Millionaire’s Express (Hong Kong, 1986) – 3,5/5
Sammo Hung’s Hong Kong western is an entertaining action comedy with little sense, but several funny scenes. The last 20 minutes offers one of the best action orgies on Hung’s career. The cast is unbelievable: Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, Kenny Bee, Yasuaki Kurata, Eric Tsang, Phillip Ko, Richard Norton, Dick Wei, Rosamund Kwan, Emily Chu and the world’s best comedian Richard Ng, just to mention a few. Special mentions to the female kicking machines Yukari Oshima and Cynthia Rothrock, whom I actually managed to like this time.
- dvd / Dragon Dynasty
Yakuza Graveyard (Japan, 1976) – 4/5
Although Battles Without Honor and Humanity didn’t fully convince me, Yakuza Graveyard leaves no room for doubts. Fukasaku’s study on the thin red line between the police and the yakuza is some of the best crime cinema I’ve seen in ages. The storyline holds up well, and the main character, played by Tetsuya Watari, is an excellent combination of cinematic anti-hero and realism. The female lead is played by Meiko Kaji, who gives another solid performance.
- dvd / Kino
5 Centimeters per Second (Japan, 2007) – 4,5/5
I can’t believe it took me this long to realize that every single Makoto Shinkai movie is about distance, either physical or emotional. 5 Centimeters per Second sets its storyline on smaller scale than the directors previous tow films, but it also avoids their mistakes. There is no longer unnecessary scifi content or complex plotting. This is how it should be. The film consists of three related parts, running 25, 22 and 14 minutes.
- dvd / R3 HK
2007 closed on my behalf, opening a new topic