Something in the Water: Deranged (South Korea) review

If an epidemic thriller is as good as the agent of destruction it unleashes, then Deranged is a deserved hit. Its economic use of effects to create a devastating outbreak panic drama has had a landslide of box office success in its native South Korea, and is also in the midst of a limited run in US theaters, giving a leaner alternative to Hollywood's offerings of summer blockbusters.

The story begins from the point of view of Jae-Hyuk, a chemist employed by a failing pharmaceutical company who is struggling to make ends meet to support his family. He resorts to demeaning tasks, like entertaining his superior’s family at an amusement park outting, juxtaposing their carefree life with his own family’s relatively meager living conditions. We learn that Jae-Hyuk’s compromised position was caused when he followed a bad tip on another pharmaceutical company’s investment, which was passed on to him by his brother, Jae-Pil, a cop who struggles with his own financial issues. After a glimpse of this tension, family dynamics are put on hold when a disfigured body turns up in a river with origins in a nearby sleepy resort town popular to vacation goers. Soon several more corpses turn up in the water, while other individuals burst into wildly erratic behavior across several cities. It is the beginning of an infectious outbreak sending the police in search of a cause as hospitals and the government search for a cure, all the while trying to get a handle on a population of alarmed and infected citizens.

At first Jae-Hyuk is not all that concerned with the initial reports. Nor is his brother, who reluctantly follows up on a lead in the nearby town where bodies first started appearing. They are largely preoccupied with keeping up their daily grind, focusing on what may get themselves out of their monetary quagmires. The rift between those that live luxuriously and characters like these protagonists, who calculate every move as a factor in their survival, is prevalent here, as in many other Korean films. Their attention is captured, though, when when Jae-Hyuk’s wife and two children show signs of being infected, and Jae-Pil finds signs of something sinister lurking in the shadows of the outbreak.

Without the factual grounding of a film like Contagion, Deranged does a pretty good job approximating an epidemic suddenly overcoming a nation with fear as government, law enforcement, and other social services respond with varying effectuality. At the same time, a more sensational truth behind the virus lurks. A more realistic tale would delve more deeply into scientific phenomena and portray the actions of a wide range of responders. Deranged goes for a more personal angle, detailing the desperate efforts of a father trying to save his family.  It gives the story a suspenseful thrust and the chance to put human greed and selfishness on trial.


The team behind deranged has created quite a formidable incorporeal foe with the virus, its basis rooted strongly in real life parasitic life forms. Treating the graphic horror with a light touch, the terror here is in the afflicted behavior it brings about in its victims and the chaos that ensues. First it instigates the appetite of its human hosts into a state of hyperactivity, like a super sped up addiction. Then it afflicts them with physical anguish, before finally warping them mentally. You would not be far off if your mind is summoning images of teeming hordes of zombies. Here the frenzied masses are reminiscent of those depicted in the first part of recent Korean anthology pic Doomsday Book, which is another story about consumption-related zombieism.  With its focus on rabid behavior over gore, it also brings to mind the transformed lot from the way back Cronenberg classic They Came From Within.


Besides the effective portrayal of frantic panic and the movie's accomplished pacing -- the events really fly by at breakneck speed -- its greatest asset is how, taking a page from The Host, its far from perfect protagonists pull together to find strength in the face of adversity. Kim Myung-Min is a perfect everyman, devoted to his family but burdened by the fact that for all his hard work, it will only allow him to get by. As he describes it early on, he is stuck in a race that one stumble prevents him from winning, yet he is bound to finish it. Also giving a breakout performance is Moon Jung-Hee as Jae-Hyuk’s wife and mother of their two children. She brings her character to life as an unlikely hero. From the beginning her stature is meek, yet she finds herself in a vicious and heart wrenching struggle, battling off her own rapidly deteriorating condition in order to protect her children.

Like other great films of this nature, Deranged plays at being a parable for a society whose appetite grows and grows while its caregivers are incapable of dealing with ensuing crisis. One of the most striking images of the movie, and definitely my favorite, finds Jae-Hyuk on his back, limbs extended with each appendage barely holding a different family member back from the brink of self destruction. Then there are the sequences of gorging on food and gulping down water until the victims are left gaping desperately at the lack of these resources. Although it is in the context of the virus, one watches and can’t help but reflect on warnings that the level of consumption going on all around us is out of control.

These more serious ideas are slighted, unfortunately, in the movie’s end run, which tries too hard to force it all down as a crowd pleaser. A sense of that too perfect dramatic timing, reminiscent of the popular political thriller series 24, rears its head. While I can overlook this in light of the strong performances and brisk action, another sequence, comes off as way too heavy handed a bit of nationalistic propaganda to not leave my hands wringing. Perhaps it’s a response to a nation in need of a boost of morale? But it feels way too forced and doesn’t match the darker tone that pervades most of the film.

Still, this does not completely negate the 110 minutes of suspense and emotional storytelling that comes before. Nor does it make the viral threat, which is sure to get under your skin and crawl around there for some time to come, any less unsettling.

Housemaid (2010)

Off base remake of a classic Korean film concerns a young woman who gets a job working for a rich family and quickly ends up a mstly unwilling target for their games and, in the case of the husband, advances. It's soon a descent into depravity as she finds out that the rich aren't like other people.

Since the original was made in 1960 I'm guessing that the film amps up the sex and violence- I'm pretty sure the ending isn't as graphic. Having not seen the original I know the ending of this one left me kind of staring at the screen, and had me playing it again and again on my IFC in Theaters screening.

As for the rest of the film I'm not sure what I make of it. The film is certainly crafted for effect- it's aiming to make us all feel uncomfortable- and it does from the WTF opening straight on until the ending. Is it any good? I don't know. It did have an effect on me but at the same time I felt manipulated. What happened- outside of the end- or the almost the end wasn't anything I couldn't figure out.

The film is being promoted as rather sexy and it is, but to what effect. It seems more like a calculated move rather than something natural.

Can you tell I'm mixed.

I'm guessing that had the film not be so heavily promoted the last few months as a hot film in some circles I might have liked it more. As it stands now. Its okay, but nothing special.

Your milage will vary.

3 Million (2012) Latin Beat 2012

Documentary about the soccer team from Uruguay and their trip to the World Cup in 2010.

It was filmed by a father and son, Jaime and Yamandu Roos, the father a popular singer and his son a filmmaker. Much of the film is a travelogue of the pair as they travel with the team, cover the games and hang out with fans.  The film also follows the improbable course the the soccer team as they get farther and farther into the the tournament.

I'm mixed about the film. The film seems to have been put together in order for the father and son go to the World Cup. I don't think that the pair really expected that the team would do as well as they did and so they didn't plan to do much. The early travel sequences reveal the good time being had by all and paint a lovely portrait of South Africa.  These early scenes showing the camaraderie of the pair  carry the film through the shaky camera work. The sequences also compensate for the some god awful narration over the first two games the team played. What are they talking about? I have no clue. It seems to be a series of declartive statements rather than informative narration. It's painful. then the games end and we're back with the boys and all is right with the film.

There is a point about half way in when the father and son stuff all but stops and we get simply coverage of the games played in great detail. Its riveting stuff, but at the same time the film ceases to be special (about the father and son) and instead becomes just like every other good sports documentary out there (about the team). Don't get me wrong it's not bad, it's just not special, certainly not special enough to warrant an almost two and a half hour running time.

For sports film fans or soccer fans it's definitely worth seeing on the big screen, for everyone else this is a should see on TV or DVD.

This is the closing film of Latin Beats and plays August 21 and 23

The Client is the next film at the Korean Cultural Service Free Screening on Tuesday

Yes Boys and Girls it’s that time again to remind you all that the next set of Korean Cultural Service screenings start Tuesday with the North American Premiere of The Client. Here’s what their website has to say about the film:

Hotshot attorney KANG Sung Hee (The Chaser star HA Jung-woo) has been called upon to defend Han (JANG Hyuk), an enigmatic, strange man accused of killing his wife. Although her body hasn’t been recovered, the public is quick to label him a monster and begs the court system for a guilty verdict. Determined to prevail, Kang works closely with his mysterious defendant, but they’re chased at every turn by the public – and Kang’s rival, a vicious prosecutor with his own agenda. A blockbuster in its native Korea, this nailbiter will have you guessing until its final, jaw-dropping moments. If you think you know where things are headed – think again!
It’s unlikely that anyone from Unseen will be at the screening (there are conflicts with NYCIFF and other things). However if we can get you a review before the film runs we’ll certainly do so.

After that the series will be running Unbowed on the 28th. I’ve heard some really good things about this film (I thought for certain it was going to play NYAFF this year) and I’ve got it penciled into my schedule Here’s how the KCS website describes it:

When it opened in late 2011, Unbowed’s uninhabited take on a highly-publicized true story caused such a stir that Korea’s Ministry of Justice and Supreme Court even chimed in, noting its wild inaccuracies. It turns out that sensationalizing the story of university professor who accosts a judge with a crossbow doesn’t go over well with governmental bodies…but thankfully, film fans love it, as this courtroom thriller – buffeted by the media uproar – became one of last year’s biggest Korean hits. AHN Sung-Ke, one of his country’s most respected international actors, delivers a bravado performance as the bow-slinging everyman while R-Point’s Park Won-Sang delivers a one-in-a-lifetime role as the struggling lawyer pushed to save him.

As always the doors are at 630 and the films are at 7 at the Tribeca Cinemas.

Spy Girl (2004)

Let me say it up front, this is one of the most romantic films I've seen in ages. Its also wonderfully, sweetly funny. And at risk of cursing myself I want to say that its a chick flick that guys will love too.

The plot of this film has a young beautiful spy from North Korea going south to capture another rogue spy. She goes undercover at Burger King and soon she's battling with her co-workers for the affections of the local boys, dealing with a culture clash between North and South, and a very cute young man who's posted pictures of her on a website of local "angels" possibly blowing her cover.

How do I describe this film? How can I sell this with out over selling it?

This is a great little film. Its a small little confection that will make you smile and feel good and give a big hug to the one you love.

The comedy is broad at times, crossing into slapstick, but more often than not its very clever. A good deal of it has to do with the fact that our heroine is a spy and can kick everyone's ass,only they just don't know it.

The romance... What can I say, its almost dead on perfect. What can I say about a modern film where they create tension as to whether two people will simply hold hands?

No, its not perfect. The problem is that some of it is so goofy, in particular the sub-plot about the loan shark and the old spies, that it seems to be part of another movie. The other movie is good, it just doesn't fully mesh with the one we're watching.

I can't recommend this movie enough. Its a wonderful fragile little creation that will make you feel really warm and fuzzy for all of the right reasons.

8 out of 10. Search this out and watch it with someone you love.

We Women Warriors (2012)

When you suffer you feel the suffering of others

Hopeful documentary about three women in different parts of Columbia who have taken a stand against the violence happening around them and have taken steps to stop it.

There is Doris, a shopkeeper who organizes the people in her village to get things done. She is very out spoken about the situation in her village. When she spoke out at a UN sponsored conference she had to stay away from her village for a while because she found out she was on a hit list of one of the roving paramilitary groups.

Flor is the Tribal Governor. She got interested in politics because she wanted to find out what happened to her father and grandfather who were killed due to conflicts with native land reclamation

And there is Ludis who's husband was killed by the rebels and who took a job with the police as a cook. This didn't stop the military from seizing her and throwing her in jail as a rebel for a year.(Neither she nor anyone taken with her was a rebel.). She now holds meetings where the women left behind by the violence weave and talk about how to stop the violence.

This is a wonderful documentary. This is a film that shows very clearly that people can make a difference and that change can be forced to happen.

The film scores many many points for laying out the conflict simply, from how the rebellion started when the political infighting in the 60's turned violent. There was then the rise of the paramilitary groups, allied with the regular military who were paid by the elites who wanted their stuff protected. Additionally you have the drug trade which funnels money into all sides. The Native population is caught in the middle as every side fights with every other.

Five million people have been displaced with in Columbia simply because they want to get out of the ever shifting war zones. No one is certain where to turn.

If that wasn't bad enough we also see the trouble with the war on drugs as the farmers worry about whether the government will spray defoliant on their fields since it will poison their water. Yes they grow cocoa leaves for the drug trade but the government makes it so its the only option since the roads are so bad they can't carry fruit to market, and even if they did they would get pennies for a large load for their crop instead of dollars for a small bundle. There are no simple solutions.

However the women in this film are looking for non-violent solutions. They are trying to bring everyone together to stop the violence. We see some of their successes in driving the war away. In one of the key sequence Flor arranges to have a police barracks forcibly dismantled because ever since the police arrived to protect the population the once peace full town was turned into a battle zone. Using authority given her and her fellow leaders they evict the police and destroy the fortifications.

I need to point out that rarely has Columbia looked like a real inviting place. Certainly it doesn't look like the den of drug dealers most American media would have you believe it is.

I really like this film. It was a real pleasant surprise. Here we have a film about bad situation that is filled with hope and possibility instead of the doom. I like that the film focuses not on the bad things that are happening but on the good people trying to stop them. I have seen way too many documentaries of this sort that stridently trumpet the evils of the world that get you to mouth "yes this is terrible we must stop it" before you go off and do nothing. We Women Warriors is different, it shows us the hope and makes you really want to be part of the change that they are trying to make.

Go see this movie. Yes, it will make you feel angry at the wrongs of the world, but more importantly it will make you feel hopeful that change can come and that people can make a difference.

The film opens Friday at the IFC Center as part of Docs Week.

Tomorrow is the Opening of the New York City International Film Festival and Film Market

Just a quick word to remind you that the NYCIFF opens tomorrow with a bit to do at the Ziegfeld Theater in Manhattan with the screening of Saving Grace B Jones.

The real meat of the festival starts the next night with screenings at several theaters around Manhattan and the Film Market at the Marriott Marquis.

As of right now Unseen will be attending Moles on Friday at the Tribeca Cinemas. We're then going to try and pick up several more films over the weekend around other commitments in the city. We're also rearranging things so we can catch somethings (fingers crossed) next week before it all ends on the 15th.

For details on the films and to buy tickets go to the website here.

Arhan (2004)

Korean action comedy that has trouble blending the two.

This is the story of the Seven Masters who recruit a bumbling police officer into their group in order when its discovered that he possesses a high level of Chi. The timing is very fortuitous since an ancient enemy has awoken and is once more spreading evil in the world.

When I first read about this movie several on-line reviews said that this was destined to be the next big thing. Later reviews were positive, but were less glowing noting that the film has several parts that don't fully mix together. I'm in the camp with the later reviews since I find the mixture of styles works against the parts.

I should begin with the action. If you want to see great action this is the movie for you. Hand to hand and weapons such as swords are used through out the film to great effect. Sure its done with wires and computers, but it doesn't matter since its so much fun to look at. Very often you watch the madness on screen and go "OH Cool" even though you know how its done. I loved when our hero throws a cup at the villain who catches it on the flat end of his sword, and then sends it spinning back with even more force. Amazing.(You really should try this film for the action if nothing else.)

The humor in this film is both knowing and very funny. The opening round-table of the masters discussing the difficulty of training is priceless, especially if you've seen any number of other martial arts movies. There is a nice friendly edge to it, that is mostly right on target. The problem is that our hero is often much to bumbling to be believed, especially after he's been in the training program for a while. The too slapsticky attitude is what really hurts the movie since there is no natural progression, just silliness for silliness sake (The ending for example).

The cast and the characters are great. These are people you can really root for. The villain is also suitably evil.

If you were to take all of the movies parts and look at them separately you'd be amazed at how good they all are. The problem is that when you put the bits together the film doesn't quite work together. As I said the slapstick doesn't hold up all the way through. The film is overly jokey at times, even in serious moments. Its hard to keep a light edge when characters are spewing blood and being run through with swords. It takes a bit of the love for the film away and leaves you with admire and simply like. The film also suffers from a pacing problem with slow period in the middle with the training bookended by a funny beginning and an action packed end.

Still I think you should give the movie a shot especially if you like action movies, especially when they have a humorous side to them. In all probability you're going to be like me and like this movie, but you won't love it

Chinese Takeaway (2011) Latin Beats 2012

Without a doubt one of my favorite films of the year and containing probably the best opening of any film I've seen,Chinese Takeaway is a HUGE joy of a film.

The film concerns a grumpy man, Roberto, who lives alone, running the hardware store that once was run by his dad. He is scrupulously honest to the point that he counts the number of screws in each box and complains to his distributorsif they aren't as advertised on the outside of the box.

He is also the object of desire by a woman, Mari, who lives in the country and is the sister-in-law of a friend of his. She completely understands him (and why he won't respond to her affection) but loves him anyway.

Into his neatly ordered life come Jun, a Chinese immigrant who is dumped on the side of the road after being robbed by a taxi driver. Roberto takes pity on him and tries to drive him to his uncle's home. Complications occur and Jun and Roberto end up stuck with each other with no way communicate except gestures.

Forget what you think happens you're probably wrong (other than they do become friends). This is one of those wonderful times at the movies where I thought was going to be getting one thing and ended up with something else. Even better when I thought the film was going to go in one direction it ended up in a completely direction. And better still a couple of the turns are better than I could have expected (ie. the wall).

What a great film.

While the relationship between the two men is the main focus, we also have the plot line of Roberto being perused by Mari. She knows him to the core of his being and in a late in the game speech tells him who he is, why she loves him and ends it with "But I love you anyway." before walking off . Call it one of the great romantic declarations on film and it melted my hard heart.

When the press screening ended I wanted them to rerun it. I needed to see it again. I needed to go back to that most unexpected place.

Go see this film. Go see this film and throw out your expectations.

Latin Beats is running it 3 times ( on the 11th and 12th plus the 21st) and it should be high on your must see list.

Chio-Tian Folk Drummers from Taiwan - DIN TAO: Leader of the Parade

We are not quite ready to let go of that New York Asian Film Festival train just yet as I have at least one more sugar sweet Taiwanese treat to share with the Unseen Films family.  DB & I went to the screening of DIN TAO: LEADER OF THE PARADE last July which was part of the NYAFF programming. DB gave a nice overall capsule review of that particular day’s festivities HERE. In a nutshell, this Taiwanese film was basically a feel good story about a traditional drum team and their struggles to maintain an identity, remain relevant, & to come together as a unit to compete with a rival troupe.  I liked the movie a lot but I LOVED the cultural and drumming aspects of DIN TAO even more so.

As luck would have it, the drum team that the film would set the spotlight on, The CHIO-TIAN FOLK DRUMS AND ARTS GROUP happened to be coming to NYC for a debut performance at Hearst Plaza on the grounds of Lincoln Center last friday. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make their show on-time but luckily I found out that they had one more performance slated at Foley Square by City Hall the next morning at 10am before flying back to Taiwan.  Seeing and hearing the CHIO-TIAN group in person made me appreciate Din Tao even more. The drummers looked fierce and ready for battle as they pounded rhythmic tribal beats on the drum wearing their ferocious face paint with traditional bottoms and no tops while the ladies looked elegant dressed in their custom embroidered folk uniform.

Din Tao is a religious Taoist procession which features drumming, huge body costumes of gods and an even bigger & taller body costumes of the Eight Generals who serve as “policeman” to capture and punish evil spirits.

I recognized at least one of the drummers at the performance in Foley Square who was in the movie as well. I hope you enjoy the ritualistic Taiwanese drumming and dance routines!

                                (All photos and videos by mr c)

Yellow Hair 1 and 2 (1999) and (2001)

Yellow Hair
The plot is simple two girls, one with yellow hair and one with orange hair pick up a guy in a club and they end up involved with him. When its revealed that he has a girlfriend he wants to return to things get ugly.

I'm of mixed feelings about this movie. Its a beautiful movie with sexy women, a tense story and a great artistic and music sense (I love the club scenes). The problem is that somehow it never comes together enough to be as good as the combination of its parts.Don't get me wrong its good, especially if you like sexy thrillers. I'm just annoyed that in some ways it simply refuses to be more than just an exploitive thriller instead of rising to something else, which it seems capable of doing since it has all of the material there. This isn't a bad thing, since the film as it stands now is a very good thriller, but some how I thought it could be and should be more, though I don't know what it would have taken to make it cross the line into greatness.

Reservations aside, I think this is worth a shot especially if you like sexy thrillers. Certainly its infinitely better than most of the American and Euro crap that shows up late on Friday and Saturday nights on stations like Cinemax on their "adult" movie blocks.


Yellow Hair 2
More Drama than thriller, this sequel in name only is better than the first and should be allowed to stand on its own

First off this film has no connection to the first Yellow Hair film. Secondly the sometimes quoted subtitle of "Pornography in Blue" is actually a title of one of the sections. Lastly this is less thriller or exploitation film than a drama about three people coming together in the event of one moment and going on from there.

This film surprised me. Watching this late at night after seeing the first Yellowhair I was was shocked that it was as different as night and day. This is a film that has something more on its mind. The film is structured in titled parts. The first three introduce us to our three main characters and take us to the same point in time. Once the film has brought all three characters to that moment it then moves on from there as they try to put their past behind them and create a future for themselves, only to find that bits of the past are always attached.

I really liked this film a great deal. Different by almost any standards this film tries and mostly succeeds in telling us a story of three people who are unable to get away from the past and fully start a new life. Its not preachy or exploitive, it just is. Even Ha Ri-Su, the transsexual model, who plays Jae, and on who's life this is supposed to be partly based, isn't used as anything more than a character that fits with in the frame work of the story.

If you want something different from the normal Hollywood assembly line product, or even something different from the normal Korean action/horror films that we seem to be getting lately, then see this movie. Its just a good story well told.

(Though I will admit that a good deal of my enjoyment came simply from seeing something different and not from clear superiority in film making)

Random Thoughts On: "V/H/S" and Found-Footage Horror

I'm not going to waste your time with a review of V/H/S, which arrives in theaters in September, since the talented filmmakers involved and the built-in quasi-gimmick -- it's a horror anthology made up of "found footage" -- has already attracted plenty of ink since its Sundance screening and is sure to prompt more in the coming weeks.

Besides, the value of any given reviewer's take becomes more perilous when anthos are involved as everyone's internal calculus regarding what's worth seeing is bound to be different. For example, if but two out of five stand-alone segments are worthwhile, but they're really worthwhile, does that make the entire film deserving of your time and cash? Maybe. Other viewers may demand three or four solid segments, a proportionality that's hard to achieve in any horror antho not entitled Kwaidan (1964) or Tales from the Crypt (1972).

Still, in true contrarian fashion -- contrary to myself, not any critical consensus, mind you -- I'd like to say that V/H/S is definitely worth catching, and not only for horror fans but also for cineastes generally... despite the fact that there's absolutely no question that I found it disappointing.

So why the endorsement? In short, its global failures are pretty darn fascinating.

Here they are, all two of them:

1) The chief experiential thrill of any found-footage film is, to use an overworked phrase, its immersive quality: we are fully there, partaking of an artful dissolution between film-reality and reality-reality. Consequently, there is no "filmmaker," no discernible "style" even. Not when we're in the moment. (The [REC] films excel in this regard.)

Yet in V/H/S the stylistic tendencies of the individual directors are more pronounced due to their very juxtaposition in the same film. Sure, we expect there to be differences across the segments (and V/H/S goes out of its way to include some change-ups)... but when we quite easily pick up on the diverse sensibilities of the filmmakers, we become and remain conscious of the artistic impulses behind the entire enterprise, and are thus reminded that we're watching a film. With a single director, yes, we may recognize certain signature touches, and even more so later, upon critical reflection. But when we're right in the midst of any truly effective found-footage horror flick, we forget that there's a director out there who's orchestrating everything. In V/H/S, we might occasionally experience a similar forgetfulness -- but it's shattered the next time a new artistic approach appears on the screen. We're never allowed that sustained plunge into a single director's authorship such that we eventually come to forget we're watching a mere film.

 2) If V/H/S had been constructed as a single narrative under the guidance of multiple directors -- which would render it not an anthology film, I realize -- then the found-footage aesthetic would have worked much better.

Why?

Because then the audience would have been treated to a consistent point-of-view. Yes, every film inscribes, and subscribes to, a specific point-of-view, or a shifting (but still specific) audience surrogate. But in V/H/S, the constant change in narration/authorship (remember, each segment is ostensibly shot by a different character), pops us out of the filmic reality of any given segment. (In a sense this is the same argument as in #1 above relocated to issues within the narrative -- here it's the jumps in character POV, not in filmmakers, that undermine found-footage's this-is-real conceit.)

And that kind of sums up the lose-lose proposition that V/H/S represents: the more aware the audience is in terms of cinematic basics, the less likely it is to enjoy the actual movie...

All right, that's the end of point #2, and, really, the point of this whole piece. I have no doubt that you'll encounter plenty of reviewers who applaud the creativity and/or execution of the individual segments in V/H/S. However, at the risk of advancing a psuedo-ad hominem attack on such critics, I'd like to suggest that they've sacrificed a deep experience of the overall film in favor of an appreciation of the smaller pleasures to be had from each segment's distinct plot twists and moments of scariness. I guess that I, in hope against hope, maintain that found-footage horror is capable of so much more...

That said, and sticking with the notion that any such found-footage antho is inevitably less than the sum of its parts, I'd still like to recommend V/H/S as an on-demand option when it becomes available on August 31. Am I contradicting myself? Again, maybe. But I feel that even found-footage horror that I'm less than impressed with (e.g., Grave Encounters) is better suited to the intimacy of a home screen at 1:00 am than a big screen at 8:00 pm.

Moreover, all those jumps in POV and artistic control -- well, we're kind of used to that when watching TV, aren't we? And that's the experience that V/H/S via VOD promises when it bows at the end of this month. So please, by all means check it out -- just make sure that you can mentally partition each story and each filmmaker as much as possible. The use of pause buttons and bathroom breaks is encouraged.

Wild Card (2003)

In Wild Card a group of police detectives try to find the identity of a gang of muggers who are killing people in the course of their robberies, while also dealing with their other case loads and with their lives at home.

On many levels this movie is a run of the mill police action/comedy. There really aren't any unique twists or anything that in and of itself that makes its special. However, the combination of great acting, great characters, a good script and a well done production all come together to make a damn good little movie. While it may not strive to hit one out of the park for a grand slam home run, it does come up with a nice inside the park triple.

Th violence is intense of the hand to hand or inanimate object to body sort. The police are hesitant to use their guns since it seems cause protracted investigations which ultimately get them into trouble. The result is lots of fist fights and beatings.

The humor is almost constant, with everyone busting on everyone else with a steady stream of one liners. Its clever and amusing and having spent a good deal of time around police I've found it on target, although I've never heard of cops dickering over who's going to get the collar while the suspect shakes his head at the craziness of it all.

The film has taken some heat for being very meandering and not being a speedy rush against time. Some people don't care that the film focuses on other things. For the most part I liked that the film wasn't 100% focused on the chase. I liked that the cops dealt with the crimes as I've seen them do in real life, namely going after all leads they have, while also being forced to pursue other crimes. Rarely do cops have one case, and rarely are they so dedicated as to never go home, or not to try to pick up a pretty girl on the street. I liked that there were lulls by the killers where they couldn't be found. And I liked that there were times where the cops sat on bored on stake out while absolutely nothing happened. Still I do have to admit that some time in the second hour there was one or two moments where the meandering did take its toll and I did wish the film would move forward just a tad faster (forgetting of course that I was enjoying what ever digression we were in the middle of.) Yes, this is a run of the mill, you've "seen" it all before sort of movie done with enough style and skill that if you take it for exactly that you'll have a good evenings entertainment. If you're looking for the next big thing, or two hours of breathless excitement, look elsewhere. If you just want two hours of laughs and police style action this is the ticket. This is a movie thats the run of a very good mill.

See this.

Black Moon (1934)

I love seeing a film that I’ve never seen, especially when it blindsides me. Black Moon from 1934 is just such a film. It’s a tense little film that is creepy as all get out.

The plot of the film has Juanita returning to her home, San Christopher a small island near Haiti. She was raised there as one of only a few whites on an otherwise all "black" island. She has felt the pull of the island for sometime and taken to drumming every night. It is hoped that by going there she will be able to find peace. Traveling along with her is her daughter, her daughter’s nurse and her husband’s secretary. Her husband is staying in Haiti.

Things rapidly go from bad to worse as the natives, who view her as a great priestess, are whipped into a frenzy, and with the aide of their high priest blood sacrifices have started again.

A tense slowly building, film the film moves with a dream like logic. Juanita is in way over her head and clearly headed toward a bad end. The doom and nastiness is rampant and it helps that this seems to be have been a pre code film since some of the twists seem to be unlike any I’ve seen in a Hollywood production. The “happy” ending comes at a terrible cost (and isn't all that happy).

The film stars Jack Holt as Juanita’s husband and Faye Ray as his secretary.

This is truly an Unseen gem. Its so good that had I not been with my dad I would have paid to see it again immediately after I saw it.

Keep an eye out for this one.

(And watch out for two WTF moments- one is Fray’s high heels in the jungle. The other is Jack Holt just flipping away a cigarette butt off into space despite being in the middle of his fancy living room.)

Black Room (1935)

The Black Room is a double dose of Boris Karloff, with the great actor playing twin brothers. The oldest and healthy one assumed the title baron when their father died. He is an evil SOB with designs on everyone’s wealth and women. His brother, cursed with a paralyzed right hand is a wonderful person that everyone loves. When the Baron calls his brother home, it is with the intention renouncing his title in favor of his brother…whom he intends on killing in the black room of the title.

There’s more to it than that but that’s enough to get you going.

A pot boiling thriller with some horrific twists, this is Karloff at his most manic. As the evil brother flies off the handle and continues his trail of murder and deceit it’s joy to be hold. To be certain you can pretty much guess where each twist is going to take you, but at the same time you’re having a great time watching how it all plays out with some neat little flourishes.

I really liked this film a great deal and Brooklyn Academy of Music’s recent pairing of this film with Black Moon on a big screen was a real treat. Its not often we get a chance to see films like this on a big screen so any chance to do so is a real treat, especially when it’s something starring Boris Karloff.

Third Clue (1934)

Complex old dark house murder mystery revolving around Indian jewels given to a rich family by a maharajah. The Indian people want the jewels back and take steps to get them. As the bodies pile up, many accidentally, the various factions attempt to find the hidden jewels.

I’m not sure what I think of this film.

Actually I’m not sure what exactly happens in this film, all I know is that its twisted mystery with lots of questionable characters trying to get their hands on the hidden jewels.

Seriously this is a wild film that is very unlike almost anything you’d see in Hollywood at the time. Everyone seems to be on the make. Everyone is culpable for some sort of mischief. People die graphically, well for the period. You really don’t know who to root for.

And where are the police?

In Hollywood this would have turned into a convdentional mystery with some sort of detective wandering through, instead we have all these people crisscrossing through a manner house.

It’s amazing.

I’ve seen the film twice and I kind of understand whats going on, and I’m going to see it again, mostly when I subject other people to the film.

See this film. If you love old dark house films you really need to see this.

NYAFF Audience Award Announced

The Press Release:

The New York Asian Film Festival 2012 is over, and Subway Cinema scientists have been working around the clock to tabulate the results of the Audience Award. Finally, they¹re ready to announce the winner. We¹ve taken all kinds of factors into consideration with these numbers, and they¹re as accurate as they can possibly be.

Winner of the New York Asian Film Festival 2012 Audience Award:
ACE ATTORNEY
http://www.subwaycinema.com/nyaff12/films/ace-attorney/

Takashi Miike¹s insanely faithful big screen adaptation of the enormously popular Nintendo DS game about battling lawyers packed both screenings and worked the crowds into a frenzy. To be honest, none of us were surprised that it took the top spot. What took the next four slots, however, came as a total shock to us.

The runner-up for the Audience Award was:

A SIMPLE LIFE
http://www.subwaycinema.com/nyaff12/films/a-simple-life/

Ann Hui¹s beautiful, quiet drama about the end of a housekeeper¹s life has been winning awards around the world, but we were not expecting it to do so well here. Let¹s be honest, some people think that the NYAFF audience would rather see mutant crab-girls explode than an elderly woman check into a nursing home, but I guess this shows those people that our audience has good taste coming out its ears!

Rounding out the top five (in order):

ALL ABOUT MY WIFE
http://www.subwaycinema.com/nyaff12/films/all-about-my-wife/

THE LOST BLADESMAN
http://www.subwaycinema.com/nyaff12/films/the-lost-bladesman/

WARRIORS OF THE RAINBOW: SEEDIQ BALE
http://www.subwaycinema.com/nyaff12/films/warriors-of-the-rainbow-seediq-bal
e-1-2/

And that¹ll do it for us this year. Attendance was up! People had more fun than ever before (or they were too polite to say otherwise)! And it looks like we¹re going to be doing it again next year, so start pressing your party pants and we¹ll see you next summer! (If not before? Stay tuned for excitement.)

Catacombs or the Woman Who Wouldn't Die (1965)

Rich woman who uses meditation to deal with pain is visited by her niece who returns from Paris. The woman can be a handful and one of her employees suggests to her husband that he kill her freeing them both. When an affair starts between the husband and the niece murder becomes a real possibility. However some people won't stay dead.

Good mystery with supernatural overtones that is rightly compared to Alfred Hitchcock Presents- though saddly it's about a half an hour too long. Its a well worn tale that sells things well enough that even if you suspect whats going on you're more than happy to go for the ride. The problem here is the way the story spins out. Yes the core story is good, but the pace of it is simply too slack. There isn't much you could cut, however they could pick up the pace since interest flags for a bit in the middle.

Worth looking for if you run across it but I wouldn't go crazy searching it out.

Stop Making Sense (1984)

Does anyone younger than a certain age watch Stop Making Sense any more?

Jonathan Demme’s record of a Talking Heads concert (in reality it was sewn together from several performances) is easily one of the best concert films of all time.

The structure of the film is a reflection of the show it self, beginning simply, David Byrne walking out on stage with a guitar and a boom box and singing Psycho Killer. Then over the course of the next 90 or so minutes the music builds bigger and bigger as more and more people step on stage to join the fun. It eventually becomes a grand party on stage.

Byrne and Demme’s structuring of the set list as an ever building wave of sound and fury sounds simple, but it’s damn near impossible to pull off. I’ve seen people try to do similar things over the years and it doesn’t always work, mostly because the selection of songs is poorly chosen, usually with one down beat song thrown in at the wrong time. The music here is spot on perfect with many of the songs, Life During Wartime, Take me to the River or Girlfriend is Better sounding way better than they ever did on vinyl or CD or whatever.

Demme’s style, all but ignoring the audience, puts us very much on stage. We’re there with the band, a part of the party. It’s a glorious experience that almost every other concert film you’ve ever seen fails to duplicate.

This is a great great film. It was a quiet game changer that altered not only how concerts were filmed but also staged. If you want to know how influential this film is watch how Byrne and the band move on stage and compare the performances here to what many of today’s performers are doing and you’ll find that they are cribbing stuff from this film.

See this film.

Black Limelight (1938)

Very talky murder mystery is a film which shows its stage bound origins in endless talk.

The plot of the film has the police searching for a husband who had rented a cottage while on a business trip. The man (played by Raymond Massey) is missing and there is the body of a dead woman inside. The police begin to hound the man's wife, who feels he's innocent. When the husband shows up she hides him and tries to find the killer...of course there tons of talky soul searching.

A kind of bland film that is done in by the talk and inaction. Its compelling if you want to know who did it- but otherwise it's not all that great. Part of the problem is a horrible performance by Raymond Massey (who is more in support than lead) and part of the problem is the script seems to want to keep all of the dialog from the play. Once the play drives to the conclusion in the final 15 minutes it picks up but itstough slog to get there.

Kind of worth a look if you run across it....