The story opens with Tin Tin at a bazaar and he happens to spot and purchase an old model ship. Soon after he does so, two strange gentlemen approach him, one offering to buy the ship, but he disregards them both. Instead he becomes more interested in the ship itself and begin to research the reason behind why it seems to be so sought after. The ship has a clue on it, which falls out when a cat knocks it over, and the previous would-be-purchaser has stolen the ship from Tin Tin in hopes of obtaining this clue. Tin Tin is then caught up in a tumultuous adventure/ mystery involving an old sea-captain and this mysterious man who seems so keen on obtaining this clue.
I've been into the comics and haven't seen an episode of the tv show since it was on tv, so I probably wouldn't consider myself a Tin Tin fan, but I did enjoy this film. First off the animation is better than anything I've seen yet. To an untrained eye, this film might look like a live action, if it weren't for the some of the mispositioned features of course, but that ties in with how the original characters were drawn. Some of the expressions look really life-like and the backgrounds are really well done. The good thing about animation in general is that it allows for anything to happen. Since the creators aren't limited to real life and budget restrictions, there are no limits. The good thing about this type of animation is that it's so close to live action, and it was really effective in this movie because while a live action version would have catered to the true fans, who are all grown up now and would probably appreciate live action more than cartoons. It also is great for this kind of movie because it would have been really expensive otherwise... what with all of the things they destroyed... and the crane fight.
It was high action and high adventure. Tin Tin is a clever protagonist who uses his head to get out of scrapes, of which he gets into plenty. It's been a while since I've seen a movie like this in theaters. It's worth the watch.
For me, this is one of the best movies... but I wouldn't watch it more than a couple of times in my life.
It's about a man who follows a forgotten way of life in a displaced setting. The main character is a guy named Ghost Dog. He's an assassin who lives in a shack on the roof of a building. Because of past events, Ghost Dog now does work for, and pretty much serves the will of, this mob member, Louie. Near the beginning of the movie Ghost Dog is commissioned to kill a gangster in the same mob as Louie because he overstepped himself. After he killed the guy, he noticed that there was a young woman in the room who had witnessed everything, but he doesn't kill her, she gives and a book and he leaves. That young woman is unfortunately the daughter of the leader of the mob, and because of that event, he has marked Ghost Dog for death. After an indirect attack, Ghost Dog decides to go after the entire family.
Mob movies have never been my preferred genre. I'll watch them of course, but it is a rare thing for me to choose to watch one of my own volition. This movie could, I suppose, be considered a mob movie, but it is actually more about a way of life. The samurai code. Ghost Dog follows the code of the samurai and lives his life how one would assume a modern-day samurai would live it. In a way, the movie is less about the characters and plot than it is about the way of the samurai. As the movie progresses, there are quotes from a book (Hagakure) that explain Ghost Dog's actions and place them within the samurai code.
The movie can be kind of slow at times, it's more slow-paced than fast. The soundtrack can also be kind of depressing. There are a lot of dark colours and many scenes are shot at night. Because of this it's not on the top of my recommendations list. It sort of feels like only a certain kind of person would really value it, others may think it's boring, but if you are able to get into it it's a really great film. It's about tradition and honour, but told in a modern way.
The book, Hagakure: The Way of the Samurai, is also a really good book. It's not plot based, but is more a collection of philosophies and stories explaining the samurai code. I bought it after seeing the movie and really loved it. I was obviously much younger then and it was actually this movie that inspired a short karate phase. I recommend you look for the book, whether you enjoy the film or not.
This is a high school drama about a girl named Mei whose parent's die. After their death she discovers that her estranged grandfather is very wealthy and she will inherit his empire, but first must attend a fancy all-girl reform school to become a lady. This school isn't just any school though. There are no desks, but rather cushy arm chairs and side tables and the campus is a third the size of Tokyo, but the weirdest thing of all about this school is that all of the girls must have butlers.
Mei is sort of resistant at the thought of becoming like these weird people, but eventually finds a reason to stay despite her reservations. Of course there are several people who are against her being there and make life hard for her. One girl in particular, the girl who has earned the highest rank on the lady- scale in the school, turns out to be her rival (in more ways than one), and even after she wins over some of her classmates, it is this adversary who is the real trial for Mei. The girl- butler dynamic is important to the plot. We learn as we watch that being a butler isn't just about waiting on someone hand and foot, but that there is a special bond between master and servant, and that the servants choose to serve.
I thought overall that the drama was interesting in theory, and the story line was well done, but the heroine was kind of pathetic. She was always whining or moping about. When she had a problem she would just stand there dumb-struck until someone saved her or until it was almost irrelevant for her to step forward. I also didn't like the actress who played her. She has one of those faces that seem to always be frowning, or smelling something disgusting, and yet her character was supposed to draw people to her and see how amazing she is. For the most part the characters weren't extremely attractive, but in addition to her unattractiveness, she couldn't act. If they had chosen a different actress to play the heroine this drama would have been much better. As it is though, it's still worth the watch.
The whole thing is actually up on YouTube for the time being, so knock yourself out.
This show is about a guy who wakes up one day to find that his right hand has been replaced with the top half of a girl. This girl's real body has fallen into a coma and her spirit has attached itself to the guys hand because she has a really big crush on him. The premise is kind of ridiculous, and slightly perverted, but the show was surprisingly decent.
The guy, Seiji, is a sort of delinquent at his school. He's a tough guy who seems to fight more than he attends class. This all changes however when one morning he waking up with Midori as a right hand. Midori is a girl who goes to a different school than Seiji and knows him from the times she's seen him at the train station, but she's always been too shy to go up to him to confess her feelings to him. When she wakes up on his hand however, she's over-joyed. Also, as the figure on Seiji's hand isn't actually Midori herself, but her spirit, she has lost her inhibitions and tells Seiji that she loves him when she first sees him.
Seiji opens up a bit and people at school are less afraid of him as a result of Midori's effect on him. Potential rivals for Midori's love appear when Seiji's softer side comes to light. Of course this is troublesome for Midori because she can't really compete with a real person when she's a hand. Because she's his hand, Seiji has to constantly wrap her up in a bandage to hide her existence from others. Though this routine is a bit aggravating for the both of them, they get used to it over time.
Midori's struggle in the show is ultimately her self-confidence and sense of self-worth. I mean there's nothing abnormal about her emotional state for someone that age, but when she left her body to be with Seiji she ran away from some issues she was dealing with. Part of the show is her ability to regain the strength to brave her situation in life. Seiji on the other hand has no confidence issues he needs to work out. Rather, in the show he slowly opens himself up more to others and finds a sense of balance in his life. Eventually Midori does decide to leave Seiji and return to her own body. After she has returned, will she once again be able to confess her love to Seiji? Will she want to? Who knows?!?!
Overall I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this show, especially after how much I expected to not like it.
Here's the intro. You can find the first episode dubbed on YouTube
This is a movie about a teacher in what was an all boys school reminiscing about the past, and how one's character dictates one's future.
Mr. Hundert teaches the classics at a prestigious all boy's high school. Every year he holds a 'Julius Cesar competition' which is a series of trivia questions about the ancient world, and the student who answers the most questions correctly get the prestigious title of Mr. Julius Cesar. All of Mr. Hundert's students are hard working, studious boys who take their education very seriously, all until a new student enrolls in the class, a Mr. Sedgwick Bell. This kid isn't very bright, but is very charismatic, and very soon his disregard and contempt for school begin to rub off on the other students.
Mr. Hundert speaks to Sedgwick's father, a high-ranking man who seems to care little for his son, and Sedgwick seems to try to improve academically after that. He goes as far as to climb to the top of his class! Unfortunately he places one spot lower than is necessary to qualify for the Julius Cesar, so in an attempt to encourage him, Mr. Hundert switches his name with one of the students who actually got in. Unfortunately, this proves to be a mistake when he catches Sedgewick cheating during the final. Instead of humiliating him in front of the assembly, he asks a question that he would only have known by paying attention in class. The question had to do with the identity of a man named Hamiclar Barca, and could not be found in any textbook, so Sedgewick of course couldn't answer it. After this, he reverted back to his old self, causing trouble and being an all around delinquent.
Fast forward to present day, a very successful and wealthy Sedgewick called together a friendly rematch of the contest and asks that Mr. Hundert conduct the ceremony. What will happen I wonder.
The movie prods the viewer to consider a person's character, and how that character may or may not decide a person's life. More importantly, it puts forward the idea that, no matter how charismatic, successful, or popular a person is, unless he or she makes some sort of contribution to humanity, they will not be remembered. The man Sedgewick was asked about, Hamilcar Barca, was used as an example of this. He was a successful Carthaginian general who led many battles and caused many deaths, but his name will not be in any textbook because he made no contribution to humanity. He made an impact on the world, but unlike Julius Cesar, Socrates, Hammurabi, etc. he did nothing to better man-kind.
The story is well done, and while it's not overly philosophical in nature, it doesn't discourage the viewer from thinking further about some of the ideas they present.
This drama is about a girl of questionable femininity according to Japanese culture who is forced to live with her manager during the summer of her first love (that love of course not being the manager).
The story opens up in the office building of a successful interior design company. We see the employees hard at work, all fashionably and professionally dressed of course. After work a group of female co-workers go out on a group blind date. To encourage some of the younger women who aren't currently in a relationship, the more experienced women say that at least these women are out trying to find a man, unlike an undesirable form of womanhood which they call 'himono- onna' or a 'dried up fish- woman'. A woman who has lost her womanhood. And here we are shown the main character Hotaru. A dried up woman is someone who doesn't go out on the weekends or a night, but prefer staying home wearing sweat pants, drinking beer, and tie their hair in a knot on the top of their head.
By day, Hotaru dresses like a professional and 'normal' woman while she's at the office, but when she gets home to a very messy apartment, she turns into a 'himono onna'. Her manager is going through a separation with his wife and was kicked out of his home, so he decided to go back to his parent's old house to live. As it turns out, his father gave Hotaru permission to live there, so the two decide to try living together.. even though the manager is appalled at Hotaru's himono-ness.
Meanwhile at work, a new and attractive designer returns to the company from working abroad and Hotaru is struck by his handsomeness, but of course doesn't do anything to try to get close to him. One day she went to oversee a project and fell asleep in a chair. The new guy, Teshima, comes in and seems to be struck by her and gives her a kiss, which wakes her up. She's startled and makes a quick escape, but from that point on develops a severe infatuation for Teshima. Another woman at work also has her eye on Teshima, and she is much more lady-like than Hotaru is. Hotaru is clueless about love, but with the help of her manager and a few comments from her other coworkers, she does her best to secure her love and become a woman!
I really enjoyed this drama. It was funny and dramatic and I really enjoyed the main character. However, going into this I was of course somewhat conflicted as the subject matter was suggesting that a woman is only a woman if she is attractive and out trying to get a man. I think it's no secret that the west sees femininity somewhat differently than the east does... and yet it's not so different as you might think. In the west it's currently popular for girls to wear yoga pants like normal pants, but yoga pants are in fact just another type of sweat pant. The top knot/ samurai knot/ get my hair out of my face knot is also really popular and if girls don't wear it out, you know that most wear it at home, and it's considered cute. But at the same time, these girls are still trying to be attractive, for what purpose? To attract men. The western equivalent of the 'dried up woman' might be a tomboy or a woman who doesn't care about men and put's no effort in her appearance, maybe wearing no name, unattractive clothing. In the west, this type of girl is seen as the opposite of the ideal type of girl... the one who wants a man. The difference between the two might be that in the west the 'dried up woman' is still considered a woman, albeit an unattractive one, while in the drama Hotaru is told that she is no longer a woman. In the end, Hotaru doesn't end up changing her lifestyle and people just accept her as she is.
One of the things I enjoy about watching Jdramas is that there isn't always the same pattern when it comes to love stories, so you don't actually know who the heroine will end up with until later episodes... unlike what happens with western movies. In your typical chick flick you know within 10 minutes of watching the movie what will happen in the end, because they all use the same pattern, but in dramas you never really know. Sometimes they don't end up with anybody at all.
* Spoiler* What I really enjoyed about this series is that we get to see a full relationship, and then get to see that relationship fall apart. The show sets up those characters as the main romantic couple we should be rooting for in the series, but then makes their dates feel awkward, and breaks them up. I love finding stories about heartbreak because it's not a popular topic. We love the happy ending stories so much that very rarely in the west do explore the idea that sometimes what we think is love isn't love, and that's painful. I also like finding stories where the 'unnoticed best friend who really loves her' character gets the girl. I thought this drama did a great job with both of these ideas and tied them in together well. * Spoiler*
This story was well done and gives the audience something to think about in terms of what it means to be strong and what it means to grow. Worth it. And the girl is cute.
This is a Japanese television drama about a young girl who has an incurable degenerative disease, and the boy who falls in love with her. It's based on a true story, the illness part. The actual girl Aya published a book for other with her disease, to give them hope.
The main character is a 15-year-old high school girl named Aya Ikeuchi. She's the ideal girl in many respects, she is very kind, hard-working, and optimistic. She's on the basketball team, has many friends at school, and has also caught the eye of one of her upper-classmen, so potential romance there. Just your typical Japanese high school girl.
Then one day as she is leaving for school, she takes a pretty bad spill and splits her chin on the concrete. The doctor takes her mother aside and tells her that the fall was not ordinary, and that Aya had a rare disease that would slowly make it harder and harder for her body to function on its own. Stealing away the power she had over her own body. The mother tries to keep this from her as long as is possible, but starts to notice that Aya is having difficulties with everyday activities, like misjudging the space between objects, or being unable to use chopsticks.
At the beginning of the first term of high school we are also introduced to a young man, Haruto Asō , who is in the same class as Aya. He wasn't even going to take the entrance exam to the school, but fate would have it that the day he met Aya, he was sort of forced into taking them. Haruto isn't exactly a delinquent, but at the beginning of the story he seems to have a sort of disregard for everything happening in his life. One day he happens to see a web page Aya was on and discovers her illness. He starts to pay more attention to her and slowly begins to fall in love.
The title of this drama sounds really cheesy, and I almost didn't watch it the first time I heard of it, but the show is oddly true to its name, and not cheesy at all! One of the things that gets me every time I watch one of these is how good the Japanese are at these emotional roller coasters. It doesn't matter if it's romance or action or tragedy, you'll be enthralled, maybe even to a heart-wrenching degree. This one in specific, the tragedy/ romance genre. You don't get too many of these in modern Western film, the only two that come to my head immediately are Butterfield 8 and A Walk To Remember. It's not as scarce in Japanese television, which is alright I guess because they do it justice. I cried the first time I watch this, maybe for 3/5th's of the series, and that's a big deal for me. There are is one, maybe two movies that make me cry, I take pride in the fact that I don't cry easily when it comes to film, but this one had me balling. Sometimes when watching tv shows or movies from other cultures, you'll have to be understanding with some of the content. The culture's different and you might not understand all of the references, but the emotions are universal. You'll have to watch this online if you want to see it, and you'll have to put up with fan subs, fan made subtitles, but it'll be worth it.
Here is a trailer made by a fan of the show with some scenes
This story is about a man named Bob Kraft who takes care of the business at a cemetery, the cemetery chairman. It's his job to manage the burial plots and to do all of the paperwork when someone dies. To keep track of all of the purchased graves, he keeps a big map of the cemetery in his office with little pins sticking out of all of the graves. The white pins represent purchased graves of living people, and black pins represent the graves of dead people.
The day after a young married couple comes into to buy a pair of graves for themselves, the die. When Bob goes to change their white pins to black ones, he finds that the pins are already black. He gets a sort of eerie feeling, like he marked them for death. To make sure it was just a coincidence, he switches a white pin for a black pin on the map. The next day the person whose pin he switched also died. He then starts getting worried and suspects that there's something suspicious about the map and tries to tell someone about it. Of course no one believes him. The police officer and reporter laugh off his worries and the former chairman, his uncle, just thinks he's been working too hard and asks him to switch more pins to make him see that he's imagining everything. Of course the following day, the people whose pins were switched die of unknown causes. Is Bob really responsible for these deaths? And if so is there anything he can do about it?
This film was really well done. The plot was decent and the acting was phenomenal. As it is with some of these older suspense/ thrillers, there is a wonderful sort of realization of horror undertaken by the characters that isn't so common in modern film. A slow dawning of the fact that there is something truly horrible happening, and there's nothing he or she can do about it. Worse, they might even be the cause. Even though the plot sounds kind of flimsy at the outset, they really do a great job at making it come to life.
