Yodariquo said:
When I saw the comment in the update section and it said Amelie I instantly knew the poster, I have absolutely no clue what the movie is about nor have I seen one second of footage. But that poster I know.
I love Amelie, especially the music and the digitally enhanced visually stunning version of Paris.
In case you haven't already seen them, I wholeheartedly recommend Jeanneut and Carot's first two films: Delicattessen and City of Lost Children both of which I consider masterpieces of cinema
___
Listen to Wu-Tang and watch Kung-Fu
Dvader said:
It's a French Shawshank made by a superior director.
Thanks to GG, I picked up Tai Chi Zero and Hero.
When I watched Amelie I thought I'd love it. I ended up giving the whole thing a funny weird look.
bugsonglass said:In case you haven't already seen them, I wholeheartedly recommend Jeanneut and Carot's first two films: Delicattessen and City of Lost Children both of which I consider masterpieces of cinema
I always wanted to see them, but Amelie put me off a bit. And sometimes french films are a little too weird, even for me. Meserine is pretty good.
edgecrusher said:Thanks to GG, I picked up Tai Chi Zero and Hero.
As in rented?
gamingeek said:When I watched Amelie I thought I'd love it. I ended up giving the whole thing a funny weird look.
This look?
More like this:
City of Violence - Korea - Martial arts thriller
Story: A detective fighting organized crime, returns to his hometown for his friends funeral. At the funeral, he meets his old friends. Suspecting something fishy about Wang-jae's death, Tae-su and Seok-hwan start investigating it each in his own way. Both of their investigations lead to a land development project that Pil-ho is directing and the two embark on a difficult battle.
From the director of Arahan, this is a watchable, but average movie that somehow peaks in the last half hour with a brilliant Kill Bill 1 topping fight scene, when the two friends bust into a mob hideout and fight a couple of hundred people, at once.
Rating: B
Sword of the Stranger - Japan - Original animated Samurai movie
Story: A swordsman from a strange land is caught in a struggle between morality, righteousness, and devotion as he reluctantly agrees to take a raggedy boy and his dog to a remote, Buddhist temple.
From the studio that brought you Fullmetal Alchemist. Although initially fairly uninteresting for the most part, the film eventually builds to the final half hour confrontation. It's difficult to describe to those who haven't seen Bones studios' work on FMA, but the way everything is animated just feels vibrant, alive and flowing. The whole sequence has some epic music and the atmosphere is vivid. That convinced me to watch the movie through twice and I enjoyed it more the second time.
Rating: A
Sympathy for Lady Vengeance aka Lady Vengeance - Korean - Revenge Drama
Story: After thirteen and half years in prison for kidnapping and murdering a boy Geum-ja Lee is released and plots revenge against the real killer. With the support of former inmates from prison, Geum-ja seeks an unattained redemption with her vengeance.
Tragic, poetic, beautiful, inventive and stark. Sympathy for Lady Vengeance sits in my top 5 favourite movies of all time. The directing, the way the scenes are cut or blend into each other is a showpiece, the Korean classical music (so good in many other Korean films) you'll hum for days to come. In many ways Lady Vengeance feels like Park Chan Wook is just playing with other directors, laying down the gauntlet to them.
Be careful about what version you rent/buy though, the original intention was for the film to gradually fade to black and white halfway through the movie. That was axed for release but some distributors have released the dvd in only the fade to black and white version, only they don't tell you this on the box. The UK dvd fades to black and white, whilst the region 3 version I had before is in full colour. Needless to say, the black and white is distracting and takes away from the film.
Rating: A+
Infernal Affairs 3 - Hong Kong - Thriller
Story: Months after the events of the original film, Ming suspects a police superintendent as being a new mole for the triads, while years earlier, Yan embarks on his first mission.
What the hell happened? If you expected a perfect end to the trilogy well.... look elsewhere. Set directly after the events in Infernal Affairs 1, you might realise why this movie is a bad idea SPOILER virtually the entire main cast was killed in IA1 END SPOILER here we deal with a Andy Lau, haunted by events, doing his best losing his mind act. It's a bad film and lets down the brand, sadly.
Rating: D-
Arahan - Korea - Martial arts Comedy
Story: When a thief steals a purse, a clumsy, naive and honest rookie policeman runs after him, only to be injured when a beautiful female martial artist captures the thief instead. She brings Sang-hwan to her home, where the six Masters of Tao heal him and believe that he has a powerful Qi, the spiritual energy of the universe, and could be a powerful warrior.
Contrary to the image the poster above is trying to convey - Arahan is pretty much an out and out comedy that has more in common with Kung Fu Hustle than anything else. As a pure entertainment junk food movie it's pretty successful at what it's trying to do. Set in the urban jungle these martial artists have quasi superhero like powers.
Rating: B
SPL (Sha Po Lang) aka Killzone (U.S name) - Hong Kong - Modern urban martial arts thriller
Story: A near retired inspector and his unit are willing to put down a crime boss at all costs while dealing with a replacement inspector who is getting in their way. Meanwhile, the crime boss plots a killing spree on them.
In 80s and 90s Hong Kong there were tons of modern day urban martial arts movies. Somewhere along the line they forget to make them and moved onto historical period pieces, mostly because of the Chinese market and censorship. SPL once threatened to herald a renaissance in the genre, but you see Thailand taking on the baton instead. SPL is a glossy looking, neon lit crime movie with some great staging and punchy martial arts scenes. Sammo Hung's in it too. 
A spiritual sequel is underway.
Rating: A
Woochi: The Demon Slayer - Korea - Fantasy/Comedy
Story: Jeon Woo-chi, an undisciplined womanizing Taoist from the Joseon era, ends up in present day Korea causing mayhem with his knack for magic.
It may start off as vaguely confusing but this lighthearted popcorn movie is big in the entertainment stakes. It's a classic fish out of water comedy, placing a ancient world magician in modern day Korea.
Rating: B+
I Saw the Devil - Korea - Serial Killer Thriller
Story: After a serial killer murders his fiancee, a secret agent tracks him down, shoves a GPS down his throat and exacts repeated, bloody vengeance
Dark, nihilistic, original and gripping, I Saw the Devil is a violent and bloody thriller, up there with Seven as one of the best serial killer pics you'll ever see.
Rating: A+
I couldn't decide between an A or A+ so I gave it a plus, as in its genre it's at the top.
Fairy Tail - Japan - Action Adventure Comedy- Anime Series - English dub
Story: Lucy, a 17 year old girl, sets out on journey to become a full-fledged wizard and joins the strongest and most (in)famous guild FAIRY TAIL where she meets Natsu, Happy, Gray and Erza, who treat her more like family than friends. This epic series takes us through all the dangers that the members of fairy tail face and eventually overcome through mutual love and friendship.
There's an epic moment in Fairy Tail, when the whole guild smashes into a rival guild for revenge - the message? You don't f*** with Fairy Tail or their friends, or they'll f*** you up. Fairy Tail is mostly an unabashedly fun and lighthearted show most of the time. But is has the ability to turn on a dime into something more meaningful and epic. To rachet up the emotions and wrap you up in its fantasy world.
Rating: A+ for fun
Note: Doesn't get great till episode 17-ish when more backstory is referenced
The Night Watch - Russia - Fantasy Horror
The Day Watch - Russia - Fantasy Horror
Story: A fantasy-thriller set in present-day Moscow where the respective forces that control light and dark do battle. Dark and Light wizards have set a balance in ancient times to co-exist with humankind. And each has a watch like a police watch and rules on what they can and cannot do. Until some try to change things...
Based on an excellent series of novels (I highly recommend), The Night Watch has been described as an adult Harry Potter. Having read the books, I find the comparison slightly unflattering to The Night Watch which is a better read. Anyhow the movie is slick trip down the rabbit hole into an alternative world with its own rules, powerful mages, vampires and more. It also has a good sequel, but they never got around to continuing, covering even more of the books.
Rating: A
Shaolin - China - Martial Arts Drama
Story: China is plunged into strife as feuding warlords try to expand their power by warring over neighboring lands. Fuelled by his success on the battlefield, young and arrogant Hao Jie sneers at Shaolin's masters after killing a rival warlord on their temple grounds. But the glory comes before a fall...
The only good Benny Chan film in over a decade, as pure entertainment fluff, Shaolin is pretty great. Featuring Jackie Chan being awesome, Andy Lau being awesome and a truly explosive ending, Shaolin turned out better than anyone really expected it would.
Rating: B+
Men Suddenly in Black - Comedy
Story: When their wives and girlfriends travel abroad for the weekend, a group of guys undertake increasingly desperate attempts at getting laid. Only the wives begin suspecting them and hunt them down like dogs.
Racously funny out and out comedy that I'm surprised hasn't been remade by Hollywood. Even better if you've seen Infernal Affairs.
Rating: A
I wouldn't say that, but it's certainly a lot better than the film.