This was my at-home movie today: youtu.be/LMGBQDpfLnc. I was inspired by our Coens discussion, so Yimous remake of Blood Simple seemed apt. On one hand it is worth seeing: Yimou is (once?) considered a giant in world cinema. It has Sun Hong-Lei (from Drug War and might become one of my favourite stoic, tough-guy actors) in the M. Emmet Walsh role. Its a remake of Blood Simple. On the other hand, it might put some off. There is a lot of (very) broad comedy and wacky camera movement. The costumes are garish and performances (other than Hong-Lei) are far from subtle. At times it seems like a film made more by Stephen Chow. This is hardly a compliment, despite my love for Kung Fu Hustle. On Rotten Tomatoes, it rates less than fresh. And considering that it is a Yimou film, I still dont know what to make of it. That this filmmaker also made Raise the Red Lantern, To Live and Ju Dou seems just weird. I know he took a corner, into more genre stuff, with House of Flying Daggers, but still. But that said, I would recommend it. It is well-made, fun to watch, has this nifty noodle making scene, and might be good for my fellow Coens completists.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 15:51:58 +0000