http://www.ratinghq.comRatinghq Category Comments Feed for ForeignRatingHQ (http://www.ratinghq.com)enBetween giving up his super powers, confronting criminals from outer space, and having problems with his girlfriend, it's a bad time to be the Man of Steel in this sequel to the 1978 blockbuster. When terrorists threaten to destroy Paris with a thermonuclear device as they hold reporter Lois Lane (Margot Kidder) hostage, Superman (Christopher Reeve) comes to the rescue and flings the weapon into space. However, its blast outside the earth's orbit awakens Zod (Terence Stamp), Ursa (Sarah Douglas), and Non (Jack O'Halloran), three villains from Superman's home planet of Krypton who were exiled to outer space for their crimes. Zod and his partners arrive on Earth and use their powers in a bid to take over the U.S., and then the world. However, when Lois realizes that mild mannered Clark Kent and Superman are actually the same person, he brings her to his Fortress of Solitude, where his decision to marry Lois costs him his remarkable strength. Without his super powers, how can Superman vanquish Zod and save the world? Gene Hackman, Ned Beatty, Susannah York, and Jackie Cooper return from the first film, which was shot at the same time as parts of the sequel.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-204/superman-ii.html2008-05-14 13:07:33Hideo Nakata follows up on the phenomenal success of Ringu -- the highest grossing Japanese film up to that point -- with this effort. In the previous film, Reiko (Nanako Matsushima) was a television reporter doing a piece on a videotape that seemed to kill those who watched it. Not long after learning that the cause of the killing was a vengeful spirit named Sadako who inhabited the video, Reiko's researcher ex-husband (Hiroyuki Sanada) died a painful death, and the fate of Reiko's son, Yoichi (Rikiya Otaka) -- who watched the tape -- was in doubt. Ring 2 opens with an autopsy of Sadako, whose supernatural rage was sparked when she was dumped in a well. Sadako's powers affect Yoichi, who survived the video and has become a medium of sorts for the wraith. Also affected is Reiko's dead husband's mistress, Mai Takano (played by pop star Miki Nakatani), whose life has become a living nightmare. Also under Sadako's power is Masami Kurahashi (Hitomi Sato), who was a schoolmate of one of Sadako's first victims. Though many try to get to the bottom of the problem -- including a psychologist (Fumiyo Kohinata) and a police detective (Kenjiro Ishimaru) -- the bodies start piling up.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-442/ringu-2.html2008-05-19 12:05:48Hayao Miyazaki's fantasy adventure Castle in the Sky begins with a chase scene through a flying ship, where all the passengers are after the young girl, Sheeta (voice of Anna Paquin). Going overboard to avoid capture, Sheeta is rescued by her powerful crystal necklace which floats her down to safety. She's recovered by Pazu (voice of James Van Der Beek), a young resourceful boy who works in a small mining town. Sharing a common desire to see Laputa, the castle in the sky, Pazu and Sheeta team up to outrun the pirates and the military. Led by hard-bitten matriarch Dola (voice of Cloris Leachman), the pirates are a rowdy yet dimwitted group of brothers who are after Laputa's treasure. Led by the greedy yet civilized Muska (voice of Mark Hamill), the military is after Laputa's secret powers. Everyone races to get to the abandoned castle of Laputa, which has been overgrown with vines and plant life. Its only inhabitants are the animals and robots who protect a magical garden. As the different parties fight over who gets to control Laputa, it's up to Sheeta to use her ancient knowledge to save it from ultimate destruction. The English-language version also includes the voices of Mandy Patinkin and Andy Dick.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-443/castle-in-the-sky.html2008-05-19 12:07:24A seemingly simple assignment sends a warrior for hire into a labyrinth of danger and intrigue in this intelligent and expressive action vehicle from filmmaker Masahiro Shinoda. In Japan in the year 1614, Sasuke Sarutobi (Koji Takahashi) is a retainer of the Sanada Clan who has grown weary of the constant warfare that has become a fact of life in his country. Tatewaki Koriyami (Eiji Okada) is a lieutenant with the Tokugawa Clan who has fled his commanders and thrown his alliances behind a rival clan, and Sarutobi is ordered to discover his whereabouts. However, as Sarutobi sets out in search of his quarry, two people he meets en route -- a charming but amoral thug and a beautiful woman -- both wind up dead shortly after he establishes friendship with them, making it clear to the samurai that someone is out to get him. As a strange and deadly assassin follows Sarutobi's trail, he finds himself drawn deeper into a web of dangerous alliances and bitter conflicts, with the warrior meeting almost no one he can trust short of a beautiful dancer also hoping to escape the violence around her. Sarutobi was loosely adapted from a novel by Japanese author Koji Nakada.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-444/sarutobi.html2008-05-19 12:08:35The title of Saawariya carries a double meaning; it refers to both an epithet for the Hindu god Krishna and to a title sought by many Indian lovers, who wish to reach a state of 'Saawariya,' or overpowering consumption by love. Director Sanjay Leela Bhansali's romantic drama Saawariya weaves the tale of the ill-fated romance between two such individuals: artist Raj, who finds the fulfillment of his soul's yearning when he enters one of the most picturesque rural hamlets in India, and his lover, Sakina, a mysterious young woman whom he spots standing on a bridge. Raj tries desperately to win Sakina's love and devotion, but finds it increasingly difficult to accept the truth of her past.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-445/saawariya.html2008-05-19 12:10:57Mani Ratnam teams with Aishwarya Rai, a woman considered by some to be the most beautiful actress of her time, in the Bollywood musical Guru. The film concerns a man, Gurukant Desai, from an average village who, starting from very modest means, attempts to build a successful business in Bombay. His troubled private life includes with his frustrated wife, Sujatha, who must adjust to being in a marriage she never really wanted. He must overcome a number of personal and professional problems in order to fulfill his ambitious dreams of success.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-446/guru.html2008-05-19 12:12:23Wan Tin-sau (Stephen Chiau) is a struggling actor who has devoted his life to the study of his craft, but unfortunately the moment he gets on a film set, disaster usually strikes. However, Wan refuses to give up, and is busy trying to stage a traditional Asian drama, "Thunderstorm," when he gets an unusual job offer. Piu-piu (Cecilia Cheung) is a bar girl who wants to be able to feign a greater interest in her customers, so she hires Wan to give her private acting lessons. The longer they work together, the more they find they have in common, and before long Wan and Piu-Piu are in love. Heikek Chi Wong was a major box-office success in Hong Kong, where it was the top money maker for the Chinese New Year season; Jackie Chan makes a cameo appearance as an extra, and Stephen Chiau in turn had a bit part in Chan's romantic comedy Bolei Cheun, released at the same time.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-447/king-of-comedy.html2008-05-19 12:14:23On the eve of presenting a pair of prized elephants to the King of Thailand, a young martial arts expert and his father are shocked to discover that the beloved creatures were stolen by an international mafia syndicate, and now the determined fighter must travel to Australia to get his animals back in this adventure from the team behind the international action hit Ong Bak. To Kham (Tony Jaa) and his father, the elephants that they were about to present to the King of Thailand were not simply pets, but members of the family as well. When Kham learns that the criminals who stole his elephants have taken them back to their home base in Australia, the fearsome fighter vows to brave the strange new land and bring his animals back safely no matter what the cost. Upon arriving in Australia, Kham enlists the aid of Thai Police Sergeant Mark (Petchthai Wongkamlao) and pretty slave Pla (Bongkuch Kongmaili) in taking on down notorious crime boss Madame Rose (Jing Xing) and locating the animals he loves before it's too late.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-448/the-protector.html2008-05-19 12:15:32Korean director Shim Hyung-Rae's monster movie D-War begins with a lengthy prologue, in which an antique dealer named Jack (Robert Forster) watches a young patron, Ethan Kendrick (Cody Erens) get zapped with a force emanating from a chest in his shop. Realizing the significance of this event, Jack bequeaths a medal to the boy, and speaks candidly to him of mystical events that transpired a half-millennium earlier. In a bygone era, it seems, giant creatures called Buraki roamed the land, morphing from serpents into dragons and back again, and equipped with a massive army of formidable creatures. An ancient warrior-apprentice saved the life of his beloved from these monstrosities; the warrior's spirit was eventually contained in the aforementioned chest, and it has now filled Ethan. Jack gives Ethan an enchanted red pendant and advises him to see out the contemporary incarnation of the ancient warrior's intended, who can be recognized via a red dragon tattoo on her shoulder. When the woman reaches her 20th birthday, it seems, she and Ethan - joining forces - will be able to reincarnate Imoogi as dragons. That woman is in fact Sarah (Amanda Brooks); she and Ethan do encounter one another, but it isn't long before the Buraki serpent and all of his enormous minions resurface and decide to lay waste to the City of Angels, worming their way through the town as they look for the chosen pair.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-449/dragon-wars.html2008-05-20 00:37:58Billed as Full Metal Jacket meets Heat meets Nikita, Kang Je Gyu directs this wildly popular action-thriller about tensions between North and South Korea. The film opens with agents in North Korean spy school T19 engaged in an unbelievably difficult rigorous training regime. The school's fanatically committed leader, Park Mu Young (Choi Min Sik) singles out the beautiful and sinewy Lee Bang Hee (Kim Yun Jin), an ace student and a deadeye shot, for a top-secret mission. A couple of years later, South Korean intelligence agents are baffled by a spate of murders of scientists working on a top-secret defense project. Agents Yu Jong Won (Han Suk Kyu) and Lee Jang Gil (Song Kang Ho) suspect the North Korean Lee but cannot locate her. One day, Yu finally spots Lee Bang Hee icing an arms dealer with a sniper rifle. At the same time, North Korean spy Park Mu Young and his fellow commandos take out a military convoy and swipe a top-secret substance called CTX, an explosive that is completely undetectable. Park and Lee's plan slowly becomes horribly apparent: to blow up a North and South Korean friendship soccer game, launching a war that will bring South Korea under the North's hegemony. At the same time, South Korean intelligence is starting to suspect a mole in their midst and evidence seems to point to Yu's girlfriend. This film was screened at the 1999 Pusan Film Festival.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-450/shiri.html2008-05-20 00:39:14In a village in China mired in poverty, Gao (Gao Enman) is the lone teacher in a school so threadbare he must ration chalk to make sure he has enough for the day. The destitution of the village is not limited to the school; some of the children sleep in the schoolhouse because they have nowhere else to go, and many students have already dropped out to go to work to help feed their families. Gao is forced to leave town for a month, and no one in the village is able to take over for him except a 13-year-old girl, Wei Minzhi (Wei Minzhi), who possesses only the most rudimentary education herself. What she lacks in educational credential, she makes up for in determination -- she needs money, and teaching is an honest job that pays, and since she'll get a 10 yuan bonus if all 28 students are still attending when Gao gets back, she is determined that no one will drop out on her watch. So when one student turns up missing, and word has it he's been sent to the city by his mother to work, she travels to the city to look for him. In a place where thousands of children are working in the underground labor force or begging on the street, one boy hardly stands out from the crowd, and she has little luck. However, she's able to persuade a sympathetic TV station manager to let her make an announcement in hopes someone knows where he has gone. Despite its serious and often grim theme, Yi Ge Dou Bu Neng Shao is often light in tone and draws on the strength and humor of its characters; the film won the Golden Lion at the 1999 Venice Film Festival.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-451/not-one-less.html2008-05-20 00:40:42In this psychological horror story from Japan, a legend circulates among teenagers that if one watches a certain video at a certain time of the night, the telephone will ring right afterward, and one week later, you will die. When Masami (Hitomi Sato) tells her friend Imako this story, she scoffs -- but a week later, Imako dies in an auto accident. Imako's aunt, a television journalist named Reiko (Nanako Matsushima), hears that not long before she died, Imako was watching a strange video with her friends -- all of whom have turned up dead. Reiko tracks down a copy of the video, and as she watches its strange, spectral images, the telephone begins to ring....The next morning, Reiko begins a desperate search to solve the mystery of the video, convinced she has only seven days to live; assisting her is Ryuji (Hiroyuki Sanada), a mathematics expert and her former husband. Ringu was a box-office success in its native Japan, and a surprise blockbuster in Hong Kong, where it became the biggest grossing film of the first half of 1999.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-452/ringu.html2008-05-20 00:42:05The phenomenal success and international acclaim of Raise the Red Lantern, cemented Zhang Yimou's status as a leading figure in world cinema and reaffirmed the vibrancy of Chinese cinema. Though the film was the topic of great political controversy in China upon its release, it received armfuls of awards from Belgium, Italy, the United Kingdom and a nomination for an Academy Award. This sumptuously photographed drama, set in Northern China in the 1920s and based on the novel Wives and Concubines by Su Tong, stars Gong Li as Songlian, the fourth wife of an elderly landlord. Songlian is a college student who has been married off by her stepmother, so it is with tremendous frustration that this woman, who had hopes of using her education to broaden her horizons, now finds herself reduced to a small enclosure at the beck and call of her husband. Despite being given a maid (Kong Lin) and luxurious surroundings, she feels trapped inside the cheerless walls. Upon her arrival, Songlian realizes that she must keep one step ahead of her rivals, the three other wives. She also learns of her husband's tradition of lighting a lantern outside of the house of the wife with whom he intends to spend the night. During the first night together with her husband, she finds he is called away to tend to his spoiled third wife (He Caifei). Songlian then becomes acquainted with his other wives -- his first wife (Jin Shuyuan), an elderly woman who ignores Songlian; the third wife, an ex-opera singer; and the second wife (Cao Cuifeng), who offers Songlian friendship and helpful advice. But it turns out that the second wife's motives are not exactly innocent--she is conspiring with Songlian's maid to undermine both the third wife and Songlian. Raise the Red Lantern is a moving exploration of power in a suffocating world of ossified tradition and naked ambition-a masterpiece of 1990s world cinema.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-453/raise-the-red-lantern.html2008-05-20 00:44:08Hsiao Kang is a cab driver's son, driven to study by his parents, who are ambitious for him to go to college. One day, the family cab is vandalized by some kids on motorbikes while Hsiao Kang is watching. One day, he recognizes the culprits, and drops out of his college preparatory after-school cramming sessions to pursue them and get revenge. The vandals are Ah-tzu, with a permanently flooded apartment, and his brother Ah-bing and Ah-bing's girlfriend Ah Kuei. They are petty thieves of telephone boxes and computer parts. The seedy side of Taipei which is favored by teen rebels is well-screened in this action drama, and might almost qualify as a fifth character.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-454/rebels-of-the-neon-god.html2008-05-20 00:46:00This blend of comedy and historical adventure from Hong Kong stars Stephen Chiau as a trusted advisor of the emperor, while Cheung Man plays the leader of a leader of a sect out to stop the imperial forces.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-455/royal-tramp.html2008-05-20 00:47:21Martial arts star Jet Li donned a black hat and mask to portray a comic book superhero in this pulp action tale that gets the full-blown Hong Kong treatment from choreographer Yuen Wo Ping, who later designed the fight scenes for The Matrix (1999). Li stars as Tsui Chik, leader of Squad 701, an elite commando team of genetically-engineered super-soldiers. When the unit was deemed a failure because of mental instability in some of the test subjects, the project was disbanded. Tsui now lives quietly in Hong Kong, masquerading as a shy librarian whose only friend is a cop (Lau Ching Wan). When some drug lords begin turning up dead, Tsui dons a black mask and hat to investigate the slayings and learns that his former Squad 701 comrades, led by psychotic Commander Hung (Patrick Lung), are plotting to take over the drug kingpin's illegal trade. Among their number is Tsui's ex-girlfriend Kaelin (Francoise Yip).http://www.ratinghq.com/5-457/black-mask.html2008-05-20 02:31:05The Empress Dowager tells the story of the last imperial family member who actually ruled in China until her death in 1908. She handed over the titular rulership to Kuang Tsu but retained all actual power. Retaining power seems to have been her real talent; she was unable to reform the Ching (Manchu) Dynasty and its system of government to meet the challenges of European dominance in Asia. The Empress Dowager was a fascinating, dominant woman in a male-oriented culture and she was a brilliant manipulator. This movie shows some of her intrigues, one of which prevented China from defending itself from the Japanese and led directly to the first Chinese revolution in 1911.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-458/empress-dowager.html2008-05-20 02:32:16In Japan, the gangsters wear tattoos. A lot of tattoos. In fact, without their clothes, it almost looks as if they are wearing a particularly tight-fitting, gaudy ensemble. When two brothers who want to quit the gangster life go to work in a mine, they are harassed by the other miners because their tattoos identify them as gangsters. When the younger brother is killed, the older one must avenge him.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-459/tattooed-life.html2008-05-20 02:35:35Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-Wai directs the strange, intimate drama Cheun Gwong Tsa Sit (Happy Together). Australian cinematographer Christopher Doyle employed multiple film speeds and different color film stock during the shooting. Ho (Leslie Cheung) and Lai (Tony Leung) are lovers from Hong Kong who have run away to live in Buenas Aires, Argentina. However, Ho is immature and unwilling to settle down, which makes Lai depressed. When they break up, Lai works as a doorman in a tango bar in order to save money and go home. The restless Ho becomes a prostitute. After Ho is beaten and injured in an attack, Lai takes him to his apartment to recover. Ho tries to rekindle the romance, but Lai isn't interested. He leaves the tango bar and works in a kitchen, where he meets the young Chang (Chang Chen) from Taiwanhttp://www.ratinghq.com/5-460/happy-together.html2008-05-20 02:37:35In this martial arts-adventure, three warriors who are gifted with swords -- Smiling Sam (Andy Lau), Big Knife (Elvis Tsui), and Samurai (Brigitte Lin) -- are en route to Central China for a tournament where their skills are to be put to the test. A villain who has disguised himself as Smiling Sam has killed one of the children of the royal family, and now the famous sword fighter is a wanted man. Knowing he's innocent of the crime, Smiling Sam's friends try to keep him (and themselves) one step ahead of the law while the try to determine the true identity of the murderer.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-461/three-swordsmen.html2008-05-20 02:38:34Chinese-American martial arts performer Donnie Yen directed, co-scripted, and stars in this tale providing background on the initial meeting of the legendary assassin Wolf and his sidekick. Flashbacks are set in a Canton community of the late '40s where a local bandit chief threatens WW II amnesiac Man-hin (Yen) and his childhood sweetheart Wai-yee (Carmen Lee), leading to an explosive confrontation.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-462/legend-of-the-wolf.html2008-05-20 02:39:45When a mobile martial arts gang takes control over the land of Chungwon, only one man -- a defector from the gang itself -- has what it takes to overcome their tyrannical regime. The catch is that in order to do that, he'll be forced to kill his own brother, whose mind is under the influence of the gang's leader. Red Hawk -- Weapon of Death was directed by Kyoung Tae Hwang.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-463/red-hawk-weapon-of-death.html2008-05-20 02:42:01A romantic drama, Bolei chi sing/City Of Glass begins with a car crash, in which Raphael (Leon Lai) and Vivian (Shu Qui) are killed in London on New Year's Eve. The two were lovers, but both were married to other people. Raphael's son and Vivian's daughter, both adults, meet in Hong Kong to collect their parents' remains, and as the two get to know each other better, we learn more about Raphael and Vivian's relationship in flashbacks that trace the past 25 years. Director Mabel Cheung uses the relationships of these two couples as a metaphor for the changes Hong Kong went through over the past three decades.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-464/bolei-chi-sing.html2008-05-20 02:43:40The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On is a brilliant exploration of memory and war guilt, a subject often ignored in modern Japan. In this controversial documentary, Kazuo Hara follows Kenzo Okuzaki in his real-life struggle against Emperor Hirohito. He proudly declares that he shot BBs at the Royal Palace, distributed pornographic images of the Emperor, and once killed a man for the sake of his strange crusade. As the film progresses, Okuzaki reveals a gruesome mystery: why were some Japanese officers killing their own soldiers during WWII? What happened to their bodies? Okuzaki begs, cajoles, and occasionally beats the story out of elderly veterans. When these old men do break down and talk, their testimonies are some of the most chilling, riveting descriptions of wartime desperation ever committed to film. In his desire to unearth these horrors, Okuzaki's behavior grows increasingly extreme and bizarre. By the film's end, Hara seems to ask whether the terrible nature of this buried incident is worth the violence of Okuzaki's methods.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-465/the-emperor-s-naked-army-marches-on.html2008-05-20 02:44:56Shinya Tsukamoto wrote, produced, directed, edited and stars in this Japanese thriller. Goda (Tsukamoto) grieves over the suicide of his lover (Kyoka Suzuki), wondering if he might bear some responsibility. Failing to acquire a gun, he wanders Tokyo streets, meets Chisato (Kirina Mano), and is beaten by her street-gang associates. He sets out for revenge -- only to receive more beatings from the gang. Made in black and white, Bullet Ballet was shown at the 1998 Venice Film Festival and the 1998 Toronto Film Festival.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-466/bullet-ballet.html2008-05-20 02:47:12In this, the third of what has become a long series of films, Doctor Wong Fei-Hung (Jet Li), a master of the martial arts, defender of the poor, upholder of tradition and a Confucian scholar (in addition to being a medical man) is visiting Beijing during a competition designed to determine what group has the best Lion King dancers. The doctor's father, a member of the Cantonese Association in town, is well known for his ability to turn out the best Lion King, and the many criminal gangs of the city, usually embroiled in rivalry against one another, are of one mind when it comes to wanting to eliminate the threat that this "outsider" will win. However, they had not counted on the intervention of the good doctor and his helpers. Simultaneously, the doctor foils several nefarious plots against the government - one of which has gotten his lady-love, Aunt Yee (Rosamund Kwan) involved.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-467/once-upon-a-time-in-china-iii.html2008-05-20 02:49:21It is 1895 in Canton, China. The Europeans are still milking the country for every dollar they can and claiming special privileges in it, as well. Meanwhile, the virulently anti-foreign White Lotus Society is mounting attacks on the generally clueless British, with the very obvious but low-key support of the government. If somebody doesn't protect the idiotic foreigners, things could get so far out of hand that they will bring in their armies for some really debilitating reprisals. This is all going on just at a time when China has some other serious problems, like the democratic agitations of Sun Yat Sen and the imperialist inroads of the Japanese, who have just stolen Taiwan from China. Fortunately, Wong Fey Hong (Jet Li) is a crafty and effective man and a wonderfully skilled martial artist. He is prepared to do what he can to protect the widely resented foreigners for reasons which are quintessentially Chinese. This is the second of four martial arts historical epics, all with the same basic title.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-468/once-upon-a-time-in-china.html2008-05-20 02:50:50This animated film is based on The Slayers, and takes place before the events of the TV show, when Lina Inverse, the bandit-hunting sorceress roamed the galaxy looking for food and adventure with her fellow adventurer Naga. Using two tickets they recover from some bandits they've just defeated, Lina and Naga take a vacation on the exotic Mipross Island. Their leisure time is fleeting, and soon the two must use their swords and sorcery to fight off a band of villains.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-469/the-slayers-the-motion-picture.html2008-05-20 02:52:24Ajisawa (Ken Takakura) is a mysterious warrior in a secret Japanese paramilitary group who, while on a training exercise in the woods, stumbles into a group of rural party-makers. In the ensuing conflict he kills everyone except one young teenaged boy. The boy was wounded in the conflict, but Ajisawa adopts him and nurses him back to health. A year later, he returns to the scene of the crime in his job as a claims adjuster, investigating the death of a newswoman who was digging into the story of the woodland killings. Police detective Kitano (Isao Natsuki) has been looking into the killings also, as well as the death of the woman. He believes that these crimes have something to do with the gangster Ochi (Ryoko Nakano), and that Ajisawa is responsible. When he arrests Ajisawa, the paramilitary group decides to execute its own man because he showed "softness" in adopting the boy. The boy and the policeman also become targets, and the three become allies in their attempts to escape death.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-470/never-give-up.html2008-05-20 02:57:27Set in the year 4998, this animated science fiction/adventure series from Japan takes a look at the biggest athletic competition of the future, the Cosmo Beauty title. Akari is a young woman training in earnest for the events, but she works under the burden of constant scrutiny as the daughter of former champion Tomoe Mido. This disc features the first four episodes from this series: "Ready Go!," "Kowloon's Attack!," "The Night of Woong-A-Ji," and "My Rival."http://www.ratinghq.com/5-471/battle-athletes-victory-training.html2008-05-20 02:58:56Two ancient races return to earth in the year 2089 for a final battle in this horror-action animé. Centuries ago, the Demons and the Guardians waged a war. Few members of either race survived, but now Takamiya, the Dark Master, is plotting to return the demons to earth and vanquish the human race. Into this intrigue steps Shizuma, who's out to avenge herself against one such demon. She enlists the help of Tsunami Shijyo, an enigmatic man with a score of his own to settle. Shijyo eventually dukes it out with a pair of adversaries against the backdrop of a moody, post-industrial cityscape. Based on the original manga by Saki Okuse, Twilight of the Dark Master includes a screenplay credit for Duane Dell'amico, whose previous credits include one-sixth of the script for the live-action Hollywood film Sleep With Me.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-472/twilight-of-the-dark-master.html2008-05-20 03:00:23In this science fiction tale, two scientists find themselves waging war against a supernatural force that has taken hold of one of their bodies and threatens to destroy it.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-473/bio-hunter.html2008-05-20 03:04:34In this classic martial arts film from Hong Kong, Yuen Biao plays the effete son of a wealthy man who is halfheartedly studying kung fu, though his father has to pay ringers to fight him (and, of course, lose). When he finds out that his father has been deceiving him, Biao decides he must learn the true ways of the martial arts, and tries to convince a noted kung fu expert to take him on as a pupil. Prodigal Son was directed by Sammo Hung, who also plays a supporting role.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-474/the-prodigal-son.html2008-05-20 03:05:47This Hou Hsiao Hsien masterpiece is a portrait of the childhood and adolescence of octogenarian Taiwanese puppet master and actor Li T'ien-lu, who narrates the film both off-screen and on-screen. In this second installment of a trilogy on Taiwanese life in the 20th century (City of Sadness is the first and Good Men, Good Women is the third), Li's development as an artist and husband plays out between 1908 and 1945 under the heavy hand of Japanese rule, paralleling the development of Taiwan's own political consciousness. The movie deftly shifts from a dramatization of Li's life, to Li speaking directly to the camera about his experiences, to his puppet performances in a semi-documentary style that recalls The Thin Blue Line (1988). Here, as in most of his films, Hou uses long takes and off-screen space to create a complex, richly layered meditation on personal, artistic, and national aspirations.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-475/the-puppetmaster.html2008-05-20 03:07:42If a yoga master and a kung fu master got into a fight, who would win?http://www.ratinghq.com/5-476/kung-fu-vs-yoga.html2008-05-20 03:12:21Lee Tso Nam directs H. Kuan-Chun, Wang Tao, and Chang Yi in the martial arts film Eagle's Claw. The Eagle's Claw school and the Praying Mantis school are rivals. When the Praying Mantis school attacks the Eagles and kills the Eagle's head teacher, the prized student joins the Mantis. The remaining Eagle's Claw students toughen up in order to save their pride and their lives.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-477/eagle-s-claw.html2008-05-20 03:13:20When master swordsman Shuransuke Sakaki refuses to be cowed by the clans populating ancient feudal Japan, he chooses a lonely and dangerous path to tread, indeed. Eventually Sakaki is hired to rescue the beautiful Princess Mayu from a team of ninja bandits, but his employers leave out an important detail -- in order to find her, he must battle the spirits of hell first. Sword for Truth was directed by Osamu Dezaki.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-478/sword-for-truth.html2008-05-20 03:16:46Based on a video game called Digital Devil Story, Tokyo Revelation is an hour-long original video anime with an overly complicated plot. The villainous Akito devises a satanic plan involving an energy substance called magnetite. In an effort to kidnap a magnetite-rich high school girl, Akito meets his old friend Kojiro and reveals his hidden love for him. This is followed by numerous fight scenes and explosions involving demonic possession, supernatural ninjas, and blatant homophobia.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-479/tokyo-revelation.html2008-05-20 03:18:34After Eun-jo (Jeon Ji-hyeon) ends her tenancy of Il Mare, a posh house on a lake, she writes to the new tenant (Lee Jeong-jae) asking for her correspondence to be forwarded. When the tenant replies, Eun-jo discovers that his letter is dated 1997, two years before she contacted him, and that he is the original owner of the property. Il Mare was released in South Korea within a few months of Ditto, another film to explore the themes of national identity and love across time.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-480/il-mare.html2008-05-20 03:19:28An unwitting superheroine has an unusual way of dealing with those who have earned her wrath in a sci-fi tinged action drama from Japan. Junko (Akiko Yada) is a woman in her early twenties who discovers she has a remarkable power -- she can set things on fire with the powers of her mind. Junko's fire-starting talent most frequently manifests itself when she's angry or upset, so when Kazuki (Hideaki Ito), her boyfriend's younger sister, is kidnapped and murdered by thugs who produce violent porn videos, Junko literally gets fired up, targeting gang leader Kogure (Hidenori Tokuyama) for some high-temperature street justice. Much to her surprise, however, Junko learns that there's more to Kazuki's murder than she ever imagined; she also discovers she's not the only one with pyrokinetic abilities. Krosufaia was directed by Shusuke Kaneko, who had previous experience with flaming creatures, having directed several films starring the jet-propelled turtle Gamera.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-481/pyrokinesis.html2008-05-20 03:20:27Zen Lao and Ko Hong Ping kick some kung-fu keister in this entry in the 36 chamber series.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-482/arhats-in-fury.html2008-05-20 03:21:53As officer Lam Che Chu (Fong Pao) and Wong Fei Hong (Yuk Wong) join forces to fight a gang of determined opium smugglers, Beggar So Chen (Kwan Hoi-Shan) takes on the dreaded Fire Lotus Gang in this martial-arts classic from Drunken Master director Yuen Woo Ping. As the tireless trio do their best to fend off the rogue forces, beautiful school teacher Yi The-Tai (Fennie Yuen) is berated by parents who suspect her of running a whorehouse and of being pursued by drug traffickers who fear that she knows too much about their operation to live. When the three stories collide in a opium warehouse filled with brutal drug runners, the stage is set for a spectacular battle featuring a variety of deadly weapons!http://www.ratinghq.com/5-483/heroes-among-heroes.html2008-05-20 03:23:17Martial arts screen star Jet Li returns to the role that transformed him into a Hong Kong action icon in this action comedy from Matrix fight choreographer Yuen Woo Ping and veteran filmmaker Wong Jing (Naked Killer, City Hunter). When Wong Fei-hung (Li) inadvertently relocates the Po Chi Lam clinic next door to a notorious brothel, he soon incurs the wrath of corrupt Boxer mayor Lui Yat-siu. Upon learning that the mayor is involved in a kidnapping ring run by a group of evil monks, Fei-hung enlists the aid of his bumbling assistants Ah-fu and Ah-so in rescuing the kidnapped girls from a grim fate in South Asia.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-484/deadly-china-hero.html2008-05-20 03:24:39The anime series Generator Gawl follows a pair of scientists and an acquaintance names Gawl who team up to stop bad guys from creating powerful hybrid man-machines. This collection combines three episodes of the series. The episodes are titled "The Visitors", "Flowers and Girls", and "Curiosity".http://www.ratinghq.com/5-485/generator-gawl-the-visitors.html2008-05-20 03:26:13This dark anime series takes place in the distant future, a time when overpopulation has led to interplanetary colonization. On the planet of Japones, the entire world is comprised of men. The only women who live there are androids called marionettes. These super-strong creations are devoid of emotion but saturated with strength, so when the evil Starface is freed from prison and sets his sights on taking the thrown from Junior, the pure-hearted heir, there's no one better suited to protect him than three die-hard marionettes, Cherry, Lime, and Bloodberry.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-486/saber-marionette-r-anime-ova-series-.html2008-05-20 03:27:48This anime adventure follows a group of lethally armed females known as the Gunsmith Cats throughout their exploits on the streets of Chicago. This time, they infiltrate a gun-running operation, pursue a Russian assassin, and find themselves in the midst of a deadly, gun-slinging duel. This production contains graphic violence and is not intended for children.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-487/gsc-bulletproof.html2008-05-20 03:28:55An ailing veteran cop whose relentless determination to do away with an untouchable gangster has led him to employ a series of unethical tactics finds his investigation complicated by the arrival of principled new inspector and the death of a fellow cop in this explosive underworld tale from Skyline Cruisers director Wilson Yip. Facing an inevitable retirement, the beleaguered and cancer-stricken Detective Chan (Simon Yam) has grown desperate to put away Teflon-coated crime boss Po (Sammo Hung) -- so desperate that he even begins planting false evidence and tampering with video in hopes of making a charge against Po stick. As Detective Chan begins to grow accustomed to thoughts of retiring and make way for honest incoming Inspector Ma (Donnie Yen), the ongoing investigation hits a snag when an undercover cop who has infiltrated Po's gang is mysteriously killed.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-488/kill-zone.html2008-05-20 03:30:21Historical fact blends with high-flying fiction as Jackie Chan steps into dual roles as a determined archeologist and a loyal general of China's first emperor in director Stanley Tong's lavish historical action film. Jack (Chan) is an intrepid archeologist in search of a mythical gemstone that is said to have the power to defy gravity. Though Jack's days are spent traversing the globe with scientist sidekick William (Tony Leung Ka-fai) in hopes of finding the elusive gem, at night in his dreams he assumes the role of General Meng-yi, devoted servant of Emperor Qin Shi-huang. As Jack and William venture to the mystical Heavenly Palace -- a wondrous fortress rumored to have been built by Qin Shi-huang himself -- Jack's vivid nocturnal journeys find him falling head-over-heels for the emperor's comely Korean consort Ok-soo (Kim Hee-seon).http://www.ratinghq.com/5-489/the-myth.html2008-05-20 03:31:42Tsui Hark (The Blade) adapted his massive martial arts epic Seven Swords (AKA Qi Jian) from Liang yu-Sheng's ravenously popular novel Seven Swordsmen from Mount Tian. The story opens in the 1660s, following the implementation of China's (Manchu) Qing dynasty. To quell possible nationalist uprisings, the emperor issues a decree forbidding the use of martial arts, and guarantees decapitation for anyone who violates that order. A class of bounty hunters quickly formed to enforce the law and collect 600 pieces of silver for each violator; the most massive and domineering of the warriors is the bald, muscular Fire-Wind (Sun Honglei), a bellicose and volatile creature who lives in an elephantine tentlike dwelling on a hill. This walking terror selects Martial Village, a hamlet in northwestern China, as his next assignment. Meanwhile, in Martial, two young adults, Wu Yuanyin (Charlie Young) and her ex-beau, Han Zhibang) rescue an old executioner, Fu Qingzhu (Lau Kar-leung) who foresees the coming wrath and acknowledges the necessity of pulling in the mythical 'Warriors of Mt. Tian' to fight Fire-Wind and his cronies. The four warriors summoned by Fu include Chu Zhaonan (Donnie Yen), and Yang Yunchong (Leon Lai), who dramatically increase the tension and bloodshed when the former develops a crush on one of Fire-wind's hostages, Green Pearl (Kim So-yeon) and decides to kidnap her - sending Fire-wind through the roof. The critically-worshipped Hark reportedly cut two versions of this film (including a 2 1/2 hour cut and a 3-hour cut) and demonstrated incredible confidence in Qi Jian by planning it as the initial installment in a massive series of multimedia sequels, including a 74-part television series, an online video game, comics, and five additional films. The picture itself testifies to this, with the setup for a sophomore installment in its conclusion. Qi Jian, however, did lackluster box office when it opened in the Far East in July 2005, making the follow-ups less than certain.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-490/seven-swords.html2008-05-20 03:32:52The work of international superstar Stephen Chow, Kung Fu Hustle is a humorous, special-effects-filled, action-packed martial arts epic set in early '40s China. A bumbling thief named Sing (Stephen Chow) desires to be the toughest member of the dreaded gangster hit squad known as The Axe Gang, but to completely join the gang he has to commit murder. When Sing attempts to rob a crowded run-down apartment complex known as Pig Sty Alley, the locals begin to defend themselves with some high-flying kung fu skills, and a tiny war erupts between the local masters and the axe-wielding gang. After the gang busts the ancient kung fu king known as The Beast (Leung Siu Lung) out of jail, tensions reach a boiling point as Pig Sty Alley's landlady (Yuen Qiu) leads an all-out attack against the gang and Sing discovers his true heroic fate. Kung Fu Hustle, which set box-office records across Asia during its December 2004 release, also stars Yuen Wah and Xing Yu, and features fight choreography by legendary masters of martial arts cinema Yuen Woo Ping and Sammo Hung.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-491/kung-fu-hustle-2004.html2008-05-20 03:35:18A genetic discovery that could prove mankind's saving grace is instead used to create the very beings who threaten their existence in director Kazuaki Kirya's visionary sci-fi epic. The time is the late 21st Century; fifty years of war between Europa and the Eastern Federation have left the planet devastated and the human race completely dispirited. In the aftermath of the Eastern Federation "victory," a new federation known as Eurasia is born. But the planet has been ravaged beyond the point of repair by nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons, and a half-century of warfare has taken a devastating toll on all mankind. At first, it appears that salvation is imminent when a highly respected geneticist named Azuma announces the discovery of a so-called "neo cell" that can rejuvenate the human body without risk of rejection. Mankind's last hope threatens to become its ultimate downfall, however, when nature and science combine to create a menace that could very well extinguish the human race forever. Now, as the human race prepares to make its last stand against the ultimate enemy, a powerful warrior will emerge to fight for mankind and provide hope for future generations.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-492/casshern.html2008-05-20 03:36:00Chinese director Zhang Yimou fuses a martial arts action-drama with a tragic romance in this elegant period piece. In the year 859 A.D., as the Tang dynasty is beset by rebellion, Leo (Andy Lau) and Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) are a pair of lawmen who have been given the task of ferreting out the leaders of a revolutionary faction known as the Flying Daggers. Working on a tip that members of the group are working out of a brothel called the Peony Pavilion, Jin arrives there in disguise and is introduced to a beautiful blind dancer named Mei (Zhang Ziyi). After watching Mei's performance following several drinks, Jin drunkenly attempts to have his way with her, and Leo is forced to intervene. After gaining Mei's trust in a game of skill, Leo arrests her and informs her that she'll be tortured if she doesn't tell all she knows about the Flying Daggers. Jin responds by helping Mei break out of prison, but he has an ulterior motive -- by following her, Leo and Jin are certain she'll lead them to the Flying Daggers. However, as he helps the blind girl find her way back home, Jin finds himself falling in love with Mei, and isn't certain if he's willing to betray her again.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-493/house-of-flying-daggers.html2008-05-20 03:37:26One of the most expensive films ever to come out of Bollywood, Lagaan tells the tale of the Indian village Champaner, beset by drought and British colonialism in the year 1893. Without a drop of rain in months, the worried villagers of Champaner decide to ask the local authorities for a temporary repeal of their taxes -- the hated lagaan. Led by the heroic Bhuvan (Indian superstar Aamir Khan) they bring their plight to the military governor, Captain Russell (Paul Blackthorne). But the sadistic Russell threatens to raise the lagaan threefold, unless the villagers can beat his men at a game of cricket, in which case he'll lift taxes on the entire province for a period of three years. Bhuvan accepts the challenge, but there's a problem -- no one in Champaner knows how to play cricket. A band of misfits come to the rescue, coached by Russell's soft-hearted sister Elizabeth (Rachel Shelley), and the race is on to be ready in three months' time. An epic reworking of Victory with eye-popping song-and-dance routines, Lagaan was a major cinematic event in India upon its release. ~ Connor McMadden, All Movie Guide (answers.com)http://www.ratinghq.com/5-652/lagaan.html2008-07-21 07:20:56Gerard Stembridge directs this charming comedy about a handsome stranger who wreaks havoc on an entire family. Pub torch singer Lucy Owen (Kate Hudson) falls for Adam (Stuart Townsend) as soon as she lays eyes on him. Tired of a string of failed short-termed relationships, she succumbs to Adam's radiate charisma and agrees to marry him after only knowing him for a scant couple of days. Yet when she brings him home to her family, she finds to her dismay that his magnetism works equally well on her two older sisters. The middle one, Laura (Frances O'Connor), is a shy bookish sort whose love for poetry proves to be her weakness, while eldest sister Alice (Charlotte Bradley) is aloof at first, but eventually she also yields to his wiles. This film was screened at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guidehttp://www.ratinghq.com/5-664/about-adam-2000-.html2008-07-21 08:59:13Sukiyaki Western: Django is a 2007 Japanese film by Takashi Miike. The English language Western is inspired by Sergio Corbucci's "Spaghetti Western" Django, as well as the legions of copycats and ripoffs. It has numerous references to that movie, including use of the Luis Bacalov theme song, but tells a completely different story, bearing more direct resemblance to Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo and Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-861/sukiyaki-western-django.html2008-09-03 10:29:53