1991-2000

  • John Woo – Laat sau sen taan aka Hard-Boiled (1992)

    John Woo1991-2000ActionCrimeHong Kong

    Quote:
    It is almost impossible to review Hard Boiled and at the same time avoid the bottomless anus-bowl of cliches that surround it. I’m sure it’s been described as “a high octane thrill ride”, and even on the box it says Hard Boiled is “an action fan’s dream”. This is all true, but plain and simple it is just a damn awesome movie. I am at a loss for bad things to say about it. Not many movies get me as pumped up as Hard Boiled does. It uses an arsenal of well executed techniques to draw the viewer into each and every action sequence. Woo also manages to craft these explosive scenes so that he actually makes you feel stupid if you miss something cool. There are many small and beautiful things going on during all of the crimson waterworks that you may not notice the first time through. One image that really stuck out to me was during the first action scene in the teahouse. There is a shot of someone getting blasted in the leg. The bullet goes through a table first, so you get this foreground picture of the table’s leg busting in two as the man’s leg snaps right behind it. It is really fantastic in that it was totally unnecessary.Read More »

  • Tat-Chi Yau & Johnnie To – Fai seung dat yin AKA Expect the Unexpected (1998)

    Tat-Chi Yau1991-2000ActionCrimeJohnnie To
    Fai seung dat yin (1998)
    Fai seung dat yin (1998)

    In this “cops and robbers” film, a raid on a jewelry store staged by a band of amateur hold-up artists goes horribly wrong, leading to a shoot-out. The elite Organized Crime Bureau team, headed by Captain Ching King Gen, is poised to go into action at a moment’s notice. Working as a unit, they bring law and order to Hong Kong streets, where they must rely on their courage and skills to survive.Read More »

  • Johnnie To – Dung fong sam hap AKA The Heroic Trio (1993)

    Johnnie To1991-2000ActionFantasyHong Kong
    Dung fong sam hap (1993)
    Dung fong sam hap (1993)

    The all-female Heroic Trio are Tung (Wonder Woman), Chat (Thief Catcher), a mercenary, and Ching (Invisible Woman). Initially, they’re on opposing sides – the invisible Ching is kidnapping newborn male babies for her evil master, Tung is trying to solve the crime (rather more effectively than her policeman husband, who is unaware of her secret identity), and Chat, who was formerly employed by Ching’s evil master, is trying to sell her services and inside knowledge to the police. But all three have something in common buried deep in their past…Read More »

  • Alain Tanner – L’Homme qui a perdu son ombre AKA The Man Who Lost His Shadow (1991)

    Alain Tanner1991-2000DramaRomanceSwitzerland
    L'homme qui a perdu son ombre (1991)
    L’homme qui a perdu son ombre (1991)

    “L’Homme qui a perdu son ombre” is a cogent metaphor for a society that is in danger of losing its soul… ~James TraversRead More »

  • Kanji Nakajima – Fe AKA Hagane (1994)

    Kanji Nakajima1991-2000ArthouseJapanSci-Fi
    Fe (1994)
    Fe (1994)

    Near the remains of an iron factory, an old painter faces the challenges of creation, as his longtime muse has not appeared in some time. A young girl lends her curiosity to discover what it is that holds the old painter back. Her mother tells her a bedtime story to which brings understanding of the relationship between the abandoned factory and the lonely artist nearby.Read More »

  • S.R. Bindler – Hands on a Hard Body: The Documentary (1997)

    1991-2000CultDocumentaryS.R. BindlerUSA
    Hands on a Hard Body The Documentary (1997)
    Hands on a Hard Body The Documentary (1997)

    Twenty-four contestants compete in an endurance/sleep deprivation contest in order to win a brand new Nissan Hardbody truck. The last person to remain standing with his or her hand on the truck wins. An absurd marketing gimmick at first glance, the contest proves to be much more…Read More »

  • Gavin Millar – The Crow Road (1996)

    Gavin Millar1991-2000BBCDramaTVUnited Kingdom
    The Crow Road (1996)
    The Crow Road (1996)

    Four-part adaptation of Iain Banks’s blackly humorous novel. Student Prentice McHoan carries out his recently deceased grandmother’s request to find out what happened to his Uncle Rory, who disappeared seven years before. The chance discovery of a novel that Rory had begun working on at the time of his disappearance takes Prentice and his childhood friend Ashley on a complex journey through his family history.Read More »

  • Ursula Puerrer & A. Hans Scheirl & Dietmar Schipek – Rote Ohren fetzen durch Asche AKA Flaming Ears (1992)

    1991-2000A. Hans ScheirlAustriaCampDietmar SchipekQueer Cinema(s)Sci-FiUrsula Puerrer
    Rote Ohren fetzen durch Asche (1992)
    Rote Ohren fetzen durch Asche (1992)

    Flaming Ears is a pop sci-fi lesbian fantasy feature set in the year 2700 in the fictive burned-out city of Asche. It follows the tangled lives of three women – Volley, Nun and Spy.

    FLAMING EARS is a pop sci-fi lesbian fantasy feature set in the year 2700 in the fictive burned-out city of Asche. It follows the tangled lives of three women — Volley, Nun and Spy. Spy is a comic book artist whose printing presses are burned down by Volley, a sexed-up pyromaniac. Seeking revenge, Spy goes to the lesbian club where Volley performs every night. Before she can enter, Spy gets into a fight and is left wounded, lying in the streets. She is found by Nun–an amoral alien in a red plastic suit with a predilection for reptiles, and who also happens to be Volley’s lover. Nun takes her home and subsequently must hide her from Volley. It’s a story of love and revenge, and an anti-romantic plea for love in its many forms. An avowedly underground film which was shot on Super 8 and blown up to 16mm, FLAMING EARS is original for its playful disruption of narrative conventions (the story is a thread rather than a backbone in the film), its witty approach to film genre, and its visual splendor.Read More »

  • Rosa von Praunheim – Ich bin meine eigene Frau AKA I Am My Own Woman (1992)

    Rosa von Praunheim1991-2000DocumentaryDramaGermanyQueer Cinema(s)
    Ich bin meine eigene Frau (1992)
    Ich bin meine eigene Frau (1992)

    Quote:
    The life story of Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, born Lothar Berflede. Miss Charlotte survived the Nazi reign and the repression of the Communists as a transvestite and helped start the German gay liberation movement. Documentary with some dramatized scenes. Two actors play the young and middle aged Charlotte and she plays herself in the later years.Read More »

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