The Last Cinema

Synapse films dvd news

2008-11-10T01:09:00.000-08:00

Synapse recently released three movies for The Minoru Kawasaki Collection. They look lovely and reviews will come as soon as I get them. When money is short and you do this by yourself, it isn't always easy to get reviews out as fast as possible.

Synopsis: Tamura is an average Japanese salaryman working in the offices of a pickle distribution company. He is well liked in the office, hard-working, polite, wears a suit and tie, and also happens to be a six-foot tall koala bear. But when his girlfriend Yoko turns up dead one day and Tamura is the chief suspect, he is forced to enlist the help of his boss (a white rabbit) and a friendly convenience store attendant (a frog) in order to prove his innocence

Specs: Anamorphic (1.85:1) Widescreen Transfer
Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Newly-Translated, Removable English Subtitles
“Making Of” Featurette
Theatrical Trailer and TV Spot

Synopsis: It’s 2011, and due to global warming and the shifting of tectonic plates, most of the Earth’s land mass has sunk beneath the surface of the ocean. Only Japan remains, and refugees from all nations try to incorporate themselves into Japanese society: famous American actors do TV costume samurai dramas, white women serve as French maids for middle-class families, the former leaders of China and South Korea act as lapdogs for the Prime Minster, and foreigners who don’t sufficiently blend in are arrested! Yet geologists have begun to detect signs of another looming global catastrophe, one that threatens to destroy the last piece of earth remaining.

Specs: Anamorphic Widescreen
Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Newly-Translated, Removable English Subtitles
Audio Commentary with Director Minoru Kawasaki and Actor Takenori Murano
“Making Of” Featurette
Introductions from Cast and Director
Theatrical Trailer

Synopsis: THE RUG COP follows chrome-domed officer Genda as he transfers to a new precinct just as a group of radical terrorists hijack a shipment of uranium and deliver a ransom demand of five billion yen. Genda and his crack team of detectives must solve the case using their peculiar abilities: champion eater Detective Fatty, abnormally endowed Detective Big Dick, speedy weightlifter Detective Shorty, and ladies’ man Mr. Handsome. But most dangerous of all is the Rug Cop, whose projectile toupee proves lethal to wrongdoers!

Specs: Anamorphic (1.85:1) Widescreen Transfer
Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Newly-Translated, Removable English Subtitles
“Making Of” Featurette
Japanese Press Conference Footage
Introductions from Cast and Director
Theatrical Trailer

As I said, I haven't seen these yet, but Synapse Films always delivers!

THE BIRD PEOPLE OF CHINA Blu-ray

2008-11-09T23:39:00.001-08:00

Don't forget the Blu-ray release of Takashi Miike's fantastic and magical movie, THE BIRD PEOPLE OF CHINA, coming out 18 November.

[REC] 2

2008-11-09T23:25:00.000-08:00

A sequel to the gritty and scary spanish horror movie [REC], will begin filming on November 10th, aka today. Jaume Balaguero and Paco Plaza are both set to direct the sequel to the Spanish film that already have got the remake seal of approval in the states, starring Jennifer Carpenter (Emily Rose, Dexter), and based on the trailer it looks exactly the same. If the americans can't handle subtitles and need to remake a whole movie just for the sake of no subtitles or if they just want an american version, I don't know, but it looks awful.

30 DAYS OF NIGHT sequel

2008-11-09T23:21:00.000-08:00

The Ghost House Pictures project will be written by the first film's co-writer and graphic novel creator Steve Niles, as well as Ghost House's Ben Ketai. In the sequel, Stella Oleson (from the first film) seeks revenge on the blood-thirsty vampires that destroyed her dark Alaskan town.

Død Snø

2008-11-09T23:16:00.000-08:00

Here is a poster for the soon to come Norwegian Nazi Zombie flick. Beeing Norwegian, I'm looking forward to this, but I also have mixed emotions. Norwegian horror is many years behind, because of the lack of passion for the genre, but it looks like times are changing. I also have problems with some of the actors. But we have to wait and see.

WEREWOLF

2008-11-09T23:12:00.000-08:00

The writer of WATCHMEN, X-MEN and X2, David Hayes, will be writing and directing a feature film entitled WEREWOLF.

''A 17-year-old boy learns that he's a werewolf during a date. After waking up and finding his family dead, he flees to New England where he takes shelter. Each night animals around the town are being slaughtered, which pits the lead against a group of creatures that leads to a big government conspiracy.''

Could be good, based on his previous work.

Apes remake?

2008-11-03T22:01:00.000-08:00

20th Century Fox is considering a new version of PLANET OF THE APES. This is not a follow up to the apeshit Tim Burton remake from 2001, but a remake of CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, the fourth movie in the series.

''The time is the near future. Apes supplant dogs and cats as household pets, and replace servants as personal assistants - until their continual mistreatment provokes one advanced ape from the future, Caesar, to lead a spectacular revolt''

And in other news, the 40th anniversary is celebrated by relasing a Blu-ray box set. The set includes PLANET OF THE APES, BENEATH THE PLANET OF THE APES, ESCAPE FROM THE PLANET OF THE APES, CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, and BATTLE FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES. The release date is set to 12 december in the UK and Europe, but is allready out in the states.

Each Planet Of The Apes Blu-ray Disc will be authored in Java on a double-layer disc presented in widescreen (2.35:1 aspect ratio) with newly mastered English 5.1 DTS Master Audio, English, Spanish and French Mono and includes English and Spanish subtitles. All new special features will be presented in High-Def. Bonus features include:

NEW Science of the Apes BONUSVIEW - Scientists, anthropologists and sociologists discuss the facts and fiction of the first film

NEW “Beyond the Forbidden Zone” Adventure Game

NEW “A Public Service Announcement From ANSA” in HD – A mission report from the agency regarding their brave astronauts

NEW “Evolution of the Apes”- HD featurette tracing the apes story from the original novel to the screen

NEW “Impact of the Apes” - HD featurette on how to market a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. The story behind the marketing and merchandising of one of the first ever film franchises and the series’ lasting influence on pop culture through the years

Hellboy 2: The Golden Army DVD and Blu-Ray extras

2008-11-03T04:46:00.000-08:00

Can't wait for our red superhero to make a second dvd and blu-ray appearence? Want to take a look behind the scenes? You can have a peek, but only a peek, because the rest will have to wait. Until November 11, you can enjoy these clips:

BLACK CHRISTMAS

2008-11-03T04:05:00.000-08:00

The cover for the upcoming Blu-ray edition of the classic 1974 film which I always try to watch around christmas time. It's going to be fun to watch this in High Def picture. It will be available on November 11th. Just in time for christmas!

Barry Prima's THE WARRIOR

2008-11-03T03:46:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder to everyone. The release of Barry Prima's THE WARRIOR is only 15 days away. Based on Mondo Macabro's previous releases, this should also be a nice edition of a classic Indo film.

While we're waiting for the release from Mondo Macabro, you can take a look at this clip:

May cause depression?

2008-10-31T07:22:00.000-07:00

Today is Halloween as we all know, and tomorrow is the Official Norwegian Movie Day, where cinema tickets are cheap.

And Finnmark kino wants to play the sequel to Cold Prey (Fritt Vilt), Cold Prey 2, on a big screen outside of the cinema, to get a Halloween vibe. But the political party Krf (Christian party) think it will trigger depression and psychosis amongst Norwegian teenagers if they watch – “Garbage”.

“I don’t think people will get depressed. Cold Prey 2 is an entertainment horror film, partially scary, but I think most people walk out of the cinema with positively charged thrill.” Says Director Martin Sundland.

He thinks that movies like Saw 5 is a lot worse.

"If you read blogs and other things from teenagers, who has actually seen the movie you can’t find any sings of depression or phychosis."

”It fills up with even more terror, snot, blood and gore, and we fear that some teenagers has to be treated for depression.” Says Merete Gran of Krf.

"I think teenagers at the age of 15 in 2008 can handle a horror movie. And see the difference between reality and fiction." Says Sundland

I guess we just have to wait and see. I've been a horror fan since I was 8 years old, that's 13 years now, and horror movies have never made me depressed. The only thing that makes me depressed are those kinds of statements about horror movies.

Watchmen trailer

2008-10-30T23:13:00.000-07:00

Here is the old trailer for Watchmen with some extra footage, as shown on 2008 Scream Awards.

Sylar, CGI and William Shatner

2008-10-30T02:23:00.000-07:00

The forth coming Star Trek movie - Star Trek Zero - has got some mixed opinions from the loyal Star Trek fans, otherwise known as Trekkies.

And with Simon Pegg as Montgomery Scott, John Cho as Sulu and Zachary Quinto as Spock, you just have to stop and think about this whole project. Will these actors live up to the original crew? Will this be a teen flick filled with CGI, and the essence of a Big Budget Hollywood money machine, or will it pay respects to the old series and it's intentions?

J.J Abrams (Lost, Cloverfield), is directing this movie. He has done great work with Lost and Cloverfield, so you would think he has the imagination and experience to do this kind of movie, with it's vivid world and many creatures.

William Shatner was offered a role in the 2009 adaption of Star Trek, but put the offer down. No other comments where made on the subject matter of why he didn't want to participate in the movie.

Ruggero Deodato's CANNIBALS

2008-05-06T01:01:00.000-07:00

The first ever true sequel to CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST is under production.

For many years the name has been stolen for sale purposes, and talk about a remake or sequel has been spreading for a long time, but we can finally confirm that Ruggero Deodato is directing the ''sequel'' to CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST.

The setting also makes you wonder about the cannibals. Is it modern cannibals? Ordinary people living amongst us, or is it a cannibal tribe invading the city? heh. Who knows.

Anyways. It looks great!

Guillermo Del Toro's SATURN AND THE END OF DAYS

2008-04-28T03:54:00.000-07:00

Guillermo Del Toro gave us a little update on his next horror flick; "It's about a kid named Saturn watching the Rapture and the Apocalypse while on the way back and forth from the grocery store. It's like, what would happen if the Apocalypse was viewed by you [while] doing errands. You go back and forth and nothing big happens except the entire world is being sucked into a vortex of fire".

Guillermo Del Toro has a great mind when it comes to movies, so this is something to look forward too.

Hellboy 2: The Golden Army

2008-04-21T03:08:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to remind everybody about Hellboy 2: The Golden Army, which will be in theaters on 22.08.2008, here in Norway.

After an ancient truce existing between humankind and the invisible realm of the fantastic is broken, hell on Earth is ready to erupt. A ruthless leader who treads the world above and the one below defies his bloodline and awakens an unstoppable army of creatures. Now, it's up to the planet's toughest, roughest superhero to battle the merciless dictator and his marauders. He may be red. He may be horned. He may be misunderstood. But when you need the job done right, it's time to call in Hellboy!

Here is the theatrical trailer presented by director Guillermo del Toro:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrR4cw8XFyI

Ms.45 (1981)

2008-04-14T13:20:00.000-07:00

A shy and mute seamstress goes insane after being attacked and raped twice in one day, in which she takes to the streets of New York after dark and randomly kills men with a .45 caliber gun.

Rape/Revenge is a love/hate genre for me. I really can’t stand the rape part. Rape is very hard for me to watch, and not because it has happened to me or anyone close to me, but simply because I think it is the most hideous crime you can commit. It makes me sick. But this is also why I love the genre; the revenge part is often very stylish and gives you a good feeling.

Ms. 45 is just that. It’s stylish and it gives some sense to the whole process of coping with the feelings of being raped. Ms. 45 feels more real when it comes to this. The girl is almost disgusted by her own body, and is very afraid to even see herself naked. As the movie progresses she really get portrayed as a serial killer, rehearsing in front of the mirror, and at some points killing innocent people. That is what makes this a different rape/revenge movie, and even more stylish then most. She seeks revenge against all men, not only those who raped her, but men making out with they’re girlfriends, for instance, every male is seen as a predator. This makes it seem even more real, to portray the feelings, madness and isolation around rape. The movie is also very realistic, as the movie contain no nudity what so ever, and does not portray it as a sexual act.

The soundtrack is often progressive jazz, and gives a more feel to the whole New York scenery, which makes the movie more sleazy and dirty, as it really was the old and filthy New York as we no longer see it.

There is one scene in this movie which I recognised straight away. I’m not going to go too deep into this, but Jörg Buttgereit must have been very inspired by it, because in Der Todesking, one of his masterpieces, which include many, he uses the same theme for the dialog and the scene ends the same way. This was absolutely fun to watch, and did not annoy like it would have, had it maybe been another director.

To me, there is a good feeling around seeing these women getting they’re revenge. It makes women stand out strong against rapist swine. This, to me, is stylish. The only problem I have is that I feel like it needs slightly more character development. Other then that it’s a wonderfully sleazy, gritty, violent, and stylish piece.

8/10

Synapse films update

2008-04-14T01:18:00.000-07:00

Synapse films will release another edition to The Asian Cult Cinema Collection on July 29. The 1967 Japanese shocker MADAME O. Directed by Seiichi Fukuda. A doctor named Seiko (Michiko Aoyama) was raped at 16 and contracted syphilis as a result, and now spends her nights seducing and destroying men. The film is mostly in black and white but switches to color for its visceral highlights, and will be presented on the disc in anamorphic 2.35:1 widescreen, with the original theatrical trailer and liner notes.

As I previously stated, BRAIN DAMAGE and BASKET CASE 2 will be released within the next couple of months. This was poor research from my side and I was corrected;

''Just a correction, we will be starting Basket Case 3, as we have finished and released Basket Case 2 as well as Brain Damage. Thanks for the report.

Jerry, Synapse Films''

(Thanks to Jerry for the update)

The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (2007)

2008-04-13T13:20:00.000-07:00

A middle-school science teacher and a hot sauce mogul vie for the Guinness World Record on the arcade classic, Donkey Kong.

In 1982, LIFE Magazine assembled the world’s greatest gamers for a photo shoot that would become the center spread of their 1982 Year-In-Photos edition. Billy Mitchell, who would later be named the Gamer of the Century, was one of the invitees.

Mitchell, the World Record holder on Centipede, had been tracking the score on Donkey Kong, and knew he could take that title as well. In front of the 20 best gamers in the world, Billy scored 874,300 points, a record many thought would never be broken.

In 2003, 35 year old family man Steve Wiebe, after losing his job at Boeing, found solace in Donkey Kong. Steve stumbled upon Billy Mitchells record online, and set out to break it. He began perfecting his game every night after his wife and kids went to bed.

King of Kong: A fistful of quarters is basically a movie about the world record on Donkey Kong, the old arcade, where Mario had his debut. But it goes much deeper then that. It follows the lives of the World record holder, Billy Mitchell, and the challenger of the record,

Steve Wiebe. Steve Wiebe goes through this hard journey of competing against this community or family that has been growing since Mitchell broke the record in 1982. His trials are many as his desire to beat the world record is intense, wanting to finish something in his life. But Steve Wiebe is calm and just you’re average Joe through all the mayhem that this world record attempt brings.

Billy Mitchell is a douche bag. I can’t really say why, because it would spoil the whole movie. And there is so much happiness, and bullshit in this movie that really needs to be described. But I can’t. You just have to see the movie.

But to see such bullshit and unfair treatment against a practically ’’no name man’’ makes you really wonder what high class people in other communities are hiding. This is a movie about a grown man playing an old arcade game, but you’re still so drawn to it, and involved, that you can’t just put this movie back in the shelf with the rest. You won’t find a more gripping or compelling movie this year. You have to keep watching this, laugh extra hard the other time around and get even more pissed of by the bullshit.

King of Kong is a movie you have to see as it is an instant classic. A heart-warming film which is fun and fascinating.

A hard movie to review, but a pleasure to view.

10/10

Cyclone (1978)

2008-04-01T14:03:00.000-07:00

A jet plane goes down in the Caribbean waters during a violent cyclone. Most of the passengers die violently or drown in the chaos, but the few survivors that remain, are rescued by a group in a smaller boat. Lost at sea, the survivors hope for rescue, but food and water supply are low. Dying one by one and surrounded by man eating sharks, this group must fight to survive.

Alive or maybe Cast Away? Forget it! Cyclone is the ultimate survival movie. Cannibalism, sharks and a huge cyclone.

The one thing I knew before I began watching this movie was that the shark attacks wouldn’t be unbelievably realistic. After seeing the shark vs. zombie scene in Lucio Fulci’s Zombie 2, another shark attack scene will never be realistic enough. It’s not healthy to compare. But that scene sat the bar pretty high.

At times it’s a fun and happy movie, like the ‘’happy fisherman’’ from the tourist boat, who puts a pleasant and comical relief to the whole situation. But this movie is also brutal. The dog scene looks very real and made me shiver. You also feel the exhaustion of the people who struggle through everyday in the heat, with barely enough to eat, and basically nothing to drink but some melted ice. So they have to ration everything. And as we all know, order won’t be kept very long, as everyone struggle for they’re own survival.

Stock footage was something I expected to see every 10 minutes, but to my surprise I couldn’t really see any stock footage scenes, except for one natural-disaster scene. This was very pleasing, even though I was slightly disappointed with the realism of the shark attacks. People where beaten to a pulp after 5 seconds of being ravaged by a shark. But scenes like the airplane crash really surprised me in a very positive way. Being an Italian movie from the 70’s, I didn’t expect too much. Don’t get me wrong, I love Italian movies from the 70’s and any other era. But most of these movies don’t have the best effects when it comes to things as an airplane crash, for instance.

If you expect the Italian Jaws, you will be disappointed. After seeing the cover and reading the synopsis, I too expected a ‘’shark attack’’ movie. But this movie is much deeper then that. It drags you in with emotion, and sympathy for the characters. You feel they’re struggle for survival, and you hang on to the edge of your seat, through almost the entire movie. You will be shocked, sickened and happy.

8/10

Satan's Playground (2005)

2008-03-30T11:16:00.000-07:00

Satan's Playground is a chiller with a vacationing family lost in the woods and the Jersey Devil lurking in the Pine Barrens.

What started of as a cheesy 70’s movie, with slasher, black magic and sacrifice elements, turned into a mediocre and boring popcorn flick.

The Evil Dead, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and House of 1000 corpses are the feeling I get from watching this movie. Not because actors from both The Evil Dead and Texas Chainsaw Massacre played parts in this movie, but because of the setting, scenery and plot.

This movie is supposed to be about The Jersey Devil, which is the first film I’ve seen with this creature. So I expected a lot. Trough the whole movie you never see the creature. And when it first ‘’appeared’’, it sounded like a wounded pigeon flying around. And according to the things I’ve heard and read, the Jersey Devil was huge. This put a more forced comical aspect to the whole movie.

This movie doesn’t really work on any level. It was just a weird movie which never went anywhere, a one track movie, stuck at the same place, repeating itself constantly, always doing the same thing and going around in circles.

Dante Tomaselli should have made a great movie, since he grew up around the area, and claims to have often, as a child, got lost in the forest on purpose. The whole movie got out of concept, as he would have to understand the fright around this legend, growing up with it. And for him to make it into a popcorn movie, was not a god idea.

Mrs. Leeds and the fact that there was a monster lurking in the forest didn’t really do anything for the legend or the movie. This movie should have played more on the concept of the monster and not the family. The legend says that she gave birth to 12 retarded children and the 13th was born a monster. But I didn’t expect a fat retarded goth girl doing all the killing. Maybe the low budget kept them from really introducing the creature to the audience, or maybe Tomaselli wanted to keep focus on the family.

The one positive thing about this movie was to see actors from classic movies such as The Evil Dead, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Sleepaway Camp.

My first Dante movie was a huge disappointment. What could have been a horror fairytale mixed with drugs, sleaze and violence became a bleak horror movie, lacking fright and excitement.

3/10

A fresh start!

2008-03-22T15:49:00.000-07:00

I have deleted everything and will start over with this blogg. There will be more reviews and less news.

2008 will be a very sleazy movie year for me, so I hope that all you sleaze hounds will keep yourself updated on my blogg.