Sort by
Listing Movies
Display Movies
Red Cliff (2008)
The future will be decided.
Filmmaker(s): John Woo

In 208 A.D., in the final days of the Han Dynasty, shrewd Prime Minster Cao convinced the fickle Emperor Han the only way to unite all of China was to declare war on the kingdoms of Xu in the west and East Wu in the south. Thus began a military campaign of unprecedented scale. Left with no other hope for survival, the kingdoms of Xu and East Wu formed an unlikely alliance.

Tectonic Extremes am not a fan of Woo, and the reason becomes more stark when you compare this to Zhang‘s work. Zhang creates a world of grace in which people move, affected by the laws of that world. They can act, based on the values in...


Published February 9, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Ones |
Tagged: , ,
Ong Bak 2 (2008)
Warrior. Conqueror. Legend.
Filmmaker(s): Tony Jaa, Panna Rittikrai

Moments from death a young man is rescued by a renowned warrior. Realizing unsurpassed physical potential in the young boy he trains him into the most dangerous man alive. As he becomes a young man he goes on a lone mission of vengeance against the vicious slave traders who enslaved him as a youth and the treacherous warlord who killed his father.

Costume Trunk was directed to this because I am interested in cinematic choreography. From a practical perspective, that usually means martial arts. Further, it means Asian films. But gee they sure get tedious after the first few unless there really is a master behind the camera....


Published February 9, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Ones |
Tagged: , ,
Innocence (2004)
The end of innocence...the beginning of life.
Filmmaker(s): Lucile Hadzihalilovic

At an unusual private school for girls, new students, including young Iris, show up in coffins. The establishment's teachers, Mademoiselle Eva and Mademoiselle Edith, introduce Iris and her fellow pupils to the school's curriculum, which includes fairy-like dances through a nearby forest. When night falls, the older girls, who are on the threshold of womanhood, are then given mysterious, life-changing lessons.

Moving Into Benjamenta” folded into “Picnic at Hanging Rock” “Maladolescenza” folded into “Stalker” “Yume“ folded into “Drowning with numbers” “Au revoir les enfants” folded into “Suspiria“ “Sex and Lucia” folded into “Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary” These movements formed into a star. That star subtracted from the lid of...


Published February 7, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Threes |
Tagged: , ,
Hachi: A Dog’s Tale (2009)
A true story of faith, devotion and undying love.
Filmmaker(s): Lasse Hallström

A drama based on the true story of a college professor's bond with the abandoned dog he takes into his home.

Multiple Watchers don’t know the original Japanese film on which this is based, but of course I do know the real life story. I watched this with 3 and ten year olds, and watched them squirm with the slow, very slow pacing. I found it not...


Published February 5, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Twos |
Tagged: , ,
Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soapbox (2006)
A documentary about obsession, compassion and all-purpose soap.
Filmmaker(s): Sara Lamm

A human story about a socially responsible company, “Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soapbox” documents the complicated family legacy behind the counterculture’s favorite cleaning product — Bronner’s son, 68-year-old Ralph, endured over 15 orphanages and foster homes as a child, but despite difficult memories, is his father’s most ardent fan.

Legacy, Chemistry are hard to do. Nearly always what the filmmaker encounters is the complexity of life, from which they try to pull a narrative. Most often, that narrative is refined, abstracted from the world to match expectations. The best of these instead challenge our...


Published February 5, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Threes |
Tagged: , ,
The Taking of Tiger Mountain (2014)
Filmmaker(s): Tsui Hark

Yang Zirong disguises himself as a bandit to infiltrate and destroy a bandit group. He joins hands with a hostage, and together, they fight against the warlord, Hawk.

The Japanese Win? a 2D viewing. This is very clearly produced under Party sponsorship to celebrate the soldiers who won the country. The contrast with US WWII films is striking. We require tough heroes, where here there is something more noble. Two remarkable things...


Published February 4, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Ones |
Tagged: , ,
Boarding Gate (2007)
She's losing control again.
Filmmaker(s): Olivier Assayas

A sordid and complex series of events unfolds when an ex-prostitute becomes involved with a couple in Hong Kong.

Asia’s Tectonics things are interesting about the film. The first and most discussed is the actress, Asia Argento. She and Beatrice Dalle are similar I think. They both have the quality of fearless commitment - like Emily Watson in "Breaking the Waves" and never afterward. They...


Published February 1, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Threes |
Tagged: , ,
Blue Collar Comedy Tour: The Movie (2003)
Filmmaker(s): C. B. Harding

The comedic stylings of four sort-of famous funnymen are brought to the big screen courtesy of this 2002 documentary.

Embrace Ignorance used to be that a standup comic would make an LP. Cosby, Prior...


Published February 1, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Ones |
Tagged: , ,
Bluebeard (2009)
Filmmaker(s): Catherine Breillat

Anne (Daphné Baiwir) reads her younger sister, Marie-Catherine (Lola Créton), the story of Bluebeard. In 17th-century France, another set of sisters — also named Anne and Marie-Catherine — are left impoverished by their father's death. Marie-Catherine dreams of marrying into money, and soon falls for wealthy divorcé Bluebeard (Dominique Thomas). Grateful for the chance at a life of comfort, Marie-Catherine marries Bluebeard — in spite of rumors that he has made a hobby of murdering his wives.

Bresson’s Beast is a sad thing to see the tragedy unfold, that tragedy of growing weariness of life we have impressed on the story of the lost innocence of a girl. There are three such stories here. The least interesting is the 'fairy tale' itself: an...


Published February 1, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Twos |
Tagged: , ,
Intacto (2001)
Some are born with luck. Others gamble for it.

An enigmatic tale of four people whose lives are intertwined by destiny are subject to the laws of fate. They discover that luck is something they cannot afford to be without as they gamble with the highest stakes possible in a deadly game from which only one of them will emerge intact.

Shoot the Picture are a few good filmmakers alive now, ones I credit. Mostly they are distributed in accidental pools of the industry, a couple in Hong Kong, a master in Amsterdam, a few passing through Hollywood it seems. Singles here and there. But there...


Published January 30, 2024
| Categorised as IMDB Comments, Threes |
Tagged: , ,
preloader image