Juggling Mike

When we were watching the trailers on the Fantasia DVD, one movie everybody agreed on that did not look great was Black. The trailer just did not make it appealing. I did not buy tickets, but thanks to the great folks at Evokative films, I won a pair of tickets to see it. I did some research on the film, and it had garnered some good press at SXSW. Intrigued, I went to see the movie with mixed anticipation. By the time it was over, I knew how wrong I was. It was nothing like I expected.. it was so much better! Black is an awesome movie!!

The story starts out like a heist film. After a failed armored car robbery, Black gets a call from his cousin in Dakar who knows of a briefcase full of diamonds in a bank with lax security. It seems like an easy job, but really, what is? It is here that everything starts diverging from your typical heist film, and where Black shines. The diamonds were supposed to be a secret, but news spread quickly. Soon several parties are after the same goal, and then nothing is going to plan. Add to the mix a voodoo witch who is trying to fulfill a prophecy by emerging the inner snake from her lover, and you can start to understand why this movie is so awesome.

MC Jean Gab’1 does an excellent job portraying Black. As he mentioned in the Q&A, the character of Black is just an extension of himself. He looked like he had a great time playing the role, and his charisma and humour really explodes on the big screen. The other cast members were all equally great, even if they may not have had a lot of screen time. I particularly enjoyed the Russian mercenary, as he is evidently eccentric and sounds just like a bad guy from the Tintin cartoons.

Many people are calling Black a Blaxploitation film, but since I don’t really know the genre, I cannot make my comparisons. One point that can link it to the genre is the soundtrack. It is full of funk and old school jazz, and in short, is awesome. I will be getting the soundtrack when it comes out in September. It really adds to the movie and makes it that much more enjoyable. The last time a movie had such an awesome soundtrack was Survive Style 5+, and while they both use different types of music, they both properly incorporate it into the movie to add to the experience.

Overall, “Black” does pretty much everything right. The cast is great, the story is crazy, the music was incredible, and the overall movie is just a lot of fun. I’m really happy I won the ticket to see this movie. It comes out in Montreal July 31st, and I recommend everybody to go check it out!

1 Comment »

Last year, one of the best Fantasia films was Satoshi Miki’s “Adrift in Tokyo”. While I did not see it at Fantasia 2008, I got to see it early this year thanks to Evokative Films. While I found it to be an enjoyable movie, the hype from everybody else dampened the overall effect. In short, it is about two guys waling across Tokyo and the zany stuff that happens to them. While that is pretty much all to the movie, it is the people they meet and the stuff they do that makes the movie special. It is a zany movie, but set at a slower pace.

This year, Satoshi Miki brings us his latest movie Instant Swamp, which feels similar in a way to “Adrift in Tokyo”, but also manages to be its own movie. In this story, Haname Jinchoge falls upon a series of unlucky events. She loses her job, her boyfriend, and her rabbit. Her mother falls into a coma after nearly drowning while trying to catch a kappa (Japanese water-sprite). She finds an old letter which might lead her to her long-gone father. She finds out that he is an owner of a junk house (”antiques shop”), but refuses to believe he is the right person. One thing leads to another until we get the crazy ending which nobody could predict. It sounds simple (and by the way I described it, very sad), but that is far from the truth. Like in “Adrift in Tokyo”, every mundane activity is spiced up with zaniness. The actors all play their roles well, and you just end up smiling at everything happening. Haname makes the best out of everything, and it leads her into all these weird scenarios.

If you’ve seen “Le Fabuleux Destin d’Amélie Poulain“, you have an idea of what to expect. This movie adds its touch of Japanese weirdness (which I always enjoy) and although it doesn’t always makes sense, you always have a smile on your face. When I left the cinema, I was thinking it was so-so, but the more I thought about it, the more it grew on me. (”Adrift in Tokyo” had the same effect.) If you want to see a fun movie, this is an excellent choice!

Now THAT is awesome hair!

1 Comment »

Last year, I saw a really great movie from Sweden called “Let the Right One In“. It involved vampires, but strayed away from the usual vampiric horror trend. It is a slow paced romantic horror, which delivers more of a psychological scare than anything else (similar to what Grace offered us this year). It was invigorating to watch, since it had been a while that I had seen any good vampire movies that weren’t slashers of sorts. (Let’s leave Twilight out of this.) This year, Fantasia brought us Thirst, a Korean vampire movie, which won the Jury Prize at Cannes 2009. I had big expectations, and while I enjoyed the movie, it couldn’t surpass “Let the Right One In”.

The story, although simple, is really interesting. The main character Sang-hyun is a priest who feels he hasn’t done enough to contribute to humanity, so he participates in an experiment to find the cure for a viral disease. Most patients do not survive, but thanks to a blood transfusion, his blisters disappear and he manages to defeat the illness. He returns to his hometown, but he soon discovers that he has perhaps not properly healed. His blisters are coming back and his senses are all alert. He has a craving for blood, which he realizes temporarily heals his ailments. He realizes he is a vampire, but as a priest, he is tormented by this fact. Add to that mix Tae-ju, an old forgotten friend, who becomes smitten with him. He falls for her and as lust takes over his mind, he has to battle his wits over what feels right (as a priest) and what feels good (but sinful). As emotions increase, issues arise which will force Sang-hyun to decide which path he will follow. It is not an easy choice when you were raised by the Church.

Thirst could be classified as a romantic drama, but it is definitely not a scary movie. They do make important choices that will shock the viewer, but nothing that will make you jump in fear. Both Song Kang-ho and Kim Ok-bin do an amazing job in their roles. They went all out for this movie, as evident from the nudity; something that is frowned upon in Asian cinema. I applaud both actors for their fantastic job, for had they faltered in their role, the movie would have greatly suffered. That said, I did find the movie to be slightly too long. It really felt like a three hour movie. It will be coming to America, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they chop it up a little bit. I think some scenes could be shortened without losing any information.

I would recommend this film to those who enjoyed “Let the Right one In”, and to those who want a movie that is different from the norm. The acting and story is terrific, but the pacing can feel tedious at times. In the end, I still enjoyed it, but I can’t stop thinking less of it because I keep comparing it to “Let the Right One In”. Perhaps if I had seen Thirst first, my opinion would be different.

I love this poster. I want it on my wall.

1 Comment »

I’m not easily disturbed when it comes to horror movies. I was laughing in the cinema when I was watching Hostel 2. I have seen so many gore and shock movies that it takes something “extra” to get under my skin. If it goes anywhere unrealistic, then I will start to see the entire movie more as a comedy. If the movie stays real, then it will have a better chance of freaking me out. Grace did exactly this.

Grace is a new horror movie that is making the rounds at the film festivals. It has made people faint during the screenings, and it is true, some screens are not for the faint of heart. There are no zombies or vampires to be found here. The story starts out with a normal couple who are about to have a baby. Due to a freak accident, the baby dies inside her, but she decides to bring it to term nonetheless. (According to the director, this is something that a lot of women actually do when this scenario arrives) The baby is delivered dead, but somehow, it comes back to life. An amazing miracle for sure, except while the baby looks normal, she acts a little different. She has slightly different needs, but has a mother that loves her and wants to do whatever possible for her. To what limits will somebody go to protect their offspring, even if it means damaging themselves? That is the premise of the movie, and it delivers it extremely well.

It really helps that this movie has a great cast. They beautifully play their roles, and add a layer of believability to the story. While Jordan Ladd did a great job as the lead, I really enjoyed Gabrielle Rose’s performance as the mother-in-law. Her character has her own maternal instincts confusing her thoughts, and while she is not the main focus of the film, she definitely gives a lasting impression.

Grace is not a movie for everybody. I am not sure parents of newborns and especially those expecting should be watching this movie. While I was very uncomfortable in some scenes, I know it would have been a lot worse if I was expecting a child. That said, it is an excellent psychological horror film, and a great alternative to all the splatter and gore films out there. If you have a chance to see Grace, watch it. It is different and well worth any horror fan’s time.

3 Comments »

It is currently day five of the festival, and although I have seen 8 films so far, I have only posted 1 review. I apologize for my tardiness, but I have not had much time to go online, and my laptop is not getting as much attention as it used to. I will post the rest of my reviews shortly, although I will try to bunch up the average films together into one post. For now, you can read up my review for Ip Man, the second movie that I saw on the opening night.

Ip Man is a biopic on the martial arts grandmaster Ip Man. He was the first person to openly teach Wing Chun, a martial art that is most greatly known thanks to one of Ip Man’s students, Bruce Lee. This movie takes place around the same time as WW2 and we follow Ip Man’s life during that era. While it is hard to tell how much the film exaggerates his past, it provides a rich visual history of Ip Man’s life.

I love watching kung-fu movies, and this felt like a modern version of the classic Kung Fu films. There are no crouching tigers or hidden dragons here. This is pure kung fu between people who actually know how to fight. Donnie Yen (Seven Swords, Hero) does a great job here portraying Ip Man. He is a skilled fighter, so when there are fights onscreen, they look fantastic. You can feel every punch and kick, and the great soundtrack adds to each hit, making it just that more enjoyable. While newer movies rely on wire work and CGI, these fights look a lot more realistic and it creates an awesome viewing experience.

I really enjoyed Ip Man. If you like kung fu, then this movie is a no-brainer. It is deserving of being release here with subtitles, and if it ever does get shown, I will go and see it again!

No Comments »

Yesterday was the first day of the Fantasia Film Festival. As many are aware, I look forward to this festival every year, and it never dissapoints. Sure, some movies are duds, but overall, my experience has always been positive. Last night, I got to see two movies, and if the rest of the festival is as good as these were, I am in for a real treat!

The first film came to us from Japan from none other than Takashi Miike! His movies span to both extremes, from the ultra violent (Ichi the Killer) to child friendly (The Great Yokai War). Last year, he entertained us with Sukiyaki Western Django, which I greatly enjoyed. This time, Miike has tackled an old animé from the 70s called Yatterman. I’ve never seen the cartoon, but knowing the other animé from that era, I know it had to be zany. (For some reason, I keep thinking of Samurai Pizza Cats, even if that came out in the 90s). What I didn’t expect was for the movie to be as equally zany, if not, possible more.

Not since the Cutie Honey movie (well at least the first 15 minutes of that movie), did I see a movie recreate so well the world of an animé. The actors, especially the bad guys, portrayed their characters perfectly, that at some points you can easily forget that this is a live action movie. Nothing makes much sense, but that is easily forgivable in this cartoon-ish world.

The cartoon revolved around Yatterman #1 and Yatterman #2 (boyfriend and girlfriend respectively) who battle the Doronbo gang, which consists of the leader (and damn beautiful) lady Doronjo, and her two minions, Tonzra and Boyacky. They are all trying to find the Skull Stone, each for their own reasons. Naturally, the best way for the Doronbo gang to do this is to scam the Japanese folk and build a giant mecha robot! Yatterman is not defenseless, since they have Yatterwoof, a big robot dog that they use as transportation (but gets its ass kicked all the time). The mechas are bizarre, but so much fun. Who wouldn’t enjoy a giant woman mecha who can shoot Titty Missles? Yeah, you read that right. While this looks like a kid’s movie, it is more directed to the adults who were kids back in the day. The comedy spans the whole spectrum, as in some cases the young girls behind me were giggling like crazy, while in other cases, the guys in my area were crying of laughter. (Guess who laughed more during the female mecha scenes…)

Anyways, the entire movie was a lot of fun and was an excellent way to start the festival. It plays again on July 14th, and I highly recommend it to anybody who wants a laugh. YATTERWOOF!

No Comments »

There is only two days left before the festival begins! While, I will be seeing less movies than the previous iterations, this year looks as exciting as the rest. The choices this year were very well varied, and while I would love to see all of them, I have to force myself to limit my choices. Below you can view what I will be seeing in the upcoming three weeks. Since I will only be buying the tickets in a couple of hours, and the tickets are on sale now, there is a possibility of last minute changes, removals, or additions. I will update the calendar as necessary, and by tonight, it should be fully complete.

See below the calendar for more details on each individual film!

You can find more details on my choices here: (Opens in a new window)
Select a movie
Battle League in Kyoto
Coweb
DJ XL5’s Razzle Dazzle Zappin’ Party
Fireball
Grace
Hard Revenge, Milly
Hard Revenge, Milly: Bloody Battle
Instant Swamp
Ip Man
Kaifeck Murder
Lalapipo
Legendary Assassin
Mutants
Power Kids
Private Eye
Spare
Troll 2
Yatterman

If you are going to the festival and are seeing any of the movies below, look for me in line! Enjoy the festival!

UPDATE: Since it fell cleanly in between two other movies, we decided to add Grace on Sunday July 12th. This completes a full butt-numb-a-thon, with movies from 2pm straight till midnight!

2 Comments »

My favourite festival in Montreal will soon be upon us once more for their 2009 edition! Thats right; the Fantasia Film Festival! While we only got a glimpse of the movies to appear at Fantasia, I am already counting the minutes left until the opening day. The website will be fully updated on Friday, as will the guide be sold. This Friday, there will also be an opening party, an event which I will do my best to attend. Afterward begins the intense trailer-watching and list-making in preperation for the month of July. This list gets compared with my friends, adjusted in consequence, and then posted here to entice everybody else to join me. As in the previous years, there will be a link near the top which will point you directly to my list. You can expect a lot more posts this month as the festival plays out.

To whet your appetite, check out this trailer of Robogeisha, one of the zanier films you can expect from Fantasia. This one falls in the crazy gorefest category which does not take itself seriously. Note that there are a lot of serious movies at Fantasia, and not everything is as goofy as this. Still, Fantasia would not be the same without a couple of movies of this genre. If you’ve seen Machine Girl or Tokyo Gore Police, you know what to expect!

UPDATE: I just realized that Robogeisha is NOT on the press release list that Fantasia sent out. Turns out it is getting released in Japan in 2010. We’ll find out Friday if it will actually be screened at the Festival or not. (Somehow, I doubt it) Nonetheless, it feels a lot like other movies I have seen at Fantasia, and the Geisha Transform makes me laugh every time I see it. Fried Shrimp!

Only 10800 minutes left…

3 Comments »