@synth_cinema: 2024

HCF Review - Cold Steel

THE SWORD (1980)

The late 1970s and early ’80s saw a period of films released in Hong Kong known as the New Wave, or the First Wave, during which directors such as Tsui Hark began their film-making careers. It was also the period in which the famous Golden Harvest title card first appeared at the start of action movies; an image certain genre fans can instantly hear the sound of. Patrick Tam’s debut feature The Sword (aka The Famous Sword) falls into this period and under this banner; a minimalist wuxia movie focusing not on honour and revenge but simple ambition. Let’s take a look at this tale of ominous blades and selfish egos and see how it holds up today.

HCF Review - Hokage

SHADOW OF FIRE (2024)

While his earlier films are full of anxiety about urban landscapes, technology, and a whole lot of repressed urges, Shinya Tsukamoto’s recent projects have expressed other concerns. Together with Fires on the Plain and Killing his latest film forms a kind of anti-war trilogy; the manic energy being replaced by a darker more contemplative mood, suggesting his feelings about the fears of audiences today. That this is another period drama is secondary to the emotional content of the story; the message is intended to be evergreen. But how successful is this as a human drama on its own terms? Let’s take a look at how all of these sombre ingredients come together.

HCF Review - The Chase

BLOOD STAR (2024)

It’s time for a bit of cat and mouse as a vulnerable driver finds themselves on a lonely road with only a vicious stalker for company. The title may be reminiscent of a certain neo-noir mystery but the contents are mostly chase movie and slasher tropes that are very familiar. You know the drill; barren highways, peculiar locals, unhelpful gas station attendants. But it’s also a tale of abusive authority figures in the guise of domestic villains and those wearing badges. Does the feature as a whole use these themes with enough tact to make the story stand out from others in this vein? Well let’s just say it’s a pretty bumpy ride.

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Horror Bites - Too Many Cooks

HALLOWEEN 2024

It's the spooky season once again so what better time could there be for a few monster movies? This time around the villains in question may be human or alien in nature, but the films all have one connecting feature. They could have been focused stories about things from outer space, evil barons, or living statues, but they've got all kinds of other plot elements vying for attention. Of course they're still entertaining as a result but it's interesting to see how writers decided to add subplots or disparate genre ingredients. Why have one idea when you can have two, or maybe more, in the same ninety minutes?

Horror Bites - Prequel-itis

ALIEN: ROMULUS (2024)

Watching prequels and sequels, especially when they're often another 'soft reboot' type affair, feels like a sort of Groundhog Day scenario these days. Nobody wants to do anything creative to avoid commercial disappointment and the results are all too often a case of Déjà vu. Remember the pulse rifle? Remember the Company? Remember dead actors now being portrayed by nightmarish deepfake technology? So despite the mythological images conjured up by the title this is more Alien: Reheated rather than anything deeper. It might look and sound pretty good but the surface level window dressing hides another hollow and mostly recycled effort.

Review Roundup - Apes a Poppin'

KINGDOM OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (2024)

Time for a computer generated ape empire double feature, which for some reason was a thing this year. While I will get to yet another King Kong feature shortly it's obvious that both of these franchises have already reached the limit of what's possible in prior instalments. The potential fourth part in a trilogy is usually ill-advised even if there are some ideas here that mean it's not as easy to dismiss it straight away. The issue is that said ideas are often scarce or spread over an unwieldy running time. Kong and Godzilla had solo movies then a big confrontation, so there wasn't much else left to say. Caesar's story came to an end. But as ever the movies keep coming.

HCF Review - Blood Brothers

WOLVES, PIGS AND MEN (1964)

In the world of gangster movies there are a lot of typical tropes and character archetypes; honour among thieves, rival factions in turf wars, respect within a criminal hierarchy. Kinji Fukasaku’s body of work is full of such examples, after all he’s probably best know for directing two sets of films in the ‘Battles Without Honour or Humanity’ series, aka The Yakuza Papers; a total of eight all in all. However, this earlier example is perhaps more interested in the social and economic struggles of a family. That is to say it’s tale of actual brotherhood rather than competing gang members. The result is a surprisingly bleak and brutal affair that suggests maybe blood isn’t thicker than water. Make no mistake; this isn’t any kind of sentimental melodrama.

Horror Bites - Fashion House of Death

BLOOD AND BLACK LACE (1963)

Mystery killers with black gloves seem to appear everywhere in films about murder and mayhem; from the shocking violence of Deep Red to the farcical mysteries of A Shot in the Dark. It's recurring motif but tracing the roots of the Giallo body-count mystery genre seems to point to the films of Mario Bava. Here we'll take a look at one of the most striking early examples Blood and Black Lace; aka Six Women for the Murderer. It certainly brings a particular level of Italian style to the proceedings with a garish 1960s colour scheme being mixed with plenty of dark shadows and sinister lighting. So let's put on the leather and get down to business.

HCF Review - Maybe Thousands

HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS (2022)

In a frozen wilderness one man finds himself standing alone against the brutal forces of mother nature. Will he starve, or freeze, or be savaged by wolves? Will his survival skills be enough or will his resolve be broken by the overwhelming odds? Will he fall victim to a make-shift rope trap and fly through the air like Wile E. Coyote? Yes that’s right; this is a battle of wits not only against the cold winter of Wisconsin but also against all kinds of wacky slapstick predicaments. A simple story well told… but with mascot costumes, toilet humour, and an endless array of gags that defy the laws of physics. So strap yourself in for the ride as we discuss the events that take one drunken buffoon into battle against Hundreds of Beavers.

HCF Review - Dragon's Eye

ELECTRIC DRAGON 80.000 V (2001)

Tired of superhero movies? Well strap yourself in for a jolt of energy from Gakuryu ‘Sogo’ Ishii, director of such cult classics as Crazy Thunder Road. At just over fifty-minutes long this could be the fresh supply you’ve been looking for; an exaggerated ride full of hissing reptiles and buzzing live wires. Not every movie out there can be so brief of course, but it’s refreshing to watch something that isn’t a bladder bursting two and a half hours these days. Does it pack this running time with eye-searing images the likes of which would make Tsukamoto turn green with envy? It really depends on what you’re looking for in a tale which is brimming with stylish visuals but is light on anti-authority metaphor.

HCF Review - Tsukamoto June

NIGHTMARE DETECTIVE 2 (2008)

Welcome back to the Midnight Patrol, and welcome back Tsukamoto fans. You may recall this inane reference from last time in the discussion of Nightmare Detective part one. But this is the sequel so things are the same but different. How different? On the surface things seem to be very unchanged. There are more suicidal thoughts, more bad parents, and more ghostly visions. Thankfully this is where things pick up and a lot of the problems from last time around have been addressed. Shinya Tsukamoto himself isn’t in front of the camera which is a shame, though unsurprising. Meanwhile singer Hitomi also declined to return which… is less of a problem. Let’s delve into the other tortured mindscapes involved and see what other changes lie in wait.

HCF Review - Tsukamoto June

NIGHTMARE DETECTIVE (2006)

Welcome back to the Dream Zone gang. Oh and welcome back Tsukamoto fans. While the idea of seeing into somebody’s mind, or even sharing their nightmares, isn’t particularly novel, it’s always fun to see it tackled in movie form. After all, watching a film unfold is the ideal way to see someone else’s visions come to life. In the realm of film makers such as Wes Craven, Satoshi Kon, and beyond, the blurred line between reality and fantasy is perfect for the medium. However, in the case of Nightmare Detective it’s clear that the writers wanted to get in other elements including psychic powers and ghostly visions. How much of this tale succeeds is debatable as it jumps between real world loneliness and supernatural shenanigans.

HCF Review - Tsukamoto June

TETSUO: THE BULLET MAN (2009)

Welcome to the barrel of the gun, and welcome back Tsukamoto fans. While the genre of the earlier Tetsuo films is perhaps debatable, one of their strengths is the way they feel so peculiar and unique. But with the second iteration (not counting Phantom of a Regular Size) some of that impenetrable exterior was lost. The original might have been part of a new wave of cyberpunk movies, leading to the so-called splatterpunk genre with the likes of Pinocchio 946, but the sequel added mainstream ideas about superhuman metamorphosis derived from family histories and triggered by anger. Which is unfortunately repeated here with more focus on conventional tropes and action. Does it at least blend the repulsive horror visuals with some slick battle sequences?

HCF Review - Tsukamoto June

VITAL (2004)

Welcome to the autopsy slab, and welcome back Tsukamoto fans. In what seems like a stylistic companion piece to Gemini, this is another tale of medical practices and doomed romances. However, while that was a story of two-faced schemes and double standards, this is more about grief and obsession. It’s also yet another film about amnesia which might not seem compelling, but there are other aspects to consider. Is there life after loss? Is someone really dead if their loved ones refuse to let go, in a physical sense? The murky images and smoky incinerator chimneys in the opening suggest this isn’t going to be a sentimental exploration of such things. There’s a lot going on in a movie full of dreams and memories, even if it’s not as potent as the title suggests.

Horror Bites - The Electrically Transmitted Man

SECRET OF THE TELEGIAN (1960)

Time for another part of Toho's so called 'mutants' series which also contains The H-Man and The Human Vapor. Both were directed by Ishiro Honda but when he was unavailable the task fell to Jun Fukuda, prior to his work on the later Showa period Godzillas. At first this seems to be the reason for the drop in quality, which was noticeable in that period of the franchise, but in reality the script here just isn't that interesting. It also doesn't have the effects spectacle or the melodrama of those others films respectively. Still, as another excuse for a crime thriller in which science fiction plays a part in the mystery it's worth examining. Just don't expect anything too compelling this time around.

Horror Bites - Primal Rage

MURDERS IN THE ZOO (1933)

In terms of pre-Code films from the Golden Age of horror there are usually less shocks than contemporary censors would have you believe. But still there are always a few surprises when it comes to simple and occasionally brutal thrillers of the time. There are also far too many comedy scenes in some of them as I will examine here. Perhaps even in its shortened version (in a film that is barely over an hour long already) there were too many grisly moments for the 1930s audience. I would have thought the resulting tonal whiplash was more frightening that anything that goes in this kind of picture, but that's just the way it seems to have gone, and the movie is less than classic as a result.

HCF Review - The Warlords

FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA (2024)

Time for a prequel, and everything which that idea entails, in George Miller’s return to the wasteland after nine years. Are these characters worth revisiting? Is the world they inhabit enriched or shrunken by taking the story in this direction? These are the questions posed by his decision move backwards and focus on ideas and details that could have been left as foot notes or single lines of dialogue. Mad Max: Fury Road was of course very spare in terms of plot and told a story through visual detail and action set pieces. It was also an example of a film that didn’t necessarily need to exist after spending decades in development hell. So once again it’s time to wander into the irradiated ruins of the old world and see if it’s a road trip worth taking.

HCF Review - Graveyard Shift

MALUM (2023)

While horror movie remakes are a dime a dozen it’s more unusual for a film-maker to revisit their own work. It could be argued, somewhat unsuccessfully, that Evil Dead II is an example of this phenomenon. The budget is higher, the scope is wider, the violence is gorier, and certain scenes are recreated. At a first glance this appears to be fair comparison since Anthony DiBlasi’s Last Shift (as reviewed by HCF’s own Bat here) has this same basic premise as this new version. However, this time around the haunted police station hazmat crew have been swapped out for something less cohesive. It might be best described as Assault on Precinct 13 meets Hereditary, but I’m afraid that would be grossly overselling the whole thing. Instead this is mostly an example of why less is more when it comes to both demonic cults and problem parents.

HCF Review - Creep

LOVE WILL TEAR US APART (2024)

Abusive parents, bullies, con artists, and creepy drunks might not seem like the most appropriate subjects for a slasher-comedy hybrid, but writer and director Ken’ichi Ugana gives it his best shot. To say the end results are uneven might be stating the obvious. This is a strange blend of plot clichés you’ve probably seen elsewhere, with added black comedy violence. At just under ninety minutes it doesn’t outstay its welcome, but then it doesn’t really ever explore any potential themes very deeply either. Of course eclectic genre mash-ups are also something you’ve seen elsewhere if you’ve ever taken a trip into the Japanese realm of horror cinema. Let’s take a look at whether this particular example distinguishes itself from its contemporaries or whether it’s a mixed bag.

HCF Review - Let's Rock

FISH STORY (2009)

Pop culture references can often be a jarring inclusion within a film, particularly when it comes to humour-laden superhero stories, but there’s also an odd charm to them when they’re used appropriately. Which is the case with Yoshihiro Nakamura’s Fish Story. It’s a yarn that asks the audience; can pop culture save the world? Specifically one forgotten punk rock song from the Seventies nobody bought, from a band without a lasting career. But more broadly it considers things like television shows, books, and even ghost stories. Do individual actions and beliefs, sometimes separated by decades, have any real impact on the world in the course of human history? Or is it all just a lot of wasted time and lost memories?

Review Roundup - Scraps and Leftovers

2023 SCI-FI CATCH-UP

Time to take a look at a few random bits and pieces that I've either forgotten to consider at an earlier stage, or forgot were actually the big thing for fifteen minutes last year. As someone wise once said this can be catalogued under the heading 'too late nobody cares'. But there are always more expensive looking blockbusters to talk about, many filled with robots, creatures and animated wizardry. When some of them forget to include basic elements like well written stories or charming protagonists it starts to become exhausting. Do I really want to look at yet more movies based on 1980s toys? Has Gareth Edwards learned from his mistakes? Let's look what's on offer...

Review Roundup - Riders on the Storm

DUNE: PART TWO (2024)

In my retrospective for David Lynch's Dune I noted that the whole thing is oddly truncated and lacks scale. Not in the sense that the ships and sets were never large enough, but the way that the passage of time is too short and the scope of the conspiracy is too shallow. It's something that in a few ways is rectified by a fan edit of the film known as the 'spicediver' edition that you can see quite easily. It's something I recommend because, in spite of the varying film sources, it's more rewarding than the official cut. Which brings us to the Denis Villeneuve iteration which when combined is more than five hours long. Does it have the depth, the grandeur, and the cast necessary to fill so much time?

Review Roundup - After Life

THE BOY AND THE HERON (2023)

AKA How Do You Live, a title which in a way reflects the tone of a story centred around personal loss. It's also a film which brings a lot of the director's earlier projects together in one place. Between 1984 and 2001 Hayao Miyazaki has been involved in some of the greatest animated films of all time. Not everything was perfect but everyone will have a personal favourite. Some fans are even enamoured with his later projects after Spirited Away, which shows the appeal of his sensibilities. However, in a story which covers everything from wartime tragedy, time warping alternate dimensions, and a whole lot of talking animals, this is a movie that avoids being too lightweight but often feels too unwieldy; in both length and scope.

HCF Review - Jackpot

CASINO RAIDERS (1989)

A Wong Jing movie about gambling with Andy Lau that was released in 1989… that’s not God of Gamblers? Yes that’s right, the prolific film-maker loves this subject and these actors so much that he did it twice in one year. After all, why make one movie when you can make two for twice the price? However, far from the usual comedic farce that Wong is known for by some this is, in some ways, a more conventional crime thriller. Which is to say that it’s generally a more sombre affair, but at the same time it’s a film with a very odd structure. Perhaps this is simply the influence of have a second director-writer on board. So while the tonal shift is refreshing this is an experience that can often be unwieldy and unfocused.

Monster Bites - Space 1999

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (1968)

Time for one last Battle Royale. Or at least that was the intention at the time of its release, before the producers at Toho decided that making more money and having the series last for another seven years was a better plan. Looking at it now there are moments in which it's clearly the last of its kind, but in other ways it's also another alien invasion story in which many familiar narrative moments appear. But purely as a large scale spectacle it's debatable whether this really is the biggest and best of the Showa era, as the marketing would have you believe. Claims that this is the brawl to end all brawls, featuring every classic monster, are certainly in doubt as things unfold.

Monster Bites - Dino DNA

GODZILLA 2000: MILLENNIUM (1999)

So with the end of the Heisei era things were finally over for Godzilla series. The big guy took a nap after one last hurrah in 1995. For a short spell at least, since in the meantime the likes of Roland Emmerich and TriStar had their hands on the property. Did this attempt to Westernise the Godzilla brand call the Japanese film studio back into action as a course correction? Probably. Although it's notable that in the meantime there was a revived Gamera trilogy threatening to take the Kaiju crown while at Toho the Rebirth of Mothra series had brought things back to a child friendly tone. Perhaps they thought it was best to get their house back in order... even if it's not an ideal start.

Scorecard

DECEMBER

FILM OF THE MONTH: Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit ☆☆☆☆

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