Sabu

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When a naïve young man (Shinichi Tsutsumi) and his lazy best friend attempt to rob a bank, they find another robber has beaten them to the punch. After the original robber and the best friend are killed the young man serendipitously gets the 80 million yen. But when he accidentally stabs an innocent hairdresser, a cause-and-effect situation quickly spirals out of control. Meanwhile, a trio of yakuza mistakenly kill a powerful mob boss. As their paths continue to cross, the story displays some interesting parallels about just-out-of-reach redemption and the unlikelihood of atoning for one’s sins, all delivered in a black comedy package.Read More »

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A fun-filled camp fantasy melodrama about cobra worshipers on an exotic secret tropical island. It was shot in appealing Technicolor on Universal’s back lot. Sarong-draped beauty Maria Montez has a dual role as both the good and evil twin sister. Director Robert Siodmak (“People on Sunday”/”Son of Dracula”/”Phantom Lady”) keeps the hokum going at a fast pace. It’s based on a story by W. Scott Darling and is written by Gene Lewis and Richard Brooks.Read More »

In ancient Bagdad, the young prince Ahmad (John Justin) is betrayed, deposed, and imprisoned by his vizier Jaffar (Conrad Veidt), an evil and calculating man who is also a master of the Black Arts. But Ahmad is saved from prison, and certain execution, by Abu (Sabu), a young thief who has made his way in life by stealing whatever he needs. Together they escape from Bagdad and make their way to the port city of Basra, where they hope to sign to sail with the renowned sailor Sinbad. But Ahmad chances to catch a glimpse of the daughter (June Duprez) of the Sultan (Miles Malleson, who also co-wrote the screenplay), and falls hopelessly in love with her. Read More »

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Directed by the Japanese king of kooky-cool, SABU, Hold Up Down has it all: bank robbers dressed in skin-tight Santa suits, the subway busker that looks like he is straight out of Woodstock, the suicidal church minister-turned-truck driver, a couple of twisted policemen – oh, and a key to a whole lotta cash.
SABU exploded on the Japanese film scene in 1986, first as an actor and later, taking a more firm role behind the camera as both director and scriptwriter with the acclaimed Dangan Runner in 1995. Hold Up Down is SABU’s second collaboration with all-male J-pop group V6 (they first starred in his previous Hard Luck Hero), which serves as a gentle reminder that, in Asia, pop stars who also act can find their CD sales actually increase (as opposed to the norm in this part of the world which seems to have the opposite effect)..Read More »

synopsis:
Kenichi Asakura is an uptight, hyper-square salesman. One day, three bank robbers
commandeer his van. They are in hot pursuit of their fellow robber who has snatched the
money. Unfortunately for the bank robbers, Asakura never drives over 40 km/h speed limit
even under the extreme situation.Read More »

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Kanjaki, a middle-aged man, goes to a quiet countryside village. He puts his helmet on a shrunken old woman whom he meets by chance in a shop. As soon as he presses the buttons on the helmet one by one, she suddenly remembers forgotten happy moments and is rejuvenated. This is just the beginning. Kanjaki goes on to make the village people recall their happy pasts, but his face is lined with worry and a sadness that deepens. What is the secret of this helmet? And what is he trying to do with it? Director Sabu’s Happiness suggests happiness and suffering are intertwined through the unusual scenario of a helmet reminding people of the happiest moments of their lives. Sabu convincingly portrays the notion that memory is the source of both happiness and suffering, and how memory affects our lives.Read More »

review:
*** might contain spoilers ***

Story: After being convinced by his friend Ishii, Asai decides to take part in a fixed
underground Thai-Boxing fight as a last minute replacement. The deal is simple; convince
the crowd that he is in fact a Muay Thaï champion from Thailand, which should be
miraculous considering the fact that he has no experience, and get knock out on the
second round. However, an unexpected incident during the fight turns the event into total
chaos.Read More »

Young rowdy Ita gets hired by a real estate company to get people out of an apartment building that should be torn down. The problem starts when Ita realizes that the building is still full of people of many different nationalities who are not willing to leave their flats. Moreover something creepy seems to be going on between the walls of the tenement. Katsuhiro Otomo’s (Akira) only feature-length live-action film, starring Hiroyuki Tanaka (better known as Sabu).Read More »

review:
Yassuda is on the run. In truth, he should be in his car, with money that was to have
been robbed from a bank, with a gun bought from Yakuza. He could have come off
well had he not forgotten the mask! Now he is on the run with a pursuer hot on his
trail.Read More »