DVD REVIEW: RIN: DAUGHTERS OF MNEMOSYNE SEASON ONE

Film: Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne **
Release Date: 13th September 2010
Certificate: 18
Running time: 260 mins
Director: Shigeru Ueda
Starring: Mamiko Noto, Akira Ishida, Rie Kugimiya, Rie Tanaka, Sayaka Ohara
Genre: Animation/Thriller
Format: DVD
Country: Japan

As most anime fans know, some of the more adult offerings are an opportunity for customers to ogle animated women in compromising positions and to watch ultra violent scenes while desensitising the horrors through the wonders of cartoon. Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne is the latest in a long line, released in the UK this month - but can it offer anything fresh to attract a different clientele?

Rin and her partner Mimi are private investigators, hired to solve mundane tasks like finding missing cats and valuable stamps. What makes these two different is that they’re both immortal, both succumbing to ‘time fruits’, spewed from the Norse tree Yggdrasil.

If a time fruit enters a woman’s body they become immortal, but if a man is unfortunate enough to come across one, he becomes an angel – a divine being with only weeks to live, hunting out female immortals that long to have sex with him, ultimately leading to their deaths as well.

Meanwhile, villainous entity Apos, a deathless angel, wants a utopia for the never dying and all mere mortals to be destroyed. Obsessed with sacrificing Rin to Yggdrasil, the tree of all life, she’ll stop at nothing, eager to tear into the private detective’s ripe body and devour the memories of her countless lives.

Will Rin, struggling to unravel the secrets of her endless agony, ultimately prevail?

It’s worth pointing out early on that Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne takes place over sixty-odd years. Ten years or more actually pass between each episode, which isn’t necessarily a problem when your two main protagonists are immortal. However, other characters come and go, replaced by relatives, all seemingly with the same motives and little in the way of differentiation. It begs the question why?

The plot is pure fantasy, so this device is gimmicky rather than clever. Meano, for example, is introduced in the first episode, replaced by his son in the third, then by his granddaughter in the fifth. Neither replacement brings anything new to the table, nor do we care little for their dilemmas. It’s only the two leads, Rin and Mimi, who carry enough empathy, but this may be due to much more screen time rather than good character development by the shows creators.

With a plot that culminates so slowly over the lengthy running time it’s hoped that other attributes allow for some entertainment. Instead, it’s your average tale of nudity, anal rape, bondage and torture designed to titillate a few while shocking the newcomers. And it will, but not for long. By the halfway stage of episode two, Rin has died so many times via such brutal methods it’s questionable whether the viewer will care much for her plight any longer.

More notable is the fact that mortal protagonists are rarely put in any kind of predicament. It isn’t until after four episodes that we start learning more about Yggdrasil, the tree of all life, bringing with it a more intriguing story and a change of direction, but it’s such a slog to get there, and to be honest, scant reward for the effort put in.

Rather than exploring such interesting themes, director Shigeru Ueda exploits them with a barrage of nakedness that would be more fitting in a Miike Takashi film rather than a sci-fi animation. Fans of this kind of exploitation anime will definitely not be disappointed – others hoping for a war between immortal women and angelic males with superhuman strength may well be.

There are some good moments here. The ongoing joke that opens each episode, with Rin in desperate need for water/vodka is amusing, and her near-escape along a ventilation shaft, undone when her backside sets off a motion sensor suggests more fun could’ve been had. Their relationship (Rin and Mimi’s) is rather sweet too, hinting at more than just friends - the quiet moments back in the office a pleasing respite from all the gory mayhem. But this, like most of its good ideas, is scrapped in favour of pleasing the fan base already out there (those that seek empathy from the size of a character’s breasts).

The animation isn’t as smooth as other releases, creating inferior action set-pieces that are a little rough around the edges - some scenes will actually awake memories of flip-books from childhood. If more effort was made to such carnage, rather than perfecting naked torsos, maybe more praise could be given.

The script offers up an odd amalgam of surprisingly intelligent ideas (never fulfilled) and the most inane drivel about lost cats and stamp collecting, while the score is hardly noticeable, never offending, but never adding too much, unless the unbearably cheesy opening number is taken into account.

Tolerate the gore and mostly unnecessary erotic imagery, and forgive the creators for wasting its interesting premise by messing around with a timeline punctured by even more nudity, Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne may offer some interest. For most viewers though, four and a half hours of your life will be wasted.

REVIEW: MYSTERY OF THE WOLF (DVD)

Film: Mystery of the Wolf ***

Release Date: 9th August 2010

Certificate: PG

Running time: 86 mins

Director: Raimo O. Niemi

Starring: Tiia Talvisara, Janne Saksela, Vuokko Hovatta, Miia Nuutila, Kari-Pekka Toivonen

Genre: Adventure/Family/Drama

Format: DVD

Country: Finland

Wolves have long evoked both fear and admiration as symbols of beauty and danger. Their image has changed drastically through the centuries – from creator and helper to symbol of evil, from predator to prey, from legend to icon. Director Raimo O. Niemi (The Blow-flower Boy and the Sky Mechanic) has mainly dabbled in television, but Mystery of the Wolf, finally released in the UK after a four-year absence, offers a glimpse at this remarkable animal, along with its complex and ever-changing relationship with humans.

After the death of her husband, Laila (Vuokko Hovatta) is driven mad by grief and abandons her young daughter Salla (Tiia Talvisara). Adopted by police officer Antii and his wife Kirsti, Salla lives a fairly average life in the Finnish wilderness until, at the age of twelve, she discovers that her mother has returned to reclaim her.

When Salla rescues some wolf cubs from poachers, her mission to keep them safe helps her bond with her real mother and befriend a boy who both share her mysterious connection with nature. However, a heavily pregnant Kirsti is reluctant to let her adopted daughter return to her roots, and the poachers are determined to hunt down the revered cubs before they too are reunited with their own mother…

Best known for his work in television, director Raimo O. Niemi displays a sure hand for both setting and character, using the beautiful Finnish landscapes during both winter and summer to striking effect. Tiia Talvisara and Janne Saksela (Salla and school friend Matias) make a surprisingly charismatic screen couple, while Peter Franzen, playing vile poacher Antero, easily outshines his adult co-stars with a sinister performance.

The wolves are actually given little screen time (though when they do appear they certainly steal the show) but Mystery of the Wolf still manages to hold interest thanks to its charming leads and a story that breezes along nicely, even if nothing truly sensational happens until the midway point. The scene in which one of the wolves struggles to escape its tormentors is tense, surprising, and not one for the animal lover.

In a way, it’s that scene that really gets the film moving. Salla’s deteriorating relationship with both wannabe guardians almost runs out of ideas by the half way stage, so a brooding villain and a goofy romance keep the pace from flagging. Why Antero and his flunkeys initially decide to hunt the wolves, the perfect cover up for their reindeer-poaching escapades, isn’t properly answered (a scene during the second act suggests that one of the poachers shares the same sentiments), while the trigger for Antero to go after the mother wolf is clumsily dealt with and doesn’t give Simo, his delightful hound, the proper send-off his amusing side-show warrants.

Staying on that subject, it’s questionable whether the mother wolf would actually attack the dog unless feeling truly threatened (documented cases of wolves attacking humans or those animals that aren’t the most vulnerable are quite rare), so it’s a failing of the movie that the viewer never witnesses anything to suggest this is so. It’s also dubious that a twelve-year-old girl can be so in tune with nature. Yet the mere sight of wolf cubs being ferried about in rucksacks, or the pregnant wolf standing over the lifeless body of her other pack member is so touching, such contentious plot devices are easily dismissed.

When the wolves aren’t present, especially in the opening act, the drama feels a little stretched. Its refreshing then when Salla meets Matias, because the story shifts focus from the family strains to the gentle romance their friendship instigates. Add Antero to the mix and the script is transformed into something far better than the viewer could have hoped for. In fact, it’s disappointing every time Salla returns home from her daily adventures, whether it be flirting with Matias, interacting with the wolves or evading her nemesis Antero.

Inevitably, despite the superior subplots, a heart to heart between mother and daughter encourages a final act which frustrates almost as much as it delights. Clambering down a fell to the river with two cubs strapped to our protagonists backs is sadly less exciting then it actually could be, but the standoff between Salla and Antero is mainly tense thanks to Raimo O. Niemi’s ability to keep the viewer on tenterhooks right until the final shot is blasted. The accidental shooting feels like a copout, and the odd manner in which Antero spills his guts (not literally) when he really doesn’t need to provides little satisfaction unless you’re under the age of ten.

Fortunately, a daring ride across the river onboard a snowmobile offers brief excitement, followed by a brilliant, not to mention laugh-out-loud exchange of dialogue between the two children when all is said and done. The inevitable reunion between mother and daughter is handled well, intersected with the more rewarding reunion of those furry scene stealers - the reason why this family drama manages to sustain such a substantial amount of interest.

Mystery of the Wolf will appeal to children and animal lovers mostly, but the beautiful landscapes and some notable performances by its cast should brighten up any rainy afternoon.

ESSENTIAL VIEWING: SONS OF ANARCHY SEASON 2 (DVD)

Sons of Anarchy is the superb American television series created by Kurt Sutter about the lives of a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club operating in Charming, a fictional town in Northern California. The show centers on protagonist Jackson "Jax" Teller (Charlie Hunnam), the Vice President of the club who begins questioning the club and himself.

Sons of Anarchy premiered on September 3, 2008 on cable network FX. Its darker second season, just released in the UK on DVD, debuted on September 8, 2009, and it was renewed for a third season on December 3, 2009.

ONE TO WATCH: FIREBALL (DVD) ***

Film: Fireball ***
Release date: 18th January 2010
Certificate: 15
Running time: 90 mins
Director: Thanakorn Pongsuwan
Starring: Preeti Barameenat, Khanutra Chuchuaysuwan, Kumpanat Oungsoongnern
Genre: Martial Arts
Studio: E1
Format: DVD
Country: Thailand

Tai, released from prison after his twin brother raises the appropriate bribe money, discovers that his savior is now in a coma. It turns out that he’d raised the money taking part in a Fireball tournament – a cross between run-of-the-mill basketball and barbaric street-fighting.

Posing as his twin, Tai is recruited by Boss Den, an ambitious upstart wanting to gain respect with his peers. Tai and his team-mates are forced to bond quickly. They have the individual talent but can they work together to win the tournament, let alone survive...

Despite some unexpected twists, Fireball plays out just like you hoped it would. In fact, after twenty minutes, you almost know exactly what you're going to get. This isn't a criticism, far from it - its the almost that packs an emotional punch. The action may be a bit too frenetic for some (at times difficult to work out who the person you're rooting for actually is) but for the most part the set-pieces are a joy to behold.

A love triangle slows things down slightly, and the final reel would've been best placed just before the final act (a sequel will suffice), but other than that, if you fancy leaving your brain at the door, immersing yourself in some high-octane action, Fireball leaves most recent Hollywood attempts back at the baseline. 

ONE TO WATCH: WHIP IT DVD (2009) ***

Bliss Cavendar (Ellen Page) is a 17-year-old-girl residing in small-town Texas, reluctantly entering beauty pageants to please her mother (Marcia Gay Harden). All she wants is something a little more from life. So when she sneaks out to a roller derby bout, Bliss's world is turned upside down. Dazzled by its potentialy life-changing powers, she joins the Hurl Scouts, becomes alter-ego ‘Babe Ruthless’ and meets a boy from a local band about to make it big. 

Surely her double life can’t last...

Whip It may have its faults: formulaic at times, some characters less than engaging and the sport itself is a tad confusing, but luckily, it also happens to be funny, with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, engaging and extremely enjoyable. Page can do no wrong, and Barrymore, with a confident, crowd-pleasing directional debut, should maybe consider giving up the acting for good.

ONE TO AVOID: VISITOR Q DVD (2001) **

Miike Takashi's unbelievably outrageous movie about a shamed reporter who visits one of Japan's 'comfort houses' to make a documentary about the experience, only to discover his daughter works there. Grounded? Not exactly. He doesn't even pay the full amount...

After that opening, nothing is sacred. Meeting Q, an enigmatic stranger who likes to hit people with rocks, he invites him into his home. Upon entering, Q decides to teach each family member a unique and special, not to mention pretty uncomfortable, lesson. Will he succeed in creating domestic harmony, or will he just make us all wish we watched the far-superior Audition instead?

Yes, it's your average tale of incest, anal rape and necrophilia designed to do nothing other than shock. Therefore, congratulations are in order because it does exactly that, if little more. One to say you've seen but maybe not to owning.

EVENT: UK WOLF TRUST OPEN DAY, BERKSHIRE

Open Day

Our next open Day is on Monday 30th August 11am - 5pm. Adults £7, Childre (3-12) £5. We've World Animal Day on the 3rd October, on which the UKWCT is also open to visitors. Why not come and have a look? We've a variety of activities on offer:

Observe our wolves in their spacious enclosures, from our retired North Americans to the new generation of ambassadors, the youngsters Mosi, Mai and Torak. If you've adopted one of our wolves it's a great opportunity to see them!

If you have any questions about wolves or the Trust, there'll be plenty of volunteers on hand to answer them for you.

Photographic sessions will be run through the day, using our special viewing platform over the lower enclosure.

See the wolves being given their medication in specially prepared treats.

For our younger visitors there'll be children's events running throughout the day.

Walk on our nature trail and learn about the other wildlife on site - owls, buzzards, kestrels and more!

Pond dipping will also be available.

See birds of prey.

SHUTTER ISLAND... ANY GOOD?

"The first half is utterly compelling whilst the second tries way too hard. If you're not already bored by proceedings the ending will justify your commitment."

 

LOOKING FORWARD TO...

ONE YOU MAY HAVE MISSED: RE-CYCLE (DVD) ****

Film: Re-cycle

Release Date: 1st July 2006 (Honk Kong)

Certificate: 15

Running time: 109 mins

Director: Pang Brothers

Starring: Angelica Lee, Yaqi Zeng, Viraiwon Jauwseng, Siu-Ming Lau, Lawrence Chou

Genre: Fantasy/Horror

Format: DVD

Country: Thailand

The Pang Brothers (Danny Pang Fat and Oxide Pang Chun) have struggled in recent years to build on the succes of the hit Asian horror film, The Eye, which has spawned two inferior sequels, as well as a Hollywood remake. The pair made their directorial debut as a team with Bangkok Dangerous, but arguably their most imaginative and striking film is 2006’s effort Re-cycle.

Ting-Yin (Angelica Lee) is a young writer whose first novel has become the best seller in South East Asia. Her fans eagerly await her next book, entitled ‘The Re-cycle’, a story dealing with supernatural forces. Battling against writer’s block and a tenacious publisher, her attempts to finish the book are hindered by the re-emergence of an old flame hoping they can reignite their love for one another.

A conversation over dinner forces Ting-Yin to make an important decision about their future, but various weird incidents hamper the progress of her book. Is her jilted lover responsible for the silent phone calls and mysterious break-ins, or does blame bizarrely lay at the feet of her new heroine, fiction fearfully becoming fact?

The Pang Brothers have once again assembled a small but talented cast that manage to captivate with strong performances. Angelica Lee first worked with them in The Eye and earlier this year even married one of the twins, Oxide. Ting-Yu (Yaqi Zeng), the stranger in whom Ting-Yin all too readily invests her trust is particularly plausible, as is Lee’s character, even if at times their relationship isn’t.

The opening act, in which Ting-Yin is alone in her house struggling to write the novel, provides many of the more unnerving moments in the movie. Here, there are a couple of very suspenseful scenes (the bathroom and the corridor definite highlights), and one superbly timed leap-out-of-your-seat scare.

The Pangs know all the tricks, as time and time again the camera uncomfortably lingers on Lee’s face waiting for something to take us by surprise, which it inevitably does. In fact, the opening half hour has more tension than a lot of Hollywood’s scare-fests in their entirety. If you’re a fan of this kind of horror then its opening won’t fail to please. But by allowing the script to switch genres after the initial onslaught, some fans might be left a little disappointed in what is to come.

A masterfully nightmarish co-creation courtesy of the dark recesses of the Pang Brothers minds, Re-cycle suddenly shifts into the realms of fantasy. This shouldn’t have been a problem. Whilst there’s imagery here that will remain with you forever, the terror that could’ve been generated from such ghoulish creations in delightfully dismal locations for the most part vanishes. The playground of the damned, ghosts’ bridge and the embryo tunnel succeed in sending minor shivers down the spine, but other levels like the gravestones and the escape are disappointingly underplayed. Even the forest of hang, with its falling dead bodies and long-necked zombies, somehow comes up short after an impressive introduction.

Don’t be put off though – these are very minor complaints, after all. The slow, deliberate buildup may be confined to the wastepaper basket, but the claustrophobic location opens up to a fantastical world that demands your attention. The viewer is quickly sucked into the strangest of spheres along with the protagonist, hypnotized by its sudden transformation. So much so, the ghostly apparition who spooked so hauntingly in the first act, now stalking Ting-yin on her own terms, is forgiven for not quite making the grade. Sadly, she is revealed far too early and her character is fairly redundant, even in the final third, but the story has moved on and her character, cleverly, is just another condemned idea that litters this bleak new planet.

The idea that everything you thought about and didn’t do during your lifetime happens in this new world, along with stories, lovers and toys you long since resigned to the trash is such a huge premise you can’t help but think that Recycle deserves a longer journey. Jumping from one set piece to another as our heroine tries to escape, although rewarding, disappoints merely because the twist ending is actually quite a surprise - an emotional delight for sure.

It’s certainly not in keeping with the story, but then, why not shift from horror to fantasy, back to horror, and then to the delicacies of past mistakes. It’s only a story, after all – the Pang Brothers have clearly decided to let others categorise it (as they did with The Eye). Regardless of its faults, along with a stirring score and luscious imagery, Re-cycle is high entertainment of epic proportions from end to end.

Minor niggles disappoint, but Recycle is still a minor classic that deserves a lot of respect. You will be scared. You will be blown away. You will be touched. When a film manages to deliver such transports of delight, it’s foolish to ignore such entertainment. 

Film Verdict: Inception ****

"Forgiving the dragged out finale, Inception is a thought-provoking, mind-blowing extravaganza that can't help but fascinate." 

 

DVD Release: Samurai Zombie **

Film: Samurai Zombie
Release Date: 19th July 2010
Certificate: 18
Running time: 86 mins
Director: Tak Sakaguchi
Starring: Mitsura Fukikoshi, Issei Ishida, Tak Sakaguchi, Airi Nakajima, Shintaro Matsubara
Genre: Horror/Action
Studio: MVM
Format: DVD
Country: Japan

George Santayana, the Spanish-American philosopher, once famously said that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. Tak Sakaguchi, martial artist, stuntman, actor and now director, has a high standing for taking every opportunity as it comes. Samurai Zombie, his second film as director, shares the same aphorism as Santayana’s, so why, considering his rapid rise to success, did he deliberately choose an angry reanimated corpse with military nobility as his next step?

A happy family take a trip to the country when their vehicle is apprehended by a pair of bank-robbers intent on escape. Having already seen the criminals dispatch a stranger in front of them with merciless precision, they concede defeat and are lead to an abandoned village, picketed by a defunct samurai who hasn’t lost his talent for killing.

When the father is brutally murdered, the remaining family must join forces with the convicts, overcoming their differences if they are to defeat the zombie and ultimately win through…

Samurai Zombie is a splatter film with more in the way of plot than it has in blood, guts and bloodshed. Sadly, this isn’t a compliment, because it also lacks the former too. Buoyed by an impressive performance by the young child actor playing Ryota, Samurai Zombie offers little in gore, action or originality. Opening with a bizarre and rather pointless scene in which a man talks to the camera about fate and how the audience will soon know what his is (he gets decapitated), Samurai Zombie is plagued by annoying characters that aren’t given the punishment they rightfully deserve (the guy obsessed with his own demise the only exception).

With all of its horrific, albeit briefly entertaining, activity suffocated by bloated and almost redundant scenes, the film feels like a pretty standard splatter movie for much of its running time with very little to say. Considering the team behind it delivered Versus, whilst providing valuable contributions to movies such as Tokyo Gore Police and Vampire Girl Vs Frankenstein Girl, you would expect a lot more, and that’s possibly the biggest criticism. Despite it only being Tak Sakaguchi’s second feature, it still feels like a step back in his career. Yes, a samurai zombie is a very good idea, but after watching the superior Norwegian splatter-fest Dead Snow, involving Nazi zombies, this effort seems rather tame and a missed opportunity.

To be fair, the first act offers an interesting opening. Empathy for the main family is quick in coming; a car journey in which the conversation questions fate and how the mother and father met, with its obvious and delightful consequences (the children), is executed to encourage a pleasant liking for all those sat in the car. Then the tyre explodes.

The vicious thugs that attack them for no reason, taking them hostage, are also welcoming, and the journey onwards to Eight Spears Village in order to swap vehicles adds intrigue and conflict (the male convict’s, played by Sakaguchi, interest in the young daughter a seedy highlight). Sadly, then it all goes terribly wrong. Having said that, the ghostly old hag warning them of their impending doom, the father who kills himself for no reason and the children who suddenly become psychic are thankfully interrupted by bank-robber Lisa getting her fingers ripped off.

There’s also a twist ending that never quite works – its arrival is far too late to sustain any kind of interest. Therefore, the two police officers introduced during the second act, supposedly offering humour and backstory, deliver little other than a smirk-inducing scene involving guns and playground hilarity.

Visually, the locations work but the special effects reek of computers. This is fine when a scene focuses on the surreal; the swarm of bats and digit-dropping segment commendable, but relying on technology to supply the film with all of its blood is unforgivable. What’s wrong with pig’s blood or, dare I say it, red paint – is it really better to produce the image on a computer rather than use other traditional, and much more realistic, techniques? As for samurai zombies, the only kick the audience gets is from one kick moments before the finale – less is certainly not more.

The leads do offer solid performances, and though the low budget proves obvious at times, the film does offer moments for most to enjoy. Despairingly, there is maybe about twenty minutes of story (and that’s being generous), whilst even less is dedicated to characterization and plot, but a couple of set-pieces and an intriguing opening sequence keeps the viewer hoping for better things, and the ending at the very least offers something to make the journey worthwhile.

Sadly less than engaging after the opening gambit, Samurai Zombie is likely to be appreciated the most by seasoned splatter-horror buffs, whilst newcomers to the genre will be looking elsewhere for their gratuitous entertainment, wondering what all the fuss is about.