“Getting Any?”– (1994, Japan, 108 minutes – no rating)
In modern day Japan, Asao (Dankan) is an ordinary guy in his thirties living with his grandfather. Asao, however, is driven by an obsession to have sex in a car and soon embarks on an extraordinary journey in this comedy from Takeshi “Beat” Kitano.
Continue reading “Midnight Movie Madness: “Getting Any?””
“Immortal” – (2004, France, 103 minutes – rated R)
Well aren’t you lucky..? Two Midnight Movie Madness recommendations within a week!
This is a bit of a curio for sci-fi fans. Written and directed by Enki Bilal, based on two graphic novels from his Nikopol trilogy, “la femme piege” and “la foire aux immortels” (“the female trap” and “the carnival of immortals”).
Watch the trailer here:
Bilal (born Enes Bilalovic) moved to France at age 9, in 1960 or so.
Continue reading “Midnight Movie Madness: “Immortal””
“The girl who kicked the hornet’s nest” – (2009, Sweden, 147 minutes – rated R)
The third installment of Stieg Larssen’s ‘Millenium‘ trilogy moves deeper into a dystopian present made of corrupted power cells both part of and unknown to government bureaucracy, in other words, the tapestry widens.
That was obscure, but the trilogy takes its time exposing Larsson’s vision of power and its abuses, of unseen environments where human monsters are made, flourish and devour everything available to them. Provided it is sanctioned, and at times even without approval.
Continue reading “Midnight Movie Madness: “the girl who kicked the hornet’s nest”
“Undertaking Betty” and “Elsa & Fred”. These are very satisfying on several levels, especially perhaps for us Baby-Boomers. Yes. Let’s indulge.
Continue reading “Lighter fare: two romantic comedies off the beaten path”
“Animal Kingdom” – (2010, Australia, 113 minutes – rated R)
“Do you know what the Bush is about?”
A key question both asked answered by Melbourne detective Nathan Leckie (Guy Pierce) as he tries to turn Joshua ‘J’ Cody (James Frecheville) into a witness against his own family.
Continue reading “JBoD’s double matinee: “Animal Kingdom” and “Rampage””
… Which you owe it to yourself to sample, especially during the holidays.
The first one should appeal to the nerd in all of us:
“Gentlemen Broncos” – (2009, USA, 90 minutes – PG-13)
Benjamin Purvis (Michael Angarano) is a home schooled teenager living in a small town with his mother Judith (Jennifer Coolidge, also known as Stifler’s mom in the “American pie” comedies).
Continue reading “Offbeat comedies: with fruitcakes and assorted nuts”
“The girl with the dragon tattoo” – (2009, Sweden, 152 minutes – rated R)
This is a foray into the monstrosities men commit, with an unusual protagonist who herself has been mauled by such, yet has the brass to fight back…
A previous Swedish film, “let the right one in”, got us curious about cinema from that part of Europe: Sweden, Denmark, Norway and their neighbor to the Southwest, the Netherlands.
Watch the trailer:
We catch episodes of the police drama “Wallander”, either the Swedish version or the British production with Kenneth Branagh in the title role on a local station.
Continue reading ““The girl with the dragon tattoo”: dark and potent Swedish roast”
“Sukiyaki Western Django” – (2007, Japan, 121 minutes – rated R)
A gunfighter arrives in a small town divided between two powerful and vicious clans, the Whites and the Reds. You’re right: you’ve seen this before in “Yojimbo”, “last man standing” and others…
Watch the trailer:
What sets “Sukiyaki western Django” apart, then, is director Takashi Miike’s style. Visually, it looks like a very colorful dream, with that “photoshopped” quality many movies have nowadays, with high contrast and bright hues.
It has been called visually stunning, but I think that’s overstating it, just as “Avatar” felt to me like watching a fancy screensaver for almost three hours.
Continue reading “Midnight Movie Madness: “Sukiyaki Western Django” avatar of Yojimbo”
I was salivating about stuffing a turkey with Spam this week, how unoriginal I know… I do like Spam, even the kind we find in the site’s ‘Spam’ box. Those buggers are getting semi-creative, as in this comment about “the worst journey in the world”:
“This was interesting and ive forwarded it on to all my friends on planet zikzar45. IF they like what you have written they may spare your life
but if they dont, well you should prepare your will. Earthling.”
Bet he or she drives a Plymouth Satellite (wink-wink), I’d like to have what he’s having.
But lo! Do I have a recommendation for your Thanksgiving night viewing….
“Blood freak” – (1971, USA 86 minutes, rated R)
This is no longer available through Netflix, and my recollections might be –perhaps – somewhat “clouded”…
Whatever your poison of choice is, even if it’s Wild Turkey, load up on it. Put the flick in the machine (can’t bring myself to even call this a movie). Well, look, it’s really bad. But in a groovy way, dig? As in dated… Carbon dated.
We’ve seen silent films which didn’t feel this fixed in their era.
Where was I? Thanksgiving started early…. Oh. So this dude Herschell (Steve Hawkes, born Sipek in Croatia), so named as a reference to Herschell Gordon Lewis, rides up on Angel, stranded by a flat tire, gives her a lift back to her pad where her sis is getting’ high with hipsters, yeah?
But Herschell, normally a righteous guy, partakes of the evil grass and boffs Ann, the baaaad sister.
Continue reading “Thanksgiving loaded groovy gravy: “blood freak””
“Death note” – (Anime series, Japan 2006, NR)
I always enjoyed serialized sci-fi and horror shows broadcast late at night, re-runs of “Star Trek: Voyager” or “Friday the 13th: the series”.
If you do as well, I recommend watching “death note”, a Japanese
animated series about a student, Light Yagami, who finds a notebook with special powers, the Death Note. The titular notebook is the artifact of Light’s doom, something he could have bought from Louis Vendredi’s shop in “Friday the 13th: the series“. The note, dropped on purpose into the human world by Ryuk, a demon-like Shinigami (death deity), has the following rules written in it, which Light attempts to refine and perhaps even circumvent: “the human who uses the note can neither go to heaven nor hell. If the time of death is written within 40 seconds after writing the cause of death as a heart attack, the time of death can go into effect within 40 seconds after writing the name”.
Continue reading “Midnight Movie Madness: a “death note” everyone has to pay”
