Weng Weng At Eyesore
In December 2014, Australian filmmaker Andrew Leavold presented his excellent documentary, The Search For Weng Weng, at The Royal Cinema. The subject of his quest is the seemingly forgotten actor of Filipino exploitation films, best remembered in the James Bond spoof For Y'ur Height Only, in which Weng Weng (standing at two feet and nine inches) plays Agent 00.
While documenting much of Weng Weng's history on numerous trips to the Philippines, Mr. Leavold's film eventually succeeds where Mark Hartley's Machete Maidens Unleashed falls short: a multi-faceted history of the country's exploitation film industry, as well as a socio-political document of the Filipino people and their spirituality, all somehow profoundly correlated through Weng Weng's short lived career, and the lives he touched. It also enforced why movies about movies are so great. They can offer whole new worlds of cinema for the viewer to explore.
While in North America, Weng Weng is remembered best for two films (the above Bond spoof, plus The Impossible Kid), much of his however brief filmography remains obscure outside of the Philippines and consigned to the same fate of countless Filipino features, left to decay from improper archival storage. Last Friday night, some Toronto cult movie fans were able to see a little more of Weng Weng's unique filmic legacy.
Andrew Leavold appeared at Eyesore Cinema for the Toronto stop of his North American tour, launching the release of his book, The Search For Weng Weng. It covers the making of the documentary of the same name, as well as his fascination with Weng Weng and Filipino genre films, plus how more of Weng Weng's history came to light after the film was released. In conjunction with the book launch, Andrew is presenting 30-minute, subtitled cut-downs of three films in which Weng Weng (sometimes barely) has a supporting role. This 90-minute presentation is not only a chance for North Americans to see some more rare footage of the cult film star, but is also an excellent primer for the country's genre film, as the actor shares the screen with such favourites as Dolphy or Tony Ferrer.
It's better to have seen three condensed movies instead of one complete film, as, by Andrew's admission, unedited they are a bit of a slog. This presentation also gave us a bigger picture of the Filipino film industry and its stars, interspersed with our host sharing his encyclopedic knowledge of the genre. That wealth is definitely shared in his book. The spine may appear thin, but the pages are in small print, and just loaded with information. Like the movie that shares its name, this book offers a new world to explore. (Full review coming soon!)
In addition to the book, Andrew also had a Weng Weng bobblehead doll to auction off: one for each city on his tour. Toronto's went for 40 dollars. This was the first screening held by Eyesore Cinema in the back of their new location. It will be interesting to see how this venue develops.
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DVD-BD Releases Of Note: All The Sins of Sodom/Vibrations (Vinegar Syndrome), Avanti! (Kino Lorber), Deadly Hero (Kino Lorber), Kill Baby Kill (Kino Lorber), The Lure (Criterion), Othello (Criterion), Summer Of Fear (Music Box Films)
Upcoming Independent Screenings Of Note: (hyperlinked where available) Thurs 12: La Vie Revée @ Lightbox; Fri 13: Ghostkeeper @ Trash Palace, Repo Man @ CINSSU; Sat 14: Countdown Canada @ Innis, Total Coverage @ Pleasure Dome; Sun 15: The Hundred Videos with Steve Reinke @ Lightbox.
