Reviews of films
The Beastmaster was a TV fixture in the early 90’s. I remembered beefcake and ferrets but forgot the storyline. Turns out the plot is basic good versus evil with a dose of animal cruelty and misogyny. If you can stomach … Continue reading Movie Recap: The Beastmaster (1982)
Once upon a time in Japanese-occupied China… Available online under Guizi lai le. Approximately 138 minutes. China in early 1945 is still under the control of Japan. The blockhouse in the village of Rack-Armor Terrace is being occupied … Continue reading WTF ASIA 111: Devils on the Doorstep (2000)
This week we lost Larry Kramer. The founder of ACT UP dedicated his life to activism but was also a talented author. His screenplay for Women in Love and his script for The Normal Heart were justly celebrated. Less known … Continue reading Movie Recap: Lost Horizon (1973)
Some people cry in disgust at political corruption. Others laugh. Available online. Approximately 138 minutes. The year is 1582. General Akechi has betrayed his lord daimyo Oda Nobunaga. His forces kill both Oda and his eldest son Nobutada. A … Continue reading WTF ASIA 110: The Kiyosu Conference (2013)
The first thing one must understand about Scoob!, the latest reinvention of Warner Bros.’ seemingly evergreen Hanna-Barbera properties, is that despite what the name implies, it is not actually a Scooby-Doo movie. Beyond its origin story prologue, there are no … Continue reading Movie Review: SCOOB!
Tron meets Star Wars anyone? Alex Rogan wins an arcade game and gets recruited by the Starfighters. The CGI is expensive so he returns to Earth to faff about before the big space finale. The Last Starfighter has likable actors, … Continue reading Movie Recap: The Last Starfighter (1984)
My friend Miss Self Destruct has been providing me with movie recommendations since October 2019. She’s been helping me fill some holes on my must – see movie list with some overlooked and underrated gems. I got a care package … Continue reading Movie Review – Valley Girl (1983)
Content Warning For: Discussions of violence historical and otherwise, and embeds of disturbing imagery. Before the Blair Witch, before the Cannibal Holocaust and the band Spinal Tap, the scripted, fictionalized use of documentary formatting and filmmaking had already emerged. Film … Continue reading Succinct Cinema: The Filmography of Peter Watkins is Radicalism, Personified
It’s hard out here for a pimp. Available in the United Kingdom, the United States, and maybe a few other countries. Approximately 125 minutes. It is nighttime in the city of Seoul. A young woman is talking on … Continue reading WTF ASIA 108: The Chaser (2008)
Readers of my Dune article convinced me to seek other epic flops. Today I look at the fantasy/sci-fi hybrid Krull. The trailer tells me that a Darth Vader type and his storm troopers will invade a medieval world and kidnap … Continue reading Movie Recap: Krull (1983)
In Which They Don’t Bury People Alive Anymore One of the great difficulties of writing about media is when you come across something that is incredibly solid. A sturdy, thoroughly well made production that doesn’t transcend the upper echelons of … Continue reading Weird, Overlooked, Wonderful 08: Panic Room
No, this is not about cannibalism. Available in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, and maybe a few other countries. Approximately 124 minutes. In a house in Taipei, far away from the hustle and bustle of the streets, Chu is … Continue reading WTF ASIA 107: Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)
You are the worst bodyguard ever. Available in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, and maybe a few other countries. Approximately 111 minutes. It is a hundred years ago…okay, it is a hundred and sixty years ago, but … Continue reading WTF ASIA 106: Yojimbo (1961)
On December 14, 1984, the movie Dune opened in U.S. cinemas. David Lynch’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s novel was a critical and financial flop. Lynch and his star, Kyle MacLachlan, would quickly salvage their reputations with the film Blue Velvet … Continue reading Movie Recap: Dune (1984)
In Which This Will be Screened in Atom-o-Vision One of the most persistent questions in popular culture is, why are we attracted to scary stories? Why do we, as a public, subject ourselves to simulated terrors when the real world … Continue reading Weird, Overlooked, Wonderful 06: Matinee
That’s right. Another movie about the Gujurati Riots. Available in Australia, Canada the United Kingdom, the United States, and maybe a few other countries. Approximately 99 to 101 minutes, depending on which service you use for whatever reason. The opening … Continue reading WTF ASIA 105: Firaaq (2009)
How can you rescue someone from someone else when you cannot even rescue yourself from yourself? Available in the United States and…um…I don’t know, maybe a few other countries. Approximately 98 minutes. Jang-sup has been looking for a woman named … Continue reading WTF ASIA 104: Miss Baek (2018)
What is a teenage girl to do when her boyfriend leaves her? Well…not much, I guess? Erm…well…this is on Youtube, but the video length is misleading and you will need to get subtitles from somewhere else if you do not … Continue reading WTF ASIA 103: Spacked Out (2000)
Cleo Morelli, an aspiring Portland chef, tries to win a food truck competition while the competition tries to win her heart. Continue reading Hallmark Bonus: You’re Bacon Me Crazy Recap/Review
The first of April is the 100th birthday of legendary Japanese actor Mifune Toshirō. Born and raised in the Japanese-occupied…Chinese province…uh…you know what, never mind. To commemorate the birthday of Toshiro Mifune, I look at one of the films that he … Continue reading WTF ASIA 102: High and Low (1963)
or the Commodification of Backstage Narratives. There is a distinct trajectory at work in the evolution of narratives surrounding the notions of the “magic of movie-making,” what could be otherwise considered the cinematic equivalent of Künstlerroman, or most simply the … Continue reading Succinct Cinema: Lost in a Full Tilt Boogie
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