KheradmandZarifeh ShivaA depiction of the off-screen relationship between the actors who play the newlyweds in the film And Life Goes On (1992).
- DirectorJang Kun-jaeStarsKim Sae-byeokHyeong-gook ImRyô IwaseA Korean director visits a small village in Japan to find inspiration for his film.
- DirectorNawapol ThamrongrattanaritStarsChutimon ChuengcharoensukyingSunny SuwanmethanontSarika SartsilpsupaA woman wants to reorganize her house and convert it into a home office. She will throw away anything that has been lying around unused. However, she faces a great challenge when she comes across some items that belonged to her ex-boyfriend.
- DirectorNawapol ThamrongrattanaritStarsThanapob LeeratanakachornChonnikan NetjuiPatcha PoonpiriyaMary is in her last course of school. She'll confront sudden changes in her life, loving relatins and friendship. Based on some tweets of an anonymous girl.
- DirectorChinlin HsiehStarsTadanobu AsanoOlivier AssayasJingjing BaoA tribute from filmmakers and critics around the world to the Taiwan New Cinema movement in the 1980s.
- DirectorKar-Wai WongStarsTony Leung Chiu-waiZiyi ZhangJin ZhangThe story of martial-arts master Ip Man, the man who trained Bruce Lee.
- DirectorYimou ZhangStarsZiyi ZhangHonglei SunHao ZhengPrompted by the death of his father and the grief of his mother, a man recalls the story of how they met in flashback.
- DirectorAng LeeStarsSihung LungKuei-Mei YangWang Yu-wenA senior chef lives with his three grown daughters; the middle one finds her future plans affected by unexpected events and the life changes of the other household members.
- DirectorHsiao-Hsien HouStarsShu QiJack KaoChun-hao TuanThe ethereally beautiful Vicky recalls her romances with Hao Hao and Jack in the neon-lit clubs of Taipei.
- DirectorWayne WangStarsTamlyn TomitaRosalind ChaoKieu ChinhThe life histories of four East Asian women and their daughters reflect and guide each other.
- DirectorKun-Hou ChenStarsChun-Fang ChangFu-Sheng TsuiDoze NiuThe story follows a young man as he changes from an intelligently aware youth, to a teenager with much less confidence than he once had, and finally, to a stable adult.
- DirectorToshiya FujitaStarsMeiko KajiJûzô ItamiKazuko YoshiyukiTo avoid a death sentence for her prior acts of bloodshed, the vengeful swordswoman Lady Snowblood is conscripted by the Japanese Secret Police to assassinate political dissidents.
- DirectorEdward YangStarsSylvia ChangMing HsuLieh LeeTwo friends who haven't seen each other for thirteen years reunite. One is a successful concert pianist just back from a European tour and the other has just started a new business.
- DirectorKing HuHsing LeeChing-Jui PaiStarsHsueh-Fen PengHuo-Yen ChiangChun ShihThree people with their karma entwined meet in three different periods of Chinese history: Ming Dynasty China, early Republican China, and modern-day Taiwan.
- DirectorFranz OstenStarsHimanshu RaiCharu RoySeeta Devi Jr.A historical romance set in the Mughal Empire. Selima (Enakshi) is a princess-foundling raised by a potter and loved by her brother, Shiraz (Rai). She is abducted and sold as a slave to Prince Khurram, later Emperor Shah Jehan (Roy), who falls for her, to the chagrin of the wily Dalia (Seeta Devi). When Selima is caught with Shiraz, the young man is condemned to be trampled to death by an elephant. A pendant reveals Selima's royal status and she saves her brother, marries the prince and becomes Empress Mumtaz Mahal while Dalia is banned for her machinations against Selima. When Selima dies (1629), the emperor builds her a monument to the design of the now old and blind Shiraz, the Taj Mahal. The film contains a number of passionate kissing scenes.
- DirectorHark TsuiStarsJoey WangMaggie CheungWenzhuo ZhaoTwo snake spirits become human and learn about love and suffering. A monk discovers his own weaknesses and finds that morality is not as simple as he had thought.
- DirectorYonfanStarsCherie ChungMaggie CheungShingo TsurumiTwo best friends So-so and Nancy are love-struck by the same handsome Japanese boy who cannot fulfill both girls' destinies.
- DirectorZhangke JiaStarsTao ZhaoZhou LanSanming HanA town in Fengjie county is gradually being demolished and flooded to make way for the Three Gorges Dam. A man and woman visit the town to locate their estranged spouses, and become witness to the societal changes.
- DirectorHong Sang-sooStarsYoo Joon-sangKim Sang-jungSong Seon-miA professor in the film department at a provincial university goes to Seoul to meet his senior, who works as a film critic, and stays in a northern Seoul village for three days.
- DirectorJing WangStarsGang ChenHan ChenYuwei JiangLife in the small, rural Chanfeng Town is seen from the point of view of the children, during the course of a summer, as various intersected stories unfold.
- DirectorYi ChangStarsChuen FuShao-Hui KuDing-feng Lin