tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77362067299552245002024-03-22T02:40:20.750+01:00TrollkontrolleAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-16500569307754048302014-02-10T15:46:00.001+01:002014-02-10T15:46:44.153+01:00Movie Review: The Conjuring - 2013<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Please leave the ghost busting to "Ghostbusters" </span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1457767" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPQFKVrqNakSBmO5DKgGDWYxtNXDDurGnuRCpRcr8IRq8SVGp3iXPbOwhbJaWyCbrMoQmhnFQKWj3FvCYbaDQnzPTOiU3ZOs1X0uG7M-OfGurysjlPwjomN8SET8IKfQc2IORysE8aOpI/s1600/conjuring.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>"The Conjuring" is similar to 1979's "Amityville Horror" in that it is allegedly based on a true story about a family that gets tormented by spirits right after they moved into a new home. Another similarity would be that the movie has a couple of ghost scenes that are quite creepy. However, I could not really get into it because - unlike "Amityville Horror" - the movie doesn't concentrate on the family but instead tries to establish two unlikely heroes from the most annoying demographic on the planet: paranormal investigators.<br />
<br />
Said investigators are Lorraine and Ed Warren who, in the movie just as in real life, are a self-proclaimed medium and a self-proclaimed expert demonologist, respectively. They must be a real awesome experts, because not once during the movie does anyone dare to question their claims, whether the Warrens are lecturing large audiences or their clients. How does Ed Warren know there are human spirits and non-human spirits? How does he tell the difference? How does one become a demonologist anyway?<br />
<br />
"The Conjuring" plays like a feel-good movie for fans of ghost hunting TV shows; all the claims about how the paranormal "functions" seem to have been taken straight from there. During the end titles, photos and newspaper articles are shown to convince the viewer once more that this was all really real. And, of course, the only skeptic in the movie is a doofus who in the end gets so lectured, haha.<br />
<br />
But even if the movie didn't make me so aware that I was watching a piece of propaganda for fans of ghost hunting shows (and of the catholic church, for that matter), I would have had a hard time finding it overall scary. Because, in "The Conjuring", the supernatural isn't dreadful but trivial. The know-it-all investigators have an explanation for everything, and they fix the supernatural like a broken car. In fact, director James Wan even added a scene where Ed Warren and the dad are trying to fix an old car, as if to symbolize just that. Apparently, Wan deliberately missed the opportunity to make a genuinely disturbing movie and chose to make a fan movie for the Warrens instead. What a waste! <br />
<br />
PS: Please, Hollywood, if you ever want to make a movie again about paranormal investigators, just make a "Ghostbusters" sequel. Oh, it seems <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1289401" target="_blank">they listened</a>.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 4 out of 10 doors not-so-scarily opening by themselves.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-60895978134165981712014-02-06T14:51:00.000+01:002014-02-06T14:51:00.433+01:00Movie Review: Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai (Ichimei) - 2011<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Debunking the myth of samurai honor</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1728196" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidhaHndRB6WLTsBZ4uN6T8H6Di78CVZrfWTv_mTRl_m2RSEmCyDMjccRiSodWPb5jve6XiiD1JiWxTWKASk6X6qqxEa6fYhIpTVAFjLG1dDPK7qkizmftYjsLWazRd98mOYUL4DdNX_Wo/s1600/harakiri.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>"Hara Kiri: Death of a Samurai" is another samurai movie by Takashi Miike which he made right after <a href="http://trollkontrolle.blogspot.de/2013/12/movie-review-13-assassins-2010.html">13 Assassins</a> and which is also a remake of a movie from the 1960s. It is a very different take on the samurai subject though in that it is less of an action movie and more of a bitter social drama that criticizes the hypocrisy of samurai culture in the Edo era.<br />
<br />
Mostly told in retrospective, "Hara Kiri" is a story about a masterless samurai who requests a clan lord to allow him to commit ritual suicide on the lord's estate. The lord is suspicious though since such requests have become fashionable among poor samurai as a means to get alms. So the lord decides to make an example: instead of giving the samurai some money he forces him to actually kill himself in a ritual that turns out to be inhumanely agonizing. Two months later, another samurai arrives at the estate, with a similar suicide request. As a warning, the lord tells him about the fate of the poor wretch who died there earlier. But the man already knows about that. In fact, he knew the dead man very well, and he tells the lord the story of his life.<br />
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Major part of "Hara Kiri"is spent with the depiction of the poverty of the samurai's family. As your sympathy for him grows, you feel nothing but contempt for the lord and his hypocritical idea of honor, which is just as hollow as the armor suit exhibited at the center of his estate. However, while the display of poverty is crucial to establish the movie's moral, there is just too much of it for my taste. The beginning of "Hara Kiri" is strong and unnerving, but then it meanders in poverty melodrama for such a long time that its action packed last act actually feels out of place.<br />
<br />
I have a hard time liking the movie since it is so bitter, but I still think that it is important since it contrasts Hollywood productions that mystify samurai honor, like "The Last Samurai" or the "Kill Bill" series. Or "Ghost Dog", which is about a killer living by the samurai code described in the Hagakure, which is a morbid book mystified in the West as some sort of esoteric business guide. Generally, there is a strong fascination in the West with Bushido, the samurai way of life, which is expressed by movies like the ones mentioned above. However, even the samurai code that the Hollywood movies claim to be based on is basically just a fabrication of the Edo era, which began with the 17th century. That era was way more peaceful than the previous ones, and it was the time when the samurai stopped being warriors and became a ruling class of government officials. Ironically, the more the samurai ceased to be warriors, the more they became obsessed with an idea of warriors' honor that actually hadn't much to do with the samurais' way of living during the previous millennium.<br />
<br />
"Hara Kiri" plays in that era, and it is mentioned during the movie that most of the lord's samurai haven't actually fought in battle. The lord's hypocrisy isn't just a plot tool added to give the movie a villain. Rather, the movie appears to provide a fairly accurate description of the state of society at that time. Considering that, "Hara Kiri" is worth watching, so it's a pity that it loses so much momentum during the middle act.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 6 out of 10 chopped-off topknots.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-38457488018051865502014-01-21T12:36:00.002+01:002014-01-21T12:37:39.174+01:00Movie Review: Tetsuo - The Bullet Man - 2009<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Tamer - and shakier - than the first</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1176416" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibG-243FnG-nxXtp1tTr4gyTw0_ufwnTGG4jSlyPzm2PXhBoSBgsivWjFG5GNzkXWv3_O32Wc9BJBRMlKeUdB5EW0Ycyk2JAgymHYqCmsP-ICBJALRm8u1KrwttYmuc6pCM_cczZK0WCY/s1600/tetsuo2.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>A man watches how his son gets purposely and repeatedly run over by a car. As if that trauma wasn't enough, his body starts growing metal, turning him into an invulnerable monster. Yes, it's Shinya Tsukamoto time again, and "Tetsuo - The Bullet Man" is the third installment of his "Testuo" series. It is similar in style and content to the former movies, but there are also some notable differences. Just like in <a href="http://trollkontrolle.blogspot.de/2014/01/movie-review-tetsuo-iron-man-tetsuo-1989.html">"Tetsuo - The Iron Man"</a>, we get lots of frantic shots accentuated by industrial music. The title sequence is even identical to the original. Also, the protagonist has metal parts growing from his body in an organic rather than technical way.<br />
<br />
But Tsukamoto also tried to make "Tetsuo - The Bullet Man" more accessible for viewers, particularly those from Western countries. The movie hasn't been filmed in Japanese but English, and it's a Caucasian, Eric Bossick as Anthony, who is growing into a metal monster. It has desaturated pictures with glimpses of color instead of pure black and white. And though it is quite as violent, it lacks the disturbing sexual images of the first installment. Most important, it has a story that can be understood and that explains why everything is happening. Yes, the movie definitely is more accessible than the first one. It is somewhat but not completely weird, it is somewhat but not completely confusing, and it even has an identifiable plot. Which, though, is also the reason why fans of the original will probably be disappointed. Although on the surface the movies appear similar, the tone is very different. This movie isn't quite as avant-garde, it lacks the pure freakishness of the original.<br />
<br />
While it's a matter of taste which style you like better, there is a real problem with "Tetsuo - The Bullet Man" that spoils the experience quite a bit. It's the shaky cam - the ugly tool that only film makers like while everybody else on the planet hates it. The shaky cam in this movie is really annoying.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 5 out of 10 further things growing out of your body.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-57059864942481613792014-01-21T12:36:00.001+01:002014-01-21T12:38:25.725+01:00Movie Review: Tetsuo - The Iron Man (Tetsuo) - 1989<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Industrial stop-motion madness</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096251" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrzaAE9-C5G_Pbgw1FbFGd-TW8LMn0wl9PSma_m4GqH6A38_TDLpGyEx__8QsouUqxhaTeGtc48m07D2o24HmQD0-kE4iMjonpjL3_inGuwJQ5q0fKi4VqAk_vLksOuxJ3ROIINgKdOtQ/s1600/tetsuo1.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>Shinya Tsukamoto's "Tetsuo" is 67 minutes of screaming, violence, sex, stop motion effects, crazy laughter, and industrial music. It's also frantically edited and shot in black and white. That doesn't necessarily sound like fun, but it is. As far as I could tell after a second viewing, the story is about a man with a metal fetish who cuts his body to insert metal parts, thereby gaining psychical power over metal that he uses to take revenge on a clerical worker and his girlfriend by making metal grow out of the man's body. Or perhaps it is about something completely different, who knows.<br />
<br />
Do not mistake this for a Japanese version of Marvel's "Ironman". There are no fancy iron suits but messes of pipes, wires, and other metal parts growing insanely fast like tumors and melding with bodies. The men aren't superheroes but monstrosities. And the style is avant-garde with lots of confusing images, making the movie feel like a vision from Kafka rather than cyberpunk.<br />
<br />
So, how can this be fun? First, "Tetsuo" is frantic, it never gives you a break to ponder what you're actually watching. This could have turned out immensely annoying - well, I suppose some people will think of the movie just that way. But it worked for me. It made the movie a pure visual and acoustic experience unlike any other. Second, it's quite hilarious. The movie is so over the top weird that I had to laugh some times.<br />
<br />
"Tetsuo" is one of a kind. Except for the two sequels that Tsukamoto made, which are actually more of the same. <a href="http://trollkontrolle.blogspot.de/2014/01/movie-review-tetsuo-bullet-man-2009.html">"Tetsuo - The Bullet Man"</a>, notably, was made by 20 years after the first one, and it's more accessible but - maybe because of that - also less fun.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 8 out of 10 strange things growing out of your body.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-65097347640614989492014-01-15T13:50:00.000+01:002014-01-15T14:55:15.731+01:00Movie Review: Confessions (Kokuhaku) - 2010<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Trash with an artsy icing</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1590089/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUz0BgCxPKty7zL12-ZLH8cmrnSfWp4WsfJM6hXvzdmHT7QZepSTyBfzrhtvTESyLRNKKGqwcOQSX_DnAka7d68lTmnXUNqPDMeMoEBt5DPrNbPzTmz6xQw_D5uDuDsXGMO6u8Lkl6Y28/s1600/confessions.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
"Confessions" by director Tetsuya Nakashima is an effective socio thriller that won't leave any viewer unaffected. I give it that. But it is also a
stone-cold, calculated movie without a heart. Its primitive morality is
covered by an artsy fartsy coating which, sadly, makes critics
believe that the movie had something profound to tell.<br />
<br />
The movie starts with a bang of an opening scene. A teacher tells her class of 7th graders about the value of life. Keeping the same calm tone throughout, she then tells them that her little daughter died; that she got in fact murdered by two students currently attending the class. She elaborates on how the two students will get away with their heinous deed because they are below the age of criminal responsibility. Before leaving, though, she reveals a nasty surprise for them: She has just infected the killers with the HIV virus. The film proceeds with showing from different perspectives what is going on in the kids minds and how the teacher's twisted revenge plan unfolds.<br />
<br />
It does so with demonstrative artistic style. Whereas the cold color scheme and the frequent shots of dark clouds may be reasonable gimmicks to create a dark atmosphere, there are also countless slow motion shots that seem to have no purpose other than make the film look artsy. The same goes for the odd choice of music and some scenes that are deliberately out of place, like one where the students almost perform a musical act.<br />
<br />
With its artsy style, "Confessions" apparently tries to mimic Chan-Wook Park's revenge trilogy, "Oldboy", "Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance", and "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance". One could argue that those movies are also somewhat pretentious. But below the surface, their morality is complex. Park's revenge trilogy is about people who are basically good but who heap guilt upon themselves, and the revenge doesn't lead to redemption.<br />
<br />
Contrary to that, Nakashima's world is simplistic and strictly divided into good and evil. All the kids in "Confessions" are monsters devoid of empathy. Not just the killers but even their peers, who are obnoxious brats trying to give their teacher as hard as a time as possible. Even when the teacher tells them about the death of her little daughter they don't care. Only the fact that the killers are among them raises their interest, as that seems a welcome opportunity for bullying.<br />
<br />
So there is the message of "Confessions". All the kids are monsters, and the most psychopathic of them deserve to die. And then, I guess, the viewer is supposed to leave the theater with a feeling of satisfaction because the revenge unfolded so well. This ugly little package is all that "Confessions" has to offer below its aesthetic surface. I have to admit that the movie impressed me at first. But then I realized just how corrupt it is. I would take revenge movies of the "Death Wish" kind over "Confessions". Because at least those movies weren't as pretentious as this
film that blinds the viewer with a shiny artistic surface to make them
believe it was art.<br />
<br />
By the way: Hey, directors, leave them kids alone! They are alright. This should be obvious, but I've seen comments from people who now believe that Japanese kids really were like this. Quite stupid of those viewers, but also quite an assholish achievement of a movie.<br />
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<b>Rating:</b> 1 out of 10 pretentious slow motion shots.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-59539188689054778612014-01-14T12:47:00.001+01:002014-01-14T12:49:44.487+01:00Movie Review: Higanjima - 2009<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Cliche-ridden but quite entertaining horror-action flick</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1270767" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpjxFQOaV31ynaWdEszvLmmyVYVzZ1DpxHTST5kYrY_ao11W76kS0KXQh9rJ-3Q_GFM1pbW2OMkw27Sk4UoZ_iFBrE0vXHPqBP0Cl4jda-RN-_6OBjXjjPtsQuceWbSCTqCLdz_pQo_I4/s1600/higanjima.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>Vampire movies are the Westerns of the horror genre; most people have had enough of them, except when they are exceptionally unique. The Korean-Japanese co-production "Higanjima" directed by Tae-gyun Kim, unfortunately, has neither a really original story nor unique characters. Nonetheless, it is quite entertaining, thanks to a lot of action that is delivered by an enthusiastic crew.<br />
<br />
Akira (Hideo Ishiguro) is a normal teenager who is one day encountered by the mysterious and beautiful Rei (Asami Mizukawa). She tells him that his missing brother Atsushi (Dai Watanabe) is in trouble. In fact, he is trapped on an island inhabited by vampires. Joined by his friends, Akira travels to the island where the gang is confronted with a whole army of vampires lead by vampire lord Miyabi (Kôji Yamamoto).<br />
<br />
Although the vampire lord looks like an albino, he is a walking cliche in that he is just as smug and aristocratic like 99% of all vampire villains in American productions of the "Vampire Diaries" kind. He also wears Victorian style clothing, which would make sense if this was "Interview with a Vampire" - instead of a movie playing solely in Japan. It is frustrating to see how the filmmakers tried to copy Hollywood, carelessly wasting the opportunity to come up with a unique vampire. When it comes to characters, I also wondered why Akira's friends thought it was a good idea to travel to a vampire infested island armed with (I do not make this up) one baseball bat and one bag of sandwiches.<br />
<br />
On the plus side, there is a lot of action to keep you entertained for the movie's two hours. Most of it has been shot on-location on an island. If you happen to own the DVD, I highly recommend to watch the Making-Of commented by Dai Watanabe. I was impressed to learn that the actors did the stunts themselves, which is astonishing since there is really tons of fighting with swords, tree trunks and whatever else is at hand, and people thrown around by vampires and explosions. <br />
<br />
Beneath the cliche-ridden surface of "Higanjima", I sense a great movie lurking. The end suggests that there will be a sequel. If so, I hope they will just try to be a bit more original. <br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 6 out of 10 useless fellow combatants.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-84283741933612493392014-01-10T15:00:00.001+01:002014-01-10T15:17:25.337+01:00Movie Review: Sadako 3D - 2012<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Ringu goes 3D. And CGI. And Aliens.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1844025/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlTHjz0qMmZmNxq2H6BUQao0KO_UvB_APi6kT7mImnJq_7ZCl3QGwDwp1qZ_JYtjQ3yQdERd9W7yVRJrbSi1Q5m2zkXOAejB6BgLmHplBkAuGQFCvDP3xRDHHrvHQAMkITv8slhe2IfnM/s1600/sadako.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>It's been quite a long time since Hideo Nakata's last Ringu installment, which was "Ring 2" from the year 2005. And which wasn't good, though not as bad as "Spiral - The Ring 2". Just to inject some more confusion, there is another movie called "Ringu 2" which was made by Nakata since "Spiral - The Ring 2" wasn't accepted by audiences. It seems that one must have studied rocket science to understand the Japanese versioning of movies since there is an even bigger mess when it comes to the "Ju-on" franchise.<br />
<br />
Anyway, there wasn't that much left of Ringu to be ruined, hence the reviews claiming that Tsutomu Hanabusa's "Sadako 3D" ruined it are clearly exaggerating. Still, Ringu is regarded the flagship of J-horror, as is proven by exhibit A, the t-shirt I purchased for last Halloween:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMh9fihfYENz8_HDnBI_7_mLtFupcFmfDUkHjZkMWff5qOpXb3p76Q83zSN4zCZcRkS3kv53L_HiIMUSWXt_mcep6uWhSFXCgbzzCic6qVma16ERCDTQ8_TE5xo4pRH_AQtPZlqCz0Kds/s1600/2014-01-10-13-01-30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMh9fihfYENz8_HDnBI_7_mLtFupcFmfDUkHjZkMWff5qOpXb3p76Q83zSN4zCZcRkS3kv53L_HiIMUSWXt_mcep6uWhSFXCgbzzCic6qVma16ERCDTQ8_TE5xo4pRH_AQtPZlqCz0Kds/s1600/2014-01-10-13-01-30.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Exhibit A: Ringu T-Shirt</i></div>
<br />
So I was looking forward to "Sadako 3D", though I had a bad feeling about the "3D". I can see how 3D works for action based movies like "Final Destination", but for atmospheric, creepy horror it must be a distraction. And so it is for "Sadako". Every scene has been arranged to show off the three dimensions. Every effect is like glass shards in the foreground, background, everywhere, hands coming out of the screen, and so forth. There are scenes where people are talking, but they are pushed to the background just so one can see another person in the foreground. It doesn't make sense, but hey, the depth! It's like the movie is constantly yelling at you "Look at me, I'm 3D!". I yell back: "I know, but I don't care, and I'm watching in 2D anyway!".<br />
<br />
As for the plot, there's nothing to write home about. An annoying young artist wants to bring Sadako back to life, and part of his plan is an Internet video of his that kills its viewers. It's quite simple, but "Sadako" wants to make sure that really, really everyone understands the plot, so it lets the protagonists explain it again and again. There is a police detective who appears to be there just for that purpose, to have the plot explained to him or to explain it to others.<br />
<br />
What is not explained though is the occurrence of multiple creatures that all look like a mix of Sadako and a monster from the "Alien" franchise. And then, as if 3D wasn't enough, there is an overuse of computer graphics. The problem with CGI is that it is always sterile and thus ruins any sense of creepiness. But that's what you get for attacking people through video technology, Sadako! Eventually, technology strikes back and demolishes you!<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 3 out of 10 dimensions I could have done without.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-44195818001268814912014-01-08T15:27:00.000+01:002014-01-08T15:29:06.444+01:00Movie Review: Imprint - 2006<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Too disturbing for American TV</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0757061/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzh7KNl4Bc6r2VOO0_yTgcJvrDNaVQ5cBH0_-lqKfJqJbfKFnqUci4R0LBEhYOHxzBOG_AuOXWP5NzLOzGEv44KtCtwpCeISmlVxqM0_gaePgQliPG3QB2zBfLABzKTYMx7sDLOZNWLH8/s1600/imprint.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
Takashi Miike's "Imprint" is an one-hour episode of the "Masters of Horror" series that was planned to be shown on American cable TV. As Miike explained in an interview, he asked the producers before what he can show, to which they replied: "Anything but penetration". I suppose they regretted later that they hadn't made a longer list of no-goes, because it seems that Miike took the opportunity to press the buttons of American viewers in every other thinkable and unthinkable way. As a result, broadcaster officials decided that the movie was too disturbing to be shown on TV.<br />
<br />
Billy Drago is Christopher, a Nineteenth Century American who has returned to Japan to find Komomo (Michie), a prostitute he fell in love with many years ago. After a long search, he ends up one night in a brothel where a woman with a disfigured face seems to know Komomo's whereabouts. He pays her for the night, and in return she tells him the story of her life and what happened to his love. As he keeps urging her to tell him the truth, her account gets more and more horrific and bizarre.<br />
<br />
I've always been happy to see Billy Drago ever since I saw him in "The
Untouchables". He has got what I'd like to call a great movie face; when
he's on screen, you have to look at him. Here, he stars in what might be seen as Takashi Miike's crazy version of <a href="http://trollkontrolle.blogspot.com/2013/12/movie-review-rashomon-1950.html" target="_blank">Rashomon</a>. Just as in Akira Kurosawa's classic, truth turns out to be something that cannot be distilled from personal accounts. Here, we have only one woman's account, but it is so surreal that it's a hard to tell whether her story approximates the truth or whether it moves away from it.<br />
<br />
Miike shows the woman's story with disturbing images, to which he added unreal elements like strange hair colors, fields growing little windmills instead of plants, and a man looking like a rainbow colored Willy Wonka. The stylization has two effects. First, it makes the woman's account more ambiguous. Second, it makes the images bearable. Like Miike is signaling: "Hey, don't take this too literally!". Still, I can see how this was a tad too much for American TV. <br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 7 out of 10 reasons not to push for the truth.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-83576993632694059232014-01-06T17:37:00.001+01:002014-01-14T17:44:47.015+01:00Movie Review: The Call (Chakushin ari) - 2003<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Not just a copy but actually a better film than Ringu</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0366292" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuIwfLQyQcF0_qDo64SLCMeUDh6jbxq9wBgZ5JBudY_D8TiUueHXVJcx5d-wyARRz11yH0PJO-1bapYGanCExgrClTpgmmnWyTEg6lVAs-R3lSndN94aoQT3LbJf9m1cIF1gywgF7X19I/s1600/thecall.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
Director Takashi Miike is known for making movies that challenge the viewer, like the disturbing <a href="http://trollkontrolle.blogspot.com/2013/12/movie-review-audition-1999.html" target="_blank">Audition</a> or the weird <a href="http://trollkontrolle.blogspot.com/2013/12/movie-review-gozu-2003.html" target="_blank">Gozu</a>. In comparison to those works, "The Call" is surprisingly conventional. In fact, it is an obvious exercise in making a movie like "Ringu".<br />
<br />
The most obvious similarity is the notion of a ghost attacking innocent people through technology. In "The Call", doom comes in the form of cell phones. Specifically, people get called through their phones by their future selves at the moment of their death, so they know when they are going to die. If that idea of a deadline in its most literally sense sounds familiar to you, that might be because it's a rehash of the famous "one week" deadline from the "Ring" remake. Needless to say, "The Call" also features creepy female ghosts, a heroine trying to evade her fate by investigating the root of the phenomenon, and overall little explanation as to how and why everything is actually happening.<br />
<br />
So, why is it still a good movie?<br />
<br />
First, being similar to famous movies isn't necessarily a bad thing. Second, its production value excels that of the "Ringu" or "Ju-on" movies. Third, it's scarier than them. Fourth, it has a faster pace. Fifth, it has more interesting locations.<br />
<br />
Sixth, "The Call" breaks with the Japanese horror cliche of people tormented by ghosts stupidly fleeing into their apartments or other places of isolation instead of seeking protection in a public place. Ever wondered what would happen if they sought protection in a maximum public place like a live TV show watched by millions? Seek no longer, "The Call" shows just that.<br />
<br />
Last, Miike could have easily come up with a faux solution that tied the lose ends of the plot and perhaps be a bit cryptic about it to satisfy those who believe that encrypting a message is the same as art. But actually, he doesn't encrypt anything. This is what is making his movies frustrating to those trying to decipher them. The craziness in Miike's movies isn't an allegory, it is the reality he wants to show. In some of heroine Yumi's scenes, you see near subliminal images popping in. It is a technique Miike already used in <a href="http://trollkontrolle.blogspot.com/2013/12/movie-review-audition-1999.html" target="_blank">Audition</a>. The supernatural doesn't just threaten the protagonists physically, it breaks into their reality, and it starts to do so long before the immediate threats become apparent. Unlike the malfunctioning devices that Yumi keeps encountering in earlier scenes, it's nothing that can be fixed.<br />
Confusing as the plot may seem sometimes, it is more consistent than most horror movies in that it doesn't belittle the supernatural as a technical problem that can be shooed away by solving a mystery or copying a video tape.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 8 out of 10 creepy ring tones.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-16148933761286334602013-12-30T18:42:00.001+01:002013-12-30T18:53:32.737+01:00Hätte, hätte, Rechtekette<h2>
Wie sich die Presse im Pornoabmahnskandal verzettelt</h2>
Anlässlich der Redtube-Abmahnwelle rauscht es nun im Blätterwald, die Abmahner hätten womöglich gar nicht die Rechte an den Filmen. <i>"Hatten die Abmahner gar keine Sexfilm-Rechte?"</i>, fragt <a href="http://www.bild.de/digital/internet/redtube/pornofilm-rechte-abmahnungen-34012936.bild.html" target="_blank">Bild</a>. Gegenfrage: Spielt das wirklich eine Rolle? Hängt das Schicksal aller Porno- und Youtube-Gucker künftig davon ab, hellsehen zu können, wer welche Rechte an den Filmen hat? Nein, es ist ein Nebenkriegsschauplatz, der die Sicht auf das Wesentliche vernebelt, nämlich dass bereits das Abmahnen von Nutzern von Streamingportalen, die nicht offensichtlich illegal sind, sehr wahrscheinlich <a href="http://abmahnung-medienrecht.de/2013/12/strafanzeige-gegen-thomas-urmann-wegen-streaming-abmahnungen-in-sachen-redtube-bei-der-staatsanwaltschaft-hamburg-eingereicht/" target="_blank">eine Straftat ist</a>.<br />
<br />
Neben Bild schlagen noch andere Medien in die gleiche Kerbe, wobei sich alles um die unbewiesene Behauptung dreht, der Hersteller der Filme sei gar nicht die Firma Serrato Consultores der ehemaligen Pornoactrice Jutta Schilling sondern der amerikanische Pornohersteller Cobat Zone. Aber wie man zu dieser Auffassung gekommen ist, mag niemand so recht erläutern. <i>"Nach bisherigen Erkenntnissen handelt es sich um Produktionen des US-Studios Combat Zone"</i> raunt es lapidar von <a href="http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Redtube-Abmahnungen-Luecken-in-der-Rechtekette-2072771.html" target="_blank">heise</a>. <a href="http://www.zeit.de/digital/2013-12/redtube-porno-abmahnung-rechte" target="_blank">Zeit</a>, <a href="http://www.pcwelt.de/news/Redtube-Abmahner_besitzt_Filmrechte_vielleicht_gar_nicht-Porno-Abmahnwelle-8371597.html" target="_blank">PC-Welt</a>, <a href="http://www.n24.de/n24/Nachrichten/Netzwelt/d/4051040/redtube-abmahner-hatten-moeglicherweise-keine-filmrechte.html" target="_blank">N24 </a>und <a href="http://www.focus.de/digital/internet/redtube-abmahnwelle-firma-keine-urheberrechte-schweizer-firma-keine-filmrechte-zweifel-redtube-anwaelte-6_id_3508166.html" target="_blank">Focus</a> behaupten ebenfalls, nicht die spanische Firma sondern Combat Zone sei der Urheber der Videos, und berufen sich dabei auf die <a href="http://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/webwelt/article123360975/Abmahner-besitzt-Filmrechte-womoeglich-gar-nicht.html" target="_blank">Welt am Sonntag</a>. Die Welt wiederum verlautbart dies:<br />
<i>"Doch Serrato Consultores S.L. ist ebenfalls nicht selbst Urheberin der
Filme. Die Porno-Streifen wurden ursprünglich unter komplett anderen
englischen Titeln von der amerikanischen Pornoproduktions-Firma Combat
Zone USA gedreht, wie Einträge in der Branchendatenbank Adult Movie
Database belegen – Serrato Consultatores hat sie augenscheinlich nur
umetikettiert." </i><br />
<br />
Nun gibt es zwar Indizien, dass die abgemahnten Clips tatsächlich von Combat Zone veröffentlicht wurden, z.B. das Video "Amanda's Secret", für das auf der von den Abmahnern genannten Redtube-Seite die Firma Combat Zone als Quelle genannt wird, und welches offenbar von der Combat Zone DVD <i>"High Heels And Glasses 2"</i> stammt. Aber das ist kein Beleg, dass Combat Zone den Clip auch selbst gedreht hat. Die Adult Film Database (die die Welt vermutlich eher meint als die "Movie" Database) weiß hierüber auch nicht mehr mitzuteilen als dass die DVD <i>"High Heels And Glasses 2"</i> von Combat Zone stammt. Warum aber sollte die spanische Firma nicht tatsächlich der Hersteller einer der Szenen auf dieser DVD sein?<br />
<br />
Tatsächlich spricht einiges dafür, dass die Darstellung der Abmahner, was den Ursprung der Videos betrifft, durchaus korrekt ist. Denn:<br />
<ol>
<li>Das Gerücht, Combat Zone sei der eigentliche Produzent der Clips, beruht allein auf dem Umstand, dass Combat Zone auf der DVD die Copyright beansprucht. Nun ist es aber gängige Praxis bei solchen DVDs, dass der Hersteller einfach sein Copyright draufpappt. Vermutlich geschah das in diesem Fall nicht einmal widerrechtlich, weil die Zusammenstellung der DVD, Coverart usw. eine kreative Eigenleistung von Combat Zone darstellt. Und selbst in dem unwahrscheinlichen Fall, dass da ein Hahn nach kräht, würden sie <a href="http://www.publicdomainsherpa.com/false-copyright-claims.html" target="_blank">höchstens $2500 Strafe zahlen</a>. Deshalb macht es jeder. Mit Copyrights zu protzen ist schlimmstenfalls eine Bagatelle.</li>
<li>Combat Zone hat nie behauptet, der Produzen der Clips zu sein. Der einzige Kommentar von Combat Zone zu dem Thema lautet bisher: <span itemprop="articleBody"><a href="http://www.stern.de/digital/online/pornoseite-redtube-neue-zweifel-an-rechtmaessigkeit-der-abmahnungen-2080148.html" target="_blank"><i>"Wir haben nie exklusive Rechte an 'High Heels And Glasses 2' verkauft"</i></a>. Wie auch, wenn sie nicht der Urheber sind. Macht es diejenigen, die Combat Zone zum Produzenten der Videos erklärt haben, nicht stutzig, dass Combat Zone die Urheberschaft gar nicht für sich beansprucht und sich auch nicht darüber empört, dass die spanische Firma dies tut?</span></li>
<li>Laut Adult Film Database sind alle Darsteller von <i>"High Heels And Glasses 2"</i> Europäer. Der Regisseur, Alex Romero, ist Spanier und hat zahlreiche spanische Pornos gedreht. Das spricht nicht gerade für eine amerikanische Produktion. Wohl aber für eine spanische.</li>
<li><span itemprop="articleBody">Combat Zone verkauft DVDs. Es nicht ersichtlich, dass sie Rechte an einzelnen Clips veräußern. Etwa an Jutta Schilling, wie von den Rechtekettentheoretikern behauptet wird.</span></li>
<li><span itemprop="articleBody">Im Gegensatz dazu scheint Jutta Schillings Geschäft sehr wohl darin zu bestehen, Rechte an Pornoszenen zu verkaufen. Und zwar (Achtung, Schmuddelseite) <a href="http://www.adultcontent.nl/shopnew/product.php?productid=55739" target="_blank">zu Tausenden</a>:<br /><i>"</i></span><i>We have a 'Special Offer' with European Scenes, all with 2257 documents
(Copy ID's & Model-releases). 8000 SD Scenes, Non-exclusive, Mostly German spoken, some Non-dialogue, Czech, Spanish and also some USA content.
Content is produced between 2000 and 2008, only around 500 scenes are a bit older then the year 2000"</i>.</li>
</ol>
Was genau spricht also dagegen, dass nicht etwa Combat Zone der Hersteller der Videos ist, sondern dass tatsächlich Jutta Schilling einzelne Szenen an Combat Zone verkauft hat, auf dass diese damit ihre DVDs füllen? Eben, praktisch nichts. Was die Rechtekette betrifft, haben sich die Medien ohne Not auf den Holzweg begeben.<br />
<ol>
</ol>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-39044835359248378192013-12-20T15:05:00.000+01:002013-12-20T15:06:36.618+01:00Movie Review: Hair Extensions (Ekusute) - 2007<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Believe it or not, this is a rock-solid horror movie about hair extensions!</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0904049/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOZRT2alXf8RfU3tOF2WFnZdWIX0wr87IAEtt3zGsmnQp9BoM75kETJWM_6xxeaIy5-fSDVti0tAavoZUwoPsdejCkNRzWk8aEZKaussREvnBqX6Envccu1b7S3Pk9k2Pdp8U7elYVW7o/s1600/exte.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>"Let's make a horror movie about hair extensions attacking people!" sounds like an idea for a Halloween episode of "The Simpsons". But astonishingly, it lead to a gem of Japanese horror. "Hair Extensions" aka "Ekuste" aka "Exte" is horrifying, funny, touching, and highly entertaining.<br />
<br />
The movie wastes no time. At the beginning, we're introduced to Yuko, who wants to become a stylist and who is living with Yuki, who wants to be a dancer. The introduction is established within perhaps 20 seconds since the young women address another by name and profession as if they were reciting their character descriptions from the script. This self-awareness of the movie gives it a satirical touch that seems very suitable. After all, "Hair Extension" can be seen as a reflection on the obsession of Japanese horror movies with hair. Take "Ju-on", for example, where you have black hair growing from everywhere all the time. Or Sadako from "Ringu", whose style of wearing her long black hair over her face has become a trademark of J-horror. <br />
<br />
Now, Yuko (played by Chiaki Kuriyama of "Kill Bill" fame) has an abusive bitch of a sister who dumps her little daughter, Mami, at Yuko. It's heartbreaking to see how this nice girl gets physically and verbally abused by her loathsome mother. All the more you have to love Yuko for trying to protect Mami even though she's already occupied with the work at the hair salon. This social drama aspect provides the movie with unexpected gravity. Still, it's a horror movie, and the horror comes early in shape of the corpse of a girl found in a container full of hair. Yamazaki, a freak with a hair fetish, steals the corpse and brings it home. To his amazement, the corpse is still growing hair, and he thinks it's a good idea to sell it as extensions.<br />
<br />
Even though Yamazaki is only a supporting character, he is quite complex. He's a trickster figure at the heart of the story, mediating between the supernatural and mundane world, and he's defining the bizarre tone of the movie. It didn't surprise me to learn from the DVD extras that director Shion Sono and Ren Osugi, who plays Yamazaki, invested a lot of work in the development of the character.<br />
<br />
Despite the comedy and drama in "Hair Extensions", it is certainly not for the squeamish. The superb special effects are quite grizzly. Overall, I found this gem of Japanese horror strangeness to be virtually flawless.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 10 out of 10 deadly hair styles.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-63778697787632134162013-12-19T13:11:00.002+01:002013-12-19T13:11:27.811+01:00Movie Review: Kaidan - 2007<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Beautiful old ghost story</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844319/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj_eC8RcfQAK0EbEtiP2P9oBhWVc1aUmalkqp93twdXFvpAVqy1w-zryrguLPripf0HeHxUH8XscCGqPMXBdw_hEsNAOrz4HCiiFdgkmcg1_YJfe5hVKvgTeMUioQvTwwM2FXa-iohf6I/s1600/kaidan.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>Just as I finished the review for <a href="http://trollkontrolle.blogspot.de/2013/12/the-complex-kuroyuri-danchi-2013.html" target="_blank">The Complex</a>, here's "Kaidan", another movie from "Ringu" director Hideo Nakata. It is very different in style and content from other J-horror movies, including Nakata's own, and establishes him as one of Japan's most versatile directors.<br />
<br />
"Kaidan" is based on an old Japanese ghost story. Nakata emphasizes this by introducing a story teller who is shown during the stylized black and white opening and who later off-comments on the story. Which begins with a man who gets betrayed and killed by a samurai, but not before he puts a curse on his murderer. Many years later, the roguish samurai's son, who is now a poor tobacco seller, coincidentally meets the slain man's elder daughter, who is now a respectable teacher of singing and music. They fall in love with another, not knowing that they share a murderous past. And not knowing that there will be blood, thanks to the curse.<br />
<br />
"Kaidan" is a pleasure to the eye. The historical costumes, buildings, and scenery are beautiful. Nearly every frame of the movie is carefully arranged like a painting. I watched it twice, once dubbed and once with subtitles, but each time I sometimes forgot to listen or read since I was absorbed by the images.<br />
Hitomi Kuroki's performance as the elder daughter is outstanding. She has a soulful face that seems to mirror even the tiniest fugitive thought. Unfortunately, the performance of the male lead, Kikunosuke Onoe, pales in comparison to hers.<br />
<br />
If I had to put this movie in a genre, I'd say it's a romantic historical horror drama. Maybe it has too few horror for horror fans, or too few romance for romance fans. But if you can appreciate a unique film that is both uncanny and beautiful, "Kaidan" is highly recommended.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 8 out of 10 kimonos.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-50383665701263799182013-12-17T13:42:00.001+01:002013-12-17T13:44:34.440+01:00Movie Review: The Complex (Kuroyuri danchi) - 2013<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Solid horror from Ringu creator Hideo Nakata</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2493466/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsJv27yvabwuQZLB3Efbo1hSvw91KNo5t-G6oX1Z1fxZVT2RcAPLO3vx_WbASvFQEzg8Jbb6mXIWm0-SihYVLsaK_uwSvsFovtSWmZV3EcZb-MwjuNvccEjIFphsm9-Et1DWTalrVMRTU/s1600/thecomplex.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>There are good twists and bad twists. Good twists are the ones which enrich the story with surprise without demolishing it. Bad twists are of the "It was just a dream" sort and just annihilate everything that happened so far. "The Complex" by director Hideo Nakata, maker of the famous Ringu movies, appears to have both kinds of twists. Any way, it has too many.<br />
<br />
Which is unfortunate because "The Complex" has a lot things going for it. Like the talented Atsuko Maeda, who plays Asuka, a girl who just freshly moved with her family into an apartment complex. Much to Asuka's distress, she's disturbed at night by strange noises coming from the apartment next door. Not much to our surprise, things are getting worse.<br />
<br />
I liked the camera work and editing. Like, at the beginning, a few effective camera moves and cuts introduce us to the main characters and give us a good sense of location, how the apartments are placed and what the environment of the building is like. Acting is well throughout, too. As for the pace, it is a bit slow at the beginning, but that's fine since it allows us to become familiar with the characters. And the characters are ones that I could care for.<br />
<br />
Everything was going fine, so I don't understand why Nakata had to add twists, which at times felt forced and disrupted the mood. In the Ringu movies, Nakata established ambiguous characters without sudden changes. Maybe he thought "The Complex" would otherwise have been not exciting enough? Actually, I liked its calm parts.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 6 out of 10 noises next door.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-9675712896977794722013-12-16T11:46:00.000+01:002013-12-17T02:44:29.588+01:00Die Pornoabmahnwelle - Feige Presse, gleichgültige PolitikerVor Jahren war ich mal in der Ukraine im Wagen von Bekannten
unterwegs, als wir von einem Polizisten angehalten wurden, der in der
Mitte der Straße stand und Autos herauswinkte. Allerdings nur die
Modelle, die nach Geld aussahen. Und dann wurde abkassiert. Nicht,
weil wir zu schnell gefahren waren, sondern einfach so, weil er es
konnte. Meine Bekannten regten sich darüber nicht einmal auf, das war
da so üblich.<br />
<br />
Bei gewerbsmäßigen Abmahnern läuft es ähnlich. Sie suchen sich Leute
zum Abkassieren aus, nicht weil diese etwas verbrochen hätten,
sondern weil sie es können. Ähnlich wie der korrupte Polizist passen
Abmahnanwälte auch gerne mal die Forderung an die Finanzlage der
Opfer an und prüfen vorher, in was für einer Wohngegend der
Abgemahnte lebt. Das Kalkül: Man verlangt gerade so viel, wie das
Opfer verkraften kann, um ein größeres Trara zu vermeiden.
Ähnlich ist auch, dass hier Leute mit einem rechtlichen Sonderstatus
am Werk sind. Zwar gehören Anwälte nicht zur Staatsgewalt, aber sie
genießen besondere Rechte, etwa das Recht, jemanden vor Gericht zu
vertreten oder problemlos Rechtsauskünfte zu geben. Natürlich haben
sie auch besondere Pflichten, etwa die Schweigepflicht. Diese
"Pflicht" ist für Abmahnanwälte aber eher ein nützliches Sonderrecht,
das ihnen gestattet, über betrügerische Aktivitäten ihrer Mandanten
keine Auskunft geben zu müssen. Das ist praktisch, denn so ist eine
etwaige Komplizenschaft nicht nachweisbar.<br />
<br />
Man sollte meinen, dass angesichts der Korruptionsstrukturen, die
durch die Pornoabmahnwelle offenbar werden, ein Aufschrei durch die
Presse ginge. Aber einzig IT-Fachmagazine wie <a href="http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Porno-Abmahnungen-Indizienkette-zur-IP-Adressen-Ermittlung-verdichtet-sich-2065879.html" target="_blank">heise</a> interessieren sich für die
Details, die keinen anderen Schluss zulassen als den, dass die
Abmahner ein gewaltiges krummes Ding gedreht und die Abgemahnten
reingelegt haben. Doch selbst bei <a href="http://www.golem.de/news/abmahnungen-ip-adressen-offenbar-durch-zwangsumleitungen-ermittelt-1312-103385.html" target="_blank">golem.de </a>wird bei solchen Details
ganz schnell der Hinweis hinzugefügt, dass die Vorwürfe gegen die
Abmahner "nicht bewiesen" seien. Die Behauptungen der Abmahnanwälte,
die Abgemahnten hätten eine Straftat begangen, werden dagegen ohne
solche Hinweise verbreitet. Es besteht die Tendenz, dass die Medien
sich artig als Sprachrohr der Abmahner benutzen lassen und Angst
verbreiten, aber den Schwanz einkneifen, wenn es darum geht, illegale
Machenschaften der Abmahner aufzudecken.
<br />
<br />
Und die Politik? Naja, was soll man da erwarten. Die interessiert
sich seit Jahren für Bürgerrechte nur dann, wenn es darum geht, diese
zu beschneiden. Man muss schon froh sein, dass Ursula vdL nicht wie
angedroht Internetministerin geworden ist. Der wäre zu der
Abmahnbetrugswelle gewiss sofort etwas eingefallen, nämlich dass
Pornogucken sowieso bäh sei und man das schnellstens verbieten müsse.
<br />
<br />
Was nun die Anwälte betrifft, die die Abgemahnten verteidigen wollen, so mischen auch diese beim Geschäft mit der Angst tüchtig mit. Hierzu empfehle ich wärmstens den Artikel der Rechtsanwältin Anja M. Neubauer:<br />
<a href="http://conlegi.de/?p=3663" target="_blank">Das Geschäft mit der Angst – mit einer “großen Lüge” und unter Auspielung eines überforderten Gerichtssystems kann man leicht Millionen machen!</a><br />
<br />
<u>Update 17.12.2013:</u> Mittlerweile wachen sie doch auf und berichten darüber, wie die Abgemahnten ohne ihr Zutun auf die Seiten umgeleitet wurden: <a href="http://www.focus.de/digital/internet/ip-adressen-geklaut-redtube-abmahnwelle-staatsanwaltschaft-ermittelt-porno-streaming-nutzer-von-redtube-reingelegt_id_3486363.html" target="_blank">Focus</a>, <a href="http://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/article123006108/Staatsanwaltschaft-soll-im-Redtube-Fall-ermitteln.html" target="_blank">Welt</a>, <a href="http://www.computerbild.de/artikel/cb-Aktuell-Internet-Streaming-Redtube-Abmahnung-9040972.html" target="_blank">Computerbild</a>. Allerdings wird weiterhin kolportiert, es sei "nicht klar", wie die IP-Adressen gesammelt wurden. Klar ist das schon, es ist nur schwierig, zu beweisen, dass etwa die Fakedomains wie retdube.net, auf die umgeleitet wurde, von den IP-Sammlern selbst angelegt wurden. Da diese aber unmittelbar vor der Abmahnaktion eingerichtet wurden, muss man schon mit dem Klammerbeutel gepudert worden sein, um zu glauben, dass diese rein zufällig von einem unbekannten Dritten angelegt wurden und rein zufällig auf die Clips umleiteten, für die dann abgemahnt wurde. Trotzdem bleibt die "Welt" ängstlich und beschönigt die Megaverlade als "rechtlich zumindest fragwürdiges Vorgehen". Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-42220589508847691592013-12-15T20:03:00.000+01:002013-12-17T15:01:28.712+01:00Moview Review: Reincarnation (Rinne) - 2005<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Tedious</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0456630/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4pEQEzCaIAJ-cskqQdq4TO2PQx1x5LFnPPtMxkPyGEZdmwD-TEMiC_hqnzE44yK2MNwpoz6rJ0aXJoNvalki1Gf-2x1pOjNUu2NNs0O4ymxGVcZlSzhkaafZpakN-2-LntZuVdqx2EmY/s1600/reincarnation.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
On paper, "Reincarnation" would seem a routine job for director Takashi Shimizu, who became famous through the "Ju-on: The Grudge" movies which are now considered classics of J-horror. However, the movie turned out so exceptionally boring that it nearly put me to sleep.<br />
<br />
As for the story, a young actress gets the lead role in a horror movie based on a massacre that happened many years ago in a hotel. Soon though the horror gets real as she finds herself tormented by ghosts and visions of the past indicating that she witnessed the crime in a former life.<br />
<br />
The movie's main problem is that the main character isn't interesting enough to connect to. She is passive and solemn. Most of the time, she is either staring absentmindedly, not listening when others talk to her, or slowly walking through corridors looking scared. Making things worse, she is played by an actress who is too self-conscious to act naturally and fill the role with life. <br />
<br />
Another problem is that most of the time nothing special is going on. Watching a film crew make a film isn't really exciting to begin with. And it becomes tedious when all scenes the crew is filming are basically the same: The lead actress slowly walking corridors, looking scared. Did Takashi Shimizu really believe this would be interesting to watch? There are occasional images of ghosts and flashbacks, but that barely helps reanimate the story. I always felt relieved from boredom when the film switched to a secondary parallel plot about a girl student.<br />
<br />
These flaws would ruin the film even if it made sense. Which it doesn't. The concepts of ghosts and reincarnation are mixed in a way that is nonsensical. The only interesting and scary thing about this film is a creepy doll. But it got too little screen time to save the show.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 2 out of 10 corridors to walk down looking scared.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-31989172393322983412013-12-13T14:46:00.001+01:002013-12-14T23:52:13.441+01:00Movie Review: Retribution (Sakebi) - 2006<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Even the NSA won't be able to decrypt this movie</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0843302/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtHHXKIf7R3V4cFj2vaUVSL1eLUXmFtreFiO1LFjKH-1VF62TtFkkvq3IvX25EALreIUvIBdz51_0UGsAognMjal616dnBuJ5S6BFP6uMelHAyvB6qwdADdrPCf1HiB4lhVo2l1QMCRj0/s1600/retribution.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
A detective investigates a serial killer case. It's a case tricky not only for him but also for the viewer because it is often hard to tell what exactly is happening and why. Maybe the detective is the murderer himself or maybe not. He sees the ghost of a woman in red, and maybe he has forgotten something about his past, whatever that is. Or maybe not. Or maybe he is just crazy. Or maybe this is just all symbolic for something. My brain hurts!<br />
<br />
Camerawork, editing, acting and everything of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's "Retribution" is top notch, but for the love of god, this film frustrated me. On the one hand, the viewer is in the position of knowing more than the protagonist, seeing everything that happens. But in the end, you're denied the missing pieces of the puzzle. Like a horse teased with an unreachable carrot in front of its nose. And then the slow pace of the movie challenges your patience.<br />
<br />
Generally, I don't have a problem with confusing plots. Takashi Miike, for instance, can make incredibly confusing films. But in Miike's films, the confusion is part of the experience. There is no encrypted message, the surreal images are the message themselves. Whereas with "Retribution", Kurosawa seems to be trying to encrypt something. Unfortunately, his message is encrypted so well that even the NSA won't figure it out.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 5 out of 10 buckets of salt water.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-54130648014338390582013-12-12T12:31:00.000+01:002013-12-14T23:51:48.419+01:00Movie Review: Cursed ('Chô' kowai hanashi A: yami no karasu) - 2004<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The horrors of failed customer satisfaction</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0449778/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSGCDdzJDBn8Cug8E7NuY05XO6QH9XqqE2B3sd9OGpJHkryLJ_m42O8TLDZBdqQADOQuKNVYdvofmzTh6s8wf9sVWbGMOx5OYTu8auX_5Q_uMpjEp0u1rWomdANl1JxHmU-U50yzGU0HI/s1600/cursed.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
As everyone knows, nothing hurts your business like ghosts with a
number fetish killing all your customers. This happening in Japan, the
land in which customer satisfaction is the highest <span class="st">priority</span>, must be the
biggest horror of all!<br />
<br />
The setting of "Cursed" is a convenience store owned by a crazy couple. Not crazy in
a funny way but in a "see them, turn around, and run away screaming"
way. The employees of the store don't seem too bothered by that, though,
nor are they puzzled by the fact that the few customers who come in
never return for a second buy. The customer shortage may have something
to do with the interior of the store requiring a new paint job, as the
employees suggest. That, or with the fact that the store is infested
with ghosts who happen to chase and kill the customers Ju-on style. <br />
<br />
"Cursed" is a low budget video production, and it shows. But although director Yoshihiro Hoshino was confronted with the impossible mission of wrapping a rather silly story with barely existent production value, he succeeded in making a movie that is watchable and entertaining. The acting isn't bad, and the movie shines in the ghost scenes. These are well made and quite scary.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 6 out of 10 reasons to prefer mail order.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-35866586774736894072013-12-11T11:31:00.000+01:002013-12-14T23:51:19.317+01:00Movie Review: Hypnosis (Saimin) - 1999<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">J-Horror with creepy black haired women but no ghosts</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0228807/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxuo_INVtTao7byT9fUdiUnnT0mvEnHO1tLQhrbQXp13BhkYUVGtqYrZDr-VobYRb5s01hDKCMmNmPapitQaNr_29kR12mvgJbovS3t6ygk2-jTvU6t0bIt06Qb0qojuFtXXEdZaEMyE/s1600/hypnosis.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
"Hypnosis" is proof of the concept that a Japanese horror movie can feature creepy black haired women in white dresses even when it doesn't feature any ghosts.<br />
<br />
It deals with a series of bizarre suicides. An old detective believes there is more to them than just some people having been depressed, so he seeks help from a young psychologist and hypnosis expert. Together they investigate the case, which turns into a horrific nightmare threatening the lives of everyone.<br />
<br />
As a horror film, "Hypnosis" is quite unique in that it tries to be more sciency instead of just piling up paranormal events. But it suffers a bit from sloppy writing. There are major loose ends in the story that don't get tied. Although it's helpful for a horror movie when some things remain unexplained, "Hypnosis" doesn't get away with that because it is a crime story. One minor detail though puzzled me most:.Why is the old cop constantly humiliating his female assistant detective? His disregard for her seems unmotivated, and it doesn't serve a purpose in the story.<br />
<br />
Still, "Hypnosis" is a fairly entertaining and solid horror movie. It has creepy moments, and it is original in that it doesn't rely on the supernatural. Fans of J-horror want to check it out.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 6 out of 10 green monkeys.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-80232453892940051112013-12-09T13:29:00.000+01:002013-12-14T23:48:07.735+01:00Movie Review: Mother (Madeo) - 2009<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Another great Korean movie that likely will be remade by Hollywood</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1216496/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtl_z9s_J_7odUHcKvCBPGlyeCFcL6z1sVKTNZIULNN2BXhi7Z6bHrKWiEfTUFnAjJSCwBJAXhznptZBtMjKG8LZEuu0CYNz-v09a0s4B3q1yxFNbliV9Yo7LsKIYTfxT9Qo0u8HUyVCY/s1600/mother.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
"Mother" is a beautifully filmed murder mystery which has a tone to it that is hard to describe. It is dark but at
times it is also light hearted. It is down to earth but sometimes surreal. Definitely, it has clever writing, great
cinematography, and outstanding acting. At that, it plays in the
same league with other Korean hits like "Oldboy" or "Lady Vengeance",
so it's no bold guess that it will be remade by Hollywood just like
those. Which is a shame since the remakes steal attention from their
originals. But that is another subject. <br />
<br />
A girl got killed, and a young man is suspected to be the murderer. He knows he is innocent, but he is also a slow thinker and helpless without support. Police make him sign a confession that he doesn't understand. Case closed for authorities. But not for his mother. Since the police aren't interested in further investigations, she starts investigating on her own, digging into the mystery of what actually happened.<br />
<br />
I don't want to give away more, so let's leave it at that. I was surprised to find out that director Joon-ho Bong also made "The Host", a monster movie I happened to have seen before. But although these movies seem so different at first sight, at their core they are about similar themes; about family bonds getting disrupted through external events, and about the lengths that people will go to save their loved ones.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 9 out of 10 confessions.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-44716643560162835482013-12-07T15:47:00.000+01:002013-12-14T23:48:21.714+01:00Movie Review: Rashomon - 1950<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Rashomon: The Trickster Film</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0042876/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy9FxUIgcC_b9ykVsDNJtISS1tLSeklxZPa9sNN22n1p-PrDrt85I7_5-dcjsS3mIIjD3pNDn62uU2bR7Nx9u8VYZCR4xmgYvsBcTUi44DDLQ-WVjQWEcmQgVz-Y1xwdl2DTBWtKJQLsw/s1600/rashomon.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
If you like Asian movies, Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon is a definite
must-see because it is not only an overall great film but also the
first Japanese film that became an international success, a classic
that started it all. Plus, Rashomon is now in the public domain, so you
can watch it for free legally on the Internet. Which you should. I
watched it for the first time when I was very young, but it wasn't
until later years that I could fully appreciate it. It's a movie for
adults in the best sense of the word.<br />
<br />
Strangely, while Rashomon was celebrated by international critics,
Japanese critics didn't like it and suggested that it appealed to
Westerners only because it was exotic, as Kurosawa bitterly noticed.
Well, a prophet has no honor in his own country. <br />
<br />
Although it cannot be denied that the exoticism of Rashomon adds to its
appeal, that alone cannot explain the out-of-nowhere international
success of this movie. There has to be something about Rashomon that
strikes a chord in viewers independent of their cultural background. I
think it has something to do with the fact that - intentionally or not
- Rashomon plays with an archetypal constellation, a pattern more or
less subconsciously known, and thus understood, in all cultures (and
often expressed by mythological figures): The Trickster. A trickster
constellation is a pattern where several or all of the following occur
simultaneously: deception, disruption, reduced sexual inhibition,
blurring of boundaries, and magical practices. Rashomon is about all of
that. The tragedy begins with an act of deception by the bandit
Tajomaru, and the deception doesn't end there. The events are
disruptive - especially, of course, to the murdered Samurai and his
wife. Obviously, uncontrolled sexuality plays a role as well, as does
the blurring of boundaries. Ultimately, Rashomon blurs the boundaries
between truth and fiction. Even the supernatural aspect is there: A
dead man speaking from his grave through a medium, once again blurring
a boundary, namely that between the living and the dead. The feelings
of dread expressed by the monk near the end are also in line with
trickster phenomena. At least that's what Jungian psychology says.
Looking at the creation of Rashomon and at its international reception,
I have come to believe that there's more to archetypal psychology than
I once thought.<br />
<br />
Now, I think there is a reason why foreign critics liked the movie
better than Japanese critics. It is simple but paradoxical: It is
easier for foreigners to detect the psychological content of the movie.
For a foreigner, much of the movie is exotic. Yet the more exotic a
movie is for a viewer, the easier it is for him to spot the aspects of
it which are familiar, which are fundamentally human and independent of
culture. Hence, foreigners are in advantage when it comes to noticing
the psychology of the movie. This paradox, again, fits nicely with the
trickster character of Rashomon.
<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 10 out of 10 different accounts.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-22098873135446020112013-12-06T14:07:00.001+01:002013-12-14T23:48:30.649+01:00Movie Review: The Wolverine - 2013<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A beautiful X-Men film that could be yet more courageous</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1430132/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHkfFMbI5ZsbHzrwF_rn1TQHtmzxez8qJhFsVzsYEU8ZrUT4L11BJoZFbQDZBzanhcQ45brem_xZ4Yn6SzIPgGeUs2AXvijMPkNp-87PYffksTmh1ccOGv9j07RVzfjsTmevfJ5rb-qys/s1600/wolverine.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
Wolverine is the X-Man who has been properly characterized by Bart Simpson as the one who always leaves when everybody wants him to stay. Regarding the comic book character, there is actually not much more to say about him. In the movies, however, he is more complex and likable, thanks to Hugh Jackman who brought life and a certain charm to the character. Jackman's Wolverine just isn't as self-serious as the comic book original. "The Wolverine" exemplifies that in an amusing scene in which the protagonist's personal hygiene gets proactively questioned.<br />
<br />
"The Wolverine" is refreshing in that it takes a step outside the X-Men universe. Wolverine aka Logan fights real people instead of mutants this time - with one unfortunate exception, but more about that later. He travels to Japan where an old tycoon whose life Logan once saved is dying and begging to see Logan so he can thank him. Logan only wants to stay "one day" in Japan, but soon he gets involved in a power struggle over the tycoon's empire. Things become especially difficult for him when he partially loses his self-healing power.<br />
<br />
Now, loss of super powers has already been dealt with in "X-Men: The Last Stand", which is storywise the predecessor of "The Wolverine". But this time the power loss actually makes the movie more interesting. If Wolverine was the ever indestructible warrior, his fights would become dull. Roger Ebert once criticized Wolverine for that, and he was right. Fights are not interesting if one side never risks a thing. And with only human opponents, watching a fully functional Wolverine would be like watching a giant lawnmower driving through a petting zoo; great fun for the whole family at the beginning, but perhaps a bit nauseating as time goes on.<br />
<br />
But the movie doesn't rely too much on fighting anyway. It actually slows down for longer periods, giving stage to the characters. I liked that, just as I liked the locations and the cinematography. "The
Wolverine" is easily the most beautiful X-Men film so far.<br />
<br />
I would love the "The Wolverine" to bits, but unfortunately its makers felt obliged to remind the viewer that it is an X-Men movie. As is typical for X-Men movies, there is a set looking like a James Bond villain's hideout, but in this movie it feels unnecessary and even out of place since the movie has real, more interesting sets to offer.<br />
<br />
Another unnecessary and even confusing addition is the presence of a second mutant besides Wolverine. It seems the makers felt uncomfortable with the idea of having no other mutant in the movie, so they added a venomous woman who serves the old tycoon. It is never clear though what exactly she had been hired for, nor do we know her intents. She is just there to be evil, somehow. Other than that, she adds nothing significant to the story. Her uselessness is almost explicitly demonstrated in one scene where all the parties are present as a big fight breaks out. While everyone else is being involved in the action, she is just standing there, taking pictures with her cell phone (sic!). Is she recording a clip for Youtube? Or is she just checking her mail?<br />
The mutant woman seems to have been added last minute to the screenplay. She could be removed entirely from the movie without losing anything. In fact, the movie would be better since this character makes it more confusing than it could and should be.<br />
<br />
"The Wolverine" is a good movie. It could have been an awesome movie if the makers sticked with the real world setting instead of adding unnecessary sets and characters just to remind the viewer that it is placed in the X-Men universe.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 7 out of 10 adamantium claws.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-6524769279186252132013-12-05T12:46:00.000+01:002013-12-14T23:48:48.151+01:00Movie Review: World War Z - 2013<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Finally, a zombie movie showing hell breaking loose</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0816711/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrD7z7KPwBUBOaEKX3_XwCf4fVH8x0S69kkUxYkmYr6r8-tT-vFCMVyOnMfBP09QEax3amdhVmZa2VcWwK12GqHi-1kYKmYC8yswogltaEJA58y3EKJ2ppBmSCO_f-P6dt1YMigEOm3X4/s1600/worldwarz.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
For many years I've been waiting for a zombie movie showing the
outbreak on a global scale. This is what "World War Z" does, and it
deserves more appreciation for that. Instead, critics moan that it was
like "28 Days Later" with more budget, missing the obvious difference
between those movies even though the titles say it all.<br />
<br />
For once, here
is a zombie movie which shows more of the world wide consequences of
the disease and which does not play in a post-apocalyptic setting but which focuses on the outbreak itself, right from the beginning. This is hell breaking loose, not just some traumatized survivors walking around in an already destroyed world.<br />
I also could not care less
whether the movie was true to the novel. Nor did I miss gore. Why would a zombie movie always have to be super gory? After all, "Aliens" was more of an action thriller than a horror movie, too.<br />
<br />
What I didn't like though was the science. This movie had the potential
to give you the feeling that this could actually happen, but the
science was just too awkward for that. Still, I found it very
entertaining, and it has a couple of very memorable scenes. I hope there will be a sequel.<br />
<br />
And, finally, this movie breaks with the silly zombie-movie gimmick of calling zombies anything but "zombies". Kudos to that!<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 7 out of 10 hyperactive corpses.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-83976276142443595402013-12-05T11:45:00.000+01:002013-12-14T23:49:45.499+01:00Movie Review: Pacific Rim - 2013<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Not as bad as the Transformers sequels or Battleship, but seriously overrated</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1663662/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqvCnx3VkdqyyeVt_k3ixfgDc3rJwi4nxmyNxrw-sDKxt3rjQLMtKsW5u5x0tW3OPitbqI-DP_NWt6W4nRUCaFM_JUaBBt4h0AM2Bxoe0FcmZvjamSjQL3BFLCxyObzmqdx0Ub2NBmHcI/s1600/pacific.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
I've been just told this movie had a plot and characters. Well, yes. A
plot making no sense on any level, including giant monsters
which are nearly invulnerable to projectiles and rockets but vulnerable
to giant robots, which come in increasingly stronger versions instead
of coming in the strongest version right away, and which are pregnant
despite of being reproduced by cloning. And cliché characters including
dyed blonde hair Russians like Ivan Drago from Rocky III and a Marshal
reproducing the motivational speech from Independence Day. As for the main characters, each of them was suffering from some trauma, so I guess I was supposed to care for them. But melodramatic background stories don't make up for actors who often seem unsure which emotions they are supposed to be expressing.<br />
I've also been told that Pacific Rim was "exactly the movie it was supposed to be" - you know, a popcorn movie, nudge nudge, wink wink. But director Guillermo del Toro made much better and more fun movies before. Hellboy, for example,
which is superior to Pacific Rim in every respect except special effects.
After Hellboy he made Pans Labyrinth, a movie which won three Oscars
and had been nominated for another three. So, no, Pacific Rim isn't exactly what it was supposed to be. In comparison to the director's
previous work it is a major letdown.<br />
Pacific Rim is nice
to look at, I give it that. And it is not as annoying as the
Transfomers sequels or Battleship. But the difference isn't too big. It is seriously overrated.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 4 out of 10 random facial expressions.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-55459470320811976762013-12-04T14:55:00.000+01:002013-12-14T23:53:19.946+01:00Movie Review: Gozu - 2003<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Miike opens a big can of WTF</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361668/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj54jfr-d8r-Az5bDGPbFhN8WW96TtpcYdO0wvrrGZ98_c84u-BFe-6VYaM6UlWWmVlOHZf88H4loHykQfzax2hrl9Rqi1id06QHeaT2qL5vsUKSreIGS8DTEX6kIuimlh4l9bRG0biMgA/s1600/gozu.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
I watched Audition and Dead or Alive before watching Gozu, so I was
familiar with Takashi Miike's weird visions. Or so I thought, because
Gozu is so extra strange that I couldn't really figure out what was
going on. But then again, maybe that's the whole point of it?
Eventually, I just leaned back and enjoyed the show. Which is gross at
times but also hilarious.<br />
To find out if this movie is for you,
just watch the first few minutes. If you feel appalled, you might want
to skip this movie (as well as other Miike movies). If the opening makes
you chuckle a bit, give the movie a try. It's a strange but highly
entertaining ride.<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 7 out of 10 milk bottles.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7736206729955224500.post-36110313565681764252013-12-04T09:40:00.000+01:002013-12-14T23:53:33.707+01:00Movie Review: Wishing Stairs (Yeogo goedam 3) - 2003<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Worthy entry in the series despite some flaws</span></span></h2>
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0370082/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="IMDB" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0t-fqNyu9VLE82jFvnL8UBz2atIqc2OMvA3m0dtp_L_1k-m51YmXPdRejQrH9Hixy9ELwNHGdWoWJoDDEaYJS3fFWyRgppszkC4OewO2seVByJLs3DC15pumV7J_vB6cC5ZpIWL0epyk/s1600/wishing3.jpg" height="200" title="" width="133" /></a>
Yun Jae-yeon, the first woman to direct a movie of the Yeogo Goedam
series, faced a big challenge when making Wishing Stairs. It was Yun's
debut, and the two leading actresses, Song Ji-hyo and Park Han-byeol,
were newcomers at that time as well. Also, Yun had to meet high
expectations because Wishing Stair's predecessors, Whispering Corridors
and Memento Mori, had been very successful.<br />
<br />
Just like all of the Yeogo Goedam movies, Wishing Stairs has a closed
story of its own but plays with the same themes. Again, it takes place
at a girls' school, this time a school of arts. There, the main
characters, Yun Jin-seong (Song) and Kim Sohee (Park), are studying
ballet. They are close friends, but their friendship gets challenged
when they both enter a contest for a place to study at a Russian ballet
faculty. Yun Jin-seong envies her more talented friend. She works hard
but just gets scolded by the teacher, whereas Kim Sohee impresses
everybody with her effortless skill; she looks like the sure winner of
the contest. Yun's jealousy grows till the point that she even seeks
supernatural help: Campus legend has it that there is a stair case on
the campus which grants a wish when you reach its last step. But as Yun
climbs the stairs, the viewer already knows that this is a bad idea.
For folklore tells that wishes granted by a supernatural force often
come with undesirable side effects, and Wishing Stairs confirms this.<br />
<br />
Like the previous Yeogo Goedam films, Wishing Stairs isn't a real
horror movie. The supernatural serves as a vehicle to accelerate a
worldly tragedy. So the movie is less about horror and more about
people feeling trapped because they are unable to become the persons
they want to be. This idea is stressed by the third main character,
Eom. Eom is an overweight outsider, and if the other students notice
her at all, it's usually just to make fun of her. She tries to escape
her misery by idolizing Kim Sohee, dreaming of being her friend or
perhaps even being her.<br />
<br />
However, it is also Eom (Jo An) where direction wasn't flawless. Unlike
her character, Jo happens to be pretty and slim, so she was put in a
fat-suit. The problem with that approach is that viewers always notice
fat-suits, no matter how well they are made. This might not be a
problem in comedies, but in this drama it is a distraction. Also, Jo's
performance is sometimes at the border of slapstick, which doesn't do
her tragic character justice.<br />
<br />
Another distraction was the use of an incoherent flashback. It seems an
obligation for Yeogo Goedam movies to employ flashbacks to reveal dark
secrets of the past, so Wishing Stairs has one flashback as well.
Without spoiling too much, it's about an act of sabotage. However, that
small part of the plot doesn't roll out plausibly. It causes more
confusion than insight and should have been deleted entirely.<br />
<br />
But the strengths of Wishing Stairs outweigh its flaws. The acting of
Song and Park is great. The movie has a high production value. And like
its predecessors, it has a certain charm and unique mix of drama and
horror to it. It is a tragedy of universal nature, so viewers can
relate to it even if they don't happen to be Korean teenage girls (as
is the case with this old bloke). Wishing Stairs is a worthy entry in
the series, which makes director Yun's debut a real accomplishment<br />
<br />
<b>Rating:</b> 7 out of 10 free wishes.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14403448480959981438noreply@blogger.com0