Blog Archives

Shaolin Soccer (2001)

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Posted on April 2, 2010 by Samson

I can just imagine how one day, this strange idea suddenly crossed filmmaker Stephen Chow’s mind: what would happen if I combine martial arts and soccer to make a ‘sports movie’? He must have thought it was a good idea, and went on to realise it. And he was absolutely right. The result was Shaolin Soccer, one of the funniest and most original films ever made, in Hong Kong and in fact anywhere in the world.

Shaolin Soccer tells … (read more)

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Kill Bill Vol.2 (2004)

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Posted on January 25, 2006 by Jonathan

So, now that this tale of bloody revenge has reached its climax, which ‘r’ do I feel? Relief, that it met my expectations? Regret, that it’s all over? A little of both actually, but mostly I feel Respect. From the opening ‘Massacre at Two Pines’ to the surreal final chapter ‘Face to Face,’ this proves to be a brilliant film; one quite different to the first half of The Bride’s quest to kill Bill, but certainly no less of a … (read more)

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Kill Bill Vol.1 (2003)

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Posted on January 25, 2006 by Jonathan

I was always going to score this film a 10. This is also the hardest review I’ve ever had to write. Not, mind you, because Kill Bill failed to meet my 10-out-of-10 expectations — quite the opposite in fact. Tarantino has made a film that is far better than anything I could have (and did) imagine, and the highest compliment that I can pay his work here is that I had to watch it a second time right away. Unfortunately … (read more)

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Zatoichi (2003)

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Posted on June 3, 2004 by Eugene

I am not a critic. I am a reviewer.

(It’s a line I’ve nicked off an article Steven Grant (an American comic book writer) once wrote in one of his forums. It being applicable, I thought I’d use it for myself.)

So why the distinction and why now? Well, the thing with being a reviewer is that all I really do is fulfil a consumer role — I basically recommend whether something is worth seeing or not. I’m not really … (read more)

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