Subway

Starring:Isabelle Adjani, Christopher Lambert, Constantin Alexandrov, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Jean-Pierre Bacri, Jimmy Blanche, Richard Bohringer, Jean Bouise, Michel D'Oz, Michel Galabru, Christian Gomba, Alain Guillard, Pierre-Ange Le Pogam, Jean-Claude Lecas, Jean Reno, BenoÃ®t RÃ©gent, Isabelle Sadoyan, Eric Serra, Arthur Simms
Studio: United American Video
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
This dark and highly stylized French import directed by Luc Besson (The Fifth Element, The Professional) concerns an enigmatic safecracker played by Christopher Lambert (Highlander) hiding out in the Paris Metro system from a gangster. While living in the underground and eluding both gangsters and Metro police he meets up with a group of colorful and quirky subterranean inhabitants eager to help him and start a rock band. All the while the safecracker blackmails a rich woman (Isabelle Adjani) with whom he is in love. Meant to be a tongue-in-cheek commentary on urban life, the film works better as a light freewheeling entertainment, with well-constructed fast-paced action sequences and a breezy sense of humor about itself. Subway is an intriguing diversion and a chance to see the cutting edge of modern French moviemaking. --Robert Lane

Style Wars
Average customer rating:

Much better than Cats

Critical FIlm for Hip Hop Lovers

Classic

history

know your history....

Style Wars
Starring: Sam Schacht
Director: Tony Silver
Manufacturer: Passion River
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Wild Style

The Freshest Kids - A History of the B-Boy

Beat Street

Subway Art

Scratch (Ws Dol Dts)

ASIN: B000A7DVZO
Release Date: 2005-08-23

Amazon.com

Some call it tagging, some call it writing, still others call it bombing--it's all graffiti. Whether it's art or not is another matter, but it's undeniably illegal. Tony Silver and Henry Chalfant's historic PBS documentary Style Wars tracks the rise and fall of subway graffiti in New York in the late 1970s and early 1980s. At the peak of its popularity, graffiti was as much a part of B-boy culture as rapping, scratching, and breaking. The filmmakers present a sympathetic, but well-rounded portrait of their subject through extensive interviews with taggers--notably Seen, Kase, and Dondi--art collectors, transit authorities, and even Mayor Ed Koch, who would eventually put the hammer down. Along the way, they documented the burgeoning breakdance scene, with a focus on the world-famous Rock Steady Crew. The soundtrack features selections from Grandmaster Flash, the Treacherous Three, and other tagger-approved icons of old-school hip-hop. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Product Description

STYLE WARS (DVD MOVIE)

Customer Reviews:

Much better than Cats.......2007-06-22

Art historians comb through years of research to find landmark events or works of art that launched a new era or genre. This documentary is that catalytic event for graffiti at the global level, and hip hop culture in general. The ripple effect that this documentary had across the world was amazing. If you were a kid in 1984, and your parents took you to the museum to see the World Graffiti Tour (I still have the poster) you went out the next day and spray painted your name on something.

After re-watching this in 2007, I noted something that I missed in 1984. The writers are plagued by CAP, the nutball renegade who is bent on crossing out all pieces with his toy throw-ups, yet they refuse to band together and resolve the problem. It struck me that although CAP's actions are antagonistic to the community of graffiti writer's, his principals are the same. He is putting his name up where it will get the most attention. On some subconscious level the larger graffiti community recognizes this and sees that by persecuting CAP, their hypocritical actions would place them in the same category as those that criticize and decry the merits of Graffiti as an art form. As an adult looking back at that time period, I was impressed by this unwillingness to turn against one who is basically on the same side, especially given the general opinion that New Yorkers had at the time of Graffiti writers being a destructive and violent group. I bet those New Yorkers are now longing for the days when kids carried spray paint in their back packs instead of AK-47s in the back seat of their Escalade. Personally, I would prefer it if the kids got the money for the Escalade from painting murals rather than slinging llello, but whatever. Right?

BakaTBakaSTakaT.Cz

Critical FIlm for Hip Hop Lovers.......2007-05-26

If you know your Hip Hop, you'll love this movie. Whether it's the time-capsule like footage tha brings you back, or it's the celebrity citings... you'll be sure to learn a thing or two about Grafitti, and what the 80's were like for young people in New York. Be on the look out for the "Drama King" DJ Kay Slay (DEZ) looking like a true Vandal! Respect

Classic.......2007-02-03

Not only a great documentary, but a fascinating look into early Hip Hop culture and early 80's era New York Cty. The film makers help document the art, the lives of graf writers and the struggle to control public spaces. For those interested in Graf, this is a must see. No matter which side of the debate you are on, you will be glued to the screen awaiting each new character, plot twist and new government sponsored counter graf project. Considered one of the original Hip Hop productions, this film gives the viewer a unique view into the culture before it became a globalized, marketable phenomenon.

history.......2007-01-12

style wars is a crash course in hip hop in it's infancy. If you are a life long b-boy or just someone who's into the culture and wants to know its roots, style wars will show you everything about the birth of hip hop.

know your history...........2007-01-11

No, it is not Dirty Hands.. but if you are a young buck, or even an OG... this is a must for your video collection.

I bough the VHS in Amsterdam 10 years ago.. but was disappointed to find it did not work in US machines. So I recently got the DVD.

Average customer rating:

Who Would've Thought.....
Good wrecking fun
average movie
An astounding, realistic piece of cinema!
Aftershock: Earthquake in New York real and live action

Aftershock: Earthquake in New York
Starring: Tom Skerritt , Sharon Lawrence , Charles S. Dutton , Lisa Nicole Carson , and Jennifer Garner
Director: Mikael Salomon
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
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10.5
Category 6 - Day of Destruction
Category 7: The End of the World
Asteroid
Tidal Wave: No Escape

ASIN: B00005OKQZ
Release Date: 2001-02-20

Description

New York, the City That Never Sleeps, is trapped in a nightmare of horror and destruction when a massive earthquake rocks the unsuspecting city. Countless lives are lost, families are torn apart, and chaos runs rampant as the Mayor (Charles S. Dutton) and former Fire Chief (Tom Skerritt) race to enact a city-wide emergency plan. The two men also face personal devastation and uncertainty as their own family members lie buried in the toppled infrastructure. Sharon Lawrence, Lisa Nicole Carson and Cicely Tyson also star in this incredible story of undying courage in the face of unimaginable human tragedy.

Customer Reviews:

Who Would've Thought............2007-06-27

Who would've ever thought that there could ever be an earthquake of this magnitude in New York City. Great Cast.....Great Special Effects. It leaves the viewer with the feeling that people really do care about one another, especially in times of crises. If you like disaster movies, this one is a must have for your collection.

Good wrecking fun.......2007-04-14

Nice panoramic CG scenes of a wrecked Manhattan, huge pieces of buildings crushing hapless people in the streets, even a full blown tsunami taking out poor Liberty, Aftershock gives us generous mayhem. Some of the "human stories" are contrived and overdone, especially the climbing mom and mean accountant. But it is still a fun ride, nicely adorned by the lovely Jennifer Garner. A definite keeper.

average movie.......2007-02-15

very average disaster movie..dialoques and scenes before earthquake are sometimes boring..there is nothing attractive for the audience...

An astounding, realistic piece of cinema!.......2006-05-04

This is undoubtedly one of the best natural disaster movies ever produced--much, much better than the 1974 film "Earthquake".

Oh, by the way, Mr. Michael Butts, that's Tom Skerritt that starred in the film, not Tom Selleck!

Aftershock: Earthquake in New York real and live action.......2006-04-09

I really liked this movie and felt it was well done with much suspense and action. It was like I was part of the whole movie. It brought back for me a feeling like it could really happen. It was true to NY and the people. The action and acting was really good. I enjoyed the movie and felt its a winner.

Average customer rating:

Fun, Frenetic, and Frightening
Excellent and Unique
Great Hungarian movie!
Do you know who I am? I'm the the Controll!
"Repo Man" Hungarian style?

Kontroll
Starring: Sándor Csányi , Zoltán Mucsi , Csaba Pindroch , Sándor Badár , and Zsolt Nagy (II)
Director: Nimród Antal
Manufacturer: Velocity / Thinkfilm
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Oldboy
Head-On
The Beat That My Heart Skipped
Cache (Hidden)
The Witness

ASIN: B0009UZGDW
Release Date: 2005-08-30

Amazon.com

The setting of Kontroll is the Budapest subway system, one of the largest and oldest in the world, and a place that becomes an omniscient character in an ambitious film that jumbles dark comedy, slick action, and horror-movie conventions. The other main character is Bulcsú (Sándor Csányi), part of a team of disheveled ticket inspectors--controllers--who roam the grimy, fluorescent-lit city-under-the-city in a soul-destroying ritual. The job has become such a part of Bulcsú that he never leaves the underground. He has taken to sleeping on empty platforms and getting progressively more unkempt as he accumulates more bruises, bloody noses, and bitterness from his scraps with a variety of unseemly creatures of the night (and day). Among the post-punk, post-communist habitués of this subterranean metropolis are a cute girl in a teddy-bear suit, a rival gang of ticket inspectors who like to play a deadly game of chicken with express trains, and a hooded specter who may or may not be pushing people under subway wheels at crowded stops. First-time director Nimród Antal keenly juggles black comedy, character types, and genre styles, making the most of the weird angles and inherent dark creepiness of his chosen backdrop. Kontroll keeps pace as a hip, flashy, fast-moving set piece by any international measure. --Ted Fry

Description

The Budapest subway system, the world's oldest, is a dark labyrinthine netherworld as vast and various as the city above. Hordes of people pass through on their way to better, brighter places. There are some who spend most of their lives underground- the ticket inspectors or "Controllers" who are assigned in teams to sections of the system and whose thankless job is to ensure that no passengers ride without paying… Deployed by those in control- they are a much-despised lot…who on his way wants to be stopped and asked for a receipt by petty officers that represent power at its most powerless.

Customer Reviews:

Fun, Frenetic, and Frightening.......2007-05-25

In the Prologue, the narrator relates that his friend director, Nimrod Antal, has made a film about the struggle between good and evil. Using the Hungarian subway system as symbol, they jump start `Kontroll,' (Control), an innovative movie almost exclusively taking place on or near train platforms. In which case, the underground system is hell on earth with its Satan being a black hooded hoodlum morbidly seeking victims to push onto the tracks to collide with oncoming trains. Surveillance cameras abound all over, yet the subway executives (or "suits" as they call them) can't seem to put their finger on the epidemic of alleged suicides they are unable to avert. In between some confrontational scenes, there is plenty going on to keep our attention. Besides being unique, 'Kontroll' has that rare ability to mix laughs, tenderness, and brutality with jarring shifts in a way that actually works. (No wonder Hungary's box office made this movie their homegrown 'Star Wars'.)

The focus starts with a drunken women who stumbles alone on the underground platform, comically fumbling with opening a bottle of champagne. Abruptly, we soon see nothing left of her but half a high-heeled shoe remaining after a high speed train passes. Next, we come to an apparent homeless man, leaning against a post. A man gently tells him that he has a bloody nose. To which he has seemingly stirred belligerence, only we find he is a ticket inspector, Bulscu' (Csany Sa'ndor), who makes the station his home. At first hard to like, his toughness fades later to a good-natured presence, especially given the nature of his position facing rough colleagues and customers. No wonder. For the gruffness, many vignettes show the thankless job of getting customers to pay. Given the prologue's disclaimer of "fiction over fact" [to paraphrase], we certainly are given a vision of purgatory to boot. The morning meeting finds Bulscu' has overslept, but he doesn't miss much with a surly supervisor assigning tasks and urgently lecturing them to save suicidal people jumping onto the tracks. Then, the dreary atmosphere turns to color with myriads of passengers who evade and harass the ticket inspectors. Just a partial cross-section, we get gays and women who flirt with the inspectors to pass on payment with dialogue that is always witty and "fresh". One decent passenger is a beautiful woman patron who wears a bear costume. (One well-edited scene has the employees going to mandatory psychologist sessions. Besides making us laugh, they inadvertently provide a better reason than Michael Moore to have a universal health care system--no matter which side you take on the issue.)

`Kontrol' is a unique movie ride. It could easily have been too bleak, but the variety of development is well constructed. Besides balancing the atmosphere, the transition from surreal to stark realism is nearly ingenious without derailing the plot. `Kontroll' is a quirky film that delivers colorful laughs as well as a menacingly dark atmosphere that is sure to give one gooseflesh. Besides that, I am partial to the way they draw from American chase scenes, like French movie, L'Enfant, yet managing to provide their own playful twists. 'Kontroll' is a movie that matters.

(Special thanks to fellow reviewer, Michael Acuna, who--besides being a tireless resource--recommended this hidden gem and put it on the map.)

Excellent and Unique.......2007-04-26

This film has hillarious characters but I would not classify it as a comedy. This piece kind of exists on its own plane. It has an "in your face" feel of the characters (reminicent of "Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels") but they are in some fantasy underground subway world.

Kontroll follows a group of ticket collectors who seems to spend no time above ground. Especially the main character, who sleeps in the terminal and doesn't look to have seen sunlight in too long a time. The whole theme of being underground is very metaphorical. Many characters are symbolic in ways too.

It is quite a dreampiece, but not too fantastic. We go odd places and meet the denizens of the underground. Some people are kind, others you wouldn't want to be alone with. Especially one mysterious character who stalks the underground and shoves people down to the tracks and to their deaths.

Kontroll has an interesting pace to it. It's fast, but not too fast. It moves like a subway would. Quickly, then a short stop, then moving on again.

I really felt a warmth towards this film. It is oddly touching at times, hillarious at others. All the characters are well thought out and well acted. It is well balanced, complete and left me feeling positive.

Great Hungarian movie!.......2007-03-06

I bought this DVD on a "blind buy" and wasn't disappointed. I will dispense with the story and just give u my opinion on the movie and the overall disc. I have the Hungarian edition which is the version u really need to go for. It has an anomorphic transfer unlike the US verion,it has Hungarian DTS,Dolby 5.1 and stereo sound unlike the US version and,most important of all,it is English friend with OPTIONAL English subs unlike the "burnt in" English subs to be found on the US disc! The movie has a very European feel about it which is just great. Give this DVD a whirl and import it from Hungary!

Do you know who I am? I'm the the Controll!.......2007-03-02

"Kontroll" follows the story of a rag-tag group of controllers who's job is to stalk the vast Budapest subway system and ensure that no passengers are rideing for free. The leader of this group is Bulcsu', a man who's anxiety of compition for his contracting job has lead him underground. Where he stays 24/7, never ventureing above ground. The film does an excellent job of depicting the controllers interactions with the subway riders. The controllers meet everyone from the needle wielding madman to a girl in a teddybear costume, who Bulcsu stikes up an endearing romance. The funniest parts of the film are when the controllers encounter "Bootsey", a young punk who gets his kicks by tormenting Bulcsu's gang. This leads to some of the best "On foot" chase scenes I've seen. The main plot of the film is when the Controllers discover that a mysterious hooded figure is pushing people infront of trains. When Bulcsu is suspected of comiting these murders, he decides to go on a hunt for the hooded one to prove his innocence. or is it a hunt for self discovery? This is truely a great movie and one of my personal favorites. It has wonderful cinamatography, colorful characters and an amazing soundtrack. enjoy

"Repo Man" Hungarian style?.......2007-01-04

Even if you have never actually ridden on one of those amazing steep, deep, and dangerously fast Budapest Metro escalators that swoop you down from street level deep into their subway system, I urge you to take a virtual journey into an imaginative and quirky cinematic world every bit as fantastic as Alice's adventures "underground."

This film is a funny and funky thriller but certainly has very little to do with the real Metro system in Hungary's capital city.

Yes, in Budapest they really do have control agents who ride along incognito and then suddenly whip out their official armbands and start checking for passengers onboard without valid tickets -- but just like the earlier American film "Repo Man" (a similarly despised way to make a living) this film is hardly a slice of "real" life or meant to be!

In fact, one of the funniest bits in the film -- and the first thing you see -- is a poker-face statement read by what we're told is a representative of the Hungarian Metro system reminding us that what we're about to see is more a parable of good and evil than a depiction of actual events or conditions in the Hungarian Metro system.

The humor is dark, but anyone who really and truly hates their current job (or suffers from bouts of depression in general) will probably identify with the controllers in this film -- especially if the hated job involves interactions with the public at large!

Like a number of other Hungarian films I've been watching recently, the characters are both wildly eccentric but quite charming innocents at heart (in a perverse sort of way, or course).

Yes, there is depictions of "sex and violence" in this film, but not anything as graphic as what's on American TV every evening, and these scenes are handled with a discrete finesse that is quite impressive. For example, there are some tarty underground prostitutes in the film, but a girl who rides the subway in a bulky pink Teddy Bear costume (think Barnie, not a Playboy bunny) is hero's love interest and sexier than anything in a skimpy skirt!

If you enjoy foreign films in general, try this one for sure. As for me, I'm rapidly becoming hooked on Hungarian films -- and (despite my pen name) I'm not even Hungarian!

Average customer rating:

Ugh!
An experiment in psychological horror
Ahh, those pesky detrimental robots , or as you know them, "deros" ...
"Marebito": Stylish Japanese Horror That Includes Everything But The Kitchen Sink
you're not gonna wanna watch this one twice, thats for sure!

Marebito
Starring: Shinya Tsukamoto , Tomomi Miyashita , Kazuhiro Nakahara , Miho Ninagawa , and Shun Sugata
Director: Takashi Shimizu
Manufacturer: Tartan Video
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Pray
Cello (2005)
Pulse
The Heirloom
The Maid

ASIN: B000E3LGMY
Release Date: 2006-03-14

Description

(Masuoka Shinya Tsukamoto, director of Tetsuo) is a cameraman possessed by the craving to understand fear. In particular, he obsesses over his footage of a grisly suicide in the subway. Returning to the scene to better comprehend the dead man's reasoning, he opens a doorway into a bizarre, cavernous underworld. Here among the ghosts and subterranean creatures he finds a beautiful, mute girl whom he takes home. As days pass he begins to suspect there is something truly inhuman about this girl. When he begins to uncover her horrifying secrets, Masuoka realizes that he has found the key to gaining the terrible knowledge he so craves...

Customer Reviews:

Ugh!.......2007-06-06

I had a very difficult time staying awake through this movie. It was rather boring and I was expecting more considering he did Juon. A camera man gets obsessed with what causes fear and just has to know what made a man he filmed in the subway commit suicide so he goes off to the subway to try to encounter/see what he saw. While down there he discovers a world within a world and the residents speaking of monsters. He delves into the center and discovers a naked girl chained up and frees her. He takes her home and names her F...So he takes her as a pet. A pet that doesn't eat or use the restroom for the majority of the film?? Anyhoo he discovers F likes to drink blood and eventually takes her out in public for a walk. He also murders a few people to feed F. He runs into a woman who claims she is his wife and he has their daughter so now our camera man doesn't know what is real and what is fantasy. This is pretty much the basis of the movie trying to determine what is real and not. He eventually returns F to the place where he found her and finally it was over!

An experiment in psychological horror.......2007-05-31

Director Takashi Shimizu took a short break from his endless re-filming of "Ju-on", between his last Japanese version and directing the new American version called "The Grudge". In order to refresh his mind from his crowd-pleasing formula, he went with something entirely different, the kind of random and brave experimental film that won him "Ju-on" in the first place. What he came up with was "Marebito".

Shot in just eight days, and filmed with a mix of film and hand-held video, "Marebito" might just be a little too experimental for most people. Shimizu took the theories of Richard Shaver as his starting point. Shaver, a 1930s madman/prophet who believed he had been given the power to read minds from a welding gun, wrote books about a secret race of underground dwellers that he named "deros", or detrimental robots, who were a degenerate sub-species living in a hollow Earth. Very few people remember the "Shaver Mystery" nowadays, so this reference gets unfortunately lost, and is a bit confusing.

The story, on the other hand, is quite simple. Masuoka, a camera-obsessed social misfit, become obsessed with the idea of experiencing true terror after watching a suicide on TV. In his quest for fear, he enters the underground sewers, where he encounters a dero-girl naked and chained to a wall. He frees her, names her "F" and takes her home as his new pet. Not a wise idea. From there, Masuoka's descent begins, along with the audience's as director Shimizu asks us to question what is real and what is not, what is sane and what is insanity.

All in all, "Marebito" is only a decent film. Shimizu's attempt to break out of his formula is respectable, if not successful. There is more psychology here than any genuine chills, and his reliance on the obscure Shaver Mystery is guaranteed to lose many viewers who are not familiar. It is short enough, at only 90 minutes, that it doesn't drag on too long, and it is a refreshing change from the usual j-horror.

Ahh, those pesky detrimental robots , or as you know them, "deros" ..........2007-03-20

Foremost, you may know the director of this film, Takashi Shimizu, from his work with "Ju-On: The Grudge" and "Ju-On 2." Both films employ the concept of the uncanny with shivering exactitude. Marebito is a bit different.

Film premise: Wanting to experience genuine terror, Masuoka tosses his Prozac in the garbage (literally) and descends into the bowels of the Tokyo subway system. In this dim emptiness, he encounters an apparition who guides him to the underworld. (And reveals the terrors of "detrimental robots" which rob a person of blood). In the CGI-esque realm, he finds a beautiful, nude woman chained in a cave. He "rescues" her ... toting her back to his apartment. Without spoilers, what follows is "How To Feed A Vampire 101." (Including ridiculously adorable baby-bottles!)

Thankfully, more resides beneath the surface. An encounter with Masuoka's wife begins to reveal the truth. And that Masuoka calls his new, monstrous "pet" "F" actually begins to make sense ... another name seems to begin with "F";) (You'll understand after viewing the film.)

Still, most of the film is exposition, which is frustrating. (Takashi Miike does this well in "Audition," so we know that exposition-heavy films can work ... when there is a huge "pay-off" in the end). Moreover, there is precious little dialogue: most of the story is first-person voice-over. This can become a somewhat isolating (and I am quite certain that this sense of isolation echoes Masuoka's own loneliness ... I "get" that ... but I'm just not certain it is entirely effective here).

The film is worth a rent if you are a J-Horror fan. But, if this is your first attempt at the genre, try a more "viewer-friendly" film (check the many Listmania's here at Amazon) and then return to this one once you have a "feel" for them. (Otherwise, you may lose your patience with this film).

"Marebito": Stylish Japanese Horror That Includes Everything But The Kitchen Sink .......2007-02-20

"Marebito" is, on the surface, a relatively straightforward example of the ever expanding world of Japanese horror. "Straightforward," however, may not be the first thing that springs to mind for a casual viewer. While the "story" of "Marebito" seems rather simplistic with atmosphere and mood supplanting narrative momentum, its themes suggest a myriad of different influences and interpretations. The film, by Takashi Shimizu ("Ju-on," "The Grudge"), is thematically an "everything but the kitchen sink" amalgamation of styles and dramatic allusions. The film references myths, the supernatural, vampirism, voyeurism, life after death, obsession, the nature of reality, and the descent into madness. By tackling, and co-mingling, so many different concepts--"Marebito" becomes an interesting and unique film that flirts structurally with being completely convoluted. There you have it, I've called this film "simple" and "convoluted" in the same paragraph--but that's the mixed message the film conveys and the mixed feelings I was left with after viewing this movie.

That's not to say that I didn't enjoy "Marebito" and admire its ambition, I just don't think it's wholly successful. The story, itself, is fairly sparse. A videographer witnesses and films a bizarre suicide while working with a local news station. He becomes obsessed with understanding the fear that would drive someone to such an action. Feeling emotionally muted, and wanting to know more about terror and even death, he takes a strange journey beneath the city to try and uncover the source of the man's horror. He has several (real or imagined) ethereal encounters on this journey, but ultimately finds a young woman being held captive. Taking her home with him, he discovers she is not what she may seem. I don't want to divulge more of what transpires (although others have) because the film's surprises work better if they unfold within the context of watching the story.

The film is unconventional in several other ways. Much of what we view is seen through the videographer's camera. It seems to be that "reality" for this character is what he can capture through a lens. That effect is maximized on several occasions by an interesting visual trickery. Sometimes the people and images seen in passing are blurred or flickering, and only through the camera are they fully realized. This reinforces the film's interest in both voyeurism and the "what is reality" debate. Much of the film also lacks regular dialogue--I'd say 90% of the screenplay is the internal monologue of the central character (which helps to flesh out both his obsession and his possible madness).

I admired much of "Marebito," but it does have a very deliberate pace. As a shorter film (and it's only 90 minutes), I think the concepts could have been more refined and a tremendous film might have been lurking inside. It is very effective at setting a mood, though, the creepiness and unease is genuine and involving. But with so many themes struggling in the subtext, the picture loses some of its impact. Some late revelations in the film are intriguing--but because you never know what's true or not, it just adds another plot strand that may or may not be significant. Maybe Shimizu wanted a film that was left open to different interpretations--and, in that, he succeeded. But for me, it was too much--too many possibilities, not enough answers. Ultimately, I'd rate "Marebito" at 3 1/2 stars--but after being genuinely fascinated by the first half, I was a bit let down. KGHarris, 02/07.

you're not gonna wanna watch this one twice, thats for sure!.......2007-01-14

nothing against the film, but it will either leave you wanting go smoke a cigarette or not be able to comprehend much of it at all. i dont want to go too far into detail(this is a film that should best be explored with the smallest knowledge possible) but this film basically centers around the object of fear; a deeply disturbed man who has never been able to feel fear, slowly unravels as he becomes obsessed in learning everything about it: what is fear? why do people fear? what truly causes your brain to feel fear?, etc.

the directing was so-so, at times it created some really captivating scenes, while other times it felt like they were being dragged on. i personally felt it ironic that Shimizu had cast Shinya Tsukamoto in the lead role, as this film seemed to reflect much of the fellow director's trademark subject matter(ex:protagonist succumbing to the pressures of city life, as well as obsession) aside from a few scenes few minutes too long, the imagery is wonderful; disturbing yet very captivating, much like the film itself altogether.

overall decent acting, decent characters, decent direction, & an above-decent & more original horror story.(you must give it credit amongst all the ring & grudge rip-offs being unloaded)

Average customer rating:

Lee hits this one out of the park.
Redefine horror....
A Very Good And Complex Film: Psychological Horror!
not for those who take a dead children lightly
Great Movie and DVD, not only for Horror Fans

The Uninvited
Starring: Shin-yang Park , Ji-hyun Jun , Seon Yu , Ok Jeong (II) , and Ju-shil Lee
Director: Su-yeon Lee
Manufacturer: Panik House
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Cello (2005)
The Heirloom
Pray
The Maid
The Booth

ASIN: B000F48DB4
Release Date: 2006-05-30

Description

This intrernationally acclaimed thriller is a character driven throwback to the groundbreaking horror films of the 1970's. This modern horror masterpiece shares as much in common with The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby as with The Ring or The Grudge. Riveting performances from the two leads porovide a powerful, unforgetable plunge into the deepest fathoms of psychological terror, and once you see what lies beyond the veil of reality, there is not escaping its apocalyptic curse.

• Behind-The-Scenes: The Making of The Uninvited Documentary Featurette

• English and Spanish Audio Commentaries

• Trailers

• Posters and Sill Garries

• Production Notes, Essays & Bios

• Essay on Korean Horror by Art Black (Asian Cult Cinema, Psychotronic Video Guide)

• Optional English and Spanish Subtitles

• Seperate Bilingual Menus in English and Spanish

• Collectible Sticker

Customer Reviews:

Lee hits this one out of the park........2007-06-26

The Uninvited (Su-yeon Lee, 2003)

The Uninvited is being marketed here in America as just another Asian horror flick, which is a disservice not only to the film, but both to the Asian horror film audience in America and the audience that would get far more out of it. Not to say there isn't crossover; I rented it expecting another Asian horror flick and got, well, The Uninvited, which while it contains some supernatural elements (and the rather extreme ways of depicting them of which the Japanese are so fond), is a breathtaking psychological drama about the lengths a person will go to to defend himself from the past, and the devastation that can occur when those defenses are broken down.

While the main character is Jeong-won (Shin-yang Park), it's hard to really define anyone as a "main" character here. He (and his story) gets the most screen time, but everything going on around him is just as important, even the part to which he and his story are tangential. In any case, Jeong-won is an interior designer with a problem--a nagging, overbearing fiancée, Hee-eun (Seon Yu). One night, he falls asleep on the train home, and rides it to the last stop by accident. As the train pulls off into the yard for the night, from the platform he sees that two small children are still on the train, seemingly asleep. The next morning, he finds out they were found there dead, and almost immediately after has a work-related accident that causes head trauma. That night, he sees the two dead girls sitting at the new table his fiancée just bought.

And that's just the first five minutes. It's also the synopsis most people will give (everyone stops there because we run out of space for it), and that's why everyone thinks it's a ghost story. Oh, but there's much more--an alleged psychic, a murder trial, a poor priest who may or may not be who he says he is, rumors of infidelity, a mental clinic, and it just keeps going on and on. There's no way to give a full synopsis of this movie in less than a thousand words; there's simply too much to it, and it's all quite wonderful.

The pace is psychological-drama pace, not horror pace. You should be expecting things to move slowly. It is, after all, over two hours long, which gives us enough time to absorb all the different threads Su-yeon Lee wove into the screenplay. There's a lot going on here; this is a movie that requires you to pay attention to it, but the payoff is in the characters, the way they interact, Lee's bravery in not tying up all the loose ends (the final scene is just perfect, even if we're probably in greater suspense about the scene that would come just after than we have been at any point in the movie), and all the other little things that make The Uninvited one of the best movies I've seen this year. **** ½

Redefine horror...........2007-02-06

As I write this I must say that Ernest's review is better than anything I can probably say, and I agree with most of his opinions. Yes, this film is slow; it is about the characters, and character development takes longer than slashing or gore. This won't fit a lot of Americans' concepts of horror movies: there is no monster, human or supernatural; there is no slashing or teen sex -- no teens at all, for that matter; and the ghosts of the dead children are not overtly threatening, but instead rather sad; there are not even "gotcha" moments such as those in Dark Water or The Grudge. It is, however, an intensely fascinating movie for fans of psychological horror, and those who have an interest in the dark side of the human psyche. I don't feel a need to describe the plot, because others have done that. This movie does give us a new kind of horror, one rarely seen in Asian films and almost never in American horror films since the 1960s. For American film fans, let me say that if you liked the original, black and white, early 60s "The Haunting" (based on Shirley Jackson's book "The Haunting of Hill House") you will probably enjoy this. The films are vastly different on the surface, but in the final say, they both focus on the human rather than the supernatural, and use the supernatural as a means to explore the human condition. It's well worth watching, and for fans of Asian horror, definitely worth owning.

A Very Good And Complex Film: Psychological Horror!.......2007-01-25

"The Uninvited," is not your usual or typical horror film riddled with the usual gorefest cliches common in too many horror films. This film is a deeper, and more methodically paced film dealing with the human pysche. And more importantly, the horrors that we carry with us: In this case, the films main protagonist Jeong-won (Shin-yang Park). If you have the patience for a very complex, and slowly paced film, then this film will reward you. As a word of caution however, it is not for those whose idea of a horror film [if we can call it that] is one with gratuitous gore from beginning to end. I thought that this was a very good film. However, it may not appeal to all viewers. The film is rather slow-paced, and ambiguous.

Furthermore, the films usuage of ghosts and other supernatural occurances are used in order to advance the films main theme: The inner pysche of the films main protagonist, Jeong-won (Shin-yang Park). And I believe the film succeeded magnificantly in this respect. The film begins with Jeong-wan, an architect, who has no recollection or memories of his childhood. Returning from home one day on the subway, he notices two young girls who are sitting next to him. As he reaches the end of the line, he notices the two girls are still there. Thinking nothing further about it, he returns home. However, he later learns that the two girls were dead. Thus begins a very complex film. Jeong-wan's life begins to change dramatically, as he begins to see the two dead children. Whether or not this is in his head, or real is only part of the films message: For it is mainly the films ambiguity which leave the viewer to his or her imagination.

Finally, while the film is not so much about horror, per se, as much as the horror of trauma and loss, there are still some disturbing images which are haunting in their themes. As the film moves forward, Jeong-wan meets a woman named Yeon (Ji-hyun Jun), who is a narcoleptic. She is also a witness in an infant murder case, who can also see these two childrens ghosts. They both try to unravel this mystery of the children, and in doing so unlock Jeong-wan's shocking past. I don't want to give away too much of the film, however, if you sit back and allow the films slow and nuanced pace to arrive at the conclusion, you might find you like this film. However, it's not a happy one with a neat tidy conclusion. I recommend you rent the film first to see it this is a film you would like to have in your cinema collection. The film does take patience. Recommended. [Stars: 4.5]

not for those who take a dead children lightly.......2007-01-12

This one was a little rough as far as dead kids go but it is a good movie

Great Movie and DVD, not only for Horror Fans.......2006-06-10

I got the DVD for the Uninvited not knowing what to expect, Asian Horror movies are usually very different one from another. There are movies that go heavy on the blood and others than go heavy on the Drama; The Uninvited falls in the latter, just like other movies like Dark Water or Two Sisters. The movie is about a man named Jung-won who is an Interior designer. One day he falls asleep in the subway and he must hurry out before the doors close, but outside he notices that the two kids are still on the train, and he does nothing. The next day he hears on the radio that the 2 children were dead and suddenly he starts seen the kids sitting at his dinner table.
He ignores what is happening to him, probably thinking is the shock of watching the children dead in the train until the day he meets a woman named Yun who suffers from narcolepsy, so he takes her to his home when she loses conscious in his car, and just when she is leaving she tell him to put his kids in bed, so now Jung-won is not the only one seeing the dead kids.
From there Yun helps Jung-won find the gruesome secrets buried in his past, but he is not the only one with a dark past.
The movie has some very shocking scenes that play very well. Both lead actors, Shin-yang Park and Ji-hyun Jun (most known for her part in the romantic comedy (My Sassy Girl") did a fantastic job playing these troubled characters. The cinematography is superb, there were some scenes were I was very impressed.

The US DVD from Panik House is great, from the cover to the extras. There are 2 Audio Commentaries, one in English, which is very informative about the Korean culture and Cinema and another one in Spanish. It has a Making Off, Interviews with the lead Actors, a story boards/scenes comparisons, and other need stuff like a condensed version of the movie. The DVD also comes with a sticker of the cover.

I really recommend this movie to everyone, is not a simple horror movie but a complex drama with some very shocking moments.

Average customer rating:

i've seen it all before
A rental at best (spoiler warning)
Unique and Very Good. 73 out of 100
Had potential but...
Better than most

Creep
Starring: Franka Potente , Vas Blackwood , Ken Campbell , Jeremy Sheffield , and Paul Rattray
Director: Christopher Smith (VIII)
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Boo
The Dark Hours
House of 9
The Dark (2005)
Ring Around the Rosie

ASIN: B000BQ5J8G
Release Date: 2005-12-20

Description

London. Midnight. Unable to find a taxi, model-agency booker Kate (Franka Potente) heads underground. Waiting for the last subway train, she dozes off…and awakens to find everyone else gone. Gripped by panic, Kate realizes she's locked in. But she is not alone. Lurking in the pitch-black maze is something unimaginable. Something that calls a deranged laboratory home. And something that's determined to make this subterranean hell Kate's last stop!

Customer Reviews:

i've seen it all before.......2007-02-09

The reason i gave this 2 stars is because it is nothing great. The movie is average and alot of the gore is assumed as we see blood splash on the walls and we don't get to see much of people being torn apart. For example you see a guy getting his head or neck ripped open but we only see his legs hanging there while all the dismantling is where we cannot see and that is very disappointing to me. In other scenes we see people being dragged away then see there half mutilated body later but we don't see the them being killed. I am very seasoned when it comes to horror movies so if you want mediocrity this is it. The acting wasn't all that bad but I became bored easily and i turned it off after 1 hour. Some people may enjoy this but again this is nothing new for me.

A rental at best (spoiler warning).......2006-12-07

After falling asleep and being locked in the subway station Franka Potente and others are pursued and dispatched by a deformed maniac who curiously travels with his own entorage of rats. The acting is decent but the story is full of plot holes and cliches. The "operation" scene was creepy but too little too late to save the film. I suggest watching the alternate beginning which was a helpful backstory of the film but was unfortunately left out. It would have filled in some of the plot holes. If you are a horror fan like me then you will probably rent it anyway out of curiosity but you are probably better off watching it when it comes to the sci fi channel.

Unique and Very Good. 73 out of 100.......2006-08-30

Creep is the story of a German woman named Kate, played by Franka Potente, who falls asleep in a subway station and wakes up to find she is locked in with some sort of nearly inhuman killer. The action winds through lost, old and unused underground train tunnels, sewer tunnels, etc, which makes for a very unique setting and feel.

At first I thought the film might be boring because Kate, and only Kate was trapped. I was wrong. The film has plenty of other characters to keep it fresh, and the film never became boring.

The movie is very fun to watch and isn't, by any means, a typical horror film. You will remember the killer, and the setting. The setting is very immersive, and you find yourself sucked into the story very quickly.

The acting in Creep is very, very good. Vas Blackwood puts in a very good support role. There wasn't an over-actor to be found. The dialog didn't come off at any time as forced or phony, as happens quite often in horror films.

Overall, there really were no cliches to be found. Creep is fresh, and for fans of horror it is a must see. For those seeking a good, creepy, horror movie that is a cut above, Creep will satisfy because of its good action, pacing and story.

There are only a couple of times in the film where I scratched my head saying, could that really happen. These moments were few and far between, but annoying none the less.

Another nit pick I had with the film is that it could have been a bit more suspenseful at times. I didn't end the film and check all the doors in the house. Despite being a good film, Creep wasn't creepy enough for my blood.

The DVD packs a lot of interesting features which, unlike many DVDs, are fun to watch for fans of the movie.

Watch it, rent it, and you might even buy it. Creep is not a perfect film, but it is very good, very unique, and a film that many will remember.

Total Score (out of 100) = 73

40 (out of 50). Enjoyment. A rating based on my overall enjoyment of the film.
8 (out of 10). Acting. How good was the acting?
7 (out of 10). Immersion. Did the movie suck me into the story?
8 (out of 10). Intangibles. Special effects. Movie pace. Is the movie forgettable, or something you will talk about and remember for weeks? Years?
7 (out of 10). Must see. Is this movie worth seeing/renting?
3 (out of 10). Must buy. Is this movie a must buy/purchase?

Had potential but..........2006-06-06

I am not a great fan of films full of gore, and this proves that I still don't like them.
The main character is unlikable and never fully comes across. She's just kind of there, along for the ride. Now, the idea has great potential. Who wouldn't be afraid of a strange creature lurking in the subway tunnels? And that sound it makes?-If I heard that, I'd start running.
This film had some real possibilities. The creature was genuinely creepy, but it wasn't enough. Could have been scarier by using more subtle means. I actually hated nearly every single character: especially one man at the beginning and his unwanted advances. And the characters make the movie, so if they don't have that, they basically have nothing.
While watching this, I was disgusted. Maybe if the characters were more likable, the story was written better, and it was a little less gross, I would have enjoyed this. But no.

Better than most.......2006-05-28

The reviews I'd read elsewhere made the film seem a bit more offbeat, but really, this movie is based on a very conventional plot. I only decided to watch this because I thought it was a German film, and I have tired of both American films (long ago), and the Asian horrors are now becoming derivative.

Anyhow, back to the film: I would say this is an average to above average suspense/horror but it's better than most horror films nowadays and certainly very interesting. Some scenes are bloody and cruel, but there isn't anything necessarily gratuitious or too disgusting. There aren't any disrobing females in this either, and so you know this film isn't your typical horror which is trying to appease to a male audience. I would recommend it to watch, but it's not going to be a classic horror film anytime soon.

Average customer rating:

Avant-Garde and Stylistic
style, style, and more style
Interesting.
I <3 the 80s
Fred's underground adventure...

Subway
Starring: Isabelle Adjani , Constantin Alexandrov , Jean-Hugues Anglade , Jean-Pierre Bacri , and Jimmy Blanche
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:

Le Dernier Combat
The Big Blue (Director's Cut)
La Femme Nikita (Special Edition)
Crimson Rivers - Angels of the Apocalypse (Special Edition)
Empire of the Wolves

ASIN: B00005OSJO
Release Date: 2001-11-06

Amazon.com

This dark and highly stylized French import directed by Luc Besson (The Fifth Element, The Professional) concerns an enigmatic safecracker played by Christopher Lambert (Highlander) hiding out in the Paris Metro system from a gangster. While living in the underground and eluding both gangsters and Metro police he meets up with a group of colorful and quirky subterranean inhabitants eager to help him and start a rock band. All the while the safecracker blackmails a rich woman (Isabelle Adjani) with whom he is in love. Meant to be a tongue-in-cheek commentary on urban life, the film works better as a light freewheeling entertainment, with well-constructed fast-paced action sequences and a breezy sense of humor about itself. Subway is an intriguing diversion and a chance to see the cutting edge of modern French moviemaking. --Robert Lane

Customer Reviews:

Avant-Garde and Stylistic.......2006-04-03

This French film was the directorial debut for a then 26-year-old Luc Besson. Christopher Lambert and Isabelle Adjani are a surprise great match. It's both a romantic comedy and social satire over a group of vagabonds who live underground in the Paris metro system. There is more than one story with Adjani and Lambert tying in the characters. It is not clear what the "papers" are that Lambert has stolen from Adjani, which hints that its a ploy on both ends to spend time together.

style, style, and more style.......2006-03-22

I was lucky enough to see this film theatrically when it came out in 1985. It definitely loses it's artistic impact on the small screen, but it's something that constantly keeps your eyes engaged. Almost every promo shot for this film had Christopher Lambert holding that portable light fixture -- in fact the theatre I went to see it at ran an ad along the lines of "Christopher Lambert is a light sabre-toting cat burgler". In actuality, he has it in his hand for about thirty seconds, before he lets it slip as he loses his footing on a catwalk. Shades of the BLADE RUNNER promo sheet of Harrison Ford running across the top of a car. Was that shot even in the film? Still, that image of Lambert (like the rest of the film's visual palette) is pretty cool. Stay away from the cheaper copies -- the quality is worse then a VHS dub. The Bassist (also doing double duty as film composer) is Eric Serra, who recently composed the score for BULLETPROOF MONK. Lots to look at, and some great music to boot. Well worth the purchase.

Interesting........2006-03-10

SUBWAY is a very interesting movie. It's more of a movie that is focused on the characters, rather than the plot itself. Definitely buy the enhanced version (the one with Lambert holding the neon light). The dubs aren't that great, but at least Lambert dubbed himself. I suggest watching it with the subtitles first. Being a Lambert fan, I figured I'd check out the film in which he one best actor in France's Caesar Awards. It's a very interesting movie, I more appreciated it, but it was entertaining nonetheless. Worth the buy if you're a Lambert or Besson fan.

I <3 the 80s.......2005-10-24

As a gift to myself I purchased the Luc Besson Collection. Two-thirds of the movies I was familiar with. This was one I was not. But what have I got to lose? I mean, let's evaluate what it had going for it before even watching it, alright? It was a Luc Besson film, ok, points earned there. Jean Reno (from Leon, the Professional) was in it, obvious trademark, but something I always enjoy. And hey, look at this, Christopher Lambert (from Highlander) was in it, kudos!

Quickly, in order to become genuinely immersed in this film, I'd like you to consider two methods of watching it. I recommend watching it in French with the English subtitles. I think you get a much better feel for the personality of the film this way. Watching it English dubbed (with English subtitles) you find that some of the language is not translated correctly. For example, Fred speaks about being a six year old in a car accident, but the English subtitles say five. Sure, it is only a small difference, but it is not the only one - in this sense, the movie is consistently inconsistent. Watch it in French, it's much better that way.

I think movies which spotlight small and strange sub-sub-cultures are utterly fascinating to me. Here we are thrown into an underground life, where strangers protect and help one another in a moment, knowing that one always needs allies in a world always out to get you.

While I can see how some might be shocked and confused by the events and the relationships between the characters - I think it is all true-to-life - in the sense that people are unpredictable, with history and complexities that can not be fully addressed or understood in the hour-and-a-half given, nor should they be.

So I enjoyed this European story telling, even if it was trapped by the 80s influence of bad clothing and hair style choices. It adds to the quirky charm.

Fred's underground adventure..........2005-05-10

I looked into the film Subway (1985) because I was interested in other work done by Luc Besson, director of such films like La Femme Nikita (1990) and Léon: The Professional (1994). Now I realized from the outset this film was going to be more of an avant-garde affair based on the reviews (many tout style over substance), but what I didn't realize was just how boring and pointless it was going to be...the film stars Christopher Lambert (Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, Highlander), whose in the process of making yet another Highlander film titled Highlander: The Source (2005)...talk about milking something for all its worth...along with Isabelle Adjani (The Tenant, Ishtar). Also appearing is Richard Bohringer (The Cook the Thief His Wife & Her Lover), Michel Galabru (La Cage aux folles), Jean-Hugues Anglade (Taking Lives), and Jean Reno (Mission: Impossible, Ronin).

The film begins with a pretty exciting car chase as a character we later come to know as Fred (Lambert), decked out in white, spikey hair and a tuxedo, speeds away from a group of men intent on getting his attention by playing a high-speed game of bumper tag. The chase ends near a subway, to which Fred utilizes to escape from his pursuers, making his way into the dark labyrinth of steel and concrete. Apparently Fred (described as a `hipster' thief on the DVD case) had been attending a party, one host by a millionaire and his beautiful wife named Helena (Adjani), stole some important documents, and is now holding them for ransom. Problem is, Fred finds himself falling for Helena, which only serves to complicate matters. These scenes are mixed in with various scenes of all the different and interesting folk Fred meets underneath the subway (sadly, there are no mole men), many of which have absolutely nothing to do with the story whatsoever but help fill out an hour and forty minute running time. So what does Fred intend to do with this money once he gets it? How about starting a band with the various underground (literally) musicians he's since met while hiding out from the cops and hired thugs?

First of all, one should be wary as there are numerous DVD releases of this film, some much worse than others, and Amazon has mixed the reviews for these various releases together in a cross-linkage nightmare (good job guys). The one I watched, and am now reviewing is the Columbia/Tristar Studios DVD (ASIN: B00005OSJO) release with Lambert holding a neon light and features blue graphics on the cover (it also appears to be the more expensive version). The version to avoid is the one with the two shot of Adjani and Lambert where it appears Lambert is sliding his hand into Adjani's shirt. Getting back to the film itself...as I mentioned before, many reviewers have commented on element of style over substance with regards to this film, but I felt it had little of either, which brings up another question...are all French directors required to produce one ` New Wave' film during their career? I've got nothing against New Wave cinema as I enjoy films like Alphaville (1965) and Repo Man (1984), but the aspects consistent with that style of film didn't really come through here for me. That's not to say they wouldn't for someone else, though, as it comes down to ones own interpretation...the movie just seemed plodding and pointless with little symbolistic and/or abstract conceptual present, two of the elements supposedly prevalent over the more traditional aspects like plot, defined characters, narrative i.e. an actual story. Also, what little there appears to be of the former seems to be what it is only on a very superficial level...I know there's no formula for determining this kind of thing, but if you're going to go this route, then jump in with both feet and give the audience something to chew on...that' just my opinion...really well done avant-garde works one different levels in that, on the surface it can entertain, while also maintaining a depth for those whose wish to explore further and develop their own ideas with regards to underlying themes and their significance. I will say even though there was a prevalent sense of boredom throughout for me, the film did look good as Besson, if nothing else, knows how to set up a shot. Another positive aspect about the film is the music, much of it composed by Eric Serra, who actually appears in the film as Enrico, the bassist. Serra has since gone on to score any number of films including La Femme Nikita (1990), GoldenEye (1995), and Rollerball (2002). I did think the idea of people living and existing beneath the subway an interesting idea, but not completely original as I've seen it before in the 1972 film Death Line aka Raw Meat, although that was a story about cannibals living beneath the London subway, surviving off the occasional passenger snatched from the platform. One thing I did learn from this film is the subways in Paris are reasonably clean and remarkably free of vermin like rats and roaches, something generally prevalent in the belly of metropolitan mass-transit beasts.

The widescreen anamorphic (2.35:1) picture on this DVD look decent, but isn't without some very minor flaws, ones most viewers will be able to live with in slight age defects. The Dolby 2.0 audio comes through cleanly enough. It's odd as the DVD seems to be set to play the English dub along with the English subtitles, but this can be changed. I would recommend the original French track with English subtitles (the English dubbing is pretty lousy). There are a couple of extras in the way of filmographies for some of the cast and crew, along with trailers for Léon: The Professional (1994), The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999), and The Big Blue (1988). No trailer for this film, though...

Cookieman108

Average customer rating:

A must for NYC tourists!
Informative and Enjoyable Guide
Excellent description of NYC Transit System

Your Guide Around NYC
Starring: Joyce Storey
Manufacturer: Storeyline Productions
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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New York City Mass Transit System
New York City subway and buses
How to use the subway system in New York City
How to use the AirTrain to & from JFK Airport
How to get around New York City

ASIN: B000PANXOA
Release Date: 2007-04-01

Product Description

A MTA/New York City Transit officially licensed easy-to-use entertaining dvd guide that will teach you everything you need to know to efficiently and safely navigate your way around New York City including using the subway, buses & Airtrain.

Customer Reviews:

A must for NYC tourists!.......2007-06-18

Wow - do I wish I had this video before my first trip to NYC. As a southern girl visiting the Big Apple, I was fearful of getting lost, or worse, ending up in a bad part of town. The NYC transit system is essential to get around the city - but also somewhat intimidating and confusing. Ms. Storey is obviously a seasoned traveler and gives an excellent "big picture" view as well as details of the transit system. Don't leave for NYC without it!

Informative and Enjoyable Guide.......2007-05-21

Surprising how interesting a DVD guide for navigating the New York City transit system can be! I was very impressed with the quality and relevance of information presented in this guide. This is a must-see for anyone planning to travel in NYC and use mass transit -- which everyone should be considering if you are going to the Big Apple. In fact, although I have tried my hand at navigating NYC using the subway before, I still learned a great deal more of helpful information from watching that I look forward to putting into practice soon.

Excellent description of NYC Transit System.......2007-05-16

We enjoyed this video very much. It is perfect for learning about the NYC transit system. It is very informative and a must see before visiting the city. It demystifies the transit system and does an excellent job of incorporating all the necessary information to get the traveler ready for successfully navigating the transit system. I would recommend it to everyone.

Average customer rating:

Tom Green is promoting racism
For the hardcore Tom Green fans only maybe
Some really funny parts, but Tom has done better. Grade B-
tom
tom green your the queen! mu

The Tom Green Show - Subway Monkey Hour
Starring: Tom Green
Manufacturer: MTV
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Tom Green: Inside and Outside the Box
The Tom Green Show: Early Exposure - Raw Meat and Rare Treats
The Tom Green Show: Endangered Feces
Endangered Feces - The Very Worst of The Tom Green Show
Freddy Got Fingered

ASIN: B00008972F
Release Date: 2003-03-25

Amazon.com

If you're a fan of Tom Green (the skinny white guy from MTV who humps dead animals, among other inane stunts), then you will probably enjoy watching him wander around a Japanese zoo wearing a furry green Godzilla costume, or slurping excessively in a noodle restaurant, or buying used panties from an underground used panties dealer, or vomiting in a hotel bathroom, or just generally inflicting himself upon the Japanese populace. If you are not a Tom Green fan, the The Tom Green Subway Monkey Hour is unlikely to convert you, as it's basically a record of Tom Green making an ass of himself all over Japan. You might, however, enjoying watching Tom Green being attacked by wild monkeys. --Bret Fetzer

Description

In The Tom Green Subway Monkey Hour special, Tom Green heads to Japan to visit its many attractions and stir up trouble with his unpredictable outbursts and zany antics. Language is no barrier as Green visits a monkey zoo in Nikko dressed up in a Godzilla costume, plays with Japanese snow monkeys on the side of the road outside Nagano, impersonates Elvis Presley in front of a sacred temple in Kyoto and hangs out with a used panty salesman in Tokyo, just to mention a few highlights from the trip. Tom Green creates a hilarious juxtaposition with the more restrained Japanese as his rush hour antics in the subway transcend the language barrier.

Customer Reviews:

Tom Green is promoting racism.......2007-06-23

Tom, if you can go south states , make fun of African American people like you did to innocent Japanese people and
get out of alive, I'll buy a copy.

For the hardcore Tom Green fans only maybe.......2007-01-11

"What kind of monkeys are those? B'boons?" "AHAHAHAHA! YOU FELL ON YOUR BUM BUM! YOU FELL ON YOUR BUM BUM! - did you see it?" "WHO WANTS BANANAS!!" "Randy Rokakanoknoknok" As you can tell I've watched this thing more than several times and it still is just as funny every time! A few of the segments are not really that funny to me though, like the "wanna see how loud i can whistle" one and a couple others. But on the whole it is classic Tom Green, also interesting to see the various ways in which the japanese react to him!

Some really funny parts, but Tom has done better. Grade B-.......2006-11-26

Here Tom Green victimizes the poor polite, respectful people of Japan, w/his impolite humor. Some funny stuff, a few really funny scenes, and some slightly funny scenes. Good only really for fans of the Tom Green Show or Freddy Got Fingered. Tom Green does sight gags, if you don't know him. He doesn't tell jokes; he just does outrageous and inappropriate and weird things, which I normally find hilarious. While I prefer Freddy Got Fingered (grade A+) or the regular Tom Green Show, this one has it's moments. The Bonus Features have some worthwhile scenes from the Tom Green Show, in North America. There's also a written bio of Tom Green in the bonus features. Here's some examples of Tom's Japan stunts in the main feature (which are all in public): Dressed like Elvis and sung through loudspeaker on sacred temple grounds. Tries to take a zoo tour in a full body costume. Wakes up people sleeping in a hotel, while wearing a fork costume. Lies down on the ground at the top of the stairs in the middle of rush hour crowd from the subway. Simulates sex w/ dancing mechanical Santa Claus in the subway. Continues to talk aloud in a packed, quiet subway train. Puts a vibrating dildo on a sushi bar's self serve conveyor belt. Feeds wild monkeys, and invites them into his van. etc...

tom.......2005-11-30

This little movie is great........I love that Pizza pie song and his jam with Aqua Juice....very funy...but not as funny as the way i spelled funny...

tom green your the queen! mu.......2005-06-08

hey people out there, i guess theres not as many british fans out there of the tom green show as there is in america. but the tom green monkey thingy was great, its so funny he loves it. and if you dont understand wot tht meens you can poo yourself. he runs up to this woman in the zoo in a monkey costume and makes stupid nioses, its great just my sort of thing. if you have got a stupid sense of humour and you love being outragous you will love it i certanly did. yay toms dw best becky x

Average customer rating:

This movie is for all horror fans!!
A Horror Fan Must !
Mind the Doors!!
A forgotten gem
One of the scariest horror movies, and definitely one of my favorites

Raw Meat
Starring: Donald Pleasence , Norman Rossington , David Ladd , Sharon Gurney , and Hugh Armstrong
Director: Gary Sherman
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00009PY41
Release Date: 2003-08-26

Description

For generations, they ve lingered beneath the streets of London. But now their last survivor has emerged, driven by a desperate hunger for human flesh! Donald Pleasence stars in this daring (TheVillage Voice) horror classic that dishes out heart-stopping jolts and hair-raising thrills! When a prominent politician and a beautiful young woman vanish inside a London subway station, Scotland Yard's Inspector Calhoun (Pleasence) investigates and makes a horrifying discovery. Not only dida group of 19th-century tunnel workers survive a cave-in, but they lived for years in a secret underground enclave by consuming the flesh of their own dead. Now the lone descendant of this grisly tribe has surfaced, prowling the streets of London for fresh victims and a new mate.

Customer Reviews:

This movie is for all horror fans!!.......2007-03-26

I thought that this movie delivered its' thrills and chills it had intended. The acting was very good and believable and the story was a different one that most horror movies. Especially one that involved the London subways. This movie is a must have for all horror fans in thier collection.

A Horror Fan Must !.......2007-02-07

"RAW MEAT" is a slow paced but good little creepfest with chunks of unintentional silly humor scattered throughout wich mostly comes from it's outdated content,offbeat acting at times & clunky delivery of the score. With that said it does have plenty of that thick creepy 70's horror film atmosphere along with a couple of jumpy scares and some great "gross out" visuals. The execise of making the viewer grapple between fearing the mutant man or feeling bad for him was accomplished brilliantly in my eyes. I'm willing to bet that before shooting "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" Tobe Hooper definitely took some visual tips from the morbid tunnel dwelling of our sad villian from this film. I do consider this to be a little known lost gem and I'm very happy to add it to my collection. This disturbing little midnight frightfest definitely deserves a special little place in the demented heart of every true horror fan.

Mind the Doors!!.......2006-09-02

One of the key ingredients to any great horror film is the setting, more often than not the setting takes on symbolic and metaphorical resonance and becomes more than just a space where the events of the film are played out. The first of American director Gary Sherman's aesthetic triumphs in "Death Line" or "Raw Meat" as it is known in the US, is the grungy, grimy and downright fowl disused London Tube Station setting. This space is not only important for the purposes of narrative exposition, but also for the message of the film, which is basically that when the money runs out the working classes will be left to rot and fend for themselves. This is reflected in modern times by the pattern of social bullying that informs the film. The MI5 look down on the police and subsequently the police look down on the students. The students for their own part present the unfortunate demise of any type of anarchic or rebellious counter-culture. The American is as thuggish and violent as the cannibalistic underground dweller whose only words are "Mind the doors". In fact the younger generation in this film offer little hope for the future. It often takes an outsider to highlight the hypocrisies and incompetence of a society and the director is particularly scathing of a class system that sees members of the MOD frequenting the red light districts and a tea obsessed police inspector who has thieving and drunken tendencies. The vision of the world in "Death Line" is particularly unpleasant and in fact the almost Neanderthal "Man" ends the film the character with the greatest humanity. "Death Line" is a film that has been unfairly neglected over the years, mainly by a British film culture that rejects works of so called exploitation. This is a great shame because "Death Line" in it's rich layering exposes almost all of societies many faults.

A forgotten gem.......2005-10-25

I have no particular interest in 'genre' movies as a rule - and horror movies least of all. But this is different.

'Death Line/Raw Meat' is a powerful and sometimes moving film whose humane vision is heightened by its treatment of the 'monster' as a pitiful creature of circumstance. In the wake of The Wickerman's new-found popularity I'd like to put a word in for this similarly memorable British film of the 1970s.

After a construction disaster in 1892 forced successive generations of 'monsters' to live the degraded existence of underground cannibals, the film follows the last surviving male cannibal who survives by abducting passengers from Russell Tube tube station and, er, eating them.

But as the Time Out Film Guide's Nigel Floyd suggests, 'the film's great achievement is in eliciting sympathy for a creature whose residual capacity for human feeling [tending to his dying wife] is ultimately more moving than horrifying.'

The sequences that slowly but surely take us through the pathetic underworld inhabited by the 'monster' never fail to unnerve me. I've never seen anything like it before or since.

One of the scariest horror movies, and definitely one of my favorites.......2005-08-02

This movie is unbelievably scary. The scariest parts are the tremendous amount of gruesome detail of the cannibal's underground lair. One scene I like to refer to as the "waterdrop" scene, will haunt you for a long time (or at least make you nauseated). This contains all of the elements of a superb horror film: a great villain, true-to-life characters, revolting gore effects, moments where nothing particularly frightening happens which adds to the realism and the feel that you are actually in the movie, and, of course, some genuine frights. So, if you like horror movies, and have not heard of this one, I highly reccomend it. "Genuine thrills! The best in horror film traditions." You couldn't have said it any better Siskel.

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