The Chaser

South Korea 2008



A serial killer is preying on call-girls from various escort agencies. In the midst of police indifference and incompetence, Jung-Ho (Yun-Seok Kim), an ex-cop-turned-pimp must dust off his old flatfoot skills to find the killer and save the life of one of his girls who has gone missing.
10/10



Unholy fuck! This movie is so intense and straight forward.
The characters, the lighting and the premise are breathtaking.
My heart was pumping 3/4ths of this film. Powerful performances
and grisly acts of inhumanity. No pretty pictures are painted
the only pictures that are painted are with blood and tears.
Gripping and relentless the movie never lets go of the viewers throat
and you never get the chance to come up for air. I advice a breathing
apparatus.

Zack and Miri Make A Porno

USA 2008



Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) have been platonic friends for years. When they both find themselves in financial hot water, they hit upon the idea of making an adult film to bring in some easy money. But when "action" is called, these two friends discover that unspoken feelings for each other may threaten the whole enterprise. Writer-director Kevin Smith helms this comic look at the line between friendship and romance.



I'm not a big Kevin Smith fan. His movies are hit or miss with me.
But personally he is a funny guy undeniably. His opening presentation speech
was so funny I really just wanted him to keep talking. I wasn't even stoned
and my face and stomach hurt. Once the movie started I wasn't really feeling the
humor. Standard cock and fart Smith humor, but once they reached the point of introducing Zack's(Rogen) work environment and friends it was literally almost non
stop hilarity. I real surprise and I recommend it highly to anyone who loves a movie that
is gratuitously funny. Not to mention the actual heartfelt undertone that is a romance.
Oh and Bill Pullman was in the audience. How cool is that?
He looked cowboyish...
Anyway, a comedic onslaught and a great pace.

Dog Bite Dog

Hong Kong 2006



Poor young street boxer Pang (Edison Chen) is smuggled into Hong Kong from Cambodia and forced to serve as an assassin. With the police soon on his trail, Pang hides at a dump and meets Yue, whose affections keep him from succumbing to his inner demons. Fanning the flames is the equally unstable Wai, one of the cops assigned to Pang's case. Relentless action and highly stylized violence permeate this fast-paced Hong Kong crime film.
8/10



Brutal, unrelenting, violent, raw and very well done. It should end like 4 times before it actually does. But a lot of asian films seem to do that. Which I don't mind. The premise is okay, it's more so a weird flavor of action/romance. Total noir, ultra violent pace. Leaves a different taste in your mouth upon completion of it's viewing.

Casshern

Japan 2004



After decades of warfare, Earth has become a toxic wasteland, and the survivors are slowly dying from a terrible disease. Dr. Azuma (Yusuke Iseya) has developed a genetic treatment that might help regenerate the population, but his experiment goes horribly wrong. Inadvertently creating a race of mutants that threaten the future of mankind, Dr. Azuma must seek an unlikely ally to help defeat the monsters he's created in this sci-fi adventure.
9/10



I finally got around to seeing this over much doubt due to almost being completely constructed of CGI, but in all honesty was blown away by this glorious uncompromisingly brutal, sci-fi epic. This could have fell short of perfection if it wasn't for the strong character development and their sentiments. Nothing does it for me more than structuring a misanthropic plot around humanitarian efforts to keep the peace despite the arrogance and corruption of leaderships running the world's powers. Bloody, awesome pacing, great acting, ridiculous detail and a truly profound and heartfelt resolution.

A u d i t i o n

Japan 2000



Director Takashi Miike fashions an explosive drama in Audition. Shigeharu Aoyama (Ryo Ishibashi) has lived as a widower for too long and decides it's time to marry again. But how will he find a wife? When a friend suggests he hold a fake audition to pick the right woman, he takes him up on it -- only to realize that his choice may be a better actress than he bargained for.
10/10



Definitive, inventive, slow burning, dark, deep, confusing, dry, warm and full of a building tension that is just genuinely creepy. Do yourself a favor if you have never seen this film. Know nothing about it, like I did back in 2003 when I saw it. Even with it being 9 years old and all these torturous films that come out every year by the truck load, this holds it's own. If any one disagrees, then they saw it too late and have been desensitized. Truly one of Miike's best.

Innocence

France 2004



The students at a mysterious all-girls boarding school learn strange life lessons from their two stern young teachers (Marion Cotillard and Hélène de Fougerolles) in this beguiling and surreal feature debut by director Lucile Hadzihalilovic. Featuring poetic and startling images by acclaimed cinematographer Benoit Debie, the film captured awards at film festivals in
Amsterdam, Stockholm, Istanbul and San Sebastian, Spain.
8.5/10



A very interesting film. As I was viewing "L'Ecole" I found myself very intrigued by the mystery of the whole premise. The whole time I was trying to pin point what was exactly going on as well why and found myself waiting for something catastrophic to happen. Nothing really does but that does not make this film bad in any way. Innocence is of exactly that. Innocence, period. It's a very beautiful multi-interpretable cinematic flare. I did not get bored and I really wanted to see it through until the end without interruption. It is the epitome of a slow burner but with it's mystique and "art film" undertones, it's a collective of character studies not only on the little girls, but on the adults governing their circumstances. Good film.

Chronos

USA 1985



Chronos is a wonder -- it's the first nonverbal, nonfiction movie filmed entirely in time-lapse photography. Presented as a visual symphony in seven movements, Chronos takes viewers on an unprecedented cinematic journey through the essence of time, across the worlds of natural beauty and man-made monuments. Prepare to be awestruck by this unique film that's unlike anything you've ever seen before.
8/10



Everything you would expect coming from Ron Fricke expect that every frame is time lapse transitional. This is Fricke's debut and it really does delivers some astonishing imagery with rich cinematography through landscapes of modern civilization as well as the ancient ancestral monuments throughout the world. There are a lot of shots that to this day have not been topped with their inventive and imaginative cinematography.