Movie Review: Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day

Director: Gary Marshall

Year: 2010

In the vein of movies like Love Actually and He’s Just Not That Into You comes Valentine’s Day. The latest romantic comedy from Gary Marshall, director of, among other things, Pretty Woman. And just like those two, this movie features a huge star-studded ensemble cast, but unlike them, all the stories featured don’t work nearly as well and in the end it just feels like a convoluted mess.

The plot is hard to describe given the unusual structure of the movie, but the film is centered around several couples during Valentine’s Day. You get to see how they fall in love with one another, breaking up only to get together at the end…the usual stuff. And just like Love Actually, the stories are not only about beautiful people in their 20s; it also features a few of stories about young couples.

The movie’s biggest problem is that it doesn’t give the characters enough development and it struggles to fit every story into its 125 minutes run. Sometimes the characters disappear completely for a long time and just when you’ve completely forgotten about them, they reappear out of nowhere. There’s a nice sense of connection between each of the stories though. But even that can’t save it from being messy.

It doesn’t help that it is extremely predictable too, not one of the plot twists at the end is not seen coming way before it happens. Moreover, it has a bunch of romantic movies clichés, which wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing, had they been well executed, but so many in such a little time can get tiresome. You’ve got the usual friends who don’t realize they love each other until the end of the movie, the kid in love with his teacher, the cheerleader and the jock, guy misunderstanding phone call, etc.

The cast is filled with stars, not one of the roles (even the supporting ones) features an unrecognizable face. The problem is that not one of them is really into it; they’re all there waiting to finish their lines so they can get paid. The result is a bunch of robotic performances, especially from Taylor Lautner, who’s just there smiling and making millions of fangirls faint in the process…but not acting. There are a few moments of enjoyment, mostly provided by George Lopez in his role as Ashton Kutcher’s immigrant co-worker. Other big stars in the movie are Jessica Biel, incredibly miscast as a woman without a date on valentine’s, like I’m supposed to believe that Jessica Biel of all people can’t find a date on Valentine’s; Jamie Foxx as the token black guy, Eric Dane as an aging football star and his grey’s Anatomy co-star Patrick Dempsey as a doctor cheating on his wife, among others.

Valentine’s Day had a potential, with such a big cast it could’ve been a great doppelganger to Love Actually, but sadly it fails at being nearly as romantic or funny as that movie, and in the end nothing works quite the way it should, and that’s disappointing.

Top 10 J-rock/J-pop albums of the decade. (2000-2009)

As some of you know, I’m a big music fan, and have an obscene collection of music, especially Japanese music. So now, I’m going to share with you what I think are the top 10 best albums of J-rock and pop of the last decade. I hope you enjoy it.

10. Album: Planet of the Dope
Artist: Dope Headz
Year: 2002

The band formed by former X Japan members Heath (Bass) and Pata (Guitar) and ex hide with Spread beaver member I.N.A (Computer & Percussion) makes a comeback with a new singer (Shame) for their second outing and the result is much better than their mediocre first album. Yes there are a couple of songs of debatable quality (namely the title track) but the end result is good enough to grant it a spot on the list.


Best songs: Plastic Smile, Reincarnation, With.

9. Album: Ruined Kingdom
Artist: Hizaki Grace Project.
Year: 2007

Guitarrist Hizaki is now best known as the lead guitarist for the band Versailles, but before that he had his own solo project with a few other musicians who came from other popular bands such as Moi Dix Mois. This album, composed of a few new tracks and live renditions of songs from his previous albums is hard and features amazing guitar solos that only Hizaki can make.


Best songs: Hover Mind (Live), Ruined Kingdom, Distorted Thought.

8. Album: Singles –Junk Story-
Artist: hide/hide with Spread Beaver
Year: 2002

I gave this a little thought before including it on the list, since the late great hide died in 1998 and most of the songs in this compilation came out in the 90s. However it includes two new previously unreleased songs and several songs that only came out in single format before, such as the single versions of Eyes Love You and 50% & 50%. And what can I say? It’s hide, every single one of his songs is amazing, and a compilation of his best should not be excluded from this list. If you don’t know hide, then this is the best place to start.


Best songs: Pink Spider, Rocket Dive, In Motion, Junk Story, Eyes Love You, Goodbye.

7. Album: Vampire Ecstasy
Artist: Aural Vampire
Year: 2004

Vampire Ecstasy is one of the few dance albums I actually like. The tunes are catchy as hell and the voice of Exo-chika, however computer-manipulated is awesome.

Best Songs: Freeeze!!, Terror Vixen, Crimson Tyrant.

6. Album: Desert Rain
Artist: Heath
Year: 2006


Yet another X JAPAN-related album (a hint to the first spot maybe?). Heath is the incredibly underrated bassist of X Japan (whom you might recognize for the song Meykiuu no lovers from Detective Conan) and he has made three albums that have been overlooked by almost everyone but hardcore fans. Desert Rain was the only one released the past decades and is every bit as good as the other two. Heath experiments as much as hide used to do with his music, and the end result is a great album that deserves to be heard by more people.


Best songs: Blueberry Murder, The Live, Eagle Sniper

5. Album: G∞VER
Artist: High and Mighty Color
Year: 2005


Well look at that, an artist people here might actually have heard about! HaMC is recognized for having performed the songs for the animes Gundam Seed Destiny and Bleach. And both of those songs (Pride and Ichirin no hana) are on this album for better or worse (worse in my case since both songs are incredibly average). Still, this album is awesome to listen to, and makes you wonder why in the hell their quality declined more and more after it.


Best Songs: Run Run Run, Naked, Over

4. Album: Magnya Carta
Artist: An Café
Year: 2006

Probably the most recognized artist on the list. An Café’s trademark bubblegum rock and oshare key looks have become popular among young people all over the world. But beyond that there’s actually some great music. Sure it’s not awe inspiring or epic as, say, X JAPAN, Zi:Kill or Luna Sea, but it’s a little piece of feel good-catchy tunes. And Magnya Carta is the best of their 4 albums with some of the band’s classics such as Maple Gunman and Smile Ichiban Ii Onna.


Best songs: Smile Ichiban Ii Onna, Jikoai Shugisha no Mijuku na Akuma, Pipopapo Telepathy

3. Album: Vulgar
Artist: Dir En Grey
Year: 2003
The album that saw the change of Dir en Grey’s style from the usual visual key stuff to metal is a success in every way, some songs I could do without (*cough* Audience Killer Loop*cough*). But overall is an impressive album and Dir en Grey’s best until Uroboroswas released in 08, the reason Uroboros is not on the list though, is because this is the one that introduced me to this great band and it has a special place in my heart because of that.


Best songs: The III D Empire, New Age Culture, Ashita Muki Koufuku Komaeminaki Myounichi

2. Album: Noble: The Vampire Chronicles
Artist: Versailles
Year: 2008


Even though I like the song Shout & Bites from their 2007 release Lyrical Sympathy more than all the songs in Noble, this is a much stronger album overall. The sense of connection between songs is what makes them great and there are not any weak songs. It could’ve been perfect if Shout & Bites was included in it.


Best songs: Second Fear -Another Descendant-, Zombie, The Revenant Choir

1. Album: The Last Live
Artist: X JAPAN
Year: 2001


Quite simply, the finest live album ever made. It’s also bittersweet because it’s the last performance of the band with hide. This amazing 3-disk package makes you feel like you’re actually in the concert and it’s probably the only live album I’ve listened to that is capable of recreating the experience of being there during X Japan’s final concert (at least until their 2007 reunion anyway). The only low point is the price, which can go over 100$ in some places, but it’s absolutely worth it.


Best Songs: Rusty Nail (Live), Weekend (Live), Scars (Live), Kurenai (Live), Endless Rain (Live).


Thanks for reading. If you notice any mistakes on the dates/names or anything else please lt me know.

Movie Review - The End of Evangelion

The End of Evangelion

Director: Hideaki Anno

Year: 1997

If I were to describe The End of Evangelion in one sentence it would simply be “wow”. No other movie, animated or not has had the impact EoE had in me, it’s beautifully shocking, jaw-dropping and most of all depressing. End of Evangelion shows us a world filled with selfishness, deception and misery, yet it pushes us to get out of that world and find happiness, something that will prove to be incredibly difficult and nearly impossible.

Love is Destructive.

The first two minutes would set the tone of the movie for me, as I watched everything I loved about Shinji being flushed down the toilet while he masturbated to a comatose Asuka before telling himself “I’m the lowest”. More shocking would be to hear Asuka herself telling him that he could do whatever he wants with her, that she “would even watch him”. This is what End of Evangelion is all about, emotionally disturbed characters and the movie blatantly asks us “How are you any different?”

The movie perfectly combines the drama, action, psychology and pseudo-Christianity of the series in two parts. The first, Air/Love is Destructive, is a violent reminder of why we like Evangelion so much; the characters, the drama, the fantastic action are all here and better than ever. Here, we get our fair share of Robot action in one of the most beautifully choreographed battle scenes ever created, it also delivers some of the saddest moments I’ve seen in my life; one particularly powerful was when Asuka chanted “I’ll kill you all” with her hand reaching the sun before being killed and devoured by the Mass Production Evas, just a minute later Maya completely destroyed my heart into pieces when she screamed “Asuka is…Asuka is…” never finishing the sentence.

The second part, “Sincerely Yours/I Need you”, is a thought provoking and jaw dropping trip through Shinji’s mind as he decides the fate of the world (a task set to him by Rei/Lilith). It is tough for any Evangelion fan not to be shocked when watching all the characters you’ve learned to love and appreciate disgust you before dying a miserable death. It is especially difficult to see Rei, the most mysterious character, finally realizing what she is and watching her do the things she does, completing her pivotal role in the series.

One of the most heartbreaking moments in the movie.

To say this is a masterpiece would be an understatement; Hideaki Anno is not only a mastermind in story development and a great director, but also a revolutionary filmmaker. This movie combines the usual animation with a sublime live-action sequence perfectly synchronized with a slow, almost melancholic version of Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Jesus Bleibet Meine Freude”. It also shows some postmodernism when some real-life shots of Gainax headquarters and a few death threats Anno received for the previous Evangelion movie Death & Rebirth flashes rapidly before going back to the “anime world”. There’s also a full live-action alternative sequence not shown in the original theatrical release which depicts Asuka, Rei and Misato as normal 25-year old women living in Tokyo, here Anno shows again his sublime directing using hand-held cameras that gives it sense of documentary, and makes us feel closer to the characters.

I need you.

Everyone has their own theories about this movie. It is really difficult to understand, even for veteran Evangelion fans like me; that’s not much of a problem though, since the movie invites you to watch it more than once and it’s one of those weird case where every time you watch it, you find something new. It is also filled with religious and psychological themes which actually made me want to find out more about that stuff. But unlike the series, EoE doesn’t stick to just Christian symbols and themes, it takes things a bit farther and includes Judaism and Kabala.

Whether or not this is a retelling of episodes 25 and 26 of the series or an alternate ending is a matter of debate. I tend to believe this is a retelling or that it is meant to complement the episodes since both 25 and 26 give hints to events that happen in this movie such as Asuka being inside her Eva in a fetal position, Shinji being surrounded by cameras and Misato’s and Ritsuko’s death. The “reality” sequence is also showed here as I previously stated in a live-action sequence, while in episode 26 it is shown as an alternate world where every character has a different personality, they’re both different in their own way, but in the end the point is the same.

Sincerely Yours.

From an animation standpoint, End of Evangelion is a step up for the series. You can tell Anno and Gainax didn’t want to recycle animation, which was the main problem with the TV ending. Here, everything is new and the animation, while not perfect, is fantastically well done. Movements are fluid, backgrounds and characters are extremely well drawn, and the little use of 3D imagery is great, one example is when Lilith is capturing all human souls into her egg, just beautiful.

The soundtrack of the movie is just as incredible as everything else and I’m pretty sure the movie wouldn’t be the same thing without it. Shiro Sagisu is once again in charge of the music and he brings his best to the plate, creating one of the best soundtracks in any anime movie. His original songs fit perfectly well and are incredibly atmospheric, among the best we can find the sad “Yume no Sukima” and the exciting “Tanin no Kanshou”. We can also find Sagisu’s classic choral piece “Mother is the first other” reworked as “Hajimari he no Touhi”, which is played when Rei reunites with Lilith, giving the whole scene a fantastic epic feel.

But not everything is just Sagisu’s original work. He also takes a few songs from the master Johann Sebastian Bach. The first is “Air” which is perfectly used to choreograph the battle between Asuka and the MP Evas and the other is “Jesus Bleibet Meine Freude” which is transformed from a light and joyful orchestral tune to a heartbreaking piano piece which as I said before, is used with the live-action sequences. But the best of them all is the beautifully depressing song “Komm, Susser Tod” written by Hideaki Anno himself from Shinji’s point of view and sung by Arianne. This song, while it has a positive and optimistic tune deals with depression and suicide and it’s played just when the Third Impact begins.

It all returns to nothing.

In the end this movie makes us question our own existence and makes us asks us questions like why are we here? What or who do we live for? What is reality? What are dreams? It’s the kind of movie that likes to play with the viewers mind. Hideaki Anno combined everything we love about the series and transformed it into something nobody ever expected and got the results he wanted. A fantastic film that might just be the best movie experience I’ve ever had in my life.

Top 10 Best Anime of 2009

Finally I got a little free time, so i managed to put together a list of my favorite shows of the year, hope you enjoy it.

1. Kimi ni Todoke.

Beautiful show is beautiful

Kimi ni Todoke is a beautiful series, I don’t think I’ve ever smiled this much watching an anime. The characters are lovable, the art is beautiful and the story is developing to become one of the best romance animes ever. It’s not even over yet, but the 11 episodes I’ve seen so far have already established it as my favorite this year.

2. Toradora!

Awww

Ok, technically it started in 2008, but most of it was aired early this year so I’m gonna take it into consideration. Toradora! Is funny, sad and just… cute, I guess that’s the best word to explain it. Sure it’s predictable, but who cares? The characters and situations more than make up for that.

3. Clannad: After Story

After Story is filled with both heart-breaking and hilarious moments

Yet another show that started in 08 but that I will also add to this list because more than half of it was aired this year. After Story is a fantastic sequel to a fantastic series and has some incredibly sad moments. The ending was disappointing but other than that, just great.

4. Bakemonogatari

SENJOUGAHARA FASCINATION

Only Shaft can take such a weird concept and make it into something enjoyable. Bakemonogatari is fantastically strange, filled with great characters and some of the strangest plots I’ve ever had the pleasure to watch.

5. K-On!

You're doing it wrong!

Yes, K-on! I know some people here hate it but I thought it was ridiculously funny and as a music lover I enjoyed watching the process of the creation of a band. It doesn’t hurt that the animation is awesome too and that the characters are lovable.

6. Sasameki Koto

Even though I’m not a fan of yuri, I enjoyed this series a lot. It’s a fun little romantic comedy that while doesn’t even come close to the awesomeness of Kimi ni todoke and Toradora! It’s really good. I love the intro music too, such a soft and calm tune, makes me feel relaxed.

7. 11 Eyes

Shit just got real

I didn’t expect much from 11 Eyes, I thought it was going to be another shounen crap filled with fanservice, and in many ways it is. But there’s something about it that caught my attention, maybe it was the weird concept, the title having nothing to do with the story, the batshit crazy characters, the panty-shots or maybe all of that but it grew on me. Awesome little show.

8. The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (2009)

Haruhi doesn't care about what you think

Endless Eight aside, the new episodes of Haruhi featured some genuinely brilliant moments. It’s more Haruhi and that’s never a bad thing. Screw the haters.

9. Kobato

DOOOOBATOOOO!!!!!

Kobato is by no means original. It’s your typical Clamp stuff. But it’s so adorable that I can’t keep myself from watching it every week. And that alone grants it a spot on this list.

10. Nyan Koi!

Get your ass back to Silent Hill!

What can I say? I love cats and Nyan Koi has plenty of that. The quality of the episodes decreased after episode 7 or 8 which is why it’s all the way down here, but the first episodes were hilarious enough to give it a spot on the list.

Honorable Mentions: Zan Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, Ponyo.