Third Window Films Discussion Thread

[thirdwindowfilms]

Originally Posted by TomN245

Hey Adam, If I ordered the Ujicha and Top Knot Detective from the Arrow Sale would they come with slipcovers?

Ujicha would, but Top Knot wouldn't

[thirdwindowfilms]

Originally Posted by bleedandtrim

Tempted to check out Onoda at a local screening in the Cine Lumiere in London.

Also worth mentioning here; some TWF stuff on discount in Arrow's Easter Sale at the moment;
https://www.arrowfilms.com/easter-sale-2022.list

It's really a film for the cinema, so see it on the big screen if you have the chance!
Also, it would really help with chances of indie films getting into cinemas, as it's very very hard to get things booked and if they're not immediately popular they get canceled.

[fatboyslim142]

Originally Posted by bleedandtrim

Tempted to check out Onoda at a local screening in the Cine Lumiere in London.

When is this on?

[bleedandtrim]

Originally Posted by fatboyslim142

When is this on?

Here's the complete listing of UK and IRE screenings, pretty limited and only showing in most places for a couple of days max;

https://thirdwindowfilms.com/films/o...in-the-jungle/

[CelestialAgent]

It’s not surprising it’s so limited tbh, besides a few outliers like The Battle at Lake Changjin or Drive My Car or a documentary like Revolution of Our Times, or Indian cinema or anime, it’s difficult to find Asian cinema in UK cinemas. Part of that I would say is although there are quite a few independents in the UK, many are more focused on wide commercial fare so they can pay the bills rather than arthouse, or might be tied to a cultural centre where they only do a few screenings a week the rest is dance/music/theatre etc. Indies are more prevalent in places like London and many cities in the UK are a lengthy train or a car journey away from a bigger city that actually has an arthouse cinema. A lot of the recent Cine-Asia releases like Raging Fire have been very limited. Another issue is though ODEON can sometimes be slightly flexible and do one off screenings of world cinema films or films with shorter release windows, generally chains won’t screen films that will be on Blu-ray in a few weeks - including Picturehouse who are supposed to be more amenable to indie films and world cinema but often aren’t.

Definitely planning to get the Blu day one though as I have no chance of seeing it in a cinema - same for other films like Great Freedom and Paris 13th District which never played locally.

[Magyalmar]

Originally Posted by CelestialAgent

It’s not surprising it’s so limited tbh, besides a few outliers like The Battle at Lake Changjin or Drive My Car or a documentary like Revolution of Our Times, or Indian cinema or anime, it’s difficult to find Asian cinema in UK cinemas.

Don't want to sound chauvinistic (who am I kidding, of course I do) but Onoda is more a French movie than an Asian one.

[CelestialAgent]

Originally Posted by Magyalmar

Don't want to sound chauvinistic (who am I kidding, of course I do) but Onoda is more a French movie than an Asian one.

Yeah, I noticed it was a coproduction on the website. French cinema definitely fares a bit better in UK cinemas (Truffaut rereleases, Deerskin, Annette, Petite Maman, Titane, Benedetta, Happening, La Mif) but it’s still not as present as it could be.

[thirdwindowfilms]

Originally Posted by Magyalmar

Don't want to sound chauvinistic (who am I kidding, of course I do) but Onoda is more a French movie than an Asian one.

It's totally a European film, with barely any ties to Japan as Japan doesn't have any co-production treaties with Europe (or anywhere in the world with the exception of Canada). Though, like a film I compare it to in MISHIMA, its strengths are that it is not a Japanese film. It would look a lot worse visually (and rhythmically) and have a lot worse acting if it was a Japanese film!

[thirdwindowfilms]

Originally Posted by CelestialAgent

It’s not surprising it’s so limited tbh, besides a few outliers like The Battle at Lake Changjin or Drive My Car or a documentary like Revolution of Our Times, or Indian cinema or anime, it’s difficult to find Asian cinema in UK cinemas. Part of that I would say is although there are quite a few independents in the UK, many are more focused on wide commercial fare so they can pay the bills rather than arthouse, or might be tied to a cultural centre where they only do a few screenings a week the rest is dance/music/theatre etc. Indies are more prevalent in places like London and many cities in the UK are a lengthy train or a car journey away from a bigger city that actually has an arthouse cinema. A lot of the recent Cine-Asia releases like Raging Fire have been very limited. Another issue is though ODEON can sometimes be slightly flexible and do one off screenings of world cinema films or films with shorter release windows, generally chains won’t screen films that will be on Blu-ray in a few weeks - including Picturehouse who are supposed to be more amenable to indie films and world cinema but often aren’t.

Definitely planning to get the Blu day one though as I have no chance of seeing it in a cinema - same for other films like Great Freedom and Paris 13th District which never played locally.

Even ONE CUT OF THE DEAD, which is often put in the same sentence as DRIVE MY CAR as one of the few Japanese films which have made a splash internationally, barely got any cinema play in the UK. Initially many cinemas were just offering 1 day, which for a word of mouth film isn't very helpful. And cinemas take the majority of the box office (places like Prince Charles tend to ask for 75%) compared to Japanese cinemas where the split is 50/50.

The ICA in London are playing ONODA for a week, but up until yesterday you wouldn't have known that as they only put its screening details up on their website 2 days before its release. And haven't made even 1 post (or retweet) on any of their social networks about the film playing there. And they take 65% of the box office too.

Which is why companies like Arrow don't put films in cinemas, and why it's so hard for others, even a film like ONODA which has a lot of major award pedigree around it

[CelestialAgent]

I remember Heathers screening in 2018, Picturehouse did one-offs of Donnie Darko and Battle Royale, I went to Ring in 2019 and Cinema Paradiso in 2021, but Blade of the Immortal and Climax were so limited I never found anywhere playing it, and Crash was cancelled by the pandemic.

[thirdwindowfilms]

Originally Posted by CelestialAgent

I remember Heathers screening in 2018, Picturehouse did one-offs of Donnie Darko and Battle Royale, I went to Ring in 2019 and Cinema Paradiso in 2021, but Blade of the Immortal and Climax were so limited I never found anywhere playing it, and Crash was cancelled by the pandemic.

Did Arrow even take theatrical rights to those films?
They were just one in a string of distributors to handle those films, and they may just have bought video rights.
Some of the theatrical rights to a lot of those 'classic' titles get handled by other companies.

[CelestialAgent]

Going off of Arrow Films titles listed on FDA. The shift I see is up through 2018 or so they were giving new films theatrical releases, but really within a few years of folding Arrow Films new releases into Video/Academy they’d shifted away from that, and I think if Arrow ever did another cinema release (they haven’t since 2020), it would just be a reissue of a remaster.

The only other labels with theatrical arms I can think of is Eureka, who occasionally does a reissue or new release, but it’s often quite limited. Unless we start counting Lightbulb or Signature who seem mostly interested in home video and VOD/streaming but still do token theatrical releases on some titles.

[bleedandtrim]

Nipped out to Kensington's Cine Lumiere in the beautiful Institut Francais last night for a showing of Onoda. Adam was right - this is absolutely one for the big screen! A tragically beautiful anti-war film that makes strong use of its near 3hr runtime to fully draw you into Onoda's absurd extended tenure on the island. I only wish we saw a bit more of his impact on the island and its citizens (was surprised to discover he had killed at least 30 Fillipinos whilst there in contrast to the handful of deaths illustrated in the film), but I understand that would have of possibly taken us too far out of his state of mind and broaden the perspective.

Will also say the transition between the two actors portraying Onoda at his different stages of life was something I barely registered, such was the seamlessness of the casting! And a gorgeous looking film to boot (shot mostly with natural lighting, IIRC?), there's a stand-out sequence I won't spoil toward the end when Onoda watches from the riverbed as another character walks into the distance just as clouds slowly envelop the foreground in shadow in some sublime pathetic fallacy.

Still need some time to chew on it some more, but highly recommend anyone close to a screening catches one ASAP! There were maybe a scant twelve or so heads at my screening but hopefully some word of mouth picks up in the week.

Worth asking - are the subs for the theatrical run the same as the home release, Adam? I can't help but mention there were a few glaring typos and grammatical mistakes throughout, definitely needs another going over IMO.

[Ste7en]

It is on at the Tyneside Cinema on Thursday evening. I'd love to go but due to the lurgy, I'm still on 'avoid large groups' guidance

[bleedandtrim]

Originally Posted by Ste7en

It is on at the Tyneside Cinema on Thursday evening. I'd love to go but due to the lurgy, I'm still on 'avoid large groups' guidance

Yeah completely fair, I've been to the cinema a few times since this all began but only ever gone for quieter showings and when I can at least get a seat with a space on either side (in one case me and my partner even had the entire theater to ourselves for a showing of Memories of Murder, bliss!). Still haven't caught it yet, so either doing something right or just been plum lucky.

[thirdwindowfilms]

Originally Posted by Ste7en

It is on at the Tyneside Cinema on Thursday evening. I'd love to go but due to the lurgy, I'm still on 'avoid large groups' guidance

Only a total of 7 people saw the film at the Tyneside cinema over all the weekend showings, so I'm sure you don't need to worry about 'large groups'

[CelestialAgent]

If they do online booking you could check how busy the film is that way, even if you book at the box office.

I would be cautious with big blockbusters, music events and big reissues, but if it’s a smaller indie you’ll probably be okay.

[thirdwindowfilms]

Originally Posted by bleedandtrim

I understand that would have of possibly taken us too far out of his state of mind and broaden the perspective.

Worth asking - are the subs for the theatrical run the same as the home release, Adam? I can't help but mention there were a few glaring typos and grammatical mistakes throughout, definitely needs another going over IMO.

In regards to the Filipino perspective, Arthur explains this on our recent podcast interview with him, saying that he wanted the film to be from Onoda's mindset/viewpoint and not a story about both sides and the whole situation in general.
Unfortunately Sight & Sound totally ripped into the film because they said it wasn't 'left' enough and didn't take the Filipino side, but that would have been a completely different film if it had. Arthur speaks really well about those points, so if you've time to listen to the interview, please do!

Regarding the subs, those subs were burnt in to the DCP which was made by the French side (the same DCP which played in Cannes), so I didn't have any chance to change them.
Saying that, I don't remember which points were fixed for the bluray release.

[bleedandtrim]

Originally Posted by thirdwindowfilms

In regards to the Filipino perspective, Arthur explains this on our recent podcast interview with him, saying that he wanted the film to be from Onoda's mindset/viewpoint and not a story about both sides and the whole situation in general.
Unfortunately Sight & Sound totally ripped into the film because they said it wasn't 'left' enough and didn't take the Filipino side, but that would have been a completely different film if it had. Arthur speaks really well about those points, so if you've time to listen to the interview, please do!

Regarding the subs, those subs were burnt in to the DCP which was made by the French side (the same DCP which played in Cannes), so I didn't have any chance to change them.
Saying that, I don't remember which points were fixed for the bluray release.

Yeah I figured as much! Will definitely give the interview a listen, very keen to learn more and may check out Onoda's own memoirs after.

What's the runtime on the disc extras, by the way? Will definitely be picking it up down the line.

[roguejp]

Just finished the last one and there's already another podcast about Zokki! Will listen next week!