Ulrich Felsberg Movies
In this film, the prolific German documentary director Wim Wenders has taken on the subject of Japanese fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto as he prepares to debut his designs for another season in Paris. The documentary is as much a meditation by the director on the meaning of documenatries and information in the age of electronic data and computerized images as it is about the skill, dedication, philosophy and work of the fashion designer. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yohji Yamamoto
Wim Wenders revisits his masterpiece Der Himmel Uber Berlin in this film which picks up several years after the original left off. Cassiel (Otto Sander) is an angel who watches over the lives of the people of recently reunified Berlin with Raphaella (Nastassja Kinski). Damiel (Bruno Ganz), Cassiel's former partner who opted to return to the land of the living in the first film, now lives happily as a pizza chef with the woman he loved and married, circus performer Marion (Solveig Dommartin). While angels are forbidden to directly intervene in the lives of humans, Cassiel impulsively breaks this rule when a little girl falls from the balcony of an apartment block, and he swoops down to catch her. Suddenly made flesh and blood, Cassiel has earned the enmity of Emit Flesti (Willem Dafoe), a sort of overseer of the angels on the physical plane. Emit makes it his business to make things difficult for Cassiel now that he's living among the humans, and after a period of alcoholism and imprisonment, Cassiel finds himself working for gangster Tony Baker (Horst Buchholz), who distributes weapons and pornography on the black market. However, Cassiel has a change of heart and decides to destroy Tony's stockpile in a bid to make the world a better place. Peter Falk, who played himself in Der Himmel Uber Berlin, makes a return appearance when a gallery shows the sketches that he was making in the first film; rock singer Lou Reed and former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev also appear as themselves. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Otto Sander, Peter Falk, (more)
- 1994
This drama is set in 19th century Prussia and looks at the life and dreams of a teenage girl. The year is 1813 and 16-year old Marie is not leading a happy life. She is regularly beaten by her governess and ignored by her mother. Her mother's friend, a merchant, comes to call with his shy nephew whom his uncle frequently beats. Marie is interested in the nephew until she sees a handsome traveller who seems to be a soldier. The stranger and his friends rape Marie and kill her mother. Marie get revenge. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sylvie Testud, Bastian Trost, (more)
This beautifully photographed German drama is set in Lisbon, a major center for contemporary European culture, and offers insight into the nature of cinema. Sound recordist Phillip Winter is driving to Lisbon to meet his old friend Friedrich Monroe who recently sent him a postcard asking Winter to help him with a documentary, but when he arrives, Monroe is nowhere to be found. Instead, Winter only finds a few cans of film shot on an old fashioned hand cranked camera. When he is not aimlessly ambling about the beautiful city recording sounds for the film, Winters passes the time playing with the local street children who are obsessed with chronicling even the smallest events on their video cameras. He also begins falling for Teresa, the singer whose band is composing the soundtrack for the documentary. Eventually Monroe returns with a brand new vision and some strong opinions on the sorry state of contemporary cinema. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
In this satiric road movie from Cuba, Yoyita (Conchita Brando), a well-known singer living in Havana, travels with her niece Georgina (Mirta Ibarra), a college professor, to the village of her birth, where Yoyita is reunited with Candido (Raul Eguren), whom she loved as a young woman. When Yoyita and Candido meet for the first time in 50 years, they're thrilled to discover that the flame of passion still burns within them; unfortunately, Yoyita is so thrilled that it gives her a heart attack, and she dies on the spot. Yoyita's body must be transported back to Havana for burial, but while logic would dictate that Georgina should simply hire a hearse to make the journey, her husband, Adolfo (Carlos Cruz), a bureaucrat with more enthusiasm than common sense, has another idea -- by transferring the body from one vehicle to another at the border of each province, the cost of fuel will be distributed more evenly along the route. No one much cares for this idea except Adolfo, but he has the law on his side, so Georgina, Candido, and Adolfo begin a long, slow journey back to Havana accompanied by truck drivers Ramon (Pedro Fernandez) and Mariano (Jorge Perugorria), who was Georgina's student years ago. At every stop, the group meets a few of the people in each town (especially Mariano, who seems to have a girlfriend in every village in Cuba) and they share their thoughts on faith, politics, and love. Guantanamera was the final work from veteran Cuban director Tomás Gutiérrez Alea; he died before the film could be completed, so co-screenwriter Juan Carlos Tabió finished the film in his stead. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1995
- NR
A reflective look at an idealistic young man's involvement in the Spanish Civil War, Land and Freedom combines wartime drama with impassioned political debate. Director Ken Loach, better known for his intimate portraits of working-class British life, begins on familiar turf in the present day, with a teenage girl sorting through the belongings of her recently deceased grandfather. She soon discovers her grandfather's involvement in the Spanish Civil War, and the film then flashes back to the 1930s to tell the story of young Dave Carr, intensely portrayed by Ian Hart. A dedicated young communist, Carr joins an international group of freedom fighters in order to wage the good war against fascism. The experience proves far less heroic than expected, however, as the fighters struggle with poor supplies, a lack of training, and internal discord. The traditional battles and romances of war drama follow, as Carr becomes involved in a tumultuous affair with a fellow fighter, but Loach and screenwriter Jim Allen give equal weight to more philosophical discussions about the nature and fate of socialism. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ian Hart, Rosana Pastor, (more)
- 1995
The many ways in which men are fascinated, compelled, and confused by their attraction to women are explored in this four part drama. As a filmmaker (John Malkovich) tries to sort out his plans for his next film, he considers several stories about women and the men who love them. Silvano (Kim Rossi Stuart) meets Carmen (Ines Sastre) and immediately asks her for a date, but despite his attraction, he can't follow through on his feelings for her. The director spies a woman on the streets (Sophie Marceau) and follows her obsessively, but when he finally meets her, he's disappointed, despite their mutual physical attraction. Roberto (Peter Weller) and his wife Patricia (Fanny Ardant) have to deal with their anger about each other's infidelities, as well as their problems with their lovers, Olga (Chiara Caselli) and Carlo (Jean Reno). And Niccolo (Vincent Perez) falls in love at first sight with a young woman (Irene Jacob), unaware that she is studying to become a nun. Par-Dela Les Nuages was Michelangelo Antonioni's first film after a massive stroke derailed his directorial career in 1985; Wim Wenders served as his collaborator on the project. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Malkovich, Kim Rossi Stuart, (more)
- 1996
In this French thriller, an actress wins the role of a murder victim in a film based on the true story of an unsolved crime. She discovers her neighbor was the lover of the woman who was murdered in real life -- and is still a suspect. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Goyette, Peter Stormare, (more)
British filmmaker Ken Loach blended a love story with strong political commentary in this powerful drama. George (Robert Carlyle) is a bus driver working in Glasgow who has a strong independent streak and has developed a serious crush on one of his regular passengers, a woman from Nicaragua named Carla (Oyanka Cabezas). Carla occasionally is short of money for her fare, so George lets he ride for free; when his boss finds out about this, it's added to a list of small insubordinations, and George is fired. However, he stays in touch with Carla and learns she's a good bit more troubled than he imagined. She's given to dramatic mood swings and has attempted suicide, and in time he learns that her emotional problems stem from the disappearance and probable death of her boyfriend Antonio (Richard Loza), a Sandinista who is believed to have been kidnapped by the U.S.-backed Contra rebels. The largely apolitical George travels with Carla to Nicaragua to help her look for Antonio. In their travels, they meet Bradley (Scott Glenn), an American who was once a CIA "advisor" to the Contra who has turned his back on their policies and now works alongside the Sandinistas. Carla's Song was a gold medal winner at the 1997 Venice Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Wim Wenders directed this allegorical drama about the emotional impact of violence in our culture, set against the backdrop of California's entertainment business. Mike Max (Bill Pullman) is a Hollywood producer who has earned a great deal of money and power in the film industry through his success with a series of brutally violent action pictures. While Max can juggle any number of tasks while working, he can't find time for his wife Paige (Andie MacDowell), and when she announces that she's divorcing him, he admits to himself (but not to her) that he deliberately put her through emotional trauma; Paige leaves to do volunteer work in the Third World, hoping to bring new meaning to her life. Very little reaches Max on an emotional level until Cat (Traci Lind), a stunt performer, is seriously injured on the set of Max's latest project. Not long after, Max is first car-jacked, then kidnapped by a pair of desperate thugs. He escapes and is given shelter by a group of Mexican-American gardeners. Wanting to retreat from the physical and spiritual violence that has become a key part of his life, Max opts to work with the gardening crew and stay away from his old life, remaining "missing" in the eyes of the world as he searches for a new life. Meanwhile, Max and his secretary Claire (Rosiland Chao) become aware of a secret plan that Ray Bering (Gabriel Byrne) has prepared for the city of Los Angeles, which will essentially put the entire town under constant surveillance, with the goal of ending violent crime once and for all. Frederic Forrest, Udo Kier, and legendary director Samuel Fuller also star; Ry Cooder composed the film's striking original score. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Pullman, Andie MacDowell, (more)
- 1997
In the midst of the danger and destruction of Sarajevo during the Bosnian conflict, a brave, dedicated group of war correspondents from all over the world gathered to bring the terrifying war into the lives of others. In the name of ratings and personal glory, these newshounds regularly risk their lives to get their stories. This war drama centers on three such reporters. Spanish newswoman Laura is more accustomed to doing "puff pieces" than hard news. This is her first time in Sarajevo and the experience is nearly overwhelming. At first the sophisticated veteran newscaster Mikel scoffs at her inexperience, but eventually the two connect and become lovers. Meanwhile, Mikel's fearless cameraman José anxiously awaits the destruction of the city's last remaining bridge. As Laura travels about the ruined town chronicling events and interviewing residents, she begins to lose her innocence and in so doing, gains painful insight into herself. At one point she finds herself entering the marketplace, a particularly dangerous sniper-inhabited location that has been dubbed by the others as "Comanche Territory." ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cecilia Dopazo, Bruno Todeschini, (more)
- 1997
The third feature from popular Spanish filmmaker Juanma Bajo Ulloa is a sprawling and complex action comedy with a touch of Almodovar-esque surrealistic absurdity that simultaneously satirizes gangster movies, film noir, and the Catholic Church. Juantxo is the chief protagonist. Coming from a bourgeois family, he has had all the opportunities to fulfill his father's wishes by obtaining a university degree, getting a high-paying job and making a place for himself in high society. The trouble is, Juantxo is a socially awkward idiot and a mamma's boy. He is, however, engaged to a rich and beautiful woman. A few days before his wedding, Juantxo's buddies Konradin and Paco persuade him to go out for a final night of oat-sowing. They are not long at the stag party when Juantxo falls for an exotic prostitute. Unfortunately he loses his fiancee's expensive engagement ring while messing with the hooker. Later, this valuable ring is discovered by Villambrosa, a gangster/pimp/international drug runner. His enemy Souza finds out about the ring and sends his sexy moll Fatima do Espirito Santo, a new age girl who can levitate, to investigate the situation. Meanwhile, Juantxo and friends frantically search for the ring. They have three days to find it and their journey takes them on a riotous road trip that leads them into the depths of the Mafia underworld. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Karra Elejalde, Fernando Guillen-Cuervo, (more)
- 1997
An IRA volunteer tries to leave his life of violence behind -- only to discover it's waiting for him in America -- in this drama based on a story by leading man Stephen Rea. Dowd (Rea) is a convicted terrorist with the Irish Republican Army who is serving a sentence in a prison in Northern Ireland. While his girlfriend Roisin (Maria Doyle Kennedy) patiently waits for his release, Dowd feels that he has no real future to offer her; the path he's chosen in life is not an easy one to move away from. After a visit from Roisin, Dowd is returning to his cell when he finds himself in the middle of a group of prisoners attempting an escape; Dowd impulsively joins them and turns out to be one of only two convicts to make it out alive. With forged papers, Dowd sneaks into the United States, where he takes a job as a dishwasher and lives in a dingy welfare hotel in Manhattan. While trying to mediate a domestic dispute among his neighbors, Dowd is stabbed in the back; a group of Guatemalan exiles who share an apartment in the building, led by Tulio (Alfred Molina), come to Dowd's rescue and treat his wounds. Dowd becomes friends with Tulio, his friend Paco (Jorge Sanz), and his daughter Monica (Rosana Pastor), and in time, he learns why they've come to the United States. The CIA operative who tortured and killed Tulio's father now lives in New York City, and they have come to assassinate him. However, Tulio and Paco have no experience in political violence, and no talent for it; Dowd soon finds himself drawn into their plan as he helps them organize a serious attempt on the CIA man's life, a situation that becomes all the more complicated when he finds himself falling in love with the beautiful Monica. The supporting cast includes Pruitt Taylor Vince, Paul Giamatti, Brendan Gleeson, and Coati Mundi, a former member of the adventurous R&B group Kid Creole & the Coconuts. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1998
Gerardo Herrero directed this Spanish-Argentine-German-French period fantasy drama set in turn-of-the century Buenos Aires. After widowed Roque (Jose Coronado) killed a man in Spain, he emigrated to Argentina with his young son Ramon (Francisco Corbalan). With his friend Hermann (Peter Lohmeyer), Roque works for a tobacco distributor. A ghost, Maidana (Federico Luppi), murdered by a "cutthroat and philosopher," reveals himself to only two people -- Roque and brothel-owner Teresa, aka Piera (Maribel Verdu) -- a situation which brings Roque and Piera together romantically. Shown in competition at the 1998 San Sebastian Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jose Coronado, Peter Lohmeyer, (more)
- 1998
- R
Actor Peter Mullan won the 1998 Cannes Film Festival "Best Actor" award with this film, directed by Ken Loach (Carla's Song, Ladybird, Ladybird). The drama is set in Possilpark, one of Glasgow's poorest neighborhoods, a rough section where half the population is out of work. Unemployed reformed alcoholic Joe Kavanagh (Mullan) does odd jobs and manages a stumbling soccer team. One of the players is Liam (David McKay), in debt to hood McGowan (David Hayman). Liam and junkie Sabine (Annemarie Kennedy) are raising a small son. After Joe meets social worker Sarah (Louise Goodall), he and his pal Shanks show up to help in the wallpapering of Sarah's apartment. This job creates a problem for Joe with the local unemployment office, until Sarah steps in to cover. It's the beginning of a romance, and Joe and Sarah make an effort to help Liam and Sarah when they are threatened by the loan sharks. Mullan commented, "The drug problem in that place is so serious that people are passive. They are corralled in a sort of dog-eat-dog environment where humans meet to laugh and thrive but have no hope of getting out." Scripted by former lawyer Paul Laverty, the film is inspired by the first half of Loach's Carla's Song. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Mullan, Louise Goodall, (more)
Wim Wenders' documentary Buena Vista Social Club is about the adventures of Ry Cooder in Cuba. Cooder, best remembered by film fans for the wailing slide guitar theme of Wenders' Paris, Texas, went to Cuba in 1996 to meet with some legendary 'soneros' musicians of the '30s, '40s and '50s. The result was the album Buena Vista Social Club, recorded with such colorful characters as the 90-year-old singer/guitarist Compay Segundo, guitarist Eliades Ochoa, baritone Ibrahim Ferrer and Omara Portuondo, "the Cuban Edith Piaf." The album won a Grammy, and in this refreshing documentary, Wim Wenders shows these exceptional musicians in their hometown, following them into their usual hang-outs -- the cafes, clubs and even living rooms -- as well as to concerts in Amsterdam and New York's Carnegie Hall, capturing their incredible vitality. "In Cuba, music flows like a river," according to Ry Cooder, who adds "Music is like a treasure hunt; you dig and dig and sometimes find something." Pursuing this metaphor, Wenders wanted to make a film that would "just float on this river ... not interfering with it, just drifting along." The result is a film full of vitality and positive energy, which is also an absolute delight to musical ears. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, All Movie Guide
- 1999
French filmmaker Jean Vigo made only four films prior to his death in 1934 at the age of 29 (only one a full length feature), but all of them are today recognized as landmarks of the European cinema, and Zero For Conduct and L'Atalante are often cited among the greatest films of their time. Vigo: Passion For Life is a dramatic biography that explores his brief life and tumultuous career. Born the son of a famous figure in the French anarchist movement, Jean Vigo (played here by James Frain) suffered from poor health throughout his life; he contracted tuberculosis as a young man, and met his wife Lydu Lozinska (Romane Bohringer) when both were receiving treatment in a sanitarium. Vigo made A propos de Nice in 1929 as an attack on bourgeois French society; the premier led to a riot, the first of many controversies surrounding Vigo's work (Zero For Conduct was completed in 1932, but its anti-authoritarian stance caused it to be banned until 1945). Vigo's fragile health was already beginning to fail him while he was filming L'Atalante; a fall into an icy river while trying to retrieve a camera only added to his ills, and he edited most of the film at home, too sick to leave. However, he was passionate about his art to the end, constantly battling producers and authorities to make films as he chose to make them. He died in 1934, the same year L'Atalante was released. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Romane Bohringer, James Frain, (more)
A portrait of a cold-blooded young gangster living and loathing in 1960s London, this drama features Malcolm McDowell in a major role in his first British picture in years. McDowell opens the film as the present day Gangster 55, who learns that an old associate, gangster Freddie Mays (David Thewlis), has just been released from prison after serving a 30-year sentence. The story then flashes back to 1968, when the young Gangster 55 (Paul Bettany) makes Mays' acquaintance and subsequently wins his trust by dealing with his enemies from a rival gang. The relationship between the two men is threatened when Mays falls for Karen (Saffron Burrows), a no-nonsense dancer. When 55 learns that Lennie (Jamie Foreman), a rival gang leader, plans to ambush Mays and Karen one night, he pits the two gangs against one another so that he can emerge as Gangster No. 1. The film was directed by Paul McGuigan, who previously examined the crusty underbelly of British society with his screen adaptation of Irvine Welsh's The Acid House (1998). ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Malcolm McDowell, David Thewlis, (more)
A young boy struggles with his family during England's pre-war depression in this drama directed by Stephen Frears. Liam (Anthony Borrows) is a seven-year-old growing up in a working-class family in Liverpool during the early 1930s. Liam's dad (Ian Hart) and older brother Con (David Hart) both work at the nearby shipyards, and his sister Teresa (Megan Burn) works as a domestic for a wealthy Jewish family. Liam, who suffers from a speech defect, is not always happy at school, where his teacher (Anne Reid) and his priest (Russell Dixon) spend nearly as much time lecturing students about the wages of sin as they do covering the three R's. The family's troubles mount when the shipyard is shut down as England sinks into an economic downturn; angry and confused after losing his job, Dad becomes a member of a fascist organization that blames the nation's troubles on Jews and the Irish. Young Liam is forced to come to terms with his father's intolerance -- and the violence that it spawns. Liam also features a standout performance by Claire Hackett as Liam's Mam. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ian Hart
Legendary filmmaker Wim Wenders returns to the screen with this loosely structured murder mystery. The Million Dollar Hotel unites Wender's obsession with cool music, lost souls, and American trash culture. Set in 2001, the film opens with Tom Tom (Jeremy Davies) taking a flying leap off the roof of the Million Dollar Hotel, an ironically titled dive in the seedy section of L.A. Told in an extended flashback, Tom Tom recounts the murder investigation of a down-and-out artist and son of a media mogul, Izzy Goldkiss (Tim Roth), who also fell off the hotel. FBI special agent Skinner (none other than Mel Gibson), sporting a neck brace, looks into the death only to discover that the building is teeming with weirdos and losers. There is Vivien (Amanda Plummer), who claims to be the fiancée of the rock star; Geronimo (Jimmy Smits), a huckster trying to make a buck by selling Izzy's abstract painting; Eloise (Milla Jovovich), a burned out prostitute with a passion for intellectual literature; and Dixie (Peter Stormare), who swears up and down that he is the fifth Beatle. As the film progresses, Skinner proves to be just as much of a freak as the hotel tenets -- he was born with a third arm that was surgically removed from his back. Just as in his Until the End of the World (1991), Wenders features a fantastic soundtrack including songs from Bono, Daniel Lanois, and Brian Eno. The Million Dollar Hotel opened the 2000 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Davies, Milla Jovovich, (more)
Leftist filmmaker Ken Loach directs this grim drama about the plight of seemingly invisible office cleaners in contemporary L.A. who often earn as little as $6 a day without benefits. The film opens as Maya (Pilar Padilla), a young Mexican lass, is reuniting with her older sister Rosa (Elpidia Carrilio) in L.A. after a harrowing cross-border journey. Rosa sets her sister up first with a job as a barmaid, which Maya soon quits after getting repeatedly groped -- and then as a janitor. When her boss demands one month's salary as "commission," Maya happens upon Sam Shapiro (Adrien Brody), a muckraking lawyer and union agitator. This film, which was screened in competition at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival, is remarkable for its prescience -- it was shown a month after a massive janitor's strike ground L.A.'s business community to a halt. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adrien Brody, Elpidia Carrillo, (more)
In this allegorical comedy-drama, a disparate group of people wait at a rundown Cuban transit station for the next bus to arrive. The problem is, it never shows up. While a number of busses pass by the station, and others that are either full or at the end of the line stop by, it soon becomes obvious that the bus everyone was waiting for has left them high and dry. While one of the would-be passengers, Emilio (Vladimir Cruz), uses his down time to win the affections of beautiful Jacqueline (Thaimi Alvarino), most of the rest decide that if they're stuck without anywhere to go, they might as well make the station a better place to wait, and they begin forming a plan to turn the decrepit bus terminal into a showplace that people would look forward to visiting. Lista De Espera was directed by Juan Carlos Tabio, in what was his first solo directorial credit in eight years -- after several noted collaborative efforts. The film was shown as part of the Un Certain Regard series at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vladimir Cruz, Jorge Perugorría, (more)
This period drama is based on the real-life relationship of the great Irish novelist James Joyce and his longtime lover, Nora Barnacle. Aspiring writer James (Ewan McGregor) meets Nora (Susan Lynch) in Dublin in 1904. While she lacks James' interest in literature, she shares his frustrations about the limitations of life in Ireland, and she encourages him in both his work and in his desire to try his hand in Europe. Nora also shares James' potent sexual appetite, and James finds himself at once thrilled by her enthusiasm for lovemaking and troubled by suspicions that she may be unfaithful to him. When James decides to relocate to Trieste, Nora joins him, and they eventually have two children together, but their relationship is often stormy -- James angrily suspects that Nora is having affairs with his brother Stanislaus (Peter McDonald) and their close friend Roberto (Roberto Citran) as he struggles with his writing and battles censors over his masterwork, Ulysses. However, while they have troubles keeping their relationship together, they find that it's even harder for them to live apart from one another. Ewan McGregor served as both star and co-producer for Nora, which was backed in part by his production company, Natural Nylon Entertainment. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roberto Citran, Susan Lynch, (more)
- 2000
- PG
- Add Shadow Magic to Queue
Chinese-born, American-based director Ann Hu debuts with this epic historical drama about the introduction of motion pictures to China during the beginning of the 20th century. The film is based on a true story of Liu Jung (Xia Yu), a Peking photographer who struggles to start a film industry in China in spite of the strong anti-Western sentiment of the time. At the film's outset, Liu Jung is scolded by his autocratic boss Master Ren (Liu Peiqi) for his obsession with Western gizmos after he brings home a junked Victrola. During a photo session with China's most famous opera star, Lord Tan (Li Yusheng), Liu Jung runs into Raymond Wallace (Jared Harris), a mysterious Brit who is hell-bent on introducing movies (called "shadow magic") to the Emperor. As soon as Liu Jung sees his first frame, he is hooked on the medium and committed to Wallace's scheme. This film was screened at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jared Harris, Xia Yu, (more)
