Entry Fifteen

Island of Death: A rare video nasty from England, and as such lends a legitmately creepier air to the movie, though it doesn't make it good. The location work is nice and the main couple are decent, but it doesn't seem to have much of a point besides the torture of innocent people.

America 3000: Ridiculous sci-fi movie, which is so silly, that it actually becomes entertaining. Lots of naive suppositions about the future, and the 80s fashion manages to last almost 1000 years. Pretty fun!

Crimson Kimono: Samuel Fuller thriller which changes tack mid-way through to concentrate on the burgeoning relationship between the 3 protagonists and finally emerges as an attempt to explore the nature of interracial relationships.

City that Never Sleeps: A decent film noir, which is enhanced through its use of authentic locations and some naturalistic performances. It's a little odd at the end, where it goes a little metaphysical, but it isn't bad.

Invisible Boy: A typical sci-fi effort from the 50s, though it's odd balance between comedy and sci-fi frequently falters, and completely abandons that balance for a straight thriller toward the end. It fails at both, with the main child protagonist being annoying in the extreme and the thriller elements failing to engage or excite.

Trapeze: Burt Lancaster and Gina Lollobrigida offer good value in this otherwise dull effort, and some of the stunt work is impressive, but it's too bland to recommend.

Porco Rosso: Miyazaki's attempt at a cartoon for adults is pretty good, though not the uproarious fun I was hoping. However, it is frequently impressive, with some beautiful animation work and a fine voice cast.

Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind: A tremendous animated feature from studio Ghibli, it's themes echo that of the later Princess Mononoke, but I feel this a superior effort, creating empathetic characters and a believable world, without sacrificing coherency or plot integrity.