Volume 04, Number 15
Movies
Movie News
By Bill Hersey
Twentieth Century Fox brought in veteran actor Bruce Willis as well as his young co-stars Justin Long who plays a hacker, and Hong Kong actress Maggie Q. to promote the highly rated action film Die Hard 4.0. Willis was 30 minutes late (usual for him) and was really in high spirits. "Genki desu ka?" he asked the room full of media, adding: "I'm really happy to be back here. Japan's one of my favorite countries." He then requested the lights be turned down "because we can't see anybody."
It was obvious that Bruce, Justin, and Maggie had a good relationship, and that they really had enjoyed working together. Willis said, "I'm happy to be back in action films, but at 52 it was a real physical challenge." He went on to say, "It's not just an action film, there is drama. My character loves his family and country and has a strong disrespect for authority."
Justin, who has a great sense of humor, had never done an action film before, but has long been a fan of Bruce and found it amazing to work with him. "Maggie was great too—we all really enjoyed working with each other—and complaining to each other."
Maggie has a real knowledge of, and skill, in martial arts. Bruce's favorite scene in the film is when "she really whipped my ass" in a fight that takes place in an elevator. It's the first time I fought a woman in a film and I lost." They all agreed it was a hard film to make and according to Willis, "there was a high possibility of failure, but it turned out very well."
It was interesting to read that the first film in the series, Die Hard, was named the best action film ever by the American magazine Entertainment Weekly, just two weeks before the release of Die Hard 4.0. Everybody I've talked to who has seen this film says it's the best action film ever.
Asia's top singer Jung Ji-Hoon who goes by the stage name of "Rain" made a stopover in Tokyo to discuss his new role in the Joel Silver film, Speedracers. The film is being directed by the Wachowski brothers, Larry and Andy, and is being show on location in Berlin. Japanese superstar and very international actor Hiroyuki Sanada also stars in the film.
Movie Review - Bad Guys Look (Very) Good in Ocean's 13.
by Danielle Tate-Stratton
In Ocean's 11, they rob three casinos on the night of an important fight; in Ocean's 12, they pull off a European heist. Now, in Ocean's 13, Danny's crew is back in Vegas, this time to avenge the honor of patriarch Reuben Tishkoff (Elliot Gould), who is wronged in the opening scenes of the movie by real-estate mogul Willy Bank (Al Pacino). As with the first two installments, Ocean's 13 is a fastpaced, slick, and highly entertaining criminal caper. While there is little doubt that the good guys will prevail over the often Donald Trump-esque (in his ambitions and do-itnow attitude) Bank, director Steven Soderbergh introduces enough hiccups along the road to keep you wondering just how Danny's crew will pull off their most ambitious plan to date.
This is not a realistic nor thought provoking film, nor does it want (or need) to be. Unabashedly painting a star-studded Hollywood veneer onto an already slick and surreal Vegas backdrop, Ocean's 13 is two hours of indulgent escapism. Polished performances by returnees to the Ocean's gang are complimented by the entertaining work of newcomers Al Pacino (Willy Bank) and Abigail Sponder (Ellen Barkin). Japan-based audiences will be especially entertained by cameo appearances by Akibono and Musashimaru facing off in the sumo ring.
The gift of Ocean's 13 is that opposed to devious and criminal, the boys all come off as playful and roguish and remind you more of the six-year-old with his hand in the cookie jar than a group of hardened criminals.
Ocean's 13 is, as with its predecessors, a fantastic way to spend the evening. With a very impressive production, luxurious surroundings, and beautiful people, Ocean's 13 gives you the opportunity to watch the imaginary high jinx of a high rolling world most of us will never touch.
East/West Double Bill
by M. Halliday
Nostalgic films can take some getting used to and the 2005 movie Always Sanchome No Yuhi (Always Sunset on 3rd Avenue) offers a rose-tinted two hours of thingsain't- what-they-used-to-be wallowing. Directed by Takashi Yamazaki, this film, with its superb recreations of 1958, the year Tokyo Tower was completed, won 13 Japanese Academy Awards (out of a possible 14). The plot concerns the inhabitants of a Tokyo street as they start to emerge from post-war austerity to the beginnings of the prosperity that was to eventually make Japan the second biggest economy in the world. Based on a comic book, Always is unashamedly sentimental and portrays an innocent and far simpler time. As 1958 progresses, the Tower gets closer to completion and a series of gentle, heart rendering episodes unfold. Although the syrup is poured on pretty thickly, with each section of the story plucking the heartstrings with ever increasing ferocity, the overall spirit of the piece prevents it from being drowned out.
That said, even the toughest cynic will be hard pressed to avoid reaching for the tissues at some point. Finding a nostalgic match from the west for Always proved more difficult than one would assume but John Boorman's 1987 autobiographical film Hope and Glory, set during the Second World War in England, shares some of the sensibilities of Yamazaki's film. Beautifully made and well acted, Hope and Glory focuses on the English home front in London, as seen through the eyes of a nine-year-old-boy. The underrated and ever intriguing Sarah Miles plays the boy and his sister's mother. Desperately and defiantly, she holds the family together despite everything Adolph Hitler throws at them whilst her husband is away fighting. Very funny in parts, Ian Bannen is a riot as the boy's grandfather, and the story is genuinely touching throughout. Hope and Glory, like Always Sanchome No Yuhi, paint picture-perfect worlds that seem less complicated and somehow safer (despite the war) which can be very comforting and sometimes that's just what you need a film to be.