Leland's A-Pop Blog

Asian/American Pop Culture

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Dead or Alive

*Warning: graphic violence and spoilers for Takashi Miike’s Dead or Alive* The ending of Takashi Miike’s, Dead or Alive, is perhaps one of the strangest endings to a film I’ve ever seen.  Up to the final ten minutes, the film plays out… Continue Reading →

The Beautiful Country

“I offer you a new life, and you choose an old dream.” The Beautiful Country is an often bleak film with small moments of beauty and joy.  It tells the story of a young Vietnamese man named Binh who was fathered… Continue Reading →

Spirited Away

I was lucky enough to see Spirited Away on the big screen today.  The movie is a modern classic and I find something new in the movie every time I watch it.  The movie looks incredibly on the big screen.

The Debut

There’s a moment in The Debut where the protagonist, Ben, is called a “chink” during a drinking game. Shocked and appalled.  “I’m not even Chinese,” he says. Ben Mercado is a young Filipino American at the end of his senior year of… Continue Reading →

Dark Blue Suit

Dark Blue Suit by Peter Bacho is a collection of seemingly disconnected stories that tie together a narrative the further you read.  Set in Seattle, we’re taken through the life of a young man named Buddy from the 1950’s up through… Continue Reading →

The Outsiders

There’s a theme that keeps popping in the films of Takashi Miike. The outsider. With over 100 credits to his name, it can sometimes be a daunting and challenging to make sense of such a huge amount of work.  Add… Continue Reading →

Margaret Cho on Norm Macdonald

Margaret Cho recently sat down with Norm Macdonald and talked about her early days in comedy.  It’s an interesting and weird interview.

Twinsters/Forgotten Country

Twinsters (2015) I’m obsessed with the MTV series, Catfish: The TV Show.  Every episode, the show unites people in online relationships who have never met, usually because one of the people isn’t being honest about who they really are.  The hosts,… Continue Reading →

Sukiyaki Western Django – A real mixed plate, bra…

My favorite film directors are the ones you can’t pin down.  I like somebody who can jump from style to style and genre to genre.  Steven Soderbergh comes to mind.  He’ll direct the audience friendly Ocean’s Eleven but will follow it up… Continue Reading →

Better Duk Tomorrow

Donald Duk by Frank Chin A young Chinese boy stands on a rooftop in the darkness holding a toy plane.  The engine of the plane comes to life and the boy throws the airplane into the San Francisco night.  The… Continue Reading →

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