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Reviews
Yeogo goedam II (1999)
OK but not a horror
Rating: 6 of 10 stars Genre: Horror, Drama. Scare Factor: 3 of 10 Acting: 5 of 10 Story: 5 of 10 Nation of origin: South Korea Viewed on: Tartan Asian Extreme DVD Video Format: Widescreen Audio Format: 5.1 DTS
"Memento Mori" is the second of movie in the "Whispering Corridors" trilogy. I wasn't all that crazy about "Whispering Corridors" but I thought I would give this a shot (as I'm sure I will give the third in the series (named "Whishing Stairs") a try once I can get a hold of it. "Memento Mori" really had little if anything to do with "Whispering Corridors" and could be watched by itself. "Memento Mori" like many Asian movies time warps back and forth throughout the course of the movie making it, like most Asian movies, more confusing than need be. It however doesn't spin and twist so much you can't follow it.
If you simply accept the fact that "Memento Mori" isn't a movie with any horror value I think you will find it somewhat enjoyable. Despite some extremely slow spots I never really felt unattached to what was happening which is a positive change from "Whispering Corridors". The story itself was nothing special however and wasn't one that I was really curious about what was going to happen next.
Dopperugengâ (2003)
Doubt this one will be redone in the US!
Where to start? "Doppelganger" was truly a struggle to watch. It wasn't without a few moments that did succeed in keeping you glued to the screen but those were very few and to get to them you would have to withstand that urge to stop watching. Truth is I would of stopped it about half way through if it weren't for Hiromi Nagasaku who is quite the looker. To sum up the movie in as few words as possible It was about 40 minutes of blah blah blah followed by 30 minutes of confusion. I watched "Doppelganger" on DVD and both the picture and Audio was very good. Just a shame the movie could never really amount to much. But, did I mention Hiromi Nagasaku is a hottie?
Yeogo goedam (1998)
Not impressed
I picked up "Whispering Corridors" hoping it would be as impressive as the other top notch South Korean horror movie that have come out over the past five years or so but have to say I was disappointed. Although not an awful movie it seemed to move along as is just waiting for the right time to end. It lacked any real "scare" value. The story wasn't bad but not overly interesting. Given I always watch subtitles I tend to avoid judging the acting as much as possible because I think the delivery of a line is a large part of acting, therefore me not understanding it in whole seems unfair to the actor. In the case of "Whispering Corridors" the acting was notable sluggish and at times annoying. If you're an Asian film buff it's a movie to check out but don't get to excited about. If your not an Asian film buff I wouldn't suggest it for you.
Ruang talok 69 (1999)
Nice surprise!
Although I watch numerous Asian films I believe "6ixtynin9" was the first Thai movie I have seen and I must say I was very impressed. From start to end it had a comedic "whatever can go wrong will go wrong" feel about it while moving along rather smoothly as a mildly bloody quasi action flick. The story itself wasn't overly complicated nor jumbled up like some Asian stuff tends to be. I could see a large group of viewers enjoying this nice little Thai surprise.
The acting wasn't "lights out" but was effective and although the filming was mainly done in an apartment it moved around more than enough to avoid getting stale.
I viewed the on the US version DVD and found the quality good enough but not top notch and it wasn't in surround sound. I would certainly recommend giving this film a watch but you might want to rent before you buy it.
The African Queen (1951)
Simply one of the best ever
"The African Queen" might the most well-rounded movie I have ever seen, or at least most well-rounded of the oldies. Staring Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn 'The African Queen" touched on brilliance in action, adventure, comedy, and a nice little dose of drama and romance to create a package that anyone would love.
The majority of the filming was done with just Bogart and Hepburn as they steamed down the river in the filthy and boozing Captain Charlie Aunt's (Bogart) boat "The African Queen", in which the movie was named after. Hepburn played a strong willed missionary named Rose Sayer who was somewhat an annoying character early on but I thought effectively fell into place as a character you applauded at just the right time in the movie. Anyone who has seen Hepburn in "True Grit" will realize she is playing pretty close to the same character which could have been a negative but in both cases (Being "True Grit" and "The African Queen") the combined talent of actors easily overpowered the problem.
The lone flaw that was obvious in the movie was the fact that a vast majority of the filming appeared to be filmed in studio with fake backgrounds. Of course it was standard practice at that time but given the clarity and visuals we are use to in this modern day and age it does stand out more than it would of even just ten years ago. I guess the reason it stands out so much in "The African Queen" is the adventure aspect itself was a very visual thing with the river rolling by behind the camera and many subtle actions in the background. I watched the movie on VHS because at the time of this review there isn't a good US release or a widescreen release. Which of course I question why it isn't cleaned up and released.
Cradle 2 the Grave (2003)
Slap a title on it and release it.
There really isn't much need to get to detailed with this one because if you saw the movie poster or DVD cover you know what it is, which is:
(1)Another movie with a hip-hop artist inserted to drag in the younger crowd being the script couldn't do it.
(2)A bunch of goofy all-be-it cool on the screen stunts that in the long run hurt the movie more than help.
(3)Jet Li kicking a lot of tail but being a man of few words.
Truly though, this film realistically has nothing wrong many of it's predecessors didn't have wrong with guys like Stallone, Schwartzenegger, or any of a hundred other actors who played the action hero in a pointless movie.
"Cradle to the Grave" isn't bad enough to where I would say don't watch it. If your looking for a quick action fix slap it in. Don't expect any lingering light-headedness from a cinematic master piece induced high after it's over though. It is what it and won't ever be anything better.
I watched the widescreen DVD and the one thing "Cradle to the Grave" does have is a nice picture and a strong soundtrack for your surround system.
Ghost of the Needle (2003)
What are you people smoking?
In my living room I don't give independent films any extra love because they are the struggling underdogs who have to work twice as hard for half as much. In short this movie just simply wasn't good. Bad Acting. No special effects to mention. The entire movie was shot in three locations I believe and none of those where very interesting.
I have no idea what others saw to give this movie anything above four stars. I sat down expecting to find a that sleeper gem we all hope to find but instead just got another low budget-put me to sleeper. Where was the scary stuff? A few animated corpses that did? or didn't? exist really don't qualify as scary to me. The story had some potential but was stifled bad acting, boring and limited use of shooting locations, and when it was all done it really was just a "by the book" rubber stamped horror-which I have no problem with what-so-ever if all the other variables are right. In "Ghost of the Needle" those variable weren't right though and it oozed low budget which generally makes for a poor horror.
Unless you're an independent film nut or just have an adventurous taste in films, avoid this one. Even if you feel like gambling some time on it don't waste a weekend night for it. Watch it while folding laundry on Tuesday night or listen to it while doing dishes Thursday night, etc
I watched "Ghost of the Needle" on DVD. The quality was fine and although you can pick one of many reasons not to watch this movie one reason can't be because of how it will look on your screen
Suna no onna (1964)
Just a bit over rated
Made in 1964 "Woman in the Dunes" was nominated for the best foreign language film at the 1965 Academy Awards which it lost to "Ieri, oggi, domain" (Italy) with Sophia Loren and in the 1966 Academy Awards it was nominated for Best Director which it lost to Robert Wise for "The Sound of Music".
In Japan it is known as "Suna no onna".
The first thing about the movie I noticed was on the DVD cover it had some quotes from some pretty impressive sources, such as Time Magazine, The New York Times, and Daily News. Given that it certainly warranted a viewing.
The plot of the movie is strong for the first thirty minutes but really loses steam as it goes on. I was under the impression it was a horror "style" film but I would have to consider it more a cross between drama and adventure
stronger on the drama. I don't want to say it was a bad movie because it really wasn't but it just didn't hold on to me after that first thirty minutes.
Perhaps a student of film or one who has an adventures taste in movies might find "Woman in the Dunes" worthwhile or even a masterpiece, but I'm afraid it wont be very impressive to the vast majority of movie goers.
I viewed "Woman of the Dunes" on the "Milestone Collection" DVD and wasn't to impressed with the picture quality itself. Much of this has to do with the movie which it seems about half of which was at night and the visibility or clarity was terrible.
Rio Bravo (1959)
Wayne and Martin can't miss
I'm a believer that every movie fan should sit and watch several "must see" movies or maybe better said for some situations several of the same "types" of must see movies. John Wayne in himself is that "Type". I don't think any actor before him or since has had such on screen command as "The Duke" did. Rio Bravo was just one of many of the examples of the John Wayne in action, who despite playing the role at 52 left no questions who the star was among a cast of stars.
One thing that is quickly noticed is the broad range of ages of the stars in "Rio Bravo" and the good guys included as mentioned John Wayne at 52, Dean Martin at 42, Angie Dickinson at 28, Ricky Nelson at 19, and last but not least in the old "spaghetti" western style
side kick Walter Brennan at 65. Maybe the cast was set that way to attract a broad base of fans or maybe it was just the way the story goes, I can't say.
Now of the cast I'll go through it quickly. John Wayne was his same old self, great. Dean Martin did an impressive role and like Wayne was a pleasure to watch. Angie Dickinson, in short played the misunderstood hottie, personally I didn't think she added much but it let the viewers see the star (Wayne) had it really going on. Ricky Nelson was almost an annoyance around such greats as Wayne and Martin although his (Nelson's) part was woven into the story to much to do without. Then there is Walter Brennan, what can you say, great actor in an overdone all-be-it entertaining role.
The film really is a case study in my opinion. You have the classic great in Wayne, Martin and Brennan. You toss in an attractive female. And I assume the theory was bring in the younger female viewers with Nelson giving Wayne and Martin might not do it at ages 52 and 42 respectively.
By the way there were actually some bad guys in "Rio Bravo" but in the presence of the good guys it really didn't matter who they were.
I last viewed "Rio Bravo" on the DVD and although there is no denying it is a 45 plus year old movie it was clear, clean and nice on the eyes but limited to mono sound.
It really is a shame the western genre is all but dead. "Rio Bravo" shows that with Stars bigger than life there is more than an abundance of quality entertainment value. Maybe things are as they say everything goes in cycles, maybe one day we will have another dominant figure such as John Wayne have us eager to see outlaws, good-guys and the six gun shootouts.
The Thing (1982)
Nicely done but wont knock your socks off.
"The Thing" was the remake of the 1951 classic "The Thing From Another World". Being a John Carpenter fan to the tune of about a 7.5 stars a movie I have to give this production a bit more love
we will say 8 stars or so. The story might have been a stunner "back in the day" but to the modern movie fan it will come off like twenty or so other horror movies that have crossed the silver screen over the recent years
and about a hundred other that went straight to VHS or DVD. Despite that it holds in there with a nice little cast of B+ actors led by the B one day A the next actor Kurt Russell. Fear not movie fans Russell was on one of his A days for this one. The movie itself is a quality production and will do your widescreen, surround sound system proud when playing the collectors edition DVD. The movie certainly has a couple scenes that are classic for the horror fan and that alone makes it worth the time. I won't promise it will make you hide under your couch in fear but its special effects are nicely done and you might find yourself uttering an occasional "eeeuuuwww" or "Yuck".
Gin gwai (2002)
Another Asian cinema "Must see" for the horror fan!
Without a doubt "The Sixth Sense" was a major influence for "The Eye", but despite the fact you know that from early on in the movie it still keeps you wondering what is next. "The Eye" in fact evolved beyond what "The Sixth Sense" was into the horror genre-bare in mind "The Sixth Sense" was all about the unraveling of the story in the final minutes-making it more a thriller than horror, "The Eye" however went more for a chilling style of horror common to Asian cinema. Unlike many movies from China "The Eye" was a quality production and for a horror fan worth the time. In fact I would say it's a good DVD to have because it's worth the watch a couple times. If you're the type that simply doesn't like Asian movies or subtitles simply don't watch it. Yes, it does have things that remind you of other movies, but this day and age what movie doesn't?