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Gokudô daisensô (2015)
Miike's best movie since GOZU.
Miike produced a myriad of dull, forgettable movies in the last 10 years, but Yakuza Apocalypse could be one of his last epic classics for a while. This movie is a mad, funny, dark, unpredictable, unconventional and violent Miike classic and has everything we came to expect from the director's brilliant movie-directing.
Don't let the whole "vampire" elements put you off. Yakuza Apocalypse doesn't intent to take itself too seriously, but you can't watch 30 min in the movie without noticing Miike's genius all over it. It's outrageously funny.
I won't dwell into the movie's plot, and Ichihara's brilliant performance, but Yakuza Apocalypse is really worth a watch, especially for Miike fans. In all modesty, this could well be his best movie since Gozu, and that's saying a lot. A must-watch!
Killers (2014)
Incoherent and pointless thriller
I had no idea in the beginning that "Killers" was a collaboration between Indonesian and Japanese filmmakers. I didn't know exactly what to expect as I started watching it. While the premise does sound promising, the movie goes nowhere later on. The Indonesian killer escape scene is far fetched. Only armed with a gun (and too scared to actually use it), he manages to escape 400 security guards in a hotel. His face gets exposed, yet he doesn't even get arrested by the local police. I guess it must be very easy to commit murder in Jakarta and get away with it.
Another incoherence is the Japanese serial killer's ability to exactly locate the Indonesian man's address in Jakarta. He kills countless women he met on the streets of Tokyo but still manages to get away with it as well. The incestuous love he has for his sister is borderline silly and we don't really understand his real motivation behind the murders. The directors merely contempt themselves to present him as a mentally unstable man who seeks revenge on society. How unoriginal!
While there are lots of good ideas in this movie, the rest makes you wonder why they actually bothered with it. Unless you are a fan of Kitamura, which is actually a brilliant actor, don't waste your time watching this!
Unbroken (2014)
Angelina Jolie is trying too hard to create an "oscar winning" epic WWII tale
Angelina Jolie's directorial debut is far too ambitious. She obviously tried to win an Oscar for that one thinking all Hollywood WWII tales are instant award winning movies. The problem with Unbroken is that Angelina Jolie is a really bad storyteller. The movie drags for the first hour and a half, with the story showing how Zamperini survived in the pacific. While it is necessary to show how he survived the ordeal, the way Angelina told the story is boring and completely uninteresting. The cast is also lacking, and borderline amateurish, lacking any emotional impact on the viewers. Jack O'Connell (Zamperini) is not suited at all for the main role. The final scene in which he carries the heavy wooden log over his head is far fetched and borderline Hollywood fiction. Unbroken is ultimately broken on all parts. This 140 min motion picture is a pain to watch, and ironically the only redeeming parts remotely interesting to me was the final cut of the movie that shows the real Zamperini carrying the Olympic torch in Nagano's 1998 Winter games. Save your money and skip this one.
Kaguya-hime no monogatari (2013)
Masterpiece
The Tale of Princess Kaguya's is Takahata's final work to end his prolific career at Studio Ghibli. The motion picture is not only based on the famous Japanese folktale but also a story about Takahata's own retirement and vision of death. Behind the facade of a girl that grows up to become a princess and eventually leave earth for the moon, is the author's own perceptions about the cycles of life, happiness, disappointments and afterlife. It's also a message about family values, and the lapses of time and age. The tale of princess Kaguya is probably my favorite Ghibli movie visually-wise. The water colors, reminiscent of ancient Chinese ink and brush techniques are masterfully used here, and bring out all the emotions from the movie's main protagonists. It really doesn't get any better than this. From the landscape canvas of rural Japan, to the magnificent character artwork, everything moves fluidly. The story is both hopeful and tragic, and the excellent dialogue adds up to it. The soundtrack from Joe Hisaishi is masterful and the Japanese voice overs are absolutely brilliant. To summarize without giving away too many details, this 140 min animated picture is a masterpiece from all angles, one of Studio Ghibli's finest releases and arguably one of the greatest animated movies ever made.