Berserk (1997)

Berserk, despite the negative attention it's gotten from fans of the original manga, is among the most entertaining animes I've ever seen. Like most anime (specifically, the kind geared towards men, so looks elsewhere for the anorexic, wide-eyed lolis with their hands on their hips) it's very gorey and the main character is extremely overpowered. But that doesn't change the fact that it posesses a lot of potential. I was personally surprised with the sub-plot elements that cover life and following one's dream. But don't be fooled, this is a very graphic piece of work and focuses more on what your typical blood-soaked, Evil Dead watching horror fanatic would prescribe himself after a long hard day of chainsaw mauling. Yeah, it's that damn gorey.

The story involves Guts, a boy who we witness being raised from the battlefield wielding a sword twice his size since a very young age. After being taken under the wing of a bloodthirsty and crazed warrior, Guts kills his father figure in an attempt to defend his own life. Charged with murdering him, Guts sets out to pursue a life of killing for cash, so to speak. He spends his life doing this until he reaches his mid-teens, and then joins a mercenary group called the Band of the Hawk, where we meet the two supporting characters, Griffith and Casca. Though Wikipedia doesn't seem to agree with me, as they consider them to be more main characters.

As I've said before, this is based on a manga series (which has reached up to 33 volumes in Japan and is still being published) and takes place durring the "Golden Age" story arc, covering volumes 4-13. I've only read a little bit to brush up on Berserk's source material and to find out what happens after the show's rather inconclusive ending. All I can say is the manga is as dark as it is perverse and extremely violent. The anime, however, doesn't do the best job of representing this, which could be the reason why the ending caught so many people off guard. Without spoiling much, Guts isn't given any sort of resulution or justice. In fact, all supporting characters are killed off in Hell as their leader sacrafices them for an ultimate power. The author must have been a big Hellraiser fan, because the apostles at the end of the anime resemble some of Clive Barker's creatures almost perfectly.

I've read rumors regarding the ending, such as the lack of budget that wouldn't allow the studio to make a 26th episode or just the idea that the ending is meant to be abrupt and depressing. Either way, I was left wanting more justice for Guts and the manga, though explaining much more on the point, really doesn't provide much more of a happy ending. The overall differences between the anime and manga wouldn't have made a sebsible ending anyway. Regardless, Berserk is more of a prequel to the Guts we see in the manga which has always been a pretty kick-ass anime character. I'd definetely recommend the first 23 episodes to any fans of big swords, gore, and the lack of physical humor that most anime is now plagued with. As for the remaining two episodes, only for those who really want to witness something fucked up.

Trainspotting (1996)

Trainspotting is urban, gritty, and thanks to Danny Boyle's superb direction, a beautiful presentation of a story about reformation and maturity once you've sunk to society's lowest level.

The story revolves around Renton (Ewan McGregor), a heroin addict with a group of odd-ball friends, who harness the true humor of the movie. His fellow addicts are the James Bond-obsessed Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller) and the typical putz Spud (Ewen Bremner). Their daily activities involve living with the scum of society, being criminals and shooting up at their friend Allison's run down apartment, where she cares for her baby daughter, Dawn. Renton and his friends lead a blissful life of drugs and desire, with the exception of their alcoholic friend Begbie (Robert Carlyle) who gets his kicks from picking bar fights and Tommy (Kevin McKidd) who is basically whipped by his girlfriend and really likes to work out. His friends have dirty motives for the most part, but are still likable because of their diverse personalities.

Really, a lot of so-called hipsters will recommend this to pretty much anyone. It's no surprise that it has a lot of environmentally trippy scenes that sort of bend the concrete world into drug induced surrealism. But I don't credit anyone for that other than Boyle, who has already proven his skill with 28 Days Later (a fantastic zombie flick if you've never seen it). The story isn't anything too spectacular though the plot does hold some meaning and if you can get past the thick cockney accents, this is a great film to watch with your friends. Especially if they're losers druggies.

Human Nature (2001)

This movie deconstructs Patricia Arquette to such a harsh degree that you'd wonder why anyone would want to be in such a movie. But apparently actors have no problem in showing it all, despite how ridicules and stupid as this movie could have turned out. For the most part, it was pretty ridicules, but did include a mild level of meaning behind the extremely opposite overmannered prudes and hairy humans jumping around making monkey sounds - we all have primal instincts that we shouldn't always suppress. Just like Charlie Kaufman's previous work, the story focuses on characters who are mostly driven by lust or one insatiable urge. One could consider this poor writing and say that the characters one-dimensional, I say it's almost Shakespearean. But then again, I'm an optimist when it comes to movies.

A good half of the film is rather pretentious and strings together through events and can't really find a comfortable spot between humor and seriousness. The remainder, however, was much more entertaining and more thawed out than Kaufman's last credible screenplay, Being John Malkovich. Though, it wasn't so much the actual story that carried my interest as it was the performances and Michael Gondry's creative direction, which shines mainly on various environments and scenes involving animals for some reason. He seemed to like a pair of lab mice that were trained to use the proper salad fork enough to bring them up in a number of scenes.

The film was enjoyable enough to recommend to those who enjoy quirky humor and lots of nudity on the side. I believe it's also Gondry's first widely released film, which I suppose means something to fans of his particular style. If you looked into it enough, the film could really bend the structure of society, but it's just far too easy to poke fun at than get up and protest about.

The Silent City (2006)

With the achievement of his last effort on Fifty Percent Grey, apparently director Ruairi Robinson thought his lack of fleshy faces meant he should put another short beneath his belt for good measure.

I will say I'm happy with his environments, and this is definitely a better shot at showing off his mad directing skills. However, the biggest flaw of Fifty Percent Grey was the lack of plot, and The Silent City shares that same problem. It introduces an interesting perception, without any justification. We're left wondering, is Robinson trying to make a feature-length film based on this? What happened to all of their comrades? And what the hell is that super fast thing that can generate enough momentum to knock a car out of its way?

Still, very well directed. Beggars can't be choosers, and directors can't always be writers.

Check out Robinson's site.

Clerks (1994)

Kevin Smith's dialogue-driven comedy is a great directorial debut. He establishes the vulgar, yet visually calm state of an entertaining and easily appreciated comedy. To think, this is the film that gave birth to the characters Jay and Silent Bob. Their roles are about as cherished as any peanut gallery input can be, but Dante Hicks and Randall Graves is the film's main focus. The chemistry between these two characters, I thought, was what carried the movie.

On top of a humorous script, Smith slips in some more heartfelt moments that sort of took me by surprise. Aside from making us laugh at the stupidity of the general convenience store customer, the various rants we're subjected to by supporting character Randall, which sold me. There's also a pretty good scene where Dante realizes his girlfriend Veronica has sucked 36 dicks before him.

This film probably got more attention for being one of a kind for its time, much before we were spoiled by the Judd Apatow curse of hilarity. Still, this film sets a standard that many comedies should follow in detouring from the usual fart jokes and goofiness.

True Romance (1993)

True Romance is loaded with a lot of eye candy that can easily lead to high expectations. As the credits roll by, favorite actors like Sameul L. Jackson and Christopher Walken roll by. The cast sort of flips the expected line up in reverse, putting Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette in the lead roles, and actors like Brad Pitt and Gary Oldman make brief appearances as minor, insignificant characters like a pimp and a pothead. Perhaps this was a strong creative decision, or maybe, this film was released during a time where Slater and Arquette were more potentially famous?

Either way, True Romance harnesses everything a man would prefer to see in a romance movie; sex, drugs, and lots of violence. The film begins in Detroit, where it shows off the cold, desolate feel of urban Michigan in the winter. Christian Slater plays oddly interested, yet street wise man named Clarence, who is searching for some kind of companionship. He finds it unexpectedly in a call girl named Alabama that his boss sets her up with. The two develop instant chemistry, which develops mostly into a sexual relationship. He takes it upon himself to "free" Alabama from her pimp, Drexl. This is where the film begins to show a level of aggression that Tony Scott delivers unexpectedly well.

From then on, the plot centers around a briefcase full of cocaine Clarence finds upon killing Drexl, and how selling it will supposedly make their dreams come true. The movie picks up again in Los Angeles, where they submerge themselves even more into a world of crime-driven movie producers and actors to set up a deal. They room with aspiring actor Dick Ritchie (Michael Rapaport) who provides some comic relief attachment to the couple. The plot concludes with producers, actors, cops and the Italian mob engagening in a huge shoot-fest.

There was lots of physical humor and smoothing talking, which is probably what causes me to show this one off to the unsuspecting Tarantino fans. I also really liked Val Kilmer as Clarence's Elvis-impersonating conscience.

The Lost Boys (1987)

If you asked me what the best vampire movie was, I'd probably say either Interview with a Vampire or the original Nosferatu. That's just in terms of quality. If you asked me what my favorite vampire movie was, I'd say The Lost Boys.

Overall, this is a very flawed movie. But to me, this made vampires cool in the '80s. Joel Schumaker is probably one of my least favorite directors, and would be considered worse if it weren't for little gems like Flatliners and Falling Down. These films never really have a purpose, aside from giving us concepts attached to unrelatable characters. These roles can vary from teenage vampires to disgruntled, former employee for governmental defense. The Lost Boys delivers the director's usual goal, all the while supplying what I describe as The Goonies mixed with coming of age and urban surrealism.

The film does manage to capture the atmospheric mystery of moving to a new town for the main character and his little brother, which eventually introduces a group of teenagers who obviously resemble the "bad crowd" that everyone's mother warned them about. Michael's attraction to the only girl of the group leads to his indulgence into the gang's influence and activities, leading to him joining their league of vampires. Though he makes this transformation, the sense of good and evil still exists, and leads to his alliance with his brother and a young vampire hunter to kill them off.

There's also an underlying plot about a missing girl, who suddenly appears without justification. Many other nonsensical things occur, like the mother's well dressed and clearly middle aged boyfriend suddenly revealing he is the leader of the biker-vamps.

After saying this is my favorite among vampire movies, it probably doesn't make much sense that I've been criticizing it this whole time. Truthfully, I liked this movie so much because it's a crowd pleaser. It delivers every appropriately-placed piece of camp and gore you could ask for, and generally anyone who watches this will be entertained by it a la guilty pleasure. It also has one of the best vampire fight scenes I've ever seen. Oh, and Sutherland makes a pretty bad-ass vampire too.