Drama > Japanese Drama

Advantages: Chillingly brilliant.
Disadvantages: There aren't any.

Ran is essentially a film that portrays with chilling effect the lust for power and the tragedy and betrayal that inevitably comes with it. Set during the Sengoku era(15th to 17th century) in Japan the aging warlord Hidetora abdicates his throne and relinquishes control of his kingdom to his three sons, in the hope that his children will work together and support each other. The youngest son is banished however as he speaks out against this plan, ...
...kingdom. Ran is one of those great films that has great acting, a huge cast of extras and wonderful costumes equal to more recent films such as Troy and 300. What makes it really stand out though is the poignant symbolism found throughout the film. The film makes references to the gods being absent in a world of suffering and human evil, where even the most religious and good hearted characters die horribly. Furthermore there is no happy ending at ... Read review

Advantages: Animation at its more mature and sincere
Disadvantages: Deeply depressing

This film is beyond a doubt Takahata Isao’s masterpiece, and amongst Studio Ghibli’s best films – arguably their best. The movie was released on a double bill with Totoro (at the time, Totoro was considered too hard to market to release on its own!), although the sole resemblances between the two films lie in character style, attention to detail and nostalgic childhood settings. They represent the opposite ways of approaching storytelling concerning ...
...brutal indifference of a cruel reality. In Hotaru no Haka, a teenaged Japanese boy and his tiny sister struggle to survive when the Second World War leaves them all alone in the world. Few films are more affecting; Hotaru no Haka is commonly spoken of (after the example of Roger Ebert) as one of the best war films ever made, regardless of being animated. Indeed, the film would have worked well in live action – there has recently been such a version ... Read review

Advantages: You will have never seen anything like this before
Disadvantages: Very very disturbing

If you think your family is disfunctional then watch this. You will come away feeling a whole lot better about your own life. I don't really know where to start with this film. I stumbled across it in blockbuster video after a sudden interest in Japanese horror films such as the ring and the grudge. I found this instead. Try imagining your mum as a drug addict selling her body, whilst your dad has a hidden fetish for killing people and sleeping ...
...drugs are right up your street then try adding necrophillia and breast milk to the list. Although the film is Japanese, it does come with English subtitles although this does not distract from the film. In fact it makes you concentrate on it more. The only downside is that the film does start off a little slow, but you won't be complaining about it when it hits the cascade of self-destruction that will make you feel like you have just took a huge ... Read review

Advantages: Spectacular fight scenes, excellent camera work, well acted.
Disadvantages: None really.

...Newcomer Yumiko Shaku plays Princess Yuki, the true heir to the royal family of the Takemikazuchi bloodline. Having fled her own kingdom with the Takemikazuchi assassins, she now works alongside them as an assassin herself. THE PLOT During the course of the film, Princess Yuki discovers the truth behind the death of her mother, Princess Azora. This new realization leads her to the traitor within the Takemikazuchi tribe of assassins, and she is forced ...
...that Princess Yuki will be seeking revenge, pursues her in a relentless game of cat and mouse. THE CAST Hideaki Ito, Yumiko Shaku, Shiro Sano, Yoichi Numata, Kyusaku Shimada, Yoko Maki MY OPINION OF THE FILM This film is fast paced and has plenty of action scenes. The fight choreography was instructed by Donnie Yen, so expect awesome displays of swordplay and downright dirty fighting. As for the level of violence in the film, I would say it is ... Read review

Advantages: Can be tense, shocking and unpredictable
Disadvantages: Appears to be a typical chick-flick on the surface

My reason for purchasing Match Point in the first instance was quite simple, Jonathon Rhys Myers was in it and for me that was as good an excuse as any to buy a new film. I'm so glad however that I did buy this film because not only does Rhys Myers play a fantastic part and look extremely handsome for the main but the film has become a firm favourite of mine. Chris (Jonathon Rhys Meyers) is an Irish tennis coach who after coaching Tom, the son of ...
..."There are moments in a match when the ball hits the top of the net and for a split second it can go either forward or fall back. With a little luck it goes forward and you win. Or maybe it doesn't and you lose." This line sums up the double-edged sword that the film is, as on more than one occasion the ball may go forward and Chris may uphold the life he has dreamed of but just as easily it may fall backwards and the world he has come to love may ... Read review