Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast, John and Jason discuss the 2018 Lee Chang-dong film, Burning. They talk about the film's themes, style, influences, and its nuanced take on social and existential issues. We hope you enjoy. Timestamps 3:02 - Media Consumption 23:20 - News 30:45 - Film Discussion Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogspot.com/2022/09/s3e8-burning-20...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast, John and Jason discuss the 2008 Oscar winning film, Departures. They talk about the film's obvious popular appeal, beautiful score, themes of death -- and finally they ruminate on whether it truly deserves its myriad of awards. We hope you enjoy. Timestamps 2:52 - Media Consumption 21:27 - News 28:16 - Film Discussion Website link: http...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast, John and Jason discuss Johnnie To's 1999 film, The Mission. They talk about the film's style, characters, deep underlying themes, as well as its place in Hong Kong's heroic bloodshed genre. Enjoy! Timestamps 1:35 - Media Consumption 14:50 - News 20:24 - Film Discussion Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogspot.com/2022/08/s3e6-mis...

In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss their favorite movies from the 2022 New York Asian Film Festival. Timestamps : 1:48 - Media Consumption 10:32 - News 17:13 - Discussion Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogspot.com/2022/07/special-nyaff-2022.html Follow the show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeroicPurgatory Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/filmnohito Fol...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast, John and Jason tackle their first Iranian film with Abbas Kiarostami's 1997 Palme D'or winner, Taste of Cherry. They discuss the film's deep philosophical themes, cultural references, and unique visual aesthetic. Enjoy! Timestamps 2:10 - Media Consumption 20:05 - News 30:29 - Film Discussion Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogsp...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast, John and Jason travel to mainland China to discuss Zhang Yimou's seminal 1991 film, Raise the Red Lantern. They discuss the film's accolades, allegorical interpretations, and its place in the director's multifaceted career. Enjoy! Timestamps 2:18 - Media Consumption 25:15 - News 27:27 - Film Discussion Website link: https://heroic-purga...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast, John and Jason discuss Ang Lee's 2000 Wuxia film, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Breaking all kinds of records when released, the film revitalized the Wuxia genre and brought international recognition to Ang Lee, Chow Yun Fat, and Michelle Yeoh. Listen to John's and Jason's discussion and see if they think the film stands the test of ti...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast, John and Jason discuss Bong Joon-ho's award winning and record breaking 2019 film, Parasite. They discuss themes of class and gender present in the film, its comparison with other films like Kurosawa's High and Low, and speculations about the film's legacy and success. Timestamps 2:14 - Media Consumption 14:30 - News 18:55 - Film Discus...

Welcome to the 3rd season of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast. This season's theme is "award winners." What are the biggest award winners in Asian cinema? How where these films received at the time, how are they received now, and can they tell as something about the state of Asian cinema at the time of their release? John and Jason start the season with this year's big Oscar winner, Drive...

In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss their favorite movies from the wonderful 2022 Osaka Asian Film Festival. Timestamps : 2:53 - Media Consumption 19:12 - News 23:42 - Discussion Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogspot.com/2022/03/oaff-2022-special.html Follow the show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeroicPurgatory Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/filmnohi...

As we move steadily through the new year, John and Jason take a look back at 2021 and talk about their favorite movies. Timestamps: 2:23 - Media Consumption 15:04 - News 25:32 - Discussion Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogspot.com/2022/01/best-of-2021.html Follow the show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeroicPurgatory Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/filmnohito Follow John: https://twi...

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone. In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason tackle Satoshi Kon's 2003 film, Tokyo Godfathers. Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogspot.com/2021/12/christmas-special-2021-tokyo-godfathers.html Follow the show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeroicPurgatory Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/filmnohito Follow John: https://twitter.co...

In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss the iconic 1998 anime series, Cowboy Bebop. The boys talk about the characters, their favorite episodes, and like many others, they join the perennial bounty hunt for the myriad pop culture references buried within. Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogspot.com/2021/11/november-special-cowboy-bebop.html Follow the show on Tw...

Season 2 might be over, but our coverage of great movies continues. In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason talk about John Carpenter's 1982 film, The Thing, and the various iterations that preceded it. Starting with John W. Campbell's novella, Who Goes There, and the Howard Hawks 1951 adaptation, The Thing from Another World, we delve into the many themes and interpretations c...

Alas, the season finale is here. In this final episode of season 2 of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss the 1997 Hong Kong film by Fruit Chan, Made in Hong Kong. We talk about the film's style, themes, and place in post-handover Hong Kong. We also share some overall thoughts on the topic of this season, 90s Asian cinema. Timestamps 3:32 - Media Consumption 18:19 - News 24:27 - Film Discussi...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss the first two entries in the South Korean Whispering Corridors horror franchise: Whispering Corridors (1998) and Memento Mori (1999). Both films are shining examples of the rising Korean cinema of the 90s. We talk about their political symbolism, same sex relationships, as well as the role that these films played in the rise of Korean hor...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory, John, Jason, and guest host Dr. Brian Ruh discuss Mamoru Oshii's 1995 animated masterpiece, Ghost in the Shell. They spend a lot of time discussing the film's philosophical/theological themes, Oshii's unique style, as well as the various sequels and spinoffs of the franchise. Timestamps : 2:58 Media Consumption 10:18 News 15:36 Film Discussion Buy Brian's book:...

In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss the 2021 edition of the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF). For the second year in a row, NYAFF goes online (well, partially), which means everyone in North America can enjoy their wonderful selection of Asian films. In this episode we talk about our overall impression of the festival and list our favorite films. The festival wi...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason return to the coverage of 90s Asian cinema by discussion Ang Lee's 1993 film, The Wedding Banquet. In this film, Ang Lee presents yet another clash between tradition and modernity through the lens of a Taiwanese immigrant struggling to balance his personal life with his filial duties. Can those two worlds ever reconcile? Listen as we discuss thes...

In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason take a brake from 90s Asian cinema to discuss a retrospective on the cinema of documentarians Kazuo Hara and Sachiko Kobayashi, presented by Japan Society. The series runs until July 2nd, and can be viewed here: https://film.japansociety.org/page/cinema-as-struggle-the-films-of-kazuo-hara-and-sachiko-kobayashi/ Timestamps : 2:24 Media Con...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason revisit South Korean director, Kim Jee-woon, this time discussing his 1998 feature film debut, The Quiet Family. They talk about the comedy, the horror, and the film's political commentary on military regime of South Korean dictator Park Chung-hee. Timestamps : 3:00 Media Consumption 21:47 News 37:13 Film Discussion Website link: https://heroic-p...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss the 1995 Hong Kong comedy, Out of the Dark, directed by Jeffrey Lau and starring Stephen Chow and Karen Mok. They talk about the Chow's most memorable scenes (in this film and others) and how Chow's particular brand of comedy elevates all his films above the competition. Timestamps : 1:36 Media Consumption 16:17 News 24:10 Film Discussion...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss Takeshi Kitano's (Beat Takeshi) 1997 Golden Lion winner, Hana-bi (aka Fireworks). They talk about the film's uniquely minimalist aesthetic, beautiful soundtrack, and potential message of hope and/or nihilism, depending on the viewer's mood. We hope you enjoy! Timestamps: 1:58 Media Consumed 6:58 News 12:47 Film Discussion Website link: ht...

In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, we are taking a break from our coverage Asian cinema in the 90s to discuss the 2020 Best Picture Oscar winner, Nomadland, directed by Chloe Zhao. We discuss the film's merits as a work of social criticism along with its philosophical musings about the beauty and harshness of the "nomad" lifestyle.  Timestamps : 2:02 Introduction 2:58 Media Consumption 1...

In this episode of Heroic Purgatory, we tackle a South Korean double feature: Green Fish and No.3, both from 1997. We talk about the similarities and differences between these too films, their artistic merits, as well as their commentary on Korean society of the 90s. Timestamps: 1:15 Introduction 1:54 Media Consumed 8:00 News 12:38 Film Discussion Website link: https://heroic-purgatory.blogspot.co...