What classics did you watch this week? (9/12-9/18)
Please tell us what classics you saw last week. Modern films are welcome, as well.
You know who else was just following orders? HITLER!
Outlaw Gangster VIP (Toshio Masuda, 1968) - A yakuza movie series recently released on video by Arrow (God bless 'em), five movies starring Tokyo Drifter's Tetsuya Watari. Other famiiiar Nikkatsu faces appear, too, including Watari's love interest from Tokyo Drifter, Chieko Matsubara (she of the perpetually sad face). The story here begins more or less like many other yakuza pictures, with Watari being released from prison. He finds his former gang has languished without him and the rival gang, whom he went to prison fighting, has grown more powerful. Immediately, he gets himself into big trouble when he defends Matsubara, a virginal youth new to Tokyo, from a gaggle of handsy yakuza. As the film moves on, it distinguishes itself with several fantatic set pieces, including some really violent yakuza brawls, and one of the best murder sequences I've ever seen, with one of Watari's best friends being clandestinely dispatched while waiting for the train. The film kind of ends in the middle of the story, but the studio knew it was going to make a series of these films immediately - this was one of five films, and the first of four of them that was released in 1968 alone! Definitely worth checking out. 7/10. yes.
Outlaw Gangster VIP 2 (Keiichi Ozawa, 1968) - While many of the plot points of this first sequel to Outlaw Gangster VIP are almost exactly the same as the original, this one is a much stronger film. That may sound a bit odd, but I think the direction and script are stronger, and maybe just because I felt I knew the protagonist I was more involved in his story at this point. Whatever the reason, I'd rank this one high amongst the many yakuza movies I've seen. The film picks up a few months after the first, with Tetsuya Watari, having healed his wounds, traveling north to find Chieko Matsubara and Yumeko, the wife of his gangster friend. In pretty much the same way (defending a defenseless woman), he gets drawn back into the yakuza world. This one features very strong performances throughout, and recognizable actors include Hideaki Nitani (whom you'll recognize from several Arrow titles), Kunie Tanaka and Meiko Kaji (who performs a flamenco dance number!). Izumi Ashikawa plays the woman Watari saves at the beginning of the film. He meets her again as a prostitute in Yokohama. She has a couple of really touching scenes opposite Tanaka, who plays the crippled brother of a gangster Watari killed in the first film. She's excellent. 9/10. YES.
Rhinoceros (Tom O'Horgan, 1974) - I read Eugene Ionesco's Rhinoceros as a freshman in college and I remember hating it. I read it in a class I hated with a professor I hated, and I think I pretty much ended up hating everything he introduced to me. Seeing the play on film some 19 years later, I'm still unsure if I like the play much. It's pretty silly and I'm not quite sure what Ionesco was going for (ditto some of the contemporary Nixon references added to the film, though I do get that the mailbox is Haldeman). However, a game cast made this version well worth watching. Gene Wilder plays Stanley, the protagonist who is particularly disturbed that the people around him are turning into rhinoceroses. Zero Mostel has the second most important role as Wilder's best friend and neighbor, who has a hilarious, protracted scene where he himself becomes a rhinoceros. Karen Black also co-stars (and wears a very silly, very cleavage-protruding green dress) as Wilder's crush. All three are very good. Wilder gets to play more quiet than he often does, though he does become bigger as the situation grows more crazy. He was such a great reactor, though. Mostel gets the more scenery-chewing role, but is tons of fun. Joe Silver also co-stars. Quite fun. 7/10. yes.
Re-watches
Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion (Shunya Ito, 1972) (third viewing) - One of the great exploitation movies. No one gets revenge like Meiko Kaji. 10/10. YES.
You know who else was just following orders? HITLER!