Note: This review is for a screener sent to me by Shout! Factory. "Woochi: The Demon Slayer" hits DVD & Blu-ray on Tuesday, April 9th wherever discs are sold!
MOVIE REVIEW: I am a sucker for Asian cinema, so I was super excited to check out WOOCHI: THE DEMON SLAYER when it arrived in my mailbox a few weeks back! The film is based upon the Korean folktale of Jeon Woochi, a Taoist wizard that is crazy about the ladies and likes to pull tricks on the aristocracy. (He's kind of like Korea's version of Wong Fei-hung.)
After coming across a magical flute that holds the key to defeating a race of goblins, Woochi is framed for the murder of his master and imprisoned within a scroll for 500 years. Eventually Woochi and his human/hound sidekick Chorangyi, are released from their parchment prisons when a "rat goblin" and a "bunny goblin" appear in modern Korea. (Though they sound kind of ridiculous, both CGI monsters actually look pretty cool!)
Though he's freed in order to help capture the monsters, Woochi is more interested in wooing the possible reincarnation of an old flame from centuries ago, and is also enjoying the finer things in modern society. Will he pull himself together and become the hero he needs to be in order to defeat the goblin menace and an old enemy from his past? Well, I suppose it'd be a much shorter movie if he didn't...
WOOCHI: THE DEMON SLAYER is one of South Korea's biggest blockbusters, and offers up some impressive CGI, especially considering that budget for the film was only twelve million dollars or so. The story is interesting, and there are some really fun moments in this movie. (e.g.Woochi "cloning" himself with the aid of his Taoist "amulets," in order to fight two goblins, is probably my favorite sequence in the movie.) However, this film is just way too long and has a really uneven pace.
Every time you think that it's building towards a big battle between Woochi and his foes, the movie kind of fizzles out; it really takes it sweet time in moving things along and lacks any real tension. There's no moment in the film that warrants an "Oh no, he won't succeed and he is sure to die! C'mon Woochi, you can do it!" reaction. It's like the heroes and villains were in no rush to see things through, even during the end when Woochi has his climactic wizard battle against the man who framed him 500 years ago.
And that's my main gripe with WOOCHI because everything else in the film works fairly well. It's an action/fantasy/comedy that contains all of the necessary ingredients of each genre (there are some great stunts and the comedic moments typically hit their mark), but what it really lacks is a "race against time" element to move things along at a brisk pace. Despite that, the film is pretty decent, though there were times I was left scratching my head because I'm not too familiar with the legend of Jeon Woochi. Maybe if I had read the Woochi folktale prior to watching this, or was at least a bit familiar with Taoism (guess it's time to hit Wikipedia), I'd probably have a better comprehension of some of the film's stranger moments. (WHY DO THE WOOCHI CLONES TURN INTO BROOMS WHEN DEFEATED?!)
I wasn't totally impressed with WOOCHI: THE DEMON SLAYER (which is a misleading title because he doesn't slay a single demon over the course of the film), but I had fun watching the special effects and Woochi's interactions with his goofy sidekick. Along with a great soundtrack, and inventive wire-stunts, I enjoyed WOOCHI enough to grant it:
THREE 'RADS'
BLU-RAY REVIEW
The Packaging: The Blu-ray cover (seen above) is generic and a bit misleading (due in part to the flying ninjas in the background) and comes in a standard Blu-ray case with a cardboard slipcover. Actually.. after looking at the original movie posters for the film, the Blu-ray cover is a definite improvement.
Audio & Video: WOOCHI: THE DEMON SLAYER looks great in its 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen HD transfer, particularly since its a recent movie. The disc comes with four audio choices: Korean DTS-HD 5.1, English Dubbed DTS-HD 5.1, Korean Dolby Digital 5.1, an English Dubbed Dolby Digital 5.1. I switched back and forth between the Korean and English DTS-HD audio options, and the dialogue, sound effects, and music all sound great!
My only complaints are minor ones really: While watching the film in its native language, there were a few moments where the subtitles moved a bit too fast. Also, the English dubbed version is atrocious; but then again, I've never been a big fan of dubbed foreign films. (With the exception of Toho's kaiju flicks.)
The Extras: Holy cow! This disc is packed with special features which include: The original theatrical trailer, thirteen minutes of deleted scenes, a "making-of" featurette, the "Newest Korean Style Hero Movie" featurette, cast and director interviews, six production featurettes that cover everything from the training of the film's stars to the lighting and shooting of key scenes, "The Magic of CGI" featurette, and four more featurettes focusing on the CGI effects in the film! The huge amount of behind the scenes material gives you a really comprehensive look at the making of WOOCHI and I'm pretty surprised this much love was given to this movie. The only downside is that all the extras are in standard definition.
Final Ruling: WOOCHI: THE DEMON SLAYER is an OK movie with an above average Blu-ray release. The audio and video presentation is top notch, and the disc is packed to the gills with extras covering every aspect of the film's creation. If you're a fan of Asian cinema, and/or like to get an in-depth look at how films are made, then this Blu-ray disc is worth picking up. I hereby give Shout! Factory's WOOCHI Blu-ray:
FOUR 'RADS'
WOOCHI: THE DEMON SLAYER comes to DVD & Blu-ray on Tuesday, April 9th! If it sounds like something that's up your alley, pre-order it now from Amazon.com:
In anticipation of the new Clash of the Titans (in theaters now!), I sat down and watched the 1981 original, and waxed nostalgic about Ray Harryhausen's still fairly impressive stop-motion effects in that film. Then I began to fondly recall all of the other mythological and prehistoric beasts that he's brought to life and thought, hey, I should do a quick top ten list to celebrate my favorite Harryhausen creations! But doing something like this is more fun when you include a friend, so I invited Bill Adcock from Radiation-Scarred Reviews to join me in my mini quest to honor a true special effects pioneer, and all around awesome guy.
Now, choosing ten creatures, aliens, monsters, and/or dinosaurs from Harryhausen's impressive filmography was not an easy task, and I found myself really hard-pressed to limit my choices. So before I kick things off, here are some honorable mentions that didn't make the final cut:
THE MINOTON - A golden, mechanical Minotaur that was created by the evil Queen Zenobia to be her "hired muscle" in Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger. The poor Minoton does not get to do a whole helluva lot, and ends up getting crushed by a huge stone while serving his creator.
THE DRAGON - Though it defeated the mighty Cyclops in battle, this four-legged, fire-breathing menace from 7th Voyage of Sinbad has since been forever eclipsed by his one-eyed opponent. While the dragon's design is nothing new, Harryhausen's work on this mythical beast is nothing short of fantastic!
THE KRAKEN - Oh yeah, I can hear the complaints now. "The Kraken didn't make it into your top ten? Are you serious?!" Sorry gang, I really enjoy seeing this big boy make his grand entrance in Clash of the Titans, but a huge favorite of mine he is not.
KALI - Egads! Another one that should have made my list, but didn't! This multi-armed menace from Golden Voyage of Sinbad gives the heroic sailor and his crew a lot of trouble, and their battle is one of the greatest sword fights ever rendered on film!
THE YMIR - Yes, he didn't make the list either, though he originally was going to. This has to be the most tragic creature in Harryhausen's filmography, as it comes to Earth only to be poked, prodded, and attacked by just about everyone it encounters, until it eventually flips out and has to be put down. Poor Ymir, we hardly knew ye.
So if those are just the honorable mentions, then what fantastical creatures and beings made the final cut? Well let's take a look!
10. The Flying Saucers Movie of Origin:Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956) Factoid: Tim Burton mimicked the design of Harryhausen's saucers in 1996's sci-fi comedy, Mars Attacks!
In the 1950s, alien invasion films were a dime a dozen. This era in sci-fi film making resulted in numerous classics like The Thing From Another World, War of the Worlds, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and Japanese epics, such as The Mysterians, and The Battle in Outer Space. One of my absolute favorites from this time period though is Earth vs. the Flying Saucers, which featured some of the coolest flying saucers ever put on film! The most impressive thing about the alien ships in the film is that they are in constant movement. (Oddly enough the aliens themselves, realized by men in goofy costumes, are far less interesting than their ships!)
These aren't hubcaps or pie tins on fishing line, these are mechanical harbingers of death that rotate in the air and deliver mass genocide with their satellite dish death-rays! While the destruction caused by the aliens' death rays is impressive, the real showstopper is the climax where the alien ships begin to fall out of the air when humanity rallies against them with a secret weapon. Seeing saucers crash into the Capitol Building and the Washington Monument is more than worth the price of admission, and easily earns the film's flying death machines the number ten spot on this list!
9. The Rhedosaurus Movie of Origin:The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953) Factoid: This movie was based off of a Ray Bradbury short story entitled "The Fog Horn."
When you think of atomic monsters, Godzilla is usually the first cinematic beastie that comes to mind. However, the Big-G and other gigantic atom-age monsters owe a lot of their existence (and success) to the star of 1953's The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms! A (fictional) species of dinosaur known as a Rhedosaurus is awakened from suspended animation after an atomic bomb is tested in the Arctic Circle. Eventually the mighty reptile makes its way to civilization, and throws a prehistoric tantrum when it realizes that us puny humans are now the dominant species on Earth. The dinosaur's rampage finally comes to end at Coney Island, after scientists blast the creature with a gun that fires a special "radioactive isotope."
The Rhedosaurus is one of the first giant monsters from Earth's past to terrorize modern man, following in the footsteps of its forefathers: the totally pissed off Brontosaurus from the original (silent) The Lost World and the immortally beloved giant ape King Kong. The Rhedosaurus was one of Harryhausen's first creations and though it lacked the personality of some of the other creatures he brought to life, it still gets big points for being a huge inspiration to the original creators of Godzilla!
Let that sink in for a minute: Had Ray Harryhausen never created the Rhedosaurus, we may never have had Godzilla! What a frightening idea.....
8.The Giant Octopus Movie of Origin:IT Came from Beneath the Sea (1955) Factoid: To save money, Ray Harryhausen only gave the aquatic horror from this film six appendages instead of eight.
One of the earliest memories I have from my childhood is watching all sorts of awesome classic creature features during TNT's Summer "Monster Vision" marathons, way before Joe Bob Briggs arrived on the scene with his drive-in totals and awesomely busty mail girl, Honey. It Came From Beneath the Sea was one of the usual suspects, and I loved to watch Harryhausen's "hex-topus" trash San Francisco and violently slap fleeing citizens into the pavement with its mighty tentacles. For the uninitiated, IT is a classic tale of nature running amok, due to mankind's careless attempts to further scientific knowledge.
Atomic bomb tests at sea have polluted the food source of a giant cephalopod, and have chased the creature from its territorial waters. Now angry as hell, with a massive hunger to boot, the tentacled terror begins pulling ships beneath the sea and eventually besieges San Francisco, where it wrecks the Golden Gate Bridge! After its daring attack, the Kraken-sized octopus slumbers in San Francisco Bay where it is killed by a specially designed torpedo. IT features some of Harryhausen's best work, which belies the limited budget he had, and has some amazing scenes of death and destruction.
Decades later, film makers still have yet to create a giant octopus film that comes close to this Harryhausen epic with all their fancy CGI technology. (Ok, I'll admit that I found Deep Rising enjoyable, but seriously name me ONE other giant octopus flick that is even remotely in the same league.) Sorry foolish mortals, but you cannot outdo "The Harryhausen" with your soulless machines! Mwahahahaha!
7. Medusa Movie of Origin:Clash of the Titans (1981) Factoid:Clash of the Titans was the last film that Ray Harryhausen and Charles H. Schneer worked on.
Seeing as how the idea for this top ten list was inspired by the remake of Clash of the Titans, you knew that something from the 1981 flick was going to pop up here. Out of all the mythological beasts from the epic original, none impressed me more than Medusa. With her constantly writhing head full o' snakes, her scaly reptilian boobs, rattlesnake tail, and deadly bow & arrow, she was a real terror to behold! Having watched the original recently, I found it to be a bit long and dull in some parts, and though there are all sorts of beasts in this film (a giant Vulture, Pegasus, Calibos, giant scorpions, the Kraken, et al.), Medusa's portion of the film stands out as the most interesting and atmospheric of the bunch. Medusa is one cold, calculated witch, and proves to be the most menacing monster in the film!
6. Talos Movie of Origin:Jason and the Argonauts (1966) Factoid: Talos' design was inspired by Sergio Leone's "The Colossus of Rhodes."
Jason and the Argonauts is probably my all-time favorite Harryhausen flick and boasts one of his most famous and memorable creations: The bronze giant known as Talos. This colossus resides on Crete and is, at first sight, completely harmless. But all that changes when a greedy asshole version of Hercules decides to steal some treasures from the pedestal that Talos is resting on. Said treasures belong to the Greek gods, and as soon as Herc grabs a few items, the mighty Talos awakens and chases after the would-be thief and his shipmates. Jason and his crew quickly set sail in the Argo, but are unable to escape in time as Talos blocks their only route and shakes their legendary boat to pieces. With nowhere to run, Jason and his brave men battle and defeat Talos after discovering its (literal) "Achilles Heel," rebuild their ship, and head back on course for the legendary "Golden Fleece!"
Talos is remarkable to watch, but believe it or not, good ole Ray Harryhausen manages to deliver far more impressive stop-motion monstrosities as this film goes on. You'll be seeing some of them further along, so keep reading!
5. Gwangi Movie of Origin:The Valley of Gwangi (1969) Factoid: "Gwangi" is a Native American word for "lizard."
Dinosaurs and cowboys make for a pretty good combo in Valley of Gwangi, which succeeds where its predecessor Beast of Hollow Mountain miserably failed. Gwangi is a total blast and features a variety of cool creatures, ranging from the adorable Eohippus, to the mighty and vengeful T-Rex. The movie starts off a bit slow, but really picks up once a group of cowboys discovers a hidden valley, blows open the entrance with dynamite, and blindly charges into a prehistoric landscape full of dinosaurs. The biggest and baddest of the thought-to-be-extinct denizens is a T-Rex (or is he an Allosaurus?) named Gwangi, and they manage to capture the ornery carnivore in one of the most astonishing moments in Harryhausen history. (The famous "Roping of Gwangi" sequence!) They bring the dinosaur back to civilization to be put on display, but Gwangi breaks free (of course!) and goes on a rampage until incinerated within the confines of a church.
Cripes! When will people learn that showcasing a giant creature for profit is just a plain old bad idea?!
4. Mighty Joe Young Movie of Origin:Mighty Joe Young (1949) Factoid: Though Willis O'Brien gets top-billing for the effects, Ray Harryhausen did nearly all the stop-motion effects in this film!
With the success of King Kong it wasn't too surprising that other giant ape films would follow. Mighty Joe Young differs from most of those though, because this isn't the usual story of a creature kidnapped from its home and exploited for money. (Though that naturally does happen when Joe is put on display at a nightclub, where he plays tug-of-war with a group of circus strongmen.) Joe is brought over from Africa, willingly enough, by a woman named Jill Young who raised the gorilla since it was a baby. He proves to be quite docile, until one night when a trio of drunks abuse the poor ape, causing it to go well... apeshit!
Joe trashes the nightclub, and fights a pack of lions (what club keeps real lions on display?!) until Jill finally arrives to calm him down. Seeing as how Joe could very well be a menace to society, an order is given to have him "put down." Jill tries to sneak him back to Africa with a little help from some friends, but the plan gets botched and soon Joe is on the loose in L.A.! Luckily, Joe comes across a flaming orphanage, and rescues all the children from the burning structure, thus putting him in the good graces of the law. Unlike the primal fury exhibited by Kong, Joe is quite gentle and Harryhausen does an incredible job of giving this tamer ape some real character and emotion.
And though it wasn't a financial success in its day, Mighty Joe Young has definitely withstood the test of time and is, to me, just as much a classic as the original King Kong.
3. The Cyclops Movie of Origin:The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) Factoid:7th Voyage of Sinbad was the first feature film utilizing stop-motion animation to be in color!
Out of all the monsters in Harryhausen's Sinbad Trilogy, the most memorable one for me is the Cyclops from 7th Voyage of Sinbad. This single-eyed mythical monstrosity resided on the island of Colossa, and guards a magical lamp that contains a genie. Sinbad the sailor ends up crossing swords with the mighty Cyclops because an evil wizard named Sokurah steals said lamp and turns to Sinbad and his men for protection.
The brave sailors escape, but have to return to that accursed island because Sinbad's love, the beautiful Princess Parissa was turned into a Lilliputian, and a major ingredient for the cure resides high in the mountains of the dreaded isle. Sinbad manages to blind and defeat one Cyclops, but luckily there was a spare elsewhere on Colossa. However, this second Cyclops doesn't fare much better as it ends up taking on Sokurah's dragon (one of the honorable mentions at the start of this article) and perishing.
Poor Cyclops... he was probably only one more day from retirement....
2. The Hydra Movie of Origin:Jason and the Argonauts (1966) Factoid:Jason and the Argonauts was the first 'A' list Ray Harryhausen film, as all his previous movies were double-billed with other "B" movies.
Out of all the Greek myths, one of my favorites was Hercules' battle with the Hydra! Finding that two new heads grew in the place of each one he took, ole Herc was stumped (pun intended!) until his nephew Iolaus said "Hey uncle, use a torch to burn the stumps after you chop off a head." And thusly, Hercules completed his Second Labour. Imagine my delight when I saw Jason and the Argonauts for the first time and saw the multi-headed nightmare come slithering out of a cave to stop the heroic Jason from claiming the Golden Fleece!
Harryhausen's Hydra is yet another testament to his amazing skills, as all seven heads and the creature's tail are constantly moving in some of the smoothest stop-motion animation you will ever see! Although Jason doesn't start lopping off heads, creating an even bigger threat for himself (not to mention a lot more work for Ray Harryhausen), his duel with the Hydra is still extremely satisfying to watch.
1. Skeletal Warriors Movie of Origin:7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) and Jason and the Argonauts (1966) Factoid: It took Ray Harryhausen a whopping four months to fully animated the skeleton battle in Jason and the Argonauts!
Many of you already "have a bone to pick with me" over some of my choices I'm sure, but very few of you can deny the awesomeness of the amazing re-animated skeletal warriors seen in Jason and the Argonauts and 7th Voyage of Sinbad. In 7th Voyage the evil Sokurah animates a skeleton that was hanging from the ceiling of his dungeon / workshop of mystical wonders.
The skeletal fiend then grabs a sword and shield, and gives Sinbad a lot of grief. However, as it is a skeleton under the control of a magician, it isn't too bright and ends up falling to its doom, off the top of a staircase that leads nowhere! (Ouch, not a good sign when your undead minions die due to bad evil lair designs.)
While that was indeed an impressive display of visual effects for its time (Hell, I still think its incredible!) Ray Harryhausen totally outdid himself eight years later with the "children of the Hydra's teeth," a.k.a. a group of skeletal warriors! Jason and two of his men, Castor and Phalerus, are cornered at some seaside ruins by King Aeetes who suddenly produces a bag of Hydra teeth which he sews across the ground.
The teeth burrow in and seconds later, skeletons armed with swords and shields pop up and begin battling the trio of heroes. Castor and Phelerus fall in battle, and the beleaguered Jason is forced backwards toward the edge of a cliff. Seeing that he has no chance of victory, her takes a leap of faith off the cliff and lands safely in the sea below while his undead attackers simply vanish, never to be seen again.
These bony bastards are my absolute favorite creation by the mastermind known as Ray Harryhausen. Up to this point, Ray's work has been great, but animating over half a dozen skeletons and having them interact on film with flesh and blood actors must have been a daunting task. Thankfully Mr. Harryhausen managed to pull off the effect nicely, resulting in a fantastic battle to the death that will live on in our minds and hearts for many years to come.
For all you who think CGI is the bee's knees, take a look at this awesome display of old school special effects, and respect them! HAIL RAY HARRYHAUSEN, THE KING OF DYNA-MATION!
Well there's my top ten list of my favorite Ray Harryhausen creations! Feel free to comment; share your thoughts and your top ten lists with me. I'd love to see what you have to say! But most importantly, head on over to RADIATION-SCARRED REVIEWS and check out "Bayou" Bill's top ten list! We generally have the same taste in Harryhausen creatures, but I think you'll be pleased to see that our lists remain fairly different!
I'm seeing the new Clash of the Titans tonight, and have my fingers crossed that it doesn't suck, but beforehand I'm going to watch either the original (again) or Jason and the Argonauts in order to get pumped up!
I guess all I have left to say now is..... "RELEASE THE KRAKEN!"
Well after a few false starts and numerous failed attempts, I finally managed to figure out how to upgrade the software for my forum. Though I lost a few cool mods that I had installed (the reputation system chief amongst them), I am quite happy with how things went. (Luckily I backed up the forum files before going full steam ahead with the update.) Please, feel free to swing by the BMFV forum (which is chock full of movie and DVD news) and give it a look-see.
Also, be sure to check out my refurbished (old) review for the 1993 Albert Pyun / Full Moon classic, Arcade. This is a pretty bad flick (though not nearly the worst I've ever seen) that features a sentient virtual reality game that steals the souls from anyone who sucks at video games.
Here's the trailer for this straight-to-video schlocker:
I was hoping to finally review "Godmonster of Indian Flats" before the month was over, but alas, it was not meant to be. Have no fear though, because that awful giant mutant sheep epic will become part of the Vault archives in the very near future; probably even as soon as Monday night. I'll keep you posted on my progress with that review and will announce its arrival at the Vault as soon as I get it uploaded.
Well that's it for tonight. I'm friggin' tired and I need to get up relatively early to go to the bank, so g'night everyone!
I was feeling a bit restless (though now I'm tired enough to hit the hay) and decided the begin the long, painful process of moving my old reviews from the Vault's Geocities archives, to my current domain. I cleaned up and posted my old review of A*P*E, so that it's readable and fits with the rest of the site.
This is just the first of about 110 reviews that have yet to make the transition to my current site. It's going to be a long process, but in the end, the Vault will be complete, visitors will have plenty to read, and I can finally say goodbye to Yahoo Geocities forever.
I'm going to bed, so enjoy the new (Old) review and have a fantastic night!
Yeah yeah, I saw this freakin' movie, so sue me. My girlfriend dragged me to the theater (quite literally) and I had very low expectations. That is probably why I didn't completely hate (or love) "Twilight." The film has a few glaring problems (as does the source material which claims that vampires are not destroyed by sunlight, but merely become glittery fairies when hit with direct UV rays), but overall it's watchable and not too awful. I'd say it's pretty much for teenage girls and fans of the books (who are primarily, GASP!, teenage girls). Check out my review HERE.
I have a lot more stuff in the works for the site and I plan on jamming this month with a lot of updates. I'm hoping to complete three more reviews, my December Genre Watch article, and an all new section for the Vault. Keep an eye out for all of that over the next few weeks.
Oh and there's less than three weeks left to get your Christmas shopping done, so get to it b-movie fans!
Well I've survived round one of "Torture the Vault Master" and have posted a rather lengthy review (with screencaps!) for FEAR NO EVIL. This movie turned out to be a cakewalk and wasn't nearly as bad as I had previously recalled. However, that doesn't mean that it is a good film by any stretch. There's plenty of homosexual undertones in this bad boy, but they are easy to ignore because there is so much weirdness going on in this movie.
We get one bloody baptism, one death by dodgeball scene, a dude who magically grows breasts, an effeminate transvestite Antichrist, a small horde of zombies, heavenly animated death rays, and an awesome 80's soundtrack! So head on over and read my review and stay tuned for more updates at the Vault!
Oh and just in case you weren't paying attention.... 11 more days until Halloween! WOOHOO!
Taskshi Miike is best known for the shockers he's made, such as "Ichi the Killer" and "Audition," but would have thought that this man had a lighter, more family-friend side? "Zebraman" is proof that Miike can branch out from doing horrifically violent films, and is one of the better superhero comedies I've come across.
Mild mannered Shinichi Ichikawa is never taken seriously by anyone. Then, one fateful night, while running around his neighborhood in a homemade Zebraman costume (styled after his favorite tokusatsu hero), he engages in battle with a rapist wearing a crab-mask. After utilizing some amazing acrobatic moves and delivering a face-crushing blow to the perpetrator, Shinichi runs off and soon embraces his destiny of becoming the REAL Zebraman!
This was a very fun film, and I can't help but recommend it. Check out my capsule review for "Zebraman" HERE, and feel free to post your thoughts about the film and/or review HERE.
Stay tuned for an updated review from the OLD Vault archives, plus a roundtable review for 1981's "The Burning." Oh, and don't forget to cast your vote for what bad movie I should review in the "TORTURE THE VAULT MASTER" poll! Blog ya later b-movie fans!
After months of starting and stopping, I have finally completed my full-length review of "Legend of Dinosaurs and Monster Birds!" This extremely strange kaiju film features an odd disco / funk / jazz soundtrack, inventive cinematography, and some of the most violent dinosaur-to-human violence I have ever seen in a 70's film. This film isn't particularly popular or well-liked, so naturally I enjoyed it. If you get the chance, check this cinematic "gem" out and give it the love it so richly deserves.
Then, after you do that, go see "The Dark Knight" in theaters! This movie is simply amazing and is worthy of repeat viewings. As it stands, it seems like the world at large has deemed this superhero film as one of the best movies ever made! So go see "The Dark Knight" everyone, and help it oust "Titanic" as the top grossing film of all time! Blog ya later!
Hello dear readers and fellow b-movie fans! I'm currently finishing up work on two reviews, so here's a little something to hold you over until I'm done:
CLICK HERE to read my capsule review for "Dai-Nipponjin!"
"Dai-Nipponjin" is an insane comedy/mockumentary about the darker side of being a giant Japanese superhero! Meet Masaru Daisatou: He's in his forties, is heading towards divorce, makes barely enough money to survive, and is Japan's only hope against giant monsters! Whenever his country is threatened by kaiju, Masaru gets ritualistically electrocuted to become Dai-Nipponjin (pictured above). Read more about this film at IMDB.com, and visit the official Dai-Nipponjin website!
Stay tuned for two new full-length reviews for "Legend of Dinosaurs and Monster Birds" and "Puppet Master!" I'm currently in the process of writing each and hope them both posted within the next few nights. Have a good night b-movie fans and keep fighting the good fight!
Thanks to Kevin P. from WTF-Film.com, I have a complete copy of the crazy soundtrack to "Legend of Dinosaurs and Monster Birds." I've converted the files from 192 kbps to 320 kbps, and upgraded the quality of the mp3 files considerably. I wanted to include the entire soundtrack as a download for my upcoming review of this obscure kaiju film, but 60 MB is a bit too much, even if my bandwidth for the site has been increased. Therefore, I have put the full, "digitally mastered" soundtrack in a .RAR file, and uploaded it to my RapidShare account.
I'll still post a track or two on the review for all of you to sample, but if you don't want to wait, and want all 17 delicious tracks, JUST CLICK HERE. You are entitled to ONE free download from RapidShare if you do not have an account, so you are good to go no matter what. Enjoy this insane music (from composer Masao Yagi) and keep an eye out for my review for "Legend of Dinosaurs and Monster Birds" next week!
Ok, so here's what's going down with the Vault guys and gals. I've pretty much finished the remodeling I wanted to do on the site. There's still a few things I need to tweak (the forums and blog mainly) before the revamp is complete. Also, I'm working on TWO new reviews this week for "My Bloody Valentine" and "Alien vs. Predator." The latter will be my contribution for an upcoming "VS. Roundtable." But what about that capsule review for "My Demon Lover?" Well its posted HERE. Keep an eye on the Vault between Thursday and Saturday for the new reviews and the complete upload of the newly remodeled B-Movie Film Vault! I've been working feverishly for the past week to get all this stuff done, and by the end of this week, I'll be taking a well deserved break! Well g'night b-movie fans! Keep fighting the good fight and don't let normal cinema-lovers get you down. :-D
Yup, another new review is up at the site for SPACE AMOEBA (1970)! This is perhaps my longest review yet and, in my opinion, is certainly not one of my best. With this review completed and archived, I will begin work on my next one for "BEWARE! THE BLOB" (1972) which should be up by Sunday the 23rd. I'm pretty bad at meeting deadlines and due dates, but I have a feeling that I'll make it this time. :-D
Well it's been a long day! Time for some sleep! G'night b-movie fans!
After days of hard work, my review for Transformers: The Movie (1986) is finally online, thus completing my end of the "REVIEWERS IN DISGUISE" team-up with Andrew Borntreger. (And be sure to read his review of the film by CLICKING HERE!) With this project out of the way, I'll be tackling my reviews for the upcoming "B-Movie Beach Party" roundtable, namely "Island Claws" and "Space Amoeba." I'll be starting those tomorrow evening after I update the BMFV DVD Shop and should have them 100% ready to go by the July 21st roundtable date.
