Tag / review

by hutchwp

Film review -トウキョウ トライブ / Tokyo Tribe (Sion Sono, 2014)

Movies should aspire to be the best in their genre. There’s no point existing as a movie unless you can at least be better than everything that has gone before in your genre. If you can’t do that, then why not mold yourself a new genre completely?

With that in mind, I am proud to announce that Tokyo Tribe is the best Japanese-language rap-musical in the tribal gang realm.

The story is pretty hard to explain. To summarise, we are let into a highly stylised version of modern Tokyo, where tribal gangs vie to rule the city. Set over one night, we see the heightening tensions as ganglord Buppa (Riki Takeuchi), his henchman Mera (Ryuhei Suzuki) and son Nkoi (Yosuke Kubozuka) declare war on all other tribes in Tokyo, announcing as much by killing the popular peace advocate Tera (Ryuta Sato). The uprising against their power trip is led by central heroine Sunmi (Nana Seino), and multiple stylised battles culminate in a dawn all-out-war.

Sunmi beat the living daylights out of another bunch of extras

Sunmi beat the living daylights out of another bunch of extras


Amazingly, the intertwining of multiple storylines and characters is reminiscent of Love Actually, though the comparisons inevitably end there. In fact, at times it’s simply hard to follow just who the central characters are. About 90% of the dialogue is delivered as rapping, so as an English native who barely speaks any Japanese it is hard to follow what are clearly some very fast and rhythmical lyrics. On this occasion, it really pays to speak the language.
Another issue is the excessive number of characters that are continuously being introduced into the mix. It felt at times like several characters were frivolously being added in too late for us to care about who they are, often getting only a handful of lines to describe who they are, what tribe they represent and a little about themselves before disappearing for the rest of the film.

That said, there is a memorable turn from Cyborg Kaori as a beatboxing servant, which is worth watching out for. She does things with her voice that seem completely unnatural. The results are fascinating and her various YouTube videos are worth checking out. This is an example of a distinct character being given the chance to shine; it’s a shame that the cast wasn’t smaller so more focus could be given to each of the talented artists involved.

Many of the featured actors and actresses, however, are new to the hip hop world and the intriguing on-disc Making Of documentary reveals a lot of the insecurities of the stars, particularly with standout performer Nana Seino. She’s clearly a talented actress but it’s sad she was the focus of such a lot of “fan-service” throughout the film.

Stylisitically, the film is top notch. From start to finish there is no break in the feeling that the characters inhabit this entirely alternate reality and in that sense it is a great success.

The same cannot be said for the storyline.

At times it’s a brilliantly unique film that threatens instant cult-classic status. Often it’s just a complete mess that loses itself in style over storyline. If you know of Sono Shion and liked his previous efforts then you know you’ll enjoy this. If not, then approach with caution.

Tokyo Tribe can be purchased on Blu-Ray in the UK now and was released by Eureka films.

by hutchwp

Paul Weller live at the Pyramid Stage, Glastonbury Festival, 28th June 2015

Setlist:

White Sky
The Changingman
From the Floorboards Up
I’m Where I Should Be
Long Time
That’s Entertainment
Above the Clouds
Saturn’s Pattern
Going My Way
Friday Street
Porcelain Gods
Broken Stones
You Do Something to Me
Start!
Peacock Suit
Whirlpool’s End
Town Called Malice

Well, there we have it. Another year of good-hearted, fun-loving live music done and dusted as Glastonbury 2015 comes to a close. All the flaws my body has developed over its first thirty years have come to the surface and I am out of both alcohol and money. It has been emotional.

The highlight set on the Sunday was a crowd-pleasing effort from Paul Weller. With a career spanning 40 years he had plenty to go on and the song selection was spot on.

Fittingly, he opened the set with a storming rendition of “White Sky”, the lead track from the new album Saturn’s Pattern. It’s a great song, though I don’t think I was alone in the crowd wondering whether the set was just going to be full of songs from his recently-released album.

This concern was put to bed with second track “The Changingman”. It immediately got the packed crowd singing along and on-side and truly kicked-off a night of fun with The Who just around the corner.

Indeed, the mid-nineties tracks he played – including “Peacock Suit”, “Broken Stones”, “Friday Street”, “Porcelain Gods” and “You Do Something To Me” – were only the tip of the iceberg. Whilst The Style Council were completely bypassed, he found space for three of The Jam’s biggest hits: “Start!”, “That’s Entertainment” and “Town Called Malice”.

The highlight for me was “Above The Clouds”, a track from his eponymous debut solo album. It has always been a favourite of mine and the rendition here was one of the highlights of a very special festival.

His voice didn’t even have a hint of cracking at any point, which bodes well for a long future of touring yet, something not possible for every artist that has been around for as long as Mr Weller. It was also nice to see Ocean Colour Scene guitarist Steve Cradock on stage with him again.

Well done sirs. It was a stunning set.

by hutchwp

Suede live at the John Peel Stage, Glastonbury, 27th June 2015

Main Setlist:
Pantomime Horse
Moving
Trash
Animal Nitrate
We Are the Pigs
Killing of a Flashboy
It Starts and Ends With You
He’s Dead
Pale Snow
I Don’t Know How to Reach You
The Living Dead
The Drowners
So Young
Metal Mickey
Beautiful Ones

Encore:
She’s in Fashion (acoustic)
New Generation

Today was the big day. Kanye West arrived at Glastonbury with his own brand of Yeezus-y goodness, set to wow the crowds and berate anyone who tried to stop him. Probably. I didn’t go to his crappy set because I was too busy being blown away by a breathtaking performance from Suede on the John Peel Stage. Brett Anderson had the audience in the palm of his hand and the whole band were on top tight form from start to finish. I’d waited for 15 years to actually see them live and it was well worth the wait.

I first got into Suede in 2000 when my first proper girlfriend bought me three Suede albums for my birthday. I didn’t know much about them outside the then-recent hit singles “Electricity” and “She’s In Fashion”, but she was a huge fan and I thought I’d go along with it. After all she was slightly older than me and seemed to know a lot more about music (and life) than me. Whilst the relationship sadly didn’t last much longer, those three albums (the Bernard Butler ones, if you’re interested) stuck with me for a long time through to the end of my education and subsequent career.

So it was a thrilling moment when Suede took to the stage and burst into “Pantomime Horse” and then “Moving” from their eponymous debut album. The fact they were crowd-pleasers shows how much of an impact that debut has had over the years, given both were actually album tracks. Brett Anderson looked as fit as he did when they first appeared on the Glastonbury line-up some 22 years ago. The years have withered neither the angst in his eyes nor the emotional electricity of the performances. He owned the stage in a way so few performers manage.

The next song was “Trash”, a timeless slice of outsider pop rock. They absolutely nailed it, the crowd went ballistic and the band used it as a platform to launch into a string of huge hits (and noted b-side “Killing of a Flashboy”), sporadically taken from various points of their career. It was a sight to behold and has fortunately been captured beautifully by the BBC who have turned a intoxicating live performance into a cinematic work-of-art.

Not many songs featured that post-date 1996 album Coming Up. Of those that did, “She’s In Fashion” stood out as particularly poignant. In its altered form as an slow acoustic song in the encore, the focus shifted more to the lyrics and melody in a way that was hidden by the oddly aged production of the original album recording.

“Pale Snow” and “I Don’t Know How To Reach You”, both new songs yet to be released, hinted at a lot of promise for the future material and will have the Suede fans around the world buzzing with interest. The former is a slightly sparse song built around a repeating guitar riff by Richard Oakes, whilst the latter has a slightly fuller sound and a catchy chorus that sits it alongside the great work they put out some twenty years ago.

For all the excitement around hearing their new material, being floored by a stunning rendition of “Beautiful Ones” will doubtless be one of the lasting memories of this festival for me and the many 1000s inside the rammed tent. It was a long wait but well worth it. If only Kanye could have been there to see it.

by hutchwp

Film review – Lava (James Ford Murphy, 2014)

The opening short film you will see before Inside Out later this summer is a sweet film called Lava, probably the first musical love story to take place over millions of years. It involves two volcanoes and is set to a beautiful song sung by Kuana Torres Kahele.

This volcano is in lava.

This volcano is in lava.

It was met with audible gasps, sighs and whoops in the screening I saw at this year’s Glastonbury Festival. Please make sure you get there in time to see this volcano’s story!

by hutchwp

Film review – Inside Out (Pete Docter, 2015)

The latest film from Pixar Animation Studios is one I approached with considerable anticipation. There has been a reluctant feeling amongst close followers of Pixar’s output that they are now running low on original ideas as we are seeing a shift towards sequels rather than original storylines. Of the first ten Pixar motion pictures, only Toy Story 2 was a sequel. Of the following four films, only the poorly received (but excellent) Brave was an original concept. Monsters University was an enjoyable film but not a patch on the original; Cars 2 was on a par with the first installment but that just means neither are good. Only the two Toy Story sequels were both a critical and commercial success and the first of these started life as a direct-to-video sequel.

So when the next few films were announced and they included Toy Story 4 and Finding Dory a lot of questions focused on how many original ideas were left in the tank. It’s cruel to be concerned in many ways, but after such a frantic amount of original ideas pumped so much life into the animation industry it was sad to think it might be slowing down.

However, seeing they were releasing two new franchises was a cause for hope. The Good Dinosaur will be seen in cinemas later this year, but first up is the film set to be a summer blockbuster – Inside Out.

L-R: Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness

L-R: Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness

The story is an unusual but simple one, much like all the best Pixar films. It is set inside the brain of a young girl named Riley Anderson (Kaitlyn Dias) as she is forced to move house with her parents from icy Minnesota to the slightly milder San Francisco, leaving behind her friends, beautiful house and successful ice hockey team. Her five emotions are represented by five distinctly hilarious characters: Joy (Amy Poehler), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling), Fear (Bill Hader) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). Each one controls her emotional response based on how they interpret what she is experiencing, and these are converted into memories in the form of tiny glass orbs, rich in one or more type of emotion, which are stored in her mind for her to recall later.

This concept is highly original and is a brilliant platform for some hilarious cutaway scenes where we see what Riley is seeing and the reaction shots of what to do with our five emotional manifestations. The most memorable case of this was a very typical family meal, into which a lot of careful consideration was evidently given to get the perfect balance between heartfelt and humour.

I won’t ruin any specifics of the plot but I would recommend taking a tissue if you are liable to cry. They reach first-eight-minutes-of-Up levels of emotions.

The real-life characters are highly realistic and the world in which they live is very believable. However, the one place the film lets itself down is with the character design of the five emotions. Whilst they are cutely colourful and well animated, the actual design doesn’t seem up to the standard expected from Pixar and I wonder how it got this far down the line without someone saying it needs to be improved. A couple of other characters – Richard Kind’s Bing Bong and a particularly scary clown – inhabit a wholly different world and have more in common stylistically with Aardman Animation. I can’t help think they were designed with merchandising in mind.

This is truly up there with the best Pixar films, no easy achievement given they have been responsible for so many of the best animated films over the last twenty years. It’s the perfect emotional rollercoaster to ride on whilst celebrating reaching the start of their third decade in the motion picture business.

Inside-Out was previewed at Glastonbury Festival on Sunday 28th June and is set for release in late July in the UK. It is preceded by the short film Lava.

by hutchwp

Glastonbury Day Four: No Kanye, washed hair, Gaz Coombes, Gregory Porter, Jane Weaver, Suede and Paloma Faith

Today was the big day. Kanye West arrived at Glastonbury with his own brand of Yeezus-y goodness, set to wow the crowds and berate anyone who tried to stop him. Probably. I didn’t go to his crappy set because I was too busy being blown away by a breathtaking performance from Suede on the John Peel Stage. Brett Anderson had the audience in the palm of his hand and the whole band were on top tight form from start to finish. I’d waited for 20 years to actually see them live and it was well worth the wait. Being floored by a stunning rendition of “Beautiful Ones” will doubtless be one of the lasting memories of this festival for me and the many 1000s inside the rammed tent.

Earlier in the day, Swim Deep were completely lost on me as the first band of the day; Jane Weaver literally and figuratively blew me away on West Holts [1]; and both Giant Sand and Gaz Coombes proved to be solid choices at The Park Stage mid-afternoon.

  

Gregory Porter looked set to be a great way to see in the evening but we left a little underwhelmed. I actually blame it on his style being well suited to relaxation, meaning we ended up almost falling asleep. His record has been on constant play in my house at times this year and it translated well into a live show. I suspect it was a case of bad timing on my part, mixed with the fact we were absolutely shattered.

Fortunately Paloma Faith and Pharrell Williams picked the pace up with a couple of hit-packed sets that got the Pyramid crowd ready to start the Saturday party. Im a huge fan of Paloma and she was on top form tonight, playing tracks from all of her albums along with a memorable Jimi Hendrix cover. Her outfits are always talking points and this was no different. 

Paloma was very apologetic throughout, implying she made a misinterpreted comment in the media at some point. I’m not privy to this info as I’ve been stuck in a field for almost a week now, but who cares when she sounds this good? Inevitably whatever she said has seen her words twisted to sell newspapers and clicks.

I was shocked how many tracks of Pharrell’s I knew. Obviously he’s been around for a long time now and has produced many hits off different artists, but he’s an excellent artist and we were left wondering why he wasn’t headlining. When you’re partly or fully responsible for three of the biggest-selling singles in the last two years (“Blurred Lines”, “Get Lucky”, “Happy”, all of which broke the million mark on sales) you deserve to top the bill, especially when the act above you has had nothing of note out for a while. He’s one of the best frontmen I’ve ever seen, and it comes entirely from his cocksure confidence. My only criticism for Pharrell was that a couple of songs sounded like they were heavily reliant on a backing track, though perhaps my ears deceived me. 

I caught the end of La Roux’s set and she sounded spot on. She’s still underrated in my eyes and is slowly building up a solid catalogue for her live performances, which far outclass the recorded versions. If you like her style then make sure you see her this tour before she disappears on another hiatus.

I’m sure Kanye will be the most talked about act tomorrow outside the festival, just like Florence probably was this morning. Let them. With any luck the chat will have ran out by the time the festival finishes and I re-enter the real world. Anyone who was at the Suede performance will testify just how special that set was, even though it won’t grab headlines.

Oh and I managed to wash my hair. So that was nice.

[1] Sorry Jane. When your set started the bass was ridiculously loud. We loved it but we only lasted about ten seconds near the stage before retreating to a safer distance. We couldn’t take it but still loved it from afar – it wasn’t a reflection on you!

by hutchwp

Glastonbury Day Two: Wilko Johnson, Beans on Toast, Elle and the Pocket Belles, Silent Disco

The second day at Glastonbury is when the fun starts to get interesting. A few familiar acts start to pop up and by and by and nobody has a 50 minute pilgrimage with a 40kg weight strapped to their back to kick off the day.

  
Our first act of the day was Wilko Johnson on the William’s Green Stage. It was a short set (about 30 minutes) followed by a long interview (about 30 minutes) followed by an exclusive screening of the new Julien Temple documentary The Ecstasy of Wilko Johnson, ostensibly about Wilko’s battle with cancer as he was given ten months to live. It covers this period, then goes on to what he describes as “extra time” and then his miraculous recovery following some radical treatment. The film was a fantastic introduction to Wilko’s music (admittedly I’m not overly familiar with it) and a fascinating insight into people battling with terminal illness. Well worth watching when it appears later this year.

Later on we caught a bit of Elle and the Pocket Belles at Avalon Café. Their set was the perfect way to see in the sunny evening as they nailed a series of popular tunes with their own style of blended vocals and punchy brass backing. I think they’re playing elsewhere over the weekend so I’m hoping to bump into them again.

Beans on Toast was next on the Hell Stage in Shangri-La. It was heaving and it was obviously a hot ticket but it didn’t really resonate with me. It’s and act that has become a frequent performer at festivals though and if you like political statements in humorous song form then maybe you’ll be more inspired.

The evening became a bit of a blur after this, though I do recall dancing to Prince’s “Raspberry Beret” in the Park Silent Disco in the early hours of the morning. It would have been rude not to. 

by hutchwp

Glastonbury Day One: Driving, Walking, Camping, Blade Runner

Well, I’ve made it through the first day of Glastonbury festival. Wednesday is always a day full of excitement – the long drive down from the East Midlands, the epic walk from the car park to the camp site (it only took 50 minutes this year!), putting up a tent that I haven’t looked at since the last festival I was at, finding my friends and heading out to explore. It feels like work but it’s worth it knowing a weekend of fun is just around the corner.

Something I always forget about when I come to Glastonbury is the sheer vastness of it all. I will always say “It’s way bigger than any other festival”, but it’s still pleasantly shocking when you actually get here. It dwarves every other festival I’ve ever been to, and I’ve been to a huge amount across Europe over the last 15 years. The Park area, for example, is about the same size as V Festival and is home to only the fourth biggest stage of the festival and a handful of other stages and tents.

There’s never a shortage of things to do or places to visit, even on what is essentially an arrival and aclimbatisation day. We spent some time in a small tent listening to a few bands, which was a nice start to the musical fun around the corner.

You can’t fear getting a good meal either – there are hundreds of stalls to try and they’re all reasonably priced. Drinks aren’t over pricey either and you can take your own anywhere you want, unlike most other festivals.

  
I spent a portion of the evening at the cinema tent watching one of my favourite films – Blade Runner: The Final Cut. The perfect way to round off the evening. I actually watched it a few weeks ago and had a review pending, which you can find here.

The vibe is something of a loving community that just wants to have a great time, which is what truly sets it apart from other festivals. It’s awesome to be back here and I can’t wait for the fun to really start tomorrow.

by hutchwp

Blade Runner: The Final Cut (Ridley Scott, 1982/2007)

I think I’ve now seen the definitive version of Blade Runner. The Final Cut, which I’ve stupidly had in my possession for almost a decade, is now firmly in the number one spot. For the first time, Scott is firmly in charge and has been able to create the vision he had over 30 years ago. In beautiful HD transfer (4K, 6K or 8K depending on the scene) and 5.1 surround sound, it provides the ultimate viewing experience even before you consider the content of the film is spot on.

There are, if you are unaware, five common versions of the film: Workprint (1982), Original Theatrical Cut (1982), International Cut (1982), Director’s Cut (1992) and Final Cut (2007). However, there are more detailed in an excellent article on Wikipedia. [1]

That there are so many versions clearly implies that the fans of the film are so enthusiastic that they keep coming back for more. Different people have their favourites but I’m on the Final Cut bandwagon.

The film is based in 2019 L.A. and centres around police officer Deckard, played by Harrison Ford, as he comes out of retirement to complete one final task as a “Blade Runner”. His job is to track down and kill four Tyrell Corporation Nexus-6 replicants (bioengineered humanoid robots) who have come to Earth illegally, possibly to extend their lives beyond their standard four year lifespan. As he tracks each down, he begins to question his own moral outlook and the nature of the replicants and his own humanity.

It's amazing what can be achieved when you eschew using digital effects.

It’s amazing what can be achieved when you eschew using digital effects.

Fans of sci-fi keep coming back to this film, and for good reason. Stylistically it was way ahead of its time and still looks stunning. It was a creation that predates CGI and the result is that there isn’t one set that doesn’t look like you could inhabit it. It’s a grim, dark look into a future which, at the time, seemed a long time away. Adjusted for inflation, the film cost just $70m, which is less than, for example, the entirely naff looking Dracula Untold.

A beautiful film with one of the greatest soundtracks of all time is all well and good, but it has to be driven by a gripping storyline. In my opinion, one of the enduring factors in the continued conversation is the many unanswered questions left after the original versions. The Final Cut does clear up at least one of the very critical questions. I imagine that advocates of previous versions would prefer to not have these questions answered but this is just the side of the fence I sit.

If you’ve not seen this film yet and have any inkling towards sci-fi of any kind, or indeed film noir, police dramas or classic cinema, then you need to put this right at the top of your “to watch” list. It simply needs to be seen and now that this definitive version is available there are no excuses.

I picked up this version of the film. It contains all five versions, heaps of bonus material, an artbook and a Syd Mead-designed collectible car model. There are other packages available but this, for me, is the ultimate package.

This 30th Anniversary Collector's Edition package is the ultimate version available in the UK.

This 30th Anniversary Collector’s Edition package is the ultimate version available in the UK.

[1] The three additional versions are San Diego Sneak Preview version, the US Broadcast version and a four-hour version shown to studio execs by Ridley Scott early in the film’s edit.

[2] This beautiful poster was designed by Jeremy Romand otherwise known as Caparzofpc.

by hutchwp

Side by Side (Christopher Kenneally, 2012)

Keanu Reeves acts as the face for this documentary, which explores the argument of which offers a richer viewing experience in cinema: traditional photochemical methods of recording on film or modern digital methods.

The people interviewed to build up what results in a pretty varied and balanced argument is exhaustive and includes directors, cinematographers, colourists, scientists, artists and other people associated with films. George Lucas unsurprisingly falls on the side of digital as he was the first to release a wholly-digital film in the now-cheap-looking Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. Robert Rodriguez, also a digital advocate who uses his inspired methods to post-produce the graphic-novel-stylised Sin City as a springboard for his contributions, is an interesting contributor. Christopher Nolan comes across as a battle-hardened traditionalist who fights for every film he makes to not be done on digital film recorders. Danny Boyle offers an insightful discussion on the creative techniques used in 28 Days Later. Lara von Trier also discusses the Dogme 95 movement, which is so interesting it deserves its own film. Other interviewees include Phil Meheux, Martin Scorcese, Charles Herzfeld, Joel Schumacher and Alec Shapiro.

The documentary itself is rich in shots of masterpieces in cinema. It offers a great history of film and digital film, and a balanced opinion of which is better.

Keanu Reeves, in his role as the interviewer, is obviously very anti-digital. I couldn’t help wondering whether his passion for one side of the argument perhaps influenced everyone’s thought process on the subject matter when discussing, but it lifts it from a simple soundbite-style documentary by letting us know the creator actually has an opinion and wants to discuss the details with a host of interesting industry experts.

It’s a documentary that explores its subject thoroughly and in my opinion isn’t just for fans of the technical side of films. Each person has clearly been encouraged to be passionate about their anecdotes and the result is a highly entertaining documentary.

Side by Side is available now on DVD and Blu-Ray.