* Fantasia 2008 * Japanese * Kenta Fukasaku * X-Cross
Directed by Kenta Fukasaku
Take The Wicker Man and 80's slasher movies, blend them with a survival horror video game and a hefty dose of martial arts, and you’ve got X-Cross – a bizarro slice of cult cinema that could only come from Japan. For those who find Sam Raimi movies “slow-paced,” this demented slice of midnight movie bliss may just be your ticket.
Directed by Kenta (Battle Royale II) Fukasaku from a script by Tetsuya (Death Note) Oishi, the film follows two Japanese school girls on vacation in an isolated hot springs village where things aren’t quite what they seem. After encountering several strange locals, the pair soon realize they’ve run afoul of an entire town’s worth of bloodthirsty cultists – and they demand a sacrifice. As dumb luck would have it, a patchy-eyed scissors-wielding slasher also stumbles into town after the two friends are quickly separated, using their cell phones to stay in contact while each one tries to survive the night.
If it sounds over-ambitious, that’s because it is, and it’s sometimes difficult to get your bearings amidst all the chaos. But it hardly puts a damper on the entertainment value. Fukasaku’s inventive direction and eye-popping visuals make for one wild ride at the movies – logic be damned! X-Cross also takes the non-linear route by showing the same events through the perspective of each girl. It’s a gimmick but a cool one that helps ratchet up the sense of paranoia and weirdness that fills each moment.
Hybrid movies don’t always work, and this one bounces from intense horror to slapstick comedy to kung fu fightin’ more often than you can count, but all the elements blend together nicely. The action scenes are beautifully staged and choreographed, the running gags are suitably funny, and there are even several tension-filled moments that deliver on the scares. Avid video gamers will also recall the Clock Tower series, which seems to be a huge influence here (fitting since father Kinji Fukasaku directed the third game just before his death).
It would be criminal to say any more since it’s best to go into this film with a clean slate. But after all these years, slasher junkies and fans of Japanese cult cinema finally have something to scream about. X-Cross is a unique spin on the genre and delivers a delirious balls-to-the-wall rollercoaster of a movie ... without a single Asian ghost in sight.
* Title: オー！マイ・ガール！！ * Title (English): Oh! My Girl!! * Format: Renzoku * Genre: Family drama * Episodes: 9 * Viewership ratings: 7.5 (Kanto) * Broadcast network: NTV * Broadcast period: 2008-Oct-14 to 2008-Dec-09 * Air time: Tuesday 22:00 * Theme song: Toki no Ashioto by Kobukuro
Hayami Mokomichi as Yamashita Kotaro
Synopsis
Yamashita Kotaro was living a peaceful life as a publisher part-timer aspiring to be a mobile phone novelist until two females suddenly appeared in his life. One is his six-year-old celebrity niece and the other is the little girl's stern manager. As he is forced to live under the same roof as the little prodigy, their differences soon manifest and disputes ensue. However, through co-habitation, Yamashita slowly comes to appreciate having a family and the warmth it brings, all the while developing a love-hate relationship with Fuji Mineko, the manager.
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Director: Marcus Nispel Writers: Damian Shannon (screenplay) & Mark Swift (screenplay) ... Genre: Horror more
cast :
Jared Padalecki ... Clay Miller Danielle Panabaker ... Jenna Amanda Righetti ... Whitney Miller Travis Van Winkle ... Trent Aaron Yoo ... Chewie Derek Mears ... Jason Voorhees
French poster
synopsis : Young friends Whitney (Amanda Righetti), Mike (Nick Mennell), Richie (Ben Feldman), Amanda (America Olivio), and Wade (Jonathan Sadowski) end up missing in the woods near the abandoned Camp Crystal Lake (made famous by the original 1980 film), after allowing their curiosity to get the better of them and visiting the site where a psychopathic killer resides. Six weeks later, Trent (Travis Van Winkle) invites friends Jenna (Danielle Panabaker), Bree (Julianna Guill), Chewie (Aaron Yoo), Chelsea (Willa Ford), Lawrence (Arlen Escarpta), and Nolan (Ryan Hansen) to his father's cabin on Crystal Lake for a weekend of sex, booze, pot smoking, and water skiing. However their seemingly fun weekend soon escalates into a nightmare after lone traveler Clay (Jared Padalecki) shows up looking for his missing sister Whitney. The police have searched with no luck, and Clay is now searching alone. Local citizens have advised Clay not to go into those woods, because anyone who shows up missing is already dead, and he is wasting his time. During his search, one of the students, Jenna, decides to help Clay find his sister, and they go into the woods. They find the abandoned Camp Crystal Lake and search the dilapidated camp house for any signs of his sister. They soon find themselves face to hockey-mask with evil reborn, reimagined, and rebooted, and his name is Jason Vorhees (Derek Mears).
