U.S. DVD Release
The Fuma Clan have stumbled upon an explosive secret involving The Shogun of Japan and his son that may tear Japan apart but before they can move on the information, the treacherous Hattori Hanzo and his Iga Clan ninja descend upon Fuma village leaving death and destruction in their wake.
The last living Fuma Clan member and the Clan leader’s daughter must now work together to infiltrate the Iga Clan in order to collect a sample of Hanzo’s blood, establish a damning connection between The Shogun’s son and Hanzo and avenge their fallen comrades.
Lovers will die, plans will be formulated and Continue reading »
100% Classic!
After an accidental nuke strike (thanks to America again!) in the Arctic, a deep fissure is opened and an ancient prehistoric creature, a Gamera, emerges from its depths! This Gamera, a massive turtle-like creature, descends upon Tokyo with all of its stomping, flying, fire-breathing might. After a couple unsuccessful attempts to stop the rampaging creature, the scientific community and Japanese government decide there is only one way to halt the creature’s advance…set Z Plan into motion!
What the hell is Z Plan, you ask? Well you’re just going to have to purchase Shout Factory’s fantastic release of Gamera to find out now aren’t Continue reading »
U.S. Blu-ray Disc Release
When lonely widower Aoyama decides to re-marry, his best friend Yoshikawa concocts a series of auditions seeking the perfect woman to “play” Aoyama’s wife for a phony film. Enthralled by the quiet, gentle demeanor of a young woman named Asami Yamazaki, Aoyama seeks to further the off-screen relationship with her but she’s got a mysterious past he’s determined to unravel before making a lifetime commitment, however short that may end up being.
Takashi Miike’s Audition is well-known, and much-loved by fans and for good reason, it’s a cringe-inducing thriller guaranteed to leave you with a chills running down your spine long after the film has ended; something that doesn’t happen often Continue reading »
Japanese DVD Release
When it comes to low budget filmmaking, the Japanese have hit upon an almost fool proof way to strike up some online buzz and secure themselves stateside distribution. You need a few simple, yet highly effective, ingredients: hot, young jail bait in uniforms, outrageous villains and over-the-top blood and gore. If you have these three things, no matter how non-existent your writing talent or budget is, you will succeed where thousands of American low budget films fail. One such example of this startlingly simple knock-out combo, though it hasn’t been picked up here yet, is Onechanbara: The Movie – vorteX (Chanbara Beauty 2: Vortex).
The first Onechanbara film, released by Continue reading »
Action, Adventure, Asian Cinema, B. Harris, Comedy, Fantasy, Horror, Japan, Martial Arts, Sci-Fi, Zombies
Mar 182010
Goofy As Hell!
Yoshihiro Nishimura. If the mere mention of the man’s name sends shivers down the length of your geek bone, then you’ve probably been anticipating this film as well. Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl has been at the top of “Must-See” lists across the net for months now so I was truly excited to get my hands on this film for review. That’s an understatement actually, giddy is more like it.
I wasn’t disappointed to be honest, everything I received from Meatball Machine: ROD and Tokyo Gore Police was here as well! There was off-the-wall gore, hot schoolgirls, shockingly offensive stereotypes, social commentary (believe it or not) and even a little story! Did I mention monsters Continue reading »
Truly Offensive!
A couple out on their first date are kidnapped by a madman and forced to play a sick game in order to survive. As their captor grows impatient, he begins removing their body parts and torturing them, the pair must give in to his demands to arouse him with their passion to live or die on his dissection tables.
Not much of a story here but there’s no pretension either, you know what you’re getting into when he performs a circle jerk on both his female AND MALE captive. With the first spunk explosion you know high expectations will just ruin the depravity and depravity, my friends, is exactly what you’re given. Sliced nipples, gouged eyes, female Continue reading »
U.S. DVD Release
American reporter Steve Martin, played by Raymond Burr, makes a stop in Tokyo while traveling abroad. His timing is perfect because he’s about to witness the biggest story in the history of news, the awakening of Godzilla. “Well, it’s big and terrible!” Steve reports to his editor; and indeed it is. This is more of a re-mix than an original movie. A few vital story driving scenes, along with the special effects shots from the original Gojira were almost flawlessly edited together with new shots and the narrative of Raymond Burr and a dubbed English track. Although still tragic and disastrous, the result is a slightly more lighthearted and optimistic monster flick; what future Godzilla movies seem to have been patterned after.
U.S. DVD Release
Giant monsters attack, and the damage in this round is not limited to Japan; the entire planet suffers their wrath, but before things get too bad, aliens appear and dispel the monsters. The aliens warn of an imminent impact between the Earth and the planet Gorath, offering their help and advise for the impending crisis. Are the Xilians true allies or is there an ulterior motive? 50 years and 28 movies later the big “G” is still going strong. Godzilla himself has evolved many times over the years and the millennium version is quite the vicious looking beastie. There’s plenty of giant monster action in this most recent addition to the franchise. Final Wars brings back Gigan, Rodan, Mothra, Angurius, King Caesar, King Ghidorah, Minilla, the CG American Godzilla Continue reading »
U.S. DVD Release
Aliens have infiltrated the planet and have brought along some heavy backup. Gigan, a cybernetic super-monster, and King Ghidorah, a viscous three-headed beast are both under the control of the aliens. Their plan is to render Godzilla helpless, so there will be no resistance when they make their final move to take over the planet. The characters are goofy and likable and the sets have a nice Star Trek-like feel, rendering a groovy, 60’s espionage essence to final package. There is plenty of build up to the final showdown, but it’s worth the wait. The battles are epic fun and even include some impressive bloodshed. Like a kaiju tag-team bout, Godzilla and Anguirus go up against Gigan and Ghidorah and Tokyo gets leveled once again; it’s always a Continue reading »
U.S. DVD Release
A super weapon is being developed that shoots from space a concentrated black hole, with hopes of ridding the Earth of Godzilla forever. During a test fire, a prehistoric dragonfly-like creature slips through the black hole and leaves behind an egg. Soon Tokyo is overrun with literally thousands of these extremely aggressive, flying menaces. The battles are brutal and there are even a couple of gross out points in this one; two people actually get eaten (crunch, crunch slurp) and there is a short but grotesque glimpse of a downed monster. I thoroughly enjoyed these scenes but it might give the average six or seven year old some new material for nightmares. Aside from a few noticeable instances of not so impressive CG and some abruptly disorienting Continue reading »
