Chungking Express (Chung Hing sam lam -1994)

Starring:
Brigitte Lin ... Woman in blonde wig (as Ching-hsia Lin)
Tony Leung Chiu Wai ... Cop 663
Faye Wong ... Faye
Takeshi Kaneshiro ... He Zhiwu, Cop 223
Valerie Chow ... Air Hostess
Chen Jinquan ... Manager of 'Midnight Express'
Lee-na Kwan ... Richard (as Guan Lina)
Huang Zhiming ... Man
Liang Zhen ... The 2nd May
Zuo Songshen ... Man

The film opens on the night of 30 April to 1 May 1994 in Chungking House, a mazelike commercial complex in Hong Kong. A Chinese woman in a blond wig is busily trying to stash some heroine among the belongings of a group of Pakistanis hired to slip the drugs out of the country. May 1 also marks an entire month since police office No. 223 got dumped by his girlfriend. He swears he's going to fall in love with the first girl who walks through the door: it turns out to be the blond drug smuggler....A fast-food restaurant where Faye, a young tomboy, listens to the hit pop song "California Dreaming". Another policeman, a regular costumer, has just lost his girlfriend, who has deposited his apartment key at the restaurant. Faye intercepts the key and secretly lets herself into the cop's apartment and proceeds to upset his domestic order.



This was a slightly weird movie. Not what I expected. I only watched it because it had my man Takeshi-kun in it. And he was sooooooo cute, as he was very, very, very young in this (21 years old to be exact).

I was hoping for more of Takeshi-kun at the end but it didn't happen. This was a movie with 2 different stories. I feel that Takeshi's story wasn't finished but maybe that was supposed to be.

A very intriguing study of human nature with twists to the women in the stories. Both women, weird or strange in their own right. And each woman teaching the men in the story, a little bit more about themselves and how to survive. Somewhat thought provoking with the restaurant Chungking Express being the centerpoint and meeting place for both men. Each never having met the other but both being policemen.

I probably never would have watched this being that this movie was made in 1994 and I'm not really much for the older movies (I can't believe I'm saying the 90's are old).

Keeping with the times and degree of cinematography, this movie was a little "dark" not that I mean scary but having to deal with the harder part of the human heart.

Tempting Heart (心動 -1999)

Starring:
Takeshi Kaneshiro - Ho-jun
Gigi Leung - Sheo-rou
Karen Mok - Chen-Li
Sylvia Chang - Cheryl
Leon Dai - Ho-jun (middle age)
Elaine Jin - Sheo-rou's mom
Jo Kuk
Audrey Mak
William So Wing Hong - Screenwriter (as William So)
Michael Tong
Cher Yeung

Sylvia Chang plays a director who intends to make a romance film and begins to wonder about the role fate plays in relationships. She ends up re-examining her own first love in a completely different light. The story is set in two different periods of time, one in the 1970s where Gigi plays the teenage girl of Sylvia Chang and the other in the 1990s where Sylvia plays her own role.

Takeshi Kaneshiro plays the role of a shy teenager who falls in love with Gigi Leung. Their relationship turns intimate but faces objections from their parents. Karen Mok plays Chen-li, the best friend of Gigi, whom Gigi confides in and tells all her problems.

This teenage love soon fizzled and Ho-jun turns to marry Chen-li. Chen-li then reveals that she is a homosexual and they both love the same girl-Xiao rou. Ho-jun meets Xiao rou on a trip to Japan and upon knowing that Ho-jun was already married, Xiao rou returned home and got engaged herself. Ho jun manages a last attempt to reunite with Xiao rou by flying to Hong Kong and telling her that he is already a divorcee but to no avail.

It was years later, that Xiao Rou found out that Ho-jun's wife was actually Chen-li. She discovered this only after Chen-li had died. Chen-li left a message for Xiao-rou asking her for forgiveness. As Xiao rou prepared to fly back to Hong Kong from Japan, she received a present from Ho-jun. Inside the box,were photographs, each taken while Ho-jun was thinking about Xiao-rou of their brief and bright moments of happiness.



Geez! I was not expecting the ending. Come on! I was really a happy camper until this movie left me feeling......"blah". Let me describe it to you. It's like waking up to dark clouds hanging over your head and life seems like it can't seem to be any worse than it is.

Don't get me wrong. This movie was totally awesome. So how can I say that even if the end of the movie was torture? Well. Hmm? I really, really, really wanted a happy ending. Instead, I'm bawling my eyes out after she opens the box that Ho-jun gives her after she gets on the plane. God in Heaven! This story, I thought, through all the sad moments would eventually leave a wonderful light on my soul. Instead, my heart was broken, and I felt that love was a dream.

Beautifully mastered movie. Takeshi-kun totally rocked my world again. I'm tellin' ya, the man is amazing. Totally amazing actor that just....well....okay, if I just happened to see him one day on the street, I'd drop everything and molest the man.

*sigh*

Don't watch this movie if you are already not in the frame of mind. It's a tearful movie. The tone is that of love lost and never regained. Memories of your first love will invade your soul and reap whatever is left of your happy mood.

Kaneshiro Takeshi

"Can I have him to go, please?"

Sweet Rain (死神の精度-2008)

Starring:
Takeshi Kaneshiro
Manami Konishi
Supporting Cast
Takuya Ishida
Ken Mitsuishi
Junko Fuji
Jun Murakami
Mitsuru Fukikoshi
Erika Okuda

Chiba (Takeshi Kaneshiro) appears seven days before a person dies an unexpected death. His job is to observe the person for seven days, and then decide either to ‘execute’ or ‘pass over’. Getting his work quickly out of the way, he goes to the listening booth of a CD shop and indulges in his favorite pastime, listening to ‘humanity’s greatest invention’: music. He is...a Grim Reaper. Today, again, in the rain, he waits. His subject, her death due in seven days, is Kazue Fujiki (Manami Konishi), 27. She works for a manufacturing company, in the complaints department. Exhausted after her day, she emerges from her office. It’s time for the Reaper to go to work.



Okay this movie had me crying at the very beginning. Well, not crying, teary-eyed...yes! The little girl reminded me of my daughter and I couldn't stop comparing the two.

I've read reviews of this movie where it's too slow and didn't make sense. I don't understand that. Okay, yes it was a bit slow but it wasn't boring at all. In actuality, this movie had 3 separate stories that correlated with each other. It's not until the last story that you are like "OMG!"

This movie, at first, has a depressing feel. The rain will get to you. Its really is a mirror image of Chibas emotions. Never having lived a human life, he never really understood what living was like. So not being able to live, he didn't understand what it really meant to die either.

This is a beautiful story of life and death. I think the story was meant to give hope to those that believe hope is lost.

This might be a story for everyone. Only because I think it takes a lot of thought and having lived a life to understand how to appreciate this movie. I think all should sit and think about what the author truly meant.

Sleepless Town (Fuyago-1998)

Starring:
Takeshi Kaneshiro
Mirai Yamamoto
San Boon Mei Loi
Eric Tsang Chi-Wai
Sihung Lung
Kathy Chow Hoi-Mei

Kenichi (Kaneshiro) is a half-Japanese, half-Chinese man of the underworld. You can sell him anything except children's organs. His domain is in Kabukicho, a gangland controlled by various Shanghainese gangs intent on taking overall control. Things are calm, however, his former partner-in-crime, Fu-Chun, is rumoured to have returned to Kabukicho, having fled years earlier after killing the number two to gangland boss, Yuan (Tsang). Yuan wants to get even and attempts to do so by using Kenichi. Meanwhile, Fu-chun's girlfriend, Natsumi Sato (Yamamoto) turns up to sell something to Kenichi.

Sleepless Town was a pleasant surprise for me, a well-written and well-executed film, with a gangster storyline containing enough twists to win a dance contest.

I'm a totall Kaneshiro fan. Another actor whose movies have never failed me in their aptitude, drama and action.

The fast paced setting actually started me out quite confused. Mainly, I couldn't read the subs fast enough to save my life. I'll admit I ended up having to pause many times to read what they were saying. So fast the pace....the subs couldn't keep up...so neither could I. But that actually had nothing to do with the movie in itself.....just the viewer who had to read at a 100mph. LOL!

The beginning mainly began with a lot of talking (hence my dilemma). Eventually, once I caught on, the story unfolded so fast but there were sooooo many twist and turns that once you thought you had the movie figured out...*poof*...something else would happen leaving you to scratch your head.

The best part of the movie was the end. OMG! It was a beautiful ending. I sat there gasping. I wouldn't really call this movie a romance but the ending was so moving that it had me wondering all along. I didn't cry but oddly sat there in awe...............

Downtown Torpedoes (San tau dip ying / 神偷谍影 -1997)

Starring:
Takeshi Kaneshiro-Jackal
Jordan Chan Siu-Chun-Cash
Charlie Young Choi-Nei-Sam
Theresa Lee Yi-Hung-Phoenix
Ken Wong Hap-Hei-Titan
Alex Fong Chung-Sun-Stanley

Hong Kong’s answer to Mission: Impossible is a slight action-thriller that’s carried out professionally and commercially. Jackal (Takeshi Kaneshiro), Cash (Jordan Chan) and Sam (Charlie Young) form the core of ATM (Available Tactical Mercenaries), an industrial espionage unit that utilizes high-tech gadgetry to steal technology and fence it on the black market. However, they're blackmailed by the Hong Kong government (led by Alex Fong Chung-Sun) to snatch some counterfeit plates called SN2 from the British MI5. Naturally stuff goes wrong, our heroes are framed for SN2’s disappearance, and then they must set about clearing their names with whatever hi-tech gadgets they have leftover.



This was a pretty cool movie. I mean it had the hotman Takeshi-kun. Totally hot!

From the get-go, Downtown Torpedoes sets itself up as a slick spy caper and it doesn't disappoint. The movie mixes in just enough high-tech gear and gutsy action to make it both believeable and exciting at the same time. In a time when many films mistake computer gimmickry for action, it was refreshing to see more of a straight-forward style. As always with these types of movies (especially ones that are a few years old), not all of the gadgets make sense or look great, but overall the spy action in Downtown Torpedoes is well-done, culminating in a climatic chase scene that is one of the best done (in either the US or HK) over the last several years.

Even though there is a fair amount of double-crosses, hidden agents and other plot twists, the story is easier to follow because of the movie's efficent storytelling. The film-makers realized that we don't need to see each detail of every character's life, and this helps move Downtown Torpedoes at a brisk pace. Even the dreaded mandatory romantic subplot fails to rear its' head here, and the film flows much better as a result.

The emphasis here is on spy hi-jinks, not mushy love stories. This streamlined storytelling is welcome in this day and age of movies that try and pretend to be more important than they are by dumping everything but the kitchen sink into the mix. From top to bottom, Downtown Torpedoes is a solid action movie that's worth your time.~hkfilms *I had to copy and paste this review because they said EXACTLY how I felt about the movie. I couldn't have said it better!*

Red Cliff (赤壁 -2008)

Starring:
Tony Leung Chiu Wai - Zhou Yu
Takeshi Kaneshiro - Zhuge Liang
Chen Chang - Sun Quan
Wei Zhao - Sun Shangxiang
Koyuki
Shido Nakamura - Gan Ning
Fengyi Zhang - Cao Cao
Jun Hu - Zhao Yun
Chiling Lin - Xiao Qiao
Yong You - Liu Bei
Dawei Tong - Sun Shucai
Jia Song - Li Ji
Yong Hou - Lu Su
Chun Sun
Qingxiang Wang - Kong Rong
Jiang Tong - Li Tong

It's A.D. 208 China. Rival states Shu and Wu join hands against their common enemy, the evil and ambitious General Cao Cao of the Wei kingdom, but are seriously outnumbered by his million-strong army. But with the charismatic leadership of Gen. Zhou Yu (Tony Leung), the perfect strategy of scholar Zhuge Liang (Takeshi Kaneshiro), and the support of emperor Sun Quan (Chen Chang), they manage to declare a small victory. While Cao Cao scoffs at this as no big deal, it adds fuel to his fury.



Wow! Stunning art work from master director John Woo. Totally spectacular.

I've been reading and reading and evidently this is an all-time grossing film and most money ever spent on a Chinese masterpiece. Yeah, masterpiece. I said it. Chinese and masterpiece usually doesn't spill out of my lips. So you'll probably won't hear me say it again.

From the beginning till the end....end would be figuratively because this movie isn't over. Yeah, a number two is coming out. How do I know? Because at the end....it says "To Be Continued." Duh! That my friend really pissed me off because I want to see the end....NOW!!!! Why should I have to wait any longer for this?

I was pleasantly shocked to see Nakamura Shido in this. First, he's Japanese and I didn't know he could speak Chinese. Woooooah Nelly! Yeah, yeah. I know that don't mean nothin' cuz Takeshi-kun speaks it fluently too. But then, he's half Taiwanese, so he's got the handicap, ya know?

Back to the movie......It was visually stunning. The action was abundant. The acting was expectedly top notch. The only gripe other than the ending is that Takeshi-kun had not one fighting scene. Okay, he's a scholar/strategist in the movie but that shouldn't stop him from kickin' ass. So maybe Part Two he'll get that chance. Oh yeah, another thing that bugged me....this was supposed to be A.D. 208. It seemed like this era could have been more along the lines of somewhere along the lines of 1300-1500's. I'm no historian so I could be absolutely wrong.....ehh.

Other than that this movie is really worth sitting down, eating popcorn, and chillin'. Definitely a really good movie.

Returner (Ritana / リターナー -2002)

Starring:
Takeshi Kaneshiro - Miyamoto
Anne Suzuki - Milly
Kirin Kiki - Xie
Goro Kishitani - Mizoguchi
Yukiko Okamoto - Dr. Yagi
Mitsuru Murata - Mizoguchi's Henchman
Kisuke Iida - Karasawa, Mizoguchi's Henchman
Kazuya Shimizu - Murakami, Mizoguchi's Henchman
Chiharu Kawai - Liu's Interpreter
Dean Harrington - Dr. Brown
Xiaoqun Zhao - Slave Merchant
Masaya Takahashi - Liu Laoban, Chinese Godfather

RETURNER stars Ann Suzuki as Milly (or Miri in some import versions), a young woman who has traveled back in time from the year 2084 to the year 2002. Her mission is to stop an alien invasion before it can begin. This invasion will eventually lead to all-out war between the aliens and the humans if Milly isn't successful. She meets a hitman named Miyamoto (Takeshi Kaneshiro), and convinces him to help her. Unfortunately, Milly's arrival in the past was slightly off and the aliens have already landed, and the evidence has been confiscated by the government. To make matters worse, a gangster named Mizoguchi (Goro Kishitani) is determined to claim the alien artifacts for himself and harness their awesome power. It's now a race against time for Milly and Miyamoto to obtain the aliens and save the future.

OMG! This was an awesome, totally awesome movie! It was amazing from the very beginning to the very end. OMG! This is now on my "must download at all cost" list. Action all the way through. There weren't any story gaps. No confusion. Just enough funny mixed in with touching to downright cool sci-fi.

This movie will remind a lot of you of Independence Day mixed in with E.T sprinkled with The Magic Time Machine. LOL! Okay...The Magic Time Machine was a bit much but there is no denying this movie has familiar elements of the other two movies. The little alien was soooooo cuuuuuute. Actually he was better looking than THE E.T. LOL!

There is a part in the movie where Milly actually comes back again. I won't say why or what she was doing. Just wonder if anyone will catch it in the movie later. It'll make sense in the end. Trust me!

This was definitely an A-list movie for everyone. Not a lot of blood...most of it left to the imagination. Just enough to make it seem real. And Kaneshiro Takeshi is hotter than ever in the movie. Damn is he HOT! *Somebody I think I need a cigarette. And maybe a pail of water, I think my panties are on fire......whew!*

Kaneshiro Takeshi

Turn Left, Turn Right (Heung joh chow heung yau chow/ 向左走．向右走 -2003)

Starring:
Takeshi Kaneshiro - John Liu
Gigi Leung - Eve Choi
Edmund Chen - Dr. Hu
Wei-Lum Shu - June
Terri Kwan - Ruby
Shiu Hung Hui - George
Suet Lam - Restaurant Owner
Lo Si Tse - Music Producer
Te Chih Wang - Landlord
Ku Wang Su-Chin - Landlady
Klaus Bru - Ghoul
Jimmy Liao
Suk-yee Chan - Dr. Hu (voice)
Angela Tong Ying-Ying - Ruby (voice)

This story is based on one of the best-selling illustrated storybooks in Asia -- Turn Left, Turn Right by Jimmy Liao.

John Liu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) is an aspiring violinist who is flocked by women like bees to honey because of his handsome face. However what he really wants is to meet someone special who appreciates his violin performance. Eve Choi (Gigi Leung) is a professional translator whose true passion is translating love poems, but for work she is stuck in translating cheesy novels and cheap thrillers which make her feel tense and frightened. Living in different units of the same apartment building and separated by one thin wall, they two have brushed shoulders in crowd hundreds times, but somehow their paths never really cross.

One day, while walking around a circular fountain in the park, they finally bump into each other. Just like a pair of long-lost lovers, John and Eve spend a beautiful afternoon together. A sudden shower cuts the encounter short. They exchange phone numbers and quickly run home. Yet fate plays a cruel joke on them, the rain has soaked through their precious scrap of paper and the phone numbers are hopelessly smudged…

Oh, the Fates have struck again. I love how the Asian community rely on this well versed saga.

This reminded me of one of my all time favorite Korean dramas.....Soulmates! They were so close but yet soooooo far away. Yeah, they lived right next door to each other and didn't know it. LOL!

I loved how they played out the story with the exception of the deceptive rivals....the doctor and the delivery lady. Eeeeegh! Especially the delivery lady....she knew the truth right from the beginning. Ahh well. This is just ONLY a movie.

I really wish I could remember the poem quotes out of the movie because they moralized the story and brought about exactly what the Fates were hoping for.

The ending was most satisfying indeed. Nothing but an earthquake can cure.......LOL!

This is a must-see for romance fanatics and sweethearts alike. It brings out the sweet love songs that are buried in your heart and the memories of our first loves..............

Kaneshiro Takeshi

Space Travelers (Supêsutoraberâzu/スペーストラベラーズ-2000)

Starring:
Takeshi Kaneshiro - Nishiyama ("Hayabusa Jetter")
Eri Fukatsu - Midori ("Irene Bear")
Masanobu Ando - Makoto Fujimoto ("Black Cat")
Hiroyuki Ikeuchi - Takamura ("Dragon Attack")
Sawa Suzuki - Kimiko Fukaura ("Gold Papillon")
Masahiro Komoto - Takahiro Shimizu ("Karl Hendrix")
Teruo Takeno - Shintaro Kurasawa ("Electric Sunny")
Koh Takasugi - SAT Taicho
Shigemitsu Ogi - SIT Taicho
Isao Nonaka - Det. Arai
Yozaburo Ito - Det. Nishikawa
Seiko Takada - Band manager
Toshio Kakei - Koichi Fukaura ("Hoi")
Jovijova - J-Six Babys
Chikara Ishikura - J-Six Babys
Meisui Kinoshita - J-Six Babys
Satoshi Sakata - J-Six Babys
Tomoharu Hasegawa - J-Six Babys
Magy - J-Six Babys
Shinji Rokkaku - J-Six Babys
Jin Nakayama - Sudo
Guts Ishimatsu - Shoda
Ren Osugi - Tsuneda
Masatoshi Hamada - Kiyoshi Nonomura
Ken Watanabe - Sakamaki ("Crusher")
Masayasu Kitayama - Officer
Bokuzo Masana - Officer
Naoto Kokaji - Toyoyama
Maiko Shobu - Momoe Kimura
Runa Ito - Minako
Kikuyo Saito - Atsuko Kikushima
Aki Hoshino - Yukari Unno
Megumi Ujiie - Moe Susuki
Miho Ogata - Ayana Nagata
Tatsuro Hoshiyama - Danshi Kouin Amemiya

To be able to finally realize their childhood dream, 3 young men plan to rob a bank. Nishiyama, the leader, Takamura, a very self contained guy and Fujimoto, an otaku obsessed by an anime called Space Travelers. Their plan is very simple, enter the bank at the closing time, take the money and leave within 5 minutes. But unfortunately for them, their plan got screwed. Not able to reach the money and surrounded by cops, they are stuck in the bank. They then decide to use the remaining customers and staff as hostages to gather some time to plan an escape, but they soon realize that an escape is almost impossible.

With the time passing, the hostages begin to sympathize with the three robbers and decide to help them. Nishiyama gets an idea that could help them, try to fool the police into thinking that they are more than what they are in reality. They will all decide to personalize a member of the favorite anime of Fujimoto and call the whole group The Space Travelers. Strangely every one has a character that really correspond to their personality and they will soon begin to develop a real association to their character, forgetting their own personality, as they all begin to be more active in the new improvised band of bank robbers. This matter doesn't help the police at all, confusing them even more as they try to solve that delicate hostage situation. -- KFC Cinema

This here movie was really, really, really good. It's a little corny at the beginning and I mean that in a good way.

The guys are 3 orphans who were raised in the same orphanage and through it all became close enough to actually being brothers. They start the movie out as amateur bank robbers. Sort of like bumbling fools but as the story moves on you can't help but fall for their kindness and naivete. With no intention of hurting anybody, they just wanted enough money to get away and find a paradise they couldn't find in their lives living in the town or city they live in.

As the hostages and the robbers get to know each other, they form a bond and realize that they all have the same dream of becoming something better or becoming someone better than they are. You can't but feel the comraderie between them all and the willing sacrifices they make.

But every bad deed doesn't go unpunished. Once the cops find out that there was a bank robbery in progress, the bank becomes surrounded. Rumors fly and the situations outside the bank become unstable and tense. Here is where the movie starts to take turn from comedy to a drama of serious proportions. At once seemed like a game now becomes a crime.

The hostages are willing to help the robbers escape but how can they when every single person from every emergency squad are called in. As the story comes to a close, my heart aches for every single character especially the 3 main characters, the bank robbers. Hopeless, abandoned, and feeling unwanted as children they strived to make their own way to find their own paradise but all this comes with a high price.

What I thought would be a funny comedy to start my day off on the right foot left me grieving for the 3 orphans who struggled in this harsh world and I prayed they found their paradise. *Oh gosh.....tears are forming now. Again!*

Ikeuchi Hiroyuki


Kaneshiro Takeshi

Masanobu Ando