GENOCYBER

GENOCYBER (1994)
JP
Directed by Koichi Ohata

CAST:
Akiko Hiramatsu (Japanese voice)  Anna McKay (English voice) - Elaine
Akiko Hiramatsu (Japanese voice)  Rosemary Elliot (English voice) - Diana
Shigeru Chiba- Radonekku

PLOT:
     As the nations of the world begin to merge, world peace is threatened by the private armies of individual corporations. The Kuryu Group has just discovered a weapon that will tip world power in their favor.

REVIEW:
      So here we have an anime I watched almost twenty years ago and I still have memories of it. One of the things I wanted to do with the reviews I do is of course let people know about the newer genre films, yet also the older films I watched in the past, and there is a lot of them. But to do the reviews for the older ones justice I have to re-watch them to refresh my memory of them . Hence why there's more new film reviews more than older ones. I am trying to get older films up though so just stay with me and think of when they do pop up to think of them as a treat, or a blast from the past if you will. I still can't believe it's been almost twenty years though and here's to the past.

     While some things age well with time, others do not. Genocyber is odd because it does stand the test of time and at the same time it doesn't. The setup for the series is one of brilliance as there is talk of a alternate universe of shadows and images.  Every so often that universe is shown as a bleak landscape of barren red rock and red skies filled with lighting. Yet there is no shadows or otherness that was talked about. Instead we are shown one of the two main characters stuck in a organic bubble with her head sticking out of it. Nothing else is shown of the others that was mentioned. And the time there is kept to a bare minimum. The one thing that could be the gateway for the series to become something more and interesting is thrown away.

     Another downfall of Genocyber is that there is almost no plot to it that can be followed what so ever. You are introduced to characters that say a word or two or you spend half the show with them that gives hints and says that they've been following one of the characters around for years only to be killed out of the blue for no purpose. The story for Genocyber is one of the worst I've been privileged to watch in a long time. The story is jumpy and inconstancy throws Genocyber against every wall it could find to see what could stick or just to see if they could make a stew out of different stories if they were thrown together. The story of the two sisters if it was given a chance could have been the main story and could have made this a more character driven story. Instead the two main lead's, the sisters,  story is given a total of what felt like one minute, and the gore and violence is given the main story instead and character development is thrown out the window. I wished that this would have held up since it's release but it doesn't and instead it just seems like it's an excuse to kill things in an animated world in a way not possible in live action films.

BEST DEATH:
     The detective's vivisection nightmare. 

BEST LINE:
     I'm hooking a human subject up to a PSI-scanner.......We can clearly see all sorts of images and shadows displayed. This is known as the "Mind Shadow". Withing this shadow lies a still unexplored universe.

FUN FACTS:
     Genocyber is the first part of a five anime OVA (Original Video Animation) series.

     OVAa were known to be more violent and risque than regular anime due to it didn't have the strict restrictions as anime that aired on television in Japan had.

     Genocyber  referenced the cult anime film Chojin Densetsu Urotsukidoji or known in the U.S. as Legend Of The Overfiend.

NEWS ROUNDUP Ver 3

PROMETHEUS
     It wouldn't be a week if I didn't have some Prometheus news it seems. This one is just a rumor still at the moment, but we might just get to see a very familiar face in the film at some point. I'll believe once I see it though.  Below is also a short video from the film of the Prometheus landing. It's not much but it's so beautifully shot and put together.

GRIMM

     In a bit of good news, NBC has decided to give the slow starting yet finally getting interesting series about a hunter of myths that's also a police detective a second season.

ONCE UPON A TIME

     Another interesting series that premiered last year that was on the bubble of being cancelled. Well I'm happy to say that this also was renewed for another season. After this past weekend's season final I really can't wait till the next season starts as it hinted at a much larger scale than what the first season was. A third season is going to be a tougher sale I think.

THE RIVER

     This one I pretty much figured would be cancelled and it pretty much looks like it is.

FRINGE

     JeNee and I were on a trip with a couple of friends when we were showed an episode of Fringe and I fell in love with it then and there. And it looks like Fox likes the viewers of the multi-universe series enough to give it a 13 episode final season. Thank you for not screwing this series like you did Firefly!

ALCATRAZ

     Then Fox goes and does something that makes no sense afterward and cancels one of the most interesting time drama I've seen since Life On Mars was on ABC. Even worse for this one is that the season ended on a cliffhanger.

SUPERNATURAL

     Coming back for an eighth season is the Winchester brothers. Only thing I have to say to this is "Good".

HAVEN

     The missing SyFy series will be back  finally in the fall after a extended time off. If you haven't watched this yet, it's a must watch.

DARKCHYLDE

     And in movie news also, the Wildstorm comic series from the 90's that was supposedly being turned into a film, might still be made (maybe, yet I'm not holding my breath for this to come to fruition). To see test footage that was shot for the film just look below. The reason why this is interesting is due to who might be directing the film which the poster gives away.

THE INNKEEPERS

THE INNKEEPERS (2011)
US
Directed by Ti West

CAST:
Sarah Paxton - Claire
Pat Healy - Luke
Kelly McGillis - Leanne Rease-Jones

PLOT:
     During the final days at the Yankee Pedlar Inn, two employees determined to reveal the hotel's haunted past begin to experience disturbing events as old guests check in for a stay.

REVIEW:
      This is the way to start out the new year. One of my top 10 movies to see this year within the first week of 2012! I first started hearing about this movie last year when it was on the festival circuit. So after waiting to see if it would actually release last year and nothing came of it, I was quite disappointed. Well thankfully that disappointment has turned to joy. Now let's hope the movie lives up to my expectations!

      I just have to say that Sarah Paxton, who plays Claire,was just fantastic in this film. She was great in the Last House On The Left remake, where she had to play a tough role, yet in this she actually shows what she's capable of and that she's a very believable younger actress. When she shows fear it's not like in most wide release movies where the female is all screaming at the smallest gust of wind, but genuine fear that is palatable.  And then there's Pat Healy as Luke. I actually believe Healy was having fun in this role as he just has to be an asshole through most of his scenes. Though just like Paxton, Healy can show actual fear which helped cement his character in reality. Then there is Kelly McGillis playing Leanne Rease-Jones.  McGillis to me had the hardest role to play as a psychic. The whole film could have crumpled if she tried to overplay her part. Instead she tries to ground her performance in reality as much as possible and in return made her character more relate-able. 

     Now as far as the story goes, I'm going to break it up into three parts, which is the same way the film is set up. In the first act we're introduced to all the characters and how they interact with one another. It's during this time we find out the little quirks of the Paxton's Claire and Healy's Luke. It's not a stretch to say that Luke is a asshole while Claire seems like she's trying to find out what to do with her life. It's was quite nice to see two people on screen in a horror movie acting like true normal people. The second act is when the normalcy of life starts to break away for Claire and her search for ghosts at the Yankee Pedlar Inn. It's also when McGillis's character comes into play. I will say that it is very important to listen to what McGillis's character says. I'm not going to say why as it will take away what happens later on in the film. The third act is when everything falls apart for Claire. The true feelings of Luke comes out during this act, which I'm still trying to decide if Claire really realized what he was saying or just chose to ignore him to help save his feelings. We also find out that Luke wasn't telling the truth throughout the whole film and what he does is almost the ultimate asshole move until he comes back.Yep, I officially hated Luke during most of this act, which just goes to show how invested in the characters you become.

     Now for those that are wondering why I was so vague through most of this review so far is because by giving away to much is to ruin the film for those that haven't seen it yet. One of the biggest complaints I've heard about the movie is that it's slow moving. And to that I just have to say that those people should stop watching the massed produced MTV joke direction in movies that has taken over what is considered horror these days. I love slow burn type of films that take time to explore the characters we see on screen, as we get to know their quirks, their passions, and this is one of the better ones. It actually takes the time to let the audience get to know the key players and creates a sense well being and peace before all hell breaks loose for Claire. The film is shot very clean and depends on atmosphere more than scare after scare to set the tone. This works wonders as when the scares do  happen it's much more scary and unexpected. My one small gripe is that director Ti West gives away one of the scenes at the end by spending to much time on Claire earlier in the movie. Those that know what to look for will see it right away, yet thankfully it doesn't take away anything away from the viewing experience. I can think of no better way to start out the year by watching a great horror film, this was one, and hopefully the rest of the year will follow suit.

BEST DEATH:
     There was no deaths on screen this time, so how about a dead man in a tub from the film instead!

BEST LINE:
     Oh shit.

FUN FACTS:
     The film was filmed exclusively in Torrington, Connecticut.

     The actual first showing of the film was at the Get Lit Winter Party 2010 in Hollywood, California.