The Asian Film Fest, part 1

So yeah, I'm a big fan of the NYAFF simply because it exposes me to new stuff that includes the schlocky and visceral betwixt the dramatic and poignant. I love it to say the least and while I had some I liked more than others, I figure I might as well expose my verdict on the films I saw. Be warned, I saw over two-thirds of their fare for this year.

SELL OUT

Something of a joke to individuality, mingling a musical with a social commentary on our modern Idiocracy. Sell Out centers between a struggling reporter who is trying to succeed in her career and a free-spirited inventor who does not want to cannibalize the purity of his creation for the sake of success. There is a romance between the two as one-sided as the rest and a few songs in-between that gave me a snicker, from the female reporter's dislike of the inventor's romantic advances (the NO song seen in the preview), to the song between the two old executives about whether it is okay to have their ass kissed or not.

While it was the cynicism that made me laugh, some of the songs were nice. Not good enough to make me want the soundtrack, but it was amusing enough to make me consider seeing it again on a bored weekend. Acting struck me as overall average (from the cast list, it seems that most of them were not too experienced to begin with though), although the CEOs deserved a genuine mention for being so humorous.

MILOCRORZE: A LOVE STORY

extrait:Milocrorze: A Love Story by TakayukiFans

What if you took a group of short skits in the vein of Kentucky Fried Movie, set it to the theme of love, and made it the skits vary based on the time of day like a TV program schedule? Milocrorze is just that. Starting as a children's tale of a boy who lived in a fantasy house who falls in love and out of favor with a woman named Milocrorze, the program changes to an advice column from an aggressive dancing gigolo, to a samurai period drama that does not know whether it is modern or Meiji era.

Aside from boasting some nice production values and some genuinely humorous acting among the deadpan to the exaggerated, it also boasts what is one of the most fantastic swordfight scenes to be seen as you watch a man tear from room to room in slow-to-fast-to-slow motion between an endless army of yakuza. This alone makes the film worth seeing, but the humor is also a treat. I would definitely watch this again and would do it eagerly.

BKO: Bangkok KnockOut

Did you see Ong Bak? This is another film in its vein. A family of stunt performers get the golden ticket to work under an American film producer, not knowing that it actually signed them up for a life or death fight gambling for their life. It's corny, the plot makes no sense, the film quality and loud colors looks like it was straight out of a 90's sitcom: yeah, you're basically watching it for stunts.

The stunts in it are good though, and some of the scenes have a beauty to them that has to be seen to be really appreciated. Like Ong Bak, it's hard for me to describe some of the fight setups beyond being unreal; the best one that could give you an idea of what kind of craziness is to be expected is two guys fighting under a moving 18 wheeler.

Still, doesn't beat Merantau's visuals and the laundry pole stab which will be forever my favorite move in a film.


PUNISHED

Man... what DIDN'T I like about this film? It was a revenge film that followed the cliche you'd expect of these films, but the acting and the film work was so perfect that I love it. There's a few stray bullets in the plot that also caught me off-guard and made me think it was a better film just for catching me that way. Definitely worth a watch and out of the five I listed in this group, the strongest of them.

More films to come!

The Asian Film Fest, part 1

So yeah, I'm a big fan of the NYAFF simply because it exposes me to new stuff that includes the schlocky and visceral betwixt the dramatic and poignant. I love it to say the least and while I had some I liked more than others, I figure I might as well expose my verdict on the films I saw. Be warned, I saw over two-thirds of their fare for this year.

SELL OUT

Something of a joke to individuality, mingling a musical with a social commentary on our modern Idiocracy. Sell Out centers between a struggling reporter who is trying to succeed in her career and a free-spirited inventor who does not want to cannibalize the purity of his creation for the sake of success. There is a romance between the two as one-sided as the rest and a few songs in-between that gave me a snicker, from the female reporter's dislike of the inventor's romantic advances (the NO song seen in the preview), to the song between the two old executives about whether it is okay to have their ass kissed or not.

While it was the cynicism that made me laugh, some of the songs were nice. Not good enough to make me want the soundtrack, but it was amusing enough to make me consider seeing it again on a bored weekend. Acting struck me as overall average (from the cast list, it seems that most of them were not too experienced to begin with though), although the CEOs deserved a genuine mention for being so humorous.

MILOCRORZE: A LOVE STORY

extrait:Milocrorze: A Love Story by TakayukiFans

What if you took a group of short skits in the vein of Kentucky Fried Movie, set it to the theme of love, and made it the skits vary based on the time of day like a TV program schedule? Milocrorze is just that. Starting as a children's tale of a boy who lived in a fantasy house who falls in love and out of favor with a woman named Milocrorze, the program changes to an advice column from an aggressive dancing gigolo, to a samurai period drama that does not know whether it is modern or Meiji era.

Aside from boasting some nice production values and some genuinely humorous acting among the deadpan to the exaggerated, it also boasts what is one of the most fantastic swordfight scenes to be seen as you watch a man tear from room to room in slow-to-fast-to-slow motion between an endless army of yakuza. This alone makes the film worth seeing, but the humor is also a treat. I would definitely watch this again and would do it eagerly.

BKO: Bangkok KnockOut

Did you see Ong Bak? This is another film in its vein. A family of stunt performers get the golden ticket to work under an American film producer, not knowing that it actually signed them up for a life or death fight gambling for their life. It's corny, the plot makes no sense, the film quality and loud colors looks like it was straight out of a 90's sitcom: yeah, you're basically watching it for stunts.

The stunts in it are good though, and some of the scenes have a beauty to them that has to be seen to be really appreciated. Like Ong Bak, it's hard for me to describe some of the fight setups beyond being unreal; the best one that could give you an idea of what kind of craziness is to be expected is two guys fighting under a moving 18 wheeler.

Still, doesn't beat Merantau's visuals and the laundry pole stab which will be forever my favorite move in a film.


PUNISHED

Man... what DIDN'T I like about this film? It was a revenge film that followed the cliche you'd expect of these films, but the acting and the film work was so perfect that I love it. There's a few stray bullets in the plot that also caught me off-guard and made me think it was a better film just for catching me that way. Definitely worth a watch and out of the five I listed in this group, the strongest of them.

More films to come!

The Asian Film Fest, part 1

So yeah, I'm a big fan of the NYAFF simply because it exposes me to new stuff that includes the schlocky and visceral betwixt the dramatic and poignant. I love it to say the least and while I had some I liked more than others, I figure I might as well expose my verdict on the films I saw. Be warned, I saw over two-thirds of their fare for this year.

SELL OUT

Something of a joke to individuality, mingling a musical with a social commentary on our modern Idiocracy. Sell Out centers between a struggling reporter who is trying to succeed in her career and a free-spirited inventor who does not want to cannibalize the purity of his creation for the sake of success. There is a romance between the two as one-sided as the rest and a few songs in-between that gave me a snicker, from the female reporter's dislike of the inventor's romantic advances (the NO song seen in the preview), to the song between the two old executives about whether it is okay to have their ass kissed or not.

While it was the cynicism that made me laugh, some of the songs were nice. Not good enough to make me want the soundtrack, but it was amusing enough to make me consider seeing it again on a bored weekend. Acting struck me as overall average (from the cast list, it seems that most of them were not too experienced to begin with though), although the CEOs deserved a genuine mention for being so humorous.

MILOCRORZE: A LOVE STORY

extrait:Milocrorze: A Love Story by TakayukiFans

What if you took a group of short skits in the vein of Kentucky Fried Movie, set it to the theme of love, and made it the skits vary based on the time of day like a TV program schedule? Milocrorze is just that. Starting as a children's tale of a boy who lived in a fantasy house who falls in love and out of favor with a woman named Milocrorze, the program changes to an advice column from an aggressive dancing gigolo, to a samurai period drama that does not know whether it is modern or Meiji era.

Aside from boasting some nice production values and some genuinely humorous acting among the deadpan to the exaggerated, it also boasts what is one of the most fantastic swordfight scenes to be seen as you watch a man tear from room to room in slow-to-fast-to-slow motion between an endless army of yakuza. This alone makes the film worth seeing, but the humor is also a treat. I would definitely watch this again and would do it eagerly.

BKO: Bangkok KnockOut

Did you see Ong Bak? This is another film in its vein. A family of stunt performers get the golden ticket to work under an American film producer, not knowing that it actually signed them up for a life or death fight gambling for their life. It's corny, the plot makes no sense, the film quality and loud colors looks like it was straight out of a 90's sitcom: yeah, you're basically watching it for stunts.

The stunts in it are good though, and some of the scenes have a beauty to them that has to be seen to be really appreciated. Like Ong Bak, it's hard for me to describe some of the fight setups beyond being unreal; the best one that could give you an idea of what kind of craziness is to be expected is two guys fighting under a moving 18 wheeler.

Still, doesn't beat Merantau's visuals and the laundry pole stab which will be forever my favorite move in a film.


PUNISHED

Man... what DIDN'T I like about this film? It was a revenge film that followed the cliche you'd expect of these films, but the acting and the film work was so perfect that I love it. There's a few stray bullets in the plot that also caught me off-guard and made me think it was a better film just for catching me that way. Definitely worth a watch and out of the five I listed in this group, the strongest of them.

More films to come!