When Real is Not a Reality

After office day, RJ, Francois & I walked over to CineArts to view the long anticipated Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010) by Banksy. With everything I'd been hearing / reading about this documentary my expectations were at a fever pitch. Thankfully this film lived up to the hype, which is rare anymore. Malcolm (SmodCast) dubbed this a "revenge doc" which might be overstating it but this film is quite subversive not just in content. It's exhilarating and yet uncomfortable at times. I look forward to more viewings.

Continuing my 80s obsession I finished off the Ghoulies flipper with Ghoulies 2 (1988). This time the ghoulies get resurrected at a carnival funhouse (same funhouse later used in Dark Ride?). Think this one is on par w/the first film with a little more humor and more camp.


Lastly another Japanese crime thriller with Takashi Ishii's Gonin 2 (1996) starring Ken Ogata as a wizened badass seeking revenge for the death of his wife at the hands of yakuza. The "gonin" in the title are 5 disenchanted women that come together after a botched jewelry store robbery and also stand in the way of the yakuza. The first half is a little slow but everything after the robbery is good stuff. Kimiko Yo is excellent as the elder (40yrs old at the time) leader of this rag-tag bunch. Dug this film.

• May New: 30
• May Re-watch: 4
• May Total: 34
• 2010 TOTAL: 289