5 Asian movies from 2023 you need to watch
And we’re back! I missed it last year, but I’m ready to dish it for 2023. It has been a pretty decent year for Asian cinema, with China releasing a bunch of great hits over the summer, and Japan coming in strong at the end. Here are my recommendations for the top 5 Asian movies from 2023:
*alert: minor spoilers follow*
1. Japan — Monster
Part of the official Cannes selection, this movie is often written off as the Asian version of Belgian Close, which did so well in Cannes the year before. In my opinion this is an unfair comparison. Yes, at the heart of it lies the relationship between two boys, but the Belgian movie is engineered to make you weep for 60 minutes and the Japanese movie is designed to make you reflect on who the monster in the story, and in our society, really is.
The story follows the events of Minato, a fifth grader who starts acting progressively more strangely and withdrawn as the school year goes by, coming home with bruises and missing shoes, acting out to those around him, and threatening self-harm. The story is told three times through different points of view, starting with the mother (a deep and grounding Sakura Ando), who identifies the culprit of her son’s bullying in the homeroom teacher, whose perspective we see in the second act, before we finally get the big reveal, as seen from the boy’s eyes.
Favorite moment: How director Koreeda actually gets you to believe the monster is young Yori.
Least favorite moment: Some of the “gotchas” of the storytelling are a slightly distracting leap of faith. Also, how everyone is calling this a queer coming of age movie when, in my opinion, that’s not really the point of the movie, and may unfortunately detract watchers.
2. Korea — Past Lives
The movie that everyone loves to talk about. It’s on everyone’s list, from The Economist to Time magazine. I have never spent so much time this year talking about a movie like I have with Past Lives. The movie tells of the story of Na-young (fiercely played by Seung Ah-moon), a Korean girl who leaves her hometown, and her middle-school sweetheart (Seung Min-yim), when she moves to North America, only to reconnect with him ten years later, virtually, and again ten years after that, in person. The movie is about so many things though: about competing identities, about roads not taken, about split hearts… there’s something for everyone.
The story feels like an accurate reflection of Millenial times, where many of us have left our countries behind and regularly return to the question of who and what we are. The liminal space between cultures is getting more and more crowded, but in Past Lives it is single-handedly represented with superb code-switching finesse by Seung. What takes this film to the next stage is that debutant director Celine Song gives voice to the part of our hearts that hail from our original home as well as our new home, as represented by the idealistic Seun, her past Korean love interest, and mousey Arthur, her Jewish New Yorker husband. The tension is delicate, profound, and complex.
Favorite moment: The final scene is really, REALLY good, but I personally loved any time Teo Yoo (Seung) had to suppress an emotion. He does it so subtly and so well you immediately feel for the guy.
Least favorite moment: The feeling that this movie could have been an A++ if it had been slightly more courageous. I got the feeling that the movie held back somehow, and could have taken us for a one-of-a-kind ride.
3. China: Tainted Love
If you are only learning about Zhou Dongyu now, let me welcome you to her fan club. She made the list a few years ago for her role in Better Days, but what directors have managed to do together with her this year is superlative. She has starred in *three* 2023 movies, and while I would comfortably recommend the visually striking The Breaking Ice — and trust me, after watching Tainted Love you will want to — I felt like Ma Yingxin’s debut film had a more entertaining pace to it.
The movie tells of thirty-something year-old Zhou Ran who, after having been relieved of all her money by one of those trending pig-butchering phone scams, tries to track down her scammer for some combination of revenge, justice, and explanation. After a number of unlikely coincidences, she finds herself in a love triangle with her scammer and his friend.
To nitpick at the script for all of its implausibilities is to miss the point of the movie, which is the tension that Zhou and her scammer-lover (played by Li Meng) build up for the whole movie. Who is in control? Is there actual love between them? If so, from who? Keep looking at their eyes, and you might just be able to get it.
Favorite moment: The last scene, in which Zhou Dongyu, although seemingly inscrutable, has a way of showing her final decision without changing her expression. It’s an incredible piece of delicate acting, and superbly captured.
Least favorite moment: Some of the subplots seem to add a bit of unnecessary melodrama to the story. It makes little sense to have such scenes when they mostly just fight the intricate vibe set up in the main plot.
4. Malaysia — Tiger Stripes
Another film by a debutant female director on my list this year, Tiger Stripes has made the rounds, not only at Cannes (winner at Cannes International Critics Week) but also at home in South East Asia, where some of the scenes have been censored in Malaysia. Amanda Nell Eu takes us through the story of Zaffan, a lively young Muslim girl in rural Malaysia who is the first in her class to get her period. As her world changes, she physically starts becoming the monster everyone around her thinks she is now.
While perhaps it is not the tightest of films, the fantasy and folklore elements that Nell Eu uses to describe Zaffan’s plight really help viewers understand some of the social topics she explores in her work. Hopefully more progressive western audiences will still be able to empathize with some of the very real issues raised here.
Favorite moment: The chemistry between the three young girls, especially in the beginning, is so natural and heartwarming, you really feel quite sad when that relationship is broken once Zaffan’s body begins to change.
Least favorite moment: Making a body horror film to talk about this issue is a choice that is interesting on paper, but it requires that the audience be familiar with certain aspects of the genre, such as some of the b-movie-style execution, which detracted a bit from the tension.
5. Japan — The Boy and the Heron
Putting Hayao Miyazaki’s latest film on a top 5 list may not seem like the boldest of moves, but this film really is incredible and deserves at least one watch.
Miyazaki has been promising to retire for some time, largely unsuccessfully. This is his umpteenth “this is the last one, I swear” attempt, but there is something here that really feels reflective and definitive.
The story starts with young Mahito moving away from a firebombed WWII Tokyo, following the death of his mother, to a large estate in the countryside. Soon Mahito begins to discover the magic surrounding the place, and will start exploring new worlds and characters with increasing speed until he reaches the existential core of world creation. It is a wild ride. Buckle up, and strap on a helmet.
The movie has elements of his previous work: without being a huge Ghibli fan I saw bits of Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Grave of the Fireflies (not his, but still Ghibli), Spirited Away, and so on, a nice look back at a history of Miyazaki’s magic. To that he adds imagery of western fairy tales and stories like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (see picture above), Alice in Wonderland, and Beauty and the Beast. To what end? A very wide discussion on different topics: the relationship between mother and child, the passing of time, or the different layers of ambition are but a few. As the movie picks up in pace, Miyazaki doesn’t try to explain any of the thoughts he has poured into this film. Instead, it’s as if he wants use to use his latest work to reflect on the original title of the film: How do we live?
Favorite moment: There is a moment, and I think it’s around the time we are introduced to the giant man-eating parakeets, where Miyazaki finally convinces us to “watch first, think later,” and you really just let go and let the rest of the film take you everywhere.
Least favorite moment: This movie, which is certainly not for kids, needs to be watched more than once to fully appreciate all the metaphors and philosophical discussions Miyazaki explores.
Bonus — Japan — Bucket List of the Dead
If you’ve been reading this annual list you’ll know that a) I love zombies and b) I like to include at least one series on this list. This last-minute Netflix release hits those two points. The premise is simple: when the zombie apocalypse hits, Akira is just *delighted* he doesn’t have to work for his exploitative company anymore. Now that he is free, he makes a bucket list of things he wants to do [before he turns into a zombie].
It’s a very fun watch, with Akira’s high energy — reminiscent of Luffy from One Piece — balancing certain adult issues, like just how difficult it can actually be to quit your job even though its sucking the life out you and all your friends are telling you to do it. It’s clever, it’s entertaining, and in this version of the apocalypse the zombies fart in puffs of color.
Favorite moment: The absolute *glee* Akira experiences when he realizes he doesn’t have to go to work, even as he is aware that the world is falling apart, had me laughing out loud. If you know, you know.
Least favorite moment: I will admit I am only halfway through (two episodes yet to be aired), and I am enjoying some of the topics discussed in each episode, but I wonder, even as a mini series, if it will have enough things to talk about and hold my interest.
Bonus — Taiwan — Port of Lies
This was going to be my original bonus to the list before Bucket List of the Dead made an appearance. Port of Lies is a Netflix legal drama that starts when an Amis public defender is assigned to defend an Indonesian migrant fisherman accused of murdering an Amis boat captain, his wife, and little kid (yes, it’s a lot). Together with an idealistic law student from an upstanding Taiwanese (Han) family and with the help of an Indonesian caregiver who serves as a translator, the lawyer investigates the murder to uncover a plot involving government officials and corrupt businessmen.
For people less familiar with Taiwan, such as myself, it’s great exposition into the dynamics between the Han, the Amis (indigenous Taiwanese ethnic group) and Indonesian migrant workers, which I was clueless about. The series suffers from a slightly overidealistic and repetitive discussion on capital punishment, as well as some overly melodramatic moments, but it’s generally gritty and pacy enough to keep you engaged till the end.
Favorite moment: Christopher Lee’s starring role as the anti-hero defense lawyer, in equal parts heart-warming as he is despairing, really grounds the story and the rest of the cast around him. Amazing gravitas full of humanity.
Least favorite moment: Yikes, unless you are familiar with the Taiwanese legal system, a lot of the discussion here is going to feel quite chewy at times, especially with regards to the mechanisms surrounding constitutional changes.
