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- Godzilla Minus One (2023)
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Elsewhere on the Web
Tiramisu (2002)
Good grief, another “boy meets ghost” romance. Bittersweet and occasionally cloying, this fills up almost two hours with a combination of A Moment To Remember and Ghostbusters that works surprisingly well, provided you’re not too attentive.
The actors: Karena Lam is young and vivacious as the tragic/romantic lead, with a beguiling air of softness. Candy Lo is spiky and strong in the support role which she fills and then some. Eason Chan, as the oft-dumped roommate, is an amusing buffoon. … (read more)
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The Way of the Dragon (1972)
Way Of the Dragon was Bruce Lee’s directorial debut, after making The Big Boss and Fist of Fury with director Lo Wei. I’ve never been that much of a fan of Lo Wei’s direction, and it is interesting to see how this film differs under Bruce’s complete control.
As the film starts, the most obvious change is Bruce’s infusion of comedy into the mix. Gone is the tightly-coiled sombre hero of Fist of Fury: here he plays Tang Lung, … (read more)
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Godzilla: Tokyo SOS (2003)
Having watched Godzilla: Tokyo SOS, I really don’t believe that I can possibly watch another Godzilla film, and it’s not because it’s a bad film. Quite the opposite, in fact. I just can’t stand the thought of disappointment from any of the other Godzilla titles that I am yet to watch.
It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what makes Tokyo SOS such a fantastic Godzilla film. However, I must point out that when I say ‘fantastic’, I am making a … (read more)
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South of the Clouds (2004)
The “road movie” is not a literal genre like, say, detective fiction, but more of a metaphysical concept of a journey and its destination. In fact, it almost always begins being defined by its illusory or even mythological destination and ends being defined only by the journey – transcending its physical state into something more emotional and spiritual. This concept has held the fascination of many filmmakers, particularly recently with Korean director Song Il-gon with such films as Flower Island… (read more)
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Hua Yao Bride In Shangri-la (2005)
Aside from the occasional films that slip below or through the government radar, Chinese cinema appears to often suffer from the same nationalistic self-obsession that gripped Australian cinema in the 1980s, where it seemed every film needed to exalt national identity through rural tales of sheep dogs, criminals, horses, criminals on horses, etc. Rural China is not just a common backdrop for Chinese films but its cultural exponents are a crucial focus for many of its stories. Hua Yao Bride … (read more)
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Godzilla vs Megalon (1973)
With around 28 films, the Godzilla franchise has definitely seen its share of highs and lows. It seems that for every brilliant and truly inspired Godzilla film, worthy of critical acclaim, there’s a Godzilla film that is so bad, so poorly concocted that it’s the spawn of Lucifer himself. True, I may exaggerate a little, but it does seem that there is a great discrepancy between Godzilla films. Thus, it should be of no surprise to hear that Godzilla vs … (read more)
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Apart From You (1933)
Mikio Naruse has often been attributed to the defining directorial triumvirate of early Japanese cinema; consisting of himself, Yasujiro Ozu and Kenji Mizoguchi. Despite this illustrious comparison, the works of Naruse have remained relatively inaccessible and unknown to audiences both inside and outside of Japan.
Apart From You is Naruse’s 20th film, made during his most successful era of silent film. The story’s modest scope is serviced by a small principal cast consisting mainly of three characters. Kikue (Mitsuko Yoshikawa) … (read more)
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Hold Up Down (2006)
One of the most popular boy bands in Japan working with Sabu, one of the hottest directors: what could go wrong?
Thankfully, not much, as we see. Sabu’s talent makes a meal of what could have been a simple bank-heist-gone-wrong story, and the six members of V6 apply themselves with much energy and verve to characters that don’t tax their skills unduly. There’s car chases, almost compulsory in a Sabu film. There’s sudden unexpected lurve, that pops up at the … (read more)
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