02-26-2010, 06:13 PM
For some reason, I became curious as to everyone's opinion on the two. For those who haven't heard or have just been living even further under a rock (the portion of the rock that has no internet) for a few years, MOON CHILD is a 2003 film in which HYDE plays a vampire named Kei and Kagen no Tsuki (Last Quarter) is a 2004 film in which HYDE plays a ghost named Adam.
HERE'S MY BIASED REVIEWS OF THEM - WARNING CONTAINS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOILERS
MOON CHILD
For most people, I've noticed this movie is hit-or-miss. Some praise it for having HYDE (and Gackt) shooting people, others praise it for having HYDE as a vampire shooting people, which is, admittedly, pretty badass. I personally find it sort of along the same lines as BLOOD: The Last Vampire. The movie itself had potential, but failed to live up to it (hence the creation of BLOOD+, although there has been no MOON CHILD+ unfortunately).
To start, though, the movie is good at catching attention. The trailer makes it look like the best damn movie in the world, and the beginning in which we can see Kei (HYDE) and his friend rushing through the innards of the city as the news reporter explains the economic crisis in Japan really gets you intrigued and aching to see how this movie will go on.
Unfortunately, that's about as good as the movie gets. The special effects, i.e. when Kei's unnamed fellow vampire friend bursts into flames when exposed to the sun and when Kei is jumping through the air with the blur effect, are cheesy and over-the-top; not to mention, extremely unrealistic-looking. Second and probably one of the most important aspects, for a movie about a vampire, we really don't ever see his fangs nor do we ever see him ever bite and drink. All we really get is Kei doing... something... to a dead man's body and then lifting up his head to reveal blood all over his face, which isn't really scary. The acting is pretty poor, which is a shame because HYDE is not really a bad actor, as I will explain in my Kagen no Tsuki section, as much as the direction was awful.
However, like I said, the movie itself had potential but fell under cruel, probably money-hungry circumstances. The script was beautifully written, but horridly portrayed. Although it is very cultural in nature, it is still very relate-able. Despite all its flaws, however, I did enjoy the movie because... well, it features HYDE shooting people and that's somehow very addictive ;3 Besides, what other movie do we get a duet from HYDE and Gackt? None! - Final score, 6/10
Kagen no Tsuki
This movie is a bit better. It's not exactly perfect but it's still worth the watch. This movie is usually praised, albeit mostly by HYDE fans, for its romance and dark story. I personally find it a great movie, but has many scenes of sheer "Oh, god, am I -really- watching this?"
One thing I like about this movie is how the plot builds up very nicely. Although, I don't quite understand how one person would get a photo of Mizuki's boyfriend cheating on her ON HER MOBILE PHONE (seriously wtf? Was she peeping on them? ... Pervert), I soon forget that question and am able to focus on the main subject at hand soon enough. Mizuki's running away from all her troubles (among which are her cheating boyfriend and dysfunctional family) is extremely relatable, although you still tend to wonder why she would just walk into someone's house like that, even if she did think it was abandoned.
In said house, she meets a ghost named Adam (HYDE), and I swear although I am a huge fan of HYDE's voice, his facial expressions alone are enough to keep me entertained, which is good considering he barely speaks through the whole movie. But that's not to say his moments of dialogue are not spectacular. HYDE's persona brings an interesting sense of mysteriousness and even sadness to the film.
Like MOON CHILD the script is very beautifully written. The representation through the cast and crew is not exactly perfect, but it's still very nice nevertheless. The special effects aren't so great, but the directors must have been aware of this as they're much more subtle and more in-place in this movie.
Of course, the movie has quite a few drawbacks. For example, some of the scenes are incredibly boring. Also, the mysteries within it seem to be solved without any sort of logical clues. It just seems to hit them. On that same note, part of a mystery is having to think about it yourself (as the viewer), and like most Japanese mysteries and Scooby-Doo, you are robbed of that chance. Another thing is that they had HYDE try to speak with a British accent, so that made his English in the movie very difficult to understand. THE CAPE OF STORMS is a tad overused in this film, although the piano and acoustic guitar renditions are done beautifully and is probably good enough reason to watch the movie on its own.
The visual scenery has a dark, Tim Burton-style to it that sort of defines HYDE's personality, in my opinion. Although the scenery suffers from cartoony atmosphere, it sort of gives the movie a delightful sense of cuteness. The acting is also not so bad. Far from perfect, but it very well done, in my opinion Final notes, I was left in tears at the end of the movie. Despite the strongly fictional story, the emotions feel very realistic and despite all its boring scenes, there's at least a thousand interesting and beautiful scenes to it. But it's not for everyone, particularly those not into the drama genre or those not into movies that, more or less, are about a teenage girl that just needs a place to vent her emotions. Final score, 8/10.
So your turn. TELL ME. I NEED TO KNOWZ
HERE'S MY BIASED REVIEWS OF THEM - WARNING CONTAINS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOILERS
MOON CHILD
For most people, I've noticed this movie is hit-or-miss. Some praise it for having HYDE (and Gackt) shooting people, others praise it for having HYDE as a vampire shooting people, which is, admittedly, pretty badass. I personally find it sort of along the same lines as BLOOD: The Last Vampire. The movie itself had potential, but failed to live up to it (hence the creation of BLOOD+, although there has been no MOON CHILD+ unfortunately).
To start, though, the movie is good at catching attention. The trailer makes it look like the best damn movie in the world, and the beginning in which we can see Kei (HYDE) and his friend rushing through the innards of the city as the news reporter explains the economic crisis in Japan really gets you intrigued and aching to see how this movie will go on.
Unfortunately, that's about as good as the movie gets. The special effects, i.e. when Kei's unnamed fellow vampire friend bursts into flames when exposed to the sun and when Kei is jumping through the air with the blur effect, are cheesy and over-the-top; not to mention, extremely unrealistic-looking. Second and probably one of the most important aspects, for a movie about a vampire, we really don't ever see his fangs nor do we ever see him ever bite and drink. All we really get is Kei doing... something... to a dead man's body and then lifting up his head to reveal blood all over his face, which isn't really scary. The acting is pretty poor, which is a shame because HYDE is not really a bad actor, as I will explain in my Kagen no Tsuki section, as much as the direction was awful.
However, like I said, the movie itself had potential but fell under cruel, probably money-hungry circumstances. The script was beautifully written, but horridly portrayed. Although it is very cultural in nature, it is still very relate-able. Despite all its flaws, however, I did enjoy the movie because... well, it features HYDE shooting people and that's somehow very addictive ;3 Besides, what other movie do we get a duet from HYDE and Gackt? None! - Final score, 6/10
Kagen no Tsuki
This movie is a bit better. It's not exactly perfect but it's still worth the watch. This movie is usually praised, albeit mostly by HYDE fans, for its romance and dark story. I personally find it a great movie, but has many scenes of sheer "Oh, god, am I -really- watching this?"
One thing I like about this movie is how the plot builds up very nicely. Although, I don't quite understand how one person would get a photo of Mizuki's boyfriend cheating on her ON HER MOBILE PHONE (seriously wtf? Was she peeping on them? ... Pervert), I soon forget that question and am able to focus on the main subject at hand soon enough. Mizuki's running away from all her troubles (among which are her cheating boyfriend and dysfunctional family) is extremely relatable, although you still tend to wonder why she would just walk into someone's house like that, even if she did think it was abandoned.
In said house, she meets a ghost named Adam (HYDE), and I swear although I am a huge fan of HYDE's voice, his facial expressions alone are enough to keep me entertained, which is good considering he barely speaks through the whole movie. But that's not to say his moments of dialogue are not spectacular. HYDE's persona brings an interesting sense of mysteriousness and even sadness to the film.
Like MOON CHILD the script is very beautifully written. The representation through the cast and crew is not exactly perfect, but it's still very nice nevertheless. The special effects aren't so great, but the directors must have been aware of this as they're much more subtle and more in-place in this movie.
Of course, the movie has quite a few drawbacks. For example, some of the scenes are incredibly boring. Also, the mysteries within it seem to be solved without any sort of logical clues. It just seems to hit them. On that same note, part of a mystery is having to think about it yourself (as the viewer), and like most Japanese mysteries and Scooby-Doo, you are robbed of that chance. Another thing is that they had HYDE try to speak with a British accent, so that made his English in the movie very difficult to understand. THE CAPE OF STORMS is a tad overused in this film, although the piano and acoustic guitar renditions are done beautifully and is probably good enough reason to watch the movie on its own.
The visual scenery has a dark, Tim Burton-style to it that sort of defines HYDE's personality, in my opinion. Although the scenery suffers from cartoony atmosphere, it sort of gives the movie a delightful sense of cuteness. The acting is also not so bad. Far from perfect, but it very well done, in my opinion Final notes, I was left in tears at the end of the movie. Despite the strongly fictional story, the emotions feel very realistic and despite all its boring scenes, there's at least a thousand interesting and beautiful scenes to it. But it's not for everyone, particularly those not into the drama genre or those not into movies that, more or less, are about a teenage girl that just needs a place to vent her emotions. Final score, 8/10.
So your turn. TELL ME. I NEED TO KNOWZ