In an attempt to make my day fruitful, I watched Spider Lilies and Ocean's Thirteen. While Ocean's watched in the cinema with yz and jiankai, Spider's watched on youtube, free.


《刺青》 Spider Lilies.

Another taiwanese R21 film concerning homosexuality. What does it show?

Synopsis:
The golden flower is native to the northeastern coast of Taiwan. Local people call it the spider lily. Japanese legend has it that spider lilies line the path to hell, poisoning the memories of all who smell their scent, forming a bridge between the living and the dead.



Tattoo artist Takeko keeps a framed design of the spider lily flower on the wall of her parlor. The design was literally cut from the flesh of her father, after he was crushed to death in an earthquake. The image of the spider lily tattoo is the last cohesive memory of Takeko's traumatized brother, Ching, who is no longer able to recognize anyone, including his sister. Takeko has the same tattoo of the poisonous flower on her body in the hope of helping Ching remember and bridging the gap between them.



Webcam girl Jade visits Takeko's tattoo parlor, looking for sexy decoration to excite her clientele. Entranced by the tattoo of the spider lily on the wall, Jade gives Takeko her business card and invites her to visit her on her website where she professes her love for the tattoo artist. Finally, Jade asks Takeko to give her the same spider lily tattoo to bring her closer to the object of her desire.




My views of this film. The plot is pretty good, and the roundabout way of shooting creates suspense revolving Takeko. But the acting is average, and there isn't much climax in the storyline besides the bed scene. Which is typical of most sensual films. But it draws the audience away from the crux of the story, which is what the director wants to bring across through the film.


Ratings: 6.5/10


Ocean's Thirteen.



I didn't catch Ocean's Eleven, nor did i watch Ocean's Twelve. I felt that they weren't my type of movies. Two reasons why i watched Ocean's Thirteen. One that yz and jiankai asked me. Second because i got two coupons for the movie (which i din use in the end).

Synopsis:
What are the odds of getting even? Danny Ocean and the gang would have only one reason to pull off their most ambitious and riskiest casino heist--to defend one of their own. But they’re going to need more than luck on their side to break The Bank.Ruthless casino owner Willy Bank never imagined that the odds were against him when he double-crossed Danny Ocean’s friend and mentor Reuben Tishkoff, putting the distraught Reuben in a hospital bed in critical condition. But Bank miscalculated--badly. He may have taken down one of the original Ocean’s eleven, but he left the others standing and, worse for him, gave them a shared purpose: to take Bank down on the night of what should be his greatest triumph--the grand opening of his new casino, appropriately named The Bank.



Their strategy is twofold. First they will ruin him financially by turning the tables on the precept that the house always wins. But that’s just money. The knockout punch will be to Bank’s personal pride and joy: his reputation as the only hotelier who has earned the Royal Review Board’s Five Diamond Award on every single one of his hotels. The plan is elaborate, dangerous and damn near impossible--but there are no limits when it comes to one of their own.




My views of this film. Clever plot accompanied with stunning visuals. Subtle humour and good acting. What's there to pick on? I have only two complaints. One being that (because the tickets were selling out fast and we end up sitting at the 2nd row) showing multiple scences simultaenously makes viewing tough. I had to look left and right to get the whole picture. Secondly, the second part of the film is basically a repeat of the first part. Reason being the first part is the planning and the second part is the execution of the plan. Although there's nothing wrong with that, i just felt that the plot could be expanded even more.


Ratings: 9/10 *applaud*