Kiltro

[CrazyFrog]

Kiltro (2006)
Cast: Marko Zaror/Zami, Caterina Jadesic/Kim, Miguel Angel de Luca/Max Kalba, Alejandro Castillo/Soto, Man Soo Yoon/Teran
Director/Writer: Ernesto Diaz Espinosa

Kiltro is billed as the first South American martial arts movie, which is probably true. And for a first, it's definitely watchable, although many things detract from the movie. But mostly, its a vehicle for rising star Marko Zaror, and this guy makes the movie.

The plot begins with some picturesque shots of Chile, stark desert, then waves crashing on a rocky shore. And then, there's a dwarf and a man sitting in a cave, looking somewhat like shamans, with a crackling fire. Ok, with me? Then cut to a dance club somewhere, where a unhappy looking Zami (Zaror) is staring across the dance floor at some jailbait girl dancing w/ a big thug. Thug touches her assets, Zami gets mad and springs into action, furious. He swears revenge (!) on "Maniac" (the thug's name). Cut to: next day, Zami and his gang walk up to some ghetto building and call out "Maniac" for his ass-whupping. Both guys are huge and at first Zami gets pummelled by Maniac, but then- a seriously fast-as-shit backspin kick to the head drops Maniac down like a bag of rocks. And that's the intro you get to the main protagonist played by Zaror- a big, obsessed oaf who just happens to move like Tony Jaa.

So I'm not going to rehash the whole plot like I just did. To boil it down, it revolves around Zami's obsession with a girl, Kim, who's the daughter of a local Korean martial arts instructor. Zami trails Kim around and acts like a big doofus until one day a mysterious man shows up at the dojo and just starts killing people. The Korean guy, Teran, shows some acknowledgement of just who this guy is but it's too late!! Leaving just about everyone dead, the mystery man turns out to have a name- Zalba! Zalba takes Teran, who is barely alive, and somehow the dwarf shows up and whisks away a easily beaten Zami and Kim before anything happens to them.

In the cave, secrets are (somewhat) revealed and Teran is part of a secret sect that does... something, what it is is never explained but probably fighting for justice and stuff, you know. This sect, which does not have a name, is somehow linked to Zami, who wears a distinctive medallion around his neck that signifies-yes- that he's a member. But Zami, who has never known his dad, is still dumbfounded at it all, and after the dwarf tells him to go north and train with Soto, you know what the hell is going to happen anyways. Zami goes north, finds Soto, trains in the Zeta way (not making that up) and finds his way back to ZALBA!! who now has kidnapped Kim. Will Zami save the day? Is the Internets totes kewl?? And does Zami get the girl?? STAY TUNED!!!

No, seriously, this movie ordered all the kung fu cliches from Costco and then made a few new ones up along the way. While predictable from the get-go, Kiltro does have some pretty fun moments. Action wise, Mr. Zaror should be the Next Big Thing. He's big but extremely agile; he's only a hair less nimble than the JaaMan and that speed and power make him look very formidable as an opponent. Add to that a natural charisma with model boy looks, and you have a future star, just add Hollywood. Dude's gonna be off the charts. Other highlights include a suitably evil bad guy, courtesy of a Miguel Angel deLuca (Zalba). This guy is like the villain from the silent films who ties women down to railroad tracks and twirls his mustache and then you spliced him with Darth Vader- NO, REALLY. The guy isn't nearly the screen fighter that Marko is but it looks like he could burn holes through babies with his stare. He's a badass! The love interest was slightly interesting, if only for the twist in which Zami is played as an obsessive lunk who seems to have borderline autism while the girl just toys with him. And this girl- very cute, if you're into 16-year olds who do cosplay (she has some serious Sailor Moon pigtails here). Other things I liked were the soundtrack (it was actually pretty damn good and funky in spots!) and when they utilized it, the quite stunning Chilean scenery. It really adds a vibe to this movie that you just don't see in any other martial arts movies.

So, did I like it? Yeah, if only to see who the next movie martial arts badass is going to be. He has got legit skills, amazing speed and strength, and a palpable charisma that is going to take him far. Otherwise, the movie was ok- quirky and with a fresh, Chilean view on the classic revenge tale but saddled with the same BS and cliches that plagues just about every other martial arts production. Guess that's universal, no matter what. It has lots of potential, and realizes some of it but also squanders a pretty good talent pool. Welcome to martial arts cinema, Mr. Espinoza and Mr. Zaror. Let's hope Mirageman capitalizes on the goods you've promised.

2.5 out of 5 empanadas
http://img128.imageshack.us/img128/7791/kiltro0333rf.jpg

Interesting tidbits:
Zami has a pink-highlighted mullet in the beginning.

Zami goes for the big kiss by the sea with Kim (with music!) but she whacks him upside the head instead.

ZALBA's Vader-like powers manifest in the dojo scene, where he picks up a full-grown man with one hand and strangles him instantly.
http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/2577/kiltro020zt.jpg
See?!! EVIL!!

The dwarf has wisdom beyond his years that is demonstrated when Zami asks why he won't fight Zalba himself: " I'm old and I'm a dwarf. Do you think I have a chance against Zalba?". No, I guess not!

Soto clears Zami's mind not with meditation but with what looks like peyote. Now that's what I'm talking about!! Psychedelic kung fu!

After "clearing his head", Zami wakes up in his birthday suit in the middle of the desert. When he does, Soto does a backflip off a sand dune right in front of him. HIIIYAAH!

Zalba's henchmen are prone to wearing Members Only jackets and very stylish tribal/emo makeup.

The CGI bloodletting gets on my nerves after a while. It really does.

WTF is a Zeta and why does it bug me so much?

[The Amazing Psycho Per]

2.5 is a bit harsh... Of course there are many flaws, but let's not forget it is a first "big time" experience for the team behind this movie. I had very high expectations when I went to see it at Fantasia last year, and although it was a bit of disapointment back then, I still enjoyed it thouroughly. Now that I've seen it twice, I apreciate it for what it is, a very nice first effort by a very promising filmaking team. Let me run it down for you...

The Good:

First thing that comes to my mind is the soundrtrack. It is sometimes cheesy love theme, sometimes tongue in the cheek 80's style music, sometimes latino and also, of course, spaghetti western inspired. Every style used for the soundtrack fits effectively into the movie to generate the required atmosphere.

Zaror. Although not a great actor by any means, Zaror definately has the presence to be an action star. His skills are undeniable as he spin kicks his way through a hord of opponents in the end fight. Zarror who serves also as fight choreographer, shows great promises for the future, even if it would've been nice had the fights been a tad longer.

The cinematography is quite good for such a shoe string budgeted movie... Especially when Zarror is in the desert training, the use of fake back drops (a la Shaw brothers) gives a nice surreal touch to the experience.

Plus, even if the first half is somewhat a little bit to ligth hearted, there are some geniuenly funny moments.

The Bad

Many plot points are left unanswered, even if maybe it was intended that way, it's a bit irritating.

On first viewing, the first half is a bit long, so the pace of the film suffers a bit.

I would've like longer fights.

The Ugly

Cgi blood. Understand it had to be done that way, but Cgi blood is ugly in a big budget movie so...

Zarror trying to play what appears to be a teenager. His age is never mentionned but since he has his eyes on a school girl that looks way younger then he his, we can assume he is supposed to play someone quite young, 20 years old tops. So basically the Hero and the love interest don't fit since there seems to be a big age gap between them.

In conclusion, if you want to see what maybe the next rising action star, Kiltro is a great introduction, and even if it is flawed, it still offers a very good time.

3.5/5

By the way Mirageman is more then improvement and extremely entertaining.

[CrazyFrog]

You've seen Mirageman, Per? It looks pretty good to me.

Maybe 2.5 seems harsh but for me, I was rating it as a movie experience and as one, it had me bored at times and confused at others. But Zaror makes up for it and yes, the cinematography was actually very good for a beginning film. I really tripped out on the Shaw Bros. like backdrop during his desert stuff- I thought it signified he was still tripping!

My ultimate point is that I am not trying to dissuade people from seeing this movie- far from it, especially on this site. I recommend most everyone here go see it. It's just that it hinted at a lot more than it delivered, IMO. And i think the director is very promising but tried to bite off a little more than he could chew, plus the pacing was just off. I really liked the multi-ethnic vibe, though, with Korean, Chilean, and Arab cultures represented. It's a very intriguing movie but made me just wanting a lot more, you know?

[The Amazing Psycho Per]

Yeah, like I said, when I saw it the first time I also thought it had pacing problems, but on second viewing, it was still there but less severe. But I agree that maybe it is more ambitious that it actually delivers...

Yes, I have seen Mirageman at the world premiere during last year's Fantasia festival in Montreal. I don't want to overhype it, but I saw 7 movies at the festival and it was by far my favorite. The action has been cranked up a notch, and the pacing problem has been fixed. I posted a mini-review last year but back then, no one seemed to bother... Anyway, the fights are great, with some Zaror trademark spin kicks thrown in for a good measures. The movie itself is an homage to comic book super heroes, and while it never take itself seriously, it never falls into the realm of grottesque parody, and does not look down on the genre. It is actually very funy with quite a few laugh out loud funny moments. Basically, all the winning ingredients of Kiltro are back, but better... I honestly give it the highest recommandation if you have the chance to catch it (Keep in mind the low budget though). By the way it was so succesful in Chile, that they are in talks to make Mirageman a serial on TV.

[AlbertV]

I found Kiltro to be entertaining. Zaror, who had stunt doubled for The Rock in The Rundown, has some impressive martial arts skills, but definitely needed to work on his acting. From what I saw in Mirageman on the trailer, he definitely got better with that department. I found the villain Miguel Angel de Luca to play the role as needed and what's great is that he is a martial artist himself. He's an expert in Shaolin Kung Fu and runs his own school in Chile. The CGI blood was a little too much, but overall, not a shabby film.

Here's a link to Miguel Angel de Luca's school: www.deluca.cl

[The Amazing Psycho Per]

Wow, didn't know Miguel Angel de Luca knew martial arts... Then he was definately underused since he doesn't get to show that much of his skills.

[The Running Man]

What did you guys think of the action direction and choreography?

[The Amazing Psycho Per]

Nothing intricate, but still very pleasant to the eye. It's a bit Bruce Lee style, in the sense that opponents are easily disposed off with one move. Where it shines is that Zarror uses spin kicks like Tony Jaa would use, but the guy is at least twice his size wich makes it more impressive. Early in the movie the choreo. is more raw then spectacular, showing that Zarror's character has an innate ability to fight, but has yet to master it.

Mirageman has more straight hard hitting action, and contains some longer one on one fights with worthy opponents...

Here if you want to catch a glimpse:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pouc0vAqY1A

[The Running Man]

It's a bit Bruce Lee style, in the sense that opponents are easily disposed off with one move. Where it shines is that Zarror uses spin kicks like Tony Jaa would use, but the guy is at least twice his size wich makes it more impressive.

I think that's also the case for Tony Jaa, in the sense that almost all the people he fights with are mostly just cannon fodder for him. Tom Yum Goong mixed it up a bit, but it was still mostly in his favor.

I have Kiltro but didn't see it yet.

Mirageman is supposedly going to be put out in limited release in theaters here in the US soon.

[CrazyFrog]

What did you guys think of the action direction and choreography?

It was decent- the best fights are the earliest in the movie, in my opinion. DeLuca is really good with the cane/sword but if he is a kung fu expert, then they totally downplayed his skill in that arena in favor of some OTT wire-assisted takedowns.
Zaror is pretty exciting to watch but matchups aren't very long at all. The longest one is at the endfight w/ Zalba (DeLuca) but it's more of a joust/duel, with Zaror taking running kicks and DeLuca doing mostly sword fighting. I wanted to see longer matchups and more contact. But it's still pretty decent, especially for relative unknowns. Like I said, Zaror is exciting to watch. Lots of presence but not too overconfident in this movie.

I know I won't get to see Mirageman in theaters here (Fresno area)... . Just have to wait for DVD release:(

[The Amazing Psycho Per]

You think the best fights are at the beginning?

To me the best one was definately the first part of the final fight where Zarror takes down the gang of thugs... Although a bit too short, I think it is where he best showcases his skills in the movie...

By the way, Mirageman definately has more contact in the choreo. Reminded me a bit of 80's early 90's Hong Kong action. And there is a scene that looks like a Double Dragon type video game where he takes down faceless-all-look-alike thugs and has to fight some "stage bosses". Really nice stuff.:D

[CrazyFrog]

Taking down the thugs was cool but definitely OTT and the CGI blood was just irritating me. Would rather not see it at all, I guess. But I'm not a big fan of 1 vs. 100 matchups. Especially when they're such ...whats the word...pusses. It strains even the movie logic of his mystical powers; plus, I'm sure some thugs in Chile carry guns. The dojo fight w/ Zaror taking on the students was more believable to me and more interesting.