Monday, October 24, 2011

Film Log: October 17 - October 23, 2011

October 19, 2011:

Fallen Angels (1995) - This is "considered" as the sequel to Wong Kar Wai's Chungking Express and i do see the similarities in both theme and characters but I would have to say I liked Chungking Express a bit more. It has same feeling of loneliness and longing but Chungking possessed a different kind of quirkiness that i have to admire. nonetheless, Fallen Angels is a beautifully shot film that should be seen. B+

Mister Lonely (2007) - the ultimate weirdo (or genius?) in hollywood also known as Harmony Korine has come up with the possibly the most odd (ingenious? perhaps) story about the lives of celebrity impersonators. theoretically in film form, the film has no direction and can be just seen as Korine's masturbations of his own thoughts but take back a few steps and it can be seen as possibly the most original and best film to date. a feeling of wonderment will come over you as you ponder if this is the best or the worst thing you've ever seen. B+

October 21, 2011:

The Skin I Live In (2011) - Leave it to Pedro Almovadar to make a more fucked up story than his last film. although i did not like some of the editing in the film, it helped reveal the most unexpected plot of all time. it is so outrageous that you question if what they are implying is actually what happened. it will leave you wondering, fearing, thinking about the entirety of the film for a couple of days. Bad: only few parts of the editing bothered me. A-

October 22, 2011:

Beat Rhymes and Life (2011) - The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest (2011) - Good: It explains the rise and fall of the legendary Hip-Hop group 'A Tribe Called Quest.' as a novice of hip-hop fan, it explained how epic and monumental A Tribe Called Quest's music truly was to the hip hop world. it takes you on a journey from day one to day 3 million of everything from how they got their name to their devastating fall out. they are the 'beatles' of hip hop. watch and learn. A

October 23, 2011:

Ninja Kids!!! (2011) - this was the first film i got to see at the San Diego Asian Film Festival and considering it was a takashi miike (Audition, Ichi the Killer) I HAD TO SEE IT. wow, was i sorely disappointed or just disappointed. he made the live-action version of japanese anime Nintama Rantaro and the film tried to accomplish the wacky, over exaggeratedness of the anime and it just didnt work out right. its like when they tried to remake a live-action version of dragonball z (2009), sometimes its just better to leave anime alone in its original form. D

Hello Ghost (2010) - you can say that this is like the american film ghost town (2008) starring Ricky Gervais and although i did not see that one, im pretty sure this south korean film is better (maybe im biased.) i rarely ever laugh and there were moments when i laughed so loud, it felt like i was the only one laughing. and i SWEAR i wasnt the only one laughing. it has a distinctly 90's look to the film and the korean sentimental tear-jerker aspect that added the cherry on top that completely wrapped this entire film together. B+

The Stool Pigeon (2010) - The Stool Pigeon is a Hong Kong action film directed by Dante Lam that stars the ultimate badass Nicholas Tse. I did not see Lam's previously film called Beast Stalker and apparently The Stool Pigeon is so similar to that it is being deemed as its sequel. While i did not see Beast Stalker, The Stool Pigeon alone was the 3 E's: ENTICING, ENTHRALLING, and an ENTERTAINING piece of work! it kept me on my nail of my toes and even made me scream once or twice from its unexpected plot twists. it is surely something to watch. A-