“The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros”: A boy in love and then some

Here is a film that challenges the viewer to question gay and straight culture while enveloping the feelings of first love as told by a young boy in the Philippines. Auraeus Solito directed this 2005 light-hearted drama which quickly became a contender in film festivals worldwide, becoming the official Philippine entry for Best Foreign Film in the 79th Academy Awards. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll question your own childhood and wonder about what defines gender: Society or You.

Brides in Nuovomondo (“The Golden Door”): Scene Analysis

A film scene analysis by Say0chan

Greetings all, just thought I’d drop by a give a gem if you wish to read through. This is but a short analysis on a particular scene that I liked in the Italian movie Nuovomondo (released as The Golden Door in 2006 to North America).

Sharpie Cakes and Family Game: Two Stories on Quickly Glancing at Society

Greeting readers! I figured a good 3-part post would do the trick so please, be on the lookout!

Book/Film analysis post by Say0chan

My face when realizing the comparison

Haruki Murakami came to do a reading at the University of Hawaii at Manoa this past April. I read a few stories my professors had assigned and listened as the author read The Rise and Fall of Sharpie Cakes. However, so much was going through my head that I couldn’t sit still because I was hungry. More importantly I thought that Murakami likes to write about or use food in his stories. A lot. With that in mind, I must reminisce to a previous film that was released the same year as Murakami’s Sharpie Cakes, known as 家族ゲーム or The Family Game. In this post I will compare The Rise and Fall of Sharpie Cakes with the 1983 Japanese film The Family Game.