BEAST IT LIKE YOU MEAN IT.

THESE MONSTERS CAME TO PLAY.

 

 

 

 

 

It would appear as though we have yet another Godzilla flick looming on the horizon. Yes, it is another Americanized attempt to recapture the energy and brand-name charm that fueled the original, perennial Japanese juggernaut that has thus far spawned at least two very underwhelming state side knock offs ( New World Pictures' hefty overhaul of 'The Return of Godzilla', rechristened 'Godzilla 1985' and the weak kneed 1998 eponymous effort by uber schlockmiester Roland Emmerich that seemed to find some odd, blockbuster leading man cred in Matthew Broderick). With still another group of ambitious souls so willing to take the burden upon themselves to make a serious bid at a high scale and truly worthy resurrection of the big screen presence of that most universally renowned of lumbering, heavily destructive creatures, I feel a tad motivated to take a glance back at the old school days of goofy, Japanese spectacles devoted to the art of big rubber abominations  causing a mad variety of disorder and, most paramount, knocking into and toppling a multitude of miniature model cities and the like.  

I fondly recall having my share of affectionate reactions to many of the 'Zilla epics I caught at random on cable television in my youth, not to mention that Saturday morning variant that unspooled in the late 70s (anyone remember the ridiculous 'Godzooky'?) and continue to be drawn to the more modern projects that seek to keep the 'big monster' or, 'Kaiju' as them Japanese folks call it, genre alive and well like big Guillermo del Toro's vivid monsters vs. robots opus 'Pacific Rim' (that one Beastie Boys video, 'Intergalactic' had it going on too).

 

So, in keeping close with this theme of big bastards wrecking stuff, it seems all too fitting to lend some quality column space to a perfect tie-in of sorts to this impending Godzilla entry as well as all the wonderful rubber monster fun stuffs so many of us have come to adore. 'Ultra Q' is an often goofy and quite charming little monochrome T.V. oddity born in Japan in January of 1966 as both a cash in on the booming Godzilla/Gamera (the flying turtle) craze of the era as well as the popularity of American anthology programs like 'The Twilight Zone' and 'Outer Limits'. The basic, on running premise is established almost straight away as an overly ambitious newspaper reporter/staff photographer and two foolhardy pilots (embodied by Hiroko Sakurai, Kenji Sahara and Yasuhiko Saijou respectively) rush to investigate a strange occurrence at an underground mine which leads to the discovery of a menacing lizard (a resourcefully reconfigured costume used in a previous Godzilla production) that our protagonists must find a way to thwart for the betterment of mankind. In succeeding entries in this series, the trio, with some help from time to time from a Professor Ichinotani (Ureo Egawa) find themselves at odds with all manner of startling oddities that threaten to upturn the fabric of their surrounding normalcy.

 

 

 

 

Thus the viewer is graced with a veritable menagerie of living, raging abstractions, creatures and fabrications equal parts menacing and completely absurd. Beings culled forth to fulfill the 'Ultra Q' roll call for mysterious villainy include (yet are hardly limited to) an aggro beasty born of volcanic rock, a big, dopy looking ape man, a freaky acorn-like monster that bounces around (a personal fave and the cover boy for this series' DVD reissue set), a massive snail with laser beam eyes and a big, bloated, loopy looking walrus that lurks in cloud formations. Each passing episode proves packed with great camp surprises and enough clever plotting to suffice the slight 25 minutes allotted to each of the 28 total separate scenarios.

'Ultra Q' was created by a man named Eiji Tsuburaya, who served as a veteran visual effects director at several Japanese production companies, the most famous of which, Toho Studios, assigned him to labor on many of the great 'Kaiju' productions including those incorporating both King Kong and Godzilla. Tsuburaya's initial desire for 'Ultra Q' ( initially entitled 'Unbalance') was for it to go in a more brooding and mysterious direction much in the Twilight Zone vein of things until the show's backer, The Tokyo Broadcasting System, pushed for the inclusion of all the curious monsters. 'Ultra Q' was to be the first in a long line of 'Ultra' series that continues to this very day although the most overly popular, 'Ultraman', was the first to be exported to other territories. No matter, the fine people at Shout! Factory have made the concerted effort to corral the whole of this 'Ultra Q' puppy into one fine and handy, 5 disc DVD package so we simple American fools can soak it up ourselves. The show looks as good as it can for being some 50 odd years old and many of its romping creations may just prove unavoidably addictive to the true cult cinema fanatic. One of the most expensive television undertakings in its native land in its time, 'Ultra Q' may have aged in the direction of visually quaint but that does not discredit its place in the history of fantastic storytelling. Recommended to those who dig their monsters with a solid dose of infectious tackiness. More info here-http://www.shoutfactory.com/product/ultra-q-complete-series

THE LAST 5 FILMS I'VE SEEN (as of 3/19/2014)

 

 

 

1. Birth of the Living Dead. (First Run Features)- Again with the little movie that started all of this 'Warm Bodies', Zombie Walk, 'Walking Dead' hyperbole. George A. Romero and several of his legendary, debut feature's stout admirers (including producer Gale Anne Hurd and indie madman Larry Fessenden, who helped pull this documentary together) wax historic and delve into yet another intricate analysis of 'Night of the Living Dead', its' genesis and subsequent, lasting impact (positive and otherwise) on the horror community and pop culture in general. Plenty of note is made of the prevalent political and social upheaval at the time of this film's conception (the late 60s) and how said factors may/may not have injected influence into the project. The most compelling factor contained within this documentary, for me at least, are the nuts and bolts details of the piecing together of a grassroots, independent (before being 'Independent' was cool) feature film against all the expected odds and shortcomings that these sort of things almost naturally come into contact with. Not at all a landmark accomplishment but 'Birth of the Living Dead' should appease most film nerds and N.O.T.L.D. completests. 

 

2. Wicked Blood. (eOne Entertainment)- Serviceable criminal antics and melodramatics set in Baton Rouge for maximum Southern seasoning. A bright young lass (that little mrs. sunshine herself, Abigail Breslin) sets to the task of double dealing her way out of a suffocating familial drug dealing operation lorded over with a firm certainty by her stone serious uncle (Sean Bean). The plot proper involves many of the usual devices and beats suited to this sort of pot boiling endeavor. There's a rival drug dealer (James Purefoy) holding a significant secret, a knuckleheaded henchman (Jake-pale imitation of Gary-Busey), the dedicated dope cooker (Lew Temple, often shown getting high on his own supply) and the requisite number of shots of people pointing guns at one another. Nothing much here to dub as astonishing, but it might just do the time killing, rainy day movie rental trick.

 

3. Unidentified. (Dark Sky Films)- A gaggle of solid 'bros' do the getaway trek to sin city deluxe, Las Vegas. Along the way, the far and away most out of place of the bunch, a goon with a YouTube fixation (Eric Artell) convinces the group to detour into an abandoned testing site where some predictably unnerving events unfold leading to a slowly manifesting, other worldly stain on the remainder of their vacation. Once in Vegas the lads set forth to drink, rabble and (near fatally) gamble their way into oblivion. This flick works to a fair degree in spite of its adhering to the oh-so played out modern day convention of the 'found footage' technique (the above mentioned nerd character never goes anywhere with out his digital camera, never mind the real life fact that most casinos, strip clubs and such frown intensely on such trinkets). There are a handful of stand out scenes and gags that carried the whole above its many less inspired moments (the underground poker gig, run by a shady figure with, let's say, an odd personality quirk comes as a sort of welcome shock) and its closing stretch is surprisingly engaging as the film ditches most of the goofy ingredients for a legitimate measure of suspense. Directed by Jason R. Miller, who put in time on several projects by Adam Green, the 'Hatchet' guy, if that's any help.

 

4. Old Boy. (Film District)- Yo Spike!  What gives with this nice looking yet fully needless reworking of the much cherished Park chan-Wook adapt of the equally celebrated manga by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi? I mean, I guess it comes as an intriguing surprise initially that the director of potent cinema like 'Do the Right Thing', 'Clockers' and the ever mighty 'Malcolm X' would think to tackle such a tricky piece of pulpy storytelling. The end result, however, is only somewhat above the level of a scaled down, slapped together imitation.

Yes, I hear the producers pushed poor Spike Lee into forsaking his reportedly more intricate and in depth, 140 minute initial cut for the more compact, nearly 40 minute lighter version now commonly available. Then why did they so glibly toss the film to theaters with minimal promotion so it would die an easy death?  Seems like this take on an imprisoned man abruptly released to solve the mystery of his incarceration was never deemed too worthy of anyone's adulation. Better luck on the next one (the Kickstarter funded 'Da Sweet Blood of Jesus'), 'cus I still think you got game. Oh and Sam Jackson's in it, his first film with Spike since 'Jungle Fever', so expect some serious profanity.

5. The Last Days on Mars. (Magnet Releasing)- Stop me please, if you've heard this one before; a group of scientists and other assorted space travelers at work on the surface of the so-called 'red planet' are about to wind down their stint and punch their ticket back to Mother Earth. One member of the exploratory posse makes a convenient, last minute discovery on a slide at his lab station that may be suggestive of something resembling life out there under the Martian landscape. Further investigating slowly but surly leads to, guess what?, bad news and genre servicing bursts of suspense and terror mostly incorporating lots of bickering souls attempting to outlast peers who have come under the fatal spell of some form of viral force that reduces decent human folk into blood thirsty, raging zombie types. Yup, that's about all folks. Joins an inexplicably growing body of admittedly competent and fairly well cast films (see 'Europa Report' for further recent example) that basically work to drag the 'Alien' formula down to a smaller scale, lower budgeted and faintly artsy level. Not awful but not awfully necessary either.

 

Any feedback? Hit me up, killpeoplenamedrichard@yahoo.com

Kill Them All But One.

A Few Kind Words Addressing Battle Royale

 (an article originally published in the May 2012 issue of The Scene)

When the world as you know it is on the brink of irreparable collapse and the majority vote of the younger generation seems to be leaning overwhelmingly toward a permanent, 'fuck you!' state of mind, what would be the most productive way in which to attempt to address the situation?

Simple enough, take a fat batch of these rowdy, disrespectful brats, toss them on some remote locale and have them fight 'til death until only one lucky soul remains. For extra good measure, have their former teacher (who's class they often avoided) supervise the whole bloody event and share the cruel outcome with a sensation starved general public. Such is the basic, catchy premise for the now notorious (in cult film sub-circles) Japanese grown slice of dystopian flavored savagery, Battle Royale. The film does propose a 'what if' outline of such an alternate reality where, devoid of a confident infrastructure and a stable, civil population, the powers that hope to restore any portion of order have reduced themselves to employing the youth as dependable fodder in a succession of morally bankrupt war games meant to help satiate the nagging demands of an overpopulated citizenry starving for more than just eats. The picture never gets overly explicit on the detailing of the how, when and why aspect of this society's apparent dire straits, but it's enough to know that times are tough all over and the kids must suffer their fair share of the unholy consequences.

Thus the invention and implementation of the Millennium Educational Reform or 'Battle Royale' Act. Selecting random classes by way of national lottery, the governing body (such as it dictatorially is) is freely able to ease on to a thinning of the herd (a more blunt and unapologetically fascistic variant on our real life practice of patriotically manipulating poor, gung ho kids to allow themselves to be groomed for the kill and to be shipped off to fight often meaningless combat). Once transposed to a deserted, nondescript island, the chosen ones are each read the rules and regulations of this so-called game that proves to be their sorry lot. Each player is issued a supply bag plus a random object that they must somehow use as a weapon (everything from highly useful firearms and sharp objects fit for stabbing to something as completely worthless as a stove pot lid, some get lucky and others get the short straw) and are ushered on to kick off the three day long, kill all or be killed off competition.

Attempts to resist the game or flee the island to the safety of the real world (or what now passes for it) are abruptly discouraged by way of handy explosive devices fitted inside snug neck brace like contraptions applied to each of the contestants. They try anything funny, the brace goes POP! and their throat will open up in due fashion, fanning the immediate area with a vivid, crimson shower. With the intense particulars of the game firmly established, the ensuing melodrama sees old wounds reopened, friendships compromised, flimsy grade school social systems collide and combust and genuine, youthful affections clear the path for handy suicide pacts.

Commanding over this troubling, ultra violent molestation of the normally harmless by comparison tropes of the rebellious teenager genre is a long shopworn soldier of the Japanese cinema, Kinji Fukasaku. Making his 60th directorial entry with Battle Royale, Fukasaku reaches an apex in a career he has been banging away at since 1961. He has affixed his mark on such titles as Battles Without Honor and Humanity, The Black Lizard, The Green Slime, Message From Space, Virus and many, many more than I feel like reiterating here. Fukasaku was also responsible for helming the Japanese segments (along with Toshio Masuda) of the all star, Hollywood WWII opus Tora ! Tora! Tora! (when that one hack, Akira Kurosawa got himself fired) so you just know the guy has his chops refined and honed up for tackling damn near anything, especially something as safe a bet as a youth gone wild scenario.

Turns out, a main portion of the motivation for Kinji Fukasaku to take on the production of Battle Royale (adapted by his son, Kenta, from the popular, same named novel by Koushun Takami) stemmed from his wartime imprintings as a teenager slaving away as a munitions worker and developing a deep set disdain for all manner of adult, authority figures (most importantly, those who represent the government of Japan). The curious thing about this is that it seems to have inspired the director to impart a significant measure of empathy toward his relatively naive protagonists, allowing the plight of these poor pubescents pushed into class execution to have a greater impact while the elder figures mostly lingering in supporting statuses remain deliberately underdeveloped. The sole adult who does manage to eke out some shading of nuance over the course of Battle Royale's two hour litany of relentless carnage is the former school teacher Kitano (essayed here by Japan's beloved jack of multi trades Takashi 'Beat' Kitano, a man who earned his way to fame as a comedian/television personality and additionally as an actor/director with such films as Violent Cop, Brother & Outrage) a man off put from any facet of happiness as a result of a dismal family situation (explored in greater depth in the much inferior sequel, Requiem) Takashi does his darnedest to make this sap sympathy worthy.

As the picture ambles its way toward what one would assume to be an inevitable denouement, it appears to take prioritized pleasure in dissecting and, at times, even deliberately satirizing the particulars of the often clique driven structure of this teen aged caste system that has been set on its head. Battle Royale's total dedication to brutal mayhem as a method of enhancing the impact of its rapid fire brand of socio-political mockery has led to its grandstanding amongst the hallowed annuls of cult filmdom. The fairly odd twist to all of this is, until this very year we live in now, Battle Royale has never once been granted an official, licensed home video berth in these United States. Now, theories and suppositions on this matter very, everything from a lack of distributor interest or financial confidence in this 'product', to the hot potato suggestion (by some) that this America was not ready to digest a film as heady as this, especially during its initial bow, right in the thick of the kids of Columbine and their nihilistic antics back at the close of the 20th Century. 

Nothing to fret much over though, as time (and pop culture convenience) seems to soothe most troubles. As fate would have it, the generous folks at Anchor Bay Entertainment (anchorbayent.com) have taken it upon themselves to wrangle together something called Battle Royale-The Complete Collection , a title that proves to be a slight misnomer (as anyone who already owns one or more of the easily obtained import DVDs of either film can attest). This is, none the less, a noble and very polished attempt to bring this saga to the Red, White and Blue once and for all (coincidentally corresponding with that one big scale, Lion's Gate film adaptation of the mega chic, book series about young-ins in a depressing future world forced to pick one another off and such to the sound of box office cash registers endlessly ringing).

The fresh, four disc set (available as both DVD and Blu-Ray) presents both Battle Royale films (the first in both theatrical and slightly extended director's cut versions) and a decent (yet far from complete) selection of bonus materials (though with nothing at all to represent the sequel), which lend insight into the behind the scenes mechanics and promotional thunder that encompasses the B.R. phenomenon. Shamefully, there are no commentary tracks of any kind nor deleted scenes to satisfy that trivial desire for something beyond the films as they stand completed. Some passing, minor complaints to be sure, but it hardly diminishes the fact that Battle Royale has finally been granted admittance into the mainstream, albeit probably to bask in the residual effects of a dumbed down, PG-13 blockbuster with a hot, blond trophy lead that serves, at best, as a flavor of the moment.

No matter, track it down and placate your hunger for crazy, quality Japanese ultra violence. You won't be underfed.



Also, something totally unrelated.

Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone.

 

One of the most tragically undervalued (in commercial terms mostly) and yet thoroughly influential bands of the past several decades finally, almost, receives its just due with this not at all landmark but still very welcome and entertaining documentary profile. Piecing together the origin through modern area timeline of this South Central L.A. born outfit by way of standard practice devices like, industry peer commentary (including but not limited to; Ice-T, Les Claypool, Gwen Stefani, Mike Watt and that overrated bass whore from the Red Hot Chili Peppers), plentiful archival footage and a guiding narrative voice lent by Mr. Laurence Fishburne, filmmakers Chris Metzler and Lev Anderson shed light on the means and methods by which such a wildly varied and potentially implosive collection of creative voices managed to change the formula of what a 'rock' band is perceived to be.

Not surprisingly, the film gains its sharpest nuggets of insight from the two primary, original founding members; Angelo Moore and Norwood Fisher (the only two cats who never abandoned the Fishbone rollercoaster at any one point). The pair explicate on the epic lifespan of this band that never climbed higher up the ladder of fame than their Lollapalloza/'Reality of My Surroundings' peak. From a socially awkward first meet up in high school all the way to bickering like an old married couple while enduring the cold truths of greatly reduced concert attendance and record sales (be honest, how many of you out there who even knew who this band was even thought they were still around?), these two remain the key voice and recount without hesitation everything from getting major label love while still in their teens, cutting some stellar records ('Truth and Soul', 'The Reality of my Surroundings', 'Give a Monkey a Brain...and He'll Swear He's the Center of the Universe'), partying it up too much, seeing members cycle in and out and back again and even suffering the loss of the pivotal guitarist Kendall Jones to a religious sect or something (an ensuing intervention attempt nearly led to Fisher's incarceration).

 

Truly one band that shone brighter on stage (their live energy is astounding) then they ever could in a confining record studio, Fishbone still succeeds in the crafting of worthy enough releases to this very day. Anyone who has bought into the sonic benefits of No Doubt, Primus, Mordred (yeah, right) and those Chili Pecker boneheads have Fishbone, in no small part, to thank for that. So do your damn self a solid and look in to their discography, catch a live gig if at all possible and set aside a few hours for Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone (the DVD of which is stuffed with quality bonus goodies and can be procured here-fishbonedocumentay.com). Now let the majesty of the 'Bone' be overlooked no further.

killpeoplenamedrichard@yahoo.com