Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
THE RED Ribbon Army was once destroyed by Son Goku. Individuals who carry on its spirit have created the ultimate androids. However, these two androids now call themselves superheroes and start attacking Piccolo and Gohan. Directed by Tetsuro Kodama, the film features the voices of Masako Nozawa, Toshio Furukawa, Yūko Minaguchi, Ryō Horikawa, Mayumi Tanaka, and Aya Hisakawa. IndieWire’s Emma Stefansky writes, “Super Hero takes a slightly new approach to Dragon Ball in a number of ways. First, there’s the animation, a decision made by director Tetsuro Kodama: computer generated and fluid in three dimensions yet styled to evoke the classic lines and angular body shapes of the animé… Then there’s the fact that, unlike most of Dragon Ball, this film follows Piccolo and Gohan as protagonists instead of the usual suspects Gohan’s dad Goku and their erstwhile enemy Vegeta.” Film review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer gives the film a score of 92% and an audience score of 95%.
MTRCB Rating: PG
Hunt
Hunt is set four years after the real-life assassination of South Korean president Park Chung-hee in 1979 under mysterious circumstances. Squid Game star Lee Jung-jae directs (his debut) and stars in this thriller which follows agents of the Korean National Intelligence Service — Pyung-ho at the International Department and Jung-do at Domestic Department — who are both independently hunting a North Korean mole within the agency. The film also stars Jung Woo-sung, Jeon Hye-jin, Heo Sung-tae, Go Yoon-jung, Kim Jong-soo, and Jung Man-sik. Variety’s Peter Debruge writes: “The last few scenes are so ludicrous as to be laughable, but that doesn’t sabotage the fun, allowing Lee to entertain, even as Hunt cynically makes its case that in Korea, there can be no such thing as a peaceful revolution, nor a clean transfer of power.”
MTRCB Rating: R-13
Easter Sunday
FILIPINO-American stand-up comedian Jo Koy plays a man returning home for an Easter celebration with his family. During the visit, he struggles to give equal attention to his mother and son, and get his cousin out of trouble. Based on Jo Koy’s life and his comedy routine, and directed by Jay Chandrasekhar, the film also stars Lou Diamond Phillips, Tony nominee Eva Noblezada, Tia Carrere, Lydia Gaston, Eugene Cordero, Rodney To, Brandon Wardell, and stand-up comedian Joey Guila. The Hollywood Reporter’s Frank Scheck wrote, “Easter Sunday earns points for its cultural bona fides, its loving portrait of the community it celebrates, and its almost entirely Filipino and Asian American casting. And Koy reveals himself to be a likable screen presence deserving of more starring roles. But it falls hopelessly flat in its comedic aspirations, more closely resembling the sort of bland network sitcom to which its main character aspires.” Film review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer gives the film a score of 45% and an audience score of 70%.
MTRCB Rating: PG
Emergency Declaration
WHILE investigating a terrorist threat that goes viral online, Korean authorities discover that a suspect has recently boarded an international flight bound for the United States. When a healthy passenger on the same flight suddenly dies a gruesome death, panic erupts both in-flight and on the ground. With steadily decreasing fuel and international refusals to offer aid, the captain and crew will be forced to take unprecedented emergency measures in an attempt to save the lives of their passengers. Directed by Director Han Jae-rim, the film stars Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-Hun, Jeon Do-yeon, Kim Nam-gil, Im Si-wan, and Kim So-jin. Variety’s Peter Debruge writes, “Airline disaster movies are nothing new (they’ve been around long enough to inspire a Zucker brothers spoof more than 40 years ago), but when you have creative minds working to reconfigure the details in original ways, they never get old.” Film review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer gives the film a score of 56% and an audience score of 78%.
MTRCB Rating: PG
Kisaragi Station
THE JAPANESE horror film follows a young female student’s investigation into a railway-based urban legend. Directed by Jirô Nagae, the film stars Yuri Tsunematsu, and Eriko Sato. According to a review on The Straits Times: “Moviegoers get a baffling twist ending but no pay-off, much less any helpful answers to the central mystery.” The paper gives the film two out of five stars.
MTRCB Rating: R-13
