Do You Like 'Asian' Movies?

[God of War]

Once upon a time I actually used to hate watching asian films on tv. I was very young and was like "Wtf?" when I saw these little white text thingies appear on the screen. Subtitles of course. They would appear after alot of actual talking had taken place. But I put up with them, because I used to watch and enjoy all of the Godzilla movies, and some old samurai films which at the moment their titles totally elude me. Loved them all as a kid. Still do. Now many years later we had vhs video, then dvd, bluray. Which brings me to the subject of my topic. Do you like asian movies? I love them! Here are a very few select of my favs. Some are asian influenced. That is-they aren't asian yet have asian actors in them. Most of them are fairly recent. Please discuss. It's no surprise that Kurosawa's work heads the list. The man was brilliant! Below are some of my favourites. Feel free to add to the list as well.

Thanks.

Seven Samurai

Synopsis:

A veteran samurai, who has fallen on hard times, answers a villages request for protection from bandits. He gathers 6 other samurai to help him, and they teach the townspeople how to defend themselves, and they supply the samurai with three small meals a day. The film culminates in a giant battle when 40 bandits attack the village.

A village is constantly attacked by well armed bandits. One day after an attack they seek the wisdom of an elder who tells them they cannot afford weapons, but they can find men with weapons, Samurai, who will fight for them, if they find Samurai who are in down on their luck and wondering where their next meal will come from. They find a very experienced Samurai with a good heart who agrees to recruit their party for them. He selects five genuine Samurai and one who is suspect but the seven return to the village to protect it from the forty plus bandits.

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/1050h.jpg

RAN

Synopsis:

With Ran, legendary director Akira Kurosawa re-imagines Shakespeare's tragic King Lear as a singular historical epic set in sixteenth-century Japan. Tatsuya Nakadai stars as Lord Hidetora, a warlord who cedes authority over his vast dominion to his eldest son, setting off a familial power struggle for control of the kingdom. Majestic in scope, Ran is a visual masterpiece in which Kuro*sawa contrasts the immensity of war with the crumbling of one family under the weight of betrayal, greed, and the insatiable thirst for power.

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/745463h.jpg

Kagemusha

Synopsis:

In his late, color masterpiece Kagemusha, Akira Kurosawa returned to the samurai film and to a primary theme of his career - the play between illusion and reality. Sumptuously reconstructing the splendor of feudal Japan and the pageantry of war, Kurosawa creates a historical epic that is also a meditation on the nature of power.

http://i40.tinypic.com/28b5s36.jpg

Gojira

Synopsis:

The Original Japanese Masterpiece

The ocean's surface boils white-hot and a Japanese freighter mysteriously vanishes in the Pacific. Rescue boats meets the same fate, and the superstitious villagers of Odo Island fear an ancient legend has come true: the legend of Godzilla! Reawakened from eons-long sleep by an H-bomb test, the behemoth seeks revenge on the civilized world, turning Tokyo into a wasteland of atomic fire and rubble. Caught in the monster's path of destruction are young lovers Emiko and Ogata, who must betray their friend Dr. Serizawa, a brilliant but tormented scientist, in order to save the world.

Classic Media presents the original and uncut Japanese-language version of Ishiro Honda's Gojira (1954), critically acclaimed as a bold anti-nuclear allegory and one of the greatest monster movies of all time. Also included is Godzilla, King of the Monsters (1956), the popular "Americanized" version starring Raymond Burr as a reporter covering Godzilla's rampage.

http://i44.tinypic.com/4tqzjr.jpg

The Host

Synopsis:

A creature plunges from the Han River Bridge into the river emerging on its shores for a feeding frenzy upon onlookers. When a young girl is snatched in the melee, her family set off to recover her from the monster that the government claims to be a host of an unidentified virus.

http://i41.tinypic.com/fp03mx.jpg

Bang Rajan

Synopsis
The Legend of the Village Warriors

In 1765, during the legendary struggle between the Burmese and Siamese empires in what is now present-day Thailand, the Burmese forces advanced on the Siamese capital, Ayutthaya. Against impossible odds, a small village of ordinary men and women with extraordinary courage withstood the advances of the Burmese juggernaut, over and over again. Trading their ploughs for swords, and with no aid from the capital, the farmers battled for freedom through eight bloody clashed using innovative tactics and displaying unfaltering bravery until Burma finally turned the sum of its wrath on the village.

The tale of these courageous villagers has endured, spreading throughout empires and across centuries to live on in the hearts and minds of the Siamese for all time. Conceived as an anti-war statement and featuring some of the most realistic fighting scenes in Thai cinema, Thanit Jitnukul's version of this legendary tale (the third to be made) has become one of its native country's highest grossing films.

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/751818h.jpg

A Battle of Wits

Synopsis:

Taking place approximately 370 B.C. in China, the story is about a lone warrior, Ge Li, who shows up to help one of the warring kingdoms. Ge Li uses strategy that keeps the kingdom from being defeated in battle, and minimizes the casualties on both sides. The lord who benefits from having his kingdom saved allows his pride to take over, jealous over the Ge Li’s popularity. The lord is also distrustful of Ge Li’s humanity. In one key scene, enemy soldiers are killed once they are captured, in disregard of Ge Li’s orders. One scene that has an unintended echo with current events shows Ge Li in conversation with an enemy general. The general wants to go to battle in the name of his 5000 soldiers who have been killed. Ge Li emphasises an life with honor over an ultimately meaningless death.

http://i42.tinypic.com/2i7r3h5.png

Ju-On

Synopsis:

An eerie tale of a family who is brutally killed in their own home, leaving behind an evil spirit lurking in the shadows. When an unknowing homecare worker enters, the spirit is awakened and a terrifying chain of events begins, passing through all those who step foot in this dark house. The original version of "The Grudge."

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/628638h.jpg


Continued below...

[God of War]

Oldboy

Synopsis:

Oh Dae-su is an ordinary Seoul businessman with a wife and little daughter who, after a drunken night on the town, is abducted and locked up in a strange, private "prison." No one will tell him why he's there and who his jailer is. Over time his fury builds to a single-minded focus of revenge. 15 years later, he is unexpectedly freed, given a new suit, a cell-phone and 5 days to discover the mysterious enemy who had him imprisoned. Seeking vengeance on all those involved, he soon finds that his enemy's tortures are just beginning.

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/1172711h.jpg

Hero

Synopsis:

One Man Will Challenge An Empire.

Master filmmaker Quentin Tarantino presents Hero - starring martial arts legend Jet Li in a visually stunning martial arts epic where a fearless warrior rises up to defy an empire and unite a nation! With supernatural skill...and no fear...a nameless soldier (Jet Li) embarks on a mission of revenge against the fearsome army that massacred his people. Now, to achieve the justice he seeks, he must take on the empire's most ruthless assassins and reach the enemy he has sworn to defeat! Acclaimed by critics and honored with numerous awards, Hero was nominated for both an Oscar and Golden Globe!

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/631899h.jpg

The 47 Ronin

Synopsis:

On March 14, 1701, in the royal capital of Edo, Lord Asano is goaded into attacking the higher ranking Lord Kiru while on sacred ground. As a result of this grave offense, Asano is told to commit hara-kiri, his house is abolished and his properties abandoned. But 47 of Asano's samurai retainers vow vengeance upon Lord Kiru. Carrying out this year-long plot, however, comes at a terrible price, for they ultimately will have to take their own lives, in order not to dishonor Asano's memory. The Japanese military commissioned director Kenji Mizoguchi (Ugetsu) to make THE 47 RONIN--they wanted a ferocious morale booster based on the familiar story of The Loyal 47 Ronin. Instead, Mizoguchi chose for his source Mayama Chushingura, a cerebral play dealing with THE 47 RONIN. However, it was a commercial failure-released in Japan one week before Pearl Harbor, the military and most audiences found the first part to be too serious, but the studio and Mizoguchi both regarded it as so important that Part Two was put into production despite Part One's lukewarm reception. Renowned by postwar scholars lucky enough to have seen it in Japan, THE 47 RONIN wasn't shown in America until the 1970's.

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/4996h.jpg

The Last Samurai

Synopsis:

Tom Cruise plays Civil War hero Capt. Nathan Algren, who comes to Japan to fight the Samurai and ends up pledging himself to their cause. Ken Watanabe (Academy Award nominee) plays Katsumoto, a Samurai leader facing a vanishing way of life, whose destiny becomes intertwined with that of the American captain. Edward Zwick (winner of the National Board of Review's Best Director Award) directs this sweeping and emotional epic tale of the birth of modern Japan.

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/589575h.jpg

House of Flying Daggers

Synopsis:

Mei is an exotic, beautiful blind dancer, associated with a dangerous revolutionary gang, known as The House Of Flying Daggers. Captured by officers of the decadent Targ Dynasty, Mei finds herself both threatened - and attracted - to the most unusual circumstances. Here, her heart and loyalties battle each other, amid warriors in the treetops and dazzling combat - the likes of which have never before been seen!

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/662589h.jpg

Azumi

Synopsis:

In 19th century war torn feudal Japan, a master samurai takes on the task of raising ten orphans to be unstoppable assassins. Their mission: do the bloody work of the state by silencing troublesome warlords. After a decade of inconceivably harsh training, Azumi and her comrades face the cruel assignment that means killing friends and enemies alike, and she begins to question her faith in her master and her devotion to her country. Still, Azumi remains determined to single-handedly complete her bloodbath mission.

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/1172660h.jpg

Shogun Assassin

Synopsis

Shogun Assassin

After his wife is murdered and his house destroyed, Ogami Itto and his infant son journey the dusty roads of Japan in search of revenge. However, as a sword for hire, his first order of business is a showdown with three agents, known as 'The Masters of Death."

Shogun Assassin 2: Lightning Swords of Death

After refusing a Governor's offer, a series of assassins, including a gunslinger, a master swordsman, and an army of soldiers await Ogami and Daigoro. And to make matters worse, a skilled samurai keeps politely asking if they can have a duel.

Shogun Assassin 3: Slashing Blades of Carnage

Ogami is hired to kill a beautiful tattooed assassin, only to find himself in a situation where honor and justice are in conflict. Meanwhile, his nemesis, Retsudo, along with a legion of his best warriors, lurks closely behind.

Shogun Assassin 4: Five Fistfuls of Gold

Five warriors enlist Ogami to save their clan. However, to ensure he is up to the challenge, he must confront and fight each man separately -- only then will he receive his pay and further details of his assignment.

Shogun Assassin 5: Cold Road to Hell

Retsudo launches one last plot by dispatching his two remaining children after the head of Ogami. A final showdown with Retsudo awaits Ogami and Daigoro in the snowy peaks of Japan.

http://i41.tinypic.com/9ktnb6.jpg

Curse Of The Golden Flower

Synopsis:

From the director of Hero and House Of Flying Daggers comes the martial arts epic masterpiece whose savage beauty and exquisite elegance has mesmerized and captivated audiences around the world. Set in the lavish and breathtakingly colorful world hidden from the eyes of mere mortals behind the walls of the Forbidden City, a tale of a royal family divided against itself builds to a mythic climax as lines are crossed, trust is betrayed, and family blood is spilled in the quest for redemption and revenge. Starring Chow Yun Fat of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as the embattled Emperor and Gong Li of Memoirs Of A Geisha as his poisoned Empress, Curse Of The Golden Flower grants you entry into a dazzling and spectacular world of betrayal, vengeance and passion that will change he way you think of martial arts forever.

http://i40.tinypic.com/243lswk.jpg

Shogun

Synopsis

From best-selling author James Clavell (King Rat, Noble House) comes the sweeping award-winning story of love and war. Set against the spectacular background of feudal Japan at the beginning of the 17th century. And Shogun has never looked better than it does on DVD in this thrilling presentation. Richard Chamberlain (TV's Dr. Kildare, The Thorn Birds) stars as John Blackthorne, an English navigator shipwrecked off the coast of Japan. Rescued, he becomes an eyewitness to a deadly struggle involving Toranaga (Toshiro Mifune, Rashomon), a feuding warlord intent on becoming Shogun-the supreme military dictator. At the same time, Blackthorne is irresistibly drawn into the turmoil and finds himself vying to become the first-ever Gai-jin (Foreigner) to be made a Samurai warrior.

http://images.dvdempire.com/gen/movies/538865h.jpg

And there are many others out there.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Avalon
Returner
Princess Blade

[Brendan M.]

I would recommend checking out Lone Wolf and Cub rather than the Shogun Assassin DVD series. The dubbing on those DVDs are really bad compared to the first Shogun Assassin since its just the people at the DVD company doing it.

Also Shogun Assassin is the first two Lone Wolf movies edited together. Its cool to check them out in their entirety after you've watched Shogun Assassin.

[razgriz21]

A little favorite of mine:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51v7WTbnbUL._SS500_.jpg

[Brendan M.]

Here are some more suggestions:

Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters
http://www.nipponcinema.com/images/releases/mishima_a_life_in_four_chapters_criterion.jpg

Battle Royale
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i242/zeyno81078/battle_royale_poster.jpg?t=1239661050

Harakiri
http://www.lib.washington.edu/media/new/images/dvd/sept/harakiri.jpg

The Sword of Doom
http://mail.grafixbg.com:81/petars/movies/Sword%20of%20Doom/cover.jpg

Suicide Club
http://www.best-horror-movies.com/image-files/suicide-club-dvd-cover.jpg

The Killer
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-10/09/xin_2921004091354312413210.jpg

[Darth Kenshin]

Anything Kurosawa is great. Personal favorite is Yojimbo, which is a must watch for any one.

They have some great horror movies. Ju-On and Ringu come to mind and are both scarier than their American counterparts.

Of course, the Infernal Affairs Trilogy is great... Tough to compare to Departed (nowhere near as gritty) but still a fantastic watch.

Lastly, there is a lot of great anime. I know some people think of anime as being weird stuff with vampires, huge robots, or busty young girls, but that's not the case. Watch Grave of the Fireflies or a movie by Kon or Miyazaki and you'll see the true depths of the genre.

[Cop No. 633]

One of my favorite filmmakers is Wong-Kar Wai. He makes very laid back dramas mostly, with dashes of off beat comedy. I have yet to see As Tears Go By and Ashes of Time (which I hear is what preempted the style of Hero and House of Flying Dragons).

http://imagecache.allposters.com/images/pic/18/CHUNGKRP.JPG

I highly recommend Chung-King Express and Fallen Angels. They're episodic love stories, or more accurately woes of love stories about people in Hong Kong. Both films have a sparse soundtrack in which song becomes the theme for the film. It almost becomes funny to hear California Dreaming over and over as Faye daydreams about her secert crush and moving to California.

Fallen Angels is the stranger film of the two. It's a bit darker in that it follows a hitman for the first half. I thought that half was sort of a deconstruction of the hitman movies that became big in China at the time. It's more introspective and less focused on the gun play than John Woo's films. But when it does show a shootout, Christopher Doyle shoots it in a very original way that looks pretty. It's funny because the second half of that is much sillier and lighter in tone, following a Buster Keaton-mute type of character who "opens" up shops that are closed at night and tries to make money that way.

http://www.seanax.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/fallenangelswangkarwai.jpg

[scottmushroom]

I love John Woo movies.

[Simple Song]

I love Asian movies! Having just watched the Lone Wolf and Cub set again, I would recommend them. They are excellent.

For a little lighter fare, here are some you might enjoy:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y129/MsInchworm/Movies/51CYRR5ZEBL__SS500_.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y129/MsInchworm/Movies/51ZXTTZ2Q4L__SS500_.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y129/MsInchworm/Movies/kung-fu-hustle-dvd.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y129/MsInchworm/Movies/51Z8NGE0PXL__SS500_.jpg

[Muddy Shores]

I thought this was pretty unique...

http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/674/147_box_348x490.jpg

[Brendan M.]

Fallen Angels is the stranger film of the two. It's a bit darker in that it follows a hitman for the first half. I thought that half was sort of a deconstruction of the hitman movies that became big in China at the time. It's more introspective and less focused on the gun play than John Woo's films. But when it does show a shootout, Christopher Doyle shoots it in a very original way that looks pretty. It's funny because the second half of that is much sillier and lighter in tone, following a Buster Keaton-mute type of character who "opens" up shops that are closed at night and tries to make money that way.

http://www.seanax.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/fallenangelswangkarwai.jpg

Fallen Angels was a really neat movie. I took that one out of the library one day without knowing anything about it before hand, and was pleasantly surprised.

Here is one more recommendation:

BAD GUY

http://a6.vox.com/6a00c225239a5e8fdb00e398dd3c3e0004-500pi

Very well made movie but also very controversial. After it was done, it was hard for me to decide whether I liked it or not based on its content and what I thought of the character's actions in the film. What I thought it was trying to portray I didn't agree with, but after much thinking I realized that shit like this happens in real life. It wasn't necessarily romanticizing stockholm syndrome, but just trying to tell an honest story. So in the end, I liked it. But I have yet to watch it a second time.

I also love the theme song in it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgQ0j_C_40Q

[Pentangeli]

Some of Asian cinema is breath-taking: In the Mood for Love; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Seven Samurai; Yojimbo; Raise the Red Lantern.

[Simple Song]

Another stunningly beautiful one is The Legend of the Black Scorpion (aka The Banquet.)

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y129/MsInchworm/Movies/51igiRAXjJL__SS500_.jpg

The King of Masks is a touching story about an elderly master street performer who buys a child with the mistaken belief that she's a boy. Since his is traditionaly a male art, he must come to terms with his mistake.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y129/MsInchworm/Movies/519IazbGm9L__SS500_.jpg

The Eel is the story of a paroled murderer who is trying to start a new life.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y129/MsInchworm/Movies/41E8NFSJVHL__SS500_.jpg

[Simple Song]

I couldn't let this thread pass without mention of, perhaps my favorite Asian movie of all, The Twilight Samurai. It has won many awards and was nominated for an Oscar as one of the Best Foreign Language Movies in 2002.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y129/MsInchworm/Movies/Capture.jpg

Set in Japan, just before the Meiji Restoration, it is a story about love and duty. Hiroyuki Sanada plays a widowed, low ranking samurai who's job is to keep records in the clan's storehouse. His is a life of constant poverty and hard work, but he is happy just to spend time with his daughters and senile mother and to tend his home. When, because of his early training with a short sword, his clan leaders order him to kill a renegade samurai who has refused orders to commit sepuku, he has no choice but to fulfill his obligation. The sword fight that follows is poignant and believable.

Hiroyuki Sanada is the veteran Japanese actor who played Ujio, the samurai who dueled with Tom Cruise in The Last Samurai. A protégé of Sonny Chiba, he has become a fine actor, and this is arguably his greatest role.

[g05]

in answer to your question, yes i do like Asian movies... probably has something to do with the fact that i'm Asian though. :p

[Needaname]

I was already a fan of japanese anime and anything Asian related that I could get my hands on, but my first introduction into Asian horror was in 2001, when I happened upon a little movie named Audition. After watching this movie, I thought "Man, these guys are sick!"

I've been in love ever since....

Every Asian film I've ever seen is so visually stunning, that just watching the background is as fun as watching the movie itself.

Anything with Zhang ZiYi, I'd watch. She's goregous!

On a side note, there's a samurai movie I can never remember the name of with a one-armed samurai....one of my favs.

[TheSpade]

I like them if they are good. ;)

[God of War]

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FUCK OFF TROLL! :rolleyes:

[Monotreme]

One of my favorite filmmakers is Wong-Kar Wai. He makes very laid back dramas mostly, with dashes of off beat comedy. I have yet to see As Tears Go By and Ashes of Time (which I hear is what preempted the style of Hero and House of Flying Dragons).

http://imagecache.allposters.com/images/pic/18/CHUNGKRP.JPG

I highly recommend Chung-King Express and Fallen Angels. They're episodic love stories, or more accurately woes of love stories about people in Hong Kong. Both films have a sparse soundtrack in which song becomes the theme for the film. It almost becomes funny to hear California Dreaming over and over as Faye daydreams about her secert crush and moving to California.

Fallen Angels is the stranger film of the two. It's a bit darker in that it follows a hitman for the first half. I thought that half was sort of a deconstruction of the hitman movies that became big in China at the time. It's more introspective and less focused on the gun play than John Woo's films. But when it does show a shootout, Christopher Doyle shoots it in a very original way that looks pretty. It's funny because the second half of that is much sillier and lighter in tone, following a Buster Keaton-mute type of character who "opens" up shops that are closed at night and tries to make money that way.

http://www.seanax.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/fallenangelswangkarwai.jpg

Hell YEAH, now THAT'S what I'm talkin about motherfucker. Wong Kar-Wai:

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00003CXUM.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

http://www.dvdroad.net/catalog/images/dvd/2046a_n.jpg

Any fan of Asian cinema, or cinema in general, must go and watch these two films. NOW.

[Cop No. 633]

haha, yeah, I love those flicks. His collaboration with Doyle is insane on those films. I don't think anybody shoots color as vibrantly as Doyle does. I was hypnotized by 2046. I was surprised to hear so many people found it dull. I really enjoyed that film and Tony Leung is great as usual.

I was upset Leung's character in 2046 didn't end up with Bai Ling. They hit it off well, but I understand that he couldn't get over his previous relationship to So Lai-zhen. I think that could've been a reason why people weren't as drawn to 2046... they basically think it's about this complete asshole, but it's more engrossing if you watched In the Mood for Love before.

[Pentangeli]

I couldn't let this thread pass without mention of, perhaps my favorite Asian movie of all, The Twilight Samurai..

A beautiful film. One of my favourite romantic dramas.