Countdown (2012) NYAFF 2013

This is going to be a two part review. The first part will be a review of the film, and then the second short part will have comment with a reference or two that will give away some of what happens in the film. I'm doing this because if you don't want to know what happens, even by allusion, then you should be able not to know and skip the final paragraphs.

COUNTDOWN follows what happens when three friends decide that they want to spend New Years Eve getting high. Going to one of their friends who deals, they find that he's making a new start and has given it all up. Not to be denied they find a torn up card from his dealer in the garbage and take it home to reassemble it. Unfortunately the card is missing the last digit of the phone number. A random choice and BINGO! they are through to Jesus who agrees come over and bring them some weed. He also turns the night upside down and puts the trio into hell on earth.

One of the great surprises  of the New York Asian Film festival, COUNTDOWN is a classic exploitation film updated with wit, style and intelligence. The film is largely a comedy for much of the running time with the darkside of the film not rearin it's head until we've kind of been convinced this is not going to be a bloodbath. The film wonderfully manages to flip your expectations around several times before it's done.

That the film works is due almost entirely to the cast. These guys and gals sell the story better than one could have hoped. Then again there is David Asavanond as Jesus who may not be a star world wide now, but will be soon. Trust me on this, this is the sort of role that, assuming people get to see it, will become iconic in film history. He's both funny and scary and everything inbetween. You want to know who this guy is and you want him to get the hell away from you. Its a brilliant brilliant performance and if there was any justice he would be up for an Oscar.

I absolutely loved this film and when it was done I wanted to call up everyone I know and tell them about it.

Go see this film when it plays at NYAFF tomorrow

Okay I now want to talk about something that will reveal some of the twists and turns in the film and if you don't want to know don't read past this point.

Seriously if you know your literature you'll find out some things you may not want to know the first time through

Still with me?

In reading on the film in the NYAFF literature there was a complaint that the film kind of punks out at the end with an ending that they said was tacked on to get it past the censor. I would beg to differ since it's clear almost from the instant that Jesus appears what is going on. Basically this riff on the classic  tales of a mysterious stranger upseting the status quo for larger reasons ala JB Priestly's An Inspector Calls. These sort of stories run all the way through literature both secular and religious. If you watch the film and pay attention you'll see very early on what is going on.  All one needs to know that Jesus is more than a simply psycho is revealed by his knowing so much about the characters, the religous symbols on his person and his references to religion (his name?). The end was not taked on, but rather aimed toward from the start...frankly considering several of the twists, the bugs in the elevator, its the only way it could have gone and actually made sense internally. It's not a cop out, its what was aimed for.

Ultimately this is  brilliant brilliant film that is a kick in the chest and the head. This is one you really should make an effort to see.

Sars Wars: Bangkok Zombie Crisis (2004)

Thai comedy can be painfully funny. There is often a sense that anything goes so long as it gets a laugh, the result is wild crazy out of left field quality that is totally endearing. A perfect example of this is this movie.

The plot has a mutation of the Sars virus that turns people into flesh eating zombies getting loose in an apartment complex in Bangkok. The zombies present complications for a kidnapped girl and her rescuer who are trying to flee the building.

Bloody, over the top and very silly this is the sort of knowing comedy that more often than not fails to work in other films. Here the balance between blood and laughs is finely balanced, or at least piled on so thick that there is enough good stuff with the bad that you can't help but find something to laugh at. From references to the George Romero zombie films, Star Wars to martial arts spectaculars and Italian horror films this is a movie that steals from the best and puts it all together into a gumbo of entertaining proportions.

Its not perfect, there's often too much going on, and the filmmakers don't always feel the need to have the film make sense, but its an enjoyable romp for those who can take the blood and body parts.

ALL ABOUT MY WIFE and her DEAD BITE or DB's last day at the Walter Reade part of the NYAFF

My final day at the Walter Reade for the NYAFF was a short day. I was supposed to go to see Blood Letter but the film was withdrawn. While I'm unhappy that I won't get to see Blood Letter, I am happy that I'll have a down night tomorrow.

I began the day by seeing Rufus from cineAWESOME. Rufus is the operations manager of the festival and one of the programmers. I was happy to see him since I wanted to tell him I liked the shorts program he put together. He offered to tell me about the short film I missed but I declined because based on how he was talking about it I realized it was a better film to see than hear about. He then scooted off to do festival chores and I went and got my seat.

First up was All About My Wife. The film is a remake of a Chilean film called A Boyfriend for My Wife. The film is a romance about a man with a high maintenance wife. After seven years of marriage he's ready to leave his wife, but in order to avoid alimony he wants her to leave him. To help push his wife out the door he makes a deal with a neighbor who is a Casanova to have him seduce her. Its a nice idea but it has lots of unexpected complications.

Said by Rufus to be one of the higher rated films of the festival, this is a super little romance. It's a nice balance of comedy and drama, with a romantic triangle that is probably the most real feeling one I've ever seen in any movie. It's one of the rare times where you really don't know who she's going to end up with since either choice ultimately is a good one.

The film is one of the big money makers in Korea and I can completely understand it since, it is one of the better films at the film festival this year. Hopefully this will get a US release because you all will want to see it. Hell I want to see it again myself.

The second film was Dead Bite.

Dead Bite is a a horror film made by the members of the Thai rap group Gancore Club. Its as weird fever dream of zombie insanity...

The film has the band fleeing a concert that was unknowingly set up for a bunch of ghosts. In order to make up for it their manager books them on a gig that will have them frolicking with Playboy models on a boat. The problem is the boat runs out of gas and they are forced to pull into Mermaid Island...which happens to have a crazed cult running around, plus zombies that come out of the water every time it rains...and there are monsters...and mermaids...

This is a weird ass mash up of about 15 different genres that is damn near close to a home movie. Its the sort of twisted film that a bunch of drunk or stoned film fans might come up with. In many ways it doesn't work. In many ways it does. Its a film that just goes for it and strangely I think we're better for it.

Forget logic this film really doesn't have any, it just throws things at us. Its funny one minute and horrifying,  the next. The zombie monster attacks are bloody confused affairs probably closer to what anything like that would be. They are uncomfortable to watch because they have consequence. People die horribly.

Is it a good movie? Beats me. I loved a lot of it, but some of it doesn't work and several sequences go on way too long. I would have loved if they hadn't done the film themselves and brought in real horror filmmakers...on the other hand what works here is the atypical stuff. The best thing I can say is its absolutely worth trying... You may not like it, on the other hand you might.

And with that I headed home.

And that's where I'm going to leave it. I'm beat. More happened today, including another chat with Rufus about next year (?) and an argument with someone over last night's Golden Slumber. I have two more days at the festival the Japan Society this weekend so expect more reports.

Starting To Get Weird - Zero Man Vs The Half Virgin, Dead Bite: New York Asian Film Festival day 5

It is starting to get weird around here.  The most unexpected word there probably being ‘starting,’ as we are already one week into the New York Asian Film Festival.  But, the beginning being, for me, mostly about the masterful film work featuring actor Choi Min-Sik, it is now getting around to that time when the crazy genre head trips are being rolled out.  Today it was afternoon delight ZERO MAN VS. THE HALF VIRGIN (Japan) and then back for the late night screening of DEAD BITE (Thailand).

When is a comedic sex romp not a comedic sex romp?  Or rather, is it possible for it to be five tenths of one? nine tenths of one?  Zero Man Vs. The Half Virgin poses the same question about the status of one’s virginity, when amnesiatic, superpower besieged, and generally awkward beat cop Kenichiro Sakuragi perceives the slowly increasing decimal on a constantly reappearing young lady’s forehead as the number of sex partners she has had.  This confounding detail coincides with a memory of a grand purpose that hits the main character like a bolt from the sky:  to put every effort into having sex with a virgin (an act which would also rid himself of his own nagging virginity).  Lest you wonder how Sakuragi can know for certain that he is still a virgin with all the gaps in his memory, he is basing things on the less problematic whole number zero that appears on his own forehead.  And oh yeah, these numbers appear to him only when he is, um, doing something rather impolite...with his hand...down there.  Yup.  

With its fair share of exposed skin, this Japanese film oddity most often gets into headier raunchy territory via dialogue, much like this year’s festival opener VULGARIA, and also like that film there is a great deal of humor.  Even its big late bloomer coming of age moment is more focused on facial expressions than other parts of the body.  

While the taboo subject matter is the source of many laughs, it wouldn’t be the case without some surprisingly sharp dialogue.  Besides deadpan exchanges between Sakuragi and a fellow officer, there is a fantastic comedic turn by gaijin actor Don Brown. I am often dubious of foreigners popping up in awkward and seemingly random moments of international films, but here a horribly affected nonnative Japanese accent is used to pull off some very clever and ludicrous dialogue jokes.

For such an outlandish concept, the story rolls along at a slow, loping pace that some may lose patience with.  Still, consistent with some of the director’s more renowned writing work, for instance the even stranger Miike directed film GOZU, the story becomes more twisted and even weirder as it settles into its final act.  

There is also a strange uncomfortableness (that I can’t help finding a little fascinating) in the film’s teetering back and forth between whacked out fantasy and bizarre but entirely possible morbid situations.  Molestation, underage call girls, and incest are all realities that come up in some form or other, and are not played up for laughs.  Yet, before you can get too focused on those unsettling details, the Zero Man myth is explored and defined even deeper, with moves that reference and parody the culture of 70s and 80s rubber suit monster fighting super heroes.

There are enough vulgar laughs and mildly intriguing plot twists to make this something to see, before it is sure to vanish from the Western World that this film is definitely not long for.

Thailand’s DEAD BITE breaks the rules.  It is a film that technically should not have happened.  It is an out and out zombie cannibal b-movie made on a gigantic budget, one that should never be spent on such a movie, lest you come upon something like this -- so gorgeous to look at and 1,000 % insane.  But owing to a major Thai pop star’s larger than life imagination and his acquaintance with Will.I.Am, which allowed for some significant financial backing, you have the making of the impossible.

It begins with Joey Boy, the real life celebrity/leader of Thai hiphop unit Gangcore, playing Joey Boy, the real life celebrity/leader of Thai hiphop unit Gangcore.  He is in a pitch black space, surrounded by other bodies and pools of blood, answering someone else’s cell phone in the hopes of getting help.  But before you can think about that too long it is time to watch Gancore in action, with a blend of hiphop meets bubblegum techno pop, blasting their way through an outdoor concert.  Their bubbly, energetic show is cut short by an audience that has turned into toothy, bloodthirsty creatures, but this is not enough to turn them off from a suddenly scheduled video shoot with beautiful girls at an island get away spot.  

What comes next is an annoying sequence of the band playing around with girls and mugging for the camera, while shooting a cool promo.  It’s pretty ingenious because it is a movie about a band playing around with girls and mugging for the camera while shooting a cool promo, before the island’s various nasty inhabitants emerge and turn things into a living hell.  This might all sound like a typical fun cross promotional vehicle, perhaps less out of place in the ‘70s or ‘80s, putting a popular music artist in an adventure movie setting.  But I ask you...would you expect that kind of vehicle to kill off band members in a giant rush of aquatic zombies? Have one of those band members turn into one of those zombies?  Have another one’s leg amputated in crude fashion? Take the biggest star’s love interest and have her head bashed in by giant-stone wielding natives?  And yet, all of these things happen.  Fear not, I would not give those details away if they were among the film’s most deranged moments.  No, there is far more in store.

Somewhere between the sudden and violent attack of the island’s elements on the band plus their crew and the violent battle that occurs again as the band tries to escape the island (all taking place with an impressively CGI rendered rainstorm in the background) other weirdness happens.  Japanese tourists with their own agenda enter the picture.  An alliance forms between the members of Gancore. A sea monster laments the mistreatment of its son.  And there is plenty of bloody violence.

The island’s onslaught is straight out of retro midnight movie KUNG FU CANNIBALS, a combination of undead hordes and magic ritual conducting inhabitants.  Like that movie and this year’s NYAFF midnight feature BOXER’S OMEN, DEAD BITE offers a fever dream of black magic and mythology that you won’t find coming out of the less superstitious West.

The big question you’re probably still left with is, does the band do a fun, loud live performance before the credits roll?  You’ll have to watch it to find out.



ZERO MAN VS. THE HALF VIRGIN plays again Saturday, July 7 1:30 PM.


DEAD BITE plays again Wednesday, JULY 11 3:50 PM.

For more information, check the Subway Cinema website.

Me on twitter = @mondocurry.

Headshot (2011) Tribeca 2012 (corrected)

From the director of Last Life in the Universe comes the story of a hit man who is shot in the head when a job goes wrong and then sees the world upside down. Things get complicated when some men come gunning for him.

Bouncing back and forth through time, the film tells the story of Tul, once a cop , now reduced to working as a hit man (the result of not giving in to a corrupt politician). After killing another corrupt politician while dressed as a monk, Tul is shot in the head. After waking up from a coma, Tul finds he now sees the world upside down.

Billed by Tribeca as an action film of sorts, its more a mediation on past deeds as the hunter is now the hunted. There are some action sequences but these are rather low key.

While the film has much on its mind, the film is full of notions of karma, justice and redemption, the film doesn't seem to add up to much. Tul is hounded for being a hit man, but its a choice that was thrust upon him with out really being a choice. How can you discuss karma and justice when the choice is beyond him? How do you punish for the wrong choice when there is no choice?

The other problem is that the film is very much set in Thailand. The film and its sense of corruption is very much Thai. According to the director the bleakness of the out look is responsible for the film's having villains who would never be punished had they been caught killing Tul. Such is the way of Thai society.

I liked the film, but I didn't love it. I know Mondocurry's take on it is different than mine, since he is more familiar with the director and his work. However since movies should stand on their own, I think the film is disappointing.

Based on the Book: Tribeca Talks: Pen to Paper event 2012

Left to Right: Charlie Matthau, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang, Donald Rice

The concept of watching books turn into movies has held much interest for me of late.  As major works such as Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Hunger Games have been adapted to the form of big screen entertainment, I’ve pondered how best to perceive them.  If there is in fact in some rule of thumb we could apply to determining their value as a reworking of another medium as opposed to just another movie.  Should cinematic shortcomings be overlooked in light of the value of bringing a worthwhile book into a more widely received medium?  Or should these works be raked through the coals for their lack of faithfulness to the original source material?  Considering the built in audiences they will bring to theaters, one might argue that it’s not unreasonable to see these projects as servants of the stories they purport to tell.  A more reasonable view may hold that these films should be judged entirely on their own merit, without a need for falling back on the printed source material to fill in the blanks when details do not translate on screen.

        I was naturally drawn to the entry of the Tribeca Talks Pen to Paper series, Based on the Book, which looks at experiences of adapting novels to the screen from the point of view of three very different directors.  Film critic Mark Adams moderated the panel, which took place in the open space of the Union Square Barnes & Noble’s third floor and was open to the public for free.  The large but cozy space attracted a full house, ranging from creative types in the film industry seeking advice on their adaptation endeavors to fans of the work by specific directors participating in the talk.

The event would not shed much light on the issue of how to receive large budget adaptations of major works, as this event focused on independent ventures being screened in the festival.  Two were world premieres:  Freaky Deaky, an adaptation of an Elmore Leonard novel directed by Charlie Matthau would receive its debut screening a few hours later at the School of Visual Arts complete with a red carpet reception for the film’s cas,t and Cheerful Weather for the Wedding, a 1930s period film directed by UK director Donald Rice.  The third film came from Thai director Pen-ek Ratanaruang, who without question stood out as the wild card of the three, as he came to present his latest film Headshot, an adaptation of a noir influenced novel Fon Tuk Kuen Fah by Win Lyovarin.  The talk did, however, shed some light on directors’ varying attitudes towards transforming written words to moving images and the obstacles they encountered.  It also gave weight to the notion of film adaptations ultimately being unique creations taking on their own life independent from the stories that they initially sprang from.

The directors with panel moderator Mark Adams

        The idea of creating untarnished mirror images of the novels movies are based on was quickly dispensed with.  Each of the directors on hand spoke of aesthetic and logistical changes they made to the stories they adapted.  To bring Freaky Deaky to the screen, Matthau convinced Elmore to go along with a significant change in temporal setting, moving the story from some time in the 80’s to 1974.  The music, drug culture, and uninhibited attitude of that decade would prove to be a major element of the movie’s aesthetic.  Donald Rice “killed an aunt” realizing that unnecessary characters would clutter the screen, when the qualities of minor players could be combined into one.  Pen-ek, feeling perhaps the least attachment to the novel he reworked, kept only the opening and conclusion of the original work while changing everything in between.  Being taken primarily with the visual concept of a hit man who is shot and ends up seeing everything upside down, he felt little obligation to the rest of novel.  Reportedly, he continues to maintain a friendship with the book’s author, Win Lyovarin.

        Other editorial decisions that may not occur to the average moviegoer include the whether or not to use dialogue.  Matthau and his crew went back and forth on a witty line that did not seem to gel with the pacing, but ultimately left it in because of the laughs it would get.  Narration is another element that may be included to maintain the original voice of a novel, but for Rice, proved to be an idea that ended up on the cutting room floor.  He felt it was boring and spelled out details that were already apparent from watching the actions of the characters.

Freaky Deaky director Charlie Matthau

         
      Something all three directors shared was an attitude that once the idea for a film adaptation becomes a reality, it is its own entity, owing less to the original creation than some intransigent fans of the novel may expect.  Pen-ek suggested that once a film’s shooting begins, it is best to forget about the book adaptation aspect.  Rice expressed satisfaction at cutting away unneeded elements rather than trying to include as much as possible from the original novel in the film.  Some criticism was leveled at movies like Watchmen, which had potential to be amazing, but seemed to be too tied down to the original comic.  There was an overall sentiment that it is best to “let go of the book” and allow the “film (to) become its own thing.”

Pen-ek Ratanaruang, whose film Headshot is about an assassin who after being shot sees everything upside down 

        And what of the future plans of these directors in adaptations? Or in general?  Matthau teased his next project, The Sugar Shack, which promises a combination of Caddy Shack and The Full Monty.  Unsurprisingly, he expressed an open willingness to adapt more of Elmore’s works to the screen, as a likeminded attitude shared by himself and the crime novelist was made apparent during the talk.  He also talked about a recent interest in developing an adaptation for the novel Huge, by James W. Fuerst.  Donald Rice is working on a project based Ealing comedies from the 40’s and 50’s.  As for Ratanaruang, he is generally open to more adaptation work, it being easier than writing his own stories. Regardless of where the ideas for his films come from, the Thai director quipped that financial backers are reluctant to support anything that isn’t broad comedy with plenty of falling down.


Photo credits: Mr. C, Mondocurry  

NYAFF: Mr C on BKO:Bangkok Knockout

Yes, you’ve seen it! Those other well known Thai action movies like Born to Fight & Ong Bak! Remember those jaw dropping, raw thai boxing fight scenes consisting of flying knees and elbow strikes that would of taken down an adult camel?! And what about all those body crunching stunts in Ong Bak that were reminiscent of the original Police Story by Jackie Chan? Well, Panna Rittikrai was responsible for most of the action in those films (not Police Story) and he returns as the director of BANGKOK KNOCKOUT!

The 1st screening of BKO for the NYAFF showed itself on the 2nd day of the festival on July 2nd at Walter Reade Theater! I was definitely jazzed up anticipating to get knocked around with adrenaline as I absorbed the energy from all the extracurricular martial art moves and stunts of BKO! For the most part, the action & fight scenes overcame the cheese of the acting, story, & dialogue. Now, don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t expecting to walk in looking for a dramatical performance of a lifetime, nor was I looking for a story that would best “The Best of the Best” or be so bad which would of made it so good such as “L.A. Streetfighters”. As a matter of fact, both of those films had better acting performances by Phillip Rhee & Jon Chung, sad to say. In my opinion, the acting and storyboard from BKO reeked of flying fish sauce. The first 20-30 minutes of the film were ‘run amuck’ with the stunt team getting drugged up by some transvestite looking food catering staff including a vagabond cross dressing violin player in some remote village location. The bartender also reminded me of Lam Ching Ying on geritol from all of those Mr. Vampire movies from HK. I’m not even going to mention that all of the male actors in this film played the role of stuntmen to perfection. That’s good, you say? Maybe, but they are stuntmen in real life for a reason. They are some of the ugliest ‘mofos’ on screen that I have ever seen which screams NO screen time for you, buddy! Just jump off that 2 story building, and "Roll 'em...CUT!" I’m no Don Ho either, but I’m also not in film! The lead protagonist looked like Hanson meets Lou Diamond Phillips. And that high roller bunch? What a set of international goof balls! Arsenio Hall and John Leguizamo would of been more interesting characters if they wanted to go that route.

Now for the good?! After the prerequisite nonsense of the stunt team competition to finally realizing that the rival teams are fighting for their lives in a fight club-street fighter video game like scenerio, the story or lack thereof gets better! The kidnapping of one of the girls adds a sense of urgency & vengeance to the emotional fire! Suddenly, the go-go action button was pressed as they turn it over to some non-stop fight sequences that we ALL were waiting for! The aerial scene where both teams were trying to jump over to the other steel beam about 30 ft high to greet each other for combat, led to jump kicks meeting flesh in the air as bodies dropped to the ground like a sack of galangal! This scene would introduce us to this life & death competition that would proceed before us as well as an OTB like simulcast in a fancy trailer with a live video feed of the underground fight game so that bets can be wagered to the high brows in a lap of luxury! A buffet of martial art styles were all represented as tae kwan do kicks met the acrobatic-aerial-unorthodox jungle style of capoeira (Brazilian) infused with a bit of monkey style kung fu! The flying thai iced tea full of deadly knees from muay thai would also show thyselves as would the likes of the coiling aspect and redirection of energy which is a specialty of tai chi! The sharp & flowing moves of northern shaolin long fist kung fu would also have a presence! The Bangkok Knockout character that looked like Jason from Friday the 13th had the ‘no pain, you can’t hurt me’ style that resembled Jackie Chan in Drunken Master 2 when he drank that gasoline in the end fight with Ken Lo! The asian looking vampire guy that I mentioned before had some no joke, straight-line kung fu style that resembled wing chun or bak mei pai (white eyebrow system) kung fu! Mr. Vampire had footwork that was real subtle with the hand strikes and defense that teetered towards the sticky hand techniques of wing chun! My favorite fighters from the movie included the character that had the motions of a lizard who always hovered the ground before climbing & moving about like a gecko! He seemed to be using the style of capoeira from brazil mixed in with a hybrid style of monkey kung fu! My other favorite was the kung fu stylist as his outrageous kicks blended in well with the flowing strikes and parries native to the system! The main character had some sweet moves from the korean art of tae kwan do! Some awesome stunts included the motocross cycle sequences, the mad max car running people over, and the fight amongst friends underneath a moving truck! The general bouncing around from prop to prop & building to building using the acrobatic street art of PARKOUR was a sight to behold as well! Parkour is an athletic discipline of navigating urban landscapes while hopping, bouncing, jumping, rolling, vaulting, scaling walls, and the likes! This urban scaling street art sort of reminded me of the early stunts that Jackie Chan, Yuen Biao, & their other classmates from the peking opera school would execute! Yes, even Sammo!

I know I threw the movie under the bus in the 1st part of this review, but the fighting choreography, action sequences, stuntwork, & the overall flow of the moving parts of this film sure made up for the rest of the limburger cheese! My final say is that if you appreciate the art of stuntwork and the meshing of intricate fighting arts in a well coordinated manner then its worth your time! Sundance peeps, here’s your chance to jump ship!

NYAFF: DB on BKO, Punished and 13 Assassins The Directors Cut (Amended)

First things first- I can't hope to match Mondocurray's multimedia posts-so I'm not going to try. He wins. To that end I'm just going to straight reporting.

Second Mondocurry is attempting to do the impossible by blogging about films and food at the same time. He's got a new food blog with eating choices for the NYAFF. It can be found here.

I was supposed to go to the press conference for Milocroze, the Star Asia Award and the film festival last night but life got in the way. It happens, I'm just glad it's not my back going out.

The day began on an up note. I met Pat, one of Mondocurry's friends, in the manner I tend to meet many famous people (Eric Idle, Mike Nichols, Brian Cox, Annie Golden amongst others) and began a two movie long conversation with him. He is a charming individual who is well versed in Asian cinema and if I can manage it I 'm going to have him scribble a few words about the film festival before its all over.

First up today was the Thai film BKO:Bangkok Knockout. We were told that the film is one that is plot optional and they were right. The plot stops about twenty minutes in and we're left with an eighty minute fight scene. If you want plot skip this film. If you want full out balls to the wall action of the martial arts and fist fight variety this is your film.

The plot such as it is has a fight/stunt club get into a competition to go to Hollywood to work on a movie. While celebrating the win they are all drugged and find themselves with their cars gone and one of their number kidnapped. Chasing the villains they find themselves trapped in an old factory where they will have to fight their way to rescue the girl, while they are filmed by gamblers who are betting on the out come of their fights.

High art? Hell no.

It's a 105 minute movie where most of them involve people hitting each other, and it wears you out. I was exhausted by the end of the film and ready for a nap. It's a good film but I felt brutalized and I wanted to go home...

...but after BKO there was two more movies for me. Pat was staying and we were eventually joined by Monocurray who was running late.

Punished is a Johnnie To produced film by one of the directors who worked on his neat little PTU series (reviews of the entire series will be coming). The film stars the amazing Anthony Wong.

The plot of the film has the drug addicted daughter of developer Wong being kidnapped. Wong thinking that his daughter was staging the kidnapping for her own gain, follows the instructions and pays the money. Sadly things go horribly wrong and Wong's daughter dies. Wong, heartbroken, lives up to the his word and goes after the kidnappers.

Forget what you think, this film spins out and around and back all through the events in such away that it constantly is changing before your eyes.

First up is Anthony Wong, who plays a part that is to a large degree bluster and icy confusion. He's a man who seems to have it all under control, but as events spin out it's clear he doesn't. It's a performance that is unlike almost anything you've sen from him, especially if you have only seen him in action films. Its a well measured and heart breaking. The final shots of him brought a tear to my eye.

Next, and most importantly, the film is about more than just revenge. Sure it has echoes of films like Taken or anything similar. Actually the film is more about the cost of revenge. It asks what does it do to not only to the people seeking revenge but to everyone around them? The answer is not a pretty one, and you question who is being punished.

The film also asks lots of questions about the roles of fathers in the lives of their children, and leaves us to ponder what is best for our children. I'm not a dad but it made me think.

It's a complex film that is at it's heart just a really good story. Sure it takes a little while to click thanks to it's looping narrative, but basically it's the sort of dark revenge tale that Hong Kong used to do so well about a decade and a half ago...with a layer or two od heady questions that you can ignore if you want.

I really liked it, and it's the sort of film I can't wait to see again in the future.(and when I do I want to write the film up properly)

When the film was done Mondo and Pat left me and I was all alone for the complete version of Takashi Miike's 13 Assassins.

Before the film they gave away a box of DVDs and Blurays of the film. I did not get one which is good since I have the film on order.

The film was introduced by Takayuki Yamada, winner of the Star Asia award. He spoke about working with Miike and about his training for the film. I was not prepared for his long answers and so I'm going to leave you to find it on You Tube. I will say that he seemed to be a nice and self effacing gentleman. Having seen a good number of films with Yamada recently I regret not getting a chance to interview him.

I am not going review the film for a 3rd time. You know how I feel about the film (I love it) the real question is how does the longer version compare to the theatrical version. (And I'm sorry if this is not perfect, but I'm going to try and talk about the differences with out revealing too much plot for those who haven't seen the film)

In all honesty, except for two cut sequences that should have stayed cut (the food mush and the brothel sequences) the film is several notches better.

Most of the changes in the film seem to be in small shots and additional lines. Yes there are a few additional sequences, but most of the new material is in the lengthening of material already there. For example the sequence where the assassins sit around the map and try to work out the course their prey will take is longer and it is a vast improvement since it adds motivation. Another lengthened sequence is the the one where the villain shoots the tied up family. I can't believe they cut a bit at the end of it where the end of the Shogunate is discussed since it subtly alters the object of our hate in such away that you realize that there is more to him then we thought. Actually almost every addition is better.

I could be wrong but I also think the film is also different in the choice of shots and editing of even intact sequences. Almost every bit of the film seems to have a differing pace and rhythm to it. I would love to sit down and compare the two films side by side. (I won't go into the differences in the translation which seems to be different in a couple of sequences)

I'm floored. I was planning on leaving during the final battle but I was sucked in all over again; this despite knowing what was going to happen thanks to having seen it a couple of times before. (I think there were some tweeks even in the battle as well).

If there is anything wrong with this longer version it's one sequence involving food as a symbol of chaos (it's just goes over ground we've covered), and the, apparently, infamous brothel sequence, which involves the sexual prowess of the 13th assassin. This second sequence is just out of character with the rest of the film, especially at the time it happens. (An earlier new "silly" sequence on the road isn't bad or out of character and actually sets up something at the end of the film that previously seemed like a WTF moment)

Sadly this longer version also doesn't really fill in any real background on the majority of the anonymous assassins. I know that some people have complained that we don't know some of our heroes, and aside from a few stray lines which fill in some bits, that's still the case. (Though in the defense of the film, in this cut there is no sense that there was any place to put that material in except as the odd line)

I really like this film a great deal. I still think it's one of the best films of the year. I also think that this longer version is even better than the International Version.

By the way, Marc from Subway Cinema said The International Version was cut by Miike and the producers for screening everywhere outside of Japan and not Magnet/Magnolia or anyone else. The decision to show a shorter version was made before the film ever left it's home country.

The DVD and Blu-Ray copies that are being released Tuesday the 5th of July in the US are the International Cut. The deleted scenes are included as extras but I don't think you'll really get a real sense of the differences since the real changes are not in whole sequences or extended sequences but in additional lines and differing shot choices. We need to hope for a real release down the road.

As the film ended I headed out and went home, pausing to answer some tweets and some phone calls.

It was a good day.... and I get to do it all over again tomorrow with A Boy and His Samurai, Duel to the Death and Karate-Robo Zaborgar.

Thai Films a Go Go: Blissfully Thai film series @ Asia Society

This Friday the thirteenth, yet another nyc Asian film event is slipping under the radar before Subway Cinema's New York Asian Film Festival takes over the city.

The Asia Society on the Upper East side brings a retrospective of Thai films, along with some talks involving an interesting mix of directors and actors.

Thai films brought to the US are probably most readily associated with by the numbers supernatural horror and fight-centric martial arts flicks (showing off the regional combat style Muy Thai). However, there are quite a few unique dramas and otherwise uncategorizable movies that have originated from the region, which are the types of films being focused on here.

The part that's got me rushing over is opening night screening of the rarely shown Ploy by director Pen-ek Ratanaruang, who will be on hand for a Q & A after the film. He directed the 2003 gem, Last life in the Universe, a film that has haunted me to this day, so I eagerly anticipate the chance to see more of his work.

Other points of interest include the candy color coated Tears of the Black Tiger, which probably looks great on the big screen, and a film by Uncle Boonmee Who can Recall his Past Lives director, Apichatpong Weerasethakul. The most raucous selection is bound to be The Iron Ladies, a loud and proud blast that documents the trials of a male volleyball team whose athletes are gays and transvestites.

More info at Asia Society's site

A few words on Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)

Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives is due to begin it's platformed US release Wednesday in New York and LA. I picked up an import DVD a not long ago because I wasn't sure when the film was actually coming out and I wanted to catch up with films I missed at the new York Film Festival last year. (An aside: A big thank you to Jesse at Diabolik DVD for helping me with the DVD and a steady stream of good conversation.)

The film was the surprise winner at Cannes last year. At this past year's New York Film Festival it was a hot ticket. For those who remember back that far I had tried to attend the press screening but missed it due to the problems with my back which caused me to miss a train and thus the screening. Sitting outside the theater on line for the next film, Certified Copy, we were talking about the film. The word from the people I was sitting with was that people either loved the film or were bored silly by it. When the screening for Boonmee ended and people started to wander out the reaction was pretty much the same, some people were thrilled by it and others appreciated the nap.

I'm really mixed on the film, and because of that I'd say a few words since I'd like you to know what you are getting into if you see great reviews and rush out to see it. My desire to do this comes from talks I had with a couple people in my office have read great reviews and are looking forward to seeing it. I know them and I know their taste and they are going to be bored to tears by the pace and the seeming split between the film as written about and the film as seen. To at least give you a fighting chance I'm reviewing the film. (Left to my own devices I would have taken a pass at reviewing the film at all). What follows is a few straight forward remarks about the film to kind of counterpoint the long flowing words that I've read in the overly glowing reviews from some corners.

The film is about Uncle Boonmee who is slowly dying due to a kidney ailment. His sister in law and his nephew arrive at his remote home and spend some time with him. One night while having dinner his dead wife materializes and his missing son, turned in to a bigfoot like creature, arrives to explain why he's been missing for 6 years.

If the long takes and great silences that proceeded it hadn't already had you leaning one way or another, these turn of events will probably make up your mind about the film for certain. For me it was an odd turn that kept me watching despite reservations. I know other people were like WTF?

A beautifully shot film, this is the sort of film you put on and just have play out as a moving picture. It's just beautiful.

For me the problem is that we have way too much time to look at the pretty pictures. people sit and stare. the camera wanders through the jungle. Occasionally people speak to each other. When the people do speak it's often quite good (if a bit formal). The trouble is that if you don't click into the mind mindset, if you don't like the silence, the long takes and the meaningful conversation this is going to be a long haul. (The film begins with two long almost silent sequence, the first follows a water buffalo that breaks loose and wanders into the jungle, and the other is a car ride where we just watch the country pass by. After the second I was like, Ah so this is what the film is going to be like, and I let the film wash over me.)

As I said I'm mixed about the film. I like what the film is doing (The conversation, the ideas, the photography) but I was bored by how it was done (the meaningful silences, the long takes, the slow pace that promises more than it delivers). To me it's an okay film, but nothing that is worth rushing out to see. I kind of get the feeling that many people who have loved the film are responding to the novelty of a Thai film instead of a truly great film.

I can't guess what your reaction will be, and to that end, I leave the decision to see or not see the film to you. I'd just like you to be more armed than you might not otherwise be. (Me I'd wait for DVD)

(FYI- The Poster is by Iluustrator Chris Ware)

Children of the Dark (2008)

This post wasn’t suppose to happen here. This was suppose to be another On Further Review Oscar edition but I decided the one for this slot was more a comment then a post and as such didn’t belong. To that end I’m going to go off the Oscar board and talk about, briefly, a film that there is a good chance none of you will have seen, will ever see or ever want to see. This is a film that is the very definition of an unseen film.

Children of the Dark is a very bleak, very dark look at the child sex industry in Thailand and South East Asia. A Japanese Thai co production the film has had extremely limited release anywhere, with the film’s uncomfortable subject semi graphic reporting style it’s really not surprising. One of the few pieces I read on the film said that the film hasn’t been able to secure even berths at film festivals because of it. The film did play the New York Asian Film Festival in 2009 which is how I heard of it. I went and tracked it down simply because the film played there since based on my experience all the films they run are worth trying no matter what the subject. As I‘ve said it’s one of the two best programmed festivals I know (the New York International Children’s Film Festival is the other) with all of their films selected because someone on the selection committee actually saw the film and thought it was worth showing. I picked the film up from Yes Asia on VCD because it was relatively cheap and I would be less likely to be upset if I pitched the discs when I was done.

Having seen the film all I can say is I need another shower. Its been two days since I saw it and I’m beyond disturbed. I understand why no one wants to show this, and why no one wants to see it.

The simple story is the film follows a reporter looking into the sex trade and as a result finding out all sorts of truly nasty things. I’ll spare you the details but the film goes into the business and related businesses like organ harvesting. A ball of laughs it’s not.

The film is more talk than action, but through clever editing you get a real sense of what happens to these kids (if you should see this in a theater sit near the aisle since you’ll want to flee the theater during some parts). It’s a warts and all film that really isn’t sensational.

Frankly if it wasn’t so important to shine a light on this terrible industry I wouldn’t mention the film, not because it’s a bad film, simply because it’s so disturbing.

As a film unto itself it’s not a bad film. It suffers from a few cliché’s of the expose genre, and it’s a tad too long at 138 minutes, but for the most part it’s a good film as a film…

…unfortunately the film goes off the rails in the final moments with a sting in the tail ending that undercuts everything that happened before. I won’t go into it, but let me just say that it’s a twist that doesn’t need, nor should it, be there. It turns a heartfelt expose into a pot boiler. It’s an ending that takes some of the edge off.

Is it worth seeing? Probably, but it’s also the sort of film that you’ll need to figure out if you want the images and ideas of the film rattling around in your head for days afterward. I thought I’d be okay, but frankly I shouldn’t have seen it. Any choice you make will be your own. (Me I’m trying to purge the film by writing about it)

For those who want to see the film you’ll have to search it out, as of this writing Yes Asia has it. (Just be sure to check the edition for subtitles since some editions don’t have them)

Capsule reviews- Two stinkers from Thailand

Today's films are on my replay in hell list. You know when you're in hell fire and there are 9 million channels and only one movie on. Both of today's films are from Thailand, but please don't hold that against the country, they make better films then these would lead you to believe.

HOUSE OF MAD SOULS (2003)
I hate this movie.

I hate this movie more than I hate any person. Why? Because I haven't found anyone I hate enough to give my copy of the movie to. Yea its THAT BAD.

The film has something do do with a break up. We watch as a woman mourns the break up of her relationship. There are longing looks. Long shots where nothing happens. Scenes that mean nothing are repeated. Somewhere along the way we get something do do with a dead kid...and ultimately we find out...assuming my tortured memory is right...the break up was actually her death. (sorry I've spoiled it but I just saved you 90 minutes)

One of the dullest least interesting films I've ever seen. NOTHING happens...repeatedly. Its horrible. Its not a mediation is an out and out painful experience. The only thing I can say is that if you like looking at the lead actress while she stands around and does nothing then perhaps you might like this. Then again I suspect not even her mother or her most smitten stalker would make it all the way through this film with out asking out loud if "are the f-ing kidding me?' ten or fifteen times. Avoid it like the plague.

DIECOVERY (2003)
Husband takes his new wife back home to a resort in the jungle. Then nothing much happens for the better part of an hour before we get weird "haunted happenings" all of which are done in a bad style that would make Ed Wood and other "bad" filmmakers look like geniuses. It transpires that years earlier there was a set up deal where the man had scammed a young woman into marriage and out of the resort and when she found out she was killed accidentally. Now years later her spirit wants revenge and shows up to get it. At that point we get some of the stupidest most inept revenge scenes ever put on film. Its awful and so bad as not to be even remotely fun.

I would tell you that the films are out on DVD, but that would be wrong since you might take that knowledge to pick up these pieces of trash and hurt yourself. I can't risk that. Please don't watch either of these films, sure I did, but I have good insurance and they cover stays in mental hospitals. Forget these films. Take it from someone who should be considered to have stuck his hand in the wood chipper so you don't have to.

Re-Cycle (2006)

The best way to enjoy this film would be to experience it knowing as little as possible. I've tried in this review to say just that, however there is a chance I may have said too much. You may wish to consider seeing the film first before proceeding.

The problem with this movie is that unless you go in and take it for what it is, with no preconceived notions, odds are you are going to be disappointed. For me, seeing this after reading some less than stellar reviews I was ready for a film that was going to disappoint. To my shock and amazement I was surprised to find that the film is a flawed masterpiece, and probably one of the best films of 2006.

The story of a young writer who ends up stuck in her own novel (literally) and has to find her way out is being marketed as a horror film pretty much across the board. The problem is that after the first twenty five minutes of creepy-scary build up, the film shifts gears and becomes something else. Certainly there are still horrific elements, but the film is more a mythic quest along the lines of Alice In Wonderland, or one of the other classic quest tales, or perhaps even Andre Tarkovsky's Stalker.

The bulk of the film set in The Re-Cycle (the film's English title) a place were everything lost or forgotten goes. People, toys, characters, city blocks, memories, everything goes to this place. It's a jumble of places and people, many half-remembered. It's a place that is visually stunning to look at and is often amazing. The film's storyline is also a jumble of pieces that refer back to other films or comics or books (for example Neil Gaiman's Sandman, What Dreams May Come, Spirited Away, Night of the Living Dead). Some have said that the film makes no narrative sense and is more candy for the eye instead of the head, but I would argue against that, since a world as jumbled as this would create a series of quests as equally jumbled. It's as if you dreamt about the five different movies you watched before bed, and then linked them in your mind as you slept. The structure and seemingly referential nature of the set pieces seems to support this idea.

As I stated at the start, the film is not set on being a straight horror film all the way through. There is more than just the notion of scaring the audience at work here. Yes, the film has a couple of good scares, and a few moments where your stomach knots in unease, but it's actually about something else. What that is isn't really clear until towards the end, so the film ends up shifting tones three or four or five times in it's two hour span. I know this shifting gears and recreating itself as something else is probably going to disappoint hardcore horror fans, but ultimately it allows for a growth of characters and storylines into places you might not fully expect.

This is a masterpiece.

In the interest of full disclosure I do have to say that the film isn't perfect. Some of the creatures are a bit too rubbery and fake, which is at odds with much of the fine work on things like the long necked corpses. There are also a few lapses in the visual effects where it's clear that things are not real, which is often glaring considering that many of the films vistas (from deranged amusement park to mountains in the sky) are so real as to be almost matter of fact.

I really loved this movie a great deal. It's a rare film that not only tries, but succeeds in being more than just one thing. It manages to take old things and turn them into something new. It's just a wonderful experience for those who are willing to be open to what it is, and not what you think it should be.

Currently out on DVD

Brave

Bee is forced into robbing Wealthy Bank of its credit card subscribers in order to save the life of his brother. Things then go sideways as they try to unravel the question of why they were singled out and how the robbery fits into the death of a bank president.

This is a Thai action film which proves that with some films no real plot is needed and any attempt at going deeper than the surface will get in the way of the action.

Forget the plot here. It makes zero sense no matter how you look at it. I mean there really isn’t one for half the film so why did they bother create one in the second half since it feels completely made up on the spot.

With the plot dismissed you’re left with a film that is mostly a series of action set pieces. The first half of the film is comprised of two, the opening robbery and a chase that culminates at a building under construction. And when I say they are the first half of the film I mean it. Almost all of the first 45 minutes are just these two pieces.

After that the plot kicks in and its painful going until we get to the extended fight scene that takes up a good chunk of the final half hour.(The last ten minutes of the film is the non-action resolution and makes zero sense) I put this film as a goof. I thought I was going to just have it on as background noise before I went to bed, but amazingly the momentum of the first half of the film kept me watching. I winced when the talking started and they tried to have a real plot, but it wasn’t long before we were back in the thick of the fighting and the film became fun again.

It’s a pure popcorn movie. Its far far from a great film on any level, but its flailing bodies makes for some interesting eye candy.

Worth a cheap rental or if you can pick it up like I did in a Chinatown bargain bin for a fiver.

Screen at Kamchanod (2007)

This is one of the best horror films I've seen in the past year. Certainly its hung with me more than most other films, even films I've thought were better after viewing them. This film has stayed with me and stayed in my dreams.

Supposedly based upon a true incident, as all "good" ghost stories are, this is the story of what happens when several people seek to repeat an event that had happened 20 years before. It seems that several people set up a film projector and screen in an open area in the jungle. When they started screening the film the field was empty. During the course of the film it began to fill with people wandering in from the woods. When the film ended everyone except the projectionist disappeared.

As the film opens a small group of people are trying to run down details of what exactly happened. The details from the news accounts are sparse. They try and locate anyone who was there, finding one man in a hospital sick and slightly unbalanced grasping tightly at an amulet. They try to locate the film that was screened, a quest which opens up many doors that should remained closed. What happens from there will shake them, and the audience.

This is a good, quietly disturbing horror film. It's a film that relies on mood and lighting and half caught images to slowly build the tension. When was the last film that sent chills up and down your spine with just the sound of a creak? Or a lot of creaks? This is a film that is mostly free of fancy special effects. The ghosts we see are decidedly low tech, but they are effective. They are glimpsed on the edges of the frame in the background, and occasionally right in front of one of our protagonists. It all helps to build to a real sense of unease. I don't know when I was left feeling this uneasy. Certainly I don't know when a film invaded my dreams and had me dreaming of ghosts all night. This is not a film of scares and screams, there are a few jumps and starts, but mostly this is a film of slowly building dread that never is fully dissipated.

Its not a perfect film. It's a film that has a great deal going on that isn't said. Things are implied between characters. The narrative kind of wanders and moves with a dream logic that seems to leave things out. It builds tension but also a bit of confusion. I kept feeling I was missing something. The biggest problem is a bit towards the end, which I'm sure was truly terrifying in a theaters, but works less well on home video. It still bothered me, but not as much as it would have had I been in a theater.

Over all this was a pleasant surprise for me. Normally I'm up and down with Thai horror films, finding them either truly scary or more times than not dull and boring. This was neither dull nor boring. This was a more than slightly unnerving experience. Definitely worth a look, especially if you're curled up in a dark room on a stormy night.

Currently available on DVD from various sources.

Angulimala (2003)

There is no one path to enlightenment. There is no one path to god. Everyone must walk their own path to salvation and no one can say what is right for anyone else.

The belief that there are differing paths is to enlightenment is at the heart of this Thai film about a Brahman born to be a thief and murderer despite the hope it would be otherwise. When the signs at his birth are bad the young child is sent away to study philosophy in the hopes of changing fate. The monks sensing his bad side refuse to teach him, however he does learn. When he's tricked into believing that the killing of 1000 bad men will bring about his getting the core of Dharma he is set on a murderous path.

Odd film about the ability to change and find enlightenment even after walking a dark path. The ending where he does find enlightenment is strangely moving even if it seems to be at odds with all that went before. Actually this is the sort of film that will get you thinking, what is the ultimate path to salvation anyway?

Recommended for those who want a real change of pace but not for general consumption (at least by American audiences) since its dark path to the light will upset many.

(And yes this is supposed to be a true story)