Showing 1 - 8 of 8
A bloody tale of power games
Life, Tatat Bunnag, Published on 15/03/2024
» At first glance, it's easy to describe the new historical miniseries Shogun as Game Of Thrones meets The Last Samurai. The show's premise is an Englishman who finds himself in the middle of a fight for supremacy in feudal Japan. However, the 10-episode series is more than that as it blends elements of political intrigue, cultural clash and warfare in a gripping narrative. Produced by FX Productions and based on James Clavell's acclaimed 1975 novel, the series transports viewers to Japan in the year 1600.
New releases for your streaming pleasure: Jun 28-Jul 4
Guru, Nianne-Lynn Hendricks, Published on 28/06/2023
» Looking for a title to binge-watch this weekend? Here's our pick!
Going for gold
Life, Suwitcha Chaiyong, Published on 11/11/2020
» While a Thai university lecturer was studying in the UK, she bought Asian ceramics from an antique market and shipped them to Thailand. However, some of them broke during transport. Most people would have no choice but to throw away their beautiful ceramics. Fortunately, the lecturer is a friend of product designer Sumanatsya Voharn, who knows kintsugi, a prominent Japanese mending technique. The broken ceramics were repaired and a plate from the set was named East West Journey, which is currently on display along with 18 other ceramic items at the exhibition "Rak: An Assemble Collective" at SAC Gallery.
A crisis of faith
Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 21/04/2017
» While martyrdom indicates the intensity of belief in, not the truth of, a religion, religious wars have been bloody throughout human history. Though not regarded as a war of religion, six million Jews died in the Nazi Holocaust. Christianity in general, Catholics in particular, experienced persecution for centuries.
Roll credits
Life, Kong Rithdee, Published on 17/04/2015
» On April 2, the oldest active filmmaker in the world died. Portuguese director Manoel de Oliveira, 107, began his career in the silent film era in the 1930s, took a pause to tend his vineyards during the mid-century dictatorship, and had a resurgence in the 1980s. He kept making films — at least one a year since the 1990s — until 2014. The man was almost as old as cinema itself when he passed away.
Somtow's new opera a resounding triumph
Life, Michael Proudfoot, Published on 19/08/2014
» The world premiere of Somtow Sucharitkul's Dan No Ura staged at the Thailand Cultural Centre on Aug 11 was the Thai composer's greatest operatic triumph to date. The opera deals with the Japanese sea battle of 1185, the final conflict in a war which effectively ended the power of the Taira samurai clan, close relatives of the imperial family of the time. They were defeated by the Genji, led by Minamoto no Yoshitsune, whose half-brother became the first Shogun, and power was effectively transferred to the Shoguns.
Death becomes him
Life, Published on 04/12/2013
» For artist Shin Koyama, it is healthy to think about death every day. For his "Ero Guro Kawaii: Shin Koyama in Arita" ceramics exhibition at La Lanta Gallery, he has drawn from the morbidity and mortality in Japanese history and culture, but deals with the subject in the form of ridicule. The works are vibrant and dark, tragic and comic, cynical and hopeful.
Scholar turned warrior
Life, Bernard Trink, Published on 29/10/2012
» Wars of succession harken back to earliest recorded history. Turning wives against husbands, sisters against brothers, aunts against nephews. The temptation to wear the crown and wield the power of the throne is greater than the blood ties that supposedly hold families together. If driven away by the monarchy becoming a republic, the royalists wait in exile to be summoned home by the acclamation of the populace.