nathan_bain
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22 years
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Yabure-daiko (1949)
Family at breaking point.
The titular 'Broken Drum' of this movie is the father, who is both a successful businessman and tyrannical head of the family which is the subject of this film.
Consisting of Father, Mother, several children in various stages of adolescence and adulthood, and a housekeeper, the family are a happy and colourful group people, each with their own dreams and aspirations, from Shakespeare actress to scientist. These dreams are ultimately quashed by the iron will and stubbornness of their father, who rules over the family the same way he does his ailing construction company, with a raised fist and singular vision for the future.
I found it very easy to relate to all the characters in the movie, the eldest son who has ambition to start his own business but cannot find the courage to confront his father, the mother who has suffered for decades as both wife and homemaker, and even the father, the 'broken drum', who has become the harsh tyrant that he is only because of the strength of will and determination required to be a success in the harsh economical and environmental climates of Northern Japan.
Overall the film was very enjoyable and leads to a satisfying conclusion. Good acting and direction make it pleasant to watch, and also interesting from a cultural point of view as we see the early stages of post war, westernised Japan through the tale of one family.
Consisting of Father, Mother, several children in various stages of adolescence and adulthood, and a housekeeper, the family are a happy and colourful group people, each with their own dreams and aspirations, from Shakespeare actress to scientist. These dreams are ultimately quashed by the iron will and stubbornness of their father, who rules over the family the same way he does his ailing construction company, with a raised fist and singular vision for the future.
I found it very easy to relate to all the characters in the movie, the eldest son who has ambition to start his own business but cannot find the courage to confront his father, the mother who has suffered for decades as both wife and homemaker, and even the father, the 'broken drum', who has become the harsh tyrant that he is only because of the strength of will and determination required to be a success in the harsh economical and environmental climates of Northern Japan.
Overall the film was very enjoyable and leads to a satisfying conclusion. Good acting and direction make it pleasant to watch, and also interesting from a cultural point of view as we see the early stages of post war, westernised Japan through the tale of one family.
Jigureul jikyeora! (2003)
Lee Byeong-gu is a man on a mission.
SYNOPSIS - Lee Byeong-gu is a man on a mission. He stands alone against a secret alien invasion force which has already taken up positions within the worlds leading corporations, whom are making preperations for the arrival of their Crown Prince and Earth's Judgement Day! Unfortunately, Lee Byeong-gu is totally insane! His ideas about a secret alien threat may be just a figment of his imagination, but the horrific crimes he commits in abducting, torturing and disecting potential aliens are quite real, as Kang Man-shik the CEO of a leading chemical company is about to find out.
OVERALL - If the Academy Awards had a prize for 'The Most Genres in a Single Film' then 'Save the Green Planet' would win hands down! It could be described as a Black Comedy/Thriller/Serial Killer/Sci-Fi/Conspiracy/Horror/Action movie. The movie begins with Lee Byeong-gu's explanation to his doting girlfriend Su-ni of how the aliens from 'Andromeda' are responsible for the creation of numerous conspiracies as well as a number of popular TV shows (x-files, etc), supposedly to throw humans off there scent!?! He also believes they are responsible for his mother being in a coma (some kind of human experiment), and is determined to confront their leader and force him to cure her. His plan is too kidnap Kang Man-shik (CEO of major chimal company and suspected alien) from his car park while he is slightly worse for the wear, force him to communicate with the 'Andromedan' leader, revive his mother and finally avert Earth's destruction.
The movie starts out as a comedy but quickly takes on a slightly more sinister tone, when Lee Byeong-gu's interogation methods are revealed. These include scraping skin from Kang Man-shik's feet and applying what seems to be a roll-on deoderant (because aliens don't like this!!!). Also, insertion of an 8 inch long 'probe' which belches steam from perferations along it shaft (apparently aliens dont like that either!!!). It all seems quite shocking, but there is enough humour (albiet black humour) to keep your stomach from churning and your finger off the fast-forward button.
Ultimately it falls on Inspector Choo and the retired (and unpopular) Inspector Kim to solve the mystery of the kidnapping and save Kang Man-shik from a rather nasty end. The film really does manage to juggle the genres excellently, with the black humor of the kidnapping, the horror of the interrogation, the assembely of the clues by the Inspectors and even a Kung-fu/Super Hero type sequence when Lee Byeong-gu meets an old school bully.
By the end of the film you will have been taken through one hell of a ride and most likely have developed an affinity for the mis-guided anti-hero of the film Lee Byeong-gu and his chubby 9but cute) accomplise Su-ni!
An excellent movie all round with as many twists as a curly-wurly, sometimes funny, sometimes shocking and always totally weird. Veteran crazy-asian movie fans will love this film.
OVERALL - If the Academy Awards had a prize for 'The Most Genres in a Single Film' then 'Save the Green Planet' would win hands down! It could be described as a Black Comedy/Thriller/Serial Killer/Sci-Fi/Conspiracy/Horror/Action movie. The movie begins with Lee Byeong-gu's explanation to his doting girlfriend Su-ni of how the aliens from 'Andromeda' are responsible for the creation of numerous conspiracies as well as a number of popular TV shows (x-files, etc), supposedly to throw humans off there scent!?! He also believes they are responsible for his mother being in a coma (some kind of human experiment), and is determined to confront their leader and force him to cure her. His plan is too kidnap Kang Man-shik (CEO of major chimal company and suspected alien) from his car park while he is slightly worse for the wear, force him to communicate with the 'Andromedan' leader, revive his mother and finally avert Earth's destruction.
The movie starts out as a comedy but quickly takes on a slightly more sinister tone, when Lee Byeong-gu's interogation methods are revealed. These include scraping skin from Kang Man-shik's feet and applying what seems to be a roll-on deoderant (because aliens don't like this!!!). Also, insertion of an 8 inch long 'probe' which belches steam from perferations along it shaft (apparently aliens dont like that either!!!). It all seems quite shocking, but there is enough humour (albiet black humour) to keep your stomach from churning and your finger off the fast-forward button.
Ultimately it falls on Inspector Choo and the retired (and unpopular) Inspector Kim to solve the mystery of the kidnapping and save Kang Man-shik from a rather nasty end. The film really does manage to juggle the genres excellently, with the black humor of the kidnapping, the horror of the interrogation, the assembely of the clues by the Inspectors and even a Kung-fu/Super Hero type sequence when Lee Byeong-gu meets an old school bully.
By the end of the film you will have been taken through one hell of a ride and most likely have developed an affinity for the mis-guided anti-hero of the film Lee Byeong-gu and his chubby 9but cute) accomplise Su-ni!
An excellent movie all round with as many twists as a curly-wurly, sometimes funny, sometimes shocking and always totally weird. Veteran crazy-asian movie fans will love this film.
Ritânâ (2002)
Takashi Yamazaki outdoes the Wachowski brothers @ their own game!
Synopsis
It is the year 2084 and the last pocket of human resistance against the invading alien race 'Daggra' have been infiltrated and are making their last stand. In the confusion a young girl 'Mirri' manages to escape through a time travelling machine. She intends to return to the point in time when the first 'Daggra' crash landed on Earth and kill it before the Daggra Mothership is contacted to begin the invasion. To help her in her quest she 'enlists' the help of handsome mercenary type 'Miyamoto'. Unfortunately Miyamoto is none too happy to co-operate with Mirri, it was her arrival which enabled his long time adversary 'Mizoguchi' to escape after years of searching for him. Mizoguchi himself ends up in possession of the Daggra, along with it's super powerful space ship, and intends to use them both to get the one thing every self respecting Triad craves. Ultimate Power!
OVERALL
Last year the Wachowski brothers served up two more slow-mo, bullet time, sci-fi extravaganza in Matrix Reloaded and Matrix Revolutions. Unfortunately neither of these films managed to scale the dizzy heights of the original Matrix.
At the same time almost unnoticed to the western world, along came 'Returner' from Japan. A film which was probably produced on a fraction of the budget of the aforementioned Hollywood productions, but a film which in my opinion knocked the spots off them both as far as pure entertainment is concerned.
Critics of this film will say the Plot is just a rehash of every successful sci-fi movie produced in the last 10 years, and they wouldn't be wrong because the heavy influence of The Matrix, Terminator & Independence Day is easy to recognise. Plus you could say that the special effects including the bullet time, although effective, are sub-standard compared to the Matrix trilogy. What this film does have over other sci-fi efforts last year is lots of high-octane action, plucky acting and style in abundance.
The production crew certainly made excellent use of the tools they had available, as I mentioned before the bullet-time in Returner is not as impressive as the Matrix films but the sight of Miyamoto in his long trenchcoat dodging bullets then launching into some all out kung fu action is just as good as anything Keanu ever did. Throw in the occasional normal looking vehicle transmorphing into a machine ala Transformers, and I was suitably impressed.
Overall, anybody looking for more fast paced, action packed, sci-fi action won't go far wrong giving Returner a try. It won't change the way you look at the world but may wake you up to a whole world of excellent movies from the land of Nihhon.
It is the year 2084 and the last pocket of human resistance against the invading alien race 'Daggra' have been infiltrated and are making their last stand. In the confusion a young girl 'Mirri' manages to escape through a time travelling machine. She intends to return to the point in time when the first 'Daggra' crash landed on Earth and kill it before the Daggra Mothership is contacted to begin the invasion. To help her in her quest she 'enlists' the help of handsome mercenary type 'Miyamoto'. Unfortunately Miyamoto is none too happy to co-operate with Mirri, it was her arrival which enabled his long time adversary 'Mizoguchi' to escape after years of searching for him. Mizoguchi himself ends up in possession of the Daggra, along with it's super powerful space ship, and intends to use them both to get the one thing every self respecting Triad craves. Ultimate Power!
OVERALL
Last year the Wachowski brothers served up two more slow-mo, bullet time, sci-fi extravaganza in Matrix Reloaded and Matrix Revolutions. Unfortunately neither of these films managed to scale the dizzy heights of the original Matrix.
At the same time almost unnoticed to the western world, along came 'Returner' from Japan. A film which was probably produced on a fraction of the budget of the aforementioned Hollywood productions, but a film which in my opinion knocked the spots off them both as far as pure entertainment is concerned.
Critics of this film will say the Plot is just a rehash of every successful sci-fi movie produced in the last 10 years, and they wouldn't be wrong because the heavy influence of The Matrix, Terminator & Independence Day is easy to recognise. Plus you could say that the special effects including the bullet time, although effective, are sub-standard compared to the Matrix trilogy. What this film does have over other sci-fi efforts last year is lots of high-octane action, plucky acting and style in abundance.
The production crew certainly made excellent use of the tools they had available, as I mentioned before the bullet-time in Returner is not as impressive as the Matrix films but the sight of Miyamoto in his long trenchcoat dodging bullets then launching into some all out kung fu action is just as good as anything Keanu ever did. Throw in the occasional normal looking vehicle transmorphing into a machine ala Transformers, and I was suitably impressed.
Overall, anybody looking for more fast paced, action packed, sci-fi action won't go far wrong giving Returner a try. It won't change the way you look at the world but may wake you up to a whole world of excellent movies from the land of Nihhon.