Reviews

Apparently edited down from a Japanese TV series, "Mighty Jack" looks more like several completely unrelated spy films chopped up and reedited randomly. The plot, if it can be said to have one, is an exercise in incoherence. A plot synopsis is impossible for this film, *none* of it makes sense. What an endurance test this film is, anyone who makes it all the way to the end deserves some sort of medal.

A pretty standard kung-fu period-piece with some comic elements. What sets this apart are some truly odd fighting techniques. I don't think I'll ever get the image of the chunky, long-haired man deflecting his opponent's kicks by contracting and expanding his belly out of my head. Must be a technique unique to Taiwan. Bizarre.

I think what really hurt this film was the advertising campaign. It was made to look like a serious science-fiction film. It's not. It's actually a science-fiction *comedy* that's so over-the-top, I can't believe people are trying to fault it for being something it isn't. On the level of gaudy, self-referential camp it succeeds gloriously. Watch this one with the right expectations and you ought to have a good time.

You know it's going to be a wild ride when bodies are being chopped in half five seconds into the film. The manic pace of this film never lets up, the assault of flashing swords, flying bodies, snakes, needles, throwing stars, whips, needles and kitchen sinks (all right, not really, but I think you get my point) is almost too much to absorb all in one sitting. But what really makes the film is the striking performance by Brigitte Lin as the villain. She's fast becoming my favourite HK actress, and her wicked performance here is a big reason why. Her character is so captivating that the next "Swordsman" film was apparently centered around her character. The only letdown is that for the bulk of the film, she's dubbed (with a male voice), but since that's integral to the plot, I'll let it slide. For fans of HK fantasy/action films, this is very much worth your while.

This was my introduction to Almodóvar, and you can bet I'll be seeing more of his work. It concerns a bisexual prostitute who begins giving sewing lessons to a doormat housewife...and quickly she and her lesbian lover involve her in a fetishistic menage-a-trois. The film is very perverse, yet very funny, and also has something interesting to say. It's also very, very Spanish, particularly in the characterizations. Lots of fun.

This one tends to get slighted by a lot of critics and Kurosawa fans, but I thought it was wonderful. It's an episodic multi-character study of Tokyo's poorest, who live in a city literally made from garbage. Though it looks like an A-Bomb just hit, the film has a sort of serene beauty thanks to the glorious use of Technicolor. The title comes from the sound made by the insane young man who drives an imaginary trolley through the slum. All the characters were wonderful and all the stories engrossing, but perhaps the most tragic concerns the man and his young son who live in an abandoned car. When not searching for food, they spend their spare time using their imagination to build their dream house. An emotionally moving and beautiful film.

Simply put, this is one of my favourite films of all time. Great acting, great writing and great camerawork make this close to cinematic perfection. Liz Taylor and Richard Burton give the performances of their lives. Sandy Dennis also shines in an early-ish role. It's a dramatic film, but the wicked humour that permeates the film is absolutely devastating, and I mean that in the best possible way. Many moments in the film I find myself laughing only to think, "Should I be laughing at this." Certainly the film is loaded with uncomfortable moments, enhanced by the camerawork replete with uneasy close-ups. Most of all, this film shows how a lot can be accomplished with just a little: a cast of four and minimal scenery changes. "Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf" has become an absolute icon of American cinema. If you haven't seen it, what are you waiting for?

Abandon hope all ye who enter here. This may well be one of the worst movies of any notoriety I've ever had the misfortune to see. The wacky title may pique your curiosity, but make no mistake...this film isn't "so bad it's good", it's just irredeemably awful and stultifyingly dull. It's overloaded with long stretches of *nothing* where you pray that something, *anything* even slightly interesting might happen, but it doesn't. Apparently, someone thought this was a "comedy", but I fail to see anything in it that anyone with a brain might find funny, even unintentionally. I wasn't offended by any of it, I was too bored to be offended. The one bright spot in this horrible film is the mesmerizing acoustic-guitar soundtrack by Leo Kottke. Skip this horrible film, and buy Kottke's _6 and 12 String Guitar_ CD instead, you'll be glad you did.

This goofy Italian slapstick comedy was obviously made to capitalize on the kung-fu craze of the early 70's. Though released in the U.S. under the title "Hercules Against Karate", there's no Hercules to be seen here. It concerns two Americans, a blond babyface and his big, burly lunkhead sidekick who woo two pretty young ladies in Hong Kong while fending off high-kicking bad guys and sumo wrestlers (don't ask). There's an irritating cute kid and some toilet humor. It all resembles a Bud Spencer/Terrence Hill film, but minus Hill and Spencer.

I'd be hard-pressed to find a more painful film. Nausea-inducing camera twists, seemingly random editing (try and find a scene that has anything to do with the one that preceded it), bad lighting, bad acting, nonexistent writing and a lack of *anything* that makes a good, or coherent film. Add to all that one of the lamest twist endings in cinema history, with out any sort of plot to justify it, and you have one infuriating film. It was so difficult to sit through, I was almost in tears by the end. One of those films you can't enjoy on any level, even as camp.

If Fassbinder has made a worse film, I sure don't want to see it! Anyone who complains that his films are too talky and claustrophobic should be forced to view this, to learn to appreciate the more spare style he opted for in excellent films like "The Bitter Tears Of Petra von Kant". This film bogs down with so much arty, quasi-symbolic images it looks like a parody of an "art-film". The scene in the slaughterhouse and the scene where Elvira's prostitute friend channel-surfs for what seems like ten minutes are just two of the most glaring examples of what makes this film a real test of the viewer's endurance. But what really angers me about it are the few scenes which feature just Elvira and her ex-wife and/or her daughter. These are the only moments that display any real human emotion, and prove that at the core of this horrible film, there was an excellent film struggling to free itself. What a waste.

"The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant" is a powerful, unflinching view of a love affair gone wrong. Though Petra is not the most sympathetic of characters (note the constant berating of her mute personal assistant throughout the film, which becomes even more intense when Hanna Schygulla's character leaves), one can't help but sympathize with her a little by the end. Not stagy at all, the actors all perform in a believable way, as though they were not actors at all but real people caught in these situations (note Mrs. von Kant's incredulousness when she discovers Petra's love affair with another woman). Excellent, but certainly not for all tastes. This is an extremely claustrophobic film; does Petra ever leave her apartment? Certainly, it's the best Fassbinder film I've seen so far, though. I'm glad I saw it, as I nearly gave up on him.

This may well be the funniest American film of the 1980's, with nonstop laughs from beginning to end. The pace of the film is almost exhausting, your throat will be sore from laughing yourself silly. It's closer in style to British farce than probably any other American film I can think of. It also sports a great ensemble cast. This was Bette Midler's *real* comeback. And Danny DeVito is delightfully nasty. Probably of best note is an early role for Bill Pullman, who is the brain-dead boy-toy lover of Anita Morris' character. Not to be missed by comedy fans, but make sure you see the uncut version (on cable or video).

This eye-popping, special-effects-laden Asian fantasy is a real feast for the eyes. It stars Yuen Biao as a soldier who, fed up with the constant and seemingly pointless civil war, deserts his platoon only to find himself caught in another battle. He escapes the battle by falling off a cliff, but descends unharmed into a cave, where he is rescued from an attack by glow-eyed flying demons by a fantastic warrior with a magical flying sword. He goes under the tutelage of the warrior, who is reluctant to take on a new pupil. What follows, words cannot aptly describe. Suffice it to say, it's an absolutely frenzied mix of action, special effects and bizarre, magical occurrences. The action is non-stop and the editing is laser-paced. I was absolutely exhausted by the end of the film. The cast is likewise first-rate. I was impressed especially by Sammo Hung in a dual role: as Yuen Biao's soldier buddy, and as Long Brows, the ancient priest who holds the Blood Monster at bay using his "sky mirror" and magical extending beard and eyebrows...You'd have to see it to understand. Suffice to say that there's many moments in this film that will have you thinking, "I have no idea what's going on, but it sure *looks* cool." Trust me, you won't be able to tear your eyes from the screen.

This film has an ethereal quality that makes it feel rather like wandering through someone's dream. It's by no means fast-moving, but there are no wasted, dead spaces. Klaus Kinski is riveting as the mad Aguirre, whose ambition jeopardizes the entire expedition. The jungle imagery is breathtaking.

This is a somewhat weird psychological drama about a mentally troubled young woman (Mia Farrow) who mistakes Liz Taylor's character for her dead mother. The situation is complicated by the fact that Farrow's character also resembles Taylor's dead daughter. Though the premise is a bit contrived, it becomes a bit touching as Taylor eventually becomes protective and concerned about the girl, who is being victimized by her own family. The film does suffer from several major flaws, most notably the appearance of Robert Mitchum, painfully miscast as Farrow's lecherous stepfather. Probably one of Taylor's most daring and least embarrassing roles from this period, she also looks surprisingly good here.

"The Swinger" is quite a relic, the film that begs the question, "Is there any emulsified substance we haven't seen Ann-Margret slather her body with?" Dated, with lots of sexist humour and lots of egregiously tacky 60's fashions, it actually has the feel of a Rock Hudson/Doris Day comedy (but not as funny, at least not in the way the writers intended!) but with lots of leering double-entendres. The premise concerns writer A-M trying to sell her stories to a Playboy-type magazine, but editor Tony Franciosa believes her to be too sweet and innocent, so she goes out of her way to portray herself as a "swinger". Only in the sixties! What more can you say about a film that contains not one, but *two* photo montage sequences? The most memorable scene is of course the orgy, the wacky opening and closing credits are lots of silly fun as well.