Haiphan02's Weblog

ICHI THE KILLER – Sadistic masterpiece!

haiphan02 — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 00:51:50 +0000

Warning: this movie is not for everyone. The synopsis of Ichi the Killer is about as complicated as Sadism for Dummies. Ichi the Killer is a vivid tale of retribution and revenge set within the yakuza underworld. After his yakuza boss goes missing, Kakihara uses his sadistic methods of interrogation to find the boss’s assumed killers. Working his way through underworld connections – with the use of hot oil, piercing needles, and large hooks – Kakihara discovers his boss’s demise came at the hands of Ichi (Nao Omori), a mysterious figure that slices individuals into numerous bloody pieces with razor-sharp blades strapped to his boots. As Kakihara draws closer, Ichi turns the tables on the hunter and brings his own vengeance, served up sushi style. The best part of the film is its realistic gore. Whenever Ichi slices open a throat with his razor-sharp boots, the blood sprays like a broken water main, painting all corners of the room in crimson fury.

Funny Games U.S. (2007) – Not as good as the first

haiphan02 — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 04:26:48 +0000

I had doubt when Writer/Director Michael Haneke decided to do a remake of his 1997 film but an exact shot-for-shot remake? I have mixed feeling about this one, I like the original so that must mean the remake is good as well, am I right? Yes and no, I got bored of the whole concept about 1 hour in because everything was so predictable. The only improvement in the newer version is the beautiful Naomi Watts. Oh about the movie, two psychotic young men take a mother, father, and son hostage in their vacation cabin and force them to play sadistic “games” with one another for their own amusement. The original is in German so even the dialogue appears to be more violent.

Funny Games (1997) : theatrical trailer

Funny Games Trailer NEW

Stuck :: based on a true story

haiphan02 — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 05:45:18 +0000

I remember reading about this nurse aide that left a homeless man to die after hitting him with her car. That article horrified me because how could someone in the healthcare industry be so cruel and thoughless toward another human being. In this movie, the beautiful Mena Suvari plays the nurse “Brandi” and Shephen Rea plays a down on his luck homeless guy “Tom”. On the verge of being promoted at her job, Brandi opts not to help the injured Tom after she hits him and impaled him on her windshield. The resilence Tom does not die so quickly, so the frantic Brandi and her boyfriend decided to kill him. But that proves to be more difficult with the neighbors watching and Brandi nosey friend getting in the way. Overall, its a great movie with alot of intense moments. It reminds me alot of “Misery” another great movie. 3 1/2 stars.

My Sassy Girl : Really good love story.

haiphan02 — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 02:20:11 +0000

Why do I hate teen movies so much? Because of their uninteresting crappy love story and their unbelievable typical characters (you know that the supposed ugly girl is a perfect super babe when she takes off her glasses). Also because I can’t support all the clichés and stereotypes that these kinds of movies like to exploit so much. It’s just not funny to me anymore. Of course, because in most cases, cinematography wise, these movies mean absolutely nothing, for me they have almost no artistic values, I just found them a complete waste of time.

But why do I love “My Sassy girl” so much? Because of that unpredictable and enjoyable love story and that the two characters in the movie were awesome and touching, especially that memorable and beautiful Korean girl. Also, that the humor was always right on time, not trying stupid sex jokes or stupid humor, unlike other movie of its genre right now and that visually the movie was surprisingly very well done.

Saving Face: pretty good

haiphan02 — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 20:00:46 +0000

Saving Face is a 2004 American romantic comedy drama flix with a mostly Chinese-American cast. It deals with the perception that Chinese should only date other Chinese. A young lesbian surgeon ‘Wil” (played by Michelle Krusiec) has trouble coming out to her widowed mother. Who also happens to be pregnant and refused to tell who the father is. As both mother and daughter is shunned by the Chinese-American community, they find the courage only after Wil’s grandmother passes away. This all takes place in a predominant Chinese section of Flushing, New York. I just love the N.Y. scenery in this movie, its the perfect background for a romantic comedy. Alot of hilarious moments in this movie too. Did I mention the hot sexy lesbian scene between Michelle Krusiec and Lynn Chen?? 4/5 from me.

Taken: pretty good action flix!

haiphan02 — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 06:52:56 +0000

Old man Liam Neeson kicks ass in this movie, it is about a retired spy (Neeson) who is forced back into action when his daughter got kidnapped. Who knew Liam Neeson at 56 years old could be such a badass, he was pretty good in “Batman Begins”. Besides the great action sequence, Neeson plays a desperate father trying to find his daughter before she is sold into a prostitution ring. He kills just about every bad guys/pimp in Paris to get to her. Only bad acting is from his over-zealous daughter, she cries/whines too much. Overall, this is a rare action flix with a good storyline and execution. Go see it. 4 stars/5 from me.

Traitor: decent

haiphan02 — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 05:59:50 +0000

Not really a foreign movie or a cult classics, but the subject matter of this movie is foreign enough heh. Traitor is about foreign diplomacy and terrorism. Don Cheadle (who is great in all his movie) takes on the role of a devout American Muslim, also a former U.S. Army Special Forces specializing in explosives. On one of his mission, he is persuaded that the Americans are the evil forces. I would go more into the plot because it’ll ruin the movie. The action is not that great, though. Just an interesting storyline. 3 stars/5 from me.

Television series that died too early:

haiphan02 — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 02:53:43 +0000

in no particular order:

- Freaks and Geeks (1998) :: I missed this show the most.

- Carnivale (2003-2005) :: a hauntingly beautiful series, the ending kinda sucked though.

- Wonderfalls (2004) :: a very quirky comedy about a girl that listens to animal figurines instructing her to help people

- Arrested Development (2003-2006) :: Another unsual comedy, for open minded people only. Very funny but you have to watch it in chronilogical order or else you wouldn’t catch some of the jokes.

- Dead Like Me (2003-2005) :: like Wonderfall, it features a strong female star in Ellen Muth who plays a grim reaper.

- Undeclared (2001-2003) Great, great show about college and life in general.

2001: A Space Odyssey – MIND TRIP!

haiphan02 — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 04:38:32 +0000

I watched this movie in my Literature of Sci-Fi class and was blown away. The special effects and overall realism of this movie is quite amazing given that it was released in 1968. It is the brainchild of the great Stanley Kubrick, based on the novel by Arthur C. Clarke. I must warn you that 2001 is very hard to follow because of its minimal dialouge and classic cinema style. In another word, its verry slowwww…. This was my second time viewing and it was more enjoyable because now that I have a better understanding of sci-fi. The whole movie is very open to intrepretation. As my professor pointed out, there is on right or wrong. I truly believe this is the ONE movie everyone should see at least once in their lifetime.

I thought this needs to be pointed out again: THIS MOVIE WAS MADE BEFORE WE LANDED ON THE MOON! More than 40 years ago. 5 stars for me

Scarface – Fun facts

haiphan02 — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 07:31:09 +0000

1. “Fuck” was said over 207 times.

2. Oliver Stone wrote the script in France while recovering from his own addiction to cocaine.

3. Michelle Pfeiffer Accidentally cut Al Pacino with broken glass while auditioning for Scarface.

4. “Say hello to my little friend” line took 61st place as the most famous quote on the list AFI’s 100 Years… 100 Movie Quotes. (B.S. imho, should be alot higher)

5. Due to excessive violence and drug scenes, it was initially given an “X rating”. But after meeting with the MPAA and a 3rd cut, it was release with an “R rating”. However because the studio executives did not know the difference between the 3rd cut and the 1st cut, the director released the 1st cut to theaters anyway. It was not until the film had been released to VHS that he reveal the truth.

There is so many great lines in this line. Heres a few of my fav:

- This is paradise, I’m tellin’ ya. This town like a great big pussy just waiting to get fucked.

- I always tell the truth. Even when I lie.

- In this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the women. (there’s a hilarious Simpsons parody of this, as soon as it’s approved — copyright problems)

- Say goodnight to the bad guy. (best scene of the movie is when Tony is having a “moment” at the restaurant at the end, nice camera)

- All I have in this world is my balls and my word, and I don’t break them for no one.

And the list goes on and on. Great movie. Very inspirational for me. Here’s a funny clip of what they edited to make Scarface suitable for TV.