Folks, it's a tremendous week for movies!

Two very good films A Frozen Flower and Public Enemies open in our cinemas this Thursday. Between the two, A Frozen Flower holds more interest for queer audiences because of its gay plot, while Public Enemies would strongly appeal to movie buffs because of its Oscar-worthy cast and director (Johnny Depp, Christian Bale and director Michael Mann).

A Frozen Flower, written and directed by one of the most exciting young filmmakers in Korea, is a costume drama set in 14th century Korea. It tells the intriguing tale of a gay king, a straight queen and the male lover they both share. Throwing sex, love, politics and history into the cauldron, A Frozen Flower is one of the most sensational Korean films to arrive in our cinemas this years.

On the other hand, Public Enemies is the sort of Oscar-worthy movie that would appeal to cineastes and art/film students, as well as lovers of gangster flick. Everything about this film, from the cast (Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard) to the director (Michael Mann of Heatfame) to the cinematographer (legendary Dante Spinotti), is first-rate. It tells the story of 1930s gangster John Dillinger, the most notorious bank robber of the Depression era.

If there's one word to describe the two best films of the week, it's "classy".

A Frozen Flower

In Koream with subtitles

The short but terrific run of gay-friendly movies (Sunshine Cleaning and The Love of Siam) over the past two weeks has culminated in the elegant A Frozen Flower from Korea. This gay historical drama was a smash hit when it was released in its country last December. Despite stiff competition from big-budget Hollywood pic, it stayed at the top of the Korean box-office for a few weeks. Way to go, Korea!

Stylish, crisp and beautifully shot, A Frozen Flower tells a fascinating tale of a king, a queen and a male lover they both share. Actor Ju Jin Mo plays a gay king whose bisexual security chief (Jo In Sung) is his secret lover. Pressured to produce an heir with the queen, the king asks his lover to impregnate the queen in his place.

Ju is reluctant at first, but carries out the deed out of love and loyalty towards the king. To his surprise, as well as the queen’s, their sex quickly becomes steamy. Lust overcomes them as the two continue the affair. When the king discovers truth, all hell erupts…

A Frozen Flower is written and directed by one of Korea's best young directors Ha Yu, who describes it as "a love story between men". Certainly, it is the male characters who take centrestage in this love triangle, as Ha tries to keeps a fine balance between the emotional drama and the overt carnality.

The result is a film that’s both poetic and erotic, punctuated occasionally by superb and bloody fights. Though A Frozen Flower is slightly more than 2 hours long, it never loses your interest.

Three years ago, another Korean historical drama about a gay love triangle King and the Clown became a huge box-office hit around the region. But if you ask us, A Frozen Flower is much better-made than the former. A must-see for queer audiences.

Johnny Depp can do no wrong. Every movie he stars in these days turns out to be winning one, and the crime thriller Public Enemies is no different.

Cool, fluid and oh-so-stylish, Public Enemies takes you to the 1930s Depression era when real-life criminal John Dillinger (Johnny Depp) rose to become one of the most notorious bank robbers in American history. Between 1933 and 1935, he's responsible for three prison breaks, several

robberies and numerous deaths of police officers. The FBI devoted an entire department to his arrest, but he continued to evade capture... until a certain Agent Purvis (Christian Bale) was assigned to the job.

Based on a book by Bryan Burroughs, Public Enemies is directed by the excellent Michael Mann (Heat, Collateral, Miami Vice) whose slick vision of crime dramas never fails to impress. The cool pseudo-realistic camerawork hits you from the first scene when Dillinger is carrying out the first prison break.With fluid cameras and slightly grainy images, Mann depicts the frenzied thrills of breaking the law and getting away with it again and again.

John Dillinger, after all, was a hero in the Depression era. Common folk saw him as their dark avenger, robbing back the banks that had robbed them of their homes and farms. When he was arrested, the journalists who met him were awestruck by his nonchalant charisma and style. The image of the cool gangster trickled down to the public, who began to worship him.

Who better then to play John Dillinger than Johnny Depp himself, whose own cool and aloof persona fits the character like a glove. Long live, Depp! Marion Cotillard who plays his girlfriend holds her own, while Christian Bale is well-cast as the hardnosed FBI agent who never stops chasing his fast-moving target. Depp and Bale are so convincing in their roles that you never stop to think that maybe these men, with their GQ-ready gorgeousness, look nothing like the real McCoys.

It doesn't matter anyway. Public Enemies is so stylish and intriguing, it sweeps you off your feet and takes you for a breathtaking ride.