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Reviews
Berserk: Ougon jidai-hen II - Dorudorei koryaku (2012)
Disappointing
The anime adaptation of Berserk was absolutely amazing, so I was understandably excited when I heard of the movies coming out. I enjoyed Part I, the animation was astounding and the sound effects were great. Part II has those same qualities, but I found that the "feel" of the manga and anime were lost, as extended sex scenes were given priority over important plot points. POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD I was most disappointed that the creators removed the scene where Zodd throws Guts his sword during his fight with Boscone, and instead added a ridiculous dance montage and extra boob time. Arguably the extended sex scene between Griffith and the princess was warranted, but I definitely would have rather seen the sword toss, which adds to the mystery of the story and foreshadows some of the freaky stuff that's coming up, than the three-minute dance scene which feels totally out of place. I think the reason the anime was so successful even though it skips over some stuff, is that the overall mood and intrigue of the manga is preserved, something this movie adaptation has proved it doesn't understand. I'm still giving it a 6 because I love the Berserk story and hopefully anyone who watches the movies without having read the manga or seen the anime will want to do so after.
Caligola (1979)
Worst movie ever made? Probably not, but it comes pretty close.
I took it upon myself to watch Caligula (the unrated version) last night, mostly because I'm a Malcolm McDowell fan. I'd been excited to see it all day, kept mentioning random trivia about it I had read to anyone who would listen, but I knew this movie had not been well received. However, being 19, a girl, and usually of a pretty open mind, I figured it would be right up my alley anyway, but about twenty-two minutes in I had to accept that this may very well be one of the worst movies of all time. I think what earns it this title is not the useless nudity and violence (I'm a huge Tarantino fan and on occasion enjoy some actual porn, so I don't think this is biased because I 'can't handle the reality of sex and gore'), but really it's that this COULD have been a GREAT film. A screenplay by Gore Vidal, great actors, and I mean, who doesn't love hearing about the decadence of the roman empire at the hands of an insane despot? I now wish I could have those two and a half hours of my life back, but I also wish I could go back in time and help make this movie the masterpiece it could have been. At first I thought the worst part of the movie would be that McDowell might slip too easily into a reprise of his role as Alexander De Large (except with a toga), but no. The decapitator wall, the freaks of nature in Tiberius' cave, Teresa Ann Savoy, that girl who peed on Proculus' corpse, and that lesbian sex scene are what stand out as I write this. I had a gum graft earlier this morning, and it's harder to recover from this film than from the procedure. Don't watch this movie if you want to retain any kind of respect for the real talent involved in this production, but if you do anyway, it helps to read about how most of them were as disappointed with the movie as I was. I give it a five out of ten for potential, McDowell in those short togas, and kick-ass opening credits music.