A total of 11 classic movies from Taiwan will screen at Lisbon-based museum Cinemateca Portuguesa this month as part of ongoing government efforts to showcase the country’s cultural impact in Europe, the Ministry of Culture said.
According to the MOC, the featured “Dragon Inn,” directed by King Hu in 1967, is credited with initiating the martial arts genre that swept Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Southeast Asia during the 1960s and 1970s. The museum described the movie as a milestone in Hu’s great career.
Since this is the first collaboration between the two institutions, the MOC has arranged two seminars introducing the development of the cinematic genre to the local Portuguese audience. Chen Ru-shou, a professor from the College of Communication at National Chengchi University, is set to host the educational sessions at the museum.
Other films scheduled for the series include “A Touch of Zen” and “Legend of the Mountain,” both directed by Hu; “The Swordsman of All Swordsmen,” directed by Joseph Kuo; and “Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters,” featuring Taiwanese opera diva Yang Li-hua.
Cinemateca Portuguesa said the event is among its most important projects this year. The late 1960s and early 1970s were a vital era of cinematic development not only in Taiwan but also across Asia, it said, adding that the museum looks forward to introducing more movies from Taiwan. (SFC-E)
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