Curse of the Chopsticks and Chinese Social Horror
“Kuai Xian”, given the English title of “The Curse of the Chopsticks” is directed by Ji Yu. It begins with an attack on a patient who has just received a transplant at a private eye hospital, their new eyes mangled and a pair of bloody chopsticks left at the scene.
Posted in Articles and tagged china, Chinese, culture, film, horror, review
Midnight Bookstore II: an Indie Chinese Jiangshi Film
Directed by Du Jingfeng, “Midnight Bookstore II” is an anthology film, linked by the tale of Daoist monk Lu Shiyi (Peng Yusi) on a mission to recover a lost book of secret techniques. During his search Lu senses the auras of those possessed by bad spirits and offers his help along the way. The possessed characters are all drawn to a 24-hour bookshop and the shopkeeper Wu Xiubo (Zhao Jiaqi), a demon slayer whom Lu finds in possession the lost book. During their battle for this book. Wu and Lu end up saving the lives of these people by either restraining the bad spirits with their powers or converting them to good with benevolence.
Posted in Articles and tagged china, Chinese, culture, film, horror, review
Huoshan Yellow Bud (JING)
A flash review.
Posted in Events and tagged china, Chinese, culture, Huo Shan, JING, review, tea, yellow tea
DiaoChan: the Rise of the Courtesan
I first heard of Red Dragonfly Production last year when they toured the UK with “Autumn of Han”. I was delighted to find a theatre company bringing dramatisations of Chinese stories to the stage. Unfortunately busy schedules meant I missed the show, so it was with great anticipation that I attended the press night for their new play, “DiaoChan: the Rise of the Courtesan”.
Posted in Events and tagged china, Chinese, Chinese culture, courtesan, Diao Chan, Red Dragonfly Productions, review, theatre, Three Kingdoms
Tea Ware Review: the Story of Gongfu Tea, My Heritage
I am reviewing a modern and minimalist Gong Fu tea set from JING, together with a tasting of their lovely Golden Gong Fu black tea. With cleaning after each use, this glass set can serve any number of different types of tea. A perfect gift for the compulsive tea drinker. And whether you like a dark winter brew or some cleansing after the rich food of the festive season, the Golden Gong Fu is the perfect Christmas gift.
Posted in Events and tagged black tea, china, Chinese, christmas, culture, Gong Fu, JING tea, review, tea, tea ware
Mulan: Revelations
I was delighted when Dark Horse got in touch with me about the upcoming title “Mulan: Revelations”. Unfortunately, as this was back in the middle of convention season, I couldn’t write about it immediatey, and it was only when I saw the title on the shelves at my local comic store, that I received the kick to actually get the review up.
Posted in Events and tagged china, Chinese, comics, culture, Cyberpunk, Dark Horse, Hua Mulan, Mulan, Mulan Revelations, review, Shanghai
White Knight Silver Needle (Teafields)
Now that Christmas , New Year, and Chinese New Year have all passed, it’s time to detox and freshen up for the year ahead. What could be better than tasting Spring in a pot of supreme white tea? Here’s a review of Teafield’s White Knight Silver Needle.
Posted in Articles and tagged china, Chinese, culture, review, silver needle, tea, Teafields, white tea
Shikumen
I select restaurants to review for various reasons. Reccomendations, publicity, invite, occasionally just simple coincidence. We came across Shikumen due to a huge advert in London’s free morning paper. With an enticing dim sum menu, and a website littered with Shangai calendar pics, we thought it would be worth a trip to their Ealing branch.
Posted in Events and tagged Cantonese, china, Chinese, cuisine, culture, dim sum, Ealing, food, restaurant, review, Shanghai, Shikumen, Tianjin