Anyone who knows me, knows that I am partial towards the fantasy , sci-fi or historical epic genres. Being Anime fans, its entirely natural that we get the bulk of our sci-fi fantasy fix from Anime. Occasionally, the creatively bankrupt Hollywood system will pump out something potentially decent, but there are a seemingly infinite amount of factors that usually destroy an otherwise good film, chief amongst them:
* “You go girl” power chicks, used to increase the potential female audience, usually at the expense of historical accuracy: (The Queen from 300) (Guinevere; Warrior Princess from King Arthur)
* The need for a PG-13 rating
* Extensive cuts that ruin an excellent film (Kingdom of Heaven)
* Adhering to an utterly overused formula
* The increased thirst for profit at the expense of artistry
Anime is certainly not free of its own inherent problems. Look at any recent season preview: it consists almost entirely of derivative trash. Indeed, many of these factors are inevitable in any entertainment industry, anywhere in the world. Profit is pretty much essential after all. Yet, values around the world differ from one another and thus, often one thing we crave for maybe offered in surplus somewhere else in the world.
Below are some foreign films that I highly anticipate seeing:
Janosik. Prawdziwa historia
Michal Zebrowski, as well as being a genuinely great actor, is the king of Polish historical films. Some of you may recall the translation project on the TV series of “The Witcher” which he starred in.
Bless Poland’s utter lack of American puritan values. Look at this, frankly, awesome trailer. Numerous flashes of boobie in the bloody trailer. Based on the true story of Janosik, a popular figure somewhat akin to Robin Hood. If no English subs are included when this is released on DVD or Blu-Ray, I’ll translate it myself.
The Inhabited Island
The biggest post Soviet Russian budget yet and a huge blockbuster in Russia, The Inhabited Island doesn’t hold back in the violence department, nor should it; it became the highest grossing Russian film of all time.
The sequel just came out and looks equally fantastic:
This, coupled with District 9, makes me happier than ever to be a fan of hard-arse (British spelling!) Sci-Fi.
Aladin
This might be a harder sell to those adverse to Bollywood. I, myself, have never actually seen an entire Bollywood film. Aladin looks like a great introduction to Bollywood. This is, by far, the most family friendly film listed here thus far.
Embedding is disabled, so check it out, here.
Wolfhound (Volkodav)
Before, The Inhabited Island, this was the Russian film credited with having the highest post-Soviet budget ever, and like The Witcher, I also worked on the translation project for this. It has since been officially translated and released on DVD with English subtitles. Wolfhound is utterly savage at the best of times and would by far, constitute a hard-R were it released in North America.
The Witcher
My first ever translation project, which lasted for almost three whole years. You can certainly see my encoding / subbing skills improve over the course of this project. An “alpha” pre-release of episode one got released with subs that took up the whole screen and were not properly timed. I’ll never live that one down.
The Witcher is based on an utterly awesome fantasy book series by Polish fantasy God, Andrei Sapkowski and now, a bestselling PC RPG game which probably was the best RPG since Baldur’s Gate. First released theatrically as an utterly incoherent film consisting of chopped up footage from the 13 episode TV series (which would be released a year later), The Witcher attracted the wrath of thousands of Polish fanboys who were utterly mortified to see their beloved series of books butchered. The TV series is considered infinitely better than the film, especially the episodes that follow the books closely. It was too late to give the TV series a chance however, as the movie, unfortunately, did too much damage.
Regardless, the TV series contains stuff that barely makes it to American theaters, let alone television. Decapitations, boobies and blood galore, and remember, it’s a TV show! The addition of beautiful Polish scenery and the three billion immaculate looking castles scattered across Poland ensure that there’s no shortage of great backdrops.
Honestly, it’s probably the biggest project I’ve ever worked on and I am infinitely proud of it, despite the rookie-level flaws at some of the subs and encodes. It’s been downloaded thousands of times since I subbed it and I still get thank you e-mails to this day. That’s nice. It’s certainly better subbing foreign fantasy TV series than anime; where the bulk of the audience are ungrateful pricks who nitpick the most minute detail.
Goemon
If nothing else, it is an utter feast for the eyes. Directed by Kazuaki Kiriya, who directed the also visually stunning (but Japanese razzie award winning) Casshern.
To be quite honest, I actually enjoyed Casshern quite a bit. It was directed with such hyper-kinetic gusto and panache that I was more than willing to overlook any narrative flaws.
Storm Riders II
I actually found the first one to be a bit of an anti climatic mess. This sequel, with the Pang Brothers taking the directing reigns, looks fantastic. As an avid fan of Hong Kong cinema (of the 80’s and early 90’s) it’s nice to look forward to a Hong Kong film again, instead of the perpetual crap we seem to be getting from Hong Kong these days.
1612
I was actually 25% through translating this Russian film, but was beaten to it. The third Michal Zebrowski film on the list. He can speak Russian too, apparently. This film is in fact, said to be Kremlin published propaganda. The Polish, who have suffered at the hands of Russian more than anybody were certainly rather furious about their depiction in this film.
You have all heard by now that Dreamwork’s live action version of Ghost in the Shell is progressing, and now has a writer attached.
Now Dane is one of those fellows who is basically against Hollywood remakes of Asian movies, so I get the feeling that unless it is a shot-by-shot remake, with an all Japanese cast, set in Japan, in Japanese , he won’t be happy. We will talk about it on the podcast, so stay tunned to the Anime Pacific Podcast page for Dane’s reaction to the Ghost in the Shell news.
I, on the other hand, am a bit excited about this. I have some faith that with Spielberg involved that it will be reasonably faithful to the original, and am hopeful that we can get a good movie out of this. Keep in mind that Spielberg is a fan of the movie.
What I would like is for it to be set in an Asian city. I don’t think it has to be Tokyo, remember that the movie is set in a generic “New Port City”, but it should be in Asia. It could be Hong Kong, Shanghai or Seoul. A city that looks like “the future”. That means: insane amounts of neon, huge crowds, busy open air markets, tall sky scrapers, and gleaming new infrastructure. But, I’ll make a post about the setting later.
The key point, and probably the most fun for speculation, is the cast. I would like to see an Asian woman cast as Major Motoko Kusanagi. But I am realistic. If this is going to be a $150 million picture, they are probably going to want to cast a big name for the lead role. So you might end up with a white, blond, Cate Blanchett type in the role. Dane would probably find that unforgivable, but I would let it slide if the rest of the movie comes together well, and if Dreamworks at least casts Asians (or better yet Japanese) in some of the other key roles.
So lets get onto the fun part! The speculation.
Who to cast as Major Motoko Kusanagi?
As I wrote above, I think casting an Asian women as Major Kusanagi is very important. Unfortunately, there aren’t exactly a huge number of well known Asian actresses in Hollywood. So maybe it is unrealistic, but I am going to give you some names, including a top-five, and why or why-not I think they should get the role.
Asians in Hollywood - Those who should get definitely screen tested:
1) Zhang Ziyi
My current favorite for the role.
She is right for the part - Young, fit, stunning in the looks department, can kick some serious ass, and Asian (okay not Japanese, but close enough for Hollywood).
My only worry is her English skills. But as I understand it, she has been taking English classes since Memoirs of a Geisha.
As for fame, like Maggie Q (#3 on the list) she is big in Asia. Obviously not a household name in North America, but there is some familiarity from Memoirs of a Geisha…
Another factor is her acting fee. With her fame in Asia her fee is now $5 million (at least according to an article from 2006). Now this is still less than half of what an A list female celebrity would charge. And for that you are getting one of the most famous actresses in China today. That means good box office in Asia.
2) Rinko Kikuchi
Good name recognition (the Oscar nomination definitely helps in that department) and she is Japanese!
Like Zhang Ziyi, my big concern would be her English. If you listen to her in interviews, her accent can be pretty painful to listen to
sometimes. (And I taught English in Japan for 5 years, so I heard all sorts). But maybe she can work on it some more with an accent coach. And she did say in a New York Times interview that she is trying to get an “east coast” accent.
However, unlike Zhang Ziyi and Maggie Q, I don’t think she has done any action roles. Also, she is a bit on the short side (only 5′5″). Now I have been trying to imagine her with her natural dark hair, unlike all the pictures of her I could find, but even so, for some reason I don’t think she “looks” right.
3) Maggie Q
Not a bad choice I think. A pretty big star in Hong Kong. Was in “Die Hard 4″ and the upcoming “King of Fighters” movie (which may actually be a strike against her unfortunately) but besides that, unfortunately pretty unknown in North America. Then again that is true with almost any Asian actress.
She could look the part with her hair done right. She has been in some semi-action roles, “Gen Y” cops for one She is from Hawaii, so obviously her English is not an issue like some of the other names here. One issue for some people (Dane for one) might be that she “isn’t Asian enough”, being that she is only half Vietnamese. But if you look at the 3rd picture above, I think she is fine.
4) Grace Park
Now say Dreamworks is going to do with movie with a non-blockbuster budget, and therefore can’t afford some of the bigger names on this list, how about Grace Park?
As you can see by all the pictures of her (that couldn’t help but post), I have a thing for Grace Park. I even watched A&E’s horrible “The Cleaner” and the CBC’s “The Border” just because she is in them. Yes, I am that big of a fan. And she grew up in Vancouver, so I can’t help but root for an (almost) local girl.
As you can see from the pictures, she isn’t afraid to do sexy, and if you have seen Battlestar Galactica you know she can pull off a more action oriented role.
All that being said, she isn’t exactly a household name, Battlestar Galactica’s Sharon being her biggest role. She would also be 37 or 38 the time the movie starts filming, which is getting to the tail end of the age range for any prospective Kusanagi actress.
And while she is undeniably very very hot, there is something that just isn’t quite right about her look for the Kusanagi role. Maybe its just my memories of her from Battlestar Galactica, but she seems to have more of tomboyish punch-you-in-the-face sexiness, rather then the more lithe, graceful, Zhang Ziyi look.
But as I said, I am a big fan, so she deserves a look.
5) Yunjin Kim
Probably one of the more recognizable Asian actresses from her Lost fame, she is a big star in Korea. And while she plays a conservative demure woman is Lost, she certainly is capable of playing a more sexy role.
However, she doesn’t have any action movie experience (as far as I know). And like Grace Park, by the time the movie starts filming she will be hitting 38. So perhaps pushing it a bit age wise for the role.
Even so, I think she deserves consideration. Especially if they were to consider a “B list” actress for the role.
Other Asian actresses
Okay, here are some other Asian actresses. If anyone has any other suggestions, post them in the comments, and I will add them here.
Gong Li - Very well known and a brilliant actress, sort of a Chinese Meryl Streep. But too old for the part (43 now), and not really the action type, even if she was in the Miami Vice movie.
Michelle Yeoh - Well known, and can kick ass, but well over the age limit (47 now).
Chiaki Kuriyama - She’s Japanese, was Gogo Yubari in Kill Bill, so perhaps a familiar face, and her age is right. But she doesn’t speak English at all. And she seems a bit on the short side.
Vicki Zhao Wei - Very big in China, but obviously unknown in North America, and I don’t know if she can speak English.
Karen Mok - A star in Hong Kong, but like Vicki Zhao, not really known elsewhere. She can speak English, but at 39 years of age she is getting towards the upper end of the age range for the Major.
Hollywood Actresses - The “A list”
Obviously despite my preferences, they may not use an Asian actress at all. We don’t know what the budget of the movie is going to be like, but if Dreamworks trying for a $150 million dollar blockbuster, then it would be completely understandable to me if they decided they had to go with an A list, well known actress. They might even have the money for some really big names. So here are some names that I have seen mentioned. Some are obvious, some are not.
Halle Berry - You know, 10 or even 5 years ago I would have named Berry as the non-Asian that could probably fit the Major Kusanagi role. She is smoking hot. She can act. She has action experience, being the only good thing about the 007 movie Die Another Day. So whats the problem? She is 43 now. Would be pushing 45 by the time filming started. I don’t know how young she is able to play realistically. But frankly, looking at this list, depending on how her body has held up (she had a kid a couple of years ago), I think she might be able to pull of the role better then any other non-Asian I have thought of so far.
- Angelina Jolie - A name that will definitely get mentioned. The go-to action girl since Tomb Raider. She is a bit… “Hollywood” for this role if you ask me. Also she is getting a bit old and has too many tattoos. She is playing Moms in her films now! So if you are going to go this route, you might as well get the “younger version” of Jolie - Megan Fox.
Megan Fox - Too Hollywood. Too pin-up girl like for my taste. Too much like a cheerleader. But I suppose that is why they are called actors.
Cate Blanchett - Yes, I saw her name mentioned. A real big Hollywood name obviously. Clearly A list, and clearly a real actress. Has the figure for the movie (I guess). Was in the latest Indiana Jones movie, so trying to branch out into the more Blockbuster films rather then the serious dramas (i.e . Elizabeth) . But a bit too old (she is 40 now). And even if she is game, I can’t really see her in a kick ass role. And other big names like, Reese Witherspoon, Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz, and Hilary Swank all have similar problems. But I suppose if Dreamworks was to go the “get-a-real-actress”, “get-a-big-Hollywood-name route”, I suppose you could do worse Cate Blanchett. On episode 81 of the podcast (link) Dane actually said he wouldn’t mind Cate Blanchett!
Hollywood - The almost “A list”
Actresses who general Sci-Fi fans will recognize, if not the general public. Casting one of these actresses might be forgivable, if they studio isn’t able to spend what it takes to get an A-list name.
Of course, Personally, I would take Zhang Ziyi over any of the following. And if you can afford these actresses, you can probably swing the $5 million or so it would take to get Zhang Ziyi.
Milla Jovovich - Do you have a mediocre sci-fi movie? Well Milla Jovovich seems to be the go-to girl if you do. Of all the non-Asian actresses she is probably the most plausible. But, I don’t think she has been in anything good since The Fifth Element. So, no thank you.
Natasha Henstridge - Made a name for herself in Species , and has other action cred. But her career has been on a downhill slid for years now.
Charlize Theron - Good body, as you could tell from Aeon Flux. But Aeon Flux was horrible! So, I am sorry but she must be banned from any other animation to live-action adaptations.
Hollywood - The “B list”
Here are a few names that I have seen bandied about in comment sections, here and elsewhere. Now, I had to have read these names elsewhere because none of them are well known household names.
For me, it makes no sense to cast any of the names in this section. If Dreamworks is worried about the Box Office and feels the need to cast a well known “A lister” like the ones I list above, that is one thing. But if you are going to cast an unknown actress, like any of the names below, why not try and be as faithful to the manga/movie and cast an Asian actress?
There must be at least one Asian actress out there ,who can act, kick ass, and look good doing it. The only reason not to would be some weird racial thing. But hasn’t the “Americans won’t watch non-white people in lead-roles” trope been disproved?
With that in mind, here are the names. If you have someone to add, please post in the comments section.
Lena Headey - She was the Queen in 300 and played Sara Conner in the now cancelled terminator TV series.
Natassia Malthe - Who? Yes, that’s what I asked too when I saw her name mentioned (see comments). But I take it she has had some minor roles sci-fi roles. And is hot as hell. Unfortunately, she is even more unknown that that Queen Goro chick above, if thats even possible.
Rhona Mitra She has had a couple of lead roles in some lower budget action movies (Doomsday, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans ) . So she has some action experience, and she certainly looks good. Hmm I say that a lot, but judging from that picture she certainly has a Motoko look about her.
Kristin Kreuk - Hmm Does she count as Asian? Dane would argue not, so I’ll put her in this section (Heck he thinks Maggie Q doesn’t count as Asian!). I haven’t seen it, but Dane HATED her in the Street Fighter movie. You can hear him talk about her in Episode 81 of our podcast. It might be irrational, but she is persona non grata for Dane.
I am sure I have left some people out, so please post your thoughts on who should play Motoko! I will add names to this list as people come up with them. Who knows, maybe someone from Dreamworks will read this. 
And again, keep your eye on the Anime Pacific Podcast website, since the latest episode has some discussion on this topic. It should be posted soon.
Alex
EDIT: Fixed up the HTML, and made the sections a bit clearer. I also found myself saying “She is unknown, so why not cast an unknown Asian” instead?” over and over again. Instead I just turned that into a whole section. Added Kristin Kreuk (thanks Kent), Rhona Mitra (thanks Phillip), and Vicki Zhao Wei (thanks Stephen) as recommend in the comments section.
Thank God for the Japanese.
If anyone tried to do this in North America, there would be an outcry from womens groups, followed by politicians grandstanding and calling for Congressional / Parliamentary hearings.
More information here. It is in Japanese, but it is pretty visual (obviously) and self explanatory.
Alex
Hey, Hey It’s Saturday was an Australian variety show which made America’s Funniest Home Videos look like something co-produced by Shakespeare, Wilde and Hemmingway by comparison. Recently I was shocked to find that it had been resurrected, further proof that the dumbing down of society is indeed a global phenomenon. The audiences reaction to this travesty is certainly a further testament to this. Then again, it certainly should not be indicative of Australia as a whole, should it? Intellectuals are far from the target demographic, after all.
In a scene reminiscent of, say, 1860, one hundred and fifty freakin’ years ago, a (severely tone-deaf) mock version of the Jackson five was performed in blackface to uproarious applause from the audience. Red Symons, in which this segment, “Red Faces” is named after, bangs on the gong, prematurely ending the segment. The audience boos. Special guest judge, Harry Connick Jr, appears utterly mortified and berates not only the performers, but the show, and by extension, Australia itself; gaining my immense respect in the process. Host, Daryl Somers, reminds the audience that this skit was actually performed by the same people twenty years ago, and WON.
After the commercial break, Daryl “I have to have the largest portrait in the studio” Somers, apologizes, “I know that to your countrymen, that’s an insult to have a blackface routine like that on the show, so I do apologize.”
As someone with an Australian passport, Daryl is insinuating that this shouldn’t be insulting to me.
As I found this video on youtube, which is renowned for its grammatically sound, eloquent, intelligent and overall, well thought out posts, I decided to see the comments below. Clearly, youtube user MrBurkey90, no doubt invoking the spirit of Athena (and Minerva for good measure) eloquently writes:
Absoloute wankas! Racist and offensive its not. A bit of harmless fun…didnt jacson sing doesnt mater if ur back or white? whites cant dress up as a black person? connick ur a tosser! These performers did the same act 20 years ago and all was fine, dont be so petty.
Americans typically thinking the worlds against them! this show is australian heritage and wasnt targeted at the u. s or none the less a u.s audience
Fantastic performance had me laughing!
Darryl you had nothing to apologise for.
No doubt via automatic writing by the late Ted Kennedy, one of the finest orators of our time, annkus3 had this to say:
Black americans are only up-set because white man it better than the jacksons family.
lionhead619 writes in what could potentially be Pulitzer prize winning material if expanded upon:
Im Australian as this is aracist all ur americans get off ur high chair, as if you did not find this funny, loved the act, love hey hey its saturday, good work guys.
In truth, there were quite a few eloquent posts and dare I say it, they outnumbered the tripe; a rarity in Youtube.
In case you hadn’t noticed episode 78 is going to be delayed, possibly until the weekend due to technical problems.
We have recorded the show, however, some of the audio files I emailed Dane were corrupt. Now, if I were at home this would be no problem. I would just email them again. However, I am out of town, and will not be back home until Sunday, so I can’t resend the files until then.
So unless Dane finds a way to uncorrupt the files, the next episode is in limbo.
Alex
P.S I am crossing my fingers that I didn’t delete the originals off of my HD after emailing them to Dane. I can’t quite recall.
update: I have re-sent Dane the episode 78 files. So I am sure Dane is now editing the show as we speak.
Well as we mentioned on Episode 75, Sankaku.com posted a bunch of cosplay pictures. I thought the one above was the best one.
But, do you think it is better than the current, long reigning champ? :
Or what about the following contestants, who came close to toppling the champ:
Alex
DuoMatrix may have vanished from the podcasting world, but it was for JUSTICE. I’d recognize that voice anywhere!
The Boston Globe had a rather fascinating picture series detailing the two Mongolia’s. What’s that you say? Two?
Inner Mongolia is in fact an autonomous region in Northern China. I actually lived rather close to it at one time and was fascinated with Mongolian culture and people. Ethnically, they are actually quite different from the Han Chinese population.
Hey, ruled the world at one stage! Do check out the link.
Anime Pacific Episode 75 is also now out for download.
As usual, take a look at our podcast page for the anime podcast show notes.
Anime Pacific Episode 74 came out last week, if you haven’t already noticed.
