Excessive Torture in a Female Prison Camp (1983)
GUN AND SWORD: An Encyclopedia of Japanese Gangster Films 1955-1980 Paperback
Cold Fish (2010)
Shamoto, a quiet, bullied owner of a small tropical fish shop, lives an existence of unhappy mediocrity until he meets Murata, a charismatic, rich man with a much larger tropical fish shop. When Shamoto enters into a shady business deal with Murata and his wife, he discovers that beneath the gleaming facade there is something very wrong with his new friends.
Inventively gory, visually extreme and blackly comedic, Cold Fish is quite definitely the creation of controversialist Sion Sono. An unrelenting and revelrous romp through the darker aspects of the human psyche - in true Sono style - Cold Fish is quite a ride. Don't say you weren't warned.
D Sion Sono P Yoshinori Chiba, Toshiki Kimura S Sion Sono, Yoshiki Takahashi WS Nikkatsu L Japanese w/English subtitles TD 35mm/2010
Audition (1999)
Made by the ridiculously prolific Takashi Miike (who also made a TV miniseries, two TV movies and three other feature films in the same year) it's a film best approached with little foreknowledge. It inspired lesser film-makers to make plenty of violent, empty gestures of movies. But Miike has a message within Asami's madness, without which the film wouldn't hit as hard as it does. The final minutes are as unbearable as film can get.
Onibaba (The Criterion Collection)
A curse hangs over Kaneto Shindo's primal Japanese classic like a looming storm cloud, but the supernatural has got nothing on the desperation and savagery of the human animal trying to survive the horrors of war. In 16th-century Japan, a hardened middle-aged woman and her young daughter-in-law have turned predator to survive, murdering the soldiers who wander into the sea of pampas grass surrounding their hut and selling their weapons for rice. When their war-deserter neighbor returns home and makes his moves on the young woman, their numb equilibrium is complicated by greed, jealousy, and lust. The consequences are terrible and not exactly surprising, but they are gripping. Shindo's unnerving close-ups, bobbing handheld camerawork, and soundtrack of pounding drums and howling flutes gives Onibaba a queasy intensity. Shooting in stark black and white, he makes even the waving of the grass look ominous as it all but swallows everyone who enters.
Kwaidan (The Criterion Collection)
A masterpiece of filmmaking artifice and mood-setting atmosphere, Kwaidan consists of four ghost stories adapted from the fiction of Greek-born Lafcadio Hearn (a.k.a. Yakumo Koizumi, 1850-1904), who assimilated into Japanese culture so thoroughly that his writings reveal no evidence of Western influence. So it is that these four cinematic interpretations--perhaps more accurately described as tales of spectral visitation--are sublimely Japanese in tone and texture, created entirely in a studio with frequently stunning results. There are painterly images here that remain the most beautiful and haunting in all of Japanese cinema, presented with the purity of silent film, sparsely accompanied by post-synchronized sounds and music (by Toru Takemitsu) that enhance the otherworldly effect of director Masaki Kobayashi's meticulous imagery. When viewed in a receptive frame of mind, Kwaidan can be intensely hypnotic.
Each of the four stories find their protagonists confronted by spirits that compel them to (respectively) make amends for past mistakes, maintain vows of silence, satisfy the yearnings of the undead, or capture phantoms that remain frightfully elusive. As each tale progresses, their supernatural elements grow increasingly intense and distant from the confines of reality. With careful use of glorious color and wide-screen composition, Kwaidan exists in a netherworld that is both real and imagined, its characters never quite sure they can trust what they've seen and heard. Vastly different from the more overt shocks of Western horror, the film casts a supernatural spell that remains timelessly effective. --Jeff Shannon
Hero of Shaolin DVD
That being said, I was very excited to hear about Terracotta’s new imprint label Classic Kung Fu, and their plans to bring a series of films to UK DVD for the first time. Sadly, the label’s first release has proven to be something of a let down.
The story being told in 1984’s Hero of Shaolin is fairly typical. Four brothers, three of whom are Buddhist monks while the eldest (Alexander Lo Rei) has been refused entry to the order, find themselves framed for the murder of the abbot. They go on the run, pursued by both their evil former master and by bounty hunters.
Unfortunately, simple as this story is, Hero of Shaolin - perhaps better known as Ninja Vs Shaolin Guard – struggles to tell communicate it in an engaging manner. The brothers are broadly drawn and lack personality, beyond Eldest Brother’s seriousness and Third Brother’s contrasting, supposedly comic, silliness.
An attempt at a love story fares little better. As a character development it’s flat and perfunctory, and it certainly adds nothing to the action scenes either, as love interest Ah-mei is the only character who doesn’t get in on the fights.
The mugging performances don’t help. This isn’t uncommon with kung fu movies of this vintage, but it’s still irksome, and especially when an English language dub is the only audio option.
Alexander Lo Rei may prove to be a notable, memorable onscreen presence, but perhaps that’s thanks to his ridiculous eyebrows rather than his acting. He’s also great fighter, but certainly have the charisma of a Jackie Chan or a Gordon Liu.
The most distinctive character, a creepy eunuch of dubious affiliation, sadly has little to do and disappears from the film in pretty short order.
The filmmaking is also quite slapdash. Hero of Shaolin was clearly made on a low budget, but there are errors that have more to do with a lack of care than a lack of cash. The editing is particularly problematic, with cuts often being poorly paced and awkward. It frequently feels as though a few frames from the end of one shot and the start of another have been lost, giving the film a jagged abruptness.
This may be less prevalent in the film’s many fight scenes, but even there, when its arguably most needed, the editing isn’t entirely fluid.
Many of those criticisms would fall by the wayside if the film impresses with its action choreography and performances. It’s certainly true that there’s a lot of action, packing a good hours worth into a slim 86 minute running time. Most of this action is rather well executed, with the notable exception of some infrequent but extremely obvious wire work.
This film is at its best during longer exchanges of technique, whether that’s horseplay between the brothers, or Lo Rei’s climactic battle with his former master. It’s in these sequences that director Mai Chen Jsai gets to have some fun.
One particularly notable shot looks straight up from the ground as one of the brothers fights a female ninja over the lens. This is an angle we don’t often see on a fight.
There’s also a fair amount of variation in the choreography. Comedic scenes near the start establish the relative levels of mastery between the brothers before things turn serious – at least until a rather silly, but hugely entertaining, fight in a graveyard towards the end.
Ultimately, the film does become little more than a series of tenuously linked fights, but it’s hard to hold that against it when the quality is at its peak: the Abbot’s seated fight with the ninjas is a standout; as is the confrontation with the female ninja, who gets to perform some of the best action in the film.
While the final fight suffers from its editing as well as a lack of well-stoked anticipation for the villain, the final fight scene proves pretty effective. It’s an excitingly choreographed one-on-one contest, and there’s some clever prop use built in. This fight seems to have been influenced by some of Jackie Chan‘s early Golden Harvest work, and that’s never a bad thing.
All of the martial arts performers acquit themselves well, though the overly technical style and pacing of the combat might feel slow moving, especially when compared to some of its contemporaries. Hero of Shaolin was made around the same time as Shaw’s 8 Diagram Pole Fighter and Sammo Hung‘s Wheels on Meals, bI’m a big fan of the UK distributor Terracotta. They’ve done a lot for the profile of Asian films and filmmakers in the UK, and I was excited to hear that they would be adding a series of classic kung fu films to their schedules. Sadly this is disappointing release, even beyond the fact that this film itself is no classic, .ut both of those pictures leave this one looking rather stiff and old hat.
On the positive side, Hero of Shaolin is presented in widescreen at approximately 2.35:1, which would appear to be how it was intended. The broad frame compositions sometimes work wonders, particularly in larger scale action scenes.
For most martial arts films, all available soundtracks are a dub of some kind as they were usually shot without sound, but this disc features on a rather cheesy and badly synced English language track. For some that will be a draw, but I’ve never found English dubs anything but annoying. I’d be intrigued to know whether Cantonese or Mandarin tracks were ever produced and, presuming so, why one or the other isn’t on this release.
Even taking into account the film’s age, Hero of Shaolin could look a lot better. On a 37 inch screen, run through my blu ray player, the image quality was soft overall and the detail was limited.
There are also some infrequent, occasionally serious examples of print damage – see below – and compression artefacts.
I’d still guess that this is the best looking home release this film has ever seen, but I would have liked to see more care and, ideally, a proper restoration, and particularly since this was the first title in a new collection.
I’d say the picture quality here is comparable to the early work of Hong Kong Legends, on discs which are now around 15 years old.
There are very few supplements. A trailer for Hero of Shaolin - under another alternate title, Guard of Shaolin – shows how much worse the picture quality might have been. The only other film-specific extra is a stills gallery, drawn straight from the transfer, and this does little but show off the compression artefacts more clearly.
There are also some extras related to Terracotta in general, with a page of online links and trailers for other releases – though nothing hints what else may be coming up in the Classic Kung Fu series.
Overall, this is a disappointing and underwhelming package, offering an average film with a weak transfer. I was hoping for a fine launch for what I was hoping would be an exciting new imprint. Hopefully Terracotta and Kung Fu Classics will pull something better out of their bag next time.
Shaolin Intruders (1983)
I liked this movie a lot... There's not much I can say that hasn't already been covered by Brian Camp. He covered everything, maybe more than you needed to know.
I thought it was great that he mentioned Lau Yuk-Pok (aka Liu Yu-Po, aka Liu Yu-Pu). He's right, she wasn't in a lot of films. For those who are searching for a little more info about her, i'll input the best I know of.
She was born in Taiwan on May 3rd 1963. She joined Shaw Brothers at their invitation in the 80's and played in "Winner Takes All", "Rolls, Rolls, I Love You", "Shaolin Prince", "Shaolin Intruders", "The Weird Man", "Portrait in Crystal", "Secret Service of the Imperial Court", "New Tales of the Flying Fox", "Butcher", "Thunderclap" and "Qin Yong (aka A Terra-Cotta Warrior)". She returned to Taiwan in 1985 after finishing "Qin Yong", and started a career in TV drama. Later she married Chang Chien-Chung, who worked in an advertising agency, and eventually emigrated to the United States.
In 1991, they gave up their careers to become missionaries. In 2001, she became a writer and published two books about herself as a mother and a patient (I would assume "cancer patient" but cant find a definite answer). She died on May 11th 2009. There's some commentary on the Celestial DVD edition of Shaolin Intruders about her.
Flying Fists of Kung Fu - 12 Movie Set
Brace yourself for bare-knuckled, pulse pounding, adrenaline pumping Kung-Fu Films! These cult classic Kung-Fu Films are hard to find and sure to delight fans of the martial arts genre. Knock yourself out with this collection of 12 fist flying flicks!
Striking Kung-Fu Stars: Tien-chi Cheng(The Fearless Hyena), Chiu Chen(Kids of Shaolin), Wei Tung(Hero), Dragon Lee(Dragon on Fire), John Liu(The Invincible Armour), Donnie Yen(Ip Man), Chang Yee&(Exit the Dragon, Enter the Tiger)
Dragon Dynasty's Ultimate Kung Fu 4 Pack Box Set
Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man (1975)
Ruggero Deodato is a director known for making hard films, filled with violence and cynicism. His impressive cop thriller, "Live Like A Cop, Die Like A Man", is no exception. Alfredo and Antonio belong to a special branch of the Rome police department. They are given the hard cases, having to deal with the lowest criminal scum around. Their methods of dealing with the criminal element are certainly not standard procedure, as we see early in the film. The 'bad guys' who have the utter misfortune of having to deal with Fred and Tony, do not get handcuffed and have their rights read to them. Deodato, most known for a contemptuous piece of cinema called 'Cannibal Holocaust', has fashioned a stylish crime drama, filled with interesting and unusual characters. The viewer gets to know the two vigilante cops, who seem to be operating on the same wavelength. They cruise around on a motorcycle together, kill and torture bad guys together, even live together. They share the same cynical attitude towards life and death. There is a real bond there, and that relationship elevates this to a higher level. It is fun to watch these two in action, cocky and sexist bastards that they are, but somehow likable. Filmed with a great deal of energy and style. The opening scene, a wild motorcycle chase through the streets of Rome, sets the tone for the rest of the film. And the music is worth mentioning, some great background music, typical of the 70's time period, compliments the action. Deodato often had a strange habit of using the most inappropriate music to go along with the extreme violence happening on the screen. Soft ballads were often heard as people got beaten and murdered, or sexy disco music complimented a brutal rape, such as in "House On the Edge Of the Park". It somehow makes the brutal imagery all the more sick and twisted. For 'Live Like A Cop' actor Ray Lovelock who portrays Antonio, sings the main theme for the film. Great stuff. In America at this time, a TV show called 'Starsky & Hutch' was doing well. A cop show that featured two handsome partners, one blond and the other dark haired, much like the two heroes of this film. Perhaps that TV show was an influence, but the movie was made before 'Starsky & Hutch' was shown on Italian TV, so who knows? Up until recently "Uomini Si Nasce Poliiziotti Si Muore" was super-rare, almost impossible to find on video. Highly recommended for fans of 70's exploit films and crime films. There were countless cop thrillers to come out of Italy in this time, but this stands out as one of the best, and certainly one of the most brutal.
Naked Comes The Huntress (1978)
A slightly bizarre, and all the more entertaining for it, film, more of a drama / thriller, than a martial arts film, although there are a couple of nicely (sammo hung) choreographed sequences. The film moves at a quick pace and has several twists and turns which work really well, keeping you on your toes. The use of the rural location, mainly in winter, works really well and adds something else to the ambience of the film's first act. Oh, and carrie lee is kinda cute...
