Blood (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Review)

March 12, 2011 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

A vampire film that is more about its romance and bloody violence than focusing on being a vampire film. It may not be for everyone but if you are wanting a Japanese horror film with a lot of gratuitous nudity and its fair share of bloody moments, “Blood” is definitely for you!

TITLE: Blood

FILM RELEASE DATE: 2009

DURATION: 86 Minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (16×9 Full Frame), Stereo/5.1 Dolby Surround Sound

COMPANY: Well Go USA

RATED: Not Rated (Note: This film does have nudity and bloody violence)

RELEASE DATE: March 15, 2011

Directed by Ten Shimoyama

Original Story and Screenplay by Shigenori Takechi

Producer: Shigeji Maeda, Tsuneo Seto, Kazuyuki Yokoyama

Music by Kiyoshi Yoshikawa

Cinematography by Gen Kobayashi

Edited by Seigo Hirasawa, Ten Shimoyama

Starring:

Aya Sugimoto as Miyako Romberk

Kanji Tsuda as Detective Hoshino

Guts Ishmatsu

Jun Kaname as Ukyo Kuronuma

Satoshi Matsuda

Hidejiro Mizumoto

Yuri Morishita

Atsushi Narasaka

Rin Sakuragi

Harumi Sone

Masahiro Sudo

Sayo Yamaguchi

Police Detective Hoshino (Kanji Tsuda) investigates the murder of a maid at a mansion belonging to Miyako Rozmberk (Aya Sugimoto), a seductive vampire mistress and “cougar” all in one. Ukyo Kuronuma (Jun Kaname), an Edo-era swordsman who was turned into a vampire by Miyako, is blamed for the crime, but before anything can be done about it, Hoshino ends up under Miyako’s spell as well. This leads Hoshino and Ukyo to battle one another for the privilege of staying with Miyako for eternity.

If you enjoyed “Shinobi”, you will probably more than likely enjoy the latest film from director Ten Shimoyama titled “Blood”, a vampiric horor/suspense action film. The story is from Shigenori Taechi, known for writing films such as “Izo”, “Araburu Tamashii-tachi”, the “Gokudo Seisen: Jihaado” films and “Yakuza Demon”.

The 2009 film begins in traditional Japan with a sword fight and a lone swordsman beats a group of men but is suffering from some type of illness as he coughs up blood. We see the man sitting alone and a beautiful woman come by. She tastes the blood coming out of his mouth and suddenly we see her holding him and her fangs coming out.

Fast forward to the present time and we see a housemaid being murdered. The murder happens to be a 14-years-old and is close to reaching the statute of limitations expiration date and for police investigator Hoshino (played by Kanji Tsuda), this case has meant so much to him. But he has been relocated to another office and frustrated about it. Fortunately, his boss gives him a go ahead despite the police department not wanting to support him.

When he opens the case files of the woman who owned the home where the housemaid was killed, it shows the picture of a Japanese woman named Miyako Romberk (played by Aya Sugimoto), who looks like the female vampire from shown hours earlier.

But as he meets with Miyako, she gives the name of the murderer, a millionaire named Ukyo (played by Jun Kaname). When Detective Hoshino goes after him, he witnesses him biting into a young girl who is begging for her life. We learn that both Ukyo and Miyako are vampires and both share bloody and body together. But when detective Hoshino is then turned into a vampire, he also wants Miyako and thus both he and Ukyo become part of a bloody battle over Miyako.

VIDEO:

“Blood” is presented in 1080p High Definition (1:85:1). The picture quality is pretty cool especially during the beginning of the film in which blue lighting is used and the red blood looks as if it’s crimson red with that just sticks out vibrantly. If anything, those wanting a bloody horror film will get a bloody horror film as you will see a lot of it throughout “Blood”. Skintones are natural, blacks are nice and deep but it’s the use of colors that makes “Blood” quite interesting to watch for a vampire film.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Blood” is presented in Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (despite the rear case mentioning it’s Stereo/5.1 Dolby Surround Sound). The film is primarily fornt and center channel driven and while the fight sequences do showcase ambient affects, it’s not the most immersive lossless soundtrack but the dialogue and effects are quite clear through the front channels.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Blood” comes with no special features.

“Blood” may not be as enjoyable as “Shinobi” but for those who want an anime-esque style of Japanese film that incorporates vampires and swordfighting, you can’t go wrong with “Blood”. In fact, it reminded me a lot of the 1990′s vampire anime films mixed with indie Japanese camp and nudity and simply, when I first found out that ’80s J-Pop singer and actress Aya Sugimoto (“Ai no Shinsekai”, “Flower and Snake”, “Hana to hebi”), it kind of was a no-brainer that we will see a lot of Aya Sugimoto unclothed especially since she’s known for her sexuality and has become one of the most outspoken talents in Japan on sexuality. And in Japan, because she was nude quite a bit in this film, many of her fans and horny otaku turned out to watch her in this film.

While the film is a vampire film, at the same time it would be wrong for me to say it was and people coming in to think it was a “Lost Boys”, “Twilight” type of film because it’s not. It’s pretty much a bloody romantic triangle between two men (who happen to be vampires) who vie for Miyako’s attention. And in many ways, it’s a sensual, kinky and carnal (yes bloody) way of showing it.

If I had one problem about the film is that you are expecting more as you find out that Ukyo went from being a samurai to leader of a crime network. It doesn’t really go much into it at all, if anything, the film tries to stay within the confines of the three individuals.

Yes, there is action in this film and in fact, there is quite a bit of wire-work implemented in “Blood” but while the carnage, romance and even action scenes are very good compared to a lot of similar-themed Japanese vampire films, “Blood” is predictable, contrived and in the end it ends up being a popcorn romantic triangle, bloody action film but it’s not dramatic like “Twilight”. But it does get quite campy but not in the indie Japanese film type of way, the production values and its presentation enhances one’s appreciation for the film.

If there was one major bummer about this Blu-ray release is the lack of special features but other than that, it all comes down to if you are wanting a horror film with a lot of blood and violence but also a touch of romance (and yes, gratuitous nudity). If so, “Blood” is definitely for you!

The Man From Nowhere (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

February 27, 2011 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

Riveting, pulse-pounding action and drama. “The Man From Nowhere” is simply magnificent!

TITLE: The Man From Nowhere (Ajeossi, 아저씨)

FILM RELEASE DATE: 2010

DURATION: 119 Minutes + 29 Minutes (Extra)

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (16×9), Stereo/5.1 HD Surround Sound, Korean with English dub and subtitles

COMPANY: Well Go USA

RATED: R (For Strong Bloody Violence, Pervasive Language, Drug Content and Brief Nudity)

RELEASE DATE: March 8, 2011

Written and Directed by Jeong-beom Lee

Produced by Tae-hun Lee

Executive Produced by Katharine Kim, Lee Tae Hun

Cinematography by Lee Tae-Yoon

Lighting by Lee Chol-O

Visual Effects Supervisor: Kim Tae-Ui

Edited by Kim Sang-Bum

Production Design: Yang Hong Sam

Costume Desgin: Jang Ju-Hee

Music by Shim Hyun Jung

Starring:

Won Bin as Tae-Sik Cha

Kim Sae-ron as So-Mi Jeong

Kim Hyo-seo as Hyo-Jeong (So-Mi’s Mother)

Kim Tae-hoon as Kim Chi-gon

Kim Hee-won as Man-seok

Kim Sung-oh as Jong-seok

Lee Jong-pil as Detective No

Thanayong Wongtrakul as Ramrowan

An ex-special agent Tae-sik Cha’s only connection to the rest of the world is a little girl, So-mi, who lives nearby. Her mother, Hyo-jeong smuggles drugs from a drug trafficking organization and entrusts Tae-sik with the product, without letting him know. The traffickers find out about her smuggling and kidnap both Hyo-jeong and So-mi. The gang promises to release them if Tae-sik makes a delivery for them, however it is actually a larger plot to eliminate a rival drug ring leader. When Hyo-jeong’s disemboweled body is discovered, Tae-sik realizes that So-mi’s life may also be in danger. Tae-sik becomes enraged at the prospect that So-mi may already be dead and prepares for a battle, putting his own life at risk.

Riveting, pulse-pounding action and drama. “The Man From Nowhere” is simply magnificent!

The winner of seven Korea Film Awards (the most awards ever received for a film in Korea) and multiple awards worldwide, the 2010 film “The Man From Nowhere” will be released on Blu-ray and DVD in the US on March 8th!

“The Man From Nowhere” was written and directed by Jeong-beom Lee (“Cruel Winter Blues”) and stars popular Korean actor Won Bin (“Guns & Talks”, “Mother”, “Taegukgi”, “My Brother”).

The film revolves around a man named Cha Tae-sik (played by Won Bin), a man who operates a pawn shop and pretty much lives his life quietly. Living next to door to him is a young girl named So-mi (played by Kim Sae-ron) who tends to visit him quite a bit as she doesn’t have any friends and is often treated like trash, even by her mother, exotic dancer/heroin addict Hyo-jeong.

Typically when Hyo-jeong sees her mother drugged out, she stays with Cha, despite him not communicating all that much.

One day, after dancing at a club, Hyo-jeong uses a stun gun on a man and steals bags of heroin which were meant to be picked up by a drug trafficking organization. To make sure she hides the bags of heroin, she puts it inside a camera bag and leaves it with Cha Tae-sik. Meanwhile, her boyfriend tells her that the organization wants the heroin and that she doesn’t know who she is dealing with. She refuses to give it up, thinking that she can get a profit for it.

As for the drug trafficking organization, they admonish Man-seok (played by Kim Hee-won) for losing the drugs and expect him to find it. Man-seok gets his brother Jong-seok (played by Kim Sung-oh) to do all he can to find it and they receive information that the person who stole it was a dancer.

Meanwhile, Cha learns a little bit about the girl. How she has no friends, she steals because she has no authority figure and he does feel some compassion for her. One day, he sees police with So-mi and a mother with her son. Both accuse the girl of trying to steal his backpack but So-mi claims she just wanted to compare it with her own. But they don’t believe she has a backpack because she is poor and the woman and the boy hit her with their backpack while the police watch. As Cha sees this, they ask her where her parents are and she points at Cha, but instead of helping her out, he leaves. And the police know that he is not her father.

As Cha goes to a nearby store, he sees So-mi who is planning to steal again and he admonishes her. But she steals anyway. As he talks to the store owner to pay for the stolen item, the store owner tells him that she needs a parent and feels badly for her, so it’s on the house.

When Cha goes to catch up with So-mi, she tells him that she stole because he was mean to her. Was he so embarrassed to be around her that he left her while the police were admonishing her? She said that she doesn’t hate him but she hurt him deeply and can never hate him because he is the only person that she cares about and gives him her lucky card… a dark knight card. Touched by this, he sees her run off back home.

When So-mi gets home, she sees Jong-seok bounding Hyo-jeong and burning her with a hair dryer and torturing her. She tries to tell So-mi to leave but she is held by a non-Korean named Ramrowan (played by Thanayong Wongtrakul). They are told that the drugs are in a camerabag held by Cha Tae-sik.

So, the thugs start go get the drugs back from Cha (who doesn’t know what they are talking about) and when they try to approach him with brute force, Cha easily beats them all up. But when the thugs call Jong-seok and tell him that this man has easily beat them, Jong-seok uses So-mi as leverage and tells him that he has both her and her mother and if he wants them safe, all he has to do is follow their orders.

He is asked to deliver a crate with a toy inside to an address and knowing that this is the only way he can free So-mi and her mother, he does it. As Cha goes to deliver the crate, he checks the contents and realizes that under it is a bag of drugs.

Cha delivers the drugs to the drug trafficking organization and demands So-mi back, but the organization has no idea what the hell is going on. They receive a phone call from the Man-seok saying that the drug trafficking organization should have never treated them badly and now has stabbed them in the back by giving police authorities a tip of there whereabout and that they are doing a drug deal.

As the police led by Detective No (played by Lee Jong-pil) arrive to make their arrests, the thugs of the organization beat Cha and throw him over the building (but is rescued as he falls on a net at the golf driving range).

Cha sees the head of the drug trafficking organization running and thinking that he knows where So-mi is and goes after him. Cha tries to pursue him and ends up crashing his car on to his and opening the back trunk. When Cha walks off, he sees something in the back trunk and the police surround him and see what is in the back trunk. It’s So-mi’s mother and her eyes are gone and her vital organs are also gone.

As Cha is being held by the police, the police are shocked that his file has been locked and police can not access it, only high-level security. Because the police were asked by the White House in America to search for a Korean terrorist, they were given a one-time access for information and they use it to get the identity of Cha Tae-sik and are surprised by his true identity and his background and why his file was locked.

Meanwhile, Man-seok and Jong-seok, who have So-mi, have delivered her to a place that kidnaps kids and use them to deliver drugs but also are kept for the purpose of when they get older, they would be killed and their eyes and organs would be taken and sold. Both criminals run an organ harvesting underground facility and make their money through that and drug trafficking.

As for Cha Tae-sik, he manages to escape from police holding and is determined to do all it takes to rescue So-mi.

VIDEO:

“The Man From Nowhere” is presented in 1080p High Definition and is presented in 16:9 widescreen. The picture quality of this film is absolutely wonderful as grime, blood and scars can be seen with detail on the characters. You can see the detail of the suit and clothing of various people, including the buttons on their clothing.

It’s important to note that this is a bloody film known for its spectacular knife fight and its violence but by no means is it sadistic in a horror-film type of way.

While a film that does showcase a lot of black and does take place during the nighttime, during the day-time scenes or neon-light club scenes, you do see the vibrant colors. As for the action sequences, no blurring or any interlacing. I saw no compression artifacting, DNR or any significant visual problems. A pretty solid release PQ-wise from Well Go USA.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“The Man From Nowhere” is presented in Korean and English 5.1 DTS-HD Surround Sound. While there is an English dub version of the film, I do not listen to English dubs for live action Asian films and prefer to watch the film in its original language, Korean dialogue with English subtitles. So, I can’t comment on the quality of the English dub for this film.

But as for the lossless audio, the dialogue is clear and there are a good amount of action scenes with car chases, car crashing, gunshots and action-sequences which can be heard through the surround channels. While not a film that does have repetitive action that utilizes the surround sound and LFE to create an immersive soundscape, the lossless audio fits this film quite well and is pretty much crystal clear.

The only audio that sounds distorted is the special features but overall, the film sounds great in HD on Blu-ray!

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“The Man From Nowhere” comes with the following special features in standard definition:

Teaser - (1:08) A teaser trailer for “The Man From Nowhere”
Full Trailer- (1:42) The original theatrical trailer for “The Man From Nowhere”.
Highlights – (5:11) A feature that focuses on the important scenes between Cha Tae-sik and So-mi.
Making Of – (17:23) The making of the action-based sequences. No dialogue but pretty much we can see how those scenes were created with the talent and the crew around them.

EXTRAS:

“The Man From Nowhere” comes with a slipcover case.

I have been highly anticipating to watch this movie. Having heard how it won all these awards in Korea and the fact that I have seen a good number of Korean films and very good ones that never won as many awards as “The Man From Nowhere”, you can’t help but think that this film must be special.

And after watching it, I can definitely say that this film was truly one of a kind. Stepping away from typical gangster or revenge films by focusing on the characters but also delivering in the action.

I have watched Won Bin grow from Korean dramas and seeing him become a film star, but “The Man From Nowhere” is a film where he truly shines and what best than to have a story where you play this character that seems quite stoic but then seeing him as an individual with emotions that he has dragged on all these years because of a tragic circumstance.

Also, the film does shed some light on the underground of Korea (which also happens in other countries of Asia) and where this film could have truly been hampered by terrible child acting, young actress Kim Sae-ron who plays So-mi, does it with so much emotion and adds to the film’s efficacy.

And while the dramatic portions are well-done, you have or will probably read how “The Man From Nowhere” has one of the best knife fighting scenes in a film. As some Asian cinema fans may be used to seeing in samurai films with sword vs. sword battles, “The Man From Nowhere” is just impressive with its fight choreography that I was amazed. There is no cheapening of the scenes, you are made to feel that the fight scenes look at feel right and never come out feeling disappointed by the results.

This is classic planning and excellent execution when it comes to the action and in balance with great performances, well-written dramatic elements, “The Man From Nowhere” was just magnificent to watch and I enjoyed this film extremely.

Granted, it is bloody and it is violent but the violence are nothing compared to a slasher, horror film, so it’s easily tolerable and not scary at all. But if you are sensitive to bloody violence, this film may not be for you. But if you are open to it, this film delivers in riveting, pulse-pounding action and drama. “The Man From Nowhere” is simply magnificent!

So far, Well Go USA has delivered with its Blu-ray release of “Ip Man” and now with “The Man From Nowhere” and with the Asian films that they brought to the U.S. thus far, I’m excited to see what other films they tend to bring in the near future.

Overall, there is really nothing for me to complain about this Blu-ray release. Granted, I wish there were more special features and wish the features were in HD but other than that, “The Man From Nowhere” is a film that I can easily give my highest recommendation.

Alien vs. Ninja (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc)

February 25, 2011 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

The concept may seem unusual but for a Sushi Typhoon film, it’s actually a pretty fun, anime-esque live action sci-fi/horror film. Plenty of humor, violence and action… I found “Alien vs. Ninja” to be quite entertaining and hilarious.

TITLE: Alien vs. Ninja

FILM RELEASE DATE: 2010

DURATION: 81 Minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080i High Definition (16×9 – HD Native), Dolby TrueHD Japanese 5.1, Dolby TrueHD English 5.1, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: Nikkatsu/Sushi Typhoon, FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV MA

RELEASE DATE: February 22, 2011

Directed by Seiji Chiba

Produced by Seiji Chiba, Yoshinori Chiba

Executive Producer: Akifumi Sugihara

Cinematography by Tetsuya Kudo, Ryo Uematsu

Editing by Seiji Chiba

Starring:

Masanori Mimoto as Yamata

Mika Hijii as Rin

Shuji Kashiwabara as Jinnai

Donpei Tsuchihira as Nezumi

Yuki Oge

The fiercest ninjas of the Iga clan face their toughest enemies – and they aren’t from this planet! A fiery mass crashes in the forest and soon horrifyingly savage creatures reduce the warriors to tasty snacks. But these extraterrestrials have bitten off more than they can chew: swords and throwing stars may fail against unearthly goons, but ninja skills don’t stop at sharp stuff.

From the filmmakers behind “Tokyo Gore Police” and “The Machine Girl” join the Sushi Typhoon to bring a Japanese sci-fi, horror comedy for International audiences.

Director Seiji Chiba knnown for “Evil Ninja”, “Sengoku: Iga no Ran”, “Red Letters” returns with “Alien vs. Ninja”, a film that incorporates Western alien sci-films and anime-style action and bring them together for an alien attacks film that takes place in feudal Japan. This time…the ninjas become the hunted!

The film begins with three ninjas who infiltrate a rival clan’s castle and blows it up. The three are being pursued by ninja. While they run, we are introduced to the team leader Jinnai (played by Shuji Kashiwabara), the cocky warrior Yamata (played by Masanori Mimoto) and the always scared but crafty weapons developer Nezumi (played by Donpei Tsuchihira).

Nezumi gives a weapon to Mimoto for him to use in battle and as the three are surrounded by enemy ninja, Yamata (played by Masanori Mimoto) easily defeats them in battle, while one is kept alive and Mimoto tests Nezumi’s spinning top. Unfortunately, the weapon does not work (as most of Nezumi’s weapons do not work) in battle.

But as they finish with their mission and are about to return home, a big fireball comes from the sky and lands near them. Instead of investigating, the three head back home and Yamata is admonished by his clan’s administrative leaders and reminded that he was not born a ninja but was taken in by the clan. All three are told to see their master who needs to talk to them.

Meanwhile, in the forest, another ninja clan is planning to head back home. This one led by Rin (played by Mika Hijii, “Kamen Rider Blade”) who led several ninjas with her to investigate an intuition that she had but proved to be fruitless. The group also sees a fireball flying over them and landing.

As Jinnai and his men meet with their master, they are told to investigate the fireball that has flown over and so, the three take off on another mission. But before they go, Nezumi introduces a new weapon, a pistol that shoots out bullets, like a Western weapon.

As the three joke around and have fun, they run into Rin’s group and tell them that together, they need to investigate the fireball that landed near them. And as the ninja travel towards the forest, they see a boy running and is bloodied. They try to find out more details but the boy can’t speak.

Next thing you know, the ninjas are attacked as one by one, someone is literally eating them alive or tearing their body limps apart. They realize their opponent is a monster they have not seen before.

With the majority of the ninjas slaughtered, only the living…Jinnai, Yamata, Nezumi, Rin and one of her ninja from her group, along with the boy are the last ones living and they retreat.

As they retreat, one of the aliens shows up and we see small aliens coming out of its head and one of them going inside the nose of one of the wounded ninja.

Knowing that they are taking on an opponent that they have never come across that is so tough to beat, the living ninjas must decide if they are willing to fight or are willing to die fighting these killer monsters.

VIDEO:

“Alien vs. Ninja” is presented in 1080i High Definition (16×9, HD Native). While it’s shot via digital, you can tell the difference of high quality digital and digital that is good enough. For those familiar with Japanese indie films like “Alien vs. Ninja” (or the various horror/zombie films) will know what I mean about the quality. It’s digital, it’s good digital but not the same high end digital that delivers in amazing detail. You do get good blacks but you will not see skin pores or major detail and it’s probably a good thing.

As the monsters does carry that Sentai feel of rubberized monster suits, the picture quality as is produces a better effect of not making the aliens look so rubbery. Granted, the low budget alien monsters, its babies or symbiotes do look like something that you want to give to your dog as a chew toy, I suppose that since I’m so used to this genre and watching these type of Japanese films, I’m too used to it. Otherwise, those who are not familiar with the genre and are more likely to complain how the monsters look cheap, will probably be disappointed.

I, on the other hand, watch “Alien vs. Ninja” and will say that compared to many of the Japanese zombie and indie horror films that I have seen in awhile, “Alien vs. Ninja” is among the better ones out there.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Alien vs. Ninja” is presented in Dolby TrueHD Japanese and English 5.1. Because I prefer to watch my live action Asian films in their original presentation, I preferred watching it in Japanese and could only listen to English for a short while. First the English dub, I will say that because FUNimation Entertainment employs talent voice actors, the voice acting is much better than Dimension Films or from other companies.

But with that being said, the Japanese lossless soundtrack is good. You can hear ambiance from the forest, the stomping of leaves, the clanging of steel on steel, the gun shots, Rin’s iron fists and various action-based sounds utilized through the surround channels. Dialogue is crystal clear from the center and front channels and for the most part, I’m happy to see that an Indie film such as “Alien vs. Ninja” does utilize the surround channels. It’s of course not immersive but still it is utilized throughout the film at times.

Subtitles are presented in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Alien vs. Ninja” comes with the following special features:

Alien vs. Ninja – Making Of - (19:32) Director Seiji Chiba and action director Yuji Shimomura talk about the film, how it came to be, the action used in the film, the talent also talk about their characters and participating in the film, plus Sochi Umezawa talks about the makeup and effects for the film.
Original Trailer- (3:07) The English trailer for the film.
Coming Soon – FUNimation Entertainment titles coming soon or are currently available.