...thus goes what I consider the most memorable line in Wong Kar-wai's Happy Together.
Happy Together
Directed by Wong Kar-wai, cinematography by Christopher Doyle, starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Leslie Cheung, and Chang Chen.
Happy Together opens with a voice-over from Lai Yiu-fai (Tony Leung) describing the crux of his and Ho Po-wing's (Leslie Cheung) relationship. The two have spent years together and apart, and anytime things get tough within or without their relationship, Ho Po-wing simply says "Let's Start Over" and Lai Yiu-fai succumbs to his request. At the start of the film, the two are again at such a point in their relationship, and decided to leave Hong Kong for South American, to start over.
Once they reach what is quite literally the opposite side of the world, their problems grow greater. As Fai tries to make the best of the situation, Wing only works to make matters worse, and the two find themselves unhappy and apart. Their paths cross again and again, with Po-wing uttering the words that Fai is all but unable to fight against. However, as Fai struggles to deal with Wing, he befriends a co-worker (Chang Chen) who begins to make him think he could find happiness on his own.
With all the cinematic flourish one would expect from a Wong Kar-wai film, Happy Together shows the inner turmoil of two peoples' unhappiness. Furtive glances, along with Christopher Doyle's use of vibrant colors and black & white, underline the tension and sadness of the characters. If I make Happy Together sound anything but what the title would suggest, then I've done my job well. Wong's romantic drama isn't like a romantic drama that would star Reese Witherspoon or Jake Gyllenhaal and feature a Hollywood ending.
Happy Together is heart-wrenching and depressing. More than that, it is an incredibly beautiful film that doesn't pander or offer comment on relationships or happiness. It simply tells, in a way no other filmmaker could, the story of two unhappy people and their attempts to become happy together. It's also one of the greatest film ever made. Ever.
24 March, 2011
20 March, 2011
The Ghosts of Saturday Night
After many months without any actual reviews, here are eight. Expect this more often. Enjoy.
Gallants
Directed by Clement Cheng and Derek Kwok.
One of the best films of '010, and one of the few really good films out of Hong Kong this past year, Gallants tells the tale of a group of misfits drawn together by Kung Fu.
A couple of middle-aged disciples of a comatose Kung Fu master struggle to take care of their society's martial arts club and their master. After going decades without a master to lead them, the two turned the club into a tea house to make ends meet. Their routine of serving tea and noodles is interrupted when an old foe re-enters their lives and brings about the resurgeance of their long slumbering master.
Oblivious to the fact that he has awakened an old man, the master goes about his days as though his decades of sleep were mere days. With their master returned to them, the martial socitey, with the addition of a seemingly hapless former bully (whom the master believes to be both of his disciples from their younger days), and his obligatory love interest, enter a martial tournament to regain their former glory.
Hilarious, and surprisingly touching, Gallants is an excellent example of the waning glory of Hong Kong Cinema.
Spring Fever
Directed by Lou Ye.
The best film released in 2010. Chinese Director Lou Ye's latest film, made inspite of a filmmaking ban imposed upon him by the Chinese Government, is his greatest film yet.
Spring Fever begins with two men headed to a remote house for a romantic getaway. Upon their return, they must face the harsh reality of their everyday lives.
As it turns out, one of the men is married, and his wife had him followed by a private investigator. The stress of the secret weighs heavily upon eveyone, including the private investigator. The stress forces them to looks at themselves, each other, and to make choices that will affect the lives of everyone involved.
I hate the oft overused saying that a film is "powerful" with "moving performances", but that is the best description I can think of for Spring Fever. It is, in my estimation, one of the finest films ever made.
Reign of Assassins
Directed by Su Chao-pin, co-directed by John Woo.
Many have heralded Reign of Assassins as the heir apparent to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. They must have seen a different cut of the film. Other than a few flashy fight sequences, the majority of the film is weighed down by a convoluted mess of coincidences that are as unbelievable as they are distracting. Reign of Assissins is not a horrible film, but, given the level of quality of Director Su Chao-pin's previous directorial effort (Taiwanese supernatural thriller Silk), and that the film is co-directed by cinema legend John Woo, it is quite a disappointment.
Truth or Dare: 6th Floor Rear Flat
Directed by Barbara Wong.
An HK film about six young people living by the rules of "Truth or Dare", as they make their way through the messy aspects of their romantic and professional lives. A bit like a coming-of-age film, but without heavy overtones about life and greater meaning. Truth or Dare: 6th Floor Rear Flat is a great example of a lighter film from Hong Kong that, while lacking in big name actors, has a quality and likeableness to it.
The Road Less Traveled
Directed by Derek Chiu, produced by Derek Yee.
No, it isn't a film based on a poem by Robert Frost. Derek Chiu's The Road Less Traveled is a romantic drama about the genre's mainstays: love and loss.
Louis Koo plays an Hong Kong truck driver that runs a route into Mainland China. On one stormy night, Koo runs over a local man while he was riding his bicycle across the road. Koo is found innocent of wrongdoing, and the victim's pregnant wife (played by Crystal Huang) receives a settlement from the trucking company for which Koo works, but their paths are somewhat destined to cross again.
Unable to cope with the horrific incident, Koo returns to his route and decides to visit the restaurant to offer his condolences, as well as further compensation. Upon meeting the widow, Koo shies away from divulging his identity, and instead develops a friendship with her. The two begin to rely upon one another, as the widow has a diffcult time running her late husband's restaurant, and Koo's inability to come to terms with the accident has caused a great deal of strain on his relationship with his long-time girl-friend (played by Karen Mok).
The pain the draws Koo and the widow together, and keeps them together, throughout the challenges surrounding their circumstances, is what brings about the inevitable discovery of Koo's identity. How they handle the shock and fallout from the discovery is predictable, but rings true.
Being that The Road Less Traveled is an HK film for the Maindland Chinese market, it is a surprisingly good film. Instead of pandering to the Mainland audience, Producer Derek Yee and Director Derek Chui proffer a film that showcases the similarities and differences of the two areas, while still presenting an interesting and affecting drama.
The Adjustment Bureau
Directed by George Nolfi.
One needs three things to watch The Adjustment Bureau:
1. A ticket.
2. 105 minutes to kill.
3. The ability to laugh.
Having an appreciation for fedoras doesn't hurt.
The film stars Matt Damon as a politician on the verge of being elected to the United States Senate. He loses the elecation due to an embarrassing photo from his somewhat unrestrained past, but gains a love interest (played by Emily Blunt) in the Men's Room of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Soon after, it is revealed via exposition that there are men working for the eponymous and omnipresent Adjustment Bureau (represented onscreen mainly by Anthony Mackie and John Slattery) that are the guiding hands of our collective fates.
From that point the film becomes convoluted to the point of ridiculousness, with Damon's character learning of the Bureau's existence, the purpose behind their hats (mostly fedoras), and struggling against their guidance in an attempt to stay with the woman he met in the bathroom, because of their true love. The will of their fates, as well as the trust and allegience of Mackie's Bureau character, are tested leading up to an ending that resolves almost nothing.
A good time can be had while watching The Adjustment Bureau; just as long as you can find humor in the plot holes and silliness of the film, all of which feel as though the filmmakers were making it up as the went.
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
Directed by Joss Whedon.
Joss Whedon's internet venture into the world of musicals.
Neil Patrick Harris stars as the eponymous (that's right; I used eponymous twice in one blog post) Dr. Horrible, a villain hoping to one day join the ranks of the supervillain elite that make up the Evil Leage of Evil. Standing in the way are his affections for Penny (played by Felicia Day), a girl that does her laundry at the same laundromat as the not yet horrible enough Dr., and the doctor's nemesis: Captain Hammer (played by Nathan Fillion).
With Whedon's trademark dark humor, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is riotously funny. Harris and cast give great performances, sing their respective characters' songs, and sing them well, to a delightful effect. In short, it's hard not to like it.
Big Time
Directed by Chris Blum.
Described as a concert film, or a musical film, Big Time is both, but really more of an experience than anything. Tom Waits "stars" in what amounts to 90 minutes of live performances interspersed with vingettes and other musical performances, all from the masterful trubadour.
Paraphrasing mini-conversations I had, both during and after the film, with the girl that I saw the film with, Big Time has an "avant-garde style reminiscient of a John Waters film, and Chris Blum's filmic take on Tom Waits is interesting and impressive; at times bizzare, with some scenes having an almost hallucinatory quality to them, it is a treat for fans of Waits, and a powerful enough representation of the man and his music to convert skeptics and the uninitiated alike."
Gallants
Directed by Clement Cheng and Derek Kwok.
One of the best films of '010, and one of the few really good films out of Hong Kong this past year, Gallants tells the tale of a group of misfits drawn together by Kung Fu.
A couple of middle-aged disciples of a comatose Kung Fu master struggle to take care of their society's martial arts club and their master. After going decades without a master to lead them, the two turned the club into a tea house to make ends meet. Their routine of serving tea and noodles is interrupted when an old foe re-enters their lives and brings about the resurgeance of their long slumbering master.
Oblivious to the fact that he has awakened an old man, the master goes about his days as though his decades of sleep were mere days. With their master returned to them, the martial socitey, with the addition of a seemingly hapless former bully (whom the master believes to be both of his disciples from their younger days), and his obligatory love interest, enter a martial tournament to regain their former glory.
Hilarious, and surprisingly touching, Gallants is an excellent example of the waning glory of Hong Kong Cinema.
Spring Fever
Directed by Lou Ye.
The best film released in 2010. Chinese Director Lou Ye's latest film, made inspite of a filmmaking ban imposed upon him by the Chinese Government, is his greatest film yet.
Spring Fever begins with two men headed to a remote house for a romantic getaway. Upon their return, they must face the harsh reality of their everyday lives.
As it turns out, one of the men is married, and his wife had him followed by a private investigator. The stress of the secret weighs heavily upon eveyone, including the private investigator. The stress forces them to looks at themselves, each other, and to make choices that will affect the lives of everyone involved.
I hate the oft overused saying that a film is "powerful" with "moving performances", but that is the best description I can think of for Spring Fever. It is, in my estimation, one of the finest films ever made.
Reign of Assassins
Directed by Su Chao-pin, co-directed by John Woo.
Many have heralded Reign of Assassins as the heir apparent to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. They must have seen a different cut of the film. Other than a few flashy fight sequences, the majority of the film is weighed down by a convoluted mess of coincidences that are as unbelievable as they are distracting. Reign of Assissins is not a horrible film, but, given the level of quality of Director Su Chao-pin's previous directorial effort (Taiwanese supernatural thriller Silk), and that the film is co-directed by cinema legend John Woo, it is quite a disappointment.
Truth or Dare: 6th Floor Rear Flat
Directed by Barbara Wong.
An HK film about six young people living by the rules of "Truth or Dare", as they make their way through the messy aspects of their romantic and professional lives. A bit like a coming-of-age film, but without heavy overtones about life and greater meaning. Truth or Dare: 6th Floor Rear Flat is a great example of a lighter film from Hong Kong that, while lacking in big name actors, has a quality and likeableness to it.
The Road Less Traveled
Directed by Derek Chiu, produced by Derek Yee.
No, it isn't a film based on a poem by Robert Frost. Derek Chiu's The Road Less Traveled is a romantic drama about the genre's mainstays: love and loss.
Louis Koo plays an Hong Kong truck driver that runs a route into Mainland China. On one stormy night, Koo runs over a local man while he was riding his bicycle across the road. Koo is found innocent of wrongdoing, and the victim's pregnant wife (played by Crystal Huang) receives a settlement from the trucking company for which Koo works, but their paths are somewhat destined to cross again.
Unable to cope with the horrific incident, Koo returns to his route and decides to visit the restaurant to offer his condolences, as well as further compensation. Upon meeting the widow, Koo shies away from divulging his identity, and instead develops a friendship with her. The two begin to rely upon one another, as the widow has a diffcult time running her late husband's restaurant, and Koo's inability to come to terms with the accident has caused a great deal of strain on his relationship with his long-time girl-friend (played by Karen Mok).
The pain the draws Koo and the widow together, and keeps them together, throughout the challenges surrounding their circumstances, is what brings about the inevitable discovery of Koo's identity. How they handle the shock and fallout from the discovery is predictable, but rings true.
Being that The Road Less Traveled is an HK film for the Maindland Chinese market, it is a surprisingly good film. Instead of pandering to the Mainland audience, Producer Derek Yee and Director Derek Chui proffer a film that showcases the similarities and differences of the two areas, while still presenting an interesting and affecting drama.
The Adjustment Bureau
Directed by George Nolfi.
One needs three things to watch The Adjustment Bureau:
1. A ticket.
2. 105 minutes to kill.
3. The ability to laugh.
Having an appreciation for fedoras doesn't hurt.
The film stars Matt Damon as a politician on the verge of being elected to the United States Senate. He loses the elecation due to an embarrassing photo from his somewhat unrestrained past, but gains a love interest (played by Emily Blunt) in the Men's Room of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Soon after, it is revealed via exposition that there are men working for the eponymous and omnipresent Adjustment Bureau (represented onscreen mainly by Anthony Mackie and John Slattery) that are the guiding hands of our collective fates.
From that point the film becomes convoluted to the point of ridiculousness, with Damon's character learning of the Bureau's existence, the purpose behind their hats (mostly fedoras), and struggling against their guidance in an attempt to stay with the woman he met in the bathroom, because of their true love. The will of their fates, as well as the trust and allegience of Mackie's Bureau character, are tested leading up to an ending that resolves almost nothing.
A good time can be had while watching The Adjustment Bureau; just as long as you can find humor in the plot holes and silliness of the film, all of which feel as though the filmmakers were making it up as the went.
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
Directed by Joss Whedon.
Joss Whedon's internet venture into the world of musicals.
Neil Patrick Harris stars as the eponymous (that's right; I used eponymous twice in one blog post) Dr. Horrible, a villain hoping to one day join the ranks of the supervillain elite that make up the Evil Leage of Evil. Standing in the way are his affections for Penny (played by Felicia Day), a girl that does her laundry at the same laundromat as the not yet horrible enough Dr., and the doctor's nemesis: Captain Hammer (played by Nathan Fillion).
With Whedon's trademark dark humor, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is riotously funny. Harris and cast give great performances, sing their respective characters' songs, and sing them well, to a delightful effect. In short, it's hard not to like it.
Big Time
Directed by Chris Blum.
Described as a concert film, or a musical film, Big Time is both, but really more of an experience than anything. Tom Waits "stars" in what amounts to 90 minutes of live performances interspersed with vingettes and other musical performances, all from the masterful trubadour.
Paraphrasing mini-conversations I had, both during and after the film, with the girl that I saw the film with, Big Time has an "avant-garde style reminiscient of a John Waters film, and Chris Blum's filmic take on Tom Waits is interesting and impressive; at times bizzare, with some scenes having an almost hallucinatory quality to them, it is a treat for fans of Waits, and a powerful enough representation of the man and his music to convert skeptics and the uninitiated alike."
26 February, 2011
Best of; '010
My favorite films from 2010:
Lou Ye's Spring Fever
Hong Sangsoo's Oki's Movie
Nicolas Winding Refn's Valhalla Rising
Debra Granik's Winter's Bone
Hong Sangsoo's Hahaha
Edward Burns' Nice Guy Johnny
Edmond Pang Ho-cheung's Love In A Puff
David Fincher's The Social Network
Clement Cheng and Derek Kwok's Gallants
Vincenzo Natali's Splice
The Coen Brothers' True Grit
Lou Ye's Spring Fever
Hong Sangsoo's Oki's Movie
Nicolas Winding Refn's Valhalla Rising
Debra Granik's Winter's Bone
Hong Sangsoo's Hahaha
Edward Burns' Nice Guy Johnny
Edmond Pang Ho-cheung's Love In A Puff
David Fincher's The Social Network
Clement Cheng and Derek Kwok's Gallants
Vincenzo Natali's Splice
The Coen Brothers' True Grit
20 February, 2011
The Right Stuff
2011 started, film-wise, with a film that is reportedly going to be remade. I'm not much of a fan of remakes, but the idea of an updated version of Logan's Run, directed by Danish Director Nicolas Winding Refn, is pretty exciting. I'm busy preparing a list of my favorite films from '010, so this post will be lacking in extensive comments for each film. Oh, well. Instead, it's just a list of the films viewed so far in 2011.
Logan's Run
Hoodwinked
Looking for Kitty
Death in the Garden
Death Hunt
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
La jetee
Nice Guy Johnny
The Third Man
Don't Look Up
Fear Me Not
The Cave of Silken Web
Dream Home
Buried
Winter's Bone
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame
The Last Exorcism
Everyone Else
A Summer Without Gitti
Shutter Island
Requiem
Les Sept Jours Du Tailon (7 Days)
The Social Network
Greenberg
HaHaHa
Inception
The Ghost Writer
The Secret In Their Eyes
Oki's Movie
Crossing Hennessy
Centurion
True Grit (2010 version)
Check back very soon (less than a week) for a post of my favorite films from 2010.
Logan's Run
Hoodwinked
Looking for Kitty
Death in the Garden
Death Hunt
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
La jetee
Nice Guy Johnny
The Third Man
Don't Look Up
Fear Me Not
The Cave of Silken Web
Dream Home
Buried
Winter's Bone
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame
The Last Exorcism
Everyone Else
A Summer Without Gitti
Shutter Island
Requiem
Les Sept Jours Du Tailon (7 Days)
The Social Network
Greenberg
HaHaHa
Inception
The Ghost Writer
The Secret In Their Eyes
Oki's Movie
Crossing Hennessy
Centurion
True Grit (2010 version)
Check back very soon (less than a week) for a post of my favorite films from 2010.
29 January, 2011
Well, There's A Lot
Nearly a month into 2011, it's time to close out the films from '010. Having slacked off post-wise in 2010, there were a little over 200 films I didn't post about. The following are the aforementioned films. I'd offer some sort of comment or review for the films, but there's too damn many. For my thoughts on any of the films, feel free to ask.
Murderer
Long Arm of the Law
A Serious Man
Caveman
The 39 Steps
Sabotage
Vertigo
Jamaica Inn
Sanshiro Sugata
Sanshiro Sugata II
Throw Down
Bodyguards and Assassins
Secret Agent
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934 Version)
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956 Version)
Paju
The Mean Who Tread On the Tiger's Tail
Ichi
The Grave
Rope
Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea
The Green Butchers
Reconstruction
Pusher
Pusher II: With Blood On My Hands
Pusher III: I'm the Angel of Death
In China They Eat Dogs
Old Men In New Cars
Amusement
4 Months 3 Weeks And 2 Days
1 Month With 4 Months 3 Weeks And 2 Days
McDull Kung Fu Ding Ding Dong
Split Second Murders
Bleeder
Harlan County, U.S.A.
Italian for Beginner's
Iron Man
Iron Man 2
Wilbur (Wants to Kill Himself)
Bronson
Bruno
Sympathy For Lady Vengeance (Fade-to-White Version)
Brothers
Allegro
Flame And Citron
The Unforgiven
Mifune's Last Song
Valhalla Rising
An Education
After the Wedding
Brother
MacGruber
Before Sunrise
Before Sunset
The Passage
Just Like Home
Brother 2
Sisters
Go Lala Go!
Adam's Apples
Fear X
The Hottest State
A Dog's Breakfast
Cube
nothing
Cypher
Splice
Home Movie
The Woods
The Intruder
Open Hearts
A Good Rain Knows
Hyazgar
Mongol
Prisoner of the Mountains
Brother
Cargo 200
Flickering Lights
The Celebration
Okay
Open Hearts
The House of the Devil
Resident Evil: Extinction
Baghead
Brief Interviews With Hideous Men
The Night Stalker
The Night Strangler
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
The White Ribbon
Stray Dog
Hannah Takes the Stairs
Thanks for the Add!
The Chaser
Offscreen
A Dirty Carnival
Take Aim at the Police Van
Sansho the Bailiff
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Fright Night
G.I. Joe
Love In A Puff
Cleo from 5 to 7
Torn Apart
Metropolis
Requiem
The Hurt Locker
Requiem
Vampire Party
Old, New, Borrowed and Blue
Dorothy Mills
Army of Shadows
Clue
After.Life
On the Beat
The Girl Who Played With Fire
Claire's Knee
Don't Look For Me
Requiem
The Lower Depths (Directed by Akira Kurosawa)
The Lower Depths (Directed by Jean Renoir)
Flags of Our Fathers
Letters From Iwo Jima
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
Hiroshima mon amour
Never Forever
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
No End
Trucker
Treeless Mountain
For Love of the Game
Storm
In Between Days
The Forest for the Trees
Le Notti Bianche
Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1974
Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1980
Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1983
Revanche
Le Doulos
Gone Baby Gone
The Baader Meinhof Complex
Laura
Please Teach Me English
Millenium Actress
Save the Green Planet!
Devils On the Doorstep
Take Care of My Cat
Woman On the Beach
Vampire vs. Vampire
Forbidden City Cop
The Masked Prosecutor
Encounter of the Spooky Kind
Organized Crime & Triad Bureau
Just One Look
Mongkok Story
Finale In Blood
Body Weapon
Terribly Happy
Triple Agent
Seance
The Bakery Girl of Monceau
The Bakery Girl of Monceau (It was so nice, I watched it twice)
Apt Pupil
Le Samourai
The Firemen's Ball
The King Is Alive
The Exorcist
Dead & Breakfast
The Most Beautiful
Winter's Bone
Ghostbusters
Drag Me to Hell
House On Haunted Hill
Horror of Dracula
Witchfinder General
An American Werewolf In London
La Collectionneuse
Zhmurki (Dead Man's Bluff)
Le Cercle Rouge
Throne of Blood
Pauline at the Beach
The Wimbledon Video Collection: 2004 Official Film
The Return
Laughing Gor 2: Turning Point
Suzanne's Career
Night and the City
Superman Returns
Kinamand (Chinaman)
The Bad Sleep Well
A Colt Is My Passport
Antichrist
My Night At Maud's
Journey to the West: Chinese Medicine Today
Home Movie
Sing A Song of Sex
Public Access
X-Men
X2: X-Men United
Blood: The Last Vampire (Live Action Version)
Love in the Afternoon
The Girl in the Park
Red Sun
Kagemusha
Paranoid Park
Remember the Titans
Nomad: The Warrior
Tidal Wave
The President's Last Bang
Through A Glass Darkly
Une Prophete
High & Low
Everlasting Moments
Ghosts
Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky
Picnic At Hanging Rock
Le Deuxieme Souffle
One-Armed Swordsman
Breach
Old Partner
Insomnia
The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires
The 7 Brothers Meet Dracula
Beyond the Sea
Onibaba
Waltz with Bashir
High Kick Girl!
Zatoichi Meets the One-Armed Swordsman
Zombieland
Murderer
Long Arm of the Law
A Serious Man
Caveman
The 39 Steps
Sabotage
Vertigo
Jamaica Inn
Sanshiro Sugata
Sanshiro Sugata II
Throw Down
Bodyguards and Assassins
Secret Agent
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934 Version)
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956 Version)
Paju
The Mean Who Tread On the Tiger's Tail
Ichi
The Grave
Rope
Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea
The Green Butchers
Reconstruction
Pusher
Pusher II: With Blood On My Hands
Pusher III: I'm the Angel of Death
In China They Eat Dogs
Old Men In New Cars
Amusement
4 Months 3 Weeks And 2 Days
1 Month With 4 Months 3 Weeks And 2 Days
McDull Kung Fu Ding Ding Dong
Split Second Murders
Bleeder
Harlan County, U.S.A.
Italian for Beginner's
Iron Man
Iron Man 2
Wilbur (Wants to Kill Himself)
Bronson
Bruno
Sympathy For Lady Vengeance (Fade-to-White Version)
Brothers
Allegro
Flame And Citron
The Unforgiven
Mifune's Last Song
Valhalla Rising
An Education
After the Wedding
Brother
MacGruber
Before Sunrise
Before Sunset
The Passage
Just Like Home
Brother 2
Sisters
Go Lala Go!
Adam's Apples
Fear X
The Hottest State
A Dog's Breakfast
Cube
nothing
Cypher
Splice
Home Movie
The Woods
The Intruder
Open Hearts
A Good Rain Knows
Hyazgar
Mongol
Prisoner of the Mountains
Brother
Cargo 200
Flickering Lights
The Celebration
Okay
Open Hearts
The House of the Devil
Resident Evil: Extinction
Baghead
Brief Interviews With Hideous Men
The Night Stalker
The Night Strangler
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
The White Ribbon
Stray Dog
Hannah Takes the Stairs
Thanks for the Add!
The Chaser
Offscreen
A Dirty Carnival
Take Aim at the Police Van
Sansho the Bailiff
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Fright Night
G.I. Joe
Love In A Puff
Cleo from 5 to 7
Torn Apart
Metropolis
Requiem
The Hurt Locker
Requiem
Vampire Party
Old, New, Borrowed and Blue
Dorothy Mills
Army of Shadows
Clue
After.Life
On the Beat
The Girl Who Played With Fire
Claire's Knee
Don't Look For Me
Requiem
The Lower Depths (Directed by Akira Kurosawa)
The Lower Depths (Directed by Jean Renoir)
Flags of Our Fathers
Letters From Iwo Jima
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
Hiroshima mon amour
Never Forever
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
No End
Trucker
Treeless Mountain
For Love of the Game
Storm
In Between Days
The Forest for the Trees
Le Notti Bianche
Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1974
Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1980
Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1983
Revanche
Le Doulos
Gone Baby Gone
The Baader Meinhof Complex
Laura
Please Teach Me English
Millenium Actress
Save the Green Planet!
Devils On the Doorstep
Take Care of My Cat
Woman On the Beach
Vampire vs. Vampire
Forbidden City Cop
The Masked Prosecutor
Encounter of the Spooky Kind
Organized Crime & Triad Bureau
Just One Look
Mongkok Story
Finale In Blood
Body Weapon
Terribly Happy
Triple Agent
Seance
The Bakery Girl of Monceau
The Bakery Girl of Monceau (It was so nice, I watched it twice)
Apt Pupil
Le Samourai
The Firemen's Ball
The King Is Alive
The Exorcist
Dead & Breakfast
The Most Beautiful
Winter's Bone
Ghostbusters
Drag Me to Hell
House On Haunted Hill
Horror of Dracula
Witchfinder General
An American Werewolf In London
La Collectionneuse
Zhmurki (Dead Man's Bluff)
Le Cercle Rouge
Throne of Blood
Pauline at the Beach
The Wimbledon Video Collection: 2004 Official Film
The Return
Laughing Gor 2: Turning Point
Suzanne's Career
Night and the City
Superman Returns
Kinamand (Chinaman)
The Bad Sleep Well
A Colt Is My Passport
Antichrist
My Night At Maud's
Journey to the West: Chinese Medicine Today
Home Movie
Sing A Song of Sex
Public Access
X-Men
X2: X-Men United
Blood: The Last Vampire (Live Action Version)
Love in the Afternoon
The Girl in the Park
Red Sun
Kagemusha
Paranoid Park
Remember the Titans
Nomad: The Warrior
Tidal Wave
The President's Last Bang
Through A Glass Darkly
Une Prophete
High & Low
Everlasting Moments
Ghosts
Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky
Picnic At Hanging Rock
Le Deuxieme Souffle
One-Armed Swordsman
Breach
Old Partner
Insomnia
The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires
The 7 Brothers Meet Dracula
Beyond the Sea
Onibaba
Waltz with Bashir
High Kick Girl!
Zatoichi Meets the One-Armed Swordsman
Zombieland
05 January, 2011
Happy 2011; Welcome Back
2010 ended up without any of the new posts promised over the summer. That sucked. However, new posts are back. Starting this month, on a monthly basis, there will be new posts here at Very and Absolutely and Extremely. So, check back very soon for absolutely new posts of extremely awesome quality.
24 July, 2010
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.
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.
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