New Releases

The great thing about genre-hybrid movies is they satisfy two moods, something demonstrated well in the horror comedies "Shaun of the Dead" and "Slither" and the action parody "Hot Fuzz."

Yet another fusion film, "Severance," has arrived from the Motherland and does well to deliver both unnerving scares and witty comedy as it follows a group of employees of a multinational weapons production company on a team-building excursion in Eastern Europe. They end up staying at the wrong lodge with crazed killers seeking revenge on the weapons company for wronging them. The plot is a bit of a stretch, but it never becomes an issue since the characters themselves aren't fully aware of the situation and just regard the killers as crazy bastards.

Unlike most genre-blending titles that ultimately rely on being comedies much more than anything else, “Severance” achieves a much closer balance. This can be frustrating, as several times you may wonder if you're watching a very macabre comedy or a very funny horror movie. It's both, but the horror element is more pronounced than the smart Brit-humor and banter. "Severance" demonstrates the finesse, tact and honesty that can be found in a horror movie, but is so rarely seen in American ones.

4 stars out of 5

Foreign

Hong Kong director Johnny To's latest film, "Triad Election," plunges into the dark, unforgiving world of the Hong Kong mafia and does so with surprising elegance. As the election for the godfather position of the gang approaches, so does a power vacuum as several members vie for the spot. Triad member Jimmy sees the position as an opportunity to further his business prospects and establish a legit life for himself outside the crime circuit after his term. However, he soon learns there is no way to keep his hands clean as the greed and betrayal cloud his initial desires, transforming him into the very thing he's trying to escape.

"Triad Election" is a very stylish and chic film, making very good use of minimal lighting to match the darkness of the subject. With decent cinematography and an eerily appropriate score, To presents a very refined crime drama that relies minimally on violence, and much more so on probing psychoanalysis. In fact, not a single gun is fired throughout the movie, though it is in no way without violence and contains a few particularly disturbing scenes.

Although a mafia movie just wouldn't be a mafia movie without way too many members with similar names and faces, the film does at times become difficult to follow in determining who's trying to kill and betray whom and for what reason. Nevertheless, "Triad Election" is one of best crime dramas of the decade.

4 1/2 stars out of 5

Classics

It's really beyond shame that so little people have heard of "Lady Snowblood." We've all heard of and most have of us have seen "Kill Bill," yet the movie that it emulated to plagiaristic lengths remains unknown. Though several descriptions of "Kill Bill" reference the influence of "Lady Snowblood," they fail to assert that Tarantino's work is a modern rendition using the blueprints of a flawless classic.

"Snowblood" is the tale of a girl born into the world for the sole purpose of vengeance, which she methodically exacts on the people responsible for her family's demise. Nearly every element that made "Kill Bill" stand out can be found in "Snowblood": plot chapters, freeze-frame character introductions, various graphic mediums, absurdly spraying luridly red blood — even the musical theme.

It's a disservice to critique "Snowblood" in such a comparative fashion, but the stark similarities shed light onto the true genius of the film. It doesn't have extravagantly choreographed fights or modern animation, but director Toshiya Fujita does everything Tarantino did nearly three decades before him. Film lead (and theme song vocalist) Meiko Kaji exudes a presence that Tarantino only could have wished to come close to achieving.

Although "Kill Bill" is an undeniably well made film, it's merely the showy, postmodern reincarnation of "Lady Snowblood."

5 stars out of 5

Other new releases: "Grindhouse," a collaborative homage to action and horror movies by some of the "top" names in the biz (including Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez … and Rob Zombie); "Lucky You," yet another romantic comedy starring Drew Barrymore; and "Zoo," a documentary focused on exposing the secretive and highly taboo world of bestiality.

Coming out today: "Knocked Up," another absurd-realist comedy from Judd Apatow ("The 40 Year Old Virgin"); "Bug," a psychological thriller as sure to make your skin crawl as Ashley Judd's acting; the Dutch World War II time-piece about Jewish infiltration into the Nazi regime in Holland, "Blackbook"; and "Next," which is … just the latest terrible movie starring Nicolas Cage.