max williams Hot on the heels of what was at the time his greatest film, the dark and beautiful Gamera 3, Kaneko took a breather from the world of kaiju, and directed and co-wrote this adaptation of a popular horror novel. In his own words he wanted to attempt something more focused on human drama.While it the script does occasionally meander, it is refreshingly free of the self consciousness which taints so many similar films, (such as the X-men movies) and its earnest take on the ethics of revenge is served with a fascinating dash of moral ambiguity. What's more, it has a surprisingly powerful emotional core, and one scene in particular was so unexpectedly touching that it brought tears to my eyes.The film's greatest strength is its character development. The heroine, Aoki Junko, is one of Kaneko's most compelling characters outside of the Death Note films. The fine details of her everyday life, -such as the precautions she has taken against her own powers- add greatly to her believability, and her development as a person in response to the plot's twists and turns gives the film its backbone. Her hesitant attempts to connect with other people after a life of solitude are very touching, and provide a poignant Yin to the Yang of the brutal action sequences. Actress Akiko Yada's portrayal of Junko is strong and subtle, wonderfully capturing her emotional torment and moral uncertainty. The secondary characters and are also given a nice degree of ambiguity and depth, and are nicely acted to boot. Of these, the standout is Kaori Momoi as Ishizu, a shrewd, cynically jovial and compassionate female detective. These three qualities are a hard act to balance, but Kaori and Kaneko pull it off nicely. What's more, she gets a ton of awesome lines, such as this gem to a male colleague, "Don't look at me like that, you remind me of my dog."Though the passionate enthusiasm he brought to GMK and the Gamera trilogy is noticeably absent, Kaneko's direction is solid nonetheless. While his pacing could use some tightening, his characteristic uses of crane shots and character mannerisms are effective, and as with his kaiju films, his artistic composition turns what could have been merely serviceable FX shots into beautiful works of art.Speaking of the special effects, they are very impressive. While a few of the death scenes are slightly cheesy and fake, the pyrotechnics are overall spectacular, and the marriage of digital and practical techniques is daring and competent. It may look slightly dated today, but for a relatively low budget film made in 2000, it's an admirable achievement.Sadly, the score by Ko Otani is rather weak. It adds little in the way of tension or drama, and is quite distracting at times. Furthermore, it's a serious disappointment given his usually very high standards, and the magnificence of his prior score for G3. Overall, Crossfire has some flaws, but also enough strong positives to outweigh them. It may not measure up to G3 or the Death Note films, but it's still a well made and entertaining fantasy film with a lot more emotional depth than most of its stable mates.

MartianOctocretr5 The movie has a familiar ring to it: It bears a strong parallel in its primary idea to Drew Barrymore's power to ignite objects (including human victims) with spontaneous combustion in Firestarter. I didn't expect much from this movie, but its originality set it apart from that other movie, and it surprised me.Akiko Yada, as Junko, the character endowed with the gift/curse of the pyro-kinetic power, leads a spirited Japanese cast. A couple of actors over-do their parts, but everyone is convincing. Naturally, as more and more people learn the truth about Junko's power, several different individuals pursue her, each for opposing reasons. Junko herself is a pursuer, seeking vengeance against a killer. Many back stories, and the competing characters make for an involving story that moves quickly (and often violently). Those who would exploit her power are in abundance.Many innocents are close to the action, too, making for a good, suspenseful plot. It has a strange ending, which provides for a good discussion of what it meant with someone you viewed the movie with. This movie blends elements of suspense, science fiction, romance, and action very well.

scobbah First of all, this one is filed as "Horror", but I didn't find this too much of a horror, not much enough for claiming it to be a pure one. It felt more like a b-thriller, but it had its moment for sure. This movie is a bit special, and it is weird because I can't really put my finger and point out the elements that made this film good (average). When it was all over, I still felt touched by it. The plot is quite neat with some interesting conspiracy ideas, and besides the b-effects (who were a bit "too" much, ehm) there were some moments that I did found quite charming. It didn't turn out to be the movie I expected, but still a good time-killer. 6/10.

movieman_kev Junko Aoki (Akiko Yada), is an average adopted shy young women, with one minor quirk: she can incinerate anyone in a ball of flame with but a thought. You see good old Junko was born with a certain brand of ESP called pyrokinesis. She falls for her co-worker Tada Kuzuki and feels a strong need to avenge the senseless death of Tada's younger sister when she's murdered by young street thugs. A chance encounter with a fellow ESPer, this one has telekinetic powers, an and offer to join a group of others called "The Guardians" starts a chain of events that will find poor Junko a target of the police. This film was like a Japanese version of "Firestarter", but a better and more mature take on the theme. VERY competently directed by Shusuke Kaneko and nicely acted, this rises above the source material to be an extremely enjoyable experience.My Grade: B+ DVD Extras: Intro & Subtitled Commentary with Director Shusuke Kaneko; 19 and a half minute Interview with Shusuke; a 17 minute Making of; 8 Theatrical Trailers; and Trailers for "Kunoichi: Lady Ninja", "Versus", "Pistol Opera", & "Samuri Fiction"