Films & Schedules - After Dark

“Rin’s normal high school life dramatically changes on her 16th birthday when her father reveals that he is a mutant, and she has inherited his mutant gene. Moments later, government special forces break into her home and blow both of her parents to bits. Suddenly, Rin’s dormant mutant abilities are awakened, and her arm transforms into a sharp, knife-encrusted claw! Fleeing and fighting her way, she joins a group of girls also born as mutants: one can transform her arms into swords, one can grow tentacles from her fingertips, and another can grow a chainsaw out of her body. Their...

“Rin’s normal high school life dramatically changes on her 16th birthday when her father reveals that he is a mutant, and she has inherited his mutant gene. Moments later, government special forces break into her home and blow both of her parents to bits. Suddenly, Rin’s dormant mutant abilities are awakened, and her arm transforms into a sharp, knife-encrusted claw! Fleeing and fighting her way, she joins a group of girls also born as mutants: one can transform her arms into swords, one can grow tentacles from her fingertips, and another can grow a chainsaw out of her body. Their mission: revenge on all who have persecuted mutants. Action-packed, hilarious, and outrageously violent, this is Japanese splatter cinema at its finest.”—Dan Halsted. (85 mins.)

Selected Filmography: Iguchi: The Machine Girl (06); Sakaguchi: Be a Man! Samurai School (08); Nishimura: Tokyo Gore Police (08).

FILM REVIEW

DIGITAL    

Interests: Narrative Feature, Asian, After Dark.

“Takeshi Kitano is back in top form with this ruthless and violent yakuza thriller! Kitano stars as Otomo, a stoic mid-level yakuza boss. When two top mob bosses form an alliance, the entire yakuza world is in danger of erupting into war, and Otomo is instructed to keep the criminal families in balance by any means necessary. What follows is an intricate web of betrayal filled with sudden bursts of realistic violence. This modern Japanese Godfather is masterfully directed by Kitano, proving himself once again to be one of the great Japanese directors of our time.”—Dan Halsted. “Humor as mean...

“Takeshi Kitano is back in top form with this ruthless and violent yakuza thriller! Kitano stars as Otomo, a stoic mid-level yakuza boss. When two top mob bosses form an alliance, the entire yakuza world is in danger of erupting into war, and Otomo is instructed to keep the criminal families in balance by any means necessary. What follows is an intricate web of betrayal filled with sudden bursts of realistic violence. This modern Japanese Godfather is masterfully directed by Kitano, proving himself once again to be one of the great Japanese directors of our time.”—Dan Halsted. “Humor as mean and dry as a straight-up martini.”—Hollywood Reporter. (109 mins.)

Selected Filmography: Violent Cop (89), Sonatine (93), Fireworks (97), Brother (00), The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi (03), Achilles and the Tortoise (08).

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature, Asian, After Dark.

“When Joey’s best friend Bart is killed in action in Iraq, Joey is unsettled at the funeral, but not nearly as much as when Bart shows up the next night undead on his doorstep. Not knowing how he has come back to life, the two friends discover that Bart is a ‘Revenant,’ somewhere between a zombie and a vampire, and needs blood to survive. To keep him ‘alive,’ they start preying on the dregs of society and inadvertently start cleaning up the neighborhood, becoming modern vigilantes. This is all well and good until the criminals and drug dealers they’ve killed...

“When Joey’s best friend Bart is killed in action in Iraq, Joey is unsettled at the funeral, but not nearly as much as when Bart shows up the next night undead on his doorstep. Not knowing how he has come back to life, the two friends discover that Bart is a ‘Revenant,’ somewhere between a zombie and a vampire, and needs blood to survive. To keep him ‘alive,’ they start preying on the dregs of society and inadvertently start cleaning up the neighborhood, becoming modern vigilantes. This is all well and good until the criminals and drug dealers they’ve killed begin to come back from the dead with only revenge on their minds. Reminiscent of Shaun of the Dead, this is one of the best horror films to come along in a decade.”—Dan Halsted. (110 mins.)

Selected Filmography: Roadkill (06).

Director D. Kerry Prior in attendance. Audience Q&A will follow screening.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature, Comedy, After Dark.

“In the California desert, the adventures of a telepathic killer tire, mysteriously attracted by a very pretty girl, as witnessed by incredulous onlookers. Why? No reason. ‘No reason’ will never make more sense than after you have survived a screening of Rubber. Straddling art film and horror, it has the most outrageous premise of any film this year. (Or ever?) An audience gathers in the desert to watch a story unfold: a tire comes to life, rolls along, discovers it has the ability to make people’s heads explode, and so on. But it’s not just a film about a telekinetic...

“In the California desert, the adventures of a telepathic killer tire, mysteriously attracted by a very pretty girl, as witnessed by incredulous onlookers. Why? No reason. ‘No reason’ will never make more sense than after you have survived a screening of Rubber. Straddling art film and horror, it has the most outrageous premise of any film this year. (Or ever?) An audience gathers in the desert to watch a story unfold: a tire comes to life, rolls along, discovers it has the ability to make people’s heads explode, and so on. But it’s not just a film about a telekinetic tire on a killing spree, there is a frame around this story that adds another level of deconstructionist space to the film and another surrealistic layer to the experience. About as mind-blowing as a movie can be.”—AFI Film Festival. (85 mins.)

Selected Filmography: Non Film (01), Steak (07).

In English.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Comedy, After Dark.