Berlin

Saturday, February 17-----As the Berlin Film Festival moves into its final weekend, a host of films from Asia have demonstrated the continued vitality and excitement of Asian cinema on the world scene. In the Berlinale Competition section, four Asian films are competing for the top prize, the Berlinale Golden Bear.

CYBORGCelebrated Korean director Park Chan-wook (whose film OLDBOY was a major international arthouse hit) returns to the horror genre with a sense of humor, with his tongue-in-cheek film I AM A CYBORG BUT THAT’S OK (starring music superstar Rain). HYAZGAR (Dream Desert) is the first co-production between Korea and France, directed by Zhang Lu. Chinese director Wang Quan'an has received praise for his film TU YA DE HUN SHI (Tuya’s Marriage), about a woman’s efforts to find a new husband who can take care of both her and her ex; and in PING GUO (Lost In Beijing), Chinese director Li Yu presents a thrillingly complex portrait of the longings, fears and values of several residents of the Chinese capital city. SAKURAN

The Japanese film SAKURAN is based on a comic by Manga artist Anno Moyoco. Photographer-turned-director Mika Ninagawa takes us to the world of courtesans during the Edo period. A young girl  is sold and then schooled to become a high-class courtesan in Tokyo's notorious red light district. The film stars Anna Tsuchiya, who is a famous model and rock musician in Japan.

BUSHI NO ICHUBINThe Panorama section also boasts its share of exciting new Asian films. The Panorama Special opened with the Japanese film BUSHI NO ICHIBUN (Love And Honor) by Japanese master director Yoji Yamada. It is the third and final instalment in his samurai trilogy – the first two parts were screened in the Berlinale Competitions of 2003 and 2005 – and focuses on a young samurai (Takyya Kimura) who serves as food taster for a lord. The Panorama also presented the international premiere of LUO YE GUI GEN (Getting Home), a Chinese/Hong Kong co-production by festival favorite Zhang Yang.

DOL

In the Berlinale Forum section, which has always championed the works of inventive Asian directors, the scope of films is daunting and impressive. In ICHIJKU NO KAO (Faces Of A Fig Tree), Japanese actress-turned director Momoi Kaori provides a portrait of a bizarre nuclear family. Kurdish director Hiner Saleem’s DOL is a multi-character study of life in the Kurdish region of Iraq. This is not to be confused with DON, Bollywood director Farhan Aktar’s fast-paced version of the classic gangster film. In the Japanese film CAMPAIGN, director Kazuhiro Soda delivers a telling commentary on the election bid of a young reform candidate.

Sandy Mandelberger, Berlin Online Dailies Editor