The Walking Dead, Season 2 – Finally here!

Frank Darabont's zombie apocalypse series The Walking Dead is back with new episodes. The last two episodes of the new season have not been disappointing. The series represents a more mature take on the zombie genre. It mixes horror and suspense with drama. The balance between the three is spot on! Good acting and (some) interesting characters. This series has to be one of the best things on TV at the moment. Seriously, if you haven't seen the first season, you should be ashamed.

I'd also like to recommend some of Frank Darabont's films, such as Shawshank Redepmtion, which everybody know and loves. Shame on you if you haven't seen it. Mist is a very good, old-fashioned monster/sci-fi thriller. Some of my friends called it cheap, but they didn't get it, that's the thing that makes the film so charming in this age of CGI-extravaganza.

Check out the trailer: 

 

Hunger

I watched this film from my laptop on a train up north, constantly looking over my shoulder, worried that other passengers might think I am some kind of perv or sadist. Hunger is not a pleasant film to watch; there is a lot nudity and violence - both physical and psychological. Not the film you would like to watch on a first date.

Hunger is based on a true story. The film depicts the lives of IRA inmates in the notorious prison named Maze in the early 1980s, more specifically the last few weeks of Bobby Sand's life. The film is very low key and there's no dramatic plot line -- some would undoubtedly say that the film is boring. It is not. Hunger is dealing with a subject matter that still today is rather sensitive, but without turning the film into a political statement. The director, Steve McQueen, is portraying the suffering inside Maze as a tragedy not only for the inmates, but also for the prison guards.

The IRA prisoners and Bobby Sands are in the spotlight, but there are several hints of the silent suffering of the prison guards. Hunger portrays many of the wrongdoers as men trapped in a situation they would never have wanted to be in, and how the overwhelming stress and feeling of guilt feeds the spiral of violence.

Hunger is a very watchable film and a very decent debut film, but it is not your typical gangsta prison flick. Hunger is very low key, slow paced, dark and disturbing - it does not handle its audience with care. The world of Hunger is almost entirely devoid of light and hope.

Hunger is available at Turku public library, make a reservation here.

Ninja Scroll

Ninja Scroll is a straightforward and bloody anime film. The plot is fairly simple: an itinerant ninja (or something) travels around Japan and stumbles upon a vile plot by some bad guys. Needless to say that he takes care of them.

Unlike many other anime films, this one is not ruined by a supposedly philosophical or megalomaniac plot. It's just fun and brainless entertainment, which a lot of times is enough. If you enjoyed playing Ninja Gaiden II, the chances are that you'll like this one. Some of the scenes are very bloody. There is also some explicit sexual content; this is no cartoon for kids. Is it any good? Yes, I would say so, the entertainment value is pretty high. I especially liked the innovative bad guys.

Watch the clip below for a little taster. It's not a spoiler, it's from the beginning of the film. But consider yourself warned, what you are about to see is pretty violent.

Don't mix Ninja Scroll the movie with Ninja Scroll the series. The series sucks!

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For the record: I watch "real" movies too. I have the russian classic Come and See and the Swedish art house movie Du levande waiting on my table. I prefer to watch more serious movies in a more focused state of mind. So called "trash movies" are better for resetting your brain after a hard day of studying and/or working. 

Crappy (22 Bullets) and mediocre (Paranormal Activity)

Never, ever watch 22 Bullets (aka L'immortel). I have nothing good to say about this film, in the middle of the film I felt like shooting myself in the face. For the sake of courtesy I had to finish the film.

I Also watched Paranormal Activity, which is loathed by a lot of people I know. The film sort of works when you are alone in the dark (my flat mate ruined the experience by coming home in the middle of the film), but yeah, its pretty boring when you really think about it. The characters in the film hang around in the house during daytime, when they go to bed at night strange shit starts to happens. Paranormal Activity is composed of god know how many repetitions of this cycle.

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Few things about my taste in films: I'm pretty demanding, I think that I have probably seen too many films in my life. Few films surprise me anymore. I'm also very masochistic. For some reason I keep watching films that are bad - and get strange pleasure from it.