ok, popped sanjuro back in and watched the last scene. have no idea how i forgot about it???
anyways, that move that mifune pulls off is pretty neat. had to pause, and slo-mo it about six times! probably impossible to perform in real life, but it looked way cool in the movies.
i also just finished watching 'tengoku to jigoku' (high & low), which i highly recommend. one of the best kurosawa films, in my opinion. i'm not sure if he got his ideas from any hitchcock movies (showing about the same time period), but it was an awesome thriller.
have any of you seen it??
Seen both of 'em...
The ending to Sanjuro has got to be one of the best, if not the best ending on film: it's so startling. The long long long pause before that adds to the suspense as well... Just awesome.
High & Low is really good as well... Suspenseful, just like a Hitchcock film... One of Kurosawa's few non jidai-geki films, but done very well.
Joined: 06 Oct 2004 Posts: 700 Location: Hawaii! Country:
Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2004 4:31 am Post subject:
bmwracer wrote:
The ending to Sanjuro has got to be one of the best, if not the best ending on film: it's so startling. The long long long pause before that adds to the suspense as well... Just awesome.
High & Low is really good as well... Suspenseful, just like a Hitchcock film... One of Kurosawa's few non jidai-geki films, but done very well.
sorry, i really should add: **SPOILER ALERT**
yeah, that sanjuro ending was pretty neat. i was expecting them to step back from one another, and do a classic swordfight duel, when mifune pulls off his move.
i enjoyed 'high&low' cuz it was so well made, yet, wasn't one of his samurai movies. the crime was pretty clever, they seemed to cover all the angles without any glaring holes in the plot, and you really didn't know what to expect. the only part i was disappointed in was the very end. i thought the villian's acting could have been a bit better. he was trying, but it wasn't that convincing. nevertheless, awesome movie!
High & Low is really good as well... Suspenseful, just like a Hitchcock film... One of Kurosawa's few non jidai-geki films, but done very well.
High & Low was a film adaptation of an Ed McBain "87th precinct" novel, King's Ransom (written in 1959). McBain is a prolific American mystery writer who has written over 40 novels centering around a group of detectives who work in the 87th Precinct of a large metropolitan city (the city is never named in any of the novels, but it's obviously New York). The "87th Precinct" novels are often referred to as police procedural novels since much of the plots are devoted to showing how the detectives try and solve the crimes committed in the stories. The first of these novels was published around 1956; the latest is out this month. In all, McBain (a pen name) has written around 80 novels, including a number under another pen name, Evan Hunter. He has also written some screen plays, including Hitchcock's The Birds. I once read that his detective novels are popular in Japan, so that's probably how Kurosawa came upon the story which became his film High & Low.
Joined: 06 Oct 2004 Posts: 700 Location: Hawaii! Country:
Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2004 10:20 am Post subject:
shin2: thanks for the info. that's pretty interesting, although it's not surprising that he had some inspiration for the story. it's still amazing how kurosawa was able to put together the movie. it flowed very well.
yeah, that sanjuro ending was pretty neat. i was expecting them to step back from one another, and do a classic swordfight duel, when mifune pulls off his move.
And the look on all of the the junior samurai's faces is priceless.
shin2: thanks for the info. that's pretty interesting, although it's not surprising that he had some inspiration for the story. it's still amazing how kurosawa was able to put together the movie. it flowed very well.
Yeah, great piece of background info on High & Low.
Joined: 06 Oct 2004 Posts: 700 Location: Hawaii! Country:
Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2004 5:09 pm Post subject:
i mentioned this to someone else about kurosawa films. when you watch them, and you realize that many of his movies were made in the 50s/60s, it makes you even more appreciative of his genius. i mean, he has clever transitions, ideas, attention to detail, character development, plot twists, etc - much of which are used in film today.
Joined: 06 Oct 2004 Posts: 700 Location: Hawaii! Country:
Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2004 5:13 pm Post subject:
bmwracer: i forgot to mention, i really thought that nakadai did his best work in 'high&low' (as the lead detective in the case). since he's usually the villain, i had to do a google search to make sure that was him!
bmwracer: i forgot to mention, i really thought that nakadai did his best work in 'high&low' (as the lead detective in the case). since he's usually the villain, i had to do a google search to make sure that was him!
If you ever have any question about the case and/or crew of a movie, you can always check the Internet Movie Database (http://imdb.com/)... It's probably the most comprehensive movie database in the web....
Joined: 06 Oct 2004 Posts: 700 Location: Hawaii! Country:
Posted: Tue Dec 14, 2004 6:36 am Post subject:
thanks for the link, but that's the site always check. that's how i put together my list of 'to-get' kurosawa movies. don't think i'll ever get his entire collection, but just the main ones.
got to watch 'akahige' (red beard). another GREAT movie. this one was long and a little bit of a tear-jerker, but still - a very well-made movie.
**slight SPOILER alert**
i may have to pop it in again, though. i was slightly confused as to what happened between the young doctor, girlfriend, gf's dad, his own dad and everything.
i was also amazed at how good the child actor was!! i'll have to look him up later and find out if he did anything else when he got older.
thanks for the link, but that's the site always check. that's how i put together my list of 'to-get' kurosawa movies. don't think i'll ever get his entire collection, but just the main ones.
got to watch 'akahige' (red beard). another GREAT movie. this one was long and a little bit of a tear-jerker, but still - a very well-made movie.
**slight SPOILER alert**
i may have to pop it in again, though. i was slightly confused as to what happened between the young doctor, girlfriend, gf's dad, his own dad and everything.
i was also amazed at how good the child actor was!! i'll have to look him up later and find out if he did anything else when he got older.
I think I did the same thing, but I didn't find much on that little kid. At least in English.
Joined: 06 Oct 2004 Posts: 700 Location: Hawaii! Country:
Posted: Sat Dec 18, 2004 5:42 am Post subject:
bmwracer wrote:
I think I did the same thing, but I didn't find much on that little kid. At least in English.
well, i did a bit of research, and it turns out that kid's name is Yoshitaka Zushi. funny thing is that he shows up in this role as a kid in 1965, then practically disappears - then shows up again in kurosawa's ran, yume, and madadayo. it'll be interesting to look for him when i watch those movies.
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Posts: 3125 Location: S.F. Bay Area Country:
Posted: Sun Dec 19, 2004 3:58 am Post subject: Finishing up some old business
A few years ago a couple of Japanese directors who were involved in the "Jam" project (a series of short films) decided to get together for a little competition.
The two directors would each make a film based on the idea of a Duel in a confined space. The shooting schedule would be about 8 days for each, and the budgets wouldn't really pay for a good weekend in Vegas.
Not exactly the breeding ground for the making of great cinema, but since the Japanese seem to have dismissed the idea of film as art... what the heck.
Anyway, Tsutsumi the lunatic, goofball, genius behind series like "Keizoku" and "Trick" made a wonderful, original, memorable little movie called "2LDK". I talked about this one earlier, so all I'll say here is that if you enjoy black comedy... go get this one. It's a trip.
I'm writing this because I just saw Kitamura's entry into the competition. A samuri movie called "Aragami".
Hands down I have to give the competition to Tsutsumi. (I know, voting's over. But I just saw the second film this week.)
"Aragami" really is a very well made piece, considering the lack of time, and lack of budget. And for the most part it's a pretty interesting short film. But it doesn't have the originality of the other move. It isn't as shocking or as funny. And bottom line, what he had here was a pretty good episode of the "Twilight Zone". Not a movie.
(Not the old Rod Serling "Twilight Zone". The newer one that was filmed in Canada.) _________________
Geez, I can't say that I'm familiar with either of those directors, though I really like the Trick series (that is the Trick you're talking about, neh?)...
I'm still trying to gather and watch all of the classics from Kurosawa, Ozu, Inagaki, and Mizoguchi among others...
Joined: 06 Oct 2004 Posts: 700 Location: Hawaii! Country:
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2004 5:25 am Post subject:
Geez: i think it came out in bittorrent as 'jam films'. it was basically seven(?) short films all in one movie. i remember it was a rather popular torrent. i had to burn it off, and i never got the chance to watch it. guess i'm gonna have to go dig it up!
Joined: 08 Jan 2004 Posts: 1529 Location: United States Country:
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2004 5:31 am Post subject: Re: Finishing up some old business
Geezer wrote:
Anyway, Tsutsumi the lunatic, goofball, genius behind series like "Keizoku" and "Trick" made a wonderful, original, memorable little movie called "2LDK". I talked about this one earlier, so all I'll say here is that if you enjoy black comedy... go get this one. It's a trip.
Funny, I was just talking to a friend yesterday about Japanese movies and he mentioned 2LDK. Isn't that a martial-arts-type film?
Another fascinating read (I'm only on chapter 3) is Stuart Galbraith's The Emperor and the Wolf: The Lives and Films of Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune... One of the few (if not the only) complete biography on those two legends of cinema...
Read somewhere that Galbraith has written another book entitled Cinema Nippon, published by Taschen and scheduled to be released some time in 2005.
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Posts: 3125 Location: S.F. Bay Area Country:
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2004 3:38 pm Post subject: Re: Finishing up some old business
eightysix wrote:
Funny, I was just talking to a friend yesterday about Japanese movies and he mentioned 2LDK. Isn't that a martial-arts-type film?
Not really. 2LDK is about two young actresses, sharing a luxury condo provided by their management, both up for the same part in a movie... and both getting on each other's last nerve.
To the point where, over the course of one evening, they go from fake politeness, to open insults, to all out war as they try to kill each other.
And they're not subtle about it. The fight scenes in this movie kick ass.
The movie stars: Maho Nonami and Eiko Koike _________________
Joined: 19 Aug 2003 Posts: 3125 Location: S.F. Bay Area Country:
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2004 4:10 pm Post subject:
bmwracer wrote:
Geez, I can't say that I'm familiar with either of those directors, though I really like the Trick series (that is the Trick you're talking about, neh?)...
I'm still trying to gather and watch all of the classics from Kurosawa, Ozu, Inagaki, and Mizoguchi among others...
Absolutely. Yukihiko Tsutsumi is the nut behind the Trick series. He also did Keizoku which is really the blueprint for Trick. The difference being that Keizoku is darker because they are trying to solve murders and serial killings, rather than debunking fakers. (But it's still wonderfully goofy.)
I looked him up on yesasia once and he's got half a dozen series to his credit, and a bunch of movies. I love this guy's work. He's not Kurosawa, but then, he's not trying to be. _________________
Joined: 08 Jan 2004 Posts: 1529 Location: United States Country:
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2004 4:59 pm Post subject: Re: Finishing up some old business
Geezer wrote:
Not really. 2LDK is about two young actresses, sharing a luxury condo provided by their management, both up for the same part in a movie... and both getting on each other's last nerve.
To the point where, over the course of one evening, they go from fake politeness, to open insults, to all out war as they try to kill each other.
And they're not subtle about it. The fight scenes in this movie kick ass.
The movie stars: Maho Nonami and Eiko Koike
Ah, thanks for the correction. I'll definetely be borrowing this one from my friend now that I know Eiko-chan is in it.
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