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King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017)
Great visuals
The poppy style with bad attitudes is not my taste but the visuals are beautiful, especially in 3D. Colours are predominantly black. If Warner had given the blu-ray maximised bitrates, both 3D & 2D, the picture would look gorgeous.
Yat lo heung sai (2012)
Absolute Trash
One of the worst, if not the worst.
Don't spend a single cent on it unless you like really low, trashy movies.
Petaru dansu (2013)
Contemplative Elegance
Soft, contemplative and hesitant, the film's deliberate pacing and lack of dramatic tension and plot will not appeal to many; but beauty and elegance emanate from its aesthetic compositions, very, very fine natural acting and quiet, understated delivery. Its sparse dialogue and long silences generate unspoken volumes upon which the film lifts and glides to a satisfying resolution. 8.5/10
Yongsoon (2016)
Why is this very good movie so unknown?
This movie is very good in my opinion. I'm surprised so little is known and written about it.
It tells its story simply and realistically, of a young girl who seems destined by her birth to have to try hard to hold on to what she thinks is hers in her life. The director balances and paces the story excellently, achieving a light tragic-comic tone without slipping into farce or melodrama.
Lee Soo-kyung gives a credible and commendable performance as Yongsoon. She conveys the character's suppression of her hurt and pain with anger and determination using just the right amount of expression, never artificially forcing it or going over the top. It is likely also due to director Shin Joon's handling and guidance.
I would also like to commend director Shin Joon's good judgment in not piling more on any scenes for bigger effects, even though he had plenty of chances to. What results is an honest, unpretentious and touching tale of a young person's very strong need to overcome what she perceives as unfairly dealt to her in life.
I would love to see more of writer/director Shin Joon's works. But given how little received this film is, I'm sadly not optimistic on it.
Love (2015)
Meandering, Repetitive, Self-indulgent & Lacking in Substance
The movie keeps repeating scenes and scenes of rumination and sex, as if the director was trying to fill up two hours, or thought he had created some new pure cinema art form. It really gets tiring and sickening.
Like the repeated shots of male ejaculation, one gets the feeling that the director was too cocksure of what he thought he was achieving, thus overindulging it to the extreme.
Yôgisha X no kenshin (2008)
Would have been great if not for a couple of logic flaws
WARNING: THIS COMMENTARY CONTAINS INPORTANT SPOILERS. SO PLEASE STOP READING NOW IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THE MOVIE.
The movie comes across as pulpy in the first 10 minutes (I didn't know it came from a book and TV series when I watched it). The characters of the supposed leads, Masaharu Fukuyama and Ko Shibasaki, are one-dimensional throughout. Thankfully, Shin'ichi Tsutsumi and Yasuko Matsuyuki brought depth and weight. Tsutsumi especially. He draws you in with his portrayal of his character. It's enigmatic and convincing. A very fine actor indeed.
The movie shines when it delves into the human drama and the contest of wits and wills between the two male protagonists. The mountain climbing segment is superb, a magnificent allegory of the intellectual power-play between the two men.
***SPOILERS*** Unfortunately, the movie didn't succeed fully on the logical brilliance it is premised on. There seems to be two serious flaws. First is the identification of the body through matching the fingerprints found on the bicycle with those from the hotel the victim stayed in. Certainly real-life police would know that is inconclusive. They would certainly confirm only with fingerprints on official records.
Secondly, a man of Ishigami's brilliance could certainly foretell that the likelihood of Kanaoka accepting his sacrifice is low to start with, or at least there is no guarantee of his plan's success. And Kanaoka would hear about it from news whether Yukawa tells her about it or not. And for Ishigami to take an innocent life is totally inconsistent with his character, no matter how powerful and overwhelming love is.
The movie would have been great if not for these flaws. But it is still a pretty good movie principally because of Tsutsumi's performance and the human drama. I would have given it at least 8/10 if not for the logic flaws.
The Game (1997)
Stretches credulity to the extreme
I have to feel very strongly about a movie before I would want to spend precious time writing about it. And this movie really irks me.
What I really can't stand when watching a serious movie is when its plot is incredulous, and this movie goes all out to score 100/100. It just keeps piling up more and more ridiculous scenes one after another. At the end of it, I truly felt I wasted 2 hours of my time and my money.
In fact, I was about to hail the movie when it was turning out that the game was a big scam job. It should have been that way and would have been totally credulous. Then came that grand silly ridiculous ending.
In fact, when I watched David Fincher's other movie, Seven, I really couldn't buy into it as I found the ways the murders were carried out highly unbelievable. But it was a very well-made movie so I could forgive the incredulous elements there. Little did I realize the much higher bounds of Mr Fincher's penchant for and capability in concocting incredulity until The Game.
Even the dumbest action movie has more credulity than this. If not for the good video quality, I would have given a 1 or 2 rating, because I do still feel very pi**ed with it.
Ong-Bak (2003)
PUT ALL HOLLYWOOD ACTION/FIGHTING MOVIES TO SHAME!!!
I'm not exaggerating - This has been the action/fighting movie I've wanted to see all my life. REAL fighting actions and sequences! No special effects, no wires, no disjointing cuts, no camera tricks, no CGI, no special effects! Full continuity from jump to hit to fall, and at what force! The audience goes WOW at almost every sequence, absolutely astounded by the force and the realism - be it a kick to the chest, a blow to the head, or a man falling down a tree hitting and rebounding off some branches before hitting ground - all one continuous shot.
One is left wondering how these guys could pull it off without any tricks or anyone getting hurt! And no stuntmen are involved.
And it is not just a good action-packed movie. Added to it is a simple and effective storyline, a good beginning, and a very apt ending! Plus controlled, non-excessive humour at appropriate moments (shame to Jackie Chan), no slack nor mushiness in-between, no pretentious story line (shame to Matrix and most Hollywood action movies), a well-controlled pace that keeps building up to a higher and yet higher crescendo...any serious film critics should be questioning his artistic pretence if he does not sing the praises of this movie.
Really, without doubt, this is the best action/fighting movie I've ever seen. It puts to shame any Hollywood action movie you can name. Also no Jackie Chan nor Jet Li movie can hold a candle to it. If there were only one film I'm allowed to see in these last 3 years, ONG-BAK has to be it!
I give this movie 10/10. It may not be absolutely perfect, but its realistic jaw-dropping actions, its simple and effective story line, and its well-controlled pace and sequences all together add up to a package that is simply beyond awesome. It's pure entertainment. It is only the third movie so far that I gave an absolute 10/10.
GO SEE IT - KILL (BILL) FOR IT IF YOU HAVE TO.
Hannibal (2001)
The Gobbling Of The Pigs
(Warning: Contains Possible Spoilers)
Did Thomas Harris fall asleep writing this story or Ridley Scott did directing it? I certainly almost did watching it.
The movie starts with the hackneyed plot of our star agent bungling a drug bust through no fault of hers and then a pseudo hotshot investigator tries to take advantage of her situation. Lots of bullets, lots of bodies, (they even make the quarry a fully pregnant lady), our hero gets unjustifiably suspended and then takes matters into his own hands, or her hands in this case. Please, this corny crap has been used countless times in TV serials and cheap action movies, like some Bruce Willis flick - I am surprised Thomas Harris could even bring himself to write this!
Then comes the ridiculous deformed character in wheelchair who somehow is super rich and powerful and who has such a superb network of intelligence and runners that they manage to catch Hannibal Lecter when for years the FBI failed despite him being on their ten most wanted list - Wah, am I watching a James Bond movie or what?!
The story moves at a tedious pace with Ridley Scott crafting his pseudo artistic style more suitable to a reflective drama than a crime thriller. The suspense, if there is any, is as flat as walking through your neighbourhood grocery store.
There is even such cheap thrill as hungry pigs eating humans. And the climax where Lecter does a haute cuisine of human brain, rather than being the stomach churner it was intended to be, instead looks delicious as watching a French master chef preparing his signature dish - it actually got me thinking of having pig brain for dinner! No kidding.
And yeah, you may half expect Hannibal Lecter to break out "Night time sharpens, heightens each sensation..." when he bends over Clarice Starling.
This movie is a prime example of the kind of product we get when greedy Hollywood executives try to cash in on a successful film by pushing the creation of a sequel. In the process, quality becomes trash, and The Silence Of The Lambs has become The Gobbling Of The Pigs.
This movie would be forgivable if it is a typical Bruce Willis-type action flick. But with names like Ridley Scott, Anthony Hopkins, Julianne Moore and Thomas Harris, not to mention the formidable legacy of Silence - Hollywood has hit the pits of disgrace. I really could not give this film anything better than 4/10. Pig brain stew would be better value.
Wo hu cang long (2000)
The brightest star...
Some reviewers here are calling for Zhang Ziyi to be nominated for the 2001 Oscar for best supporting actress. Are they sure? If at all, it should be for best actress! Hers was the character around which the others revolve.
I could see this film over and over again once at least, to soak in the drama, action and atmosphere; once to savour the poetic Mandarin dialogue (such as: Jen, `And this little boy who fails to find his star turns instead to stealing my comb.' Lo, `I'm a man now, and I've found myself the brightest star.'); once just to wallow in the haunting score; and once to focus on Zhang Ziyi alone...
her sweet curious innocence as an aristocrat's daughter
her poise yet potency in battle
her tearful defiance under the strain of force from her pursuers
her feeble resistance to submission while in a drug-induced stupor
I just love that scene of her eyes welling in tears as she was on the verge of being unveiled.
No, the Oscar will not stand up to your talent, Ziyi, and this is only your second film! Yet, alas, your star is shining so brightly now that you will soon be lost to the big studios and end up in some low Jackie Chan or Hollywood action flicks, or to some directors more obsessed with you than making a good film. Sigh.