Guan yun chang - The Lost Bladesman

Guan yun chang - The Lost Bladesman
Hong Kong (2011)
Starring:  Yu Ai Li, Hong Chen, Siu-hou Chin, Donnie Yen

I just got my hands on this movie and the only subtitles I could find were a re-translation from a Vietnamese sub.  The resulting subtitle I used could have had a serious effect on the story as there are a few things that I seem to be missing - the gist of the movie I know I got fairly well.  My recommendation for those of you in the same situation I am in is to try and find a better subtitle file, but the movie is still good.

The Lost Bladesman was a super interesting movie on many levels.     Guan Yu, played by Donnie Yen, is a true Chinese general that helped bring an end to the Han Dynasty and ushered in the beginning of the Three Kingdoms.  It is still common to see small shrines dedicated to Guan Yu in Chinese stores and restaurants around the world.  The movie also depicts the warlord Cao Cao in a way that I had not thought of him.  In this movie he is depicted as a wise manipulative man and not necessarily the feared man who rained death upon everyone in his path.

With all of that said this is one cool movie.  The cinematography is great all the way through.  Most of the fight scenes use the pudao sword requiring large movements that were gracefully executed.  The history and the story part I'm still a little fuzzy on and I might have to do some reading and then watch it again when a different subtitle file is available.   All in all if you are a fan of epic period martial arts flicks involving kings, generals, provincial leaders, and an honorable hero this is certainly one movie you should be happy to get your hands on as well.

Samurai Ayothaya - The Samurai of Ayothaya

Samurai Ayothaya - The Samurai of Ayothaya
Thailand (2010)
Starring:  Seigi Ozeki, Kanokkorn Jaicheun, Sorapong Chatree
Awards:  2011 National Film Association Award (Best Score) - Thailand National Film Association Award

Finally months of patience and perseverance have paid off and I was able to acquire a subtitle file for this movie enabling me to watch it and more to the point: write this review.

The Samurai of Ayothaya is an interesting movie to me.  It loosely follows part of the life of the historic figure Yamada Nagamasa.  In history Yamada became the Govenor of the Nakhori Si Thammarat province.  In the movie Yamada became one of the elite warriors from the Ayothaya province.

Betrayed by his countrymen and left for dead Yamada is saved by an enemy tribe and slowly brought back to health.  He finds tranquility and identity with his saviors and decides to stay after his recovery.

This movie has some really cool fight scenes.  There is this humorous tone to the movie that muay thai is the be all end all of martial arts and is the destroyer of all other forms.  What else should I expect from a Thai movie though.  I don't think the history portrayed in this movie is close to accurate, but I'm okay with that.  The choreography of the martial arts is pretty good in this movie.  The scenes are really cool - including the full moon festival.  The movie served it's purpose of entertainment.  I enjoyed watching it.

The Fall

The Fall
USA (2006)
Starring:  Lee Pace, Catinca Untaru, Justine Waddell
Awards: 2007 Best Film - Sitges Catalonian Int'l. Film Festival; 2007 Crystal Bear Special Mention - Berlin Int'l. Film Festival; 2008 Best Cinematography - Austin Film Critics Association

This movie dubbed a fantasy and adventure begins in a hospital.  In this hospital there are two characters thrust together by chance.  A stunt man with a shattered heart and broken leg and a girl who fell and broke her arm.

Roy befriends Alexandria and begins telling her a story of six heroes who each desire to kill the same man.  As the story carries on Roy cons this young child into acquiring medicine for him for his pain.  As the story unfolds the viewer begins to understand that medicine will not cure Roy's particular situation.

I decided to watch this movie because I wanted to continue a recent run on fantasy movies.  This was far from anything upbeat and was truly sad the way the story unfolds.  For those of you who are looking for a fantasy adventure I would look on - the lack of action throughout and the morbid twists will leaving you wishing you picked another movie.  For those of you interested in fantasy movie with a dark/depressing motive well you can find it on Netflix.

Mulan

Hua Mulan
China (2009)
Starring:  Wei Zhao, Jaycee Chan, and Rongguang Yu
Awards:  Golden Deer (Changchun Film Festival 2010), Shanghai Film Critics Award (Shanghai Film Critics Awards 2010)

Mulan is another epic.  Epic in story, history, deeds, and the filming.  When I first watched this movie it reminded me of Joan of Arc.  It wasn't till a little later that I discovered Hua Mulan is a true historical Chinese figure dating roughly back to 300AD.

Hua Mulan, a woman who couldn't bear to see her aged father be called to battle sacrificed herself and went to fight for him.  Women of course weren't allowed in battle so she disguised herself as a man and took her father's place.  Legend has it that she fought for 12 years under his name.  A noble tale of sacrifice and honor.

I 100% enjoyed this movie.

Goemon

Goemon
Japan (2009)
Starring:  Yosuke Eguchi, Takao Ohsawa, Ryoko Hirosue

I'm just going to open this up with the fact most of Goemon was visually stunning.  Between the scene settings whose detail was amazing to match the period, the fight scenes, and some pretty good CGI this movie was one of the most impressive that I've seen in a while.  With that said there were some periods of the movie where I caught myself thinking, "just get on with it."  All in all though it was phenomenal.

The story itself is based off of a mythic legend from the 1500's in Japan.  Goemon was somewhere between a simple thief, a runaway ninja, or the son of a samurai family.  The story of Goemon is mirrors that of Robin Hood.  He was a man who stole from the rich and gave to the poor.  His fighting skills have grown to nearly super-legendary levels over the past few hundred years.  In truth little is really known about hit, but that doesn't change the fact that his legend lives on.  Today a round cauldron like bathtub is still named after him Japan.

Red

Red
USA (2010)
Starring:  Bruce Willis, Mary-Louise Parker, Helen Mirren, Morgan Freeman

Red is an acronym in this movie for Retired, Extremely, Dangerous.  It fits the title.  Frank Moses, a retired CIA agent is beginning to find a peaceful life.  From the picture perfect house to decorating for the holidays Frank continues to find new amusements to ease his retirement blues.  Included in his daily diversions are long conversations with Sarah.  Forced from retirement Frank goes to save Sarah from being the target of the same people who are trying to kill him.  From there the comedy in the movie just grows.

Red is about a group of super bad-ass retired CIA agents getting back together for a cause.  They come replete with aching backs and a madness driven by boredom.  The topic is amusing to me in thought, it's akin to a superheroes rolling in wheelchairs out of a retirement home.

All in all it was a fun little movie.

Casshern

Casshern
Japan (2004)
Starring:  Yusuke Iseya, Kumiko Aso, Akira Terao, Kanako Higuchi, Fumiyo Kohinata

Casshern, is ghost hero in local folklore from one of the small towns in this movie.  Based on an old Japanese anime this movie follows Tetsuya through the transition into Casshern where he might become the hero legend.  In this movie you will find there is a blur between being alive and being the ghost of the living.  I decided to get this movie for two reasons.  Casshern is a superhero in a sense and the imagination that goes into creating superheros is unique, so it piqued my curiosity.  The other reason is because I read about it being better then both of the Matrix sequels.

I found this movie to be extremely well put together.  The scenery and effects are masterful at some moments.  The concept of this superhero ghost is unique.  The plot is very different.  Kazuaki Kiriya filmed this movie in such a way that it made me think to put it together and afterward.  Granted I could be incorrectly projecting meaning where there is none, but that's part of why I like this movie.  The action though left a little to be desired.  It seems as if the beginning starts out great, but where great forces come into play later in the movie they are filmed with regular actions it seems - potentially a money saving venture aimed at reducing special effects costs.  Even so, if you like a semi-dark twisted sci-fi anime based superhero story check this one out.

The Chronicles of Narnia - The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

The Chronicles of Narnia:  The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
USA (2010)
Starring:  Ben Barnes, Skandar Keynes, Georgie Henley

Based on a series of books I haven't read since I was about five, I found this installment of C. S. Lewis's books to be what I expected.  The details of the story I had long forgotten so most of the movie was not as familiar as you might expect of someone who had read the book.  It seems like there are some occurrences that weren't in the book and of course many that were in the book that weren't in the movie.  Still, all in all, I was pleasantly surprised by what I watched.  If I was my little brother's age I would have loved this movie, I am sure.

While the classics aren't represented in their entirety I am enjoying the surge of movies written with a classic literature or historic background that have been coming out in the past 10 years.  This one especially so.  For everyone who can remember being a kid and reading this book by flashlight or candlelight long after you should have been asleep I thoroughly recommend allowing this movie to take you back to the times when magical things were possible in your mind.

Season of the Witch

Season of the Witch
USA (2011)
Starring:  Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman, Claire Foy

Season of the Witch enticed me for a few different reasons.  First it deals with Templars whom I considered a mystical bunch that were nearly the stuff of fairy tales.  Second because it involves witches, which are the stuff of fairy tales.  And third, unlike many, I like Nicolas Cage as an actor.

The film didn't disappoint me.  I wasn't expecting a whole lot and as such I wasn't quite wowed nor left feeling like I had wasted an hour and a half.

Dominic Sena shot this film in Austria to give it a good backdrop.  I give him props on that move.  There are some really cool scenes that would have been quite a bit different if he had filmed it anywhere else.  The acting was okay and the plot was the stuff of fairy tales.  The scenes were set well which only helped form the shell for this story to be told.  I wouldn't call it one of Nicolas Cage's best movies, but a good one in his line of movies and it did what it was supposed to:  entertain.

Valhalla Rising

Valhalla Rising
Denmark (2009)
Starring:  Mads Mikkelsen, Maarten Stevenson, Alexander Morton
Awards:  International Fantasy Film Award - Special Mention ( 2010 Fantasporto); International Fantasy Film Special Jury Award (2010 Fantasporto)

The first thing that I noticed about this movie was the scenery which was consistently stunning all the way though.  The film itself was dark and not just in story, but in the actual brightness as well.  There is limited dialog and so much is inferred through the actions, travels, and cinematography.

I enjoy the concept of Viking, Nordic, and other Scandinavian tales so I decided to give the one a whirl.  I'm pretty sure I won't do that again - just wasn't my type of movie or storytelling.

There is a fair amount of blood and some fight scenes for those of you who are after that.  There is also a good underlying tale and moral to the story about trying to conquer lands that aren't yours.  I really enjoyed the part of humans acting on behalf of God or in his name.  The superstition that is projected from those in the native land of this movie from  a millenia ago was fairly amusing, for about 5 minutes.  If you find something you like in this movie I'd enjoy hearing about it.

K-20: Legend of the Mask

K-20:  Legend of the Mask  aka  The Fiend with 20 Faces
Japan (2008)
Starring:  Takeshi Kaneshiro, Takako Matsu, Toru Nakamura
Award:  2009 Hochi Film Award
I went on this long hunt for foreign superhero movies and K-20:  The Fiend with 20 Faces emerged.

From his humble beginnings Heikichi Endo is forced to move from being Japan's number one circus act to becoming Japan's number one enemy.  With his name in ruin Heikichi trains to gain the skills required to capture the man who set him up.

This Japanese fantasy movie is pretty cool.  There's some fun stunts, a few decent scenes, a number of good laughs, some drama, a couple of scenes that beg for the audience's emotions, and a bit of scientific mystery.  Sure there were parts that didn't really jive and some scenes where the helicopters looked like little remote control helicopters, but it was worth overlooking that.

I would have watched this even if it had horrible reviews, just because it is a foreign superhero movie.  Regardless of why I would have watched it though, I'm glad I did.

20th Century Boys

20th Century Boys 1: Beginning of the End
20-seiki shônen: Honkaku kagaku bôken eiga


20th Century Boys 2:  The Last Hope
20-seiki shônen: Dai 2 shô - Saigo no kibô


20th Century Boys 3:  Redemption
20-seiki shônen: Saishû-shô - Bokura no hata


This is a series of three movies produced from 2008-2009 from Japan.  The movies is based on an award winning magna series called Yawara written by Naoki Urasawa.

When my week long venture of watching these three was over I was happy.  I can see why this might have been a huge success in Japan.  It was kind of gory and in some ways seriously creepy.  The story continuously develops and devolves as more and more information lost in the minds of the group who wrote a story during their childhood.  This is the story of one man, Friend, who climbed to the top of the religious/global political ladders and a group of childhood friends who must gather together years later to fight against the evil that Friend is unleashing on the world.  

Aside from being a super long story this set of movies was cool.  The special effects left a little to be desired and the style of filming was a little different, but all in all for another take on the end of the world it was worth the watch.  I don't think I'll watch it twice though.   

На игре 2. Новый уровень/Na Igre 2. Novyy uroven - Hooked 2. The Next Level

На игре 2. Новый уровень/Na Igre 2. Novyy uroven - Hooked 2.  The Next Level
Russia (2010)
Starring:  Sergey Chirkov, Marina Petrenko, Pavel Priluchnyy, Evgeniy Kharlanov, Tikkhon Zhiznevskiy, Nodar Siradze, and Aleksey Bardukov


Na Igre 2 picks up right where the first left off.  It's the beginning of the struggle between multiple parties for and against world domination via an army of programmed gamers.  This movie features a well knit web of deceit and domination that evolves into a struggle for life from all sides.  If you watched the first one... you've gotta see this one too.


All of the open story is closed in this movie.  I have to give it up for the director and writer of this movie (Pavel Sanayev and Aleksandr Chubaryan) they really didn't leave loose ends.  This movie was just as difficult to acquire, it was kind of luck that I happened upon them both.

Travelers and Magicians

 

Travelers and Magicians
Bhutan
2003
Starring:  Tshewang Dendup, Sonam Lhamo, and Lhakpa Dorji

When I saw this movie I watched it mainly because I wanted to visually explore Bhutan as much as this movie would allow.  It certainly satisfied some of my curiosity with some gorgeous scenery, but I know there are many spectacular wonders the cinematography in this film didn't touch.  With that said, being the first movie from Bhutan that I've watched I had to see what type of story it conveyed.   I found the beginning a little strange and almost annoying, but it was worth sticking out the first 20 minutes as the movie changed drastically.

From the beginning this movie is a story of travelers.  Dondup travels the mountain roads for days so that he can get to the capital and move to the United States.  Along the way as he rides buses and hitchhikes as he is forced to travel with a growing group of people.  One person whose path was crossed in this journey was a monk with a story to tell.  His story of a dreamland is mystical and certainly has its own meaning amongst choices the travelers will one day have to make.

Quote:  "A peach blossom is beautiful,  But you see, a blossom is only beautiful because it is temporary."

"You should be careful with dreamlands because when you wake up, it may not be very pleasant."

Aladin

Aladin
India - Bollywood
2009
Starring:  Ritesh Deshmukh, Jaqueline Fernandes, Amitabh Bachchan, and Sanjay Dutt

I can not express how insanely happy it made me to find this movie.  There are just certain stories that always capture my interest, Aladin and the Genie have been one of them for almost 30 years.

The story has little new to it, but it comes from close to the land of the original tale and so from that perspective it is new enough.  This story begins with Aladin hiding from his heritage.  Through a strange twist of fate he ends up with the magical lamp and from it summons Genius.  Aladin can not conceive of three wishes and is prodded by Genius who is eager to get the three wishes over with and go about his way.

This movie has the comedy, the love story, the Bollywood dance, a cultural overlay, magic, carnies, a genie, and some interesting visual effects.  Oh, there is this funny song that you have to hear.  There's a Genie rap in the movie that cracks me up, I wish I understood the Hindi part - but, that might take some of the humor away.  All in all I was happy to see the movie and at just over two hours the time was much better for this story then the typical near 3 hour epics that Bollywood produces.

Quote:

Veer

Veer
India (Bollywood)
2010
Starring:  Salman Khan, Zarine Khan, Mithun Chakraborty, and Jackie Shroff

As the poster says, it Veer is the epic love story of a warrior. The movie boasts some decent sweeping visual scenes as well as a multicultural tale.  Veer is a story of honor, betrayal, and love against the backdrop of a historically epic time in India.

Veer is a Pindari warrior whose father and tribe are betrayed by the British and Madhavgarh's King.  Fate one day brings Veer and his warriors to rob a train that will change the course of history for the Pindari.

Veer has extremely mixed reviews on all fronts, still I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Some say the final scenes aren't necessary, but I find some cosmic peace in the ending; others say the battles were unnecessary, I'm not sure how else one would portray this warrior without them; and still others yet say it was cheesy, every Bollywood romance has a huge element of that.  All in all I'd watch it again.  I hope Netflix soon brings it to the USA masses, I'd like to see Zarine Khan boosted into stardom and this first movie of hers referenced as one of her greats in years to come.

Quote: This story belongs to fearless the Pindari whose saga of bravery was not considered as a part of history by the British. But, they could not stop them from becoming a legend.

"What is the Greatest Thing for a Pindari?" - "Courage"
"And greater than courage?" - "Promise"
"And greater than a promise?" . . .

Fung wan II - Storm Warriors

Fung wan II - Storm Warriors
Hong Kong
2009
Starring:  Aaron Kwok, Ekin Cheng, and Kenny Ho
Awards:  Nominated for the Asian Film Award (2010)

Probably my second favorite genre of movies right now is the martial arts arena, fantasy martial arts movies are awesome because of the thought that goes into creating the worlds and the martial arts themselves.  Fung wan II is no exception to that.  Virtually all of the action sequences are friggin awesome.  The limits of reality are tested, sure, but that doesn't mean the story isn't cool.  If you liked the looks of Goemon you should certainly like the looks of this.  Some of the names in this movie were a little corny, but that very well could be something that is lost to me in translation.

I think we are coming into a new era for martial arts movies.  I have a hypothesis that the kids who grew up watching anime are becoming directors now with production budgets large enough to create the worlds and special effects their minds have been trained to imagine.  I think we're going to see a large number of flicks coming out of Asia that will rival Hollywood action productions in the next decade.

Storm Warriors has a decent plot behind it.  There is a strong element of good and evil, light and dark, and it approaches the high ranking martial arts training with that perspective.  There is a some type of a love story tied into this movie for both Wind and Cloud, but for some reason if it wasn't for the acting that wouldn't be overly apparent; the subtitles said little about it other then hints here and there.  If you like fantasy martial arts movies with good action virtually all the way through you should check this one out.

Soon to come

I have unfortunately been lax in my reviews, however I have not been so in watching the movies. Soon to come (next few days) will be reviews of Cargo, Zeitgeist, Het Leven Uit Een Dat, Strigoi, Action Replay, Ip Man 2 & 3, Black Death, Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame.... amongst a couple of others. Check back soon ;)

MirrorMask

MirrorMask
2005
Canada
Starring:  Stephanie Leonidas, Jason Barry, and Rob Brydon

MirrorMask falls into many different categories.  It is an adventure, a drama, a family movie, a fantasy, and is full of carnies all the way through.

I think Jim Henson had a run in with some bad acid from the 60s when he wrote this.  This movie was a visual trip all the way through.  I can only imagine the people who created it.  It is done by the creators of Dark Crystal and Labyrinth.

With that said, if you can deal with the trippieness of it all it is quite an imaginative adventure.

The story begins in a carnival where one of the stars of the show is fighting with her daughter.  After those often exchanged words between the rebellious teenager and parents watching out for them.  Soon she finds herself in a world where everyone mysteriously wears masks..



Quote:  If I told you something wierd, would you think I'm crazy?

Su Qi-Er - True Legend

Su Qi-Er - True Legend
China
2010
Starring:  Man Cheuk Chiu with Xun Zhou and guest appearances by Michelle Yeoh and David Carradine  


Su Qi-Er is a great fictional movie about the founder of the drunken boxing style.  

Do you remember the kung fu flicks of days past?  The awesome striking, kicking, blocking, and unique techniques?  The awesome moves all the way around with names to match?  Have you watched one lately?  I find them cheesy now.  This movie though, True Legend, is one awesome display of martial arts!

I find when looking at reviews that this movie is under appreciated.  True Legend though involves so much that it is one awesome movie.  The story begins in the Qing dynasty (1644-1911).   Su Qi-Er opens with one of the best martial arts scenes.  The movie incorporates battles of good against evil, of family against the forces seeking to tear it apart, of love against separation, and of devotion and believing.

I dare not tell too much about this movie for fear of spoiling it.  This movie though involves daggers and swords.  Gods and poison. And amazing scenes.  I recommend this movie as a top notch hand to hand martial arts flick, a well choreographed and artistic display of Asian cinema, and as a story worth hearing that has survived a millennium.  There is no aspect of this movie that is lacking.  From mortals to gods and everything in between it should be seen by martial arts fans around the world.  It will get you pumped and keep you there all the way through.  Even if just strictly for its martial arts this movie is awesome; watch the firsts 10 minutes and say no to the rest, I dare ya!  It is easily one of the best Kung Fu movies I have seen in a decade.  The choreography of Woo Ping is at its best in this movie and the scenes are just spectacular.  I didn't see this movie nominated for any awards yet, but by the time 2012 hits my assumption is that it will win awards in movie festivals across the world.  I rate this movie as a must see!!