lyle-5

This is one of the best action movies ever made. Warren Oates is perfect in the role of Dilinger and the film's rough, violent and fast-paced action sequences remind me of Walter Hill and Peckinpah. A very good entertainment.

This film's reputation is phenomenal and there is no end to the superlatives being used to describe it. It is the most expensive film in the history of Korean cinema and it was directed by Kang Jegyu, currently the most important filmmaker in the country (he also made the popular Gingko Bed). Swiri is also the biggest ever success in Korea and has surpassed Titanic at the box-office. In Seoul alone, over 1 million people saw it in 23 days (it took Titanic 38 days to attain the same result). Above and beyond these historical exploits, Swiri is a spy film with emphasis on action and muscles (actors were required to undergo 6 weeks of intense physical training) made with a battalion of special effects and melodramatic romances. Its story is treated on the basis of the political unrest between North and South Korea (fighting since the war of 1950-53).

With Rainy Dog, Director Takashi Miike has taken everyone by surprise, in Japan and elsewhere. After the hyperactive and insanely bloody Fudoh (1996), he has become one of the most respected directors of contemporary Japanese cinema. Rainy Dog is a dark thriller, a slow and oppressive film noir, constantly animated by a uniquely graceful poetry. Recently, Miike has shown the world just how much his films fit within the cinema of exile. Rainy Dog is certainly a part of this, because it was shot entirely in Taiwan (you'll recognize some familiar faces from Taiwanese cinema, especially actors from Hou Hsiao-hsien's films) and features only two Japanese actors. After Takeshi Kitano, "Yakuza Cinema" has found a new master. For Japan, it has found a new poet for its society. (J. F.)