DVD Galore

And my dvd collection has begun. I've decided I'm gonna start collecting movies I like and ditch pirated dvds. I've had enough of the frustration from a bootlegged dvd getting stuck half way through a movie and having to skip the whole scene to get the dvd going again. Plus, it's always a good investment to build up a collection of films I like. Well so far, here's what the stock's looking like...

Fawlty Towers

Ahhh good old Fawlty Towers. I was first introduced to this classic British comedy series by a friend, Infomatica back in the days at the dorms. After a few episodes and I thought Fawlty Towers was one of the most wittily humourous comedy series ever written..still is. That's because it's written and starred by the ingenious Mr. John Cleese himself.

My personal favourite character has to be Manuel, played by Andrew Sachs as the hotel's only waiter (from Barcelona, as Mr. Fawlty always says). The character is simply adorably funny, being constantly confused due to his limited English.

For a lil taste of what Fawlty Towers is like, here's a short clip off of my favourite episode, where Manuel's having trouble understanding one of the hotel guests.

The Neighbour No. Thirteen

This Japanese film first caught my attention with its cover with these two guys in identical urban clothes, one holding a samurai sword. I thought that was pretty cool. Its Jap name Rinjin 13, the plot follows young Juzo, who used to get bullied in school and develops an avengeful alter-personality, whose sole mission is to kill his childhood tormentor. The movie gets more interesting as the bully coincidently moves into the same building as Juzo, along with his young wife and his lil son. And when Juzo's split personality, #13 comes out to visit them at home :)

The other thing that got me picking up the dvd was that the guy on the cover with the samurai sword is Nakamura. If you have seen Fearless (Jet Li), Nakamura is the Jap guy, who fights Jet Li at the end. I like his style...

From Dusk till Dawn

One of my favourite movies. I remember watching it on VCDs in highschool, and thought it was a shit cool movie. I like to think of From Dusk till Dawn as like an everlasting gobstopper, with each scene dissolving to reveal a new flavour/mood. You get to see George Clooney be as crude as ever, starring as the elder of the crime-indulging duo, the Gecko brothers (nothing to do with the amphibian whatsoever).

This movie was the one that got me into Tarantino's work. In fact, I think it's my favourite from the Tarantino collection. Mr. Tarantino also plays one of the main characters in the movie; Clooney's character's younger brother.

A Nightmare on Elm Street: The First Three Nightmares

This dvd boxset contains the first three of the infamous A Nightmare on Elm Street series. The last time I saw any of these was probably when I was around 8 or 9. Wasn't exactly my movie of choice at the time but dad had me sat next to him while he was watching it, and I remember thinking Freddy Krueger's damned cool. He's just different from any other boogiemen out there. He's not another one of those slow-moving big stupid mysterious figures with a large knife in one hand and a mask to hide a disfigured face, who can barely walk but somehow always manage to catch up with the girl only to see her scream hideously and stick the knife in her stomach. Freddy's much more than that. He makes slashing wayyy stylish.

P.S. Freddy kicks Jason's ass any day.

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I have also just seen SAW III at the movies. Now, I would classify myself as a fan of horror flicks and usually, the bloodier the marrier. But SAW III did turn my stomach in that cinema. Well, may be it had been a while since I last saw a blood and guts film on the big screen so everything seemed so amplified. A brain never looked so big.

Dont get me wrong. I'm not saying the movie was bad in any way. In fact, I think it was very well made. The plot was clever as usual with its unexpected twists and turns. The concept behind each of the torture scenes was also very clever, with each of the excruciating machines that were so nerve-wrenching to watch operate, and at the same time, invigorating...in a way.

All in all, a good movie with some excellent make-up effects (well, they better have been make-up effects), and a clever plot. And if you're a fan of the good old blood and guts (and brains), SAW III will definitely not dissappoint.