Film

 Alexandre Aja’s High Tension, also known as Switchblade Romance, was one of the films that kicked off a new wave of French horror films that have really been redefining the genre as of late. These films, which are often excessively gory, but never seeming gratuitous, have been shocking and entertaining treats for real die-hard horror fans.

 High Tension is about a pair of traveling female friends, Marie and Alexa, on their way to visit Alexa’s family country home. Upon arrival, their attempts at a peaceful getaway are interrupted by a savage killer who invades their home. When the killer kidnaps Alexa, it’s up to Marie to save her friend, resulting in an intense game of cat and mouse that makes up the rest of the movie. The first eighty minutes of this movie are so completely relentless and uncompromisingly violent and suspenseful that I found myself often at the edge of my seat. This film was obviously inspired by the early works of Wes Craven like The Hills Have Eyes and The Last House on the Left and especially Tobe Hopper’s The Texas Chainsaw Masacre and while paying homage to them, in many ways High Tension exceeds those films. It really is a remarkably well-made horror movie, raw and unnerving the way they should be always.

 The films one tragic flaw is the ending. As I stated early, Wes Craven and Tobe Hooper could probably tip their hats to Aja after this one. Unfortunately, M. Night Shyamalan would be proud too. Without giving anything away, I will only say that the film’s climax changes the viewers entire prospective on everything that has happen before it and while there may be some that might like the “twist” ending, I found it cheapen the film and was unnecessary. I wasn’t expecting a happy ending by any means, but I just felt that High Tension’s climax was not the one that the movie was naturally progressing towards. It felt forced and out of place. Of course, it is just a matter of opinion, but be warned you may feel let down in the end.

 Still, it is a very accomplished piece of filmmaking which for the most part I highly enjoyed and still recommend. It was Alexandre Aja’s directorial debut and is still his best work to date. Now he is stuck in the world of remakes, first redoing ironically enough the previously mentioned Wes Craven classic The Hills Have Eyes. He also remade the J-horror film Into the Mirror and put Jack Bauer in it and his newest film, an update of the Joe Dante film Piranha is currently treading water in theatres (at the time of writing this review).

 As I stated before the new French horror wave, that High Tension belongs to, came at a time when horror fans were craving more so films like this are praised even more so because it hit all of its marks in terms of giving the people what they want. Unfortunately, Hollywood’s a business and when something original and different is successful we eventually get Americanized knock-offs trying to recreate the films while completely ignoring what made the films being copied worthwhile… “These popular French films had gore? Well let’s top that!” So instead of films where it wasn’t just gore for gore’s sake, it complimented the story… But now we have the birth of the torture porn genre and the never-ending Saw film sequels. It’s not a shock that sometimes the domestic film industry simply can’t compete in certain fronts and this is proof. To throw in a corny analogy; stick to the films that paved the way, before big business took over and now it’s a superhighway.

 If you liked this movie, I also highly recommend Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury’s Inside, a movie that literally made me put my hand over my mouth a few times. It really was as shocking as High Tension, but had a more logical, albeit equally over-the-top ending. Also, check out Pascal Laugier’s Martyrs and I’ve heard good things about Xavier Gens’ Frontier(s), although, I have yet to see the latter.  

 Video

High Tension’s video is displayed using the AVC MPEG-4 in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1. The video doesn’t have any artefacting or transfer issues and the video is sharp and clear with skin texture and details coming off nicely, especially in close-ups.

 The colors are exaggerated like any recent colour graded horror film and the film has a bit of a stepped up contrast look that keeps the black levels deep while keeping any serious grain issues down.

 The skin tones are appealing and in that orange range when they can, but during the night scenes the lack of secondary colour correction (a process that’s only been recently adopted as standard) makes some of the night shots very blue washing out the skin tones slightly, however we’re left with a good looking Blu-ray.

 Audio

 High Tension’s audio comes at us using the French DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 or English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1… Wait what?! How dare a film offer a better codec for a language besides English?! Just joking… One of my pet peeves is dubbed films, if the actors are speaking in French for example and all of the eccentricities of their performance and the specific intonation they use to capture the audience have to be recreated by an underpaid voice-over talent who’s probably doing four movies a day just doesn’t seem like the best way to partake in the authentic experience that the filmmakers laid out for us.

 The French mix is clean and has all the beauty of a 7.1 mix, with atmospheric elements playing in the surrounds and the back speakers to encapsulate you within the mix. The dialogue is clear and up front while the score and sound design takes full advantage of the dynamic presence and gives your sub a nice work-out as well. I recommend taking full advantage of the Director’s cut and avoiding the English dub.

 Special Features

We’re given a light set of extras to chew on, all of which are from a previous DVD release, with the obligatory audio commentary with Alexandre Aja and Gregory Levasseur and selected scene commentary with Aja again with Cecile de France. There’s also three behind-the-scenes featurettes about the making of High Tension including a visual effects piece and a featurette on how to build tension… Unfortunately they’re all in glorious SD.

 The lack of exclusive bonus features or high def features lowers the value of this disc.

 Final Thoughts

 If you’re a horror fan they you may already have High Tension on DVD so besides the audio/video quality upgrade the special features and unrated cut are all old news. However with a very nice 7.1 mix of the French language track, I would recommend buying this flick again.  As for newcomers interested in France’s popular horror scene, this would be a great gateway film to test the waters.

Film 

The best way to describe The Warlords would be to imagine a cross between a marital arts film and The Longest Day or the opening 18 minutes or so of Saving Private Ryan.

The film is set in China during the 1860′s and stars Jet Li as General Pang whose troops were victims of a massacre during the Taiping Rebellion. General Pang escaped death during the massacre by playing dead under the bodies of some of his less than fortunate troops. He pulls himself out from under his dead soldiers after the battle and comes upon a group of passing bandits lead by Er Hu (Andy Lau) and Wu Yang (Takeshi Kaneshiro).

After Pang helps Er Hu and Wu Yang defend a helpless village that is under attack from the forces of General Ho, the three take an oath as blood brothers, pledging loyalty to each other until the death. At Pang’s urging, Er Hu and Wu Yang as well as other members of the group join the army to lead what Pang describes as a more honorable life. The three lead an army during the rebellion that has remarkable success.

The film is filled with some rather gruesome and realistic battle sequences featuring plenty of blood, gore, decapitations and some marital arts. At the end, the three blood brothers are done in by some intrigue involving political ambitions on the part of Pang as well as Pang and Er Hu’s desires for a beautiful woman. Despite the unnecessary gore, I found The Warlords to be an interesting film, providing a glimpse into Chinese history that I knew little about.

While I enjoyed the film, I found its pacing to be a bit slower that I desired. I also can’t imagine sitting down and watching this film more than once. Accordingly, while I enjoyed the film and feel that it is definitely worth a look, I would suggest that you do so on the basis of a rental only.

Video 

After having watched a bit of this film on HD Net, I can say that the Blu-ray release offers a significant upgrade over the TV experience as the Blu-ray does not possess the MPEG-2 motion artifacts that were visible on the cable version I saw. The film is not exactly a bright and colorful film. Most of the color palette of the film consists of varying shades of brown, black and gray. The film itself is very gritty looking with occasional pops of color, especially bright red blood which is seen far too often for my tastes.

I found detail, especially facial detail and clothing textures to be quite impressive with excellent blacks. Overall clarity is very good as well as is shadow detail. I was not able to detect any evidence of the application of significant levels of digital noise reduction or edge enhancement as the film clearly retains the gritty look and feel of the film I saw originally on HD Net. All in all, the Blu-ray release of The Warlords represents a significant upgrade over the prior cable release of the film and is one that should please fans of the film.

Audio 

The release of The Warlords on Blu-ray includes two lossless tracks, Mandarin and English. While the dialogue track on the English version sounded better, I preferred watching the film in the original Mandarin with English subtitles. There is just something about dubbed films I just don’t like. Maybe its the dialogue that continues once the lips stop moving that freaks me out. It is great that this release gives you the choice of two lossless tracks so you can decide which one best appeals to you.

If there is one thing I can state without hesitation, is that this film has some of the deepest bass I have yet to experience at home. Normally I would take the position that too much bass is just about right. However, in the case of this film, I found the bass to be a tad excessive and at times, unrelenting. From thundering horses to massive cannon blasts which just about knocked pictures off the walls in my room, this film is a bass junkies’ dream. Unfortunately, all this bass comes at the cost of nearly overwhelming the rest of the sound mix and at times does.

As for the rest of the sound, I found it to be a bit on the thin side, lacking a bit too unnatural, lacking the smoothness and depth of the better sounding tracks I heard. I wouldn’t describe the sound as harsh as it isn’t. It just lacks the fullness of the better sounding tracks, especially the dialogue and musical score which I would describe as sounding a tad shallow. The dubbed English dialogue sounds much better than the original Mandarin. The surrounds, as one would expect from an action film, are quite active throughout most of the film, creating a nice immersive sound field, especially during the battle sequences. If you are fan of unrelenting bass this release may just be for you. Just make sure that you take the pictures off the wall in your room before you screen the film.

Special Features 

The Blu-ray release of The Warlords contains many extras, most of which are in Mandarin with English subtitles. As such, it can get a bit tedious going through them all, especially all the brief featurettes detailing many aspects of the making of the film.

The extras include the usual deleted scenes as well as a Making of Featurette where numerous aspects of the making of the film are detailed, from the use of horses to battle sequences. It appears that no aspect of the making of the film is too small to be included in the featurette. Also included is a the featurette “The Warlords 117 Days: A Production Journal which I found to be very tough to follow as well as a Behind the Scenes special and HDNet: A Look at The Warlords featurette. Also included is the international trailer for the film.

If I had to choose, I would suggest that you check out the Behinds the Scenes Special as well as the HDNet special if you felt compelled to delve into the extras included with this release as I found them to be the most accessible.

Final Thoughts 

The Warlords is without a doubt a gritty and at times gruesome look at the subject of war. While the premise and execution of the film is interesting, I can’t say it is the type of film that I would want to watch more than once. While it surely deserves a look, I would suggest that you check it out on the basis of a rental only.

Film 

Broken Embraces is one of those films that takes awhile to pull you in but once it does, you are in for good. The film is in Spanish with English subtitles which may put off some viewers. Please don’t let that fact dissuade you from experiencing this film. The opening is a bit disjointed as it is another film that contains a series of flashbacks to built the plot line.

The film is essentially two love stories both centering around Magdelena or Lena in yet another riveting and sensual performance by Penelope Cruz. The film opens in the present and focus on a former director who continues to make a living writing screenplays. He is blind as a result of some sort of accident that is not disclosed until later in the film.

After losing his sight, the director, refused to be acknowledged by his given name, Mateo Blanco, instead choosing to be known as Harry Caine. Once you are introduced to Harry, the film flashes back to introduce you to Lena and her older lover Ernesto, a high powered and wealthy power broker, who after a series of prior marriages, develops a fixation with Lena.

The relationship between Ernesto and Lena is clearly one of convenience, at least for Lena, who is using Ernesto for his wealth having come from very modest means, which Ernesto is happy to share in exchange for Lena’s physical attributes. However, over time, Lena begins to become dissatisfied with Ernesto and her life with him and seeks out to carve out a career as a film actress, a career which she had given up on in the past. She auditions for a role in Mateo’s latest film and he, quite naturally becomes quite smitten with her, a fact which does come to the attention of Ernesto, who will take any step necessary not to lose his beloved Lena.

I am hesitant to give up much more of the plot so as to not spoil the film for those of you who may want to see it. Suffice it to say that this is a beautifully written and directed film and features fine performances by the entire cast and is highly recommended.

Video  

The video on this release is visually appealing in more ways than one. Penelope Cruz looks sensational here as does the cinematography. The film features a natural color palette with bright and bold primary colors and deep blacks. Detail and background details are excellent as well, with the fine facial details in the actors’ faces, and in Ms. Cruz’ case, her physique, beautifully rendered. Clarity and depth of image are top notch as well. I was not able to detect any obvious evidence of the application of edge enhancement or digital noise reduction. In short, this is a great looking film that has been faithfully encoded to the Blu-ray format and looks exactly as it was meant to be by the director, which is how it should be.

Audio 

The quality of the audio reproduction on this release is very impressive as well. While the film is rather front heavy with only occasional use of the surrounds, the overall fidelity of the sound more than makes up for the shortcomings of the sound design in terms of immersion. The film features a rich and smooth sound with excellent transparency and imaging. While I wouldn’t call the sound design bombastic by any means, there are a few instances with rich, tight and dynamic bass. Just take a listen to the music track being played by the character Diego, at a local club where he is the DJ. The bass is deep and tight without even a hint of bloat.

Overall, the two brief scenes in the club offer the best sound in the film, with the most aggressive use of the surrounds to create a nice immersive sound experience. While I don’t speak much Spanish, the dialogue track features excellent fidelity as well and would be easy to follow were you fluent in Spanish. The overall musical score is also presented with excellent fidelity, with a smooth and natural sound with excellent transparency and depth. Other than the lack of an aggressive use of the surrounds, the audio on this release is top notch and very pleasing to the ears.

Special Features 

I can;t say that I was impressed with the extras included with this release. Unlike most releases, there is no making of featurette included. Also missing is the usual director’s commentary. The extras include some deleted scenes as well as a featurette “Pedro Directs Penelope” which consists of a split screen with the director coaching Penelope during one of the scenes of the film, in Spanish of course. Not exactly entertaining.

Also included is a brief featurette “On the Red Carpet: The New York Film Festival Closing Night” featuring interviews with Penelope Cruz and director Pedro Almodovar. Also included is a Variety Q & A with Penelope Cruz as well as an original film by Pedro Almodovar entitled “The Cannibalistic Councillor” which is an extended sequence of a scene that is featured in Broken Embraces.

None of the extras are presented in true HD. While some of the graphics are in HD, the actual video footage is widescreen standard definition. The release is BD-Live enabled but does not include a digital copy.

Final Thoughts 

Broken Embraces is a wonderful film that features a fine performance by Penelope Cruz and fine audio and video presentations. The film is well worth a look and is highly recommended.

Film

Kristin Scott Thomas plays Juliette Fontaine, who at the beginning of the film is released from prison after 15 years for the murder of her six year old son. Having nowhere to go and being incommunicado with her parents Juliette is taken in by her much younger sister Lea (Elsa Zylberstein). Juliette moves to a small university town to live with Lea and her husband, his mute father, and their two adopted children. Lea being much younger than Juliette recalls very little of her growing up, and would not be allowed to visit her (because of their parents shunning). The film revolves around Juliette’s reintegration into society and her relationships with people she meets, and the developing bond between her and her nieces much to the fear of their father. More importantly the film deals with Juliette and her attempts to relate to people and feel like a human again. While she seems cold to others, her internal struggle to reconcile with her mother and family seems to motivate her actions. In the end through a series of flashbacks and some detective work on Lea’s part we learn the truth surrounding the murder of Juliette’s son.

While I already had some high expectations of the film coming into the film, I’ve Loved you So Long had no problem meeting them, but did little to surpass them. Let me elaborate; the film really was enjoyable and even unique, but did little to raise the bar or go the extra mile over a typical dramatic film. The story itself went places I hadn’t anticipated it would, and was rather suspenseful at times. But the interactions themselves (between the characters) and the rate of progression wasn’t the best.  There were several moments (which I won’t divulge to avoid spoilers) that seemed to drag on, and add unnecessary complexity to the story. But really, other than a few minor complaints about the flow of the film and sometimes being to bleak the film was quite good.

The story was deep, and comes together beautifully in the end. Watching some of the relationships develop in the story was great and portrayed extremely commendably. Of course most notably by Kristin Scott Thomas who really did deserve her nomination, and perhaps even a win. You can really feel the torment and inner battle experienced by her character, all along knowing there is something more to the murder of her son.

Video

Presented in 1080p 1.85:1 aspect ratio and encoded in MPEG-4 I’ve Loved You So Long hits Blu-ray with some good but at times underwhelming results.  From the opening scenes you can tell that Sony put a lot of care into the films transfer.  The picture maintains a crisp amount of detail throughout the entire movie; with only a few shots looking soft and lacking detail.

The main problem I had with the transfer was the way the color was presented.  Instead of a realistic skin tones we were given a dull blue palette.  This could have been a filter added by the director but outdoor shots had a tendency to look overly vibrant.

The print is in perfect condition, with no artifacts or dirt on scene throughout the film. Nasty effects such as DNR or edge enhancement are also nonexistent, which shows Sony really did a good job with this transfer.

There is no denying that the Blu-ray offers a noticeable upgrade over the DVD version.  Besides the problems with the color presentation and the odd soft looking scene the presentation left me satisfied.

Audio

Sony has included both French and English 5.1 TrueHD tracks with this release and both do a great job presenting the given material.

Dialogue is presented clearly through the front channels and although bass is almost nonexistent the track does not come off tinny or echoed.  Balancing is also a non issue as the sound effects and music blend well with the dialogue.

For an independent drama it is hard to fault the given tracks for the reasons above.   For people who have already seen the movie on DVD or in theatre the added TrueHD tracks will not disappoint.

Special Features

• Deleted Scenes – We are given 7 deleted scenes with optional commentary by Director Philippe Claudel.   At about 5 minute’s total none of these scenes have any bearing on the story, however Kristin Scott Thomas has a few very well acted minutes of footage.

Final Thoughts

A great story of redemption, love, family, and rehabilitation, I’ve Loved you So Long truly is a gem worth watching. I feel this movie should have been more widely received and is a great addition to any collection, especially for those of you who love dramas, or foreign films. The acting is great all around, which is noticeably great in the fact that I couldn’t even understand the dialogue but felt the emphasis and power of the language.  Along with a great story and terrific performances I’ve Loved you So Long hits Blu-ray with a great video and audio transfer. The only downfall of this film’s release is the horrible selection of features. But regardless the film is worth purchasing for fans of the film, if you haven’t seen it I would recommend you do, but rent it before purchasing as it won’t be for everyone.

Lately many Hollywood films have either partially or completely drawn from foreign film, and can you really blame the Hollywood execs? My experience with foreign films has been nothing but positive, from German and Spanish all the way to Japanese and Chinese, with Chungking Express falling into the ladder category (Hong Kong to be more specific). With the odd exception, I have found myself craving some originality in the films I’ve been watching, hoping for some complexity and stylistic visuals. Everything I’ve heard about Chungking Express points in the positive direction, and fourteen years after its release I will finally get the chance to make that determination for myself.

Written and Directed by the innovative Kar Wai Wong (2046, Fallen Angels) Chungking Express is a pulsating look into what it means to be love struck. The film is actually told in two distinct narratives, one after another. The two stories mesh together nicely but other than a few character reoccurrences are completely unrelated, yet the narratives are coincident and ultimately akin.

The first story pertains too He Qiwu (Takesi Kaneshiro) also known as Cop 223, a Hong Kong police officer dealing with the aftermath of a painful breakup. May (Qiwu’s girlfriend) broke up with him on the first of April, and he decides to wait until his birthday on May 1^st for her to either come back to him, or he will have lost her forever. Interestingly enough, this is represented by him buying a can of Pineapples every day with the expiration date of May 1^st. The month passes by and May hasn’t returned and desperate to fall back into love Qiwu meets a mysterious woman in a blonde wig, who we learn has deep ties to the drug underworld. As their relationship plays out the characters are met with emotions, decisions, and the inevitability of life moving forward.  The story concludes without much resolution, which is only fitting and surprisingly sits well. With the introduction of Faye, a new staff member at a convenience store, the second story begins.

The second story concerns Cop 663 (Tony Leung) who is likewise having troubles moving on after a tough breakup. He soon after meets Faye at the convenience store, who ambiguously falls for him, made clear by her breaking into his apartment and redecorating things. Over time her antics begin to cheer Cop 663 up, to the point where her intentions become clear and he sets up a date with her. From here the two have to decide what is really important for them in life, and where their relationship really stands. This story ends with slightly more closure, but only in implication.

I have to say that I was extremely impressed with this film, Wong’s visionary look into the heart, had some really intense and savoury visually experiences. The cinematography was really astonishing to me; the film is carefully distorted giving it a dizzying, almost hallucinatory effect, which is perfect for film noir.

The story has a feeling of sincerity to it, and a dose of reality; two men dealing with incomplete love and the need for closure. What really appealed to me was the sincerity and emotion; these aren’t over the top love stories, just everyday people dealing with the hardships of love or lack thereof. Adding to my likeability is that things never get too heavy; there are appropriate amounts of humour in just the right places. To compliment the deep storylines is an extremely strong soundtrack which really runs on its own, and deserves an honourable mention.

In the end I was very pleased with this film; it is very invigorating and representative of love in modern life.  The blend of humour and representation of the desire in our hearts controlling our actions is extremely compelling to viewers who can appreciate a film that actually has a story and isn’t effect or gimmick driven.  On top of it all the cast was perfectly put together and all do extremely convincing jobs in their unique roles. Easily a must see movie for fans of the genre, and those looking to branch their tastes, I don’t know why it took me over a decade to check this one out, but at least now I can fully appreciate it.

Video

Chungking Express is beautifully presented in 1080p 1.66:1 aspect ratio.  The transfer was supervised by director Wong Kar-Wai himself and he succeeds in giving the film a realistic look.  The color palette used looks very realistic while maintaining a sharp and vibrant with no visible bleeding.  Detail is surprisingly crisp and clear, with subtle detail like hair and wrinkles clearly visible; Brigitte Lin and Tony Wai both look great in HD.

I was extremely pleased to see the print free of any issues like edge enhancement or compression artifacts.  Some might knock the lack of 3D-pop, but when you have perfect looking color and detail, it is hard to complain.  Fans of the film should pick this one up for the upgrade in picture quality alone, kudos to Criterion.

Audio

Presented in 5.1 DTS-HD Cantonese Chungking Express comes to Blu-ray with some great sounding results.  The front channels release crisp and clear sound, never sounding muffled or out of balance. Rear and sub support are equally impressive, enhancing the dialogue with realistic and engaging ambient noise.

Compared to the DVD copy the Blu-ray version offers a big improvement in the sound department.

Special Features

We are given a handful of some.  The interview piece is extremely interesting; unfortunately it is presented in standard definition.

• Collectors Booklet — A 14 page essay by critic Amy Taubin which discusses the themes found throughout the movie.

• Audio Commentary – An audio commentary with Asian cinema critic Tony Rayns.

• Interviews – An interview with director Wong Kar-Wai and cinematographer Christopher Doyale.  The 12 minute interview is a must watch as it provides some insight into the films creation.

• U.S. theatrical trailer

Final Thoughts

Chungking Express is a film about the sadder side of love, and without the traditional Hollywood ending. The film is unique in all ways, shapes, and forms. The story plays out without the clichés of a Hollywood film, and ends appropriately with you wanting more, but having seen enough (if that makes sense). All elements of this film play off each other beautifully, the acting is inspiring, the direction is nonpareil, and the strong soundtrack could almost tell the stories itself. I recommend the movie itself to any fans of foreign, romance (or even romantic comedies), and dramatic films, which is sure to leave a lasting impression. The Blu ray is easily recommendable as a purchase; Criterion has truly run with this one, producing an extremely impressive picture along with superb audio and a decent batch of features. A must buy for fans of the movie, and a great overall release.

The interesting thing about reviewing movies is that at any given time you can be handed a movie that is just so out of your usual realm of movie watching. That is what I like about reviewing movies. You get to experience so many different genres than the typical mainstream flick. So, when the time came to review Persepolis, I knew this would be one of those times. However, could my mainstream mind handle the change?

Persepolis focuses on Marjane; a young Iranian girl who bears witness to the changes made in the late 70’s during the Islamic Revolution and follows her life from the age of nine to her mid-twenties. After the fall of the Shah, her family was convinced that things would now be different. A democracy was finally on the horizon, but it was not to be. The death toll of the population had risen, family members killed for no other reason than wanting their freedom. The Islamic fundamentalists took over Iran and have placed new rules. Women are to be covered completed. They are also not to socialize with men. The times were changing and not for the better.

Not one for following the rules, Marjane spoke her mind to anyone who would listen. With bombs falling on Iran from Iraq as well as Marjane’s attitude regarding the new regime, her parents decide it is best that she go to school in Austria.

After not fitting in at the nunnery she was living at while attending school, Marjane is kicked out and is forced to live on her own, trying to find a place to stay. Although she is able to find friends, she just can’t find happiness. She doesn’t want to have to lie about who she is to people who can’t appreciate her for who she is. Marjane wants nothing more than to find happiness and maybe even someone to love. However, to do that she feels the need to go back home, regardless of its shortcomings.

Upon arriving home, Marjane sees that nothing has changed, in fact things are much worse.

I didn’t know much about Iran in the 70’s and how it came to be what it is today. I only knew what I saw on the television, read in newspapers or on the internet. Of course, this is one person’s perspective and is subject for debate. I am thankful that I live in country that allows me to do as I please, within the law, and that I don’t have to fear doing it. I can listen to what I want, spend time with whom I choose and watch what I want.

Video

I have seen quite a few good transfers here on Blu Ray and Persepolis puts most of them to shame. The 1080P High definition transfer, shot in 1.85:1, comes just about as clean as can be. The film, which is in black and white, really has no flaws. Every detail is exceptional and I spotted not one thing wrong with this picture. The print is pristine.

Blacks were perfect, the whites were wonderful. It was a pleasure to view. I didn’t know what to except from a black and white animated film. The drawing of the characters and the detail that went into making them perfect really paid off. All of the imagery for the film was hand drawn and it is really just mind blowing as to how good this looks.

Audio

Presented in both English and French 5.1 True HD, the soundtrack is very decent. I decided to listen to the film in English instead of the original French language. Given the black and white of the film, reading the subtitles I felt would be difficult. What I did watch of the film with English subtitles and the French soundtrack, the translation was not perfect. Of course, that is pretty much to be expected.

English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.

Surrounds did present themselves but it was fairly low key to my ears. Mind you, that isn’t a bad thing for this type of film. It really was a nice pleasant audio experience, it just didn’t blow me away.

Special Features

The Hidden Side of Persepolis

• Here is where you can see how the characters were created by the artists that created them. Experience the thought process and the amount of time it took to draw each and every image by hand.

Behind The Scenes

• This focuses on the people who voiced the characters for the film.

Cannes Film Festival Press Conference

• Basic Q&A session with the creators of the film.

Selected Scenes Commentary

Animated Scene Comparisons with commentary by Marjane Satrapi

Final Thoughts

I had to watch the film twice to really get a grip on what it was I was watching. The second time around, I was able to understand more and have a better appreciation for what I was being told. I can understand why some would not agree with the making of this film because they have specific beliefs and choose to live them the way they are told. Of course, others have the freedom to feel the opposite.

If you are looking for a change from the normal, mainstream movie viewing, then Persepolis is for you. With a wonderful picture and incredibly interesting story, this is an easy film to recommend.

It was back in 1999 when I first saw Run Lola Run. I remember exactly where I rented it, what city I was in and who I watched it with. I read about the film online and when the opportunity came about to rent it, I jumped at the chance. One of my main reasons for wanting to rent it was because my companion was in fact German and from Germany and I knew she would enjoy watching a movie in her native language. Little did I know before watching Lola, it would become one of my all time favorite movies.

The movie quickly kicks off with Lola (Franke Potente) answering a phone call from her boyfriend Manni (Moritz Bleibtreu) who is in a phone booth in downtown Berlin. Distraught and scared, Manni questions Lola as to why she wasn?t there. She explains that she tried to be there for him but her moped was stolen and by the time she was able to get a cab and pick him up, he had already gone. Manni explains that due to her not coming for him, he is in serious trouble.

You see, Manni works for a German mob guy named Ronnie (Heino Ferch). Ronnie assigned Manni to a job and when finished, he was to deliver his money to him by 12:00pm. The problems for Manni all started when the job was completed. Manni, tired of waiting for Lola to pick him up, decided to take the subway. While on the subway, a bum (Norbert von Au) falls in front of him and as Manni helps him back to his feet, two police inspectors on patrol step onto the subway car, spooking Manni, causing him to quickly exit the train. As he begins to walk away from the train, he realizes his huge mistake; he left the bag of money on the train. As he tries to get back on, the inspectors grab him for questioning. The bag of money, sitting on the subway seat, is spotted by the bum, who looks inside at the fortune that awaits him.

Now, with the clock ticking, Manni has 20 minutes to get 100,000 Deutsche Marks or else Ronnie is going to kill him. Lola, trying to stay calm, tells him not to worry, that she will think of something and get the 100,000 and save him. Manni warns her, that if she does not get to him in 20 minutes with the 100,000, he will get the money himself and rob the grocery store across the street from him.

Now, it is all on Lola. In her journey to help Manni, what she does will forever affect herself, Manni and everyone else she comes in contact with. She has 20 minutes to save his life. It is now time to run, Run Lola Run.

Video

The 1.85:1 transfer on Run Lola Run is definitely hit and miss. As intended by the director, and noted within the director commentary, he used different styles of aesthetics. He used black and white (used for flashbacks), video (when Lola and Manni are not in the scenes) and 35mm (when they are present.)

So, given the three different aspects, you are going to have 3 different types of quality. The 35mm shots were very good, but not without their flaws. You could see some bleeding coming from Lola?s bright red hair but also at times, the brightness of her hair shines perfectly. On some of the close up shots on certain objects, such as the downtown clock, the grain is very apparent. I did notice some white specs as well in several scenes.
Skin tones were next to perfect.

Now, as for the black and white shots, grain is definitely apparent, but not to the point where it is distracting. I really felt that given what he said in the commentary, this was his intention.

The worst is the video shots. Very blurry, wavy and just down right, awful. At times it is like watching an over watched VHS tape. One scene that stands out as truly awful is an accident scene where you can clearly make out a large amount of moir?.

If I am purely grading this on high definition standards with all 3 of the film types included, I would say it is slightly above average but in no way is it reference material.

Audio

To say that the audio was good on this movie would be an understatement. You have 4 choices (German and English 5.1 True HD or Spanish and Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital.) I chose to watch it with the German 5.1 and English subtitles, which really is the only way to watch it, unless you know the movie so well you don?t need subtitles (which I could have done.)

The bass is used very well and the surrounds definitely get a nice workout given the techno soundtrack. Cranking the audio up on this disc will sure rumble your seat.

As far as subtitles go, aside from English and English SDH, Spanish, French and Portuguese are also available.

Special Features

• Commentary with director Tom Tykwer and Franke Potente – This is a really good listen. They both really give some good insight to the film and work well together. You really can find out all you needed to know about the filming of the movie by giving this a listen.
• Still Running – This is a new feature not on the original DVD. Franke Potente and Tom Tykwer talk about how the movie was filmed and explanations for certain scenes in the movie. If you were to listen to the commentary, all of this is pretty much covered. One thing I would keep an eye out for in this extra is when Franke talks about the storyboards. Very funny.
• ?Believe? Music Video – Music video of Franke Potente?s song from the movie.

Final Thoughts

Without a doubt, Run Lola Run is different from any other movie you may see. I have seen the movie at least 40 times or more. It has really held up well over the past ten years and given it popularity among DVD collectors; a Blu-ray purchase should be easy for them. This is one of the films I recommend to just about everyone if they are looking for a change from the norm. A definite must own.

Let me first say that I love Godzilla and I love monster movies. The Host is a South Korean film that has received much critical acclaim for the return of the giant monster. With many comparisons to both the Godzilla movies and Jaws, to say that I was looking forward to watching this would be an understatement. Yet, when all was said and done, I was left, like the monster, a little cold. Maybe I had just bought into the hype a little too much.

The Host, with its success in Korea, and limited success in the US, has set the bar much higher for Korean cinema in terms of ticket sales and dollars earned. Korean cinema has become more popular over the past several years and will likely continue to move in that direction if The Host is any indication.

Synopsis:

Part TV family sitcom, part giant creature horror-fest, The Host tells the story of a wacky dysfunctional Korean family and their fight to survive and stick together during a giant monster attack. What begins with silly family antics straight out of The Simpsons, quickly turns to real tragedy and loss. The cast of characters is thin and built on one-note. There is the doting grandfather, the imbecilic father, the drunken brother, the semi-successful sister, and the overly-intelligent/obnoxious daughter. It is the daughter’s kidnapping by the monster that pulls the family together despite all odds to try to save her. The creature itself looks like a CGI Sid and Marty Kroft character gone wrong, but it looks decent enough considering the likely low budget. There were some genuine thrills and some downright funny moments, but as I mentioned, I was hoping for more.

Unfortunately, throughout the struggles, little redemption is found for the characters, and some don’t even make it through the day. I guess that’s my beef with this movie. Is it horror, or is it comedy? I think what often makes a good horror movie is a good dose of dark comedy, but The Host just can’t balance it. I found it jumping from one extreme to the other, disregarding the characters let alone the audience. But maybe I’m being a bit harsh. It wasn’t a bad movie per-se, and has garnered some great reviews, but it wasn’t enough for this monster movie fan.

Video:

The Host arrives on BD via a 1080p/VC-1 encode. Like the film, I had somewhat mixed feelings about the transfer. While there were a few knockout shots (see the close-up of a girl at the beach near the beginning of the movie), I just didn’t feel the transfer was consistent. While much of the film is covered with a light grain (likely intentional), it seemed this verged into a heavier grain/possibly noise (likely unintentional) in spots. The overall result was an adequate presentation that, also like the movie, didn’t thrill me.

Audio:

Maybe I’ve been bashing a bit so far, but I won’t in the audio department. The PCM 5.1 track is a killer (pun intended). Prepare to be immersed in the sound-scape. This is demo material here, and anyone who questions the validity of a lossless track vs. Dolby Digital can compare the two here and find the PCM track significantly stronger. It really packs a wallop. This is how all track should sound in horror films, crisp, clean, and powerful at just the right times. As far as the dub, yes, you can watch it in English, but no, you shouldn’t.

Special Features:

Here’s a bone to pick. Why are high-def discs often left with less special features than their SD counterparts? I’m all about using the extra space on the disc for superior audio and video, but why not, like the SD version, include a second disc of extras? Anyhoo..Here’s what we get:

• The Making of the Host
• The Creature
• The Cast
• Deleted Scenes
• Gag Reel
• Commentary with director Bong Joon-Ho
• Korean Trailer

All features are presented in SD (why not include the rest of the SD features?) and are pretty self-explanatory. Worth watching are the Making of the Host and the commentary is worth the time for fans.

Final Thoughts:

Despite my review, I didn’t hate The Host, I just didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as I thought I would. That’s not to say it isn’t worth a rent, but I’d advise doing so before blindly buying (as I did). Audiophiles and fans will be more than pleased. I’ll be heading back to my newly released/remastered Gojira, thank you very much!

I am a huge fan of foreign cinema. It gives me a chance to enjoy unique and unconventional films without the predictability and overly optimistic Hollywood undertones. So it goes without saying that anytime I get the opportunity to observe foreign film I welcome it with open arms. Already being a huge fan of Chinese cinema I hope Curse of the Golden Flower can hold up to what I’ve come to expect from past viewings

Curse of the Golden Flower is a fictitious story told in 10th century China where the ambitious Emperor Ping (Chow Yun-Fat, Hard Boiled) has abandoned his first wife to obtain the hand of a Princess later referred to as Empress Phoenix. That’s about as simple as it gets, because things start to get really confusing, encouraging a second viewing. Nevertheless, Ping has no affection for his new wife and gives her n medicine every few hours to keep her in check. But while the story develops we discover the Empress is sleeping with Ping’s son, and learns that she is being poisoned by her husband and the Imperial Doctor. This leads to her leading a rebellion which tears the family apart and tests the loyalty of the Emperor’s two sons as well as others close to him. If you get past the first while which can be extremely over indulging, the story develops into something rather interesting tied in with some nice action scenes.

Normally I’m all for complex characters and expansive storylines, but something seemed to be missing in Curse of the Golden Flower that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Ultimately I felt that the movie was just too slow, focusing too much on unessential aspects of the Ancient Chinese lifestyle, and less on building up the conflicts. But my problems with the films execution didn’t overshadow the brilliance of the filmmakers, Curse of the Golden Flower had amazing character development and some tantalizing martial arts sequences. You can really tell this film wasn’t the workings of Hollywood; things had a way of feeling real, and even Shakespearean. On a completely separate note I have to applaud Chow Yun-Fat for another superb performance, completely selling his role and adding to the depth of the character and movie. But while I didn’t find the film overly interesting, I can still really appreciate the amazing execution of the character development and in-depth storytelling, Cure of the Golden Flower is a true testament to the ever evolving Chinese cinema.

Video

Presented in a 1080p 2.35:1 aspect ratio and encoded in MPEG4, Curse of the Golden Flower nearly has the look of perfection, the interior shots early on in the film look amazing. Almost every color you can think of is shown here and they all look extremely vibrant and crisp. The costume design looks terrific in high definition, sporting both excellent detail and color.

But as good as this transfer looked, there is as always a few negative points worth mentioning. The first thing that comes to mind is the extreme softness in several scenes; more specifically within the poor lighting conditions. And despite the colors looking amazing, the blacks frequently had a tendency of looking washed out. Problems aside this is one of the most colorful looking films I have seen in high definition, not only does it render these colors perfectly, it combines them with exceptional detail to create an almost perfect transfer.

Audio

Sony has included a pair of tracks for this release, a PCM 5.1 Chinese track which sounds the best, or a less highly recommended Dolby Digital 5.1 English dub version. For me the highlight of the track lies within the action sequences scattered throughout the film, be it one on one sword fights or massive battles everything sounds so much better in PCM. For instance whenever arrows were shot they had a tremendous field of depth, traveling from front to rear channels seamlessly with impressive results. In addition to the frequent use of all channels, the dialogue from the front channels sounded crisp and meshed extremely well with a great sounding soundtrack. Once again Sony has provided a pair of excellent sounding audio tracks; this is the best the film will likely sound for a long time to come, easily pleasing fans.

Special Features

A very disappointing lack of features, but at least the Secrets Within featurette is worth some attention, making up for the otherwise lackluster special features.

• Secrets Within: Making of Featurette – A 23 minute look into all aspects Cure of the Golden Flower. Includes interviews with the filmmakers and cast regarding pre production, filming, costume design, etc a pretty interesting look behind the scenes, sure to please fans of the film.
• Los Angeles Premiere – 2 minutes of footage from the Los Angeles premiere of the film, includes a red carpet interview with director Zhang Yimou.

Final Thoughts

The film itself was a bit slow but I appreciated its complexities, just don’t expect to walk into a Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon type martial arts film. Instead get ready to use your mind a bit and enjoy a brilliant sounding audio track combined with an equally impressive video transfer. If it weren’t for the dismal special features section this disc would be a must buy for fans, but even so I’d recommend the purchase for fans. Otherwise rent this one first, because it’s not for everyone.

Special Features List

• Secrets Within: Making of Featurette
• Los Angeles Premiere

For those unfamiliar with Clint Eastwood’s recent massive undertaking, Letters from Iwo Jima is the companion film to Flags of our Fathers (see my previous review). What Eastwood has done is taken two different perspectives on the same battle: one from the soldiers responsible for raising the famous flag on Mt Suribachi, the other from the Japanese soldiers as they prepare and enter the battle themselves. Letters is the latter and possibly stronger film of the two.

As Clint Eastwood was developing what would become Flags of our Fathers he read a book containing Japanese letters written to friends and families during a war. These letters had been found on a battlefield (not Iwo Jima) years later and expressed the soldiers? innermost thoughts during the battle. Eastwood decided that such a concept could be used as a second film surrounding the events of Iwo Jima. The idea was that while Americans are given hope that they will return home after the brave fight, the Japanese soldiers were never given such hope. In fact, when drafted, they were pretty much expected to die in battle for their country. This concept is presented masterfully in Letters as a semi-fictional dramatization of life and death during the war. This perfectly compliments the more historical documentary style of Flags, in which the American soldiers are looking back after the war.

The story is centered on General Kuribayashi (Ken Wantanabe), leader of the small group of soldiers defending the island, and Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya), a simple baker who desires to return to his wife and newborn. It is interesting to see how different these two characters are, yet because of their honor, dignity, and love of their families, they are the same. Kuribayashi treats the inferior soldier Saigo with respect initially, and Saigo can later do the same for Kuribayashi. During the course of the film, as the title implies, the two men are writing letters to their families and remembering their lives as they once were.

Video

I found the VC-1 of this Blue-Ray disc to be simply stunning. While it does not have the cleanest picture I have ever seen, due to the light grain and muted colors used, the level of detail and the depths of the blacks against grays are excellent. Aside from some outdoor shots (which also look great) only muted blues and greens peek out of the caves and much of the battlefield. This makes for an interesting contrast with the bright oranges and reds of the explosions. A nice balance of realism and artistry presented in 2.35:1 widescreen format.

Audio

Thank you Warner Bros! We finally get a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track on BD and it?s a winner. Dialog is clear, albeit in Japanese only (no English dub), and the surround mix is far better than that of Flags (which was done by Paramount, not WB). Explosions are plenty bass heavy with good use of LFE. Sounds of firing guns put you in the middle of the action. The orchestrated score is effective and sets the mood nicely. Audio also comes in Dolby Digital 5.1 also Japanese only. Subtitles available in English, French, and Spanish. All in all a great audio presentation.

Special Features

Paramount gave us a pretty decent 2nd disc of high-def extras with Flags, but Warner Bros gives us only a few skimpy extras. (personally I?ll take the TrueHD track over the extras though). We get a photo montage, and a press conference, both of which are far from essential, and two featurettes. The featurettes are both worth watching. One is Red Sun, Black Sand which has Eastwood discussing making the movie and his thoughts and inspirations. The second is The Faces of Combat where various actors discuss their roles. They are both insightful and adequate as bonus features go, but a commentary track really should have been included.

Final Thoughts

Clint Eastwood?s vision is clear and well realized in Letters from Iwo Jima. While some may be turned off by the use of Japanese dialog only, they shouldn?t be. This is an excellent film and an excellent BD. Even if Flags wasn?t your thing, this is a very different film and you may find much to appreciate.

Special Features List

• Red Sun, Black Sand
• The Faces of Combat
• Photo/Audio Montage
• Press Conference