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I've been into Asian Cinema for quite some time. Infact, I was watching so much of it at one point, I ended up watching English/American movies in subtitles!

Japanese, Hong Kong and Korean movies are fairly excellent. Most recently, I saw "Oldboy" and the "Young and Dangerous" series, and was very impressed with what I saw. I also saw the first two "Dead or Alive" movies over the weekend, excellent stuff. I find a lot of Asian Cinema to be better than the stuff we keep producing in the West in recent years.

Anyone else into Asian Cinema? Any particular favourites, for instance?

Battle Franky

"Dead or Alive"

Very peculiar movie, I'm still trying to figure out the ending. Bah.. it's Takashi Miike, why bother. :wacko:

Originally posted by Battle Franky@May 11 2005, 12:53 PM
Very peculiar movie, I'm still trying to figure out the ending. Bah.. it's Takashi Miike, why bother. :wacko:
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The Ending? - I guess the only thing to say is KA-BOOM

Have you seen any of the… ahem, "Sequels"?

Battle Franky

I've seen DOA 2, but not three. The sequel, 'Tobosha' is definitely a lot different from the original, more grounded and moves at a slower pace then the first. And, no… there's no cataclysmic destruction of earth this time around. B)

Oh, already named! Dead or Alive, for one. I for one loved the very strange ending. I've yet to see the third installment though. Has anyone seen it yet?

Quick question: Did anyone else see Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi?

Oh, and before I forget again, I have to add that Tokyo Monogatari will always by one of my favorites…

Greg

I find a lot of Asian Cinema to be better than the stuff we keep producing in the West in recent years.

Which is funny considering the Japanese would rather watch our films.

I have all three DoA. The third one is fairly straight-forward right up until the last 5 minutes…

I have a massive Miike collection. I haven't even seen it all. My favorite of his is (and will likely remain to be) Chakushin Ari which was just a remarkable mainstream horror film.

I saw Takeshi's Zatoichi in theaters. The final segment was shaking the ground I sat on.

Battle Franky

Yeh, I saw it last year, I loved it. I'm big fan of anything Beat/Takeshi Kitano. I was mesmerized by that choreographed dance scene at the end, just awesome. :lol:

_Originally posted by Battle Franky+May 11 2005, 01:07 PM–>QUOTE(Battle Franky @ May 11 2005, 01:07 PM)I've seen DOA 2, but not three. The sequel, 'Tobosha' is definitely a lot different from the original, more grounded and moves at a slower pace then the first. And, no... there's no cataclysmic destruction of earth this time around. B)
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Yes, for some reason, I absolutely loved the second movie. The bizarre style is still there, but the story was such a tearjerker. Fantastic piece of Cinema.

The play for the children was absolutely hilarious, though. Kappa.

@May 11 2005, 01:11 PM
**Oh, already named! Dead or Alive, for one. I for one loved the very strange ending. I've yet to see the third installment though. Has anyone seen it yet?

Quick question: Did anyone else see Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi?

Oh, and before I forget again, I have to add that Tokyo Monogatari will always by one of my favorites…
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_I'd love to see the third "DoA"! , but I was only able to find the first and second. Too bad, huh?

I haven't seen "Zatoichi" yet, but I'm a massive fan of Beat Takeshi. Especially those movies like "Violent Cop" and "Sonatine." - As for "Tokyo Monogatari", I haven't seen it, yet, I've heard good things~._

Greg

I found the children's play terribly disturbing. I dunno what he was trying to get at.

Starlight

Quick question: Did anyone else see Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi?

Unfortunately, no. What's it about?. :lol:

I did see Dark Water though. :lol:

Originally posted by Starlight@May 11 2005, 01:30 PM
**> Quick question: Did anyone else see Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi?

Unfortunately, no. What's it about?. :lol:

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"Zatoichi", the Blind Samurai. That about says it all, I guess.

This is like, a modern remake of the original movies. I've only seen a few of the old ones, so I couldn't comment on the new version with Beat Takeshi.

Battle Franky

Hey omae, have you seen Miike's Izo yet? I remember seeing a trailer for it a while ago, I think it had like, time travelling samurai, vampires, Bob freakin' Sapp and of course Beat Takashi.

Sounds like a really fun flick, opinions?

Greg

Hey omae, have you seen Miike's Izo yet?

no….it's coming back no! OH GOD NO THE MEMORIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

SMABAFUNBADUBBADUBBAYUUUGARSNARF!!!!!!

EAT CHAIR LEGS BUT THE MAN BEATS ME!Q!!! GABAGABADEEEE!!

Battle Franky

That good, huh?! -_-

IZO?!

OMG.

I saw Izo and yes, it was a very fun flick. Nay, it was definitely more than just fun! It was absolutely loaded with symbolism! - I absolutely loved that about it. With the radical statements and artistically justified blood shed, I'd say it's one of the most solid films I've seen.

But you know what, I think of Miike's works, Jitsuroku Ando Noboru Outlaw-den: Rekka [Noboru Ando's True Outlaw Tales: Raging Fire] is my favorite.

Greg

**That good, huh?!Â **

I can't comment on Izo. Of course everything in it means something other than what it would appear to and is probably very cool if you break it down, but at least prepare yourself by seeing Gozu before jumping straight into the fiery pits of hell with Izo.

The main character's script is 90%

"UWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"

It's an almost nonstop swordfight against….well anything. Don't look for a straight story, like Yumi said, look for a lot of Miike's opinions.

Yoska

I haven't seen many aside from Audition and Battle Royal. There was this movie about a deaf theatre or something, it left really fuzzy feeling. Anyway, I can't say I like much of Miike's works as I'm only familiar with a micro portion of his directions. I did download MPD Psycho's tv adaptation by Miike though.

sanji-desu

I really liked Battle Royale but I was so tired and it was late while I was watching it that I missed the ending. I also saw both films of… forgot the name it was the film that the Grudge was based on. Asian cinema is good.

igalsfy

i enjoyed battle royale then i wanted to know how was the whole kitano cinema, then i watched tokyo eyes and… wow, what a difference, but it is really a good movie too, so i'd like to know which kitano's movies should i watch now, what different styles does he do?

kitano only acted in battle royale, but fukasaku directed it.
all this miike talk…visitor Q was pretty nuts. i also liked tokyo monogatari, but am still at a loss for why people love it so much. kurosawa's one wonderful sunday may have been better.

Greg

I understand how Kurosawa was amazing for his time but I really never enjoyed any of his flicks. I can see WHY they changed cinema but honestly, the people after him have done such a better job. It's like looking at Oda's work compared to Toriyama's.

Devil Meats

I agree with Oi Sanji about Korean cinema it's pretty up and coming I was pretty obsessed for awhile (I want to see A Bittersweet Life reaaaally bad. Hasn't been picked up by a US distributor yet.grrrr…Has anyone else seen it?) Chan Park Woon's trilogy of revenge was amazing. I like a lot of Japanese horror and martial arts films, not so much the dramas. I watched Kikujuro which won all sorts of awards and acclaimation, but it was so dull I wanted to gouge my eyes out and I refused to stop watching it because I paid money to rent it and refused to stop until I had finished watching it. Same went with After Life, I had to watch that over a period of 3 days cause I just kept falling asleep. I really really like Lady Snowblood: (Song of Sorrow? Not sure) Was the new Zatoichi the one where he's older? If so I think I saw it. I really liked that one and I liked Battle Royale. A really good movie if anyone is interested, is Adrenaline Drive. It's really cute. Two nerds falling in love and getting involved with some yakuza. I really enjoyed Happiness of the Katakuris and Audition. I don't believe I have the stomach for "Q" or "Eiichi the Killer". I heard "Q" was one of the goriest movies in the history of cinema next to Cannibal Holocaust. Is anyone planning on going to see "Host" when it comes out?

Greg

I agree with Oi Sanji about Korean cinema it's pretty up and coming

That post was 2 years ago.

Source: KFC Cinema

It looks as though the so called 'Korean Wave' which has seen films and television exported en masse has finally come to an end, with a 68% loss in international sales reported during 2006 by the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). In cash terms this represents a slump from $76 million in 2005 to just $24.5 million in 2006. The drop off has been particularly severe in Japan, where there has been a rising tide of anti-Korean feeling and criticism of Korean stars, resulting in just $10.4 million in sales during 2006 compared to $60.3 million in 2005. Although this is no doubt a bit of a kick in the teeth for the Korean film industry, the news is not all bad, as 2006 also saw local films claiming a substantial 64.2% of the market share despite increasing pressure from Hollywood product. This figure is likely to have been buoyed by a number of high profile hits such as "King and the Clown" and of course "The Host" - neither of which have thus far been able to replicate this success overseas.

hot heat

i just watched Hero this evening but i still cannot figure out why they had to die and the king most not

Devil Meats

@Greg:

That post was 2 years ago.

Source: KFC Cinema

Wow I feel silly. And I guess I can't argue with statistics, but still… With the "trilogy" of revenge films that Chan Park Woon did and Tale of Two Sisters, A Bittersweet life, The President's Last Bang. I think there was also a movie Welcome to Dong Makol (sp?) which garnered international success, and major film festival play. Plus I saw an article about "The Host" (which you mentioned) has the highest box office sales in Korean cinema history with the exception of some other film. (I forget the title) Because of not only the special effects, which I thought looked cheesey, but the supposed political implications of the movie. But I haven't seen it yet so i can't judge yet. I'm glad there's a resurgence with the 2 new films though. Thanks for the information too! (i haven't heard anything about the second movie you mentioned)

Cr4zy

You know, there's a whole site with tons of Asian Drama shows:
http://adrama.peekvid.com/
Great site.

Greg

Because of not only the special effects, which I thought looked cheesey, but the supposed political implications of the movie.

Yeah. It's basically a "shit on America" film.

not so subtle hint The monster was created by the US military presence in Korea.

Good thread to revive though. Asian cinema is always fun.

megakazul

@hot:

i just watched Hero this evening but i still cannot figure out why they had to die and the king most not

Scenerio 1: King lives. King unifies land, writing system, etc. Peace eeverywhere! (well, almost everywhere)

Scenerio 2: Jet Li kills king. Havoc ensues. War everywhere!

Greg

Theme = Can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs

Devil Meats

@hot:

i just watched Hero this evening but i still cannot figure out why they had to die and the king most not

I believe it's also based on true events. Or Chinese tradition. I learned about that period in my History of China class.

stingy

Seeing as how some people have already pointed out Takeshi Kitano's more popular works, I'm going to point out a more obscure one: Kids Return.

Like a lot of Kitano's works, Kids Return is a minimalist work; not much happens, it's pretty damn quiet for most of the movie, and there is few dialogue. The message that the movie conveys – while not beating you over the head -- is great and uplifting, even in a depressing and nihilistic movie.

You'll even find our friend Kiriyama from Battle Royale in this movie.

Greg

I liked how the story changed like 180 before you even knew it.

igalsfy

anybody seen tokyo eyes? amazing movie. kitano has a small role in it. i always thought that he also made it but i just found out it's not him who did it.

anybody saw the recent korean movie with the giant monster living in the sewers? i don't remember the name of the movie…

and talking about korean movies, 2 sisters was definitely a masterpiece!

Cr4zy

Does anyone know that famous action Korean movie that actually had people die in it? Like 20 people died in that film.

My favorite Korean movie is a kiddish comedy called "House".

Greg

Does anyone know that famous action Korean movie that actually had people die in it? Like 20 people died in that film.

Shiri?

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Kuroneko

I love Asian horror movies, specially the ones made in Japan. They build up the suspense in a very artistic way, plus the ambiguity used in those movies is well-done. My favorites are Ring and Ju-On.

igalsfy

did some people here enjoy ring 0? i found it particularly good, especially after ring 2 which was nice but that's it.

Kuroneko

I enjoyed that movie too. The story was a bit depressing, but it had good frighting scenes.

Greg

They build up the suspense in a very artistic way, plus the ambiguity used in those movies is well-done.

Better than standard US horror films? Okay, I'll agree for the most part but lately they've just been the same thing again and again.

The latest is a film about haunted hair extensions.

Please.

Kuroneko

@Greg:

Better than standard US horror films? Okay, I'll agree for the most part but lately they've just been the same thing again and again.

The latest is a film about haunted hair extensions.

Oh bummer… they should get inspiration on kyoufei mangas then. Junji Ito's works "Tomie" and "Uzumaki" got movie adaptations, why not Hideshi Hino or Kanako Inuki? Those guys created things more than we can label as "original".

What's the name of this movie, anyway?

Greg

The name is: Extensions