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AKB48Fan rated Ghost Stories

 Ghost Stories 3/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

Professor Phillip Goodman devotes his life to exposing phony psychics and fraudulent supernatural shenanigans. His skepticism soon gets put to the test when he receives news of three chilling and inexplicable cases – disturbing visions in an abandoned asylum, a car accident deep in the woods and the spirit of an unborn child. I was really looking forward to seeing this movie, as it had got a lot of hype when it was first released. But I was sadly disappointed with this awful tripe. It had some useless jump scares and it was only interesting seeing Paul Whitehouse in one of the stories. Alex Lowther was just too strange and over acting in his story. Maybe I expect too much to be entertained but I just can't stand movies that build you up, make you invest 90 mins of your life and let you down with a naff and confusing ending. Don't believe what some are saying that this is a good and frightening movie - it isn't!

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated Touch and Go

 Touch and Go 4/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

When Jim Fletcher is told by his firm, that his new furniture designs, are not in keeping with the firms image. he threatens to resign, and decides to uproot his family, and emigrate to Australia. but his problems are only just beginning. Not one of Ealing Studio's well known comedies and for a good reason - it just isn't that funny. The story revolves around the family black cat Heathcliff who acts as a catalyst for many situations including the finale. The acting is just about fine from everybody and the London locations including the shots of Chelsea Bridge with Battersea power station in the distance is a nice touch. I'm not sure how this movie was nominated for 2 awards as it doesn't deserve it. It just isn't good enough and I don't think I laughed even once during the entire duration. I wouldn't really recommend this movie at all.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated City Hunter: Million Dollar Conspiracy

 City Hunter: Million Dollar Conspiracy 7/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

Beautiful American Emily O’Hara offers the City Hunter one million dollars to protect her from a man named Douglas. Ryo & Kaori take the job, but things are not quite what they seem. The real target just might be Ryo, but it’s unclear who wants Ryo dead. Another great City Hunter story told in just the right amount of time and with just the right mix of Ryo's dual personality of pervert and private detective. There are numerous plot twists and a lot of action/gunplay on display. You're guaranteed to get many laughs along the way as Ryo is smashed over the head with a 100t wooden mallet by his partner Kaori for being too perverted. If you're a fan of City Hunter, you know the formula you're going to get here. It never changes but why should it when it's so successful. This was a lot of fun to watch.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

The Tokyo Bay City Hotel has opened, complete with supercomputer and accompanying theme park, and privileged guests are there to celebrate, including Ryo's partner and her best friend. The huge party takes an unexpected turn...a bunch of terrorists surround the building and park, taking the partygoers hostage. Behind it all is a Central American dictator who the U.S has ousted from power due to his control of a huge international drug ring. He has sinister plans that can only be staged at the Bay City Hotel...but why? This is a clever pastiche of Die Hard with Ryo and Umibouzu taking on a bunch of terrorists at a hotel....and of course Ryo being a pervert around girls as only he can! There's a ton of action and destruction taking place. You'll also get a lot of laughs. The story gets going straight away as the running time is short so you're never going to get bored watching this movie. So yet again this is another winner in the City Hunter franchise with the usual formula guaranteeing you're in for an entertaining time.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 2 items to their collection

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

A beautiful pianist comes to Tokyo for a charity concert – and City Hunter is there. But music isn’t his forte. He wants lessons in the language of love. Desperation is the word as bodies start dropping. A foreign dignitary is assassinated in cold blood. Secret agents scour the streets for a missing microchip. And diplomatic infighting swirls around the upcoming concert until Nina the pianist and her grandfather Klaus are kidnapped. This was the first City Hunter anime movie and it's a great one. The plot here has a number of twists and turns, which while not all that surprising, keep things interesting as new angles emerge. Action is abundant, and the longer runtime allows for more time with the supporting cast. While the characters remain predictable, the schtick here has a classic appeal to it, and never gets tiring. Ryo's lecherous antics are extremely humorous, as are the responses he gets from his cohorts, and part of the fun is just waiting for Ryo to mutate into his other self. The animation whilst looking dated from what we're used to nowadays is good. This isn't an anime for kids, it's geared up for older teenagers upwards with numerous references towards sex is mentioned. A solid City Hunter movie.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated The November Man

 The November Man 7/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

An ex-CIA operative is brought back in on a very personal mission and finds himself pitted against his former pupil in a deadly game involving high level CIA officials and the Russian president-elect. You might think that the character of Peter Devereaux that Pierce Brosnan plays is similar to James Bond but they are 2 completely different characters. This is a much more violent, level headed spy movie than any of Brosnan's Bond flicks. The only thing that is remotely similar between Bond and Devereaux is that they dress sharp. In fact this movie is actually better than some of his Bond stuff. The story builds up nicely. The characters aren't underdeveloped at all. However, that character development happens mostly in the last 20 minutes or so. This is a movie that is unfolding through several threads, coming together at the end, clarifying the characters. There is plenty of exciting scenes to satisfy action junkies. Pierce Brosnan is great and so is Olga Kurylenko who is easy on the eye. Devereaux's protégé played by Luke Bracey is pretty cool as well. All in all, this is a complex and great spy thriller with a story that has many twists. I really enjoyed it.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 2 items to their collection

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 2 items to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated The Secret Man

 The Secret Man 6/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

A physicist finds himself drawn into an investigation to track down a spy at his research station. A quick and interesting spy thriller co-written by Brian Clemens who would go on to produce The Avengers and The Professionals. Even though the plot is nothing new, it's still an exciting story. The location scenes in bombed out houses of post WWII London is shot well. Marshall Thompson plays the leading role of a rocket scientist who aids the police in tracking down the mysterious head of a spy ring. It's a fine movie to track down even if the plot is something you've seen countless times before.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated Waterfront

 Waterfront 6/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

When ship’s fireman Peter McCabe walks out on his long-suffering wife, he leaves her impoverished, with two young daughters and a boy born soon after his departure. After an absence of fourteen years McCabe returns, sacked and humiliated, trailing trouble in his wake. This is a short but beautifully written and acted kitchen-sink British drama. It boasts an early performance from a young Richard Burton before he went to Hollywood. As the movie doesn't have a complicated plot, it focuses instead on the characters such as the mother who has grown strong for her children's sake (a fantastic turn from the ever reliable Kathleen Harrison). The movie showcases the Liverpool docks in the days when life was hard for those who lived there and made their living from the water. It's odd that nobody in the city seems to be speaking with a Scouse accent! Also strange hearing the music from those b&w Flash Gordon serials when the end credits came up. A good movie that's well worth seeking out.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated Yardie

 Yardie 6/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

Jamaica, 1973. When a young boy witnesses his brother’s assassination, a powerful Don gives him a home. But 10 years later, when he’s sent to London, his past catches up to him. This is a very clichéd piece of work and it's not unpredictable, but at the same time the movie tells it story well. Director Idris Elba on his debut behind the camera creates a really vibrant atmosphere with moody visuals and an open appreciation of Jamaican music. The movie is not complex cinema, but one of character and life. It could've done with a richer story but there's an endearing rawness to its tale of crime, revenge, and music. The cast is good but it was cringeworthy seeing Stephen Graham trying to speak and act like a Jamaican drug lord. At the end of the day, this movie is same old story of gang violence, collateral damage, double crosses, drugs, guns and shenanigans. It's a decent effort from Idris Elba and I look forward to see what he comes up with next if he ever decides to go back behind the camera in the future.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated Hang 'Em High

 Hang 'Em High 7/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

Marshall Jed Cooper survives a hanging, vowing revenge on the lynch mob that left him dangling. To carry out his oath for vengeance, he returns to his former job as a lawman. Before long, he’s caught up with the nine men on his hit list and starts dispensing his own brand of Wild West justice. After making a name in Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy, Clint Eastwood returned to America and began cementing his name in the genre of movie that would come to define him. This is a different western disclosing a period when law and justice were in the beginning of implementation in the Wild West. The characters performed by Clint Eastwood and Pat Hingle have an interesting duel, with Marshal Jed Cooper following the traditional procedure of justice by his own hands, while Judge Fenton is concerned in introducing law and order to a wild place. I wouldn't say this is up there as one of Eastwood's best but it's pretty good to watch.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated The Big Deal

 The Big Deal 6/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

The “Saint Hero” is a secret group comprised of a martial arts master and his two oddball daughters. They rob from the rich and give to the poor. The HK police send for a man codenamed Lethal Weapon and team him up with troublesome female cop Super Canon to bring "Saint Hero" to justice. It's not often you get to see Moon Lee and Yukari Oshima in a wacky comedy but that's what you get here as they play sisters who help their master in stealing from the rich. This movie is chock full of slapstick gags. Most work well but some fall way off the mark. It's a HK crazy comedy that would be more suited to Stephen Chow. There are two other strong women in the Girls With Guns genre appearing in this movie - Sibelle Hu and Sophia Crawford along with Yuen Wah as the main villain. Don't expect any classic martial arts fights here although the final scenes at a theme park contain fairly good stuff. Insane, hilarious and not shy of action, this movie may not make a lot of sense to many, but it proves to be a fun and entertaining one if you're in the right kind of mood.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated The Relative Worlds

 The Relative Worlds 7/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

Shin has shut his heart ever since his mother died suddenly when he was young. His childhood friend Kotori has been keeping an eye on him ever since. Now that they are in the 3rd year of high school, it seems like they can finally move forward in dating each other when a doppelganger of Shin from another Japan suddenly appears in front of them. This is a great anime movie about parallel worlds with people that are "linked" to each other. If a person on one world dies, the other person on the other world dies as well. The story has a decent sci-fi set-up, even if its a variation on those that people have seen before: killer robots from another world; dystopian futures; parallel universes and visiting doppelgangers. The plot is straight forward to understand as a narrator explains at the beginning why there are two worlds. The characters are fairly likeable though Shin as the hero is the usual sullen and moody teen but viewers will gradually warm to him as the movie progresses. The most interesting person is Miko, an android sent to help protect Kotori. The action sequences in the story are well executed and exciting. CG animation by Craftar is fantastic and looks good. This movie has been slated by many people but I thought it was great and well worth checking out.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated Hercules in the Haunted World

 Hercules in the Haunted World 5/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

Hercules learns that his lover, Daianara, has lost her senses. Acording of the oracle Medea, Dianara’s only hope is the Stone of Forgetfulness which lies deep in the realm of Hades. Hercules, with two companions, Theseus and Telemachus, embarks on a dangerous quest for the stone, while he is unaware that Dianara’s guardian, King Lico, is the one responsible for her condition and plots to have the girl for himself as his bride upon her revival. Even though this fantasy movie is directed by Mario Bava, this isn't a great Hercules movie. The main problem with the movie is there's very little action. The story is very slight and after a while, the excellent cinematography can do so much with so little. Some scenes are beautiful and the whole golden apple moment was excellent, and the living dead attacking Hercules was equally fun but there's simply nothing much going on here. Physically, Reg Park fits the bill as Hercules but he simply can't act and has no charisma whatsoever. Christopher Lee makes for a poor villain as well. There are many better Hercules movies to watch than this one. It's not a total disaster but it's not exactly memorable either.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan rated I Want to Eat Your Pancreas

 I Want to Eat Your Pancreas 8/10

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

An aloof bookworm with no interest in others comes across a book in a hospital waiting room. Handwritten on the cover are the words: “Living with Dying.” He soon discovers that it is a diary kept by his very popular and genuinely cheerful classmate, Sakura Yamauchi, who reveals to him that she is secretly suffering from a pancreatic illness and only has a limited time left before she dies. Having watched the live action movie of this story some time ago, it was high time to watch the anime version. I have to say that both versions are excellent. The story is more or less the same: the changes and affects two people can have on each other at the most difficult of times and to live everyday like it's your last! As with the live action version, there is heartbreak right at the end of the movie which may bring tears to some viewers. Studio VOLN does a great job with the animation. Overall, a brilliant anime that will touch your very soul.

4 years, 2 months ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to A New Decade! A New Year! Movies Watched In 2020 list

A woman blinds a martial arts master and his pupil The Silver Fox vows revenge on her. She is forced to abandon her loved ones without explanation in order to protect them from her ill-intentioned pursuer. With a startling visual style and innovative action aplenty, this is a great HK fantasy movie. Each frame of this production is filled with sharp, eye-catching colours that give the whole movie the unique texture of a larger-than-life comic book and the action at times is bonkers. Andy Lau, Aaron Kwok and Anita Mui are fantasic and it looked they were having a blast in their roles. Although elements from the Japanese manga City Hunter is put into the movie, you can't really say that this is a HK version of that manga. That would come 2 years later with Jackie Chan's official adaptation in 1993. The action sequences are well choreographed with a mix of swordplay, gunplay and wire-fu. The mix of comedy and action I thought seemed to gel really well. Definitely a movie to catch if you get a chance.

4 years, 2 months ago