Larry Augustin's Weblog

"Howl's Moving Castle" Takes #1 Spot in Japan for 2005

Anyone who is a fan of Hayao Miyazaki's work knew that "Hauru no ugoku shiro" ("Howl's Moving Castle") was the number one film at the box office in Japan in 2005, but the MPPA of Japan has finally released the official results for 2005.  In the rankings of Japanese films, "Howl's Moving Castle" earned 19.6 billion yen (~ US $165M), making it the biggest hit followed by "Pocket Monster Advanced Generation" at 4.3 billion yen and "Koshonin Mashita Masayoshi (Negotiator)" with 4.2 billion yen.

I was lucky enough to catch "Howl's Moving Castle" at it's only California showing last year in San Francisco.  It's not Miyazaki's best work ("Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind", "Princess Mononoke", or "Spirited Away"), but average Miyazaki is better than most people's best anyway.  It will be out Match 7 on DVD and I've already pre-ordered mine.  I highly recommend it. 

The Quick and the Dead

I think this movie is often overlooked because of it’s positioning as a Sharon Stone vehicle. True, Sharon Stone did co-produce and plays the lead in this Western. Also, it doesn’t live up to the Sergio Leone spaghetti western classics that it tries to re-create. But it’s still a stylish film with some great performances in spite of being somewhat empty. You always think that with a stronger script and with a stronger lead (a female Clint Eastwood), it could have been a great film.

But great performances from a stellar ensemble cast make this movie worth a second look. Stone can’t carry the lead, but the good news is that she doesn’t need to.  She’s surrounded by a great ensemble cast including Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe, Leonardo DiCaprio, Lance Henriksen, and Gary Sinise.  Plus she’s got Sam Raimi directing. In addition, you’ll recognize a lot of familiar faces in people like Tobin Bell, Pat Hingle and a slew of other well-known character actors whose names never appear on the marquee but consistently turn in great supporting performances.

Hackman of course turns in his usual incomparable performance as a villain, reminiscent here of his character in Unforgiven (a brilliant movie).  Russell Crowe is his usual commanding screen presence.  Sam Raimi always makes a stylish movie, and this is no exception. And in case you’re wondering, yes Bruce Campbell did make an appearance, but it got cut in the theatrical release.

Ying xiong

We saw Ying xiong (aka "Hero") Saturday night. This is a beautiful movie. It's a shame that Hollywood can't make this kind of tragedy anymore because most american moviegoers want only feel-good endings. It was even complete with the equivalent of a Greek Chorus in the king's advisors. The style is reminiscent of Wo hu cang long (aka "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon"), but it lacks some of the comedic touch that gives so much life to Crouching Tiger in spite of the tragic overtones.

Watch the cinematography carefully. Each of the flashback sequences features a different predominant color distinguishing the theme of the flashback: red (passion), blue (love), green (youth), white (truth), and black (death).