Pusher

Directed by - Nicolas Winding Refn
Country of Origin - Denmark
Richard's Rating - (6 out of 10)

Pusher is a week in the life of Frank, a low level heroin dealer in Copenhagen, Denmark. It's the first installment in the excellent Pusher trilogy. The movie is filmed documentary style, so you feel like you are part of the action. Frank starts his week by running up his already substantial tab with his heroin supplier, Milo. After a run of bad luck, Frank is left without his product or cash. The harder he tries to get the money to pay off his debt, the more things go wrong for him. I really liked the way the film builds up the tension as Frank's life and week go further down the shitter. Frank's best friend in the movie is Tonny, played by Mads Mikkelsen, who just played Bond's nemesis in Casino Royale. The story has a good flow and keeps your attention as Frank schemes to get the cash he desperately needs. I enjoyed the authentic feel of the character's personalities. So if you're looking to experience the seedy Copenhagen underworld, check this one out.

-Richard

Suicide Club (Jisatsu Circle)

Directed by - Sion Sono
Country of Origin - Japan
Nick's Rating: (8 out of 10)


Ok I'll admit it, I'm one twisted mofo when it comes to my taste in movies. This is one of my all-time favorite movies, not just from Japan but out of EVERYTHING. "So why did you give it only an 8 and not a 10 if it's your favorite?" Well, because I've started to realize that my f**ked up taste in movies might be be clouding my over-all judgment. So that's why I say I'll give it an 8, because it might be too disturbing and hard to follow to be good to a normal audience.
The title "Suicide Club" is pretty self explanatory. Teens are killing themselves by the boatloads throughout Japan, which is an extreme outlook on what is actually happening in real life Japan today. I really don't want to give away too much of this movie because a lot of the surprises are important to the telling of the story. But I will say this; the movie gives a horrible alternative to laser tattoo removal . . . it hurts to watch, and yes, they most certainly make you watch. There are so many hidden clues in the movie to watch out for, so much so that I immediately replayed the movie to see if I could find them all. I've read a few other reviews of this movie that talk about unnecessary scenes in this movie that make it drag, but I can safely say that everything in this movie is there to give a clue to what is actually going on. Like I said before, this movie may not be for everyone but you will definitely be saying "What? That's pretty f**ked up!" more than once.

-Nick