review

Movie Review ~ Kuroshitsuji / Black Butler

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Language: Japanese

Subtitles: English, Chinese

Japan

Set in 2020 in Asia, East and West cultures combine and Phantomhive is run by a young girl who has sold her soul to Sebastian, a devil. People are being mummified and whoever is behind it may be behind Phantomhive’s parents that she swore revenge for. Can she defeat them with her hell of a butler at her side?

This movie is a lot different from the manga/anime, as it’s set in the future. Why they did that, I have no idea. But Sebastian and a lot of aspects mimic those in the manga/anime, like his defeating everyone with cutlery.

If you don’t mind the fact they changed a lot of things, this is actually a really good movie. The subtitles sucked and weren’t that good, but it was understandable. The acting was very good, the camera, and special effects were quite spectacular. I didn’t think Sebastian fighting with forks and knives would look good in live action but they did a wonderful job, along with Mei Rin Lin’s fighting scene.

The plot was straight forward, and it actually closes at the end of the movie, not leaving us hanging like the anime and the manga is still going.

So if you are a fan of Black Butler and don’t mind the change, go for it! But if you are someone who hates when they rip things apart like the new Star Wars movie, then I wouldn’t advise watching it. I give it a 4/5 for being a pretty good movie, but the subtitles need work and they did change up the story a lot.

Until next time

Dani

Movie Review ~ New Orleans Mon Amour

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New Orleans Mon Amour

Language: English

Produced by: Voodoo Production Services

USA

A year after Hurricane Katrina a doctor and young woman run into each other years after their love affair. Henry is trying to get back together with his ex-wife and Hyde is trying to start her life anew, but will they be able to resist each other? Very unlikely.

I downloaded this movie from Amazon due to my interest in New Orleans and because I am a fan of Christopher Eccleston. This movie appeared to be small budget, and I wonder if some of the people telling their tales are actual residents. It is a pretty eye-opening movie, showing the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The acting was all right, though Christopher Eccleston did a really good job. I believe he did this movie because of his love for New Orleans. The camera work could have been a little better.

The story was pretty interesting, about love during chaos. These two characters just wanted to help the society, but hurt those closest to them. It could have been written a little better, as it didn’t quite make sense for the guy Hyde was with and his reaction.

All in all, if you like indie films or a fan of New Orleans or Christopher Eccleston, check it out. I give the film a 3.5/5.

Until next time!

Dani

Movie Review ~ Kopfstand

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Kopfstand

German (English Subtitles but my DVD player is broken and can’t turn subtitles on)

Produced in Austria (1981)

I picked up this movie because I am a BIG Christoph Waltz fan. Released in 1981, this was one of Waltz’ first movies, and even back then he was a great actor. Everyone in this movie did a very good job in the movie and I wished that I knew a bit more German to understand everything that was going on.

The movie follows Markus(Waltz) as he gets in a fight with his mother. He is acting out like any young man who hasn’t had much support from his parents. Expecting him of being a criminal, he has him committed and he is thrown into an asylum. He obviously isn’t mentally ill but the doctor is corrupt and keeps him there anyway. Markus escapes a few times but is taken back. He then befriends and elderly lady, who helps him stay sane through all this (as he is being given electroshock therapy and witness an inmate hang himself). New doctors come into the asylum and realize that there is nothing wrong with Markus, but the scars have already left their mark on him.

This movie was very interesting and very touching. It is like a lot of other stories on the subject of asylum and some of the corruption that was going on during the time. It is filmed in black and white, and while I understand it was to make the movie seem more classic and serious, but in some scenes the lighting was too dark to see anything (I mean, we want to see Waltz’s face right?). But it definitely added to the feel of the film.

I unfortunately had some trouble following as I am working on learning German currently. Even so, I could understand what was going on and enjoyed the movie. If you are able to find this online or pick it up on Amazon, it is definitely worth it. (Note: there are English subtitles for the nonUS DVD region movie but my DVD player is broken and I can’t turn subtitles on). 4.5/5

Until next time!

Dani

Anime Review ~ The Seven Deadly Sins

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The Seven Deadly Sins

Available on Netflx

Audio: Japanese, English, French, German, & Spanish

Subtitles: English, French, German, & Spanish

This Netflix original based on the manga by Nakaba Suzuki is amazing! It is almost like Fairy Tail meets The Devil is a Part-Timer! This is now one of my favorite animes and I can’t wait to see what is in store for these characters, as I believe there will be a second season. I will also be reviewing the manga later (done with the first two volumes and the anime seems to follow the story so far).

At first when I saw that it was a Netflix Original, I was sort of hesitant. What was Netflix doing with an anime? But I figured I would give it a shot and by the second episode, I was hooked!

The Seven Deadly Sins follows Elizabeth as she is trying to find the Seven Deadly Sins to restore peace in the kingdom. It was told that they betrayed the kingdom and killed the Holy Knight leader and they have been fugitives ever since. Elizabeth, however, doesn’t believe this and knows the Holy Knights are corrupt and need the Seven Deadly Sins to stop them.

However, the Seven Deadly Sins aren’t what she expected. The leader appears like a kid (but sure doesn’t act that way…), the second a giant, an immortal, and so on. None are of the same species, as this world combines the world of the humans, demons, fairies, giants, and so much more.

From what I can tell, this is supposed to take place in ancient Britain, the fairies and giants being some of the legends of England. It’s very loosely based of course but still interesting. The world is really cool and interesting. I wish it was real (kind-of).

The characters are really well developed. Each have their own back story and in the first season, you get to see a lot of their back story. Ban, the Fox sin of Greed, is my favorite by far. He is very fun and has a back story that I very much enjoyed. I can’t wait to see where this character ends up.

I am actually on my third time watching it through this week (I started on Monday and it’s Friday). First time I binged it while sick, second I watched it with my husband, and then I found out it was in German and now I’m watching it in German. I usually can’t watch something more than once, and definitely not right away. This story keeps me so interested that I am able to watch it three times through AND read it as well. I cannot wait for the second season! Do check it out, it is worth your time!!!

But seriously, go watch it right now.

Dani

Music Review ~ Doll Skin’s In Your Face

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Doll Skin website – Buy now!!! DO IT!

Based out of Arizona, Doll Skin is an all-girl band that will rock your world. The moment I put the CD in my computer, I knew that these girls were amazing. With an 80s rock band feel mixed with modern punk, this is the music I love and could listen to hours (although my husband hates it when I do that). I can see these girls going far and I can’t wait for music to come! I hope they make it to Seattle or play while I am in Arizona because this is definitely a band I want to see live.

There are 6 songs on this first album and, just as Ghost of the Robot, I loved them all (again, it’s rare I swear).

  1. Family of Strangers – A nice intro for sure! I love this song and it is definitely my favorite on the album. Any song that has girls rocking this hard, with such passion, I will definitely love and be able to rock out for hours.
  2. Wring Me Out – A nice punk song that about love. It definitely captures the feeling of love suffocating, as what the song is about. Sometimes lyrics and tone don’t match but these girls nailed it.
  3. Let’s Be Honest – This song is a little softer than the first two, but still great. It could be my theme song, honestly, with the lyrics “Do I make you feel awkward, does it look like I care? I got no filter to show for….” Yeah that’s me…
  4. Blind – a slower, softer song that is touching and one that I can enjoy (as I don’t particularly like slow or soft songs unless they really grab my soul). Reminds me of the 90s, something like Avril Lavigne’s old style.
  5. So Much Nothing – Bringing the tempo back up, this song is something a lot of people can really relate to. When everything starts feeling like nothing—these girls know how to relate to their audience, to those who would be interested in punk rock music. This is my second favorite song on the album.
  6. Weatherman (Live) – I’ve heard some pretty bad live songs on albums, but this one is definitely great. It’s understandable, doesn’t rely like some bands do. A great exit to the album.

So if you get the chance, definitely check out Doll Skin! They are a great band that I hope will go far in the music world. I love their style and can’t wait to hear more from them.

Over and out,

Dani

Manga Review: Wanted

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Wanted by Matsuri Hino

A short little manga series that had a lot of potential but unfortunately got shelved due to her Vampire Knight series going on for 19 volumes (but that is amazing as well!).

The story starts out about a girl who lost her love to a pirate and goes on to find the pirate who kidnapped her love. She finds out that the pirate captain is actually her love and she stays on the ship to be with him. They also run into problems with the navy, of course, and they have to stay out of trouble.

The art, as always, is tremendously beautiful. I love Matsuri Hino’s art in all of her work, and this story does not disappoint. I really like the pictures in between chapters as she puts in so detail to what she puts in each drawing. Not only is the drawing beautiful, but the colors are great as well. For example:

The characters are pretty interesting, I just wished that Luce wouldn’t treat Arto like a little girl, but it is understandable as she is on a boat with a bunch of pirates. As I said, it ends short and there should be more to the story. If you love pirates though, this is a great short and will make you smile.

Also, there is a short story at the end called Spring Cherry Blossoms that is also cute and heartwarming. If you love Vampire Knight, definitely check this out.

I give this manga a 5/5 as it wasn’t the story’s fault that it got cancelled or not finished as she had prior obligations. It’s beautiful, cute, and sweet and I never wanted to put the manga down.

Dani

 

Movie Review: Housebound

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Housebound (2014)

Origin: New Zealand

Language: English

I haven’t seen too many horror movies but after reading the summary, I thought it sounded pretty good. The story follows a girl who got caught robbing an ATM and is under house arrest for eight months. She hates her old home, where her mom and stepfather reside, and makes is vat first annoyed by them. Her mother then claims the house is haunted. At first she doesn’t believe it but then starts to see and hear weird things. Is there another house guest, and is it of this world, or another?

This a really well done movie, especially with how small of a budget. It was very different and a lot of scenes where you think you know what’s going to happen, it doesn’t, but something even more weird/random happens. It is quite humorous at some points, as it is supposed to be a comedy and horror.

The characters were pretty interesting, and pretty developed. You learn more of why the girl is the way she is, although I wanted to learn more about the father. The ending is pretty funny as well and I definitely enjoyed it.

I also wanted to know more about what the house once was and why exactly they bought the house. There were a few unanswered questions that could have been answered to straighten everything out.

All in all, I give it a 4.5/5. It was pretty funny, but could have more info of the past and how the house was ‘haunted’.

Anime Review: Ouran High School Host Club

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(Note: I haven’t read the manga yet)

So at first I didn’t think that I would care for this anime, was just wanting to binge watch something I knew my husband wouldn’t care for (which wasn’t the case as he was as entertained as I was by this show). I loved it!

OHSHC follows Haruhi as she is a scholarship honor student at Ouran High School who accidentally breaks a very expensive vase of the Host Club’s. Since she can’t pay the money back, she has to become a host for the club. Little did they realize that Haruhi was actually a girl not a boy, but they decide to dress her up as a boy and let all the girls fawn over her anyway.

The anime goes into all the trouble the host club gets into, along with all the girls they help make smile. It is really cute, fun, and at times, hilarious! They characters all well rounded and have their own arcs. My favorite character was Haruhi’s dad.

The only downside to this anime is that it ended abruptly. I figure it must have gotten cancelled or they decided not to do a second season so the writers had to draw it to a close right away. It was sad and I couldn’t believe I watched 26 episodes in just a couple days. I wanted to cry…

If you haven’t seen this anime, I recommend it. It is fun, cute, and light hearted. 5/5!

Movie Review: Ring of Curse / Gomennasai (2001)

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Ring of Curse / Gomennasai

Japanese with English subtitles

This Japanese movie follows a girl named Yuka who, along with other girls in class, starts to bully a strange girl in their class named Kurohane. Yuki didn’t feel bad since she was jealous of Kurohane’s writing skills and wanted to beat her in a contest for the drama. To find out, Kurohane didn’t write a screen play, but actually a novel that left the girl who stole and read it dead. More deaths happen after people read her notebook and Yuka figures out that Kurohane is behind it. Kurohane explains why she started killing people and why she is learning how to curse write. The rest of the movie deals with the curse and how Yuka must stop it

The story also goes into Kurohane’s past even more and tells what she wrote in her diary. I found it to be kind of strange that she told part of the story, then we hear the rest through the diary.

Plot-wise, I found this story be quite fascinating. A girl can write curses and whoever reads them will die. Based on an mobile story years before, I think that it was great that the pop group Buono! wanted to create it in a film because it spoke to them so much. It is one of those horror movies that makes you kind of nervous and glad you can’t read Japanese because you don’t want to be cursed too (though I wonder if Buono! made it into a movie as well so they didn’t get cursed). It was more about plot than it was about special effects.

This movie was rather creepy in the concept, but the sound and video lens were lacking. Although I really don’t care about special effects that much, the lighting, sound, and film angles did bother me as they didn’t make it feel like a horror movie. If they invested in it a little more, I think this could have been a lot scarier. The creepiest part was when Kurohane tells her story, as the lighting changed and was the only time they used it to their advantage (not sure if it was on purpose though). And they really needed to get rid of the high-pitch sound, it was really annoying.

The acting was okay. Some actresses could have been a little better at acting, but for the most part they were pretty good.

I give the movie a 3.5/5. The plot was good and creepy in concept, but the filming and sound could have been better to make it a lot more scary.

P.S., if you are a person who gets chain letters and is paranoid the chain letter will curse them if they don’t forward the letter, probably shouldn’t watch this movie…

Dani

Movie Review: Iron Sky (Director Cut)

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I have to be honest, this is one of my favorite movies. It is a great parody directed by Timo Vuorensola. There are so many little jokes that they will leave you laughing (like when the main character James Washington pointed at one of the Nazis and said ‘who are you supposed to be, Prince Harry?’). The movie was originally made released in Finland, then actually released through Walt Disney in the States (of which I did not know until now).

They did a great job researching Nazi culture, predicting what the future would be like if they went to the moon, and what Earth would be like in the future if they had to face this problem. I did, however, want to learn more about what they ate and such, how they were able to travel to the moon without anyone noticing, but it’s not relevant to the story as it is a parody.

The plot itself was pretty believable, as the President of the United States has sent people to the moon to help her ratings in the next election and once they are there, they find the Nazi moon camp as they are mining Helium-3. James Washington gets captured and has to take them to the Earth for another phone computer to power their large space ship, that is after they turn him into an Aryan. Meanwhile Renate is an Earth specialist who sneaks aboard to see the Earth she thinks she knows so much about.

On Earth they find that things have changed a lot.

They kidnap the President’s assistant, Vivian, so that they can talk to her and declare war (or, as Renate thinks, bring peace and kindness as she has been brainwashed on the moon). Vivian takes them to the President, making them appear as campaign troop leaders and use Renate’s brainwashed message about peace. They use the same ideas for their campaign. Meanwhile the Nazis on the moon are preparing for war.

When they get the computer back to the moon, the Nazis declare attack on the Earth and every country is trying to figure out whose ships they are. They each act like they don’t have their own militarized spaceships but actually all space craft revolving the Earth has been militarized. An all-out war breaks out between the Earth and moon.

This movie is very well done and actually is in German when on the moon and English when they are in America (I loved that!). It’s refreshing to have a movie that tries to keep the language true to who is talking.

BTW, the fact that they had Vivian reenact the Hitler youtube video parody that has been subtitled so many times was amazing. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, go here)

One of the problems I did have in this movie was that they had sound in space. Pet peeve, really… That’s why Firefly was amazing! But other than that, I enjoy this movie very much! 5/5!

Also, there is a sequel being made, check it out here!

Until next time!

Dani Hoots