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Rough Cut (AKA: A Movie is a Movie) (DVD) (2-Disc Special Edition) (Korea Version)
So Ji Sub (Actor)
| Kang Ji Hwan (Actor)
| Kim Ki Duk (Producer)
| Jang Hoon (Director)
Kim Ki Duk protege Jang Hoon makes a well-deserved splash with his directorial debut Rough Cut, the most commercially friendly film ever to bear the prickly auteur's name (as producer and screenwriter). Playing on the movie-within-a-movie premise, Rough Cut pits a gangster-like actor against an aspiring-actor gangster for one sprawling brawl of a blockbuster. Essentially a character drama sandwiched between two layers of gangster action, the film combines visceral fighting with a strong screenplay, upturning the grit and glamor of both moviemaking and the gangster's life. Cocky, angry, and out of control, movie star Soo Ta (Kang Ji Hwan) is famous for playing gangster roles onscreen and... [read more]
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Getting Real New + Best Selection (2CD)
Ken Chu (Singer)
F4's least idol member takes a break from Tai Chi to release his second solo album Getting Real. Arriving with little promotion or pop fanfare, Ken Chu's two-disc sophomore album is divided into "Now" and "Then" with the former featuring six new tracks and the latter collecting 16 songs from his previous solo album, the F4 albums, and soundtracks. Released back in 2005, Ken's first album On Ken's Time was a genuinely pleasant surprise with its easygoing mid-tempo guitar and pop numbers, and his latest effort follows in the same vein. Though Getting Real doesn't surpass its predecessor, it also doesn't disappoint. And with all his past singles making it onto Disc 2, this album is definitely a... [read more]
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Attitude (DVD) (English Subtitled) (Taiwan Version)
Circus (Director)
| Lin Jia Wei (Director)
| Liao Ren Shuai (Director)
| Charles "Blackie" Chen (Producer)
In Taiwan, it's easy to see how popular basketball is among the younger generation. At night neighborhood courts are lit bright and filled with sweaty guys, basketball-themed idol dramas abound, Jay Chou made that silly basketball movie, and the only time the high school boys I used to teach showed any interest in anything I said was when I gave away a basketball. Taiwan has a professional basketball league of its own called SBL (Super Basketball League), notable for its scrappy play and spiky-haired players. Take a walk in Ximending and you'll see plenty of Kobe jerseys and Lebron ads. But you just may also catch sight of a T-shirt bearing the logo "Attitude", the popularized slogan of... [read more]
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Boys Over Flowers OST (KBS TV Drama)
Korean Various Artists
| Korean TV Series Soundtrack
| Tree Bicycle
| SS501
After an anime series, two seasons of Meteor Garden, two seasons of Hana Yori Dango, and a really long movie, haven't we all had enough of F4 and Boys Over Flowers? The answer is, of course, NO. Korea's own take on Hana Yori Dango hit the small screen in January after months of buzz, and fans have dutifully tuned in. In a deja vu of Meteor Garden in Taiwan and Hana Yori Dango in Japan, the series has started a Boys Over Flowers trend in Korea, and the craze naturally includes the music. Meteor Garden gave us Harlem Yu's Qing Fei De Yi and F4's "Meteor Rain", and Hana Yori Dango made mega-hits out of Utada Hikaru's Flavor of Life and Arashi's Wish and Love So Sweet. The Korean Boys Over... [read more]
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Ghost (Japan Version)
Gackt
For anyone who's ever suspected that Gackt might be a cyborg - because he's, cough, too awesome to be all human - the suddenly (and thankfully) prolific again rocker answers with his new single GHOST. His second tie-in song for the American sci-fi series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, GHOST is a fabulous follow-up to his December 2008 single Jesus (for anyone who's ever suspected that Gackt might be...). The ghost in question here is not the haunting kind, but rather the ghost in the machine which Gackt gives voice to in this electronic hard rock number. Opening with the sound of creaking machines and techno beats, GHOST jumps into a simple rock melody replete with electronic... [read more]
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TV Theme Songs Collection (3CD)
Hong Kong Various Artists
| Sammi Cheng
| Jacky Cheung
| Andy Hui
TVB of the 1980s produced so many classic dramas and so many classic theme songs, it's impossible to collect them all in one release (although we fans would sure appreciate it if someone tried). The latest album to rekindle fond memories of TVB's golden decade, TV Theme Songs Collection isn't the best or most comprehensive compilation for 80s TVB themes as there are many famous songs excluded from the collection. But it's the rare and less obvious inclusions that make this compilation a must-have for 80s TVB fans. The album features 50 TVB themes over three CDs from the likes of Alan Tam, Anita Mui, Leslie Cheung, Michael Kwan, Susanna Kwan, Lui Fong, Adam Cheng, Roman Tam, and other... [read more]
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Maou DVD Box (DVD) (Japan Version)
Ikuta Toma
| Ohno Satoshi
| Oshinari Shugo
| Kobayashi Ryoko
A remake of the Korean drama The Devil, TBS mini-series Maou surpasses its predecessor by wrapping the original's stellar storyline in an even leaner and meaner package, with two Johnny's artists in the leading roles to boot. In Japan, you're just about guaranteed a detective drama every season but Maou is a very different beast from the standard case-per-episode format of most police series. Instead, this gripping drama revolves around one case that incorporates multiple crimes and layered backstories, played out as a tragic cat-and-mouse battle between a cop with a tainted past and a conflicted serial killer who never deals the blow himself. Arashi's Ohno Satoshi takes on the complex role... [read more]
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All About Women (DVD) (US Version)
Zhou Xun (Actor)
| Guey Lun Mei (Actor)
| Kitty Zhang (Actor)
| Tsui Hark (Director)
Two minuses do make a plus, at least in the case of Tsui Hark's latest film All About Women. In recent years, I've come to greet every Tsui Hark film with a sort of morbid anticipation, wondering how much more the Hong Kong Cinema great of yesteryear could possibly disappoint me. For All About Women, Tsui Hark went ahead to tempt fate further by teaming up with Korean director Kwak Jae Yong who has long used up his My Sassy Girl goodwill in my books. To put things blankly, I haven't liked a Tsui Hark or Kwak Jae Yong film in years and yet in 2008, their creative (destructive?) forces combined delivered All About Women, a movie that I wholeheartedly enjoy. All About Women is certainly as... [read more]
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Nell - The Trace (Special Limited Edition) (Korea Version)
NELL
Though the price tag is hefty, the Special Limited Edition of Nell's The Trace is very much worth the splurge as it comes with both the band's latest EP and concert DVD, plus various goodies to accompany the great music. Nell may not have the dreamy looks of the idol bands, but one would be hard pressed to find a Korean act that puts out dreamier music. The band's moody progressive alternative rock cuts from the same cloth as Brit-rock bands like Coldplay, Placebo, and Radiohead, but delivered with a more balladic softness that brings them closer to the tastes of the K-pop mainstream. The crowning glory of this release is Nell's July 19, 2008 Seoul concert. Other than the idol standards,... [read more]
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Public Enemy Returns (DVD) (Limited Edition) (Korea Version)
Sol Kyung Gu (Actor)
| Jung Jae Young (Actor)
| Kang Woo Suk (Director)
| Moon Sung Keun (Actor)
Detective Kang Chul Jung is back, and he's a lot more likable this time. After drifting to an alternate story with Another Public Enemy - which was essentially an average crime thriller with an above-average lead - director Kang Woo Suk wisely returns to the more compelling premise and protagonist of the original Public Enemy for third installment Public Enemy Returns. Wiser yet, he brought on Jang Jing as screenwriter and Jang Jin regular Jung Jae Young as the baddie, turning Public Enemy Returns into the hands-down strongest entry of the franchise. Franchise man Sol Kyung Gu reprises as aggressive, law-breaking, washed-up cop Kang Chul Jung, who's softened up considerably since the first... [read more]
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The Magic Hour (DVD) (Special Edition) (English Subtitled) (Japan Version)
Sato Koichi
| Tsumabuki Satoshi
| Fukatsu Eri
| Nishida Toshiyuki
From the delightful mind of Mitani Koki comes the clever and crowd-pleasing comedy The Magic Hour which had the entire theater up in stitches when I saw it during the Hong Kong Asian Film Festival. I can't remember the last time I had that much fun at the movies. Though more ambitious, over-the-top, and narrative-driven than Mitani's previous slice-of-life Suite Dreams, The Magic Hour starts from a similar foundation. Again, he places eccentric characters in a limited space and lets them roam free on the set, crossing paths and lighting fires through comical coincidences, quirky set pieces, and smile-tugging dialogue - but this time a hotel just isn't enough. Mitani built his own quaint... [read more]
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Musekinin Hero (Jacket C)(Normal Edition)(Japan Version)
KANJANI8
Oddball idols Kanjani8 are perhaps best known for their ability to talk and laugh up a storm, but this time I want to give due credit to their music. Though definitely the most "un-Johnny's" of the Johnny's groups and populated by members more suited for manzai than idol pop, Kanjani8 has achieved, in seemingly the most casual of manners, something that eludes most of Johnny's other groups - a distinctive musical style. As every Johnny's single is pretty much ripe to be covered countless times on Shonen Club, all the songs from all the groups begin to blend together after a while, which is of course all the better for those Johnny's Jr theme medleys. There is a certain sound and style... [read more]
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Cape No. 7 Original Soundtrack (OST)
Movie Soundtrack
Just how exactly did Cape No. 7 become Taiwan's highest-grossing Chinese-language film ever? By now, the fairy-tale run of this little film about a ragtag band in a small coastal town has become the stuff of legends. Cape No. 7 opened rather humbly in fourth place in Taiwan on August 22, 2008. Carried by word of mouth, it rose to the top spot in the following weeks, breaking record after record as it surpassed the box office of Lust, Caution, Red Cliff, The Dark Knight, and Jurassic Park to become the second highest-grossing film ever in Taiwan. Made on an NT50 million (US$1.5 million) budget, Cape No. 7 eventually pulled in over NT400 million (US$12 million). Given the film's... [read more]
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The Way We Are (DVD) (Hong Kong Version)
Idy Chan (Actor)
| Paw Hee Ching (Actor)
| Clifton Ko (Actor)
| Leung Juno
If Hong Kong newspapers are to be believed, Tin Shui Wai is not a good place to be. This New Territories town in northern Hong Kong has become the poster child for urban tragedy with stories of suicides, poverty, unemployment, broken families, wayward youth, and mothers throwing their children out the window. For more on why living in Tin Shui Wai completely bites, you can refer to Lawrence Lau's sensationally dismal teen-gone-wrong tale Besieged City, but that's not the only side to life in Tin Shui Wai. There are also all the people who just have normal lives, and it's their humble experiences that take center stage in Ann Hui's remarkable docudrama The Way We Are. The Way We Are is just... [read more]
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King Of The Road
Anthony Wong (Singer)
A pop icon without being a pop star, Anthony Wong Yiu Ming is one of Hong Kong's few pioneers in popular music. Like wine, his music seems to keep getting better as the years go by, or maybe it's that I've learned to appreciate his music more and more as the years go by. Given his veteran singer status, respect pretty much comes automatically, but the reverence comes from his ability to stay relevant, be it in his evolving music, his effortless style and glamour, or his work with People Mountain People Sea. With Anthony Wong, his best album is his next one, rather than one released a decade ago. This is why you're more likely to see young fans screaming for Ming Gor (his Chinese nickname)... [read more]
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Epik High - Lovescream
Epik High
The poets and poster boys of Korean hip-hop, Epik High seems to have mastered the game when it comes to maintaining both mainstream appeal and underground credibility. Considering the group's album sales, chart-topping hits, screaming teen fanbase, and television exposure, Epik High has long reached pop idol-level fame, only without the pop idol stigma. Even while making the variety show rounds and rolling out perfectly produced tracks for the Mnet generation, the group still manages to be convincingly hard, if not exactly hardcore, and more than willing to court controversy with outspoken lyrics. Ultimately, the secret to Epik High's dual success comes down simply to their ability to... [read more]
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Bokutachi to Chuzai-san no 700 Nichi Sensou (DVD) (Collector's Edition) (English Subtitled) (Japan Version)
Ichihara Hayato
| Sasaki Kuranosuke
| Aso Kumiko
| Ishida Takuya
When will Ichihara Hayato grow up? Hopefully, not before the 700 days of battle are up. Ichihara plays the role he does best, or at least most often - hard-headed, soft-hearted student with a penchant for trouble - in 700 Days of Battle: Us vs. The Police. There's little plot or point to this loud and lighthearted comedy about the escalating prank war between a group of overactive high school boys and a rigid neighborhood cop, but the best memories and adventures of youth rarely have purpose. The nostalgic setting of 1979 Tochigi brings an air of security and a hearty dose of old-time small-town charm to the mix. The film takes the audience back to a time when mean pranks can be taken in... [read more]
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I Really, Really Like You Vol. 1 of 2 (DVD) (End) (English Subtitled) (MBC TV Drama) (US Version)
Ryu Jin
| Yoo Jin (Eugene)
| Lee Min Ki
When it comes to TV dramas over 20 episodes long, I tend to either skip over them knowing that I can't invest the time, or I start and never finish. I'm more likely to hold out for period dramas, but I lose interest quickly with long romantic dramas as length too often means descent into padding, cliche, and overblown melodrama. Which is why I Really, Really Like You really, really stands out as a romantic comedy. Clocking in at 34 episodes, I Really, Really Like You is a tad long for a non-sitcom romance, but I whizzed through the whole drama in record time, and was rather sad to see it come to an end. I Really, Really Like You didn't receive as much as love as it should have when it aired... [read more]
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Kung Fu Hip-Hop (DVD) (Hong Kong Version)
Jordan Chan (Actor)
| Fan Bing Bing (Actor)
| Poppin Hyun Joon (Actor)
| Yang Yang
There's good, there's bad, and then there's Kung Fu Hip-Hop. As the silly title and Jordan Chan's even sillier thumbs-up pose on the cover indicate, this is not a movie to be taken seriously. Those looking for kung fu action or quality cinema should steer clear, but if you're in the market for a cheesy inspirational dance film and unintentional comedy, Kung Fu Hip-Hop is a groan-out-loud guilty pleasure prime for late-night rewatch. The story is the stuff of B-movie dreams. A kung fu-savvy street vendor (Jordan Chan) with mad dancing skills enters a dancing contest in hopes of winning the prize money to pay for his blind sister's operation. But to get the prize he has to beat the reigning... [read more]
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Nan
Pong Nan (Singer)
Out of the ill-fated 2004-2005 wave of Hong Kong male singer-songwriters, Pong Nan has emerged as a curious survivor. As a low-profile singer-songwriter on a major label, he has largely stayed out of media attention in the last four years - an occasional face in the crowd at charity and award shows, an occasional name in song credits, an occasional poster on the wall for new releases. Without the populist appeal of pre-fab idols or the buzz of indie champions like Chet Lam, Pong Nan has nonetheless managed to stick around somewhere left of mainstream, quietly accumulating a loyal following of listeners with his earthy vocals, politely outspoken lyrics, and moody brooding melodies. Apparently... [read more]
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