The Pacific Wave
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5093106/site/newsweek/
Europe may have the best art, but no one can match Asia for smart,
compelling films with mass appeal
By Dana Thomas
Newsweek
June 7-14 issue - Hollywood is the home of the blockbuster, and Europe
of the auteur film. But Asia has been steadily combining the two
schools to come up with a whole new genre: the artful and intelligent
crowd-pleaser. Smart, expertly acted and breathtakingly beautiful,
these films are beginning to rack up awards and box-office receipts.
In May Asians won four awards at the Cannes Film Festival; South
Korean director Park Chan-wook won the Grand Prix for "Old Boy" and
Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul took the Jury Prize for
"Tropical Malady." Fourteen-year-old Yuya Yagira came away with the
best-actor prize for his role in "Nobody Knows," while Chinese star
Maggie Cheung won best actress for her portrayal of a recovering drug
addict in "Clean."
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