THOMAS PODVIN’S FREELANCE WORK
Freelance writer - translator - Editor

Jasmine Women, a classy cinematic adaptation of Su Tong’s novel Women’s Life (co-produced by Tian Zhuangzhuang), deals with the loves and losses of Shanghainese women over three generations, from the 1930s to the1990s. Their fate is far from pretty. The real beauty is in the telling; the life of each character is subtly mirrored in the mores of a given period, as evidenced, for example, in the tale of a single mother circa 1930s. After three years delay, Jasmine Flower (Mo Li Hua Kai in Chinese, a play on the protagonist’s names) was finally released this past April. The late release was due to objections among the film’s investors, who were unhappy with its unusual, yet intriguing, structure. The movie is broken up into three medium length films (129 minutes in total) with each segment (1930s, 1960s and 1980s) having its own distinctive flavor (and form of intrigue). Zhang Ziyi and Joan Chen play three different characters, with both actresses excelling in their multiple roles. Zhang’s performance is of special note; indeed, this 27-year-old Beijing Dance Academy graduate (who pocketed the 2004 Best Actress Golden Rooster Award), is clearly China’s most gifted young actress.
Wanji Group

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

The White Countess is set in late 1930s Shanghai, just prior to the Japanese invasion of eastern China. At the time, nightlife, at least in the foreign settlements, was at its decadent apex. Into this heady world comes a blind American, a former diplomat (Ralph Fiennes), who opens a chic nightclub where he meets a beautiful Russian countess (Natasha Richardson), reduced to working as a bar girl to support her daughter and aristocratic family who have fled the turmoil in their homeland. Co-produced by the Shanghai Film Group, and shot in Shanghai in late 2004, The White Countess is the last collaboration between famed producers Ismail Merchant and James Ivory (A Room with a View, Howard’s End); Merchant died in May 2005 after completing the film. Along with a screenplay by celebrated UK novelist Kazuo Ishiguro, and masterly cinematography by Christopher Doyle, the film displays the Merchant/Ivory’s usual hallmarks: sumptuous production design, detailed period reconstruction, and solid performances. However, this time round, they fall short of their best work. A disjointed structure, ineffective pacing, capped by a hollow emotional climax, all combine to lose the viewer long before the film sails off into a clichéd sunset.
Merchant-Ivory Productions

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

With this disturbing, yet enthralling, thriller, lauded in the US as his best work for a decade, Woody Allen has, ahem, served up an ace against the opposing side (critics and audiences). Match Point’s central question (there’s always a question in Allen’s films), is to what extent our lives depend on luck. On the screen, this quandary is addressed by former tennis pro Chris Wilton (Jonathan Rhys Meyers). About to marry the daughter of a well-off British family, he falls for his prospective brother-in-law’s seductive American spouse (Scarlett Johansson). Match Point is a unique effort among the 71-year-old director’s extensive filmography. It’s Allen’s first (though in all likelihood not his last) attempt to escape intrusive Hollywood executives – the film was shot entirely on location in Great Britain. What’s more, it’s the antithesis of his usual style: no neurotic New Yorkers, no over-intellectualized dialogue, no comic relief, and no jazz soundtrack. Instead, we have a great piece of operatic tragedy, proving that Allen is still a filmmaking force. Indeed, the director, in his inimitable fashion, admits as much. Following an avalanche of positive reviews, he declared: “The only thing standing between me and greatness is me.”
DreamWorks/BBC

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

“Every morning, the President of the United States is given a report that outlines the most active international and domestic threats ... this document is called the ‘Threat Matrix’”. So begins each episode of this ABC TV series, which dramatizes the behind-the-scenes action at the security institutions in the world’s most powerful state. The show is reasonably well written, at least when compared with other such couch-potato fare; though it does, at times, verge on the cheesy, and occasionally suffers from an overdose of gung-ho patriotism, and predictability. The drama unequivocally plays off 9/11, portraying homeland security agents as heroes in their defense of the Stars and Stripes. There are striking similarities with Jack Bauer in FOX’s 24 (see Movie Reviews, P25), but Threat Matrix is less dynamic, suspenseful, and successful. A point underlined by the fact that the series only lasted two seasons (16 episodes). Yet the real menace, for viewers, comes from the TV industry’s endeavor to exploit terrorist attacks for entertainment purposes, trivializing extreme situations, and playing up xenophobic fears. No-brainer TV it may be, but a balanced view would be of greater public benefit.
ABC

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

In The Sentinel, Kiefer Sutherland plays Jack Bauer, a Secret Service agent assigned to protect the President from a conspiracy to assassinate him. The main suspect is a fellow agent, with the rest of the film devoted to the subsequent hunt for the mole within. Hang on a minute, that’s the plot from the TV show 24, but with so many similarities one could be forgiven for confusing the two. Sutherland actually plays Agent David Breckinridge, and the suspect is Pete Garrison (Michael Douglas), but the rest of the plot may as well have come from 20th Century Fox’s hit series. Perhaps to compensate for the lack of an original storyline, much of the footage is shot with a handheld-camera in an unsuccessful effort to liven up the proceedings. This style comes as no surprise: director Clark Johnson cut his teeth on gritty cop shows such as Homicide and The Shield. But his sophomore flick, with its far fetched twists and clumsily staged action scenes just can’t match the pace of his small screen efforts. In sum, why should moviegoers pay to see this work at theaters, when they can watch almost exactly the same thing at home (only better) on TV?
20th Century Fox

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

(c) that's PRD
PRD Chief editor: Christopher Cottrell
July 2006 issue

According to its publisher Doubleday, Dan Brown’s global bestseller has sold over 60 million copies in 45 languages and counting. As such, it was inevitable that the book would be brought to the big screen, and almost as predictable it would make hundreds of millions at the box office. What no one could have foreseen was that The Da Vinci Code would be such a turkey of a film. In case you’re one of the few souls who hasn’t read the book, the plot can be summarized as follows: French cryptologist (Audrey Tautou) teams up with an American religious-symbol expert (Tom Hanks) to find the killer of the Louvre curator, and unveils a two-thousand-year-old secret that threatens the foundations of modern Christianity. Of course, as one would expect with a Hollywood production, the film is full of gorgeous locations (including the Louvre), and a star-packed cast (with a typically distinguished Ian McKellan as Sir Leigh Teabing). But with too many characters, locations and plot twists, what flowed with relative ease on the printed page, is laborious on celluloid. However, both media do share one thing in common: theological and historical nonsense.
Columbia Pictures

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

(c) that's PRD
PRD Chief editor: Christopher Cottrell
July 2006 issue

In this double billed compilation, the so-called ‘Taiwanese Godfather of Electronica’, DJ @llen, offers over twenty disparate tracks of electronica, performed by an impressive array of international artists, including Lee Coombs, Marco V, Cloud 9 and Havana Funk. Despite his cool attitude (check that cover), the veteran beat matching master doesn’t mess about; he blends tempos, pushes records and balances rhythms with meticulousness precision. On the Electro Acid and Tribal House CD, Oscar Goldman’s playful “Thrust 2” is laid into Mark Knight’s mesmeric “Inside You”; SuperChumbo’s fiesta-style “Dirtyfilthy” is faded into Smokin Jo and Washington’s late night house “State of Mind”. The attitude on the Funky Club and Latin House CD is more lighthearted and uplifting, as befits a selection of summer tunes. Cloud 9’s anthemic “How Shall I Rock Thee?”; Soul Central’s (featuring Kathy Brown) gospel-influenced “Strings of Life”; Havana Funk’s groovy Brazilian “Bakiri Ban“ and Belezamusica’s soulful “U Got Me Spinning” are all held together by DJ @llen’s turntable expertise.
High Note Records

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

Jolin Tsai’s popularity is inversely proportional to the size of the mini-shorts she wears on the sleeve of Dancing Diva. At the tender age of 18, this Taipei-born singer broke into the entertainment industry, and after eight years of catchy chart toppers (and fine-looking photos), Tsai, the “Teenage Boy Killer”, has won a strong fan base throughout Asia – and the US. Dancing Diva, released in May, is her first album with EMI/Capitol Music, and at first listen something of a letdown. The album’s tagline – “Trend setting! 39 perfect mins!” – is a wild exaggeration. In fact, this CD offers ten, less than perfect tracks of hip hop, R&B, dance and saccharine pop that set no new trends, except, perhaps for pastel-blue pants. That said, all ten cuts are so easy on the ear that 39 minutes seems almost too brief. Take “Dancing Diva”; this slick dance number, with its Middle-Eastern influence, is only three minutes long, barely enough time to warm up the dance floor. Duration aside, other tracks offer rock fused with break beats, “Mr. Q”; funk, fun and rap, “Nice Guy”; or classic Mando-pop, with violin and emotional choruses, “The Finale”.
EMI Capitol Music

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

Mr. Zhou’s Melody 967 is undeniably influenced by the brief, but brilliant, Brit Pop of the mid 1990s, acts such as Radiohead, Suede and Pulp. Yet, this is Britpop with Chinese characteristics, as one might expect from a band founded by Beijing-based frontman/singer/guitarist Zhou Fengling and lead guitarist Zhou Guangbin. The band may have been formed just five years ago, but the two Zhous are veterans of the China rock scene. Indeed, Zhou Fengling has been on the scene for nearly two decades. He first won fame back in the golden age of China rock, with bands like The Face and Hearts 5, sharing the stage with the likes of Dou Wei and even Radiohead itself, at memorable gigs in Hong Kong in the 90s. With such a wealth of experience, you might expect Melody 967 to push the boundaries a little more. The melancholic “Peacefully Brilliant” and the mesmeric “Outsider” are admittedly bright pop numbers, but the band never really offers anything that might be called unique. True, the atmospheric, ear friendly tunes sound remarkably like a Brit Pop record of yore – on “Gate” and “Pupil”, Fengling’s falsettos sound uncannily like Thom Yorke’s – but even the melodic guitar attacks and effects are too reminiscent of times past. This is a pleasant enough soundtrack for the summer, but one can’t help but feel that Mr. Zhou (both of them) are capable of much more.
Modern Sky/Badhead

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

When one considers modern Irish folk music, the names that come to mind typically include Sinead O’Connor, Altan and The Corrs. With her delightful brand of folk/country/blues, 31-year-old Ireland-born vocalist Cara Dillon makes a worthy addition to the list. At age 14, Dillon won the All Ireland Traditional Singing Trophy; at 20, she joined what was then the most exciting British folk band Equation, before eventually going solo. Released in February 2006, her third album After the Morning, produced by long time collaborator Sam Lakeman, is arguably her best effort. Whether she’s performing new numbers or covering traditional Irish favorites, Dillon displays considerable flair with catchy melodies and emotional hooks. Both “Never in a Million Years”, which features crystalline vocals atop an acoustic guitar and discreet drums, and “I Wish you Well”, accompanied by virtuoso banjo and a mesmerizing chorus, are instantly memorable. While these cuts offer a fine example of folk and pop crossover, Dillon also refreshes folk classics such as “Brockagh Braes”, “Here’s A Health” and “The Streets of Derry” (a duet with fellow Irishman Paul Brady). To date, with few notable exceptions, Irish country/folk music hasn’t broken much ground beyond the British Isles. Dillon’s albums could very well break those boundaries.
Rough Trade Records

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

Compilations for clubs, bars, beaches or even restaurants have become a trendy, and lucrative, marketing tool of late. In recognition of this, the temples to electronica and hip hop that are the two Guandiis, located in Shanghai’s Fuxing Park and Suzhou’s Shantang Jie, have released their own compilation, purportedly offering a taste of the clubs’ true ambiance. Yes, this double-CD release mixed by DJ Email (CD Two is all remixes), provides solid progressive trance from an international line up, including DJ Steve Lawler from UK, but with nary a hip hop joint in sight. The trance beat dominates: there’s heavy-hitting BPM from Mooncat’s “Bad Ass”, as well as Paris & Sharpe’s soulful and hypnotic “Temptation”. This is, of course, before DJ Email gets back on the throttle, with the supersonic paced and altogether otherworldly House cut “Filth” from Rowan Blade and Chris Lake, and a couple of anthemic numbers, “Seven Cities” and “Rebounce Indicater”. With the hip hop half of the music missing, this isn’t a complete album, but then again, that just means Guandii will have to bring out a hip hop compilation. Perhaps what they intended all along.
High Note Records

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

In A Lively Mind, Londoner DJ/producer Paul Oakenfold adds more to his sound than just dance club vibes; he includes his experience of the cinema world of sounds and imagery. “Oakie”, in case you didn’t know, is an iconic figure from the late 1980s Trance and Acid House scenes. He was also prominent in the development of Ibiza as a clubbers paradise. Resident in L.A. ever since his monumental US tour in 2001, Oakenfold quite obviously mingles with the jet set and cinema crowd. Between remixes for Madonna and U2, he worked on the soundtracks of Swordfish, Planet of the Apes, The Matrix and Collateral. It makes sense, then, that A Lively Mind (three years in the making) draws its influences from the cinematic and social environment of Hollywood. Take the heavy beat laden “Sex ‘N Money” which evokes the superficiality of La-la land. Or the torrid first single, and homage to Russ Meyer, “Faster Kill Pussycat” to which Sin City actress Brittany Murphy lends her voice. At 43, with three movie scores currently under development, the Brit DJ is certainly exploring new horizons. After shaking the planet with phenomenal electronic sound for the past fifteen years, that Oakenfold is looking to the future should come as no surprise. Still, this is a matter of taste. A number of critics have faulted this release, including that bible of sound, Billboard: “With nods to rock, dance, hip-hop and electronica, Oakenfold has created an eclectic song collection that does not always jell. While there are moments of pure bliss (the New Order-hued “No Compromise” featuring Spitfire), too many tracks meander aimlessly without finding the perfect beat.” To each his own.
Fairwood Music

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

Steven D. Levitt, dubbed “the Indiana Jones of economics” by The Wall Street Journal, is a so-called ‘rogue’ economist. In this 2005 bestseller Freakonomics (co-authored by writer/journalist Stephen J. Dubner), the University of Chicago Professor applies economic theory to a series of diverse, and apparently, non-economic, topics. His essays cover everything from cheating sumo wrestlers to the business of drug dealing; in addition, he presents his well-known theory: “The Impact of Legalized Abortion on Crime.” In this paper, Levitt seeks to demonstrate (through endless statistics) that the legalization of abortion in the US was followed 20 years later by a reduction in crime. Well researched and documented, Levitt’s work has led to a re-examination of the way economic theory can be applied to sundry social issues, and, along the way, stirred much controversy. The author expresses his desire to replace “moral posturing by an honest assessment of the data, because only numbers will scrub away layers of confusion and contradiction”. For the most part, largely due to the author’s jargon-free prose, he succeeds in peeling back at least several of these layers.
Penguin Books

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

In Cantonese, gweilo means “ghost man”, a somewhat derogatory piece of slang referring to Caucasian males. However, its use is so prevalent in Hong Kong, that even Westerners employ it to describe each other. This ambivalent approach to the issue of race and culture is central to author Martin Booth’s memoirs of his early childhood. Booth’s family arrived in Hong Kong in 1952 (his father was a civilian employee of the Royal Navy) and for the next three years, young Martin set about exploring every nook and cranny of the colony, then a sleepy outpost of the British Empire. In his book, he vividly recounts his daily adventures, from exploring the darkest reaches of the infamous Kowloon Walled City, to defending his father from an angry mob by surprising them with Cantonese obscenities. While at times Booth’s writing can be overly novelistic, his entertaining voice and lively tales bring to life a Hong Kong forever gone. That said, the book ends with a sad footnote. Booth wrote Gweilo after he was diagnosed with brain cancer, completing the work just before he passed away in February, 2004. For readers though, the author’s past will never be lost.
Bantam Books/Transworld

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue

http://nippop.com

Much like the country itself, Japanese music is as intriguing as it is puzzling. Every month, new aidoru (Japanese idols) are presented to the general public; in the main, manufactured stars about as fresh as three-day old sushi. With the press giving blanket coverage to these teen icons, it is difficult to delve deeper into the talent rich world of Japanese music. Enter nippop.com, an English database of artists offering profiles, photos, biographies, as well as regular columns on Japanese pop culture. Launched in January 2005 by three gaijin (foreigners) with insider knowledge of the music industry (former Tower Records Japan CEO Keith Cahoon; former YesAsia.com Japan General Manager Bill Haw; and Billboard’s Asia bureau chief Steve McClure), the site claims to be “the world’s best English-language resource on Japanese music”. This may be a slight exaggeration, but where else on the Internet (in English, at least) can you find everything you ever wanted to know about acts like Malice Mizer, Guitar Wolf and Dir En Grey?

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
July 2006 issue