This summer has taken every free moment that I have and I have enjoyed all of it. For those of you who keep checking back for more movie reviews here's a preview of what I have coming in the next couple of weeks.
Kites
Thank You
Dobi Ghat
Game
Haunted 3d
Shaolin
Mo Gong
Krrish
Jodah Akhbar
Confucius
Dilwale Dulhania le Jayenge
He Ni Zai Yi Qi
Pyaar Impossible
Dostana
Bachna Ae Haseeno
The Tango Lesson
Thanks for the patience while I've been enjoying some non digital life and great weather.
8.08.2011
7.05.2011
120 Countries
I was just looking at the stats trying to ponder the future of my blog. On one hand I could continue chronicling movies even though I do not know how much free time I will have in the upcoming months to watch and write about them. On another hand I could just as easily stop writing. The fact that of a small measured part of the year (3 months) I have received hits from just over 120 countries is amazing to me. I am sure some of those were bots and others were proxies, but still I find it amazing that in 90 days I can touch so many from around the world with such diverse topics is amazing. It has even led to what is an interesting pen pal or two from random places around the world. As I go to sleep tonight I am leaning toward continuing the small amount of writing I did. Thank you to all of you from around the world who stumble upon my pages - thank you for simply visiting; again I welcome you to leave comments, suggestions, or movie recommendations for myself and the other readers.
6.22.2011
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.
6.19.2011
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.
6.13.2011
Mo hup leung juk - Butterfly Lovers
Hong Kong (2008)
Starring: Charlene Choi, Chun Wu, Ge Hu
Butterfly Lovers itself as a movie didn't really "wow" me on many levels. The story however is altogether something else. This movie is based on a story that is almost 2000 years old and is a traditional folktale in China. Liang Zhu as the tale is often referred to, in honor of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, is a love story that has truly transcended history to bring us a tale of two lovers who are bound by a love so strong heaven itself cast them to live upon the earth and never truly realize that which they sought after most. It is a fascinating story and may be older then it's Hindi counterpart Heer Ranjha and certainly older then our western Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. When comparing the similarities of the major characters in these stories the parallels are quite amazing. It makes me wonder if such stories spread and with a change of characters and local were brought back to life and made famous again in a foreign land, or if the stories have absolutely no connection and from arbitrary chance one story was believed to have happened while something very similar was dreamed up with no influence passing either way.
The main actress and the director in this movie both get slammed in popular reviews citing she is not believable in her role. There are a few moments where I felt the same way, but there's a few good giggles, a couple decent martial arts scenes, an evil villain fighting to possess a heart that is not destined to be his, and then of course the story that makes butterfly lovers of Butterfly Lovers. I enjoyed the movie and the history lesson I received while trying to bring you the background on it. I enjoyed it. If you're looking for a romantic martial arts flick, I will stand behind this one.
Quote: Butterflies should be a pair, one left behind will be lonely. So wait for me.
6.12.2011
Bab'Aziz - The Prince that Contemplated His Soul
Iran (2005)
Starring: Parviz Shahinkhou, Maryam Hamid, Hossein Panahi
Awards: 2005 Crystal Simorgh - Fajr Film Festival; 2006 Golden Dagger - Muscat Film Festival
Bab'Aziz is an amazing story that begins in the desert with a blind dervish and his grand daughter. This movie follows their journey as they head towards their destination, a great reunion, with nothing but faith to guide them. On the journey they meet many other dervishes who are also headed the same direction. Some are misguided and without faith can not find the way, others are lost and seeking answers, and one is on his way to find the love of his life whose path had split from his own. As these dervishes come and go, taking their own paths to the reunion, Ishtar's grandfather tells her a story of the prince who gave up his worldly status to contemplate his soul. Through the movie I wondered if that prince was her grandfather himself, but this was never made clear to me.
There are a few things about this movie that I really liked. The scenery was gorgeous. This movie was filmed in both Iran and Tunisia and it incorporates both dues of sand with a satin appearance as well as scorching desert with mountains off in the distance. For the scenery and the cinematography this movie was worth watching. It also has a very heavy undertone of Islamic teaching and words wise enough that I believe many of the lines and stories in this movie might have come from Sufi's. Bab'Aziz does orient towards Islam, but the wisdom hidden in the movie make it a wonderful movie for almost anyone with an open mind. There is no action in this movie, there are no amazing special effects, but there is a beautiful journey and an amazing story.
Quote: He who has faith will never get lost
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.
5.17.2011
Wu ji - The Promise
China (2005)
Starring: Cecilia Cheung, Dong-gun Jang, Hiroyuki Sanda
Awards: Orient Express Section Special Jury Award (Fantasporto 2007)
I looked for this movie because I came across an old review from the LA Times I think that called it one of the most beautiful films imaginable. The Promise was without a doubt visually striking. It was worth getting the blu-ray version of it. From the costumes to the scenes to the story itself this movie was cool all the way through. It truly is a beautiful story.
In a world where men and gods live side by side a slave from the Land of the Snow and beggar turned princess pick their destiny. Cheung was promised by a goddess a life of riches, but without love. Jang was born a more noble human from the Land of the Snow and forced into slavery. Their paths cross in a complex turn of events and the rest is the story that is worth watching.
This movie was awesome. Just when I thought that I'd exhausted nearly every major cinematic release from the past decade I found a movie that made me wonder how I had missed it!
Quote: Destiny can be changed, time sometimes does flow backwards, snow can fall in the spring, and even a frozen heart can come back to life.
Frostbiten - Frostbitten
Sweden (2006)
Starring: Petra Nielsen, Carl-Ake Eriksson, Grete Havenskold
Awards: International Fantasy Film Award (Fantasporto 2006): Best Film; Festival Trophy (Screamfest 2006): Best music Score
Frostbitten is a slightly twisted vampire movie. When I say twisted in this case it's because it is a uniquely strange vampire movie (as far as vampire movies go). There is little about the movie that can be taken seriously; it is slightly off balance fusion of horror and comedy. I guess if you're a vampire movie lover check it out... if you're not a vampire movie lover, I'd walk right by it at the movie store.
The Thief Lord
2006
Starring: Aaron Johnson, Jasper Harris, Rollow Weeks
I do not recall if I watched this because I wanted to see a childhood adventure movie or because it is supposed to take place in my favorite city ever - Venice. I can recall why I won't keep the movie though. . . The movie was kind of pointless to me it's as if there almost wasn't a story at all, just a bunch of orphaned kids doing what they have to do in order to survive....almost storyless.
5.08.2011
Looking for subtitles
I got my hands on two different DVD's a while back and I'd love to watch them except they don't have subtitles. Can anyone point me in the right direction for either of these? Format of the file doesn't matter much.
The Samurai of Ayothaya
Don Quixote (2010 Chinese version)
The Samurai of Ayothaya
Don Quixote (2010 Chinese version)
4.30.2011
Aparecidos - The Appeared
Argentina (2007)
Starring: Ruth Diaz, Javier Pereira, Pablo Cedron
On the wake of a difficult decision Pablo convinces his sister to go on a road trip to discover more about their father. After discovering a diary that recants a grim tale two decades old many strange things begin to happen.
Aparecidos wasn't particularly scary, but it was kind of different. Of course you should expect a little of the precursor to being a ghost, blood and gore. There are a few parts that are a bit twisted too.
Aashayein
India (2010)
Starring: John Abraham, Sonal Sehgal, Anaitha Nair
Aashayein begins by showing a gambler that winning is not what life's all about. Rahul is a compulsive smoking gambler placing everything on one last bet; this wager contained his girlfriend's life savings. Strangely enough he won. He does what any man would do that won a fortune, he throws a party for a few friends to announce his intentions in life and proposes to his girlfriend. There could be no grander stage of happiness that could be built from which someone could fall.
In the moment of his greatest joy Rahul takes ill. Shortly afterward he is diagnosed with lung cancer. Fighting the million ways that his heart and thoughts are tugging his soul fate finds him while in the deepest of his despair. He runs away to a place where those with terminal diseases go to die and somehow blesses them with the most beautiful of gifts - life.
Aashayein is not the most upbeat of movies out there. In truth it has taken me about 4 months to watch it because I've known that. It is, though, a beautiful movie that is touching and thought provoking.
Quote: I don't know what tomorrow will bring. But now, now I have to live.
4.26.2011
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
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
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.
4.25.2011
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
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
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.
Lang zai ji - The Warrior and the Wolf
China (2009)
Starring: Maggie Q, Jo Odagiri, Chung Hua Tou
I was hoping for a Chinese version of Dances with Wolves... That didn't happen.
I will have to say the scenery was cool in this movie, but that's about where it ended. The dialog lacked as much as the recently reviewed Valhalla Rising and it was not nearly so easy for me to glean a story from this film. I fell asleep about half way through and can't find it in me to start it again from that point. Someone will probably tell me that I missed one of the most monumental endings a film has ever had....and I'd probably be okay not watching it still.
The Experiment
USA (2010)
Starring: Adrien Brody, Cam Gigandet, Forest Whitaker
For years I've heard of this story about a sociology experiment where a class was divided and half became prisoners and half became guards. Over the past two or three decades a few have said it was their class and a couple people knew someone who was in the class. Once I heard the story a few times I kind of wrote all first hand recollections off much the way you would if someone told you they witnessed the Roswell incident. None the less I had to watch the movie.
The movie ended up as I would have expected. There weren't very many surprises. Either there really was a sociology experiment and this movie is based off of it or this movie is based off the fictitious legend someone created. All in all there was some action, a shocking scene or two that makes you think about what it really takes to manipulate a person or a group of people.
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.
4.18.2011
K-20: Legend of the Mask
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.
Delhi 6
India (2009)
Starring: Waheeda Rehman, Abhishek Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor
Roshan was born to a Muslim mother and a Hindi father. He was raised in America and when his grandmother takes ill he is the only one that is willing to travel back to the city the family came from. He willingly thrusts himself into a world where he placed between two major religions, a culture unlike any he has ever dreamed of, beliefs and customs that people are willing to die to defend, and a black monkey. As he discovers the roots of his family, meets his parents old friends, and his family's oldest supporters Roshan's life completely changes the more he is immersed in his new world.
This movie depicts culture shock in a wonderful light. It partially shows the edges of the boundaries that different religions, castes, races, and cultures create simply by being. It's full of good humor, song, dance, and of course a Bollywood love story - but, it also has a bit of racial and religious clashing. In the arena of Bollywood movies I found Delhi-6 a good one; finally a movie where I didn't feel like I wasted my time for the first time in a week!
Loong Boonmee raleuk chat - Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Thailand (2010)
Starring: Thanapat Saisaymar, Jenjira Pongpas, and Sakda Kaewbuadee
Awards: 2011 Best Film (Asian Film Awards), 2010 Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival), 2010 TFCA Award (Toronto Film Critics Association Awards)
Ok, so generally I see that a movie which carries a generally accepted set of genre tags such as comedy, drama, and fantasy and then the awards that were won along with a few other nominations and I think, "wow that might be a good movie. To get such attention from everyone this one at least has some potential."
I don't know if it was that I couldn't identify the title with the occurrences within this movie or if it was a cross between the ghost, the monkey spirit, the guy who mated with the monkey spirit, or the catfish god having sex with a princess. . . but, this movie didn't really impress me.
Bajo Aguas Tranquilas - Beneath Still Waters
Spain (2005)
Starring: Michael McKell, Raquel Merono, Charlotte Salt
Beneath still waters was...
There were some parts where you could tell some great imagination came into play during the script writing. There were some parts that were kind of, semi, maybe partially a little creepy. That's about it. By the time this movie was over with I felt like it was a complete waste of time. If you are snowed in with no alcohol, no internet, a pen, a dvd player, and a TV that get's no network channels, and this DVD - take the pen and use the DVD as a surface for some artistic outlet and doodle on it.
4.06.2011
Guru
India (2007)
Starring: Mithun Chakraborty, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai
Guru is a movie that has sat in my collection for months, once again I should have watched it sooner.
This movie is about a villager who left his family and went to Turkey to work at a young age. His father never accepted that he would become anything. When he was to receive a promotion he saw little sense in continuing to work for someone else while remaining poor and quit working to go back home and follow a dream. From that point forward the story unfolds. Unlike many Bollywood movies that go on and on and on while playing out the plot with nothing new being introduced, Guru was constantly brining new issues or causes into the movie all the way through. Also unlike many Bollywood movies, Guru is not a sappy love story all the way through; granted the love story does play a main part in the movie, but it is not the focus. There are a few cute dance scenes which of course I love just because they involve the beautiful Aishwarya Rai.
This movie was about overcoming obstacles. It depicted how much having the right person at your side can make all of the difference while enforcing that without determination you will never reach your goals.
All in all I have to say I really enjoyed this movie. Partially because of the messages the movie contains and partially because of it's uniqueness as a Bollywood flick.
Quote: If you're with me I can beat the whole world.
If law can be made in a day, it can be changed in a day.
Think big, think ahead, and think fast.
Ninja's Creed
USA (2009)
Starring: Alexander Wraith, Gail Kim, and Lalaine
I'm not even going to go through the trouble of finding a trailer and embedding it. While there was a reason to watch Alien vs Ninja, I can think of no reason to watch this movie.
Ninja's Creed started out with some amazing scenery and I thought to myself, "maybe all of the other critics are wrong and it's just an under appreciated movie." Nope. . . I don't even know how this movie received funding.
Alien vs Ninja
Japan (2010)
Starring: Mika Hijii, Ben Hiura, and Shuji Kashiwabara
This came around in the San Diego Asian Film Festival last year and I was bummed that I didn't see it. I spent months looking for it and finally Netflix put it on streaming. For all of the time that I spent looking for this movie it wasn't worth the wait. With that said, if you feel like watching a mindless flick with a little gore and some funny but off kilter humor it's worthwhile.
All in all you can make the decision. I watched it once, but I won't watch it twice. Mika herself was more worth watching in the movie then the movie itself. . .
3.29.2011
Fighter in the Wind
South Korea (2004)
Starring: Dong-kun Yang, Aya Hirayama, Masaya Kato
Fighter in the wind is one of those 60 or 70 movies I've been sitting on for five or six months, waiting till the time was right to watch it. It had literally been so long I forgot what it was supposed to be about. I'm glad I finally took the time to watch it. This movie has some pretty horrible reviews, but given that it is based on a true story some of Choi Bae-dal's fans might not like it. In nearly every movie that surrounds a figure wrapped in legends truth is exaggerated and the films tend to use a sort of poetic license as history is twisted to fit the big screen. Fighter in the Wind is no different.
The movie begins as a Korean man ends up joining the Japanese air force during WWII. After he and a few other Koreans refuse to go on a kamikaze mission the fighting life of Bae-dal begins...starting with a Japanese General. There is a sense of honor that Baedal seems to be fighting to obtain that starts in that one fight with the General.
There are a few things I didn't like about this movie. The action while good is all fragmented. I like my martial arts flicks to have fluid action through each fight and not clip to the punch landing or knee breaking. Okay maybe I have just one complaint. The movie other then the lack of fluidity from the director in the fight scenes is pretty cool. All in all I wish I had watched it months ago instead of letting it sit there.
Quote(s): A man can be poor As long as he has a goal and strives to attain it he is beautiful. - Choi Baedal
I am afraid of fighting. I am afraid of being beaten and loosing. But, I am more afraid of surviving as a cripple than dying in a fight.
3.27.2011
Huang cun gong yu - Curse of the Deserted
Singapore (2010)
Starring: Shawn Yue, Kitty Zhang Yuqi, Zefeng Li
I was kind of hoping and expecting more from Curse of the Deserted. The movie was filmed well and the actors did good, but the story wasn't quite what I was hoping. From all of the trailers I was hoping that this would be scary enough to keep me on the edge of my seat. Sadly it wasn't really scary. The story was okay though. I think the writer and director were going for a psychological thriller that didn't quite pan out the way they expected.
With that said, for a ghost story that isn't super freaky with some slight mind bending story behind it it is worth a couple hours on a boring night.
Ajeossi - The Man from Nowhere
Korea (2010)
Starring: Bin Won, Sae-ron Kim, Hyo-seo Kim
Ajeossi was unique. It certainly isn't the typical bullet ballad or is it a straight kick ass movie, but it has aspects of both. The beginning is a little slow, but when the action starts to kick in the pace changes completely.
As the movie starts it opens up defining this awkward relationship between a pawn shop owner that shuts most of the world out and a little girl that is without friends or a father. There's speculation due to his seclusion that the pawnshop owner is a sexual predator, but we soon learn that is far from the truth.
From one silent good deed to the next he takes care of the little girl till her mother betrays the wrong group of people and she is kidnapped. From then on this silent pawn shop owner goes up against gangs, villains, organ harvesters, police, and his own past. . . when all the forces at work in the movie come together there's one spectacular bang.
The Man from Nowhere touches on some subjects that we all wish didn't exist. In some very blunt ways it depicts the atrocities committed by organ harvesters, the dark underworld of gangs and drugs, and the violence created by these shady paths of life. This movie is super graphic and will leave you going WTF? a few times. To me it is in a small way a reminder of the acts committed against other humans on a daily basis, we should all be so lucky as to never see this part of life in reality.
With that said, the choreography is done well. The cinematography is also pretty good. Every person in the movie had a foul mouth and the way things were translated gave me a good laugh. It could be the movie was actually written that way and it was designed to interject humor through dialog - I would welcome someone's opinion who can understand it in it's native language. All in all I'm glad I watched it. If you want to see it in English though, I'd go for the subtitled version instead of the dubbed one - the audio on the dubbed version is all kinds of horrible.
Quote: He didn't flinch when I shot the gun.
San kei hap lui - Mr and Mrs Incredible
Hong Kong (2011)
Starring: Louis Koo, Sandra Ng, Kwan Yue, and Chapman To
Mr and Mrs Incredible is a funny comedy that had me giggling all the way though. The story is based on two married superheroes who retire forcing them to deal with some of life's finer points. From arguments and health issues to acting normal and dealing with small town gossip this couple is plagued by the issues that come with being married for years. From fertility to infidelity the comical bickering and bantering was funny all the way through this movie.
Gazer Warrior and Aroma Woman are an inseparable duo that struggle to conceal their super powers and former identities from their friends during retirement. They are successful, albeit barely, for a good while till trouble comes into their lives again. . . Yes the silliness in the movie matches their superhero names.
All in all the film was kind of silly, kind of funny, and not super unique. Foreign superhero movies interest me because they require quite a bit of imagination; I'm curious what types of situations and superhero powers other cultures can dream up. From that perspective this movie was okay. With that said, if one were to take Mr and Mrs Smith and cross them with the Incredibles, send them back in time about 900 years the result would be Mr and Mrs Incredible. This movie really was an Asian fusion of those two movies. If you youtube the actual trailer it will prove that point in about 30 seconds, though strangely enough the trailer is made with zero percent of the film footage. It was still worth it just for the giggles. Not to mention who doesn't like a superhero movie?
Quote: Drunk carriage driving will be fined 2 dollars, serve six months suspension, and the horse will be confiscated.
3.23.2011
Koi Mil Gaya - I Found Someone
India - Bollywood
2003
Sratting: Rekha, Hrithik Roshan, and Priety Zinta
Awards: over 15 different awards
I often look around for foreign alien movies. In a way similar to written history I am positive that movies and other cultural media help to depict how topics are viewed within a country or culture. I also pay attention when foreign movies show those who are less fortunate and are invalid or slow for some reason; I find it equally interesting to see how cultures around the world view and treat people who are challenged in such a way. Another example would be one from Tibet with a group of blind children on a pilgrimage to a location in the roof of the world; that showed quite a bit of how blind children are treated in today's world - another movie for another day when I write that review. While this movie didn't really help me to understand either from India add ten more movies like it and I might be able to extrapolate what I am looking for. What this movie did do is to be one of the first sci-fi movies from abroad that incorporated aliens and super powers that I have found.
Rohit's father worked on programs involving contacting aliens and then fell from the scientific community after a strange turn of events. Rohit was born challenged and finds his way through his younger years happy and care free. Then one day he discovers his father's research and his whole world changes.
This movie was a great little family oriented movie. It made me laugh and smile. In short I enjoyed it! Between Rohit's developing relationship with Nisha and children dancing and singing with aliens it was a unique and fun little move for me. Then I discovered that it had a sequel: Krrrish. If I have enough time I'll get that review up tonight... This movie does borrow heavily from about a dozen movies that I grew up watching in the US, but if you can not pay attention to that it's a good intro for Bollywood into the Sci-fi scene.
3.22.2011
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.
на игре / Na Igre - Gamers. In Search of the Target
Russia (2009)
Starring: Sergey Chirkov, Marina Petrenko, Pavel Priluchnyy, Evgeniy Kharlanov, Tikkhon Zhiznevskiy, Nodar Siradze, and Aleksey Bardukov
Na Igre seems to be patterned after a guy's teenage dream; any gamer from the olden days of Street Fighter tournaments at the local arcade to the Halo fanatics of today can appreciate the concept behind this movie.
In Gamers there is a group of video game tournament winners who are given a CD. Once played the CD programs the brain granting the skills of the games each played to the winners. From there on out it is a battle for control of the CDs by many different parties.
All in all Na Igre was worth watching. It was different and unique. It is kind of amusing to watch these super first person shooters try to out smart themselves and the world around them. There are a few things in the movie that don't really connect and make sense, but if you can forgive that and were a game fanatic - it's worth an attempt at watching. Na Igre certainly was a difficult movie to get my hands on though.
3.20.2011
Zhan gu - The Drummer
Hong Kong/Taiwan (2007)
Starring: Jaycee Chan, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Angelica Lee, Josie Ho, and Kenneth Tsang
Awards: Golden Horse Award - Best supporting Actor (2007), Wine Country Film Festival - Best Feature Film & Best Actor (2009)
The son of a powerful triad gang leader through his own decisions turns his and his family's lives upside down. After sleeping with the girlfriend of a powerful gang leader Sid is forced into seclusion as an alternative to losing his hands or his live. Having been the drummer in a band he is drawn to the sounds of drumming echoing through the mountains in his exile. The discovery of the Zen Drummers changes his life forever.
This movie was interesting. There is a mix of some action with inspirational concepts buried in the story around the Zen Drummers. It doesn't go so far as to be a spaghetti style Hong Kong triad movie and has a bit more action then your typical Buddhist inspired movie. Such a balance is a difficult one to maintain in a movie and the did a decent job walking that fine line in this movie.
3.13.2011
Listen to Your Heart
USA
2010
Starring; Alexia Rasmussen, Kent Moran, and Cybill Sheperd
The movie concept of a deaf person and a musician falling in love seems to be a recurring theme, though fewer and further between most of today's theme recurrences. This one was done fairly well, but mostly because of the deep love and life lessons that it presents. Listen to Your Heart was an awesome movie that was well worth it's time. It's a good drama, love, life, loss, and inspirationally eye opening movie. It seems like the budget might have been a little low, but then that makes part of a movie.
Danny and Ariana meet at the restaurant where Danny, the struggling musician, works. Though he captured Ariana's attention he does not at all impress her mother. Where they end up is another place altogether. Falling deeply in love is where this story begins. Living through some of life's hard trials and tragedies is the journey that Listen to Your Heart takes the viewers on.
All in all I was anticipating a sappy love story and it proved to be so much more then that; sure there is a sappy love story, but there is also the beauty and inspiration of a love painted tragedy and a story that will make us all think about enjoying the time that we have. Danny and Ariana are amazing characters for so many reasons. I really enjoyed this movie; I'll warn you though it could possibly have you both laughing and crying.
Quote: What's one thing you could always use more of? "Love" -Danny
Daybreakers
USA
2009
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe, and Sam Neill
Daybreakers is a modern day vampire movie. Some of the concepts it tackles and the way the movie is presented it is not your average teen vampire flick. This movie touches on global catastrophe, greed, corruption at the highest level, extremely twisted population control methodologies, and then of course vampires creating some action.
Daybreaks starts out by describing what the human race went through and how vampires rose to power. With their food supply dwindling and having farmed nearly all the humans left in existence the vampire race is facing a widespread change coupled with near extinction after a decade or two in complete power. The surviving groups of humans aren't about to give in without a fight.
All in all the movie was pretty cool. The story was unique and the effects were fairly decent. I would recommend this one for vampire movie lovers.
Quote: "Living in a world where vampires are the dominant species is about as safe as barebacking a $5 whore."
La Herencia Valdemar - The Valdemar Legacy
Spain
2010
Starring: Daniele Liotti, Oscar Jaenada, Silvia Abscal, and Laia Marull
The Valdemar Legacy was a decent horror movie. There's a twist or two that I didn't expect. The dark style Spanish movies are known for is also present, Jose Aleman uses contrast between shadow and light well throughout the movie as a means to help create the scene and convey the story.
La Herencia Valdemar begins with a well respected property appraiser being given the opportunity to appraise an old remote estate, the Valdemar mansion. What she finds there will change her life. When she is out of contact for a few days her boss hires Nicolas to locate her and ensure that she completes her appraisal. Nicolas soon discovers the legend of the Valdemar properties. Through the movie there is a story within a story that is very well placed and played out. There are also appearances by at least two of history's infamously evil figures.
In this movie the cinematography is pretty good, the acting is alright, the plot is somewhat unique, and the flow of the story is well enough to keep you watching. The Valdemar Legacy is just part one of a story. Part two, La Sombra Prohibida, should be releasing on DVD some time in the next few months.
3.07.2011
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
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:
The Haunting - No-Do
Spain
2009
Starring: Ana Torrent, Francisco Boira, and Hector Colome
No-Do is a horror movie from Spain. In its own rights it is unique. There are some heavily borrowed parts of this movie, but it did still contain some originality. I found the beginning a little hard to follow, yet towards the end it all fell into place.
This movie wasn't overly gory, but did of course contain some gore. It also had a number of spirit hauntings and one bad ass demon. The church is featured heavily throughout the movie and plays a multi-sided stereotypical role. Who else is going to try and expel your demons though?
All in all it wasn't a horrible movie, not terribly scary either. There were times when the level of fright portrayed by the actors wasn't quite in line with the story, but I think that's where many horror movies go wrong anyway. It did have that famous Spanish dark overtone that you'll find in movies like Pan's Labyrinth or The Orphanage.
Quote:
3.06.2011
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?" . . .
3.01.2011
Strigoi
UK
2009
Starring: Constantin Barbulescu, camelia Maxim, and Catalin Paraschiv
I have to give it up for originality. I was expecting something that didn't wow me too much, something that wasn't really exceptional, and that is exactly what I got. I actually thought it was a Romanian movie till I did the research on it. With that said, it is a vampire movie and maybe it's vampire lore somewhere that they behave in the manner depicted in the movie. If not then these vampires are completely different then those I've grown old with on film. There is some humor in this movie that's kinda funny. There are also a lot of things that just don't seem to connect properly, but hey I still gave it the length of the movie. It was enjoyable on some level, and probably what I'd recommend as a stormy Sunday afternoon flick.
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