All posts filed under: Movies

Live, Die, Repeat – Palm Springs – Humble Opinions

Published by Luke Halliday

After several months of anticipation, Palm Springs, the latest Andy Samberg vehicle from Hulu, made it’s way to the Prime Video streaming platform in Australia—meaning I was able to finally watch the darn thing after watching the trailer ad nauseum. As someone who loves the film Groundhog Day, I was naturally drawn to what looked to be a modern take on the infinite time-loop scenario. So was Palm Springs worth the wait? Yes, very much yes it was. Starring Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti, Palm Springs takes the infinite time-loop concept of Groundhog Day and flips it on its head. Unlike Groundhog Day which sees Bill Murray repeat the titular day over and over, Palm Springs explores what it would be like to share that experience with someone else. Set at a wedding in Palm Springs, we learn that Samberg’s character, Niles, has been stuck in the loop for an immeasurable amount of time and has completely given up on trying to escape the loop—just embracing the fact that he is in this situation nothing really …

Aye – Robert the Bruce – Humble Opinions

Published by Jahanzeb Khan

Braveheat—the classic medieval Scottish pride film starring Mel Gibson—was on TV the other night. The film was meant to depict the conquests and campaigns that took place under the legendary Scottish knight, William Wallace, as he fought to liberate Scotland from the rule of England. As entertaining, epic, and charming as the film was—for all the right reasons—the fact of the matter is that it simply was not an authentic depiction of the real William Wallace, nor the events that transpired during his legendary knighthood. Sadly, his legacy has now become synonymous with Gibson’s charming crocodile smile, much to the dismay of the Scots who revere the legacy of William Wallace and his contributions to Scotland’s odyssey towards freedom. In the very same film was the conflicted Scottish king Robert the Bruce, portrayed by actor Angus Macfadyen, depicted as a cowardly and indecisive young king—which ultimately was a disservice to who he really was historically. Still, there was a layered and conflicted nature to his character as someone caught between England and Scotland. Braveheart ended …

Two For All – My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising – Humble Opinions

Published by Kane Bugeja

What can be said about My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising without spoiling the plot in its entirety? Nothing, so buckle up for a slew of words that detail every single thing I found to be cool in this second film outing for the series I love oh so much. Fair warning, I am just going to write this as it pours out of my head; so, literacy be damned, this is about fun…and cool…and cool fun…and punching things really, really hard…with a film budget. As is apparently the case, My Hero loves throwing Class 1-A onto islands when it needs a film set piece. I don’t know why. Maybe so they can wreck shop and not impact mainland Japan? You could argue that it’s so Pro Heroes aren’t as readily available, but that only applies to this film, since the first took place on an island that had literally just called a bunch of extra Heroes to it. Regardless, Class 1-A is on an island, helping out the locals as part of their training. With …

The Love for One’s Own Sound – Sonic the Hedgehog – Humble Opinions

Published by Jahanzeb Khan

I honestly believe the Sonic we ended up seeing in the final cut of Sonic the Hedgehog was always the original intended design; the shock trailer with the horrifyingly “realistic” depiction of the iconic blue blur was always a deliberate publicity stunt. It worked, and “Gangsta’s Paradise” never made it to the final soundtrack. The question of “what if Sonic was real?” had been asked before, which the 15th anniversary disaster Xbox 360 release of Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) tried to answer with very limited success. I’m certain a large fan  base out there enjoyed the misguided romance of Sonic and Princess Elise. Remember kids, there’s nothing cooler than finding anything you want on the internet but always leave safe search on…always. Jim Carrey ended up playing the part of Doctor Robotnik, mainly because he realised that it was always predestined for him to take on the role since the very dawn of existence itself. A profound existential force may have played a part here, but against all odds and speculation the man once known …

Who’s Eating Who? – Parasite – Humble Opinions

Published by Luke Halliday

The buzz surrounding Bong Joon-ho’s 2019 film Parasite cannot be understated. The film has just gone on to utterly clean up at the Academy Awards including winning the top prize of Best Picture – the first non-English language film to do so in the 92 years of the awards ceremony. Truly an impressive feat regardless of the films native language and country of origin. Admittedly, going into Parasite I had little to no knowledge of what the film was exactly about. I had only watched two other films by Bong Joon-ho, Snowpiercer and The Host, both of which I thoroughly enjoyed. I know Joon-ho is acclaimed for nearly all of his films, so my expectations were that this too must be at the very least as good as Snowpiercer and The Host. So I rented the film on Google Play, decided to turn down the lights, and got stuck into the film. What awaited me was truly beyond anything I could possibly have imagined. Parasite is at it’s core a film about a poor family …

Shin Godzilla – Review

Published by Jahanzeb Khan

In the same way it takes an organised team of politicians, generals, and scientists to take on the behemoth that is Godzilla, we at SnapThirty felt that the task of reviewing a brand new Godzilla film simply could not be done by one person. Jahanzeb Khan, Frank Inglese, and Luke Halliday had the opportunity to witness the historic event that is the international release of Japan’s reboot of the historic monster franchise, appropriately titled Shin Godzilla to signify a new beginning and the most definitive, truthful, and memorable depiction of the movie icon himself. Shin Godzilla is every bit of a historic landmark release as the original 1954 Godzilla film. Shin Godzilla had a lot of high expectations to live up to, and the limited international release means not everyone will have a chance to witness it. Thankfully, Madman has taken the mantle to distribute the film all over Australia in major cities. It was initially meant to be a one night screening only on 13 October 2016, but thankfully more dates have been added …

Hideaki Anno Film SHIN GODZILLA To Hit Australia And New Zealand This October

Published by Frank Inglese

Hmmm, there’s this strange taste in my mouth. It’s not a bitter flavour, it’s not a sour flavour, it’s not even a salty flavour, it has an almost…uncomfortably disappointing accents. It’s strange. It’s definitely left over from the last Godzilla film I watched, but it’s flavours are so subtle it’s hard to exactly define what it is I’m experiencing. I suppose this is much the same for many of you. It’s no mystery that the West cannot produce a Godzilla film. Period. Thankfully Japan still know’s exactly what it’s doing when it comes to The King Of Monsters, and it’s latest film, Hideaki Anno’s SHIN GODZILLA, is a testament to exactly that. Fans across the world have been anticipating this film ever since it was first revealed, and while it’s been released across Japan, it is the film’s Western audience that has yet to experience it. That’s where Madman Entertainment come in. The Australian distribution company, known for all things Japanese pop culture, have just announced that they plan on bringing this film to Australian …

Resurgence of The King of Monsters: Godzilla

Published by Jahanzeb Khan

July 29 2016 marks the landmark release of Godzilla Resurgence, and in case you missed the memo, Funimation has picked up localisation rights which means we’ll get a subtitled release very soon in 2016… just in time for the Japan Film Festival in Australia if I am being realistically optimistic. It may be another few months for us, but it’s exciting to see a brand new Godzilla flick from Japan as a glorious reboot of the historic and iconic monster movie franchise. This is the first Godzilla film by founding studio, Toho, since 2004’s Final Wars. It may be some time before you see a review of Godzilla Resurgence grace front page of Snap Thirty, but in the meantime we’d like to present to you with a tribute to all things Godzilla: the movies, the video games, and the culture itself. Return of an icon: Godzilla Resurgence  Godzilla Resurgence looks to be the movie that fans always wanted, and it certainly has very high expectations to live up to. Billed as a reboot, everyone is naturally …

Japanese Public Weighs In On Hollywood White-Washing of Ghost in the Shell

Published by Luke Halliday

Many anime fans and also many who are not that have taken to the web to complain and feign surprise that Hollywood have cast a white actress in a role of a Japanese character. Said actress is Scarlett Johansson and said role is Motoko Kusanagi the lead in iconic anime film Ghost in the Shell. Personally I think that the people complaining about white-washing simply don’t know how Hollywood works or that quite obviously this isn’t a literal adaptation in the sense they clearly presume it is. Scarlett Johansson will not be a character named Motoko Kusanagi, lets just get that straight to begin with, nor will it likely be set in Japan. If that is a deal breaker for you in an American film then you probably don’t watch many Hollywood movies. That said, the general opinion of these detractors is that this is a case of racism in Hollywood which has a history of white-washing and yellow face. I won’t deny Hollywood’s dark past but if you watch the video below a Japanese …

Legendary, Sony, And Warner Bros. In Bidding War Over Pokemon Live-Action Film Rights

Published by Frank Inglese

You’re a fan of Pokemon, right? Of course! We all are, this much is true. Because of this, we’re not necessarily going to jump at the prospect of there being a live-action adaptations of the 90s video game of the same name. We’re not silly, we’ve seen previous attempts at this kind of the thing, the writing is on the wall, chances are if it were to happen…it wouldn’t be good. Well, according to source Hollywood Reporter, juggernaut studios Legendary Entertainment, Sony, and Warner Bros. have been fighting a secret bidding war for the rights to a live-action Pokemon film adaptation. It has been proven that no company should attempt to develop live-action film adaptations of much-beloved television series’ from our childhoods. Have we not learned from the past? Despite the fact that Pokemon would make an absolutely atrocious live-action film thanks many, many obvious factors, those vying for the rights to it will do absolutely everything in their power to make it because, well…it’s Pokemon! It’s going to make money regardless of the film’s quality, …

What If Star Wars: The Force Awakens Was An Anime?

Published by Luke Halliday

It is not secret that Star Wars takes inspiration from Japanese culture, be it in the kendo influence behind the light saber battles, the samurai-esque look of Darth Vader or even the fact that the first movie is basically a space opera version of Akira Kurosawa’s Hidden Fortress. That said, what if I told you that some wonderful person on the internet has decided to bring Star Wars: The Force Awakens into the anime realm? Well that very thing has happened with a fan putting together an ‘anime opening’ video for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The video plays on all the tropes and even makes use of a song by perrenial anime music makers, J-rock band FLOW. You can check out the Star Wars: The Force Awakens anime opening below. Let us know what you think of this lovely bit of mash up in the comments section. -30-

La La La at Rock Bottom – Review

Published by Luke Halliday

Pain hits us all in different ways. Sometimes it aches slowly over time accumulating as the days go by. Sometimes it hits us with all the force of a baseball bat to the head. Sometimes it hits you without you ever noticing, eating you alive from the inside. When you’re at rock bottom, pain is always a companion. What you do with that pain is what defines you. La La La at Rock Bottom has been on my mind for weeks now since I initially saw it. I just couldn’t put my feelings on this film into words because it all felt so very real. These characters, the lives they lead and the journeys that they take are all a genuine and sincere representation of a side of Japan that is all too often forgotten about it Japanese cinema – the underclass heroes who toil away and suffer under the weight of the world all the while never losing grasp of the glimmer of hope that guides them on in life. Pooch as portrayed by …

Anne Hathaway’s new film ‘Colossal’ narrowly avoids a lawsuit from Godzilla and Toho

Published by Luke Halliday

The upcoming Anne Hathaway-starring film Colossal was earlier this year described by it’s director Nacho Vigalondo as a film about ‘Tokyo coming under attack by Godzilla and a giant robot.” Naturally this did not sit well with kaiju overlords Toho, who actually own the rights to the king of all monsters, Godzilla. So with an army of kaiju sized lawyers, Toho began to file a colossal lawsuit against Vigalondo and the production company behind this movie about not-Godzilla and a giant robot of some manner. As it turns out Toho didn’t take kindly to some guy saying he is making a movie about the monster dinosaur thing that they make movies about. Vigalondo only made matters worse for himself when he was quoted in countless interviews proclaiming that Godzilla will be in his movie Colossal. Vigalondo noted that it is “the cheapest Godzilla movie ever” and “a serious Godzilla movie.” Both damning quotes from a man making a movie about Godzilla and a nondescript giant robot without the express consent of Godzilla’s daddy Toho. Be warned aspiring film-makers, kaiju …

Japanese Film Festival Returns, Blockbuster Line-Up Locked In

Published by Luke Halliday

For the 19th year in a row the Japanese Film Festival will take Australia by storm with countless films of Japanese cinema set to the silver screen across the nation. With a nation wide tour taking place from October 14th to December 6th, the festival will stop off at Canberra, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Sydney and Melbourne. Films on show include the live-action adaptation of wildly popular manga series about making a manga series Bakuman, Takashi Miike’s latest directorial effort As The Gods Will and the adaptation of Shonen Jump action comedy series Assassination Classroom. You can check out the full schedule over at the Japanese Film Festival’s official site. So when does the festival hit your town? Well you can check out the tour schedule below: CANBERRA – 14 to 18 October 2015 at Capital Cinemas, Manuka BRISBANE – 21 to 25 October 2015 at Event Cinemas Brisbane City Myer Centre PERTH – 28 October to 1 November 2015 at Hoyts Carousel & Hoyts Millennium ADELAIDE – 30 October to 1 November / 6 to 8 …

Robonyan And Schwarzenegger Come Face-To-Face At Terminator: Genisys Japanese Premiere

Published by Frank Inglese

Though you probably wouldn’t know it at first glance, the Terminator T-800 and Yo-Kai Watch’s Robonyan have quite a lot in common: Not only are they both mechanised warriors from the future, they’re both incredibly powerful, they’re both practically indestructible, and they share a catchphrase…”I’ll be back“. Legendary action star Arnold Schwarzenegger has hit Japan for the premiere of his latest explosion-heavy masterpiece Terminator: Genisys and to celebrate not only his arrival in the country but the arrival of the robot-on-robot shoot-fest it has been organised for the original time-traveling automaton to meet a robot soldier of the new age: Robonyan. Akihiro Hino, president and CEO of Level-5, had this to say about the meeting of these two pop culture icons both new and old:  “The Terminator T-800, who comes to protect those in need no matter what trouble they’re in, is still my hero. I never would’ve thought that Robonyan would be able to meet Arnold Schwarzenegger. I think Robonyan is also quite happy.” The cat-mech himself, Robonyan also made a statement regarding his …

Hideaki Anno Announced As Chief Director/Writer For Upcoming “Godzilla” Film

Published by Frank Inglese

You guys and girls like “Neon Genesis Evangelion” right? Oh, you do?! That’s great, but it doesn’t really matter right now because series creator Hideaki Anno is setting his sights on another towering mass of destruction and it doesn’t go by the name “Unit-01”. I’m sorry I brought it up. Now instead of Mr. Hideaki Anno laying out a work schedule for the fourth “Rebuild of Evangelion” movie that we’ve all been waiting for, he has decided to tackle one of his lifelong dreams; to be the driving force behind a modern “Godzilla” film. Something you may not know and something that may help you swallow this piece of news is that Mr. Anno has actually been a long-time fan of not only “Godzilla” but the entire Tokusatsu genre as a whole. In fact, he’s been known to collect props from some of the more mainstream series’ that have been made and aired in the past couple of decades. Fact is, his sights are now on a project he’s never done before but one that …