Monster Bites - Fallout

GODZILLA: MINUS ONE (2023)

It feels like just a few months ago that the news of another film in Toho's Godzilla series broke. But it's here and has been given a theatrical release relatively quickly compared to something like Shin Ultraman. It's a brand recognition thing but I can hardly complain. While the Legendary Pictures iteration is pushing forward into an ever larger franchise, the original Big G has been dormant for a long time (not counting short films of course). Which means that they've had time to consider what the film has to say beyond the spectacle. Not that there aren't disaster scenes in this latest addition to the series, but what they've done with a considerably smaller budget has far more weight and nuance.

Monster Bites - Magic Crystals

GODZILLA VS. SPACEGODZILLA (1994)

While this isn't the last of the 1990s Godzilla series it's certainly the least, in a real scraping the barrel lack of creativity kind of way. Apparently Toho were resting on their laurels at this stage after the popularity of the prior instalments and decided that a 'same but different' approach was the best way forward. When the resulting film is so lethargic and the new additions are so trivial it's hard to say why they thought this was such a great idea. It's an oddity that feels sluggish at best and like a toy commercial at its worst. However, it's an essential stumbling block for the franchise which would at least go out with a bang. But before we get to the finale it's time for a monster-sized snooze-fest.

HCF Review - Time Sink

THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME (1983)

Time travel stories involving high school students are not a new concept; whether it’s something like the more well known animated version of this same story released in 2006, or a certain 1985 Robert Zemeckis movie. Katsuyuki Motohiro’s 2005 comedy Summer Time Machine Blues is a great example of this concept; using something well known as the basis for a largely frivolous tale in which paradoxes and clichés are played for laughs. Of course this 1983 drama from Obayashi pre-dates all of these takes on the idea that naive and short-sighted kids make for poor time travellers. Does it take the whole thing to some unexpected and original places, or is it simply a missed opportunity to do something creative and exciting?

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HCF Review - Summer Holiday

THE ISLAND CLOSEST TO HEAVEN (1984)

With its sweeping romantic music and seaside storybook atmosphere, Obayashi’s adaptation of a ‘warm-hearted tale’ might seem a far cry from some of his other projects, but it’s still a film about nostalgia in its own way. For the most part the whole thing is a coming-of-age drama without much of the director’s typical style and the few unreal moments included are very subtle. It’s kind of a road trip and it’s kind of a melodrama, with hints of fairytale and a whole lot of travelogue. But do any of these individual parts make up a broader and more compelling whole? It really depends on what you’re after in terms of world cinema appeal; and your tolerance for meandering lackadaisical storylines about naive teenagers.

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Horror Bites - Henry's Pact

TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER (1976)

So here were are, at the end. In many ways the later years of the Hammer Horror cycle are a fascinating time in the studio's history. On the one hand they clearly wanted to have fun and play it fast and loose with established ideas... so the results are things like Captain Kronos. If only there were more movies released in that vein. On the other hand the pressure was now on to compete with The Exorcist and everything that followed once genre expectations were forever changed... which meant no fun was allowed. Evil children were in and period pieces were out. Which would be less of a problem if this particular story of blood rituals and sinister cults made more sense.

Scorecard

NOVEMBER

FILM OF THE MONTH: Summer Time Machine Blues ☆☆☆☆

Review Roundup - Exposition of Doom

INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY (2023)

It's hard to admit it but in life most things come and go, often never to return. The past will only ever be part of long term memories that should be reminisced about occasionally, but never obsessed over. Remember when Indiana Jones was in a rollicking adventure series during the heyday of Spielberg, Lucas, Williams, and Ford? It's still one of the best trilogies of all time, with perhaps some of the best action and music ever done for the big screen. But you can never go back to that era and re-experience it. Trying to live in the past will only make you miserable and bitter, which is why it's hard to be upset that this sequel exists. It's no good at all but in the end it was never going to be.

Action Bits - Bullet Ballet

HARD BOILED (1992)

'John Woo is...'
'...God.'

These outrageous words appear on a series of title cards shown in a trailer for what is an all time Hong Kong cinema classic. The press quotes they've chosen to splice into the footage almost manage to sum up the madness that is Hard Boiled, a crime thriller created by a master at the zenith of his powers. It's also described as 'gob smacking mayhem' and 'more exciting than a dozen Die Hards'. This hyperbole seems ridiculous but it is in fact appropriate; it's an exaggerated and excessive exercise in explosive action. After A Better Tomorrow and The Killer, John Woo returned to a genre he helped create to give us his magnum opus. It would be the distillation of everything that had come before, showcasing his fascination with meticulously staged gun battles and brotherhood themed tales. Ideas of loyalty and corruption would be explored one more time, while giving the forces of law and order a chance to be the heroes.

Horror Bites - Final Nails

LEGEND OF THE 7 GOLDEN VAMPIRES (1974)

For a series that eventually became rather long in the tooth the Hammer vampire series is strangely adverse to giving a character like Count Dracula something to do. He's a fascinating villain that has remained popular for a reason after all. As Christopher Lee himself said why not use the source material? And I don't mean in bizarre half measures like the Jess Franco version. But for whatever reason the lure of using new gimmicks and storylines unrelated to Bram Stoker was always more appealing to the studio producers. So let's take a look at their further attempts to freshen up the whole thing... through the magic of traditional Kung Fu and contemporary kitsch.

Scorecard

OCTOBER

FILM OF THE MONTH: Horror Express ☆☆☆☆

HCF Review - Summer Days

HIS MOTORBIKE, HER ISLAND (1986)

While Obayashi may be known for his eccentric, and often rather psychedelic, flights of fancy, it’s time to take a relaxing road trip to the countryside. A breezy summer holiday kind of ride where a group of friends are addicted to Kawasaki engine sizes instead of having to fight a supernatural threat. Which isn’t to say that it lacks a particular film-making style this time around, but it’s generally a different kind of experience. Motorcycle culture and karaoke moments come together in a simple, and occasionally musical, tale of duelling egos and youthful obsessions. Perhaps the overall effect will be too melodramatic or clichéd for those looking for something more outrageous, but it offers an easy going story about clashing personalities.

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Horror Bites - Fear in the Night

THE NIGHT WALKER (1964)

William Castle is often remembered for directing spooky films like House on Haunted Hill, in which stars such as Vincent Price were paired with movie theatre gimmicks. Simply wearing 3-D glasses wasn't enough, he went the extra mile to get the audience excited. But less is said about this release, an attempt at a more straightforward thriller, made a script by Psycho author Robert Bloch. It's a story full of atmosphere but features Barbara Stanwyck from Double Indemnity rather than a horror film regular. Of course it's still pretty hokey as a product of its time, but as a mystery tale there are some fairly striking moments that stand out even by today's standards. Let's take a closer look at this venture into fantastical dreams and waking nightmares.

HCF Review - The Aimed School

SCHOOL IN THE CROSSHAIRS (1981)

Time for a story about extra-sensory perception and alien beings from Venus. Which, if these kind of movies are to be believed, are the sort of things that happen at schools in Japan all the time. But beyond the surreal waking dreams and nightmares of Obayashi’s work, famously seen in 1977’s House, what about real life study? Interestingly in this case he takes a lot of time to explore the idea of academic work versus sports clubs, and conformity against individual freedom. Should psychic powers be used to cheat in Kendo matches? Should roller-skating kids be stripped of their willpower by patrols of brainwashed committee members? Perhaps these questions answer themselves but it’s still an entertaining, if mostly light-hearted, examination of these kinds of issues.

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Horror Bites - Brain Damage

HAMMER FRANK-O-THON

 

It's time for a quick Hammer Horror feature, in a series that is strangely varied and often lacking the usual sequel focused connective tissue. As a result it's also not one that has an obvious rise and fall in terms of quality and diminishing returns. First up it's their original foray into colour horror movies with The Curse of Frankenstein but it's also worth comparing it to the later remake slash parody, The Evil of Frankenstein. The former is of course the first of the studio's forays into taking on the classic Universal monsters, maligned by contemporary critics but adored by general audiences. Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee would quickly become genre icons of course, so it's good to take a look back at where it all started.

 

Scorecard

SEPTEMBER

FILM OF THE MONTH: Adrift in Tokyo ☆☆☆☆

Action Bits - Twin Effect

A BETTER TOMORROW II (1987)

Making a sequel to A Better Tomorrow was a bad idea. After all, it ended with a tragic final note that underlined its moral themes; crime doesn't pay and revenge will bury everyone involved. Where else was there to go when all the main heroes were either dead or in prison? Of course following up a hit movie like this with an under-developed and convoluted sequel is what Hong Kong cinema does best. John Woo's idea of what to do next seems to have been push deeper into melodrama, make the action more outrageous, and simply re-name any characters he wanted to bring back. As a result the final product is a ridiculous movie in more ways than one.

Review Roundup - Ecstacy of Gold

SISU (2022)

Many years ago, almost nine at the time of writing, I recall covering a film called Big Game. Perhaps under-rated and probably under-seen, it was a mixture of Jalmaris Helander's European sensibilities and a lot of Hollywood action movie tropes. It was an odd change of direction for a film-maker that had previous made the eccentric holiday horror movie Rare Exports. But his fondness for the genre was evident in a story where a Finnish youth and an American politician had to join forces. It's this kind of mix-up which returns here in an English language war film set in war-torn Finland, which focuses more on outrageous spectacle than real world detail. It's a grim backdrop with a lot of gruesome moments, but it's a story told with a firmly dark sense of humour.

Monster Bites - The Duel

GAMERA VS BARUGON (1966)

While the Gamera films are generally considered fare made for children it's interesting to look back and see exactly when that transition came around. The original film mixed up the typical kind of city-wide death and destruction with some elements of this, but overall it's a pretty straightforward monster movie. The next two sequels on the other hand? Well it's interesting that the first entry I'm looking at here doesn't include a child actor at all. In fact it's more in line with the kind of stories that spawned from King Kong, in which creatures are brought back to the modern world from the unknown parts of the map. The next instalment on the other hand... well I will get to that in good time.

Scorecard

AUGUST

FILM OF THE MONTH: The Taking of Pelham One Two Three ☆☆☆☆

Action Bits - Masked Riders

KAMEN RIDER 1972 / 1992 / 1994

With a decades long series made up of dozens of shows and movies sometimes it's best to start at the beginning. But it's also fun to use this as a jumping-off point to look ahead at how things evolved in later years. With the recent release of Shin Kamen Rider it's worth revisiting the earlier film releases, even if they're not actually feature length. But this brisk nature is an advantage for newcomers and old fans alike, allowing for a few cyborg stories in a relatively short space of time. Where else can you find a blend of superhero action, body horror, and alien invasion under one banner? Of course the answer is in any number of Japanese special effects franchises. But for now let's focus on the motorcycles and grasshopper masks.

Review Roundup - A Trilogy in Four Parts

JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 4

So here we are at the end... again. In a perfect world John Wick should have put away his black suit in part three, and while that instalment certainly had it's moments it felt like filler. Which is often still the case here in a sequel that is nearly three hours long. It's appropriate in some ways since this is more of a closing storyline. But in some ways it's yet more of the same without really getting any deeper into the main character's back story or rounding out the series as a whole. Action junkies will get a thrill from many of the individual set pieces and some of the guest stars. It's not reinventing the wheel or doing anything that the previous films haven't already tried. However, beyond all the shiny visuals this often feels by the numbers in a DTV sequel kind of way.

Action Bits - Relic Hunter

ARMOR OF GOD I-II 1986 & 1991

Time to revisit a couple of old favourites and see how much they hold up. I've always been of the opinion that Hong Kong action sequels, particularly those by Jackie Chan, are often weaker than their predecessors. The action highlights always shine very brightly but the scripts often fail to recapture the magic. But is this the case with Jackie's 'Asian Hawk' adventures, or have the tables turned? Not everything can be Police Story or Project A of course, but in this case there's quite some time between the original and follow-up. It also helps that the globe-trotting stories crib from Indiana Jones and as such can be enjoyed as separate adventures with few returning characters or plot points. Let the treasure hunt begin...

Scorecard

JULY

FILM OF THE MONTH: UHF ☆☆☆☆

Review Roundup - Shock Waves

OPPENHEIMER (2023)

Christopher Nolan's latest venture into science and history is a heady mixture. A disturbing blend in which the retelling of real life events collides with a character study of a complicated man. It's also a self indulgent three hour biopic that covers perhaps more court room drama than world changing physics experiments and atomic weapons. The sometimes relentless music, the occasionally stilted dialogue, and the perhaps misjudged time shifting narrative are all hallmarks of the director at this stage. But does it succeed in reaching emotional criticality or is it a non-starter? Is it more like the mechanical precision of Dunkirk or more of the confused ramblings of Tenet? It's a tough one to digest to say the least, with some extreme highs and a few low points along the way.

Review Roundup - Silver Machine

SHIN ULTRAMAN (2022)

The world of Japanese special-effects cinema and television, or the 'Tokusatu' genre if you prefer, is a vast decades long phenomenon. Dipping into any of this is far more intimidating than the mere twenty-something movies in the Godzilla franchise. Beyond the realm of mainstream Western entertainment exists a world of transforming heroes that spans dozens of shows, of which only a tiny fraction were adapted by Saban in the 1990s. Though this kind of chop-and-swap effort to appeal to English speaking children was successful at the time, the original versions were more than a passing fad in their country of origin. With so much history how can a single film hope to capture what made it work so well? Let's take a look at two of the latest iterations to see what the makers of Shin Godzilla have to offer.

Monster Bites - The Tomb

YOKAI MONSTERS: SPOOK WARFARE (1968)

For those who were underwhelmed (or misled) by the previous entry in this series, Yokai: 100 Monsters, this will probably be more to your expectations. I feel each delivers a similar quality folk tale based movie but both are different experiences. So while this one is often bloody, and perhaps even has a higher body count, the overall tone is lighter and focuses more on creatures instead of feudal disputes. There still aren't one hundred monsters mind you; but they get more do to as an odd ensemble of mostly non-violent spirits. Some of the same ghoulish designs are re-used but they don't curse anyone or drive them to madness this time around. Which isn't to say that the story lacks bite.

Scorecard

JUNE

FILM OF THE MONTH: Sanjuro ☆☆☆☆

HCF Review - Yokai Hunter

HIRUKO THE GOBLIN (1991)

With its clean synthesized music and its sentimental moments, is this really another Shinya Tsukamoto movie? Composer Chu Ishikawa is absent and a company called Makotoya gets top billing over the director’s own Kaiju Theatre label. It’s more pedestrian than anything he had worked on at this early career stage, perhaps as it’s a manga adaptation. Prior to this Tsukamoto had given high-school fantasy a shot with his experimental film The Adventure of Denchu-Kozo. But for whatever reason this often feels more like a ‘for hire’ project rather than something with that same kind of frenzied momentum. The story of a successful artist being lured into a deal with a studio is an old one. Which isn’t to say that there aren’t enjoyable moments in what is essentially a tale of a mad scientist and a teenager fighting evil. But does it have any sort of creative edge?

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HCF Review - Seeing Double

KOTOKO (2011)

As the title character arrives with a lot of discordant classroom instruments, a few dance moves, and some screaming, it seems clear that this isn’t just another Tsukamoto movie. Even if the man himself is in the film and like Gemini the top billed cast also includes a music star. There’s also another descent into madness (or hell) and another painful relationship like the ones his earlier features. However, as things unfold this becomes the director at his most atypical, without the technological metaphors or even the Chu Ishikawa tunes. These kind of stylish touches would only serve to make this less disturbing. Here the nightmare happens in broad daylight and seems like a documentary, complete with a narrator, about the life of someone trapped by problems conjured up by their own mind. Any moments of dark comedy or fantasy are fleeting in a story that is more an endurance test than a macabre thriller.

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HCF Review - Twins

GEMINI (1999)

Rats, maggots, disease, unsettling sounds courtesy of Chu Ishikawa… it must be another Shinya Tsukamoto movie. A period drama might not be the kind of project anyone would be expecting from the director who, at the time, was mainly known for stop motion effects and industrial locations. But this blend of Meiji Era fashion and existential dread isn’t exactly typical fare. The eyebrows and the hairdos are certainly a fascinating choice. In some ways there are familiar ingredients involved as this is a tale of good and evil twins; and a story about a wealthy and a poor man who look alike. This is also based on a short story from the same time period rather than being a bizarre original script. But while archetypal characters and familiar narrative beats are used there are many strange moments waiting to creep out of the shadows.

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Scorecard

MAY

FILM OF THE MONTH: Star Trek IV ☆☆☆☆ 

Review Roundup - Losers Club

THROW DOWN (2004)

Time for a sports movie about judo. Or at least that's what the title suggests this will be. While it doesn't run with the concept quite as far as Tokyo Fist it's still an unusual take on a popular idea. There's an underdog, or in this case three of them, looking for success. There are a bunch of different sparring sequences. But there's also some musical moments along the way amongst other stylistic choices that make this feel more unique. It's a story more about the obsession (or the addiction) some might have with winning, whether it's through fair competition or other more self-destructive means. It's also fair to call it another one of Johnnie To's triad underworld movies, but that would have under-selling it.

Review Roundup - The Last Stand

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3

Nearly ten years ago the Marvel Cinematic Universe seemed as if it could do no wrong, releasing both Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy in one fell swoop. Fast forward to the present day and things have began to collapse inwards as those kind of distinct movie experiences have been lost under a string of sub-par releases. Avengers: Endgame felt more and more like the end of the era as time went on and things got more tired and rote. Budgets were spread thinner and the veneer of a film series cracked to show the corporate product beneath. But there was still a third instalment of this trilogy to be released, one that had been delayed for some time now. Is this another mechanised obligation or does it have soul?

Monster Bites - Parent Trap

GORGO (1961)

Time for a venture into the world of familiar second hand ideas and recycled imagery. There aren't too many original monster movie concepts out there, but some are more noticeable than others when they get repeated. In this case it's the old Mothra story in which something is stolen from a mysterious region and something bigger and angrier shows up to cause havoc. This was itself an obvious take on the story from King Kong but sometimes a simple formula works. There are greedy jerks looking to find fame and fortune and there are exotic islands. Unfortunately there are also some moments involving child actors that would later be copied by the Gamera series. It's a weird self cannibalising genre, but that's part of the fun.

Scorecard

APRIL

FILM OF THE MONTH: Roujin Z ☆☆☆☆

HCF Review - The Key Master

TOKYO GORE POLICE (2008)

Somewhere back in time cyberpunk cinema in Japan, quite appropriately, mutated and branched off from Tetsuo: The Iron Man and into the likes of Meatball Machine. Things became bloodier and slimier in some cases, while in others the swords and guns started to become bigger and more grotesque. Between all of the body horror and technological nightmares it’s no surprise that the film makers in this case decided to throw some action movie clichés into the meat-grinder. But while the basic premise involves a girl trying to live up to her late father’s legacy by joining the police, there’s little else here that will be familiar. The sheer number of odd sequences is certainly a strength in a story that could have perhaps lost twenty minutes here or there. But there are many other intriguing, and disgusting, facets to consider.

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Action Bits - Back-tracking

DRUNKEN MASTER II (1994)

Time for a few sequels even if, in general, I'm not a huge fan of them. When it comes to Hong Kong movies the second chapters are usually a bit lacking, in terms of the pacing and the story-lines. That whole magic lighting in a bottle thing is tough to recapture. But the ones I'm looking at in this case do contain two of the greatest action finales of all time, which is why I always highly anticipate re-watching them. Maybe things will fall into place this time around, things that don't involve the last twenty minutes of stunt work? Maybe if I watch the real version, instead of 'The Legend of Drunken Master' in which all the music and sound effects are wrong, something will click? Let's see how these two entries in Jackie's early 1990s catalogue hold up.

Action Bits - Off The Rails

MILLIONAIRE'S EXPRESS (1986)

Time for a movie about East meeting West, but not in the usual sense. Instead of a culture clash story this is essentially two ideas; a steam train heist meets a Heroes of the East style action flick. Which means there are in fact plenty of clashes involved. There are Japanese warriors, Russian soldiers, American bandits and lot of familiar Hong Kong faces living on a desert frontier. Making this all a lot less straightforward. Why have some characters migrated from the American West to Asia while others are living in a town that has been transplanted from that setting? Who can say. It's a film which tries its hand at a lot of things in terms of ideas and tonal shifts. Should it have stuck to just two genre ingredients or does all of this all form a coherent adventure?

Scorecard

MARCH

Film of the Month: Dragons Forever ☆☆☆☆

Review Roundup - Blood Debts

EXILED (2006)

The old clichés of betrayal and brotherhood, gangsters trying to escape fate, or even just a gold heist are nothing new. But if they can be dismantled and reassembled with enough flair perhaps adding a few eccentric touches and a bit of a Wild West flavour, perhaps someone could make something interesting. That certain someone is Johnnie To. He's a storyteller who has used these ingredients before of course, but by taking a different approach the results are pretty compelling. Which is odd considering that the basic synopsis sounds like just another triad movie about hired killers and vengeful crime bosses. But this misdirect is one of many throughout the running time.

Action Bits - The Witness

IN THE LINE OF DUTY IV (1989)

So once again we're back in the line of duty with Cynthia Khan. But this time she's got co-star Donnie Yen and director Yuen Woo-Ping on her team. Do the results speak for themselves or is this another case of diminishing returns? There are various attempts to freshen up the formula, including the first half of the story being set in Seattle. Or at least that's how it appears in some of the establishing shots. The details of this location and the details of the story are pretty sketchy in the early stages of the movie. There are also familiar elements taken from the prior films in this loosely connected series. Fortunately for us, though it takes some time to pick up speed, the results are a consistent improvement over part three.

Action Bits - Dragon Force

IN THE LINE OF DUTY III (1988)

As one cop says to another in the opening scene; shirk responsibility at all costs! It's an idea that the lead character certainly won't be taking on board. But have the film makers taken this advice by going into a mode that is more repetitive instead of being responsibly creative? Michelle Yeoh was on a hiatus and they've brought on board a doppelgänger in the form of Cynthia Khan. This obvious portmanteau isn't fooling anyone. Hiroyuki Sanada is also out, and they've brought in Hiroshi Fujioka as another partner from overseas. Michael Wong is out and they've got Melvin Wong as a character called Michael Wong... for some reason. It's a solid action packed movie overall, but with so much familiar territory its easy to see why it's less popular.

Scorecard

FEBRUARY

FILM OF THE MONTH: Tampopo  ☆☆☆☆

Action Bits - Dynamite Fighters

MAGNIFICENT WARRIORS (1987)

It's time to travel into the past. Not only in terms of the setting for this film, but to revisit an old favourite of mine from years gone by. Like some of the recent Yuen Biao adventures I've reviewed the world of Michelle Yeoh movies is something I've touched on before. Unfortunately without much real detail or discussion and in a brief marathon format. But what's old is new again, particularly when it comes to re-releases that have been restored and put onto a more modern format. Will The Champions and Wing Chun get the same treatment? I can only hope. At any rate it's a good excuse to find out if this is still top tier action cinema, or if the mixture of classic spectacle and not-so classic comedy holds up today.

Review Roundup - The Brotherhood

ELECTION 2 (2006)

There are a few old clichés that might describe this sequel to Johnnie To's previous triad thriller. Perhaps desperate times call for desperate measures? Or maybe that old idea that it's not personal, it's just business. But the dark reality is that the results are much less about a series of expected tropes, and more about the brutal and cold world the characters inhabit. Some of it might go beyond even what fans of the first instalment might be expecting. Ideas about unity, tradition, and honour are still bandied about during the opening history lesson. But by this stage it's clearly all just a cynical veneer being laid over a lot of truly nasty ambitions. The kind of principles discussed last time around are not going to make a come back.

HCF Review - Bound by Blood

THE SEVENTH CURSE (1986)

Blood curses, demonic possession, investigative journalism… yes it’s another example of bonkers cinema from The Cat and The Story of Ricky director Ngai Choi Lam. There’s going to be action, violence and sleaze in this wild ride into the world of Hong Kong Category-III cinema, but in the grand scheme of things it’s generally pretty mild. Which is to say there’s a lot more low budget monster and gore effects than there are nude scenes and things are never taken too far. It’s less Untold Story and more Temple of Doom if you get where I’m coming from. More adventure story than straight up horror, but still a heady mixture of crazy sequences and outrageous spectacle...

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HCF Review - Repossessed

SHADOW MASTER (2022)

Horror and martial arts together? Why those are my two favourite things you might say glancing at this apparent mix of The Crow and Ong Bak. In some ways you’d be correct, as this is a story about ritual killings and demonic possession with some Thai boxing moves thrown in. I’m certainly on board for a wild combination of diabolical deals and bone crunching fight sequences. On the other hand it’s perhaps a story that mixes together too many elements and influences. Which is a problem when it’s busy referencing a whole series of religious figures and forgets to include enough fighting. Without a cohesive narrative to glue any of this together those interesting genre hooks are little more than marketing images designed to get the direct-to-video action hero fans interested...

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Scorecard

JANUARY

Film of the Month: Kids Return ☆☆☆☆

Review Roundup - The Society

ELECTION (2005)

Bureaucracy isn't generally a compelling subject matter, unless it's subject to a certain type of scathing perspective. Elections? That hardly seems like an interesting topic either, even in a crime thriller. Surely the triads don't have such respect for tradition and democracy. But there's the root of all the concern in this instance; what it means to have loyalty in a world of keeping 'your friends close and enemies even closer'. As a result this is a story that exceeded my expectations as all the moving pieces, which were initially rather jumbled, started to move into place. The results are a dark and murky underworld tale in which many different figures struggle to maintain their positions in the hierarchy. Simply placing a ballot is only the beginning of their problems.