Kibakichi (aka Werewolf Warrior, Kibakichi: Bakko yokaiden, 2004)

In an attempt to diversify it's portfolio, MTI Studios along with it's newly born Saiko Films, threw together an inspired movie called Kibakichi, admittedly to gain some Asian Horror cred and cash in in the current success of the genre. This is the new label's first film. The studio's summary also appears on the Region 1 DVD. What it leaves out is that Kibakachi is standard B-movie fair. I had higher hopes for it.

The film opens with a deep, ominous voice; "A long time ago humans and monsters called Yokai, and nature lived in harmony without getting in the way of each other. But soon, men began to destroy the Yokai. Some fled to the mountains and some turned themselves into men, women, and the elderly to hide from the human world."

Now, there are obviously clear parallels in Kibakichi's story between world history's conflicting countries or populations within countries in man's quest for advancement or simply the ability to conquer and rule. Whether it's rooted, in the film's case (?), in feudal Japan's emergence into a more technologically advanced world (which I don't know a lot about, regrettably), or the Europeans going to America and taking land from the Indians, or even more contemporary instances, there's definitely a moral backdrop in Kibakichi. But such situations have taken place for thousands and thousands of years and in the end, it's the way the world has worked for just as long. So I tried to set that on the back burner while taking in the spectacle of Kibakichi.

The "spaghetti western" aspect of the movie is evident from the start. Kibakichi is strolling through a dry, grassy plain, while a group of bandits try to get the jump on him for some reason. The camera ping-pongs back and forth between sides and then, as if an homage to Sergio Leone, freezes on the blazing afternoon sun. Needless to say, Kibakichi will continue on his way that day. And similar to Clint Eastwood in his famous trilogy, Kibakichi, with reason, (as we find out later in the movie), will agree to extend his services to help pacify the village's turmoils. But unlike The Man with No Name Trilogy, Eastwood didn't encounter talking frog or turtle monsters on a narrow bridge leading into the tiny town. I'll have to check on that though. Kibakichi takes some sake at a pub and is quickly "recruited" to gamble at the local casino (for lack of a better term) and just like that, the meat of the story kicks into high gear. He sits at a long, low table to wager on a dice game that's based on an "even or odds" outcome. Many other patrons are also gambling , as well as enjoying the company of one of the many giggling geisha girls. It's not long before Kibakichi is raking in the cash and then suddenly pulled away from the table and asked by the village leader Onizo for his help as different factions of the region maneuver for respect and land rights. While other are more interested in recognition and power.

All in all, Kibakichi is a gutty effort from first time director and studio alike. It's well-rounded in it's mix of samurai fighting and monster mashing; along with a decent story. Even with it's flaws and the unexpected appearance of some modern weaponry, fan's of the genre shouldn't be left hanging. There's a little for everyone here. It's not exactly horror, as the studio claims (horror/action/fantasy). But I guess that depends on what you consider to be horror. I'd say it's closer to "slasher" if I were being pressed. And despite the often cheesy dialogue (ex. "Life is like a spot on a dice, we won't know until we shake it.") and freshman effort on the part of the director, which may have been a budget issue, Kibakichi wraps up nicely with some (literally) high flying action and ties up the story nicely as well. I don't think it's necessary to go into specifics here, especially with character names and individual motives because Kibakichi does jump around a bit and a couple very small plot holes left me wondering a little, but didn't distract me from enjoying it, somewhat. Kibakichi, I believe, is a love it or hate it type movie. Personally, I think it had an identity crisis. But I'll begrudgingly recommend it for it's uniqueness.

Infernal Affairs (Wu jian dao, 2002)

Infernal Affairs begins as young police cadet named Chan Wing Yan (Tony Leung) is being groomed by the highest ranks of the Academy to eventually become an inside man for the police. His keen eye and steady demeanor makes him the perfect candidate to infiltrate the Triads, who have taken control of Hong Kong's streets and are peddling massive amounts of drugs to it's citizens. At the same time, a different road is laid out for fellow Academy officer Lau Kin Ming (Andy Lau). Although we aren't witness to the actual path he takes, Ming becomes Yan's counterpart in the film, as he uses his position within the higher ranks of the police department to keep Triad Boss Sam a step ahead of any police actions. Sam is deftly played by Eric Tsang, who gives a highly effective, authentic performance here. What follows is one of the best table-turning, catch-me-if-you-can cop stories ever put to film.

Often compared with another great epic, Michael Mann's "Heat", Infernal Affairs is quicker, brighter and goes down in 40 minute less time. It's apparent why this film became a smashing success in Asia and in turn, exploded onto the world scene. Spawning a sequel (which is actually a prequel) and then a third installment.

Returning to the story; Yan, after leaving the Academy and subsequently earning his chops
on the street as a Triad footman for 10 years, becomes a member deep in Sam's inner circle. Yan continues to work directly and exclusively with Superintendent Wong (played by Anthony Wong) feeding him information that Wong puts to good use. He brings that information to his most elite police team led by Officer Ming, who unbeknown to Wong, relays it back to the Triads. Ming showcases his moxie and stealth inside an active command center, feeding police channels and locations to Sam in real-time, within five feet of fellow officers. Yan, at the same time, finds a way to keep Wong informed. A brilliantly scripted Felix Chong & Siu Fai Mak screenplay lends weight, tension and gravity to even the simplest scenes. Finally, Wong is able to get Sam brought in to be interviewed, but by that time, they both know that each has an undercover man inside their particular camps. In a Pacino/DeNiro-esque face-off, Wong and Sam smugly challenge each other to find their respective moles. The rest of the film is yours to enjoy.

One aspect of this film that gets as much attention and kudos as the characters themselves
is Chan Kwong Wing's stellar, powerful, moody soundtrack. The original score begins the
film along with sweeping, abstract visuals that flow gracefully across the screen, accompanied by the undulating score. What stuck with me in particular (as a first time listener to his work) was the alternately light, then heavy drum tracks as they scurried from front to back, left to right, left-rear to right-rear and diagonally back; washing the entire room with energy and life. The mood shifted from forceful grandeur to intricate suspicion and back again. The perfect audio preview to what was to follow. Deep inside the film is a heart-wrenching female vocal track that seems to signal the true beginning to Yan and Ming's respective gambits toward finding out each another, and when she sings again, yet another chapter begins to take shape. It's brilliant in depth and scope. Never a track out of step with the film and only the most appropriate volume and energy. So rarely does a soundtrack fall into line and dance so well with a film. So rarely does one set the tone for a film.

Infernal Affairs is loaded with subterfuge and intrigue. We're privy to both sides of the proverbial infiltration equation from the start, but this formula gets more complex with near misses and natural character evolutions, even as the story itself appears to begin it's resolution. At least that's what I found. There is a touch generic cop vs. cop to it (if I must find a flaw), with a couple classic stand-offs, but very little mano-a-mano conflict. The film's confrontations are wholly group against group; good against bad. That can't be ignored. The beauty of the film is in the interaction. It has all of the elements of many crime dramas, but Infernal Affairs is genuine and sophisticated like none other.

The Return (Возвращение, 2003)

Andrei Zvyagintsev's temperate thriller The Return portrays a mother and two sons living their seemingly unaffected lives, when, without warning, the man of the house (a resolute performance from Konstantin Lavronenko) returns. We as the audience are clueless to whether the mother (or for that matter the live-in grandmother) anticipated his return, but it's apparent that the two boys, Ivan (Ivan Dobronravov) and Andrei (Vladimir Garin), are taken by surprise. What is clear though is the boys initially resist their new father's regimented philosophies — a stark contrast to mom's. Slowly, the boys warm to their father but remain somewhat cautiously distant during an impromptu fishing trip. The remainder of the film puts the father-son relationship under an unequivocal gaze when the boys are tested along the expedition.

The Return's starkly constructed world smacks of a grim post-WWII shiftlessness, but this is most certainly a timeless, even allegorical tale. A lingering tension concerning the father's motivation seeps to the surface and is bolstered by the children's confusion and wavering allegiance. Filming in extreme northwest Russia near St. Petersburg, on and around Lake Ladoga — (in a tragic twist, the young actor who plays the eldest son, Andrey, drowned in this very lake shortly before the film premiered). Zvyagintsev chooses a befitting and picturesque locale to strengthen the personal conflicts in his humanistic masterwork. The region seems to smile wide and we're treated to lingering, poignant portraits throughout. At times this breadth of dimension and sparse dialogue struggles to invigorate, its smoldering fraternal conflict weighs heavy early on, but there's a method to this approach. A superabundance of symbolism, a mainstay in Russian storytelling, and references to powerful religious artwork, only adds to the visual buffet. One can't not be satisfied. It's simplicity lends to its extravagance.

Buddy Boy (2000)

Buddy Boy tells the tale of Francis, a stuttering, timid guy who's saddled (for all intensive purposes) with the responsibility of living with, and taking care of his super-religious but feeble, alcoholic step-mother. The reality seems to be that he's willing to do so. In fact, Francis and his mother are steeped in religion. Francis carries her on his back to and from church regularly and the Pastor visits their dingy, hole of an apartment every once and a while. He's bent on fostering Francis' beliefs in the church, or more specifically, asking him to attend Confessional more often (which the pastor seems to get a rush from).

One day, Francis comes home to find his step-mother lying unconscious in the kitchen with an empty bottle of glass cleaner clutched in her hand; somehow, later, (thanks to a high tolerance I'm sure) she wakes up. They go to church to repent. At one point, Francis is taking out the trash (no, not his step-mother) where he drops the arm-full of garbage down some stairs and manages to discover a knot that falls from a wooden wall behind the apartment building. He peeks out the knothole and sees that it looks directly into the apartment building across the street, more precisely, into the seventh-floor apartment of Gloria (Emmanuelle Seigner, also from The Ninth Gate). He notices the lights going on & off as she moves through her apartment, where she ends up in her bedroom. He a little intrigued to say the least. The next night, he returns to the knothole to find her having a party of some sorts, and after everyone leaves, she, again, moves to her bedroom. This time she appears blue and dispirited, despite the lively get-together. A third visit to the knothole produces the vision of Gloria feeling her breasts, followed by a bit of self-gratification. Francis is intrigued, but he's much too weighed down by life in general to think of these visions as anything but a passing novelty. Then one night as he's returning from work, he sees a woman getting mugged down the street from his building and he shouts out; the attacker runs away and he approaches the woman to see if she is o.k. and finds it's the woman from the apartment. Gloria seems to see something in Francis after they make their introductions, so much so that she proceeds to make several attempts to get together for coffee or dinner.

But nothing is ever what it appears, especially when it comes to complete strangers. Neither has a full idea of the others' lives in total, and the rest of the film in dedicated to letting each of them discover this, or to let their imaginations run wild... one of the two... or both.

Buddy Boy certainly doesn't run from the issues it starts. Be it how Francis deals with the growing burden of his bible-thumping, vulgar step-mother who smokes crack and drinks like a fish, only to play the 'sanctimonious card' when Francis strays from the flock, as it were. Religion is the main issue the movie deals with. The "how can a loving God allow such suffering" argument plays out to a point where Francis screams in his step-mother's face a multitude of blasphemies such as that "God can go fuck Himself" and that he hates everything to do with the church. His step-mother begins to pray. The other main issue is, (well I don't really know if it is this exactly), trust in another person. His relationship with Gloria becomes fraught with mistrust, lies, forgiveness, jealousy, obsession, and a multitude of other factors. On the part of both Francis and Gloria. Things get more complicated with the relationship and at home, but that will be something you'll have to see for yourselves. There's plenty more. In the end though, the twisting main plot and the surrounding story-lines (some of which don't completely pay off) combine for a somewhat disjointed experience. I like it, but even as 'real' as the feel is at times, I couldn't quite sink into the movie and consider it afterward. I kept going in & out of it. For all I know, it was meant to be that way.

Lhorn (Soul, 2003)

Lhorn is a foursome of tales from Thai folklore. Each tale supposedly comes from a different region of Thailand. Nothing as vanilla as The Singing Apes of Thailand or The Story of Bukit Merah, but four nightmarish tales of horror.

Lhorn, or "Soul", in actuality, has a macro story-line where a group of twenty-somethings (namely Dech, Fah, Dao, Krit, Manao, Toob, Uab and a couple friends) are recruited to assist Dech in restoring a large traditional-style Thai manor, which he has recently inherited. As we get to know the group through they're own introductions, we learn that most of them have a field of expertise that will help Dech with a required appraisal needed before renovations can begin. Some of the group are just tagging along. As they settle in at the house for the night, Manao's book of folklore becomes fodder as they wind the evening down. She has been engrossed in it all afternoon, so after some mild prodding from her girlfriends, Manao agrees to share a few of the tales.

** mild spoilers **

First up is the story that is closest to actual horror out of the four, imo; the 'Paup Ghost'. The premise is solid as far a horror goes: a carnivorous spirit is seen late one night, by a pair of fisherman, devouring the insides of a live animal. The following day, the village residents march to the village chief's house and demand he do something about this paup ghost that's been killing their animals. When they notice the demon entering the home of a small family after surprising it in a field another night, a witch doctor is summoned to that home to expel the demon from a most unlikely place.

The 'Paup Ghost' story has it's tense moments, although few and far between. But it does manage to stay even as a whole. The transition from the main (macro) story packs a bit of a shock in and of itself, and the dark tones & "peek-a-boo" style camera work (made famous by so many Japanese classics) teases us as the paup creeps in and out of view.

We briefly snap back to "the present" where Mamao is begged to spin another yarn:

The second tale has Den, a young man, renting a house near a large banana field. A house large enough for him and his soon-to-be-bride Sao, as well as to throw and bake pottery. Shortly after moving in, Den begins to have dreams of a young woman seducing him in the night as he sleeps. This "episode" takes place almost entirely at night and is very dark, visually. Content-wise, it's fairly short and pretty tame.

Again, we're brought back to the house. And again Manao regales those of the group who haven't either gone to bed or scampered off to get frisky. She tells the story of the Pong Ghost. This one is a lot like the Paup Ghost story but minus the animal eating.

This is where it gets quite a bit edgier and a tad more interesting. The final tale, is about a young servant woman who, after having been caught having an affair with her employer's (husband ?), is fired, promptly follow and raped to death by three young local men and buried under the so-called 'Takien Tree'. This tale simultaneously takes place in the past. We see the intertwining time lines playing off each other as the folklore surreptitiously enters the present.

Overall, I would hazard a guess that someone more familiar with Thai folklore may like this movie more than I did. It seemed flat and, in a few spots, boring. Each "act" was played very tight to the vest, so that even the genuinely scary parts couldn't balance the movie. The worst part of the film is the horrifically out of sync dialogue. The traditional music and (most) sound effects are perfectly utilized and in time, but the vocal overdubbing lags by a second or two. It's tough to tell if this continues throughout the movie because I was too busy trying to catch the English subtitles before they hastily disappeared. A minor flaw in the dvd that could stand to be corrected.

Soul does have a unique look to it and the cinematography holds it's own among horror film. One thing that struck me immediately was the lack of electric lighting and what a challenge is must have been to film the action and yet allow it to retain it's "naturalness". With the only light sources (seemingly) being a lantern or two, a few torches or the eerily bright moon, Soul ingeniously uses devices like fog to help reflect and magnify the scarce quantities of light. It's might be worth checking out for the unique format or the cool interplay between the final tale and the main story-line, but in the end, Soul was just too drawn out and lacked the punch of more interesting horror I've come to enjoy.

Shinjuku Triad Society (Shinjuku kuroshakai: Chaina mafia senso, 1995)

The scene is a rather familiar mixture of police versus yakuza, but shot at street level, with a gritty lens. It essentially begins with the murder of a police informer, who's found dismembered, lying in the street. The scene is a frenzied one, with passers-by horning in on the crime scene, investigators combing the crown for someone who can translate a witness's statements, and beat cops who pose for candid photos with the severed head! The entire film spans mostly Taiwanese & Japanese locales, Triad & Yakuza territories, and a multitude of dialects surrounding the Chinese, Taiwanese and Japanese gangsters. In fact, the language barriers (or more precisely, the languages themselves) are nearly characters in and of themselves. Even the police get wrapped up by it.

After a violent and multifaceted beginning, the film becomes clearer; the Chinese-born Kiriya is a Japanese cop who becomes obsessed with saving his younger brother's future as a lawyer, while Yoshihito (the younger brother) has agreed to help in an "illegal" underground organ harvesting program the Yakuza and Triads have been conducting. The Chinese police know about it, but they consider two willing parties as a legit deal, 'Who has been wronged?', they say. Kiriya is sent to China to investigate the organ-harvesting case, but uses most of the time to investigate Wang, the head of a syndicate, who has employed Yoshihito as council/intermediary. The film definitely has a gritty, 1980's feel to it, and catches the far east gangster scene at the height of it's power and brutality. Nobody is safe, no one is untouchable.

I don't presume to "get" everything going on here, there's so many facets to a society I've never known, but Miike does a great job at parsing the dynamics/motivations of every character; even if they don't have a major role. Be it a drugged-up, strung-out whore who ultimately wants to live a normal life, or a Japanese officer who cares deeply for his Chinese parents that speak no Japanese and feel lost in the country they now live. One of those is a major character, and one is a minor one...but both lives are illuminated sufficiently. If I had to mention a negative, it would be that there's just so much jammed into the film that it was pulled in too many directions. The up-side is that it never became convoluted. Another would be, and I don't know if Miike did it for show/shock, but the movie is packed with loads of sex between the gangsters themselves or the gangsters and a couple of androgynous man-children. The police even use ass-rape as an interrogation tactic. He lost me there. Still, a great early Miike film and a must see.

Ichi 1 (1-Ichi, 2003)

Masato Tanno's '1-ICHI' is the live action prequel (as opposed to Shinji Ishidaira's animated Koroshiya 1: Episode 0) to Takashi Miike's full feature film, Ichi The Killer. In it, we get to witness the teenage roots of Ichi's manic-depressive beginnings and the origins of his monster-sized kicks. Tanno serves up Ichi's psychological, as well as physical beatings.

It opens as Dai (played by Teah) is putting the hurt on three local thugs and notices a fellow student Shiroishi/Ichi (Nao Omori) watching him intently and smiling at him from a walking bridge in the distance. This immediately ticks Dai off, as Dai isn't one to take anything lightly or as chance. He's determined to be the baddest guy around, and he's doing a fine job at it. Dai and his friends head home afterward to relax and eat. Dai is so focused and regimented that he only allows himself a certain amount of time to finish eating; he actually uses an egg-timer! Dai becomes obsessed and a little unnerved with Shiroishi, as he's always showing up to watch him fight (although we only see this a couple times) and believes that he's passively challenging his strength and dominance. Dai has had enough of Shiroishi's lurking and begins tracking him down. But not single-mindedly. He runs into Shiroishi as he's being pushed around by some thugs from another school and when Shiroishi refuses to defend himself, Dai actually jumps in the middle to ask him why he doesn't fight back. He doesn't lose his urge to crush Shiroishi, but becomes fascinated with him at the same time.

But before he can pull the proverbial trigger, a new student comes to school to complicate things. Onizame, a master of Hop Ki Do (a Korean discipline), brilliantly played by Koji Chihara, wastes no time in proclaiming himself king by first "winning over" Dai's friend's girlfriend by busting him up right there in the classroom upon arrival. which eventually leads to a phenomenally brutal ending to 1-ICHI, which is reminiscent of Ichi The Killer's famous final scenes. I'll spare a complete recap of anything further because you'll want to see it for yourself.

1-ICHI is a lightning fast 83 minutes but does a fine job in it's mission to explain Ichi's beginnings. Considering Tanno and his crew ran into time constraints immediately before shooting began (via the interview with Tanno and Miike on the DVD) the film is surprisingly fluid and cogent; what's there is there, and even though I wanted to, I couldn't argue with the character's motives or the extremely myopic and carefully constructed world. There is never an instant of 1-ICHI's world being fake or contrived, even when you begin to notice that there are never any authorities around or teachers present as the kids fight for lengthy periods of time; inside the classroom! I would hesitate to call it an incomplete or half-hearted effort as well. The world we see in the film is unique and self-sustaining, What's more, little things like Dai's friend Hide's penchant for watching only the third installment of a movie series, Exorcist 3, Godfather 3, Let's Ride The Pervert Train 3, because, as Hide puts it, "the third one tends to be self-explanatory, so it's easier to follow.", gives the film a quirky, likable edge and weight.

1-ICHI is not for the faint of heart though. You'll see (and hear) some brutally realistic, bone-breaking fights and some borderline sadistic behavior. Some of the earlier fights are on he cheesy side which directly oppose the latter's carnage. What you will also witness is the makings of Ichi's sexual excitement for violence; from simple erections to moments of release. Very graphic stuff here folks. This isn't just violent, blood-soaked brutality and CGI amputations as in Miike's cult classic. It may be low-budget, but it has a ton of character and by the end I was convinced that it dovetails nicely with Miike's film.

The Heirloom (Zhaibian, 2005)

The godsend known as Tartan Asian Extreme delivers Leste Chen's inaugural effort The Heirloom to North America, yet this real live throwback to American's slasher past doesn't arrive as one their most savory releases. Welcome, yes — good, not exactly. Surprising since all of the elements are there (no bare–breasted twenty–somethings), but the semi–pedestrian direction and slasher formula are. At issue is the presence of misplaced long–winded explanation–based dialogue. The movie isn't that complex...

A secluded house teaming with young professionals (as opposed to absent–minded lovable losers) plays host to Chen's plat homage, where a guy inherits a somewhat dilapidated house and soon a mysterious force begins to plague the he and his freinds. The single intriguing aspect of this movie involves the 'mysterious force' which moves people from one place to another (purposely vague), but this is a short–lived feature. Although it may seem early on that Heirloom is on the right track, but as time moves on there's little chance of it redeeming itself. However, the chance of it accidentally transforming into an unofficial spin–off  of the Friday the 13th series was high. Heirloom isn't woefully bad, it's just nothing we haven't seen before.