VIFF 2014: The Vancouver Asahi has all the goods

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      The Vancouver Asahi (Japan/Canada)  

      The historic legend of a local Japanese-Canadian baseball team gets a distinctively Japanese cinematic take in this dramatic feature by director Ishii Yuya. The film thwarts North American sports-movie expectations with its reflective pace, low-key, group-oriented character development, and sometimes wordless scenes. Yet all the goods are there: an ethnic minority struggling against racial discrimination, the underdog team fighting against odds, familial and intergenerational tensions, and a history lesson against the backdrop of war.

      Centre, September 29 (6:30 p.m.) and October 4 (2:30 p.m.) and 9 (3:30 p.m.); Playhouse, October 10 (1 p.m.)  

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