Cold Fish DVD (Salient)
RELEASE DATE: August 23, 2011
Cold Fish (read our review) is a true crime portrait of a Japanese tropical fish dealer responsible for over forty murders. Directed by Shion Sono (Suicide Club), Cold Fish is one of the most talked about movies in film festivals around the world. Check out the trailer here. Be sure and check out an interview with the film’s director, Shion Sono.
“Assassination Games” American Theatrical Poster
Director: Ernie Barbarash
Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Scott Adkins, Kevin Chapman, Ivan Kaye, Valentin Teodosiu, Alin Panc, Serban Celea, Michael Higgs, Kristopher Van Varenberg, Marija Karan, Bianca Van Varenberg, Andrew French, Marioara Sterian
Running Time: 95 min.
By HKFanatic
For many Jean Claude Van Damme fans in the United States, the limited release of “Assassination Games” this summer means the first chance to see their hero on the big screen in over a decade. Pairing the Muscles From Brussels with rising star Scott Adkins (“Undisputed III: Redemption”) seemed like a no-brainer recipe for success. All these two guys had to do was bring the action and fans would go home happy. Unfortunately, “Assassination Games” fails to meet even those modest expectations.
Although Van Damme and Adkins’ previous collaboration, 2008’s “The Shepherd,” didn’t exactly set the world on fire, at least it had some decent fight scenes. It’s now clear that the quality of that film was due to director Isaac Florentine, an “auteur” of direct-to-DVD action with movies like the “Undisputed” sequels and “U.S. Seals 2” under his belt. Without his deft touch, the Van Damme/Adkins reunion of “Assassination Games” flounders. Instead we’re in the hands of Ernie Barbarash, director of “Cube Zero.” For some reason he shot the film in a sepia tone – or, more likely, had the film color-coded this way via computer in post-production – that makes it look like you’re viewing the entire movie through a waterfall of urine. This is how we have to see Van Damme return to the big screen?
Granted, no one would care how this movie looked if it at least showed Van Damme kicking ass. Alas, “Assassination Games” is more a low-budget European thriller than it is an action movie. The set-up is firmly simple: Van Damme plays one of the best assassins in the business while Adkins is a retired hitman hiding out with some money stolen from corrupt Interpol agents who want him dead. When they’re both given the same contract – Adkins is after the guy because he put his wife in a coma – the two killers butt heads and ultimately realize they’re better off teaming up. While this premise had the potential to deliver plenty of action and thrills, there’s barely any action to be had in “Assassination Games.”
Perhaps the feeling of disappointment here comes from the fact that we’re witnessing a “pretty good” direct-to-video movie on the big screen; one’s expectations are a bit higher when you add a premium ticket price. You have to wonder just how this movie secured a theatrical release, as limited as it may be, since it’s purely a cloak-and-dagger movie and not the kind of martial arts spectacular that Van Damme made his bread ‘n butter in the 90’s (whoever thought we’d be nostalgic for “Time Cop”?). Director Ernie Barbarash keeps the focus on backroom dealings and double-crosses rather than any fisticuffs. Van Damme doesn’t even crack a smile, let alone throw a kick.
Sure, we’re used to Van Damme playing more downtrodden, melancholy souls ever since “Maximum Risk” but this is a movie in search of a pulse. Scott Adkins does his best – he’s got a handsome face and killer moves so there’s no reason he shouldn’t be a big star – but his characters’ rage is almost completely internalized. “Assassination Games” desperately needed its characters’ inner conflict to boil over and actually affect what was happening onscreen. Instead, this movie sulks through the shadows to an ultimately limp conclusion.
That’s the big problem with “Assassination Games.” Every time the plot seems to tease at escalating the conflict, it just plods along to the next scene and maintains the status quo. The bad guys are constantly talking about calling in reinforcements or putting the hurt on Vam Damme and Adkins, and yet it never manifests. When Van Damme and Adkins sneak up to the house with all the bad guys inside, one of them makes a comment like “There’s at least two guards out front. We’ll have to draw them out.” Excuse me? TWO guards?! Hell no – I’ve seen Chow Yun Fat and Andy Lau creep up on a villain’s mansion and blow it to hell with rocket launchers and grenades in 1987’s “Tragic Hero.” I’ve seen the first two “A Better Tomorrow” movies. You need to do a lot more to impress me with the finale of your film, especially when Van Damme and Scott Adkins are two of the toughest guys in show business. Scott Adkins could take out two guards in his friggin’ sleep.
Look, I know it’s hard to make a good movie. These days most of our 80’s action heroes are forced to shoot their flicks on a low-budget in economically challenged Eastern European countries. The sepia tone is most likely an attempt to try and make “Assassination Games” look visually interesting despite a lack of funds. I’ve read Donnie Yen say that you can give him all the money in the world and if he doesn’t have enough time, he’s not going to be able to deliver a good fight scene. I’m sure the filmmakers on “Assassination Games” were pressed for both time and money. It’s just the reality. But I’m looking in the credits and I see Van Damme has a stylist, a hair dresser, a costume dresser…I mean, shit, guys. I paid good money for a ticket – could you at least deliver one knock-out, drag-out fight scene that makes my jaw hit the floor? Could you at least try? Please?
Scott Adkins is a beast. We’ve seen this guy deliver kicks that would send my out-of-shape ass to the moon in movies like “Undisputed II” & “III.” The fight scene between him and Vladik Jacukevicius in “Special Forces” is one of the top ten best fight scenes since the heyday of Hong Kong cinema. And yet there’s not one moment in “Assassination Games” that comes close to unleashing Adkins’ true potential. The fact that he’s even in this movie and so under-utilized is like buying a submachine gun to shoot empty bottles in your backyard – a waste of pure firepower.
I’m no hater. I love Van Damme. Hell, he blew me away in “Universal Soldier: Regeneration” and that was just two years ago. That movie had so much action and bloodshed, I needed a cold shower afterwards. The thing is, movies like “Regeneration” and even Van Damme’s “Wake of Death” in 2004 have steadily raised the bar for low-budget action movies. They prove you can have great fight scenes with more fluid camera work and editing than most Hollywood flicks. “Assassination Games” takes too many steps back, back to the days when Steven Seagal was pumping out direct-to-video flicks where he mumbled his way through Prague in the name of political intrigue. Considering that Scott Adkins has probably done 200 push-ups by the time Seagal has had his first Snickers bar of the day, that is just a shame.
Van Damme, we love you – but the fans deserve more.
HKFanatic’s Rating: 5.5/10
"Destroy All Monsters" Japanese Theatrical Poster
Amid a flurry of escalating internet rumors, Media Blasters Inc. and their Tokyo Shock label are proud to announce and confirm the acquisition of two vintage Toho produced Godzilla classics – DESTROY ALL MONSTERS and GODZILLA VS. MEGALON! For the first time, both films will be re-mastered in high definition and released on DVD and Blu-ray! DESTROY ALL MONSTERS will receive a worthy deluxe treatment to provide fans with a noticeable upgrade from its previous DVD incarnation. GODZILLA VS. MEGALON marks the first time that this long sought after title will be officially released uncut and widescreen on DVD and Blu-ray. Both films will feature exciting extras!
DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (1968) is universally considered a strong fan favorite of the entire Godzilla series! It’s an all-star monster rally of epic proportions featuring Toho’s greatest and wildest mammoth monsters in the ultimate, all-out rubber suit rumble! See Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan, King Ghidorah, Anguirus, Minya, Spiega, Baragon, Gorosaurus, Manda and Varan in all their titanic glory! The film was directed by the famed Ishiro Honda, director of the original 1954 film and the last entry to feature the dream team of special effects supervisor Eiji Tsuburaya, music composer Akira Ifukube and producer Tomoyuki Tanaka.
“Destroy All Monsters represents a high water mark in the Godzilla series for its sheer spectacle… It’s Godzilla movie heaven.” – stomptokyo.com
GODZILLA VS. MEGALON (1973) has been the most elusive Godzilla film in North America. This is the film that most baby-boomers saw in U.S. movie theaters and then had to rely on badly cropped VHS and DVD bootleg copies to enjoy the film thereafter. This entry features Godzilla taking on Megalon and Gigan with the help of the unforgettable growing robot, Jet Jaguar! Reportedly cut to receive a G-rating upon its U.S. release, the film was hosted by John Belushi in a Godzilla suit for its national TV premiere. Tokyo Shock will present the film uncut on DVD and Blu-ray for the first time!
“Godzilla vs. Megalon” completes the canonization of Godzilla, the creature who came from beneath the sea… to destroy Tokyo and has returned in sequels again and again to protect the land he once loathed. It’s been a remarkable transformation of character- the dragon has become St. George.” – Vincent Canby, THE NEW YORK TIMES
Stay tuned for release dates and more details!
“The Warrior’s Way” Korean Theatrical Poster
Director: Sngmoo Lee
Cast: Jang Dong Gun, Geoffrey Rush, Kate Bosworth, Danny Huston, Tony Cox, Ti Lung
Running Time: 100 min.
By HKFanatic
I’m going to have to be the dissenting opinion here because I didn’t enjoy “The Warrior’s Way” nearly as much as Mighty Peking Man. I thought the film had potential, but overall the sluggish pacing and artificial-looking digital world didn’t do much for me. If you have a strong distaste for Zack Synder’s (“300,” “Watchmen”) style of slow-motion and speed-ramping fight scenes, “The Warrior’s Way” will drive you to hysterics. I don’t think there’s a single moment of action in this movie that is played at natural speed.
The lead actor is Dong-gun Jang who, after starring in two Korean movies you may have heard of called “Friend” and “Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War,” is one of the biggest stars in all of Asia. But I suppose the cliche is that you haven’t “made it” until you’ve been in a major English-language production and one senses that’s the only reason a talented guy like Dong-gun Jung is starring in “The Warrior’s Way.” He speaks English just fine but he’s an actor, not a swordsman or martial artist, so his performance as a master assassin is all style and no substance. His hair seems to do a lot of his acting for him. You have to wonder: could this guy even win a fight if it wasn’t in slow motion?
Elsewhere in the cast we have talented actors like Geoffrey Rush and Danny Huston, who aren’t exactly slumming it but they do make you wonder just what the hell they’re doing in a movie like this. Here we have two guys who should be asking their agents for Oscar-caliber parts and yet they’re starring in a samurai-meets-Western flick with buckets of CG blood. I mean, Danny Huston spends most of the film looking like the son of Leatherface. Kate Bosworth plays the female lead and she gets plenty of screentime for people who like her, but I’ve never found her to be a charismatic actress. I bet the filmmakers could have gotten Malin Akerman for the same price and had twice the hotness factor, but that’s just me.
I liked the movie’s premise – Eastern assassin hides out in a dilapidated town in the Old West while his clan hunts him down – but it was undone by poor pacing. After the briefest teaser of action, “The Warrior’s Way” spends at least an hour with Dong-gun Jang getting to know everybody in the town, planting flowers, and starting up a laundry business. Couldn’t we have had a little bit of action to tie us over during this long stretch of plot development? The ending finally brings the bloodshed but of course it’s slow mo’d and digitally enhanced to hell and back. The fact that the skyline looked so fake it could have been made of cotton candy didn’t help immerse me in the film either. I wouldn’t be surprised if “Greenscreen: The Movie” was a working title for this flick.
It’s difficult to imagine just who “The Warrior’s Way” will appeal to. Dong-gun Jang has a surface-level role with little dialogue so I don’t really know if his fans will go home happy; maybe if they just want to see him look bad-ass with cool hair for 100 minutes. For the rest of us, we can get better graphics and actually be in the control of the action on our Playstation 3’s. “The Warrior’s Way” is an interesting experiment in combining Eastern and Western filmmaking talent, but unless a truly great script comes along I think Dong-gun Jang is better served by making films in his native language. Perhaps he should be content with being one of the biggest stars on the Asian continent – that can’t be such a bad life, can it?
HKFanatic’s Rating: 5.5/10
By Mighty Peking Man
Yang (Jang Dong-gun), a swordsman from the Saddest Flute gang, is at the tail-end of his mission to kill every last member of a rival clan. Just as he’s about to complete his duties, he has a sudden change of heart when he learns the last standing member is a helpless baby.
Yang decides to let the baby live and take it under his protection. Knowing the rest of the Saddest Flute gang will be looking for him and the baby, Yang leaves Asia and retreats to a neglected Western town in America. During his stay, he befriends the town’s people (Kate Bosworth, Tony Cox, Geoffrey Rush), who happen to have dreadful problems of their own.
Meanwhile, the Saddest Flute gang (headed by Ti Lung) is hot on Yang’s trail; upon locating him, they plan to not only assassinate him for his incompetence to fulfill an important mission, but also to kill the baby to end their enemy’s existence forever.
I usually try and stay away from movies loaded with cgi, green-screen, digitized blood and other special effects (I know I could have just said cgi effects, but I want to make sure I get my point across). There are a few exceptions, but at the moment, I can’t even think of one, other than the title I’m writing about right now.
“The Warrior’s Way” is 30% special effects and 70% live action, but somehow, the filmmakers managed to make me happy.
The action scenes – which consist mostly of swordplay and gunfights – are visually astonishing. Some of it is extremely quick and furious, some of it is stylish slow motion; but either way, they’re done with total creativity. What’s even more awesome is the violence isn’t sugar-coated, it’s brutal and bloody (we’re talking flying heads and limbs, etc.) and an absolute riot to watch.
A lot of gritty detail was put into the costumes, art direction and settings. At times, it’s hard to tell what’s an actual set and what’s computer generated; overall, it’s a nice line between digital effects and dusty props.
As much as I enjoyed “The Warrior’s Way,” there’s something missing from it that I can’t put my finger on. I’m usually not surprised when a good movie like this fails financially or critically, but even as a film buff with decency and taste, I can see why it was practically ignored upon its release. So what’s missing? I don’t know. Let’s just say that it’s different (probably purposely and rightfully so).
The biggest misconception about “The Warrior’s Way” is that it’s a Hollywood film. It’s actually a New Zealand production directed by South Korean filmmaker Sngmoo Lee. What makes it more impressive is “The Warrior’s Way” is his first feature, both as a director and a writer. I don’t know who the hell this guy is or where they found him, but somebody give him more movies to make.
“The Warrior’s Way” features a great line-up of international talent: Jang Dong-gun (“Friend”), Kate Bosworth (“Superman Returns”), Ti Lung (“A Better Tomorrow”), Danny Huston (“Edge of Darkness”), Geoffrey Rush (“Shine”) and Tony Cox (“Bad Santa”). As a fan of global cinema, you can’t get much better than this.
To simply put it: “The Warrior’s Way” is a fun-filled, hard-hitting fantasy/action/swordplay/western with a simple, linear plot. No bullshit surprises, no twists or turns. It truly entertained the hell out of me from start to finish and that’s what a good movie is all about.
Mighty Peking Man’s Rating: 8/10
Assassins' Code aka Serpent Rising DVD (Screen Media)
RELEASE DATE: October 18, 2011
A corporate assassination forces opportunistic double agents from three nations to fight to retrieve a high-tech computer disk containing schematics for a deadly weapon. Starring Julian Lee (My Samurai), Min-su Choi (Libera me), John Savage (The Deer Hunter), Martin Kove (The Karate Kid), Christopher Atkins (The Blue Lagoon), and Kirk Baltz (Reservoir Dogs). Check out the trailer here.
"Assassination Games" American Theatrical Poster
The trailer for “Assassination Games” (formerly known as “Weapon) is now up. Directed by Ernie Barbarash (“Cube Zero”) and co-starring Scott Adkins (“Ninja”). Van Damme’s children, Kristopher Van Varenberg and Bianca Van Varenberg, also appear. Ernie Barbarash and Van Damme have recently signed on for another movie titled “Six Bullets“. – Thanks to kingofkungfu2002
Update: “Assassination Games” will have a limited theatrical release starting July 29th. The film’s official site has list of cities that will be playing it. – Thanks to HKFan for the heads up!
Update 2: MTV has posted an exclusive clip. Also, twitchfilm.net posted a recent interview with Van Damme.
Update 3: Review by HKFanatic has just been posted.
Update 4: Watch it now on Amazon Instant Video for $6.99. DVD is also up for pre-order.
“Tekken” International DVD Cover
Director: Dwight H. Little
Cast: Jon Foo, Kelly Overton, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Ian Anthony Dale, Tamlyn Tomita, Candice Hillebrand, Luke Goss, Gary Daniels, Mircea Monroe, Cung Le, Marian Zapico, Darrin Dewitt Henson
Running Time: 92 min.
By HKFanatic
Video game to movie adaptations have something of a dirty reputation. I mean, I’ve lost count of how many times director Paul W. Anderson has suckered audiences (myself included) into spending money on his tepid “Resident Evil” franchise. The live-action version of “Tekken” doesn’t exactly buck the trend but at least it’s not as offensive as some of the genre’s biggest stinkers – “Double Dragon,” anyone?
“Tekken” should feel familiar to game movie fans since it combines the post-apocalyptic future city setting of the “Super Mario Brothers” movie with the flashy costumes and cheesy hairstyles of the live-action “Street Fighter” flick. It also manages to waste the not inconsiderable talents of of folks like former MMA champion Cung Le (“Bodyguards & Assassins); legendary b-movie actor Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (“Mortal Kombat”); karate-trained actor Luke Goss (“Blade II,” “Hellboy II”); direct-to-video king Gary Daniels (“The Expendables”); and the bald bad-ass from the “B13” movies, Cyril Raffaelli, who choreographed the fight scenes. If you’re watching “Tekken” to see any of these guys show off their moves or maybe just to witness your favorite game characters in the flesh, this movie delivers just enough for its audience to go home content and nothing more.
In the lead role is Jon Foo, a young actor and martial artist who’s already had the honor of fighting Tony Jaa; he was the sword-wielding Wushu master who attacked Jaa in the burning church scene of “The Protector.” At 5’8″ and baby-faced, John Foo is still a bit too diminutive to come across as “Tekken”‘s Jin Kazama or even as someone who could defeat Gary Daniels. But I’ll give Foo credit as he obviously knows some moves and he’s building an impressive resume which includes the Hong Kong action movie “House of Fury” and a small role in “Universal Soldier: Regeneration.”
Even as a casual fan of the video game, I can tell you that the “Tekken” series has become home to an increasingly complex set of fiction. I mean, they’re on their fifth sequel at this point; and it seems like every game ends with someone being thrown into a volcano only to crawl back out at the start of the next game and announce the Iron Fist tournament is back on. To its credit, the “Tekken” movie seeks to keep things simple: it’s about a dysotopic future where an angry young man with great power must learn the identity of his evil father and crush his tyrannical empire once and for all. Yup, it’s basically “Star Wars” with a fighting tournament.
Though the film is stuffed to its seams with fight scenes and actors who look like they stepped right out of the video game, nearly everything about “Tekken” underwhelms. This is due in large part to a cornball script and shoddy editing. We get plenty of fight scenes and most of our actors clearly know martial arts, but the camera rarely stays still long enough to truly capture the action and the editor is constantly cutting to people who are viewing the fights on television. Do we really need to keep seeing the same chubby bartender, who has one thirty second scene at the beginning of the movie, throughout the entire film? All these fools keep cheering “Jin, Jin, Jin” when all we want is to be able to see the matches going on. As such, it’s nearly impossible for me to comment on Cyril Raffaelli’s fight choreography. The movie doesn’t even showcase it enough to make a judgment call.
This film is also unbelievably sexist, which might have worked if this was “Dead or Alive” but it’s “Tekken.” In the game, the character of Christie Monteiro is a Brazilian woman who practices the Brazilian martial arts Capoeria. In the movie, she’s whitewashed into a Hollywood actress who, uh, kinda knows how to fight (?) but mostly just shows off her asscrack. It seems the men in this movie were cast based on their martial arts ability while the women were cast based on their willingness to wear skimpy outfits. If you’re a fan of Nina Williams (one of “Tekken”‘s most popular characters and someone who had her own spin-off game), prepare to be outraged by this movie.
When it comes to video game movies, fans rarely win. The first “Mortal Kombat” movie remains a solid guilty pleasure while I’d say “Silent Hill” is the closest the genre has to come to creating an honest-to-God decent movie, but even that film faltered faltered after its halfway point. The rest of these video game movies either suck so bad they threaten to bore a hole through your head or they merely suck. “Tekken” falls somewhere in the middle: certainly it’s a cheesecake festival with fight scenes that don’t reach their full potential, but at the same time it’s a fairly faithful visual approximation of the game. If all you want is to see some of your favorite characters come to life – in the right costumes even if they’re not the right ethnicity – without having to put any quarters into an arcade cabinet (unless you’re using Red Box, I guess), then “Tekken” is perhaps worth a rental.
HKFanatic’s Rating: 5.5/10
In a Glass Cage aka Tras el cristal Blu-ray (Cult Epics)
RELEASE DATE: October 18, 2011
First time on Blu-ray! Tras el cristal (English: In a Glass Cage) is a 1987 Spanish art house horror film written and directed by Agustí Villaronga and starring Günter Meisner, Marisa Paredes and David Sust. The film was inspired by the history of Gilles de Rais. With its theme mixing Nazism, pedophilia, torture and homosexuality, the film was highly controversial. Check out the trailer here.
"Black Water" American Theatrical Poster
Director: Andrew Traucki, David Nerlich
Writer: Andrew Traucki, David Nerlich
Producer: Michael Robertson
Cast: Diana Glenn, Maeve Dermody, Andy Rodoreda, Ben Oxenbould, Fiona Press
Running Time: 88 min.
By HKFanatic
“Black Water” opens with an ominous message. To paraphrase: “The Saltwater Crocodile population of Northern Australia is increasing.” Pause. “So is the human population.” Even with the knowledge that the film received funding from the Australian Film Commission, you probably know what you’re in for: some hapless humans are gonna wander into croc territory and become lunch. Did I mention it’s based on actual events?
“Black Water” is a low-budget Australian indie film from 2007. It was co-directed by David Nerlich and Andrew Taucki. Taucki went on to direct the 2010 killer shark movie “The Reef” to rave reviews. He’s stated he’s planning a trilogy of films about Australian creatures, though funding is not yet in place for the final movie. Here’s hoping that Taucki’s vision for a trilogy comes true as he’s revealed himself to be a promising filmmaker.
Considering its low-budget origins, I found “Black Water” to be a taut and effective thriller. It’s a movie about people being threatened by killer crocs, sure, but it’s no “Lake Placid” – don’t expect a computer-generated croc to launch out of the water to rip anyone’s arm off in a gory display. For the most part, real live crocodiles were used in the filming of this movie and then spliced into scenes with the actors through careful editing. On one hand, it means that you don’t get to glimpse the beast as much as you might in your typical Hollywood monster movie; on the other hand, what you can’t see is often more terrifying than what you can and “Black Water” mines this sense of dread to pitch-perfect effect. And in this day of CG overkill, I love any movie that uses real animals.
The script is smartly written. Does that mean the characters don’t do the stupid things that people always do in horror movies? I wish I could say “no,” but again, “Black Water” is based on a true story and it’s about people reacting to an extreme situation. It’s easy to second guess what you would do if threatened by a crocodile while you’re reclining in a La-Z-Boy, know what I mean? A lot of screentime is taken up by our characters sitting in a tree, trying to figure out if they should make a move for their upturned boat or wait for a potential rescue team. It’s admittedly not that visually interesting to watch a trio of people bickering in a mangrove swamp but it helps build tension for the climax of the film.
I still stand by the script because the dialogue doesn’t insult your intelligence and each character is given their chance to shine. Despite the potentially dangerous setting, I have to imagine that “Black Water” was an actor’s dream movie; it unfolds almost like a stage play, with a constant focus on the cast. I found the performances, scripting, and editing to be way ahead of similar films like 2010’s “Frozen,” which featured three poor bastards stuck on a ski lift.
“Black Water” is recommended to audiences who are willing to give a chance to low-budget indie filmmaking from the other side of the world and who can appreciate a horror film that isn’t a thrill-a-minute, no-brainer slasher movie from Platinum Dunes. The use of real crocodiles and some expert editing, as well as a tasteful restraint when it comes to onscreen violence, mean “Black Water” is more of a measured, intelligent thriller. We could debate all day about whether or not we would do what these characters did if we were stuck in croc-infested waters – but, hey, at least that means the movie got you talking.
HKFanatic’s Rating: 7/10
Radley Metzger's Erotica Psychedelica Blu-ray Set: Camille 2000, The Lickerish Quartet, Score (Cult Epics)
RELEASE DATE: August 30, 2011
Plunge into the world of Erotica Psychedelica, the ’70s cinematic sexual revolution! This box set features restored HD transfers made from the original 35mm negatives of the original theatrical versions of CAMILLE 2000 (1969) , THE LICKERISH QUARTET (1970) and SCORE (1972), along with many new Bonus Features, including never before seen On the Set footage and an exclusive Soundtrack CD. Limited numbered edition of 3,500 copies with collectible lenticular artwork!
Trailers: Camille 2000 | The Lickerish Quartet | Score
“The Grudge” Theatrical Poster
Director: Takashi Shimizu
Cast: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Behr, William Mapother, Clea DuVall, KaDee Strickland, Grace Zabriskie, Bill Pullman, Rosa Blasi, Ted Raimi, Ryo Ishibashi
Running Time: 92 min.
By Ningen
So stop me if you’ve heard this before. Sarah Michelle Gellar walks into a Japanese haunted house, and almost gets attacked by demons. She’s a nurse who happens to be working abroad and living with a whacky family. Unlike The Ring remake, which at least tried to add some characterization which was missing from the Japanese version, this film is just the exact same idea, but with a gaijin as the lead. (Foreigner for those not in the know.) What was once a movie focusing on the trials and travails of a harried social services worker now becomes a travelogue in which the lead tries to show her tolerance, but gives in to her inner xenophobe, and thinks, “Dem Japs are weird!” (While this method of interaction was popular in the overrated Lost in Translation, it’s annoying to people like myself who actually want to see movies about Japan featuring Japanese doing Japanese things. Not movies where the Japanese are eyed under the microscope like Mondo Cane.)
So how’s the actual horror? Well imagine if you just popped Ju On in your dvd player and hit the fast forward button, and you have The Grudge. But one would think that with MTV-style editing, it’d actually be much more enjoyable, since even the arthouse fans hate sitting through slow Japanese flicks. Unfortunately, it’s actually slower than the original, since the original compensated with excellent suspense and sympathetic characters (i.e. “hotter chicks”). This one feels like a drag, because the dark cloudy stuff in the original takes the foreground in this version, rather than the background as in the original; so instead of the ectoplasm creeping behind the leads (and you the viewer), it’s in-your-face and trying to impress you with its knowledge of performance art.
Since most of the flicks Gellar has starred in have been absolute crap, and since I don’t watch Xena the Vampire Slayer, I only have The Grudge to evaluate her, and frankly, I think her performance is mediocre. She’s just going through the motions, and gives a weaker emotional performance than Gillian Anderson. So I guess you can call The Grudge a case of selling-out, since it seems like Shimizu is just basically phoning in his scenes. Or perhaps like most Asian filmmakers, his work got screwed over by an American committee in post. I don’t know, and I don’t care. All I do know is that it’s given me a grudge against crappy remakes.
Ningen’s Rating: 5/10
“Ju-On 2” Promotional Poster
Director: Takashi Shimizu
Cast: Shin’ya Egawa, Takashige Ichise, Kunio Kawakami, Yoshinori Kumazawa, Hiroki Numata
Running Time: 95 min.
By Mighty Peking Man
They should have called this movie Ju-On II: Overkill – not only would this title sound cool, but it’s one hell of a double-pun. Like most people, I never expect sequels to be as good as their originals, but Ju-On 2 is too much of the same sh*t, only weaker. Much weaker.
Like the first movie, we get some ( or should I say less) of those startling, jump-out-of-your-seat moments; but this time, they’re tiresome, uninventive and just plain stupid (unless you think “crawling hair” is first-class horror). If the two Ju-On TV-movies (released between the first film and this one) were crud, then Ju-On 2 isn’t far behind.
If you’re a completest, give it a shot. If anything, it’s a good popcorn movie that’ll scare children for sure, but if you’re expecting a solid sequel, then you’ll probably be very disappointed.
Go back to school, Toshio. You’re not scary anymore.
Mighty Peking Man’s Rating: 5/10
“Ju-On” Japanese DVD Cover
AKA: Ju-On: The Grudge
Director: Takashi Shimizu
Cast: Megumi Okina, Misaki Ito, Misa Uehara, Yui Ichikawa, Tomomi Kobayashi, Takashi Matsuyama
Running Time: 92 min.
By Mighty Peking Man
Imagine waking up in the middle of the night and the first thing you see standing over your bed is Linda Blair’s character from The Exorcist staring right at you and coming closer and closer – that’s how creepy this damn film is. In fact, I don’t remember the last time a film spooked the living sh*t out of me the way this one did.
Conducted in a series of connected segments, with mixed and related characters, Ju On is the story of a haunted house that makes The Amityville Horror residence look like The Brady Bunch’s dream home. The curses that reside within were summoned after a horrible crime was committed (involving a man who brutally murdered his own family, then shortly thereafter, killed himself….). Now, the victims’ wicked ghosts are back and they’re out to possess and kill anyone who comes across their path. At the jump-out-of-your-seat level this film achieves, dismiss all points of reason.
For the people that do care about the reason, tough luck, you won’t get one. At the end of the Ju-On, nothing is really met as far as a satisfying conclusion or closure. People die, ghosts do their ghostly things and the audience gets freaked out. If you want more than this, you’ll be disappointed.
Ju-On (aka Ju-On: The Grudge) is passionately directed by Shimizu Takashi, and written by Hiroshi Takahashi (screen writer of The Ring 2). Don’t recognize any of the cast members, but all their performances are passable.
Overall, Ju On is creepier than The Ring, but unlike the latter, it lacks the presence of a plot. By the way, if you want the full effect, watch it loud.
Mighty Peking Man’s Rating: 8/10
Lau Ching Wan rides his bicycle in "Life Without Principle"
The plot involves three ordinary people, a loan shark and $10 million bucks. Directed by Johnnie To and starring Lau Ching Wan (“Running Out of Time”), Richie Jen (“Accident”), and Denise Ho (“Merry-Go-Round”). The film is also known as “Death of a Hostage”.
Check it out the trailer here.
Update: Looks like shooting has finally wrapped. – Thanks to DiP for the heads up!
Manhunter Blu-ray (MGM)
RELEASE DATE September 13, 2011
Michael Mann’s 1986 thriller Manhunter is nearly as good as The Silence of the Lambs, and in some respects it’s arguably even better. Based on Thomas Harris’s novel Red Dragon, which introduced the world to the nefarious killer Hannibal “the Cannibal” Lecter. ment to track down a serial killer who has thwarted the authorities at every turn. Starring William Petersen (“To Live and Die in L.A.”).
Check out the trailer here.
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