Kamui Gaiden (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

An exciting, action-packed yet sad and tragic ninja film.  Ken’ichi Matsuyama (“Death Note” films) does a great job playing the wanted ninja who has escaped from his clan and a good number of characters who definitely compliment the lone ninja.  If you have familiarity with anime, manga and video games with a  ninja storyline, “Kamui Gaiden” will definitely entertain you!

Images courtesy of © 2009 Kamui Film Partners . All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Kamui Gaiden

FILM RELEASE DATE: 2009

DURATION: 120 Minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition 16×9 HD Native, Dolby TrueHD Japanese 6.1, Dolby TrueHD English 5.1, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: Not Rated

RELEASE DATE: December 28, 2011

Based on the comic by Sampei Shirato

Directed by Yoichi Sai

Screenplay by Kankuro Kudo, Yoichi Sai

Produced by Akira Morishige, Yui Tamae

Executive Producer: Nozomu Enoiki, Naoya Kinoshita

Music by Taro Iwashiro

Cinematography by Tomoo Ezaki, Junichi Fujisawa

Edited by Isao Kawase

Production Design by Tsutomu Imamura

Starring:

Ken’ichi Matsuyama as Kamui

Koyuki as Sugaru

Kaoru Kobayashi as Hanbei

Koichi Sato as Gumbei

Hideaki Ito as Fudo

Sei Ashina as Mikumo

Ekin Cheng as Dumok

Yuta Kanai as Yoshito

Suzuka Ohgo as Sayaka

Panta as Eshi

Anna Tsuchiya as Ayu

Tsutomu Yamazaki as Narrator

Cruelly shunned by his people as a child, Kamui trusts no one. Now a solitary warrior, he wanders Japan, using lethal skill and instinct to evade countless violent attacks from the ninja clan he left behind. A turn of luck introduces a band of fugitive ninjas who offer Kamui a new life amongst them as a pirate, killing sharks for suffering fishing villages. While the tempting promise of respect and protection leaves him conflicted, the merciless members of his former clan are closing in, and his deadliest foe is poised to strike. The battle is never over for Kamui, the ninja who stands alone.

Considered a manga classic, “Kamui Den” (The Legend of Kamui) is a manga by mangaka Sanpei Shirato and was published in the monthly gekiga (dramatic pictures) magazine “Garo” from 1964 through 1971.  And would inspire several spinoffs such as “Kamui Gaiden” (1965-1967) and “Kamuiden Dai 2 Bu” (1982-1986) and would inspire anime TV series “Kamui the Ninja” (1969).

During the late ’80s, American comic book collectors had their taste of “The Legend of Kamui” as it was one of the first manga printed in comic-book format in English by Viz Comics.

In 2009, the spinoff “Kamui Gaiden” received a live film adaptation which was directed by Yoichi Sai (“Quill”, “Art of Revenge”, “Blood and Bones”) and co-written with Kankuro Kudo (“No More Cry”, “Zebraman” and “Ping Pong”).

The story of “Kamui Gaiden” continues the adventures of a ninja named Kamui.  Long ago, he was a lone child who was taken and raised as a ninja.  When he was a young teen, he was taken on a mission to kill a female ninja named Sugaru (played by Koyuki, “The Last Samurai”, “Blood the Last Vampire”).  Sugaru battled Kamui’s master and in the end, Sugaru was fell over a cliff and was thought dead.

His masters words were that anyone who plans on leaving their ninja clan will be pursued wherever he went as he would be considered a traitor.  Also, to try to keep their secrets within their clan, that traitor must be killed.

Fast forward years later and Kamui is now an adult.  We see Kamui (played by Ken’ichi Matsuyama, “Death Note” films) and several other ninja who have escaped the tribe and are being pursued.  Kamui manages to use his special ninja techniques to defeat his pursuers but his friends weren’t so lucky.

As he continues to run and escape, the lord of the area is out hunting with his men.  While one of the servants for the lord is taking care of a horse, a man named Hanbei (played by Kaoru Kobayashi) comes out of nowhere and cuts off the horse’s leg/foot and runs off with it.  The lord and his men now what to punish the man who did such an act and intrigued by the fearlessness (and carelessness) of Hanbei, Kamui goes to help him and to make a mockery of the lord’s men.

The two escape by boat and are off in the ocean where a violent storm has come.  Next thing you know Hanbei pushes Kamui off the boat and we see what looks like Kamui drowning in the ocean.

We see Kamui now waking up in a land and the villagers trying to rescue him.  Apparently, the rescuers on the land are Hanbei and his family.  We also learn that he has married Sugaru (the escaped ninja).

We also learn the reason why Hanbei had cut off the foot of the horse that belonged to the lord and that is because it’s hoof can be used as bait to catch more fish.  And sure enough, both Hanbei and Kamui grow closer as Hanbei shows him how to fish and his lucky bait made from the hoof can lead to them catching enough fish for the entire village.  But most of all, a friendship is developing between the two.

Kamui ends up getting closer to Hanbei’s family and feels that he has started a new life without any ninja pursuers after him.  Hanbei’s teenage daughter Sayaka (played by Suzuka Ohgo) has fallen for him, his two children love Kamui being there and Hanbei knows that wherever Kamui came from, that is where his wife Sugaru came from (as they smell the same).  But he feels that he can trust Kamui with his life.  He asks for Kamui to please not reveal Sugaru’s presence.

As for Sugaru, she wants nothing but to kill Kamui as she is paranoid that his presence in the village is to impersonate a villager in order for him to pursue and kill her.

Will Kamui be able to convince Sugaru that he’s not after her.  And what will happen to Hanbei, when one of their own villagers, a teen named Yoshito (played by Yuta Kanai) who is jealous of the attention Sayaka is giving Kamui, notices a wanted poster for Hanbei’s capture (for the death of the lord’s horse) and rats on him?

VIDEO:

“Kamui Gaiden” is presented in 1080p High Definition.  First the good news.  The good news is that one will be able to see clear details of rocks, trees, the ground, leaves, blue water and sky. There are scenes that look absolutely fantastic.  You can see the grain of the wood, you can see the details of the cloth in the clothes of people.  There are scenes with wonderful detail.

But…It appears that Yoichi Sai and cinematographers Tomoo Ezaki and Junichi Fujisawa wanted to create different moods with the different villages featured.  When referring to Kamui’s past, there is a use of blacks and darker grays.  When featuring Kamui on the run, there is more use of earth-tones and when they are in the seaside village, a brightness that makes the oceans blue waters come alive.

There is definitely nothing wrong with showcasing different colors of setting moods but there is a bit of inconsistency with the overall pallet that some viewers may feel its a bit too overused.  Also, some may notice a bit of softening on different parts of the film.  Not DNR softening but more like it was intended.  Also, some scenes may look a bit dark at times.

I didn’t notice any digital artifacting and overall, the film does showcase strong contrasting, black levels are nice and deep and also use of grain.  Overall, PQ is very good but you do notice much more of the details during the second half more than the first half of the film due to the shift of colors to a more vibrant location.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Kamui Gaiden” is presented in Dolby TrueHD Japanese 6.1 and DolbyTrue HD English 5.1.

I preferred to watch this film via its original Japanese soundtrack and the good news is that from the center and front channels, dialogue is absolutely crystal clear.  But for those expecting an active soundscape, “Kamui Gaiden” has its moments during its action sequences at the beginning film and at the end of the film but in between, it’s a film that is primarily dialogue-driven with crowd ambiance and little surround channel usage.

Some scenes do show of good surround sound usage such as a scene where Sugaru throws her metal coins towards the peasants or when the sharks start jumping from the ocean. You can hear the surround and rear surround channels being utilized.  It would have been nice to have LFE employed and feel the booms but for the most part, you get a good amount of ambiance from the surround channels.

While there are plenty of action scenes, many do take place during the opening sequence and the ending sequence and very few in between.  So, it’s not a active soundtrack but you do get crystal clear sound through the front and center channels.

As for the English dub, I’m not really into dubs for Asian films but I did watch several scenes with the English dub and while some fit certain characters, the English dub sounded a bit too modern-ish.  Especially for the family scenes, it was like listening to a normal family during the modern times, especially when Sayaka and her sibling speak.  The voice actor for Kamui and Hanbei were good though.  I’m sure it will work for some viewers but it didn’t work for me at all.

But I will say that for those who are used to English dubs while watching Asian films should know already that FUNimation Entertainment are one of the best when it comes to English dubs.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Kamui Gaiden” comes with the following special features in 480i Standard Definition, Dolby Digital Japanese 2.0 with English subtitles:

• Behind the Scenes – (12:34) Featuring the training that Ken’ichi Matsuyama had to go through before the film in order to prepare for his role as Kamui.
• Making of - (32:35) Featuring the making of “Kamui Gaiden” back in 2008 and the challenges which took place, especially when Ken’ichi Matsuyama was injured and production had to stop.  So, we get to see the stress that crew faced at times and also when filming resumed.
• Coming Soon - Featuring trailers for upcoming and currently released FUNimation Entertainment movies.

I’m going to come out and say it…I really enjoyed “Kamui Gaiden”.

When it comes to Japanese films, especially those that deal with supernatural type of storylines, even with ninja-based films with swordfighting, wire-work and action sequences, there are those who will compare them to Chinese and Korean cinema.

I’ve learned long ago with trendy Japanese films, especially if you grew up watching anime or reading manga, the Japanese have a way of storytelling that takes a lot of what is part of Japanese pop culture and fuse it into a modern live action-film.  The humor, the action, the special attributes of a warrior… if it can happen in an anime or manga series or a video game, expect a live-movie adaptation from a manga/anime to include those unique abilities.

And I know for some reviewers who have watched Asian cinema, they wonder why this happens so much with Japanese film.  Especially when that reviewer is so into Japanese cinema from Kurosawa, Naruse, Teshigahara, Ozu, etc.

But those post-war films of before, a lot has changed with Japanese films and there are those that can be considered as cinema and those that are trendy Japanese films.  “Kamui Gaiden” is the latter.

These are films where you are going to find popular young actors such as Ken’ichi Matsuyama (known to many for his role as “L” in the “Death Note” films) and it helps when you have a well-recognized actress such as Koyuki (known in the west for her role in “The Last Samurai”) together in a film.  Especially seeing pop/rock star Anna Tsuchiya and other talents that many Japanese are used to seeing in trendy Japanese dramas and films.

And having covered “trendy” Japanese films and dramas for over 20-years, I’ve been able to watch these films and not expect anything deep but to sit back and say “wow me!”.  Become better than the typical popcorn action flick with the usual banality that one would expect.

I’ve read those who watched the film and wonder why Japanese films tend to evoke these supernatural style of sword fighting.  Why isn’t it like a Chinese or Korean where warriors fight in battles that seem possible?

And my answer to that is, it’s based from a popular manga, which inspired spin-offs and an anime series and for those who have watched a ninja anime series, ninjas are not just seen as warriors of the night.  They tend to be given supernatural abilities and thus, we see a character like Kamui being able to pull off his special moves.  Moves that seem possible in a video game, anime series or manga and we see it in a live-action film.

I read one review who questioned Kamui’s double sword attack in which he creates two images of himself.  And the reviewer was criticizing of how stupid that move was for a sword fight?  Once again, this is not a Kurosawa film.  These stories are not going after realism.  When you look at Japanese storylines even for sports-based anime or manga series such as “Tennis no Ojisama” (Prince of Tennis) or “Eyeshield 21″, these athletes are gifted with special abilities.  And this is no different with samurai or ninja inspired manga series such as “Kamui Gaiden”.

And as mentioned before, since this is a film adaptation from a manga, you’re going to see some of these special abilities on a film but also getting to see how Japanese films have progressed in action films that require wire work and CG special effects ala blue screen.

What I enjoyed about about “Kamui Gaiden” is the storyline of the protagonist (Kamui) wanting to live a normal life away from his ninja clan and this clan will do anything to stop him and prevent anyone knowing their secrets.  And these ninja are not the nicest ninja out there.  These are vile people who have their own way of serving out justice and will do anything terrible to get their point across.

The film makes you believe that Kamui is a man that has a chance at redemption but as the film utilizes that time to show that hint of happiness that he has yearned for, the writers find a way to destroy any feeling of happiness that the viewer was expecting by the final 15-minutes at the end of the film and just showing us how Kamui’s life will always be a man who will continually be hunted.

Ken’ichi Matsuyama is able to break out of his “L” character that he will forever be known for and take on this character in which he had to be quite convincing and it helps that he underwent a lot of training preparation for this film.  There are very good action sequences but what does hurt the film at times is the use of CG via blue screen and combining it with the realistic scenes.

While in the manga, it shows Kamui along with Hanbei’s family riding a boat to the ocean and then being attacked by huge killer sharks, the problem is that these sharks are just enormous and jump high in the air to terrorize them.  Unfortunately, we have been spoiled with James Cameron’s “Avatar” to see how good CG and realistic scenes are combined but somehow for Japanese films, even today, it’s still hit or miss.

The wirework of course has been a staple of Hong Kong and Chinese action films and it takes a lot of trial and error with even stunt people getting terribly hurt to get the scenes right, but that’s why there are professionals that are hired from Hong Kong to work on American and European films but the wirework for “Kamui Gaiden” doesn’t look as smooth and looks as if they are gliding from a wire.

But these shortcomings are few, the focus is on the story.  Koyuki plays a more convincing role as the mother and former ninja, Kaoru Kobayashi also does a great job playing the husband/father Hanbei.  There is also an appearance by Hideaki Ito who plays Fudo, a ninja also on the run and plays a pivotal role in the final half of the movie.

The film also features short appearances by Hong Kong star Ekin Cheng as Dumok (a ninja who tries to stop Sugaru early in the film) and Anna Tsuchiya as Ayu, the lord’s wife who is always laughing at his grotesque fetishes or violent tendencies.

But what the film does have is a lot of heart.  Yes, and I mean that in a good way for a ninja, action film because Kamui is literally displaced and just wants to free himself of any pursuers.  His new family has embraced him (well, with the exception of Sugaru) especially with the eldest teen daughter Sayaka (played by Suzuka Ohgo), your average teenage girl with her first major crush.

And Kamui cares for this family, so it just drives a stake through your heart as you see these relationships build and see them destroyed by a callous act that no one sees coming.

Sure, this is not a Sho Kosugi ninja style film or anything like “Super Ninjas” that many of us grew up watching during the ’80s.  And no, we aren’t going to see ninja stars or heads being impaled or samurai’s sneaking in for assassinations.  This is all about one man’s goal for freedom and to escape and survive from his old clan who wants him dead.  Will Kamui ever find this new life?

Overall, “Kamui Gaiden” is an exciting, action-packed yet sad and tragic ninja film.  Ken’ichi Matsuyama (“Death Note” films) does a great job playing the wanted ninja who has escaped from his clan and a good number of characters who definitely compliment the lone ninja.  If you have familiarity with anime, manga and video games with a  ninja storyline, “Kamui Gaiden” will definitely entertain you!

The Legend of Zu (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

A film that had tremendous potential but becomes of a special effects-laden film without any deep overtones.

THE LEGEND OF ZU (2001)
CAST: Ekin Cheng, Louis Koo, Sammo Hung, Zhang Zi Yi, Cecilia Cheung and Wu Jing.
DIRECTED BY: Tsui Hark
PRODUCED BY: Tsui Hark
DURATION: 100 minutes
Note:  Viewed China Star DVD version with removable English subtitles.

Movie Synopsis:

Legend of Zu stars Zhang Ziyi of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon fame, as well as martial arts star Sammo Hung. In this latest high-flying and far-leaping adventure from Hong Kong, Zhang plays a young woman who does battle with an evil strongman in the ancient mythological province of Zu. Zhang’s warrior princess is joined by Ekin Cheng, Cecilia Cheung and Wu Jing.

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DVD EXTRAS:

- DTS track, Making of Featurette (with English subtitles), trailer, movie trailers for “Love on a Diet” and more.

KNOWN DVD SECRET(S): None that I know of

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DVD REVIEW:

Back in the early 80′s, Tsui Hark directed a movie titled “Zu Warriors from Magic Mountain”. A movie that is highly regarded as the movie that pioneered many fantasy movies that followed like “Bride with White Hair”, “Heroic Trio”, etc. In fact, “Zu Warriors from Magic Mountain” is like what “Star Wars” is to the United States.

In 2001, Tsui Hark is back with “The Legend of Zu” featuring a similar storyline but yet very different. The story features Ekin Cheng as Xuan. A powerful swordsman whose tribe was wiped out by the evil entity known as Insomnia. Together with his friend Red (Koo) which is similar to X-Men’s Archaengel with the protective metallic, blade-like wings try to team up with Omei’s grandmaster (Sammo Hung plays the same character like he did in the original movie) and the Omei clan featuring it’s protectors Enigma (Cecilia Cheung) who is like a reincarnation of Xuan’s love who died 200 years ago and as you can tell it’s getting confusing the more I try to explain it.

I guess you can liken this movie to a videogame RPG like “Final Fantasy” because in fact, this beautiful, abundance of special effects movie is like a live RPG with many characters and plenty of cool fighting moves.

Like the first movie, many people will get confused with the storyline because it goes into some mythological type overtones. Where many people loved, the first movie…I couldn’t get into it. Where many people compared this to the first and didn’t like it, I enjoyed it.

This is a film that I’m sure cost a lot of money. It appears that nearly the whole landscape was computer generated and it looks very Final Fantasy-ish.

As for the DVD, it looks great and it sounds great thanks to the DTS soundtrack. The video quality is great but noticed some artifacting in the dark areas.

If there is one major problem with this DVD is that in some areas there are no subtitles. This was the first time I experienced a DVD which featured subtitles missing in certain dialogue scenes. Although not a long time (maybe less than a minute) but I was surprised to see this problem.

The special features feature a making-of, cast info, trailers, etc.

“The Legend of Zu” is not for everyone. I really think this will appeal to the videogame crowd to the awesome special effects, RPG like overtone and the awesome fight scenes. But for those wanting to see a straightforward movie, this might not be for you.

THE MOVIE: B+
THE DVD EXTRAS: B-
THE DVD OVERALL: B

Leave Me Alone (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

Easily one of my favorite HK films of 2004!  Ekin Cheng shows us once again why he’s one of Hong Kong cinema’s top stars!

Leave Me Alone (2004)

CAST: Ekin Cheng, Charlene Choi, Kenny Bee, Lawrence Chou, Jan Lamb, Chi Wah Wong

Directed by Danny Pang

DURATION: 97 minutes

COMPANY:  Tai Seng Entertainment

2004 had several cool movies come out of Hong Kong and among my top 5 movies was “Leave Me Alone”.

The story is about two twin brothers (both played by Ekin Cheng). Yiu Chun-Man is a gay fashion designer who has problems with holding any relationships because of his fast paced work life. He is visited by his twin brother Yiu Chun-Kit, who came from Thailand to visit his brother in Hong Kong.

Both were separated when their parents divorced, so both brothers wanted to catch up on how their lives have been in the last ten years. Yiu Chun-Kit is not aware that his brother is gay but he makes the trip to Hong Kong with more than just a reason just to meet his brother and catch up on old times.

One morning, Yiu Chun-Kit borrows his brotherʼs car and runs into a woman and gets into an accident. Since he doesnʼt have his license, it is assumed that Yiu Chun-Man is the person who got into an accident. As Yiu Chun-Man awaits in the hospital while his brother is in a coma, his brotherʼs phone rings and it appears that Yiu Chun-Kitʼs girlfriend, Jane (played by Charlene Choi) needs her boyfriend back in Thailand to sign papers for a loan. Since his brother is in a coma and due to the accident, it is assumed that Yiu Chun-Man is in a coma, he goes to Thailand in his brotherʼs place. It is there that you learn that the life that Yiu Chun-Kit has lived has been borrowing money from loan sharks who are expecting payment within the next few days and if they donʼt receive the loan money from the bank, Yiu Chun-Kit and Jane will pay with their lives.

They donʼt get the loan and Jane and Yiu Chun-Man (using his twinʼs identity) are on the run, trying to find ways to get money to pay off the debt. Unfortunately, Jane tends to do what she wants and it tends to get her into trouble and leads to both she and Yiu Chun-Man taking on triad bosses. “Leave Me Alone” is actually very entertaining and the camera work is very well done.

Ekin Cheng does a fantastic job playing two different roles. Yiu Chun- Man has frilly hair, gay and is passive and Yiu Chun-Kit is Mr. Cool, he dresses well but very pro-active. Eking Cheng did a great job that you reallyndonʼt question him playing two roles at all.

As for Charlene Choi (member of the music duo, TWINS), I actually found it very entertaining to see her play another different type of role. I also found her much more mature and sexy in this role.  This time around, the chemistry between Ekin and Charlene works a lot better this time around compared to their first pairing in “My Wife is 18” due to their different types of roles played and frankly, their age difference. Charlene Choi is quite sexy in this film but what may be a long stretch for many HK viewers is to see Charlene play an active role as a gun-toting, action heroine and Ekin Cheng standing back in his role as Yiu Chun-Man (Well, Yiu Chun-Man is a fashion designer) and to see these two work with each otherʼs characters, definitely works.

The action scenes are typical HK fun with guns ablazing, unimaginable ammo coming from one clip, car chase segments and much more. The computer generated graphics are good and not as fake looking. Although an action movie, the film offers another story about relationships. Since both brothers have to assume the otherʼs identities, they get to learn more about how each brother has lived, their faults and why they both have problems with their relationships and the people they love. As for the DVD, I found the video quality very good, presented in 16:9 anamorphic widescreen and the audio quality is served in DTS or Digital 5.1 and sounded sweet during the action segments on my home theater system.

The DVD offers several special features such as a making of featurette, teaser, trailer, production notes and other extras or usual offerings on HK DVDʼs. If there was one negative that I found, itʼs not more of a negative but more nitpicking is that if you select the title menu button on your remote, it will take you directly to the movie and not the title screen. Thus you need to select the DTS or Digital 5.1 sound first after the copyright screen to access the title menu and not by remote.

“Leave Me Alone” is a fun film that was among my top 5 for 2004. Ekin Cheng does a wonderful job of playing two different characters, Charlene Choi showing us that she can play something new and to find an actionfilm that a good balance of humor and not so much seriousness was nice to have and I recommend people to check this DVD out.

For Bad Boys Only (A J!-ENT DVD Review)

BUY THIS DVD

DVD reviewed by Dennis A. Amith
CAST: Ekin Cheng, Louis Koo, Kristy Yeung, Shu Qui, Daniel Chan and more.
DIRECTED BY: Manfred Wong
TYPE OF MOVIE: Romance, Action
DURATION: 101 minutes
NOTE:  Reviewed Universe DVD version with removable English subtitles (All Region).

King and Jack are experts in finding lovers of first love for their clients. One day, a young guy, a man of concealed identity, and Taiwan’s richest business tycoon ask King and Jack to look for their first lovers. To King and Jack’s astonishment, the women all look like the same ……

DVD EXTRAS:

*  English/Chinese removable subtitles
*  Synopsis and cast info. + two trailers (Marooned and Queen of Kowloon) and making of (with selection of subtitles).

KNOWN DVD SECRET(S): None that I know of

DVD REVIEW:

A very interesting movie about three men who love women differently (one for the sake of quick love, one looking for Ms. Perfection and the other who will love the girl of his dreams no matter what), the Charlie’s Angels like storyline (but with two guys and one girl) and then the storyline about illegal cloning which makes one interesting storyline “For Bad Boys Only” which is the name of the detective company.

This movie is very hip and entertaining to watch.  The CG graphics may turn people off who had enough of it (you will see Matrix special effects in this movie).

For this movie, I’m amazed at how much Shu Qui has grown as an actress and in this movie, she has to play multiple roles.

As for the DVD, the audio is very good and the selection of language has an International selection which features dialogue in Chinese, Japanese, English, etc.  Perhaps this was meant to be release stateside like Gen-X Cops.  Also, the DVD has two trailers and a making of which Universe added a selection for subtitles (YES!)

All in all a pretty cool movie.  It’s not meant to be taken seriously but to sit back and enjoy.  Check it out!

THE MOVIE: B
THE DVD EXTRAS: B-
THE DVD OVERALL: B

Tokyo Raiders (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

BUY THIS DVD

MOVIE COMPANY: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX
CAST: Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Ekin Cheng, Kelly Chen, Toru Nakamura and Cecelia Cheung.
DIRECTED BY: Jingle Ma
DURATION: 101 minutes

On the marriage day of Macy, Her bridegroom Takahashi does not show up. Macy comes to Tokyo to look for him. She meets Tommy, an interior designer who wants to collect debt from Takahashi, and Lenny a private eye who is hired by a gangster boss to spy on Takahashi. During the investigation, these three persons soon find that they are in conflict with the Japanese underworld gang.

DVD REVIEW:

I was highly anticipating movie.  My favorite HK actors and actresses are in this movie including Toru Nakamura (GEN-X COPS) as the bad guy again.

This movie had a lot of potential and it looked very good as if it was like a art movie. What I mean by that is utilizing sound and the camera to create like a dance for the action scenes.  Almost like Woo style but totally different.  Make sense?

Anyway, the movie is like watching a James Bond and Avengers movie in one.  Pretty cool to watch but in terms of being very satisfied with it, I felt it was average.  Ok.

As for the DVD, the video is beautiful and the music is utilized in the DTS track.  Btw, this DVD version is the first HK to utilize DTS.

As for special features, similar to all Universe DVD’s but with the inclusion of a making of.  Although I don’t have a DVD-Rom, I’m not sure if this DVD carries the video game, screen saver and wallpaper like the VCD version did.

Otherwise a cool movie and the action scenes to be done in a different way was quite different but the movie does not motivate me to watch it many times.  Even though it has Kelly and Cecelia.

THE MOVIE: C+
THE DVD EXTRAS: B+
THE DVD OVERALL: B

A Man Called Hero (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

BUY THIS DVD

CAST: Ekin Cheng, Nicholas Tse, Anthony Wong, Kristy Yan, Francis Ng, Shu Qui and more.

DIRECTED BY: Andrew Lau

DURATION:  105 minutes

After a simple initiation ceremony, Hero goes home with excited but he finds his parent was killed. What had happened was, Gian took a group of foreigners to Hero’s parent and forced them to had over the Red Sword, their family treasure. In order to take revenge, Hero kills the foreigners. Thereafter, he want by the police and sign up to coal miner in America

DVD EXTRAS:

*  Removable Traditional Chinese & English Subs

* Includes a 17 minute making of featurette with optional Chinese or English subs. * 3 different movie trailers

Includes info on Cast Members Ekin Cheng, Francis Ng, Kristy Yang, Nicholas Tse, Anthony Wong and Shu Qi.

Also includes cast comments on the characters played by Ekin Cheng, Francis Ng, Nicholas Tse, Shu Qi and Yuen Biao. KNOWN DVD SECRET(S): None that I know of

DVD REVIEW:

Almost everyone from “Stormriders” is back with a new movie combining special effects, martial arts and history to a new level.

The story focuses on a man named Hero who believes that he is born under the “Star of Death” (everyone around him dies…friends, loved ones and foes).  One one hand he is fighting for his master, the other is getting revenge for the death of his family and last to find his kidnapped daughter.

Unfortunately, the movie doesn’t answer all what I mentioned thus perhaps a sequel will be coming out.  As for the movie, I tend to enjoy this movie more than “Stormriders”.  I actually liked the plot which has a lot of potential.  Unfortunately, like most comic book adaptions with many people, trying to throw many characters in will confuse the viewer.  Personally, some people may need to see this movie more than once to feel comfortable with it.  I enjoyed it a lot and enjoyed the different characters in the movie.  It was like a live movie of “Tekken” and “Soul Blade” mixed with “Fist of Legend” and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”.

As for the DVD, this movie has to be bought on DVD.  Although the special cut has been edited for the DVD version (they removed the KKK section, a cemetery section and a few other things), the DVD is the best way to watch this movie because it looks good and sounds good.  Also, the special features available from Universe is a better offering than most DVD’s because they actually subtitled the special 17-minute making of featurette.  Also, the inclusion of three trailers for the movie and more.

Watch this movie with an open mind and try to enjoy it.  Can’t wait for the next movie!

THE MOVIE: B+
THE DVD EXTRAS: B+
THE DVD OVERALL: B+

The Legend of Speed (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

CAST: Ekin Cheng, Cecelia Cheung, Kelly Lam, Patrick Tam, Blackie Ko, Simon Yam, Yiu Man
DIRECTED BY: Andrew Lau
PRODUCED BY:  Manfred Wong
TYPE OF MOVIE: Romance
DURATION: 108 minutes

The movie is about a rich guy named Sky.  He loves modifying his car, being with his girlfriend Kelly and his friends and racing.  Everything starts to go downhill when he races the legendary Tang Fung (who beat his father who was a legendary racer) and leads to the death of his girlfriend and he is framed for possession of narcotics.

The family has Sky leave HK to Thailand to find his father and find out if he will get his revenge against Tang Fung.

DVD EXTRAS:

*  English/Chinese removable subtitles
*  Synopsis and cast info. in Chinese, a 12-minute production notes (which is actually a making of) and trailer.

KNOWN DVD SECRET(S): None that I know of

DVD REVIEW:

From the beginning of this movie, video game racing buffs will know they will enjoy this film.  From the “Ridge Racer” opening, to the “Tokyo Shutoku Battle” like racing and “Gran Turismo” like CG graphics, one must be thinking they are in racing heaven with this movie.

Although dubbed as “Full Throttle 2″, let’s get away from that as this movie still focuses on motor cycle racing and of course, car racing.

If one looked at it as a video game racing movie, then you will be pleased because this movie has a pretty good storyline but for those who aren’t racing buffs and are expecting a solid story, that’s where the problem lies.

The storyline has Sky being framed for something he didn’t do.  He leaves to another country knowing that people and cops are after him but that is it.  He returns to the country, no problems whatsoever and you’re wondering, for a wanted man…what happen to that story arc?  The second is a major accident scene may make people say (no matter how cool it looked): “There is no way someone can survive from that!” but of course, the person lives.  Last, even though the story problem listed above was made, the final minute after an exciting race fizzles with the final sentence by the bad guy and his crying.

As for the DVD, the movie looked great and certain scenes really looked colorful.  As for audio, my rear speakers were used before the racing scene at the end of the movie.  I wonder why they didn’t use it throughout the movie.  Everytime I heard a rev, I expected to hear it through my speakers very clearly.

As for special features, there is a production note which is actually a making of.  The cast info/database is in Chinese and so is the synopsis.

So, needless to say that this movie is going to be enjoyed by people into the racing scene, fans of the actor and actresses in this movie and video game fans.

THE MOVIE: B-
THE DVD EXTRAS: C
THE DVD OVERALL: C+

Avenging Fist (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

Loosely based on the “Tekken” video game, “Avenging Fist” is a fighting/action film with ups and downs.

TITLE: Avenging Fist

CAST: Lee Hom Wang, Ekin Cheng, Sammo Hung, Kristy Yang, Stephen Fung, Cecilia Yip, Yuen Biao, Chin-Kar Lok and more.

DIRECTED BY: Andrew Lau and Corey Yen

COMPANY: Deltamac DVD version with removable English subtitles.

Scientists experiment on Power glove are on the verge of success. Power glove is designed to active the unknown power in human’s brain to empower the force of human beings. Special agent Dark, Thunder and War 21 are the only survivors in that experiment. Ambitious War 21 gets evil. He captures Thunder with a power glove and disappears…He has become Dark’s fugitive for 20 years. Two decades later. War 21 comes back with brainwashed Thunder and his underground troop aiming to rule the world. Dark is failed to eliminate them but he realizes Thunder has a son who also has the DNA, which enable him to use the power glove to challenge War 21, eventually…

When I heard that “Avenging Fist” was going to be out on DVD, I had this grin on my face because of the “Tekken” hype surrounding the movie.

I finished watching “Avenging Fist” starring Ekin Cheng, Gigi Leung, Lee Hom Wang, Kristy Yeung, Sammo Hung, Stephen Fung and more.

Anyway, this movie has a lot of people you may have seen from many HK movies and a few big names which adds to the allure of the film. Also, the special effects are pretty cool and the futuristic look ala “Blade Runner” was very nice.

This movie is definitely not “Tekken”, it’s more like “Tekken”, “Street Fighter 2″ and “Dragon Ball Z” mixed together.

The only thing that “Tekken” has to do with this film is that it’s a fighting movie (ala videogame like fighting movie) and the main character (Leehom Wang, the guy who played Aaron Kwok’s partner on China Strike Force) has hair like Kazuya which is pretty cool. The only thing that “Street Fighter 2″ has to do with it is the fighting characters and Combat-21 (think M. Bison, or if you are in East Asia think Vega). The only thing that “DBZ” has to do with this is the ending segment which is reminiscent of how DBZ ended with Goku’s battle with Boo.

Anyway, the plot is humans can only use 10% of their brain. What would happen if humans can tap into the other 90% which is called the “Forbidden Zone”. Anyway in the past: Thunder was a guy who perfect the martial art of the “Avenging Fist”. As a police officer, he and two others – Dark and Combat 21 were chosen to test the power glove which would allow police officers to tap into the 90% but something goes wrong. Now it’s twenty years later and Thunder’s twins: Nova (Wang) and Belle (She was the female partner in “For Bad Boys Only”) are twins that have special talents. Nova for fighting and learning his dead father’s “Avenging Fist” and Belle with her power for producing heat. Nova never knew what happened to his father, his mother is not saying anything. Nova’s goal is to have a “Power Glove” for himself, not knowing what it’s for…just knowing that police officer’s use it to kick butt. The day of his birthday, his mom has a surprise but Nova and Belle are in for a surprise when their father Thunder reappears.

If anything, people who love video games especially fighting video games or anime will love this movie. As for the DVD, it only comes with a trailer. No special features which sucks. But this is the first time I seen a DVD featuring DTS 6.1 and Digital Dolby EX on a HK DVD. Unfortunately, the movie doesn’t feature great surround sound like GEN-X Cops but it’s ok.

English subs are good but with the typical typos in HK film.

All in all a great film for those who enjoy video game fighting movies and anime. If you don’t enjoy these type of movies, then you may want to pass.