Flash Point (2008)

Long-time Hong Kong action movie star Donnie Yen ("Hero") acts in and action-directs this soon to be released flick. (I got into a press screening during the SF Asian Film Fest.)

The action scenes are pretty tight with Mixed-Martial Arts (MMA) style fighting. There are a lot of holds and other moves where people are lying on the ground, using their legs to crush ribs and things. There's also traditional high-flying kung fu, as well as agitated boxing and the times when they use your clothes as a weapon against you. In a word, awesome.

The problems with the fairly short film are in the plot, which takes a while to unfold. Some comedic moments break it up, like a slow-mo shot of elderly bathers running from the beach into polluted waters, saying "We're going to die anyways," or something like that. The English subtitles were a bit strange at times and the cuts not the greatest, but maybe those will smooth out for the March 14 U.S. release.

But there were clearly things I did not pick up on, like the history of Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong and their gangs. I failed to realize the main couple were from mainland China. Basically, there was a bit too much talking, and I got confused who was who. Arguably, that's cuz I'm not a HK action aficionado.

Still I recommend it for any audience. It's a refreshing look at how to make an action movie without x-treme sex scenes, gadgets or Rambo but with a hardcore bit of ass-kicking.

Accepted (2006)

I swear, if any of you read this site semi-regularly AND watched Seinfeld, you may come to a similar conclusion as me. There was an episode of Seinfeld where Elaine goes to the video store and gets all these art house movies based on one of the employee's recommendations. Then there's one employee who picks brainless movies such as Weekend at Bernie's. Well dear readers, that employee's name was Gene. Kind of funny since I feel, and AM, like the Gene of this site and review the most braindead movies. And here I'm back again with the movie Accepted.

This is a comedy in which a group of friends from high school don't get into college, for one reason or another, and so they start their own college. This premise is very reminiscent of Camp Nowhere (1994) in such that the kids have to build their own institution to allow their wacky antics to occur and they gotta hide that fact from their parents. SPOILER ALERT Needless to say, the parents find out; thus leading to the predictable conflict and reconciliation along with the assumption of more wacky that can occur after the credits roll SPOILER OVER

I'll say this, it was an entertaining movie and it did it's job of making me chuckle. Justin Long plays the mastermind behind this scheme and does an ok job carrying the movie, however this truly is an ensemble work. Jonah Hill is humorous as the witty/talkative friend, a roll that he's pretty much made into his usual typecast, albeit the his characters' book smarts differ in each iteration. But to me, the most entertaining character is Lewis Black because I just enjoy what he does and he pretty much does that in this movie, so it's not like he's really acting up a storm. He cracks wise, and that's all I want really.

Beyond the cliched humor that kept me entertained, I enjoyed the babes in this movie. And that's to be expected of course in a movie marketed to young adults and teens. There is no nudity in this film, but they provide just enough eye candy and innuendo to keep things honest. No watch checks on this one. However I don't recommend this unless you are really sure your brain is in the open and off position.

Rocket Science (2007)

I was scared. I thought this movie might be like "Thumbsucker" or "Rushmore", even "Pumpkin", or some other quirky rip-off that just wouldn't be as funny or entertaining as one of those original, off the wall black comedies.

I liked Thumbsucker, couldn't get through Rushmore because I hate compulsive liars and found myself confused morally after watching Pumpkin.

Anyway, Rocket Science is well worth your time. Who doesn't need a dose of speech impediments, dysfunctional families, a weird Korean boy all wrapped up in a story about love, cruelty and the debate team?

I took my medicine and liked it.

When people say children are cruel, they don't really delve into that behavior. It's like hitting puberty transforms adolescents back to being babies, where all they know are their instincts. And let's face it: most of our instincts are based in evil. OK, you don't have to believe that fact, but I certainly do.

Peers start to convince them that the only way to survive is to be the meanest, scariest, most popular person in school and one does not achieve this by being kind and understanding.

Anyway, what I loved about this movie was the sincerity in everyone's not so perfect character. It was an open and honest story that gets up to the line of absurdity, but never crosses over it far enough to lose you.

Oxbow - The Narcotic Story (2007)

I just made it through this whole album at this site. As one might expect, a transporting and unhealthily disturbing experience. Oxbow seem to be able to pull off totally creepy without batting an eye, but keeping it compelling and just this side of not-completely-offputting.

If I ever saw them live I would wonder how conciliatory a facial expression I would need to wear to avoid Eugene putting me in a headlock.

Withnail & I (1987)

 A big cult film in Britain but not as well known here.  Like most cult films, it's got fans who can quote every single line, and also like most films I"m aware of as being cult films, I didn't quite get what made it so cult-y on first viewing.  Then I went on Google and found everyone quoting every line.

What did appeal to me, though, was the depiction of bohemian starving-artist-alcohol-addict living at the end of the '60s, which reminded me of a much seedier version of post-collegiate bohemian living in the middle of the '00s.  Not that I actually did it, but I know a lot of people who did, and it looked a lot like this, though Withnail and Marwood take it to hilarious lows. 

It's pretty hard to say much about what's great about this movie without lapsing into quotes, but you can root around for all of that awesomeness.  It's a very dark, British sort of humor.