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Reviews
Showgirls (1995)
Great for female nudity, but the story's surprises are hardly entertaining.
"Showgirls" is an exotic dancer's fantasy of making it big in Las Vegas. It's not like the imagined talent and fame in "Chicago (2002)." It's more like the climb in "Black Swan (2010)," but with the "who you know" angle rather than mere skill.
The most notable aspect of this movie is its female-centered erotica throughout. While movies such as "In the Realm of the Senses (1976)" are much more revealing toward sex acts, "Showgirls" emphasizes nudity; and keen remote-control handlers can easily verify what they thought they just saw. Such daring is a plus, even though this movie is surprisingly lacking in extreme close-ups. (They seem to angle it more towards sexual dance.)
What makes this movie unique is the main character's defensiveness. She refuses to be taken advantage of. The tricky part for the prophesying viewer is that Nomi reacts in ever-different ways (which are often extreme), with perceptions of people's motives that don't always jive with YOUR perceptions. Her moods may easily be seen as random, as if the scriptwriter couldn't draft a consistent personality. Anyway, it's a minus for those few consumers who watch it for the story — which is a bit long (video: 2 hours 11 minutes).
Although it's not a tragedy, it includes bad things happening to good people, further lowering the entertainment value.
Chaar Sahibzaade (2014)
STIRRING Concept, Weak Imagery, Slightly Confusing Subtitles
The timing of Chaar Sahibzaade is excellent, given the extensive religious killings in the Middle-East. It is based on true events concerning advocates of religious freedom. These people courageously did whatever was necessary to restore what was wrongfully taken from the weak and oppressed. The theme is mostly about their training, and about the military forces against them. In these ways, it is a religious war movie.
It is animated, with fair-to-good foregrounds but very poor backgrounds. There is a feel of limited movement. The images of holy people are stills, since the makers considered it disrespectful to make cartoons of them (but the audio strategically keeps the flow).
The English subtitles exclude periods. The translators obviously catered to audiences of Sikhs, leaving in untranslated titles (such as Guru) and other religious and martial terms. Non-Indian audiences find it hard enough to read through the long names without all the foreign-language extras. Audience members who did not need subtitles were much more pulled. The narrated overview at the beginning aids understanding, even though it includes spoilers.
Although most NR movies are adult-oriented, this one shows the weapon attacks WITHOUT the gore or suffering. It has its battle scenes, executions, and corruption, but is hardly disturbing or offensive.
I recommend watching it, even though the art and linguistics have their problems. It expresses the need to personally battle injustice, rather than idly pray, meditate, and give in.
Zookeeper (2011)
Failed Attempt at A Family Movie
Although primarily for kids, boring -- though sometimes funny -- adult relationships are included. Behaviors of different species are explained, but in confusing ways; this shows that the story relates to children's perceptions, but doesn't enlighten.
The turn-off for adults is the childish relationships among the main character's buddies. Parents will even find some conduct to be offensive, although the objective of immature characters was 'creative thinking'. Children would rank Zookeeper higher than adults would, since the theme is a little more weighted towards their fantasies.
The plus side is that there are entertaining parts for everyone ... even though you have to put up with lengthy, not-so-pleasant scenes.
Ai no korîda (1976)
A Man Pays Dearly for Failing to Enforce Personal Boundaries
An adulterer's favorite partner's obsessions continually worsen, unchecked. The extreme results of this true story inspired the making of 'In the Realm of the Senses'.
Not everyone will appreciate the straightforward telling of this story. You must be okay with viewing graphic nudity, explicit sex acts and consensual violence. Most countries limit viewing to adults. Some have outlawed it entirely.
No English audio exists – just subtitles.
Pros include: 1. The uncensored escalation of risks accepted by an over-trusting man. 2. Contextual foundations leading to each scene. This is not director-fantasy pornography. 3. Good acting, cinematography and flow of events.
Cons include: 1. The storyline is too narrow. Although sex was exclusively what led to the events, such focus belongs in a documentary format rather than in a traditional movie. 2. Way too visual for today's free audiences. For most people, it likely evokes either abhorrence or sexual arousal, leaving less of the viewer's attention on the story itself (for those who care).
OVERALL 6/10: 'In the Realm of the Senses' is A FAIR MOVIE FOR WATCHING ALONE or with like-minded people either a) as porn; or b) for analytical comparisons with crime or religion or psychology. As general entertainment, though, it is of VERY LOW VALUE.