Seeing 'Red Sun' in 4K!

Photo by Brett Homenick.

Tonight, Saturday, September 19, I visited Toho Cinemas Hibiya Chanter to catch a screening of Red Sun (1971) in 4K. I'd never seen the film before, but the pairing of stars Toshiro Mifune and Charles Bronson in a movie directed by 007 veteran Terence Young seemed like an intriguing project. 

And the movie is . . . all right. I can't say I loved it, but it wasn't a bad time, even though it dragged on occasion. The premise is fun, but a lot of it felt a bit too much like a reworking of Hell in the Pacific (1968), just set in the Old West. Alain Delon wasn't a very imposing villain, especially when set against a figure with the gravitas of Mifune. (I mean, does anyone really think there'd be a contest there?) 

Bronson does all the heavy lifting, acting-wise, as Mifune doesn't do much more than be a stoic and respectable samurai. The action scenes are decent, but you can find more compelling ones elsewhere. The stuff involving the Comanches was straight out of a '40s B-movie. 

OK, I am starting to sound a bit harsh. As of this writing, Red Sun has a 6.8 rating on IMDb, and I think that's pretty fair. Perhaps my expectations were a bit too high, as the movie has a solid reputation, especially in Japan. I'm also just not the biggest fan of Westerns, so you should probably take that into consideration, too. 

Overall, the movie is pretty good but definitely flawed. I wish I could share the enthusiasm others have for it. It probably would have benefited from being 15 or 20 minutes shorter, as the scenes in which Bronson tries to get Mifune to agree to his terms regarding what to do about Delon are needlessly repetitive. As presented, however, I'll give the movie a lukewarm recommendation. Check it out if it's a flick that might interest you.

Where'd Godzilla Go?

All that's left of Godzilla outside Tokyo Midtown Hibiya. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While browsing social media the other day, I saw a post from someone who shared a photo from the recent Hibiya Meets Godzilla exhibit just outside Tokyo Midtown Hibiya. This individual speculated that someone at Toho must have seen Godzilla Minus One's below-the-line, technical category win at the Oscars, shrugged, and put up a completely irrelevant bust of the original Godzilla from 1954 to "celebrate." 

Well, having stopped by Tokyo Midtown Hibiya on Friday night (less than a week after the Oscars aired), here's all that's left of the "celebration." It was rather short, don't you think?

(Spoiler: It was always scheduled to end on March 10.)

Hibiya Meets Godzilla, Take Three!

Hibiya Meets Godzilla. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While stopping by Toho Cinemas Hibiya after work today, I decided to check out the Hibiya Meets Godzilla display one more time, especially to see how it would look at night. It certainly didn't disappoint -- it was quite impressive! Here's what I saw.

'Argylle' Comes to Toho Cinemas!

Argylle (2024) is coming to Japan. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While at Toho Cinemas Hibiya earlier today, I spotted this display for the upcoming (in Japan) release of the action-packed flop Argylle (2024). Notably, it's been placed in the exact same spot where the Godzilla Minus One (2023) statue held court in the theater for so long, so whether it's an upgrade or not remains to be seen.

I can't say I'm all that enthused about Argylle (despite a rave review from a U.S.-based Shin Godzilla alum who swears up and down that it's true cinema or whatever), but I thought it was an interesting set-up, so here you are.

Um, this thing can't be any worse than Kingsman (2014), can it?