meggui

One good thing about 'Queen of the Damned' is that it doesn't seem as if it were written by a committee. It's loopy and personal, somewhat loose and rambling. It seems as if it were written by a real live human writer, a person; perhaps not the world's most talented person, but a person nonetheless. This has to count in its favour when you compare it to other recent robotic exercises in camp such as the horrid 'Tomb Raider.'

The other good thing about 'Queen' is the casting. Stuart Townsend makes a far better Lestat than Cruise did. Unlike Cruise, he has a certain malevolent effeminacy that is appropriate to the character. Also, he's tall.

Aaliyah demonstrates a truly commanding presence as Akasha. At times, she almost makes you want to laugh; she's so over the top. But at the same time, you really can't take your eyes off her. She's so beautiful, so confident -- she really does manage to pull off this quite ridiculous character. Kudos.

In spite of the low ratings the film seems to be getting, here's hoping it goes on to find a loyal cult audience.

Since Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon came along, there's been a lot of talk about a revival of the Hong Kong movie industry. Don't believe it. The people now making movies in HK give new meaning to the word crass. Running Out of Time 2 is a perfect example. Ekin Cheng is the name draw, here, but he spends most of the film just grinning idiotically and flipping a coin. He flips the coin over and over and again and again. Why? Who knows? Sean Lau plays a cop who chases after the coin-flipping pretty boy. But once again: who knows why? There's a pretty actress in the female lead who runs some sort of company and she has to pay a ransom or something but she mostly just looks like she would rather be at a spa or shopping centre than in front of a camera. Nothing makes any sense. There is no action. There is no sex. There is no comedy. All there is is a name: Ekin Cheng. And you know what? Who cares?

This is the best movie I've seen this year, and it will probably go down as one of my all time favourite movies. Why? Uh...Hard to say. I think Messenger is just put together perfectly, from the story to the cast to the cinematography to the score. Every piece fits. And Naoko Iijima rules!