josephbleazard Reviews

My Way Home (1965)

Imaginative and ambient

[9/10 · 6 October 2008]

This film has been described as Jansco's first masterpiece. I would probably agree. The story concerns a 17yr old hungarian stranded in Russia at the end of the second world war, adrift after the collapse of the German army. He speaks a few words of German and no Russian. He seemingly feels nothing, and the film gives no easy explanations why. Like every other character in a Jansco film he seems completely overwhelmed by the scale of the landscape who finds himself wandering in almost antlike, almost always lost at the rear of a longshot. We never learn how close he is to hungary.

Eventually the film becomes a vivid and psychologically telling depiction of male friendship. In 1967 a story of friendship between a Russian and a hungarian after WW2 is an incredibly political subject,yet Jansco affects a kind of delightful innocence in this section and never lets his symbolism overwhelm his characters. What could have been over-reaching and didactic emerges as more of a chamber piece. I don't know how Jansco ever got away with making these kinds of movies in a soviet country.

My only caveat is that Jansco's most significant theme, political violence and its random nature, is partly explored in this film but in a way completely superficial and unaffecting compared to the terrible catharsis of films like "The round up" and "the red and the white".

Overall, a gem

The Flowers and the Angry Waves (1964)

Frenetic brilliance

[9/10 · 6 May 2008]

I must back up the previous reviewer. This is easily one of Suzuki's best pictures and deserves a much wider audience. At the moment I am writing this it has only 1 IMDb comment - there should be essays and theses on this piece. This is a B movie but one where Suzuki enjoyed a freer rein than in others I have seen. He was also blessed with a charismatic lead and supporting characters full of the deviance he loved to explore.

The film itself is a frenetic exploration of modernity and corruption and the collapse of codes of honour in the face of commerce. Add to this gratuitous action and a love story told with a kind of melodramatic fury that stays with me today, despite the fact that it only takes up about 10 minutes of the films narrative.

This film is frantic at only 90 minutes long. Suzuki threw the pot the kettle the sink and even the camera at this film. And he caught it. I don't know what that means. I don't know what this film means. But if you like Suzuki watch it and piece it together and come to appreciate just how grand a scope a cinematic master can encompass in a 90 minute action epic.

Beijing Bicycle (2001)

The emperor has no clothes

[4/10 · 5 May 2008]

Wang Xiaoshuai is grouped with the sixth generation Chinese directors led by Jia Zhangke and Jiang Wen. He is also clearly influenced by Italian Neo-realism as evidenced by the plots much noted similarity to De Sicca's Bicycle Thief. The other clear influence is the work of Taiwanese long shot auteurs like Tsai Mian-liang and Hou hsiao hsien. This combination of influences has created a style which some have proclaimed innovative but which to a seasoned viewer of world cinema is derivative, generic and actually shot in a very workmanlike style without any particular framing ability, brio or gift for mise en scene.

The premise of this movie could have led to an interesting examination of modern china, but the writers seemed unable to find any realistic way to bring about this premise. Once the relationship between country boy and city poor is established the contrast between their lives is not used to say or show anything of interest but instead the director opts for fallacious pieces of symbolism to show their "innate similarity".

The movie has been praised for gritty realism in showing the life of the Chinese poor, but it is actually incredibly false. The beijing of this movie is too clean, too bright, too picturesque and would appear to only have about ten people living in it. The movie also cops out by having every single character speaking putonghwa - very unlikely.

Finally, the acting is poor and unnaturalistic and every plot point drawn out for melodramatic effect. This must be the most over-rated piece of world cinema i've ever seen. Instead of following the herd to this tosh watch the true leaders of the sixth generation.

Zero Focus (1961)

Well photographed monotony

[5/10 · 16 March 2008]

This was the first film I had seen by Nomura and constituted a major disappointment. Nomura appears to belong to the static variety of Japanese directors, preferring lingering and beautiful black and white shots over the bravura editing of contemporaries such as Seijun Suzuki or early Kurosawa. This approach really does not fit the material which is a stultifyingly dull and procedural mystery story that at no point rises above the generic, or generates any palpable tension or danger.

A point of comparison would be Rebecca by Hitchcock, mostly because of its focus on coastal scenery and echoes of the past affecting a hurried marriage. But this movie lacks any of the sexual or psychological aspects that make Rebecca so interesting. Some of the dialogue and minor performances are appalling. At one point a coastguard turns to a distraught bereaved wife and advises, straightfaced, "Why don't you walk to Noto cliff, It is very beautiful and a common spot to commit suicide." How did that ever get beyond the editing suite? Even the final exposition is ridiculously forced and overlong that I was tempted to fast forward to the end of the ending. One to miss

Time (2006)

Gibberish

[5/10 · 19 February 2008]

I'm a great fan of Kim Di-Kuk's classics : The Isle, Bad Guy, Samaritan Girl, and Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring. But this is gibberish. Tosh.

Time is a very very poorly realised film that does not play to Kim Di-Kuk's directorial strengths. Di-Kuk is a brilliant aesthete but this movie is made in the style of a TV movie. His previous movies have been mostly silent but this film unfortunately reveals this hid a terrible ear for dialogue and a worse one for music. This is Korean TV melodrama bullshit with a little bit of token shock footage and philosophical questions shoehorned into it.

This movie cheapens everything Di-Kuk has done before and if I had only seen this one I believe him to be a chauvinistic charlatan with absolutely no understanding of normal human interaction. My biggest criticism is that characters just randomly perform actions with no basis in psychology or their nature merely in order to provide neat symmetry, visual moments or convoluted plot twists. Crass

Takeshis' (2005)

Very disappointing

[6/10 · 20 January 2008]

Beat Takeshi's latest film is a long slow and self indulgent attempt to move out of the yakuza genre. The film begins like "Curb your enthusiasm with Beat Takeshi" as we follow the iconic star through his daily life. The film shifts gear as he meets his doppelganger, a jobbing actor and convenience store clerk. Then it begins to get "surreal". But unfortunately Beat Takeshi is not a very interesting surrealist. This is surrealism for people who think that the matrix is surreal. He uses lazy wackiness and unoriginal symbols in laboured dream sequences. We've seen it all before and its very boring.

But Takeshis becomes an interesting satire on media violence and develops some interesting visual moments in its later stages. It appears to be a discussion of how takeshi's previous films and persona could be interpreted. A self reflexive work. Not a bad idea. Just poorly executed even though Takeshi's skill in editing, black comedy and orchestrating vioence is still present. The ending is also an annoyingly neat cop out. A final indignity at the end of a film that is far too long.

Very disappointing.

Fighting Delinquents (1960)

Clichéd family drama by a directorial great

[7/10 · 13 April 2007]

This is one of a number of B-Movies made by Seijun Suzuki for Nikkatsu. These movies were made quickly under strict studio guidance, with stars and scripts outside of Seijun Suzuki's control. Suzuki would later be famously sacked for rebelling and making his freewheeling sixties yakuza masterpieces. For this movie however Suzuki sticks quite closely to his instructions except for a few moments of trademark brilliance.

This movie's clunking script is about a tokyo punk (played by an uncharismatic teen idol) who finds he is heir to the matsudaira clan and so must go the isle of Awaji and claim his birthright, fight yakuza for the preservation of the clan, and discover his mother. The themes are big, the acting and dialogue unfortunately completely lousy. This is a movie where problems are solved in the wish fulfillment manner of children's entertainment. But it lacks the pace and innocence of a children's classic. We are left with anaemic yakuza and clichéd teen rebellion. This is the kind of Japanese film that kinji fukasaku and the new wave pioneers thankfully killed off.

The movie is not a dead loss as Suzuki engages in quite a few playful moments. Sound and music plays a prominent role in this movie and musical interludes provide most of the better moments. There is a halfhearted chase which then thrillingly weaves across and around a noh theatre performance. There are some audacious jump cuts and abbreviations to the narrative. Awaji itself makes a brightly coloured setting and island traditions are interestingly recorded. The ending is also a highlight when Suzuki undercuts the appalling script and restages the action in a wild west quarry pit.

In final judgement, this movie is probably just one for Seijun Suzuki completists. It is however excellent to see it released on Uk DVD allowing us to see how Seijun Suzuki subverted the formulas of a studio programmer. Suzuki would return to similar themes and a similar style in "Fighting Elegy". Of the two "Fighting Elegy" is infinitely superior due to an excellent script, performances and satirical distance.

Devilman (1972–1973)

Evil has never been this child friendly

[9/10 · 22 November 2006]

The character of devilman has featured in a number of manga, OVAs and movies. This is however an anime version produced for children under close censorship. This has none of the extreme violence of later versions or the books. The characters are younger and the situations are less obviously adult. Their is an innocence about this "devilman" which is wholly deceptive. The innocence extends to the child like drawings of subsidiary characters and the bright colours. It sometimes looks like it was drawn by a child.

Beneath the colourful surface of this formulaic anime is something much darker. The character of devilman is more nihilistic than any other version, in this he is wholly demonic and only interested in saving one human his love, Miki. The title sequence describes him as a hero of justice but that could not be further from the truth, he thinks nothing of picking up a car full of screaming people and throwing it at a demon foe.

His monster enemies are brilliantly designed and have bizarre plans to attack devilman which lead to some incredible psychedelic sequences. There is a surreal bent to the entire production which pays little attention to narrative cohesion. Some sequences seem to have been guest directed by Seijun Suzuki or Jodorowsky. There are also some incredibly transgressive moments that jump out from the normal childishness. Devilman whips a female demon on the nipple until she provides him with information. Every demon seems to have some deviant sexuality or air of androgyny. The school devilman attends in human form is a hotbed of institutionalised paedophilia.

In conclusion, this is a great show for anyone in love with 70s Japanese retro cool. But, fans of the OVA and manga may be shocked by the difference in characters and animation and lack of an ongoing storyline.

Pistol Opera (2001)

Interesting, but flawed

[7/10 · 3 November 2006]

If you've never seen a Seijun Suzuki film don't start with this one. I cannot state that strongly enough.

Taken as a film in isolation, judging it on its own merits, this film fails. Fails interestingly, but fails.

The acting is appalling. The script is pretentious gobbledegook. There are parts of the film when it seems like even the director is sleepwalking. The sets and props are clearly badly made. The actors aren't very good or even interesting looking. The soundtrack is bad. Your friends will think you're a paedophile.

BUT... There are incredible moments in this film. Jaw dropping changes of colour. Symbolic actions. Bizarre perspectives. A new way of looking at everyday items and interactions. Some moments that recall the old thrill of watching the original "Branded to Kill".

The sheer ambition of certain moments is heartening. You think of things like German Expressionism and pop art and say "wow". It's tantalising.

This is a film interesting for those people who've followed Suzuki's career and want to see his next experiment in non-realist cinema and storytelling. Unfortunately that's the only level on which this film works.

The Woman with Red Hair (1979)

The wong kar wai of pinku eiga

[9/10 · 29 July 2006]

This is the most under-rated movie on IMDb in terms of avg score rating. This is a sophisticated softcore counterpart to "ai no corrida" yet surpasses that film. This film is only an incredibly short 73 minutes long but says almost everything it set out to about the concrete nature of romance in a homosocial and cruel world. This is a realist and working class reclamation of the "passion beyond reason" genre. There are hints of death and perversion amidst dialogue of surpassing clarity. The long shots and absurdity remind me of Tsai Mian Liang. Maybe a dark sense of humour runs through this film, maybe actions in 1970s japan will always be funny to us because of cultural difference, however I belly laughed whilst watching this film but was also deeply moved. Beware, unless you are acquainted with Japanese 1970s pink movies the male leads will be so unsympathetic that you will have no appreciation for their difficulties. Beware also if you are a pinky violence collector only interested in the sex, it is deliberately reduced to clinical joint masturbation and this is a strangely unsexy movie. For everybody else, enjoy, this is profound, moving, funny, well observed, gritty, funny and most of all passionate.

The One Armed Swordsmen (1976)

If you're looking for a baffling drunken kungfu one armed swordsmanship whodunnit....

[9/10 · 22 February 2006]

Although a kung fu classic, this film lacks a certain grace in its fight sequences. This might be partly due to the fact that every single character seems to have one arm. Indeed a new DVD release includes an extra previously cut fight scene which raises the number of one armed swordsmen to 7, effortlessly setting a new standard for the one armed genre.

The real pleasure of this film is its labyrinthine plot. This film employs a Chinese box structure, steadily expanding its scope and the importance of the action. In layman's terms, this film has the two most improbable plot twists of any kung fu movie i have ever seen. Watch and shake your head in disbelief, then laugh, then watch it again.