Only The Lonely

Last movie I watched with my girlfriend was Jun Ichikawa's Tony Takitani (2004), a film I've had for a while but just haven't seen. Man, this is a very depressing film but excellent performances by Issei Ogata and Rie Miyazawa, who does double duty as Tony's wife and replacement muse. Definitely a different film but well worth the watch. Recommended. 7/10

• November New: 51
• November Re-watch: 6
• November Total: 57
• 2010 TOTAL: 715
  

The Downward Spiral

Another VHS tape I picked up at San Carlos Video for a buck was Endless Descent (1990) a.k.a. The Rift. Directed by Juan Piquer Simón, this is a decent little submarine horror thriller. Features R.Lee Ermey and Ray Wise with Jack Scalia sporting some awesome hair as they investigate a missing submarine and discover something much more threatening... beneath the sea. Kinda really enjoyed this flick. 6.5/10

• November New: 50
• November Re-watch: 6
• November Total: 56
• 2010 TOTAL: 714
  

Kids WIll Be Kids

Was lucky enough to catch one of the last midnight grindhouse screenings at Camera 7 in Campbell, CA. Last night was Bonnie's Kids (1973) and this has to be the grainiest, most speckled print I've seen screened. So bad that the film quit several times during the screening making it an agonizing watch. Many people didn't stick around as the delays continued. All that said, this is the way to see a film like this. I'll probably pick up the DVD now because it is such a fun sleazy flick. 7.5/10

Another DVD we decided to watch was Fumihiko Sori's Ping Pong (2002), about a group of teenagers competing against other high schools in a ping pong tournament. Rather amazing to see all these young actors who have gone on to bigger things. Overall good film heavy of the drama with some incredible ping pong matches. 6.5/10

• November New: 49
• November Re-watch: 6
• November Total: 55
• 2010 TOTAL: 713
  

London Calling

My girlfriend had picked up a few movies she thought we could watch during the holiday break. The Bollywood film Namastey London (2007) was one of them and sadly we both didn't care too much for it even with Akshay Kumar. Basically none of the characters are likable and there's no sympathy for the bratty Jazz (Katrina Kaif). The instant love bit grows tiresome here. 4.4/10

• November New: 47
• November Re-watch: 6
• November Total: 53
• 2010 TOTAL: 711
  

Noodled

Thanksgiving. Disney. My Girl. Pretty good combination for an afternoon movie outing of Tangled (2010), the latest animated feature film by Disney. Early buzz told me this was a good flick. I can confirm that it is. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience and performances. Zachary Levi is excellent as is Mandy Moore. Fun time at a small packed theater full of families. Usually this would be a bad situation but it made it even more memorable. 8/10

After our evening subpar Thanksgiving dinner at a steakhouse, we decided to watch the Japanese foodie film Tampopo (1985), one I haven't seen in years and have been wanting to revisit. Sadly it's OOP but at least my girlfriend's library had it. All the parts I remembered held up quite well and made me wish we had ramen instead of turkey tonight. Forgot many of the stranger scenes (those with the Man in White, Kôji Yakusho). Ken Watanabe and Tsutomu Yamazaki are so great too. Highly recommended for foodie movie fans. 8/10

• November New: 46
• November Re-watch: 6
• November Total: 52
• 2010 TOTAL: 710
  

Breaking the Law

Picked up a few more VHS flicks from San Carlos Video, my go-to for OOP genre titles. One of those was The Lawless Land (1988) directed by John Hess, which I hadn't seen. Decided to watch that while my girl went dancing. Fairly decent Road Warrior-esque type of film about a couple that defies the laws to be together. Pretty good bar shoot-em-up scene during the rescue sequence. Good watch. 6.5/10

• November New: 45
• November Re-watch: 5
• November Total: 50
• 2010 TOTAL: 708
  

The Octopus Man

A movie I've been wanting to see for probably 30 years is now available on Netflix Instant Watch!! Yes, I'm talking about Octaman (1971), a super awful monster flick directed by Harry Essex. I used to watch this on Sunday afternoons when one of the cable stations scheduled back to back monster movies. At the time I thought this was super terrifying and I loved it. Wasn't sure if I'd ever get to it again (never seen it on home video). It's another retelling of the classic Creature from the Black Lagoon down to the final sequence. Poor Octaman. He's just misunderstood. Of course it doesn't hold up to these wizened eyes but still charming for what they did on a meager budget. That costume is just hilarious. Would love to have a 1/6 figure of the Octaman. Or at least a replica of that little baby octopus he saves. 6.2/10 (for the nostalgia)

• November New: 44
• November Re-watch: 5
• November Total: 49
• 2010 TOTAL: 707
  

Cracked

Found a little time to finish this old school disaster flick, Crack in the World (1965). Basically some scientists fool around trying to tap into the Earth's core for energy and end up causing a… crack in the earth! 6.3/10

• November New: 44
• November Re-watch: 4
• November Total: 48
• 2010 TOTAL: 706
  

Phantom Night Ninjas

I'm off to San Jose for Thanksgiving. But still managed to watch last week's Horror Movie Night selection Night Life (1989). Very interesting little film about a teenage kid who works part-time at a mortuary. Can't even imagine doing something like that. Of course, dead bodies return to the living dead after a storm and the horror comedy ensues. Not bad. 6.7/10

While on the place I also watched Godfrey Ho's Ninja Phantom Heroes (1987). Like all of Ho's ninja flicks this one is just as comical. I don't feel it's worth trying to decipher here but it is something to be seen. If you want a detailed explanation, check out this long review on StompTokyo. 5.7/10 (for pure fun)

• November New: 43
• November Re-watch: 4
• November Total: 47
• 2010 TOTAL: 705
  

All The Boys Love Ohyaku Dayu

I have a feeling I've seen Yuen Woo-ping's Dreadnaught (1981) before a long time ago. Everything about it is so familiar. Really a wonderful film with outstanding choreography. Glad that the GGTMC covered this as I think it's an ideal movie night flick. The lion dance battles are soooooo good. White Tiger fight scenes are wonderfully brutal. 7.9/10

Hadn't seen Ocean's Twelve (2004) and not sure I'm any better now that I have. Seems like an excuse for a sequel with an overwrought plot. The Julia Roberts / Bruce Willis segment probably played better at the time of release but now just looks silly. At least Vincent Cassel is great. 6/10

Time for more Pinky Violence with Ohyaku: The Female Demon (1968), another film I really love. Junko Miyazono (Okatsu) is just great as ever as a struggling woman who seeks revenge for the death of her lover. Also like seeing Tomisaburo Wakayama in a small part. The ending is a little over the top but still a very fun film. 7.8/10

• November New: 41
• November Re-watch: 4
• November Total: 45
• 2010 TOTAL: 703
  

Cruel Bloody Violence

Tonight I dove into my ECLIPSE SERIES 17: NIKKATSU NOIR Collection to watch Cruel Gun Story (1964). This is a caper film about an ex-con that gets offered a job upon exiting prison. He recruits some unsavory fellows and gets caught in a double-cross. Reminds me a lot of The Killing from the racetrack and overall heist plot. Not the same film of course but similarities with the lead and plot. 7/10

Anticipating the upcoming release of the latest Harry Potter flick I dropped in my blu-ray of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009). Think I enjoyed it more this time around. 7.5/10

Also watched Bruno Mattei's other women's prison flick, Violence in a Women's Prison (1982), which is nearly identical plot-wise to his Women's Prison Massacre. Features Laura Gemser as Emanuelle again along with most of the same cast shot in the same prison. Don't' like this version as much but still sleazy enough but the ending doesn't have the same impact. 700th film of the year! 5.8/10

• November New: 38
• November Re-watch: 4
• November Total: 42
• 2010 TOTAL: 700
  

Ballad in the Supermarket

Ballad of a Soldier (1959) was a recommendation from Angie Dickinson. No lie. Mr. Beaks interviewed her for AICN when she mentioned if he had seen the film. He hadn't and she recommended it. So there ya go. I had to get the VHS from my library network and it's definitely worth the watch. It boils down to a Russian soldier that asks for a short leave of absence in lieu of a medal. He meets a girl on his way home and they fall in love. Very good film. 7.9/10

The Horror Movie Night pick was Scott Spiegel's Intruder (1989) a.k.a. Night Crew: The Final Checkout, yet another one I haven't seen. It's a slasher set in a supermarket and features both Sam Raimi and Ted Raimi in supporting roles. Actually a pretty fun little flick with a decent twist. 6.5/10

• November New: 36
• November Re-watch: 3
• November Total: 39
• 2010 TOTAL: 697
  

Mile High Dining

There was a little buzz on Twitter about Altitude (2010) and how the DVD cover gives away the main plot point. Still looked interesting enough and it's not terrible but really an overblown Twilight Zone story. Jessica Lowndes is the lead and super attractive. Other than that a whole lotta meh. 5.5/10

Been wanting to see Legend of the Black Scorpion (2006) a.k.a. The Banquet since Harry Knowles first gabbed about it. Not sure how it remained off my radar for so long considering it stars Ziyi Zhang and Daniel Wu. Had high expectations and despite some incredible cinematography, the movie falls flat. It's loose retelling of Hamlet but not nearly as effective as beautiful as it is to watch. 6.6/10

• November New: 34
• November Re-watch: 3
• November Total: 37
• 2010 TOTAL: 695
  

A Better Quartet

Was more than thrilled that my local cinema Showplace 12 is screening more S.Korean films. Tonight I went out to catch Song Hae-sung's Mujeogja (2010) a.k.a. A Better Tomorrow. And it is a remake of John Woo's brilliant film of the same name (he actually had a hand in this remake). For the most part it is faithful to the original with the same characters but even having seen the original as recently as this year, I still found this film very compelling. Much of that due to the excellent performances by all four lead actors. One of the better films I've seen this year. 7.7/10

My late night viewing consisted of Radley Metzger's sensual fantasy romp The Lickerish Quartet (1970). Been wanting to see after recently viewing the trailer. The visuals really caught my eye and the film lives up to providing an interesting story about an eccentric couple that invites a gorgeous woman into their home for a variety of sexual escapades. 6.5/10

• November New: 32
• November Re-watch: 3
• November Total: 35
• 2010 TOTAL: 693
  

Edges of Badness

From NWI I found Fred Olen Ray's The Good, the Bad & the Beautiful (2005) a.k.a. Bikini Round-Up, which is actually a soft porn featuring adult film stars such as Randy Spears, Evan Stone, Nicole Sheridan and others. It's also not very good. The neutered sex scenes are rather bland and story is quite awful. Title is only good thing here. 4/10

Decided to knock out another title form my NWI queue so opted for Edges of Darkness (2009). Unfortunately this wasn't much better. It's a weird low-budget meil of zombie mythology mixed with vampires. Too low budget with poorly shot scenes and amateurish performances. 4.5/10

• November New: 30
• November Re-watch: 3
• November Total: 33
• 2010 TOTAL: 691