What asian film/series have you just seen.. marks out of 5

gasteropod · Post by **gasteropod** » 31 Dec 2008, 18:19

I'd love to see that, looks good

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 31 Dec 2008, 19:19

gasteropod wrote:I'd love to see that, looks good

And I hear season 2 is even better. I'm getting too excited :king: :faroah:

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 31 Dec 2008, 19:52

That looks fun Hungfist

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 01 Jan 2009, 22:50

Ip Man (2008 - HK - By Wilson Yip with Donnie Yen and Simon Yam): 3 / 5

Meh...

Almost a perfect carbon copy of Fearless. With Ip Man, Wilson Yip uses the name of a famous martial arts master to make his own little kung-fu flick.
Don't expect an accurate biopic, and don't expect to see any accurate historical facts in this.

The good:
-Donnie Yen is surprisingly good.
-The choregraphy by Sammo Hung is fairly decent (similar to what he did on Blade of Fury and on par with Fearless, SPL and Flashpoint).
-The inevitable Wing Chun training scene is well done. Not too long, not too short, not too serious and not too funny. It's just right.

The bad:
-The score by Kenji Kawai. I'm sorry, but I'm really beginning to hate this guy. The score for Ip Man is recycled from Seven Swords and feels totally out of place most of the time.
-The lack of coherence in the narrative. There are many holes in the story and you can tell a lot of stuff has ended up on the cutting room floor.
-The lack of originality. If you've seen SPL and Fearless, then you've seen Ip Man. There's nothing new to see here. Nothing worth getting excited about. It's just... meh.

If you're in need of a quick martial art film fix, Ip Man will work just fine.
It's good entertainment. Watch it with no expectations and you might like it.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 01 Jan 2009, 23:43

I havent seen SPL, any good?

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 01 Jan 2009, 23:50

grim_tales wrote:I havent seen SPL, any good?

I haven't seen Casablanca, any good?

Seriously, Grim. It's the most talked about and acclaimed Hong Kong action film of the decade.

Shingster · Post by **Shingster** » 02 Jan 2009, 00:27

HungFist wrote:Seriously, Grim. It's the most talked about and acclaimed Hong Kong action film of the decade.

It's not THAT talked about or acclaimed, it just stands out in a vacuous decade for HK action. Clumsy melodrama but decent action, the film really is nothing special at all.

the68monkey · Post by **the68monkey** » 02 Jan 2009, 03:52

Curse of the Golden Flower (3 out of 5)
Plodding and melodramatic. *yawn* Still, I'll give it marks for the excellent leads of Chow Yun Fat and Gong Li. Fantastic setting, too. Too bad the story was boring as hell. If you like this sort of royal family melodrama, see The Lion in Winter. FAR better.

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 02 Jan 2009, 09:23

Shingster wrote:
HungFist wrote:Seriously, Grim. It's the most talked about and acclaimed Hong Kong action film of the decade.
It's not THAT talked about or acclaimed, it just stands out in a vacuous decade for HK action. Clumsy melodrama but decent action, the film really is nothing special at all.

Even if you didn't think so highly of it surely you admit it's best action film HK has produced since early 90's?

But my main point was that on this forum alone the film has been mentioned or discussed 244 times already (search engine results). Grim's question made is sound like it's a little known film... I mean, probably even Brad has watched his dvd already

saltysam · Post by **saltysam** » 02 Jan 2009, 12:05

Will be watching Ip Man later...looking forward to it.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 02 Jan 2009, 12:09

I must be the only person who liked Curse of the Golden Flower.

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 02 Jan 2009, 13:11

It's Only Talk (Japan, 2005) - 4,5/5
Ryuichi Hiroki has been one of the most interesting Japanese directors for years, although many of his films have been flawed. But he seems to be developing constantly. Vibrator was like a follow up to Tokyo gomi onna. It's Only Talk is a fully mature, superior version of Vibrator. Hiroki’s razor sharp eye (the cinematography) is still here, but now also soundtrack and characters are perfectly subtle. The film’s opening is so amazingly good that there’s a risk of the actual film not being able to live up to it, but it does, almost fully. Shinobu Terajima, who was already very good in Vibrator, gives an amazingly good performance in the lead role. Very few actresses dare to be this real in front of the camera.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 02 Jan 2009, 14:17

Hey Brad, I liked Curse of the Golden Flower

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 02 Jan 2009, 15:13

Liked it too.

the68monkey · Post by **the68monkey** » 02 Jan 2009, 15:43

tom2681 wrote:Liked it too.

Hey, aren't you the guy who loves the films everybody else hates?

Markgway · Post by **Markgway** » 02 Jan 2009, 16:36

Shingster wrote:It's not THAT talked about or acclaimed, it just stands out in a vacuous decade for HK action. Clumsy melodrama but decent action, the film really is nothing special at all.

Exactly. I only gave it **/4.

For the action, natch.

The movie was overrated simply because it was like a mouthful of water in a vast desert.

Doesn't make it a good movie or anything like.

Markgway · Post by **Markgway** » 02 Jan 2009, 16:37

bradavon wrote:I must be the only person who liked Curse of the Golden Flower.

No, I also thought it was a good film.

the68monkey · Post by **the68monkey** » 02 Jan 2009, 16:52

Based on all the "I thought it was good" remarks, you'd think I gave Curse of the Golden Flower a 1 out of 5, rather than a 3.

I think it's better than average, especially with Chow Yun Fat and Gong Li in the leads. Still, it's not nearly as good as House of Flying Daggers, and doesn't even come close to the greatness of Raise the Red Lantern.

If it's a martial arts film, then the pacing is too slow. If it's a character drama, then there needs to be more character development. If it's a period piece, then there should be less melodrama.

saltysam · Post by **saltysam** » 02 Jan 2009, 18:32

Ip Man 3/5

This is merely decent and as such a little disappointing.it's great to see martial atrs period pieces being made though.Donnie Yen is surprisingly understated as the title character,unfortunately cliches abound ie evil japanese!! fights are ok,nothing stand outish,and clearly a sequel is on the cards.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 02 Jan 2009, 19:26

I havent seen RTRL yet, but intend to get it.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 02 Jan 2009, 19:46

the68monkey wrote:Based on all the "I thought it was good" remarks, you'd think I gave Curse of the Golden Flower a 1 out of 5, rather than a 3. I think it's better than average, especially with Chow Yun Fat and Gong Li in the leads.

Fair enough. I thought you only thought it was okay/passable.

the68monkey wrote:Still, it's not nearly as good as House of Flying Daggers

Agreed. I love that film.

the68monkey wrote:If it's a martial arts film, then the pacing is too slow.

I don't recall any martial arts.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 02 Jan 2009, 20:05

Me neither. The only big "action" scene is towards the end. It's more of a drama movie.

Shingster · Post by **Shingster** » 02 Jan 2009, 23:36

HungFist wrote:Even if you didn't think so highly of it surely you admit it's best action film HK has produced since early 90's?

It's one of the best HK has produced this decade, but since the early 90s? No where near!

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 02 Jan 2009, 23:46

Shingster wrote:
HungFist wrote:Even if you didn't think so highly of it surely you admit it's best action film HK has produced since early 90's?
It's one of the best HK has produced this decade, but since the early 90s? No where near!

What good action films did HK produce after Hard Boiled and Full Contact?

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 02 Jan 2009, 23:55

Fist of Legend
Heroic Trio
Drunken Master II
Purple Storm
Who Am I