This month sees the launch of the Asia House film festival in London, with screenings of popular and under-the-radar Chinese movies at cinemas in Ham Yard, Regent Street, London’s Cinema Museum and Asia House itself, which happily means I got to spend my the weekend immersing myself in Asian cinema, taking in everything from Kazakhstani thrillers to Korean Teen Romance.
First up, sharp-shooting thriller Khenzhe.
Khenzhe (Or ‘Little Brother’, to give it it’s less intriguing English title) is an odd beast. On the face of things we’re firmly planted in 90s thriller country. Two young brothers (who remain nameless throughout the film) are orphaned and left to fend for themselves. Eschewing a life of petty crime in the countryside, they head for the city for… well, a life of less-than-petty-crime. One becomes a mob boss, the other, a hitman.
In the wrong hands it could be turgid, run of the mill stuff, but Tursunov is getting at something deeper here, and rather than a basic thriller, we’re treated to an exploration of how the city can chew people up and spit them out, and how violence begets itself.
It’s fascinating to watch something that should be so familiar through an entirely unknown cultural lens. The action is fun but seems slowed down in a genre where jump-cuts and overcranked cameras are the norm, but it’s no less effective, and allows the director to add some flourishes of humour throughout that keep things from becoming too portentous (one hit involving a kebab skewer nicked from a street food stall is particularly effective).
Another thing that struck me is how quiet everything is, with the background noises taking the place of music for the most part. Things begin to build as another hitman (or in this case, hitwoman – here played by Russian actress Olga Zaytseva) appears on the scene. Our nameless hero’s bosses are worried that he’s becoming disinterested, causing a convoluted plot to roll into motion that culminates in one brother taking the other’s young son hostage – cue a (slightly subdued) roaring rampage of revenge.
It’s not a brilliant film, but it is an interesting one, with fun action pinning down larger themes with a subtlety that Hollywood thrillers often struggle with. It would benefit from slightly better subtitles, but in a movie where so much is communicated through inference and gesture it isn’t a huge issue. There’s a lot of moving parts here, and the fact that they all keep rolling along is testament to the skill of the writer. 3/5
Little Brother was shown as part of ASIA HOUSE FILM FESTIVAL, which takes place from 22 February to 5 March at London venues. Tursunov’s much-anticipated ‘Stranger’ is also showing this week. Find out more and grab tickets over at the Asia House site.
