Daughters of the Sun

Starring:Altinay Ghelich Taghani, Soghra Karimi, Zahra Mohammadi, Habib Haddad
Director: Maryam Shahriar
Studio: Facets
Product Type: DVD

Product Description

From Walt Disney Pictures, the studio that brought you THE PRINCESS DIARIES, ICE PRINCESS is a hilarious and heartwarming coming-of-age story featuring popular teen star Michelle Trachtenberg (TV's BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, EUROTRIP). Though she longs to become a graceful champion figure skater, gawky Casey Carlyle (Trachtenberg) has always been just a brainy high school misfit. And with a strong-willed mother (Joan Cusack -- RAISING HELEN) pushing her toward a top university, it seems as if she'll never get the chance to be like the elite skating prodigies she sees at the rink. But when Casey uses her head and follows her heart, she'll find herself transformed beyond her wildest dreams! Also starring Kim Cattrall, it's an uplifting and laugh-packed story your whole family will flip for!

Amazon.com

Like The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, Ice Princess is a fairy tale for girls who dream about what they can be. Casey Carlyle (Michelle Trachtenberg of Buffy the Vampire Slayer) is a physics geek who discovers a mathematical formula for those tricky figure-skating jumps that her fellow high schoolers are performing. It's all part of her plan to nab a juicy college scholarship, but a funny thing happens on the way to Harvard: Casey decides that in the name of research she should try the jumps herself, and she discovers that not only does she have talent, she likes figure skating. Will she throw away her Ivy League dreams in favor of those frilly dresses? Ice Princess isn't a movie that will change the world, and it treads lightly on the downsides of the sport (it costs a lot of money, rivalries are bitter, careers are short, and long hours mean less time to party!); there's also more than one unfortunate reference to how skating makes Casey look "hot." But just as Casey says: "What's wrong with wanting to feel strong and graceful and beautiful?", what's wrong with a movie that lets people explore their options and make decisions for themselves? The on-ice action is believable, and Trachtenberg is especially appealing in the lead role. With Kim Cattrall as the snarling coach, Joan Cusack as Casey's anxious mom, Trevor Blumas as the light romantic interest, Hayden Panettiere as the rival, and champion skaters Michelle Kwan and Brian Boitano as themselves.--David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews:

This Movie Show's That You Can Make Your Dreams Come True!!!!.......2007-06-26

My mom rented Ice Princess on Netflix I liked this movie alot that I watched it 3 or 4 times.I've always liked figure ice skater & I love to wacth figure skating all the time.In Ice Priness at the end of the movie I'm glad Casey gave up Harvard & to after her where she belongs is to be a Figure Skater.Michelle Tractenberg & Hayden Panettiere did a great job protraying their roles in the movie.My friend to me that she & her [...]granddaughter seen Ice Princess & they liked this movie,too.Ice Princess is great movie for kids & adults to enjoy together!!!!

Real Life Drama.......2007-03-27

A truly gifted person succeeds while her best friend is pushed forward by
her mother: frustrated, overbearing and non-successfull figure skater. She at last admits that her daughter's friend is truly gifted and she seems to be satisfied; her daughter no longer under pressure to succeed is very happy too and is finally able to do those things for which has yearned for lo these many years.

Surprisely good........2007-02-23

Ice Princess was a movie I didn't think I would enjoy but to my chargin, I found it very charming, intelligent and not at all sappy even for a Disney movie. The ice skating scenes are beautifully shot, Kim Cattrall is one catty board but you forgive her character later in the film. And Michelle Tractenberg's acting was very convincing, thank god they didn't get that Lindsay Lohan to star in this. I recommend this somewhat serious and "go for your dreams" mantra to every little girl who loves ice skating. Enjoy!

Just watch.......2007-01-26

This is a good movie if you stop criticizing that she mastered a triple jump quickly, and bringing your arms together decreases inertia. Honestly, thats not the point of the movie, it's more about the go for the goal kind of stuff. It's not realistic, but so what?, it's good anyway. One flaw is,she doesn't wear the white dress on the front cover at all in the video. It's also good for kids around 12-13 because it isn't something like Barney or Ariel the Mermaid, but there is nothing inappropriate in it's content.

WOW, people REALLY love happy happy endings to give this movie a 4 star rating.......2006-12-30

I expected to have a good time with this movie because 1. it's about figure skating, my favorite sport, 2. it's disney, fun, happy endings YAY. But after seeing it, I've only begun to remember the ridiculousness in disney movies, but even the Princess Diary wasn't as ridiculous.
first of, I don't care HOW TALENTED YOU ARE, a few months training CAN NOT, and I repeat CAN. NOT. make you master the triple jumps, in fact, they take a LIFETIME of ANY figure skater to master, this I find soley annoying. 2. any figure skating fan who watches figure skating constantly can see that Michell T just can't skate well, I mean, 'course she's good for someone who isn't a renouned figure skater, but even when she skates you can see her body is very tense and hard, not someone who has "natural talent" and graceful movements, the star of the show is the jumping shrimp, and alot of the other skaters who are obvious real skaters, not some actor who tries to skate but did her best, and got silver, gosh I have a big hard time believing that, and Michell Kwon too, you can feel the anger and annoyance in her voice. But what do they make up for that? yeah, she MAGICALLY did the triple jumps, I think this movie'll make any figure skater/figure skater fan really angry
Other than that would be the annoying disney formula: OF COURSE parents can never understand their kids, OF COURSE skating is more glamorous than school, and OF COURSE the science geeks don't have a life and they dress geek-ish. And yeah, one more thing: of course it's either Harvard or skating, GOD knows you can't do both!!! YEAH RIGHT, if she really won silver at such competition it won't matter, Harvard would LET her in non-the-less, and lots of athelets are honor students.
and what else? yeah, the physics, like tucking yourself in DECREASES the moment of inertia, NOT increase, common writer, DO some research at least!!! And everything else she talked about are simple Newtonian laws and equations, nothing impressive or advance as the book she's sleeping on in class- which is an AP physics book- I took the class, I know
they've only done two things right: 1. the blond girl isn't evil- THANK GOD! 2. she won silver with her fall- at least that's less fake, along with everything else...
If you are under 12 you'll like this movie better, if not, avoid, especially if you love figure skating.

Average customer rating:

This Movie Show's That You Can Make Your Dreams Come True!!!!
Real Life Drama
Surprisely good.
Just watch
WOW, people REALLY love happy happy endings to give this movie a 4 star rating

Ice Princess (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Joan Cusack , Kim Cattrall , Michelle Trachtenberg , Hayden Panettiere , and Trevor Blumas
Director: Tim Fywell
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
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The Perfect Man

ASIN: B0009JE57Q
Release Date: 2005-07-19

Amazon.com

Description

Customer Reviews:

This Movie Show's That You Can Make Your Dreams Come True!!!!.......2007-06-26

Real Life Drama.......2007-03-27

Surprisely good........2007-02-23

Just watch.......2007-01-26

WOW, people REALLY love happy happy endings to give this movie a 4 star rating.......2006-12-30

Average customer rating:

A very CHARMING movie!
Delightful in so many ways
One of the 10 Best Films I have ever seen!
A must see!
Shadows in the Sun - a writer's motivator

Shadows in the Sun
Starring: Harvey Keitel , Joshua Jackson , Claire Forlani , Armando Pucci , and Giancarlo Giannini
Director: Brad Mirman
Manufacturer: Buena Vista Home Entertainment
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Americano
Everything You Want
Aurora Borealis
A Good Year (Widescreen Edition)
Proof

ASIN: B000C8STWQ
Release Date: 2006-04-25

Amazon.com

Shadows in the Sun is a feel-good movie that tells the story of two men who're struggling to overcome their fears of not being good enough. When Jeremy Taylor (a charming Joshua Jackson of Dawson's Creek) is assigned the unenviable task of tracking down and signing up reclusive author Weldon Parish (Harvey Keitel), he has his work cut out for him. The American expatriate hasn't written a book in 20 years, has no interest in dealing with junior editors such as Taylor, and sees no reason why he should change his idyllic lifestyle in Italy to worry about meeting hurried deadlines and publisher's editorial changes. In reality, Parish--who stopped writing when his wife died--is scared he won't be able to live up to his reputation as a relevant literary icon. After a few fistfights and the reclaiming of a stolen cow, the two begin to bond. A little. As Parish tells Taylor, "I dislike you less today than yesterday." Not as subtle as Diane Lane's Under the Tuscan Sun, Shadows in the Sun highlights the beauty of rural Italy--and of Claire Forlani, who plays Parish's daughter Isabella. The warm acting and lush scenery transcend the film's slow-moving pace and the predictable ending, which, in movies like this, can be nothing other than happy. --Jae-Ha Kim

Description

If you liked UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN, you'll love this wonderful romantic comedy set in the stunning Italian countryside! Ambitious agent Jeremy Taylor (Joshua Jackson -- CURSED, TV's DAWSON'S CREEK) is sent by his London publishing company on a mission to achieve what many others have failed to do: sign reclusive, wildly eccentric author Weldon Parish (Academy Award(R) nominee Harvey Keitel -- Best Supporting Actor, BUGSY, 1991; NATIONAL TREASURE). Once in enchanting Tuscany, however, Jeremy instead falls head over heals for Weldon's beautiful daughter (Claire Forlani -- THE MEDALLION, ANTITRUST) and develops a friendship with the literary master. It's a charming, fun, and passionate tale that's sure to steal your heart!

Customer Reviews:

A very CHARMING movie!.......2007-04-15

If you liked "Under The Tuscan Sun", you will enjoy this movie too. It is a romantic comedy filmed in the beautiful Italian town of Tuscany. This movie shows wonderful scenery of the countryside. It really makes me want to visit Italy one day. This movie is about an ambitious agent Jeremy Taylor (Joshua Jackson) who is sent by his London publishing company to convince a reclusive, retired author Weldon Parish (Harvey Keitel) to write again. After Jeremy spends time in Tuscany he finds himself very much in love for Weldon's daughter (Claire Forlani) and also he becomes friends with Weldon. This movie has a little bit of everything...romance, comedy, and wonderful scenes of Italy. However I would consider this a girl's movie...or better yet.."chick flick". It is a good movie for a girl's night together with a bottle of wine. Or a good entertainment on a rainy day. If you are interested in Italy or Italian movies then this is the movie for you. I also am a fan of movies filmed in Italy. I imagine it to be the most beautiful place on earth.

Delightful in so many ways.......2007-04-13

Excellent film, my son is a writer, getting his MFA (Masters of Fine Arts) in creative writing/English, to be a professor at a University, he enjoyed it as well.

One of the 10 Best Films I have ever seen!.......2007-04-05

We loved everything about this film. The acting was some of the best. And how can you go wrong with a backdrop like Tuscany to film in! We loved the tender story of two artists who brought out the best and the worst in each other. Amazing! We would like to see more films like this one. We also enjoyed the extra features on the DVD that explained more fully about the making of the film. Let's see more of this caliber of filmmaking!

Dean and Lori Mickelson

A must see!.......2007-02-23

Stunning Tuscan scenery, well filmed and a superb storyline. There is no bad actor nor any bad role in this entire movie! I've never known much about Harvey Keitel before this film. I've seen him but the characters he played never matched his ability. But, this film is, by far, THE BEST role I've ever seen Mr. Keitel play! The depth of this movie will amaze you and long after the movie had ended, good vibes and happy thoughts will linger in your mind! This is a must see movie, definitely an addition to my personal collection and is a "feel good movie" that I will watch again and again! Enjoy!

Shadows in the Sun - a writer's motivator.......2006-08-31

What a wonderful story. For a writer, it is pure inspiration!
Made me laugh and cry :o)
Outstanding cast ...

Average customer rating:

The Vertical Ray of the Sun
Beautiful: Lucid Sensual Dream
Human relations and amazing photography
A study in the CALMNESS in Buddhist cultures
"It's Tranquility I Look For In A Photograph" ~ It's All About The Visuals

The Vertical Ray of the Sun
Starring: Tran Nu Yên-Khê , Nhu Quynh Nguyen , Le Khanh , Quang Hai Ngo , and Chu Hung
Director: Anh Hung Tran
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
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ASIN: B00005RDRJ
Release Date: 2001-12-18

Amazon.com

The lush, super-chic ambience of Tran Anh Hung's third feature, The Vertical Ray of the Sun, presents a beckoning, irresistible vision of Vietnam. The film opens with a sexy brother and sister waking up to the sound of Lou Reed's laconic voice on the stereo. They stretch, practice tai chi, meander toward a late breakfast, and playfully flirt with each other. This morning ritual--slightly disturbing but mostly alluring--recurs as a quietly resistant motif to the disappointment that awaits each character introduced. Shot on location in an impossibly hued Hanoi (lime green and chartreuse abound), the film trails after three beautiful sisters during the month that separates the anniversaries of the deaths of their mother and father. Attempting to protect the ideal memory of their parents' recently assailed love, the sisters recount kindnesses and joke with each other just as the serene charm of the café they run is to be overturned by an unexpected pregnancy and marital infidelities. Tran's lustrous style of collage is unique, pulling the viewer's attention away from imminent conflict and revelation to completely tactile and isolated moments. As with the titular subject of Velvet Underground's "Pale Blue Eyes," the sensual tension lingers on. --Fionn Meade

Customer Reviews:

The Vertical Ray of the Sun.......2007-03-26

This is one of the most cinematographically beautiful films I've seen. The shots along Halong Bay and within Hanoi are stunning and the lyrical beauty of the opening scenes, with the Velvet Underground's Pale Blue Eyes as the accompanying music, is second to none. The plot moves well and sustains the viewer's interest as it tracks the lives of three sisiters and their brother in contemporary Hanoi. Sensational.

Beautiful: Lucid Sensual Dream.......2007-01-03

This is one of my favoritest movies. The cinematography in this film is visually eloquent, to say the least. The story unfolds hypnotically; its charisma expressed through rhythmic allegory. Simply BeatyFull. Plus, a soundtrack that features Lou Reed and eccentric passionate love scenes.
It is not for those looking for a straightforward climax of sensory overload as we are accustomed to in Holywood theaters. However, it is a nice glimpse at another culture...It makes me wanna go to vietnam and wake up. Maybe go for a bike-ride in the rain. ;P

Human relations and amazing photography .......2006-08-06

A wonderful film by master director Tran Anh Hung who gave us a series of equally well directed productions.
This film is all about human relations blend with wonderful music and exceptional photography.
The actors took up their roles in a balanced way with each one able to show his/her best while at the same time to complement each other in a harmony of acting.
The music is spectacular combining well-chosen western music and Vietnamese.
It is of a particular importance to notice the sound of this film. Background sounds and effects strengthened by spending photography make the viewer to feel the heat of the tropics, the rain and humidity and the coolness of the garden.
But the most important aspect is the human relation, all presented for what they are in real life. While able to strengthen the virtues of fidelity does not condemn infidelity, while praising family ties and values does not shy away from questioning believes.
The photography is superb with the director of photography able to capture the sun, the bright areas and combine them perfectly with shades.
The contrast of the clean spotless dresses in bright colours with the run down walls of a city in the tropics is something one can notice and appreciate.
The collection of small details of the daily life that could have gone unnoticed become through the photography part of the beauty of this film.
The music is acting also as a tool of symbolism and one must pay attention to the beautiful group singing.

A study in the CALMNESS in Buddhist cultures.......2006-01-15

AS a visual artist who spends alot of time in Asian countries, I find this movie very moving...first, the visuals, the orderly square and rectangular compositions, the colours, and the editing, all adding up to catching SO WELL the clamness inherent in Buddhist cultures, (of which there are not as many as most believe).
Amazon accurately delineates what the film is all about. There are surprises,,,hearing Lou Reed, discovering a house in the water of an area considered one ot the most beautiful natural places in the world, not a prostitute to be found, (unlike in the director's earlier movie "Cyclo"), or farmers in straw hats. Just briefly following the lives of 3 male contemporay artistic professionals: an actor, a photographer and a writer, and the five women very much involved in their lives, but it is really more about the three sisters of the 5 women involved.

NOW the important stuff: I viewed this DVD on high end equipment.
Although anamorphic, with this DVD, inorder to read the second line of subtitles when a second line appears, you have to view the movie with the "normal" aspect set on a widescreen t.v., resulting in a much smaller image. Is this bad? No, it is GOOD. This is a very beautiful filmed movie. Here the subtitles are NOT overlayed on top of the image, which is GREAT. So just sit closer. I pity any viewer seeing a pan and scan version of this movie on cable t.v. and thinking they actually viewed this movie. Highly recommend for a terrific character study of three sisters, and the men in their lives, and a perfect tone poem of the calmness that pervails all the characters' lives.

"It's Tranquility I Look For In A Photograph" ~ It's All About The Visuals.......2005-11-21

Note: Vietnamese with English subtitles.

Director Anh Hung Tran's has followed up his academy award nominated masterpiece, 'The Scent Of Green Papaya' and 'Cyclo' with yet another cinematically lush and textured film which relies more on its visual appeal than substance of storyline. Also returning for her third appearance in an Anh Hung Tran film is the exotic and lovely Tran Nu Yen-Khe in the role of Lien, the youngest of three sisters and a brother.

Another gently flowing, beautifully filmed tapestry of color and form weaved seamlessly together in a surreal, sensual tale of Vietnamese siblings, their spouses and families. All seems happy and carefree in the beginning as you view them together planning a ceremonial dinner honoring the birthday of their deceased Mother. They harmoniously interact during both the preparation and celebration of the meal, giving every indication that all is well. However some are secretly harboring personal secrets concerning where they go and what they do when alone. Secrets that exposed would bring turmoil and disruption into their peaceful existence.

Like Anh Hung Tran's previous endeavors you go into the film knowing that it's going to be first and foremost about the visuals. Accepting that premise you will find 'The Vertical Ray of the Sun' a rewarding experience. If however you are more concerned with storyline you should look elsewhere.

Average customer rating:

The naïve dreams of the childhood and its fatal consequences!
Two cute girls and a plan gone awry
An Arthouse Masterpiece
Thought Provoking... For Sure
Experiencing Kim Ki-Duk

Samaritan Girl
Starring: Park Jun-gyu , Lee Eol , Gwak Ji-min , Seo Min-jung , and Gweon Hyeon-min
Director: Kim Ki-duk
Manufacturer: Tartan Video
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Bad Guy
Oldboy
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ASIN: B000FZEQDC
Release Date: 2005-05-10

Customer Reviews:

The naïve dreams of the childhood and its fatal consequences! .......2007-04-16

"The Samaritan girl" is a very complex movie that must be seen, taking into account three levels; the first part turns around the childish vision of the world
where the prostitution is regarded by these girls as a trade, a goal by itself to make their dreams come true, that ticket that will allow them to travel, in search of new landscapes. The second part is the face of nastiness and repulsion of her friend once the tragedy happened, and the psychological device she will employ on order to achieve a personal vengeance. The third part is the expiation of her father who is a cop, and finds out the consequences of such abominable act. The final scene is am anthological metaphor, the camera progressively opens the objective and elevates itself leaving us before such dramatic end.

Kim Ki Duk has achieved an original proposal, without falling into easy concessions, there' s no overindulgence or melodramatic approach. It `s the life with all its merciless cruelness and horrid realism.

A powerful, bold and intense film that reveals many unsaid aspects of this delicate theme that many of us, simply overlook it.

Two cute girls and a plan gone awry.......2007-03-18

I justed watched SAMARITAN GIRL tonight. This Korean film, directed by Kim Ki-Duk, features Ji-Min Kwak as Yeo-jin, a high school girl who runs a small prostitution business with her friend Jae-young (played by the cute as a button Yeo-reum Han, acting here under the name Min-jeong Seo, according to Imdb.)

These two girls are best friends and seem to do everything together. To raise money so they can fly to Europe, Jae-young comes up with the prostitution idea. She sleeps with the clients and actually enjoys it, while Yeo-jin makes the arrangements and keeps the money. Things go bad one day when two cops follow Jae-young up to her liaison in a motel, and attempting to escape, jumps from the window to her death.

Yeo-jin is distraught at the loss of her best friend and beset with guilt over having the money entrusted to her. To alleviate her conscience, she arranges liaisons with Jae-young's clients to give back the money. However, when her father, a cop on the vice squad, discovers what she's up to, things take a dark turn for both himself and his daughter's customers.

This film seemed like several in one. It starts off as a story about the friendship of two school girls, turns into a tale of about guilt and redemption, and then turns into a story about revenge and a lack of communication. I'd like to have seen more of the friendship (with more screen time for Yeo-reum Han), and some things seem rather far-fetched, but it's a thought provoking film and I liked it overall.

The film is presented on DVD by Tartan Video and has one very serious flaw that I've never seen before on disc: for the last ten or fifteen minutes, there's a quite visible bar running vertically through the picture about a third of the way in from the left. It's as though I was watching a broadcast with a weak signal. I couldn't believe I was seeing such a thing. Did anybody at Tartan look at this transfer before committing it to disc? I'm thinking of writing them to say that, after seeing this, I must seriously question getting any more of their titles.

Otherwise, the film is presented at 1.78:1, widescreen enhanced. The picture is okay but not great - kind of on the dark side, and certainly not among the sharpest that I've seen. It is watchable, though. I listened to the DTS soundtrack, but it sounded like a regular stereo soundtrack with no special audio effects.

An interesting film, and I'd like to see more by this director, but the transfer problem at the end is unforgiveable.

Ratings: Film - 4 stars; DVD transfer - 2 stars

An Arthouse Masterpiece.......2006-11-27

KINDLY NOTE SOME MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD.

Samaria is probably the first arthouse movie to emerge from South Korea.

Upon viewing the cover of the Dvd, many will get the wrong impression that this is some exploitation Movie. This is definitely not the case. Actually this has got to be one of the most honest movies to tackle such a delicate subject without ever once being explicit.

The director could have easily spoilt the movie with graphic sex or nudity, but instead this very brave director (who actually won the award for Best Director at the Berlin Film Festival) has managed to cross a message that is very important in our times without ever once embarrassing his audience. The movie is divided into 3 chapters, it opens with two girls chatting on the Internet with a complete stranger to meet for a date. Next we see a title on the screen which reads Vasumitra.

Vasumitra was a prostitute in India where legend has it that any man who slept with her turned into a devoted Buddhist! The director will further in the movie also mention other religious references. The name Vasumitra is the name that one of the girls will actually use as to disguise her identity. So begins the adventures of two teenage girls in the world of prostitution all for the sake to earn some easy money. An important shot at the very beginning of the movie after one of the girls has her first encounter with her client shows them eating a roasted pig's feet. Could this be a clear indication where these poor two girls are heading too, since the pig is considered by many, a filthy animal.

To further prove my point both the girls enter a bathhouse to wash. Describing what one of them just did was filthy. Next the girls run around in a park where they sit next to a line of statues of a complete family consisting of the mother father and children, which clearly shows they're longing to be part of a family.

Meanwhile one the girls is taking notes in her diary of every man she encounters. She sleeps in her tiny room soon, to be awakened by her father who is a detective!

He takes his daughter to school, and here again we hear another religious story this time about Jesus told by the father to his daughter.

Tragedy soon strikes and while one of the girls is busy with a client, the police raid the apartment. In a state of panic the girl has no idea what to do, and jumps out of the apartment window and falls to the ground, she is carried to the hospital by the detective's daughter but she is in a very serious condition and about to lose her life. Her friend persuades her to give her the diary and contact one of her clients, to visit her one last time before she dies. This is actually were the story takes a dramatic turn!

After her friend dies in hospital the detective's daughter starts visiting each client to return back the money her friend made from these men.

It is important to note that her friend was just there to look after her and take care of the money and had never encountered any clients up until now! Meanwhile here father is investigating a murder case and this is where he sees his own daughter in an opposite apartment with a client! Thus begins a story of revenge on each client, without the daughter ever knowing her father is actually one step behind her.

Revealing more would spoil this unique movie experience. The direction is superb and the haunting score literally pulls you in the mood of the story. I have no hesitation in highly recommending this movie to serious moviegoers. I would like to applaud Ki-duk Kim for making such an honest movie about a very serious subject.

Ki-duk Kim has truly made an amazing arthouse Masterpiece.

Thought Provoking... For Sure.......2006-06-12

In Samaritan Girl Kim Ki-duk once again asks us to ponder deeply into complicated space of the human psyche. Two young girls set out on a mission to save money for a holiday. When one of the adventures goes horribly wrong, the young girl turned prostitute commits suicide, forcing her best friend and partner in crime (who is also her manager, and arguably her lesbian lover) to seek a sense of atonement. Jae-yeong's (Seo Min-jeong) is not bothered by and even attempts to connect with her clients on a personal and human level. Her best friend and manager Yeo-Jin (Kwak Ji-min) at first resists but later sets out to "do the right thing" by servicing those very same clients and then returning the money they paid to be serviced by Jae-yeong. The reason for this is not fully explained. Guilty perhaps and not wanting to benefit from the "ill-gotten" wealth, one gets the sense that the burning of the money would have done the trick. The story is elevated several levels when Yeo-Jin's father - a police officer (Lee Eol) witnesses an encounter and is forced to deal with the issue - not just as a professional but as a father. The turbulent emotions and reactions set the stage for arguably the most complex issues set out in the movie - for that alone, the movie is worth watching. After Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...and Spring, Kim Ki-duk sticks with the more "forgiving" mode, oddly juxtaposing the short moment of happiness as Jae-yeong gives of herself to the men around her and martyrs herself in order to free Yeo-Jin, who in turn has to whore herself to restore serenity to the world vis-à-vis the heavy handed retribution leveled at the johns by Yeo-Jins father. One is almost reminded of the sexual encounter in Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...and Spring where a young monk and the young woman are both "liberated" through their "encounter" only to be subjected to suffering caused by a sense of attachment that leave both, more troubled. Honestly though, one is left troubled by the target of the existential consideration - children. Arguably, by subjecting the man to his daughter's whoring, Kim Ki-duk does in an odd sort of way bring the two closer - the father does not REALLY know his daughter. It is really difficult to figure out what Kim Ki-duk is trying to do here.

Miguel Llora

Experiencing Kim Ki-Duk.......2005-08-30

MOVIE: 5/5
I won't bother saying what the movie is about as you can read the synopsis provided by the editor above.

Kim Ki-Duk as a film maker has a real talent in effortlessly establishing his characters and relationships which are vital in moving his movies forward. The development he creates in a single scene without dialogue, other directors fail to do within entire movies. In essence, he is efficient because he understands human behaviour and the power of subtlety. Others may find the lack of onscreen activity boring but I can't help feel fascinated and completely drawn in with each passing minute of this movie.

This is not a movie for everyone and it is by no means a happy one. It is at times sad, depressing, and revolting. But it is hard not to come away with some emotional investment with either of the main characters. At the core, I believe the same thing is driving both main characters (the father and daughter), that being nobility, but here we see how being noble leads to suffering. I have only seen one other Kim Ki-Duk movie (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring) but both have left an everlasting impression.

If you are a fan of Kim Ki-Duk or Korean cinema, I highly recommend this.

DVD: 2/5
There is no reason why this movie should look the way it does given how recent it is. It's not the worse, but certainly far from perfect. The video transfer is inconsistent and it looks like it came from a less than perfect print. At the start, I couldn't help but feel a little distracted by all the nicks in the print. I eventually got use to it and the transfer does improve in the middle section of the movie. I found the transfer to be quite soft throughout. And towards the end, there is a barely noticable vertical band in many scenes. Like I said, its barely noticeable but distracting somewhat.
The Dolby Digital/DTS mixes are pretty much identical. It is a front heavy mix which is appropriate for the subject matter. The surrounds do chime in but are reserved primarily for ambient sounds. There are no worthwhile extras which is unfortunate.

Description

Amanagol (Altinay Ghelich Taghani), the daughter of a poor rural family in Iran, becomes "Aman", when her father shaves her head, disguises her as a boy, and dispatches her to another village to work weaving carpets. Proficient at the job, "Aman" is nonetheless exploited by the owner and isolated from all those around her. Her secret becomes jeopardized when a young co-worker, engaged to an older man, falls in love with her.

Average customer rating:

Ciudad del Sol (Sun City)
Starring: Darío Grandinetti , Nicolás Cabré , Jazmín Stuart , Patricio Contreras , and Luis Luque
Director: Carlos Galettini
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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