Seven Samurai

My brother and I checked this film out from the library when I was still in elementary school I believe. Around that time we had checked a few Asian films out like, The Last Emperor, Ran, and a several others I can't recall. Out of all of them Seven Samurai was the most astonishing. Now that I think about it I absolutely love that film. Seven Samurai and Rashamon are my two favorite Akira Kurosawa works and those are two that I'll forever hold close to me. Seven Samurai is in all fact better than some samurai films that are made even 50 years after the making of it. On top of that it stars a young Toshiro Mifune, along with Takashi Shimura, who are no strangers acting along side one another. Toshiro and Takashi starred in Kurosawa's Drunken Angel a few years before Seven Samurai was filmed. Seven Samurai is the one film that will open anyone up to the samurai genre as it did me.

In 16th century Japan, A village of farmers are terrorized by a group of bandits that constantly return to take their on grown produce so that they may eat leaving the farmers village with nothing. One day the villagers turn to their elder for guidance and he suggests hiring a samurai to teach them how to fight. With nothing but food as payment several of the villagers journey into town to find a samurai willing to help them. When are found and the group seems to have given up hope they run across an older samurai named Kambei (Takashi Shimura) who they spot saving a boy taken hostage by a thief. Kambei listens to the villagers plea, having been turned down by all the rest of the samurai, and joins but, requires they find more ronin to assist them on the task. Kambei and the villagers come across each warrior one by one with different traits to each of them and ask them to join along and leave for the village. While traveling back to the village the group of ronin and villagers are followed by a samurai named, Kikuchiyo (Toshiro Mifune), who refuses to be ignored and despite the will of the others trying to run him off, follows like a lost dog. Upon arrival into village the people cower in fear and flee to their homes. The samurai are offended and demand an explanation. At that moment an alarm is sounded and the people are run to the safety of the six samurai that are there and beg for them to protect them. No attack occurs and we see Kikuchiyo stepping away from the alarm he has raised a false alarm. He rebukes the cowardly villagers for running to the samurai for aid after first failing to welcome them to the village. Soon thereafter the training begins and the village prepares to go under siege to fight against the bandits.

One of what I feel is one of the world's most important films. If you're wanting to get into samurai films this is the one to start with. The film is carried across because, of the compelling story and the brilliant character acting of the cast. It's just amazing how well this film plays out, you'd think these actors had been previous samurai. One of my favorite scenes and favortie aspects of the film is Toshiro Mifune's character. This is the start of where my fan craze of him began. He portrays so many emotions in this film it's incredible. A joking wanderer who pesters the other samurai at the start of the film who goes on only to prove he's a very well thought out individual and intelligent. To see him break down into tears over the fact that he was once a farmer like the villagers he was protecting. Kurosawa saw something so incredibly blistering in Mifune and I'm glad to see that he rode with it and had him in a number of his films to come.

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Fat Girl

Fat Girl, the story of my life some (Nathan) would say. But, untrue though venturing through this film I can't help but find myself in a minimal notation sort of feeling some of her pain. It was actually quite painful to watch this because, this for everyone is a very harmful stage of a persons life to your psyche. Honestly, it especially happens when I'd see her piling food on her plate that towered over the rest of the others food or, getting a banana split when others are having coffee. Need I say some people have been in those situations? I know I have and I'm glad that awkwardness is gone. What provoked me to watch this finally is that recently I have been assessing my fatness and am actually doing something about it. It's a miracle that everyone seems so reluctant to try called, exercise. It really is a good feeling to feel all the sweat dripping away from you and know that it's like, "Rock it's dripping away" though I know that's not the whole process. 'The Burn' sets in and that's when it really gets to kicking.

Anaïs (Anaïs Reboux) and her older sister, Elena (Roxane Mesquida), are on vacationing in a seaside beach town of France become bored at home and wander out into town for beverages. On the way the girls talk about their virginity and Elena promiscuous behavior with her boyfriends. The two walk to an outside and they meet a young law student named, Fernando (Libero De Rienzo), who invites them to sit with him since the place is crowded. Elena and Fernando become very interested in one another and begining making out in front of Anaïs while she eats a banana split. Later, Fernando comes to the girls home to meet the parents and later sneaks into the bedroom where Anaïs and Elena sleep. Pretending to be asleep, Anaïs watches the whole episode while the two fondle each other and Fernando tries to convince Elena to have sex. She is reluctant at first but, Fernando explains to Elena that if he doesn't get what he wants from her he'll have no other choice but, to alleviate himself with the use of another girl. Elena is eventually talked into having anal sex as a proof of 'love' to Fernando. The two wake in the morning to learn that Anaïs was awake during it all and the two feel violated and Elena is infuriated and slaps Anaïs out of anger and calls her a bitch.

The story about half way appeals to me I guess along the means of being a childhood fatty and then trying to do everything my older sibling did. The sisterly bond is both excruciating and rewarding at the times it is necessary. The two reminisce about the old days and share their thoughts with one another while just a few short moments ago they were at one another's throats. Anaïs views on her virginity are totally adjacent to her elder sisters whom thinks that one should lose their virginity to someone they love and feel connected to, Anaïs on the other hand believes the first time should just be lost to some 'nobody' just to get it over with. I'm positive these kinds of things are harder on girls with all the pressure put on by peers and especially boys, hormones in guys being much more physically driven opposed to girls hormones usually leaning more towards emotional points of view. But, in Anaïs' case not so much I guess. The film definitely shift gears and it wasn't what I was (or for anyone else) thinking it was going to end up as. The ending is well worth watching this film if anything. Otherwise it's an extremely awkward film pertaining to those who have had, or have, weight problems because it might bring to the surface some of your own old bad memories.

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1984

As we all know and as usual George Orwell's book 1984 is always listed in most everyone's top favorite books. The book is an astonishingly shocking look into what Orwell thought that the future held and to my freight I could see bits and pieces out of the book that had actually happened with similar occurrences in real life today. One of them being the idea of using children as 'spies'. according to an article I read, UK children were going to be shown a video on how to spot a terrorist when they see one so they can report them to the authorizes. The book is nothing short of a masterpiece and the only reason I think a film was made out of the book is usually so they can get people to read the book or, at least that's what I try to tell myself. But, as always it's usually hard to take such a controversial and compelling book and make it into film.

In a totalitarian government run future, the people of what use to be called, Europe, now Oceania, has been waging war against Eurasia. The crumbling population of London are left to work under war conditions with rations and curfews while the Ministry of Truth and the poster boy for the ministry, Big Brother, keep an open eye on their every detail. and the Ministry of Truth watches their every move to make sure there is no traitor amidst in their numbers. Winston Smith (John Hurt) is one of the working few that keep the system going strong in it's everyday routine. Winston follows along with the daily routine as though he is a supporter of the Ministry and an ally of Oceania but, inside his soul is wrenched in turmoil and hatred towards Big Brother and the Ministry documenting everything in his journal that he bought of a antiques launderer. Winston starts to become what is called a 'thought-criminal'. One day, Winston begins to a notice a young woman named Julia (Suzanna Hamilton) watching him and being in his area more and more often and thinks that she is a spy for the Thought Police and becomes paranoid and imagines killing her. The woman confronts Winston and slips him a concealed note spelling out the message, "I love you" and telling him where to meet her. The two meet face to face in a forest outskirts area meant for hiking and immediately make love. The two begin to fall in love and share deep thoughts with one another about their past, future ambitions, and the hate of the government they both share.

The film more or less plays out more fixated on the story of Winston and Julia than it actually digs into the main plot and meaning of that the book does. It more or less skims the surface of the message Orwell was wanting to get out. It only starts to become most psychological towards the ending of the film. Basically, in this case the book is a much stronger medium for what this story sends across to the one interested in it. It was a love story on top of the world George Orwell had created where as in the book, the love between Winston and Julia was like an act of anarchy and symbolism of real love that could still exist even in the bleakest hours of the human race. You felt more compelled and emotionally attached to Winston and Julia because it was more personal. The film even skipped over the more important aspects of the book that maybe would have shed some more light on the actually film for folks that didn't fully understand it. I know that some cases like with books such as Trainspotting, A Clockwork Orange, or the Shinning, it's an entirely different medium but, in the case of 1984 , it didn't work out. I honestly think the film adaptation of Animal Farm was better than this one. Some of the images they brought to life like the ever watchful eyes of Big Brother was a definite good touch but the rest was just a failed 80s grit film attempt to make another forgettable piece of work.

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The Machine Girl

I had discovered this film in one of my Rue Morgues. I hadn't ever found the time to get around reading it's article but, I read the highlights and the shots they had in the article were very intriguing. Soon after, I had heard of the film by the same team Tokyo Gore Police and God, what a sight that film turned out to be. So, I kind of went backwards with these creators films but, I don't honestly inflicted any thought block to which one would turn out to be better than the other. But, in all honestly I prefered Tokyo Gore Police
just because of the shear fact that this film was whacked out of it's fucking mind. Literally, not to say that the Machine Girl
was a bad film it was actually very original, as most Japanese films are, and incredibly entertaining. Not to mention the Japanese girls they get to play in this film are mind-blowingly cute.

Ami (Minase Yashiro) and her younger brother, Yu (Ryôsuke Kawamura) are orphaned after their parents are accused of being murderers and take their own lives due to the allegations appointed against them. Ami and Yu continue to live on their own and continue with life on their own. Yu asks Ami to borrow some money for a new game and in return promises he'll do his chores and hers until he pays her off and Ami agrees. Yu and his friend, Takeshi runs off with the money to a young Yakuza heir, Sho (Nobuhiro Nishihara), who is holding his dignity and self pride for ransom and demands payment for no reason whatsoever and instead of the money he demands Ami so she can work as a whore in his fathers brothel. Sho wants nothing more than to see the suffering of Yu unfold. Yu becomes increasingly upset and Ami begins to notice but, Yu refuses to tell her what is the matter. The following day Ami tries to follow Yu but, it stopped short by a gang that tries to rape her and keep her from following Yu. Meanwhile, Yu and Takeshi confronts Sho and tries to defeat him to defend his sister and keep her from become Sho's sex slave. Sho and his thugs overpower Yu and Takeshi and throw them over a ledge, murdering them. Yu catches up to where Yu was going only to find him sprawled on the ground dead. Yu immediately seeks revenge on her brothers killers and finds her way to the house of Ryûji Kimura (Kentaro Shimazu), Sho father, in order to kill Sho. Yu is captured and slowly tortured by Sho's father and mother. In the process Yu's left arms is accidentally hacked off by a samurai sword and is left alive to be further tortured in the morning. During the night Yu escapes and runs to a garage that was owned and run by Yu's friend Takeshi's parents and passes out where she is found later by the parents. Takeshi's parents learn the truth behind their sons death and vow revenge along with Ami and train her to become strong and defeat the Kimura family. As, a final present from them they create her a new grafted arm that is a machine gun so she can kick more ass.

The girl that is classified as being machine isn't fully machine she does make up for it with the machine gun arm so the title is a bit misleading. Truly a porno for the ones whom are gore freaks though not as gory as it's successor Tokyo Gore Police for sure. I really enjoy what these guys are doing in terms of film the films are very disgustingly gorgeous both in thought and execution as far as imagination goes. Everything from Tempura fried arms to a human finger sushi these guys have it all. The film is loaded with black humor and the acting talent that the cast lets off is very impressive given the nature of the film and in similar American made films that try and capture the gory and the zany the acting is half-assed and not given that big of a shit about. This film actually could do for a sequel which is usually common but, it isn't likely to see one. Knowing this film exists and Tokyo Gore Police makes me excited to wonder what this group is going to put out later in the years to come. It's a truly popular genre to see such manga type stroies be made into film like most of Takeshi Miike's work. And as the fad goes along the more original these stories become and the more they seem to move away from being based on previously written mangas.

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From Hell

For years, I had put off seeing this film due to no other reason than procrastination. It came out shorty before my point of interest in serial killers and among all of them I guess Jack the Ripper was the one where most of my interest ensued. There's something so devilish about the Ripper in the facts that he was never caught, he kept a morbid interest and fear wrapped around the people in London at the time, and the ever so famous Tusk letter with the return address, "From Hell". Sadly, I hadn't realised that the film was based off the graphic novel by the same name by author Alan Moore (Watchmen, V for Vendetta, Constantine, etc.). I'd always imagined this film as being extremely violent because of the story of Jack the Ripper but, I guess it was just as violent as the actual real-life story played out to be. I hear that this film had originally been set up for an NC-17 rating but, to my knowledge it has never seen the light of day.

The story is set in 1888 London and follows Mary Shelly (Heather Graham) and her group of prostitutes try to scrounge by on the filth ridden streets of Whitechapel in order to pay off man named Benjamin Kidney (Terence Harvey). Kidney threatens the well being of the girls and puts a demand on his money. The girls are entwined in worries that they will not make the deadline to pay Kidney off when their married friend Ann offer to ask for the money from her husband while the girls watch her little girl . Shortly after, Ann and her husband are kidnapped by a group of secret individuals linked to Anns husband. Shortly after, the girls one by one are picked off and brutally hacked into pieces. The London police department assign Peter Godley (Robbie Coltrane) who immediately seeks the help of Inspector Frederick Abberline (Johnny Depp). Abberline is a known psychic who is also an opium addict who has had his fair share of bad luck in his past. The two persist to work together to unravel who the murderer known as, Jack the Ripper, who continues to claim the lives of Mary's friends. Abberline suspects that the killer is a butcher or some trained or retired surgeon of some sort and seeks the guidance and professional outlook of William Gull (Ian Holm). As Abberline digs further into his clues that he gathers from Gull and other murder he begins to unravel something even larger containing secrets involving the Free Masons and learning that Ann's husband was actually a descendant of the Royal Family and that their baby girl is the rightful heir to the throne of England and soon becomes somewhat of a target himself.

In a large way, I was let down by this film. Nine years of anticipation and it wasn't as good as I had hoped for. It was a good idea but, nearly all of Alan Moore's stories are amazing conceptions. I can now see why Moore didn't put his name on it or any of his work made into films. Not only was the story meant to be told through the median of comics but, it wasn't that well made of a film. Moore's idea to tie in real life occurrences and myth were brilliant. For example the whole conception that he did with the Free Mason being lead by Queen Victoria, trying to cover up the fact that the heir to the Throne was born out of the Royal Family to they could assume control over everything. And I'm sure it got a lot more attention in the book, in fact I think they could have left it out of the film entirely, was the cameo of Joseph Merrick the Elephant Man (Anthony Parker). It was a neat idea to throw that in there but, not in the film. I film actually had me worried that after seeing it I wasn't going to have any more interest in reading the graphic novel but, thankfully it didn't spiral too far down the hole to lose the grasp of my interest. There wasn't a whole lot likeable about the film it was more or less just a whole that it crammed to much into one setting and after hearing about how the novel was written it just seemed like the film could have been twice as compelling as it was made out.

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