skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Film: Cold Fish
Year of production: 2010
UK Release date: 27th June 2011
Distributor: Third Window
Certificate: 18
Running time: 144 mins
Director: Sion Sono
Starring: Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Tetsu Watanabe, Hikari Kajiwara, Megumi Kagurazaka, Denden
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Format: DVD
Country of Production: Japan
Language: Japanese
Review by: Daryl Wing
Inspired by the Saitama Dog Lover Serial Murders that came to light in 1993, involving the exploits of Gen Sekine and his ex-wife Hiroko Kazama, who would breed then sell rare hounds, killing any buyer that felt robbed by their extortionate valuations, the latest offering from cult Japanese writer-director Sion Sono (Love Exposure) swaps the lovable mutts for tropical fish. So is Cold Fish the compelling thriller it claims to be, or will we be tossing it back from whence it came?
Shamoto is struggling to run a small tropical fish shop with his second wife, Taeko, and his troublesome daughter, Mitsuko. When Mitsuko is caught shoplifting at a grocery store, they meet a friendly man named Murata, who helps to settle things between Mitsuko and the store manager.
Since Murata also runs a tropical fish shop, Shamoto establishes a bond with him and they become friends. Mitsuko is offered work by Murata, who suggests she stay with him and his wife at their beautiful home, allowing Shamoto to rebuild his relationship with Taeko.
All seems well, but Murata hides many dark secrets behind his friendly exterior. Selling cheap fish to his customers for high prices with his artful lies, if anyone suspects fraud or refuses to go along with his moneymaking schemes, they’re murdered and their bodies disposed.
With Mitsuko a seemingly willing hostage at Murata’s home and Shamoto fooled into becoming a business partner, it isn’t long before the mild-mannered shopkeeper has to take a stand in order to save his family - and himself...
Director Sion Sono cleverly invests so much time in establishing his (mostly likeable) characters and their inter-relationships in the hope that when he starts snuffing them out, there’s far more gravity to their deaths than you’ll find in many films of similar ilk. And the opening half hour is arguably the most entertaining, introducing us to Shamoto, a man who never amounted to much, his wife, Taeko (her knockers would question her worth to the story while her fans will argue they’re are all that matters), and his brat, Mitsuko, untroubled by Murata’s overfriendliness, as in fact, oddly, they all are.
The quirky opening act pulls the viewer into a simple world, and thanks to strong performances by all the leads, we quickly empathise with Shamoto, a man as wet as the weather, and his family, as they struggle to face up to their problems. At the same time, we fall for the smooth-talking, charismatic Murata, and his beautiful wife, and we’re hoodwinked by his successful business, but we’re also suspicious of their motives and keenness to befriend such a disillusioned protagonist when surely they don’t need the inconvenience. Although by now he’s a little creepy, it isn’t until Murata takes Taeko to one side that we realise this offbeat family-drama is not all it seems, and it’s also the point in which Taeko finally shows promise – her character’s interesting desire to be dominated, however, is sadly never explored further.
And what happens next is disappointing to say the least. Padding out most of the running time with lessons in how to dismember a body, intercut with dodgy double-crossings, passionless poisoning and repetitive threats to make people “invisible,” Sion Sono fails to find a spark for the majority of a lengthy second act. Uneventful in the extreme, it’s only worth watching if you plan on becoming a butcher. Even then, it would probably be quicker to partake in an Open University course of similar study.
The film also suffers from an extremely negative portrayal of its female characters, whether it be Taeko’s untold hankering for a high-handed partner (the perfect excuse to give her impressive globes an airing - no doubt what attracted her star-gazing husband in the first place); Murata’s indecisive wife, who gets her kicks from entrusting herself to no-one, as long as she gets what she wants (a good excuse to get it all out); the ungrateful daughter who apparently hates her family, yet hardly utters a word in disgust; and six other teenage disciples that work for Murata at his enormous fish emporium, with no hint of back stories (a good excuse to have a bit of girl on girl action). All in all, their lack of depth is bound to leave most female viewers dumbfounded. Having said that, our planetarium-obsessed male lead is hardly blessed with any either.
With all of its horrific activity confined to the final third, Cold Fish is, therefore, hard work for the most part, and when it does finally indulge in the red stuff, including a fantastic struggle through slippery entrails, you’ll still be slightly surprised by Shamoto’s sudden transformation from lifeless loser to complete fruitcake. Considering the film drags on for two-and-a-half hours, that’s some statement. Still, the opening act looks very pretty, even if budget constraints confine the movie to limited locations and rather bland camerawork later on, but the effects are top notch, and this DVD release does at least offer a more interesting special feature on the true events that inspired the movie.
Cold Fish starts promisingly but loses its way during the bloodless flimsiness of its second act, which refuses to end, or in fact add anything remotely interesting until the ruthless finale that lacks originality and isn’t as clever as it thinks it is. To quote our leading man, “life is pain, and it doesn’t get much more painful than watching this.” DW
![]()
Film: Faccia a Faccia
Year of production: 1967
UK Release date: 20th June 2011
Distributor: Eureka
Certificate: 12
Running time: 107 mins
Director: Sergio Sollima
Starring: Tomas Milian, Gian Maria Volonté, William Berger, Jolanda Modio, Gianni Rizzo
Genre: Action/Adventure/Western
Format: DVD
Country of Production: Spain/Italy
Language: Italian/Spanish
Review by: Daryl Wing
His films never received the acclaim that two of his contemporaries, Sergio Leone and Sergio Corbucci, rightfully earned, but Italian auteur Sergio Sollima’s movies still deserve a wider audience. Faccia a Faccia (Face To Face), the second of his three westerns, speedily sandwiched between 1966 and 1968, is considered one of his best, and the gang-busting, gun-toting actioner is finally released in the United Kingdom.
Upstanding history professor Brad Fletcher (Gian Maria Volonte) is reluctantly forced into retirement by his poor health and decides to move west for the warmer climate.
Almost as soon as he arrives, however, he is taken hostage by famed bandit Solomon Bennett (Tomas Milian), who needs to escape the attentions of the local sheriff. By necessity Fletcher is forced to take up with his cohorts as they try to reunite the Wild Gang.
But the educated man's growing identification with the gang encourages him to stage a takeover from Bennett, and a crueler system of leadership is put into place just as Pinkerton Charley Siringo’s (William Berger) plans to rid Purgatory City of the gang appear to be succeeding…
If you don’t fight, you fail, and Brad Fletcher certainly isn’t the failing kind. On his death bed at the start of the film, along with Bennett who was shot in its opening exchanges, his transformation from teacher to tormentor is slick and convincing, even if the whereabouts of his illness gets lost in the baron landscapes of this intriguing western. His line, “you couldn’t have chosen a worse hostage, let’s just say I’m dying” to Bennett is slightly perplexing, at first, but in time it’s clear that only his lust for life is fading fast.
Any quibbles about his desire to help Bennett instead of running are quickly brushed aside by both the beautiful visuals and, most importantly, the talented personalities along the way, ranging from Berger’s clever turn as Charley Siringo, who convinces his nemesis to reunite the Wild Gang in order to rid them from the fantastically named Purgatory City once and for all; a beautiful woman called Maria (Jolanda Modio), who questionably falls for Fletcher after being beaten and raped by him; to Rusty Rogers (Francisco Sanz), an all too brief but welcome comedic turn as an elderly man clinging on to his pointless existence by insisting he is still a wanted man even after thirty years in the wilderness.
Sollima isn’t afraid to pepper the screen with unsettling imagery, as a rabbit is shot, women are treated as punch bags then raped, families are massacred (including a frighteningly fantastic shot of the vigilantes appearing over the sand dunes) and a child is silenced by a bullet for daring to tell the Sheriff about the bank raid as he sits snoozing in the sizzling sun. The resulting shoot-out is easily the best moment from the film, as the perfectly planned heist is turned on its head in bloody, exhilarating fashion.
It’s here Sollima ups the ante plot-wise, too, discarding of most of the Wild Bunch in order to concentrate on Fletcher’s creepy transformation, and Bennett’s disapproval of such, despite being solely responsible for turning the man into a monster. Fletcher, described early on as “from up North, he reads a lot of books,” and who at the midway point tries to guilt-trip the gang from stealing money from a mail coach by reading the accompanying letter, begins his slippery slope when he falls for the beautiful Maria. An excellent standoff against the lightning-quick gunslinger Bennett whets his appetite further, but it’s only when he realises what an intelligent man can do in a town like Purgatory that he truly discovers his lust for life again – a fascinating journey mapped out in jaw-dropping style.
Faccia a Faccia also has its problems, though. The search for final gang member Zachary is a little too long, and then brushed under the carpet, as the audience aren’t given enough time to bond with him, which is a disaster when Sollima decides it will be him who turns traitor and leads the vigilantes in the film’s finale. How Bennett gets to his comrades before the marauding mob is even less believable, whether he knows the dessert inside out or not, and his escape from jail, lazily, is never even explained. The final showdown also raises eyebrows, not because the odds of fifty being defeated by two mercenaries need to be shortened, or because Bennett remembers how bad to the bone he actually is, but because Pinkerton Siringo baffles us with another change of heart that sits as out of place as Fletcher’s mutation into a sex-starved rapist.
An effective combination of genuine thrills, traditional storytelling, lush imagery and an outstanding naturalistic performance from its lead helps make Faccia a Faccia a fun, likeable western. Despite its flaws, this film has been imitated by many but bettered by few. DW
Film: Eaters: Rise Of The Dead
Year of production: 2010
UK Release date: 13th June 2011
Distributor: Chelsea
Certificate: 18
Running time: 90 mins
Director: Luca Boni & Marco Ristori
Starring: Rosella Elmi, Guglielmo Favilla, Elisa Ferretti, Riccardo Floris, Alex Lucchesi
Genre: Horror
Format: DVD
Country of Production: Italy
Language: Italian
Review by: Daryl Wing
Uwe Boll, taking a long overdue break from adapting every video game property he can, has decided to lend his questionable expertise, as well as a welcome cash injection, and allow someone else to destroy the zombie movie once and for all. Despite Frank Darabont’s The Walking Dead (2010) breathing new life into a tired species, it’s been a while since a feature-length has had anything new to say on the subject, with Boll’s House Of The Dead (2003) one of the finer examples of how to put a bullet through the head of a lifeless genre. Will newcomers Luca Boni and Marco Ristori be able to resuscitate the zombie flick with their apocalyptic offering, Eaters?
The world has been ravaged by a zombie epidemic of grave proportions, now governed by hordes of living dead. Igor (Alex Lucchesi) and Alen (Guglielmo Favilla) are two of the few survivors, forced to spend their days searching for fellow survivors and capturing zombies so that a scientist, Gyno (Claudio Marmugi), can continue his experiments to find an improbable cure.
On their travels, they meet an array of characters still clinging to life: a crazy painter, neo-Nazis, the imposing Plague Spreader (blamed for its escalation), and a mysterious girl, uninfected, hidden from a red-blooded land of laddishness.
In a world where the ever-evolving dead lay down the law, Igor and Alen know that the girl, Christina, is vital if the human race is to survive, but when they discover Gyno’s plans to create a new breed, they realise it’s not the undead they should fear the most…
Humanity is in chaos, there’s a birth rate of zero, and the Pope just blew his brains out because he doesn’t want to come back to a world overrun by a vicious breed of anarchic thugs – and they’re just the living. Welcome to the wonderful world created by first-time directors Luca Boni and Marco Ristori, who together have engineered a movie that thankfully dares to offer some originality to proceedings, eventually.
Taking time out from reading the latest edition of Girls and Corpses magazine, our two protagonists, Alen and Igor, go on a little road trip to keep boredom at bay, and after half an hour of seemingly pointless banter with each other, the mad scientist Gyno and two annoying loons that demand to be eaten (the sooner the better), the plot finally finds its feet and the cast, suffering from the same acute boredom engulfing the audience, are finally thrown a bone or two. Boni and Ristori offer hints to where the plot will finally end up, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if the viewer has switched off long before the foreshadowing of Gyno’s experiments, Alen’s doctor-fiancée held captive in a cage and the mysterious plague spreader finally pay off.
It really does take forever for anything to happen, and although Lucchesi and Favilla are likeable, there can only be so much of the two knuckleheads minding their own business amidst an all-too-familiar backdrop you can take. Even when hunting day arrives, you’re still left twiddling your thumbs for another good five minutes before the first zombie is dispatched. Luckily, the attractive blonde with it all hanging out is a satisfying first kill, not because of its brutality, but because Igor is able to deliver the first of many wonderful lines of dialogue. Then, finally, after yet another brief encounter with a character (the madcap painter) that offers little to the plot, things start to get interesting.
The gore may not be top notch - all too often the scene is cut just before the blood can spill - but the murky wastelands explored on route are beautifully realised, especially when they probe neighbouring sectors, and the soundtrack pumps harder than Schwarzenegger in his heyday. By this point, despite a brief sidestep when our protagonists decide they need beer and must therefore visit an old nemesis (involving a fun game of Nazi target practice), the plot is finally starting to unravel into something worthwhile. The appearance of the Plague Spreader may disappoint in terms of chills and a potentially decent idea wasted (Igor does get to deliver another cracking one-liner), but, on the other hand, the discovery of Christina turns this timid tale into a mind-boggling head-screw.
Although our two leads are charming in their own unique way, and Alen must have something going for him if he once dated a doctor, adding a young girl (a slightly older Mathilda from Leon) into the mix fascinates. Will they protect her or the human race first? Igor, certainly, hasn’t seen any action for a while, and despite Christina’s tender years, couldn’t be trusted alone with her. But this subplot is just the beginning, as it isn’t long before they discover Gyno’s warped plans, involving a new breed of zombie.
It’s not like they haven’t already evolved enough. Our two auteurs have cleverly moved on from a living dead that can merely keep up with their victims, allowing them to be entertained by television, carry and use weapons, and even, dare you believe it, talk. Astonishingly, it somehow works, made the more fun when Alen shoots one dead because, “she was asking too many questions.”
The weirdness is stretched even further, involving aborted babies and zombies able to reproduce, but because this is a story rarely told, you’ll be grateful for the ride. One of the final stand-offs may disappoint after all the good that went before it, and a scene involving a bomb about to detonate doesn’t make any sense, but our band of heroes prove that it’s friendship that comes before science, even if you can’t help but think Christina may regret where she aimed that machine gun.
Eaters keeps most of its horrors under wraps for the majority of the disappointing opening act and instead diverts the audience with two sufficient leads and an escalating sense of dread that pays off in an appropriately apocalyptic final act that needs to be seen to be believed. DW
Film: Direct Contact
Year of production: 2009
UK Release date: 13th June 2011
Distributor: Lionsgate
Certificate: 18
Running time: 90 mins
Director: Danny Lerner
Starring: Dolph Lundgren, Gina May, Michael Paré, Bashar Rahal, James Chalke
Genre: Action/Thriller
Format: DVD
Country of Production: USA/Germany
Language: English/Bulgarian
Review by: Daryl Wing
A quick flick through perennial tough guy Dolph Lundgren’s back-catalogue makes for depressing reading. Superior movies like Masters Of The Universe (1987) and Rocky 4 (1985) are few and far between - even The Expendables (2010) and Universal Solider (1992) are standouts. Where did it all go wrong for this 1980s action hero? Or did it all go wrong? His films (47 and counting) may not be appreciated by an audience force-fed by Michael Bay, but he’s still doing what he does best. With The Expendables reviving interest in his career, Lionsgate Home Entertainment have decided to release 2009’s Direct Contact, in which Lundgren ditches his trademark scowl and plays the good guy, but does he still have the power?
Mike Riggins (Lundgren), an imprisoned ex-Special Forces operative in Eastern Europe, is offered his freedom (and lots of cash) to rescue an American woman, Ana Gale (Gina May), who has been kidnapped by a ruthless warlord.
Shortly after freeing her, Mike discovers that the kidnap story was just a ruse to bring Ana out into the open. Riggins suddenly finds himself and his feisty charge being hunted by ruthless government and underworld organizations - all who want him dead and the mysterious Ana under their control.
With no-one to turn to, and the enemies closing in, Mike must uncover the truth about Ana, gain her trust, and bring her to the safety of the US Embassy…
Arriving nearly two decades too late, Direct Contact isn’t going to appeal to anyone under the age of 25. Made with very little money, it fails to revel in the spectacle of Transformers (2007), doesn’t have the brains of The Bourne Identity (2002), and isn’t as much fun as either. For those raised on Commando (1985) and Hard Target (1993), however, it will certainly cater for some fleeting, good old-fashioned entertainment, sparing enough time throughout to reminisce about the good ol’ days when your dad would joyously accede to an eighteen-certificate instead of homework.
In today’s climate, it’s impossible to watch Danny Lerner’s actioner without chuckling at the cheapness of it all. But for some, that’s also half the fun. And yet, through it all, Direct Contact cleverly insists on taking itself seriously. It’s a gripping, intensely harrowing film with a solid emotional core, as both the hardened Mike and sympathetic-to-her-captors Ana find the conflict mirroring the transformations occurring within themselves. Or maybe not…
What you do have is a movie with no interest in dimensional characters. A permanent resident in the “worst prison in the world,” Lundgren’s Riggins doesn’t believe in small talk (his American accent more convincing than his real one), has no enthusiasm for anything other than money, but can dodge a speeding bullet and pulverize his foes with considerable, engaging ease. He also struggles to climb into a parked car, but the old-timer is approaching 60 so let’s cut him some slack.
His compatriot, meanwhile, certainly looks the part, but don’t expect any acting fireworks from an almost mute Gina May – leave that to the countless car chases and gun fights that thankfully distract from inflammable cardboard characters and dodgy dialogue (“I don’t care who the hell you are, I’m just damn glad I met you”). May’s performance does improve, but it’s debatable whether even a young Jodie Foster could persuade us that their character has fallen for her new captor quicker than you can say buckle up, and then go on to deliver such a wonderful chat-up line as, “How’s your wound?” with such sincerity. Luckily for her, James Chalke’s support performance as villain Uncle Trent is simply embarrassing.
The only way to enjoy Direct Contact is to embrace its utter nonsense. Revel in the shabby dialogue (“I just happen to have an extra ten grand” and “This guy’s a loose cannon” are up there with the best); and ignore the illogical, as a tank is called in to take down Riggins on a motorcycle, while a guard fails to hear a door slam ten yards away, with the big fella creeping around like a clumsy battle droid in his search for Ana, and the action is sped up to make the motorcycle scenes look that much more dramatic. It also fails with simple back projection techniques (Lundgren’s driving would surely send them into a ditch), and in this day and age, surely it’s cheaper to whack a camera on the bonnet of the car. It certainly disrupts an audience’s ability to suspend disbelief.
But then, the damage has already been done, with a couple of inspired shots: firstly, the aptly named Lerner introduces the classic point of view action sequence, as if we were in fact the motorcycle, terrorizing the unsuspecting public minding their own business on the sidewalks. He dares to do it again, this time the shot taken over the shoulder of a missile launched from the tank, missing its intended target, the bike, by miles. They don’t make them like this anymore. Or, rather, they shouldn’t make them like this anymore.
Sniping aside, Direct Contact is blessed by some decent fight choreography, plenty of half decent car chases and worthy shootouts (the standoff in the football stadium is extremely satisfying), and even surprises with its sporadic brutality. For some reason, the air turns blue after the half hour mark, with characters deciding to unleash the f-word for no other reason than to convince us how angry they are, but there’s still room for Lerner to at least get something right when a car flips over in near-silent slo-mo and then delivers his piece de resistance during the final act when Uncle Trent makes an explosive exit, and Lundgren delivers a truly killer line.
No-one would ever call it good filmmaking, but Direct Contact is old school trash of the first order. In short, this one’s for those raised on Schwarzenegger, Stallone and Seagal; the action is passable, and Lundgren is surprisingly good. Remove a star if you’re under 25. DW
Film: Agnosia
Year of production: 2010
UK Release date: 30th May 2011
Distributor: Momentum
Certificate: 15
Running time: 106 mins
Director: Eugenio Mira
Starring: Martina Gedeck, Eduardo Noriega, Bárbara Goenaga, Félix Gómez, Jack Taylor
Genre: Crime/Drama/Thriller
Format: DVD
Country of Production: Spain
Language: Spanish
Review by: Daryl Wing
From the producers of two of the greatest scare-fests of recent years, Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) and The Orphanage (2007), written by Antonio Trashorras, who also co-penned Guillermo del Toro’s spectacularly spooky The Devil’s Backbone (2001), and directed by Eugenio Mira, who brought us darkly comic The Birthday (2004), comes Agnosia, a Spanish period drama about love and, er, deceit? There must be some mistake, surely?
Joana (Bárbara Goenaga), a young woman suffering from the rare neuropsychological condition agnosia, which affects her sensual awareness, is preparing for her wedding to her father’s business associate, Carles (Eduardo Noriega).
Although Joana's eyes and ears function perfectly, her brain cannot interpret the stimuli she receives through them. When her father dies leaving behind a secret that only Joana knows, the formula to a telescopic lens hidden in her subconscious, she falls victim to a sinister plan to take advantage of her condition.
While her enemies try to extract the secret against her will, a handsome young man called Vincent (Felix Gomez), who previously worked for her father and shares an uncanny resemblance to Carles, is blackmailed into helping them, but his feelings toward Joana prove that perception isn’t always reality…
Eugenio Mira’s movie is wrought with persuasive period detail, lush landscapes, strong performances from an outstanding cast, but most surprising of all, razor-edged savagery and bursts of brutal imagery that make Agnosia almost as chilling as any of the movies already mentioned. It’s a genuinely refreshing surprise, even after the opening stampede when a horse is executed because they ran out of balloons. The plot veers into fantastical territory throughout, but Mira keeps it in check by allowing the characters to be as real as possible.
The opening act is quite bizarre, but all the better for it. Beginning many years earlier, when Joana is a child, the audience is able to revel in the film’s opulent surroundings reminiscent to countless fairytales as a group of wealthy gentlemen test out a new telescopic lens, shooting at balloons released by the whippersnapper. But then the horse gets one in the neck, a child collapses, the beginning of her suffering, and we are catapulted into a bleak, shadowy world controlled by villains and thugs. In turn, we are introduced to Vincent, ambushed and outnumbered, innocent yet insurgent, and the one man who can make Joana’s universe worth seeing again.
At its best, Agnosia is cruel and hard-hearted, with only Joana and her father decent enough to route for. The rest of the cast provide constant wickedness, whether it be Noriega’s reasonable turn as Carles, with his countless trips to the whorehouse because his future spouse isn’t giving him any (and he’s too polite to ask), or the mad doctor using his respectability to make lots of money, down to the evil business partner that never leaves loose ends, and even Vincent, a nice guy who doesn’t care if the girl he wants to ‘smash’ is getting married.
Because of this, there is bloodshed throughout. Not of the Sunday afternoon, Sikes murders Nancy variety, kindly gruesome even if it’s one of the most graphic, frightening scenes Dickens ever wrote, but seriously violent, and truly unexpected, whether it’s the death of a stallion, a servant - many servants - or the shy, unassuming Joana herself. A neat twist may propel us into act two, but the thrills witnessed here are not from the love triangle that slowly develops (although Joana’s conversation with Carles after spending a thunderous night with Vincent is comically tragic), but from the more believable world of corruption it’s set in.
Sadly, although it makes for convenient plot lubricant, the biggest stumbling block is the notion that Joana is unable to distinguish Carles from Vincent. And let’s face it, without this believability, the film is going to fail, no matter what else happens. It’s certainly difficult trying to suspend disbelief. With her impaired vision, his looks (although more youthful) are convincing, yet his voice, and the hope we can believe in a relationship that suggests they have barely touched each other since childhood, doesn’t quite wash. It’s a shame, because although both Vincent and Carles are likeable, there really should only be one winner.
Let’s face it, though, shoving a girl in a cocoon for three days and kidnapping her to retrieve the secret formula is a hard sell by anyone’s standards, as is the revelation during a pleasant period drama that it’s actually hidden in Joana’s subconscious, while the love story, despite its over-egged conclusion, is well executed and refreshingly realistic. Having witnessed the beauty that is Bárbara Goenaga, you would be lying if you didn’t understand either man’s plight. And so, with a barely noticeable soundtrack, which isn’t a bad thing, other than its clumsy hindrance to Vincent’s escape attempt, Agnosia fails to catch fire. To paraphrase Joana’s disappointment, “Last night, Agnosia, you seemed like someone else.”
As impressive as it looks, along with its surprising acts of brutality, Agnosia fails to convince because it can’t combine fairytale sweetness and quirky invention with realism where it really counts – a flawed but promising addition to Spanish cinema. DW
Film: Tracker
Year of production: 2010
UK Release date: 23rd May 2011
Distributor: Kaleidoscope
Certificate: 12
Running time: 98 mins
Director: Ian Sharp
Starring: Ray Winstone, Temuera Morrison, Andy Anderson, Mark Mitchinson, Gareth Reeves
Genre: Action/Adventure/Drama/Thriller
Format: DVD & Blu-ray
Country of Production: New Zealand/UK
Language: English
Review by: Daryl Wing
English-born director, Ian Sharp’s best work is arguably five episodes for the excellent television series Robin Of Sherwood (1984). Most of his other credits have also been for the gogglebox, whether it be a movie or part of a continuing drama. It’s therefore hard to get too excited about his return after an eight year absence; that is until you discover heavyweights Ray Winstone (who also found fame in Sherwood) and Temuera Morrison (the one and only Jango Fett) star in his freshest offering, Tracker, set in New Zealand’s spectacular landscape.
It’s 1903, and Arjan (Winstone), a guerrilla survivor of the South African Boer War, has landed in colonial New Zealand and is promised a generous bounty to capture Kereama (Morrison), a Maori seafarer accused of killing a British soldier.
Being such a successful tracker, what should be a simple job for Arjan turns into a dangerous game of cat and mouse, as Kereama is no fool himself, repeatedly escaping, all the while insisting he is innocent.
As each man gains and loses the upper hand, they find they have more in common than simply a mutual hatred of the British, who aren’t far behind, by now suspicious of Arjan and desperate to capture Kereama once and for all…
Tracker is a decent enough, albeit extremely clichéd buddy drama, which marginally establishes itself with some satisfying action along the way. It takes a while to get to the good stuff, though, even after an impressive opening gambit that sees Kereama cavorting with an English girl before being framed for the killing of a soldier during a scuffle in which he manages to escape. From that, there’s certainly not a great deal of originality on offer, and not a lot to keep an audience interested until Arjan finally tracks down his man.
It’s not so much a matter of whom the killer is, which would certainly help a thin plot (this act is revealed straight away), rather how long you have to wait before he or she finally catches up with the man pleading his innocence, and what they plan on doing with him. This, sadly, is barely given time to be answered. What the film does offer to keep boredom at bay, at least for the dull opening act, is some wonderful scenery that just longs to be explored further. It really is a beautiful film, and carries you through the dire moments lacking conflict as Arjan tracks and Kereama fishes, Arjan tracks and Kereama lights a fire, Arjan reads and Kereama sleeps – exhilarating stuff, for sure.
When the film does finally take off (the edge of a cliff, no less), what it then provides is some strong performances from a cast surely thankful Winstone is on board, even if his South African accent is slightly rubbish, and probably explains why he spends half the movie mumbling to himself. Morrison has his shaky moments, too, but gamely assumes the role of wise, intellectual man slightly off his rocker, and acquits himself well, proving he does have the ability when presented with the right material.
If the two of them aren’t scuffling, they’re spouting proverbs and lines from the Book of Books, or banging on about their past lives, so we don’t have to watch lengthy flashbacks that could hinder this already plodding thriller. When Morrison grumbles, “I should kill you for just being annoying,” it would make more sense and be more fun if said in unison, then interrupted by Gollum, still searching for his ring, which in turn would explain the spare finger in Arjan’s handkerchief, and allow us to indulge in some more breathtaking scenery.
A couple of cheap gags threaten to turn the film into a Sunday afternoon stroll, the worst offender emanating from the predictable downpour after Kereama proclaims he can predict the weather. And what with the constant preaching and another lazy scene that has Winstone falling for the oldest trick in the book, when he assumes it’s safe to go for a swim, Tracker almost derails. Fortunately, after much grudging mutual respect, a bizarre brawl from the ageing warriors and the arrival of the Brits means that the film grows stronger and stronger, daring to even add a satisfying twist ending that touches on exciting.
Obviously, the movie could have ended before it even began if a prostitute who could clear Kereama’s name admitted to what she had seen, and why Arjan doesn’t immediately take his captive back as promised is never explained, while the Sergeant Major’s vendetta is barely explored, creating missed chances and more fanciful fisticuffs aplenty (Winstone is oddly agile). And yet, throughout, Tracker manages to avoid its director’s television trappings, and, at the same time, won’t do the New Zealand Tourist Board any harm either.
An entertaining if slow-moving film, Tracker suffers from a stuttering start and lacks any kind of originality whatsoever. Luckily, it’s a feast for the eyes, and its leads, Winstone and Morrison, offer enough of a presence to keep this clichéd buddy movie lumbering along. DW
Film: Young Bruce Lee
Year of production: 2010
UK Release date: 30th May 2011
Distributor: Cine Asia
Certificate: 15
Running time: 90 mins
Director: Raymond Yip & Manfred Wong
Starring: Tony Leung Ka Fai, Christy Chung, Aarif Rahman, Jennifer Tse, Michelle Ye
Genre: Action/Biography/Drama/Martial Arts
Format: DVD
Country of Production: Hong Kong/China
Language: Cantonese
Review by: Daryl Wing
Bruce Lee is regarded by many as the greatest martial arts legend who ever lived. Produced by Robert Lee, his younger brother, and based on his own first-hand experience, Young Bruce Lee pays homage to the man who, uniquely, brought the power and majesty of Chinese kung fu to millions around the world. Directed by Raymond Yip and Manfred Wong, it arrives from the studio that brought you Jet Li's Warlords and the acclaimed Infernal Affairs trilogy.
Almost named Push Lee by a confused father, Bruce (Aarif Rahman) was born in the year of the dragon and raised into a large family, spending most of his childhood swearing, fighting and performing in various movies, following in the footsteps of his father, Cantonese opera artist Lee Hoi-chuen (Tony Leung).
Academically though, Lee is struggling, preferring to hang out with a close group of friends as they, quite literally, dance the nights away in clubs. Cocky but good-looking, Lee is inevitably caught up in a love triangle, and decides to distance himself, concentrating on his passion for boxing. A chance encounter with Charlie Owen (Alex Yen), the British boxing champion, results in a dream bout.
With Owen demanding a rematch, the group of friends slowly part, following their own paths to happiness. And yet they must join forces one last time to help one of their own – one of Lee’s closest friends, Kong Lau-lin, who is throwing his future away thanks to a hellish drug addiction...
Young Bruce Lee is a two-hour drama with very little of the essential ingredient. On paper, it’s big on ideas but, disappointingly, thin on conflict – a flimsy love triangle with Lee torn between two beautiful sweethearts, a boxing champ looking for revenge tagged on at the end, a family coping with the fall of Hong Kong, a young man battling his drug addiction, and Lee embarking on a movie career that will inevitably lead to stardom suggests great things. It doesn’t deliver. The real distinction of the film is that it crumbles under the weight of expectancy, with the final act the only thing that will please fans of Bruce Lee, the legend, rather than Phoenix Lee, the ordinary kid whose years growing up were, at the very best, dull.
Yip and Wong sidestep the meatier aspects of Lee’s life, instead creating a dreamy atmosphere that tries to piece together several key moments, managing to conjure up a disappointing opening two acts in which very little actually happens. Skipping many years in the process, ditching action sequences just as the audience shift forward onto the edge of their seats, the two auteurs replace friction with birthday buns, a game of marbles and dancing the cha cha. Until the last half hour, the latter is easily the most exciting scene, choreographed and filmed in a surprisingly breathtaking manner.
But is this what the audience want to see? Bruce Lee’s brother, producer Robert Lee, clearly thinks so, and although discovering that the legend couldn’t ride a bike, swore like a trooper when he was barely old enough to walk, was pretty hopeless with girls and could put Patrick Swayze in the corner is fairly interesting, it doesn’t really justify a lengthy running time that sugarcoats his family before bombarding us with some sensational action sequences that somehow sit out of place. This, coming from a Bruce Lee movie, is astonishing.
Nevertheless, they are undeniably welcome – reward for observing such a damp squid of a film. With the help of slick cinematography, the scenes have a sleek, shadowy look that owes as much to Lee’s famous flicks from yesteryear as to Stallone’s Rocky franchise. A strange score during the frantic no-holds-barred rematch between Lee and Owen is slightly distracting, but this is the best moment of the film, with the drug house rooftop climax a close second. Oddly, the cha cha competition in which Lee performs with his younger brother is more thrilling than you could probably imagine.
With its decent location and believable setting, one of the other notable pleasures is the performances. The characterisations may be pretty standard, they all emerge as too similar, but the casting is spot-on, even if Rahman’s Lee is, at times, too cocky, a bit smug, and less likeable because of it. The true winner in this movie, however, is the traitor who invades their home when Lee is barely old enough to walk, and who then appears at various points in an all too brief but brilliantly sleazy turn as the cartoonish villain of the piece, pushing the film towards it more satisfying action-packed conclusion.
Young Bruce Lee indulges in a bizarre tonal shift from dire drama to an action-packed finale bordering on thrilling. It’s hard work getting there, and fans of Lee will hate how such an icon has been made to look so ordinary, but skip to the end and enjoy some truly entertaining set-pieces that question the matter-of-factness of its opening two acts. DW
Film: Sparrow
Year of production: 2008
UK Release date: 9th May 2011
Distributor: Terracotta
Certificate: 15
Running time: 87 mins
Director: Johnnie To
Starring: Simon Yam, Kelly Lin, Lam Ka-tung, Lo Hoi-pang, Law Wing-cheong
Genre: Comedy/Crime/Drama/Romance
Format: DVD
Country of Production: Hong Kong
Language: Cantonese/Mandarin
Review by: Daryl Wing
The 'Jerry Bruckheimer of Hong Kong', Johnnie To has enjoyed a startling career to date, ending the 1990s on a high before suffocating in the creative and financial lull endured by a struggling Hong Kong film industry in 2001. Hitting form again with the release of award winner Running On Karma (2003), Breaking News (2004) and Throw Down (2004), the prolific auteur then delivered the mighty Election (2005) and its follow up. Not afraid to venture into the world of comedy, crime-caper Sparrow attempts to merge the criminal world with humour and romance, but will a tale about pickpockets falling for the same mysterious woman leave an audience feeling short changed?
A band of pick-pockets (‘sparrow’ in Hong Kong slang) are enjoying a profitable year when their corrupt world is disrupted by the sudden appearance of a beautiful and mysterious lady, who has the nerve to turn the tables on them.
Following her trail, the pick-pockets are led to a face-off on the streets of Hong Kong with a rival pick-pocket gang, with both gangs vying for the possession of this enigmatic lady.
As both sides struggle to decide who she plans to side with, revelations about her past reveal a sweeter side to her personality, and a hidden yearning for freedom…
An avian attack in waiting then, with hundreds of starved cynics perched on the edge of their seats, claws freshly sharpened, all waiting silently for any false move so they could take to the sky and begin their savage assault on one of Honk Kong’s most consistent directors – and Sparrow disappointingly allows them all to scratch his eyes out, despite bearing a vivid hallmark of good intent.
It houses all the trappings of a decent gambol across the innocent pastures cultivated by some of Hollywood’s greats from the 1950s and ‘60s. So much so, in fact, if Sparrow starred Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck, you would probably appreciate its little oddities far more. The problem is that Johnnie To appears to have lost himself in such a sugar-coated world that he failed to construct a plot that can’t be written down on the back of a postage stamp.
Overpopulated with thinly-drawn characters (and over familiar casting), it’s hindered by a cheap impersonation of Hitchcock’s worst material, and suffers from a director keen to stamp his authority all over key scenes whilst forgetting the rest. The introduction neatly pulls the viewer into this world of over indulgence – and it also sets the stage of expectation at a level the ensuing 80-minutes fail to meet.
It’s difficult to work out whether or not the pacing is deliberately sluggish, because just as scenes start to sag, To does something quite magical, upping the ante, not to mention the interest levels. With a Breakfast At Tiffany’s vibe running throughout, impressive moments include our main protagonist being outsmarted by a girl who can clearly drink until the cows come home, an amusing escape in a crowded lift, To’s obsession with dressing his male leads in ladies rags continuing with a tense massage scene, and the visually poetic finale in the rain with a handful of umbrellas. They may not be searching for a ginger cat, there’s no kiss in the downpour, and it may not make a great deal of sense to western viewers, if to anyone at all, but it’s certainly captivating, and easily the highlight of the film – if indeed you make it that far.
Whether a few minutes of pleasure justifies enduring the other 80 minutes is debatable however, because it takes an eternity for the plot to find its feet, tripped up by an unexplained interest in photography, a cigarette smoking scene about as erotic as kissing an ashtray, To trying to convince the audience that men on crutches can climb ladders just as easily as those without (in fact, they can do everything just as well), an unpaid set-up involving a café owner that laughs at his customers, and not enough back-story or characterisation to convince us that the heroine/villain deserves such puppy-eyed adulation.
In its favour, Sparrow is able to walk a careful line between nostalgic crime-caper trappings (the damsel in distress, the sophisticated charmer, quirky side-kicks and goofy innocence) and modern, crime-riddled realism, even if it does frustrate with a fanciful feathered friend who is only too happy to be a flying metaphor. Where is that ginger cat when you need it? How it all ties together is anyone’s guess, and how the journey wasn’t as painful as this review sounds is a bigger crime than those witnessed throughout; in any case, it’s visually satisfying and bizarrely intriguing, with performances impossible to assess and a dreamlike experience suited to Sunday afternoon viewing.
Nestling snugly between his successes and failures, Johnnie To’s Sparrow almost falls fowl of the audience with a film that never really takes flight, and yet has enough magic to carry you through to its fascinating and equally perplexing finale. DW
Film: Pandemic
Year of production: 2009
UK Release date: 9th May 2011
Distributor: MVM
Certificate: 15
Running time: 130 mins
Director: Takahisa Zeze
Starring: Satoshi Tsumabuki, Rei Dan, Ryôko Kuninaka, Yûji Tanaka, Chizuru Ikewaki
Genre: Drama/Sci-Fi/Thriller
Format: DVD
Country of Production: Japan
Language: Japanese
Review by: Daryl Wing
Prolific Japanese auteur Takahisa Zeze (Flying Rabbits, Moon Child) is back with Pandemic, a harrowing film starring an impressive group of actors including Satoshi Tsumabuki (Dororo, The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift), Kanningu Takeyama (Memories Of Matsuko) and the much-celebrated Tatsuya Fuji (In The Realm Of The Senses, Empire Of Passion). Will this topical tale of a country threatened by a mysterious virus be the apocalyptic disaster movie it longs to be, or will it just be a calamity?
A lethal avian flu outbreak hits a small village in the Northern Philippines, with the team working to contain the virus hearing unconfirmed reports that one of the residents has left the village, taking a chicken with him. Three months later, a poultry farm on the outskirts of Tokyo is found to be infected.
At a nearby hospital, doctors quickly determine that the cause of a patient’s death is not avian flu, but something much, much worse – and early estimates suggest an outbreak of this deadly plague could infect Tokyo and kill 640,000 people within weeks.
As fear quickly spreads, medical researchers race to identify and isolate the virus, and to produce a vaccine. But the death toll begins to rise far quicker than anticipated. All flights are cancelled, resulting in mass panic and chaos, and in the middle of it all, the hospital where the virus was first discovered has become a war zone. Will anyone discover a cure before it’s too late?
An old proverb reads, better a little loss than a long sorrow. Director Takahisa Zeze takes these words of wisdom and spreads its message over 130 minutes of misery and sentimental claptrap. The message is clear, and delivered during the film’s final act (if you’re lucky enough to make it that far), but if you really must lose a fly to catch a trout, surely there are ways of making an apocalyptic thriller more exciting than replacing action and chills with hospital drama best left to daytime television. On this evidence, watching a trout eat a fly would actually make for more interesting viewing.
While the basic premise of this depressing tale might sound like a rehash of Wolfgang Peterson’s impressive Outbreak (1995), watching it unfold is something else entirely; shot on a small budget, with only a handful of impressive visuals towards the end of the film, as we witness Tokyo in all its desolate glory, this is perhaps the dullest disaster movie to ever grace our screens. Takahisa isn’t afraid to pull the rug from under our feet, and many characters we’ve gotten to know over the film’s duration are fatally discharged with considerable ease. It’s just a shame nobody cares. You certainly won’t be touched by it either; no matter how many times Zeze wheels out his pianist to remind us that a sad part is fast approaching.
If you’re of the opinion that any disaster film could be improved tremendously by the addition of such wonderfully touching dialogue similar to, “I’ve seen so many people die, now it’s my turn I’m scared,” and a doctor screaming “Why?” when the first victim dies, in a manner that suggests he’s never seen someone kick the bucket before, then Pandemic is the movie for you. You’ll be rewarded with a truly astonishing scene in which the only bright spark, Yuji Tanaka’s sweet nurse Mito, manages to not only keep hold of her mobile after being struck down by the deadly virus for a good ten minutes without anyone noticing, but she also sends a text message to her worried child from beyond the grave. A spoiler if ever there was one, but if it stops you from wasting two hours of your life on this tosh then you’ll be grateful in the long run.
Other failings include a lack of conflict that results in a lack of thrills, and each character’s willingness to help when some would surely be running for the exit creates a world that just isn’t very believable. Yes, it’s their job to preserve life, but this is one of the deadliest viruses known to man – a cure seemingly impossible. Wouldn’t someone sneak out the back door? The acting, a disappointment when you look at the impressive cast list, veers from average to poor then back again throughout, with some characters struggling to convince when English dialogue is required, while other performances, especially the European cameos, simply stink – they would look out of their depth on children’s television.
The biggest problem, though, is a complete lack of empathy for any of the characters. Too many times Takahisa ditches characterization and back-story for scenes that fail to move the story forward. He introduces a romance that doesn’t satisfy, tells a story without a hint of humour, which would go some way to making this experience more pleasurable, not to mention the simplest device to make his stars likeable, and bombards us with so much death you’ll be bored by the time another character succumbs. A film that’s more miserable than sad, Pandemic can’t be saved by pretty snowstorms and the pouring rain (Takahisa’s ultimately tiring party trick).
With an impressive cast and a premise to really pull at the heartstrings, Takahisa Zeze ditches the thrills, chaos and menace a deadly virus could bring to the operating table, replacing them with a plot so slow-paced it’s probably not even worth checking for a pulse – catching a cold is more fun than this coma-inducing disaster of a movie. DW
Film: Confessions
Year of production: 2010
UK Release date: 25th April 2011
Distributor: Third Window
Certificate: 15
Running time: 106 mins
Director: Tetsuya Nakashima
Starring: Takako Matsu, Yukito Nishii, Kaoru Fujiwara, Masaki Okada, Yoshino Kimura
Genre: Drama/Horror/Thriller
Format: DVD & Blu-ray
Country of Production: Japan
Language: Japanese
Adapted from the award-winning debut novel by Kanae Minato, still high on the sugar-coated ripples of critical acclaim with his previous features Kamikaze Girls and Memories Of Matsuko, genre-busting auteur Tetsuya Nakashima returns like a scalded cat with Confessions. Gone are his trademark candy-coloured worlds, replaced by a sinister universe contaminated by disease, bullying and murder. Will Nakashima’s delicious new direction hit the sweet spot once again, or will it leave the audience with sweet Fanny Adams?
Yuko Moriguchi (Takako Matsu) is a middle-school teacher whose 4-year-old daughter is found dead in the school’s swimming pool. Convinced that two of her students were responsible for her daughter's murder, she returns to her classroom and begins a final lesson the students will never forget.
Referring to the killers as Student A and Student B, Yuko’s ramblings are at first treated as tommyrot by the children half-listening to her inane drivel. Then she reveals that two of the cartons of milk they had been drinking prior to her arrival have been laced with the HIV infected blood of her dead child’s father.
Confessions spill quicker than the milk, as each suspect reveals motives, allies, and a disturbing lack of sympathy. Will Yuko be satisfied with their acceptance of blame, knowing only too well that they aren’t old enough to be truly punished for their actions, or will she decide to end her teaching career by going out with a bang?
All films should be this pretty. Exploring the dark side of adolescence with wit and delicacy, Confessions creates a disturbingly bleak atmosphere that more than compensates for a sparse plot, further complimented by an indie soundtrack and stunning visuals by Director Tetsuya Nakashima. A film more about mood than substance, ordinary teen irritants are blended with the extreme so seamlessly here it’s frightening, as we see when, early on, Student A (a chilling turn by Yukito Nishii as Shuya) reveals his unrivalled genius by creating contraptions to torture cats and dogs and another electrifying invention to stop purse snatchers.
The other students may be flirting with the opposite sex and questioning the joys of puberty, but apart from an orchestrated fling halfway through proceedings, Shuya is far too busy devising ways to inflict pain and suffering on those that have failed to spot his superiority, praying the mother that abandoned him finally will. Meanwhile, Student B (Naoki) is so disgusted with himself for allowing his trust to be abused, he accepts his punishment, takes it on the chin, then spends the rest of the film transforming into a caveman, intent on scrubbing away any past mistakes - his mud-encrusted body a constant reminder of the horrors that fell before.
It’s certainly a haunting tale that will linger long in the memory, helped by a dry sense of humour running all the way through it (the students rendition of KC Band’s ‘That’s The Way I Like It’ is absolutely brilliant), with gruesomeness and giggles combining perfectly, culminating in a genuinely explosive denouement.
Takako Matsu’s performance as the scarred teacher is deftly restrained: her intense opening monologue is so gripping you’ll question how thirty minutes have zipped by. But Nakashima masters such a lengthy confession with ease, cutting to cold and harsh visual flashbacks, classroom mayhem and a self-contained story so beautiful it’s almost a disappointment when the new term begins.
With a script that feels like it’s followed Robert McKee’s best-selling book ‘Story’ to the letter, Confessions uses the principles of screenwriting to great effect - especially in the way of structure, with its perfectly placed inciting incident and rollercoaster second act leading to the chilling climax. Clearly helped by an artist who has already mastered the form, Nakashima soaks Kanae Minato’s script in such lush imagery you’ll gladly drown in its dreamy slo-mo sequences (at its stunning best in the pouring rain), entwined with wide-eyed acts of violence that will make the journey uncomfortable but compelling. The violence may not always be graphic in nature, upsetting any gore hunters amongst you, but although pleasantly understated, when it does inevitably fall, it certainly makes a bigger splash than the painfully poetic demise of Yuko’s daughter.
Without showing anything overtly, Confessions projects an atmosphere of palpable evil and menace with minimal locations and fuss. Fine-tuned characterizations help a plot structure that could become confusing if not dealt with so brilliantly, but this sophisticated shocker is slightly let down only by the plot’s thinness. It's not a massive problem. In the end, it allows Nakashima to intersect the action with some wonderful sequences (helped along by cracking melodies from Radiohead, The XX and Japanese superstars Boris), each subtle moment adding depth to plot, characters and back stories with superb realism, never allowing the viewer's mind to wander.
This, of course, is also a horror, so add to all this gripping drama the countless memorable scenes that surprise with their sudden brutality (Shuya cutting himself in class to terrify the haters or the cuteness and foreboding doom of a kitten with its mother), mix in some brilliant performances, especially by the children (it’s easy to see why the whippersnappers are often treated badly in Asian cinema – who in their right mind would want to teach this lot), and it’s obvious the only confession this movie needs to make is that it will blow you away.
Certain to be remade by a Hollywood studio, bursting with inventive visuals and a slew of nasty surprises, Confessions is a beautiful piece of work harmonized with a cracking soundtrack, brilliant screenplay and wonderful performances. Put simply, the best film of 2011. DW
