With the World

This week's post is a day late and one film more than promised.

This week's films:

Hur Jin-ho's A Good Rain Knows
(a.k.a. Season of Good Rain)

Starring South Korean Actor Jung Woo-sung and Chinese Actress Gao Yuan-yuan, Hur's latest film is multi-lingual. What began as one-third of the omnibus film Chengdu, I Love You, was transformed into a feature-length film due to the amount of footage Director Hur had shot, and, presumably, very much liked.

Jung and Gao play old friend, and perhaps something more, that are reunited when Jung's character visits Chengdu, China on a business trip. What follows is a semi-tragic love story set a year after the horrific earthquake that took a heavy toll upon Chengdu.

Something I found neat, is that the characters converse in Korean, Chinese, and English. I, like Director Hur, very much liked the footage shot for his latest release; and am glad it was made into a feature film.


Breck Eisner's The Crazies

A mediocre horror flick that should be credited for being one of the better American horror films released in the last few years.

Noh Young Seok's Daytime Drinking

A bit like a film from Hong Sangsoo, Daytime Drinking engages while it semingly meanders to a finish. It may not be quite as good as a film directed by Hong Sangsoo, but it is a very enjoyable film.

Hong Sangsoo's Virgin Stripped Bare By Her Bachelors

A film from the aforementioned South Korean Director Hong Sangsoo. For me, the name of the director is enough to signify its quality and importance in the world of cinema. For those unfamiliar with Hong's works, see this film, and all of his films.

Hong Sangsoo's Woman On the Beach

Another film from Hong Sangsoo. Like all his films, Woman On the Beach is very, very good. Besides being what I can only describe as an important, or perhaps even a necessary, film; Woman On the Beach is one of my favorite of Hong's films. Easily one of the best films ever made. Ever, ever, ever, ever, ever. Ever.

Francis Ng's Tracing Shadow

A really fun martial arts fantasy flick from Hong Kong Actor/Director Francis Ng.

Mamoru Hosoda's The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

When I read about the planned live-action version of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, I was intrigued. What I read also made me want see the original Anime film first. I'm glad I did. It is one of the best Japanese Anime films I've seen. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a very likeable film.

King Hu's Painted Skin (1993)

The first filmic adaptation of Pu Song-ling's Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio to be named Painted Skin. King Hu's version stars Adam Cheng, Joey Wong, Sammo Hung, and Lam Ching-ying. Like A Chinese Ghost Story, Painted Skin is an old school Hong Kong martial arts fantasy film that may seem a bit dated by today's standards, but is still an enjoyable film.

Gordon Chan's Painted Skin (2008)

The newest adaptation of Pu Song-ling's Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio to be named Painted Skin is a very different film from King Hu's. Gordan Chan's film has, of course, more sophisticated special effects. It also sports an impressive cast, with Donnie Yen, Vicki Zhao Wei, Zhou Xun, and Aloys Chen. In addition to the differences mentioned above, Chan's film is different plot-wise. However, both films are fun to watch, and feel like Hong Kong films made in the 80's and 90's.

Andrew Lau's The Storm Riders

Speaking of Hong Kong films made in the 90's...Andrew Lau's The Storm Riders was another adaptation, adapted from a comic of the same name. The special effects haven't held up, though they were state-of-the-art at the time, but The Storm Riders was, and is, a great fantasy action epic.

The Pang Brothers' The Storm Warriors

An abysmal follow-up to Andrew Lau's The Storm Riders. The lead actors (Ekin Cheng and Aaron Kowk) are the same as the previous film, but that and the source material are the only similarities between the two films. The films is an over-stuffed mess of computer effects excess and little else. I can help but wonder how good it would have been if Lau had directed instead of the uninspired Pang Brothers.


Check back in a week for my thoughts on ten, or eleven, more films.

Looking Up

Things are getting back on track here at Very and absolutely and extremely. For at least the next eleven weeks, in an effort to get caught up "thoughts-wise" on over a hundred films that I've yet to post about my thoughts on, I'm going to post my thoughts on ten films a week. That is a lot of thought(s).

This week's films:

Jean-Luc Godard's Passion

Pretentious and unnecessary.

Wong Kar-wai's My Blueberry Nights

Wong's English-language debut isn't nearly as good as his prior films, but I like My Blueberry Nights more and more each time I view it.

François Truffaut's Two English Girls

In 1962, Truffaut made, Jules and Jim, a film about a woman in love with two men. In 1971, he essentially made that film again, in the form of Two English Girls; albeit the second time it was a man that was torn between his love for two women. I don't love either film, but they are both interesting works from a great director.

Grigori Chukhrai's The Forty-first

Chukhrai's first film, and an excellent drama. I really liked it.

Grigori Chukhrai's Ballad of A Soldier

Chukhrai's second film, an excellent drama, and one of my favorite films in all of filmdom.

Grigori Chukhrai's Clear Skies

Chukhrai's third film, and an excellent drama. I really liked it.

Hong Sangsoo's The Power of Kangwon Province

Not as good as some other films from South Korean Director Hong Sangsoo, but it is still a very good film.

Johnnie To's The Longest Nite

Listed as directed by another director; rumoured to have been directed by Hong Kong Cinema Crime Drama Master Johnnie To; believed by me to have been directed by said HK Cinema Crime Drama Master. An excellent neo-noir that stars top HK actors Tony Leung and Lau Ching-wan. If you haven't seen The Longest Nite, you should.

Patrick Leung Pak-Kin's Beyond Hypothermia

Another HK Crime Drama flick that stars Lau Ching-wan. Also, it is good.

Johnnie To's Where A Good Man Goes

Yet another HK Crime Drama that stars Lau Ching-wan. Like the two listed above this, it is very good.


Check back in a week for my thoughts on ten more films. I promise more information, words, and comas (my favorite of the punctuation marks).