A collection of reviews of films from off the beaten path; a travel guide for those who love the cinematic world and want more than the mainstream releases.
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Cop on the way home ends up in the middle of a highjacking. In a word where action films out of China have been overwhelmed by the need to include propaganda it's nice to see one that isn't crushed by it. It's a nice film with good characters, solid action and a hard edge that remains to the end. I'm not going to say a great deal on the film. A large part of the reason is that I simply enjoyed the…
Loosely connected to the Korean Round Up Series it follow a Japanese cop who gets hooked up with a Korean cop in order to take down some bad guys. I'm sorry if that is really vague but the truth is there are way too many characters and way too much going on to worry about the details of the plot. In other words, yes, I got lost. What matters here is the action, and there are copious amounts of it,…
An astronaut sent into space to find the source of a signal runs into a tragedy. If you love great looking science fiction films you must see this film. This film has images that surpass the vast majority of what Hollywood has turned out in the last decade. You will want to see this film big and then some. This is a deeply moving meditation on life and death. Rooted in director Angad Aulakh’s…
If you want a sure-fire night at the big Bad Film Festival go to the screening of CRIME HUNTER BULLETS OF RAGE, BRIME HUNTER BULLETS OF BETRAYAL and CRIME HUNTER KILLING BULLET. Three direct to video films from Japan, but set in America, specifically Little Tokyo, they are as bat shit crazy as they come. They are gritty, ugly, over the top funny both intentionally and unintentionally, and jaw…
I’m not going to do a full-on review of all of the Big Bad Film Festival shorts. It is not because they are bad, but so many of them are so short that I don’t want to give them one or two words. They films are wonderfully made. Some of them look spectacular compared to many recent big budget features. All of them were made with love. While I love some more than others, I actually liked every…
With this film playing THE BIG BAD FILM FESTIVAL this weekend here is a repost of my review from when the film was originally released 14 years ago: Okay- why the hell isn't this getting talked up? I knew the film was out there but it wasn't until Peter Gutierrez talked it up on Twitter that I really sat up and took notice. With an opening that is disturbing and disorienting and a sense of real…
This is a deeply troubling film, about the problem of nuclear waste. Where do you put it? Sure you can bury it but what if something happens? What of the people down wind or who live on top of or near the storage facility. I’m not going to say a great deal about this film, because you just need to see it. This is one of the best films I’ve seen on the problems of nuclear waste. It balances the…
This is the true story of Shalin Shah who joins the Peace Corps in order to do good, only to find that he has a nasty form of cancer. In the time he has left he explores what it means to be alive and what we owe to each other. Good but by the numbers tale designed to fill its audience with feelies and make them see the wonders of the world. I don't mean to sound snarky, but the cast and craft of…
Kelsie Kimberlin travels to Ukraine to pay tribute to her cousin who was killed fighting the Russian invasion of the country. She travels the country seeing for herself what the Russians have done, seeing how the Ukrainians have responded and paying tribute to her lost cousin. THE LAST CALL frustrates me. Containing some of the best “you are there” footage in any documentary I’ve seen on Ukraine,…
“There’s not a bird on earth that could survive a human uppercut.” After just a few minutes of experiencing IT ENDS on the big screen, it becomes clear why this is the opening night film. Assured, beguiling, and using sound in a way that can be described only as gorgeous, Alexander Ullom’s first feature promises to take you places even before it really gets on the road. Aided by the fine work of…
