If you've seen Iron Man, Narnia II, and Indy, the next movie I'd suggest to you would be Speed Racer. I finally got the chance to watch it last weekend and it's like taking acid on steroids while having a seizure, and it's awesome. All the critics are panning it for having a shallow story, but I think everyone who knows about Speed Racer will be extremely satisfied with how the film portrays everybody. It's a great story that pays homage to the original series while still being super modern and stylish.
I want to give a great big shout out to the incomparable, irreplaceable, irrepressible

for the package she sent me, which I got today. Some time ago I sent her an Amy Rose doll I found at a flea market, and so she decided to send me an awesome Donkey Kong T-shirt. She one-upped me by including a note and a doodle, and it's just one more reason why I luvs her

.
So the other night I went back to the past and revisited some old favorites of mine...Vampire Hunter D, M.D. Geist, and Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture. It reminded me just how much I love anime, and why I fell in love with it in the first place. Vampire Hunter D especially reminded me of the strange and terrifying power that Japanese animation held for me way back when...the music is truly haunting and the overall atmosphere is just plain unsettling. The editing is kinda jumpy even in the un-edited version. I originally caught this on Cartoon Network waaaaaay back before it got all commercial, so it was nice to watch all the cut-out nudity and gore on the 1 dollar VHS I picked up some time ago.
A lot of the anime that was coming out in the eighties had that really creepy feel to it...Akira, VHD, Fist of the North Star...maybe it's just how I remember them seeming when I was younger, but I don't get that feeling of mystical awe from anything these days. In lieu of a real poll, tell me what anime was your first and the feeling you got from it...what made it grab you by the throat and change the way you looked at animation. That is, assuming you're not a real young kid who's grown up with it all along. I kinda did, but when I was a child we were never told what was anime and what was American, so I always assumed Voltron and Robotech were home-grown.
And to top this thing off, here are some links of videos you must watch if you haven't already. Italian Spiderman is the best thing ever this week and having watched will grant me with superhuman stamina and good luck, I'm pretty sure.
Italian Spiderman Ep. 1 -
[link]Italian Spiderman Ep. 2 -
[link]Indian Superman -
[link]Retro Video Game Commercials -
[link]Deric