Movies of 2008 in a nutshell.

Explosions. Aliens. Swords. English actors. Confusing titles. Pretty boys. Ugly girls. Screaming, dislocating limbs, bald heads. These are the movies of 2008 in a nutshell, and overall, I was pretty unimpressed. While I will freely admit that I was smitten by Ben Barnes' (of Prince Caspian fame) horrible performance and Spanish accent, I refuse to say that movies like Indiana Jones 4 and The Strangers impressed me.

What was the biggest letdown of 2008? Midnight Meat Train. I went in expecting some sort of crazy killer action film by Ryuhei Kitamura (come on, Versus? Alive? He has some of the best pointless sci-fi action flicks) and Clive Barker. Instead, I got some weird creature film. I can't say much more without spoiling it, but I can tell you two things: the acting is terrible, and the plot is incredibly cheesy - not even cheesy in the fun 70's sci-fi way, but in the "we tried way too hard to be original and failed miserably at it" way.

Now, for the unexpected jewel of 2008... Son of Rambow! It was originally released in early 2007, but it didn't make it over here to the U.S. until May of this year. Not only did the film have an original plot, but every single person in it could act! Shock! The leading stars, Bill Milner and Will Poulter, had better acting skills than most Hollywood actors. All the characters were interesting and had many dimensions, something I've rarely seen in the films of 2008. When a character was mean or rude, the roots of that rebellion and behavior were always explained. I'm happy to hear that Poulter will be in the next Narnia movie, and hope he'll make a great addition to the otherwise boring main cast (seriously, without Eddie Izzard and Warwick Davis, Prince Caspian might not have had any redeeming qualities).

Well, there you have it, my letdown and unexpected jewels of 2008 - surprise, no foreign language films!

Sometimes I like to pretend I'm still 10.

I have something to admit - I enjoy tokusatsu (live-action Japanese sci-fi shows). Not just any tokusatsu, no, but Kamen Rider. It isn't my fault, either - I was forced into it by some evil (wonderful) horrible (fantastic) woman, and I've been addicted ever since. The most recent season, Kamen Rider Kiva, is finally down to its last 9 episodes, and we all know what that means... new Rider series! Kamen Rider Decade marks the 10th anniversary (hence "decade") of the Kamen Rider series taking place in the heisei era (current era in Japan), and many rumors are floating around at this time. The most consistent rumor I've heard is that it will be card-based (like Yu-Gi-Oh!), but let's hope it won't turn out as crappy as the aforementioned anime. Maybe they'll have stronger female characters this time around, because Kamen Rider Den-o (the one before Kiva) had good chick characters. Kiva, on the other hand, has the two most common Japanese female stereotypes: loud and obnoxious, and timid and softspoken. However, there is one amazing lady to make up for it, and she's one of the strongest characters in the whole series - Maya. Too bad she's got an eyepatch and lives in a cave now. Outside of that, they probably try to keep it simple as far as character backgrounds and personalities go because of the audience Kamen Rider is aimed at (younger boys), so I can't expect much (unlike Den-o, where the main actor channeled five very different characters - can you tell I liked that one?). I am absolutely pumped to see how Decade will turn out, and I hope they have a happier plotline this time around because I'm tired of walking away from Rider depressed.

Oh no, I'm a pretentious elitist butthead!

This wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be, but here's my top 5 movie picks of all time! For some reason, my list starts out at a rather mainstream level, and further down it looks more and more like I'm an ostentatious prick. I have no idea how that happened, I can only guess it's because I am an ostentatious prick.

5. The King and the Clown (Lee Jun Ik) - My fifth pick is one of the highest-grossing films in Korean history, and deserves it. The film tackles a very subtle issue about homosexuality, which is a big deal in a country whose official national religion is Catholicism. This movie does what others can only dream of achieving - balances character development, controversy, corruption, and bittersweet endings. It's a complex story about the mental instability of a king, his obsession with a male performer, and the ways in which they damage and fix each other. Hell, this movie's so good, it made me like clowns for 120 minutes - now that's a feat.

4. I'm A Cyborg, But That's OK (Park Chan Wook) - I normally don't go for love stories - they leave me feeling somewhat empty and cheated. However, this changed my mind. In Park's first attempt at a romantic comedy, two very troubled young adults fall in love in a rather unconventional setting: a mental hospital. The girl, Young Goon, believes she's a cyborg, and speaks to machines while feeding on electrical currents here and there. However, when she meets the boy Il Sun (who believes he can steal nonmaterial things from people - their skills, memories, etc.), they enter a peculiar friendship. Cyborg's story centers mostly around individuality and everyone's purpose in the grand scheme of things, which is a rare message in Korean films as Korean culture is very much centered on the idea of national unity.

3. Last Life in The Universe (Pen-Ek Ratanaruang) - Everyone knows that Asano Tadanobu (most of you will know him as "the guy with the scars from Ichi the Killer") is my heartthrob. In this film he plays the bored, suicidal brother of a Yakuza member, and throughout the movie he ends up in the strangest of circumstances - hiding (cough) while his brother is shot up in their apartment, witnessing the death of a young girl on a bridge (then befriending her sister, who was in the car), and somehow ending up on a road trip with aforementioned sister in mourning. Through the whole film there are parallels to a short story about a lizard, and it's up to the viewer to determine how it relates to the characters.

2. Memories of Matsuko (Nakashima Tetsuya) - Yes, a musical is in my second spot. I'm very vocal about my hatred of musicals, but something about this one just charmed the doubt right out of me; Nakatani Miki as Matsuko is one of the most touchingly tragic and adorable portrayals I will ever see. The entire story is told from Matsuko's nephew's (played by one of my favorite actors, Nagayama Eita) point of view, which is an amazing twist. He learns about her through stories from old acquaintances and cleaning out her apartment having never known her himself. Through relationships with abusive men (all of whom are the personification of a cataclysm, I swear it), one can clearly see that her joy in life was with bringing happiness to others, no matter how unfortunate they were (or how much it hurt), all the way until her death.

1. Aoi Haru (Toshiyaki Toyada) - Finally, my number one film! Everything about this film completely floors me. From the soundtrack (no really, the soundtrack makes any Japanese indie punk fan cry tears of joy) to the camera angles, to the actors (every single one of them does an amazing job - Sosuka Takaoka, Matsuda Ryuhei, Nagayama Eita, Hirofumi Arai, and Shugo Oshinari - hell, all of them!), to the individual stories of heartache, loss, and uncertainty. The basic plot follows a group of students at an all-male high school that is known for being pretty low on the academic scale. It's filled with the most tragic of monologues, and the most beautifully executed slow motion scenes. I'm going to go ahead and take a risk by saying that yes, this movie did change me, and every single character in it is relatable in some way to myself.

Hey Taka, I like your manliner.

Anyone who knows me knows my wallet is emptied in favor of CDs. One of the bands who destroys my lunch money is ONE OK ROCK, and $70 later I'm still missing their live DVD, two most recent singles, and recent album. Import$ $uck. But anyway, the lead singer is Taka, the rapper/guitarist is Toru, the guitarist is Alex, and the drummer is Tomoya, for a little background. They're known for their mixture of rock and very subtle rap vocals, and they've been together since 2006.

As for their most recent single, Koi no Aibou Kokoro no Kupido? Well, let's just say I'm not impressed.



This song seems very Americanized for someone who is known for having an anti-American attitude toward his non-Japanese fans at concerts (even going so far as to call them out on it, or glaring at them). Taka has thrown away his grey hoodies, jeans, and brown hair for black skinny jeans, a thinner figure, and eyeliner. Huh? I guess he's still desperately trying to get away from his short-lived pop music career with one of the highest-grossing boybands in Japan. Oops!

One of their 2007 singles, Yume Yume, was a cliché motivational ballad about following your dreams, and it was awesomely creative and very much "them" - a few singles later, they released Hitsuzen Maker, their second most recent single. Hitsuzen Maker was a song about learning to get over grudges and not hating people because it's pointless, and it had a very 90s alternative rock feel to it with a loud, stomping 10-second bit toward the end that had me marching. And then Koi no Aibou Kokoro no Kupido happened.

On the specifics of arrangement: the whining guitar background takes away from the steady beat of the drums, which should have a more prominent role because they have a very talented drummer. I will always think Taka's voice is awesome because I'm biased, but it does sound pretty forced in this song. The guitar solo is overly obnoxious and high-pitched, not to mention ridiculously uncreative. Also, what happened to Toru's rapping? The last three singles haven't had any rapping!

Despite all this, I'll probably end up buying the single and album to complete my collection because I feel obligated to, but also because I know this ridiculously cheesy mainstream song will grow on me.

11/12 edit: I just thought I'd pop in that I had a chance to listen to the whole CD yesterday when it came out, and overall I'm all right with it. The average score was about 3/5 stars, but it was a huge disappointment, and as I suspected: no rapping. TORU'S RAP WAS ONE OF THE BEST THINGS ABOUT ONE OK ROCK! They were getting so good at combining rap and rock without looking like d-bags, and then they went and ruined it and turned into a drunken Japanese version of Fallout Boy. Ugh.

Insert lame Titanic/Akira reference here.

The fact that this was even considered disturbs me immensely. Why take something that is already perfect and try to destroy it? While the anime was amazing, it paled in comparison to the manga's thick plot and numerous political parallels. Rumor has it that this will extend beyond one movie (they're supposedly making two, three graphic novels' worth of plot in each) to keep true to the manga's original story, but I still have a bad feeling DiCaprio will ruin it with his new setting. 'New Manhattan'? Seriously? The setting was very vital to the time period it was created in, and (in the simplest of explanations) Tokyo's involvement was not chance or accident. Many World War II references were included in Akira, everything from blunt statements to the bombed stadium Tetsuo basically exploded in -- will Leo keep those in? Will he try to make the same statement about the corrupt youth of today, or will he take the teens out of the equation completely? Adolescent instability was a huge part of Akira, as witnessed in Tetsuo's need to be in complete control of himself and his surroundings, as well as his desire to fight his own battles -- it's an obvious stage of rebellion all teenagers go through, where they want to sever all ties to authority figures and gain independence.

There were rumors that Joseph Gordon Levitt was slated to play Tetsuo, and Leonardo DiCaprio as Kaneda, but neither of those have been confirmed (Levitt himself says "... that’s really just a rumor. They don’t have a script or anything." - source). All that has been confirmed is the writer, Gary Whitta, and the director, Ruairi Robinson, as well as DiCaprio's producing team with Andrew Lazar and Jennifer Davisson. I have little faith in this project, no matter how good of an actor DiCaprio is, because he's taking out key elements of the original story's plot and replacing it with something the average stupid Americans can understand (or at least pretend to understand).

Things you haven't heard of, and probably because you're sane.

These are the things you either rarely hear about anymore, or have never heard about, period. The following stories will make you nauseous, force your face into a cringing knot, or leave you wondering why you've been reading pointless 48-page stories about girls who won't date guys because they don't fit into the deco-deco (obnoxious accessories) style instead of these. This is my ever-changing "top" list, which probably implies I need help.

4. Benkei in New York by Jinpachi Mori/Jiro Taniguchi (18+) - Written in the early 90s, this story follows a hitman who specializes in revenge jobs. Oddly enough, he has an appreciation for art, and makes copies of famous pieces to sell or just to fool others. One of the most interesting things about the main character is that he seems to never feel sorry about what he's doing, as he can go home and paint beautiful replicas with a steady hand, all by memory. Each and every story of revenge is interesting, and leaves you with mixed feelings about which character to side with.

3. MW by Tezuka Osamu (18+) - Most people have read Tezuka stories (he's considered the "godfather of manga"), but this is one of my absolute favorites by him. The two main characters are both polar opposites, and setting them against each other while observing their relationship is one of the best parts. The "bad" character of the two negatively influences the "good" character (a priest) because a war gas (MW) released on his home island made him unstable, and his sinful side rubs off on the priest (literally). It seems to represent how war keeps on giving, even long after it's through. (I feel I should note there is a movie in the making based on MW!)

2. Tanpenshu by Hiroki Endo (18+) - This might be cheating (I already mentioned this mangaka -- manga creator -- already; he did Eden), but this is one of my favorite oneshot (chapter-long stories) collections. It discusses many things and has so many different characters: a story of a girl whose only friends are the crows she feeds and the Yakuza (mafia in Japan) member she takes in, a perverted robotic brother and sister who live in a world that's hanging in the air by large wires extending into the sky, and many others. They all have important messages about life in general, and give you a good look at the darker side of Japanese society while doing it.

1. Nijigahara Holograph by Inio Asano (18+) - After reading this graphic novel over the summer, it has quickly become my number one favorite. The story centers around one beautiful angelic girl in a coma and the people whose lives she touched -- a man who raped her in a park, the woman who tried to stop him and got hit with a brick and then later taught a boy who fell in love with her, and so on; they're all connected in a circle. The observation of human fragility and community folktales (centering around butterflies and their growing population) is what makes this seemingly normal town unique. It isn't a feel-good story, but it's beautifully executed and leaves you just as confused and mystified as the lost characters.

Oneshot Omake (extra)!
White Clouds by Hisae Iwaoka - An award-winning story that discusses life and death, as well as the things we leave behind for the things to come (in this case, the afterlife). Told from the perspective of an elderly couple's dog, this will more than likely make you sob your eyes out. I know I did!
Watching TV All the Time Makes You Stupid by Naoki Yamamoto (18+) - A rather dark story about a hikikomori (people who live in almost complete isolation from society) and the few people who try to pull her out of it (or try to keep her in it). The art uses a repetitive style in its panels to illustrate the boring and often routine lives of hikikomori, making days bleed into each other so you're just as confused as to what day it is as she is.
Hotel by Boichi - I love stories about the environment, and this sweet, quirky tale is about a program created to keep the data of all the earth's living beings after global warming destroys the planet.
Hanshin by Hagio Moto - This was what first got me into oneshots! A beautifully tragic story from one of the "foremothers of shoujo" (girl-themed manga) about conjoined twins -- one beautiful, the other ugly. It shows the bittersweet love between them and how each is viewed, and the outcome of their relationship.
Always Together by Makoto Isshiki - Here's a story that goes against all romantic oneshots; two overweight cousins, best friends since birth, decide to lose weight together so the girl can get the boy of her dreams. It shows the true value of friendship, and that the people who care most about you are right under your nose.

Eden, not so much a paradise.

Eden: It’s an endless world! (named best manga of 2007 by Wizard magazine, January issue) is the most complicated and well-written seinen (aimed at 18-30 year old men) series I have ever read. The basic storyline is that a virus has broken out and wiped out 15% of the world’s population, while some have emerged immune. It’s a vicious disease that turns your insides to soup, and hardens your skin because your cells rapidly multiply and eventually your skin is like glass, and just as fragile. Most of the world is controlled by Propater, the main “government”-like group, who are far from innocent or kind. The world is in constant turmoil because of the pain those left behind feel, the way they’re treated by Propater, and the growing poverty crisis.

Much of the world is heavily integrated because of the virus, and the creator, Hiroki Endo, manages to throw them all together in a cultural melting pot that creates tons of tension. There’s a specific neighborhood with poor Africans and slightly more wealthy ethnic groups, and one of the African boys talks about how you really only have two choices in their area – join with a local gang or join a sports team. One of the most prolific scenes in the whole comic was when an Incan descendent and an African soldier discussed their pasts and ended up on common ground. As for discrimination, a Korean character briefly recalls being called “kimchi breath” in an all Japanese class, even though he was in the same income bracket. A lot of what goes on in Eden are references to things that have happened in the past – for example, there’s a woman from the Uyger clan (an ethnic group residing in China) who talks about how her group is the victim of ethnic cleansing (comparing it to the Jews in the Holocaust).

The title itself seems to be a religious reference, and there are a lot of biblical names in the series – Elijah, Cherubim, and the title Propater (the latin name for God the Father in the Holy Trinity). Sophia, a human-turned-A.I., said: “Before the human beings worked together with him, but the Bible and the Qu’ran left him alone, and he went crazy. God is trying to be a complete being. Everybody needs to believe in something. Some days I don’t believe in anything; God went crazy, but he still loves us.” The point of view is very interesting because quite a few characters believe the virus that killed off a good chunk of mankind was put there as an “extinction mission”, which would explain God going crazy. The title seems to imply that the human race has broken some sort of natural law and needs to be punished, as the biblical story suggests.

As for the last arc of the series, it focuses on a new virus that emerges and works as a sort of “natural computer” called the colloid. When someone dies because of the new virus, the colloid absorbs their subconscious, therefore retaining their memories and personality. It’s almost as if this is a second virus sent in by God to send people to a sort of Heaven, because the colloid is said to transport their subconscious to another galaxy via Maya, the “savior” if you look at it from a religious point of view. Maya, an A.I., is immortal in a sense that as long as there is a computer available, he can keep copying himself.

This whole series seems to be a big, complex statement about the flaws of mankind. Everyone is focused on overpowering the next group that they refuse to accept the fact that we are all born equal, and we will all be the same in the end when we’re dead (which is what the colloid tries to prove). There are two main powers in the story – Propater, the government figure, and NOMAD, the mercenary group that occasionally works with Propater, but is an independent group. Basically power, money and guns, which is what seems to run the world of Eden.