Sukiyaki Western Django

2007

98 minutes

5 Stars

Adult-R for violence

This is one of the strangest westerns I've ever seen. In fact, it is the strangest. A whole new genre of the spaghetti western. Soba western? Noodle western? It is violent (including rape). And it is funny. It takes place in the southwestern town of Nevada Utah, which is a cross between an old west town and a Japanese village. The Red Clan and the White Clan are fighting over the gold the villagers dug (and hid) when into the town comes the stranger. A Japanese film, in English (suggest subtitles—pronunciation is great, syntax is "off." Quentin Tarantino has a couple of cameos, and as always, he's wonderful! Takashi Miike is the director, and if you're familiar with his work, you won't be disappointed. Parody? Homage? I dunno, but I enjoyed it to the end.

Trailer

Hellboy!

Hellboy

English

132 Minutes, 2004

PG 13

5 Stars

I've seen Hellboy2 on the tube many times, and just realized I'd somehow missed the first one. Oh. My. God. I haven't laughed this much in ages. Ron Perlman, long one of my favorite actors, plays Hellboy, a demon child summoned by the Nazi's from the realm of Chaos. He is rescued by the Good Guys and raised not to do evil, but to destroy it. Lots of action, fights with monsters from the supernatural realms. Hellboy is just great fun of Good vs. Evil – You know, when something goes bump in the night, someone has to bump back and that someone is Hellboy!

Comics were never this much fun (Hellboy is from the comic book series)

Trailer

Snow White all Growed Up!

Snow White and the Huntsman

English

2012, 127 Minutes

4 Stars

Yes, this is Snow White and the Seven Dwarves – for adults! No, Rainy Day doesn't mean sex scenes, it's just a great fun as an adult good v. evil action film. Charlize Theron is absolutely marvelous as Evil, while Kristen Stewart is pretty Good. For those who enjoyed Thor (Chris Hemsworth) – and what red blooded female didn't love Thor?! – you will truly enjoy him in this movie as the Huntsman, sent to kill Snow White, and well, you'll have to watch the movie to see what happens. Rainy Day does not suggest this for the smaller folks you may still have occupying your home, it is dark, and nothing even vaguely resembling the Disney movie. This movie belonged to Theron and Hemsworth, and they made the movie. Could have been a tad more character development. Still, worth the watch.

Trailer

The Matrix: Revolution

The Matrix Revolutions

English

2003, 129 Minutes

4 Stars

Rainy Day gives this one a step down in the ratings. She almost gave it a 3, but the other two brought it up. The final battle of Zion v. Machines is almost an hour too long. Neo learns a Truth from the Oracle – that Agent Smith is his dark double. His Ying to Neo's Yang. They are conjoined twins. So, the final fight, between the two is a known outcome. Still, it's fun (much more fun than the Armageddon in Zion). The Wachowski Brother (Writers/Directors) did an amazing job with this series. The FX, the music, the costumes - especially Neo's Soutane, the story, everything is wonderful, and worth the watch, probably more than once.

For a trailer, click here.  

Samurai Assassin, Mifune Toshiro

Samurai Assassin

Japanese, English Subtitles

1965, 122 Minutes

5 Stars

Rainy Day rates this 5 stars because the acting was superb, and the photography pretty darned good. The story is based on history, about the end of the Samurai times. Adm. Perry and his Black Ships were already nosing around Japanese harbors. Mifune Toshiro stars as the ronin Niiro Tsuruchiyo, who is not really a ronin because he is not really a Samurai. He becomes involved in a coup attempt in order to become a Samurai. He is an angry, broken, and almost animalistic man who never knew who his father was, and neither his mother nor his stepfather will tell him. He seeks to become a Samurai by killing a daimyo, thereby setting off a chain of events ending the Samurai period. Rainy Day has no idea how historically accurate the movie is, but thinks it's worth the watch.

For a trailer of Samurai Assassin, click here.

It's time for Witch Hunts, again!

Season of the Witch

2011, 113 Minutes

English

4 Stars

Rainy Day doesn't much care for 'witch hunt' movies—too many in her family background—but she has to admit, this was great fun. Rainy Day is not a huge fan of Nicholas Cage, but she loves Ron Perlman, and in her mind, he carried the day, with Cage a superb help. If you want accurate history of the Plague Days or Crusades don't watch. If you want a fun movie with lots of great one-liners by Cage and Perlman, enjoy. This movie is fun, exciting, funny, dark, not too scary. It is the story of two courageous knights who give up warring and agree to transport a young girl/suspected witch for trial. She is suspected of spreading the Black Plague and must stand trial and be executed to save the world from its spread. Lots of laughs.

Click here for a trailer.

Flying Fox of Snow Mountain (Fox Volant of...)

Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain

Disc 1 of 8 discs (series)

Mandarin, English subtitles

5 stars

After the previous series try, with so much "Gu Gu" and "Gor," Rainy Day admittedly hesitated to start another series. However, Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain found her on the edge of the sofa more often than not. The costuming isn't all that rich (it's called Snowy Mountain for a reason) but is interesting, the photography great, and the sword fights are plentiful and wonderful (and all do not end in death or dismemberment!) This TV series was adapted from the popular novel of Louis Cha. The subtitles are a little odd, but passable. Actually, they add to the humor with quotes like, "a teeth for a teeth." Each disc has 5 episodes, and Rainy Day eagerly awaits Discs 2 & 3. If you like Asian movies/TV, this is a feast.

Rainy Day finally had to look up the word, 'volant' just to be sure she had it right. It means: 1. having the wings extended as if in flight – used as a heraldic bird, 2. flying or capable of flying, 3. quick, nimble. Which should give you, gentle readers, a fair guess as to the kinds of kung fu you will see in the movie!