Sunday, June 21, 2009

Blood: The Last Vampire Is A Bust


Source: Korea Herald



Despite Korean actress Jun Ji-hyun's efforts to prove her acting ability, her latest film is proving a box-office flop.

"Blood: The Last Vampire," Jun's Hollywood debut film, which was released at local theaters on June 11, has drawn around 70,000 viewers through June 20, Korea Film Council said yesterday.

The figures are far behind its competitors, such as Korean flick "Running Turtle (Geobugi dalinda)," which has drawn more than 550,000 since opening on the same day.

With hotly anticipated movies such as "Haeundae" and "Transformers 2: The Revenge of the Fallen" on their way, the prospects for "Blood" look grim.

It is quite a tough situation for Jun, who has not had a real box-office hit since "My Sassy Girl (2001)" and faces criticism that her main job is modeling for TV commercials.

Critics cited Jun's failure to deliver the complicated emotions of her character, Saya, as one of the major reasons for the film's failure.

The loose plot which largely differed from the original Japanese animation that the film is based on and the poor computer graphics are also cited as reasons for the film's lack of appeal.


Here's the official site and trailer.

Can't say I'm impressed with the trailer. Not a movie I would race to the theatre to see.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Ziyi! Your Lipstick Smeared!


Source: CriEnglish




Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi appeared at the Cannes screening of the film "Inglourious Basterds" looking flawless, until she smiled.

The jury member of the short film section was spotted cleaning her teeth with a finger before walking the red carpet. Her attempt proved to be unsuccessful, as the photographers easily caught with the red stains on her teeth when she grinned.

Guess she needs a more responsible cosmetician. That, or she needs to pay more attention to the food she eats before a big event.


Hehehe sloppy girl. That's WAY too much lipstick to be putting on anyways. Everyone is speculating what she ate or how this happened. I'd bet five dollas there was some sucky-sucky on the side. :)

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Asia's dark pics make a splash at Cannes


Source: Yahoo!



Asia made a splash at Cannes with films from Korea, Hong Kong and the Philippines this weekend, almost all throwing dark violent blood-spattered visions of the world onto festival screens.

Hong Kong's Johnnie To offered "Vengeance", starring aging French rock idol Johnny Hallyday as a father out for blood after a family murder. A gangster movie shot like a western peppered with Triad shoot-outs, it is one of 20 films competing for the festival's coveted Palme d'Or.

From the Philippines, and also vying for the Palme, controversial love-him-or-hate-him director Brillante Mendoza's "Kinatay" (meaning "massacre") notably features corrupt cops hacking a prostitute to pieces with blunt kitchen knives.

Lone exception to the blood-and-gore on offer was "Mother" by Korea's young cult director Bong Joon-ho, although he is no stranger to violence in previous films such as "The Host" and "Memories of Murder".

.....more





Vengeance:

Youtube Link

Mother:

Youtube Link

Kinatay: Youtube Link (Sorry can't embed)

Monday, May 11, 2009

Movie Reviews - May 11, 2009

Source: LoveHKFilm



Departures (Japan) 2009 Oscar Winner Best Foreign Film

Even though it doesn't meet the astronomical expectations it has earned by now, Departures is a touching and well-calculated commercial film that is deserving of its commercial success.



Youtube Link

I Corrupt All Cops (Hong Kong)

A rare serious Wong Jing film that’s actually respectable in quality, I Corrupt All Cops is entertaining and can sometimes be gripping cinema. But it’s also too sprawling without the focus or filmmaking to justify it. Nevertheless, it possesses a solid cast and is easily the best Wong Jing film in years, whatever that means.



Youtube Link

Hello Schoolgirl (Korea)

Thanks to a great cast, striking visuals and observant storytelling, Ryoo Jang-Ha’s first film in 4 years is a good one. A resoundingly successful film adaptation of Kang Pool’s charming web comic about May-December romances.



Youtube Link

20th Century Boys: Chapter 2 - The Last Hope (Japan)

20th Century Boys: Chapter Two should be a slam dunk for fans because it adapts the manga in a truncated, but still slavishly faithful manner. For non-fans, this film is so dense and convoluted that confusion is a likely result. Maybe it'll seem like a better film after the third one is released.



Youtube Link


The Bluebird
(Japan)

A stuttering, earnest substitute teacher makes waves in a class trying to get over an attempted suicide of one of its students. Fine themes, compelling emotions and solid acting lift The Bluebird, but the measured, too-reverential storytelling doesn't entirely convince.


Sorry, couldn't find a subtitled trailer.


Youtube Link

Saturday, May 9, 2009

John Cho on Jimmy Kimmel Live

Source: Alpha Asian




Youtube Link

Loved the story about his 1-year old son. Not sure how good a 3rd Harold and Kumar would be, the 2nd one kinda sucked.