Kissing Hollywood goodbye.
Yet again I have been blown out of both my mind and my seat by Asian cinema. Recently had the privilege, no, the HONOR, of checking out two films I had been awaiting for quite some time. And both of them are unequivocable masterpieces.
Audition is another thriller by Takashi Miike. I wanted to track this down because I had enjoyed the over the top insanity of Ichi the Killer, though that movie was not quite perfect. My drummer happened to have the DVD. Touche. Well, this is a slightly more subdued, yet no less terrifying film, with faint traces of a Hitchcock influence. I really don't want to say anymore...anyone researching the net is going to reveal the plot for themselves, but needless to say, if I had not known about Audition in advance it would have leveled me. Fuck, it leveled me anyway. Good solid A. Suspense and horror fans who want something worthwhile would be insane to miss it.
But an A is just not enough for Oldboy, a Korean masterpiece (based on a Japanese comic book) that pays homage to Count of Monte Cristo but with a vastly superior and more unique story. The film is in turns breathtaking, visceral, original, hilarious, and very tragic. I can soundly state that this is one of the greatest motion pictures ever created, and I feel absolutely no doubt or regret in saying so. I'd rate this above The Godfather, Scarface, or any other cult American revenge saga. Far more effective even than the last brilliant revenge saga, Kill Bill. I must admit I'm not entirely up to date with Korean cinema, having seen only a small handful of films. You can bet I will remedy that. Min-sik Choi is one hell of an actor, this is the performance of a lifetime and puts nearly everything I have seen to shame lately (except Rourke's excellent Marv in Sin City). A+++
Here is the thing...Oldboy came out in 2003 in Korea. You can get import DVDs of it now, and I believe in March it started playing art houses and limited theaters. See this now, in it's original Korean incarnation. If anyone is going to take my advice here, please do not complacently and ignorantly wait for the shitty Hollywood remake being planned for next year (like so many did with The Ring and Shall We Dance). Seriously. Go to the source. Buy the comic if you can find it. Buy the DVD. Download it. Who fucking cares, films simply do not get any better than this.
Audition is another thriller by Takashi Miike. I wanted to track this down because I had enjoyed the over the top insanity of Ichi the Killer, though that movie was not quite perfect. My drummer happened to have the DVD. Touche. Well, this is a slightly more subdued, yet no less terrifying film, with faint traces of a Hitchcock influence. I really don't want to say anymore...anyone researching the net is going to reveal the plot for themselves, but needless to say, if I had not known about Audition in advance it would have leveled me. Fuck, it leveled me anyway. Good solid A. Suspense and horror fans who want something worthwhile would be insane to miss it.
But an A is just not enough for Oldboy, a Korean masterpiece (based on a Japanese comic book) that pays homage to Count of Monte Cristo but with a vastly superior and more unique story. The film is in turns breathtaking, visceral, original, hilarious, and very tragic. I can soundly state that this is one of the greatest motion pictures ever created, and I feel absolutely no doubt or regret in saying so. I'd rate this above The Godfather, Scarface, or any other cult American revenge saga. Far more effective even than the last brilliant revenge saga, Kill Bill. I must admit I'm not entirely up to date with Korean cinema, having seen only a small handful of films. You can bet I will remedy that. Min-sik Choi is one hell of an actor, this is the performance of a lifetime and puts nearly everything I have seen to shame lately (except Rourke's excellent Marv in Sin City). A+++
Here is the thing...Oldboy came out in 2003 in Korea. You can get import DVDs of it now, and I believe in March it started playing art houses and limited theaters. See this now, in it's original Korean incarnation. If anyone is going to take my advice here, please do not complacently and ignorantly wait for the shitty Hollywood remake being planned for next year (like so many did with The Ring and Shall We Dance). Seriously. Go to the source. Buy the comic if you can find it. Buy the DVD. Download it. Who fucking cares, films simply do not get any better than this.