The Cat Returns

This sould be a quick one.... The Cat Returns , don't bother. I watched this last month and can't remember what happens. I couldn't really remember what happend the day after I watched it (and I was sober). Sure, it's nicely animated, but then it is Ghibli so I'd expect that, but the story was lacking a grip. The one thing I will say is I'd be happy to stick it the player if my little cousins were round, knowing there's be a gentle story with no scenes of tentical rape.


*** ' ' ' ' ' ' ' 3/10

Versus

Right, Finally got my hands on Versus (There was no way I was shelling out £16, so I waited), I'd heard good things about it. I couldn't remember what good things, but I had heard them. It's a Japanese zombie filck. I eagerly fired up the DVD player last night and settled down. Within seconds I thought "Damn, this is rubbish", and it got worse, and worse, and then it hit me: this is a B-Movie. A real honest-to-goodness B-movie, as all zombie flicks should be. It had it all, bad acting, bad effects, bad stunts (Wirestunts where they've made no attempt what so ever to hide the wires) added to cheap martial arts gumf. Think Romero meets Samo Law meets Thunderbirds.

Ace.

Double Ace.

Where's the slow mo' button?


Zombies, Guns, Zombies with guns, Swords, Zombies with swords, Zombies with sword AND guns, shots lifted from Frank Miller comics and then repeated over and over, a man in too tight trousers, versus has it all.

******* ' ' ' 7/10 (sooo close to 8/10)

Howls Moving Castle

Howls Moving Castle is your standard wartime tale of girl meets wizard, girl is turned in to a granny, granny becomes cleaner, wizard becomes bird, happy ever after that we all know and love. Another fine animation from Studio Ghibli (that brought you Spirited Away). Not quite as fantastic as Spirited but still good, one good thing (or bad, dependent on your tastes) about Ghibli animation is that it tends to steer clear of the whole tentalce-rape scene that some Japanimaion seems to be preocupated with. One I'd happily watch with my young cousins. Also has nice touch of "the futility of war" moral in there too.

********'' 8/10

"All right Calcifer, lets get cooking.

I don't cook! I'm a scary fire demon! "

Battle Royale

Battle Royale Once a year a class of badly behaved kids are chosen, told they're going on an away day, only to be drugged and taken to an island, given weapons (ranging from guns to frying pans) and only one will make it out alive. Brilliant. Totally Brilliant. Everyone who has ever worked in a school should be sat down and made to watch it. Quite gory in places, shows how evil kids are can be.

*********' 9/10

"If I survive, can I go home?

Yes, but only if everyone else is dead."