Dead Man's Shoes

Revenge (in movies at least) is a dish best served simple. Park Chan Wook director of Oldboy understands this and from the looks of Dead Man's Shoes understands it really well too. We get straight to the act of revenge itself and it works really well.

Both Shane and Park understands that after a certain amount of time is spent establishing the reason for the act of violence, we want to just see the damn bastards get their come uppance. Here we are told the reason behind the revenge in a series of flash backs told in black and white. What ever pity you have for one of the victims will be replaced with satisfaction as their acts of what they did are shown as the flash backs reveals more and more of their dirty deeds committed against the protagonist's brother. If you feel some of the acts meted out are too harsh then, to appreciate it this show has got to be followed to the end where the violence done to them are justified in a semblance of a twist. Just hold your judgement on whether the violence is justified till the end. Will not give anything away here just watch it. Ain't no sixth sense class twist but it's sufficient here.

4 out of 5

Save the green planet

This is one movie that almost succeeds in blending the most genres I have ever seen in a movie! What I like here: editing is top notch keeping the pulse on the suspense all throughout. Expectation that I had about each turn throughout the movie was mostly subverted. This movie being of a South Korean origin also succeeds in being bloody more than most of the other English movies I have seen. Is it as bloody and gory as "I saw the Devil"? No. Does it serve the story line and does the violence feel justified ? Yes. Story in a nutshell ? Guy believes that a rich industrialist is actually an alien and has been sent to earth to perform experiments on humans, guy is also a meth addict, nice curve thrown in to make the protagonist point of view an unreliable one, but is it really that unreliable and would the reveal of each truth along the way go to prove the protagonist as more of a nut job or will it finally reveal us the unbelieving viewers as audiences lacking faith ? Well both. Trust me you just have to watch it to know what I mean.

Tell me now was it good ? Think as I may I can't answer that. There are just too many genres mixed in here for me to blanket everything under one answer. It mixes thriller, crime, sci-fi and horror all rolled into one giant salami and serves it to you. I can tell you this, for me it really worked as a thriller keeping me on the edge most of the time with it's brilliant editing. Really could care less about the Sci-Fi ending that it took a turn to which seems almost comical and for me that sort of brought it down a notch. I must say though the ability and the gall of the director plus the writer of this movie to attempt something like this is definitely worth the price of admission for me! 3.5 stars out of 5

Chasing ghosts beyond the arcade

I watched this as the extension to "King of Kong" plus I really enjoyed that documentary. This was good too though I prefer King any time of the day as the story telling is tighter. This documentary brings us back to the era when arcade that was the shit and people all around was playing it, I realize I am really dating myself but I do remember being about old enough to play the Kongs, the Pacs when they came out, just that those days, I was considered the lower middle income group and my mom had this irrational fear that getting me one of those games would be equivalent to gouging my eyes out with a hot poker, so I am pretty much out of the arcade scene back then. I only joined the scene when the streetfighters were the rage but this documentary does not cover that.

The talking heads talk lovingly about the almost nirvana-ic times when they could make a living off playing games. Almost too good to be true. The final act of this covers the feeling of the bunch of players or arcade gods when the bubble burst and they had to come back and tread among us mere mortals, good stuff!

Give this one a watch on a boring Sunday afternoon. Three out of Five.

Foo Fighters Back and Forth

Saw this one on Astro and I liked it. I have seen quite a few documentaries about rock bands and most of them are well done, this one included. It give a good introduction on foo fighters as a band. I really did not know that they have survived so many band members recycling. It also gave an insight to how much of a frontman and a leader Ghrol is. I always thought of him as the drummer for Nirvana and especially his Everlong and Learning to Fly music video seems to present him somewhat of a goofball but here you can see the Leader, dictator cum visionary of Foo Fighters that he really is.

Serious about his craft and his band, Grohl is not too shy to redo all of the tracks of his earlier drummer without his knowledge when he thought he could not cut the mustard. I seen this kind of same scenario play out in other successful bands as well such as Metallica (Hetfield and Ulrich) and Megadeth (need I mention who here?). Here, I think the longevity of a band depends on the vision of the main visionary but how long the stay together also depends on how he can keep his asshole self in check while dolling his orders! In fact I would go so far as to say this kind of hierarchy is not exclusive to grunge bands. They exists everywhere. I digress, that is a discussion for another place and possibly another blog.

Back to the Foo Fighters, other things that I liked about documentary is the way it's edited. It's seamless. Interviews with band members are used to seg way into the next discussion or bring the show forward. It's good, almost like a monologue or a "self-interview", if the term exists. A documentary about rock bands usually tries it's best to avoid over shining the spot light on the lead man resulting in a lop sided view of the band but then it's hard. They are after the lead man and the mouth piece of the group, here though, I think that while Grohl is mostly featured but then we also get to know the other guys in the band, let me fess up, before this I did not even know their names. I still thought that FF consisted of three guys. In my head they are forever trapped in the era of Everlong.

Back and Forth piqued my interest so much in this band that I went looking around for their other songs and I must say that Grohl throughout the years have matured and blossomed as the lead for FF to the point that I can say that his vocals is not the stand out weak factor of FF. Their music too shows a tightness of a band who survived turmoils and over came them as a team would get. The other only time I heard music so tight was with Pearl Jam of yore (Don't know about today, heard that they on a downward spiral). So give this one a watch, you will be introduced to one of the most enduring bands around that still produces great music till today!

5 out of 5

Leon the professional

A hitman Leon ends up in an unlikely team up with literally the young girl next door in this earlier effort from Luc Besson who for those not in the know will go on to direct the great 5th Element. Leon is a protrait of a very lonely man, a lonely killer 90 percent out of choice rather than anything. Nothing glamorous about Leon. His world is effective world built out of necessity. Is this how Clooney's The American is like? Oldman is his usual menacing crazy self, for this one think a bad version of The bad lieutenant. OldMan would definitely make a great Bad Lieutenant, a man on edge with the world around him slowly unravelling. Some pretty interestingly shot gun play. I like the scene where Leon finally opens the door and the light shines on Portman's face is nice and symbolic or a light finally at the end of the tunnel for her. Portman is good in this and you can see why she was destined for the fame she enjoys today.

The interaction between Reno's Leon and Portman's Matilda is more real than any of the more recent action movie partnering I have seen in a long time. You can see the love and care that Besson invests into his characters. Contrasting her character, Leon's character is almost a child himself and in some scenes Portman's character seems more matured compared to Leon. Strangely enough, the training she under goes with Leon in trying to be a 'cleaner' is the closest to a father figure she ever got hence the core of the relationship of Leon and Mathilda. Scenes of her 'learning the trade' with Reno is strangely tender and effecting. I would give my soul to have her in “Super” instead of Ellen Paige. It would have been so much better! Like a different movie ? The focus of Leon would be Portman's Mathilda as she is almost every scene.

The father-daughter interaction in the “practice kills” are hillarious, much like a father would teach a daughter how to ride a bike. Taken as a whole does the plot of the movie works? Yes, it does. Jaded audiences desentisized with movies like Crank, Death Race and other 1 billion a second action, a slow but hot brewer like Leon is like a breath of fresh air. This one revived my interest in the hitman genre somewhat so 4 stars.

I saw the devil (2010)

After OldBoy, The Chaser, JSA and The Three Extremes I became a fan of Korean movies. Theirs is a different brand of movies which often do not shy away from violence and the protagonist in them often bear the burden of conflict (The pimp cop in The Chaser). They play up conflict really well and subvert the audiences expectation at every turn so much so at the end you would find yourself rooting for someone which usually is a slimeball. This was done especially well in OldBoy and The Chaser. I really liked The Chaser so I was eager to see if I saw the Devil would be like something in the same vein as that movie. Well is it ?

This is a story driven movie with a cop played by Byung-Hun (The Good The Bad the Weird) whose fiancee is murder by psychopathic killer (Oh Dae-Su from OldBoy) and vows revenge wanting the killer to "feel as much pain" as his fiancee did. Director Ji-Woon Kim explores just how far one can extend and bring revenge and also the consequences of doing so. Min-Sik Choi or better known as Oh Dea-Su here plays a totally unredeemable killer which kills anything that moves in a dress. There is totally nothing good about his character and through the movie you will find yourself wishing as much pain as Byung-Hun can inflict on this character and he goes through much pain.

Anyway, back to the story, I enjoyed the first 30 minutes of this movie where it was more of a traditional cat and mouse chase movie as Byung-Hun tracks down and kills the 4 suspects of the murder of his fiancee and does away with them. This is the embodiment of Dirty Harry where he is more interested to kill them rather than bring them in for questioning. I thoroughly enjoyed this chase and was the edge of my seat. The story takes a strange turn though when he finally catches up with Min-Sik and things do not turn out as we expect (I too felt a bit strange looking at the timer for the movie when at the 30 minutes mark Byung-Hun was plummeting Min-Sook with a large rock). "What are they going to show next" I thought .... Byung-Hun lets Min-Sook go with a bit of cash if you can believe it! This is where it got a bit strange for me. I guess the enjoyment you can get from this hinges on the fact if your mind can accept the fact that revenge prolonged by causing pain on you prey is better than just killing him the first time you get the chance .. For me I could see that but it was at this juncture too that I felt the movie sagged a bit and it could have been shortened to greater effect. Let's just say the first 30 minutes was 5 star stuff but the prolonged story line took me out a bit and it became 3 stars there on. Things start picking up on the final act when the prey finally figures out the game and plots a revenge of his own by biting back.

Is this movie good ? Well the general feel of it was not as good as say something like Chaser and I felt that certain plot lines were questionable but as a watch I would say that it still is a good watch especially the 1st and 3rd act. 3 out of 5 stars for this one.

super (2010)

I have seen Defendor (okay ...) and KickAss (even more meh compared to Defendor). I mentioned those two because I am sure James Gunn's Super will get lumped together and compared with those two. Well out all three of them I liked this one the best, so much that this review was born!

Rainn Wilson of The Office fame makes a much more believable 'un-super-bumbling' hero compared to Woody or Aaron (had to look this guy up). I kept on thinking of the episode of The Office where Rainn or Dwight dressed up as an environment superhero during environment day while watching Super. Here, I think he blends and walks the fine line between being a fool and maintaining this menacing edge just right. It lends a story it's dark humor with much more finesse and depth. Think of it like a machete with a bobo the clown handle.

The story here is that Rainn after loosing his drug head wife (Liv Tyler) to a suave drug dealer (a jumpy and nervous Kevin Bacon) and hearing voices in his head rises to battle crime as his alter ego "The Crimson Bolt". Every hero needs a sidekick so after a call came too close, he forced to depend on a comic store clerk played by Ellen Paige (Bolty).

This story pulled me in and I stayed with it much due to Rainn's portrayal of Crimson Bolt which was superb plus the story line. While there were scenes which were unnecessary such as the 'sex' scene with Paige over all it managed to maintain my interest. Thank god too Ellen Paige's character finally shuts up in the last act of Super! I really can't stand that woman! There are a few violent scenes in this movie and while it still can't even hold a candle yet up to some Korean favorites, but they are improving. Hollywood taking a leave from their Eastern brothers ? I waited for this movie for quite some time after hearing the guys in Film Junk praising it over KickAss so I was curious for a long time to see how it measured up. Now, after watching it I can say it's definitely better. 4.5 stars over 5!

White Dog

I checked out this classic by Sam Fuller after listening to the Criterion Cast. I am glad I checked this out. It is quite good. Think a cross between Lassie and To shoot a mocking bird.

A girl knocks down a white dog ends up adopting the dog without realizing the dog carries with it a terrifying conditioning. Strewn in the simple packaging is an effective message of racism plus mental conditioning. Certain scenes might be a bit dated, glaringly so are the scenes where cotton buds were stuffed into the dogs jaws to give it a joker-ish maniacal snarl. The story is simple yet effective and when was the last time you saw a movie with almost no CGI? This was so refreshing for me. Paul WinField is the trainer that is committed sometimes to questionable lengths to cure the dog of it's 'ailment'.

It's the first time I have heard of the term 'White Dog' too and no the 'White' here is not referring to the color of the dog. The 'White' here refers to the fact that the dog was trained to attack Negros or 'blacks'. The fact that a movie like this might have it's roots in reality stirred up a mixture of anger and a chill in me being a dog owner myself. The thought that someone could do something like this sends a chill right to the core of my soul.

The scenes of the dog attacks is realistically done and being a victim of a vicious dog attack once that nearly tore my finger off while I was jogging, the attack scenes brought back waves of uncomfortable memories too close to home. I shifted around uncomfortably and pulled the volume down anticipating the attack scenes.

Well a friend today made a good comment about something else that I think applies to these kinds of classic, he said "Signs of imperfection are usually an indication that it's original ..". I feel the same thing about this movie. While the outdated scenes might illicit a smile or two but then the final message of the film is just as effective and does not distract from the enjoyment of this movie. I started with the film they said would be the misunderstood gem of Sam Fuller .. and I find myself raring to check out what other gems this great director put forth. Check the criterion cast out for another source of passionate movie discussions.

This is a solid 4 in my books and makes me want to check out Fuller's other work.

Source Code (2011)

First up review without spoilers .. this was really really good. I liked it. All I can say is going in I was very nervous as I really liked Duncan Jones's earlier effort Moon.

I really was not disappointed. This is sci fi with a heart and it's written quite well. Think GroundHog day plus 12 monkeys. As with the first the signature of Jones is all over this movie fro the loneliness feel of the protagonist, the question on what it really means to be us and that Chesney Hawkes song! The song is used very effectively here.

Right from the beginning we are in the shoes of Captain Colter Stevens waking up in this strange training and frame by frame we are made aware of his mission on this train reminisce of 12 monkeys here. There is a bit of romance thrown in with Michelle Monaghan but not too much to detract the story. It's always in the back ground.

You should just go in with a mind to enjoy this one and you really will, trying too much to think about the viability of the technological bits of this film and you might just end up missing the point that Duncan is so glaringly trying to put forth. The wife and me really enjoyed this one!

4.5 out of 5

The Devil and Daniel Johnston

First time introduced to Mr. Daniel Johnston. Have not heard of him prior to this and I only heard about him listening to the podcast from documentary blog. After hearing him mentioned about the 10 th time the podcast I had to see this man that reputatedly defied the whole world and made this world changing music from the basement of his parents. Was this the missed Dylan? The thing that struck me though, is how much Sam Rockwell is the splitting image of Dan. That in a strange way took away for me a bit when watching this documentary as I had to constantly remind myself that I was not watching a movie with Rockwell in it. Put up on my twitter that if his movie ever got made no one else had the right to play him but Rockwell. Even both their mannerisms and facial ticks are identical.

I kept on thinking about the people who have had to put up with the artistic genius of our time: brother of Picasso, husband of Virginia Woolf and the parents of Dan. How do they really feel when watching a documentary like this? I wonder if they feel the anguish and hardship of putting up with these misunderstood geniuses is worth it?

I am not really the biggest fan of the sex, drugs and rock and roll stories and in a way this is exactly that, detailing Daniel's rise from obscurity (working in Mac D) to his eventual fall and it's when the story falls into it's trappings of a normal rock and roll documentary I felt the most bored. I liked the personal stories of Daniel plus the superimposition of Daniel's voice recordings over his movie videos of him playing his mom in drags. That was a wonderful touch by the director. It really helped to bridge the two mediums and create in my opinion a new life and view of Daniel's raw material.

Another point worthy of mention here is which I actually gleaned off the documentary blog podcast is the director's appreciation of the 'alternate appreciation' of art and it is due to this that this tribute to Daniel is here today. I actually like the rawness of his music the most and feel that the composition and lyrics of his music to be absolutely genius. At this point too the thought occured to me of how personal art really is and the folly of allowing a bunch of people critique about your art. I guess now I understand better that I am not weird or crazy wheneven I feel the bile regurtitate up my throat when I have to sit through an episode of American Idol. I am sure a person singing like Daniel would have probably would not even have survived the perlims and a genius like this would have flowed right through the Idol filter, so I think about the necessity for this on going reality series that is in it's 10th season?

The scene about Daniel's 'bad boy' stuff related to his acid consumption and weird acts following that was a bit ordinary. I have seen that before. Which one of these artsy genius was not strange?

Conclusion: 4 stars for this one, it was good and it introduced me to one of the best artist I would have missed because of no coverage, just one star taken away for the times I felt a bit bored.

Pray the Devil Back to Hell

I am a believer in the teachings of Abraham Hicks and practice it daily. I am getting there but then there are parts of me that think how effective this kinds of teachings would be against the more “practical” powers, like guns and such. Would an idea of peace stand up to a gun?

“Pray the devil back to hell” is one of those rare documentaries that extolls and answers that question of how usable the practice of ABE's teachings is in the real world with a resounding yes! It show cases the huge role that women of Liberia played in getting the peace process on the way. What is truly magnificient to me is the way that these women were able to gather their forces and create a powerful unified idea in the collective consciusness. Love might be a beautiful idea but walking the path of love is not always easiest thing to do. Everyone of Abraham's teachings is put into action in this 1 hour 11 minutes documentary. Truly and eye opener to me about the power of an idea.

I love the opening montage of art that gives the viewer a summary of the what the documentary is going to be about. I really like this. It was very effective in framing the story around the whole documentary. The only movie that comes to my mind that does a similar style which is actually not a documentary is the puppet sequence in the beginning of “Hell Boy 2”. This kind of style really appeals to me for setting the stage and whetting the appetite of the audience of the unfolding story.

Yes these women faced fear. Yes they felt anger consuming their souls but never once did they give in to the desire to dish out the same violence and atrocities that was forced on them. This ensured the success of their campaign. Any point if they gave in, it would have spelt disaster or failure for their campaign for peace. This documentary has convinced me that truly a gun is never more powerful than love.

At many points of this documentary, the women seems to be the only voice of reason against a backdrop of violence and unrest. There was one amusing scene where during the disarmament, even UN lost control over the people and the narrator says "UN is lucky that the women are there". Funny stuff.

It's no wonder that this documentary has won many accodales. 5 stars from me!

talhotblond (2009)

This documentary sent chills up my spine. A little bit due to the ending, largely more on the reflection how the events that happened in it could have easily happened to me. I have been there before, start up this really wonderful almost anonymous chat with this stranger online, leading to really great everyday conversation which could be mistaken for stronger feelings such as love.

I just remember increasingly afraid as this documentary played. Afraid for how near I got to turning into a killer like marinesniper. As he described about why he liked the online chats that he had, it shocked me how much I agreed to him. My experiences with online chats is online relationships is relationships as well so strong feelings can surface as a result. The ease for to relate what Montgomery said really scared me, so much that it stayed with me for a while.

Boy, I am glad I am over those days now. I used to be a pretty hardcore irc dude spending most of my days (sometimes fucking my exams next day because the night before I had a more important online presence to maintain !)

Back to the documentary, this piece about real incidents directed by Barbara Schroeder is really well done! I sat glued to my seat the whole time and the narration told by the person murder served grabbed hold of my interest right till the end. The story by itself has enough twist and turn to keep anyone attention but kudos must be given here to the direction and restraint of Schroeder to keep us guessing and holding on for dear life every death defying turn the story takes. This plays initially like a romantic comedy twisting and turning finally into a murder mystery and when the final and most depraved reveal is unveiled I guarantee it will floor you. You would have thought that in a times where viewers are getting more and more desensitized to twist and turns and shocks in plots that something like this would seem tame but just think a minute about the consequences of the actions of the people involved here and see if it hits home. The fact that these are real events that took place help to cement that even more.

A good solid 5 stars for this one!