Blu-Ray Review: Retaliation

Posted on May 9, 2015 by geelw

Retaliation (Shima wa moratta), Yasuharu Hasebe’s follow up to his 1967 yakuza flick Massacre Gun is another gem from the director worth a look. Packed with great Japanese actors throwing themselves fully into their roles as gangsters and plenty of full color violence, the film’s only “weak” point is a plot where you can often see what’s coming a mile away. But Hasebe’s technique shines here as the director pulls off some great shots and keeps you hooked in right from the beginning.

Akira Kobayashi plays Jiro Sagae, a gangster fresh out of prison after an eight-year stretch for murdering a rival yakuza. He’s followed from jail by Jo Shishido’s Hino, the brother of the man he killed who’s been planning his revenge for years. As Hino attacks Jiro, Hino’s girl (who’d been following him) rushes in and interrupts the battle, forcing Hino to put off his vengeance until later. Jiro eventually goes to see his aging and indebted to another crime boss Godfather who sends him to pay his respects to his former rival. That Boss makes Jiro an offer he can’t refuse in the form of busting up another gang trying to buy up farmland in a tiny village so a factory can be built. Jiro gets a ragtag group of assistants from a failed actor, a card shark, a pair of singers and amusingly enough Hino, the man who tried to kill him at the beginning of the film.

Continue reading →

A Birthday? Greeting of Sorts.

Posted on May 7, 2015 by geelw

It seems that yet another year has passed and I get to wake up and trip over stuff on the way to the bathroom before my morning coffee before dinking around as normal because I don’t run out naked and yell at the top of my lungs that it’s my special day. Whee. Actually, I was thinking yesterday about the best advice I’d ever gotten on my birthday (as that’s the most important thing you get after a certain age, folks) and I laughed because it was from a really drunk guy outside a bar I was walking past a long time ago. I’d just run into a friend leaving that bar who wished me a happy birthday and as I’m thanking him, that drunk popped up from the doorway he was in and yelled out to me “HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MAN!”

As we didn’t see him there until he yelled, the two of us pretty much jumped out of our skin as he grinned like a rather too happy Cheshire Cat. As we was putting ourselves back together I nodded out a thanks to my new “friend” who then decided to offer me some advice. “If you ever try anything you don’t like, man… make sure to do it TWICE (pause…) because YOU NEVER KNOW!” I gather he was speaking from too much experience in trying all sorts of things more than twice, but his words did stick with me from that point on. Granted, I haven’t tried a lot of things ONCE yet. But I guess that’s another reason people celebrate their birthdays. Eh, it’s been a fairly quiet day here so far. I had to work on my laptop (as in getting it back to working) and that turned out well enough that I’m doing this late post. I also see I got a lot of facebook greetings, so I’ll need to respond to those at some point. Well, some of you can consider this post a general response for now. I’ll take care of you all personally via fb reply in a bit.

For now, I need to stick my head in the oven and get that chicken I put in there out to cool. That bird is going with some rice and black beans I made and after that, I’m going to run like the wind (or walk quickly, as I hate running) down to Starbucks because I’d forgotten until just now that I get a free beverage on my birthday and I may as well take advantage of that. Of course, they’ll toss me out before I order because I never buy anything like the over-sweetened fancycchinos they sell to the masses who just don’t want an ordinary cuppa joe and my brain will lock up looking at the menu. Eh, I’ll just tell the barista I’m trying something new and it may need to be twice before the night is through. Yeah, I lead a reltively dull life these days, people. I’m saving my energy for potential future naps.

Blu-Ray Review: Massacre Gun

Posted on May 6, 2015 by geelw

Yasuharu Hasebe’s brooding but action-packed Massacre Gun (Minagoroshi no kenjū) is a great example of the Japanese gangster film that’s well worth a look. Starring chipmunk-cheeked Jô Shishido (he has plastic surgery to look that way), the film packs in plenty of beatings and shootings into its 91 minute running time while maintaining its not so sunny outlook for just out everyone in its cast. Then again, when the “happiest” looking guy in the movie is the angry one with the titular firearm you know you’re in for a wild ride.

Shishodo stars as Kuroda, a hit man who turns on his employers after being sent on a job to kill his girlfriend. Kuroda fires himself after the work and teaming up with his brothers Saburo (Jirô Okazaki)and Eiji (“Tatsuya Fuji”, or director Hasebe’s acting persona) also wronged by the crime boss, set off to take down his empire. This trio of men setting out for vengeance on other men thing is a high risk gig and yes, the film has a very fatalistic tone running throughout that works heavily in its favor. Some Japanese gangster films tend to have running themes about codes of honor and men maimed or dying in as respectful a manner possible (well, given the violent ways in which they meet their ends). There’s a lot of that in Massacre Gun, but Hasebe’s fluid, innovative direction and use of a jazzy score make the film compelling even in its most violent moments. That and the film is amusing when it needs to be. Someone gets a nice surprise in the form of a booby trapped coffin and some of the sudden violence can be funny because it arrives when least expected and lasts longer than you’d think.

Continue reading →

Mad Max: Fury Road May “Retaliate” If You Don’t Go See It

Posted on April 29, 2015 by geelw

I can only imagine some wag who plans to blow this off stepping outside one sunny day only to have a chopped and channeled dust-covered death-mobile roll up as a long handled grabber of some kind reaches for their shirt collar. Yeah, that will be a wild ride to the nearest multiplex to be sure. You can avoid this fate by just going to see the movie, you know. It opens May 15 pretty much anywhere you can see current films. Now, I know that some of you adventure seekers wouldn’t at all mind getting yanked into a crazy-looking ride for a bouncy-bouncy trip to the cinema. But the thing is, when these guys show up to get you… you end up riding OUTSIDE on that long pole. That could get problematic if you happen to reside in an area with a lot of potholes. Ouch.

Today’s Mystery: The Case of the One-Winged Chicken

Posted on April 26, 2015 by geelw

One more reason to cut certain foods out of the diet, I suppose. But also a big little mystery that needs solving, so I’m (kind of) on the case. I defrosted a whole Purdue chicken and put it in a simple salt water brine overnight. As I tend to handle raw proteins as little as possible, I didn’t realize until this morning that the chicken ended up in the store sans one wing. Eek. From what I recall, chickens don’t fly very well at all, so this couldn’t be the result of the one I was about to cook being gimped because it wanted to go all Freebird from wherever it was raised.

“It’s a factory second!” was a guess tossed into the hat I wasn’t wearing. But that wasn’t the case, as it was a full price chicken with a clipped wing and someone out there walking around with it in a pocket as a good luck charm. Or something a lot less disgusting. Speaking of disgusting, as soon as I saw that missing wing, I had a serious Eraserhead flashback. You know the scene: “Just cut them up like regular chickens!”:

Yuck. Anyway, a coin was flipped and it was decided to not waste a good and already brine-soaked bird. So a bit of Madras Soul (TM!) spice blend and a good shake in a plastic bag later, into the oven it went. As it’s meant to be split with a friend going through some bumpy times of late, I decided to keep the wingless half for myself. There’s nothing like having to answer questions about what happened to that missing flapper on a gift half chicken. Some questions weren’t made to be answered without a legal team handy. Or at least the Scooby Gang. Anyway, it’s a sunny Sunday and too nice outside to dwell on a dead (now twice dead) piece of poultry. That said, guess who will be pickin’ chickens a lot more carefully from now on. Or a lot less carefully because I’ll have changed my dining options.

Then again, having tried faux poultry on a few occasions, I can very safely say that every one has had missing wings, legs, thighs and bones. That’s not a mystery at all other than why some of those ersatz birds sometimes end up in assorted poultry shapes. Then again, if it were a tofu bird with a missing wing? Well… THAT would be even more creepy.

More From The Vaults: Found Object Fridays

Posted on April 25, 2015 by geelw

Hey there- here’s some more random stuff I unearthed from the vaults while my PC was out of action for a few days earlier this week. I ended up making more of a mess “cleaning up” than I did when I left all those bins and boxes alone. But I did find some nice things I knew I’d kept for assorted good reasons. Enjoy the quick trip down memory lane!

If I recall correctly, this sketch was gotten in a rather oddball reverse double back-flip manner at a Creation Con back in 1981 or ’82. I was minding a friend’s table at the show while displaying some of my (lousy) artwork and a man walked up and started looking through my stuff. We chatted for a bit about comics and when he told me his name was Al Kurzrok, I was thrilled because I remembered the outstanding lettering he did for Marvel on Doctor Strange back in the late 60’s. When I noted that to him and asked for an autograph, he asked me for a sheet of paper and did this quick sketch. That was a big day-maker for me back then.

Heh. Back in 1981, a dot matrix printout sure looked “futuristic”, so here you go: The press kit for Peter Hyams‘ sci-fi flick OUTLAND. The film is basically High Noon in outer space with Sean Connery playing the Gary Cooper part. High Noon is a better film by far, by the way. That said, it does have some suspenseful moments (and a few exploding heads, eww), Frances Sternhagen gets the best part and lines in the film and there’s a great Jerry Goldsmith score worth tracking down.

All that and like many of Hyams’s best films, there’s a nice foot chase that perks things up at just the right moment.

I have a lot more ancient history here, but I’ll pull the plug on this installment before I end up making an even bigger pile of stuff in the home office. No need to have to sleep curled up in a closet because there’s way too much stuff on the bed and floor, right?

New Terminator Genisys Trailer: Blasts From The Past And Future Get The Internet Somewhat Nuts

Posted on April 18, 2015 by geelw

What’s been interesting about these Terminator Genisys trailers is how the internet whiners has reacted to the reboot without realizing that the new film is playing them like violins. The time-bending going on here and all the plot twists see as spoilers might not even be the big things the movie is bringing to the table. Me, I like the idea of taking the first two films and remixing them so Sarah Connor knows what’s coming and prepares for it before finding out things aren’t as she planned for.

I’m really curious to find out what type of Terminator John has turned out to be as well as seeing if the process can be reversed (remember, we’re dealing with time travel and its many possible ripples) by the time those end credits roll. That and hell, it’ll be fun hearing whatever goofball quips Arnold comes up with as the film progresses. It looks as if Emilia Clarke has got some of his better quotes from the first two films down pat. Eh, we’ll see (as usual). I don’t expect him to survive this flick either, but I have the feeling that even if he does… he’ll be BACK. Well, at least for one more go-around.

PSN April Flash Sale: Some Decent Deals For All Tastes

Posted on April 18, 2015 by geelw

I guess it’s now a once a month deal or so over at the PlayStation Network when it comes to finding quickie weekend bargains available for a short time. This month’s big deal PSN Flash Sale is a nice lineup of PS3, PS4 and Vita digital games plus a bunch of movies at okay to excellent prices. Don’t forget to poke around the site and look up other deals, as there are some cool titles not part of THIS sale that are part of other promotions. You never know what you might find outside the box, right?

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Trailer: A Big SOCK! Full Of POW! For 2016

Posted on April 17, 2015 by geelw

Wow. First we get slapped around by new Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Terminator Genisys trailers and today, it’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice getting people all hot under the collar and a few other places. Well, it certainly looks as if any blubbering about Ben Affleck as Batman has been silenced. The film seems to borrow rather heavily from Frank Miller’s Dark Knight books in terms of Batman’s more tricked out costume (the lighted eyes, sniper rifle and other bits) as well as the big battle that’s going to take place between Bats and Supes.

Of course, the film is also a jump off for the future Justice League movie, so there’s going to be plenty of new things to ogle here and over-speculate about as new trailers drop. You go do that ogling and speculating on your own time. I’ll just wait more more moving picture news and perhaps a few stills to pore over before passing any major judgments Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is in theaters March 25, 2016.

Yeah, yeah – I’ll get to that Terminator trailer tomorrow. I was up way too late working on a few projects and am wiped OUT tonight.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Trailer 2: TBT Meet TMI, All In Two Minutes Flat

Posted on April 16, 2015 by geelw

Well, the film certainly looks incredible (in that practical FX meets CG manner expected of it), but man did that old Ford get OLD. Well, I’m not getting any younger myself, but yikes. Scary stuff there. All kidding aside, it also looks as if the film won’t skimp on the humorous elements at all, so that’s a good thing. Nothing’s worse that a sci-fi/fantasy flick that tries too hard to take itself seriously (no names here, but some will know of which I speak). I’m betting we see more as the week spools out, what with Star Wars Celebration in full swing and all. Eh, perhaps I’ll save up one day and go to one of those, but that’s only going to REALLy happen if I’m IN a Star Wars flick at this point. Hey, I’d play Darth Faux Hipster Goatee any day of the week!