What Have You Just Seen... Marks Out of 5

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 03 Jan 2007, 19:24

hey,

Bewitched Area Of Thousand Years 1/5

Boring Taiwanese horror quickie that is only useful for some minor ventures into hokey make-up and SFX as well as gore. At least the ending is a little lively though.

degeneration · Post by **degeneration** » 03 Jan 2007, 23:23

Casino Royale 4/5

Really quite enjoyed this film, but I'm amazed and shocked that it was a 12A certificate!!! It should have easily been a 15!! What with the 'ball' torture, people getting shot and killed in quite a number of places, the nail to the eye etc... I also seem to remember a time when those flick knife or switchblade type knifes were banned on screen, but were quite ok here in this 12A film... I know that they may be allowed now as times do change, but still. IMO this should not have been a 12A.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 04 Jan 2007, 01:18

I thought it should've been a 15 too.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 04 Jan 2007, 01:33

Agreed.

Markgway · Post by **Markgway** » 04 Jan 2007, 01:37

Yeah, and hopefully it will be on DVD.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 04 Jan 2007, 09:16

Agreed x 3. Should really have been a 15.

Father Ted - S2 Part 2 - 5/5

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 05 Jan 2007, 06:17

The Host
Bisc liked it and Tom liked it so I knew what I was in for. But part of me was still hoping for more. Cyprinus carpio.

If You Were Me 2
Not as good as the first, lacked a little of the panache but still had some great films in there.

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 05 Jan 2007, 11:11

Babel - 5/5
Inarritu has done it again. Presented in Inarritu's typical fragmented non-linear structure, it works marvellously utilising another flawless Arriaga script and is 100% free of Hollywood-esque sentiment. Santaolalla haunting guitar score is as marvellous and pulling as it was 21 Grams and Amores Perros; as is Prieto's grainy cinematography.

As anyone with half a brain can figure out - the central theme is communication; it is explored in a similar fashion to "the value of life" and "how love is not easy" were in the previous outings. Discussions explored in the film include:- The consequences of ignoring communication, the isolation brought by a lack of communication, misunderstandings of communication, communication over cultural and political barriers, the loss of communication between significant others.

Brad Pitt really surprised me, this is probably the performance of his career.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 05 Jan 2007, 15:48

A Moment of Romance 2 - 2.5/5
Can't believe that the last quarter of the film ruined that otherwise solid motion picture. Started out as a 3.5, maybe even 4/5 film, but the last quarter seriously dragged it down.

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 05 Jan 2007, 16:06

hey,

Wu Chien-lien can do no wrong but Aaron Kwok can and could at this time and he creates an emotionless experience when it should've been one. Some funny implausabilities towards the end and sped up racing make it even more sillier.

Mark liked it.

degeneration · Post by **degeneration** » 05 Jan 2007, 16:12

Whispering Corridors 2/5

Decent start, but then it slows down and is neither a great suspense film, horror film nor slasher film. Could've been so much better.

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 05 Jan 2007, 16:32

Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl
Don't know why I watched 40 minutes of it, I supposed I hoped it might at elast be mindless entertainment. Wrong.

Double Suicide
I got a bit sick of the melodrama + whining women and pitiful characters. But what was I expecting from a film version of a 1700's kabuki play? Well made film, not my cup fo tea.

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 05 Jan 2007, 18:21

Apocalypto 3/5

Again as with Passion of the Christ, Gibson sugarcoats a film to give it that "grand epic" look, but again delivers a fairly one dimensional storyline. Thankfully this time, the premise is a bit more interesting than a bloke getting the seven shades of shit kicked out of him for two hours.

The first hour shows a bunch of villagers getting kidnapped. The second hour is basically a looooong chase scene. When you think about it, Apocalypto is just a B-movie... like Evil Dead or something... but all glossed up with fancy music and pretty photography. It's fairly obvious that it was filmed digitally - I remember Scary Movie 4 looking identical.

The opening quote is:

"A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within." — W. Durant

Most useless opening quote ever! They may as well have used one of Romero's quotes, as it has nothing to do with the storyline. You kind of expect something huge and meaningful... Apocalypto... end of a civilization.... but nope, you just get a slightly above average action movie with subtitles to make it look contemporary.

slasher13 · Post by **slasher13** » 05 Jan 2007, 22:14

Baabul - 3/5
It pretty hard to describe this movie, the 2nd half of the movie is great, lots of drama, both Rani and the big A are on top. John Arabham is really great, and Om Puri is excellent as the eldest brother who worries about tradition rather than what family should come. However there is one thing that lefts down the 1st half, and it called Salam Khan, He is just rubbish in this movie, honestly if they put in someone else like SRK then this would be a better movie and even more of a compact within the 1st half. He is purely rubbish which is why I think the movie is getting panned. If you get through watching the 1st half, the 2nd half is sooo much better due to a tradegy in the family. The 2nd half is really really great, I really liked it, but have to say overall the 1st half kills off the film which is a shame.

Nice music, and glad to see John Abraham breaking out of hearttrob movie and instead acting Smile

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 05 Jan 2007, 22:40

hey,

The Log 3.5/5

Despite the obviously heavyhanded symbolism concerning 1997, Derek Chiu's thriller-drama has enough character-based touches that outweighs some of the more out of touch visuals. A filmmaker in transition towards even better things, he gets an award winning turn from Kent Cheng and integrates Michael Wong's foreign character into a Hong Kong movie, for once. Meaning he CAN and WILL speak Chinese and English, even requiring translation at points.

degeneration · Post by **degeneration** » 05 Jan 2007, 23:57

Gladiator 4-4.5/5

I remember when I first saw this film, it was on DVD and I'd heard so many good things about it that I was expecting something special. At the time I was disappointed. I thought it was ok, but nothing more, and I couldn't see what all the fuss had been about.

Just watched it again, and again I'm amazed at how your expectations can completely change your perception on a film. This time I went in to it remembering that I thought it wasn't anything special and have come out thoroughly enjoying it and thinking it was agreat film!! Glad I kept the DVD now and very glad I watched it again. Prob a good thing I waited several years to do so as well!!

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 06 Jan 2007, 02:16

Knetan wrote:Wu Chien-lien can do no wrong but Aaron Kwok can and could at this time and he creates an emotionless experience when it should've been one.

Kwok wasn't that bad IMO. But the lame guy was just out of place, because it looked a lot like they tried to make another part 1, if that wasn't obvious already with the title and all.

Some funny implausabilities towards the end and sped up racing make it even more sillier.

The sped up racing wasn't that bad either IMO. Things like Frank pretending to be going mad while driving the car and hitting his head in the front shield, resulting his face to be covered in blood, only to be completely clean once he gets out of the car.

There were so many side plots. They should have cancelled the racing plot (although Anthony Wong was the best actor in the whole film) and should rather have concentrated on Frank's relationship to his father and more importantly to Celia.

Matando Cabos - 4.5/5
Hilarious comedy about mix-up between a kidnapping victim and his once best friend, the father of the kidnapper. Does that make sense? Oh yes, it does. This film has so funny dialogues and even funnier are the awesome characters. The film features some great, very short and fast cuts, like in "Snatch" (when we see that guy fly to New York and get back) which either tell us the background stories of certain characters (even some of which don't have anything to do with the main story) or tell us what is going to happen if the main characters decide to go either that way or that way.

Really tough to explain. Even in the making of, when crew members or the director are asked what the "Matando Cabos" is about, they aren't really able to explain. But it's very simple to understand once you are watching the film.

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 06 Jan 2007, 09:07

hey,

Pavilion Of Women 2/5

A rich tapestry of themes and emotions...on paper, even without having read the book the treatment here by Yim Ho (shooting in English language for the first time I believe) feels watered down, merely ticking off the excellent content in a standard manner.

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 07 Jan 2007, 08:44

hey,

Naked Weapon 1/5

What really is Wong Jing's Naked Weapon is a shallow mess in intent but he's not able to work magic from that simple goal either. Ching Siu-Tung's action seems forced to rely less on the doubles and more on the actresses which does hurt (and would hurt any 90s high flying spectacle as well). A neat sequence at Cheng Pei-Pei's house remains the sole spark Ching manages to inject in this borefest. And as for Maggie Q, well...didn't think for a second she made an impression but she got her tits out so all's well then? Check out Anya in Sharp Guns instead. Now THAT is making an impression.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 07 Jan 2007, 10:02

Hey,

No Retreat No Surrender - 3/5

Enjoyable Karate Kid a-like in which a kid learns kung fu from the ghost of Bruce Lee

(Tong Lung from Game of Death II I think)

JCVD is in it for about 10 seconds

At least I thought KK came first.
My uncle and I liked it, my mum hated the fighting in it - like the bit where the hero beats up the guys who hurt his father, in Bruce's films anyway, he never fights at the beginning, and even when he did, its only when he's driven to the end of his rope and angry. The purpose of learning MA shouldn't be for "violence".

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 07 Jan 2007, 10:24

hey,

gotta rewatch that someday to see if there is a smidgen better action than I remember, considering Corey Yuen directed. Best line is when Van Damn-it is insulted by the end:

"Russian!"

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 07 Jan 2007, 11:24

Yeah, I found the action to be 80's American standard rather than HK standard (if that makes sense). As to whether it was uncut, I don't know

It was in a 3 DVD set (with NRNS 2 and 3.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 07 Jan 2007, 16:52

Exiled - 4.5/5
What a blast. My review:
http://www.asia-on-dvd.com/index.php?na ... cle&sid=72

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 07 Jan 2007, 17:04

Casino Royale 3.5/5
Aye I decided to boycott my own boycott of not seeing a censored film.

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 07 Jan 2007, 17:10

BiscLimpkit wrote:Casino Royale 3.5/5
Aye I decided to boycott my own boycott of not seeing a censored film.

Good to know that you're a man who stands by his principles.