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Originally posted by Keeth
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Weren't Synapse planning on it but ran into complications because one of the actresses is ashamed of taking part in one of the films and doesn't want them out? Pretty sure I heard that on a podcast. -
Kanto Woman Yakuza (é–¢æ±å¥³ã‚„ãã– ) (1968)
Nikkatsu Noir meets Girl Gang Films at Daiei. Michiyo Yasuda, one of the studio's few female action stars, leads a group of three girls who make their living playing on the clubs. They soon run into trouble with the yakuza. The film has a phenomenally energetic opening with great music, fantastic cinematography and Yasuda kicking ass. It's just a shame the storyline gradually takes a more conservative turn with emphasis shifted towards the male characters, who do the dirty work in the climax. It's still a very stylish film with superb cinematography and amazing moments where director Akira Inoue sets scenes to a blazing rock score. The film also does great job capturing the streets and clubs populated by the lower class. This is a small discovery, although more noirish and down to earth than the likes of Stray Cat Rock that would make a passable comparison point.
In his book Gun and Sword, Chris D. calls this the first film in the Kanto Woman series. However, that is almost certainly not correct. Based on Japanese databases, the spelling of the title (hiragana instead of kanji) and supposedly different approach (ninkyo instead of modern) the other three Kanto Woman films are a series of their own, unrelated to this one.
The screencaps below are from a VoD stream. Kadokawa also released the film on DVD a few years ago (I have it, but I'm too lazy to take new screencaps, so these will have to do).
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I could see that happening; I remember reading that when Synapse released Singapore Sling, no one wanted to be involved with that or even admit they had anything to do with the film.Originally posted by Tom Clark View Post
I guess if Nikkatsu were to take heat from the actress then that would cause Synapse to not get proper materials but if Synapse had everything then there wouldn't be much the actress could do to stop it (if contracts, etc. were all in order)....Comment
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That's what's confusing me. Maybe things are different in Japan but if, as you say, Synapse is in the clear as far as paperwork is concerned AND has the proper materials, what's stopping them? Being ashamed of appearing in a film is one thing but to actually prevent said from getting a home video release is another. Like I said, maybe its different in Japan but surly such an argument cant hold much legal water.Originally posted by Keeth View PostComment
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I don't think it is really a legal matter (or at least should not be a problem even if someone tried to make it into one) but maybe it just isn't worth the trouble for Nikkatsu and they can afford to pull some films since they have so many (still hundreds of roman pornos that have never been released outside theaters). Or this is how they do things in Japan. :p
Synapse doesn't have the rights and Nikkatsu won't license the film (Angel Guts: High School Co-Ed) anymore so the not-so-good incorrect aspect ratio DVD is the best we're ever going to have (of course things could always change but for now it seems this is it). Sucks but at least we can see the film... But every film the actress appears in has been pulled. Even old VHS (rental?) pages at DMM.co.jp have been removed. And of course couple of the films never even had a home video release so nobody will ever see those films again (as it also seems they won't allow theatrical presentations either). :down:
And apparently her name has been deleted from several Japanese movie databases (but Nikkatsu still has her name on their database). Jerry Chandler only talked about the actress being ashamed or something like that but sukebanboy dug out some info (and posted on the roman porno thread) about how the actress would actually be dead and it would be someone claiming to be a relative who had been asking sites to remove the name. No idea how reliable that info is...Last edited by Sundance; 09-12-2016, 08:51 PM.Comment
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Caught Jobic Wong's 1985 Taiwanese exploitation flick, LAST BREATH which is also known as JUNGLE HEAT in international markets with footage of gweilo actors inserted like Sam Jones of FLASH GORDON fame. The movie is infamous for its cruel "acid in the brain" torture scene -- if this looks familiar, well it also was used in Bosco Lam's A CHINESE TORTURE CHAMBER STORY as one of the Ching dynasty punishments detailed in the intro.
Also, re-watched Philip Chan's 1985 giallo influenced CATIII thriller, NIGHT CALLER. I just love watching Pat Ha...she plays these off-beat characters so well but her crowning achievement was her role as the abused wife in THE WOMAN OF WRATH. I think I'm going to have give that one a re-watch as well from my old Ocean Shores laserdisc rip.
^ one of the great subtitles in HK cinema, along with Simon Yam's "You shot my dickey" after Yvonne Yung shoots him in the privates
Last edited by 47lab; 09-14-2016, 03:28 PM.Comment
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This one looks absolutely gorgeous from the screenshots. I just got a book about post-war Daiei studio history delivered. Definitely want to dive a bit deeper into the movies they produced, especially during the Dainichi Eihai period where they joined their distribution arm with Nikkatsu from 1968 until 1970.Originally posted by Takuma View PostComment
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Nihon no Sex jyudan: Hihashi nihon hen (Japan, 1971) [35mm] - 1/5
Pink film director Mamoru Watanabe's low budget accounting of a rapist murderer who left 4 women dead in the 1960s. No budget, no ambition, no exploitative edge, this is a real struggle to make it till the end.
The Blossom and the Sword (Japan, 1973) [35mm] - 4/5
Tai Kato's early 20th century set yakuza epic about an ordinary merchant girl (Yoko Maki) who crosses paths with an assassin (Tetsuya Watari). The encounter sends her to jail as a suspected accomplice. Years later she marries a yakuza boss, whose gang is affiliated with working class people. The boss is wounded by the same assassin, who however has a change of heart when his own boss (Bin Amatsu) turns out a rotten bastard, and he falls in love with the woman. There are some slow patches and unnecessary humour during the first half - the film was released in two halves with an intermission - but the second half is tremendous. Although Kato is more interested in characters and revealing the oppression of common people than filming stylised yakuza mayhem, he ends the film with a fight scene featuring one of the most striking images in recent memory, with fatally wounded Watari and Amatsu fighting for their lives in the background while another dying man is crawling in right towards the camera and spitting blood.
School of the Holy Beast (Japan, 1974) [35mm] - 4/5
Norifumi Suzuki's nunsploitation film is by far the best thing the genre ever produced in Japan. Nikkatsu's nunsploitation films never came close to this one in terms of quality. The film's got the usual ingredients - lesbianism, whipping, sadistic priest, disco scene, revenge plot - but what puts this in a class of its own in the extremely stylish, moody and occasionally surreal visuals that resemble Suzuki's earlier pinky violence film Sex & Fury, and even the films of Dario Argento to some extent.
I always wanted to know whether the Japanese dvd transfer, with its blue tint, or the French dvd with its more natural colours, was more accurate. The former transfer is technically poor, while the latter looks somewhat manipulated. Unfortunately the mystery remains unsolved. The 35mm was also in less than a stellar state. It did have some of the blue tint - not as strong as the Japanese dvd - but also a pink haze and was clearly quite aged. It was impossible to judge the original look based on this print.
Hanzo the Razor: Who's Got the Gold? (Japan, 1974) [DVD] - 3/5
It is not many films that have a plot synopsis like this: "After extracting information by raping a ghost, Hanzo uncovers a plot among high officials to steal the shogunate's gold". The Edo era Dirty Harry is back, only dirtier and hornier. It's a bit less inventive film than the first two, but still enjoyable with an amazing blacksploitation score and Hanzo's interrogation methods that that never cease to amaze. Some might be offended by the treatment of women in the film, but it's frankly so over the top that no one should take it seriously.
Black Panther Bitch M (Japan, 1974) [DVD] - 3/5
Reiko Ike is a ninja trained assassin in this Nikkatsu produced action film, which came out just the right time. Toei's Pinky Violence was starting to wane out while karate films were the new thing. Black Panther Bitch M was a bit of both. The film hit the screens just two weeks before Sister Street Fighter. Limited production values and some slow patches set this apart from the best Toei action films, but there are some atmospheric parts and nice bits of ultra violence as Ike takes out her opponents using knives and sadistic martial arts moves. Ike also looks absolutely gorgeous in her frequently malfunctioning blouse that clearly wasn't intended to for hand-to-hand battle. Supporting cast is mostly Toei actors, including karate master Masashi Ishibashi.
Minato no Yoko, Yohohama, Yokosuka (Japan, 1975) [35mm] - 4/5
A crazy disco dance youth film plays out like a Japanese Saturday Night Fever with a murder suspect plot. A young girl (16 year old Ai Saotome) is looking for her runaway sister and ends up finding new life at a night club. Expect psychedelic discos, dance-till-you-drop-dead all night dance marathon competitions and Downtown Boogie Woogie Band, whose song gave the film its title and plot, and who appear in the ultra-funky intro scene. What a discovery!
The Great Chase (Japan, 1975) [35mm] - 2/5
Norifumi Suzuki seems to have directed this movie with his left hand, resulting in Etsuko Shihomi's weakest karate film. Shihomi is a race driver and undercover detective whose specialty is disguising herself as an old woman (which is exactly as funny as it sounds like). Fight choreography is surprisingly sloppy, with only the final 10 minutes providing some worthwhile moves and stunts. Standard scrip does things by the book, except for an awesome "rapist in a bear suit" villain. On the positive side, the film remains surprisingly watchable despite lacking high quality.
Akira (Japan, 1988) [35mm] - 4.5/5
This is the second time I see Akira in 35mm within two years and it's always a blast. One of the best sci-fi films ever made.
The Friends (Japan, 1994) [TV] - 2/5
Shinji Somai was a genius director in the 80s, and while he made many good films even after that, his approach started becoming softer after Taifu Club (1985). This is another coming of age film; this time about three elementary school boys who are obsessed with the concept of death. They start spying on an old man living in the neighbourhood, figuring the man must be just a few steps away from the grave. Of course it eventually leads to an unexpected friendship. Not really a bad movie - I could imagine many viewers quite liking it - but it does feel very television-like and I personally didn't find it all that interesting.
Spriggan (Japan, 1998) [35mm] - 1/5
A truly awful anime film that is too violent for kids and too childish for anyone else. It reminded me of Ryuhei Kitamura on an especially bad day, although the truth is even Kitamura could not helm such boring, stupid action. I kept falling asleep for short periods during the last 30 minutes and probably didn't miss anything worthwhile.
Linda Linda Linda (Japan, 2005) [35mm] - 4.5/5
This is the rare Japanese mainstream debut by a celebrated indie champion that isn't a compromise or a total sell-out. It is nothing short of amazing how effortlessly slacker comedy specialist Nobuhiro Yamashita brings his dry humour and leisure pacing into a mainstream crowd pleaser about four high school girls who must learn to play a punk rock song for a school festival. Yamashita gets tremendous performances from his young stars, especially Bae Doona as the Korean exchange student. There was a another music film released the same year, Nana, which is utter trash compared to this.
Although I could not stay till the end of the event, it was great finally seeing Aki Maeda live after the film. She was a charming girl at the time of filming in 2004, and now 12 years later she's become an equally charming and beautiful 31 year old woman.
Godzilla: Resurgence (Japan, 2016) [DCP] - 2/5
A rather disappointing film by director/writer Hideaki Anno, whose track record as a brilliant analyst of troubled and alienated characters (Ritual), and as a strong social critic (Love & Pop) with antipathies for adults and the government (Evangelion), had us expect something special. Unfortunately this is as far from the Anno we know as possible. It's 25 minutes of action and 95 minutes of talking heads in a government conference room. Oddly enough the heads belong to legions of uninteresting politicians and researchers, leaving the film without a main character other than collective "Japan". There are some semi-interesting themes concerning Japanese politics, and references to recent natural disasters are effective, but the character depth is zero and the pro-government approach very unexpected from Anno. Special effects are good whenever old school effects dominate, but there are some poor CGI segments as well.
Karate Kill (Japan, 2016) [DCP] - 3/5
It's hard to imagine anyone getting bored with Gun Woman director Kurando Mitsutake's karate film. There's almost nothing but karate, violence, and boobs on display. New face Hayate stars: he's one of those guys whose muscles are bigger than his charisma. Impressive karate, quite clearly captured on camera, but one does feel Mitsutake should've exploited the martial arts angle even more with more training scenes, philosophy, and tougher opponents. One also wishes he had refrained from CGI blood in gunplay scenes. Compared to Gun Woman, this one has better production values but also less innovative plot concept and slightly less energetic execution. Entertaining low budget fun that feels like a good DTV production, but could've been better.Comment
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This has been #1 on my most wanted list for awhile. I'd pay through the nose for an English friendly release.Originally posted by Takuma View PostBlack Panther Bitch M (Japan, 1974) [DVD] - 3/5
Reiko Ike is a ninja trained assassin in this Nikkatsu produced action film, which came out just the right time. Toei's Pinky Violence was starting to wane out while karate films were the new thing. Black Panther Bitch M was a bit of both. The film hit the screens just two weeks before Sister Street Fighter. Limited production values and some slow patches set this apart from the best Toei action films, but there are some atmospheric parts and nice bits of ultra violence as Ike takes out her opponents using knives and sadistic martial arts moves. Ike also looks absolutely gorgeous in her frequently malfunctioning blouse that clearly wasn't intended to for hand-to-hand battle. Supporting cast is mostly Toei actors, including karate master Masashi Ishibashi.
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A Scene at the Sea (Ano natsu, ichiban shizuka na umi; 1991, Takeshi Kitano)
Watched it with the audio commentary from Jasper Sharp a few days ago. This is not only my favorite Kitano but one of my favorite movies overall. The audio commentary was stacked with a lot of interesting details about cast, crew and Kitano himself. Definitely one of the better audio commentaries I was able to enjoy in last time.
In the Realm of the Senses (Ai no korida; 1976, Nagisa Oshima)
Had the pleasure of seeing this in the most beautiful cinema here in Vienna in gorgeous 35mm. I actually prefer Oshima's version a bit more than the Roman Porno one by Noboru Tanaka, which also is a good movie, but not one of my favorites from him. Completely forgot that Meika Seri has a small role in IN THE REALM OF THE SENSES, which delighted my viewing even more. Beautiful love story about two individuals escaping from their real lifes, the horrors of war and having their own little revolution. After seeing the 35mm print yesterday I've to admit though that the Criterion Bluray is top-notch. Definitely want to check out the Tony Rayns commentary on that one again.
Two images of yesterday's cinema (Website - German only):
It's a real pleasure to watch these movies in such a nice atmosphere. Today I'm out for the new Kiyoshi Kurosawa one, CREEPY ... Trailer looked promising
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Speaking of Meika Seri, there's a retrospective for her in Cinema Vera in November. She will also attend as guest.
- http://www.cinemavera.com/preview.php?no=179
This is the second time within 2 years that there is retro for her in Tokyo. Last time was in Laputa Asagaya.
- http://www.laputa-jp.com/laputa/program/serimeika/Comment
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Creepy (Kuripi itsuwari no rinjin; 2016, Kiyoshi Kurosawa)
I was able to catch this one alongside another Japanese film from last year during a genre film festival currently held here in vienna. I am by no means an expert on Kurosawa, have only seen three other of his films and none of the big "classics". I saw LOFT a few years ago and although not disliking it, it didn't really create more interest in me to dig deeper into the director's oeuvre. About a year ago I got me the Third Window Films DVD of EYES OF THE SPIDER and THE SERPENT'S PATH. I ended up liking both movies quite a bit for their unique take on the revenge genre, but just as with LOFT, I wasn't too keen on watching more Kurosawa soon. That said CREEPY completely blew me away. By many it's seen as a return to strength of Kurosawa. I can't really comment on this, but it definitely made me want to watch more soon.
Takakura, played by Hidetoshi Nishijima and his wife move into a new house after Takakura got seriously hurt doing his work as a police detective. He now works as an university professor but in his heart still wants to be a detective. Of course he gets involved into an unsolved case again, but that's not the only problem the young pair is facing. Their neighbor Nishino, played marvellous by Teruyuki Kagawa, while at first seeming to be a kind of weird but somewhat also loveable guy, gets weirder and weirder with time and also seems to have a connection to the unsolved case Takakura is focusing on again.
The film starts out as a kind of police buddy movie and slowly drifts into more and more extreme thriller resorts while also adding another dramatic aspect through the relationship between Takakura and his wife. Kurosawa never relies on jump scares or any simple methods to create fear, instead he slowly builds up a frightening mood throughout the whole runtime. At the end of the movie I was completely thrilled and frightened with my eyes glued to the cinema screen.
I have to say though that it's not a perfect movie. Takakura is slightly overwritten which can get a bit annoying, especially during some of the earlier interrogation scenes, which also don't really profit from the modern digital all-too-clean look of the images. If I'd want to nitpick, I'd have to mention a gas explosion scene with absolutely horrible CGI, but it's only a small part of an otherwise great movie.
The Inerasable (Zange sunde wa ikenai heya; 2015, Yoshihiro Nakamura)
At first I wasn't too interested into going to watch this one, but after the great experience I had with CREEPY I decided to give this a try also. I haven't seen other movies from Nakamura, so I can't comment on how to position this within his body of work or anything like that.
The movie starts out from a really interesting premise of combining a kind of Scooby Doo mystery story with the J-Horror genre but fails at the execution of it. Many of the reviews I read were widely positive, not only praising it for it's unique take on the J-Horror genre but also for the great work before and behind the camera. I'm not exactly sure which movie these people saw, but for me not only wide parts of the script were unbearable, I also had problems with the overall look of the movie and also some of the acting was far from being good.
The film has it's moments throughout his running time but relies way too much on exposition through dialog. That's not the only problem of the script, which also suffers from new characters suddenly appearing out of seemingly nothing just to further the development of an all-too convoluted storyline.
Also, I don't know if that's only a problem for me since I mainly watch older movies, but I can't stand this all-too-clean optic of modern digital-shot Japanese movies. It all looks fake to me and throws me out of the movie constantly. That's clearly a budget-problem also, but it didn't bother me as much on CREEPY which still managed to create great imagery within many scenes.
Two images from Slash Film Festival currently being hold in vienna:
Great to watch movies in a cinema again. Definitely a complete different experience then watching them on DVD or Bluray. Looking forward to the other big film festival here, which will be held in about a month. There are movies from Akira Kurosawa, Naruse and Ozu already confirmed for the retrospective alongside a screening of LADY SNOWBLOOD. As for now there are no Japanese movies confirmed for the main program, but the complete program will get online in just a week or so. I really hope they will show something out of the Roman Porno Reboot Project.Comment
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Nice pics. Always cool to see pics from cinemas and film fests.Comment
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Me and my lady went to check out the new Dante Lam actioner, OPERATION MEKONG last night. Supposedly based on a true story but I didn't know anything of the background before going in. Ok, no one is going to confuse this with the second coming of BULLET IN THE HEAD or anything but it was solid & entertaining action film. Yes, the script read like a CPC propaganda piece at times and of course, all the heroes are Chinese with all the villains being SE Asians, Indians and hell they even threw in a black guy baddie too. The all too familiar shaky handicam and quick jump cutting edits weren't as off putting here as in some other films. The CGI wasn't the best and the powder blood squib type effects were annoying but the car chases and the firefight battle at the end made up for it for the most part. There was one truly poignant scene where I could hear some muffled crying and tears from the audience & it didn't involve any of the actors but Bingo the K9 anti-drug dog. i enjoyed this enough to pick up the blu ray when Well Go releases it later.
Best part of the night was going to dinner afterward at Tokyo Fried Chicken. It's like southern comfort food meets Asian fusion. The chicken is alright but man, I love the side dishes there -- could live on the curry corn and miso collared greens alone! :up:Comment
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I caught some back to back Eddie Peng action with CALL TO HEROES by Benny Chan and action director, Sammo Hung. He looks ridiculous here with the facial hair but still looks a hundred times better than he did with his disguises in OPERATION MEKONG. It's a throwback good vs evil flick with classic Western movie influences and really one dimensional characters. Louis Koo goes all out as the son with bloodlust of the local Warlord, Sean Lau as the whipmaster sheriff and the aforementioned Eddie Peng as an itinerant bum with a past which will come to a head in the finale with Wu Jing. Nothing outstanding but entertaining. Better than 90% of Benny Chan's previous efforts.
Last edited by 47lab; 10-09-2016, 11:59 AM.Comment
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