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Reviews
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: Subspace Rhapsody (2023)
Suspension of disbelief?
Sci Fi and Fantasy depend on suspension of disbelief, more than any other kind of fiction. The writers fundamentally misunderstand their jobs by doing this episode in this particular way. As such it gets a 5/10. The actors try their best so not lower. I agree that the lyrics are pretty forgettable (except "change paradigm") but it's easy to identify holes in the premise that are most distracting. If they're being forced to sing, it doesn't mean they dance, nor that the artificial gravity goes out etc etc etc When they just talk it's the usual excellence which just highlights how the rest doesn't fit.
Kaishaku the honor of Samurai (2018)
Pointless
The production is not 1 star only because there are actual sword techniques & the costumes. The tatami rooms also look authentic. So much is off-putting, including English dialogue when subtitles would have been a better choice. The techniques would have been interesting if they hadn't decided to speed up (obviously so) the film at certain points. If you're going to make a film instead of an instructional video, anything that takes away from a seamless story is a big minus. Maybe in the time of Tyrone Power's Zorro you could get away with speeding the film up, but this was made in modern times. There's also a glaring plot hole. In a story this short, it is impossible to ignore. Honestly, I regret buying it, and would have thought even renting it to be a waste of cash since I'm not related to anyone involved in the production or in one of the sword schools who I imagine are the only ones who wouldn't regret spending money on this. Since there were no other reviews, I'm glad at least to be able to provide some description for those curious about Kaishaku.
Perry Mason: The Case of the Shooting Star (1986)
Great! Way heavier hitting than the usual episode!
I have no idea what film the other written reviewers were watching. This one, unlike the disappointing Nun, follows the classic format. The writers really struggled to find out how to use Katz effectively in the first films, this one they made him just like Paul Sr, even putting him in a classy plain suit at one point. That was fairly shocking after the "mod" outfits they had him in previously. The investigation phase has them chasing various leads with the usual sets of red herrings. They even pull a blatant con on the audience by having Perry say, "He smiles too much," about one particular guy. In a rarity, Perry discovers the actual killer at about the same time as a sharp audience member could (I missed it. Ooooops). Usually Perry knows far in advance of the viewer so this was a treat.
Now the actual spoiler. The episode addresses head on, and in a compelling manner, the issue of child abuse. The victim behaves as an adult in a manner consistent with that trauma. There is no tidy ending for that character shown on screen, nor is it clear how the State will proceed in the light of the evidence that came out at trial. The cops wait outside the courtroom but they haven't stormed in to make the arrest & make no move forward to the end. Very often in Perry Mason, the real criminal is someone the audience has absolutely no sympathy for, made doubly worse by having let the blame fall on Perry's client. This ending throws that on its head, and it thus mirrors real life far more than usual. The audience is left wondering about how to find justice (what is due/owed to each person), and that is thoroughly contemporary. There is acknowledgment also for the first time that the laws have changed from the 50's & 60's in that the death penalty is not on the books in that jurisdiction. That was always an overarching issue in the original series. Really, this is the best integration of a thoroughly dated series (which I nevertheless love!) into modern sensibilities and does it without pandering & preaching which modern media just can't convincingly do.
Kyô Samurai Musashi (2020)
Worth watching once. Interesting approach, but flawed execution.
There is very little effort made in setting up how or why the fight happened and so as a story the plot (i.e. the central conflict) is lacking. Man v. man, yes, but without setting it up there's no real story here. I'm happy I bought it and watched it as encouraging innovation in chambara or jidai geki (definitely the former). As entertainment it lacks because it goes on long enough to spot some glaring issues easily ignored in shorter scenes. 1) the shortest distance between two points is a line. From the middle stance, one is always threatening the throat strike as the most efficient killing blow but he never does it. I get it for safety's sake but after so much coverage it becomes more obvious. 2) no one who charges from the high stance has any actual intent to connect the downward swing. You can tell because he's easily able to connect a slice to the midriff (should be a "men" attack probably) before the downswing ever happens. He does this without needing to step forward or do anything to throw off their timing. 3) no coordination from the attackers. The very few times they attack simultaneously, it's high so both blows can be blocked with the same block. The only way they could have won would be such simultaneous attacks but from different angles & directions. I take issue with those who say no blood gets on his blade because it's manifestly inaccurate. I agree with those who say that the few extras in the exact same outfits & hairpieces is something easily perceived after so many minutes of coverage.
Things that still impress me 1) the actor's physical stamina. Even if the "sword" is light wood, it has to be heavy enough to receive a lot of blows without visually bending or distorting. The actor holds that thing up an impressive length of time. We used to do an exercise in my Okinawan style where we would hold our arms parallel to the ground for as long as we could and it was never long. We just couldn't do it. 2) the preparation of the character for the battle in advance. He knows he'll need extra swords & water, so he set them up in advance. I'd like to circle back to the actor's stamina here because until close to the end he drinks very little of the water, preferring to rinse his mouth & his "blade." He's obviously sweating for real & doing a lot off physical activity so again, impressive. 3) the fight scene at the end.
The last bit of criticism I have wasn't mentioned yet, and that is not letting us see the last opponent defeated. After making us sit through all that attacking without even giving us the emotional satisfaction of completion felt like a deliberate waste of our time. If they were going to cut away, why not edit? Why not show the ending after spending so much time setting it up.
Kuro-obi (2007)
Great on martial arts/ martial philosophy, less so as a total package.
It's great seeing something more authentic than the usual martial arts film, though don't get me wrong, wire type films are also great entertainment.
My take on the sensei's prohibition is not one of anti-violence but rather that the three (and apparently only) students are rather flawed so he has (temporarily) sealed the strikes until they actually comprehend the purpose of the martial arts & their style in particular.
The students can be divided into two groups. For one student, it's a classic problem. Just because something is *physically* possible, doesn't mean it is *morally* so. The easiest error to fall into for any strong person is "might equals right." This was also most certainly the historical error of the Imperial Army & the Kenpeitai especially. Unlike these groups, I've never met a serious contemporary practitioner of the Chinese/Japanese martial arts who advocates a "violence often" approach to problems. Rather, when violence is called for, it ought to be effective. Judging the time & place for violence is perhaps the most important art of the martial arts, but very rarely is that expounded upon explicitly. Rather, one absorbs this organically from practicing the martial arts and the always disciplined application of force.
The other two students though lack conviction. They practice the movements but do not grasp the internal logic. This is apparent when the one student admirably stops the officer of the kenpeitai every time he continues his aggression (even beyond the point of reason like the Monty Python Black Knight). Who is responsible for the officer's crippling? Given the situation, it's the officer himself who attacks with ample evidence that he's outclassed. The officer never takes responsibility for his actions then or after (and sadly, historically only a very small percentage of the kenpeitai personnel were ever caught & tried). When the laughably incompetent son & daughter show up, though, he doesn't defend himself from their aggression (even with the restrictions his sensei has imposed). He's shaken to the core. Doesn't he understand the point of his martial art? No, he doesn't. Later when he finally does try to defend the child from the aggressors, he gets lost in the individual opponents and forgets his main task: protecting the kid. I feel for the poor sensei saddled with these guys. There are hints that he has explained repeatedly in words but they just don't get it.
The weaknesses of the film are in the historical setting, story, and production values. The Imperial Army's uniforms don't fit. Indeed this is the absolute worst I've ever seen these period uniforms look. The fabric appears artificial, the clothes without shape, the lengths of the jackets uneven in relation to the size of the soldier, even the Sam Browne belt is off. The worst anti-Japanese American film of the World War 2 era (or post war) has better looking uniforms than this. Second, the kenpeitai were as historically despicable as the German SS and Gestapo. You don't have to look far for historically accurate atrocities to lay at their door. For a period movie, they didn't do much research coming up with this yakuza prostitution ring (which in fact ropes in some yakuza to carry it out). The story is also improbable as to the historical kenpeitai's reaction to resistance to their orders. They were hated even in Japan for their ruthless brutality. As to rewarding these karateka for their defiance with official appointments as martial arts instructors to the Army, while many things can happen in the effort to save face, the need to do so is never emphasized or played up the way it would need to for suspension of disbelief. Lots of the story goes like this.
Overall, this film is worth a watch due to the martial arts & the perspective upon them, the rest not as much.
Maine Cabin Masters (2017)
Fantastic show!
I've seen from episode 1 and this is quite the fun show. The camps (the rest of the US outside of New England calls them cabins) are fun transformations but the real entertainment is the friendships and interactions of the crew. This was even more entertaining in the first two seasons with Lance, just because the guy is so atypical, but everyone is still fun and real. What you see is what you get with these folks. Just watch their YouTube podcast and you can see they're exactly the same in real time as the show. This will be worth your time if you like renovation shows/building shows or you want to see people who are passionate about what they do and like doing it.
The Pirates of Penzance (1983)
The Best Media version of the original Papp produced version
So, having watched the DVD version of the original NY Broadway version, the official audio album of the Broadway version, and the movie version, I can say without a doubt that the movie as a performance is the mature fruit of the actor's long acquaintance with the material (having also performed the material in the park version). The dialogue is also modified from the original, which followed the old original G&S a little too slavishly for a modern style production. To my mind, the changes greatly heighten the comedy. Probably my favorite is when Mabel gives a rote recitation of the original dialogue ("Frederic, cannot you in the calm excellence of your wisdom, etc") in all its 19th century stiltedness, and Frederic says, "wha?" (reacting as any contemporary English-speaker is thinking), and Mabel summarizes in modern English. Don't get me wrong, I love both period productions of Gilbert & Sullivan & modern adaptations (Animaniacs anyone?). There's just a lot of comedy gold to be mined in the contrast. Really, the whole thing is brilliant and in a distinctly cinematic fashion. Having seen the recordings of the stage version, this is absolutely NOT a recreation of that. In the stage version, for instance, the Pirate King fighting with the conductor happens at the beginning, whereas cinematically that didn't make any sense. They work hard to recreate the scene, but in a way that makes sense in the flow of the film.
Watch the movie!
Unorthodox: Part 4 (2020)
Disappointed.
Third time trying to post a review.
The attention to detail in the costuming, set design, and locations are ultimately wasted in this series. Instead of also capturing the true motivations of a whole community that picked up the pieces after the Holocaust and built a thriving group that continues to exist today, we ultimately hear very little about Judaism, let alone the Hassidim of Williamsburg.. What a wasted opportunity! (And I'm not Jewish). Instead we get a stereotyped cult, with a manipulated cult member breaking out and being "deprogrammed." I've seen those stories before, and sometimes they're good. This one is breaking no new ground, story wise. This one only has one real character, Deborah. While I was initially sympathetic to her plight, in the end she won't even negotiate with her desperate husband who goes to great lengths (and episodes) to find her, her character's development is suddenly thrown out the window after having 3 episodes of intimacy issues followed by a scene where there is suddenly no issue at all, and the thug is thwarted as he laughs (all that was needed was a bwa-ha-ha or a "I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog too"). I was excited to watch it after seeing the accompanying documentary, but ultimately liked the documentary much more than the series. The real-life characters and stories really moved me. The fictional versions not.
The Happiest Millionaire (1967)
Fun musical
While freely admitting this is a nostalgia title for me, having seen it and liked it in my childhood, I still think this is a delightful movie. It has very little to do with the historical Biddles, Drexels, Buchanans or Dukes, as all such productions including Yankee Doodle Dandy and Three Little Words. I have to disagree cordially with those who declaim lack of a central story-line, because there is an obvious one but it doesn't center on Fred McMurray's character. This is about Cordelia. It's about her growing up, finding her own identity, separating from her family of origin, finding romance, and getting married. The Millionaire is merely a character study on the side which leads us back into the main conflict. Even the new butler character is there not only as a narrative device to introduce us to the various characters, but as a dramatic device keeping the Angier character in play. While it comes across as episodic, it is in fact focused.
As to the music, it must be said that John Davidson has a fantastic voice. His two solo numbers (with a couple additions by Leslie A. W.) are show stoppers. It's no wonder the guy was successful in the recording world. I never watch this film without "Detroit" going through my head afterwards. I know many enjoy Leslie's voice but I'm not one of them. Nevertheless, it works in this film. I cannot identify at all with those who say the music if forgettable. The music of Wicked is forgettable (even if the show is insanely funny). Not so any Rodgers & Hammerstein, Les Misérables, Andrew Lloyd Weber, Lerner & Loewe, or the Sherman Brothers. Granted those composers/shows do not hit 100% on every song (ever heard "The Lonely Room" from Oklahoma? Shudder), but there are plenty of hummable tunes in here as the others. There are certainly some uneven singing out of Fred M., but that's part of the character, so even that works. Rex Harrison couldn't sing a jot, but turned that to his advantage in My Fair Lady. Rex didn't have to pull off an Italian aria either as Fred does. Bye-yum pum, pum is also truly hilarious. My mother has said, "Shocking!" for years. In short, the composers and writers blend drama and comedy equally skillfully, although they are true geniuses of comedy.
Back to the writing, there are a lot of really delicious zingers in here, ("Poison dart. Raisin tart.") especially with Geraldine Page and Gladys Cooper's characters. Neither of them can sing, but their tête-à-tête sparring means ignoring their musical performance is quite easy. I'm also not sure that scene could have been done with just dialogue. Their slash and riposte is better by not being precisely continuous.
In short, outstanding music, wonderful writing, excellent casting, and superior performances make this a treat!
Yip Man ngoi zyun: Cheung Tin Chi (2018)
Woo Ping! Woo Ping.
The problem with this movie and the bright star of this movie are Yuen Woo-Ping. The problem is that he is a truly exceptional fight choreographer, a true genius of this movie making art. He can direct a fight, but as a movie director he's so mediocre! The fights are truly remarkable. The rest of the movie, meh, thus a totally average movie when added together. Please, please see this movie once. Whether you will ever watch it again is another story.
Kung Fu Traveler (2017)
Good movie.
This isn't going to win any Oscars but is a decent sci-fi, kung fu movie. It has a certain tendency to preach anti-foreign propoganda, but it's easily overlooked. If you want an enjoyable piece of escapism with some decent action, this is a movie for you.
Ichimei (2011)
Not bad! Not as good as original.
This is my first Miike film, as I am not a fan of the general themes and stories that he tells. Kobayashi's original, with legendary actor Nakadai, is a shining example of ironic storytelling in the "jidai-geki" (essentially historical fiction) mode. "Jidai-geki", where it uses swordplay, is characterized by short flashes of action as opposed to "chambara" (swordplay) or "samurai slasher" flicks which are all about the action and blood (usually copious amounts of it). I notice a number of the reviewers do not know or appreciate the distinction.
The original's purposes were multiple but most critics center in on the irony of the red armor, which to the casual observer would seem to show the dedication of the house of Ii to honor through the samurai arts. The film shows this to be an empty shell in many ways. It's the delightful sense of irony in all aspects of the storytelling that makes Hara-Kiri (1962) such a delicious film. Take, for example, the story of seppuku told by the high official to Hanshiro. In the original, when the official tells the ronin of the wooden swords, the ronin pulls out his own sword from its sheath briefly to show it is steel. This contrasts with his son-in-law's action, but also with the house of Ii, who talk a good game, but when push comes to shove, do not suit their words to action. Miike chooses to substitute a different irony by having Hanshiro use a wooden sword at the end. This leads to some interesting things. For instance, the best swordsman of the house of Ii present is soundly beaten in his dual with a classic basic technique of a strike to the head (in "kendo", "men") with a wooden sword. This in turn invokes the dual between Musashi Miyamoto and Sasaki wherein Musashi used a wooden sword and killed his opponent, i.e. Hanshiro is a much better warrior (skilled swordsman) than the empty Ii but also better warrior (honorable samurai). It's not that these new ironies are not fun, but the original's use of timing and quick reveals (e.g. the topnots) does so both more efficiently than the gradual reveals of Miike here but more importantly gets Kobayashi's point across more effectively.
Of course in 1962 the wonderful realism and nitty gritty of daily life made popular by Yamada's trilogy of adaptions of Fujisawa's written work (Twilight Samurai, The Hidden Blade, Love and Honor) hadn't happened yet, and so Miike's adaption has something to offer the previous incarnation did not have, but is that trade-off worth the price in this case? Certainly the darker lighting and more muted colors in set design and costuming gave Miike a chance to be more artistic (his shocking use of color in brief autumn scenes and the use of the white cat). Still his desire to create some sympathetic elements in the antagonists (e.g. the official's giving 3 ryo and cutting off Motome's head himself) needlessly waters down the problem with the house of Ii. Other reviews have said that Miike favors ambiguity, but here it's not enough to really create sympathy for the noble house. He should have done either more in fleshing out the character of the head official or less and made the message clearer. It comes across as half-hearted here, when the point is to show in both versions that the honor of the house is lacking.
Don't get me wrong, Miike has made a fine attempt in the new style of jidai-geki, one that apparently contrasts with his usually more exploitational style, it's just not as good as getting to its point as the original.
The Green Berets (1968)
Excellent war movie! Gives needed perspective then and now.
I've always liked this movie from the first moment I saw it as a child, and the material is looking pristine in its Bluray edition (although I also bought the double-sided DVD treatment previously).
People often seem to forget that fiction is not without truth. The truth found in fiction is of a different type and character than a documentary. Many excellent war films, and Vietnam war films in particular attempt to convey certain truths, often from the viewpoint of the individual soldier, marine, and sailor and the smaller groupings of (mostly) infantry: squad, platoon, or even company. Rarely do we venture into the broader picture, since for the individual fighting man, the big picture was not as significant personally as what happened day to day.
Each of the better Vietnam films of that type, and here I reference such works as Full Metal Jacket and The Siege of Firebase Gloria (not coincidentally movies in which R.Lee Ermey appears) capture certain aspects of primarily enlisted men's lives, e.g. boot camp, drill instructors, perceived non-responsive officers, the intense nature of combat in general & the type of combat in Vietnam in particular, etc.
What John Wayne's movie does is communicate more of the "why was the US there?" sort of questions that the other films ignore (or honestly don't take seriously). The whole film is essentially an exposition on the initial presentation by the soldier characters on their lecture at the beginning. It's very hard to forget Aldo Ray dumping all that military hardware on the desk.
Also after the Soviet Communist threat has disappeared people tend to forget that militant Communism still exists and is still a political and military power in the world. Try to tell those South Korean military and civilian personnel killed without provocation (or even military retaliation) recently that Communism in Asia is no longer an issue! The military solution to the problem tried in the era of these films did not work, but the problem exists to the current day, and it is entirely possible that the world will see another Korean war for similar reasons.