Home

Real life father and son Vincente and Alejandro Fernandez team up in this tear-filled drama about a father's wish to have his son follow him in his successful footsteps.
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
For personal use only.
All rights reserved.

Salome - Deutsche Opera, Berlin (DVD)
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
For personal use only.
All rights reserved.

Director Mochizuki Rokuro cut his teeth doing Japanese porn films before turning his attention to focus almost exclusively on the Yakuza genre, to which, with ANOTHER LONELY HITMAN, he brings a deft touch of surprising subtlety, and infinitely compelling characterizations. A gritty tale of an old-fashioned hitman's crusade to maintain the traditional Yakuza values of old, the titular character is played with a nuanced complexity by Ryo Ishibashi in his breakout role. As a young Yakuza, Tachibana Takashi pulled off an important hit on his very first time out, killing the boss of the rival Hokushin gang. He committed an error, however, due to the fact that he was on heroin, and was subsequently convicted and imprisoned for 10 years. Upon his release, he is welcomed back into the arms of the Hirakawa family, but things have changed a great deal in the intervening period, and not to Tachibana's liking. The rival gangs now settle their differences through the exchange of money, and make their living in such undistinguished professions as pornography, extortion, and drug dealing. When Tachibana defends an abused prostitute against her pimp, he inadvertently reawakens the old familial feud, and he must fight the bosses on both sides to purge the underground of its new business methods, reinstating the old codes of gangster life. Through a veneer of ultraviolence that warrants comparison to acclaimed director Takashi Miike, a multifaceted portrayal of the complexities of morality emerges in the well-drawn character of Tachibana. He is at once brutally cruel and sensitive, an essentially ethical creature in search of salvation, the harsh realities of which are offset by the conscious lack of artistry in the film's construction, with the lack of beautification a parallel to the moral decay with which Tachibana is surrounded.
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
For personal use only.
All rights reserved.

Thomas Vinterberg's contribution to the Dogma 95 collective is an electrifying achievement, driven by powerhouse acting and hand-held digital camera work so realistic that one might forget they're watching a feature film. Friends and family gather to pay tribute to Helge on his sixtieth birthday, but when it's time for the eldest son, Christian, to give the opening toast, the fireworks begin. At times hysterical, at times tragic and heartbreaking, this is a film that has the ability to single-handedly reaffirm one's faith in cinema. Inspiring and brilliant. Winner of the Jury Prize at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.DVD Features:Region 1Keep CaseFull Frame - 1.33
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
For personal use only.
All rights reserved.

Zhang Yang, the award-winning director of 1999's SHOWER, recreates the powerful story of Chinese actor Jia Hongsheng in the fascinating and thought-provoking QUITTING. Jia was a modestly successful breakout Chinese star in the late 1980s and early 1990s, appearing in such films as SUMMER EXPECTATIONS and SILVER SNAKE MURDERS as well as the award-winning and controversial FROZEN. In 1992, Jia starred in a stage production of KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN, directed by Zhang, and was introduced to heroin--which he embraced wholeheartedly. The dementia that stemmed from his addiction resulted in a closed-off existence in which there was room only for the Beatles song Let It Be and little else.QUITTING is not a documentary; Zhang brings back all the principals, who play themselves. Thus, when Jia's parents retire early in order to move in with their son (and daughter) to take care of him, the pain and frustration is being relived for the screen scene by scene, making for an uncomfortable yet remarkable and original format in which to watch this family struggle to save a child yet again. This story of isolation and drugs is also a metaphor for what occurred during the cultural revolution in the 1980s and 1990s as Chinese youth experienced more of what the West has to offer, with all its bright high points and dark low valleys.DVD Features:Region 1Keep CaseWidescreen - 1.78Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1 - ChineseAdditional Release Material: TrailersInteractive Features: Interactive Menus Scene Selection
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
For personal use only.
All rights reserved.