easternkicks.com » General

easternKicks – now in print (in Japan!)

Andrew Heskins — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 09:00:52 +0000

Regular Japanese readers of easternKicks may spot a familiar name in the September issue of glossy interview magazine Cut (hitting shelves right now) – yep, that’s us! Our interview with Lee Byung-hun was reprinted with permisson and translated into Japanese. (And we’re hoping to bring you some more very interesting interviews very soon… So stay tuned!)

Grotesque banned by the BBFC

Andrew Heskins — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 09:00:26 +0000

This last Monday (17 August) you might have noticed the Japanese horror film Grotesque, by director Koji Shiraishi, did not appear on our shelves as originally planned – and now comes the reason why: the British Board of Film Classification has refused to grant an 18 certificate due to it’s graphic torture scenes!

Quoted by the BBC website, BBFC director David Cooke said Grotesque presented “little more than an unrelenting and escalating scenario of humiliation, brutality and sadism”. He added its “unacceptable content” meant cuts were “not a viable option”.

A spokesperson for 4Digital Asia expressed surprise at the outright rejection of Grotesque, stating, “We knew that the BBFC was debating the content of the film quite intensely but we had expected to receive from the BBFC a list of recommended cuts enabling the film to be passed with an 18 certificate. We are now considering whether or not to appeal against the Board’s decision.”

And well he should be surprised. Nowadays the BBFC rarely refuses to pass films, having denied only three titles seeking an 18 rating over the last four years. It seems like a hark back to the (ahem) ‘good old days’ of the Video Nasties, when it seemed like every week another title was being banned by the BBFC and removed from the shelves of our local video store…

(…and as I remember it, that’s not far from the truth!)

Since then, of course, all those movies have been passed by the BBFC with few problems. In a day and age when even controversal films like Antichrist seem to get passed with rarely a double-take, it’s pretty impressive to make a movie that offensive!

David Cooke said of the film, “Unlike other recent ‘torture’ themed horror works, such as the Saw and Hostel series, Grotesque features minimal narrative or character development and presents the audience with little more than an unrelenting and escalating scenario of humiliation, brutality and sadism. In spite of a vestigial attempt to ‘explain’ the killer’s motivations at the very end of the film, the chief pleasure on offer in not related to understanding the motivations of any of the central characters. Rather, the chief pleasure on offer seems to be wallowing in the spectacle of sadism (including sexual sadism) for its own sake.”

(Personally, I’m not entirely convinced by his argument about the character development in the Saw and Hostel series, but anyway!)

Call me a cynic, but it does occur to me this’ll be great publicity for when the film eventually gets released – if it ever does…

…what do you think?

» Read the story in full on BBC News online

Soft boiled: Oi, Morrissey, NO!…

Andrew Heskins — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 10:00:03 +0000

…what do you think you’re doing? No, you are not Chow Yun-fat in John Woo’s classic action epic Hard Boiled, so what is this about…?

I’m a bit late coming to this. Even if my head hadn’t been completely consumed by thoughts of a holiday/family gathering on the other side of the planet, I’ve soooooo made it my business to avoid Morrissey and all he stands for (namely bemoaning media attention while appearing on TV chat shows) that I’d probably have missed this anyway!

Imagine the shock, horror (and supreme offense) when the image of Morrissey on the cover of his latest album striking a familiar pose greeted me across a dimly lit station platform. A very familiar pose. Unmistakably that of Chow Yun-fat on the iconic publicity shots for John Woo’s tour de force Hard Boiled. Just what does Morrisey mean by that? Is he secretly a massive John Woo fan? Perhaps this homage is his idea of compliment, imitation being the sincerest form and all that. For that matter, do I even really care?

I’m not the first to have noticed the simularity, take Idolator’s blog for example, but I for one could do without it!

Bruce Lee home to become museum

Andrew Heskins — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 10:00:03 +0000

The Hong Kong townhouse that was once home to Bruce Lee and had since become a downmarket love motel has been donated to the city to become a museum.

Free kung fu movies!

Andrew Heskins — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 10:00:05 +0000

Fancy watching some free kung fu movies? Fancy getting them in an iPod or iPhone friendly format? Not too picky about the quality – whether that happens picture, dubbing or even the actual movie itself?

Well, if you’re using iTunes, just follow the link below to the Cult of Kung Fu podcasts, a special branch of the Cult of UHF who release a lot of ‘public domain’ b-movies. (Still not really sure how these films become public domain in the first place, but there you go…) There you’ll find a growing selection of American dubbed Hong Kong movies, including Shaolin Invincibles and Shadow Ninja. Many of these have been available in some format or another before on low cost video or DVDs (though often not cheap enough considering the dire quailty!)

Entertaining if not brilliant, they coud be just what your daily commute needs…

See the current list on iTunes

News round-up: Bitter taste for Chocolate in Taiwan

Andrew Heskins — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 08:30:23 +0000

Wise Kwai reports that Chocolate has bombed on it’s release in Taiwan in comparison with the previous success of Ong-Bak and Tom Yum Goong (Warrior King) – mind you, could that have something to do with the now widely available DVD releases, including the UK release next month? Also to be released in the UK soon, Chukiat Sakweerakul’s bloody psychological thriller 13 Beloved.

Wu-Jing.org reports on the release of Gordon Chan’s take on Painted Skin, starring Donnie Yen. Very much of the Chinese Ghost Story ilk, it’s a story that’s previously been interpreted by Pao Feng (1966) and King Hu (1992).

Twitch reports on new Korean cable TV drama, Fight Master, as well as the sad passing of Korean actress Choi Jin-Shil, star of Partisans of South Korea and Roses & Beansprouts.

Meanwhile beyondhollwood.com talks about the official announcement of a Kung Fu Panda sequel, and the new poster for the latest Asian horror to be remade in Hollywood, The Uninvited – a remake of Kim Ji-woon’s A Tale of Two Sisters. (Thankfully not out till January 09 now!)

News roundup: Tony Jaa back on course to make Ong-Bak 2

Andrew Heskins — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 09:00:56 +0000

After leaving the set of Ong-Bak 2 in what appeared to be something of a meltdown, then appearing in tears on national Thai television, Tony Jaa has finally returned to complete the film. His mentor action choreographer Panna Rittikrai will be taking over direction duties from him. Read more about Tony Jaa’s return on Wise Kwai’s Thai Film Journal »

The 65th Venice International Film Festival is now well under way and runs until 6 September. New Asian films in competiton include: Hayao Miyazaki’s Ponyo On The Cliff, which you can see pictures of and read more about it here at Twitch; Takeshi Kitano’s Achilles and the Tortoise; and Yu Lik-wai’s Plastic City, which you can read more about on MonkeyPeaches.

Meanwhile, Wu-jing.org reports that the latest collaboration between actor/action choreographer Donnie Yen and director Wilson Yip, Ip Man, has been completed.

Another one bites the dust: Tartan UK closes

Andrew Heskins — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 17:00:38 +0000

Bit slow bringing you this news, but the Tartan label – whose responsible Asia Extreme label was responsible for exposing many of us to Asian classics such as Ring, Audition and Happiness of the Katakuris – has closed as of the end of last month…

As with Hong Kong Legends, which also recently closed, it’s a sign of how the industry is not recognising the changing habits of their audience. It’s far more than simply the effect of downloading films, or even the effect of a global market which makes worldwide DVD releases, often better packaged than UK ones, available at the same or even cheaper prices.

It’s a sign of how an independent retailer, investing in hard to find, specialty releases, can no longer compete with the big retailers and their bargain bin prices on recent releases. But you have to wonder about the longterm effect of what’s happening to ’specialty’ retailers – at a point when the consumer should be benefiting from more choice than ever, the chances of them being exposed to anything that’s not – let’s be frank – from Hollywood, are becoming less and less.

Will we even know what a ‘foreign language’ film is in 10 years time…?

This is a real shame considering Tartan’s long standing as an independent retailer, some 20 years or more, and all the films that company has debuted both here and in the US. To the contacts that easternKicks had there – we wish you all the best for the future!

Guardian Godzilla giveaway!

Andrew Heskins — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 09:00:31 +0000

The Guardian are giving away a DVD of the classic original 1954 Godzilla movie this Saturday.

Godzilla DVD in the Guardian today

Andrew Heskins — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 05:55:35 +0000

Get the 1954 original of Godzilla free with the Guardian today…

easternkicks.com » General

easternKicks – now in print (in Japan!)

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