Blu-Ray Review - Repo Man

Almost the eponymous punk movie of the early 80s, Alex Cox's look at non-conformity and life in Southern California is a real piece of work.  Rented it from netflix a couple years ago (regretted not blind-buying Anchor Bay's OOP collectors edition tin when it first came out a few years back), and the new Blu-Ray special edition from the Criterion Collection is a gorgeous release.

DVD Review - Welcome to Irabu's Office (Complete Series)

Well, this anime series is very different from almost every other series I've watched before.

The eleven episode series is a very unique sort of proposition.  The psychiatrist Irabu Ichiro analyzes a variety of patients over the course of the series as they are drawn to his office.  These range from a man with a permanent erection to a yakuza underboss afraid of sharp objects and an investigative reporter with OCD.  One of the catches to the show though is that the entire show takes place over a 9 or 10 day period in December - and each episode covers roughly the same period of time...so starting from the first episode you also see some of the different characters crossing paths with one another - unaware of some of the issues being addressed or their interconnectedness.  There's no overarching plot or conflict, just a series of characters addressing their issues - although the final episode does close things out a little more clearly.

Blu-Ray Review - Moonrise Kingdom

My first *full*/complete viewing of Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom since I first had the opportunity to catch it in the theater in Portland when my ship was there for the Rose Festival in 2012.

Anderson is rightfully recognized as an auteur and his style in this film is instantly recognizable if you've had the chance to watch any of his previous films.  He also revisits very familiar themes - particularly familial issues and relationships - failed ones, new ones, renewing old ones.  While clearly hitting some potentially very painful edges - for the characters - or the viewers - he's able to bring his characters to address them appropriately (for the most part) - and without the use of too much deus ex machina (also for the most part).

Sam the orphan Khaki Scout goes AWOL from his troop to run away with Suzy, the lonely, misunderstood daughter of two bickering lawyers (Frances McDormand and Bill Murray).  Enlisted in the search to find the two of them are the mismatched remainder of Sam's troop, his scout leader (Edward Norton), the local police officer (Bruce Willis) and Social Services (Tilda Swinton) - right as a massive storm is about to break out - as narrated by Bob Balaban.

Blu-Ray Review - Kamikaze Girls

First saw Kamikaze Girls when it came out on HK DVD almost ten years ago.  Really enjoyed it then and still do.

A beautifully filmed comedy about complete opposites meeting and clashing....repeatedly.  A lolita fan-girl (Kyoko Fukada) and a "yanki" biker girl (Anna Tsuchiya) stuck in the middle of nowhere (Shimotsuma, Ibaraki)...but somehow it works.