Movies I Watched Instead of Writing Part 12

Brokeback Mountain [2005] -- Finally decided to check out what all the fuss was about. While it was very pretty and well acted, I have to admit it didn't really do that much for me. The fact that I was bloated from too much Chinese food couldn't have helped, but I found the story too simple to really move me in any significant way. I'm still trying to figure out why Syrianna wasn't nominated for best picture...

The Weatherman [2005] -- Really well made, beautifully shot, acted and written movie about mediocrity that goes... nowhere. I sort of enjoyed the non-ending, and Nick Cage & Michael Caine were really funny, but my God, couldn't anything good happen in this movie? I really liked it and I'm glad it was made, but I understand why it didn't make a red cent. Who wants to spend $12+ to sit through 2 hours of someone else's crappy life? I'll recomend it, but be warned, it's a downer.

My Wife is a Gangster [2001]-- Not nearly as goofy as I'd feared, it's more a comedy of manners in a lot of ways. At least, that's when it seemed to work best for me. Eun-Kyung Shin is excellent as the reluctant bride and her sense of movement and deadpan delivery make what could have been another tedious wacky Korean comedy suprisingly entertaining. I kept thinking about what an American remake would be like and the only word I could come up with is "awful". What was a charming dissection of gender roles in a country that's still getting used to the idea of women in the work force would be reduced to a lame vanity piece for a washed up starlet and whatever Hollywood Roadkill was still hanging around.

Criminal Woman: Killing Melody [1973] -- Predictably plotted, but well paced entry into the "Female Boss" subgenre of Pinky Violence that doesn't lack blood or boobies. It also opens and closes with a Reiko Ike/Miki Sugimoto cat fight, which frankly sold me right away. Reiko Ike is at her bitchy best, and while Miki is mostly relegated to pouting and looking hot with a full back dragon tattoo, seeing the two of them together in something that makes more sense than Sukeban Guerilla was a perfect birthday treat. And Ryoji Hayama from Bloody Territories is in it too!