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Artoo
Warawara

Registration Date: 07.19.07
Location: UK
Posts: 160

lots of good picks here that I like too...

I am House of Flying Daggers fan too. I enjoyed Hero and Curse of the Golden Flower as well, but HOFD for me has the best story (the visuals are great in all of those films). Raise the Red Lantern is good too, I should check out some more Yimou Zhang films... any recommendations anyone?

Amelie is a great film but I found it a little 'twee' in places somehow. I totally get why everyone who loves it does, and I did like it a lot.

I need to watch more Kurosawa too... I have seen a few, my faves being Seven Samurai and The Hidden Fortress (gotta love that as 'Artoo', as R2-D2 and C-3PO's characters were inspired by characters in that film!). I also really like Dreams (Martin Scorsese as Van Gough... odd but cool!).

Other films I've been reminded of...
Ong Bak, Infernal Affairs, Kung-Fu Hustle, All About Lily Chou-Chou... all good. I like the original Japanese Dark Water too (not as keen on the US remake (though I think Jennifer Connelly is great)).

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08.18.2007, 05:09 AM

Lupin
Calcifer

Registration Date: 04.09.07
Location: Suffolk, England
Posts: 137

hmmm... ive got to get round to watching some Kurosawa and Pan's Labyrinth... and Seven Swords... ARGH so many ive got to watch!!

08.18.2007, 07:30 AM

Roarkiller
Your Daddy-O

Registration Date: 06.03.03
Location: Home, resting...
Posts: 6077

quote:
Originally posted by Theowne
All About Lily Chou-Chou

Just a beautiful film, and one of my favorites. It also is an eye opener for those people (and I know you've seen them all over anime forums) who seem to believe that Japan is heaven on earth.

Oooh, I heard bout that one, but missed it when it was on the screens here. Is it VERY worth it, cuz if it is, I know where my next few dollars are heading.

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quote:
Originally posted by fenkashi
Screw your opinions, they are not relevant ^^.

08.18.2007, 12:32 PM

Theowne
Baron

Registration Date: 02.11.07
Location: Toronto, Canada
Posts: 1290

quote:
Is it VERY worth it

I would say it's very well worth it. Keep note that the film switches from past to present to past without notice. Also, the director rarely explains things outright, so for instance, there might be a character death but he doesn't spell it out in huge letters why they did it (though after some thought, you'll get it). These are the most common complaints against the film. If that sounds like something that might bother you, then you might not want to get it.

Post last edited by Theowne on 08.18.2007, 02:54 PM.

08.18.2007, 01:18 PM

Roarkiller
Your Daddy-O

Registration Date: 06.03.03
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Posts: 6077

Ocean Waves and Millenium Actress both switch between time frames.

I've been wanting to get Crying Out Love in the Center of the World anyway, good chance to get both.

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quote:
Originally posted by fenkashi
Screw your opinions, they are not relevant ^^.

08.18.2007, 11:30 PM

Mush
Baron

Registration Date: 07.30.07
Location: South of Canada
Posts: 1810

I just saw the Motorcycle Diaries. It was really, really good. And Ché is cool!

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08.27.2007, 12:22 AM

Roarkiller
Your Daddy-O

Registration Date: 06.03.03
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I saw Pan's Labyrinth. Title was misleading until I saw who they meant by Pan; the actual title is El Laberinto Del Fauno. The word "faun" is a more accurate term (I do know, however, the tale of Pan).

Basically, it is a bit like The Neverending Story, in the sense that the main protagonists are living in a real world where they are, in several ways, looked down upon, and thus escape into a fantasy world where life is generally better.

Anyway, while the movie portrays a fairy tale setup, the background events make me believe that the Ofelia's adventures are but of her own imagination, despite clear evidence against this theory. My explanation is simple: Ofelia is living in a world where she feels tied down, oppressed and unloved. This "fairy" world allows her to escape the realities of life.

There are flaws in my theory, of course. Near the end, Ofelia escaped with the help of the chalk which should not be possible, and the existence of the mandrake root, although debatable since she may have gotten it from the forests.

The Captain not seeing the faun in the end is what makes me feel this way, btw.

However, I honestly feel that that the fairy tale is but a sub-plot from the main story where the countryside Spain is at war, and Ofelia is thrown right into the center of it.

All in all though, this is an excellent movie, very highly recommended. Get it if you have the chance, but beware; it does not have a happy ending.

And in fact, most fairy tales originally never had happy endings (Red Riding Hood and The Little Mermaid comes to mind).

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quote:
Originally posted by fenkashi
Screw your opinions, they are not relevant ^^.

08.27.2007, 01:41 AM

Mush
Baron

Registration Date: 07.30.07
Location: South of Canada
Posts: 1810

I agree; the fairy tale really is a sub-plot for the war. It's how she copes with the horrors around her.

Although, the chalk piece (which the Captain finds!) is a little hard to explain.

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08.27.2007, 01:50 AM

Cabooseshero
Kodama

Registration Date: 08.09.07
Location: Blood Gulch
Posts: 48

quote:
Originally posted by Ramah
One thing I would like to know though is, those people who are listing Final Fantasy: Advent Children as being a great foreign film... what exactly is it about the film you like? What makes it worthy of recommending?
I'm genuinely interested in what you think because I found the film to be a huge letdown, so much so that I wish I hadn't seen it. I'm a massive fan of FF VII but a film with a story that kind of ruins the original and is made up of little more than numerous fight scenes that are hard to follow is not what I wanted all those years I longed for a sequel.

I agree with you. What makes Final Fantasy so special are the stories and the memorable characters not just the action. I always thought Spirits Within was a better Final Fantasy movie. BTW aren't both FF movies anime anyway?

08.28.2007, 03:24 AM