Open City

Rating: PG
Running time: 114 minutes
Now out on DVD

Some info:
1) Synopsis (from KoreanMovie.com)
2) IMDB Profile
3) Official Site (Korean)

Although I put the rating as PG, that’s only my own deduction based on other titles listed as South Korea-15 on IMDB. Yeah well, but this movie does contain violence, some blood scenes here and there as well as some attempt in including sexual content though really, it’s nothing explicit. If only there’s a rating between PG and NC-16. Heh.

Anyway, KoreanMovie has done quite an excellent job in summarising the main plot devices used in this 2 hour movie. Actually, there are also 2 reviews posted at the end of the synopsis page, but it’s 1 huge chunk of text, making it rather difficult to read. Lol.

Firstly, what’s decent/good about this movie is that in this crime thriller, the baddies are organised syndicates of pickpockets, something which rarely used (if at all. I don’t seem to recall any that I’ve watched). There are some “demonstrations” as to how they prey on their victims, and the things they could and will do in the event that their cover is blown or when someone tries to stop them etc. I’m not exactly sure how realistic the portrayal is, but some of the actions look rather plausible to be pulled off in an actual crowd.

For everything else, it’s probably mediocre at best. I didn’t exactly find the rest of the plot very interesting. A lot of it deals with the various syndicates and their territory issues. The backstabbing, the scheming actions against one another. That’s for the baddies part. As for the main lead, who’s a cop investigating all the pickpockets, has a little more “complicated” role since his mom was once caught pickpocketing and belongs to the syndicate run by the female lead. Well, of course you can expect some emotional drama between the mother and son, which unfortunately ends quite tragically. At the end, only the cop is left while the other important people are essentially all dead. Heh.

Overall, it isn’t a very nice movie to watch. Though the pickpocket idea is something not over-used, the story part is simply lacking, My take: 5.5/10.

Byousoku 5cm

Japanese title: 秒速5センチメートル
Number of episodes: 1 (Movie)

Some info:
1) Official Site (Yahoo!) (Japanese)
2) Official Site (Japanese)
3) Wiki
4) ANN

One of the hyped anime movies last year. It may come as a surprise to some of you, but this is the first piece of work by Shinkai Makoto that I’ve watched. He’s known for his other works such at Voices of a Distant Star and Beyond The Clouds, The Promised Place. I’ll probably try to get my hands on them some time in the future since I’m deeply impressed by the quality of this movie. =D To think I delayed watching this movie for almost a year. Bleh.

Aside from the hype that I hear about, I did see trailers and previews here and there in early 2007. They were no doubt streamed online, but I was already blown away by the quality of the animation. It’s so beautiful that I was literally at a loss of words at that point in time. I knew I just had to watch this in full when it came out. Haha. Besides, I probably have a lower appreciation of it as I (supposedly) can’t appreciate colours and stuff as well as a person with normal vision. Heh.

Anyway, this movie isn’t very long, clocking at a little over an hour. It consists of 3 short stories that do have a link that connects all of them together. The story is rather simple, yet in simplicity there’s beauty. There’s something about the show that I can’t really put in words but the feeling is great! The characters do get to express themselves well even though the movie isn’t that long. Each of the stories convey messages of their own - about people, relationships and distances among them.

The theme song is also very nice! The integration of it into the movie towards the end and the way it was edited made it look like a music video yet still showing stuff related to the storyline. There’s also a special video edited (official) that has the theme song with different footages as background. Certainly an enjoyment to hear the song (lyrics are nice~) as well as seeing the way the animation is integrated nicely.

Overall, I think this is another masterpiece coming from the anime industry. I bet there are already many people who have watched this and liked it. This recommendation may come a little late, but this is one of those that I consider a must-watch. =D

The Art of Seduction

Rating: PG
Running time: 100 minutes

Some info:
1) Wiki
2) IMDB Profile

As suggestive as the title of the movie may appear to be, the movie doesn’t contain anything explicit. Haha. Anyway, the story is about these 2 people who are supposedly very good at dating and seducing members of the opposite sex, but they often get bored of their “prey” after a while and always think of ideas to dump these people.

As predictable as it is, their paths (finally) cross, and they need to bring out their very best tricks and skills in order not to “lose” to the other party. Well, at least it becomes a decent source for comedy and entertainment, seeing them pitting against each other and coming up with weird (but funny) tricks. Lol. Anyway, along the way, the 2 of them realise that they have actually fallen for each other (lol, predictable also) but just don’t wanna be the first to give in and admit. I guess they got their pride and ego at stake. Heh.

While it is funny and entertaining at parts, I think some antics are just a little too fake and exaggerated. I mean, I don’t think it’d actually work in that manner and there’s no (major) backlash of any sort. Then again, I’m not in any position to comment right? Maybe it is really that illogical. Shrugs =P

As for the stars, sometimes I find their chemistry on-screen seems to be a little lacking. But I guess, overall it’s still not -that- bad lah. Haha. Oh, I also noticed that Pepsi should be an important sponsor of the movie since the Pepsi can appeared at least 4 or 5 times. Gosh. Haha.

Overall, it’s quite a predictable and simple movie bah. Quite funny and entertaining at times. My take: 5.5/10.

Sword of the Stranger

Japanese title: ストレンヂア －無皇刃譚－
Number of episodes: 1 (Movie)

Some info:
1) ANN
2) Wiki
3) Official Site (Japanese)

This is one cool movie with loads of actions, though story wise it’s very simple and ordinary. You might be guessing the 2 people in the picture featured above are the 2 main people who are gonna face off in the show. Well of course, they are, but the way they faced off isn’t exactly what I had in mind before I watched this awesome movie.

Well it’s not a surprise that these 2 men are uber powerful swordsman, well experienced in combat and pwns the average and the above average warriors in the show. The guy on the left has a past that left him hesitant to draw his sword, which he really doesn’t until much later into the show. Of course the reason behind this behaviour will be explained, and he finally decides to draw his sword once more to protect the kid he has developed a bond with. Sounds familiar? Haha.

Now for the other guy. He’s a westerner looking for a worthy opponent to fight with. Sounds familiar also right? Yeah well, he had actually sparred with the main character earlier in the show, but couldn’t finish enjoying himself before he was asked to stop and carry on with his duties. Haha. The final showdown was quite cool, though it’s a little short considering it’s something like the highlight of the show. For the reason why things ended up this way, the plot summary at ANN pretty much sums it up. Lol.

While it has kick-ass action and fighting scenes, some viewers might be put off by the explicit animated violence, although to me it’s nothing much bah. The sound effects also quite shiok, and matches the action very well to give a complete experience. Haha. The music is also very nicely composed for the movie, setting the mood, tension and atmosphere of the show. =)

If I were to find something to complain about, it’d be some of the Mandarin comments that some of the characters make. Since some of them are from China, they did speak some lines in Mandarin. Yeah, it’s not dubbed because they do put Japanese subtitles whenever those parts are being said, which is the usual practice for anime. Well, I don’t think my listening skills are that bad, but some of the lines spoken are quite bad. Not just the pacing but also the pronunciation. While some lines do sound like they were coming from ethnic Chinese speaking people, others sound like they were trying very hard to pronounce the word properly, hence making the dialogue sound rather weird. I guess it’s understandable since many of the voice actors/actresses are Japanese.

Oh well, in all I think this movie is still well worth watching. At least I enjoyed it a lot. =P

花花型警

English title: Playboy Cops

Rating: PG
Running time: 98 mins

Some info @ IMDB Profile

Lol, I must say the way the movie did its opening is rather unbelievable. A cop, Michael, (played by Shawn Yue) using stacks of cash to lure a small time solo robber. Man, even though he’s a son of a rich tycoon, this is a bit outrageous. Hahahaha. But ok lah, it certainly brought across the way he often uses to solve crimes and catch criminals, along with his attitude towards money etc. Due to his actions, he’s suspended from duty.

Since there’s a lack of helpful wiki article this time, I guess I’ll just comment a bit more on the story and *try* to summarise. Ok, so the other main lead is Lincoln (played by Chen Kun), who of course, is also a cop. And rich. While he’s another rich guy, he’s quite different in terms of personality from Michael. Maybe it’s because of his past as well as the recent death of his brother that partly shaped the way he is. For this guy, he’s bent on finding the murderer responsible for his brother’s death. In the end, Michael helps out using whatever connections he has, with the help of money of course.

Apart from that, Michael dislikes Lincoln mainly cause he sort of “snatched” his girlfriend, Lisa (played by Linda Chung) and is rather pissed off. So Michael kinda follows Lincoln everywhere to “keep an eye” on him. Hahaha. So well, they try to look for clues, but it leads to nowhere helpful. In fact they even got in trouble because of misleading clues (explained later on in the movie). As time goes by they realise they were actually being manipulated by someone who knows the both of them, and that’s why the show actually goes into something more concrete. Haha.

Turns out the mastermind behind all these is one of the staff of a high class club in which both of them are members, including Lincoln’s deceased brother. Wow, that guy was actually quite dedicated to his service job (portrayed earlier in the movie), but turns out he’s actually gone psychotic from all the nice “treatment” he got from arrogant and spoilt rich people. He’s out for revenge, and that’s how we get all of this mess in the show. Lol.

Of course, things do turn out fine in the end, except Michael dies. Well, he died quite “stylishly” though. Lol, the first case he solves without the abuse of his wealth (which is then gone cos his dad was declared bankrupt) and he dies. How ironic. Well then, that leaves Lisa with only Lincoln left, and they intend to name their unborn child Michael in remembrance of the efforts he put in to solve that case.

Well, enough of story summarising (gah so long). Some comments about the show. During the course of the show, it seems that the director (or maybe scriptwriter) tries to convey the message that money isn’t everything. Money can’t buy you your lost family members back. Money can’t buy relationships as you wish. While there’s many things you can do to move people in your favour with the power of the $$$, it isn’t everything in the world. Also, the people who stick to your spendthrift habits often will not give a hoot about you after you become a poor man.

Action wise, there are some fighting scenes, but not say ultra fantastic or anything. Ok lah, not bad also, but I’ve seen better. There’s also some blood and quite some violence shown, but it’s not very explicit (hence still getting the PG rating), so no worries for those who are turned off by gore and stuff.

Some questions come to mind towards the end of the movie. Firstly, all 3 of them are so busy handling the lunatic and trying to lessen the injuries they got from battling the mad man, so where did they find the time to alert the police? 2ndly, Lincoln was shot and clearly it injured him but it seems that he’s quite well and all, without any signs of being in pain. Did the bullet in his head numb his nervous system?

Pretty okay HK police & thief movie, though some parts really looked a little ridiculous. Lincoln’s personality is rather interesting while Michael’s character was given the chance to develop and grow, sadly only to end up dead. My take: 6/10