Rating: 
Summary: A Beautiful Disaster
Review: Anyone familiar with the work of Japanese director Takishi Miike knows that his movies have a distinct tendency to take you off of the fence and force you to make a concrete decision: namely, "I dig this movie" or "I hate this movie." ("Audition" and "Visitor Q" being perfect examples.)While many people would dismiss this as plotless, violent trash there are deeper themes afoot to those who care to look. The plot itself is a convoluted mess about a monosyllibic Brazilian/Japanese thug named Mario (played with nihilistic cool by Teah) and his gorgeous Chinese lover, Kei (Michele Reis) who rob the Chinese mafia (led by the ping pong loving, effeminate gangster Ko) and the Yakuza (fronted by the brutish, ultra-violent kingpin, Fushimi) during a drug deal in order to get cash the flee the country with. Things go awry, as they're wont to do in these kinds of movies. Mayhem insues. However, the real story isn't the story at all. It's pretty much a mashed up collage of violent imagery. There's also a massive absurdist streak (CGI cockfighting with the birds pulling off Matrix-style moves) and an evil sense of humor (one of Fushimi's poor victims gets beaten to a pulp, lit on fire and then run over with a car). The characters pose and posture, the dialogue is minimal, and the scenes are shot with a hyper-kinetic verve. Imagine Guy Ritchie's "Snatch" or Tarentino's "Pulp Fiction" on cheap drugs and you're off to a good start. The movie breezes through 100 minutes like it was half of that and leaves you with an ending that will initially leave many people scratching their heads. "What was the point of that?" And perhaps that's the ultimate point. The characters are all greedy, nihilistic, violent and essentially unlikable, with the exception of little blind orphen, Carla, who Miike shoots like she was a broken doll and the fiery (and I mean that literally) Chinese beauty Kei who spends most of the movie following Mario from violent confrontation to violent confrontation. We're not really supposed to like these people. They all live up to the movie's title. Empty save for their violence and penchant for posing in the coolest possible manner. We watch the film like we watch a car wreck. The violence is so slick and stylish that it's impossible to take seriously. Perhaps that's Miike's greatest accomplishment with this picture: he takes a hyper violent mess and makes it not only watchable, but fascinating in it's effortless brutality and leaves you with something to talk about with your friends once the credits roll. Definately not for the faint of heart. This movie makes "Robocop" look like "Steel Magnolias."
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful Love Story...
Review: As my second favorite Takashi Miike film to date, it's quite a sweet love story amongst gratuitous violence and bizarre characters. In Japanese, Portuguese and Chinese, this is an ultra cool movie with a myriad of wierd Miike characters, drugs, guns and blood. You get the picture if you like the Miike, which I do...contains a ping pong scene which you won't soon forget. Remember playas, this is Takashi Miike here...my homie...
Rating: 
Summary: "People in this world, we have no place to go..."
Review: At the risk of sounding very pretentious, I think that some of the negative reviews miss the point of the film. First of all, I agree that the action sequences are excellent, but there is another dimension here. This is not a conventional action movie; it is about desperate, lonely people looking for a sense of place. They behave so recklessly not because of courage but out of desperation. Even Fushimi, one of the only main characters who is not an expatriate, is tortured by a sense of Japan's waning nationalism. Overall, I think it's an outstanding movie: stylish, smart and not entirely without depth. And the 'play ping-pong?' scene surely deserves a place in the modern cinema pantheon along with the laser scene in 'Goldfinger.'
Rating:
Summary: Tokyo's Melting Pot
Review: Beautiful Kei, crazy Mario, fearless Fushimi. This is one of my all-time favorites. Forget that the movie has no intricate plot, that the characters do not engage in didactic dialogue, that the film is not laden with themes. This movie entertains in the style of "True Romance", "Natural Born Killers", and "Pulp Fiction". Miike focuses on what he does best, delivering a tireless film with
incredible cinematography. Although there is no apparent attraction between Kei and Mario (they more or less share scenes as good cop/bad cop partners), moments of their acting brings humor to their insanity: Kei's facial expressions after she lights the Russian's face with a mouthful of vodka; Mario psyching himself up on the street as he goes to rescue Carla and Kei.
This film has some great stunts and artistic flair. The fighting chickens, of course. Mario and Kei jumping from a helicopter with no parachutes. Mario jumping out of a window with Carla to land on his back on top of a car. The blood shed between Mario and Fushimi during their shootout that spells the word "Love".
I would have liked to have seen more of the love between Mario and Kei. She is extremely beautiful; I find it hard to believe Mario is always so restrained around her. Not even a kiss on their wedding day. Still, a great film, and the only place I've seen a crowd of people brushing their teeth with cocaine for a fix.
Rating: 
Summary: Brutal violence and love...
Review: City of Lost Children is a Japanese contemporary version of Bonnie and Clyde. Kei is about to be deported, but her boyfriend Mario steps in between the law and rescues her in order for them to set sail for freedom. In order to reach freedom they need to buy a couple of very expensive tickets through a crook who has specialized in helping criminals leave the country. Thus, Kei and Mario attempt to rob the mafia in order to get the money for the trip. However, somehow they end up with the Yakuza's cocaine instead and they have to run from the law as well as the crime element. City of Lost Souls is a changing story that jumps everywhere and at times does not make sense at all. Nevertheless, the cinematography is magnificent, which adds some spice to the overall experience.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Miike's Best
Review: Don't bother with this piece of trash. At least rent before you buy. I'm a great fan of Director Miike's work, but he makes so many films that some just turn out to be garbage. If you want to see some good Miike films see Ichi the Killer (if you can stomach it), Audition, Dead or Alive, The Happiness of the Katakuris (my favorite heart-warming, zombie, musical comedy!), Visitor Q (very, very odd and perverse), even Fudo ... anything but this one! I'm surprised this movie has recieved so many rave reviews on this site. I mean no offence to other reviewers, but my humble opinion is don't take this movie as an example of Miike's best work. Read a review anywhere else and you'll see what I mean. The Matrix - style cockfight scene is very funny, though.
Rating: 
Summary: When good directors make bad movies
Review: I caught this movie on cable after seeing "Audition" (which I liked) in the theatre. That Miike is a gifted director, pipin- full of potential, there can be no doubt. Nice sets, nice camera-work, nice techinical work. But there can also be no doubt that this movie is so full of hookum as to make the ghosts of Japanese screenwriters past weep. As eye candy, the movie does have a certain charm. As anything else, pass. The characters are set pieces with dialogue; the plot has the clairity of pea soup. The only reason I gave it two stars is that any Japanese movie featuring a Brazillian element offers interest, sociologically speaking. I'm curious to see if there will be more entries into the Japanese-Brazillian catagory, given the current state of Japanese immigration.
My advice: Go rent (or buy) "Tears of the Black Tiger." It's Thai, not Japanese, but that (gory) action movie has the heart that this movie lacks.
Rating:
Summary: When good directors make bad movies
Review: I caught this movie on cable after seeing "Audition" (which I liked) in the theatre. That Miike is a gifted director, pipin- full of potential, there can be no doubt. Nice sets, nice camera-work, nice techinical work. But there can also be no doubt that this movie is so full of hookum as to make the ghosts of Japanese screenwriters past weep. As eye candy, the movie does have a certain charm. As anything else, pass. The characters are set pieces with dialogue; the plot has the clairity of pea soup. The only reason I gave it two stars is that any Japanese movie featuring a Brazillian element offers interest, sociologically speaking. I'm curious to see if there will be more entries into the Japanese-Brazillian catagory, given the current state of Japanese immigration.
My advice: Go rent (or buy) "Tears of the Black Tiger." It's Thai, not Japanese, but that (gory) action movie has the heart that this movie lacks.
Rating:
Summary: City of Lost Souls
Review: I just picked up this movie today and it took everything that I could muster not to pull it out of the DVD player. I am a big fan of Japanese and Chinese blood operas but this movie is truly horrible. The acting was horrid. The only reason that I gave the movie 2 stars is because the movie had a decent story line. I recomend spending your money on something else.
Rating:
Summary: City of Lost Souls
Review: I just picked up this movie today and it took everything that I could muster not to pull it out of the DVD player. I am a big fan of Japanese and Chinese blood operas but this movie is truly horrible. The acting was horrid. The only reason that I gave the movie 2 stars is because the movie had a decent story line. I recomend spending your money on something else.
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