FANTASIA 2005! Cbabbitt Takes On BREAKING NEWS, IZO, and More! And Enrique Reviews A Fistful Of Titles, Too!!

Excellent work, Cbab bitt. I gave him my press pass, and I’m really pleased with how he covered the festival for us. I hope he enjoyed it, though, because next year, I’m going no matter what. In the meantime, I thought I’d publish some reviews by my friend Enrique, owner of Cine-East, a retail/wholesale store that specializes in Asian import DVDs. If you buy your stuff at Amoeba here in LA, realize that a lot of that comes from Enrique, and he’s got his own store and his own website as well. Today, Enrique’s going to cover a number of the titles that showed at FanTasia, many of which he already has available:

One Nite In Mongkok

I initially heard the hype on this film when it first came out last year. It won Best Director and best screenplay at the 24th Hong Kong Film Awards, both went to talent director Derek Yee (LOST IN TIME). I am pleased to tell you that the hype was well deserved. I was not disappointed and neither will you be. Derek Yee is one of the best HK directors around. With ONE NITE IN MONGKOK he joins the ranks of Johnnie To and John Woo as a great storyteller. I wonder why this film is not more popular; it definitely deserves some more attention.

ONE NITE IN MONGKOK is a thrilling ride. Armed with a polished script, a rare thing in Hong Kong these days, Derek Yee gives us a fascination look at the events that transpire within a 36-hour period in the densely populated streets of Mongkok. Yee captures a gritty claustrophobic look with his roaming camera turning Mongkok’s neon lights and labyrinth like streets into a character in the film. On the surface it is a noir inspired police procedural thriller. However, the heart of the film lies within its well-crafted characters. With only 24hrs before Christmas Eve, officer Milo and his team must flush out a hired killer sent by a rival gang to kill the opposing crime lord. Monkok’s streets are lined with massage parlors, adult stores, pachinko parlors, video stores, prostitutes and pirated goods so this will not be an easy task for officer Milo. The framework of the film allows Yee to focus on what he is mostly interested in meaningful characters. And, the story is seen through the eyes of the many sides of the story.

On one side you have officer Milo and his team who are determined to stop the hired killer before more blood spills onto the streets. Milo is, on the surface, your hard ass hero archetype, but underneath he is deeply troubled man, by what? His crew is a loyal bunch, which includes your usual types, with the exemption of the new transfer, yep the young officer who is too eager for action. As clichéd as that may sound, it doesn’t turn out the way you think. Enter Lai Fu a country bumpkin who accepts the aforementioned hit from a greedy couple. This is his first hit, but it does run in his family. His older brother once worked for the couple that hired him and is now serving a 22-year sentence. For the first time Lai Fu travels into the heart of the city. Upon his arrival, trouble is always one step behind him. His demeanor is that of a nerdish young man, but underneath lies a rage that is at once startling and pathetic when provoked. When a prostitute Dan Dan played by the beautiful Cecelia Chung, cast here against type, is brutally beaten by a local thug Lai Fu cannot help but intervene. Now the two have to run to avoid retribution from the thug, who they both underestimate. It quickly becomes apparent to Dan Dan that Lai Fu has money, a gun, and appears to be looking for a sister or girlfriend? It also happens that they both come from poverty and possibly even from the same village. As the films heads towards its climax, I was impressed by two very distinct turns of events that elevated this film from good to great, at least for me. Without going into too much detail, there is one outstanding scene that brings officers right outside Lai Fu’s door. You can palpably smell their fear as they position themselves for the attack. The scene that follows is quite suspenseful and Yee’s pick of cameras angles and sound effects make this it one of my favorites in the film. It turns your sympathy for one of the main characters- a very effective and cold scene. The other scene is towards the end and without giving anything away it shows that Lai Fu is so full of rage it undoes him.

As romantic leads Daniel Wu and Cecilia Cheung work well off each other in the short amount of time that they spend together, it’s genuinely touching to see their relationship develop and watch them try to trust each other. My first Daniel Wu introduction was a good one, the action packed FACE OFF wannabe, PURPLE STORM. This boy can act when he is given a competent script. He was literally asleep during TWIN EFFECTS 2 and HOUSE OF FURY. Stay ways from fantasy Kung Fu fluff and keep making serious character work Daniel. Cecilia Cheung, last seen in WHITE DRAGON, proves here that she has the chops. Cheung fans will not be disappointed. There are a few serious missteps with characters, like the pitiful snitching drug addict whose sole purpose is to tip off Milo at the most obviously convenient times. While not a serious offence it does distract a bit. Still this is first-rate cinema from Hong Kong and fans of darker more emotional action films will find plenty to kick back and enjoy.

SOME

A disappointing high concept film from the director of TELL ME SOMETHING, SOME is a slickly produced cop thriller with a tinge of the supernatural, set within the confines of the 24hr picture gimmick. Traffic reporter Seo Yun-Ji has moved into a new flat. She receives a care package in the middle of the night, a small MP3 player. Outside the very hip Detective Kang spots the youth who dropped off the package, driving off haphazardly. Kang gives chase and we get one of two exiting chase sequences in the film. While watching this scene we get a cool shot of the car flipping over in a very Bruckheimer way. There are no survivors. After the accident, Detective Kang notices a few strange things about the driver and its passengers. When the driver’s cell phone rings Kang immediately recognizes the number as one of his suspects who may be involved in stealing millions of dollars of confiscated drugs allegedly masterminded by Kang’s former boss. Kang is tired and clearly overworked. He does not believe his former boss is capable of such a crime and has been trying to clear his name.

Later when Kang drives by the house were he originally spotted the driver, his path crosses with Seo Yu-Jin. When she is almost kidnapped outside her house on the way to work, Kang saves her. Is it fate that these two must meet today? Who is watching Seo Yu-Jin and why? Typical thus far, now ready for the big twist? Well it seems that Seo Yun-Ji remembers meeting Kang and so does he, in a way, but they’ve never met before. At the films middle point Seo Yun-Ji’s begins to get flashes of things before they happen, a sort of deja vu, including the fate of detective Kang. In the last act, Seo Yu-Jin begins to understand the reason for her visions. This part of the film is interesting and has some emotional weight due mostly to Song Ji-hyo’s focused performance. The main problem is no one really bothered to make the lead, Kang, interesting. This is especially disappointing coming from director Chang Youn-hyun, whose last film benefited from a strong lead presence by actor Han Suk-gyu (SHIRI). Go Soo is a tad boring as detective Kang and just, as my friend noted, too cool for his own good, he does not project the kind of authority needed to play this type of character. SOME works overtime to be interesting and hip, even throwing in music by Massive Attack and Chemical Brothers for some street cred. It does work for a while, mostly because the film is shot so beautifully, very glossy. SOME has the look of an expensive Hollywood blockbuster for less than the average catering cost on the new Tom Cruise film, which is a credit to the Korean film community. Unfortunately, it also comes with the same problems associated with that kind of comparison.

The case of the stolen money is not very interesting. I did enjoy the use of technology in the film, particularly the use of cell phones and traffic cameras, which provide some cool visuals. There is a scene with Seo Yun-Ji at work when she sits in front of an immense control room filled with hundreds of monitors. This is where she does her traffic reports- quite imposing and omniscient. Also, the tracking of criminals by their cell phone usage is used to offer some convenient plot points, but is effective. This is a culture that embraces technology for better or worse. There is nary a room that does not contain a computer or a hi tech electronic device, but like the machines that fill it, this film felt cold and inhuman. The officers’ interaction felt forced and over the top with their constant yelling. The first half is confusing and drags a bit, while the second half entertains some very good ideas including the, ‘I never thought he would be the bad guy’ twist, only to drop it and try to end everything tidily. Even the big rumble in the warehouse teased at in the trailer was there only to give this film an action-movie tag, while the hero demonstrates moves we’ve never seen before. While there are parts that were certainly enjoyable, I think in the end, director Chang Youn-hyun coped out. There are plenty of fans for these types of films, did I not mention Bruckheimer earlier, It’s obvious that Chang Youn-hyun needed to deliver a blockbuster, it’s a too bad that he sacrificed the hard edge gothic style he brought to TELL ME SOMETHING for a more traditional action film look and structure. The movie ends with a pop song, and that my friends should tell you everything.

GHOST HOUSE

Ghost House was the 8th highest grossing Korean film of 2004. A lighthearted effects filled comedy, it aims to be a crowd pleaser. Not exactly the type of film you expect from the director of the no holds-barred ATTACK OF THE GAS STATION. Things look good from the outset, the manga inspired opening credit sequence is kind of cool and the music reminds me of Tales Of The Crypt.

Pil-Gi (Cha Seung-won) has finally done it. He owns a house. A house over-looking the scenic town of KyuShi-Ji. We are then witness to a series of Pil-Gi’s childhood through a series of flashbacks. This comic over the top sequence sets to tone for the film. As it turns out Pil-Gi’s dad never bought a house, and to make matters worse, had a bad temper, which meant moving every few weeks. At his deathbed, Pil-Gi’s father makes him promise that one day he will own a house. This day has come and no sooner than he starts to settle in, unseen forces attack Pil-Gi. Actor Cha Seung-won (KICK THE MOON) is perfectly cast as Pil-Gi. He genuinely seems to enjoy being scared and is game for just about anything director Kim Sang-Jin throws his way. The comic twist is that a silly ghost, that isn’t too threatening, haunts Pil-Gi’s house but he is not going down without a fight. Early on, Pil-Gi’s boss informs him that he can become friends with the Ghost, but due to his bad attitude the negotiations fail. As luck would have it. Pil-Gi is struck down by lighting, not once but twice. When he finally is nursed back to health, he has the ability to actually see ghosts. Upon returning home he sees his ghost Yeon-hwa (Jang Seo-hee), a cute widower, who died in a terrible bus accident with her husband. She returned to her home, but her husband never did. She is determined to keep her house so she can wait for her husband and Pil-Gi is determined to fulfill his father’s wish. Now enter the wealthy realtor who wants to tear down the house and build a condominium and you have the formula for a lighthearted romp, key word lighthearted. What will happen to Pil-Gi & Yeon-hwa? Can they settle their difference and save their house?

Unfortunately, the moment we find out that Pil-Gi's ghost is a cute sad girl the film starts to slow down. GHOST HOUSE is a somewhat muted from this point on; while it aims first at being a comedy and second at being a sweet romantic film it feels somewhat patched together. The first half is funny and has its moments. Especially inspired are the stabs at Ring and Men In Black; I wished they could have done that a bit more. Director Kim Sang-Jin could have turned it up a few notches in the haunting scenes. The spooky happenings that occur in Pil-Gi's house don’t seems that dangerous and very few of us would have been truly terrified, but it does work for this type of film. I did crack up when the couch attacks Pil-Gi, which is a classic WTF moment. Special mention also goes to the chicken sequence. This must have been a cultural joke still it was funny. Are chickens that scary to Koreans? To Pil-Gi they are. In the end the films settles for just being cute. It’s like director Kim Sang-Jin felt uneasy with the comedy elements, and decided to dedicate the second half of his film to the female portion of his audience. The syrupy ending and tragic elements are a far cry from its inventive first half. While not the horror spoof we were wishing for, I did enjoy the film and I don’t hate myself for sitting thru it. I’ll leave it at that.

SURVIVE STYLE +5

Let me just start by saying this movie totally rocks! Survival Style +5 is a quirky, artsy, very very dark comedy assemblage film. The film is directed and written by dynamic advertising duo Sekiguchi Gen and Tada Taku and true to these roots it pops with color, wit and ideas. The movie opens with Asano Tadanobu in a forest dragging a woman’s body, Hashimoto Reika, into a shallow grave, and so we meet our first set of characters. There are five sets in total all existing peacefully- and not-so peacefully in the case of hitman Vinnie Jones and his shadowing interpreter- in their own realms. That is until these realities start intersecting, crashing, whirling and inspiring one another. Vinnie and his interpreter are hired to do a hit in Japan and we first meet them traveling on the coolest plane I’ve ever seen. flying would be awesome if the cabin was hot pink and the flight attendants dressed in pert little contrasting red uniforms. In fact, this highlights one of the coolest things about the film. the production design and wardrobe is fully kickin’. I almost wish it came with one of those buying guides you find in the back of a magazine just so I could find some of the cool shit literally littering the screen at all times. The colors and style keep pushing the limits of sensory overload and the film looks like the most vibrant Rauschenberg or Jasper Johns painting. Part emulation of thrift store chic, part comic-book pop, part pure gaudy beauty. I love love love films that make your eyes salivate as though they were eating a huge bowl of sugar with all sorts of hidden fun that make watching them over and over and over so rewarding. Anyway, back to the story, Vinnie is obsessed with asking of his potential victims and acquaintances ‘What is your function in life?” and is met by often confused and polite Japanese answers. His interpreter is at first slightly more polite than him but soon seems to get into playing the bad guy too. Soon after this interlude we meet the comic relief, a gang of three misfits and minor crooks who are breaking into the house of a family. There are some really really funny moments with these three as the most unattractive of the bunch is quite enamored with the hot one. When you hear the lyrics ‘come baby come come baby’ you’ll know what I mean. The director’s commercial background is highly evident in the soundtrack, particularly in his use of repetition in song for story threads. The family’s house that this trio of misfits is breaking into is out for the evening to see a famous and quite obnoxiously randy hypnotist’s show- the hypnotist is played by Abe Hiroshi. There is much excitement when the father, Kishibe Ittoku, gets picked for the hypnotism contest. Have you ever wondered what would happen if something happened to the hypnotist during the hypnotism? This film has an answer. In following the willowy thread of this film, this hypnotist has slept with and emotionally abused a cute Ad director played by Koizumi Kyoko. She is definitely one of my favorite characters in the beginning… as she goes about her daily business she is constantly getting little ideas for funny ads, which are shown with the title Imagined Ad and as the curtain goes up you know you’re in for an absurdist treat. The best part about these little interludes is the fact that she always cracks herself up and starts this hilarious little snicker. Unfortunately, I find her story ending fell a little flat. she seemed so pleasantly pleased with herself and she gives up so anticlimactically and sadly. That to me was the weakest point of the film although her character was so wonderful. One of the great things about non Hollywood cinema is the non-Hollywood cinema ending and I felt that her ending was the lamest in those terms. Overall, though this film is filled with quirkiness, wonder, quiet magic and humor. It may not be the deepest film in the world, but it isn’t drivel like many American ‘adult’ comedies. Each character demonstrates a distinct facet of their reality.. they live and act by their own rules- admirable or not- and they’re fun as hell to watch. Asano Tadanobu’s character in his repetitive quest to eliminate his spouse, lover, ghost, robot, who the fuck knows, was one of the most enthralling parts- is it a metaphor, magical realism, it’s up to you to decide. It is entertaining and food for thought, definitely.

I don’t want to too much revisit the beauty of the film, but Asano’s house is amazing.. and his nemesis and her constant reinvention is equally amazing. The ending of all the characters is a mixed bag, neither happy nor sad, definitely not ‘ideal’. The antithesis of the neatly wrapped up bundle we are consistently confronted with in Hollywood cinema.. situations are taken for what they are, the best is made of things given the circumstances and it’s basically a perfect semi-fluffy masterpiece. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I have, on many levels it’s fun, backwards that’s spells ‘nuf’ and there you have it ‘nuf’ fun.