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Reviews
Izo (2004)
A terrorists spirit journey through hell
First of all, this film is a sequel to Hitokiri (1969). Thats one of the classic Samurai swordfighting films with very fast action scenes thats still better than much we get to see today.
"Izo" starts where the first film ended. The protagonist is crucified for his crimes that he committed as a hired terrorist in the service of those who tried to restore the old regime.
But he finds himself alive again, at first not understanding that he has taken on a demonic existence because his soul cannot rest and he must descend through the layers of hell in full consciousness.
Following his motto from the first film, "Divine punishment", he sets out to take revenge on the world and on the gods for getting him into this whole mess.
This film may be another blood bath, but the philosophical content is also enormous. Miike film-making at its very best, another no-budget production whose profundity may give the watcher stuff to think about for years.
Hak sai lik (2008)
Watchable HK flick
Finally a real HK film again that is meant to appeal to a local and young audience.
A former Triad hit-man is trying to go clean but of course it doesn't work. The story builds up nicely to the finale with a very righteous revenge trip by the excellent Jordan Chan. A sea of CGI blood and cartoon intercuts make this a surprisingly stylish affair with the traditional colored lighting only adding value to the premise. Wong Tin Lam is in great shape and we get to see another gangster election headed by the producer's father, too.
As far as Wong Jing films go, this one is certainly one his better projects and shows that HK cinema isn't dead quite yet.
Sang gong kei bing (1984)
Classic 1980s Hong Kong pulp
This is the film from which Tarantino copied the idea of mutilating someone's ear for a bit of a shocker effect. The film chronicles the career of the "O gang", a bunch of Mainland Chinese who hope to make some superfast bucks during a few days of illegal stay in the crown colony.
Things start to go in the wrong direction for them even before they can cross the border, however and the gang makes a conscious effort to defeat the odds through camaraderie and loyalty. They loudly profess their love of freedom and one wonders if these are in fact hardened criminals or clueless country potatoes. They definitely are clueless towards their impending downward spiral that continues with a double cross from a local mobster, while they have to wait for their targeted jewelery shop to re-open after someone else's robbery.
This film has it all, gratuitous violence that was all but impossible for western cinema back then. Very funny and absurd tales of country boys vs the HK redlight district. Now historic Hong Kong footage from the walled city ghetto, where the gang takes refuge in an underground clinic and is drawn into a superbly staged final shootout.
A classic tale of male and criminal self-destruction, told in an early superlow-budget HK film from a bygone era.
The Way of the Gun (2000)
At least they tried
The reason why this has been no commercial success is easy to tell: there are absolutely no likable characters in this film.
The two main anti-heroes are basically the real life versions of Beavis and Butthead, the way they cringe in the dirt after being beaten up at the beginning is just too obvious a reference. Even the hairstyles match. Kids, being losers with no future can really propel you on a career path as portrayed in this little film. However, thats offset by the even more repellent ways of their opponents.
For a Hollywood action film, this is not too bad. The rating falls off when compared to the standards of the action genre which are almost completely non-Hollywood however.
The plot is nothing too fanciful. Viewers paying attention can get the essential clues easily early on, leaving them with no plot twist at all to look forward to. However, for the normally totally predictable and plot less US-American fare even a tiny bit of story as in this film is a very welcome change. Humour or a even a lighthearted moment to allow the audience an emotional break are sorely missing. Or maybe the characters are really supposed to be that uncool? The gun action is done in quite a realistic manner, but filmed somewhat deficiently. The film looks like it could have used at least an extra camera on the set to have some different angles and closeups.
At least they tried to make an interesting actioner, and in todays creative dearth thats quite something. Still the result could easily have been much better with more attention to the technical aspects and script.
Demonlover (2002)
A Hong Kong thriller a la Francaise
Much has been said about this film in other high-rated user review that need not be repeated here. Assayas has obviously seen a whole number of Hong Kong movies as this is nothing less than a French HK thriller. The themes may have been a bit old and trite even as the film came out ("You don't have that in France yet, right" as the Americans remark at one point) but there's always a trade-off to be made between elitism and populism. Certain media events concerning real torture that shape our perception now had not transpired either, and even the fictional internet doesn't appear totally made-up yet.
Contrary to what some reviewers thought, the plot didn't have any holes that I noticed. In the second half (after the fight with HK style near-deadly deception) the pace merely accelerates and showing every step of the development would have been even more populist. In the end, as HK cinema fans know very well, the dark decisions and desires of the human soul let everything go to hell.
The cinematography is faultless, and the actors - especially the main anti-heroine - express everything in a very non-extreme but nonetheless crystal-clear way. This is a great film that does not overstep the boundaries of entertainment, as there are really no explicit scenes to be seen, yet it leaves a very strong message about the life people are creating (or rather destroying) through their decisions and actions.
Hellboy (2004)
Everything that can be bad about Hollywood...
Everything that can be bad about Hollywood...
...like cheap clichés, Germans Nazis Evil; Russians Evil too; evil Nazi pseudo-Ninja is there too; Americans all-white Christians and super-all; no discernible plot or storyline; flat characters without emotions, especially the main hero; dull, visibly calculated acting without a spark of spontaneity; reliance on "action" and CGI sequences that have been done much better long ago
...is in this film.
This stuff is great if your mental age is no higher than 12, else take your girl/boyfriend out for dinner or something or read the comic.
Seriously, this film is the perfect example of how a comic should not be made into film.
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006)
An unfunny film in unfunny times.
An unfunny film in unfunny times.
Sasha Baron Cohen is largely a has-been in Europe where his scriptwriters put him through his first, genuinely snappy shows that brought together a lot of influences from lampooning youth culture to spoofs of veteran shows like Benny Hill.
The Borat character was initially used to mock snotty Oxbridge students, foaming-at-the-mouth foxhunting protesters, or just breaking the routines of other performative artists. The point of the skit was that people would treat Borat with respect or courtesy despite his grotesque missteps, so he could go on childish rampages like farting in a meditation group.
It was also widely regarded as the weakest part of the show, relegated to the late or ending segments. After a short but flamboyant run the initial "Da Ali G show" had lost its special touch, and US cable seems like the natural place to continue the job for a few years in these cases.
And now, there's an ethnic comedy movie where a Jew, that means from one of the traditionally most tightly sealed-off communities in history, tries to explain something about our world to Americans, one of the youngest and most self-centered nations on this planet. The method used beyond the traditional 'playing dumb and childish' routine from Cohen again seems to be gratuitous offense and over-the-top insensitivity, but somehow it isn't funny at all anymore.
There's a genuine lack of anything like wit or surprise, and he probably writes his own material without much input from a real team. Taking an act 'over the top' is a risky thing and similar results can be observed in many rushed Hong Kong comedies where the fun just doesn't happen despite or because of technically correct execution of 'funny'.
One reason may be that real comedy still comes as interaction between several level players, whereas this film presents a nearly autistic performance that leaves the viewer rooting for the genuinely clueless and debased victims. Going at it or chutzpah is a valuable thing, but if you don't know when to stop you're just a crazy horse.