cityonfire.com | Movie News & Developments |
- Killers (2014) Review
- New trailer for indie martial arts film ‘Unlucky Stars’
- Big Game trailer for ‘Furious 7′ is definitely fast and furious!
- ‘Jurassic World’ Big Game trailer is open to the public! RUN!!!!
| Posted: 02 Feb 2015 12:01 AM PST  "Killers" Japanese Theatrical Poster Director: The Mo Brothers By HKFanatic Killers generated a great deal of buzz as soon as it was announced. Not only does the movie represent the first time the Indonesian and Japanese film industries have collaborated on a thriller, but movie also boasts a co-production credit from Gareth Evans, hot off the massive success of The Raid 2. Furthering the connection between the two films, Killers borrows two supporting actors from that martial arts sequel – namely, Kazuki Kitamura and Oka Antara – who serve as headliners here. In the director’s seat are The Mo Brothers, two filmmakers who have generated buzz in their own right thanks to the horror film Macabre, as well as Timo Tjahjanto’s co-directing credit with Gareth Evans on V/H/S 2 – their segment literally being the only good sequence in an otherwise mediocre film. The final bait for Killers was its stylish teaser trailer that promised plenty of “the old ultra-violence.” Now the film has arrived in limited theatrical release and various On Demand platforms, thanks to North American distributor Well Go USA. It’s not by happenstance that I quoted Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange earlier, as Killers has more in common with that feature than the Silat acrobatics of The Raid series. Although steeped in an often unsettling brutality, The Raid: Redemption and its sequel do, at the end of the day, offer audiences escapist entertainment. When Killers immediately opens with a scene of stomach-churning misogynistic violence, in which Kazuki Kitamura bashes a helpless woman over the head with a hammer, it’s clear that The Raid star Iko Uwais isn’t waiting around the corner to save the day. We’re in much more disturbing territory here. Killers offers something of a dual narrative. While a handsome and well-dressed serial killer (Kitamura) stalks the streets of Tokyo in his fancy car, searching for his next victim a la Patrick Bateman in American Psycho, a disgraced journalist (Oka Antara) begins a slow descent into madness in Jakarta, Indonesia. What unites these two disparate murderers? The internet, of course! You see, Kitamura has a habit of filming his homicidal deeds and uploading them to the world wide web. Something of a closet fan of these videos, Antara follows suit and films his first kill after he’s pushed to the edge by two thugs. The fact that Antara’s birth into a killer occurs inside of a taxi cab isn’t his storyline’s only similarity to Martin Scorsese’s classic Taxi Driver; the frantic shootout that occurs inside the vehicle also brings to mind a similar scene in 2010′s I Saw the Devil. As our two ‘protagonists’ begin to chat over the internet, Kitamura becomes something of a twisted mentor figure to Antara, pushing him along the path to kill – and kill – again. The effectiveness of these scenes is somewhat diminished by the fact that the two actors are forced to communicate in broken English, and that Antara typically acts like he has no idea what Kitamura is talking about, since his precarious mental state seems to suggest he’s not entirely in control of his actions. While many reviews for Killers have argued that The Mo Brothers have a great deal to say about individuals’ disconnect from violence in the age of social media, as well as filmgoers’ relationship with onscreen depictions of violence, I wouldn’t recommend searching for profundity in Killers. It’s wild to think it’s been nearly 20 years since Funny Games, and while technology has certainly changed a great deal in the intervening years, I didn’t feel that Killers had anything new and more interesting to convey than Michael Haneke did in his memorable thriller. The Mo Brothers do share Haneke’s love of toying with the audience, however; a sequence in which two cops bicker in the foreground while Kitamura’s latest victim struggles to get their attention in the out-of-focus background is a particularly cruel joke. Considering this is Merantau Films’ follow-up to The Raid 2 one would expect a high degree of polish as far as the production values are considered. And while the film is well-acted and stylishly photographed, the special effects and choreography leave something to be desired. No one would mistake Killers an action movie, but there is one sequence in which Antara has to evade over a dozen bodyguards in a narrow hotel corridor. I was utterly baffled when he somehow appears to crowd-surf over the lot of them, all without any of them managing to wrench his gun out of his hand. It’s moments like these that take the viewer out of the reality of the movie – and considering Killers’ weighty 134 minute runtime, these moments have the opportunity to add up. Despite how much time we spend with our titular killers, The Mo Brothers never make the mistake of glamorizing them. It’s understood that these are two very sick individuals, and while Antara has our sympathy in the beginning, it quickly becomes apparent that he is losing his mind. Even when he does a good deed, such as when he inadvertently rescues a captive boy from a child predator, it feels like a ‘happy’ accident. This begs the question: do we really want to spend over two hours in the company of these two psychopaths? Killers invites you to wallow in the darkest corners of humanity; it’s a nihilistic work with nary a ray of hope. Some viewers may be drawn to the idea of a movie that makes Seven look like an episode of the Care Bears, but uneven pacing and the language barrier between the leads keep Killers from truly taking off – not to mention the sometimes substandard production values. Still, the film’s greatest sin may be that it fails to stand out in a crowded genre. There are simply too many quality entires in the Asian thriller genre to wholeheartedly recommend Killers, unless you absolutely have to see the latest release from Merantau Films. HKFanatic’s Rating: 5.5/10 |
| New trailer for indie martial arts film ‘Unlucky Stars’ Posted: 02 Feb 2015 12:00 AM PST  "Unlucky Stars" Promotional Poster Decades later, the iconic films of Hong Kong legends Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan continue to inspire a new generation of stuntmen and filmmakers. Case in point: Unlucky Stars, an in-production independent martial arts comedy directed by and starring Dennis Ruel. As you can tell from the title, the film takes particular inspiration from the Lucky Stars series of films that Sammo popularized in the Eighties. Expect tongue-in-cheek humor and bone-crunching fight choreography. You can scope out the teaser trailer for the film on YouTube. The cast includes Dennis Ruel, Ken Quitugua, Sari Sabella, Jose Montesinos, Giovannie Espiritu, and Vladislav Rimburg. Unlucky Stars is still seeking funding so the project is looking for fan support. You can donate here, as well as ‘Like’ them on Facebook or follow them on Twitter. | 2nd teaser trailer! Updates: Watch a new behind-the-scenes feature, which contains new footage. BREAKING NEWS: Watch the new trailer, thanks to Paul Bramhall. |
| Big Game trailer for ‘Furious 7′ is definitely fast and furious! Posted: 01 Feb 2015 04:01 AM PST  "Furious 7" Teaser Poster THE MOVIE: Director Justin Lin is stepping down from his post for now and is passing the baton to Saw and Insidious filmmaker James Wan, who will supposedly put a “gritty, ’70s revenge thriller” vibe on the next installment. Here’s an official plot tidbit: After Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his crew helped take down Owen Shaw, his brother Ian Shaw (Jason Statham) now wants revenge. Furious 7 (aka Fast and Furious 7) has a new release date set for April 3, 2015 In addition to Vin Diesel and Jason Statham, Furious 7 stars Dwayne Johnson, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Lucas Black, Kurt Russell, Tony Jaa and Djimon Hounsou. Updates: In honor of Paul Walker, Universal will donate some of the proceeds from the upcoming Fast & Furious 6 Blu-ray & DVD release to Walker's charity Reach Out WorldWide. As far as the future of Furious 7, there has been some talk about scrapping the current storyline and moving the plot into a completely new direction. THR reports that Chris Morgan, Furious 7′s screenwriter, is revising the script that could make use of scenes that were shot before Walker’s death. If the plan works, production may resume by late January. | THR (via Collider) reports that Walker's character Brian O'Conner will not be killed off in Furious 7, but will instead be retired "in a way that the studio hopes will satisfy fans of the franchise and make use of the exciting footage of Walker." According to an official statement from F7′s Facebook page, Paul Walker’s real life brothers will step in as doubles for the late actor; there are several reports that Cody Walker (one of Walker’s real brothers) may be joining future installments of Fast and Furious as Brian O’Connor’s (Paul Walker) younger brother. | First trailer for Furious 7 is now available watch! BREAKING NEWS: Watch the Big Game trailer! Cityonfire.com is hoping you can take a minute to check out www.FrankandBeanz.com, a doggie apparel website that has just released their Fast & the Furrious clothing line. Part of the proceeds will be donated to Paul Walker’s charity, Reach Out World Wide (ROWW). |
| ‘Jurassic World’ Big Game trailer is open to the public! RUN!!!! Posted: 01 Feb 2015 12:00 AM PST  "Jurassic World" Teaser Poster THE MOVIE: The fourth installment in the Jurassic Park franchise is titled Jurassic World. Directing the film will be Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed). There are no plot details, but the film has a release date for June 12, 2015. So far, the cast includes Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jake Johnson, Nick Robinson, Ty Simpkins and Irrfan Khan. Chances are his script will bear no resemblance to an earlier one from The Departed‘s Willian Monahan that floated around the web back in 2007. That draft had a soldier of fortune returning to Jurassic Park with the help of some genetically engineered mini-T-Rexes who obeyed his commands like domesticated dogs. We’re not even making this up! Updates: Here’s a new pack of cast photos, featuring Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Nick Robinson and Ty Simpkins, courtesy of Collider. | First official poster. | First Jurassic World teaser. | First full trailer. BREAKING NEWS: Watch the Big Game trailer. |
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