Takashi Miike on DVD

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Michael
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 12:09 pm

#26 Post by Michael » Thu Feb 10, 2005 9:34 pm

More on Gozu.

My friends came over tonight and I was excited to share Gozu with them.

Whoa...still amazing, mind-blowing. Miike proves again that he's a master of pacing and composition. Gozu is filled with moments of sheer beauty ( :shock: because it was originally a straight-to-video work !!)...and moments of "overload", both visually and thematically. Some scenes are the most dreamiest ever. If you think Miike makes this film for the sake of weirdness... think again (many reviews attacked it for being meaningless...how wrong!) My second Gozu experience made a lot sense...especially after dvdane's pointing out to the yazuka guy's homophobia. The bizarre, unforgettable symbolisms (actually the entire wacko village) reflect this and Miike's handling of them is mind-boggling. Gozu is also playful throughout and Miike is careful to keep a thread of humor woven throughout the film. After all, when a hotel is leaking breast milk, what else can you do but laugh? As Ozaki spells it out in the beginning, "Everything I'm about to tell you is a joke; dont take it too seriously".

All my three friends loved the film.

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Pinback
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 4:50 pm

#27 Post by Pinback » Fri Feb 11, 2005 9:47 am

Michael wrote:Gozu.. I love this mind blowing film.. Gorgeously directed. Plenty to chew on. Plenty of images burning in your memory eternally. Best film about homophobia and how many films are like that?
Is Gozu really about homophobia? It's been raised by a couple of people, and I'd love to hear an expansion of the argument. As far as I recall, I didn't get the impression that Minami had any aversion to homosexulaity specifically, rather that all sexulaity made him uncomfortable. He's a total petrified virgin, and reacts with equal horror to being hit on by both his male guide and the lactating lady of the inn. His inexperience, and his lack of sexual interest in anyone at all did not seem to be homophobic. It takes the bizarre union of his beloved 'brother' in the body of a young woman to spark the fist signs of sexuality in him. It's the union of man and woman (in one incestuous form) that finally takes his interest. And the final shot, of Minami with both the male and female Ozakis seems to say it all...the three of them make the perfect couple.

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Michael
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#28 Post by Michael » Fri Feb 11, 2005 10:37 am

Is Gozu really about homophobia?
Yes and no. Since dvdane brought this up, everything finally clicked for some reason. During the second viewing with that in mind, I can see that coming through the symbolisms .. but keep in mind that I'm still digesting this film. The film is definitely infused with the "homosexual paranoia" ...the guy on the run looking for the missing corpse..(very much like Scorsese's "paranoia" masterpiece After Hours). Minami is a virgin and his "brother" comes after him to check out his penis. Then we have a waiter dressed like a woman (not necessarily a homosexual but from the eyes of most homophobes who tend to believe that gay men like crossdressing). There is a freaky same-sex couple.. one wearing silver, the other wearing gold at the restaurant. More references on the voyage...the cow demon (obviously male) spurting cum through his mouth...I'm not sure about the symbolism of the hotel leaking breast milk...could that be the common assumption of most homophobes that gay men are mama's boys? The way the old lady comes after Minami.. forcing her maternity on him. And what about the ultimate beautiful transexual who comes out in the near end of the voyage? Again, I'm still chewing on this film...I'm probably talking bullshit but I hope dvdane will come back and elaborate on the "homophobia" references. I know he will do a great job. Maybe Minami happens to have sexual feelings/urges for Ozaki and he doesn't know what to do with them. So that begins the bizarre, nightmarish voyage for Minami?
And the final shot, of Minami with both the male and female Ozakis seems to say it all...the three of them make the perfect couple.
So maybe Minami is a happy bisexual now.

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dvdane
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#29 Post by dvdane » Fri Feb 11, 2005 3:00 pm

The homophobia is mainly caused by Minami's virginity and his boss' openly heterosexuality. The reason I read it as homophobia is, that outside of Minami's "world", sexuality is heterosexual, but inside his world, its dominated by, at least, alternative sexual imagery.

First there is the presents of the cum-like substance, both dripping from the ceiling, and later from gozu's mouth, but also thru the symbolic equivalent in form of the breast milk, which both notes upon white seminal fluid, but also a sexual presentation of a mother figure. Then there is his "shame" in showing his penis, his discomfort, when his boss wants to see his circumcition. Then there is the cross-dresser and the same sex couple, as Michael points out. And finally, there is the female incarnation of his boss, with whom Minami loses his virginity and gives birth to his boss.

The images does not suggest fear of women, nor fear of losing his viginity, but present sexual ideas, from which Minami distances himself, and because of the nature of the images, I find that a homophobic reading is fitting. But having said that, I also have to say, that the homophobism is based upon Minami's own sexual insecurity, so one can alternatively also read the images as representing alternative sexual ideas. It certainly is open for alternative readings.

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Michael
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#30 Post by Michael » Fri Feb 11, 2005 5:47 pm

Further info on The Man In White

http://www.genex.biz/yurusarezarumono/

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JHunter
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#31 Post by JHunter » Sat Feb 12, 2005 1:04 pm

As far as I know, The Man in White has yet to see the light of day on dvd. I caught this at the 2003 Fantasia festival in Montreal, and I think that it's definitely one of his best. It'd be a damn shame if this stays hidden away.
It's hard to imagine anything Miike being hidden for too long. They are releasing "Bodyguard Kiba", for God's sake, in the UK. I want to know when an English subbed (legitimate) copy of "Graveyard of Honor" will be out. Tartan was supposed to release a copy last year, but it never materialized.

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Pinback
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#32 Post by Pinback » Sat Feb 12, 2005 1:18 pm

JHunter wrote:
As far as I know, The Man in White has yet to see the light of day on dvd. I caught this at the 2003 Fantasia festival in Montreal, and I think that it's definitely one of his best. It'd be a damn shame if this stays hidden away.
It's hard to imagine anything Miike being hidden for too long. They are releasing "Bodyguard Kiba", for God's sake, in the UK. I want to know when an English subbed (legitimate) copy of "Graveyard of Honor" will be out. Tartan was supposed to release a copy last year, but it never materialized.
Miike's Graveyard of Honour will definitely see DVD release, at least in the UK, in 2005. There was a trailer for it on the UK Gozu DVD, and it was listed as forthcoming in the Tartan Asia Extreme catalogue book included with Gozu.

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colinr0380
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#33 Post by colinr0380 » Mon Feb 14, 2005 5:46 am

Visitor Q is an excellent film as well. It was part six of the six part Love Cinema series by different directors and discussed with a review of Visitor Q in this Midnight Eye article.
Visitor Q is the sixth and final part of the Love Cinema series, produced by the CineRocket company, which kicked off with Ryuichi Hiroki's Tokyo Trash Baby (Tokyo Gomi Onna, 2000), followed by Mitsuhiro Miura's Eri Ni Kubittake and Yukisada Isao's Tojiru Hi the same year. The crop for 2001 consisted of Tetsuo Shinohara's Harikomi, Akihiko Shiota's Gips and this film. All six were shot on digital video and intended for the video market, although they received a brief theatrical run in a small cinema in Tokyo's suburban Shimokitazawa district.
Similar to Pasolini's Theorem, with its mysterious and maybe imaginary stranger living with a family, this seems to me to be one of Takashi Miike's most transgressive films. It deals with a perhaps more recognisable family environment rather than that of yakuza gangs. It deals with usual family problems: father in work crisis who is ignoring his wife and son's problems and maybe having an affair, wife feeling unloved by husband and hurt by son, the son being bullied and the daughter leaving home (to perhaps get away from her family situation). But this being Miike, these normal soap-opera type themes are depicted in absurd ways: the husbands work crisis involves being the victim of a sexual assault and involves his children in his work in a desperate attempt at recapturing his lost success (living vicariously through his children?), the wife is hurt by her son by literally being beaten, the sons bullies set off an enormous number of fireworks at the family home, the daughter becomes a prostitute (following in her mother's footsteps?), and so we enter more familiar Miike territory.
Midnight Eye wrote:As a result, the chaos of people living under the same roof becomes a family unit again. The film might sound like a parade of depravity and an assault on the sanctified institution of the family, but is surprisingly conservative at heart. When the credits roll, each member of the family has re-assumed his or her natural role in the restored unit. They may have developed a liking for murder and necrophilia along the way, but at least they love each other again.
It also seems to have a couple of ideas that are used in Gozu. I think this may be where the lactation idea started and there is also a moment with the father getting stuck in an intimate place (although in an entirely different context and with a different resolution to Gozu!), with the same 'cork coming out of bottle' sound when he eventually gets free! There really is only one appropriate sound effect for that situation and Miike has been able to use it twice!

One of the great things about watching a lot of his films is that there are a lot of these ideas or set piece moments that crop up again, used in surprisingly different and inventive ways.

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JHunter
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#34 Post by JHunter » Thu Feb 17, 2005 12:34 am

Pinback wrote:Miike's Graveyard of Honour will definitely see DVD release, at least in the UK, in 2005. There was a trailer for it on the UK Gozu DVD, and it was listed as forthcoming in the Tartan Asia Extreme catalogue book included with Gozu.
Great news. I enjoyed the Miike version even more than the Fukusaku original.

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bcsparker
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#35 Post by bcsparker » Mon Feb 21, 2005 1:15 am

I'm glad some healthy debate has started with Miike here again. I just got Yakuza Demon the other day. Great film! It reminds me a lot of Deadly Outlaw Rekka. Picked up Andromeda too. Haven't gotten around to it yet.

Since it hasn't been brought up yet, anyone have any thoughts on Ichi the Killer? It was my first Miike film, so I've been in the unenviable position of not being too shocked by any of his other output yet. Yes, Audition gets to me.....

And forgive me if this sounds stupid, but who is hanging in the tree at the end of Ichi?

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Poncho Punch
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#36 Post by Poncho Punch » Mon Feb 21, 2005 5:21 am

bcsparker wrote:I'm glad some healthy debate has started with Miike here again. I just got Yakuza Demon the other day. Great film! It reminds me a lot of Deadly Outlaw Rekka. Picked up Andromeda too. Haven't gotten around to it yet.

Since it hasn't been brought up yet, anyone have any thoughts on Ichi the Killer? It was my first Miike film, so I've been in the unenviable position of not being too shocked by any of his other output yet. Yes, Audition gets to me.....

And forgive me if this sounds stupid, but who is hanging in the tree at the end of Ichi?
I'm pretty sure it's
SpoilerShow
the old man

Ichi The Killer was also my first Miike film, but if you haven't seen it yet, I suspect you'll find Visitor Q even more shocking/disturbing.

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colinr0380
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#37 Post by colinr0380 » Mon Feb 21, 2005 9:44 am

bcsparker wrote:Picked up Andromedia too. Haven't gotten around to it yet.
Thats the one with Christopher Doyle, the Director of Photography of many of Wong Kar-Wai's films (and Gus Van Sant's Psycho remake) as the bad guy isn't it? I haven't got round to seeing it yet, so when you do post up your comments!

I really like Ichi The Killer as well. Its the grand comic book style of absurd violence which Miike seems to see bubbling under the surface of all his yakuza films. He's taken it to its fullest extent here it seems.

Unearthed Films is going to release Ichi-1 soon which sounds interesting:
ICHI-1
Dir. Masato Tanno

The prequel to Takashi Miike's "Ichi the Killer". Discover what turned Ichi into the depraved serial killer that haunted audiences worldwide in Miike's violent opus. We find Ichi in High School where he exhibits an unhealthy attraction to witnessing the violent behavior of Mr. Dai, the school bully. Things change when an exchange student by the name of Onizame shows up and begins to take over the school by breaking bones in a vicious display of force. Ichi is reluctantly drawn into the fray and is forced to release his ferocious inner demons. Starring Nao Omori as Ichi (star of Takashi Miike's "Ichi the Killer") and Teah as Mr. Dai (Takashi Miike's "City of Lost Souls").
I know this isn't Miike but a spin-off, but is this recommended at all?

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Pinback
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#38 Post by Pinback » Tue Feb 22, 2005 5:56 pm

colinr0380 wrote:Unearthed Films is going to release Ichi-1 soon which sounds interesting:
ICHI-1
Dir. Masato Tanno

The prequel to Takashi Miike's "Ichi the Killer". Discover what turned Ichi into the depraved serial killer that haunted audiences worldwide in Miike's violent opus. We find Ichi in High School where he exhibits an unhealthy attraction to witnessing the violent behavior of Mr. Dai, the school bully. Things change when an exchange student by the name of Onizame shows up and begins to take over the school by breaking bones in a vicious display of force. Ichi is reluctantly drawn into the fray and is forced to release his ferocious inner demons. Starring Nao Omori as Ichi (star of Takashi Miike's "Ichi the Killer") and Teah as Mr. Dai (Takashi Miike's "City of Lost Souls").
I know this isn't Miike but a spin-off, but is this recommended at all?
This sounds interesting...but I know nothing about it. I'm surprised it's not more widely seen...the dire Ichi the Killer anime spin-off was promoted quite heavily on the back of Miike's film...I wonder why this wasn't...

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colinr0380
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#39 Post by colinr0380 » Wed Feb 23, 2005 9:20 am

Found this very positive review. It also says that director Masato Tanno was the assistant director on Ichi The Killer, Happiness Of The Katakuris and Gozu, with Ichi-1 being his first film as director.

EDIT: Sadly the website linked to has gone down since I posted this comment.

Second edit: The link to the article is back up!
Last edited by colinr0380 on Fri Sep 07, 2007 4:12 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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colinr0380
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#40 Post by colinr0380 » Mon Mar 14, 2005 11:59 am

Just watched the first four episodes of MPD Psycho and thought that it is quite a good series. Very bizarre as of course we might have come to expect! You have a detective who after a traumatising experience of a brutal attack on his wife loses his memory and gets two personalities, that of a cop and a killer (hence Multiple Personality Detective Psycho!) The psycho of the title manages somehow to move from person to person by way of the Internet and can take over specific types of people with barcodes in their left eye, usually causing them to commit murders and leaving them at the point at which they are caught or have their bodies destroyed (more frequently the latter!).

Despite all that the series is less 'out there' than many of Miike's films, blending serial killer and police procedural in a style similar to the Denzel Washington film Fallen, but there are some very strange moments, such as every episodes briefing to the 'top brass' in a large conference hall, with the police officer and his sidekick, with the sidekick having a rather unwholesome interest in creating models of the crimes and who then proceeds to disturbingly demonstrate the killers techniques on it with gusto! And the less said about the Christmas-themed schoolgirl shooting briefing from episode 3 the better!

It is worth a watch though. I found myself getting caught up in the episodes and there are some fascinating images that make getting it worthwhile. I've only seen the first four episodes of the six, but my feelings about the ending is that it probably hinges on the detective realising his original personality was that of a normal man who killed his wife himself and then ended up with his split personality. Even if this turns out to be the case, there will have still been many interesting moments throughout the series to make watching it worthwhile.

The series is released on three DVDs from Film 2000 in the UK. Each DVD has two episodes, each of which are an hour long.

A couple of points that people thinking of buying these DVDs should be aware of though:

The covers for each of the DVDs are very graphic. The episodes themselves are digitally fuzzed, although there are a number of flash cuts as well. Whether this is due to television restrictions or whether, as is my feeling, that this is partly that but also a continuation of playing around with censorship (a la Full Metal Yakuza), the DVD company themselves are pretty remiss to use such graphic images to sell their releases. Thereagain, if the original Japanese promotion used them, I can't blame this company for reusing them. (I think the fuzziness is an intentional filmmaking technique for practical reasons of pulling off some of the effects and perhaps also in storytelling terms, as shown by the blocks only appearing around the girls head in episode 1 once she realises that her brain is exposed - while she is possessed by the killer's personality there are relatively graphic shots of the brain).

Also the cover for the second DVD features the brainflower (for want of a better word) that only features in the first episode, on the first DVD! Plus on the first DVD a number of screenshots feature from the third and fourth episodes, which are on the second DVD!

The cover also states "Episodes 1 and 2, Series 1" or "Episodes 3 and 4, Series 1". I can't find any information on any further series of this, or any future episodes beyond these six that were done by another director than Miike, so I'm not certain what to make of this "Series 1" tag.

The discs have unremoveable subtitles, with a couple of grammatical mistakes. Nothing big, just "I" instead of "It" in a couple of places. A lot of the onscreen text is not translated either, which is a shame. I have a feeling that with the burned in subtitles and obvious interlacing at points (obvious even to me) that this is one series of discs that DVDBeaver will not be giving very good marks!

The soundtrack is stated to be Japanese 5.1 on both of the first two DVDs, but you should be aware that there is only 2.0 stereo on them.

If you are thinking of buying this for the presence of a pre-Battle Royale and Kill Bill Chiaki Kuriyama in episode 3, who has a large picture on the second DVD (at least it is the right disc!), then you should be aware that she is only in the pre-credit sequence! One of these days I'd like to see a film where she makes it to the end without dying!

And finally, if you hate Tarantino keep away from the sole extra on the disc, the trailer that montages a lot of releases from the company to a remix of the guitar riff that begins Pulp Fiction, with a lot of "Quentin Tarantino" plastered all over it - it makes Miramax's Tarantino presents look like a masterpiece of great marketing savvy! Did I mention that the so called 'Maki Trailer' does not name any of the films it shows clips of? How do we know what to get if we have no titles to look for!

So these are interesting episodes, and a great song (#Same blue sky in a strange new world#) make it worth a watch even if you are not a Miike completist (although try out his films first!), but which have been badly treated by the company releasing them on DVD, with a lot of false information on the packaging that seems there to only mislead consumers. However I guess I can't be too upset - at least these rarities have been released!
Last edited by colinr0380 on Sun Jul 01, 2007 9:33 am, edited 3 times in total.

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Pinback
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#41 Post by Pinback » Fri Mar 18, 2005 8:00 pm

I've got to recommend Rainy Dog. I've only just seen it, but I have to say I think it's one of Miike's best. I'd say it was similar in tone to Dead or Alive 2: Birds. I'd held off watching Rainy Dog because I was so unimpressed by Shinjuku Triad Society; (Shinjuku Triad Society is the first part of the Black Society Trilogy, of which Rainy Dog is the second and Ley Lines the concluding part). The trilogy is incredibly loose however, and Rainy Dog stands alone. The film has perfect pacing and characters, strengthened by a superb performance from Miike regular Sho Aikawa (particularly excellent in Gozu and Zebraman). I'd advise any Miike fans to check out this film immediately.

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Theodore R. Stockton
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#42 Post by Theodore R. Stockton » Sat Apr 09, 2005 7:41 am

Does anyone have any idea what the songs in Izo are about?

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dx23
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#43 Post by dx23 » Wed May 11, 2005 9:02 pm

Davisdvd.com confirmed the features written on the previous post. They also have a shot of the cover. Personally, I like the previous version cover art.

Travis
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#44 Post by Travis » Sun May 29, 2005 5:52 am

Ok, here's a couple questions...

Has anyone else seen Izo? And if so, can they offer any explanations about it to me?

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Fletch F. Fletch
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#45 Post by Fletch F. Fletch » Wed Jul 13, 2005 12:32 pm

I've been thinking of getting to his movies and I was wondering what would be a good film of his to start with? I am aware of his gonzo rep and intense subject matter, gore, etc. So, what are his best films to check out?

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chaddoli
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#46 Post by chaddoli » Wed Jul 13, 2005 12:42 pm

I started with Audition and I think that's a good place. It is, imo, technically his best film. It is also a bit more tame then say, Ichi the Killer or Visitor Q. Audition shows his true talent as a FILMMAKER, not just a shock artist.

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backstreetsbackalright
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#47 Post by backstreetsbackalright » Wed Jul 13, 2005 1:51 pm

I posed the same question to a friend in the know a couple weeks back. I've only seen Agitator - which was mostly terrific. His advise was, as has been mentioned, Audition, as well as (again) Agitator, Graveyard of Honor, and Happiness of the Katakuris.

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JHunter
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#48 Post by JHunter » Wed Jul 13, 2005 2:11 pm

I would also toss in the "Dead or Alive" series. My first Miike was the first DOA at the Philly Film Fest five years ago and it blew me away. Been a fan ever since.

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viridiana
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#49 Post by viridiana » Wed Jul 13, 2005 4:07 pm

My favorite Miike film is Visitor Q, but I wouldn't suggest starting with it. Happiness of the Katakuris, however, is thematically similar to Visitor Q, but probably a much better intro to his work. It has the best balance, in my opinion, of Miike's soft side (seen in Bird People In China) and his fucking crazy side (more apparent in films like Ichi the Killer or the aforementioned Visitor Q).

Besides, that flick has the best choreography ever!

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Fletch F. Fletch
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#50 Post by Fletch F. Fletch » Wed Jul 13, 2005 4:38 pm

Thanks to everyone for their recommendations so far. I think I'll give Audition a go.

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