Californian Sojourn

Blog Roll Addition: Libertas

Looking over my blog roll I can't believe I left this great blog off.  Libertas is a blog I've long read actually, serving my conservative films needs for well over a year I believe.  Great reviewers and contributors that regularly provide insights from a perspective I've come to appreciate, especially in regards to the absolute LOVE indie films can receive from the artsy fartsy folks (they know when to call a spade a spade however nice it may look).  The box office talk in regards to the usual anti-war film flops can be over bearing at points, but when you're right, you're right.  So pop on over and enjoy the news, reviews and commentary.

Obligatory The Machine Girl Post..

Alright, Hot Air has it, and so did Angry Asian Man, but the first was Twitch!

 

So here's the trailer making the rounds and is EXTREMELY NSFW!  Don't say I didn't warn ya!

Reason # 138 Why I've Come To Prefer Asian Film: Negative Happy. Chainsaw Edge.

What you need to know about this film is here.

What you need to whet your appetite?

This: 

Yosuke, a school student, comes across Eri, a beautiful girl in a school uniform. Every night, Eri is fighting an immortal giant with a big chainsaw.

And if that wasn't enough here's the trailer to visualize the concept:

Once again...Japanese cinematography kicks all sorts of behind.

Killer Bean Forever

So you might remember back in the day when internet videos weren't as wide spread as they are now that there was a certain animation going around called Killer Bean.  And basically it was what the title suggests, a bean who is a killer (proficient in gun-fu).  I remember laughing a lot while also being impressed with the animation and the choreography especially considering it was a home made project.  Well it seems the director of that short, Jeff Lew, went on to become the lead animator on the Matrix Reloaded (how's that for making things happen) as well as doing several other projects in Hollywood.  Well it seems he's back to his roots and he's created a full-length feature of Killer Bear aptly named Killer Bean Forever.  Now from the title page (where a trailer is conveniently located) it seems he's worked his ass off on this and though I'm just a small little blogger I'd like to help him with at least some linkage. If I see someone put out that much hard work I'd say whatever he's selling deserves a look at.

So check out that link and see what you think.

VDH Weighs in on Millar's 300

And his take is surprising.  I must admit that I was originally turned off by the liberties that were taken with the film (explained further in the article) but if a professor of the Classics can look past that and say the spirit of the Battle of Thermopylae is still there, well that's good enough for me.  Of course will the public who clamor into the theaters to see the violence and gore, among the other things the trailer promises, come out impressed by that spirit?  Well that's the million dollar question.

Jean Claude Van Damme, In A Decent Film?

Say zuh?

I present the trailer to the French (I assume it's French considering the language) film, Narco.

Batman One Sheet....Out!

CHUD.com has it on the front page.  Sleek, simple, and undeniably reflects what the soul of Batman is as a whole.  Awesome!

VDH's Take On Alexander

Reprinted here because it's just so to the point.

This is why I won't be seeing the movie:

Well, I thought it was simply terrible. The film goes on for nearly three hours, but we hear nothing of what either supporters or detractors of Alexander, both ancient and modern, have agreed were the central issues of his life. Did he really believe in a unity of mankind, and were his mass mixed marriages, Persian dress, and kowtowing cynical, sincere, or delusions of megalomania? We see nothing of the siege of Tyre, Gaza, much less Thebes or even the burning of Persepolis. Other than the talking head Ptolemy, none of his generals have much of a character. There is nothing really in detail about the page purging other than a single reference; Stone, I would have thought, could have had a field day with Alexander’s introduction of both crucifixion and decimation.

The Gedrosian desert gets a few seconds. And what was the elephant scene in the jungle? Was that supposed to be dirty fighting in India, or the battle at the Hydaspes—which in fact was a brilliant Macedonian victory? The elephants were visually good, but without context or significance. So since Stone omitted the controversial and key issues of Alexander’s career, what do we get instead for at least over two thirds of the movie? Mostly sit-com drama, with gay and bi- subplots, in various bedrooms and banquet halls. Olympias was something out of a teen-aged vampire movie, not the sophisticated and conniving royal we read about in the sources.  It is the old Dallas or Falcon Crest glossy pulp in Macedonian drag. Stone’s Alexander is a pouty, wimpy bore; the real figure, whatever your thoughts on him, was a killer and a fearful man of action. Gladiator’s Maximus was a far more engaging and forceful character—and that was a far better film as well.

There is also irony here. If we remember the embarrassing Troy, we are beginning to see, that all for all the protestations of artistic excellence and craftsmanship, Hollywood has become mostly a place of mediocrity, talentless actors and writers who spout off about politics in lieu of having any real accomplishment in their own field. I’ve heard so many inane things mouthed by Stone that I would like someone at last to address this question—why would supposedly smart insiders turn over $160 million to someone of such meager talent to make such an embarrassing film? Alexander the Great is third-rate Cecil B. Demille in drag.

©2004 Victor Davis Hanson

So basically, don't waste your time with not just historical revisionism, but sheer historical apathy.

The Cinematic Artistry That Is, Wong Kar Wai.

ALFHALDHGKJFHGJKHFKHGKL!

I had a awesomely worded post going here and then this keyboard arangement decided to screw me over.  Rats...

Anyways, here is the new subtitled trailer for 2046, a movie I high anticipate and now it's coming soon (after a LONG wait).  So watch the trailer and be amazed!  Damnit!

2LDK (Or How I Learned Roomates Lead To Double Homicide)

Saw the flick 2LDK starring the lovely Eiko Koike (I'll let the Google Search speak for itself) and Maho Nonami (who people seem to mention more than Koike, which is a sham).  It's a movie about two roomates who happen to be actresses seeking the same part and found out it is just them in the running.  Nonami is the more "worldly" of the two while Koike is the smarter and all this leads up to a clash to end all roomate clashes.  It's a dark film but certainly has it's humor even more so if you know about the two actresses (Koike's character makes mention she doesn't want to be a pin-up girl when in real life, that's what she is) and I found myself laughing out loud several times. Interesting flick, more people should check it out. And Tony, you can thank me later if you didn't know about Koike before....