Roger Fan as Bruce Lee... uh I mean Breeze Loo in Finishing the Game (IFC)

The Eighth Annual San Diego Asian Film Festival kicks off on Thursday October 11 with Justin Lin's Finishing the Game. Listen to my Film Chat preview of the festival with Dwane and Maureen, and read my interview with filmmaker Justin Lin. Lin will be in San Diego to present his new film on SDAFF's opening night.

Ever since the age of ten, Justin Lin had a love-hate relationship with Hong Kong action star Bruce Lee. As an Asian American, Lin loved having a strong, sexy movie hero that ethnically looked like him. But he hated the fact that people would expect him to do kung fu moves and yell like Bruce Lee just because he was Asian. Lin takes a humorous look at the legacy of this martial arts phenom in his new film Finishing the Game.

The closing film in MopA's Shakespeare on Screen

Parting is such sweet sorrow... well it's time for the final film in the Shakespeare on Screen series at the Museum of Photographic Arts in Balboa Park. Closing out what I hope will be an annual event at MoPA is Tom Stoppard's verbal tennis match, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (screening October 11 at 7:00pm at MoPA) starring Tim Roth and Gary Oldman in two of their most appealing performances.Arrive early for a little swordplay before the film screening and hang out afterwards to discuss the film.

Serving as guest curator for The Film's the Thing: Shakespeare on Screen has been a delight. Not only have I been able to show four great Shakespeare films but I have also had the chance to meet some fellow Shakespeare enthusiasts. One of those enthusiasts was guest speaker Diane Venora (Lady Capulet in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet) who riveted the audiences with her insights and passion. In addition, we have been able to showcase young actors at each event performing scenes fro the Bard. Last week, MoPA's atrium was shrouded in fog as the witches arrived to tempt Macbeth before the screening of Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood. Now to close out the festival, I have chosen a film that offers a riff on Shakespeare, Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead.