Well, I'm back. I know I've promised a few older films, but this time I'm back with a couple of newer movies that are still in theatres. I will be back later with reviews for...can you believe?: Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo, Krush Groove, Cooley High, Car Wash, House Party and House Party 2. It just don't get any better than that. I'll still chime in with my thoughts of all the new things I see as well as those timeless classics. So keep coming back.
Oldboy
Review by Jon Waterman
****
Oh Dae-Su was captured after being released from police custody one night. Without knowing why or who was behind it, he was locked in what seemed to be a hotel room for fifteen long years, commemorating each one with a self-inflicted tattoo. Upon his release, he set out to take revenge on his captors. Once he finds them, he finds himself in need of closure. In order to find out why he was held captive (while his wife was murdered – which was blamed on him), he must do some detective work and utilize every single resource he has. If he doesn’t find out the truth, something unspeakable might happen.
Director Chan-wook Park (“Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance”), alongside cinematographer Jeong-hun Jeong, creates a remarkable, dank world in which the Dae-Su explores. His visual style is somehow subtly flashy. All of the “cool” camera tricks and maneuvers actually have meaning and substance behind them, which is pretty rare these days. He knows just the right angles and perspectives to make the story and the visuals come alive.
In addition, the acting is some of the best I’ve seen, especially in a foreign film. Normally foreign movies that make it across seas are known more for their directors or for the stories told, rather than the acting. This film does well with all three. Min-sik Choi (“Shiri”) plays Oh Dae-Su to perfection. He effortlessly blends in a balance of comedic oaf and rugged action star, while at the same time delivering powerful, emotionally draining scenes. There is no way you won’t be on this guy’s side. Ji-tae Yu (“Attack the Gas Station!”) plays a wonderfully evil villain without resorting to the typical conventional behavior. For once, the bad guy isn’t transparent. And Yu makes it particularly tough to really get inside his mind and truly understand his perspective, thus making him that much more frightening. The only weak part is by relative newcomer Hye-jeong Kang who plays Mi-do, a sushi chef and Dae-Su’s potentially untrustworthy love interest. She has mostly good moments, but sometimes slips into over-acting.
The big surprise ending actually isn’t all that surprising. Well, at least the major element of it isn’t. But the whole scenario is virtually un-guessable and incredibly shocking. But more importantly, the film grabs you (as Dae-Su grabs the suicidal man on the top of the roof) right from the beginning and never lets go. You’ll run through the gamut of emotions without ever feeling like the film is disjointed or trying to be something it’s not. The movie is simply amazing and without question one of the best films I’ll see this year.
++++++++
Dot the I
Review by Jon Waterman
1/2 star
On her Hen Night (bachelorette party for readers in the US) Carmen is forced to kiss a stranger in a restaurant (it’s tradition). The kiss turns out to be something extraordinary, something unexpected, something that neither can forget. Carmen rushes out of the restaurant to escape, but that young man (Kit) is able to find her later on. Armed with a video camera, in order to save a potentially fleeting moment, he attempts to start up any type of relationship. Carmen is torn between this fun-loving, exciting new guy and Barnaby, the dull, rich man she loves stuck back at home.
Here we have the psychological thriller that couldn’t. Written and directed by first (and hopefully last) timer Matt Parkhill, everything that was supposed to shock or amaze or twist or blow you away just completely fizzles out like static. Besides the insanely predictable plot, the movie also suffers from some of the worst dialogue I’ve heard in a very long time. Clichés and cheesy lines abound, especially in the beginning. One could make an argument that knowing the end, that sort of make sense, but it doesn’t matter. That kind of material draws me right out of the excruciatingly long 92-minute picture.
The acting was equally abysmal. Natalia Verbeke (Carmen) has a couple good scenes, although really I just mean facial expressions/reaction shots. The rest of her performance is rather blah. Although, considering that English isn’t her native language, it’s a little more impressive. Also taking on English as a second acting language is Gael García Bernal (“The Motorcycle Diaries”, “Bad Education”) as Kit. He handles the nuances of the language quite well, but placed in such a humdrum story, his proven talents essentially go to waste. Worst of them all is the unbearable James D’Arcy. It’s pretty easy to see why up to this point he’s been a forgettable television actor. His performance was incredibly forced and painfully stagy. He exuded the subtlety of a rhinoceros with as much charm.
Not everything about the movie was incredibly terrible. The cinematography by veteran Alfonso Beato gave the film a little promise. Also the division and utilization of both film and video, which was so integral to the story, turned out surprisingly well. But that’s about it. The editing was unnecessarily choppy and the throw back shots to previous moments in order to clarify what we already knew in the first place (or could remember on our own) edged on downright insulting. I mean, they replayed an entire scene that had just happened to show us another “twist” in that scene. And I basically knew that twist before the scene happened the first time. Simply pathetic.
Oldboy
Review by Jon Waterman
****
Oh Dae-Su was captured after being released from police custody one night. Without knowing why or who was behind it, he was locked in what seemed to be a hotel room for fifteen long years, commemorating each one with a self-inflicted tattoo. Upon his release, he set out to take revenge on his captors. Once he finds them, he finds himself in need of closure. In order to find out why he was held captive (while his wife was murdered – which was blamed on him), he must do some detective work and utilize every single resource he has. If he doesn’t find out the truth, something unspeakable might happen.
Director Chan-wook Park (“Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance”), alongside cinematographer Jeong-hun Jeong, creates a remarkable, dank world in which the Dae-Su explores. His visual style is somehow subtly flashy. All of the “cool” camera tricks and maneuvers actually have meaning and substance behind them, which is pretty rare these days. He knows just the right angles and perspectives to make the story and the visuals come alive.
In addition, the acting is some of the best I’ve seen, especially in a foreign film. Normally foreign movies that make it across seas are known more for their directors or for the stories told, rather than the acting. This film does well with all three. Min-sik Choi (“Shiri”) plays Oh Dae-Su to perfection. He effortlessly blends in a balance of comedic oaf and rugged action star, while at the same time delivering powerful, emotionally draining scenes. There is no way you won’t be on this guy’s side. Ji-tae Yu (“Attack the Gas Station!”) plays a wonderfully evil villain without resorting to the typical conventional behavior. For once, the bad guy isn’t transparent. And Yu makes it particularly tough to really get inside his mind and truly understand his perspective, thus making him that much more frightening. The only weak part is by relative newcomer Hye-jeong Kang who plays Mi-do, a sushi chef and Dae-Su’s potentially untrustworthy love interest. She has mostly good moments, but sometimes slips into over-acting.
The big surprise ending actually isn’t all that surprising. Well, at least the major element of it isn’t. But the whole scenario is virtually un-guessable and incredibly shocking. But more importantly, the film grabs you (as Dae-Su grabs the suicidal man on the top of the roof) right from the beginning and never lets go. You’ll run through the gamut of emotions without ever feeling like the film is disjointed or trying to be something it’s not. The movie is simply amazing and without question one of the best films I’ll see this year.
++++++++
Dot the I
Review by Jon Waterman
1/2 star
On her Hen Night (bachelorette party for readers in the US) Carmen is forced to kiss a stranger in a restaurant (it’s tradition). The kiss turns out to be something extraordinary, something unexpected, something that neither can forget. Carmen rushes out of the restaurant to escape, but that young man (Kit) is able to find her later on. Armed with a video camera, in order to save a potentially fleeting moment, he attempts to start up any type of relationship. Carmen is torn between this fun-loving, exciting new guy and Barnaby, the dull, rich man she loves stuck back at home.
Here we have the psychological thriller that couldn’t. Written and directed by first (and hopefully last) timer Matt Parkhill, everything that was supposed to shock or amaze or twist or blow you away just completely fizzles out like static. Besides the insanely predictable plot, the movie also suffers from some of the worst dialogue I’ve heard in a very long time. Clichés and cheesy lines abound, especially in the beginning. One could make an argument that knowing the end, that sort of make sense, but it doesn’t matter. That kind of material draws me right out of the excruciatingly long 92-minute picture.
The acting was equally abysmal. Natalia Verbeke (Carmen) has a couple good scenes, although really I just mean facial expressions/reaction shots. The rest of her performance is rather blah. Although, considering that English isn’t her native language, it’s a little more impressive. Also taking on English as a second acting language is Gael García Bernal (“The Motorcycle Diaries”, “Bad Education”) as Kit. He handles the nuances of the language quite well, but placed in such a humdrum story, his proven talents essentially go to waste. Worst of them all is the unbearable James D’Arcy. It’s pretty easy to see why up to this point he’s been a forgettable television actor. His performance was incredibly forced and painfully stagy. He exuded the subtlety of a rhinoceros with as much charm.
Not everything about the movie was incredibly terrible. The cinematography by veteran Alfonso Beato gave the film a little promise. Also the division and utilization of both film and video, which was so integral to the story, turned out surprisingly well. But that’s about it. The editing was unnecessarily choppy and the throw back shots to previous moments in order to clarify what we already knew in the first place (or could remember on our own) edged on downright insulting. I mean, they replayed an entire scene that had just happened to show us another “twist” in that scene. And I basically knew that twist before the scene happened the first time. Simply pathetic.
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