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Reviews
Perth (2004)
Brilliant Singaporean Entry
Having just visited Singapore for an extended stay, one of the first things I did, as an avid movie buff, was to hunt down the best in local cinema. Perth is one of those movies. Not only does it offer the viewer a small glimpse into everyday Singaporean life with it's brilliant use of Singlish dialog, it delivers a great story that gets you right in the gut. (hehe)
My only complaint is that the DVD is not (that I can find) multi region so I can buy copies for my friends back home in the States. However, I will settle for the VCD release for the time being.
Lets hope this goes into wider release soon. It is a film that needs to be shared, and is yet another example of the need to eliminate region specific coding.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider - The Cradle of Life (2003)
Better than the first
Albeit not the greatest of all action movies (I rated this a 7 out of 10), The Cradle Of Life had a very unique feel to it that sets it aside from others, and way outdid it's predecessor.
The change in directors from the first movie to Jan de Bont made all the difference, and as I look through his past credits, I can further understand his vision for this movie.
Cradle has a more stylized, gentle feel to it, and was enchanting if not beautiful at times. It was never over the top with the action sequences or cgi effects (although the shark scene was a little goofy as I felt like I was watching Finding Nemo for a sec).
The amazing soundtrack blended well with the action shots and sound effects (a lesson learned from the M. Manson Resident Evil experiment mayhaps)?
The fight scenes were well orchestrated and directed and I never felt as though there were any filler shots needed in between to keep us interested (as there were none). Most of the action blended into great, grand landscape views that left you wanting more.
Like the first, the content was lacking storywise, but not as much, and I am sure had Jan de Bont been given more to work with, he would have made it enthralling.
Should they decide to do TR3, I would hope that Jan de Bont will be at the helm, and I look forward to his next movie.
Cidade de Deus (2002)
Suprise after suprise after suprise!!!
Suprise after suprise after suprise.
Man, I so have to remind myself to ignore the reviews.
This film was so very fantastic. I haven't been this impressed with a lower budget film in years. Not to compare, but the shocks per minute ratio was right up there with Tarantino, but with seemingly much less effort. See this film as fast as you can, and watch it again and again just to savor all the subtly involved in creating such a masterpiece. All the brilliant camera angles, the sweat dripping off every 10 year old killer, and all of the plot twists that didn't need one ounce of fake blood to get across all of the realism involved with the subject matter, it was way too much.
I felt alive during the whole film. I felt for every single character, in every sense. If COG misses the Academy voting, then something is seriously wrong.
Solar Crisis (1990)
A nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon
With the earlier comments from other critics summing up many of my feelings about this movie, I will make this short.
This is not a great movie, but it was a lot of fun to watch.
It has all the tell tale signs of an epic sci-fi tale that was trimmed down way too far (like Dune or The Black Hole). Great acting edited down to shreds, plot lines that go nowhere (but feel like they should), and great special effects to fill in the blanks.
I havent seen the original release yet, but will search for it just to see an alternate cut, as it seems the original intent was to make a masterfull sci-fi thriller, but the US release falls a bit short of this ideal.
I have seen it twice now, and for all it's misgivings, it makes for some good popcorn time.
Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993)
Yeah...I was on there once....
Yep... One nite they needed scary grunge boys to do a corny Seattle grunge sketch. I WAS GRUNGE BOY NUMBER 3!!! DID THEY AIR IT....NOOOOO... I waited for hours, preparing for my big shot on Late Nite. Sweating the whole time... We were towed out, looking mighty fine and grungy, heck, I even started scratching at my arm to look authentic. Did it work for the big man Conan??? NOOOOOOO... It was waaayy over his head. He barely let out a chuckle before he dropped me like last nights Jamesons. Thanks a lot Conan, you big man fake booty late nite snake in the grass. Thanks a lot... for nothing.... By the way, need anybody for your skits? Im still available... And I love your show... Kiss Kiss... :)
Bruiser (2000)
Wow... Why Did We Have To Wait So Long For This?
This is a wonderfully directed film from one of the best directors in the business. The only question is, why did he wait so long to show us? This psy-thriller ranks up there with the cult classic Psycho or more recently American Psycho and Memento. What has he been doing all these years? The cinematography is unreal, provoking the innermost evils of man. Not only do you root for the beleaguered white collar worker (hero), but you feel absolute pity as he goes to any length to finally be noticed by (or to pay back) the people that live the life he would give everything to have, no matter how he attains this goal. This pin-eyed, whited faced anti-hero brings up many questions about the simple progressions of mankind, or more specifically, Americans. This is a reoccurring theme in Romeo's work, and he works it like a charm. This movie is worth every second spent in the viewing, which makes me state again, Why make us wait???? The good thing, is that G.R. has 2 projects in the coming years, but if we are really lucky, he will do far more in this coming decade then he did in the last.
Korean Connection (1990)
Here Is A Winner...
Totally useless plot, bad action and even worse direction. Of course, I own it. This is a classic tale of love lost, bad cinematography, and no credits. Who would want their name on this film?
I bought it for two bucks from a video store clearance sale. It was worth every penny. I laugh every time I watch it. By the way, it's a kung fu drama.
Made in Japan, mayhaps to ridicule Korea, this movie plays out like an editors dream come true(the editor sleeping through the whole process).
Gunan il guerriero (1982)
A movie you may forget right after you watch it...
Here is a larf if I ever saw one. This movie makes "Hercules In New York" look good. It goes without saying that I own this movie. Everyone should.
This is a true classic, the type of movie that would inspire Ed Wood to rise from the dead and team up with Roger Corman to make a sequel to "Masters of the Universe".
A must see. After you watch this, check out "Korean Connection" to compare notes on the junk that was put out on both sides of the world during the early 80's.
Are they kitch or camp? We may never know.... Either way, it's a whole lotta fun.
Hellraiser: Inferno (2000)
A suspenseful mind trip...
I am so happy that the straight to video sequels are branching out away from the mistake that was the third movie "Hell on Earth". Rather than including random acts of violence and gore, this particular movie borrows more from the graphic novel series. Using the first two movies as a base, the comics explore the different levels of hell, including stories of the personal hell of those that come across the box. This movie documents the personal hell of a cop gone bad. I wont get into the details, but it is one heck of a ride. There is more suspense as opposed to blood and gore as they set the stage for a very suprising, and messy ending.
The quality is very good considering this was straight to video. The Cenobites, as always (with the exception of the silly CD tossing guy in part three)are very creative creatures. Although you dont get more than a couple of visits from Pinhead, you know he is running the whole show. After all, he is a very busy man. Hell is a big place.