FATAL & FALLEN

𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗹𝘀 landed at @theatreship for @hkff.unitedkingdom earlier this month - so many cute pics from this!! Curated by the absolute best Elizabeth Gabrielle Lee @elizabethgl33 and Jade Meili Barget @greenjade___ for the fifth chapter of ꜰᴀᴛᴀʟ & ꜰᴀʟʟᴇɴ, we spotlight Hong Kong’s legendary Girls with Guns wave through Johnnie To’s cult 1993 masterpiece Heroic Trio《東方三俠》, starring the electrifying trio Anita Mui 梅艷芳, Michelle Yeoh 楊紫瓊, Maggie Cheung 張曼玉 🖤☕️ After the screening we continued on expanding the world of the Girls with Guns genre, and invited the audience to contribute their impressions in an afternoon of worldbuilding & sense-making 🔮 Thanks so much for having me @fatal_fallen 🔪🗡️

★ 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗹𝘀 is taking over Theatership @theatreship as part of @hkff.unitedkingdom ★ For the 5th edition of ꜰᴀᴛᴀʟ & ꜰᴀʟʟᴇɴ, we zoom into Hong Kong’s Girl with Guns with the 1993 classic title, Heroic Trio《東方三俠》, directed by Johnnie To, featuring the assassin unholy trinity, Anita Mui 梅艳芳, Michelle Yeoh 杨紫琼 and Maggie Cheung 张曼玉. ☆ London Sunday, September 14th Theatreship, Canary Wharf 1pm ☆ In a futuristic city plagued by baby kidnappings, three skilled female heroines – Wonder Woman, Invisible Woman, and Thief Catcher – must overcome their past conflicts and join forces to defeat a powerful eunuch and his sinister plot. The film is followed by a participatory worldbuilding workshop inspired by the Girls with Guns genre, in collaboration with educator and technical artist Jenn Leung @jennnital as a collective exploration of final girlhood, revenge, rage, and agency. ꜰᴀᴛᴀʟ & ꜰᴀʟʟᴇɴ is an ever-evolving programme that unearths the trope of the deadly, deranged and delinquent woman pictured in exploitation and arthouse cinema, across the genres of Hong Kong’s Girls with Guns, Japan Pinku Eiga, South Korea’s hostess and thriller films and Taiwan’s Black Movies. Curated by Elizabeth Gabrielle Lee @elizabethgl33 and Jade Meili Barget @greenjade___ the series investigates the enduring motif of revenge across cinema, popular media, collective narratives, and contemporary imaginaries. Tickets link in bio 〆〆〆

Fatal & Fallen lecture performance: Taipei edition 🖲️🦿🕸️🗡️🕷️ The two-voice lecture performance weaved an essayistic voice unravelling the techno-mystical themes of the programme, with the voice of a spider spirit, inspired by the vengeful arachnida Fatal & Fallen woman. When seeking revenge, Challenge of the Lady Ninja’s final girl, Elisa, alike many Fatal and Fallen women, recruits an army of female fighters. She finds them in brothels, in dance classes or in the streets. Her brothel network becomes an unbounded silky chokehold, a lethal architecture, within which her army programmes tricks to take revenge. Her technologies are often hallucinatory: Elisa trains to provoke visions in the enemy. Under her dance the opponent hallucinates naked flesh. Once possessed by his own carnality, she sets her web, and chokes the enemy with his lust. The lecture performance observed the formation of revenge, the tricks and body techniques ranging from kung fu and ninjutsu to telekinesis and transfiguration. The use of martial arts in the wuxia and xianxia genre is referred to as a technology of the self, which was used as a strategy to build national character and magnify self worth in post WW2 China. During this time, wuxia was used as a strategy for restoring confidence and tapped into hyper yang energy and disregarded many yin practices — which xiuzhen (immortality cultivation) enhances. In fact, xiuzhen encompassed shamanistic daoist practices which preceded patriarchal confucianism. Not just used for tactical means, the mystical impulse of an inexplicable desire to connect to a source origin uncloaks how characters in the films are at heart, energetic bodies and activated vectors searching for release, retrieval, or revenge. As such, they implicitly become vessels or channeling portals of the divine. Image credit of Lecture Performance: TFAI @tfai_tw Eternal gratitude to the entire TFAI team and Tony, translator extraordinaire.

FATAL AND FALLEN : DELINQUENT GIRL BOSSES, TAIPEI EDITION 1 - new portrait of the guild @elizabethgl33 2 - angel, becoming evil woman @elizabethgl33 3 - me getting you a plushy 4 - bts after @sc_in_tii live score of The cave of the silken web (1927) 5 - when its been handled 6 - WORTHLESS TO CONFESS! us and Mariko Mori, post screening Q&A 7- ammo & gun dealer 8 - programmed for crime: local palm reader ad. 9 - our farewell to the heartless

We’re in Taipei for 𝔉𝔞𝔱𝔞𝔩 & 𝔉𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫: 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔘𝔩𝔱𝔯𝔞 𝔅𝔞𝔡 𝔚𝔬𝔪𝔞𝔫 𝔞𝔰 𝔗𝔢𝔠𝔥𝔫𝔬-𝔐𝔶𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔠 𝔚𝔢𝔞𝔭𝔬𝔫 ☆ Come say hi and join us for the packed weekend of events at @tfai_tw Saturday, April 13 14:30-15:30 Lecture Performance by yours' truly 15:30-17:25 screening of Mariko Mori’s Kumano and Tsui Hark’s Green Snake 18:30-20:30 Park Chan-wook’s I’m a Cyborg, But That’s OK 20:30-21:20 Post-screening Q&A Sunday, April 14 15:00-16:00 The Cave of the Silken Web with Live DJ Set by scintii (@scintii ) 18:30-21:20 Introduction and screening of Suzuki Seijun’s Pistol Opera 𝔉𝔞𝔱𝔞𝔩 & 𝔉𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫: 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔘𝔩𝔱𝔯𝔞 𝔅𝔞𝔡 𝔚𝔬𝔪𝔞𝔫 𝔞𝔰 𝔗𝔢𝔠𝔥𝔫𝔬-𝔐𝔶𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔠 𝔚𝔢𝔞𝔭𝔬𝔫 is live until April 28, 2024. Trailer thabks to @tfai_tw Tickets via TFAI bio! . . . #fatalfallen #tfai #movingimage #cinemastudies #curatorialstudies #technomysticism #wuxia #visualart #visualresearch #xianxia #grindhouse #girlswithguns #eastasiancinema

Programmed to kill! Come witness the fighting girl in all her wickedness and glory in 𝔉𝔞𝔱𝔞𝔩 & 𝔉𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫: 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔘𝔩𝔱𝔯𝔞 𝔅𝔞𝔡 𝔚𝔬𝔪𝔞𝔫 𝔞𝔰 𝔗𝔢𝔠𝔥𝔫𝔬-𝔐𝔶𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔠 𝔚𝔢𝔞𝔭𝔬𝔫 5-28 April 2024 at the Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute @tfai_tw [1] Green Snake 青蛇 (1993), Tsui Hark [2] A highlight for us is the screening of the 1927 silent film The Cave of the Silken Web. This will be accompanied by a live score by @sc_in_tii on 14 April, 3pm at TFAI [3] Pistol Opera Pistol Opera ピストルオペラ (2001), Seijun Suzuki [4] Kumano (1997-98), Mariko Mori [5] August in the Water 水の中の八月 (1995), Gakuryū Ishii [6] The Challenge of the Lady Ninja 女忍者 (1982), Lee Tso Nam [7] I’m a Cyborg, But That’s OK 싸이보그지만 괜찮아 (2006), Park Chan-wook Tickets via @tfai_tw bio! ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ˏ . . . #fatalfallen #tfai #movingimage #cinemastudies #curatorialstudies #technomysticism #wuxia #visualart #visualresearch #xianxia #grindhouse #girlswithguns #eastasiancinema

𝔉𝔞𝔱𝔞𝔩 & 𝔉𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫: 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔘𝔩𝔱𝔯𝔞 𝔅𝔞𝔡 𝔚𝔬𝔪𝔞𝔫 𝔞𝔰 𝔗𝔢𝔠𝔥𝔫𝔬-𝔐𝔶𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔠 𝔚𝔢𝔞𝔭𝔬𝔫 (pt. 1) ️Evil girl calling! 𝔉𝔞𝔱𝔞𝔩 & 𝔉𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫 returns with more manic episodes, revenge fits and outbursts of rage. In this 3rd edition for @tfai_tw the programme descends into the portal of the ultra-bad woman who cultivates her mind, trains and enhances her body, and summons spirits for retaliation. Whether it’s a bullet or a spell, it’s a deadly weapon! .₊̣̇.ෆ˟̑**̑˟̑ෆ.₊̣̇⫘⫘⫘.ෆ˟̑**̑˟̑ෆ.₊̣̇. 5–28 April 2024 and at @tfai_tw Curated by Elizabeth Gabrielle Lee & Jade Barget In ritual and protocol, ceremony and computation, 𝔉𝔞𝔱𝔞𝔩 & 𝔉𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫 summons the netherworld of the technological sublime, traversing celestial data streams where gadgets and incantations alike are used as weapons against obliteration. Spanning 1927 silent film to 2023 artist videos and encompassing grindhouse and arthouse titles, 𝔉𝔞𝔱𝔞𝔩 & 𝔉𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫 beckons the mystical impulse to engage in various somatic rituals and cybernetic communions on screen, suggesting an expanded and infidel understanding of the science fictional. Across network cables and legendary blades, characters in the films mould and transmute energy, shaping it at their will, or at times, to their horror. .₊̣̇.ෆ˟̑**̑˟̑ෆ.₊̣̇⫘⫘⫘.ෆ˟̑**̑˟̑ෆ.₊̣̇. Full programme and tickets at @tfai_tw .₊̣̇.The Cave of the Silken Web 盤絲洞 (1927), Dan Duyu .₊̣̇.The Thrilling Sword 神劍動山河 (1982), Chang Hsin Yii .₊̣̇.The Challenge of the Lady Ninja 女忍者 (1982), Lee Tso Nam .₊̣̇.I Love Maria 鐵甲無敵瑪利亞 (1988), David Chung Chi-Man .₊̣̇.Green Snake 青蛇 (1993), Tsui Hark .₊̣̇.Miko no Inori (Prayer of the Priestess) 巫女の祈り (1996), Mariko Mori .₊̣̇.Kumano (1997-98), Mariko Mori @marikomori .₊̣̇.Pistol Opera ピストルオペラ (2001), Seijun Suzuki .₊̣̇.So Close 夕陽天使 (2002), Corey Yuen .₊̣̇.I’m a Cyborg, But That’s OK 싸이보그지만 괜찮아 (2006), Park Chan-wook .₊̣̇.ReMazu: Iterations of Devotion 新媽祖崇拜 (2023), Banyi Huang @cropp_topp . . . #fatalfallen #tfai #movingimage #cinemastudies #curatorialstudies #technomysticism #wuxia #visualart #visualresearch #xianxia #grindhouse #girlswithguns #eastasiancinema

🌫🐉⚔️ BLIND WOMAN’S CURSE (怪談昇り竜) 🌫🐉⚔️ SCREENING TOMORROW The film will be introduced by Laura Treglia. Laura lectures and researches on gender, film and Japanese cultural studies. She has researched 1960s to 1970s Japanese Cinema and the sukeban trope through the lens of gender, class, and sexuality. Sinema Transtopia @bibak 20:00 Tickets link in bio 🗡 With its grotesque, violent, and erotic imagery, Blind Woman’s Curse is a vivid amalgam of genre influences from horror, yakuza, and sexploitation films. The theme of revenge, whilst integral to the plot, is ultimately subverted as the protagonists woefully ponder its futility towards the end. . . . #fatalandfallen #curatorial #bibak #berlin #filmprogramme #asianfilmarchive #koreanfilm #taiwanfilm #japanesefilm #hongkongfilm #girlswithguns #pinkfilm #blackfilm #kimkiyoung #teruoishii #stephenshin

🐈‍⬛💠🦾BLACK CAT (黑貓) SCREENING THIS THURSDAY 🐈‍⬛💠🦾 Sinema Transtopia @bibak Thursday, 9 June 20:00 Tickets link in bio 🗡 Bordering on nihilism, Black Cat strays away from the classic Girls With Guns model, whilst still retaining some of the genre’s traits. As the heroine transforms into a government controlled cyborg, the film provides a glimpse into the complexities of technofeminism, illustrating the problematic dynamic between woman, discipline, and machine. An unofficial remake of Luc Besson’s La Femme Nikita, Black Cat reflects the rise of the femme fatale figure in post-handover Hong Kong. . . . #fatalandfallen #curatorial #bibak #berlin #filmprogramme #asianfilmarchive #koreanfilm #taiwanfilm #japanesefilm #hongkongfilm #girlswithguns #pinkfilm #blackfilm #kimkiyoung #teruoishii #stephenshin

⛓❤️‍🩹🩹WOMAN REVENGER (女性的復仇) SCREENING TONIGHT ⛓❤️‍🩹🩹 The film will be followed by a response presentation by Ting-Wu Cho, Ph.D. Candidate in Cinema Studies at New York University. In the 1980s, Taiwan had been under more than 30 years of martial law. During the final throes of a violent dictatorship a cinema featuring the underworld of the city emerged, subverting decades of propaganda cinema to reveal a long suppressed collective consciousness. Immersed in a milieu of drug trafficking, gambling, prostitution, and violent crime, Woman Revenger is an example of this resistant cinema. . . . #fatalandfallen #curatorial #bibak #berlin #filmprogramme #asianfilmarchive #koreanfilm #taiwanfilm #japanesefilm #hongkongfilm #girlswithguns #pinkfilm #blackfilm #kimkiyoung #teruoishii #stephenshin

🐀🥀 WOMAN OF FIRE (화녀) 🔥🐀🥀 SCREENING TOMORROW The film will be introduced by Nikki Ji-Yeon Lee, Senior Lecturer in Asian Media at Nottingham Trent University. Sinema Transtopia @bibak 20:00 Tickets link in bio 🗡 Woman of Fire is a remake of Kim Ki-young’s classic The Housemaid (1960), stylized with the energy and passion of 1970s Korean cinema. A highly lurid chamber drama set against the backdrop of social inequality, the two women play games of seduction and trickery, ultimately descending together with the household’s male figure. Grotesque melodrama sits at the heart of this film, encapsulating the fatality and futility of women’s roles in the domestic horror genre. . . . #fatalandfallen #curatorial #bibak #berlin #filmprogramme #asianfilmarchive #koreanfilm #taiwanfilm #japanesefilm #hongkongfilm #girlswithguns #pinkfilm #blackfilm #kimkiyoung #teruoishii #stephenshin

💿📟 SO CLOSE SCREENING TONIGHT 💿📟 As part of the second wave of the Girls with Guns subgenre, So Close is an updated version of the 1980s films that were built on strong, female leads portrayed with ostensible power. However, the film masquerades female empowerment under the guise of a highly sexualising male gaze. Expressed in definitive Y2K stylisation and featuring quintessential early-2000 gadgets, fashion, and special effects, So Close captures the new millennium’s techno-optimism after the handover of. . . . #fatalandfallen #curatorial #bibak #berlin #filmprogramme #asianfilmarchive #koreanfilm #taiwanfilm #japanesefilm #hongkongfilm #girlswithguns #pinkfilm #blackfilm #kimkiyoung #teruoishii #stephenshin