Blue Tiger

Starring:Virginia Madsen, TÃ´ru Nakamura, Dean Hallo, Ryo Ishibashi, Sal Lopez, Yuji Okumoto, Harry Dean Stanton, Brenda Varda, FranÃ§ois Chau, Henry Mortensen, Claudia Templeton, ToshirÃ´ Obata, John Hammil, Chris DeRose, Thomas 'Doc' Boguski, Chery Frey, Dan Bradley, Michael Madsen
Director: Norberto Barba
Studio: Image Entertainment
Product Type: DVD

Description

What she just saw could kill her. Virginia Madsen (The Rainmaker) and Harry Dean Stanton (The Green Mile) star in this sleek, stylish thriller about an ancient myth that comes to life in a woman's quest for vengeance. According to legend, the savage Blue Tiger has only one weakness: its desire for a Red Tiger soulmate. When a Yakuza assassin emblazoned with the Blue Tiger tattoo kills her young son, Gena Hayes (Madsen) transforms herself into the predatory Red Tiger to seek revenge. Aided by reclusive tattoo artist Smith (Stanton), she prowls the underworld of Los Angeles's Little Tokyo, seducing Japanese gangsters one by one to see if their bare bodies contain the tattoo she seeks. Increasingly dependent on a world she barely understands, Gena realizes she cannot stop until she finds the Blue Tiger--and her own true destiny.

Customer Reviews:

A mothers revenge........2006-03-19

Great movie, I loved it when it first come out and still love it (apart from the God awful waitress costume choice). The acting is solid and convincing, the story line and pace is entertaining and good. The sex scene was well done and in line with the story. This is a good revenge flick that incorporated the east v west theme well. Highly recommend.

Better than it should be.......2003-06-29

While skirting the edges of formula, this film nevertheless manages to include a few elements of originality that definitely place it above the norm in the thriller arena.

Gena Hayes, a single mother of a five year old son, watches in shock and grief as her young son's life is destroyed by a yakuza in a drugstore wearing a silver mask. She sees a blue tiger tatoo on the yakuza's chest and does some research, ultimately finding a tatoo artist who knows its signficance. When she has him ink a red tiger on her bare skin, following the legend of the meeting of the two tigers, it's purely for revenge.

So the revenge motif, long a staple of the thriller--American and otherwise--pins the story's plot to its characters. But here the writing and directing are both fresh and lean, so there is a minimum of unnecessary grunting, emoting, slipshod hammy dialogue, and pointless commanding and commandeering (i.e., You do this; Steal that truck...etc.)

Instead what we have is a sharper, crisper entry in the East meets West thriller department (the setting is Los Angeles' Little Tokyo) whose momentum is strong and confident enough to pull you to the finale which is a meting out of just desserts. More important than the inner working of the yakuza is Gena's own thinking on how to find the one who killed her child. (For a more in-depth, gritty, and intense portrayal of the yakuza, see a few films by Fukasaku like Battles Without Honor or Humanity, or Yakuza Graveyard--or by Beat Takeshi, like Sonatine).

Harry Dean Stanton here plays a reclusive tatoo artist and acquits himself well. Only one logical flaw comes to mind here. Is there only ONE man with a blue tiger tatoo?

You decide.

Well done.......2001-09-02

This movie was well done. It got it's message across on how revenge motivates people to do things. Madsen was execellent as the mother out for justice. The other actors did well also. I'd recomend this to everyone I see.

Great Action.......2001-08-24

If your into action movies, this is right up your alley. It keeps you hooked. Virginia Madsen does a great job as a mother getting revenge on the person you killed her son. I'd recommend this to all my friends.

Violent, haunting, stunning.......2000-06-13

"Blue Tiger" is a film that you want to hate for its overtly gratuitous violence, but instead you find yourself compelled to watch it again and again, haunted by the tragic story that slowly unfolds before your eyes. The film begins with the death of a child. A young mother Gena Hayes played magnificently by Virginia Masden witnesses the death of her son when he is accidentally shot by a member of the Japanese Yakuza. All she sees of the killer is a tattoo on his chest and back depicting a red tiger. This image haunts Gena and to stop herself descending into madness she decides to find the man who killed her child. In order to find him she must first infiltrate the world of the Yakuza. This she does by becoming a hostess at a club frequented by Yakuza gang members. She learns to speak Japanese, teaches herself how to handle a gun and then sets out on her quest of retribution. At the same time she learns more about the red tiger she saw. Harry Dean Stanton is superb as the dying tattoist Smith who tells her the legend of the red tiger and the blue tiger. These two mythical creatures are destined to meet one day, whether in passion or in violence, but when they do meet a price has to be paid. Gena takes this legend to heart and gets Smith to craft into her flesh the image of the red tiger's nemesis. This is he does, and it is one of the film's pivotal moments as we watch him begin to tattoo her flesh, not swiftly with an electric needle but done over time with crude instruments, as it would have been done hundreds of years ago in Japan. Gena's pain becomes our pain as she suffers the agonizing crafting of the Blue Tiger onto her flesh for like her we know that soon the two tigers will meet and only one will survive. The director uses the image of this tiger and its counterpart as a central theme that runs throughout the story. This is not just a story about revenge; it is also a love story, because Gena inadvertently falls in love with the killer of her son. There are several sub plots to keep track of such as the killer's relationship with his brother, a gang war between Asian and Whites, and a cop who suspects that Gena knows more about her son's killer than she is letting on. The film is amazing because it manages to grab you by the throat from the beginning and keep you riveted to your seat right to the end. This is one of the best films you will ever buy; it will stun your senses and leave you begging for more. Virginia Masden brilliantly portrays the fragile but vengeful Gena Hayes and Tôru Nakamura is totally believable as the damned killed Seiji, a man of violence, yet a man of compassion. "Blue Tiger" is well worth adding to your collection of videos if you want something intelligent but action packed on your shelf; it's just a shame it isn't available on DVD as well.

Monster Rancher - Catch a Tiger By the Tail (Vol. 2)

Average customer rating:

The Rancher feature
Monster Ranger -- Anime "Mon" Continues

Monster Rancher - Catch a Tiger By the Tail (Vol. 2)
Starring: Saffron Henderson , Andrew Francis , Janyse Jaud , Doc Harris , and Brian Drummond
Manufacturer: Adv Films
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Animation | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

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General | Animation | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Monster Rancher - The Problems with Pixie (Vol. 4)

ASIN: B00004STWG
Release Date: 2000-05-23

Customer Reviews:

The Rancher feature.......2001-03-11

In enthernel worm a man has a worm and is causing trouble.Will he Hand the worm over to the seed sisters.In Tiger of the wind,The tigers are running riot.Will Genki and Holly be able to save the injured Tiger.In Hares trick,Tiger is in battle with a hare.Who will win?If you want the answer get this on DVD!

Monster Ranger -- Anime "Mon" Continues.......2000-06-13

In the tradition of Pokemon and Digimon, we can now watch Monster Rancher. If you have a Pokemon or Digimon fan at home, they will enjoy Monster Ranger just as much. Our new hero, Genki (which means energy, and he's full of it) is mystically transformed to the world of Monster Ranger while playing the new "Monster Ranger 200x" on his Sony Playstation. He joins a party of monsters and a fellow human (girl -- can't recall her name) to find the mystical Pheonix monster who will turn all the bad monsters, ruled by the evil Mu, into good monsters. There's enough variety and uniqueness for any "Mon" fan to enjoy these. In the second DVD, the party gathers new allies during various adventures. I recommend the actual Sony Playstation (Monster Ranger 2) game as well.

Average customer rating:

Blue Tiger [Region 2 Import]

Manufacturer: Contender
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video
Product Features:

Trailer

ASIN: B000M4D484

Product Description

A dark and tense story of courage and danger set in the deadly world of the Japanese Brotherhood of terror - The Yakuza. A courageous mother vows to avenge the death of her young child. Killed in the crossfire of a Yakuza 'Hit'. Her only clue is the lurid blue tiger tattoo on the hitman's chest. Infiltrating the Yakuza's shadowy world. She seduces suspect after suspect to uncover the killer and exact burning revenge.

Average customer rating:

A mothers revenge.
Better than it should be
Well done
Great Action
Violent, haunting, stunning

Blue Tiger [Region 2]
Starring: Virginia Madsen , Tôru Nakamura , Dean Hallo , Ryo Ishibashi , and Sal Lopez
Director: Norberto Barba
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Thrillers | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000066CV2

Customer Reviews:

A mothers revenge........2006-03-19

Better than it should be.......2003-06-29

While skirting the edges of formula, this film nevertheless manages to include a few elements of originality that definitely place it above the norm in the thriller arena.

Harry Dean Stanton here plays a reclusive tatoo artist and acquits himself well. Only one logical flaw comes to mind here. Is there only ONE man with a blue tiger tatoo?

You decide.

Well done.......2001-09-02

Great Action.......2001-08-24

Violent, haunting, stunning.......2000-06-13

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