spotlight: film fan depot
July 13th, 2011 by Mr. C
We had a chance to speak with Dolores, a big fan of asian films for quite some time now. I met her at last years NY Asian Film Festival at one of the Sammo Hung screenings and bumped into her again at the SELL OUT screening at the NYAFF this year. She was also one of the winners of the SELL OUT soundtrack that night! I was so jealous! Dolores has an extensive knowledgebase of asian films including chinese, korean, and japanese films as well as classic american films. What sparked my conversation with her was her familiarity with the old chinese movie theatres in chinatown-NYC including the Pagoda (11 E. Broadway), The Music Palace (91-93 Bowery), Sun Sing Theatre (75–85 East. Broadway), & the Rosemary Theatre (133 Canal Street). All of these movie theatres in chinatown have been defunct & torn down for quite some time now. The Music Palace was the last to be demolished in 2000. What a shame! I had a chance to ask Dolores a few questions after the screening of DRAGON INN at the NYAFF.
PC: How many years have you been attending the NY Asian Film Festival?
DN: I’ve been attending the NYAFF for 8 years now. Some of the 1st venues for the NYAFF include the Anthology Archives on 2nd ave as well as the IFC on 6th ave. I’m surprised that Anthology Archives is still in business. Everytime I attend a screening there, it’s usually empty. Besides, Anthology usually plays film-noir and art house films which I’m not a big fan of.
PC: What are some of your favorite and least favorite films of the NYAFF so far?
DN: Ocean Heaven (a drama film with Jet Li) & A Boy and a Samarai are some of my favorites so far. SHAOLIN was very disappointing & too long. NINJA KIDS was cute but very distracting with all the schools involved.
PC: Are you enjoying Tsui Hark’s discussions and Q&A with Grady Hendrix?
DN: yes, very much so. Tsui Hark speaks very fluent english and is very knowledgeable in his craft. I’m very impressed.
PC: What are some of your favorite theatres in Chinatown?
DN: The Pagoda on East Broadway & The Rosemary Theatre by the manhattan bridge was one of my favorites. The Sun Sing Theatre underneath the Manhattan bridge on East broadway was horrible. It was messy, smelly, with rats running around. Really filthy.
PC: Who were some of your favorite chinese actors?
DN: I really liked Ti Lung, he was very handsome. I also liked David Chiang, Chen Kuan Tai (Chan Koon Tai), & Fu Sheng . Did you know that Fu Sheng died in a car accident? That was such a shame. It looked like he was well on his way to international stardom.
PC: Yes, it was very tragic when Fu Sheng died. He seemed to have that star charisma that probably would of crossed over to US films.
PC: What genre of films do you enjoy the most?
DN: I really like period piece films such as the Dowager empress type movies. I’m also a big fan of Japanese cinema with films from Kurosawa & Yasujiro Ozu. Nagisa Oshima films are a bit too eccentric for me.
PC: Are you a fan of Bruce Lee films?
DN: Yes, I like Bruce Lee films. I didn’t think he was a great actor, but he had a great film presence. I actually visited Bruce Lee’s grave in 1977 when I was in Seattle attending a King Tut Exhibition. I thought I was weird when I asked the cemetary caretakers where Bruce Lee’s grave was but the staff said no they have had many many visitors asking about his gravesite.
PC: Do you have any favorite american actors/actresses?
DN: Some of my favorites are Robert Mitchum, Burt Lancaster, Betty Davis, Claudette Colbert, Marlon Brando, & Montgomery Clift. Some of my favorite performances include Marlon Brando in ON THE WATERFRONT and Peter O’toole in LAWRENCE OF ARABIA.
PC: Do you have any comments on some of our contemporary actors?
DN: I can’t stand Tom Cruise. I think he is overrated. I also don’t think too much about Sean Penn. He gets too hysterical. Dennis Hopper is another crazy actor. Who can believe that THE REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE actor would live to be 74. I thought he was destined to a tragic death similiar to James Dean.
PC: What’s your next NYAFF screening?
DN: I’m attending the Korean film, BATTLEFIELD HEROES.
PC: It was a pleasure speaking to you Dolores! See you at the NYAFF!
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