The Anime Alley

I watched Frozen

Went and saw ⸢そうして父になる⸥ ("Soushite Chichi ni Naru", English title "Like Father, Like Son") tonight. It's quite a good movie. Fairly low key. There was a lot of potential for typical Japanese melodrama and overacting but it managed to steer clear of that. The humourous moments were touching and the moments of stress and conflict were portrayed with restraint (which was fitting for the central character).

Need for Speed.
It was okay. I feel some of the stunts are improbable and definitely computer generated, but at least there are few if any unrealistic scenarios similar in nature to the worlds longest runway in Fast n Furious 6.

It was enjoyable but not a movie I would go back and see over and over again.

Paying extra to see this movie in 3D is a waste. But I didn't pay anything. I went to the prerelease screening

Went and saw the 2014 edition of Godzilla tonight. It was a bit on the long side but the pacing was good so I didn't really notice its length. The carnage was well depicted and I generally liked the designs of the monsters. The story wasn't too bad and I found the acting to be fitting for the movie. If I had a list of personal favourite Godzilla movies then I'd definitely include it in the top five.

I also saw the trailer for the new Lupin III movie. It's a live action version and the preview looked pretty good. One minor complaint is that I would've liked the guy playing the titular main character to be a bit more lanky. Any ways, it's coming out at the end of August.

I saw Guardians of the Galaxy on Saturday – IN IMAX 3D (the only way)!!

Marvel has done such an excellent job with its properties thus far, which certainly doesn't stop here. The movie was incredibly fun and pack with so much fun stuff from Marvel universe. I want to see it again... I'm still processing it! I wonder if they're going to connect this to the Avengers in future movies. I mean, they kinda did a little bit (not a spoiler), but the movie is still technically it's own thing for now. Can't wait for the sequel.

Boyhood - Cute movie. Not the masterpiece everyone is making it out to be. 8/10

Went and saw the 7pm screening "Omoide no Marnie" (When Marnie Was There) tonight. (Note to self: tickets to the late show are ￥500 cheaper.) I really enjoyed this movie. The story seemed a touch predictable from the start but close to the end it takes a quick turn and comes up with a nice surprise. Yes, I cried a small bit near the end of the movie. Of the three Ghibli movies I've seen in the theatres over here, I put this one in a close second spot after "Kaguya-hime no Monogatari" and ahead of "Kaze Tachi nu".

Here's one of the official trailers:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lO79qkKDUNY[/youtube]

Just saw Dawn of the Planet of the Apes last night, I would give it a 7/10. The CG wasn't bad, but it had alot of "post apocalyptic tropes" as my one friend put it. You know, some of it was predictable and some of it was like "physics doesn't work like that". But not bad

Saw the new "Lupin the 3rd" movie on opening night. For once I was in a theatre for the late show and the place wasn't empty. The movie itself isn't too bad. The fight/dance scene with Fujiko and Lupin was quite neat. There were plenty of action scenes and only a few of those overly long dialogue scenes which plague Japanese movies. Tadanobu Asano's talents were kind of wasted in playing an almost always snarly Zenigata. All the non-Japanese actors had their lines dubbed by Japanese voice actors. There were a number of cheap laughs in the film (first and foremost was the "You shot me" quip in the middle of a kung fu duel) but people don't react audibly to anything on screen in Japan. Makes me wonder if they're all dead silent when watching comedies.

PS: The anime/manga version of Lupin III does make an appearance in the film.

I went and saw 「舞妓はレデイ」(Lady Maiko) tonight. It was directed by the fellow who directed the original Japanese version of "Shall We Dance?". It was okay. The ending lacked punch but the musical numbers (yes, this was a musical about a girl becoming a maiko-san/apprentice geisha) were quite fun. The concept of the movie would appear to have been taken from "My Fair Lady". One member each from AKB48 and SKE48 had bit roles in it too.

Here's the trailer:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssWHL44q9BY[/youtube]

Saw Fury tonight. For some reason or another admission was only ¥1100. I guess it was the snowy Sunday night rate.

The movie was quite good. There were a number of times where I couldn't suss out what people's lines were. The subtitles sometimes were a bit beyond my ability so I missed out here and there. There was one indoor scene which didn't make much sense (I thought it dragged on and was kind of pointless) until the scene immediately after it. The fight against the Tiger certainly raised my heart rate. It was quite intense. Overall I give it 7/10.

I saw the new Hobbit movie. It was pretty amazing. Sure didn't feel like 2 hours though. The battles were really nicely done, just like in Return of the King. The ending did veer away from the book but with Legolas and Tyriel being in the movies, and not the book, you had to expect it would. I still think it was a fine addition. I do still prefer the LOTR trilogy more though.

Went and saw "The Imitation Game" last night. I enjoyed the performances by the actors. But knowing the liberties taken by screen writers did take an edge off the film. Also, the naval scenes were so historically inaccurate they were embarrassing to watch. My rating of this film is three and a half out of five.

I watched "Boyhood" on the plane back to Narita. Couldn't catch chunks of the dialogue on account of the cheap earbuds handed out on the plane. Very impressive movie nonetheless. It wasn't until after I landed that I was able to confirm the movie was filmed over a 12 year period. I had read that previously but didn't recall it while I was watching the movie.