Posts Tagged ‘Swordplay’
I know It’s been some time since this one came out, and naturally being the swordplay junkie I am, Neko watched it right away when I was lucky enough to grab the subtitled Malay release….
Recently though, the Region 1 Funimation release came along and, as expected, had an English dubbed audio track on board for the US audience that dreads foreign language films or subtitles. Since Carolyn hadn’t watched this one yet…. and because I wanted to surprise her with one of my goofy swordplay films…. “Gasp!! ….In English!!” , it wasn’t hard to talk myself into picking up a copy of it for us to share one evening. On the plus side… it gives your Favorite Catgirl Movie Reviewer the chance to do a comparison of both DVD’s all in one simple lil’ review.
Synopsis? Well it goes like this: “Blind and beautiful traveling entertainer Ichi (played by Ayase Haruka) has been wandering the country searching for her teacher, a blind masseur who taught her the way of the sword when she was a child. She reluctantly gains a traveling companion when kind-hearted samurai Toma (played by Osawa Takao) tries to save her from a group of thugs, and ends up needing to being saved himself.
After Ichi dispels the thugs with a flash of the lethal sword hidden in her walking stick, the two enter a village being terrorized by a gang led by the ruthless Banki (played by Nakamura Shido). Though Ichi isn’t interested in fighting, she soon gets pulled into the lethal battle between good and evil.”
I’ve always loved strong female roles in period swordplay films…. just that fierce il’ warrior spirit within me struggling to escape so naturally this one was a “must see”. How well did Funimation, known mostly as a releaser of anime here in the US, treat this one? Hopefully with the respect such an iconic character deserves…. But enough of this… there’s really only one way to find out, so let’s get to it, shall we? “Read On”!!
Oooohh!! Another nifty Thai fantasy film…… just what the doctor ordered for this lil’ Catgirl. I’ve been going into withdrawals without getting to see any new Thai stuff for the last month or so. This one has actually been out for quite a while now…. but without subtitles naturally….. (Boooo!! Hisss!!) A proper Fansub for this one finally became available, and as I’ve been wanting to see it sooo, sooo badly, I ordered it up direct from Thailand just last week….
The synopsis for it reads as follows: “In the 1600′s. Queen Raja Heejau of Langkasuka must defend her country against numerous foes when a rogue prince conspires with a coalition of vicious pirates to incite a rebellion and plunder the kingdom. A famous Dutch Cannon maker tries to aid the kingdom by constructing the “Mother of All Cannons” to be used to defend the kingdom against it’s enemies. Unfortunately the pirates learn of the cannon and try to seize the ship delivering it.
The raid fails, and the ship, along with its crew and weapons sink into a deep ocean abyss after an titanic explosion. This fateful incident occurs on the very same day as the birth of “Panee”, born with the amazing gift that enables him to communicate with all the creatures of the sea.
In the years to come and after much training Panee’s uncanny ability would be used to help the Queen and her sisters defeat the merciless pirates that threaten their shores. Panee will call upon whales, giant rays, and dolphins to aide him in the historic sea battle for the fate of the kingdom of Langkasuka.”
Sounds good!! Neko-chan just loves the whole sweeping epic romance angle and the promise of some crazy kickboxing… and if you do too, then I just know you are gonna want to “Read On” for more about “Queens of Langkasuka”!
Well…. some more info has crept out regarding the upcoming sequel to “Onechanbara”.
According to the good folks over at 24framespersecond it seems a synopsis for it is sorta available : “In the year 20XX, the world is coming to an end because of infestation of fierce zombies. The ultimate battle sisters Aya and Saki, fight against their new enemy Himiko, who is manipulating the marauding zombies and devises a evil scheme. Aya tries to hunt down Himiko and save mankind. . .”
Ummmm? Wait a minute? Didn’t Aya sorta… well…. you know…. kill her sister Saki in the last movie? I guess it’s just another example of the Japanese not letting a little thing like death or plot continuity get in the way of a character they like…. happens all the time in anime….
I know…. I know…. the last one was such a disappointment…. but Neko-chan is such a sucker for these dumb, dumb, dumb zombie infested exploitation films…. so you know I’m gonna have to see it….
But of course, if you want all the video Trailer goodness, you’re gonna have to “Read On”… silly…. Hehehehe!!
I suppose it’s impossible to keep a zombie slaying bikini clad cowgirl down…. as witness to this essential truth, there’s news out now that there’s gonna be a sequel made for it. News at 24fps today tells me “Chanbara Beauty – Vortex” is indeed going to be that sequel.
There’s little info available yet, just the Teaser that popped up at the “Onechanbara” movie site, but according to both Twitch and 24fps it seems there’s another Japanese actress donning the cowboy hat and bikini for this one taking over the lead role from Eri Otoguro this time out. Let’s hope she can fight at least as believably this time as she can strut her stuff….. Will this silly Catgirl want to watch it after the disappointment of the last one? Yeah…. probably. I’m just such a zombie junkie…..
Wanna check out the Teaser, linked in below just for you? Then you gotta “Read On”!!
Well, this time out, it’s some light entertainment for your Favorite Catgirl, the recent Japanese Fantasy film “Chanbara Beauty” aka “OneChanbara”… with so much crazy Japanese Cowgirl Zombie fighting weirdness to spawn both a video game and a movie. It’s taken some time to crawl up to the top of my DVD pile, but finally, it’s time has come…..
Our synopsis for it reads: “A mysterious scientist, Dr. Sugita, has invented a new medicine which can wake dead people up. The streets are filled with zombies. A beautiful girl, Aya, with a samurai sword who is seeking revenge for the murder of her father, keeps fighting with the zombies day and night. One day, she meets a girl called Reiko. From Reiko, she learns that her half-sister Saki is under the evil Sugita’s control…
Up-and-coming actress Otoguro Eri (from the American “Shutter” remake as well as “Shaolin Girl”) stars as the feisty heroine Aya, slashing her way through the movie in the character’s signature costume – cowboy hat, boots, long scarf, and naturally……a Bikini! To survive, she has to battle the quickly multiplying army of zombies that was raised from the dead by the evil scientist Dr Sugita. Aya is joined in her fight by lone biker chick Reiko (Hashimoto Manami) whose beloved daughter was killed by the living dead and who now lives only to seek revenge, and together they fight the undead army and battle Aya’s half-sister Saki (Nakamura Chise from “Swing Girls”) who suddenly shows up in a schoolgirl uniform with a saber of her own having joined the evil doctor in his twisted schemes.”
OMG!!! So… let’s get this straight now… it’s got Zombies… and a tough, tattooed, bikini clad Japanese cowgirl with a sword (… and you all know how much this lil’ Catgirl loves to play “dress-up”!!) so you gotta see how Neko’s already on board for this one, but it it actually going to be any good? I mean, the whole “inspired by the hit video game” thingee usually tells me a movie is destined to be fairly “crap-tastic”. (Or would that be “crap-tabulous”? Hehehehe!!) I guess I’m just gonna have to wade in and find out!! Why don’t you “Read On” and join me? (C’mon…. ya know ya wanna!!)
First up in Neko-chan’s new “Lil’ Kitten Classics” reviews, is the MGM/ UA Fantasy Adventure film “The Magic Sword” from waaaay back in 1962. I fondly remember first seeing this on a Saturday morning during my “Sword & Sorcery/ Fairy Tale” movie phase.
It’s a simple film from a far simpler time, and the synopsis I found reads: “In this fun-filled adventure-fantasy, a rookie knight embarks upon a valiant quest to save a princess who has been captured by a malicious magician. Along the way he must battle the usual assortment of dragons, ogres and other mythical beings. He is assisted by a good witch who gives him a magic sword. Unfortunately, the magic fails and suddenly he must find his own magic from within.”~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Mind you… this is a film that was originally targeted for children, much the very same as this lil’ girl was when I first saw it that Saturday morning all those years ago. So if you are expecting the sword slashing savage action of “Conan the Barbarian” or the mystical special effects and epic story of “Lord of the Rings” you are going to be sadly out of luck. However, if you, too, saw this one as a kid, then you’ll be hard pressed not to remember it as a fun film, even after all these years…..
But…. the big question is, does it have enough nostalgic kitsch and quaint goofiness to still hold up after all these years? I guess you’ll just have to “Read On” to find out…..