D. O. A. (Dead or Alive) - Eddy Teh

D.O.A is in the grand tradition of Street Fighter-style video games ported to the big screen. What distinguishes it is that the main characters are all women - perfect femme-fatale archetypes with killer smiles and killer moves. Lots of eye-candy and rather impressive wire-work, a very easy and lazy 90 minutes.

Highly recommended for fans of Holly Valance ie all teenage boys.

Rating: 6.5/10.
(9/10 if you like street-fighter movies and Holly Valance.)

Rumble Fish (DVD) - Eddy T.

By a happy coincidence, I got to watch Francis Ford Coppola's 'Rumble Fish' immediately after 'Sin City'. This is a 1983 adaptation of the much-studied novel by S E Hinton. There are other superficial similarities between 'Rumble Fish' and 'Sin City': the use of black and white film, with splashes of colour at crucial junctures, Mickey Rourke in a leading role, and a setting of urban decay.
As cinema, 'Rumble Fish' is at every level superior to 'Sin City'. Coppola at the time would still have been basking in the glow of critical acclaim for his '70s movies ('The Godfather' I and II, 'The Conversation' and 'Apocalypse Now'), and assembled for this outing a young cast of strong actors who would go on to bigger fame - Matt Dillon, Mickey Rourke, Diane Lane, Nicolas Cage and Laurence Fishburne.
They live in a grimy urban world where the passage of time is marked by mesmerising time-lapse shots of rolling clouds and lengthening shadows thrown by buildings, and where adults are lost souls (Dennis Hopper) or police akin to an Angel of Death. Their story is one of teen alienation, of the primal desires and aimlessness of youth. It focuses on Rusty James (Dillon), a gang member trying to live up to the reputation of his legendary older brother The Motorcycle Boy (Rourke). When the latter returns to town, transformed, he finds he can't escape being haunted by past sins, even as he tries to 'free' Rusty James.
This is very much a film with artistic pretensions. It may be stylised and heavy handed in its symbolism, and perhaps more successful in its observation of youth gangs, than in its commentary; yet it makes for a memorable movie experience that has stood the test of time. There is also a striking music score by Stewart Copeland (of The Police).
Rating: 7.5/10

Sin City (DVD) - Eddy T

A huge disappointment. 'Sin City' comprises three stories set in the eponymous city, where the women are either exotic dancers, streetwalkers or gun-toting prostitutes, and the men are either tough guys, crooked cops or serial killers. It is a literal translation to the screen of Frank Miller's graphic novel. That means black and white visuals and voice-over narration to emphasise the noir pedigree. It also means unrelenting violence depicted with sadistic glee and dubious sexual politics (an 11-year old girl falls in love with an ageing Bruce Willis after he saves her life and on his release from prison, she, now 19, immediately makes a play for him - yuk!)
The filmmakers' stated aim was to make a film as faithful as possible to the graphic novel. If that were the case, they would have done better making an animated film. As it is, 'Sin City' the source material, on the evidence of this movie, is poorly written, with threadbare storylines and little to sustain interest beyond the gunplay and swordplay and Jessica Alba's rotating torso. It has none of the noirish atmosphere of Bogart's 'The Big Sleep', nor the too-cool style of 'Kill Bill', and in Mickey Rourke's Marv, a very pale imitation of 'Hellboy'.
Should appeal to testosterone-charged young males.
Rating: 3/10

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (DVD) - Eddy T

I never thought I'd hail the greatness of a Jim Carrey movie, but here it is - the first great Jim Carrey movie. (For the comedic Carrey, I always get stitches from 'Liar Liar'.) Carrey plays a withdrawn man Joel whose relationship with an exuberant and kooky Clementine (Kate Winslet, one of the finest actresses of her generation, in a beautifully-judged performance) is in a downward spiral. They've become a boring couple. Then without warning Clementine completely erases her memory of him. Utterly devastated, Joel decides to do the same to her. Much of the movie then follows Joel's memories of Clementine, in reverse chronological order, as they are erased. It isn't long before the unconscious Joel realises that there are many beautiful memories that he wants to keep, even if the relationship has subsequently soured, and he starts to fight the erasure procedure...
This is a tour de force of film-making, one of my favourites of 2004, or any year for that matter. It has elements of science fiction, and is also one of the most touching and odd love stories yet told. This should hold no surprise for admirers of Charlie Kaufman, the writer also responsible for oddball gems such as 'Being John Malkovich' and 'Adaptation'. Those earlier efforts were virtuoso exercises of narrative trickery which left me a bit cold for all their brilliance. 'Eternal Sunshine' is also blessed with the usual Kaufman narrative surprises, and thought-provoking ideas about memory and identity. Above all, it has heart, and that is what seals its greatness. (There is even a little detour into childhood memories which is very poignant.) In this, Kaufman is ably aided and abetted by director Michel Gondry and composer Jon Brion. Gondry uses effects sparingly and they are startlingly effective. The cinematography is unobtrusive and evokes memories eloquently. Jon Brion turns in another weirdly wonderful soundtrack after 'Punch Drunk Love'.
Finally, 'Eternal Sunshine' quotes Alexander Pope and unabashedly claims that love is transcendental. How romantic is that?!
Rating: 9.5/10

Downfall - Eddy T.

'Downfall' is a German film about the last days of the life of Adolf Hitler, seen through, for the most part, the eyes of his increasingly bewildered secretary Traudl Junge. It is a sober examination of people twisted beyond recognition by perverse ideals and wartime desperation. Hitler is portrayed as a dead man walking, utterly delusional and swinging between raging despair and wild hope. It is a portrait consistent with historical accounts, of a ruthless tyrant who in those days had lost all his messianic charisma (leading many of his army staff to openly question his leadership abilities), a barely sane and rational man who yet could muster affection for those he perceived as still loyal.
There has been a tendency to depict Hitler as Evil incarnate, and this film has earned some controversy by allowing for some humanity in him. Evil, of course, is a human trait and one cannot understand an evil man if one is not prepared to see him as a man. For all the admirable directness and clear-sightedness of 'Downfall', its subject remains something of an enigma. This is in part due to the film's narrow focus on Hitler's last days.
There is also no mention of the heavy medication Hitler was under, and the palpable German fear of a vengeful Red Army pillaging, raping and murdering many before it, mention which would have explained more fully the bizarre behaviour of the occupants of Hitler's bunker. On the other hand, street battle scenes are staged with realism and the suffering of civilians is not glossed over.
It is difficult to sit through 150 minutes of the inexorable fall of an utterly corrupt man and his regime. And for those who wish to understand how a state such as Nazi Germany could have come about, they would be better served by the many books on that subject. This is however an important historical drama that stays true to well-documented events and it deserves the widest audience.
Rating: 8/10

House of Flying Daggers (DVD) - Eddy T.

'House of Flying Daggers' has vivid and colourful cinematography and sets, attractive leads, some visceral - if incredible - fight scenes and critically-acclaimed director Zhang Yimou. Yet I found it deadly dull (after the intriguing Peony Pavillion opening scene). For a film-maker who earlier in his career delivered powerful films such as 'Raise the Red Lantern' and 'Ju Dou', this film, as well as the previous 'Hero' must rank as low points in his art.

Even when taken as a straight-out action/'chase' thriller, the thrills diminish with each succeeding stylised action set piece. The problems are an absolute absence of suspense, a lack of character development, implausible plot twists crammed into the second half, and that bane of modern film-making: the overuse of CG effects. 'Matrix'-like effects and obvious CG just don't sit well with a period martial-arts extravaganza. It doesn't help either that the brooding soundtrack keeps sign-posting what's about to happen.

Ang Lee's 'Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon' remains the best recent example of this genre.

Rating: 4/10