Chinese spy thriller The Message (Feng Sheng) will close the 14th Pushan International Film Festival (PIFF), which will open on Oct 8 and run for nine days.

The Message, starring Zhou Xun and Li Bingbing, tells the story of how the Japanese-controlled puppet government finds an undercover agent among five suspects during China's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1937-45).

Directed by Chen Kuo-fu and Gao Qunshu, the flick is "one of the most impressive Chinese films of the year", organizers say.

This year's PIFF features a record 355 movies from 70 countries, among which 98 will have their world premiere.

Good Morning President, a South Korean film starring Jang Dong-Gun, will open the festival in the southern city of Busan, formerly known as Pusan, next month.

Inaugurated in 1996, PIFF has grown into one of Asia's most influential film festivals, with its focus on discovering new films and first-time directors from across Asia.

(China Daily September 17, 2009)