A Saké Bomb is a beer cocktail made by pouring Saké into a shot glass and dropping it into a glass of beer, it’s also the feature debut of Junya Sakino that’s making its international premiere at the 2013 Raindance Film Festival. In Sakino’s debut, rising star Gaku Hamada (Naoto) […]
Reviews
The Last American Virgin (1982): The 1980s sex comedy with a conscious
Nostalgia is a potent emotional state, as much as it can transport you back to your younger days it’s equally able to ask questions about what your younger self was thinking. This contrast defines everything about The Last American Virgin. Directed by Tel-Aviv-born Boaz Davidson, who had more success as […]
Time Bandits (1980): The definitive article of 1980s Kid’s Adventure Movies (Review)
Falling in with fellow 1980s fantasy adventure movies like The Princess Bride, Labyrinth, The Goonies, Dark Crystal and The NeverEnding Story – Time Bandits is an icon from a time when kids’ movies meant films for all the family. Fast forward a few decades, and studios have adopted a ‘them […]
Space Battleship Yamato (2010): Sci-Fi Throwback that rarely steps out of the shadow of fandom
This most illustrious of anime intellectual properties has a legacy stretching back to 1974, through various series and OVA spells. The Space Battleship Yamato is as influential in Japan as Star Trek is throughout the world. Now receiving its first run on UK shores through the Manga label, the live-action […]
Deranged (1974): proto-slasher with a commitment to weird American History (Review)
The true story of the Wisconsin killer, Ed Gein, influenced some of the most important films in horror cinema. He was the muse of Hitchcock’s Psycho and Tobe Hooper’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre. There are also films that tackle his disturbing crimes head-on with the gory 2000 film of the same […]
Runaway Train (1985): tough prison escape thriller undone by broad strokes (Review)
Not to be confused with the late Tony Scott’s Unstoppable, Runaway Train is based on a potential début colour film by Akira Kurosawa, later redrafted by Djordje Milicevic, Paul Zindel and Edward Bunker. In this 1985 film, Jon Voight stars as Oscar “Manny” Manheim, a controversial inmate even at the Stonehaven maximum security prison. A deal of that controversy and idolization from his fellow prisoners comes from […]
The Car (1977): Christine in the Desert with a Moustache (Review)
Die Hard, Jaws and Towering Inferno are all of a school of prototypical Hollywood genre films that gave birth to copycats far and wide. Many confined actions films have been referred to as ‘Die hard in a…’ Many disaster films borrow Towering Inferno motifs and pacing. As far as these […]
Spider Baby & Foxy Brown: Iconic Jack Hill Double Bill (Review)
Jack Hill is the greatest… I think that Hill is a really terrific director. He was the Howard Hawks of exploitation filmmaking. Quentin Tarantino Even if that box quote does cut Jack Hill as a vital figure in the exploitation film world, what’s even more worthy of note is Arrow Film’s commitment to […]
For Love’s Sake: Takashi Miike’s Ultimate High School Musical (Review)
As a director, Takashi Miike is impossible to define beyond his boundless productivity. Yakuza, musicals, superheroes, children friendly, gore, taboo baiting, samurai, horror, video game adaptations, these are well within Miike’s wheelhouse, there are few people in the world as outright eccentric. His latest to see release in the UK […]
Vulgaria: A Vulgar sweetheart with a heart of gold (Review)
As a rule of thumb, comedy in Chinese and Hong Kong cinema tends to have a light touch. Instead of anything akin to the more raunchy Western stylings, Chinese territories typically favour slapstick and mischievous puns, a playful sense of humour at large. To that end, Sam Voutas’ 2010 film […]