2003, Action
Director: Kenta Fukusaku
Starring: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Ai Maeda, Riki Takeuchi,

Plot: Japan has fallen victim of the Wild 7, a group lead by Shuya Nanahara, a survivor of the Battle Royale program. Wild 7 takes credit for the bombing and declares a war against the Japanese government. And the government responds the way it only knows, it launches a new Battle Royale program. And a lucky class of junior high graduates is sent on to a mission of “do-or-die” to take out Wild 7.

Just like the original Battle Royale, the US will not ever welcome Battle Royale II, ever. This is why. The film is very sympathetic to terrorism. And if that’s not bad enough, the country responsible for the fascist state of affairs in the film is, you guessed it, the US. This film is directed by Kenta Fukusaku. He took over the project shortly after death of his father. And the result is a disappointing one. Just like the original, an over-the-top performance by Tatsuya Fujiwara is not easy to watch. The gunfights are not really exciting. The film is about individual choices and how society prevents us from making them. It is way too thematic and metaphoric, it seems not enough thought was given to making the plot of the film as coherent as it should or could have been.

I am sure there are people who will enjoy Battle Royale II for its over-the-top everything. But the film feels just plain silly. And if you were truly impressed by the original, well, you may be disappointed.

Review by Shogo.

Can/Fr/Belg 2002
Director: Sylvain Chomet
Score: *****

Cutesy and adorable characters are replaced by often obese and grotesque figures in Quebecois Sylvain Chomet’s fascinating and imaginative new animated flick that has deservedly been nominated for the upcoming Academy Award for Best Animated feature alongside Finding Nemo and (yes- ugh!) Brother Bear.  From the film’s first sequence, which pays tribute to the old Felix the Cat and Betty Boop type TV cartoons, the film gets better and better, finally ending in a hilarious bicycle/limo chase through the streets of imaginary Belleville.

The marvel of it all is that this foreign film goes without subtitles.  Yet, the complicated plot involving the granny training Champion (the grandson) for le tour de France, the abduction of the three cyclists, her heroic rescue with the faithful dog in the city of Belleville, the encounter with the singing ‘triplets’ is simple and intriguing enough to follow.  The film’s charm derives from Chomet’s grand imagination.  The cyclist wind-vane changing direction in the wind and the slowing down of the train each time it passes the cottage window, so that the faces of the passengers can be seen by Bruno, the dog particularly stand out.  But it is the colours (often yellowish brown), caricatures of real-life figures and dark shadowy city with the slanted buildings that give the film is characteristic look.  Art director Evgeni Tomov claims to have got his inspiration from Caro and Jeunet’s Delicatessen and City of Lost Children.  And it shows.

Les Triplettes was also nominated for best song and with reason.  Leaving the cinema, the catchy tune Belleville Rendezvous stays in the head for at least a day or two.  Les Triplettes is not to be missed for its sheer achievement!

Some points to note. The North American title goes as THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE and the British title Belleville Rendez-vous.  In Canada, this film only just opened a few weeks back while the U.S and Britain were fortunate to have it played since last year.  And if you were in London or Dublin during the festive season, BBC2 played the entire film on prime time at 9 pm Christmas Day.

Review by Gilbert Seah

I’ll admit it… I was prepared to hate this film. I didn’t know much about it. Only that it was a short shot-on-video “horror” film that was going to be released on an upcoming Kevin Lindenmuth anthology called Monstersdotcom. It didn’t sound promising. But even though I was prepared to hate it, this creepy no-budget tale of a swamp-monster in pursuit of a serial killer won me over.

Shadows in the Garden is an atmospheric film about a vicious serial killer on the loose, an evil company making “bloodmeal” for dogs and cats, a missing police officer and a Swamp Thing like swamp creature. These elements combine on a lonely rainswept night as the creature searches for his identity while the serial killer stalks another victim. All of these ingredients could have easily added up to nothing more than a cheesy waste of time, but the talent of director Wayne Spitzer lifts the project to a higher level.

Spitzer makes a very wise choice for a low-budget director—Shadows in the Garden is essentially a silent film. He cheats a bit with radio broadcasts and newspaper headlines which definitely help communicate the complicated and fractured storyline. He also employs a very expressionistic dynamic visual style. The lack of dialog combined with the surreal imagery and steady downpour of rain really create a creepy and lonely atmosphere.

A monster suit can make or break a movie, and monster suits almost ALWAYS look terrible in shot on video flicks. Realizing this, Spitzer keeps his swamp beast obscured by shadows and rain and it works pretty ***censored*** well. The glimpses we do get of the swamp beast are impressive. This is definitely a nice monster suit. The beast looks like some kind of reptilian gorilla covered in swamp vegetation. That being said, the monster does have flowers growing out of his head which takes him down a notch or two on the coolness scale.

This is obviously a very low-budget effort so you have to look at it from a different perspective than you would a mainstream movie. Ultimately, Shadows in the Garden only amounts to an interesting diversion, but it definitely shows a real talent at work behind the camera. Spitzer shows real talent and has put a lot of energy into realizing his vision and pushing the limits of his budget and available technology.

(Note: Shadows in the Garden is available as part of the Brimstone Media anthology Monstersdotcom. We haven’t been supplied with the other segments to review. In addition to being a talented director Wayne Spitzer knows how to promote his work. Note to aspiring filmmakers: There’s a lesson be learned here.)

Review by Christopher Sharpe.

2002, Japan
Director: Fumihiko Sori
Cast: Yosuke Kubozuka, Arata, Sam Lee

Peco and Smile are best friends that have been playing ping-pong since they were kids. While Peco loves to play the game, Smile only plays to kill time with his friend despite the fact that he is the most talented.

This film is based on Taiyo Matsumoto’s manga of the same title. I can’t say anything about the manga because I am not familiar with it, but the film explores and brings the world of ping-pong to the next level. One might expect Shaolin Soccer. This is much more than that. While Shaolin Soccer was mainly a whacked out soccer game film, this film interestingly deals with the spirituality of the game. Sure it is very surreal indeed but characters have certainly more determination, ambition and perhaps spirit in Ping Pong.

First-time director Fumihiko Sori uses CGI very subtly throughout the film, so that it never takes over the film. He really could have gone overboard with the ping-pong matches and thrown in tremendous amounts of CGI to enhance the game. But once again this film is not about the game of winning and losing. It is about what goes on behind it. And there is some comedy to be had, but Ping Pong is much more charming and insightful than a wacky comedy.

This film will absolutely satisfy and inspire everyone. You may not stand up and cheer, but you will have a big smile at the end of the film. And perhaps it will bring tears to your eyes at some point.

Drama, 2003, Thai
Director: Pen-ek Ratanaruang
Starring: Tadanobu Asano, Laila Boonyasak, Sinitta Boonyasak,

Kenji (Tadanobu Asano) is a quiet Japanese library clerk working in Bangkok. He is so fed up with his mundane existence that he constantly fantasizes about suicide. After the tragic death of a girl he’s been infatuated with, witnessing the murder of his brother and murdering his brother’s killer, he moves in with the dead girl’s sister Noi (Sinitta Boonyasak) and their relationship slowly starts to grow.

This is an amazing and charming film. From the very first moment images appear, it will grab you. And it almost becomes addicting all the way through. It is playful and emotionally tender at the same time as Kenji and Noi’s lost souls build a bridge of the relationship. And once again Christopher Doyle did what he does best. His luscious images create a perfect mood for the film. The performance by the entire cast is superb. Asano’s performance is so effortless that if you haven’t seen him in other films you would believe he is this character in real life. And Sinitta Boonyasak is a total thrill to observe as well. If that’s not enough, this film has special guest stars. Riki Takeuchi and Takashi Miike portray yakuza in the film. This film brings together all the exciting talents in cinema world today and results in a piece that will be remembered for ages to come.

Last Life In The Universe is a funny, tender and subtly devastating film about how fate moves in mysterious ways. This is a film that should be on everyone’s watch list.