Friday, April 30, 2010

A Bittersweet Life (Korea, 2005)


This is one of the best gangster flicks to come out of South Korea. 

The story is a simple tale of revenge and stars Lee Byeong Hun as a gang enforcer who gets punished by his boss for making a couple of mistakes in his gangster career. 

Little do the boss know that this act will turn Lee into a revenge-obsessed killer. The breathtaking action and visuals is a knockout.

RATING: @@@@@

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Battle Royale 2 (Japan, 2003)


This is a bland sequel to the bad-ass first film which was one of the best high school kill-spree movies to ever come out of Asia. 

Following the events of the previous flick, a new batch of kids is sent to the battleground island to do some nasty killing. 

Only this time their targets aren’t each other, but the terrorist group known as “wild seven” who are composed of previous survivors of different battle royales. 

RATING: @

Thursday, April 15, 2010

A Tale of Two Sisters (Korea, 2003)


This flick has a plot and cinematography that will get your attention right from the start. 

The story is a psychological mind-bender that will show a superb twist in the end.

Satisfaction is guaranteed to viewers who are interested in a different variety of the Asian horror genre. 

RATING: @@@@

Monday, April 12, 2010

The Hangover (Hollywood, 2009)


It’s your typical American screwball comedy where almost anything goes, and a lot of stuff happens along the way that doesn’t make any sense. 

In this film the characters try to make sense of what happened during a very wild bachelor party in Las Vegas. 

Director Todd Philips of Old School and Road Trip fame tries his best to subdue the unintentional silliness, and he succeeds thanks to a perfectly assembled cast. 

RATING: @@@@

Friday, April 9, 2010

Windstruck (Korea, 2004)


Windstruck is a whole new ball game for Jeon Ji Hyun, this time playing a cutie pie police officer in one of the districts of Seoul. 

When she meets a goody two shoes school teacher, sparks fly in true Korean rom-com fashion. 

RATING: @@@@

Thursday, April 8, 2010

In the Mood for Love (Hong Kong, 2000)


This movie is hailed as one of the best that came out in the turn of the new millennium. 

Thanks to Wong Kar Wai’s stylistic filmmaking, this movie became an instant classic of Hong Kong cinema. 

It features a lot of cool cinematography and moody romantic music that only a master filmmaker like Wong Kar Wai can show. 

RATING: @@@@

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Joint Security Area (Korea, 2000)


The story is mostly set on the DMZ of Korea (Demilitarized Zone) which is between the border of the north and south. 

A couple of soldiers from both sides end up being friends and discover that North Koreans and South Koreans have a lot in common with each other. 

A good movie from Old Boy director Park Chan- Wook. 

RATING: @@@@

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Battle Royale (Japan, 2000)


In the not too distant future of Japan, kids in high school have become incredibly violent and disrespectful to grown-ups. 

So in turn, the government came up with a nasty solution to the problem: pick the worst class section in random high schools and put them on an island with one instruction: kill each other. 

This is a Japanese classic that showcases great acting and extremely violent action.

RATING: @@@@

Hello, Schoolgirl (Korea, 2008)


A simple tale about a romance between guys and girls who have a big difference regarding their age. 

The movie is composed of two storylines. One is about a high school girl that ends up dating a civil servant who is at least 12 years older than her. 

The other storyline involves a young guy falling in love with an older woman who has break-up issues.  
Along the way the two stories converge and what you get is a nice little romantic comedy. 

RATING: @@@

Election (Hong Kong, 2005)


In the triads they hold an election every two years in order to choose their new godfather. 

This film chronicles how the triad election is conducted and the problems that arises along the way. 

A great Johnnie To movie with stylish dark visuals and cool posturing from the characters. 

RATING: @@@@

The Killer (Hollywood, 2023)

  This dark action thriller from director David Fincher is a stylish "Hitman Procedural" that follows Michael Fassbender as he goe...