Displaying Review 1 - 5 of 11 in total

• Work to live or live to work? — for Suna no onna
  Written by pieterjaspers on 10.07.2015

  **WARNING: some spoilers are here, but only concerning the beginning of the story.**

  This is the second movie in Teshigahara's loose trilogy of films concerning the way we perceive identity. The other films are Pitfall (1962) and The Face of Another (1966). Woman in the Dunes follows entomologist Niki Jumpei in a search for rare insects in the deserted dunes near a beach. He misses his last ride home and is forced to find a place to sleep nearby. Some men lead him to a house which lies at the bottom of a sand dune, where he is offered a place to sleep by a woman who appears to live there. After he wakes up it dawns on him that he will not be able or allowed to leave. He is forced to keep the house free of the never ending stream of encroaching sand coming from the dunes. He also begins to bond with the woman.

  The story plays out beautifully, slowly, which gives us plenty of time to think over the message of this movie. While the meaning of Niki's life before was becoming famous by means of his entomology, it is now the question if he worked to live or lived to work, and how he will fare in his new situation. The question is also raised if there is any difference between his former situation in the city, and his new predicament in the dunes. The acting is subtle, the lighting through the cracks of the house is fantastic, beautifully emphasizing the presence of the dirt, sand and sweat. The cinematography is great: the atmosphere of the movie is claustrophobic, accentuated by shots of Niki seen from behind wooden planks of the house, which are the symbolic bars of his wooden prison cell. You are really dragged into Niki's sorry situation and you feel for him. This is my favorite in Teshigahara's loose trilogy by far, one of my favorite Japanese films and it is a great film all together. Recommended to all.

  *Sorry for my sometimes wooden English, it is not my mother tongue.*

• The most accurate prediction of the future of the human race. — for Idiocracy
  Written by pieterjaspers on 10.07.2015

  It is a mystery to me how this movie did not get a release in theaters. It speaks to lovers of all kinds of comedy. While it is obviously very silly and absurd, it sports also a kind of social commentary that reminds me of some of the best South Park episodes. It mocks smart and dumb people alike, it shows us how the entertainment industry is deteriorating, it mocks the health care system and thoughts about privacy, and in general: how we are all seem to be getting dumber. It deals with a guy who is so average, that he is deemed perfect to be a test subject in a military experiment in freezing people and waking them up after a year. Instead, he is forgotten about and he wakes up 500 years in the future. He is now the smartest person alive and must find his way back to the past, while also saving the future's future.
  This movie features, in my honest opinion, both the best imaginary tv-show and the best imaginary movie in movie history. It also has the greatest president of the USA ever, played by Terry Crews.

  While the acting is mediocre on all sides, maybe purposely so, there is an incredible amount of work put in decor, props, costumes and the general look of our future world, in which I always find something new every time I watch the movie. It has great original ideas about a dystopian future. Also, the special effects are quite nicely done for a direct-to-dvd movie, and the voice-over is great. The movie is densely packed with gags and jokes, which follow each other in a fast pace. Not one of them missed its mark with me. Laugh-out-loud funny while still conveying a true and important message.

  Stay tuned for the after credits scene too. It still cracks me up every time. This is in the top 5 of my favorite comedies of this millennium.

• Great creature feature — for Tremors
  Written by pieterjaspers on 10.07.2015

  Tremors, starring a young Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward and Michael Gross as the gun-toting Burt Gummer, is an inventive creature feature with fantastic creature design and practical effects. It also spawned some fun sequels and a tv-show. As we speak, a fifth movie is being made, coming out october 2015.

  Tremors follows the inhabitants of a small American town, Perfection, in their fight against a huge underground monster, preying on everything that makes a sound. It has bromance, romance, family and friendship between people who struggle to make a living in a small town in the middle of nowhere. It has a great build-up, likable characters and heartfelt humor, together with some childfriendly splatter. Tension is built up slowly, not showing the creature for some time in a Jaws-like fashion, but when it eventually appears, it is a joy to look at. In my opinion it is one of the most inventive creatures in the giant monster genre. Chase scenes are filmed beautifully, low above the ground to emphasize the subterranean nature of the monster. Acting is pretty wooden sometimes but it does not detract from the genuine fun this movie spreads.

• a Feast for the eyes — for Feast
  Written by pieterjaspers on 10.07.2015

  This fast moving horror comedy has something to offer for all: creatures that are well designed, enough guts and gore to fill a medium sized swimming pool and plenty of wise-cracks and funny death scenes to please a comedy enthusiast. Some jump-scares will also appeal to the casual horror fan. Feast follows a bunch of people, all colorful characters, in a bar in the middle of nowhere, who are besieged by a bunch of hungry and horny creatures. A desperate fight for survival ensues. Acting is not the right reason to start watching this first in a trilogy, though you will find a lot worse in most recent horror movies. The creatures are fully shown for longer stretches of time, and they look very original, scary and dangerous. Great camp fun.

  Both sequels keep up the good work that this part 1 starts. Part 3 sports one of the greatest endings and credit-songs in the history of cinema. Director John Gulager followed this trilogy by directing Piranha 3DD, which in all aspects falls short of his directing debut.
  If you liked feast, check out Splinter (2008) and the Hatchet trilogy (2006-2013)

• Great Characters and a very quotable script — for Napoleon Dynamite
  Written by pieterjaspers on 12.07.2015

  Napoleon Dynamite is Jared Hess' (Nacho Libre, Gentlemen Broncos) directing debut. It deals with a short period of time in the lives of some of the nerdiest young people in cinema history. It follows the titular character around in school, with his friends, and at home with his equally weird family consisting of an extreme sports loving grandmother, a supposedly cagefighting brother that chats online with babes all day and an uncle who makes a living selling tupperware and breast enhancing articles.

  Virtually plotless, with no big names in the cast, not openly out for laugh-out-loud moments, this is an odd duck in comedy. This being said, it is still a fantastic one. You come to feel for all characters, of which there is not one whom is 'normal'. Oddly enough, Haylie Duff's bitchy antagonist Summer Wheatly is probably the most normal of the lot. Jon Heder does a great job portraying Napoleon. His facial expressions are perfect for the character. The musical score is also fantastic, with some well chosen songs. A lot of distant, static shots should make us feel like watching monkeys in a zoo exhibit, but still the innocence of the main characters make for an engaging experience. The comedy exists in the quirkiness of the unrealistic, but still easily to identify with, characters. Stay tuned for the after credits scene, which is great, and features one of the most funnily romantic songs ever.
  Recommended to those who love unconventional comedy.