2hotFeature
one of my absolute favorites!
UnowPriceless
hyped garbage
Taraparain
Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.
zetes
Tsukamoto-esque insanity. I wouldn't have been surprised to see that Tsukamoto had directed this, but I wouldn't call it a rip-off. It's definitely reminiscent of Tetsuo, but it is quite different. Tadanobu Asano stars as Dragon Eye Morrison, a man who was infused with electricity as a child when he climbed an electrical tower. He spends his days rocking out on the electrical guitar and hanging out with his collection of lizards. Meanwhile, another electrical prodigy known as Thunderbolt Buddha (Masatoshi Nagase) is cruising the streets of Tokyo looking for Asano, itching for an epic battle. The film is fairly plot less, just made up of gorgeous black and white images of the two men drifting through Tokyo. Ishii frequently uses Tsukamoto's lightning-paced editing, but a lot of the film moves a lot more slowly than that. The awesome Japanese heavy metal that Asano plays defines the mood, and the film subsequently rocked my nuts off. I will be adding this one to my collection as soon as possible. It's totally effing awesome.
sound-4
Electric Dragon 80,000 Volts is a frenetic rock and roll fever dream come to life. The narrative is fairly simple, but the action is intense. It's a loud film: the music is guitar freakout aggressive punk noise.The characters are developed via compressed time quick cuts and long takes that show their idiosyncratic behaviors. There's almost a meditative quality to the longer shots, especially when viewed in the unique cinematography style. For those who are interested in one-off visual styles, this film would merit repeated viewing. I highly recommend the making-of features on the DVD.If you like punk music and wuxia films, this may be the best use of an hour you've had in weeks.
Coventry
With "Electric Dragon 80.000V", director Sogo Ishii brings homage to ... himself, really! Who else could he pay tribute to, because HE is the one man who single-handedly started the wild and anarchist Japanese punk-cinema and, even though other directors may have had a lot more success with it (for example Shinya Tsukamoto with "Tetsuo"), Ishii is and will always remain the pioneer of punk. That being said, "ED8kV" is an extremely weird accomplishment and it's probably the type of movie that spontaneously causes people to suffer from epilepsy & twitching. It feels like a 55 minutes long industrial videoclip, with chaotic camera movements, extremely loud noises and the most unique use of black and white photography you'll ever see. Ishii also put quite a bit of wicked imagination into the script, as he revolves his film on an unorthodox type of super-hero named Dragon Eye Morrison. The young punker-protagonist survived a massive electro-shock as a kid, but the accident somehow sparked severe aggression and powers. He sleeps with chains around his wrists and boisterously plays on his electric guitar to control the anger. Eventually, he's allowed to let out all his furious anger in a battle against his oddly masked nemesis Thunderbolt Buddha. Crazy film, a lot less nightmarish than the aforementioned "Tetsuo", but definitely an unforgettable visual attack on pretty much all your senses. Ishii's direction feels genuinely hostile and aggressive, as if he wanted to take revenge on big studios and meddlesome producers who always interfered with his personal visions and ideas, resulting in final cuts the director didn't even like. "Burst City" is the ideal example of that. As said, the film is only 55 minutes long, but personally I thought it was more than long enough! A couple of minutes extra and I probably would have started hallucinating about talking lizards and malicious Buddha's myself. And my tympanum membranes probably wouldn't have survived a longer version, neither.
InzyWimzy
Tadanobu Asano's middle name is COOL.This one's a visual treat. If you've seen Tetsuo: Iron Man, you'll be familiar with the breakneck cuts, but there's less of the "biting down on aluminum foil" effect you get from Tetsuo. Asano just flows into his character who's has one of the best morning routines I've ever seen. I don't even want to describe his scenes, but they're a hoot to watch. The black and white definitely gives the movie a more gritty, almost kinetic feel. Effects are great without overkill and there's so much style onscreen giving ED8V its unique energy. Just watch the quick dialogue flashes and you feel the adrenaline laced coaster ride.ED8V definitely flows and the movie pretty much keeps you glued throughout. Definitely rewatchable as there's a lot to pick up on that you have missed the first time.
