“I usually identify with the nerds but these ones just reinforce the social rules. Their values are fascistic. All those people marching around in capes and masks and boots. The superhero imagery is totally fascist!”

“When you step into this genre, they feel it belongs to them. They want you to conform, or they won’t like you. They want the conventional. But it’s fine. The movies has been doing very well, I think, whenever we’ve screened it to normal people.”

“I’m attracted to working with comedians because they don’t have that stars’ idea of what a hero should be.”

Or, know your source material. Either way, fans can get picky even if all they see is a trailer. Unfair, sure, but fascists? Is The Green Hornet’s fan base like a Batman or Spider-Man? Uh…find out January 14th, 2011.

Source: The Playlist

However, a test-screening was held on Tuesday night in Long Beach that has Sony putting faith in the movie. So much that Sony Executive Amy Pascal is already talking about a sequel, according to the LA Times. Of course, this doesn’t mean that it will happen, and it all depends on whether or not the film is successful at the box-office. The fanboys/girls have already expressed their intentions to not see the film, but may be this will change their minds.

The Green Hornet opens on January 14, 2011.

“Britt Reid is the son of LA’s most prominent and respected media magnate and perfectly happy to maintain a directionless existence on the party scene — until his father mysteriously dies, leaving Britt his vast media empire. Striking an unlikely friendship with one of his father’s more industrious and inventive employees, Kato, they see their chance to do something meaningful for the first time in their lives: fight crime. But in order to do this, they decide to become criminals themselves — protecting the law by breaking it, Britt becomes the vigilante The Green Hornet as he and Kato hit the streets.

Using all his ingenuity and skill, Kato builds the ultimate in advanced retro weaponry, The Black Beauty, an indestructible car equal parts firepower and horsepower. Rolling in a mobile fortress on wheels and striking the bad guys with Kato’s clever gadgets, The Green Hornet and Kato quickly start making a name for themselves, and with the help of Britt’s new secretary, Lenore Case, they begin hunting down the man who controls LA’s gritty underworld: Benjamin Chudnofsky. But Chudnofsky has plans of his own: to swat down The Green Hornet once and for all.”

Kato will be played by Jay Chou, a role once held lovingly by Bruce Lee.

Source: /Film

Chou’s previous credits include the Oscar nominated The Curse of The Golden Flower, and most recently Kung Fu Drunk, though is still relatively unknown here in the States.  The film’s director Michel Gondry calls the actor “incredibly unique and charming and fights like a wild dog!”

Source: Gordonandthewhale

Source: EW

The Film:

Tokyo! is it’s own trilogy, an omnibus film with the intentions of allowing three of the world’s top art house filmmakers, to shed light on their version of Tokyo. The directors are two Frenchmen, Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind; Be Kind Rewind) and Leos Carax (Pola X; The Lovers on the Bridge), and the Korean Bong Joon-ho (The Host). Those who have seen Paris, je t’aime, which is a much larger collection of much shorter films, will identify with the concept. However, they’ll also be aware that some films are bound to be better than others. In Tokyo!, where each film lasts over a half hour long, the film that falls a bit short is certainly a bit less forgivable.

The first of the films is “Interior Design”, as directed by Michel Gondry. It involves a young couple, Hiroko (Ayako Fujitani) and Akira (Ryo Kase), who live with their high school friend, Akemi (Ayumi Ito), in Tokyo. They’re oblivious lovers, completely lost within the hectic and demanding world of big city life. Their efforts to find meaning and purpose are illustrated through a fascinating surreal twist which I will not spoil. The film, adapted from a graphic novel by Gabrielle Bell, is interesting, but it certainly doesn’t shed much light on Tokyo specifically. It’s instead a universal portrait of the ungrounded youth.

The second film is Leos Carax’s “Merde”, which stars the strange red-headed troll (Denis Lavant) that appears prominently in the film’s advertisements. He comes out of the sewers one day, an unidentifiable creature with a milky eye and a bright green suit, and terrorizes the citizens. At first, he’s only licking armpits. Then, he throws grenades. He’s eventually tried and receives a lawyer who claims to understand him. There’s a long sequence when the two “communicate” (we don’t get subtitles), which is a definitive example of why this film’s pacing is flawed. We begin to lose interest, and then the scene continues. And continues. Lavant is really good, and the concept is great (a modern day Godzilla shedding light on the “buried” nationalist party of Japan), but it runs out of steam shortly after it begins.

The last film, which may be the best and most relevant to the city, is “Shaking Tokyo”, as directed by Bong Joon-ho. It defines for us the “hikikomori” – urban hermits, usually young males, who one day enter their homes and never leave. The concept of urban isolation is obviously done to death, but strange additions of a pizza girl with “buttons” tattooed on her arms and periodical earthquakes certainly give the plot enough of a spin to remain fresh. The end of the film shows us a city where every citizen has become a hikikomori.

One of the flaws of the film is that only “Shaking Tokyo” seems specific to Tokyo. In a film without a linking theme this would be excusable, but I was expecting each director to use the setting more to their advantage and take care in examining social issues specific to that particular city. “Merde” can be set in any number of countries with a violent history, and “Interior Design” is so vague that it’s familiar of any city in the world.

Despite it’s flaws, Tokyo! is certainly easy to watch. The first and last films are very good, and although “Merde” doesn’t quite live up to their quality, it still gives us an incredibly memorable villain. Fans of the directors won’t be too disappointed, but don’t go in expecting much more than mild entertainment.

The Blu Ray:

Audio/Video: The films were all shot on different formats, and therefore video quality is a mixed bag. “Merde”, for example, has a lot of noise in some scenes (like the sewer), however it appears to be intentional. The last of the films, “Shaking Tokyo”, is letter-boxed more than the prior two, giving it a completely different aspect ratio. Nothing looks bad on it’s own, but it’s a weird package to watch the high contrast milky “Shaking Tokyo” after watching the grainy and damaged “Merde”. The audio is also fine and adds a good deal of dimension to certain scenes, such as Merde’s grenade-throwing rampage.

Making of…: There are three different “making of” features, each running about a half hour in length (and therefore running as long as the films themselves). The features for the last two films are a bit dull – they’re candid looks at the filming without any analysis or voice-over. It’s fascinating to compare and contrast the methods of each director, however a casual audience isn’t going to make it longer than five minutes before turning it off.

… Interior Design: This is the best of the “Making of” features if only because it’s presented in a more formal and traditional manner. Gondry discusses the intricacies of the script, the visual effects, the locations, etc., and we also hear from every one of the actors from the film (even those who hardly get screen time).

… Merde: This feature focuses on director Leos Carax and actor Denis Levant figuring out the mannerisms of Merde. The rehearse the first tracking shot of the film, which involves Merde walking down a city sidewalk and harassing anyone within an arm’s distance. We don’t hear any voice-over, however we watch several practice takes of Merde’s walk and see how carefully each piece of it was rehearsed.

… Shaking Tokyo: Much like the making of feature for “Merde”, this is another intimate look at the actual on set filming of certain key scenes of the film. While the prior feature focused primarily on Denis Levant, this sets it’s focus more on the technique of Bong Joon-ho. He’s incredibly precise, a perfectionist unwilling to settle for anything.

Director Interviews: These interviews are what I was hoping for out of the “Making of” features, but unfortunately this only runs for a combined 20 minutes or so. Each director discusses their film in depth, most notably their inspirations and how it reflects Tokyo to them. It’s insightful and engaging, and certainly a more worthwhile feature than anything else on the disc.

Photo Gallery: A simple two minute slideshow of pictures from the set and the film. It’s a bit hard to watch if only because each picture lasts only a few seconds on screen before it switches away. There’s no time to process anything.

Tokyo! Trailer: Self-explanatory.

Conclusion: I would recommend renting this film before purchasing it. The special features are a bit dull and not nearly as interesting as I would’ve liked. The film itself is a mixed bag – both the first and last segments are quite good, but the one in the middle is unfocused and without momentum.

Michel Gondry’s segment is probably the biggest selling point for an American audience, and if you’ve liked his previous work you’ll probably like “Interior Design”. It’s a very odd story, and although it’s not quite as quirky and charming as his features, it’s a worthwhile and interesting piece. Both the disc and the film are a mixed bag of positives and negatives, but there’s definitely enough good material to warrant a rental.

The Film: Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

The Blu Ray: Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Tokyo! Release Date: March 6 in New York, and March 20 in Los Angeles and Nationwide. 

 Synopses:

“Interior Design” (Dir. Michel Gondry)            

Hiroko and Akira (Ayako Fujitani and Ryo Kase),
a young couple, arrive in Tokyo to pursue their careers, moving in temporarily with Hiroko’s old friend Akemi (Ayumi Ito), a career girl whose boyfriend quickly tires of the houseguests. Hiroko and Akira appear to have a solid and mutually supportive relationship that will seemingly carry them through any challenge. Akira, the young man, takes steps towards his ambition to become a filmmaker, but the woman is less sure of herself and gradually she begins to lose herself in the vast city. Ultimately she under-goes a surreal metamorphoses that gives her an unexpected sense of peace and purpose.  Adapted from the comic “Cecil and Jordan in New York.”

Merde

“Merde” (Dir. Leos Carax) Merde (a French term translating as “shit”) is the name given to an unkempt, gibberish-spewing subterranean creature of the Tokyo sewers, played by Denis Lavant, who rises from the underground lair where he dwells to attack unsuspecting locals in increasingly brazen and terrifying ways: he steals cash and cigarettes from passersby, frightens old women and salaciously licks schoolgirls, resulting in a televised media frenzy that creates mounting hysteria among the Tokyo populace. After discovering an arsenal of hand grenades in his underground lair, Merde slips into full-on assault mode, hurling the munitions at random citizens and creating a Godzilla-like atmosphere of urban terror, which the media promptly laps up and reflects back to its equally voracious television audience.  Enter pompous French magistrate Maître Voland (Jean-François Balmer) – a dead ringer for the sewer creature’s gnarled and twisted demeanor – who arrives in Tokyo to represent Merde’s inevitable televised trial, claiming to be the sole person in the world able to speak his client’s unintelligible language. The media circus mounts as lawyer defends client in a surreal court of law hungry for a satisfying resolution. Merde is tried, convicted and sentenced to death – until justice takes an unexpected turn.

Shaking Tokyo

“Shaking Tokyo” (Dir. Bong Joon-ho) Teruyuki Kagawa stars as a Tokyo shut-in, or hikikimori, who has not left his apartment in a decade. His only link to the outside world is through his telephone, which he uses to command every necessity from a series of random and anonymous delivery people, including the pizza that he lives on and the hundreds of discarded pizza cartons he meticulously stacks in and around his cramped apartment. But one day is different – his pizza arrives thanks to a lovely young woman who succeeds in catching the shut-in’s eye. Suddenly an earthquake strikes Tokyo, prompting the beautiful young delivery woman to faint in her client’s apartment. And then the unthinkable happens – the hikikimori falls hopelessly in love. Time passes and the shut-in discovers through another pizza delivery person that the improbable object of his affections has become a hikikimori in her own right. Taking a bold leap into the unknown, our hero crosses the threshold of his apartment and takes to the streets in search of his mystery girl, at last discovering his kindred spirit at the very moment another earthquake strikes.

Interior Design clip: Dead Cat-

Merde clip: Green Suit Guy-

Shaking Tokyo clip: Blinding Light-

Trailer

The Green Hornet has an official website, and with new logo for quite some time now, but is basically just holding the Internet space till the film begins, so they will have promotional material.   You can check out the official site HERE

Source: THR