For this Sunday Kino Night, first up is the first two installments of the samurai-action-fantasy Lone Wolf & Cub series, and two of the most beloved Japanese action films ever: Sword of Vengeance (1972) and Baby Cart at the River Styx (1972)! You wanted stuff about ninjas and guys stabbing people in the face, so here we go. Based on the manga of the same name, the series involves a ronin wandering the land with his small child as the shogun’s henchmen relentlessly hound them. The second film ups the ante by having our hero battle a clan of lady ninjas. He wracks up a ridiculously body count in all the films, generally by chopping the bad guys’ limbs off. Tarantino got the idea for the Kill Bill blood sprays from these movies. These are the best-known and arguably best-regarded films of director Kenji Misumi. After these two films, which are both short, we will finish up with the surreal French cartoon The Triplets of Belleville, (2003), set in a demented old-timey city and following a trio of sisters on a bizarre, dialogue-free adventure to find a kidnapped boy. It is currently the magnum opus of director Sylvain Chomet.

We’ll start early this evening, at 9PM EST on Hextube, right here:

https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies

Be there, comrades!

Letterboxd:

• Lone Wolf & Club: Sword of Vengeance: https://letterboxd.com/film/lone-wolf-and-cub-sword-of-vengeance/
• Lone Wolf & Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx: https://letterboxd.com/film/lone-wolf-and-cub-baby-cart-at-the-river-styx/
• The Triplets of Belleville: https://letterboxd.com/film/the-triplets-of-belleville/

Doesthedogdie.com links:

• Lone Wolf & Cub: Sword of Vengeance: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/85967
• Lone Wolf & Cub: Baby Cart at the River Styx: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068816/parentalguide?ref_=tt_stry_pg
• The Triplets of Belleville: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/12260

CWs for the Lone Wolf & Cub movies:

• Sexual assault. Oof. Despite the ridiculous, campy, over-the-top tone of these movies, the first film (Sword of Vengeance) has an unpleasant scene about 50 minutes in involving a woman being chased and assaulted by some bad guys. It lasts about one minute. I will announce exactly when this scene is coming.
• Nudity.
• Sex scene.
• Death of parent.
• Blood and gore.
• Dismemberment.
• Decapitation.
• Gun violence.
• Cutting of flesh.
• Profanity.
• A child is dropped down a well.
• Child abuse.
• Smoking.
• Alcohol.

CWs for The Triplets of Belleville:

• Torture.
• Spitting.
• Fat jokes.
• Burlesque dance scene with brief nudity.
• Car crash.

Links to movies:

Forthcoming. I have the files, and will upload shortly.

For this Friday Movie Night, we’re watching two of the most critically-acclaimed films of the year. First up is the best-reviewed Pakistani film of any kind to date: Joyland (2022), a romance about a young man from a conservative family who gets into dance theatre and starts woogin’ for a trans actor. Romance and struggle ensue. Pretty much universal acclaim for this one since its Western premiere earlier this year, and really, how often does a Pakistani gay romance come along? Let’s watch. After that will be the first of our Christmas-themed films this month, with the highly-acclaimed new dramedy The Holdovers (2023), the latest film of Oscar darling Alexander Payne (Election [1999], Sideways [2004], Nebraska [2013]). Some students at a prep school are too poor to go home for Christmas break, so a curmudgeonly professor (played by Paul Giamatti) has to look after them. Hilarity and feel-good antics ensue. Will they learn to understand each toher? Who can say? Anyway, this is likely to be up for some awards, and has received extremely good reviews, so we’re checking it out.

We’ll start at 9PM EST on Hextube, right here: https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies

Be there, comrades!

Letterboxd:

• Joyland: https://letterboxd.com/film/joyland-2022/
• The Holdovers: https://letterboxd.com/film/the-holdovers/

Doesthedogdie.com links:

• Joyland: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/885225
• The Holdovers: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/789816

CWs for Joyland:

• Alcohol abuse.
• Deaths of animals.
• Death of parent.
• Cheating.
• Someone wets themselves.
• Vomiting.
• Spitting.
• Hospital scene.
• Suicide.
• Flashing lights.
• Pregnancy.
• Death of pregnant person.
• Childbirth.
• Homophobia.
• Homophobic slurs.
• “Man in a dress” joke.
• Sex.
• Sad ending.
• Blood and gore.

CWs for The Holdovers:

• Child abandonment.
• Alcohol abuse.
• Dislocated shoulder.
• Death of child.
• Someone wets themselves.
• Mental institution scene.
• Hospital scene.
• Mental illness.
• Depression.
• Black character dies first.
• Sex jokes. No sex decpicted.
• Sad ending.

Links to movies:

• Joyland: https://vimeo.com/892786863
• The Holdovers: https://vimeo.com/892789373

For this Sunday Slop Night, first up is, by request, Hoot (2006), a family film about a trio of kids who team up to stop some evil developers from plowing over the habitat of an endangered owl population. Kids rock? I guess we’ll find out. This is the only film of director Wil Shriner; he is a one-hit wonder. Second is the highly-acclaimed Italian union drama-comedy, The Organizer, about a well-read socialist professor at the turn of the 20th century who tries to organize a strike of textile workers, and has to deal with false consciousness and liberalism every step of the way. Director is Mario Monicelli, who also did the anti-Rififi film Big Deal on Madonna Street (1958), which was a hit when we watched it a month ago. Superb reviews across the board for this one, so let’s give it a shot. Last for the night is Jim Jarmusch’s Mystery Train (1989), a comedy following several storylines of odd characters during a night in Memphis, Tennessee, including a ditzy bellboy, a Japanese tourist couple, and a trio of bumbling thieves. Steve Buscemi is in it. The previous Jarmusch movies we’ve watched (Down By Low, Ghost Dog) have been great, and this is supposed to be one of his best. Let’s watch.

We’ll start early this evening, at 7:15PM EST on Hextube, right here: https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies

Be there, comrades!

Letterboxd:

• Hoot: https://letterboxd.com/film/hoot/
• The Organizer: https://letterboxd.com/film/the-organizer/
• Mystery Train: https://letterboxd.com/film/mystery-train/

Doesthedogdie.com links:

• Hoot: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/17240
• The Organizer: Sorry, nothing on DTDD or IMDB.
• Mystery Train: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/32043

CWs for Hoot:

• Animal abuse.
• Comic violence.
• Sexual innuendos.

CWs for The Organizer:

• Someone is hit and killed by a train.
• Worker abuse.
• Poverty.
• Angry mobs.
• Capitalism.

CWs for Mystery Train:

• Alcohol abuse.
• Smoking.
• Bugs.
• Ghosts.
• Suicidal ideation.
• N-words.
• “Sexual content”. Seems pretty tame to me, though.
• Blood and gore.
• Gun violence.

Links to movies:

Forthcoming. I have the files, but the most convenient way to upload them is to replace one of the earlier videos while a later video is playing.

For this Friday Movie Night, we’re watching one of the all-time classics of Indian cinema: Nayakan (1987)! Imagine The Godfather, but in Tamil, and with the melodrama cranked to max, and a bunch of song-and-dance numbers thrown in. Dude gets too far in with the mob, and then he becomes the mob. We have not watched much from India, despite the size of its film industry, so we may as well start with one of its most critically-acclaimed, canonical works; nothing but praise for this one from pretty much all corners. It is considered the magnum opus of director Mani Ratnam. Okay, we’ll give it a try. After that will be our obligatory God Damn America entry for the week, with Frances Ha (2012), directed by critical darling Noah Baumbach (Manchester by the Sea, among others) and starring another critical darling, Greta Gerwig, who is now better-known as the director of Barbie (2023). She plays an aspiring dancer trying to launch her career in New York, and finds that showbiz sucks ass. Excellent reviews for this one pretty much everywhere, so let’s give it a whirl.

We’ll start at 9PM EST on Hextube, right here: https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies

Be there, comrades!

Letterboxd:

• Nayakan: https://letterboxd.com/film/nayakan/
• Frances Ha: https://letterboxd.com/film/frances-ha/

Doesthedogdie.com links:

• Nayakan: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093603/parentalguide?ref_=tt_stry_pg
• Frances Ha: https://www.doesthedogdie.com/media/16834

CWs for Nayakan:

• Sex. No nudity depicted.
• Blood and gore.
• Beatings.
• Gun violence.
• Death of parent.
• Torture.
• Police brutality.
• A bottle is smashed over someone’s head.
• Vomiting.
• Stabbing.
• Child abuse.
• Cutting of flesh.
• Strangulation.
• Eye trauma.
• Spree killing.
• Explosions.
• Someone is set on fire.
• Profanity.
• Ableist language.
• Drug use.
• Alcohol.
• Death by hanging.

CWs for Frances Ha:

• Alcohol abuse.
• Vomiting.
• Miscarriage.
• Discussion of sex.

Links to movies:

• Nayakan: https://vimeo.com/890460752
• Frances Ha: https://vimeo.com/890466021