I still don’t see why it’s so difficult to turn two of the coolest superheroes into a full fledged action franchise to this day. If anyone is more deserving of a movie franchise it’s The Green Hornet and his assistant/sidekick Kato, who, with the right director, can be turned into a blockbuster franchise that could easily be put in the same consideration as Batman.
Tag Archives: Gangster
Jopog Manura, (My Wife is a Gangster) (2001)
Jin-Gyu Cho‘s film is a very unusual little entry. It’s basically all over the map in terms of the genres, and is really never what you expect it to be. The premise reads like a sitcom, except with violence and mystery a la “La Femme Nikita.” Sure, in some places that could lead to an awfully messy film, but “My Wife is a Gangster” surprisingly works. Eun Jin is a mob boss named Big Brother, who was given the tag of a legend after taking on a group of men to defend a friend in combat. But after so many years of acting like a man and grimacing, she finds her long lost little sister and now must stick by her while she dies. Her sister wants one thing for her: she wants her to get married.
Alpha Dog (2006)
Much like films such as “Havoc,” and “Dreamland,” the teen thriller “Alpha Dog” is about as realistic a representation of the modern teen as Hollywood would like you to believe. The only saving grace is the fact that it’s based on a true story, which helped fuel my strong interest, along with the lovely Amanda Seyfried starring. “Alpha Dog” is a display of the best of the best young talents that Hollywood has to offer with an ensemble hearkening back to the likes of “The Outsiders” on many occasions. People like Ben Foster to Emile Hirsch pull in very good performances, with even Justin Timberlake pulling in a stand out as Frankie, a friend of Johnny Truelove’s who is given the duty of watching young Zack, and inevitably gains a sense of fondness for him. Timberlake is unlike anything I’ve ever seen here, and he’s both sympathetic and utterly memorable as a character that begins as a mere supporting player and ends up a key figure in the progression of crime drama.
Renaissance (2006) (DVD)
Almost simultaneously released alongside Richard Linklater’s equally high concept animated film “A Scanner Darkly,” Volckman’s “Renaissance” is a little bit of George Orwell and Phillip K. Dick with the same neo-noir atmosphere of Frank Miller with a Dystopian twist, and it composes itself as an equally high concept animated science fiction installment that focuses on a society that’s not too much in the distant future from ours. The world is ruled by vanity and the search for eternal youth, and this is all spearheaded by an ominous corporation called Avalon that markets on society’s youth obsession and rules over all of society. Ads pop up from thin air, follow pedestrians, and always seem much more omnipresent than they should.
Gone in 60 Seconds (1974)
Many people I’ve ever talked to have never seen the actual film of “Gone in 60 Seconds,” and really have their knowledge of that title extended to the miserable and horrid remake starring great actors being completely misused in what I can describe as a ninety minute eye sore. “Gone in 60 Seconds,” from 1974, is a film I actively sought out for the mere excuse of comparing a terrible movie to what I initially hoped was a great film as previous car films like “Vanishing Point,” and “Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry” have been.
The Sweeney: The Complete First Series (DVD)
“The Sweeney” is one of those series that hasn’t lost any of its flavor or edge, even though it’s racked up the years and suffered the slight scorn of obscurity. Though many will insist series like “NYPD Blue” and “The Streets of San Francisco” were the more hard edge police series, “The Sweeney” is also a valuable contender for this list. Soon to be remade with the great Ray Winstone, “The Sweeney” is one of the rare police series to feature older men in the role of our two heroic cops that find themselves wrapped in intrigue and street toughs in the investigation of a vicious criminal.
Gangs of the Dead (Last Rites) (2006)
“Put on some news, I wanna hear about dead muthafuckas out there eating cops like it’s a barbecue!”
Yo son, check dis son, I’m from da Bronx son, and I just finished watching “Gangs of the Dead.” See, what makes “Gangs of the Dead” so clever is because it’s a double entendre, son. It ain’t just gangs of the dead, it’s gangs, as in groups of the dead. So it’s clever and not as stupid as y’all think. So I sat here wit ma forty, and laughed ma nuts off, while firing off ma glock. Naw, son, word is bond, I’m sick of zombie movies, son. The zombies in here, they all look like nothing but filthy hobos and alcoholics you see under the bridge in da streets. And wouldn’t you know it, now we got a bunch of black stereotypes being haunted by those flesh eating bastards, and I sit here trying to think of a reason not to turn ma glock on my head… son.