New year, new foreign movie list! And not too bad of a selection if we do say so ourselves… at  least better than last month. A lot of you were askin’ about the new Transformers and the Creed sequel and we thankfully get both of them (on the same day!). Also included: a couple animes, a couple about dogs, a couple about sports, a couple more big budget action type ones, and a Ukrainian princess cartoon. We even have a couple holdouts that got added to the end of last month… enjoy the movies!

Whoa, awesome!

Friday, December 28, 2018

Thugs of Hindostan

《印度暴徒》

yìn dù bào tú

Director: Vijay Krishna Acharya

Actors: Aamir Khan, Katrina Kaif, Amitabh Bachchan

China Release Date: Friday, December 28, 2018

Note: this film is in Hindi with Chinese subtitles

Aamir Khan is back and can do no wrong. This time he’s a “thug” from Hindostan. Cool. As you all know, China loves this guy and will be flocking to the theaters this week to see it.

The movie is set in 1795 and follows a gang of pirates who aspire to free Hindostan from the evil British Empire. A small-time thug (Khan) is then sent by British commander John Clive to infiltrate the gang and counter their threat.

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Friday, December 28, 2018

Benji

《神探狗笨吉》

shén tàn gǒu bèn jí

Director: Brandon Camp

Actors: Gabriel Bateman, Darby Camp, Kiele Sanchez

China Release Date: Friday, December 28, 2018

Didn’t we download and watch this one months ago? Yes, we did. But it’s finally coming to Chinese theaters. Kiddos and dog lovers alike, will love this happy-go-lucky film remake. And no, they don’t pull a Marley and Me.

Two school kids strike up a friendship with an orphaned puppy named Benji. When danger befalls them and they end up kidnapped by robbers who are in over their heads, Benji and his scruffy sidekick come to the rescue.

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Friday, January 4, 2019

Bumblebee

《大黄蜂》

dà huáng fēng

Director: Travis Knight

Actors: Hailee Steinfeld, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., John Cena

China Release Date: Friday, January 4, 2019

Another Transformers movie! Which number is this one? Doesn’t matter, it’s a standalone with everyone’s favorite autobot…

On the run in the year 1987, Bumblebee finds refuge in a junkyard in a small Californian beach town, of course. Charlie (Steinfeld), on the cusp of turning 18 and trying to find her place in the world, discovers the yellow transformer, battle-scarred and broken.

Maybe a little origin story thrown in for good measure. And don’t forget John Cena!

Friday, January 4, 2019

Creed II

《奎迪：英雄再起》

kuí dí：yīng xióng zài qǐ

Director: Steven Caple Jr.

Actors: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson

China Release Date: Friday, January 4, 2019

After the first film, this one seemed inevitable. And we all could’ve easily predicted his opponent: Viktor Drago, son of Ivan Drago. Seems to have good reviews and is sure to become another classic boxing film to add to the collection.

Friday, January 11, 2019

The Breadwinner

《养家之人》

yǎng jiā zhī rén

Director: Nora Twomey

Actors: Saara Chaudry, Soma Chhaya, Noorin Gulamgaus

China Release Date: Friday, January 11, 2019

This animated feature was nominated for an Oscar this year and is based on Deborah Ellis’ bestselling novel of the same name. Parvana is an 11-year-old girl growing up under the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2001. When her father is wrongfully arrested, Parvana cuts off her hair and dresses like a boy in order to support her family.

Working alongside her friend Shauzia, Parvana discovers a new world of freedom and danger. With undaunted courage, Parvana draws strength from the fantastical stories she invents, as she embarks on a quest to find her father and reunite her family.

Equal parts thrilling and enchanting, The Breadwinner is an inspiring and luminously animated tale about the power of stories to sustain hope and carry us through dark times. We highly highly recommend this one!

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Friday, January 11, 2019

Memoirs of a Murderer

《22年后的自白》

èr shí èr nián hòu de zì bái

aka 22年目の告白 私が殺人犯です

Director: Yû Irie

Actors: Paolo Andrea Di Pietro, Tatsuya Fujiwara, Toyotaka Hanazawa

China Release Date: Friday, January 11, 2019

Note: this film is in Japanese with Chinese subtitles

In 1995, five serial murder cases took place. Wataru Makimura took charge of the murder cases and tried to catch the serial killer. Due to the killer’s trap, Wataru Makimura’s superior was killed.

The serial murder case has been unsolved to this date. 22 years later, a murder memoir “Watashi ga Satsujinhan desu” (“I am a Murderer”) is published. The author describes himself as the killer responsible for the five unsolved serial murder cases.

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Friday, January 11, 2019

Uncle Drew

《德鲁大叔》

dé lǔ dà shū

Director: Charles Stone III

Actors: Kyrie Irving, Lil Rel Howery, Shaquille O’Neal, Nate Robinson, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, Lisa Leslie, Tiffany Haddish, Nick Kroll

China Release Date: Friday, January 11, 2019

After draining his life savings to enter a team in the Rucker Classic street ball tournament in Harlem, Dax (Howery) is dealt a series of unfortunate setbacks, including losing his team to his longtime rival (Kroll).

Desperate to win the tournament and the cash prize, Dax stumbles upon the man, the myth, the legend UNCLE DREW (NBA All-Star Kyrie Irving) and convinces him to return to the court one more time. The two men embark on a road trip to round up Drew’s old basketball squad and prove that a group of septuagenarians can still win the big one.

Wow. Based off of the comedy webisodes, this is primarily for those NBA fans out there.

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Friday, January 11, 2019

Fate/Stay Night:

Heaven’s Feel – I. Presage Flower

《命运之夜——天之杯：

恶兆之花》

mìng yùn zhī yè   tiān zhī bēi ：è zhào zhī huā

Director: Tomonori Sudô

Actors: Bryce Papenbrook, Noriaki Sugiyama, Noriko Shitaya, Cristina Valenzuela, Ayako Kawasumi

China Release Date: Friday, January 11, 2019

Note: this film is in Japanese with Chinese subtitles

Adapted from the third route of Fate/Stay Night, this story follows Emiya Shirou, a young magus who attends Homurahara Academy in Fuyuki City. One day after cleaning the Archery Dojo in his school, he catches a glimpse of a fight between superhuman beings, and he gets involved in the Holy Grail War, a ritual where magi called Masters fight each other with their Servants to win the Holy Grail.

Shirou joins the battle to stop an evildoer from winning the Grail and to save innocent people, but everything goes wrong when a mysterious “Shadow” begins to indiscriminately kill people in Fuyuki…

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Friday, January 18, 2019

Mortal Engines

《掠食城市》

luě shí chéng shì

Director: Christian Rivers

Actors: Hera Hilmar, Robert Sheehan, Hugo Weaving, Jihae, Ronan Raftery

China Release Date: Friday, January 18, 2019

A mysterious young woman, Hester Shaw, emerges as the only one who can stop a giant, predator city on wheels devouring everything in its path. Feral, and fiercely driven by the memory of her mother, Hester joins forces with Tom Natsworthy, an outcast from London, along with Anna Fang, a dangerous outlaw with a bounty on her head.

This movie is NOT doing well abroad… who’s to say how it will do in China, but unknown sci-fi flicks with little known actors will most likely also not do well here. Still kinda wanna see it, though.

Friday, January 18, 2019

Let Me Eat Your Pancreas

《我想吃掉你的胰脏》

wǒ xiǎng chī diào nǐ de yí zāng

aka 君の膵臓を食べたい

Director: Shin’ichirô Ushijima

Actors: Mahiro Takasugi, Lynn, Yukiyo Fujii

China Release Date: Friday, January 18, 2019

Note: this film is in Japanese with Chinese subtitles

Disregard the quirky English title, and you have yourself a legit drama that is sure to draw tears. Also note, this is the anime remake that was recently released in Japan. This is NOT the live-action version that released here in September.

Summary: A high school student happens to find a diary written by one of his classmates, Sakura Yamauchi, that reveals she is suffering from a pancreatic disease. He spent time with Sakura, but she dies. 12 years later, due to Sakura’s words, he is now a high school teacher at the same school where he graduated from.

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Friday, January 18, 2019

Escape Room

《密室逃生》

mì shì táo shēng

Director: Adam Robitel

Actors: Deborah Ann Woll, Taylor Russell, Tyler Labine

China Release Date: Friday, January 18, 2019

Six strangers find themselves in circumstances beyond their control, and must use their wits to survive. Find the clue… or die.

It was just a matter of time until Hollywood took this beloved group entertainment concept and made it into a movie! And the trailer looks pretty good.

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Friday, January 18, 2019

A Dog’s Way Home

《一条狗的回家路》

yī tiáo gǒu de huí jiā lù

Director: Charles Martin Smith

Actors: Bryce Dallas Howard, Ashley Judd, Alexandra Shipp

China Release Date: Friday, January 18, 2019

Another dog movie in less than a month! Just because I have a cat now, doesn’t mean I’m not a dog person any more.

In this movie, the eponymous dog has to travel over 400 miles back to find its owner. There’s no way this can be better than the classic Homeward Bound, though!

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Friday, January 18, 2019

The Stolen Princess

《森林奇缘》

sēn lín qí yuán

aka Викрадена принцеса: Руслан i Людмила

Director: Oleh Malamuzh

Actors: Nadezhda Dorofeeva, Aleksey Zavgorodniy, Yevhen Malukha

China Release Date: Friday, January 18, 2019

Note: this film is in Ukrainian [or dubbed in Chinese or possibly English] with Chinese subtitles

This wonderful story happened in the age of valiant knights, beautiful princesses, and battling sorcerers. Ruslan, a wandering artist dreaming to become a knight, met beautiful Mila and fell in love with her; he didn’t even suspect that she is the King’s daughter. However, the lovers’ happiness wasn’t meant to last too long.

Chernomor, the evil sorcerer, appeared in a magic vortex and stole Mila right before Ruslan’s eyes to transform her power of love into his own magic power. Without further ado, Ruslan sets out on a chase after the stolen princess to overcome all obstacles and to prove that real love is stronger than magic.

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Thanks to imdb.com, douban.com, all the movies’ websites, and Wikipedia for the information used. And a huge thanks to the team at  Culturability. They consistently write useful content. Follow their WeChat platform by scanning below:

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Chengdu Film Society

Sunday nights from 8pm

Berlin Haus
SOHO Building A 1203, 60 Kehua Bei Lu 科华北路60号费城A座1203

Movie nights at Mike’s Pizza 

Sunday nights (now from 10 pm)
Mike’s Pizza Kitchen 
2-3 East Yujie St., 28, Sect. 4, South Renmin Rd. 人民南路四段28号玉洁东街2号附3号

Chengdu Secret Cinema Immersive Film Experiences

Secret Cinema will be showing movies throughout the year in unusual places to give some of your favourite films a little special flavour.  Add WeChat ID: Chengdu-Expat2 to be added to the group and keep updated with upcoming events.