Red Light Revolution Review

Chinese comedy 'Red Light Revolution', is a light hearted look at the bumbling attempts of Shunzi, and his foray into running an adult shop in his Beijing neighbourhood. The film highlights the clash between the old communist and the new capitalist China, where nothing is off limits in the quest to make money.


Brilliantly cast as the luckless loser, Shunzi is a cab driver who's just been given the sack. His wife kicks him out and he is forced to move back in with his parents. He manages to find a new job, along with a hilarious uniform, and a chance meeting with an old school friend propels him into setting up a sex toy shop.

Tucker & Dale Fightent Le Mal

Plot: Two hillbillies on vacation in their cabin in the woods find themselves the target of a group of college kids who, due to one big misunderstanding, have mistaken them for chainsaw-wielding killers.

Review: I could not resist using the French title of the film to name my post. This is indeed how Tucker & Dale vs Evil has been translated over there. If there was an Oscar for worse title/translation, it would be a frontrunner. And then again France is the country that gave us The Teeth of the Sea for Jaws. But I digress.

W.E. Oui or Wee?

It is an understatement that cinema has not embraced Madonna in the same way that music has. Body of Evidence, Shanghai Surprise, The Next Best Thing... Despite a promising start with light and quirky comedy Desperately Seeking Susan, it all went downhill from that modest high. And she has herself party to blame, who ever thought being in a cheap Basic Instinct knock-off featuring burning wax and Willem Dafoe's balls. It has to be said however that she did win a Golden Globes best actress award for Evita.

So the Like a Virgin lady is now trying a different path in ever attempt to finally reach that ever eluding success, by turning her attention to directing. Given the polarised opinion she has always faced, it seems almost impossible for her to receive a fair reception. Fans will love it, even though she does not even star in it. Haters will have an easy ride hating it. So I shall attempt to review it fairly. despite being a big fan of her Madgesty (there, I have said it).

Shame: Yay or Nay?

How boring would life (and cinema!) be if we all agreed on everything. Steve McQueen new film, Shame, has been riding a wave of good reviews since its Venice premiere last September. It was my most anticipated film at the London Film Festival, hence an even more crushing disappointment when it turned out to be a big let down for me.

Interview with Lee Hardcastle, Director of Pingu's The Thing

Unless you were hiding under a rock this week, you cannot have missed the incredible The Thing/Pingu remake/mash-up that has been uploaded on YouTube by his director Lee Hardcastle, and has been a massive hit since.

As a huge The Thing fan, I was so impressed by it that I have already decided to give it a guaranteed spot on my top ten list of best films of 2012, you can see it and read my previous post about it here. I was curious to find out a bit more about his director and Lee has been kind enough to answer a few questions for me. Lee studied at the Northern Film School and then got a job as a runner in a Soho Post-Production company, before realising that if he wanted to make it big in the industry, he had to do it by himself!

Pingu's The Thing!

Have you ever watched claymated children's programme Pingu, about a family of penguins living in igloos in Antarctica? It is sweet, funny and so lovely. Have you seen John Carpenter's The Thing, an 80's horror classic about a shape-shifting alien which attacks the occupants of an isolated scientific mission in the North Pole? It is dark, scary and utterly depressing. Now I bet you have never wondered what would happen if Pingu and The Thing collided?

"Who Can Kill A Child?" Review: Bloody Pinata!

Plot: An English couple, holidaying in Spain, makes their way to a secluded island a long way off the coast. Upon arrival, they soon realise that something is wrong, very wrong, as the children on the island have gone crazy and are murdering all the adults!

Review: This 70's oddity seems to have been brought back to the general filmic consciousness on the back of its recent release on DVD, and while I had never heard anything about it, a few articles and twitter discussions got me curious. That and the fantastic poster design, which, depending on the version, evokes Italian giallos as well as video nasties of the era. Who Can Kill A Child did suffer from the curse of the thousand titles upon its release upon Europe, as many horror films did at the time, with the most idiotic title being the French one: "The Revolt of the Year 2000" Well I have got news for you, the film is not set in 2000. Shame nobody thought of calling this: Bloody Pinata (you will see why).