tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70299969612875808992024-03-13T14:54:41.917-05:00In Nervous ConvulsionHeavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-11684356578833532592011-08-01T22:28:00.000-05:002011-08-01T22:29:15.437-05:00Just a head's up for you guys. =)<br /><br />"Starting next Friday through Sunday, Japan Flix will be making two of its movies (to be named later!) available for free on its new streaming service to all members all weekend long. Membership is free and it only takes seconds to join. To become a memeber, head over to <a href="http://www.japanflix.com/" target="_blank">www.japanflix.com</a> and click on the 'Join' button at the top of the screen."Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-45825374304179547992011-06-17T15:41:00.006-05:002011-06-17T15:53:42.679-05:00My Thoughts On Rest Stop (2006)REST STOP (2006)<br />John Shiban, Director.<br />80 Fun Filled Minutes.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Koiu5sFQM7wY4sskLNvxK5rzRD0GuuGvU7zPHXU7fTllLrA17AfjvfvePRleB2-gXoI_1C35TKi6rgdn7uFJz1JZj60pu930a3VAjM6ijuD32vAZaQ7fMFErKy9V8PiX6ZLmbBMtBuc/s1600/001.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Koiu5sFQM7wY4sskLNvxK5rzRD0GuuGvU7zPHXU7fTllLrA17AfjvfvePRleB2-gXoI_1C35TKi6rgdn7uFJz1JZj60pu930a3VAjM6ijuD32vAZaQ7fMFErKy9V8PiX6ZLmbBMtBuc/s200/001.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619293044752846850" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Koiu5sFQM7wY4sskLNvxK5rzRD0GuuGvU7zPHXU7fTllLrA17AfjvfvePRleB2-gXoI_1C35TKi6rgdn7uFJz1JZj60pu930a3VAjM6ijuD32vAZaQ7fMFErKy9V8PiX6ZLmbBMtBuc/s1600/001.jpg"> </a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilApeyyM04WB0WR8KAvvleycV9WkU_xMrFos0zoe-l39TfG0d1m0YVIL91hKkiYH2DB_XStXlHEDoUOfRBEb6krYgPjdSpYUhV5OR823fWWD1OisiOvZ0CU1ivs_SBymFExXDQ8VxsgsM/s1600/002.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilApeyyM04WB0WR8KAvvleycV9WkU_xMrFos0zoe-l39TfG0d1m0YVIL91hKkiYH2DB_XStXlHEDoUOfRBEb6krYgPjdSpYUhV5OR823fWWD1OisiOvZ0CU1ivs_SBymFExXDQ8VxsgsM/s200/002.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619293038209455314" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirlFrGFihjDTFg7b86W2aVC8bMG7CTdSKeguXnBmmd8CzRwU4jIHVH2y8kTSrx2rrrAm9m-8RKurHXPV_wBOSgVGRQ6hPq38kWQbymkH1jFIwCu7C7E9fJnGRCbnYxcPuMgS8NqUnSSnY/s1600/003.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirlFrGFihjDTFg7b86W2aVC8bMG7CTdSKeguXnBmmd8CzRwU4jIHVH2y8kTSrx2rrrAm9m-8RKurHXPV_wBOSgVGRQ6hPq38kWQbymkH1jFIwCu7C7E9fJnGRCbnYxcPuMgS8NqUnSSnY/s200/003.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619293030704731826" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB__5sW0zP6Lsxi10Til5DK1cQouAwy8ksDUFPxJEAXuppZe5n_3x4Hhnxc6wpM_AFariFUyw-9AdY_0fhD1Y6rfrYrnPFQA1qsMV-p5MT0w1jcBJbKo6eTO6AviE-eG5W1t_6Q1y-3Zw/s1600/004.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB__5sW0zP6Lsxi10Til5DK1cQouAwy8ksDUFPxJEAXuppZe5n_3x4Hhnxc6wpM_AFariFUyw-9AdY_0fhD1Y6rfrYrnPFQA1qsMV-p5MT0w1jcBJbKo6eTO6AviE-eG5W1t_6Q1y-3Zw/s200/004.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619293025802305154" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXkHiTlhcZdrab3PCch7Mfwy41lNsO1JVQUh3A9PNczA24Gl4ttuE8urw21wlH87MHej2hOytuW2_pYC-2DdY2pTu9xlCS_b3WvNmomMl4OQW4DaEIBKx3vmVUj25BjhOvsXKedHb_SYU/s1600/005.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXkHiTlhcZdrab3PCch7Mfwy41lNsO1JVQUh3A9PNczA24Gl4ttuE8urw21wlH87MHej2hOytuW2_pYC-2DdY2pTu9xlCS_b3WvNmomMl4OQW4DaEIBKx3vmVUj25BjhOvsXKedHb_SYU/s200/005.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619292466947080418" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirVB2gca5B1ZK8ZpERDlbMKOND_r91FGM4ZtrkLmuALvbZYNVHCQD1i1rKXf56vETcp0zFgh9UP9XjzmCN6vY9Ke1XbtHY_pYpV2qQuPJtjGmHVLU-IDhWXum0EvOxKkaCmZ9PbwpZgzc/s1600/006.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirVB2gca5B1ZK8ZpERDlbMKOND_r91FGM4ZtrkLmuALvbZYNVHCQD1i1rKXf56vETcp0zFgh9UP9XjzmCN6vY9Ke1XbtHY_pYpV2qQuPJtjGmHVLU-IDhWXum0EvOxKkaCmZ9PbwpZgzc/s200/006.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619292455373617394" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6z9xEa1JpmdGn3JQAdiEEtOyC8f6DIwkokMsDWSq3ZxSaaZstyvWQHhMtg2VyITS-9Oz47LcQtWAW-3hAoFKn4zLqJTXAgq8PLpVge975EWps2MSRCchUq1gWBhvN3UwFLekVvF-EO-g/s1600/007.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6z9xEa1JpmdGn3JQAdiEEtOyC8f6DIwkokMsDWSq3ZxSaaZstyvWQHhMtg2VyITS-9Oz47LcQtWAW-3hAoFKn4zLqJTXAgq8PLpVge975EWps2MSRCchUq1gWBhvN3UwFLekVvF-EO-g/s200/007.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619292448187209570" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGGfm4OCZoaT0-p2PEdE1nz3ayHNo-umrm-Ueo_jcIZ9ECRpMKlGc9ye9xVGCsUZzl7E8zhV030lcYq_kAKSgdcFtcYaTNwxLsfjor176GsgEHbWqPC3ebVIMnRiz3mEFPmESuZaiRmmY/s1600/008.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGGfm4OCZoaT0-p2PEdE1nz3ayHNo-umrm-Ueo_jcIZ9ECRpMKlGc9ye9xVGCsUZzl7E8zhV030lcYq_kAKSgdcFtcYaTNwxLsfjor176GsgEHbWqPC3ebVIMnRiz3mEFPmESuZaiRmmY/s200/008.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619292443751391314" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHMAsJL8rrdjRlEqEbVlM_3NnqYxijy9Bcl_M0NA-7tQ94qpHP2_xP_p6NprRl6L7ThzedLWipx4w78PSC5j00WWE2QRpxQn-jdzG5xa9cvJuhEBcvseEKmGFaakcGrorOVnWqy-hCkC8/s1600/009.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHMAsJL8rrdjRlEqEbVlM_3NnqYxijy9Bcl_M0NA-7tQ94qpHP2_xP_p6NprRl6L7ThzedLWipx4w78PSC5j00WWE2QRpxQn-jdzG5xa9cvJuhEBcvseEKmGFaakcGrorOVnWqy-hCkC8/s200/009.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5619292433939538546" border="0" /></a><br />I haven't been this angry with a film since the remake of It's Alive. I would rather watch the "reboot" of Friday the 13th again than this thing. Avoid.<br /><br />NOTE: An old grill from the dumpster was used for this review, I don't cook on that thing anymore obviously.Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-42901870312127208242011-04-28T17:02:00.008-05:002011-04-28T17:37:04.117-05:00Perfect Education:40 Days Of Love<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5DMLPBhYUmKc1xWJLPj6qpYqqmBmenwIu7hX5g2Sd9wO1r-mSXg2DADYDCwkcsozyQJj2zTR_Qcf-6M8RYfIdjkxgSNJ9yVFVbYxp7X1PoBX3E90a-S91P4R6KIkPLLLllEKNvyCifs8/s1600/PerfectEducation40Daysoflove-8bit-800pxX1200px-ver1.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5DMLPBhYUmKc1xWJLPj6qpYqqmBmenwIu7hX5g2Sd9wO1r-mSXg2DADYDCwkcsozyQJj2zTR_Qcf-6M8RYfIdjkxgSNJ9yVFVbYxp7X1PoBX3E90a-S91P4R6KIkPLLLllEKNvyCifs8/s320/PerfectEducation40Daysoflove-8bit-800pxX1200px-ver1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5600758488695102882" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Perfect Education: 40 Days of Love (2001)</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Yoichi Nishiyama, Director.<br />89 Minutes.</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Psychologist Akai sees a depressed young woman by a bridge outside his office every day. Curious, he approaches her and she propositions him. He politely declines but offers her treatment to help her cope with what is bothering her. She accepts and he soon elects to use hypnosis as a treatment. Through this hypnosis it is revealed that several years earlier she was abducted by a teacher named Tatsuaki Sumikawa and held captive for forty days. From this revelation, the rest of the film takes place in a series of flashbacks, as Haruka explains the circumstances of her time in captivity.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOop-jy3vcUMLN_qAxe8Ds5UY8Liv_2EdS0kqWHvF2PB6q2uk6j0ds_uGXHgMo74r7CKXFAeEuOE3RJ4ZlURv8Z4Zx0-1-ucqA9XCLikJNI7QpdrTEdignOIhvGyewGhF2L-Sk4hgA_LI/s1600/TO40Daysoflove_still2.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 256px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOop-jy3vcUMLN_qAxe8Ds5UY8Liv_2EdS0kqWHvF2PB6q2uk6j0ds_uGXHgMo74r7CKXFAeEuOE3RJ4ZlURv8Z4Zx0-1-ucqA9XCLikJNI7QpdrTEdignOIhvGyewGhF2L-Sk4hgA_LI/s400/TO40Daysoflove_still2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5600758843017334018" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Perfect Education 40 Days of Love</span> is the second film in a series of seven films in total, (if I have my information correct) that are unrelated to each other beyond the title. I haven't seen any of the other films in the series, myself, but this one works fine as a stand alone film. It was the debut film from director Yoichi Nishiyama, who also directed such films as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Trouble Maker Lucy</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fateful</span>, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Gurozuka</span>. It is also the film debut performance of Japanese model Rie Rukami, who plays the role of kidnapped girl Haruka Tsumura. The kidnapper, Tatsuaki Sumikawa is played by Yasuhito Hida who may be known to readers from his role as Bad Ronin Kuroiwa in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Samurai Fiction</span> among other performances. (I also maintain that Hida looks like a Japanese John Cazale in this.) Rounding out the primary cast of the film is veteran character actor Naoto Takenaka, playing the role of the psychologist, Akai.<br /><br />One of the things that I think that the film handles really well is that Sumikawa never feels like a one note character. Right from the beginning, he seems at odds with himself about the actions he's taking. For example, in his one attempt to force himself on her sexually, he stops as soon as she starts to struggle and begins apologizing for his actions. In a standard exploitation style film, which is what this one looks like it would be on the surface, you might expect the Sumikawa character to be aggressive and forcing himself violently on Haruka throughout the film. But this isn't just a basic exploitation film, coated in the typical gratuitous sexualized violence. Instead, he comes across as a lonely and conflicted man, having taken this extreme step of abducting a woman out of desperation for companionship and wanting to teach her to become the perfect lover for him. Although it certainly doesn't excuse the character's actions, it does help to humanize him.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJlB7PIYofldDXE-xJ3nruFWDEkTrwveScSYnLDqPE3SpLxvTez6ZlxuFhDcspP2NtxmrvpaS_mioPHHoTj6NLTfF7HU7p5jXMTQPdcAUPlT5FCBmo3jPudHZ2DaCkUxahCtewDxSFhtQ/s1600/perfect-education-2-04.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 350px; height: 185px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJlB7PIYofldDXE-xJ3nruFWDEkTrwveScSYnLDqPE3SpLxvTez6ZlxuFhDcspP2NtxmrvpaS_mioPHHoTj6NLTfF7HU7p5jXMTQPdcAUPlT5FCBmo3jPudHZ2DaCkUxahCtewDxSFhtQ/s400/perfect-education-2-04.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5600763058293339682" border="0" /></a><br />Another element of the film that I found to be a really interesting touch is that we spend the majority of the time with Haruka in the small apartment, sealed off from the outside world. It is not until she is allowed to venture out one evening with Sumikawa that we find out the degree of effort being put forth to find her by her family and the police. We only see her perception of things, which is limited to a single television news segment near the beginning of her abduction.<br /><br />The film never really goes to the kinds of extremes that one might expect from it, and that is to its benefit, I think. It elevates the film from being simply exploitation and turns out to be something of a meditation on loneliness and the desire for love. Although unconventional of course, it is made abundantly clear that Sumikawa truly does love Haruka, and does care about her happiness in his own, very flawed way. Also in a flawed sort of way, Haruka comes to love Sumikawa as well, and eventually starts to refer to him as 'Dad'. This rather disturbing moniker is chosen by Sumikawa simply because, as he puts it, he couldn't come up with any better idea.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXn1jPGygyov_rR4k34RTT6Y1Mwv3xXq5SU6WHlUmoDCTedgTCtPSe7Sk6-Kit2ljFK_PTAb9M5PFG-5b0w1Yd1ahTPy3n6hTUWH2evjU7Yk59-bnpV3kTqy-7ax-oj_nw4_irQJBAVYs/s1600/TO40Daysoflove_till3.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 251px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXn1jPGygyov_rR4k34RTT6Y1Mwv3xXq5SU6WHlUmoDCTedgTCtPSe7Sk6-Kit2ljFK_PTAb9M5PFG-5b0w1Yd1ahTPy3n6hTUWH2evjU7Yk59-bnpV3kTqy-7ax-oj_nw4_irQJBAVYs/s400/TO40Daysoflove_till3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5600758846897368514" border="0" /></a><br />This is not to say that the film is void of exploitative elements, it certainly has it's share. For a good portion of the film, Haruka is topless, bound with rope or chain, and gagged. Often treated like a pet, she spends her days bound up on the bed with a TV and food to occupy her until Sumikawa returns home from work. Every night he bathes her, takes a polaroid photo of her and writes the date and her weight on it. These pictures are posted on the wall, presumably to track the progression of her time with him. It is during one of the first of these baths, in what I thought was a particularly odd move, he leans over and licks her soap covered shoulder. Getting a tongue coated in bath soap doesn't seem like a desirable choice to me, but that's just one person's opinion.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju5cPyOC2BVVqm6vNoYxkbPFdtgd49vn9eThbqygrpdo-CUIt0uxbPW3Zg_bEk1oI6vhxA9Zh8aj-JJe2OroB5nVlDHQIwEhu81sauE2cxXae1F0UvC7JCyKJvRY4wom4BumHQKHEMmKs/s1600/TO40daysoflove_still1.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 261px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju5cPyOC2BVVqm6vNoYxkbPFdtgd49vn9eThbqygrpdo-CUIt0uxbPW3Zg_bEk1oI6vhxA9Zh8aj-JJe2OroB5nVlDHQIwEhu81sauE2cxXae1F0UvC7JCyKJvRY4wom4BumHQKHEMmKs/s400/TO40daysoflove_still1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5600758838135727170" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Rie Rukami represents the weakest link of the film for me. She does a decent job in her role, but is clearly outranked by her cast mates. Having not seen any of her other films, it's kind of unclear to me if she has difficulty expressing emotions as an actress or if it is the character that she is playing. We learn early on that her character grew up without a father and is a rather quiet and lonely girl who doesn't feel particularly close to her friends. This sense of detachment that she carries could be argued as being portrayed in the occasionally wooden looking performance that she gives for the first two thirds of the film.<br /><br />While it is not without its flaws, all in all, I think <span style="font-weight: bold;">Perfect Education 40 Days of Love</span> is certainly worth a look for fans of the genre. It can be found for rent or purchase at <a href="http://www.japanflix.com/">Japanflix.com</a>. They also have other interesting looking Japanese films available that I've never seen. <br /><br /><br />Would you like to read a second opinion? Check out <a href="http://www.vcinemashow.com/?p=2204">this review</a> by my friend Coffin Jon, of VCinema Podcast. =)<br /><br /><br />You can view the trailer for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Perfect Education: 40 Days of Love</span> below: <iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ogVTAW2_s5g" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" width="560"></iframe><br /><br /><br />Comments are always welcome!Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-77356332911893183922011-04-20T20:10:00.009-05:002011-04-20T21:09:22.439-05:00Trapped (1973)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu1c2ontY8h0B30sfQM0yY6k4zQfyVm0aHPpDH8OkJi5UIo3vrDi7zt45aG6gH2i-t8Ey_BhSU16tj-9WzomVIAYHGXCsU4fdUc0HAO0MErYUswCbwwHIMtFIbYF_BSzw5pxPHKEd-v3Y/s1600/692759912_Trapped_1973_VHSRip.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu1c2ontY8h0B30sfQM0yY6k4zQfyVm0aHPpDH8OkJi5UIo3vrDi7zt45aG6gH2i-t8Ey_BhSU16tj-9WzomVIAYHGXCsU4fdUc0HAO0MErYUswCbwwHIMtFIbYF_BSzw5pxPHKEd-v3Y/s320/692759912_Trapped_1973_VHSRip.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597838848201733362" border="0" /></a><br /><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">Trapped , 1973.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">(AKA Doberman Patrol)</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">Frank De Felitta, Director.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">90 Min.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">This made for television film from 1973 certainly has an inviting premise. Divorced father Chuck Brenner, played by James Brolin, is at a department store buying a doll as a going away present for his daughter. Her recently remarried mother is taking her to a new home in Mexico City that very night. The specific doll that his daughter wants has to be brought up from the warehouse, so Chuck has to wait around for a while. Poor Chuck gets mugged while visiting the store's bathroom to have a smoke (sign of the times, eh?) and is knocked unconscious. He is overlooked by the store staff when they lock up for the night and left behind. This is particularly bad news for Chuck, as the store uses some exceptionally aggressive guard dogs to patrol the store at night.<br /></p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOHIHpBh-d4g2GpEOsEmBCQdX_rbrRUKOFBzRxcJ9fQgR5jXZCEEoS1RelpACuC1L-J17kmMVxD4XltnUj9PRMUY1DmW3RE47adrIAUWnQGFudJtDpjNLINsCo8wjd_3Zu3vnPF742Bfo/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h30m40s224.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOHIHpBh-d4g2GpEOsEmBCQdX_rbrRUKOFBzRxcJ9fQgR5jXZCEEoS1RelpACuC1L-J17kmMVxD4XltnUj9PRMUY1DmW3RE47adrIAUWnQGFudJtDpjNLINsCo8wjd_3Zu3vnPF742Bfo/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h30m40s224.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597839445376379522" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4zDXBwEk_uoROjM-I0P5cN_jCkePEtWln5htv5C7rFEuKOoxfLKWSnoq6AUJUDZjKcrXWDEHgu8r2P9h4e_ZwtRcf1PswJQvpVg5RmaN-X0xaP1BwstEFp29ibJpcxeo9x7jVFKgrwSc/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h32m15s222.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4zDXBwEk_uoROjM-I0P5cN_jCkePEtWln5htv5C7rFEuKOoxfLKWSnoq6AUJUDZjKcrXWDEHgu8r2P9h4e_ZwtRcf1PswJQvpVg5RmaN-X0xaP1BwstEFp29ibJpcxeo9x7jVFKgrwSc/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h32m15s222.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597839960950454722" border="0" /></a>For the full length of the film, Chuck is stuck in this department store dealing with these dogs. And when I say that these dogs are exceptionally aggressive, I'm not kidding. The security team wears face guards and padding when dealing with the dogs and put up temporary barricades between areas of the store so that the dogs don't attack each other during the night. On the couple of occasions that two of the dobermans are in the same space as each other, sure enough, they start fighting. All of the writings on this film that I was able to dig up mention that he's having to deal with dobermans, but there are at were at least three German shepards involved as well. Chuck is wounded in his first encounter with the dogs, one of the German shepards actually, and his movement is slowed down right from the start. (Somewhat amusingly, he feels the need to tourniquet the dog bite on his calf even though it clearly doesn't look very life threatening.) <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMkPVYu1n9h6qAZId8nzm-bQjaOEb-mfacvg2HrNMinw4BqRDnJo4SfTEXieATr2q5a9deKahHXgK2_uWMA_RjKllJTbqfF_7t9z1ZJfAV8dxeLuRG4QMnTsOoMat5bqztl6q6LcV5Zwc/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h33m27s183.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMkPVYu1n9h6qAZId8nzm-bQjaOEb-mfacvg2HrNMinw4BqRDnJo4SfTEXieATr2q5a9deKahHXgK2_uWMA_RjKllJTbqfF_7t9z1ZJfAV8dxeLuRG4QMnTsOoMat5bqztl6q6LcV5Zwc/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h33m27s183.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597839972201035906" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBServ5L2wv4purOkxBZ9fpkCWSXpNSSnoRZdOgdAlJsnnfrIJip2hiaCTb-4rSTypYCnmojwkpbki_9FdkzX9tqlkq0oA-pl4coF5ZV3-8HanT_jkCsbW5MeYYFECd-tYdvHf0m4AXvw/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h38m01s137.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBServ5L2wv4purOkxBZ9fpkCWSXpNSSnoRZdOgdAlJsnnfrIJip2hiaCTb-4rSTypYCnmojwkpbki_9FdkzX9tqlkq0oA-pl4coF5ZV3-8HanT_jkCsbW5MeYYFECd-tYdvHf0m4AXvw/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h38m01s137.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597839983726254034" border="0" /></a>Frank De Felitta had a moment of sheer genius, either intentional or not when he wrote this film. He gives viewers this amazing scapegoat that allows them to throw logic out the window when dealing with a big part of this story. You may be asking yourself what this genius idea was, right? He gives the protagonist a head injury. During the mugging, Chuck gets his head cracked on the tile floor in the bathroom, which presumably gives him a concussion or something. James Brolin does a decent job of portraying this in the film by staggering around a lot holding his head as he navigates through the department store. It provides a great way for the writer to avoid using logical solutions to situations that arise in the store. Why doesn't he just pull a fire alarm and wait for rescue? He didn't think of it, he's got a head injury. Why does he insist on continuing to fight his way out of the department store when he's got himself in a safe place that he could just hang out and wait for the store to open after the weekend? He has to get out to get help because his head injury is getting worse. Why does he wander around the department store making a huge mess everywhere he goes even when the dogs aren't around? Is he just a prick? No, he's got a head injury, he can't think straight.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ15PjY3D0FLoOxGedKEugFE1Lu4EsGx1ABUd3SV1ykNcEGyHSn7HtQxOeieZ7-IvCtXYUEZhaJCGRKX27qYW0xmTOQk0ZBWzMI2u98Eo_6Wcn3GorFOKdXmLt40fFVhuq-pjAH7O4qi4/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h43m59s111.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ15PjY3D0FLoOxGedKEugFE1Lu4EsGx1ABUd3SV1ykNcEGyHSn7HtQxOeieZ7-IvCtXYUEZhaJCGRKX27qYW0xmTOQk0ZBWzMI2u98Eo_6Wcn3GorFOKdXmLt40fFVhuq-pjAH7O4qi4/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h43m59s111.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597846673874370226" border="0" /></a> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpcPsXZE41SiZO1KC0R9ZbY_ByCqbm-8SZNmC5drDx8sro-Q1ZGj5D_y0jXKWpcUAQL9zTyjcFq_drCFPt7WXIWzqGcyAb4mRlw3zGZfs87NzDGSGN7dJLEEksV1W29wepAEDkWSkj9Ws/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h42m34s21.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpcPsXZE41SiZO1KC0R9ZbY_ByCqbm-8SZNmC5drDx8sro-Q1ZGj5D_y0jXKWpcUAQL9zTyjcFq_drCFPt7WXIWzqGcyAb4mRlw3zGZfs87NzDGSGN7dJLEEksV1W29wepAEDkWSkj9Ws/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h42m34s21.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597846670182240242" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">But we don't spend the entire film only seeing Chuck deal with his plight. There is also a side plot involving his ex-wife, played by Susan Clark, and her new husband as they attempt to find Chuck so that he can say goodbye to his daughter since their flight has been conveniently delayed. We learn that Chuck likes to drink, and his ex-wife Elaine expresses her cynicism about him throughout the film. In a wonderful moment of irony she delivers one of my favorite lines of the film. In this scene, she talks about how he's likely in any bar in the city and her new husband David, played by Earl Holliman tells her that Chuck is likely to be in a bar near the department store. Elaine looks at him and says “Terrific! Now that you've solved the mystery, can I have another drink?” I chuckled. There is also an unnecessary subplot about the tension that Chuck's disappearance brings into Elaine and David's relationship.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7iEv0l12fxwkGDTYWBL-BYwXg4f20GJ2-WEzf0dNbuWATws-M_AJBB20cl9fnQXUOqy6BgzglvVyCVS69OQdx9Ut4k7UgIPIjOcPfUBhxg-iPFi3061wmsUJPqx0YGkmNmgwy1Y_S2Gk/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h50m58s187.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7iEv0l12fxwkGDTYWBL-BYwXg4f20GJ2-WEzf0dNbuWATws-M_AJBB20cl9fnQXUOqy6BgzglvVyCVS69OQdx9Ut4k7UgIPIjOcPfUBhxg-iPFi3061wmsUJPqx0YGkmNmgwy1Y_S2Gk/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h50m58s187.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597850482946613746" border="0" /></a><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfveGGe_ppVtwTfAENnBhzpwnk1QCHZCL6Fp5A9Kp2ehgPkl7LspykIpSAJrDOWm1Mhyphenhyphencmre4lEBvLisGwbnP0oNdIP9jCRnIARqoB1ArDx0VffGvBbpXjNUlyKUI_A46Ht2xYqxOteRw/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h47m09s230.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597846678195249138" border="0" /></p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfveGGe_ppVtwTfAENnBhzpwnk1QCHZCL6Fp5A9Kp2ehgPkl7LspykIpSAJrDOWm1Mhyphenhyphencmre4lEBvLisGwbnP0oNdIP9jCRnIARqoB1ArDx0VffGvBbpXjNUlyKUI_A46Ht2xYqxOteRw/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h47m09s230.png"><br /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">There are several tender scenes involving the daughter Carrie, played by Tammy Harrington, a child actress who appeared in only seven things between 1973 and 1976. She continues to hope that her father will show up to say goodbye and this is what spurs David to try to find Chuck regardless of what his wife Elaine says about Chuck's irresponsible nature. This is an interesting aspect of the film to me because it touches on the difficulty of being a stepfather, and how their actions are perceived by the children involved. David does not want to be perceived by the little girl as the man who took her away from her father.<br /></p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9EWBCBtcDYbpSa7mglcXhNMM-7STjZElsSYa2WQ45AL4-ZqKZB33VdFcVY0tfLZcxMcnAVxnZRX9Y2UFNC8bVITFlH3b7Aag-OxJYSvlx4zMaZRLHzIOskqayOCS0XOEluoRXgJ7_jXo/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h37m31s72.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9EWBCBtcDYbpSa7mglcXhNMM-7STjZElsSYa2WQ45AL4-ZqKZB33VdFcVY0tfLZcxMcnAVxnZRX9Y2UFNC8bVITFlH3b7Aag-OxJYSvlx4zMaZRLHzIOskqayOCS0XOEluoRXgJ7_jXo/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h37m31s72.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597839978948710946" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">There are lots of great little details about this film that make it an interesting watch. For one thing, the people look like real people. They don't look like the “brand name” big star people who populate so many American Hollywood productions these days. Like many films from the 1970s, these actors look like your neighbors, the folks from the grocery store, the kid you see waiting for the school bus in the morning. Except for the questionable hair styles, and clothing, of course. This one of the things that I really like about films from the 1970s.<br /></p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimvv9c92gjKL4L7rckjw5TxSVh4NdrQBOScW3GwbW4I2NVtEcBFk3mm03YTGrCwcaB6n8L9b-ExhXweXguSTbjZEZfGgQwnBRLNkUHtVmce5x4P20h32YFapTuVhGqximoHaRlB5x_rSg/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-16h18m46s108.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimvv9c92gjKL4L7rckjw5TxSVh4NdrQBOScW3GwbW4I2NVtEcBFk3mm03YTGrCwcaB6n8L9b-ExhXweXguSTbjZEZfGgQwnBRLNkUHtVmce5x4P20h32YFapTuVhGqximoHaRlB5x_rSg/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-16h18m46s108.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597839435082556962" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Other interesting details that pop up come from interactions between characters. In one scene a stewardess at an airport is talking to the little girl and asks if she'd like to go lay down in the back for a little while instead of sitting out in the noisy waiting room because her flight is delayed. When have you seen that happen? In today litigious world, no employee of any business would invite a child to go lay down in the back room. Ever. Well, a particularly brave pervert may try such a move, but certainly not a well meaning upstanding employee of a business who doesn't want to be fired or sued when the child gets into mischief.<br /></p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcBX_8ew7YZ4Z8APDz6F2rxRfg-dtpYJAwrbKuka5toyjljMyZ5zP5xrUmzNOJ1ubJ2F7b6BX7b89Txi57iwHZVD4nj9SNA5fphe6aXbhas0WxYkOxRnx6U2t-va32v2EOclly6FmnYiU/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h51m20s160.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcBX_8ew7YZ4Z8APDz6F2rxRfg-dtpYJAwrbKuka5toyjljMyZ5zP5xrUmzNOJ1ubJ2F7b6BX7b89Txi57iwHZVD4nj9SNA5fphe6aXbhas0WxYkOxRnx6U2t-va32v2EOclly6FmnYiU/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h51m20s160.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597846683660593714" border="0" /></a> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs20s_ghw8kwaS-kTGAjEkiO_B2odWbI_MPmbzHsw4_wGctfITLpgHixZv33J1H7NVTJbVo_yy0ladzKjWQee9RswRueNwnDr4ifly1kya3zR75sR7IkhYG-UwEyIzx_Pyu3Ee-5oH-DU/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h53m57s194.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs20s_ghw8kwaS-kTGAjEkiO_B2odWbI_MPmbzHsw4_wGctfITLpgHixZv33J1H7NVTJbVo_yy0ladzKjWQee9RswRueNwnDr4ifly1kya3zR75sR7IkhYG-UwEyIzx_Pyu3Ee-5oH-DU/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h53m57s194.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597846687395597218" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Frank De Felitta has directed six films, according to IMDb, and all but one of them were made for TV films, including one of the ones that haunted my memories as a child in the form of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dark Night of the Scarecrow</span>. (Yeah, I know, in retrospect, even I think I was a little wuss. Let's move on, eh?) He also wrote the screenplay for 1982's <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Entity</span>, starring Barbara Hershey and Ron Silver. A strange looking little tidbit I found on his IMDb page is that he also wrote a film in 1974 called <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Savage Is Loose</span> starring George C. Scott about a father, wife, and son that find themselves stranded on a remote island together and the situations that arise as the son begins to mature sexually and wants the only woman that's around. Yeah, that looks like it could be a strange and controversial piece of film.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi7j1KQRIRIqUorSbOnCoKhB1jEmwFNz66h1AfbMroQJNom1QsYtJk_mlkOLlw509A9EwYRIwo5RKhKWwqdKf8UcmULCZK3xXK3x_KhNinCmY4bM5D5KmEDdEzBEEjxXQ83B5TO02GHl8/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h54m22s199.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597847989659713874" border="0" /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">It's no secret that I'm a big fan of animal attack films.<a href="http://rupertpupkinspeaks.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></a> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jaws</span> rip-offs are my favorite sub-variety. Something about the man versus some creature (that really exists) larger and more ferocious than he out in the wilderness just appeals to me. Horror film fans are a masochistic lot. We sit through bad horror film after bad horror film, hoping for that gem that will rock our world the way some classic piece of cinema did when we were kids. (In my case, this would be Jaws and Dawn of the Dead.) The animal attack sub-genre is no different. Let's be honest, a lot of animal attack movies, especially the shark films, are really, really bad films. I've even ranted about how awful and lazy some of these films can be in the past. While not perfect, this is a pretty good made for TV thriller, and certainly worth taking a look at. I know I enjoyed it quite a bit more than I expected to. Sadly, this film isn't on DVD yet. Special thanks to Rupert, who helped me find this film. Check out his blog at <a href="http://www.rupertpupkinspeaks.blogspot.com/">http://www.rupertpupkinspeaks.blogspot.com</a>. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM-Hk7UCfhVd48QclJ4XztJAp8BjLFFADrEdbMPOyj_1pOzBQTVkAeBfEv0G6PFKEy3-LwPppMOTprz8XwDZBGcQo5AAlqtHM0Ulo5p9GZwBwS3zl4gjIVo83jMT6sgljon3eO4ajflXw/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h59m03s53.png"><br /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEU-cFwlyL6rF2BxmcMpayzbeFroo4Mh2F5Btn4I5LRdZ6emfwUM0nz88F17ld7dhq3GeyfS3u_4lZjJB4LNfLsaxWuO5O1o3GgcIAt6kM1v__zaMpmlQET7JUaC24YCeGpryXChupzQk/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h55m45s250.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEU-cFwlyL6rF2BxmcMpayzbeFroo4Mh2F5Btn4I5LRdZ6emfwUM0nz88F17ld7dhq3GeyfS3u_4lZjJB4LNfLsaxWuO5O1o3GgcIAt6kM1v__zaMpmlQET7JUaC24YCeGpryXChupzQk/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-20-19h55m45s250.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597846922175232338" border="0" /></a></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I couldn't find a trailer for this one, sorry guys. </p><br /><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Comments are always welcome! =)</p>Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-74240669447421187212011-04-19T21:00:00.008-05:002011-04-19T21:36:09.312-05:00Slice (2010)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjstPE5STJRf5_tYvBi0kUQtO62ilK68sjk5bEUW6WmoRGIrsQLEmRQmVRC6aiz6KybKb4Tq7V838idupr82X1AceN5GjMuyx8g2MmQdeiDK_0-F5vNOsOpcBOufYNFVkvkYqD6VfXSlwY/s1600/slice.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 280px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjstPE5STJRf5_tYvBi0kUQtO62ilK68sjk5bEUW6WmoRGIrsQLEmRQmVRC6aiz6KybKb4Tq7V838idupr82X1AceN5GjMuyx8g2MmQdeiDK_0-F5vNOsOpcBOufYNFVkvkYqD6VfXSlwY/s400/slice.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597480533766862290" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">Slice (2010)</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">AKA Cheun</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">Kongkiat Khomsiri, Director. 99 Minutes.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">On the surface, the plot of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Slice</span> is a fairly straight forward one. A serial killer is murdering people around Thailand, mutilating their bodies and dumping them in red suitcases around the country. Public pressure is mounting and when the Prime Minister's son becomes a victim, it is ordered that drastic actions be taken to catch the killer. Papa Chin, the lead police officer in charge of the case is given 15 days to solve the case or else. Frustrated, and having no leads of his own, he follows the advice of a police psychiatrist who reminds him about an inmate who claims that the murders sound exactly like the work of someone the inmate knew from his childhood. The inmate, a tattooed hitman named Tai, is granted a conditional release: If he can find the killer before the deadline, he gets to keep release and have his prison record wiped clean. Tai then sets out to find what has become of his childhood friend and gain his freedom. As Tai begins to learn more about the victims in the course of his investigation and how they relate to his friend, the story gets deeper, darker, and more twisted.</p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKCrRW9gfmUhoP4ksST8o82-2yAYb0aPXYHXy9jbgPhggGiqf5TG5SJv02YOTnhziHYbXZRGDVuAOHMT428Dx0_Q5fdXboAQDCGecn218Hv47LDn1bg-_Yr09_ZZnZhIHEk37iA8gp2PA/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h45m55s159.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKCrRW9gfmUhoP4ksST8o82-2yAYb0aPXYHXy9jbgPhggGiqf5TG5SJv02YOTnhziHYbXZRGDVuAOHMT428Dx0_Q5fdXboAQDCGecn218Hv47LDn1bg-_Yr09_ZZnZhIHEk37iA8gp2PA/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h45m55s159.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597484540491125378" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9jNJjc33Cjbhc2o-0t5SIEZZWf4S1eiMyRkFrc1I8lg8ybkIugXecy-D9hpSLvIOofpZghkEkpStzf0iSEYa3aeWY8iA5gGeqhgqnoqwWotc1tIxX2kMS4A6CVmI8DmmrwRrcs8qzB3M/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h22m18s56.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9jNJjc33Cjbhc2o-0t5SIEZZWf4S1eiMyRkFrc1I8lg8ybkIugXecy-D9hpSLvIOofpZghkEkpStzf0iSEYa3aeWY8iA5gGeqhgqnoqwWotc1tIxX2kMS4A6CVmI8DmmrwRrcs8qzB3M/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h22m18s56.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597481608886565538" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The story told in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Slice</span> can basically be divided into two parts. The primary part being about Tai pursuing the killer, while being monitored by the police. The second part focuses more on Tai's childhood and that of the kids he grew up with. This added dimension of story takes us deeper into Tai's world and explains a lot of the motivations behind the killer's brutal behavior. In this regard, the film shifts from being a straight forward thriller to being a touching story about friendship, betrayal, guilt, and the harsh trials of childhood in a very unkind world.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO3lLqdKgF6tg4RVm8x-T8ZqN6prfspaKKK1FjkwkGqyACB3MaLuA2nWTOg1G50-MX8CFCCaQMAWPHZIFM9DusMcoHuzJrQzjkmpu8Qx6mjB8Y7HlgdM-hwnHfUwT_DexRG8Riak8lDs0/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h52m11s66.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO3lLqdKgF6tg4RVm8x-T8ZqN6prfspaKKK1FjkwkGqyACB3MaLuA2nWTOg1G50-MX8CFCCaQMAWPHZIFM9DusMcoHuzJrQzjkmpu8Qx6mjB8Y7HlgdM-hwnHfUwT_DexRG8Riak8lDs0/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h52m11s66.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597484548005705314" border="0" /></a> <img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHGKANuUIajYtLC5a5NiAuO6bV-pQvDuTtufOAXRjgUBoa-DZKYXNiOEzi147Ll3XBotrf4nTFDvAwcAZ-by013MuQWxFYD8hWI5m1Tgq80xSl5VVIp5bD29uPw8nyPVCdIHLgHF2OwhY/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h39m37s181.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597481619781482274" border="0" /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">There is a lot of moral ambiguity in the characters portrayed in the film. From the onset, the protagonist character of Tai is shown to murder another inmate in prison who considers him a friend. Tai does not enjoy this and is clearly remorseful, but is acting on orders from his boss sending word from outside the prison. The lack of a clear definition of who is good and who is bad, morally speaking, permeates throughout most of the characters in the film. I wouldn't consider the film to be bitterly nihilistic, but there are a lot of selfish characters in it working towards their own goals.</p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXjvNyUamY2_QKc84HIL6QjaGjE2NsEyh__u9wP81m00FUY3XLKJz1YsdTI9OCL3EuF1dOao9ROLYLphIkoW1XpaFMX0c8kk6U2LosSimh65ZoiuF14xZfnFmQI1EbiB52Mw7PvH-Wca8/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h31m57s206.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXjvNyUamY2_QKc84HIL6QjaGjE2NsEyh__u9wP81m00FUY3XLKJz1YsdTI9OCL3EuF1dOao9ROLYLphIkoW1XpaFMX0c8kk6U2LosSimh65ZoiuF14xZfnFmQI1EbiB52Mw7PvH-Wca8/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h31m57s206.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597484531945765730" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkTrEytdvy64CsMQAsujjhaXrXUPZePPoiK0qfeWRPSycsVI5AYBsGP3y-Nt8GmIql-i55eQFjXm2Q2wW0BD3WSLqNKQDE1EwUU_XEmwgA5-62oIEWl9fX5On1I2gPp7fxBloBuu9bNVA/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h31m34s219.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkTrEytdvy64CsMQAsujjhaXrXUPZePPoiK0qfeWRPSycsVI5AYBsGP3y-Nt8GmIql-i55eQFjXm2Q2wW0BD3WSLqNKQDE1EwUU_XEmwgA5-62oIEWl9fX5On1I2gPp7fxBloBuu9bNVA/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h31m34s219.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597481612663548338" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">This film is certainly disturbing at times and not for everyone. It takes viewers to some dark places, and lets us know right from the beginning that it is going to. The first victim that we see is an English speaking scumbag who keeps a nude Thai boy on a leash in his hotel room. Although the film does not portray things as graphically as, say a certain notorious film named after a country in Eastern Europe, it is graphic enough to disturb some viewers. While it keeps a sleazy atmosphere for most of the film, thankfully,<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Slice</span> exercises a little bit more restraint, to its benefit, but I would be remiss not to give a bit of warning in that regard. </p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihzuH_jW9lOIZmFioBR0IuuhZCEbFV9rp1JsKQEDrQ5O0DtvYiDHmhzOqGCb7zK1r2vzZy7vXrpPHe6bvYxJOlL0HWdgSZhFZ0TUrJNcHXif1XXb0Sjilde4M11_PtEfNwuBmYs6A3df8/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h51m57s177.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihzuH_jW9lOIZmFioBR0IuuhZCEbFV9rp1JsKQEDrQ5O0DtvYiDHmhzOqGCb7zK1r2vzZy7vXrpPHe6bvYxJOlL0HWdgSZhFZ0TUrJNcHXif1XXb0Sjilde4M11_PtEfNwuBmYs6A3df8/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h51m57s177.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597487649126157794" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxJ004Eq8HQ2QTu2BCFhA8CM7b5kk1ErWHZeBilbw0bNnxhfqD6XsJ93Hs_BDL-FatPWQUUupZNRDQ0nveI-a7XcuUeiCnFlHpKDgUU0jxEhURDC_zx1S8k1T8nt-hHMK68uhpHXN9QE/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h50m02s34.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifxJ004Eq8HQ2QTu2BCFhA8CM7b5kk1ErWHZeBilbw0bNnxhfqD6XsJ93Hs_BDL-FatPWQUUupZNRDQ0nveI-a7XcuUeiCnFlHpKDgUU0jxEhURDC_zx1S8k1T8nt-hHMK68uhpHXN9QE/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h50m02s34.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597484544427412914" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I really enjoyed the use of color in this film. One of the first things to catch the viewer's eye is the bright red raincoat worn by the killer in the opening scene and the vicious murder that takes place after. Whenever we see the killer, the world is always very brightly colored, in blues and reds. This immediately brings to mind images of Dario Argento's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Inferno</span>. I can't possibly imagine that the director, Kongkiat Khomsiri isn't a fan of<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Inferno</span> after seeing this film. In fact, parts of the film sometimes have a giallo feel to them, even though I wouldn't consider the film itself to be one.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk9b1IlINRRKBdDko8m8kSHxvS0Q2denX4EX6FpDWIDDLcreRS1Blww1sc11um3QBOTa0whak54-P6pgxmjtflOWljH_Imif6m-Lkrsxi8NP5yZ4W703Jbq3dTIN1De7UMcs_fA-deFMg/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h20m45s158.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk9b1IlINRRKBdDko8m8kSHxvS0Q2denX4EX6FpDWIDDLcreRS1Blww1sc11um3QBOTa0whak54-P6pgxmjtflOWljH_Imif6m-Lkrsxi8NP5yZ4W703Jbq3dTIN1De7UMcs_fA-deFMg/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h20m45s158.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597486871484660082" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT3SuFMxcEPcse3NJhhOnfxB-EwrN3Q2lDabl0vQ4jttV5KdZY2F45iNbTLYo7UQ_JGAXll7GhSa9YAkjxxXrpIiPkQvD1iDJdXzZu9N-8L9s-lvl3AHceL1SHRslxeTKhC8zAz8hClNY/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h49m09s30.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT3SuFMxcEPcse3NJhhOnfxB-EwrN3Q2lDabl0vQ4jttV5KdZY2F45iNbTLYo7UQ_JGAXll7GhSa9YAkjxxXrpIiPkQvD1iDJdXzZu9N-8L9s-lvl3AHceL1SHRslxeTKhC8zAz8hClNY/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h49m09s30.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597486864459186946" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Slice is the fourth film directed by Kongkiat Khomsiri, who has previously directed <span style="font-weight: bold;">Art of the Devil 2, Chaiya,</span> and<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Long Khong 2</span>. He has written another three films as well. I have seen none of his previous work and have been only vaguely curious to see the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Art of the Devil </span>films. After seeing this film, I definitely want to seek out more of his work. It is, by far, the best film from Thailand that I personally have seen. (I should note that I haven't seen but a handful of Thai films, I'm not trying to make the statement here that this is the best film that Thailand has ever produced.)<br /></p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWp1Hnw2EF4-u2oWWIjGrdkUJd-_1EfXFgxs3To4kSG1NBD0Wm5FsoiYtcunkfHqkRLNzAq4QB3KQahfachU7wgOGBeR6KtR7eSYsKrGnpHQeoyoCVO6hXdTHYn5QIDpSSHhH5RnFBxFg/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h11m59s7.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWp1Hnw2EF4-u2oWWIjGrdkUJd-_1EfXFgxs3To4kSG1NBD0Wm5FsoiYtcunkfHqkRLNzAq4QB3KQahfachU7wgOGBeR6KtR7eSYsKrGnpHQeoyoCVO6hXdTHYn5QIDpSSHhH5RnFBxFg/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h11m59s7.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597484527815214018" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE4NRg2rRQXoBr2o3h0M5piAyEfe_iK_YXEz1FyTTKfC5COFbsUyQw8Yoc4bwhkPwoDIDeplVLjP3Eu6c0Zi1IUSKDuywPWVoBy8MpRGUXTUwcvM23AMkmQNTqXLdFiIXSMuP6lEW-ig4/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h31m09s239.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE4NRg2rRQXoBr2o3h0M5piAyEfe_iK_YXEz1FyTTKfC5COFbsUyQw8Yoc4bwhkPwoDIDeplVLjP3Eu6c0Zi1IUSKDuywPWVoBy8MpRGUXTUwcvM23AMkmQNTqXLdFiIXSMuP6lEW-ig4/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h31m09s239.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597481616964506322" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The performances in the film are solid, even those of the children that we see in the flashbacks to Tai's childhood. From what little information I could find on IMDb, none of the actors in the film have had much experience except for Chatchai Plengpanich, who plays the police officer, Papa Chin. Plengpanich has been in a lot of Thai soap operas and films, including <span style="font-weight: bold;">Hit Man File</span>, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bangkok Robbery</span>. The character of Tai, is competently portrayed by Arak Amornsupasiri, who has only been in two other films prior to this, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Body</span> and<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Best of Times</span>.<br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC2_d4msqkDHmkwQNXL3FvsDhO0DooQDwNVJcwLAwkm9jcAp4OGGSBLMVO87iVnvqL92Y49BZmci5ZA06uvLPii2dNACeQvZHLURsnvlqTqQylIBzju8AAxC1h3baYsidtkA8OvCsASjU/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h32m15s142.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC2_d4msqkDHmkwQNXL3FvsDhO0DooQDwNVJcwLAwkm9jcAp4OGGSBLMVO87iVnvqL92Y49BZmci5ZA06uvLPii2dNACeQvZHLURsnvlqTqQylIBzju8AAxC1h3baYsidtkA8OvCsASjU/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h32m15s142.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597487654547303234" border="0" /></a> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhvxsJBGPr7TBVUbdSoATAP62OccPnCiKxhGE5MGGn8B7le6bxr1lpMY_eJJf2Lbq7dLbBR-wYb_2R_j4mcbfIM-4DL-XwRmR5eytlniWdxP8qq75ROBgyRRil1YObWrqUL-E8rlk3zXU/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h41m48s247.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhvxsJBGPr7TBVUbdSoATAP62OccPnCiKxhGE5MGGn8B7le6bxr1lpMY_eJJf2Lbq7dLbBR-wYb_2R_j4mcbfIM-4DL-XwRmR5eytlniWdxP8qq75ROBgyRRil1YObWrqUL-E8rlk3zXU/s400/vlcsnap-2011-04-19-20h41m48s247.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597481623830026850" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I highly recommend this film to those who aren't offended by the disturbing aspects of it. It's an enjoyable watch with some major twists that really got my attention. I'd like for others to see it and I'd like to know what they thought of it. I do want to give a word of warning about spoilers. I tried very hard not to post spoilers in this review beyond what's shown in the first five minutes of film, but I have seen other reviews online, particularly at IMDb and a few blogs that hint at or blatantly give away major spoilers that I would be angry if they had been ruined for me. I don't want be so arrogant as to say that my review is the only one that you should read before watching, but I would like readers to have the best viewing experience possible when watching it and not have it spoiled for them.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">You can view the<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Slice</span> trailer: (Sorry, no subs)</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0hm_6tHtcfw" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" width="480"></iframe></p><br /><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Thanks for reading, and comments are always welcome! =)</p>Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-67000293388863880042011-04-06T00:44:00.011-05:002011-04-06T01:24:55.471-05:00Cinematic Alphabet: A Second LookThere were so many titles that I wanted to include in my first Cinematic Alphabet post and couldn't fit them. And there were titles that weren't "First Tier" choices but that I still wanted to acknowledge them. Then Rupert ( http://rupertpupkinspeaks.blogspot.com ) posted a second list, and like any unoriginal mindless drone, I am following up with my own second list. Even with this second list, I feel like I have missed titles that I should have in it, but I draw the line at a second list for now. I hope you enjoy reading my second attempt at creating a cinematic alphabet and feel free to post your comments below.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik_8sL98IBWKbdmnEw84yvM3QjLD_hBlfGUREeVZJNcvzFbGAQVAH71zc-IzZ69GhvpSav4FGidrR_iwKU4L0n8KgKLOphq_weu7virtSgCnRIkfboFrmr7eIr5KzMp-Ld-fXkz0SRExo/s1600/aragami_pic.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 280px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik_8sL98IBWKbdmnEw84yvM3QjLD_hBlfGUREeVZJNcvzFbGAQVAH71zc-IzZ69GhvpSav4FGidrR_iwKU4L0n8KgKLOphq_weu7virtSgCnRIkfboFrmr7eIr5KzMp-Ld-fXkz0SRExo/s400/aragami_pic.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592350998891401970" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">A</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Aragami</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiwSzz0BFWTF0SyfGLwfeDnXb3JY43I6O9UNW0-MM75rTgCUKkgZlWMkMgx8RdGWgROrXDp3wDk_YWMvp63Q_9J44vjSYzhkaOsri2aWeGRoW4pxO8FMYv2MK8CJwzjlkx2h42NycwMcs/s1600/black+cat.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 302px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiwSzz0BFWTF0SyfGLwfeDnXb3JY43I6O9UNW0-MM75rTgCUKkgZlWMkMgx8RdGWgROrXDp3wDk_YWMvp63Q_9J44vjSYzhkaOsri2aWeGRoW4pxO8FMYv2MK8CJwzjlkx2h42NycwMcs/s400/black+cat.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592350582897709250" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">B</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Black Cat</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCbBAjzsoR6pxrfyNZ7maIFKlxxr6sJdo70mHqg_VJi_Lkntl-oWPSB3ehSES237h4_Uz5FmHV9pkiHKD8hesnBRfKO7aUctMqO9KyP0d96Zv-3A9z2xFdH62Bk1i0eJ_A6q4fYzHSGtM/s1600/capefear.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 311px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCbBAjzsoR6pxrfyNZ7maIFKlxxr6sJdo70mHqg_VJi_Lkntl-oWPSB3ehSES237h4_Uz5FmHV9pkiHKD8hesnBRfKO7aUctMqO9KyP0d96Zv-3A9z2xFdH62Bk1i0eJ_A6q4fYzHSGtM/s400/capefear.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592350581021564034" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">C</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cape Fear</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFjHEaKrT55geeFu8myIiR6O9ipw7Wvbvl43MeDMmcBQ-x5kslrbXRdAWwNfso37t3kwqUP9yChLHSUoihwduup4BAN90Xj2dTI3gsgObWF_FrbpAbHzwjospvdKR74EC4PXX4D__FrSk/s1600/drugstorecowboy.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 250px; height: 354px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFjHEaKrT55geeFu8myIiR6O9ipw7Wvbvl43MeDMmcBQ-x5kslrbXRdAWwNfso37t3kwqUP9yChLHSUoihwduup4BAN90Xj2dTI3gsgObWF_FrbpAbHzwjospvdKR74EC4PXX4D__FrSk/s400/drugstorecowboy.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592350575956082578" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">D</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Drugstore Cowboy</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNx-7bzq58Ximu4wjCgo2tm7cBCnJ_DCVhkBlPxIBy-b5XECdTujxtAET16e8n5s-QxYl9Ys7vEibkfKL7SLoTnMiB4wNRlpkyzFU2dBOYnSeZLumOgvUCoACVP_pndiVoeVoAQmk09YI/s1600/Empire+Of+Ash.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNx-7bzq58Ximu4wjCgo2tm7cBCnJ_DCVhkBlPxIBy-b5XECdTujxtAET16e8n5s-QxYl9Ys7vEibkfKL7SLoTnMiB4wNRlpkyzFU2dBOYnSeZLumOgvUCoACVP_pndiVoeVoAQmk09YI/s400/Empire+Of+Ash.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592350573537290258" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">E</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Empire Of Ash</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtOnbiLhXdR8aIMYdn1aJpY53eRSiAYfQAz_4a3nigNtDk1kANn64Gdw1Bs47tuIKoBoX8e0Ck_a7bTFC6-sah8MijRtKWCm9MV1rrYnUtzgHGJtXAE1nsVTk4DNiJdudQFwKlQkap2ww/s1600/fountain.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 272px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtOnbiLhXdR8aIMYdn1aJpY53eRSiAYfQAz_4a3nigNtDk1kANn64Gdw1Bs47tuIKoBoX8e0Ck_a7bTFC6-sah8MijRtKWCm9MV1rrYnUtzgHGJtXAE1nsVTk4DNiJdudQFwKlQkap2ww/s400/fountain.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592350567942797202" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">F</span> is for<span style="font-weight: bold;"> The Fountain</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJBMExLWbMcozH0yw1VJnAIN9QhP-Oebyd4uXnVEsZNJ95huJfRIQCC3GYTONoI4CVeldnv2ribbWtpmp19tC1ghJh7IEYJI3AcwbV7Be4vvbNUytX7CL4ZZZaWczLqlQRsMSbwhd2o6w/s1600/Graveyard+of+Honor.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 264px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJBMExLWbMcozH0yw1VJnAIN9QhP-Oebyd4uXnVEsZNJ95huJfRIQCC3GYTONoI4CVeldnv2ribbWtpmp19tC1ghJh7IEYJI3AcwbV7Be4vvbNUytX7CL4ZZZaWczLqlQRsMSbwhd2o6w/s400/Graveyard+of+Honor.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592348806352608962" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">G</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Graveyard of Honor</span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-0Qh0ULCwzI-snhLwDA4dkdig-1vg14CjAyPuWWpkN9Xxt9Pr4404xSSt4qm_CaCQ3fNXcy2UoYqI5URKZ3FqggTXoQemNzTln3CnljIyyCjCY9ZQr_24rO4nF0If2Bit7IhCAgnlKSc/s1600/Henry+Fool.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-0Qh0ULCwzI-snhLwDA4dkdig-1vg14CjAyPuWWpkN9Xxt9Pr4404xSSt4qm_CaCQ3fNXcy2UoYqI5URKZ3FqggTXoQemNzTln3CnljIyyCjCY9ZQr_24rO4nF0If2Bit7IhCAgnlKSc/s400/Henry+Fool.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592348805801567522" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">H </span>is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Henry Fool</span> </div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRtYrf1nRISpWpXcwweQIc8AeEHzyIgnOQplQ8hBVmz3AaDtjsmYx5aQomhAWVcdV_j9h-bY6HsMxSHH_zkIK5AU_q6zunuYTs3IhfIejUbc0BDh9wApzzoNbJ7KszrEsr_lbKYoTVYks/s1600/insideposter.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 295px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRtYrf1nRISpWpXcwweQIc8AeEHzyIgnOQplQ8hBVmz3AaDtjsmYx5aQomhAWVcdV_j9h-bY6HsMxSHH_zkIK5AU_q6zunuYTs3IhfIejUbc0BDh9wApzzoNbJ7KszrEsr_lbKYoTVYks/s400/insideposter.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592348793103635890" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">I </span>is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Inside</span><br /></div></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzsRd170rObKSpGYN5252o51KWvKdrDYCyntl92pCm8MQwbvI_WDMzgrNzB78pWMG5MZg9H6C7oEBkgYF-PsrbvhXJezri3jbEJGnccgdhx1DbV1qPXYG9bIp1geSqrQsUtiGmUBBiW5E/s1600/joint_security_area.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 216px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzsRd170rObKSpGYN5252o51KWvKdrDYCyntl92pCm8MQwbvI_WDMzgrNzB78pWMG5MZg9H6C7oEBkgYF-PsrbvhXJezri3jbEJGnccgdhx1DbV1qPXYG9bIp1geSqrQsUtiGmUBBiW5E/s400/joint_security_area.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592348794971499714" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">J</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Joint Security Area</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWlKOy7zQTKEGtezQr9r_LETmkqKhxFy-aaAyUJvznmGg6lnHrscDyb74UDp7yeOOfxZ_ODiIbv-iHQ_UXWDSdIUHJjZo98hMJLi0pox6MHEo3-HyebnuG3atlPB71F2GBMnFkvgfSNg/s1600/king.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 356px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWlKOy7zQTKEGtezQr9r_LETmkqKhxFy-aaAyUJvznmGg6lnHrscDyb74UDp7yeOOfxZ_ODiIbv-iHQ_UXWDSdIUHJjZo98hMJLi0pox6MHEo3-HyebnuG3atlPB71F2GBMnFkvgfSNg/s400/king.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592348795060519714" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">K</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">King Of Kong</span><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4poJWNf5TeV4ueoSaR-_KPzoSMzhJXOHo6fvX44q9r0T_FVQy5foHmNHAmmegzs8EpXDa2i8rqx3q9kfJRLtWzW6or-qK5QfRQb5i4AnITtQhuY63LqASpvYRoPIk2CUthfo-FbKw_wY/s1600/lultimo_squalo_06_stor.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 224px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4poJWNf5TeV4ueoSaR-_KPzoSMzhJXOHo6fvX44q9r0T_FVQy5foHmNHAmmegzs8EpXDa2i8rqx3q9kfJRLtWzW6or-qK5QfRQb5i4AnITtQhuY63LqASpvYRoPIk2CUthfo-FbKw_wY/s400/lultimo_squalo_06_stor.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592347570322906194" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">L</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">L'Ultimo Squalo</span><br /></div></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY72KiVuP86_FjWhMWGCsNQxotgLp1ZsEhhdHqUCEcptR_YvB-gt1d1uH1HAACRUTgt_iAyMyRIEzDobZQV2DNNNocSEclw6i_IWlQ-CMWZXq6_MbXVCB_pj-4MhARbTqE06EDTCh4b28/s1600/memories+of+murder.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 224px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY72KiVuP86_FjWhMWGCsNQxotgLp1ZsEhhdHqUCEcptR_YvB-gt1d1uH1HAACRUTgt_iAyMyRIEzDobZQV2DNNNocSEclw6i_IWlQ-CMWZXq6_MbXVCB_pj-4MhARbTqE06EDTCh4b28/s400/memories+of+murder.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592347562709567346" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">M</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Memories of Murder</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNui7vv_b0Hf4biZBq6xvyokBbBllzkk7EbQmiVpn_AS5_n6E3KKCxBG_wgNmshv6qn8LEWyHPu6gc2zoeoh3aydRyw1RO6Vvc6KFLNbxzMGdMKv27gSEE4EP_Q3nvpJzVPXv0yhbxLfE/s1600/nomercy.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 399px; height: 162px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNui7vv_b0Hf4biZBq6xvyokBbBllzkk7EbQmiVpn_AS5_n6E3KKCxBG_wgNmshv6qn8LEWyHPu6gc2zoeoh3aydRyw1RO6Vvc6KFLNbxzMGdMKv27gSEE4EP_Q3nvpJzVPXv0yhbxLfE/s400/nomercy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592347562460620850" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">N</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">No Mercy For The Rude</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhesFPJY0aiK8ay__n1i2jwu-aKklIobvboXfsLxQStauhTsehpv03nVJkLo0haBjatBLQoBLyENjj2JRl56oHYMC4kqT6o1Ug6CAF3wut9FxgqwF2LawJ5fmygHyBW4fom1A7sWPafB8Y/s1600/outlaw+josey+wales.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhesFPJY0aiK8ay__n1i2jwu-aKklIobvboXfsLxQStauhTsehpv03nVJkLo0haBjatBLQoBLyENjj2JRl56oHYMC4kqT6o1Ug6CAF3wut9FxgqwF2LawJ5fmygHyBW4fom1A7sWPafB8Y/s400/outlaw+josey+wales.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592347560683105202" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">O</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Outlaw Josey Wales</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAdNsnQFku5c5fCGqOte2E28a01GZ5e_-f_tFZL3k9W3-Fk98mDOPiX5uOJTwg3ygoh2-EGKctlzI8E8NNkb8s0tz3yQ65e5pKyAVepSJAb5pUsdu58-fOJqiELBiGzlv5fDdLNEJoO9Q/s1600/Perth.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 311px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAdNsnQFku5c5fCGqOte2E28a01GZ5e_-f_tFZL3k9W3-Fk98mDOPiX5uOJTwg3ygoh2-EGKctlzI8E8NNkb8s0tz3yQ65e5pKyAVepSJAb5pUsdu58-fOJqiELBiGzlv5fDdLNEJoO9Q/s400/Perth.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592347556128710546" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">P</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Perth</span> </div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoX0axtupD8Y2K1lc9crgpKg5Yo41xIeu_FncZ6TG5daQDwCymXyPR5m05fXmxrQ479IMsWtK-vkLPAZ1mjCK45OryDXu97_-HAAn0MqD_uanchmx9QEx26MZhGbY7eQWPKRyHBorBHmI/s1600/Quills.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoX0axtupD8Y2K1lc9crgpKg5Yo41xIeu_FncZ6TG5daQDwCymXyPR5m05fXmxrQ479IMsWtK-vkLPAZ1mjCK45OryDXu97_-HAAn0MqD_uanchmx9QEx26MZhGbY7eQWPKRyHBorBHmI/s400/Quills.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592345803350118098" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Q</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Quills</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd30RC50sH9iVJEpIFAKzGB14Nn9MDkXVGrGzjf-mAqTVAmu-RiaLr_sA5FbOe-trLCT4sQN2baO5oeUOgUImbiLWfBEjQEWHCLTXfzL8ZhSUiQjusGGNCHd_i5bchNSZy-GEXiDhXmMM/s1600/rabid-1977-movie-poster11.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd30RC50sH9iVJEpIFAKzGB14Nn9MDkXVGrGzjf-mAqTVAmu-RiaLr_sA5FbOe-trLCT4sQN2baO5oeUOgUImbiLWfBEjQEWHCLTXfzL8ZhSUiQjusGGNCHd_i5bchNSZy-GEXiDhXmMM/s400/rabid-1977-movie-poster11.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592345801863388818" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">R</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rabid</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3paTZfxbf3WJ9-JYDTIGO-bZrs_AJGQst4RuBmrPupGgZXOEpSkTDNOWFbKV-H-Hz9lT9olub7p3STMHALUek3Sg0OvpyWfkri2JITE0PzIuIOR6PSyY_UnhiIeH-l1K9Sb88aM-Ch5w/s1600/Samarita.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 279px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3paTZfxbf3WJ9-JYDTIGO-bZrs_AJGQst4RuBmrPupGgZXOEpSkTDNOWFbKV-H-Hz9lT9olub7p3STMHALUek3Sg0OvpyWfkri2JITE0PzIuIOR6PSyY_UnhiIeH-l1K9Sb88aM-Ch5w/s400/Samarita.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592345804823022050" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">S </span>is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Samaritan Girl</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLEQYEVk_RUpeZ-JuNDkrsHOHi_50twttoovQ_JtYOKSm5zlvIUX1yYwAGLv79VbDBJEyHmSM6oZRpcTZzNinH__26ZIx0Jd0x8-htnElSqMNZRVKEcHAsygl0g8-E-KwNdY6LIAgWKsQ/s1600/taegukgi.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 302px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLEQYEVk_RUpeZ-JuNDkrsHOHi_50twttoovQ_JtYOKSm5zlvIUX1yYwAGLv79VbDBJEyHmSM6oZRpcTZzNinH__26ZIx0Jd0x8-htnElSqMNZRVKEcHAsygl0g8-E-KwNdY6LIAgWKsQ/s400/taegukgi.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592345807725736802" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">T </span>is for<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Tae Guk Gi</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjREHjI3oZdIcn0A9YK1Cg-roFoGofZORkbuv0lswgXkf5dwMvOOyUyI6Yx_daC7IeVLxhsIjxywQBBKmjP4na94doSq2UPC4C5sXVNrlKCg_LHR3QiKIm2ujOs7rb2sESc8IMF_ETkjUU/s1600/unforgiven2.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 356px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjREHjI3oZdIcn0A9YK1Cg-roFoGofZORkbuv0lswgXkf5dwMvOOyUyI6Yx_daC7IeVLxhsIjxywQBBKmjP4na94doSq2UPC4C5sXVNrlKCg_LHR3QiKIm2ujOs7rb2sESc8IMF_ETkjUU/s400/unforgiven2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592345810294922642" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">U</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Unforgiven</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW1areCY2TRVeYFjHcsiZ1Sg9mI3Fq3oDrt2PkP0W1NTBlN3QfhIfKJMqOzbEmHh1-i02OiR9PUyQQJ4bfPRXKwPQhjiMskgxoiEF50bMiArSG8OCFQNMkPDy0tyCos8vj2sJ88YCdzDQ/s1600/vital_posters.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 282px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW1areCY2TRVeYFjHcsiZ1Sg9mI3Fq3oDrt2PkP0W1NTBlN3QfhIfKJMqOzbEmHh1-i02OiR9PUyQQJ4bfPRXKwPQhjiMskgxoiEF50bMiArSG8OCFQNMkPDy0tyCos8vj2sJ88YCdzDQ/s400/vital_posters.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592344025002924466" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">V</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vital</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsLqP9u2B82dMoUOQueHZQAeFwuialwj0MiUjkGl1KSl20XNYRJpQfgsv-PSAR0Qa8IO5AW5ubyZ3hSBykhZoiOvtTNFlA98HZr_J19YOmgbuZkJGEZSUq0Rovw2n-oA2uHsFDu3hApv4/s1600/way+of+the+gun.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 218px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsLqP9u2B82dMoUOQueHZQAeFwuialwj0MiUjkGl1KSl20XNYRJpQfgsv-PSAR0Qa8IO5AW5ubyZ3hSBykhZoiOvtTNFlA98HZr_J19YOmgbuZkJGEZSUq0Rovw2n-oA2uHsFDu3hApv4/s400/way+of+the+gun.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592344019882205186" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">W</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Way of the Gun</span><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLomQXrBgP3hb7EashDY03PxS68gJQpmw06Vzzuo1sMO4dUC7APXnB2s0dQUha2H1R5eN9uMnRmBFgzEiU5g9XH7neN4cR55VZVxjQDdKWoDRdTmn5czrWY5asLPjdAcZYKgzZv8zLbc/s1600/x_files.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 269px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLomQXrBgP3hb7EashDY03PxS68gJQpmw06Vzzuo1sMO4dUC7APXnB2s0dQUha2H1R5eN9uMnRmBFgzEiU5g9XH7neN4cR55VZVxjQDdKWoDRdTmn5czrWY5asLPjdAcZYKgzZv8zLbc/s400/x_files.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592344012825543650" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">X</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">X-Files</span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqcdgZ2UKWC5vIznxknPeWHrnyo09R8RZ6iWP6jTewANuCtbaAS7reBw7pzRLNIE9sELBF47L-FZraD9HgVV-8pXNSrQbhAwZ83zVRrvZz8CqjmupNIAu1BJ4diapTWssYJ2tdpR0E7i4/s1600/1287534963_The_Yakuza_Papers_Battles_Without_Honor_and_Humanity_Boxset_1973_1974_Complete_6_disc_Box_Set.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 244px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqcdgZ2UKWC5vIznxknPeWHrnyo09R8RZ6iWP6jTewANuCtbaAS7reBw7pzRLNIE9sELBF47L-FZraD9HgVV-8pXNSrQbhAwZ83zVRrvZz8CqjmupNIAu1BJ4diapTWssYJ2tdpR0E7i4/s400/1287534963_The_Yakuza_Papers_Battles_Without_Honor_and_Humanity_Boxset_1973_1974_Complete_6_disc_Box_Set.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592344009187749682" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Y</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Yakuza Papers</span> (cheating?)<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWA4Os2pHCUrWtvHNgP22kP7Ym_kX5ECxHLf_tS7tZ83Zxb-XhvFEfyVBchcT0OX42f86obNzeUs2Q9zcrHKZ2R_qquXeAK_OzDnmLePyAvYlLAqeXaJk6fpThmERuFuNOIOt8KJ5YwnA/s1600/zatoichi.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWA4Os2pHCUrWtvHNgP22kP7Ym_kX5ECxHLf_tS7tZ83Zxb-XhvFEfyVBchcT0OX42f86obNzeUs2Q9zcrHKZ2R_qquXeAK_OzDnmLePyAvYlLAqeXaJk6fpThmERuFuNOIOt8KJ5YwnA/s400/zatoichi.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592344009757243330" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Z</span> is for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Zatoichi</span><br /></div>Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-7482370135047509552011-03-31T21:16:00.006-05:002011-03-31T21:50:28.582-05:00Guns And Talks (2001)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPc7FJAelofd_ntCCmfO7U0Y6k15t2qA0yHrP3Uu3lmqQKBVcZyvY5xlIxrXJZ41x-8Q7eCHZetO5msJPA3EprC8CkwO1HzjUdYAT6t9LEZkUBdwl_aRhns5caXXu_GsgUk68okNYCbBU/s1600/guns-and-talks_dvd-cover.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPc7FJAelofd_ntCCmfO7U0Y6k15t2qA0yHrP3Uu3lmqQKBVcZyvY5xlIxrXJZ41x-8Q7eCHZetO5msJPA3EprC8CkwO1HzjUdYAT6t9LEZkUBdwl_aRhns5caXXu_GsgUk68okNYCbBU/s320/guns-and-talks_dvd-cover.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590434687188807986" border="0" /></a><br /><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">Guns and Talks (2001)</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">AKA <span style="font-style: italic;">Killerduelua Suda</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">Jang Jin, Director. 125 Minutes.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Guns and Talks</span> is the dubious American title for a South Korean action comedy about four freelance assassins whose lives get complicated when they get too interested in their assignments and their clients. This is just after a job that they completed for a local crime boss attracts the attention of a district attorney. </p><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYqsBcKQkV0rcPmzyE_0BgoGHYVDQcH_g1-5NwR7LrFfbZzRUyIUaBGWcULp2fc3fw4qjYp3Mnd8SJ24zjiRursYmspn0KNXjW-1Bp6vS-m1cOc7zLx4QOxZX0fs4dnPIOmQe-IhWwWe8/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h04m59s135.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYqsBcKQkV0rcPmzyE_0BgoGHYVDQcH_g1-5NwR7LrFfbZzRUyIUaBGWcULp2fc3fw4qjYp3Mnd8SJ24zjiRursYmspn0KNXjW-1Bp6vS-m1cOc7zLx4QOxZX0fs4dnPIOmQe-IhWwWe8/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h04m59s135.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590438551676968322" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The first thing to catch my eye about this film was the cast. The group's leader, Sang-yeon, played by Shin Hyeon-Jun (<span style="font-style: italic;">Barefoot Ki-Bong, Kiss Me Kill Me</span>), is primarily assisted by demolitions expert Jung-woo, played by one of my favorite actors, Shin Ha-Kyun (<span style="font-style: italic;">No Mercy For The Rude, Sympathy for Mr Vengeance</span>), and firearms specialist Jae-young played by another favorite, Jeong Jae-Yeong (<span style="font-style: italic;">Welcome to Dongmakgol, Righteous Ties</span>.) The fourth and youngest member of the group is Ha-yeon, Sang-yeon's little brother, and is played by Won Bin (in his first major film role.) Won Bin, of course, would later go on to star in great films like <span style="font-style: italic;">Tae Guk Gi, Mother</span>, and most recently, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Man From Nowhere</span>. The district attorney whose attention is focused on Sang-yeon is played by Jeong Jin-Yeong (<span style="font-style: italic;">Green Fish</span>). (Writer's Note: With a cast like that, how could I not be interested?? All it would need is Choi Min Sik as a crime boss and Song Kang Ho as Jeong Jin-Yeong's supervisor or something and I wouldn't even care what the plot was about anymore. Ha ha!)</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxmovCVUHg6pa5nNWJZ9_2kzurYhmUnEvrnezfuksU9GBoTR_aPMk9GxAwtDGkTjb5BEoSzPCQFgObuqH41qDcUFKZhYUgkL18d4dZ5C2yUWJf-ArTqWD0LRA5NI7uSVUHCjJzcjEI4RA/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h00m49s230.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxmovCVUHg6pa5nNWJZ9_2kzurYhmUnEvrnezfuksU9GBoTR_aPMk9GxAwtDGkTjb5BEoSzPCQFgObuqH41qDcUFKZhYUgkL18d4dZ5C2yUWJf-ArTqWD0LRA5NI7uSVUHCjJzcjEI4RA/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h00m49s230.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590439333939218002" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Early in the film we see the team kill a few people who can testify against a local crime boss who is currently in police custody. The kills are stylishly shot and pretty to look at, despite stretching the limits of believability a bit right out of the gate. (We were all disappointed as children to discover that we couldn't actually crawl around throughout the air duct system of buildings, it wasn't just me, right?) This effectively kills the case against the crime boss, which greatly upsets the district attorney over the case. The district attorney comes to the conclusion that the killings were not of the style that the crime boss or his men would employ and begins to investigate further, putting him on the trail of the group of assassins. Around this same time, a schoolgirl who has figured out what they do for a living begins brashly hounding the group to kill her teacher who is an ex-lover. Things are further complicated when Jung-woo is assigned to kill a pregnant young woman that he is attracted to, and Sang-yeon takes on a very public and dangerous contract despite all of the attention that is on the group from the police.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTwIxqxSGz1dMUmZBgvbgfh5GrlUdn88hGr8PZksufZCXMKfZ8rcNR2EIutz8-Pp-8YZEgSQ0FElegytNcgD8k6EPxZZ__VKqfQPIRW0MImui-kqRD2sHnQt_aGCrUoQ-5oTCbGXTw4PM/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h03m08s88.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTwIxqxSGz1dMUmZBgvbgfh5GrlUdn88hGr8PZksufZCXMKfZ8rcNR2EIutz8-Pp-8YZEgSQ0FElegytNcgD8k6EPxZZ__VKqfQPIRW0MImui-kqRD2sHnQt_aGCrUoQ-5oTCbGXTw4PM/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h03m08s88.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590439331996408274" border="0" /></a> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTppRGyT8FRkQevI4aYkvz8SgEHnR4Xr2IO5OXz7BKXozIGDro8DXFzIE2-mvrEBplahOOs5aJ-cxZF-TGdzo17gNXB61dWrnucIXXHbET2VXTxjbsrAkVtNmkPFLg6Kg4V56Z_n7Bi_o/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-19h48m25s199.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTppRGyT8FRkQevI4aYkvz8SgEHnR4Xr2IO5OXz7BKXozIGDro8DXFzIE2-mvrEBplahOOs5aJ-cxZF-TGdzo17gNXB61dWrnucIXXHbET2VXTxjbsrAkVtNmkPFLg6Kg4V56Z_n7Bi_o/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-19h48m25s199.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590439337448582674" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Let me put my cards on the table early. The assassin as protagonist angle has been done far too many times for its own good at this point. If real life assassins were kept as busy as they are in cinema, it wouldn't be long before there would be no population problem on this planet. Even the subcategory, if you can call it that, of assassins having a heart and falling in love has been overdone. This film is no exception. In fact, looking at this film with the same level of critique that I normally use on this blog, this film is not good. (Here's where I get to admit to being a bit of a hypocrite for all the times that I gripe about some really bad big budget American films being made up of some good scenes but too flawed to be worth watching.) I'm a bit of a sucker for that kind of thing though, especially in Korean cinema, and this film has some really fun scenes and such a gleeful attitude at times that I do enjoy it despite its many flaws.<br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3I-4-9yDYJLHJi4RTxOrUAogyNHUFxooEPGtiJ912cvyBNJjnHEbBWdtW0gLY56VYyHWOyJXuG37u3JEMXcgYNNRp7vWP8kyE5UpBadDHuxvYasaegN39d7jRXj87EWlrUMMKmjkzlF8/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h14m16s117.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3I-4-9yDYJLHJi4RTxOrUAogyNHUFxooEPGtiJ912cvyBNJjnHEbBWdtW0gLY56VYyHWOyJXuG37u3JEMXcgYNNRp7vWP8kyE5UpBadDHuxvYasaegN39d7jRXj87EWlrUMMKmjkzlF8/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h14m16s117.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590438547559844786" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbw3DFVaQeI6uedRHkted0ABco3Eev8PuvAozWPQyacvjwKSNZCJY4FxNvb011a2C9JnFaDdAvTsFinysj4z8ttmLw3LjJy1tb6xETCKgPta7M5eUn1mxd43QOiAwNfKfYVyCeTX9oUGA/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h17m53s244.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbw3DFVaQeI6uedRHkted0ABco3Eev8PuvAozWPQyacvjwKSNZCJY4FxNvb011a2C9JnFaDdAvTsFinysj4z8ttmLw3LjJy1tb6xETCKgPta7M5eUn1mxd43QOiAwNfKfYVyCeTX9oUGA/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h17m53s244.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590438538912101522" border="0" /></a> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Part of the film's humor is found in the unreliable narration by Won Bin's character, who is arguably the most immature of the group and occasionally has trouble expressing himself when speaking to the audience. What his character perceives and reports is sometimes different from what we are shown on the screen. This is particularly evident in one humorous scene where he is describing to viewers the outcome of a monologue he delivers about love to break up a fight between two other members of the group. While he describes the others as being moved to tears by his statements, in reality they are shaking with laughter at him, but have their backs turned so that he can't see it. Another major humor vehicle for the film is Jung-woo's impulsive actions and how easily the character is thrown off balance by the woman he is assigned to kill. While not exactly bumbling fools, the group does make their share of mistakes in the film, which is also amusing to varying degrees.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_g1TEFO0HSanpEsn42wKwoOVHfyWP-2iPRHKAH6QQ06p9nqRJW7JiIKboBhoxWxbhbuMczLo75HU_C0shTz7220D_Zt3Gckn82R8EKz2G7ANfcg0ovrlTAO-uGJb2D4nNYTdGJAEs3hI/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h28m38s59.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_g1TEFO0HSanpEsn42wKwoOVHfyWP-2iPRHKAH6QQ06p9nqRJW7JiIKboBhoxWxbhbuMczLo75HU_C0shTz7220D_Zt3Gckn82R8EKz2G7ANfcg0ovrlTAO-uGJb2D4nNYTdGJAEs3hI/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h28m38s59.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590438532223321682" border="0" /></a></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">In my opinion, most of Guns and Talks features pretty typical lighting and cinematography, but it does have a few stylish shots up its sleeve. The scene in the opera house late in the film is particularly fun to watch, although again asks for a good deal of suspension of belief by viewers. There are occasional split screen shots to show montages of actions by characters in the film, that I generally find a bit distracting to watch although the specific scene featuring a brief home invasion wraps up rather nicely. There are also several nice little cinematic touches to some scenes that would otherwise be far more typical and boring to watch.<br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Da4F09T_sIknbQL4782SOi6iXUEcxJOnaadr5L6REUkIzRMH7dC4Zell85C7yxd8Q0YxwIiglQnKazW35emZVF71J9Wly469m315FtwbRbu4JVpKxBuzGubJxCD8t-Gy1bGZ521LbYQ/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h43m27s245.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Da4F09T_sIknbQL4782SOi6iXUEcxJOnaadr5L6REUkIzRMH7dC4Zell85C7yxd8Q0YxwIiglQnKazW35emZVF71J9Wly469m315FtwbRbu4JVpKxBuzGubJxCD8t-Gy1bGZ521LbYQ/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h43m27s245.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590436113022384802" border="0" /></a></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoOXsomLaRkzKQKppdT7k3b8O-1_JfqHI8JvhZH0lP5UNMDvr9uJFS7t64_Ml1NssINyaWGMgwU1bHbPvXJKIJZmwVBOkMntAauraiCvoutVpB5Adt-ubPrECOaPqKjc7OzEiXBpwlhyphenhyphenU/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h51m43s70.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoOXsomLaRkzKQKppdT7k3b8O-1_JfqHI8JvhZH0lP5UNMDvr9uJFS7t64_Ml1NssINyaWGMgwU1bHbPvXJKIJZmwVBOkMntAauraiCvoutVpB5Adt-ubPrECOaPqKjc7OzEiXBpwlhyphenhyphenU/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h51m43s70.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590436108503516242" border="0" /></a></p>This is the third full length feature by director Jang Jin, who also wrote the film. I was rather surprised to discover in doing my research for this review that I was more familiar with Jang Jin than I thought I was. Of his other directorial work, I've also seen 2005's <span style="font-style: italic;">Murder, Take One</span> (also starring Shin Ha-Kyun and Jeong Jae-Yeong), and 2006's <span style="font-style: italic;">Righteous Ties</span> (again starring Jeong Jae-Yeong.) In addition, Jang Jin wrote the play for<span style="font-style: italic;"> Welcome to Dongmakgol</span> (the film version of which I can not recommend highly enough), the screenplays for <span style="font-style: italic;">The Man Who Went To Mars</span>, and <span style="font-style: italic;">Public Enemy 3</span>, among others. (It's interesting to see how many of these actors and directors worked together multiple times, I skipped over mentioning many other times they have crossed paths in writing this review, but if anyone is curious about it, feel free to ask.<br /><br /><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpqbYs0ji8LQ7TdA7_wy1hOsNV6V0TsbdtccNQolZ2L5axqhmwTmBFeUMaS4LkW9mq-bQ5_9JJQmKUElvqx-oKYA8NRzUh6JuVuy6MTMygQhY3L1udovaykGz-aRgCnf7tzPYoVq8HgM/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h59m25s53.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpqbYs0ji8LQ7TdA7_wy1hOsNV6V0TsbdtccNQolZ2L5axqhmwTmBFeUMaS4LkW9mq-bQ5_9JJQmKUElvqx-oKYA8NRzUh6JuVuy6MTMygQhY3L1udovaykGz-aRgCnf7tzPYoVq8HgM/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-20h59m25s53.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590436093590847378" border="0" /></a></p>Should you watch this film? That's up to you to decide. It has many flaws, not the least of which is how the film just seems to randomly culminate in an out-of-nowhere happily ever after style ending that leaves viewers scratching their heads. The script could also have used some more work, for certain. I get the feeling that maybe they had a few ideas for interesting scenes and then wrote the story around that, or something similar. Personally, I've watched it a few times now and do recommend that people give it a look as long as they don't expect a lot from the film. I do a bit of eye-rolling at times, of course, but I do like the film. Shin Ha-Kyun is always great to watch, and his presence alone makes the film a must see for me. Jeong Jae-Young is another favorite of mine who I think is perhaps, under appreciated by Western audiences. It's also interesting to see Won Bin's first major film acting role. Bin does a serviceable job in this film, and in my opinion he's continually improved with each role he taken on since. <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0yDWGiNqdYksePaMlk-YZ6RSx_7fWrgZD3SDUG0KNOgLAXsVJiKY8C9Q8DJqwA4mqJFJqIPYmfZgbSsJ5x2ltM0xsrpNY14WPR-VtDlu2L2tGE89D36vyNxTuCIELLjM9i__MyuUs1M/s1600/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-21h03m36s21.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0yDWGiNqdYksePaMlk-YZ6RSx_7fWrgZD3SDUG0KNOgLAXsVJiKY8C9Q8DJqwA4mqJFJqIPYmfZgbSsJ5x2ltM0xsrpNY14WPR-VtDlu2L2tGE89D36vyNxTuCIELLjM9i__MyuUs1M/s400/vlcsnap-2011-03-31-21h03m36s21.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590436088970802834" border="0" /></a></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />English subtitled trailer, but image and sound quality is lacking.<br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/sUTDcxQ18cM" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" width="480"></iframe><br /><br />There is better image quality on this trailer, but no English subtitles.<br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/XUn8CeQxY4Y" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" width="480"></iframe><br /><br />Thanks for reading. Comments are always welcome. =)<br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p>Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-73308486438040903022011-03-29T15:20:00.013-05:002011-03-30T10:02:38.511-05:00My Cinematic Alphabet<div style="text-align: center;">My Cinematic Alphabet.<br /><br />This list is inspired by Rupert's list at Rupertpupkinspeaks.blogspot.com and by citizenrobot.com.<br /><br />These are some of my favorite films from each letter of the alphabet. They aren't necessarily the best film to start with that letter of the alphabet, but they are all good or enjoyable movies that in a lot of cases more people should see. Feel free to post your own lists in the comments or on your blogs.<br /><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEc81f44IyGOgktdX-ofe4bHuxbMBsKeSLNANSlEbLvFj6cEcw7jXPDGp9jJcOSSRmyUzACmAkWtSnCXxana7Rkr6o1bcBbRtbZ9jW-61m0CwEXGvObeoAUK3cch02h6-uXNFDZ8grpe0/s1600/animal_factory.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEc81f44IyGOgktdX-ofe4bHuxbMBsKeSLNANSlEbLvFj6cEcw7jXPDGp9jJcOSSRmyUzACmAkWtSnCXxana7Rkr6o1bcBbRtbZ9jW-61m0CwEXGvObeoAUK3cch02h6-uXNFDZ8grpe0/s400/animal_factory.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589609013208982242" border="0" /></a>A is for ANIMAL FACTORY<br /><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLkMsAQkU9VFIAJxKho3VpiTplYvpZkXpxZa0TidMGY11Yuv_VJvNPJns-wNa_CZByo6OuvgN68GzVDVWMRv3k9GDSVqxrxidf1ETi3KfSkoHlok0ILY4pyfVAl3lD0dLrLw8jj5rZOW0/s1600/bad_boys.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLkMsAQkU9VFIAJxKho3VpiTplYvpZkXpxZa0TidMGY11Yuv_VJvNPJns-wNa_CZByo6OuvgN68GzVDVWMRv3k9GDSVqxrxidf1ETi3KfSkoHlok0ILY4pyfVAl3lD0dLrLw8jj5rZOW0/s400/bad_boys.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589608536508599762" border="0" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">B is for BAD BOYS<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiO1aIYPDvc-eQXm0x5AIQh6wB7tPZSAWNXtAOKf63zFD-NwZVlYQL2GaJIu2ZlL9uIaZ22M4HkoeiwcWQxhXwuX1kDaCftFLXsc87czoK8F9UEz6gWBNG5t-WkPqrXIHBpfZ4CAeKyzE/s1600/500full-city-of-god-screenshot.jpeg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 289px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiO1aIYPDvc-eQXm0x5AIQh6wB7tPZSAWNXtAOKf63zFD-NwZVlYQL2GaJIu2ZlL9uIaZ22M4HkoeiwcWQxhXwuX1kDaCftFLXsc87czoK8F9UEz6gWBNG5t-WkPqrXIHBpfZ4CAeKyzE/s400/500full-city-of-god-screenshot.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589608531416599554" border="0" /></a>C is for CITY OF GOD<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKM0XraVTjEjhVDw144EertoaqcJtPUFL3p71PutFQl4SKi3Fx1HeT1afaMYHl-pp3bZnXt1rqZ2-oTUC7aKtuHS5LyrlGz-xcMGidOFhj0t5efm5y2ubbaMDptbpV6koCE0nhGHYrMA/s1600/delicatessen-splsh.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKM0XraVTjEjhVDw144EertoaqcJtPUFL3p71PutFQl4SKi3Fx1HeT1afaMYHl-pp3bZnXt1rqZ2-oTUC7aKtuHS5LyrlGz-xcMGidOFhj0t5efm5y2ubbaMDptbpV6koCE0nhGHYrMA/s400/delicatessen-splsh.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589608530769589234" border="0" /></a>D is for DELICATESSEN<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoUXKUgy9I290fb8map3kc8ZB7yp6Z9NoHg6ql8_Y2YEqPlnAZN_KJ4sQIi0qktMfOVDawWrzHzvG8jHeRNDzZ_wqOeS8CLxgAu2Krf5q4GntjMxgCamHRYhReUDQSkKLVK13YKqkhuTg/s1600/each-dawn-i-die-1.jpeg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 222px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoUXKUgy9I290fb8map3kc8ZB7yp6Z9NoHg6ql8_Y2YEqPlnAZN_KJ4sQIi0qktMfOVDawWrzHzvG8jHeRNDzZ_wqOeS8CLxgAu2Krf5q4GntjMxgCamHRYhReUDQSkKLVK13YKqkhuTg/s400/each-dawn-i-die-1.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589608530151963714" border="0" /></a>E is for EACH DAWN I DIE<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnT6cf3DIAOntOkVIZYzpzsWECkrktDFRykMDEg9yZwHtrFfbzoIFdiPHsIp4hqvOaNs6ixjJF0gzaRB2eawA_ieKCi7Ta5CBH-gmkMZFABPUf0SrQ5ZidiwL_Uu60Nn0Ke3BKArcj6HI/s1600/fires-on-the-plain-_1.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 173px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnT6cf3DIAOntOkVIZYzpzsWECkrktDFRykMDEg9yZwHtrFfbzoIFdiPHsIp4hqvOaNs6ixjJF0gzaRB2eawA_ieKCi7Ta5CBH-gmkMZFABPUf0SrQ5ZidiwL_Uu60Nn0Ke3BKArcj6HI/s400/fires-on-the-plain-_1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589608525370643282" border="0" /></a>F is for FIRES ON THE PLAIN<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3hEL8l8HIHqSsq3qZ03VQrJyyJSJoJ8GS9AM6G53mfJ88uQCXmFxq3zoYBHLIedObjRHIXuxonLp_M_IuPtbota-E3DmgSfhz-gfs0tASD8hPPEsLy9nzimcL4ENZLfpnACEaV6wYoMM/s1600/936full-the-grey-zone-screenshot.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3hEL8l8HIHqSsq3qZ03VQrJyyJSJoJ8GS9AM6G53mfJ88uQCXmFxq3zoYBHLIedObjRHIXuxonLp_M_IuPtbota-E3DmgSfhz-gfs0tASD8hPPEsLy9nzimcL4ENZLfpnACEaV6wYoMM/s400/936full-the-grey-zone-screenshot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589607237088934338" border="0" /></a>G is for GREY ZONE<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHN1ZAPhGWuj922kHpSSM0-QnPF8qIUCDRLQad2_0epQPoSqoaREjBgL5VMJDQGu2Pi8eKbFNF_yoO7wybBI7O07oi_rzNl1UsjrYCrFqxjAphj1vDb4NEOoBLDtYATBHYL-VZg7ubqM8/s1600/happiness.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHN1ZAPhGWuj922kHpSSM0-QnPF8qIUCDRLQad2_0epQPoSqoaREjBgL5VMJDQGu2Pi8eKbFNF_yoO7wybBI7O07oi_rzNl1UsjrYCrFqxjAphj1vDb4NEOoBLDtYATBHYL-VZg7ubqM8/s400/happiness.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589607356258306594" border="0" /></a>H is for HAPPINESS<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK9A08jA7CuucPswpgXxdfqnlwH8ya8Tl8kAyTi0ST0YkyY48VQLbOaPTDOPkdqlCZfRpUDl_e9Q56kpElAz4Ncw5JQ_qUPZdpNibJ68GP64NM7zP9W3Y4nhlHhMX0R2Fz-9FfQR3CRsU/s1600/the+isle.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK9A08jA7CuucPswpgXxdfqnlwH8ya8Tl8kAyTi0ST0YkyY48VQLbOaPTDOPkdqlCZfRpUDl_e9Q56kpElAz4Ncw5JQ_qUPZdpNibJ68GP64NM7zP9W3Y4nhlHhMX0R2Fz-9FfQR3CRsU/s400/the+isle.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589607223302936402" border="0" /></a>I is for THE ISLE<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb8a3mkudBDeNlGh8ApZ2FgN8EDi7BrO9Nolt3MbUjrMYTN9CqO0H1MqekHjalRE0DPCrZxvpvztCEDMBK5y03xMQRhd1oHTXDOuxmBv0749x7k5YM_vMjAiQj4RKMsERqnAoW5LXtGaM/s1600/Jaws-1.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb8a3mkudBDeNlGh8ApZ2FgN8EDi7BrO9Nolt3MbUjrMYTN9CqO0H1MqekHjalRE0DPCrZxvpvztCEDMBK5y03xMQRhd1oHTXDOuxmBv0749x7k5YM_vMjAiQj4RKMsERqnAoW5LXtGaM/s400/Jaws-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589607221449011890" border="0" /></a>J is for JAWS<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-p9NnGrnsC34SlxrXwMQD-RcvfXrU7HW6g7MvZxm6WN8vOZ9ngebMuTzTLipHJL0VZLQTXrddRL5yryelly_IwYg5vCvwnqUcQMU9koBHjyNaMznfUpepLdaK6M8mtHkF0HHMKzEc0w/s1600/killershrews4.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-p9NnGrnsC34SlxrXwMQD-RcvfXrU7HW6g7MvZxm6WN8vOZ9ngebMuTzTLipHJL0VZLQTXrddRL5yryelly_IwYg5vCvwnqUcQMU9koBHjyNaMznfUpepLdaK6M8mtHkF0HHMKzEc0w/s400/killershrews4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589607217111480610" border="0" /></a>K is for THE KILLER SHREWS<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtwdg_AO5j55ahRyx85cdx-BGWfLBCHoKjX3yFN9fHFcWeB1Gj64-JXEaK_aiEEcYM5taFw7s7hBqPCvffTkGTxdDtzoFmcWH7g3CS61CFZekzmUHj8pssn3gw2Q4A01EQ1eW3826axfw/s1600/lifeboat.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 251px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtwdg_AO5j55ahRyx85cdx-BGWfLBCHoKjX3yFN9fHFcWeB1Gj64-JXEaK_aiEEcYM5taFw7s7hBqPCvffTkGTxdDtzoFmcWH7g3CS61CFZekzmUHj8pssn3gw2Q4A01EQ1eW3826axfw/s400/lifeboat.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589607213293850930" border="0" /></a>L is for LIFEBOAT<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja4fgM2E_SKYqhOrzp07kVPoXMzAXVPvOhS5I22vD1E7rQXvAe1L57CV9zmiuluiw7HiX5iMaFpzMcLI5gp2zOOOX47DAZmDJJgYRdbUHkMHcHeyK7n_3Le5M2AIvp46eaZseZkfSF1AA/s1600/martyrs2.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja4fgM2E_SKYqhOrzp07kVPoXMzAXVPvOhS5I22vD1E7rQXvAe1L57CV9zmiuluiw7HiX5iMaFpzMcLI5gp2zOOOX47DAZmDJJgYRdbUHkMHcHeyK7n_3Le5M2AIvp46eaZseZkfSF1AA/s400/martyrs2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589605939093817554" border="0" /></a>M is for MARTYRS<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBbrBqmRNWpNZkocw_FUFZnR-Fwkq_51Ce2xgFWHm4qn4TV__pSfaLXkTPguH8wVybDiRFD4Hb2CbQVv-Z9AIYC-ZFBjvSscE1Roer8t19S8wsNaFefRlzYRq9WGwKKHhtXc33N_wL6t8/s1600/Night+of+the+Living+Dead+6.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 262px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBbrBqmRNWpNZkocw_FUFZnR-Fwkq_51Ce2xgFWHm4qn4TV__pSfaLXkTPguH8wVybDiRFD4Hb2CbQVv-Z9AIYC-ZFBjvSscE1Roer8t19S8wsNaFefRlzYRq9WGwKKHhtXc33N_wL6t8/s400/Night+of+the+Living+Dead+6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589605932667143842" border="0" /></a>N is for NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf_lBtGnG8IO-9MR1MjWWzp4goL6kqLaQrnDinud3eWcezSGU4l1VN4lQXFWAgq-m8b10UJFnWfWCdYqkhFhu3UYAQ76YCvgXE6enwKRA2h2zh2Qi2b9eY9uegBQi5ZIXNk-omIuebyrc/s1600/one-flew-over-the-cuckoos-nest.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 217px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf_lBtGnG8IO-9MR1MjWWzp4goL6kqLaQrnDinud3eWcezSGU4l1VN4lQXFWAgq-m8b10UJFnWfWCdYqkhFhu3UYAQ76YCvgXE6enwKRA2h2zh2Qi2b9eY9uegBQi5ZIXNk-omIuebyrc/s400/one-flew-over-the-cuckoos-nest.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589605929843449570" border="0" /></a>O is for ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2dvnwz_ODvVmv9RwZxDQ3t-YzfOTMzG37EfkXmzaNWcXyoxWThUCeVPEAQRlrNLENNj6VaLnEFjmEALNaMpGHv_LQlRT2sWilqM0uzZrR2cVFSAv8fBIFOi9SfIEdcgmh0o46KmOY98Q/s1600/pusher1.preview.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 270px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2dvnwz_ODvVmv9RwZxDQ3t-YzfOTMzG37EfkXmzaNWcXyoxWThUCeVPEAQRlrNLENNj6VaLnEFjmEALNaMpGHv_LQlRT2sWilqM0uzZrR2cVFSAv8fBIFOi9SfIEdcgmh0o46KmOY98Q/s400/pusher1.preview.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589605925212929714" border="0" /></a>P is for PUSHER<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ0rNyb13v0DNDDU5WMSc__kmgV6Kdi-3YfSpfGwZAF7crRDe1ulNL4x70U4tmBnHQKipwkbryBcoQsFY3XVxViciLzaMV6Ijukx1n9NBpT923X_12ZKZjp00ACRd5uWb6bU4skDPWAbg/s1600/Q%252C+The+Winged+Serpent+%25281982%2529+%2528Robert+O.+Ragland%2529+-+Monster+Photo.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 252px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ0rNyb13v0DNDDU5WMSc__kmgV6Kdi-3YfSpfGwZAF7crRDe1ulNL4x70U4tmBnHQKipwkbryBcoQsFY3XVxViciLzaMV6Ijukx1n9NBpT923X_12ZKZjp00ACRd5uWb6bU4skDPWAbg/s400/Q%252C+The+Winged+Serpent+%25281982%2529+%2528Robert+O.+Ragland%2529+-+Monster+Photo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589605924079456306" border="0" /></a>Q is for Q, THE WINGED SERPENT<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL5jAmaImBBJyjDrHSGwikg9OUcYmvUUtxLI6ZJNwQdf9qtfjIyvd-UFxf66fLw1rB4oy4wzPAPUhHUgpJ41DZ8uXBp_Mcpj95S50V4JEayV0MAoH9Hmcfq5QMf_wmlJNGxD7QNYHvM4o/s1600/pig4.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 167px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL5jAmaImBBJyjDrHSGwikg9OUcYmvUUtxLI6ZJNwQdf9qtfjIyvd-UFxf66fLw1rB4oy4wzPAPUhHUgpJ41DZ8uXBp_Mcpj95S50V4JEayV0MAoH9Hmcfq5QMf_wmlJNGxD7QNYHvM4o/s400/pig4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589604249863467202" border="0" /></a>R is for RAZORBACK<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCfpAsE48eT2OpYCuio6CXWNqZFJSczVdQZVbUNCPYYuAF-gum_wBe6gO0CHiSMhndNOnB7dxcBSDPoquuInQgkXzcKFgl1zK_X9PuZuRoXX1zi5l_O6pwzb2Jr5g2wubXJ92NjnSAE4w/s1600/936full-save-the-green-planet%2521-screenshot.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 263px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCfpAsE48eT2OpYCuio6CXWNqZFJSczVdQZVbUNCPYYuAF-gum_wBe6gO0CHiSMhndNOnB7dxcBSDPoquuInQgkXzcKFgl1zK_X9PuZuRoXX1zi5l_O6pwzb2Jr5g2wubXJ92NjnSAE4w/s400/936full-save-the-green-planet%2521-screenshot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589604247076390898" border="0" /></a>S is for SAVE THE GREEN PLANET<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhoqfrrN-z5bSzf9mAYyuk5cq-21PAPTCkq8NQ88v_t-8AHDe4SivZ1fzf4UJMBl3vZGcM4GXNEqlDUTGeyVaDTdnIpuMOFYstTtJOYjskboEqMxOkkhPbnb7UezX6EeHj1C1jp-fMMDE/s1600/todayandtheotherdays.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhoqfrrN-z5bSzf9mAYyuk5cq-21PAPTCkq8NQ88v_t-8AHDe4SivZ1fzf4UJMBl3vZGcM4GXNEqlDUTGeyVaDTdnIpuMOFYstTtJOYjskboEqMxOkkhPbnb7UezX6EeHj1C1jp-fMMDE/s400/todayandtheotherdays.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589604240769015970" border="0" /></a>T is for TODAY AND THE OTHER DAYS<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPa8fNtM1e1icKjlOTWUb-FFJdMA7ubD5RQnQAEo0tDS9yChl3-NjfAonSKOAUT_cNwtjJcH4uVRbV4YVxOKwq1UE-kckFP5b41Ay99tOEbAQMDHGPtl0pV8thr6h8qLRDYRCyxsNtZ68/s1600/undertow.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 250px; height: 174px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPa8fNtM1e1icKjlOTWUb-FFJdMA7ubD5RQnQAEo0tDS9yChl3-NjfAonSKOAUT_cNwtjJcH4uVRbV4YVxOKwq1UE-kckFP5b41Ay99tOEbAQMDHGPtl0pV8thr6h8qLRDYRCyxsNtZ68/s400/undertow.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589604238511465106" border="0" /></a>U is for UNDERTOW<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAc_r50XF2fau1X2c2RCC3QHdI1AKCbV6mvoip8UJjxy9I3lF7XFMr2K7Q_6jfiVUkxo9ocGdGk2u3JIsVIwm1vUUv3YwfkzNbRXlayLzrCh2W9SxGyNIRcqxiKkVbpPqN2dshR5geN78/s1600/venom.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 325px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAc_r50XF2fau1X2c2RCC3QHdI1AKCbV6mvoip8UJjxy9I3lF7XFMr2K7Q_6jfiVUkxo9ocGdGk2u3JIsVIwm1vUUv3YwfkzNbRXlayLzrCh2W9SxGyNIRcqxiKkVbpPqN2dshR5geN78/s400/venom.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589601705140856530" border="0" /></a>V is for VENOM<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuvTWVXMTJLKXEI4hRJ9_G6gB4f6nV66KCkyEzme-5wsfArrw7-X8PzuesiEJ1mSozvE5w2265GVcoYzfU3IpOl3rNaAvJtB5k78-o-cymE58QsCWwV0y4tPCzVthE97Gv0tHohsGYJrQ/s1600/whocankillachild5.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 260px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuvTWVXMTJLKXEI4hRJ9_G6gB4f6nV66KCkyEzme-5wsfArrw7-X8PzuesiEJ1mSozvE5w2265GVcoYzfU3IpOl3rNaAvJtB5k78-o-cymE58QsCWwV0y4tPCzVthE97Gv0tHohsGYJrQ/s400/whocankillachild5.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589601700501762898" border="0" /></a>W is for WHO CAN KILL A CHILD?<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPP2CVjivLJIYlvd6l4tpqocOwHoTjLmLqknF6GLzF9_X4srkkFTIb4_q6OIZ4RTx4CR02MycQwbms_zgkqRu9xCZjiph0tkweNcROHyBdLO_skx9jgvEY84KSQbzf0rs6fiXulMNMbZU/s1600/Xtro1.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 164px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPP2CVjivLJIYlvd6l4tpqocOwHoTjLmLqknF6GLzF9_X4srkkFTIb4_q6OIZ4RTx4CR02MycQwbms_zgkqRu9xCZjiph0tkweNcROHyBdLO_skx9jgvEY84KSQbzf0rs6fiXulMNMbZU/s400/Xtro1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589601696625784242" border="0" /></a>X is for X-TRO<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidOhJo_SHgXm051F7nZFmzZpTNw90s_vCuDZ2bZBMq8cIAz8tRDuxmOc7Vt7yNbSCR18GmFmrmHfe5sXmrpKiKjNdBJE9BdTpxUDH2Zd3ryYoW2w1_euvv8PyVtXkCQ50Vz6R7PfMqkiQ/s1600/yakuza+demon.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 229px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidOhJo_SHgXm051F7nZFmzZpTNw90s_vCuDZ2bZBMq8cIAz8tRDuxmOc7Vt7yNbSCR18GmFmrmHfe5sXmrpKiKjNdBJE9BdTpxUDH2Zd3ryYoW2w1_euvv8PyVtXkCQ50Vz6R7PfMqkiQ/s400/yakuza+demon.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589601696522505330" border="0" /></a>Y is for YAKUZA DEMON<br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCitDgLhbvcVTNcsWKtLNYTiL8J7bWVweleAjPYqvpcfQphaugcR-5oE4wYXIJDOmQ8RMY2Srt3Mesf46QGcgZy_y1k5HAK2oBFAADVfBtyfIUz1VAkTk61reQUx4Mesidufp3aIxpVr4/s1600/Zombie2.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCitDgLhbvcVTNcsWKtLNYTiL8J7bWVweleAjPYqvpcfQphaugcR-5oE4wYXIJDOmQ8RMY2Srt3Mesf46QGcgZy_y1k5HAK2oBFAADVfBtyfIUz1VAkTk61reQUx4Mesidufp3aIxpVr4/s400/Zombie2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589601692011019570" border="0" /></a>Z is for ZOMBI 2<br /></div><br /><br />*credit for images goes to those who posted them around the internet previously.<br /><br />Comments are always welcome. =)Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-18075967493841757582010-08-09T16:54:00.012-05:002010-08-09T17:46:53.265-05:00No Mercy For The Rude<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTuxjPME7H3neYw5-kNdP_vp-VZTah-QQqKdGeGsN8d4044jbm8Uh8VYZQTgT1JU2MO9ULffHUmzlNHJM0gznurpZB8K2em2p6kCKyhA-U-EMSot43HnIfZ6XZBik3dua1FAKDfyBcILI/s1600/No-mercy-for-the-rude.gif"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 225px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTuxjPME7H3neYw5-kNdP_vp-VZTah-QQqKdGeGsN8d4044jbm8Uh8VYZQTgT1JU2MO9ULffHUmzlNHJM0gznurpZB8K2em2p6kCKyhA-U-EMSot43HnIfZ6XZBik3dua1FAKDfyBcILI/s320/No-mercy-for-the-rude.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503532225934414194" border="0" /></a><br /><style type="text/css"> <!-- @page { margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom: 0.08in } --> </style> ><b>No Mercy For The Rude (2006)</b><p></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">113 Minutes. Cheol Hie Park, Director. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>No Mercy For The Rude</b> is a Korean film that tells the story of an assassin known as Killa, who is working to save up enough money to get a corrective surgical procedure. He was born with a short tongue, giving him a speech impediment, and is now too embarrassed to talk. Killa's two great passions in life are seafood and bullfighting. He loves to watch the bullfights on television and dreams of becoming a great matador one day and laments the fact that there are no bulls in Korea. He prefers to use knives for his killing, having originally been a chef, and only accepting jobs killing those he feels are rude men. As he draws near to his goal, he starts finding his life changing in unexpected ways. A woman (played by Yun Ji Hye and identified only as “She”) he meets in a bar comically forces her way into his life, and later a chance encounter with a rather pushy homeless child leads to Killa finding himself dealing with a sort of makeshift family. Then just as things seem to be coming together for all of them, a botched hit threatens everything.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEindCyvO8WwrH9oJx33DV5N7iApn5BL6uXWvK3qPH3q-01zd_ka6vMHR5wRtImEk_AHpkpO_dzg-px-ZecQlNepgCaIFRbM7CATFEZqWysprpw1JnsM1K5r1Y5bNcJ4RrNH-oB7mEWaVDo/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h37m19s106.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEindCyvO8WwrH9oJx33DV5N7iApn5BL6uXWvK3qPH3q-01zd_ka6vMHR5wRtImEk_AHpkpO_dzg-px-ZecQlNepgCaIFRbM7CATFEZqWysprpw1JnsM1K5r1Y5bNcJ4RrNH-oB7mEWaVDo/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h37m19s106.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503534500120666786" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicC644ctvmHMKn1dH6dFMagTu7m2mrTmzYMsPepB_O-5R-rC6M-JnJQ0kqXDdg4qroD-FZq5DOUZd9So20pnUqtPcxGYc3kj1zanEkGRQSebGcjpGJTPYvSNPpBWdY-KJONRwLNoCqI8M/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h15m32s4.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicC644ctvmHMKn1dH6dFMagTu7m2mrTmzYMsPepB_O-5R-rC6M-JnJQ0kqXDdg4qroD-FZq5DOUZd9So20pnUqtPcxGYc3kj1zanEkGRQSebGcjpGJTPYvSNPpBWdY-KJONRwLNoCqI8M/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h15m32s4.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503537732406874530" border="0" /></a>Killa is played by Shin Ha-Kyun, one of my favorite Korean actors, who also provides the narration for the film. This also provides some of the dark humor of the film as we see how things play out in a scene, while hearing a different version of events from Killa as he paints a picture that is more to his liking. He shines in this role as his character conveys much through facial expressions and many times even while wearing sunglasses obscuring his eyes. Shin Ha-Kyun seems to enjoy playing socially disadvantaged characters, having also played a mute character in Chan Wook-Park's <b>Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance</b> and a man with a hairlip in <b>My Brother</b>. Both of those films are well worth checking out, in my opinion. And if you haven't seen <b>Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance</b> by now, I'm ashamed of you.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWN0JTA6mTdwpwPd8_k_qntupa9IdB2AhBYyMB9j5f7qT7tNYl-QaR8XFxQZcFjzUreHqghk1gXNt6o4K9yqZiGEw2W4QFw-nLdxRdY2kWMbll3IwcQMj-SiQUYxfQ6hAnhMV4HoXgj0Q/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h35m18s23.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWN0JTA6mTdwpwPd8_k_qntupa9IdB2AhBYyMB9j5f7qT7tNYl-QaR8XFxQZcFjzUreHqghk1gXNt6o4K9yqZiGEw2W4QFw-nLdxRdY2kWMbll3IwcQMj-SiQUYxfQ6hAnhMV4HoXgj0Q/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h35m18s23.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503533689662864530" border="0" /></a><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibhFwxPADzb6BR0_Ia2VG66q2t72jCKZLqXexTZ13oMrQxNoaUJWVYdfK3otSPa6odARLCO-KbLnVoUkOd3hRJKnal5EEeBpbyX5_VC0_J-L8MytXkw1p3M_ieSzeo7HE1YRoxtTZ0U1Y/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h41m23s146.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503537719196766818" border="0" /></p><b>No Mercy For The Rude</b> is confidently written and directed by Cheol-Hie Park, who's only other IMDB credit is for writing the Korean horror film, <b>Face</b>. <span style="font-weight: normal;">(I have never seen</span><b> Face</b><span style="font-weight: normal;">, and never felt any particular desire to. Should I rectify this?)</span> The film is stylishly shot, graphically violent at times, and very nice to look at. It has a great sense of atmosphere and setting, with nice establishing shots that provide excellent visuals. I love the film's set design, while not as elaborate and candy colored as something like Japan's <b>Survive Style 5+</b>, it still has some stunningly decorated restaurants and street scenes. It feels like it's post modern influences lay with Tarantino and at times the Coen Brothers, although it's hard not to also think of Chan Wook-Park's <b>Vengeance trilogy</b> because of Shin Ha-Kyun, as well as the setting. The film starts out very much like an action comedy and it progresses becomes more and more dramatic while still maintaining it's sense of dark comedy. Even at the tensest of moments, viewers will find themselves chuckling at little moments. The pacing of the film is excellent, never making you feel like it is dragging. Which is a nice change for me, as I often feel Korean films tend to be too long. (Although I usually can't identify the segments that I would cut from them to make those films run more smoothly. Go figure.)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMH4ojt40P1KyIhLdJ_KyVXN3HSJ0vEq5JHRNFDMDXgTzyYmP9wadTrXSnMNhvMa_LsG0mai4uXxuXpU4hVzrf6apgT9zCXd2bd7CU2bw4YRWXEqxhsP1rP1SAluMN4_BIvnAjXsjUoU/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h27m14s81.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMH4ojt40P1KyIhLdJ_KyVXN3HSJ0vEq5JHRNFDMDXgTzyYmP9wadTrXSnMNhvMa_LsG0mai4uXxuXpU4hVzrf6apgT9zCXd2bd7CU2bw4YRWXEqxhsP1rP1SAluMN4_BIvnAjXsjUoU/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h27m14s81.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503537709856691442" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Pw3bakZhBAkHpjHyC_i62joho_q-c5Ou2JF963NP2iamSNrg4ois5szQCSfuNtQ73QuMD8cp5m_-YKkRU7X0vmq0NU9Vxmy5tOd79mha8iDia4drQHnSOY0QMASyaJxvZO7_HW9q8Sg/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h42m12s216.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Pw3bakZhBAkHpjHyC_i62joho_q-c5Ou2JF963NP2iamSNrg4ois5szQCSfuNtQ73QuMD8cp5m_-YKkRU7X0vmq0NU9Vxmy5tOd79mha8iDia4drQHnSOY0QMASyaJxvZO7_HW9q8Sg/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h42m12s216.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503537700336223170" border="0" /></a>But what I feel really sets this film apart are the performances of the actors and the depth of the characters. The characters are all well developed and have back stories to explain their motivations and overall feel like real people. For example, all of the different men that are work as assassins with Killa are only assassins because they failed or were forced out of their original lines of work. One is a martial arts instructor who couldn't make ends meet, and another particularly likeable character is a former ballet dancer with a knee injury which forced him to give up the art he loved. Killa himself would be a matador or poet if he had his way, but circumstances have lead him to becoming an assassin. (The one chance that we get to see some of his poetry is sure to explain why that didn't work out very well for him.) The level of character development in the film helped me care about the characters more than I typically do in a film. When things start going wrong, I was more committed to the characters and their situation than I usually am, which ultimately raises my opinion of the film.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSo72049biYP0N_7F_OYDStW8NHboJXBGxqU6cb-mzEWlEoUSrxvzgVB3HdUyaAWfLnx_Rwj-p-9iPer0bidxORaJFyieRwyThOsCpYUnD92gJgqLCyAiMhygd1PD1ukFFLmqNr4am-_I/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h43m04s235.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSo72049biYP0N_7F_OYDStW8NHboJXBGxqU6cb-mzEWlEoUSrxvzgVB3HdUyaAWfLnx_Rwj-p-9iPer0bidxORaJFyieRwyThOsCpYUnD92gJgqLCyAiMhygd1PD1ukFFLmqNr4am-_I/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h43m04s235.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503534530300287170" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9-4nX1liqMj_E2nixBiMcDYgUkTftcl0rdEWPfts2w-r2F9gHa6v4SKFUfT9FC3zcNgNCnLD5kmwEAKu4Cw66FSoPBiuLzXNRHjQ6SvUlte-purrEuIZ646wmOzACImmpdayuqpnbBD4/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h45m47s55.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9-4nX1liqMj_E2nixBiMcDYgUkTftcl0rdEWPfts2w-r2F9gHa6v4SKFUfT9FC3zcNgNCnLD5kmwEAKu4Cw66FSoPBiuLzXNRHjQ6SvUlte-purrEuIZ646wmOzACImmpdayuqpnbBD4/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h45m47s55.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503534541198315490" border="0" /></a>As well as covering the ever popular theme of revenge, most evident in the results of the botched assassination mentioned earlier, the film also touches on themes of personal identity, self worth, and acceptance. Killa is too embarrassed to talk and isn't well educated, but dresses in all black, carries knives, wears sunglasses at night, and puts on the persona of a enigmatic bad ass. Sometimes this works for him and people are impressed by his presence, and other times he is ridiculed for it. One could take this theme even further and say that by Killa's decision to only kill those he considers to be rude and bad people that he is trying to justify his actions and maintain his personal identity as what he considers to be a good person, despite being a murderer for hire. Other characters in the film face similar struggles as they try to keep their flaws from showing and act like they are more than they are, much as people in real life often do. This really adds a nice element to the film, in my opinion, and makes it a bit more than it's relatively simple premise would have you believe.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieDEamuGHhHPzDH0HxUpimA3wOlORdg8nC5ilh8Riw0EbzjZb01FmOx9kaGcdy0Tsahy0ibGscAQx9CAGrjpJCmGh93Jw5cUmWd5-sMJQXEx6P7oxDVYxVmkls8cuoOihOzappg8GYMoM/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h53m46s131.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieDEamuGHhHPzDH0HxUpimA3wOlORdg8nC5ilh8Riw0EbzjZb01FmOx9kaGcdy0Tsahy0ibGscAQx9CAGrjpJCmGh93Jw5cUmWd5-sMJQXEx6P7oxDVYxVmkls8cuoOihOzappg8GYMoM/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h53m46s131.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503540919665716738" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg27M9v6OglbjWMjG5AKOBCO28YZ7GM4r5GapDITHt-8j9rFk_EzWwJs3qZ5Q44qwbqUIn_ZrRO-dHQUxexNEtleatWUwr2hHqdPz_FpyeJpoeIGZm9XfnJULGGBbr6DSnvGifQv5dkEkU/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-16h08m52s228.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg27M9v6OglbjWMjG5AKOBCO28YZ7GM4r5GapDITHt-8j9rFk_EzWwJs3qZ5Q44qwbqUIn_ZrRO-dHQUxexNEtleatWUwr2hHqdPz_FpyeJpoeIGZm9XfnJULGGBbr6DSnvGifQv5dkEkU/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-16h08m52s228.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503540929792085362" border="0" /></a><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I stumbled on this film basically by accident as I was going through Shin Ha-Kyun's films trying to see what I had missed of his. I am surprised that not many people seem to have seen or heard of it at all. Maybe because 2006 was a good year for Korean films it just got lost in the shuffle. (<b>City of Violence</b>, <b>The Host</b>, Kim Ki Duk's <b>Time</b>, <b>Puzzle</b>, <b>Righteous Ties</b>, <b>I'm A Cyborg But That's Okay</b>, and <b>Arang</b> all released that year as well.) I haven't been able to dig up much information on the topic beyond that it was released on August 24<sup>th</sup>, 2006 on 52 screens in South Korea and took in a total of $904,802 through 2007. (By comparison, the BIG film that year was <b>The Host</b>, taking in a total of $13,019,740 through 2007. But that's hardly a comparison since roughly 25% of South Korea's population reportedly went to theaters to see <b>The Host</b>.)</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCBYwTzn4KXI6MkfB_d2HtMtyhnY89eAJ-pYR3_RqkRNjTJVWhrAYlYJXMNdZd5Q9jy9vrwkTOvEojLe5-ww0gR4ImidEiQkijgsT9c_DZLmPZ3Ryx6fr-cdhAb-76J3KtFvrp0F8y2pc/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h46m58s211.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCBYwTzn4KXI6MkfB_d2HtMtyhnY89eAJ-pYR3_RqkRNjTJVWhrAYlYJXMNdZd5Q9jy9vrwkTOvEojLe5-ww0gR4ImidEiQkijgsT9c_DZLmPZ3Ryx6fr-cdhAb-76J3KtFvrp0F8y2pc/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h46m58s211.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503540904280323874" border="0" /></a><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKdYp30jsMkZHk_OKKgZsDxmBO6WCToitz0UhX7yjLDau4FKWQM60l9sco3uupmJmeX8hlpVfT5WQDuGvgd6kJWXkGpQofB1nO6yDphyphenhyphenH4ArYEyqCpuc54o7AnIeM2xnugzB3mJPcE0c/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-14h36m24s48.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503534520316498850" border="0" /></p>I found this film really enjoyable, and think that people who may have enjoyed <b>A Bittersweet Life</b>, <b>The Chaser</b>, or Korean action and thriller films in general should check it out. I think this is the kind of film that might work as a good “conversion film” to use on friends who claim to not like foreign films, as it has a distinct look and flavor that should appeal to fans of Tarantino and his followers. Sadly, it's currently unavailable in Region 1, which is a shame as I think it'd be a relatively successful film for American audiences, but can be found at YesAsia.com and on eBay inexpensively. I truly hope that those who read this review do try to see it and let me know what you think.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieDEamuGHhHPzDH0HxUpimA3wOlORdg8nC5ilh8Riw0EbzjZb01FmOx9kaGcdy0Tsahy0ibGscAQx9CAGrjpJCmGh93Jw5cUmWd5-sMJQXEx6P7oxDVYxVmkls8cuoOihOzappg8GYMoM/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h53m46s131.png"><br /></a><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1Sg3N-SnHXqv-WUFDkbb8cPl2zAgd9DJC1eOAKhS28i0gq72sA-yaw9D-FXldnk5ZbujWMRJACV1d2ACuhgNyg8y5KtN7n5lQqql_4Pz9p4KukydPa1rtmWn994Rpv2lMstdbF02c9Dw/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h45m47s223.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1Sg3N-SnHXqv-WUFDkbb8cPl2zAgd9DJC1eOAKhS28i0gq72sA-yaw9D-FXldnk5ZbujWMRJACV1d2ACuhgNyg8y5KtN7n5lQqql_4Pz9p4KukydPa1rtmWn994Rpv2lMstdbF02c9Dw/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-15h45m47s223.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503540916491263490" border="0" /></a><br /></p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1QDZVrNO1qJqZX2k521rEx6skcmyII0B8MtH9dmF1ZhQuFRhKlOE3GWjajTpb6ug8hI2Z1y6QHAG2yMv3gkmzM4GyHxXR_M8UJtmtchj3Aq5di5B7-cjHWhHGpXoWL92VZ0bAqjj8fqQ/s1600/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-16h14m05s51.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1QDZVrNO1qJqZX2k521rEx6skcmyII0B8MtH9dmF1ZhQuFRhKlOE3GWjajTpb6ug8hI2Z1y6QHAG2yMv3gkmzM4GyHxXR_M8UJtmtchj3Aq5di5B7-cjHWhHGpXoWL92VZ0bAqjj8fqQ/s400/vlcsnap-2010-08-09-16h14m05s51.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503537727587655842" border="0" /></a><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Check out the trailer here:<br /></p>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcfqXq9u60A<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">As always, comments are welcome! =)</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p>Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-73375163605898224022010-04-09T14:52:00.013-05:002010-04-09T15:16:29.964-05:00Try just a little harder, please?Try Just A Little Harder, Please Guys?<br />(HT rants a bit)<br /><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I had been toying with the idea of doing a series of reviews on animal attack movies. I've been talking about shark and crocodile movies a lot with some friends online lately, which got me thinking about this idea. So I gathered a few films that I thought may be interesting to watch and write about. I knew full well going into it that some of them would not be good, and knew that some of them would annoy me, but I thought I'd give them a shot anyway. Well... I watched several of them, and kept finding that I unable to cull enough from them to be able to write a review that would have amounted to more than a paragraph or two at most. And even then, most of those reviews would have come down to “I would almost rather stare into my cat's litter box for two hours than watch this thing again.” So instead of a big series of animal attack movie reviews (although I'm sure I'll be covering a few of them here and there), you guys get to read a rant. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrmQzG_8Z-OWcZo7nqNXpl5ZC56TMdXqn-IJo2bGsJoUAn60xHkm1d7lcaSGYLfR8xPCNwS4BlqY92UcRJ4bihCkA-Qme332slrS0529SIqaaFhv7t7xGpgErtr99zyqUiYmUnZUOaTzw/s1600/shark3.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 154px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrmQzG_8Z-OWcZo7nqNXpl5ZC56TMdXqn-IJo2bGsJoUAn60xHkm1d7lcaSGYLfR8xPCNwS4BlqY92UcRJ4bihCkA-Qme332slrS0529SIqaaFhv7t7xGpgErtr99zyqUiYmUnZUOaTzw/s200/shark3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458232539982127826" border="0" /></a>Wild animal attack movies are one of my lifelong favorite genres. At the same time, it seems that ninety-five percent or more of these films suck. What's worse is that it's also one of the film genres that is hard hit by the technological achievements in film that allows us to have really bad computer generated effects. Anyone who talks films with me finds out soon enough that I really despise bad CGI. It can break a film for me as faster than anything I can think of. And a lot of cheaply made animal attack movies have gotten to the point that they don't even bother to include a real animal at any point in the film anymore. Just to clear the air, I'm not opposed to CGI if it's done well. <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKwMC4rmBXykoNGOt3CN9qbfKY19D9nkHLQnsjitKrQVHqrjUHKGjuT1eaoT0F4dKyw4o6AEiqlqov_woROYl-19i687OBtGWC_kXgMI7CUa5SyZawDUUOY71j3vz5loab-_NGP5awADw/s1600/malibu-shark-attack.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 198px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKwMC4rmBXykoNGOt3CN9qbfKY19D9nkHLQnsjitKrQVHqrjUHKGjuT1eaoT0F4dKyw4o6AEiqlqov_woROYl-19i687OBtGWC_kXgMI7CUa5SyZawDUUOY71j3vz5loab-_NGP5awADw/s320/malibu-shark-attack.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458228383482019842" border="0" /></a></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE5xI-8pXe7B8DiWx_d39OEJlUU7y6XgUNgs-OTYHuWogcPRAVzioFM85PiENL18CJA2rT6WyPciU5irU7tAJY3W5GPxO4rc6Q6zJQM17MRsaMC-i_ckjNv9sq4QVCYiESe4gfvyr4uBo/s1600/sharkswarm_0001g_js-dh1.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 146px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE5xI-8pXe7B8DiWx_d39OEJlUU7y6XgUNgs-OTYHuWogcPRAVzioFM85PiENL18CJA2rT6WyPciU5irU7tAJY3W5GPxO4rc6Q6zJQM17MRsaMC-i_ckjNv9sq4QVCYiESe4gfvyr4uBo/s200/sharkswarm_0001g_js-dh1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458230549877653986" border="0" /></a></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Syfy is particularly notorious for this. And as much as I love a good <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jaws</span> knock-off, the ones Syfy has been making are absolutely insufferable. I've seen better CGI in a video game than in some of these films. I recently sat through <span style="font-weight: bold;">Malibu Shark Attack</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Shark Swarm</span>. Both of whom did not feature a single real shark as near as I could tell. Hell, Malibu Shark Attack even claimed a species of shark was extinct that wasn't. Guess what? Goblin sharks are not extinct, nor are they even known to attack people. <span style="font-style: italic;">See:</span> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goblin_shark">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goblin_shark</a> So not only are they being lazy as film makers by not even bothering to dig up some stock footage of a real shark and sticking in some poorly done CGI that they probably used some poor intern hoping for a college credit to create, but they are giving out straight up misinformation besides. Yes, I am aware that this happens in other genres as well, shows like CSI give unrealistic expectations to the public of what police officers are actually capable of in the way of crime solving all the time. </p><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi__69cd0tvIhF71D_BPZW8RNYoep8DuoTolNvLe-rZm-6n-5wkf81fwRbIOph7HgxB40OqNkLJcLCXYQ6eZwWWTguBxA8WxQ0JOE4GT6EL8nesmG3YVa88XfUel1MzK7Vz8dADg7PT0t0/s1600/poster_anacondas3dvdimage.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 140px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi__69cd0tvIhF71D_BPZW8RNYoep8DuoTolNvLe-rZm-6n-5wkf81fwRbIOph7HgxB40OqNkLJcLCXYQ6eZwWWTguBxA8WxQ0JOE4GT6EL8nesmG3YVa88XfUel1MzK7Vz8dADg7PT0t0/s200/poster_anacondas3dvdimage.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458230965380036578" border="0" /></a><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Don't even get me started on snakes in movies. How many times over the years have I seen a so called poisonous snake depicted in film and have it only be a Columbian Boa, a California Banded Kingsnake, or a Ball Python? (Nerdy Film/Reptile Enthusiast Note: It's call venomous, venom is injected. There is no such thing as a “poisonous” snake.) Is it that hard to track down a non-venomous snake that isn't in 75% of pet shops in the world? I don't complain when they use a milk snake and tell me it's a coral snake, at least they tried. I've ranted on this topic before in my review of Chaw, but it still annoys me. This happens all the time in current films, and it's nothing new, but I always applaud when they at least give an effort. If you look at the original <span style="font-weight: bold;">April Fool's Day</span> there is a scene in the woods where a snake strikes at someone and it's a Cook's Tree Boa. Why don't they use those more often? At least it's an unusual looking snake. I realize that I might know a little bit more about snakes than the average viewer, simply because they interest me and I've been around them most of my life, but anyone who's ever been in a pet shop for more than fifteen minutes has seen a few Columbian Boas. All I'm really asking for is a little effort. Really. That's all. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRgyg-kV0EARDN54LWgWHHpcVaWqAH0OPa7M7oPQc3BVBAs0rWORSQxzIhPErAAlehDD6CKpSedcOJxoNV-dL_Qwzt0e7t9E17Ur4NvhzgtPCSm_7PRFGa7kNf9bxsfXRjfwVRIbmp_pg/s1600/greenanaconda.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 314px; height: 230px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRgyg-kV0EARDN54LWgWHHpcVaWqAH0OPa7M7oPQc3BVBAs0rWORSQxzIhPErAAlehDD6CKpSedcOJxoNV-dL_Qwzt0e7t9E17Ur4NvhzgtPCSm_7PRFGa7kNf9bxsfXRjfwVRIbmp_pg/s320/greenanaconda.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458231760791760370" border="0" /></a>I realize that these things shouldn't be taken seriously and that they are most likely made tongue-in-cheek hoping to appeal to the fans of the so-bad-it's-good types of films. But sometimes bad is just bad. End of story.<br /></p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv3QHOBza0bSG7UjFTMhlFCQ984QqasdRMnhFr-_x16RK8tK_jMONPhf1M3CwcWAbsa3eBV6O01uj30uDeq47wqtgkoDc7n6-vwsdV9IgWTfgKDkU59nOng9jBvs0Z5Te75YxCotU1Ci0/s1600/funny-pictures-lolspeak-jaws-shark.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 216px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv3QHOBza0bSG7UjFTMhlFCQ984QqasdRMnhFr-_x16RK8tK_jMONPhf1M3CwcWAbsa3eBV6O01uj30uDeq47wqtgkoDc7n6-vwsdV9IgWTfgKDkU59nOng9jBvs0Z5Te75YxCotU1Ci0/s320/funny-pictures-lolspeak-jaws-shark.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458231407770165506" border="0" /></a>Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-42919720764075212642010-04-06T17:43:00.011-05:002010-04-06T19:53:17.600-05:00Survive Style 5+<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaSbMSvxKasZ-z-HEmB5gJYrHg32QU_-CCgm_XGe8Fld6E1CFL7FE1MXwUCnSpb0TBpg-I4ktqGyxgftYURSvNAwqef86Wxa76n4WcHWIvNt-XAVo1On_C_wNK_S0ogUKJBkSpOOprAco/s1600/newdvd.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 141px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaSbMSvxKasZ-z-HEmB5gJYrHg32QU_-CCgm_XGe8Fld6E1CFL7FE1MXwUCnSpb0TBpg-I4ktqGyxgftYURSvNAwqef86Wxa76n4WcHWIvNt-XAVo1On_C_wNK_S0ogUKJBkSpOOprAco/s200/newdvd.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457190248107285026" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Survive Style 5+ (2004)<br />120 Minutes. Gen Sekiguchi, Director.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">A movie where love means never having to kill your wife more than five or six times...</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I thought for the first real review I've done in a while, I'd cover one of my favorite films that remains horribly unseen in the US. It's going to be really hard for me not to oversell this one, I'll warn whomever reads this one now. Everyone has films that are their personal favorites, and if I were to rank my top films of the last decade, this one would be in the top ten. I am probably alone in that, partially because few have had the opportunity to watch it from what I can tell, and partially because of that abstract thing that makes a film resonate with some people more than others. One thing is for certain though, I can't think of any movie quite like it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvKYS79HaG4S07ArpYLkqSRz30LVG-1kdmtdnKPCYDXbqFtXK9j4T2L4JhBHkO9-K0sOa4yygawVUk2mel_BlWf42nkHM6_HTIFMqFtnkRhfEs4ddt8EhQLP4ArHQJ5Cqc0wo6MFVLXtk/s1600/vlcsnap-16337366.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvKYS79HaG4S07ArpYLkqSRz30LVG-1kdmtdnKPCYDXbqFtXK9j4T2L4JhBHkO9-K0sOa4yygawVUk2mel_BlWf42nkHM6_HTIFMqFtnkRhfEs4ddt8EhQLP4ArHQJ5Cqc0wo6MFVLXtk/s320/vlcsnap-16337366.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457184293271042210" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">What is your function?</span><br /><br />Survive Style 5+ is kind of an anthology consisting of five stories that manically overlap and interweave with each other. It was the feature film debut of Gen Sekiguchi, who's only other work listed on IMDB is two short films. If the information I've found is correct, he primarily makes his living by directing television commercials. The film seems to never slow down from start to finish, seldom giving you enough time to take in the incredible set design as you fly from one scene to the next. It's sheer unpredictability keeps you from guessing what's going on, and it's probably best to just strap in and enjoy it.<br /><br />The cast is solid and made up of talent such as Tadanobu Asano (one of my favorite actors, perhaps best known for his role as Kakihara in <span style="font-style: italic;">Ichi The Killer</span>), British actor Vinnie Jones, Hiroshi Abe, Ittoku Kishibe, Jai West (who recently starred in <span style="font-style: italic;">Love Exposure</span>), model/actress Reika Hashimoto, as well as a cameo from the great Sonny Chiba, among others. They all play well off of each other in the film and I can't imagine that they didn't have a great time making it, particularly Asano and Hashimoto, who play a married couple.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhigNt90uFLi0WKRt0XZym9PcqCyA6hgSMvT9-5HsLrwyyAFjgTZATB42Jq0I6IW0hkGlcNocRw7g3CfLAJY2EAQZZS_fxGf5GcTt4aA2I0eGE-XXZObUZrRstwPqlscamrzxifH9bYSm0/s1600/vlcsnap-16308528.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhigNt90uFLi0WKRt0XZym9PcqCyA6hgSMvT9-5HsLrwyyAFjgTZATB42Jq0I6IW0hkGlcNocRw7g3CfLAJY2EAQZZS_fxGf5GcTt4aA2I0eGE-XXZObUZrRstwPqlscamrzxifH9bYSm0/s320/vlcsnap-16308528.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457181400539303218" border="0" /></a>The film opens with my favorite story, where a man who's just killed his wife discovers that she isn't dead after all. Aman, played by Tadanobu Asano, gives a brief monologue on killing, and how we wouldn't understand his wanting his wife dead. After burying his wife (Reika Hashimoto) in the woods, he returns to his utterly amazing and somewhat impractical home only to find her waiting there patiently for him to return. She serves him a huge feast, seeming to consist of every bit of food in the house, and waits for him to finish eating before she proceeds to attack him, kicking off (literally) a cycle of almost cartoonish battles between them that will repeat throughout the film. He kills her again, comes home and again she's waiting for him, and the battles continue.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmPf3vMVxIAKtfu1R7N0VztimdLxHEQatw_eMluYJCLjLUvdylnb29YBFrmZ8y4nHUWnzwyUR_3R4IhZpGAvFFMRUQVFV_H4piPH8t8VdTPEcac232lcpkpc_Boih7Qve1CGEypfkdjrc/s1600/vlcsnap-16345190.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmPf3vMVxIAKtfu1R7N0VztimdLxHEQatw_eMluYJCLjLUvdylnb29YBFrmZ8y4nHUWnzwyUR_3R4IhZpGAvFFMRUQVFV_H4piPH8t8VdTPEcac232lcpkpc_Boih7Qve1CGEypfkdjrc/s320/vlcsnap-16345190.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457184307815180354" border="0" /></a><br />A foreign hit man, played by Vinnie Jones, is brought in by special request for an extravagant, very public job by the man who subcontracted him and acts as his translator. Jones plays well into his stereotype, sneering at everyone he meets, growling the question “What is your function?” at them. He flies off on a rage anytime he doesn't receive a satisfactory answer to this question, which allows for some great moments on airplanes and saunas, while his translator does his best to keep up with the ranting and obscenity that Jones spouts off.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQKFGPr240mRjlfd_bM7UnUaRYeQKS3d7orQsN5MZqgdvtYJeNuob7o8IQ6KijJMl9PuWPLQowTQlNMQqh1GynelnxgepbsXVcLwttWF-ecpHIRabvihrf8Q3Z8CHM0xbCMKO1HF99h4Q/s1600/vlcsnap-16334572.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQKFGPr240mRjlfd_bM7UnUaRYeQKS3d7orQsN5MZqgdvtYJeNuob7o8IQ6KijJMl9PuWPLQowTQlNMQqh1GynelnxgepbsXVcLwttWF-ecpHIRabvihrf8Q3Z8CHM0xbCMKO1HF99h4Q/s320/vlcsnap-16334572.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457182338441550738" border="0" /></a><br />Other stories involves a group of teenagers who burglarize peoples homes for entertainment, one of whom is filled with unrequited love for another gang member, a family who's father is hypnotized into believing he's a bird, much to the horror of his wife and family, and finally, a commercial executive who's constantly thinking up bizarre and quirky television commercials which she explains into a decorated micro-cassette recorder.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL5ZM-vgDr9SHMK5KPXjl0fqev87XU1_ZCXukOQf4l0t2ohxsS8g692pbipUCIF3hmmNaJUQJDNeXiMUJBRlipK53q48vYRBtJwU-ufI8u5y7b2xyFJa77dLxuCubhWVs8NMUxjUUk77Q/s1600/vlcsnap-16332403.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL5ZM-vgDr9SHMK5KPXjl0fqev87XU1_ZCXukOQf4l0t2ohxsS8g692pbipUCIF3hmmNaJUQJDNeXiMUJBRlipK53q48vYRBtJwU-ufI8u5y7b2xyFJa77dLxuCubhWVs8NMUxjUUk77Q/s320/vlcsnap-16332403.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457182348260688866" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"> You are killing me with the smell of armpits.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxTwAfKX9q6VMD8QbsdiFrazyZtRB-XHGLCD8zZmqUMUOclfPwVPAMylHUoDfcdiiS7Hls5YxErVI53LdMGc_p1I5VqRe1HzMYLL1hcPc3NPhwBmqSsz8bONRslmL81EH572tU-FeJ9TM/s1600/vlcsnap-16326227.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxTwAfKX9q6VMD8QbsdiFrazyZtRB-XHGLCD8zZmqUMUOclfPwVPAMylHUoDfcdiiS7Hls5YxErVI53LdMGc_p1I5VqRe1HzMYLL1hcPc3NPhwBmqSsz8bONRslmL81EH572tU-FeJ9TM/s320/vlcsnap-16326227.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457181430957796610" border="0" /></a><br />This last story thread, involving Yoko the commercial executive, is my least favorite but I can't imagine the film without it being included. Every time that Yoko, played by Kyôko Koizumi, thinks of a commercial, we get to see the commercial play out in the film that she's visualized. Her commercial ideas don't exactly please her clients, nor do they impress her lover, a hypnotist. I found her character to be the least likable person in the film, even while her lover is clearly the most despicable character present, and am still unsure why exactly I feel that way.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ISbDleEKzGuMYYUWKw0CIByWiPHaQW-trKMk18oCPF0rD0GqkMqN0aDipE9Ivis3caJVKL-RmGuZ9PIVns2A9nXRQH7lpEU81meszBhzAI5h4NRmThttqAU-hr0Rr2_SEeX0LnIcbCg/s1600/vlcsnap-16331001.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ISbDleEKzGuMYYUWKw0CIByWiPHaQW-trKMk18oCPF0rD0GqkMqN0aDipE9Ivis3caJVKL-RmGuZ9PIVns2A9nXRQH7lpEU81meszBhzAI5h4NRmThttqAU-hr0Rr2_SEeX0LnIcbCg/s320/vlcsnap-16331001.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457184325970182002" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUPmjZcx-VJoWNfHFdpcW3lfQ2v7WqpAfo9z41LQ3ThxZSaCyEoghw03UlkQgH1xrdU6TgoACoPFqFf9BZEeSjyC0Ce57EswYgP4I6nCEupRzZZSoQK_idfOvJTGX5AyZ7pRGiclm8fcs/s1600/vlcsnap-16317438.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUPmjZcx-VJoWNfHFdpcW3lfQ2v7WqpAfo9z41LQ3ThxZSaCyEoghw03UlkQgH1xrdU6TgoACoPFqFf9BZEeSjyC0Ce57EswYgP4I6nCEupRzZZSoQK_idfOvJTGX5AyZ7pRGiclm8fcs/s320/vlcsnap-16317438.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457181421235588610" border="0" /></a><br />The visuals in this film are amazing. Pure eye candy. Vibrant colors cover almost every frame of the film, much of which was done in post production, although you can't tell to look at it. The set designs are lavish and insanely detailed, from the home Aman shares with his wife, down to such small touches as the interior of the gang's car and Yoko's tape recorder. The character costumes are as outlandish and over the top as their personalities, with the beautiful Reika Hashimoto having some of the most stunning outfits of all.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBGguojbzi21lbO4kvVqm-uVYl0U3ZIIFv0TwWGx8zIbNjYCfvxFHkISan1WpyYIhEUE8gZF2s5hwOLcYuhi1mF9KhoRfXwW_D6VNyIpAXWbsrC8f7CqHze7t-LqQzgdg3sZXs6eojbQc/s1600/vlcsnap-6469474.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBGguojbzi21lbO4kvVqm-uVYl0U3ZIIFv0TwWGx8zIbNjYCfvxFHkISan1WpyYIhEUE8gZF2s5hwOLcYuhi1mF9KhoRfXwW_D6VNyIpAXWbsrC8f7CqHze7t-LqQzgdg3sZXs6eojbQc/s320/vlcsnap-6469474.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457181389535132674" border="0" /></a><br />The soundtrack also plays an integral part of Survive Style 5, and is as outlandish as you might expect. The majority of it provided by James Shimoji, but it also contains well known songs such as The First Noel and The William Tell Overture. Scenes that are accented with music are both appropriate and sometimes as over the top as the scenes themselves, which only adds to the roller coaster effect of the film.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht22yZ9axmDRy06vmZfY-bJO3Zr-IZfTCtfeh7Me0lm8c7FUCGdxxKxY0hqWMSIvda-Z14lTlTury-71NAXRy8cx3D7rF1KNc05W5hlHrm0vwNfijJ_SjWahavMY7NWStCXHmbVnC7Z3k/s1600/vlcsnap-16340511.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht22yZ9axmDRy06vmZfY-bJO3Zr-IZfTCtfeh7Me0lm8c7FUCGdxxKxY0hqWMSIvda-Z14lTlTury-71NAXRy8cx3D7rF1KNc05W5hlHrm0vwNfijJ_SjWahavMY7NWStCXHmbVnC7Z3k/s320/vlcsnap-16340511.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457184320238016050" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAOVdFxFPFW0ktRECJVx3RIEXelMZF4RZ_TOc5daUIYIdIJFJnOWim0HNxQ8-E8WUzrV-IBIq4P-XhrYpeDJ4RrmnJkeVCopBokq3NsGkEDuLfDh_8SjCv41etPF0K8ZmpeSBLnWOUoD8/s1600/vlcsnap-16351969.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAOVdFxFPFW0ktRECJVx3RIEXelMZF4RZ_TOc5daUIYIdIJFJnOWim0HNxQ8-E8WUzrV-IBIq4P-XhrYpeDJ4RrmnJkeVCopBokq3NsGkEDuLfDh_8SjCv41etPF0K8ZmpeSBLnWOUoD8/s320/vlcsnap-16351969.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457182371377154514" border="0" /></a></span><br />While the film at first appears to be rocketing viewers through it with gleeful abandon and childlike innocence, it's actually got quite a bit of heart in the end. It covers many themes such as love and loss, resentment and acceptance, denial and regret, among others. The characters in the film must find ways to continue to survive in the lives that they are placed in, and deal with what that survival means. By the end of the film almost everyone is changed in some way.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5z4WVLXd0DX3N8n3pqPMYBl8Zs75hGH2EvM3ChVahiuVh8eMTJRWG28sqpExG51C8H7Ek8bA08LYtQJ7Tf5CCo7z9SSztsgoSlZK1vIq4WF2bDmCWbO-5G4gYPt3yDbGx_Iv2Fv1wxEQ/s1600/vlcsnap-16348243.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5z4WVLXd0DX3N8n3pqPMYBl8Zs75hGH2EvM3ChVahiuVh8eMTJRWG28sqpExG51C8H7Ek8bA08LYtQJ7Tf5CCo7z9SSztsgoSlZK1vIq4WF2bDmCWbO-5G4gYPt3yDbGx_Iv2Fv1wxEQ/s320/vlcsnap-16348243.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457182360332333586" border="0" /></a><br />You can see the trailer for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Survive Style 5+</span> here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEH7nDkiPEk<br /><br />I urge anyone who reads this blog to give this film a chance. It is one of the most fun times I've had watching a movie in a long time. If you live in the USA, it's sadly unavailable in Region 1. If you have a region free DVD player, however, it can be had quite inexpensively from Amazon.co.uk, where if memory serves I paid less than 4GBP for my copy.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzfIS_wuvZpjAKnQz0BiVOnpXckW9IHbS5VDVahvHjFuOZlTVY-MJfa20Iy8NGGOjUEN62nR0GS7_7xH0lH4aLEGnUex83VNWdiFwMORxnYUaltStEoQ5RxuSVs1Yw7XtQs9IfmM97tFg/s1600/SurviveStyle5flame2_2.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 435px; height: 114px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzfIS_wuvZpjAKnQz0BiVOnpXckW9IHbS5VDVahvHjFuOZlTVY-MJfa20Iy8NGGOjUEN62nR0GS7_7xH0lH4aLEGnUex83VNWdiFwMORxnYUaltStEoQ5RxuSVs1Yw7XtQs9IfmM97tFg/s400/SurviveStyle5flame2_2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457190476236322786" border="0" /></a>* Special thanks to Andrea (@forestaken on twitter) for assisting with this review and encouraging me to get over the writer's block I've been fighting with. =)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZcboBr0rxZ56zieGdkSKXlA_-ziYw34NYQpF_AGCodM7G1jMH8TIFwajvJOOUIqjtkx7fHe2rouSf8-LzT57oZoH68stkqjIIE431K28ktFbp_IEUdxp0d4nmbEzoOh5CCL8JhNbRIo4/s1600/vlcsnap-16330005.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZcboBr0rxZ56zieGdkSKXlA_-ziYw34NYQpF_AGCodM7G1jMH8TIFwajvJOOUIqjtkx7fHe2rouSf8-LzT57oZoH68stkqjIIE431K28ktFbp_IEUdxp0d4nmbEzoOh5CCL8JhNbRIo4/s320/vlcsnap-16330005.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457184334806611938" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie86Jt8aNBaQ1pbAxEi0FPizjG6YQ4A33UeZ8vMFXkO-9nYOfQ1aZAisJ9wmCwbu8LwzRsKjEtnbI5J3xG4f4de2OlkpzTeaut7uA-2ulUBiMJA_wb52GXEFfAIIntMfy6zvpo-S7LlbI/s1600/vlcsnap-16316643.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie86Jt8aNBaQ1pbAxEi0FPizjG6YQ4A33UeZ8vMFXkO-9nYOfQ1aZAisJ9wmCwbu8LwzRsKjEtnbI5J3xG4f4de2OlkpzTeaut7uA-2ulUBiMJA_wb52GXEFfAIIntMfy6zvpo-S7LlbI/s320/vlcsnap-16316643.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457181411372542114" border="0" /></a><br />Comments are always welcome!Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-10937254951257338782010-02-11T13:00:00.004-06:002010-02-11T13:32:43.368-06:00What I've been watching lately...I realize it's been a long time since I posted anything. I've had writer's block something fierce. In the meantime, just to give you an idea of what I've been up to, this is a list of the films I've watched in 2010, as part of my New Year's Resolution to watch all the films I've bought (some were gifts, promotional materials from work, or whatever) but never watched. I started out with 465 films in my to-watch pile. As of February 2nd, I've added 9 more. This basically means that as of this posting, I've watched 107 films from a total of 474 that I need to watch, leaving me with 367 still to watch this year, plus whatever I buy to add to that. (Which probably won't be very many as it stands right now because I lose my job next month.)<br /><br />January:<br /><br /> 1. The Betrayed<br /> 2. Boy In The Striped Pajamas<br /> 3. Howling V/Howling VI<br /> 4. 5 Dolls for an August Moon<br /> 5. Each Dawn I Die (1939) ^<br /> 6. The Believer<br /> 7. His Name Was Jason<br /> 8. Pathogen<br /> 9. The Public Enemy (1931)<br />10. Cop Killers<br />11. Hell In The Pacific ^<br />12. Public Enemies * ^<br />13. The Night Porter<br />14. Shottas<br />15. Dog Bite Dog ^<br />16. Wendell Baker Story<br />17. Blindness ^<br />18. The Kid Stays In The Picture<br />19. White Heat (1949)<br />20. Isle of the Dead<br />21. Brain Damage<br />22. Mark of the Devil<br />23. TranSiberian<br />24. The Fair Haired Child<br />25. The Great Silence ^<br />26. Do You Like Hitchcock?<br />27. Wild Country<br />28. Two Thousand Maniacs<br />29. Invisible Target<br />30. Death Proof<br />31. What Doesn't Kill You<br />32. Hell High<br />33. The Girl From Monday<br />34. Long Weekend (original)<br />35. Fracture<br />36. Teeth<br />37. Dream Cruise<br />38. Opera<br />39. Freaks<br />40. Woyzeck ^<br />41. Inferno<br />42. Screwfly Solution<br />43. The Squid And The Whale<br />44. H<br />45. I Walked With A Zombie<br />46. The Body Snatcher<br />47. Rockaway<br />48. House of the Damned<br />49. Story of a Prostitute<br />50. Blood From The Mummy's Tomb<br />51. The Lookout<br />52. Snow Angels<br />53. Tower of Evil<br />54. Return of the Vampire<br />55. Sound of Thunder<br />56. Quarantine<br />57. Let's Scare Jessica To Death<br />58. Babel<br />59. Reservation Road<br />60. The Nest<br />61. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang<br />62. Bedlam<br />63. Bullet Ballet ^<br />64. Bats:Human Harvest<br />65. Effects<br />66. Derailed<br />67. The Secret (not the psuedo-doc, this has Duchovny in it)<br />68. Female Prisoner #701:Scorpion<br />69. Last King of Scotland<br />70. Wonderland (Winterbottom film, not the John Holmes one)<br />71. The Bank Job<br />72. Undertow ^<br />73. Death Sentence <br />74. Deliver Us From Evil ^<br />75. Night of the Creeps<br /><br /><br />February:<br /><br />76. The Great Raid<br />77. Cat People (1943)<br />78. Tightrope<br />79. Curse of the Cat People (1944)<br />80. The Hand<br />81. This Boy's Life <br />82. Darjeeling Limited<br />83. Picture Snatcher (1933)<br />84. Apt Pupil<br />85. Ice Harvest<br />86. Brothers Grimm<br />87. Deadly Spawn<br />88. Sublime<br />89. The Tattooist<br />90. Sunshine Cleaning<br />91. Petrified Forest<br />92. Painted Veil<br />93. I Confess<br />94. Big Nothing *<br />95. Beautiful Country<br />96. Eye of God ^<br />97. Horrors Of Dracula<br />98. Already Dead<br />99. Grizzly<br />100. Half Nelson<br />101. Little Caesar<br />102. Rendition<br />103. Rise Blood Hunter<br />104. Mesrine: Killer Instinct * ^<br />105. Mesrine: Public Enemy Number 1 * ^<br />106. Sin<br />107. Play Misty For Me<br /><br />* = Film I bought since January 1st, 2010.<br />^ = Film that I consider a favorite of what I've seen so far in 2010.<br />(believe it or not, some of these I've watched special features on and/or commentary tracks too.)<br /><br />You can see how others involved in this New Year's Resolution are doing at http:/tinyurl.com/towatchpile.<br /><br />More reviews are coming, I just have to get myself motivated again. Hopefully, you'll find this at least vaguely interesting in the meantime.Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-54401893363269218532009-12-15T07:27:00.006-06:002009-12-15T08:07:31.020-06:00An Interview With Jenny Spain<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiASUAt1imF271UvGBSOQYSOkB_43ZSDQ_lhDiUhmIeno_3N8HChYGPLjaUn07ceEJaEPC2fpnal9makJW2j8tX9KA0mmlb_xvt3YuzsabRvtNQKpQd-pcOadUC_ltnkW0yOyNF0DYlLHU/s1600-h/deadgirl-poster-fullsize.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 247px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiASUAt1imF271UvGBSOQYSOkB_43ZSDQ_lhDiUhmIeno_3N8HChYGPLjaUn07ceEJaEPC2fpnal9makJW2j8tX9KA0mmlb_xvt3YuzsabRvtNQKpQd-pcOadUC_ltnkW0yOyNF0DYlLHU/s320/deadgirl-poster-fullsize.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415464305431031138" border="0" /></a><br /><style type="text/css"> <!-- @page { margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom: 0.08in } --> </style> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-weight: bold;">An Interview With Jenny Spain, of Deadgirl</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Deadgirl</span> tells the story of two bored and unpopular teenagers, JT and Rickie, who skip school one day and pass the time by going to check out an abandoned mental hospital. They eventually find a naked dead girl, bound and wrapped in plastic, in a corner room of a dark corridor of the basement, only they discover she's not exactly dead. What happens from there is the real meat of the film, as JT and Rickie's relationship is tested by this discovery and their differing opinions on what to do about it. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">When I first sat down to watch <span style="font-weight: bold;">Deadgirl</span>, I didn't expect to like the film. Despite zombies being one of my favorite horror genre staples, the enormous amount of bad zombie films out there has made me a bit skittish about getting my hopes up for a good one. What I got this time was a surprisingly refreshing and original take on the zombie genre. This film, like <span style="font-weight: bold;">Pontypool</span>, proves that there is still fresh territory to explore within the zombie film concept. While I freely admit that it's not a film that everyone will love, I do recommend that you guys check it out. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The dead girl in the film is played by model and actress Jenny Spain. She gives what I thought was a brave performance, spending most of the film nude and bound to a gurney. Not to mention being made up in a less than flattering light with everything from simply looking unwashed and neglected to beaten and bruised. She never speaks a word in the film, yet you often wonder what her character is thinking about the things that are going on around her.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFynZUfOZWQWjxv9PJS6FpezDQoMlKHhxD08UAUcFM6KstkPEvQ9dPA2Qw8QDGcX4PDONM_TyyFLs64bKHW0Lwpt-JcDq63V0gwVT2MQthbKZfvnx82LQTd09nCP5F-j0UB6tq-EW4rc0/s1600-h/JS2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 172px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFynZUfOZWQWjxv9PJS6FpezDQoMlKHhxD08UAUcFM6KstkPEvQ9dPA2Qw8QDGcX4PDONM_TyyFLs64bKHW0Lwpt-JcDq63V0gwVT2MQthbKZfvnx82LQTd09nCP5F-j0UB6tq-EW4rc0/s320/JS2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415457956548056370" border="0" /></a></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I had the opportunity recently to interview Jenny Spain via e-mail. She was very friendly and enthused about the idea even though this blog is fairly new and I'm a very inexperienced interviewer. I am very pleased with how the interview turned out and I hope you guys enjoy it! </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Heavenztrash</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">If I understand correctly, you started out in modeling and then got involved in acting. Had you always wanted to be an actress or is it something you discovered about yourself through your career?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Jenny Spain</span>: Ever since I was a little girl I have always wanted to be both. I took theater and modeling when I was young. I always loved modeling because its acting and expression. You can be anything and as a model I learned expression. When I took theater I did a lot of children's plays such as Peter Rabbit. Growing up I was always exposed to entertainment. My friends did movies and worked for MTV. So I had the exposure also being behind a camera.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">How did you come to find out about the script for <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span> and become involved with the film?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: A good friend of mine contacted me about <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span> and put me in contact with Gadi & Marcel. I did a home audition since at the time I was was living in Michigan. I sent the video and everybody LOVED it. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>:<span style="font-style: italic;"> How did you feel about the material initially, especially given what your character has to go through? What, if any, reservations did you have about it?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: I read the script and instantly fell in love with it. Growing up watching horror films this was completely different and emotionally dark. I knew my role as deadgirl and knew it would be difficult. I really had to emotionally and mentally prepare myself for it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Did you have to audition for the part? If so, how was the audition conducted?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: I did a home audition using a video camera. Before my audition I just happened to have been watching Shawn Of The Dead so it was a hoop going from watching records being thrown at some dead chick's head to a very emotional/animalistic deadgirl.<br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXu0FMNSYNd3J73NPvKyQZGz3JlrsvtRF0431heXLzuTd5T9WSs96tE6Ec6-BYZ4WpA1gX2L1WI-9UU_tnZAbn0uKHSbPKts6Cvl2Og6o9O5GAQphcTpESTUY1thIGmPa4wsKa5lsknY/s1600-h/vlcsnap-171860.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXu0FMNSYNd3J73NPvKyQZGz3JlrsvtRF0431heXLzuTd5T9WSs96tE6Ec6-BYZ4WpA1gX2L1WI-9UU_tnZAbn0uKHSbPKts6Cvl2Og6o9O5GAQphcTpESTUY1thIGmPa4wsKa5lsknY/s400/vlcsnap-171860.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415460575183863810" border="0" /></a></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">What was the hardest part of the film making experience for you? Was there ever a time that you were having second thoughts about the project? </span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span> is a very dark and emotional film. Knowing I would be nude and majority of my scenes included a lot of physical and emotional activity, it was very difficult. It was important for me to build a bond and comfort zone with my co stars. I knew they felt uncomfortable and I reassured them that its alright, your not doing anything wrong. We are making something special. JT (Noah Segan) was very intimidating. Women like to feel comfort and have reassurance and I knew our characters were going to be a battle. We understood each other, worked together and made it happen.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Did you enjoy making a film with such heavy subject matter? Do you think that you would do it again?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: Honestly I did enjoy making <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span> because it was such an intense movie to make and it brought everyone involved close together. We knew how extreme and how far we were going and it really became a family affair. </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">You've asked the fans on twitter what their favorite parts of the film were, or what parts scared them the most... what was your favorite part of the film? </span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: My favorite part was were they discover the girl, its such a mystery and so much death and beauty that lies beneath. Her discovery is probably the most intense because it makes you question life itself.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2FICI4PFNTQIfbxScSUqk4vJWuUIpVo-LEMDhaXbrWWJmc5EoWEczj2S2UkyFxZ-dUHGw3290pnUM-P6ExVhHG7wApb1XGfTd8vUc7oa9VkJcKLY-8OO24nAVPfMSA6reiiCJdTkat-w/s1600-h/vlcsnap-162623.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2FICI4PFNTQIfbxScSUqk4vJWuUIpVo-LEMDhaXbrWWJmc5EoWEczj2S2UkyFxZ-dUHGw3290pnUM-P6ExVhHG7wApb1XGfTd8vUc7oa9VkJcKLY-8OO24nAVPfMSA6reiiCJdTkat-w/s400/vlcsnap-162623.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415460572587140370" border="0" /></a></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Have you experienced any negative reactions from family or friends about the film since it's release? You said in an interview several months ago that you watched it with your father, I can't imagine that was very comfortable. </span> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: Yes, I have had some negativity from family. I did an interview with the New York Post about taking my dad and my brother to see <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span>. My mom still wont see <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span> because she knows the content of the film, but she is still proud. I took dad and my brother to one of our premiers at the AFI Film Festival. I didn't tell them much about the film. I was hoping we would have separate seating but we all had to sit together. My dad was a little uncomfortable so I went and got a BIG bucket of popcorn. My dad and brother shared it and by the end of the movie the bucket was CLEAN! I reassured my dad that I had a stunt double. ;) My brother who serves in the U.S Army said "Thats my kind of movie" my dad said " Cool Jen". He is short on words but he has been a huge investor in me and my career. My dad loves the movie!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Have you kept in contact with any of the other actors involved in <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span>? If so, how are they enjoying the film's reception?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: Yes! I do keep in contact with everyone. We all became very close both Gadi and Marcel as well as spfx artist Jim Ojala. We have all developed a special bond. Especially working with Jim who did my spfx make-up. I was nervous at first, shortly we became the best of friends we goofed a lot and got into mischief. All the hours in make-up, not to mention I mooned ALOT of people! ha. Stuff they don't mention on behind the scenes. We made it fun. Not very many films go this far emotionally, mentally and physically. <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span> had an impact on many of us and brought us all close together. That's rare.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglgblhEBBLVJyRj63Wdxm9S6YvBJbpzOn25BZxCAnyWcSth3mNnFNwOUJqxojIbcD4WkPbE9aWiESunG7OyIBe_SB8pwp6r5tisQmFXK3YtEpZIkf3n5oLP3h9ByjjeqorFQ2U7BXdsiE/s1600-h/vlcsnap-187078.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglgblhEBBLVJyRj63Wdxm9S6YvBJbpzOn25BZxCAnyWcSth3mNnFNwOUJqxojIbcD4WkPbE9aWiESunG7OyIBe_SB8pwp6r5tisQmFXK3YtEpZIkf3n5oLP3h9ByjjeqorFQ2U7BXdsiE/s400/vlcsnap-187078.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415460588294722514" border="0" /></a></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Are there any actors or directors that you would really love to work with in the future? Who would they be and what is it about their work that you enjoy?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: There are lots of actors I would love to work with. Everyone is different and has a particular style. I'm an observer, actors or not, everyone has some kind of talent to learn from. I think its important to be observant and open minded. It helps with with creativity.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">What can you tell us about your upcoming film <span style="font-weight: bold;">Trust</span> and your character in it? So far I've only read that it's being compared to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Saw</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Big Brother</span> on some levels. (There seems to be a certain level of interest in tying reality TV in with horror I've noticed. The best effort so far being the UK zombie miniseries, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dead Set</span>, in my opinion.)</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: I play Elaine Tanner who is a lead character in <span style="font-weight: bold;">TRUST</span>. Can't tell you too much about my character because that would just give it away :) Both Directors Kerry Finlayson(UK) and Dominka Pyke (Poland) have won awards for previous international films. <span style="font-weight: bold;">TRUST</span> is about 12 reality TV stars at their last chance of fame and a huge wad of cash and would do anything to win. Everyone is put through tests, whether it's life or death, and nobody knows. Some turn up missing, dead, it's a battle between lovers and friends. Lots of sex, blood, its good. It's about who you can <span style="font-weight: bold;">TRUST</span>.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">You've mentioned a couple of non-horror film projects that you may have coming up, can you elaborate on those at all?</span></p> <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />JS</span>: I have multiple projects in the works. I have been offered many leading parts two are Sci-Fi, the others are drama/thriller. Unfortunately, I can't say the names just yet. They are all leading roles with some big names. So keep a look out! :)<br /><br /><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPCtYmrWF2rg4XSEJ0qnIt959FY4glLEIbe_SxNXtUff8xWFLnRyfByyTkHqvw1D6NN8xh-PLYDipPvjfmPRf10TSEACGVMkdbSCzIO0Kml7w62w_xKfXEsXo5HtScxX4BNHI9t1LhAfc/s1600-h/vlcsnap-181258.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPCtYmrWF2rg4XSEJ0qnIt959FY4glLEIbe_SxNXtUff8xWFLnRyfByyTkHqvw1D6NN8xh-PLYDipPvjfmPRf10TSEACGVMkdbSCzIO0Kml7w62w_xKfXEsXo5HtScxX4BNHI9t1LhAfc/s400/vlcsnap-181258.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415460584029094130" border="0" /></a></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Is horror your favorite genre? Do you plan to work within the horror genre more in the future, or is it a stepping stone into acting for you? </span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: I grew up watching horror. My dad introduced it to me as a kid. Growing up watching horror films taught me to be fearless. There are many lessons to learn in the horror genre. Those who are not use to seeing death and blood, etc, who watch Lifetime and soaps all the time... if someone was in a real life situation and had to act quickly, who would be the first to freak out? It's common sense. So you wont see me on Lifetime. Ha! I love horror, but I'm the type of girl who loves to expand herself.<br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">From what I've seen you post on twitter, you seem to be a huge film fan like myself and those who will read this. You may even watch more movies than I do, and that's saying something! What are some of your favorite films?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: My ultimate favorite film is <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bram Stoker's Dracula</span>. I could watch it over and over again. It's so sexy, dark and lustful. I am not a fan of love comedies. Majority of those who watch love comedies can not divide reality and fantasy. It's a whole different world. I'm a fan of a good flick that keeps me on my toes, not something that would make me depressed, veg on ice cream, and cry over. That's just lame.</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HT</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Is there anything that you'd like to talk about that hasn't been mentioned in the previous interviews you've done about <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span> or about yourself? </span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">JS</span>: I would just really like to thank you for this interview and all those who have seen <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span>. We worked really hard for this and waited so long for everyone to experience it. Our DVD commentaries/behind the scenes doesn't compare to what we actually went through to make this film but it's as close as we could get. So please check out <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span> you'll either love it or hate it. Thank You!</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIAlV9lK0ig1A27mumKS361W4vvHMMj1XjLTK0b0mVbs3E0tH-cQETAg38ulV2nZrhv-kXISq-7d9bwhFi6GqKPlSZCKK91nOhywYMkhwxywti6vKT3F3vMOUvp1PsDGXxWA3k-f12m5k/s1600-h/JS1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIAlV9lK0ig1A27mumKS361W4vvHMMj1XjLTK0b0mVbs3E0tH-cQETAg38ulV2nZrhv-kXISq-7d9bwhFi6GqKPlSZCKK91nOhywYMkhwxywti6vKT3F3vMOUvp1PsDGXxWA3k-f12m5k/s320/JS1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415457951995502450" border="0" /></a></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I'd like to give a HUGE Thank You to Jenny for taking the time to do this interview. I hope she'll keep us informed of her future projects and maybe grant us another interview later on down the line. You can follow Jenny Spain on twitter, where she can be found as @jennyspain. I hope you guys enjoyed it and check out <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADGIRL</span>! </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">As always, Comments are welcome!</p>Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-55770435178801579402009-12-11T23:27:00.009-06:002009-12-11T23:50:10.823-06:00Chaw (2009)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhouU1OwxaJW_0i_lygdFbcvZEIwxC5Iwi8NsB1WzzVdu5-NaRclH2CfYJvrxzbgSw2BkNZK2Hkse5UqJpUxFwspeKLhFHMsC4YUf-PF4Gd0VypDgw34ZBAju_So6TqPj1oWLz_dLDHTJE/s1600-h/644387Chaw-p2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 280px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhouU1OwxaJW_0i_lygdFbcvZEIwxC5Iwi8NsB1WzzVdu5-NaRclH2CfYJvrxzbgSw2BkNZK2Hkse5UqJpUxFwspeKLhFHMsC4YUf-PF4Gd0VypDgw34ZBAju_So6TqPj1oWLz_dLDHTJE/s400/644387Chaw-p2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414218186805449266" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Chaw (2009) 121 Minutes.</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jeong-won Shin, Director.</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Chaw</span> is a South Korean horror/dark comedy film about a man-eating boar terrorizing the small Korean village of Sammaeri. According to IMDB, it's only the second film from director Jeong-won Shin. I was unfamiliar with all of the cast except Yu-mi Jeong, whom I'd seen previously in <span style="font-weight: bold;">A Bittersweet Life</span>. What drew me to watch the film was the concept. Killer boar terrorizes village. Yep, I'm sold. I'm a sucker for that kind of thing. I love old school monster movies. Unless Syfy makes it.<br /><br />The film credits open with some rather disturbing and realistic looking footage of hunters trapping and killing animals in a series of quick flashes. I don't know if the footage is real or not, it certainly looks like it is. Once that bit of unpleasantness is out of the way (I'm not a fan of real animal violence AT ALL) the film starts with a man going to take a leak at the edge of a hill before tripping and falling face first into a dug open grave. He climbs out of the hole, clearly disturbed by this turn of events and is promptly attacked and drug away by the boar, who we don't see at this point. A classic beginning to a film that is essentially a Jaws knock-off. I mean that in a good way. I love <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jaws</span>, and I tend to enjoy <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jaws</span> knock-offs. And this one doesn't take itself too seriously.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZUADBJUZiEoU8ER2_u1r-eXrg7Uk79FC4FWxpx4QS1PdJ6olh4ZkfO9QtMfad-X1HbDduJZW1RKXiWjJqR68UE7mIFJlAwdX8ZAhYYGfvScxx265MumDvP4jJPfDorlbdcRuvvRYEeds/s1600-h/vlcsnap-5159207.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZUADBJUZiEoU8ER2_u1r-eXrg7Uk79FC4FWxpx4QS1PdJ6olh4ZkfO9QtMfad-X1HbDduJZW1RKXiWjJqR68UE7mIFJlAwdX8ZAhYYGfvScxx265MumDvP4jJPfDorlbdcRuvvRYEeds/s400/vlcsnap-5159207.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414220500732377538" border="0" /></a><br />From that point, we meet the typical cast of characters. The village chief, the retired hunter, the detective sent to investigate the killings, the new cop in town, and the big game hunter brought in to solve the problem. We are also treated to some strange villagers like an apparently insane woman who insists on being called “mother” and laughs maniacally at everyone, and an odd street urchin looking child who may or may not be her son. These characters have good development and interact well with each other.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVtPtPki153I3opZ3rcj2td2e0NaqdWRpezDFHm_-QyMB_JGOBaufUVlS1_0A4QaQHOeAcwzggrVLQQJbDRutL4FDRzRGay6mBG6iDtiubNgSxJ20EOCRDtUZP0IoeefPeO-WFO2a78Vs/s1600-h/vlcsnap-5154029.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVtPtPki153I3opZ3rcj2td2e0NaqdWRpezDFHm_-QyMB_JGOBaufUVlS1_0A4QaQHOeAcwzggrVLQQJbDRutL4FDRzRGay6mBG6iDtiubNgSxJ20EOCRDtUZP0IoeefPeO-WFO2a78Vs/s400/vlcsnap-5154029.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414220494831458178" border="0" /></a><br />One of the things that works in this movie, strangely enough, is it's humor. I'm kind of a hard sell for horror comedy. For years I resented <span style="font-weight: bold;">Return of the Living Dead</span> for making zombies funny. (Don't worry, I got over it. But, for the record, I like my zombies to be slow, hungry, mindless hordes.) But in this case the comedy and horror elements actually compliment each other pretty well. For some reason <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tremors</span> comes to mind, not in story, but in how the horror and comedy work within the story. Some of the humor in the film appears unintentional. For example, in one scene, a group of hunters comes to the village to help track down the boar. These hunters are supposed to be from Finland, yet speak English with VERY American accents. There is some physical humor in it as well. People are always falling down in this movie. Come to think of it, boars are always falling down in this movie too.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZNWRhPKtzAUloqTksFt2sqbISPTNr2xprh0nU9nO412ItjGaZdpfc7dCiBezyDLRHXMIujocpHPo20CHj5KcKmA1cVsP9KIu9MVj_7mWjPoSJ8YQYWLknrlVw5sIg2Iw17tWikj-tf4g/s1600-h/vlcsnap-5163413.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZNWRhPKtzAUloqTksFt2sqbISPTNr2xprh0nU9nO412ItjGaZdpfc7dCiBezyDLRHXMIujocpHPo20CHj5KcKmA1cVsP9KIu9MVj_7mWjPoSJ8YQYWLknrlVw5sIg2Iw17tWikj-tf4g/s400/vlcsnap-5163413.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414220505612395794" border="0" /></a><br />Visually the film is nice to look at. The forest is very pretty and I like the set design. There are a few action scenes where I didn't care for the filming style that the director chose to use, but that's a personal preference. The special effects in it are pretty solid, all things considered. The gore and blood effects are pretty typical of what I've seen out from Korean cinema. The boar sometimes looks a bit odd and not very menacing, but when they are showing it running through the forest and so on, the effects are good. It's usually the close up face and mouth shots where it looks computer generated. Bear in mind that I'm particularly picky about my CGI and am a big fan of practical effects, so I am probably making more of this than I should.<br /><br />Interestingly, about 70% of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Chaw</span> was filmed in California near San Francisco, despite being a Korean production. Much of the film takes place in rural areas and it was much easier to secure permission to film in the California woods than it was to film in Korea. Many of the computer generated effects were also done here in the United States. From what I've been able to find out online, the effects crew spent two years developing the boar in the film.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhArh9k5gmWm7s2QNLTPG9RgNRqdp89iwXWILw4rU3cW9TgPL5dgn8tLKJe5aVM7Y-sTp7nI7m2PI640k-8AtdQSZ3nh_xyM_Tqx323noF1rI9KGyJweDYPjHnAr7HSeTy-_H7OkijVN7o/s1600-h/vlcsnap-5163839.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhArh9k5gmWm7s2QNLTPG9RgNRqdp89iwXWILw4rU3cW9TgPL5dgn8tLKJe5aVM7Y-sTp7nI7m2PI640k-8AtdQSZ3nh_xyM_Tqx323noF1rI9KGyJweDYPjHnAr7HSeTy-_H7OkijVN7o/s400/vlcsnap-5163839.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414220510176948082" border="0" /></a><br />Snakes feature prominently in two scenes of the film, in one instance it was a computer generated one that looked rather weak. I think they would have us believe it was a Mamushi Viper that you were seeing although it looked more like a variety of rat snake to me. The other one, which was presented in the story as being a venomous snake looked like it may be a Cooks Tree Boa or something in the smaller tree boa family. I realize this probably doesn't matter to anybody but me. I have been around reptiles most of my life, and find it really annoying when a film tries to show me one snake and tell me it's another one. At least the film makers in this case used a less common snake for their “deadly snake” than a lot of films do. I've lost count of the number of films where some deadly snake that kills you in seconds is portrayed by a corn snake or boa constrictor. Even the cover of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Anaconda 3</span> (which I've never seen and have no desire to) has a bunch of ball pythons on the cover and the main snake being featured is a Burmese Python with something looking like a computer generated rat head tacked onto it. Completely ridiculous, but I digress...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD26xaJHqyAwHBb22Wf0j22yPShP2CcvAaj0ogHyMOGbSe_cAoJjZVW6ZH7crt13xv2J41YVQPgqpYTC1TMhIDN5pqZ-a_GoVquE-reweQWzdbZYa7MRsAR7ZOpGjSO7qhyphenhyphenHcYa_Gc3gA/s1600-h/vlcsnap-5168303.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD26xaJHqyAwHBb22Wf0j22yPShP2CcvAaj0ogHyMOGbSe_cAoJjZVW6ZH7crt13xv2J41YVQPgqpYTC1TMhIDN5pqZ-a_GoVquE-reweQWzdbZYa7MRsAR7ZOpGjSO7qhyphenhyphenHcYa_Gc3gA/s400/vlcsnap-5168303.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414219435192660306" border="0" /></a><br />This film can't help but draw comparisons to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jaws</span>, as I mentioned above, and the Australian film <span style="font-weight: bold;">Razorback</span>, which it's particularly reminiscent of in the final act. I've also heard of an American film called <span style="font-weight: bold;">Pig Hunt</span>, which I've not seen, and have heard this compared to as well. From what I can tell, they are very different films though, and the only real comparison to be found in it is that both involve killer pigs.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd6lU1fgg4ti7loXpT3brPyysuISm9jvvdVdgWIIDZkOkUGHDPgDbtOkWhtFKPgfqwtCwSGpZW7F5K-ZaKEmdrXMhK31YGsYIjrxuxlGL6KV_UYzbN8s0OK0OwsTSWyQ9lbJ82PaRKX8A/s1600-h/vlcsnap-5169244.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd6lU1fgg4ti7loXpT3brPyysuISm9jvvdVdgWIIDZkOkUGHDPgDbtOkWhtFKPgfqwtCwSGpZW7F5K-ZaKEmdrXMhK31YGsYIjrxuxlGL6KV_UYzbN8s0OK0OwsTSWyQ9lbJ82PaRKX8A/s400/vlcsnap-5169244.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414219429837257378" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Chaw</span> is a very fun film and I highly recommend that you guys give it a watch if you get a chance. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. So many really bad monster movies come out, it's always a good thing when one like this comes along, in my opinion.<br /><br />As always, comments are welcome!<br /><br />(I finally got a chance to write a new review! Thanks for the patience everyone!)Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-15131899639270183462009-09-17T22:33:00.011-05:002009-09-17T23:52:55.928-05:00Animal Factory (2000)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDPODoX6vW-YgPuYD9otOVCqBj6YGvQ6n0QHDz2mCHzn558bQdlbyfKrVyoSPFKrdT36h8aJc2G3Zdqt1vC2t_lh3XYxs-Z1c1B7xpy948ypNNAthy8F_vjlsxTKtPhB3iLVLmG-qWAnE/s1600-h/af4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 221px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDPODoX6vW-YgPuYD9otOVCqBj6YGvQ6n0QHDz2mCHzn558bQdlbyfKrVyoSPFKrdT36h8aJc2G3Zdqt1vC2t_lh3XYxs-Z1c1B7xpy948ypNNAthy8F_vjlsxTKtPhB3iLVLmG-qWAnE/s320/af4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382647100968374738" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Animal Factory (2000)</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">94 Minutes. Steve Buscemi, Director.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Animal Factory</span> tells the story of Ron Decker, played by Edward Furlong, a young felon sent to prison for two years after being convicted for dealing in large quantities of marijuana, and his relationship with Earl Copen, a long term convict, played by Willem DaFoe. Decker is clearly in over his head, being sent to a prison full of hardened criminals, while he is inexperienced and naive. He falls in with Earl Copen after a short while and is taken in by Copen and his friends, and struggles to adapt to prison life.<br /><br />Edward Furlong gives a good performance as Ron Decker. He comes of as inexperienced and uncertain of how to best interact with the other inmates. Furlong looks androgynous in the context of the other inmates, carries himself kind of shyly, and frankly, looks like the kind of guy who would wind up being a rape victim within the first few weeks of incarceration. As the film progresses, his character changes, becoming darker, and more acclimated to prison and prison culture.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsOBiCVIOujpRP9J6GFC286HtvjEEt4q9F5zpbvIlP3x9iDoQ7koh_JWKuDMqPSjDpe0s9GxVRLpItv_TEyChjYGXisaopupHtoobBNURUoLK7hHuFgsxNzRdc0aB0Ueo6SwXNWL9t3wo/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6300593.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsOBiCVIOujpRP9J6GFC286HtvjEEt4q9F5zpbvIlP3x9iDoQ7koh_JWKuDMqPSjDpe0s9GxVRLpItv_TEyChjYGXisaopupHtoobBNURUoLK7hHuFgsxNzRdc0aB0Ueo6SwXNWL9t3wo/s320/vlcsnap-6300593.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382657177666794498" border="0" /></a><br />Willem DaFoe is excellent as Earl Copen. DaFoe portrays Copen as haggard and wise, a jaded prisoner in a way that seems more genuine than say Morgan Freeman's turn as Red in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Shawshank Redemption</span>. (This is not meant as a slight against <span style="font-weight: bold;">Shawshank Redemption</span>, which I am also a fan of). There is a tired look in his eyes sometimes, and a calculating reptilian expression at others. The performance is sometimes very subtle, and at other times, animated. Copen has been incarcerated for so long that he knows how to exploit the place to suit his needs. DaFoe performance changes showing Copen's adaptation to what the situation needs to achieve his goal. He takes Decker under his wing and shows him the ropes, so to speak. He helps Decker find a better job in the prison, and helps him make the best of his situation, while Decker worries what he wants in return.<br /><br />The film also stars Danny Trejo, whom Bunker befriended in Folsom Prison. Many other familiar character actors turn up in the film as well, such as John Heard (<span style="font-weight: bold;">C.H.U.D.</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Chumscrubber</span>), Mark Boone Junior (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Memento</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Seven</span>), Chris Bauer (<span style="font-weight: bold;">The Wire</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">8mm</span>), Tom Arnold (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Rosanne</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Freddy's Dead</span>), Seymour Cassel (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Convoy</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rushmore</span>), and Mickey Rourke (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Angel Heart</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Wrestler</span>).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrwFGQ-7yaY48tcYUZlWjqygtJkPnF9lvcdc8r4xqRMH-3pGwxKm9h3Cc2OnZ7co14IavX3IAJmXi-SznelzhlobtYwXNJ68e3i9GGx7t0n6AqVV40P8uJ1gpg1YVj4d_xF073Q0PPuTo/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6306914.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrwFGQ-7yaY48tcYUZlWjqygtJkPnF9lvcdc8r4xqRMH-3pGwxKm9h3Cc2OnZ7co14IavX3IAJmXi-SznelzhlobtYwXNJ68e3i9GGx7t0n6AqVV40P8uJ1gpg1YVj4d_xF073Q0PPuTo/s320/vlcsnap-6306914.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382656590758193602" border="0" /></a><br />Mickey Rourke turns in a particularly noteworthy performance as a trans gender convict, who is Decker's first roommate. He gives a great monologue at one point in the film about how he was born the wrong sex. In the DVD's special features, there is a really amusing interview with Rourke where he talks about the lengths he went to in order to get into character for the movie, including flying across country wearing a bra and outfit similar to what he wears in the film. In the film's commentary, Danny Trejo points out that Rourke also wrote some of his own dialog for the film.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9PokHldWYfM07qV0PoxgtzSWf_kI9S3h7zjujRv_Ir9BKiYficxT_Ud3ET87lIoZWzsvXlqtcB3G4j-f4jr1WZrdpG9ts99iR7BguUzvtioYKewltSP41oMeCuQ9arGoAWhTaycAbqIk/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6301345.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9PokHldWYfM07qV0PoxgtzSWf_kI9S3h7zjujRv_Ir9BKiYficxT_Ud3ET87lIoZWzsvXlqtcB3G4j-f4jr1WZrdpG9ts99iR7BguUzvtioYKewltSP41oMeCuQ9arGoAWhTaycAbqIk/s320/vlcsnap-6301345.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382651859525017330" border="0" /></a><br />The film touches on other interesting aspects of prison life, such as race relations. There's a scene in the film where the African American convicts are staging a demonstration for better working conditions and one of the characters tells Decker that he'd join them except that they are all black, that he'd be shut out by some of his white friends if he did. In another instance, a white inmate is attacked by a black one who is mentally unstable, and tension ensues despite it not being a race related issue. It also touches on things like how the convicts perform certain actions and make decisions based on how that action will appear to other convicts. As Copen says at one point in the film, “All a convict has is his name, remember that.”<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA30CxZcQ15JAzm8WkpxhAE1zfzHPBcqmTIC27Q30i-7btLvTLK3wWLH5OXJaxwkmeDId1_-DjuqPWbAqEE1Pbl4P8SUUeRgNz6ZCqlEUjMlZhCWJxu-K5nJumc31odkvNGOXgSRLqMd8/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6308387.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA30CxZcQ15JAzm8WkpxhAE1zfzHPBcqmTIC27Q30i-7btLvTLK3wWLH5OXJaxwkmeDId1_-DjuqPWbAqEE1Pbl4P8SUUeRgNz6ZCqlEUjMlZhCWJxu-K5nJumc31odkvNGOXgSRLqMd8/s320/vlcsnap-6308387.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382655191538113778" border="0" /></a><br />The film has a great atmosphere to it. The set design is excellent. The prison looks run down and aging, and provides opportunities for great visual moments. The place looks so beat up and old that you can almost smell the old building musty odor of the place. There is very little scored music in the film, with most of the sounds present being ambient noises such as footsteps, doors closing, alarms sounding and the like. The majority of the music is heard when a convict is playing a song on a guitar and the others are listening to it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi94gVRHXkP7hYFyo7vxhR2WcH1nzeo6Diwh3rJkXiB6mMCPGRDwOPPVrGLlerWDngDaQu1X7svK6EXQC7G1ssV3tKcidd7Kepg07KarDzBJJO8HqRewiYwO5hqjZCSEkQ9YmMEGGZ1wuA/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6317949.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi94gVRHXkP7hYFyo7vxhR2WcH1nzeo6Diwh3rJkXiB6mMCPGRDwOPPVrGLlerWDngDaQu1X7svK6EXQC7G1ssV3tKcidd7Kepg07KarDzBJJO8HqRewiYwO5hqjZCSEkQ9YmMEGGZ1wuA/s320/vlcsnap-6317949.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382659013032687698" border="0" /></a><br />This was the second feature film by long time actor Steve Buscemi, who also directed Trees Lounge, and later went on to direct many TV series episodes such as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Oz</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Sopranos</span>, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Nurse Jackie</span>. It was based on a book written by Edward Bunker, an ex-convict who passed away in 2005 at the age of 71, and also wrote the screenplay. Bunker, who wrote several books and films including the Dustin Hoffman vehicle, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Straight Time</span>, served time for bank robbery, drug dealing, extortion, armed robbery, and forgery. (This is according to Wikipedia which admittedly is not always the most reliable source of information, but I've read interviews with Bunker where he talks about several of these crimes.) He started out with juvenile detention centers while a minor, and in 1951, at age 17 he became the youngest inmate at San Quentin Prison. Bunker was in (and occasionally out) of prison for various offenses until 1975. Discovering that he was earning a living from writing and acting, he put his criminal days behind him. Edward Bunker appears in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Animal Factory</span> in a brief cameo, which is what most of his film performances amounted to, including his role as Mr. Blue in Quentin Tarantino's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Reservoir Dogs</span>.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFKa-j-TYlXfLIZhl6RSKGo9IiKZ8JNfRmpU3tp6YoZ-THfHKjViixv7TZSnHoEhmxt-a_Efh_KJlUW6zBiz-b_RdmY0C_FAiKxuy48wSa1p7i80AK6BuKO2449ee9iV4HXC4PNLx5k1o/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6312317.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFKa-j-TYlXfLIZhl6RSKGo9IiKZ8JNfRmpU3tp6YoZ-THfHKjViixv7TZSnHoEhmxt-a_Efh_KJlUW6zBiz-b_RdmY0C_FAiKxuy48wSa1p7i80AK6BuKO2449ee9iV4HXC4PNLx5k1o/s320/vlcsnap-6312317.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382656599909063682" border="0" /></a><br />What sets <span style="font-weight: bold;">Animal Factory</span> apart from the majority of prison films I have seen is that it feels very realistic. People going into this film expecting the typical prison film will be a bit disappointed. While films like <span style="font-weight: bold;">Shawshank Redemption</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">American Me</span> feel appropriately bleak and gritty, this film has an authenticity about it that struck me as fascinating. The interactions between the convicts feels very real. Even the way that they walk and the conversations that they have with each other feel somehow more authentic than I've seen in other prison films.<br /><br />I've never spent time in prison, and I've only knowingly been acquainted with a few people who have over the years, so I can't speak as an expert on the prison experience. But the few times I have spoken with ex-convicts and literature I've read, such as Jack Henry Abbott's <span style="font-style: italic;">In The Belly Of The Beast</span>, have lead me to believe that prison life is better exemplified by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Animal Factory</span> than by <span style="font-weight: bold;">Shawshank Redemption</span> or <span style="font-weight: bold;">Oz</span>. If anyone who reads this has served time and feels compelled to comment on this, I'd be very interested to hear what you have to say.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyHdoY07ov22nb7FUpcjew2tDZDIQIrMSwTq3ScreNj89GrQrK8yuVdtZO3AxWmf2oQSZd0TRZkoosrkNT0tarYXJZaA6wGt4uWhaqB2zoCB_FywxiHw8YJYLYGAHF7BjlZBc3THPWzK4/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6316894.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyHdoY07ov22nb7FUpcjew2tDZDIQIrMSwTq3ScreNj89GrQrK8yuVdtZO3AxWmf2oQSZd0TRZkoosrkNT0tarYXJZaA6wGt4uWhaqB2zoCB_FywxiHw8YJYLYGAHF7BjlZBc3THPWzK4/s320/vlcsnap-6316894.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382659009995359058" border="0" /></a><br />The commentary track on the DVD by Edward Bunker and Danny Trejo is really interesting. They both talk about the different people that they know that they served time with and how many of the characters in the film are based on those people. It's filled with anecdotes about prison life on everything from the boredom of prison and comments on prison food to explaining how some of the different scams that convicts pull on each other work. They point out many of the extras in the film were ex-convicts that they served time with, telling their stories. Bunker talks about working to get the film made, how it took five years to get made, and some of the aspects of filming the movie in a prison with actual inmates.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHqDWYndBOVd2IwOKrClhq4bpNhPerkgG6QWLCkQeJrY5VkCmjLxjy9JyZZYpu3Afj-frSJO1lP14Q1TH2BviTR8SZBP6mbpTqVnI8fF9GEUY_MCz5yQdzLgahGn-SJZL0r_cg5KtMDx0/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6332977.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHqDWYndBOVd2IwOKrClhq4bpNhPerkgG6QWLCkQeJrY5VkCmjLxjy9JyZZYpu3Afj-frSJO1lP14Q1TH2BviTR8SZBP6mbpTqVnI8fF9GEUY_MCz5yQdzLgahGn-SJZL0r_cg5KtMDx0/s320/vlcsnap-6332977.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382665468133333074" border="0" /></a><br />I really love this movie, and have always felt like it's been overlooked. I highly recommend it to fans of prison dramas. I love the performances in it, I think the set design is great, and that it's got great atmosphere. I really hope that people who haven't seen it check it out.<br /><br />As always, comments are welcome!Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-90638504996142235782009-09-04T17:56:00.011-05:002009-09-04T18:47:59.447-05:00Calvaire (2004)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhipojAX9nWq7Rwk4mYEDOKlI2Ktyn2LQOdc0pL9KAgly3dTRVydiNRDzx5cYes-r6-Ns-LejLO5IGEjax3ReA3sFYscsj-yxqyV_6VMfSwD4J6cy80TsKKOJjcnVEp2Ff0fPDHDJgrXJc/s1600-h/Calvaire_(2004).jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhipojAX9nWq7Rwk4mYEDOKlI2Ktyn2LQOdc0pL9KAgly3dTRVydiNRDzx5cYes-r6-Ns-LejLO5IGEjax3ReA3sFYscsj-yxqyV_6VMfSwD4J6cy80TsKKOJjcnVEp2Ff0fPDHDJgrXJc/s200/Calvaire_(2004).jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377763223084302386" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Calvaire (2004) 88 Minutes.</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Fabrice du Welz, Director.</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Calvaire</span> tells the story of singer Marc Stevens, a traveling performer at retirement communities and Christmas parties, who has car trouble one night while traveling through the wilderness of southern Belgium on his way to perform at a holiday gala. When his van breaks down in the rainy evening, he encounters a strange young man looking for his dog who agrees to lead him to Bartel's Inn for the night. Paul Bartel, a lonely innkeeper, at first seems very friendly and eager to have Stevens as a guest, but things become more troubling as Stevens tries to get his van fixed and move on to his next gig. Marc finds himself in an increasingly disturbing position as his situation becomes more and more out of hand between dealing with Bartel's strange behavior and the even stranger population of the nearby village, whom Bartel clearly fears.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpw9kukQKDyBFKZGDnENEb0sqXSX8m90p4sIzKmhjGAbfCgNf4NM_BD9rMtauzKau2KZzjMRXH8tetl_SX07jnJhRINSm2sshtQzEz3aW0H2Fid_hfw4xHrwA3E6Y8jf6JQvkWVrlmSrY/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2076966.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpw9kukQKDyBFKZGDnENEb0sqXSX8m90p4sIzKmhjGAbfCgNf4NM_BD9rMtauzKau2KZzjMRXH8tetl_SX07jnJhRINSm2sshtQzEz3aW0H2Fid_hfw4xHrwA3E6Y8jf6JQvkWVrlmSrY/s320/vlcsnap-2076966.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377754083392311298" border="0" /></a><br />This is the first feature film by Belgian writer/director Fabrice du Welz, who would later write and direct <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vinyan</span>, a harrowing descent into madness film about a couple seeking their lost child in the jungles of Thailand. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Calvaire</span> stars Laurent Lucas as protagonist Marc Stevens, who's other film work I am unfamiliar with, but does a decent job in the film's lead role. Jackie Berroyer gives us an excellent and strangely moving performance as Paul Bartel, the innkeeper. Also starring the great Phillipe Nahon, best known to me from his roles in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Brotherhood of the Wolf</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">I Stand Alone</span>, and as the psychotic madman in <span style="font-weight: bold;">High Tension</span>, as the leader of the villagers. The last member of the cast that I felt was particularly noteworthy was Brigitte Lahaie, star of many 70s and 80's French exploitation and horror films (even the occasional hardcore film), who has a minor role in the film as Mademoiselle Vicky, one of the nurses at the retirement home.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7-JR_FsjctOsklQWC1hxhio8XJKQIf68E3bycuagAd5XuWbmAVyqkrccX0XUZj4bSAVYXWeVfJ1BCqzwYbE-fz91ZSEXsN9oJJ73xab9WmPTNB6zWpo2-e7SSiU7ysoeabVZbOcgGN-Q/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2082318.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7-JR_FsjctOsklQWC1hxhio8XJKQIf68E3bycuagAd5XuWbmAVyqkrccX0XUZj4bSAVYXWeVfJ1BCqzwYbE-fz91ZSEXsN9oJJ73xab9WmPTNB6zWpo2-e7SSiU7ysoeabVZbOcgGN-Q/s320/vlcsnap-2082318.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377754096934718434" border="0" /></a><br />Even though this film is presented to us as a horror film with a sprinkling of what may be darkly comic moments, I find it to be primarily a very bleak drama about loneliness. Almost every character in the film feels desperately lonely and isolated, and it's clearly had profound effects on them. The innkeeper is the most clear example of this, as he reveals early on that his wife, Gloria, has left him some time ago. We learn early on that Bartel was a comedian before becoming an innkeeper and that he quit doing comedy when Gloria left, as she broke his heart. His longing for companionship is clear from the beginning, and in Stevens, he sees a kinship as they were both performers. But the loneliness is clear in seemingly everyone that Marc encounters from Mademoiselle Vicky at the beginning to Boris, the strange man looking for his missing dog, Bella. The struggle to escape the sadness and loneliness that many of the characters appear to feel is what seems to be the primary motivation for their extreme actions.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5DIp4qvkQ4tfIGhe1CnkzVAFR2scWQaB_LVQQG8hJZcKX50U9j1Za_r_DZmzSo2jEmdD1PK1hZhT44q2JR-2i_9qhgo_dh07TrD60BwPN9o657nT7PCoXca5dThO0NqjhXR5zQjCQkoc/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2141260.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5DIp4qvkQ4tfIGhe1CnkzVAFR2scWQaB_LVQQG8hJZcKX50U9j1Za_r_DZmzSo2jEmdD1PK1hZhT44q2JR-2i_9qhgo_dh07TrD60BwPN9o657nT7PCoXca5dThO0NqjhXR5zQjCQkoc/s320/vlcsnap-2141260.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377756190159525762" border="0" /></a><br />The film, while having a simple premise and rather linear plot as a survival/escape from wilderness madmen movie, has interesting little things about it. While typically a film will give the viewer a good idea of what the main protagonist's motivations are and an idea of what kind of person he is, this film does not. He is intentionally left vague to us, he is almost like a vessel to be used as a focal point for the other things that happen in the film. We know very little about him. On the other hand, we are given a much more clear idea about the history and motivations of Bartel. Often, at least while as long as it is left up to him, Stevens seems to be disinterested in the lives of those around him, and interacts with them only in as much as is required of him.<br /><br />Another perhaps interesting side note is that we see very few women in the film. Once Marc finishes packing up his van and leaves the retirement home that he performs at in the beginning, the film never shows us another female character. The village seems to not have a female population. It's as if they have all vanished. The only indicator that this is not the case is in a tiny scene Bartel passes a group of identically dressed children in the woods. The viewer is left to come up with their own conclusions about why this is, and what it means.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYk94W0ri7zxODnmNXL1LccgjAOW9E02g3UEwF3lweOHNorujXoTRre4h95aICwXfkS5FqLY73Lwzcy2WujU8-1Q0kyVX9LBBtUbQU1rm66Rid1AByN3jc_lAi40ov6FgiUuPqgoYs1t4/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2088811.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYk94W0ri7zxODnmNXL1LccgjAOW9E02g3UEwF3lweOHNorujXoTRre4h95aICwXfkS5FqLY73Lwzcy2WujU8-1Q0kyVX9LBBtUbQU1rm66Rid1AByN3jc_lAi40ov6FgiUuPqgoYs1t4/s320/vlcsnap-2088811.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377754114600755186" border="0" /></a><br />One of the interesting directorial choices I noticed in this film is that there is almost no music in it. The majority of the sound in the entire film is made up of ambient sounds and times when characters are speaking. This only adds to the sense of isolation, in a way, by not using the music to add tension to the environment. The one time that music is present in the film, it is because a character is playing a piano in what might be the strangest dance sequence I have ever seen. Truly creepy and unsettling. The director also tends not to show very much on screen violence, the majority of it happens off camera. This may be due to budget constraints, or may simply be a directorial decision. It's a fine choice, as the material is strong enough to still feel disturbing and have a sense of dread building without using visual effects to achieve it. There is a lot of violence in the movie, we just tend to see it's effects afterward, similar to the famous ear sequence in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Reservoir Dogs</span>.<br /><br />Also of note, I was excited to see that viewers are once again treated to the excellent camera work of Benoit Debie. Benoit Debie is one of my favorite cinematographers working today. He has impressed me very much with the handful of films he's worked on that I've seen. (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Irreversible</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Calvaire</span>, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vinyan</span>.) As much as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vinyan</span> seems to get divided reactions from the few people I've spoken to that have seen it, everyone at least seems to appreciate the camera work in it. I may review it here one day, as I found myself deeply affected by the film and consider myself among it's fans. I am looking forward to seeing his work in Gaspar Noe's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Enter The Void</span>.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS4cCK1f_so9YokOlrVngGTEMAt24ANw0kCJ0AC_xku1_1kxiDjIkMSeLGpFjCgqPHf4py7uQXcjjf5RIi3X-cCB8J1Lqk8lmzDM_J7lGFoKbl35sDvFNyiNxNSJl6gapInP7yXFQkwHU/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2089963.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS4cCK1f_so9YokOlrVngGTEMAt24ANw0kCJ0AC_xku1_1kxiDjIkMSeLGpFjCgqPHf4py7uQXcjjf5RIi3X-cCB8J1Lqk8lmzDM_J7lGFoKbl35sDvFNyiNxNSJl6gapInP7yXFQkwHU/s320/vlcsnap-2089963.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377756184758022034" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX02BXjErU8moMHnUF7D9NEUethZOwmgnzHKoUYyXru50soCSbsZZT-OD3mR1vZtU2wgjMuKQHMi0a6TOh6eEPUwjBlAl3CTOJGvf1_bx6DWBJ0pbpXtWjlu-dbe5mEUJtWBeLDnRA6OU/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2141997.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX02BXjErU8moMHnUF7D9NEUethZOwmgnzHKoUYyXru50soCSbsZZT-OD3mR1vZtU2wgjMuKQHMi0a6TOh6eEPUwjBlAl3CTOJGvf1_bx6DWBJ0pbpXtWjlu-dbe5mEUJtWBeLDnRA6OU/s320/vlcsnap-2141997.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377756199610782098" border="0" /></a><br />Fabrice du Welz pays homage to many films and filmmakers with his first effort, and speaks openly about it in the interview portion of the DVD from Palm. The name of the innkeeper, Paul Bartel, is surely a reference to the director of the same name who helmed efforts such as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Private Parts </span>and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Eating Raoul</span>. There are shots in the film that reminded me of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Straw Dogs</span>, particularly during a siege segment of the film that is amazing to behold visually. I found myself also reminded a little of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Texas Chainsaw Massacre</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Psycho</span>, and of course, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Deliverance</span>. But the film feels neither regurgitated nor like he's ripping off those films. He's clearly shown a distinct vision and style in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Calvaire</span>, he's taken those elements and refashioned them in his own way. If anything, he's showing the audience that he is as much a fan of those earlier works as we are. As he himself puts it in one interview, “With [<span style="font-weight: bold;">Calvaire</span>], I feel like a young painter who is surrounded by many great masters. And very simply, he paints his first piece, his first important piece. So, obviously, he references his great masters. But he tries to do it with his own personality. That is what I tried to do.” I, personally, feel like he succeeds.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8QKypWawHLTYRMdzVrgu0fDP1HV-Elk_6qjuyYChLf-9qHdZ-dHPm9B4NrzTJLeUYDLuzP8uj4Gj-JGNofIX-0Ni4iNC0S5dXSErin4DS3NElJX0IEJD77sAtFPLBtb4F24P92t32QXw/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2142865.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8QKypWawHLTYRMdzVrgu0fDP1HV-Elk_6qjuyYChLf-9qHdZ-dHPm9B4NrzTJLeUYDLuzP8uj4Gj-JGNofIX-0Ni4iNC0S5dXSErin4DS3NElJX0IEJD77sAtFPLBtb4F24P92t32QXw/s320/vlcsnap-2142865.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377756207926025282" border="0" /></a><br />I recommend this disturbing little film to any of you out there who like dark, unsettling movies about madness and survival in extreme situations. There is a very low body count to it, so those looking to see bodies littered about the screen, this one isn't for you. I think it's a great movie and was one of my favorite films of 2004. In America, it's distributed by Palm Pictures and can be found easily enough to rent on Netflix, or can be bought from Amazon and other retailers. It is in French with English subtitles, and the DVD includes a very nice “Making of...,” theatrical trailer, and previews for other Palm films. As far as I am aware, no dubbed version exists, which suits me fine.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwPSvQLIZvOXxUFe95unGEwgffCRsDJ5C3wuDq6cAF5VX4EvEO8iIm6olOUhPziCC_YPVCaE7U13BcfKR3ZFMXHyw5DI52ygT-sMNSuAvWpujEFz8KdyTLWMJ2xRISgfS4xez7NFYL4_s/s1600-h/vlcsnap-2090211.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwPSvQLIZvOXxUFe95unGEwgffCRsDJ5C3wuDq6cAF5VX4EvEO8iIm6olOUhPziCC_YPVCaE7U13BcfKR3ZFMXHyw5DI52ygT-sMNSuAvWpujEFz8KdyTLWMJ2xRISgfS4xez7NFYL4_s/s320/vlcsnap-2090211.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377756188727966914" border="0" /></a><br />That said, I chose to review this film, because it seems like not a lot of people have seen it here in America. I really enjoy it, and I hope that some people who might stumble onto this blog who haven't seen it will give it a chance. I really look forward to seeing what Fabrice du Welz does next.<br /><br />As always, comments are welcome! =)Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-17524060873436238912009-08-30T13:36:00.007-05:002009-08-30T14:00:54.422-05:00Hiruko The Goblin<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjULHQMC1NuidB24-6eFI2X06sAY2hYOy7htIQpRtrMXX0GdXQt4aDDcTAqkGoI7fPqZQW7Vyp2N-NSVOTdS_tyufdZoRY8QSk1H0vKisr4Xzxpfa911hFGHuNx5x-aLaZPdtl_AfjiVt8/s1600-h/Hirokugoblin.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 140px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjULHQMC1NuidB24-6eFI2X06sAY2hYOy7htIQpRtrMXX0GdXQt4aDDcTAqkGoI7fPqZQW7Vyp2N-NSVOTdS_tyufdZoRY8QSk1H0vKisr4Xzxpfa911hFGHuNx5x-aLaZPdtl_AfjiVt8/s200/Hirokugoblin.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375829215524855330" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Hiruko The Goblin (1991) 88 Minutes.</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Shinya Tsukamoto, Director.</span><br /><br /><br />Based on two stories from the Demon Hunter manga series by Japanese author Daijiro Moroboshi, Hiroku tells the story of a goblin let loose through one of the Gates of Hell. As it begins terrorizing a school one summer, a small group of students and an archeology professor struggle to find a way to stop it.<br /><br />The film starts with the disappearance of a high school teacher, Mr. Yabe, and one of his female students while exploring a cavern. The teacher's son, Masao, and his friends go looking for the missing girl, Reiko, who he is secretly in love with. He is later joined at the school by Hiedo, an archaeologist who is trying to prove that demons exist and is being spurned by his colleagues for his beliefs. Masao is clearly more important to the events going on than he realizes, because every time someone dies from an attack by one of the demons, an image of their face is burned into his back.<br /><br />From the opening moments of this film, I was immediately struck by the realization that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Hiruko the Goblin</span> was not like the other Tsukamoto films I had seen. I've seen a handful of his films, and they have been universally dark and atmospheric. From the cyber-punk body horror of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tetsuo:The Iron Man</span>, his first film, to the pent up grief and surrealism of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vital</span>, I had come to expect certain things from a Shinya Tsukamoto movie. I was certain within the first six minutes of the film that I was not going to be getting that experience from this one. Instead of the dark, dramatic story that I usually get from his films, I found myself watching a light horror comedy with more than a few nods to other films contained in it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrcXdQ1mg66QX53OPb_ZH7WRClL7rd3KqNPK0kZSLiYmBJ6NHghk76vSjgMCyMyz9vhB0DIm8VRNo2crqkr74t84S7_dROnLiTVrYLsz-I7ZBXm7ODxSL9aMwrLn2aF7n4dXJC1nEnvCo/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6057653.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 460px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrcXdQ1mg66QX53OPb_ZH7WRClL7rd3KqNPK0kZSLiYmBJ6NHghk76vSjgMCyMyz9vhB0DIm8VRNo2crqkr74t84S7_dROnLiTVrYLsz-I7ZBXm7ODxSL9aMwrLn2aF7n4dXJC1nEnvCo/s320/vlcsnap-6057653.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375830767595252642" border="0" /></a>Tsutsushi Umegaki's synthesizer score during the opening credits, which seems to be clearly inspired by low budget horror films of the 80's, gave me my first real clue as to what kind of film I was in for. Using that as a jumping off point, there were references to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Evil Dead</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Little Shop Of Horrors</span> (1960), <span style="font-weight: bold;">Alien</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Abyss</span>, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Thing </span>among others. Tom Mes' excellent book "<span style="font-weight: bold;">Iron Man:The Cinema of Shinya Tsukamoto</span>" even shows a side by side comparison of shots from the ending scenes of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Hiruko the Goblin</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Metropolis</span>! These things never feel like they are rip-offs, but more like nods toward those films. They aren't used as scenes being repeated from those film as much as they are ideas about effects and creature design being adapted for use in different ways. I'm sure that there are probably other references that I didn't catch on first viewing.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmMUuVaDZoX7w24AJwpCxLA32tLk_oUUA9H1lec9GyWVdmGRcx4AUyc7RgpYhUfr3iA1jDncT3xQOdMaWKAuphBYyq21I21lux-MLHpWbjWo0usetUeM-8TsrKCKP7Lpkr9Q2E-0XOTO0/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6125067.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 439px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmMUuVaDZoX7w24AJwpCxLA32tLk_oUUA9H1lec9GyWVdmGRcx4AUyc7RgpYhUfr3iA1jDncT3xQOdMaWKAuphBYyq21I21lux-MLHpWbjWo0usetUeM-8TsrKCKP7Lpkr9Q2E-0XOTO0/s320/vlcsnap-6125067.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375830793221033634" border="0" /></a>Japan's love of arterial spray is on full display here, from the windows being showered in blood during an off camera decapitation to the on camera attachment of a demon's body to a person's head. The empty school setting is used well, providing lots of long hallways to run (or bicycle a couple of times) down, kitchens to search and fight in, and stairways to stumble around. The heroes use a variety of weapons from shotguns to bug spray in their efforts to thwart the Hiruko demons.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3OmpdslsMoJiVRohhM4DZYUSTrX0G_Zg_kzOGvog-N86K-3BRztTk_vicIFoJTmV-FZbL_3FFdauMIB73K5bnTEtCuEeTqk2wwcukHRp-C1oZNmKPPwcWxQT4wLSNWSSZdNmRyCq3pfY/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6125719.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 476px; height: 198px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3OmpdslsMoJiVRohhM4DZYUSTrX0G_Zg_kzOGvog-N86K-3BRztTk_vicIFoJTmV-FZbL_3FFdauMIB73K5bnTEtCuEeTqk2wwcukHRp-C1oZNmKPPwcWxQT4wLSNWSSZdNmRyCq3pfY/s320/vlcsnap-6125719.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375830800698169906" border="0" /></a><br />The DVD that I have of this film is put out by Media Blasters apparently in association with Fangoria International. The film is shot on widescreen. It's got a few cool extras on it, including an interview with Shinya Tsukamoto, an interview with the special effects designer, a small feature on the goblin creation and design, a photo gallery, and a few trailers for other films from Shriek Show. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg88y8nWXZObKYJWUg8N5nKDFxm2CZ0azIgDFB9aUvI7QoJwSVHfDsudbRw_HTubcEK_ZMqdFZyU4yWg1WnCX1RN2PTB1Al5OCWB-6d91vVTcIhhZvZdbzq6gvPNkVuerUfyDcF7XHVnwI/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6114871.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 478px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg88y8nWXZObKYJWUg8N5nKDFxm2CZ0azIgDFB9aUvI7QoJwSVHfDsudbRw_HTubcEK_ZMqdFZyU4yWg1WnCX1RN2PTB1Al5OCWB-6d91vVTcIhhZvZdbzq6gvPNkVuerUfyDcF7XHVnwI/s320/vlcsnap-6114871.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375830775727815170" border="0" /></a><br />I can honestly say that while I don't think that this is my favorite Tsukamoto film, an honor that falls to either <span style="font-weight: bold;">Snake of June</span> or <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vital</span> (depending on my mood that day), I do think that this is the most fun I've had watching one of his films and I highly recommend it to my readers. It's certainly one that I will be watching again, and one that I think would be fun to watch with a group of people as well.<br /><br />I decided to do a bit of research about this film after seeing it, and thought I'd share my findings. First of all, the name Hiruko comes from Japanese mythology. It was the name of the misshapen child of the brother and sister deities who gave birth to the islands that make up Japan. The story is recorded as far back as 712 A.D. The name translates as “leech child.”<br /><br />Hiruko was Tsukamoto's second film, the first being <span style="font-weight: bold;">Tetsuo:The Iron Man</span>. When he was approached to do the project he wasn't interested in doing a manga adaptation, but was a fan of Moroboshi's work and accepted. While Tsukamoto wrote the screenplay and directed the film, he allowed others to handle the cinematography and editing of the film. This is an unusual move for him, but at the time, he was intimidated by working on a film for a studio, instead of doing his own independent work. To this day, he has only directed material that wasn't completely his creation twice, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Hiruko the Goblin</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Gemini</span>.<br /><br />While Tsukamoto doesn't claim to have negative memories of working on the film, the studio staff under him resented being forced to work seven days a week on the project, which was the style that Tsukamoto preferred to use. They also felt that he was too young and inexperienced a director. His biggest problem on the set was in dealing with a supporting actor, Hideo Murota, pictured below. Murota had an alcohol problem and would often show up on the set already drunk and carrying a bottle. Having starred in over a hundred films by that point, dating back to the yakuza films of the '60s and '70's, Murota disagreed about his part in the film and tried to force his opinions. He and Tsukamoto almost came to blows at one point during production and were separated by the cinematographer and one of the assistant directors.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfiLbL2DdB1TSV3Scgi-pNoEg8KNdT5kvpxOkM5TkwkhgOJGznDTPLS7EU8hWy9ExcZeZ-gE6dmOhKiR60ia9AFe3Sab3f6iCHIx_-jX5bd4n4Ibn7eDG-qb32bFzjN3wV83uDeI6fUts/s1600-h/vlcsnap-6123924.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfiLbL2DdB1TSV3Scgi-pNoEg8KNdT5kvpxOkM5TkwkhgOJGznDTPLS7EU8hWy9ExcZeZ-gE6dmOhKiR60ia9AFe3Sab3f6iCHIx_-jX5bd4n4Ibn7eDG-qb32bFzjN3wV83uDeI6fUts/s320/vlcsnap-6123924.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375830785418609506" border="0" /></a><br />The film also represents what Tsukamoto states is the only time that he has ever made a compromise regarding one of his films. He feels that the ending of the film is not what he would have wanted and that he had to settle for something less because the production ran out of money. The film had a budget of approximately $2 million, and when it ran out of funds near the end of production, the crew continued to work on it without pay to insure its completion.<br /><br />It turns out that this film was a massive failure upon its release. (I didn't discover it until years later.) The studio, Sedic International, spent a lot of money on TV spots and ads for the film, but Tsukamoto felt that the posters were worthless. He was not involved in any of the promotion of the film, and looks back on it as a mistake. Tsukamoto has had a hand in every aspect of his films from that point on, from preproduction to marketing.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrnFWbPlXybb9X1eAcBs_z6rbDAbQ5nfqZuRdKSPVmEacImgymS5gtmV3aUq3n0Il2LEjKsZeNylqZ94VERmoem38kkQEv0F1Gz0whfKjDSW9EIHrcZ0LyRSLKC3jiexv0gHEpzatYE44/s1600-h/FAB064.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 139px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrnFWbPlXybb9X1eAcBs_z6rbDAbQ5nfqZuRdKSPVmEacImgymS5gtmV3aUq3n0Il2LEjKsZeNylqZ94VERmoem38kkQEv0F1Gz0whfKjDSW9EIHrcZ0LyRSLKC3jiexv0gHEpzatYE44/s200/FAB064.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375829926515526578" border="0" /></a><br /><br />My information on the history of the film comes from interviews with Shinya Tsukamoto and from Tom Mes' superb book “<span style="font-weight: bold;">Iron Man: The Cinema of Shinya Tsukamoto</span>,” which I highly recommend to his fans. It is released by FabPress, and can be found here: http://www.fabpress.com/vsearch.php?CO=FAB064 or at www.amazon.com .<br /><br /><br />Comments are welcome, of course! =)Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-42804898057915637002009-08-23T12:46:00.007-05:002011-05-04T15:03:27.369-05:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVuWcx5FpWGYv9XGRCEXmI5xZzq3vRHP9opOyK5-96qufzSpkgq2VT32xWbsgnC5GW255OYXgKtLU-j1fmaOIFkbVYUAu6GO4kZm2evVOHYugkyG4Vqw6OWohlvUR2MoKWwX_PG1_YQIE/s1600-h/last_house_on_the_left.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 216px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVuWcx5FpWGYv9XGRCEXmI5xZzq3vRHP9opOyK5-96qufzSpkgq2VT32xWbsgnC5GW255OYXgKtLU-j1fmaOIFkbVYUAu6GO4kZm2evVOHYugkyG4Vqw6OWohlvUR2MoKWwX_PG1_YQIE/s320/last_house_on_the_left.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373217990988191106" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Last House On The Left (2009) 114 Minutes, Unrated Cut.</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dennis Iliadis, Director. </span><br /><br />As I posted on twitter the day before this film released on DVD here in the USA, I had only one wish for this movie. I wished that it not make me angry. I am a big fan of Wes Craven's original film and, when hearing that it was going to be remade, I was not a happy camper. Why not? Well, I'm not a big fan of remakes. I don't mind them, in theory. It comes down to what's done with that material. Some remakes improve on the material (<span style="font-weight: bold;">The Thing</span>), some do interesting spins on the material (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Dawn of the Dead</span> '04), some are mediocre (<span style="font-weight: bold;">Texas Chainsaw Massacre</span>), and some are absolute travesties (<span style="font-weight: bold;">I Am Legend</span>.) I always worry about having a travesty befall a story that I love. While admittedly not a huge fan of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Friday The 13th</span>, on the whole, I was completely incensed with how poorly that “re-boot” was handled. This is also the reason that I didn't go to the theater to see this film, and waited for DVD. The one thing that made me feel a little bit more comfortable about this remake being made was that Craven was directly involved with it and hand picked the director for it. I don't always like Craven's work, but I trusted him to understand how important the original film was to its fans.<br /><br />It was not without a sense of dread, and I assure you that it wasn't the kind of dread that the filmmakers were hoping I'd have, that I put the DVD in my player. All I wanted was to not hate this film. I would have been totally fine with it being mediocre, just did not want it to suck. Luckily, I got my wish.<br /><br />For the uninitiated, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Last House On The Left</span> is a remake of a semi-notorious 1972 film of the same name. It was the first film written and directed by Wes Craven, which was loosely based on Ingmar Bergman's <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Virgin Spring</span>. While it's not without it's flaws, it was a disturbing and deeply affecting film.<br /><br />Both versions of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Last House On The Left</span> tell the story of a teenage girl named Mari and her friend encountering escaped convict Krug and his gang. The gang kidnaps the two girls and assault them in the woods. Then when circumstances leave the gang stranded in the woods, they seek refuge in a nearby home that just happens to belong to the Mari's parents. The parents eventually figure out what happened and seek revenge for their daughter.<br /><br />Strangely enough, this film is bookended by the two weakest scenes of the entire film. The opening five minutes should have been trimmed off, in my opinion. It's too predictable and unnecessary. There is no information there that we couldn't have figured out for ourselves from a single line or two of dialog that occurs about fifteen minutes later. And the last two and a half minutes of the film require a suspension of belief that is far beyond anything else that occurs in the film. Again unnecessary and honestly, just plain silly.<br /><br />Those two things aside, this is a surprisingly solid remake. It is appropriately violent, bloody, and disturbing. The key change that most concerned me from the original (that one of the girls survives) is not as troublesome to the story as I'd been worried it would be. Several things are improved upon from the original version. One of the biggest improvements is the character development and the quality of the acting. All of the characters seem to be more fleshed out, more realistic.<br /><br />The most obvious example of the improved acting is that of the parents. In the first film, they were easily the weakest link of the first film. (That is assuming that you take out the intentionally bumbling policemen, who were added to lighten the mood of the material. Thankfully, the remake removes that bit of nonsense.) In this version the parents act more like real people and less like soap opera archetypes. The original has a really annoying scene of the parents baking a cake for their daughter's birthday with them reading the recipe book together and so on that is completely ridiculous. For one, I've never had anyone read a recipe book with me, have you? But, I digress. In this version, they seem like more complete people, with the father wanting to get alone time with the mother although never actually saying so, the mother dealing with people from her job that she doesn't care for but has to feign politeness with(something I relate to more than I like to think about), and so on. They have lost a child already in this version, and that adds toward the reasons that they are willing to go to the lengths that they do for their daughter. And when they go to those lengths, it's very satisfying.<br /><br />While it's an important part of the film, the rape scene is uncomfortable to watch, and if you are deeply affected by that kind of thing in a film, I'd advise you not watch this one. The scene is very graphic, but not in any kind of an arousing way. I feel like the scene is very much about power, punishment, and subjugation and not at all about sex or sexuality. At least that's the impression that I take from it. Surprisingly, unless you count Dillahunt's ass, this a nudity free scene. It's one of the most viscous rape scenes I've seen in recent cinema. Not on the level of Irreversible, mind you, but brutal to watch. It also shines a real spotlight on the sound design in the remake, as there are some very uncomfortable sounds at this point in the film. It certainly adds to the level of realism in the film.<br /><br />The gang in the remake is still comprised of people who are sadistic killers, but they don't have the level of insanity that I felt from the gang in the original film. I don't mean to say that they do not work in the film or that they are a detriment to it, it's simply that the original casts a shadow over this one for me. In some ways this is one of the things about the remake that would work for me a lot more if I had never seen the original film.<br /><br />Garret Dillahunt gave a great performance as Krug. I was familiar with him from having seen his work in Deadwood, The Assassination of Jesse James by the coward Robert Ford, and No Country For Old Men. He will also be in the upcoming film, The Road, which I'm very excited to see. His version of Krug is more calculated and measured character than David Hess' out of control psychopath. While there is nothing at all wrong with Dillahunt's performance or casting, for myself at least, David Hess is Krug. He is a lot of what made the original what it was.<br /><br />I feel I need to mention the performance by Riki Lindhome. At first glance I thought she was cast for the simple reason that she was pretty enough and capable of looking mean. She looks like what I suspect some Hollywood executive would think a bad guy's girlfriend would look like. I have to chalk that up to my own personal cynicism though, because after watching the remake twice now, I have to say that she's my favorite character of the film. Lindhome brings the Sadie character to life far more than in the original film. She is desperate for Krug's approval, and while she is as deeply involved in the gang's deeds as anyone, there are moments where you get the feeling that she doesn't want things to be the way that they are. When her character is cornered later in the film and forced to fight, she is like a caged wild animal, positively feral. At that point in the film, she completely sold me on her performance.<br /><br />I honestly can't say that I disliked the performances of anyone in this film. My only real complaints with it were the two scenes I mentioned earlier. That being said, I feel like this remake is pretty solid and totally worth watching. I would complain that it didn't really bring anything new to the story, but in the case of a story that I enjoy so much, I think it would have the potential to really upset me if it had. I think that for audiences today who are unwilling to watch older cinema (and shame on you if you are one of those) this is a great film.<br /><br />For myself, I prefer the grainy look and feel of the original. Something about how it was shot, and certainly David Hess's Krug, make it a more visceral and frightening film to me. This film is more polished and clean looking, even if it is covering some gritty material. Still, it didn't upset me, and I'm very pleased about that part.<br /><br />As for the DVD itself, it's pretty a pretty bare bones release. A couple of deleted scenes and a three minute long "Inside Look" featurette. I would have really liked a commentary track or two.<br /><br />Comments are welcome.Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7029996961287580899.post-7958994647069594862009-08-16T15:15:00.001-05:002009-08-16T15:15:33.994-05:00Under Construction. Bear with me. More coming soon.Heavenztrashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02313110798288531271noreply@blogger.com2