Dragon Ball Z Uncensored

[Spamdini]

I saw this at the first night of Fantasia yesterday. The production value was quite strong with very good CG for the Stands and the locations were beautiful. But they made the plot and individual scenes very close to the manga (covering Part 4's fight against Angelo and the Nijimura brothers), and played it way too straight on top of that. Without the light-heartedness that is periodically thrown into the original, the outrageous poses and (in the anime) the funky colour palette, there is something lacking to make it different from other anime-to-live-action adaptations. Josuke's character was also played far too seriously and made him into what was effectively a Jotaro clone.

The biggest criticism I can impose upon the film is that that last half-hour was just boring. Once again, they played it too close to the source material by spending lots of time explaining the Nijimura patriarch's predicament and at a point in the film that should have contained an exciting climax, there was a lot of drama and dialogue instead. The pacing was way off and it's something that could have been glossed over or changed to better service the film. As it was, the final battle happened with nearly thirty minutes of runtime left, or at least it felt that way. There was too much that was clearly there to set up the sequel with Kira instead of focusing on making this movie a tight, exciting experience.

That said, the production value was there and the first scenes were well done. The stand battles were translated far better than I had expected them to be and most of the casting and performances were spot on. Worth a watch for fans, but if you're not already sold on Jojo I would wait to see if the follow up is more interesting.

Also, hi!
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[Ryoko's Biatch]

I'm more surprised when a Japanese live-action movie isn't shit. At least the CG is good. Also, Japan is completely, 100% gay for Jotaro for some reason, so it makes sense that they would turn Josuke into a Jotaro clone.

Hi!

[Fagzilla]

I like how there are still like a dozen people who will just pop in here after not having been seen for several years, and make (a) post(s) like no time has passed.

What would be really cool is if the dead posters started doing it!

[Vinny]

I'm kind of bummed that Akira doesn't seem like he'll be in the movies at all although I can understand why since he's essentially just a red herring final boss.

I guess he can still be in it as some random shithead Josuke beats up. All I want is the scene where Akira says he will kill Josuke using only his pinky finger so Josuke breaks it with a punch and then Akira performs a guitar solo and wills his pinky unbroken so he can rock out.
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[Spamdini]

SPOILERZ!!!

Otoishi's role in the Nijimura Brothers arc is replaced by Sheer Heart Attack, so yeah I doubt he'll be in the movies.
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[Ryoko's Biatch]

Why would Kira want or need the arrow? That's stupid.

[Spamdini]

So how is everyone? What did I miss?
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[Fagzilla]

A few dozen posts.

(Not sarcastic understatement)

[Spamdini]

A quick review of the other films I saw at Fantasia this year.

Japanese Girls Never Die (Japan): A surprisingly subtle and quirky indie film that actually portrays the tribulations of women in Japan in a realistic and somber light. Of course, there are also gangs of Japanese school girls who beat up on men, but even this is treated with a careful hand as there is none of the over-the-top brutality to be expected with Japanese violence. It follows the story of two women, one in her late-20s and another in her late teens as one stumbles through life listlessly and the other runs around with youthful exuberance, but both are dragged down by the emphasis of masculinity in society.

Little Hours (USA): Has Aubrey Plaza being Aubrey Plaza as she, Kate Micucci and Alison Brie play 14th-century Italian nuns being vulgar and giving in to their various urges. Dave Franco plays the comic foil, being "subjected" to the lust of the nuns and their other violent and insane acts, and John C Reilly and Molly Shannon are the head priest and nun of the convent. A lot of the best scenes can be seen in the trailers and the best part of the movie is Nick Offerman's cameo near the beginning, but it's fairly enjoyable overall. The main joke is that everyone speaks in modern vernacular complete with foul language so the novelty only lasts so long, but there is enough to keep you compelled enough to get through the whole thing. Worth it for Offerman at least. Might be in a theatre near you right now!

Plan B (Germany): Three wannabe stunt men, two of Asian and one of Turkish descent, as well as their boastful friend and manager, end up wandering into a gang-related kidnapping and are forced to go on a scavenger hunt to find clues to the whereabouts of a safe containing a hoard of blackmail material used my a local mob boss to keep politicians and law enforcement in check. The story is as dumb as a ton of bricks, but the arrogant and self-absorbed protagonist is surprisingly likeable and does in fact come off as the action star he believes he is. While his two friends lack his charisma and swagger, their martial arts skills are even better and some of the action scenes are quite impressive. It's a stupid movie, but with enough heart and exciting action to compensate.

Broken Sword Hero (Thailand) - Thailand has already horned in on Hong Kong's martial arts action movie, and now they're taking aim at the genre of sweeping historical journey that includes martial arts action. A young man who ran afoul of an asshole governor's son is forced to flee his village and travels around Thailand learning different fighting styles and skills from the various masters he comes across. My main complaint is that there are various dropped storylines that don't get addressed, but it is an otherwise appropriately epic tale.

Kills on Wheels (Hungary) - A dark comedy about a young man born disabled with a misshapen spine that keeps him bound to a wheelchair and who will die in a matter of years if does not get expensive surgery to keep the weights of his organs from crushing themselves. He and his friend with cerebral palsy meet a paraplegic hitman and they all end up working together to set up the perfect assassinations. The first Hungarian movie I have ever seen and was quite compelling. The actors are all great and while many of them are miserable people, they don't stay miserable enough for you to hate them. Between the bonds between them and the humanity that the hitman shows in spite of his profession, you get a cast of likable characters and a touching story about social outcasts who all press on in spite of their self-loathing and the outside world's perception of them.

Bastard Swordsman (Hong Kong) - An 80's kung fu classic about two martial arts schools at war, revenge and betrayal, and an orphan who may hold the key to the ancient Silkworm Style. Not much else to say other than it's very wacky and very awesome.

Bad Black (Uganda) - Another first for me, I have never seen an Ugandan movie before. Shot on a budget of $65, the mess of a plot involves a young girl who leads a street gang, a white doctor who is trained to become a badass buy a little Uganadan boy, and class wars between rich and the poor. The movie is a mess with some of the cheapest CG effects I have ever seen, but was a lot of fun and the fact that everything is pretty tongue in cheek helps. In Ugandan cinema, there is a tradition that goes back to the 80's where a guy talks over the movie and provides humorous commentary (known as a VJ or Video Joker), and Bad Black is one of the first instances of the VJ speaking in English over the film. It was weird and distracting at first, but in the end I really liked it and it made the whole experience even better. I have never seen anything like it and I recommend everyone look up Wakaliwood if they want to find more about the weirdos making these super budget movies in the the slums of Kampala.

Tragedy Girls (USA) - Two high school seniors on the prom committee run a vlog highlighting serial killers in their area, but are in fact using the platform to hype up their own homicidal tendencies. The plot is more teenage comedy than it is slasher film, but does a good job of mixing the two genres and is fun and colourful.

Geek Girls (Canada) - A documentary about women and geek culture, the first half is fairly forgettable as is acts as a showcase for various geek cultures (anime, video games both casual and professional, lolita fashion, yaoi comics, etc), but ramps up in the second half when it talks more about cyberbullying and the societal stigmas and issues surrounding women and geekdom. The documentary seemed to be lacking quite a bit of polish with the presentation, narration and the fact that the theme seems to go from "Finding out what my identity as a geek means" to a more general "women in geek culture and the challenges they face". Worth a watch, but I have a feeling that this subject could have been tackled better by a more capable filkmaker.

Bushwick (USA) - The south rises again as a southern militia attacks the
Brooklyn neighbourhood of Bushwick and seals it off, murdering any civilians they see. Shot Birdman-style to seem like one continuous shot, a college student returning to see her grandmother in Bushwick is caught up in the uprising and escapes militants and looters with the helping of motherfucking Dave Bautista! Bautista's character, an ex-medic who served in Iraq, made for an interesting twist on the badass former soldier trope as he was constantly more concerned with treating injuries and saving people than kicking ass and making their way to safety. One scene in particular seemed to be made by and for Bautista to show off his dramatic acting chops and stuck out like a sore thumb, but he otherwise did a great job and it was solid overall. The single shot aesthetic seemed like it was unnecessary though and it would have been nice to see more of what the southern soldiers were thinking, as they were mostly painted as being a faceless evil (sure to go over well with people from the south who already think that the media portrays them unfairly).

Lu Over the Wall (Japan) - Masaaki Yuasa's latest film (the director behind Mind Game, Ping Pong and one of the segments of Genius Party) tells the tale of a seaside fishing village. There is a long history of stories about mermaids stealing villagers and as such the people of the town remain fearful of them and the cove in which they supposedly inhabit. A young wannabe musician finds a cute little mermaid one day and they strike a friendship, and once a video of her dancing goes viral, she becomes a sensation and the town tries to exploit the merfolk as a source of tourism while the older villagers remain fearful and wary of them. It's all beautifully animated and very touching, and highly recommended for any anime fan.

Blade of the Immortal (Japan) - I'm bookending this year's Fantasia with manga adaptations directed by Takashi Miike, with Blade of the Immortal marking his 100th film. While I am not as familiar with the source material as Jojo, I did enjoy this film a lot more possibly because of that. It remains faithful to the manga as well, but violent samurai action is more in Miike's wheelhouse and holds up much better than Jojo's quirky pastel Colombo-meets-X-Men vibe. The characters are wacky and varied and the relationship between the hero and the little girl who hires him is sweet. Most surprisingly, there is a fair amount of suspense in spite of the fact that the protagonist's power being that he is immortal, as we get to see that particular trait pay off multiple times as he is stabbed every which way and losing limbs quite liberally, only to paste them back on. Between this, 13 Assassins and Western Sukiyaki Django, I think Takashi Miike is at his best when he is making samurai/cowboy films.

Se everyone next year!
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[Ryoko's Biatch]

You always make me want to watch movies that I will never watch.

I'm going to have to go to Fantasia at some point in my life.

[Spamdini]

Little Hours and Bushwick will end up in theatres.

The Jojo movie bombed in Japan and now the sequel is in doubt.
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