Reviews

The Second Renaissance, parts 1 and 2: a fictional documentary, it chronicles the events leading to the enslavement of humanity and the creation of the Matrix. The events in part 1, involving the increasing conflict between man and machine, are references to actual events of world history: the Holocaust, the Million Man March, POW executions... Part 2 explains why the sky was "burned" and the war that followed. The animation, part CGI and part cel, is first rate. Though animated, the simulation of a documentary filming feels realistic, and the stylized transitions are artfully stunning. The story itself is reminiscent of the Terminator origin plot, but with a more anti-human sentiment. The violence, nudity and gore are typical of japanese animation, but could be excessive to more squeamish viewers. Overall, The Second Renaissance is eye-candy with a moralistic message that deserves the R rating that "The Matrix" didn't.

The live-action version of Mr. Bean was hilarious. The movie was a little disappointing (being a rehash of some of the more famous sketches, but inserted into an actual plot). The animated series is visually gorgeous, with the use of the latest technology in animation, but a cartoon caricature of a cartoonish real-life character is somewhat redundant. Maybe Rowan Atkinson is getting a little old to do even more outrageous antics than in his first series, so is letting an animated character take the reins. The series certainly does capitalize on the freedom of animation, being more comedically surreal, but is essentially the same old Mr. Bean, voiced by Mr. Bean. Entertainment for all ages based on entertainment for all ages.

I've never read the manga this movie is based on, but was compelled to see it because of a trailer that aired before another movie here in Singapore. Why "Uzumaki" is opening here two years late I don't know, but I was hoping for a Japanese "Little Shop of Horrors" with more horror than funny and crazy special effects. The story: Kirie lives in a town cursed by the spiral. People are obsessing over spirals and are dying in very supernatural ways. And that's it. The movie has no resolution. The movie is either screaming "sequel!" or "read the manga!" and I don't like that too much. The visuals are nice, the special effects are impressive for a two-year old movie, and I'll never see washing machines the same way again. But there are better ways to leave a movie's ending open.

The one thing that bothers me about the show is the character of Rolf. He's the "weird foreigner" whose family immigrated to America. He's some hybrid East Asian, South Asian, Middle Eastern person with a Swedish twist, and is always eating "weird" food, has "weird" traditions, and does everything in a "weird" way. Of course, all the other characters play off it, being written as white suburban American kids. Being a first generation Asian-American, I don't find Rolf a very funny character, but an offensive super-stereotype of ALL immigrants that simply reinforces ignorance and xenophobia in American youth. I'm glad he's only a supporting character.

Taking cues from "The Matrix" and "Shaolin Soccer," "Volcano High" uses live-action and visual effects to make a very anime-inspired movie. The story revolves around Kim Kyung-Soo, a nine-time high school reject, who just wants to finally graduate! It's a modern-day Shaolin Temple story with korean high school students, with action sequences inspired by "Dragon Ball Z" and "The Matrix." The movie is graded to look almost black and white (easy since all the korean school uniforms are black), and the action is a lot of wire-fu with computer effects throughout. The story isn't meant to be deep, and the characters are two-dimensional on purpose. Some of the action scenes are an incomprehensible blur, but some make this movie worth the movie ticket. The special effects are low-budget but effective, and the comedy is... cute. A fun romp for any anime fan who's fairly easy to entertain.