Hey look, somebody’s left a blog here unattended ! I wonder… maybe we could use it to further our sinister goals.

Chik yeung tin sai

Charlie’s Angels from Hong Kong? Not quite, in the good or the bad sense of the phrase. So Close, as it’s known in the West, is a lifeless action piece with a few nice scenes but way too much empty action and, what is worse, empty emotion. Not much to see here in this prolonged one-reel actioner, then.

Yo, Jake! JAKE! Bring the corpse over here!

Chiklo gouyeung

I think one reviewer used the word ’demented’ when referring to Naked Killer. A mighty fine choice, I should say. The story is somewhat Hitchcockian, what with the fake identities and unsolved murders, but the main source of paraphrasing seems to be Basic Instinct.

There are some hilarious action scenes here, but the overall register fluctuates a bit too wildly from softcore (really soft) to gore to double-gun shootouts to flamboyant overacting. Not really recommendable either.

Yeah, you saw off his feet and I’ll do the arms. Noboby’s gonna recognize him afterwards.

Shaft (1971)

Could the theme song ever get old? I doubt it. On the other hand the movie itself hasn’t aged so well. Some of the performances are just plain awful, including Richard Roundtree’s Shaft. The upsides include New York, that looks really shitty in a really gorgeous way. In general Shaft in an enjoyable riff on 70’s cop movies (think Serpico) but might not be strong enough to stand on its own two feet.

Right, now once we put some dirt on his grave the place’ll look good as new.

Ônibus 174

True metropolises can be hell. That’s what a small town boy like thought after Bus 174, a documentary about a bus hijacking in Rio de Janeiro. Unfortunately the movie is way too long and loses much of its force in frequent flashbacks and digressions that, in the end, only serve to underline the social critique and therefore undermine it. Once again cutting down would’ve improved the end result, as in its present form the movie lacks focus.

Did you hear that? Is someone else here? What the fu–

Fog of War

’Second bomb dropped in Nagasaki just for the hell of it’ is how The Onion put it. Robert McNamara doesn’t talk about the Big One but instead sheds light on various other wacky conceptions the Americans have been experimenting with in the 20th century. The man talks with great authority and – so it would seem – honesty, even though there are some subjects he won’t discuss.

Some reviewers have complained about Morris’ flashy visual style. As a seasoned television reporter I know how goddamned hard it can be to figure ways to illustrate interviews, and as such Fog of War works just brilliantly. Yes, it’s eye-catching and somewhat excessive at times but nevertheless fills its purpose just fine. Heartily recommended.

Oh shit, it’s the cops! Make a run for it!

What will happen to the mysterious gravediggers? Will they be caught? Who is the body?

Find out in the next episode of… AHBoSG movie reviews!