MAGO (2004) [Ascending from Depths of Hell] (Korea) director: Hyun-il Kang
starring: Ga Eh • Yoo-Jin Kwon
This movie is in an elite class, only a handful like it... Alexandro Jodorowsky's Holy Mountain, as well as underground hits like Japan's Death Powder (by Shigeru Izumiya) and Godfrey Reggio's Koyaanisqatsi. The list sorta ends there. A horrific fantasy based loosely on the Adam and Eve mythos, the Oedipus tale with heavy doses of Zen philosophy. In tandem, this heady brew of religious symbolism is seasoned with huge helpings of gratuitous nudity and excessive gore. The narrative deals with a male loner hiding inside an urban hotel room, plagued by hallucinations of twelve naked nymphs and images of nuclear annihilation. Seemingly, he is despondent because he's lost track of his perfect soul-mate, Mago. Through a series of illusions, he learns that the 12 beauties are, in fact, slivers of his lost love, split from "Earth Mother Mago" after humanity turned ugly and parasitic. Further, some of these 12 spirits are raped and abused by male predators, causing the remaining ones to retaliate against the human race. The man – anxious to end the mayhem and regain union with his Mago – travels to a time before his birth where he learns the dark secret harbored in his subconscious. Whew. Click to see more photos!

LOVELY RIVALS (2004) (Korea)
director: Jang Gyu-Seong
starring: Yeom Jeong-Ah and Lee Se-Young Best summarized by the Korean title "Yeoseonsaeng vs Yeojeja" (Female Teacher vs the Coed). The story revolves around a teacher who’s lost interest in her students – in fact, she's making plans to quit and move away – but then she falls madly in love with a handsome new colleague. The problem is... one of her students, a nubile sexpot, also has eyes for the new professor.  Click to see more photos!

SURVIVE STYLE 5+ (2004) (Japan)
director: Gen Sekiguchi
starring: Tadanobu Asano and Hiroshi Abe
Asian Cinema is alive and well. Here is one of the most unusual, beautiful, eye-popping, hallucinogenic films of the past decade. If you LOVE Asian movies, don't even hesitate... just get it and enjoy it! The plot deals with 5 main characters whose lives are intermingled in a variety of improbable, absurd and, ultimately, violent ways. This collection of misfits includes (among others) a song-and-dance hypnotist, a business man who’s been transformed into a bird, a zombie-wife who can dismember her arm and use it as a weapon, and a British hit-man who REALLY likes his job. A maniacal masterpiece.  Click to see more photos!

WET DREAMS 2 (2005) (Korea)
director:Jeong Cho-Shin
starring: Lee Ji-Hoon and Kang Eun-Bee
Whereas the original Wet Dreams told the story of a young male student obsessed with bedding his foxy teacher, this one deals with a high school girl who longs to lose her virginity to a handsome new teacher. This film not only embraces obvious contemporary sexual controversies but also delves into the American Pie brand of gross-out humor popularized by the Korean hit Sex Is Zero. Specifically, this movie deals with high-schooler Sung and her close friends Sue-yeon and Mi-Sook. Of course, these teen girls are enamored with boys but Sung especially wants someone who "knows the ropes" sexually. New teacher Kang seems to fit the bill just perfectly. And so, Sung begins her campaign of seduction. However, she is unaware that her Prince Charming suffers from an incurable (and embarrassing) disease... he farts uncontrollably when sexually aroused. Unaware of the tragic illness that plagues her handsome teacher, Sung marches towards Kang's apartment ready to sacrifice her virginity...  Click to see more photos!

LA BELLE [Beauty] (2000) (Korea)
director: Yeo Gyun-Dong
starring: Oh Ji-Ho and
Lee Ji-Hyeon
A highly controversial film that ran into serious censorship problems upon the original Korean release in 2000. It pushed the boundaries of erotica to the extremes and opened the mainstream marketplace for numerous "sex'' movies to followed. The story, based on a book Body (written by the director in 1998), follows the budding relationship between a 22 year-old model and a magazine journalist as they become intoxicated by the physical pleasures of the flesh. Even though the bliss is passionate, every time her cellphone rings, she immediately scurries from the love nest without explanation. It turns out that the woman is still attracted to the peril offered by her former, abusive boyfriend.  Click to see more photos!

YELLOW DRAGON (2004) (Japan)
director: Tsutomu Kashima
starring: Yasuaki Kurata and Yuki Miyamoto
Legendary martial fighter Kurata (best remembered for Heroes of the East and Fist of Legend) stars in this supercharged action thriller from Japan. There's been lots of talk about the shocking scene where Kurata kicks the villain's head off (literally). Yes, that segment is here... along with many other breathtaking set pieces! While dancing in a club, young woman Jun is kidnapped by a mysterious man. After regaining consciousness, she finds herself in a truck with her unidentified captor. Moments later, Gou (Kurata) attacks the driver and zooms off with the girl. They go to a house in the countryside. Gou says “You’re in danger now, stay here.” She doesn't know what to believe. But things become even more complicated – and grim – when she finds the brutally murdered bodies of her parents in the house.  Click to see more photos!

NAKED AMBITION (2004) (Hong Kong)
director: Dante Lam & Chan Hing-Kar
starring: Louis Koo and Eason Chan
The story of two men and their rise to success in the publishing world. Today, they are on the top-of-the-heap as publishers of a wildly popular men's magazine (not unlike Playboy). This film tracks their rise to fame, from unemployed comic-section editors to porn tycoons. Especially interesting is how their personal relationships change with their new moral values, brushes with the law and healthy bank accounts.  Click to see more photos!

A.F.R.I.K.A. [Adoring Four Revolutionary Idols in Korea Area] (2004) (Korea)
director: Shin Seung-Soo
starring: Lee Yu-Won and Kim Min-Sun
The Beatles said it best: Happiness is a Warm Gun! Cast members from Memento Mori and Attack the Gas Station star in ultra-chic Girls-n-Guns flick.
It's not been a good week for Yo-Won. After failing an important class at the university, she gets fired from her part-time job. Meanwhile, aspiring actress Min is humiliated by an academic advisor and quits her training. Tired of all the hoops, clichés and thankless work, the two friends drop everything and make plans for a road trip to Kang-Rung. Unfortunately, they don't have a car. So they borrow one. As it turns out, the auto was owned by the Mafia and it's complete with revolvers in the glove compartment. After they meet up with Young-Mi, a waitress who dreams of revenge against her ex-boyfriend (and most every other male on the planet), the girls decide to put the guns to use... blasting their way across the Korean countryside. A non-porn Baise-Moi.  Click to see more photos!