Details

  • Last Online: 2 days ago
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: Unitied Kingdom
  • Contribution Points: 0 LV0
  • Roles:
  • Join Date: June 26, 2023

Friends

DanTheMan2150AD

Unitied Kingdom

DanTheMan2150AD

Unitied Kingdom
Completed
The Vampire Doll
0 people found this review helpful
17 days ago
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 5.5
Rewatch Value 8.5

Effectively creepy spin on the vampire mythos

The first entry in Toho's Bloodthirsty trilogy, The Vampire Doll, is an aspiring and brilliantly atmospheric spin on the classic vampire mythos. It has all the gothic trappings you'd expect from its Western counterparts while retaining all the eccentricities that come with Japanese filmmaking. A slow-burning and technically fantastic film, Director Michio Yamamoto tells his grisly story with a cool taciturn detachment, with plenty of scares lurking around the bend, some of it even hair-raising. Moody photography and classy art direction sell the isolated mansion setting with eerie grace and although the relatively simple story may not be anything new, it is written exceptionally well and told at a steady pace to keep maximum attention, the fantastic performances from the cast certainly help to sell it. The film's dark spot for me is Riichirō Manabe's score, while ominous, melodic and gloomy it feels overly repetitive and cheap. Fantastically made and brightly hued, The Vampire Doll is not entirely faultless but for fans of old-school atmospheric scares, it's a corker.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
A Legend
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 26, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 2.0
Story 1.0
Acting/Cast 1.5
Music 4.0
Rewatch Value 1.0

Painfully boring

Watching any form of modern Jackie Chan film comes with its fair share of challenges but A Legend hits a new low for the ageing martial arts star, in this so-called legacy sequel to The Myth. Sure, the film is lavishly produced, with plenty of sweeping landscapes, and suitably epic set pieces, however, it commits the cardinal sin of being unmistakenly boring and a slog to sit through thanks to some abysmally erratic pacing. The film tries to cram in way too much for its runtime and feels like two distinctly different movies crowbarred together, it's rather sad since I know Stanley Tong has been capable of so much better. The elephant in the room is of course the horrific de-ageing job done to Jackie Chan during the scenes set during the Han Dynasty, it looks like someone just got a picture of his face and slapped it on the body of a younger actor, it can be genuinely disturbing at times. If you're expecting Jackie to throw a few moves, then you'll have to wait till the last act before he finally gets down to business. Although it sadly stands as a consolation prize and comes too little too late. I will say however, I did like Nathan Wang's musical score despite the very cheesy and stereotypical soundscape. There’s a noticeable lack of adventure in A Legend, it falters with a largely self-serious tale of action fantasy and a central romance that feels more cringey than it does profound. I highly doubt Panda Plan is gonna be much better.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Ultraman Dyna
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 18, 2024
51 of 51 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 7.5

History repeats. But… it changes for the better, little by little.

A sequel to Ultraman Tiga was always going to be an uphill battle and Ultraman Dyna was a struggle initially. Still, Dyna fought that battle hard, never giving up and winning me over by the journey's end. Yes, it's a bit of a step down in quality, probably not helped by the budget cuts in contrast to its predecessor, but that doesn't stop the series from giving it its all when it matters and ending on one of the most gut-punching, haunting and melancholic finales I've seen from any of the Ultra shows.

One of my major gripes with this series is its tone. Unlike Tiga, Dyna is more comedically focused, and that tone often undercuts any sense of tension or emotional beats. This frequently left me rather annoyed and disconnected in some of the more outrageous stories, but the series soon managed to find its way to getting the balance right and delivering the best of both. The lack of an overarching story for the majority of the series' runtime isn't necessarily a bad thing as there are some real standout episodes sprinkled throughout, it just lacks the drive to maintain the momentum in the sillier episodes which dominate the series.

My other gripe was with its main cast of characters, they aren't nearly as memorable as the Tiga gang, yet they all have clearly defined personalities and their headlining episodes allow them much more growth than initially expected but they still manage to feel undeveloped as a result. Asuka made for a fascinating watch as the series went on, starting as a real annoyance but pulling a massive 180 and becoming a true hero by the end. However, I don't think the reliance on the Tiga gang helped matters as they tend to crop up repeatedly throughout the series and steal the spotlight from our main team. Hell, Diago makes an appearance in the finale to inspire Asuka to keep fighting as he had done before.

I do have to applaud the production team and all their efforts on the series. The direction is usually great, the odd episode notwithstanding, I do wish we had more than one Akio Jissoji-directed episode. The model and suitmation effects are still up to the high standard of Tiga even if the CG is notably more frequent. While Tatsumi Yano delivers another fantastic score that rivals that of his work on Tiga.

Because I did it for Tiga, here are my favourite episodes from the series:
1. A New Shadow / Solar System Annihilation / Toward Tomorrow...
2. The Smile of Destruction
3. Bird of the Phantom Dream
4. Monster Drama
5. Tear of Churasa
6. The Snow of Venus
7. The 3000 Degree Heat Radiating Monster
8. The Time of Resolution
9. Captain Long-Legs
10. Soldier of Tsukuyo

I have my moans but Ultraman Dyna is still a fabulous show, it does struggle to escape the shadow of Tiga often falling back on it as a safety net, but the whole experience leaves you incredibly satisfied and notably saddened by the end. There's always hope among the darkness and Dyna provides the light even in the most dire of situations.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Ultraman Dyna: The Return of Hanejiro
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 17, 2024
1 of 1 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 7.5
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 6.0

I would die for Hanejiro

In many ways, The Return of Hanejiro feels similar to Tiga Gaiden, but unlike Gaiden, Return of Hanejiro feels closer to the tone and content of its parent show. A last gasp of the sillier elements before the finale, this film lays the jokes on thick and fast, giving a large focus to the bumbling Miji trio. However, the silliness is in earnestness and the special is a fun little side venture, one I certainly enjoyed more than Warriors of the Star of Light, it's much better paced for one thing. Set just after Hanejiro's farewell to the cast but produced 3 years later, it ultimately means the continuity between the two is very off as everyone has noticeably aged between projects, especially Mai who is practically unrecognisable. The production values are still fantastic though, Masaki Harada's direction is great, the cast is all fun to watch and Tatsumi Yano's music is always a winner. For everything that The Return of Hanejiro does well, it does still feel like an expensive DVD extra more than its own entity, regardless... I would die for Hanejiro and I'm sure many more of us would to.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Lolita Vibrator Torture
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 10, 2024
Completed 1
Overall 5.5
Story 5.0
Acting/Cast 6.5
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 3.5

I watched this for a joke…

Lolita: Vibrator Torture has been the subject of a long running joke between myself and a friend, we’d constantly be recommending it to each other or saying that we’re watching it, it’s a film I didn’t think I’d ever really bring myself to watch. And yet, here I am, having watched it. Doesn’t mean the joke will end though. With a title like Lolita: Vibrator Torture, the film gives off the impressive of exploitation nastiness, yet oddly this pink film is one you can’t look away from. There’s a sledgehammer styling to Hisayasu Satô's direction, the guerilla style camerawork and almost drone-like soundscape only amplifying the effects. Yes, the fetishisitc sex acts are the main selling point of these types of films but here the film is more concerned with diving into the psychological wallows experienced by its characters, it takes the pinku genre as a whole and dilutes it down. There’s a genuinely disturbing piece of extreme cinema buried within the overbearing sexual violence, it's not one recommended for the faint of heart. Stripped down to its core, Lolita: Vibrator Torture will challenge you, one that's meant to be difficult to watch and succeeding in doing so.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Disciples of the 36th Chamber
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 9, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 5.0
Story 4.5
Acting/Cast 6.0
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 4.0

Tired and stagnant

On paper, the premise for Disciples of the 36th Chamber probably sounded promising, sadly this is a disappointing finale to the 36th Chamber trilogy. There's little of the inventiveness and vitality that figured so heavily in the previous films, instead, we're given a sub-standard kung-fu revenge plot tinged with the occasional comedic beats. It feels like a product of yesteryear, marking the passing of the torch when it comes to populist Hong Kong action cinema. One that relegates Gordon Liu to a mere supporting role and focuses on the most annoying Fong Sai-Yuk in the history of Hong Kong cinema as played by Hsiao Ho. That being said, Lau Kar-Leung's direction remains particularly strong but it's his script where the film falls apart, with a few tweaks here and there, it could have been a winner. The usual production values that so epitomise a Shaw Brothers production are all here but ultimately it's at the expense of awfully sluggish pacing, this is the shortest film of the trilogy and yet it feels the longest to the point at which I felt I was zoning out. Sadly, there's not a lot to distinguish Disciples of the 36th Chamber as its own unique experience. It feels tired and stagnant, even with all its traditional Shaw Brothers style, signifying a changing tide for audiences.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Return to the 36th Chamber
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 9, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 8.5

Fun-filled parody of the original

A bizarre, unconventional, almost anachronistic parody of the original 36th Chamber, Return to the 36th Chamber is just as much fun as its predecessor albeit for very different reasons. Equal parts spoof and as it is a straightforward martial arts actioner, the film recasts Gordon Liu as a down-on-his-luck con artist learning the ropes from the very character he played in the original, one that pushes Liu's comedic chops to the forefront and one he pulls off exceptionally well. The lighter tone and bigger focus on comedy oddly work in the film's favour, it's a welcome change of pace in direct contrast to the original, one that I found myself laughing at consistently. Lau Kar-leung maintains his stunning direction with just as much emphasis here on training sequences versus actual fighting which are once again a fantastic sight to behold. Admittedly, some aspects of the plot don't hold up to intensive scrutiny, but for what it is, Return to the 36th Chamber works. A fun-filled, highly engaging piece with a heightened sense of reality that will please fans and newcomers alike.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
The 36th Chamber of Shaolin
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 8, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 7.5
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 8.0

World's longest training arc

Offset by the longest training montage known to man, Liu Chia-Liang's trend-setting classic, The 36th Chamber of Shaolin mythologises the true story of a monk who took his martial teaching out of the temple and into the secular world and in turn boiling the revenge drama down to almost abstract levels, one that is often heralded as one of the most influential martial arts films of all time. Leung directs this movie masterfully, making fabulous use of the epic and colourful surroundings while the exceptionally choreographed fights fill the frame. The acting is great all around with Gordon Liu more than carrying his weight but the show is really stolen by Lo Leih's villainous turn as General Tien. The music is nothing overly special but works for the film. Ultimately, it's hard to fault The 36th Chamber of Shaolin regarding its technical and landmarking achievements for the kung fu genre, although granted it does take a little bit too long to get going but once it starts, it doesn't stop.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Legend of Dinosaurs and Monster Birds
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 7, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 5.0
Story 4.0
Acting/Cast 5.5
Music 6.5
Rewatch Value 4.5

There were no Dinos or Monster Birds here

Taking the formula established by the success of Jaws and combining it with the domestic kaiju film, Legend of Dinosaurs and Monster Birds had a decent amount of potential but ultimately shot itself right in the explosive tank before it could fully realise that. The DNA of the film feels ripped right from Nessie, the tragically cancelled collaboration between Toho and Hammer, with climate anomalies and seismic activity reviving prehistoric reptiles to terrorise the residents around a legendarily monster-haunted lake. One of those creatures is a Plesiosaurus with the film even referring to poor Nessie at a few points during its runtime, Toei was evidently listening at the walls of Toho studios one summer day. Director Junji Kurata seems to have failed to fundamentally grasp the premise of a huge monster operating by stealth and picking off its victims individually in secret, regardless, his direction is nonetheless passable. The film doesn't allow you to bond with the characters, there's little reason to care for them beyond their base archetypes, however, the actors all turn in decent performances at least. The ill-fitting and often hilariously juxtaposed music by Masao Yagi is usually the film's talking point, combining a catchy mixture of disco, funk, and jazz. Despite a healthy dosing of gory violence and some great effects work, Legend of Dinosaurs and Monster Birds is a really outlandish film, odd and sometimes surreal, it's at least capable of keeping your interest from beginning to end.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
The Skull Soldier
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 6, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 6.0
Story 5.5
Acting/Cast 6.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 4.5

Silly DTV toku gem

A clear passion project by guitarist turned actor Masaki Kyomoto, The Skull Soldier is a relatively cheap but hugely stylised little DTV tokusatsu gem from Tsuburaya. Gritty and exploitive, the film's tone can vary wildly mixing elements of horror, comedy and rockabilly funk with graphic violence, sex & nudity. The whole thing is pretty much an unofficial live-action adaptation of Shotaro Ishinomori's The Skull Man, Kyomoto's direction is pretty great given his budgetary limitations and lack of experience. Still, I feel the film runs a bit too long for the material he's got. The comedic moments don't really endear the movie to me as they often come at the expense of an otherwise tightly plotted and well-realised story. However, the action, as brief as it is is brilliantly envisioned, the design of the titular anti-hero is exceptional, big ups Keita Amemiya, the performances are engrossing all around and the soundtrack is a superb selection of rocking synth tunes. The Skull Soldier isn't perfect by any means, but it's a special little film in its own right. Seek it out if you have the time.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Aug 31, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 6.5
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.5

Would be better if it were longer

After the rather heated production woes of the previous film, John Woo split from Tsui Hark and went off to self-finance his original draft for A Better Tomorrow III and in the process create his masterpiece, Bullet in the Head. With Woo and Hark's working relationship having deteriorated, Hark decided to helm his vision of a prequel himself. Unfortunately what we get ultimately feels like Hark being lazy, cashing in on the name with Hark's take on the heroic bloodshed genre, one of which he grounds into a harsh reality. The biggest problem with this film for me is its writing, it doesn't really feel like a prequel to A Better Tomorrow because the character depth and dynamics we loved so much about the previous two just aren't here.

However, there's still some good stuff to be found in A Better Tomorrow III, Hark's direction is fabulous with so many of his trademark imaginative camera shots and the action is brilliant, especially the finale involving machine guns, a tank and a motorbike; the music by Lowell Lo is lovely and makes good use of Joseph Koo's cues and, despite him really not giving a shit about this film or how his character was written, Chow Yun-fat turns in a marvellous performance as Mark once again. All in all, if you go in with much lower expectations, A Better Tomorrow III: Love and Death in Saigon will deliver an enjoyable if immensely flawed ride.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
A Better Tomorrow 2
0 people found this review helpful
Aug 31, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 6.0

An enjoyable mess

The fact that A Better Tomorrow II somehow manages to form a somewhat cohesive narrative and deliver some more uproarious Woo action is nothing short of a miracle. While the moment-to-moment editing is extremely questionable, seriously, the number of hard cuts in this movie that feel like we're jumping over some very necessary details; all get thrown out the door for an absolutely brilliant finale that is more than a highlight in Woo's already-stacked repertoire.

The absolute mess of its production is infamous, with John Woo and Tsui Hark constantly disagreeing with each other over how the film should go eventually resulting in two different versions of the film being shot, separately edited and then edited together again by another team. Honestly, if someone were to find the original film elements of this movie, you could most likely cobble together, at minimum, 5 different cuts putting Blade Runner to shame.

Chow Yun-fat is completely unhinged in this one, be it crying over some rice or nearly being blown up due to an explosion gone wrong, I love it. Ti Lung and Leslie Cheung retain their great performances of certified bromance which made the original so endearing. Joseph Koo's soundtrack is great, at least when he isn't egregiously overusing the main theme at every possible moment. For what it's worth, however, while this film may be an unfocused mess, it's still ridiculously entertaining with all of Woo's loveable trademarks still very much in place.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
A Better Tomorrow
0 people found this review helpful
Aug 31, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 9.0

Simply Marvellous

Considering A Better Tomorrow was produced on a relatively small budget and sent into cinemas with virtually no advertising, it's simply incredible to witness what is the birth of Hong Kong gangster cinema as we know it today. Pretty much any of the film's wonkier moments are bolstered by its captivating musical score by Joseph Koo, the gripping story, epic shootouts and incredible leading performances of Ti Lung, Leslie Cheung and, the epitome of coolness himself, Chow Yun-fat. In 95 minutes, John Woo redefines his entire filmmaking career into one that is very often imitated but never matched, his ballads of heroic bloodshed and emotional male leads leave me enchanted every time. A Better Tomorrow is simply marvellous.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Aug 31, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 6.0
Story 5.5
Acting/Cast 6.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 5.0

Ultraman Dyna and the cameoing Tiga

Greatly benefitting from a larger budget and its theatrical status, Ultraman Tiga & Ultraman Dyna: Warriors of the Star of Light ultimately plays like two TV series episodes cut together as a movie and less like the team-up promised by its title. Sluggishly paced but exceptionally well-directed the film does at least look pretty fabulous, Kazuya Konaka did a great job here while Tatsumi Yano's music is as great as it has always been. The model and practical effects work is marvellous and looks tremendous in the widescreen format, although the CG character work is abundant and extremely rough. The acting from its cast is solid, but like the show, I still haven't gelled with Asuka's character as a protagonist, even if this film largely focuses on his inner turmoil and occasional suicidal thoughts. The Tiga aspect of this film is more set dressing than anything else, with the titular Ultra only showing up during the climax but conspicuously missing his host, Daigo. While it is lovely to see most of the cast of the GUTS squad again, the conspicuous absence of Hiroshi Nagano doesn't make the reunion feel authentic. Ultimately, I wish the story for this one was better, there's a lot of good stuff in here but it just fails to stick the landing.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Boiling Point
0 people found this review helpful
Aug 27, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 1.0
Rewatch Value 7.5

a master stealing home between two out-of-the-park home runs.

What Boiling Point may lack in contemplativeness, playing the material not for action or thrills but with comedy so dark and deadpan that its intent can be easily lost on many. Tranquillity explodes into violence, which recedes to its original serenity. A tale unfolding sedately against a backdrop of calm sunny stillness punctuated by shocking moments of unpalatable violence that points to the behind-the-scenes mundanity of the perceived glamour of organised crime in Japan as presented in yakuza films. As his first scripted effort, that narrative almost dissolves into abstractions and digressions, but Kitano largely stays the course with a compellingly warped look at the uniquely Japanese culture of violence. Kitano himself turns up very late in the film's runtime, his presence as welcomed as ever, leading both protagonists and viewers alike on a guided tour of the bleaker recesses of the human psyche with the lack of a musical score heightening the tone and storytelling power behind his magnificent direction. Boiling Point may not be as refined as Kitano's later works, but it more than establishes Kitano as an artist with a clear vision and distinctive style.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?