This is it!! Finally I am clearing out the cupboards and running the comps. I know a few people have been waiting on this one for a very long time. All the left over DVDs and Blu Rays from comps ran in the past or comps that got left behind due to life are finally going to hit the site so we can catch up. And what a better way to do it than by starting with Madman Entertainment.
Madman is probably my favourite distributor in Australia. Their arty nature and film choices match my preferred taste in film. Not to mention they are the distributor for all things Ghibli, probably my favourite studio on the planet.
THE PRIZE PACK:
Well this is it. You can win one of three prize packs, each prize pack containing the above movies.
Each pack consists of:
GHOST IN THE SHELL – Blu Ray
PRINCESS MONONOKE – Blu Ray
MONSTER – Blu Ray
THE SALVATION – Blu Ray
JOE – DVD
OMAR – DVD
THE SUMMIT – DVD
THE FINISHERS – DVD
As you may have gathered it will truly help if you have a Blu Ray player.
MINI REVIEWS:
This is honestly the best prize we have ever given away on Salty Popcorn. Every single movie is a 4/5 or higher on my scoring. GHOST IN THE SHELL is one of the greatest anime ever made and PRINCESS MONONOKE is arguably Miyazaki’s greatest work.
MONSTER is the film that won Charlize Theron an Oscar, THE SALVATION is the violent and visual Mads Mikkelsen Western and no word of a lie, JOE is a 5/5 film that stars Nicholas Cage. Haha yep, he has made some great movies.
OMAR won the Best Foreign film Oscar for this Palestinian thriller/ drama and THE SUMMIT is a brilliantly made 2012 documentary about the 2008 K2 disaster that saw eleven people killed.
And finally, THE FINISHERS is the amazing heart warming journey of father and (wheelchair bound) son teaming up to enter an Iron Man triathlon, needs tissues, too much joy!
IN CONCLUSION:
It doesn’t get much better than this for a Salty Popcorn Prize Pack. I cannot thank Madman Entertainment enough for all the goodies and can only apologise for a lot of them not being posted at the time of their release. There is not a dud in this bunch and there are hours and hours of entertainment bliss to be won. I may or may not have some smaller runner up prizes if you do not win one of the three major prizes.
HOW TO WIN THE MAD MADMAN MEGA PRIZE PACK:
With special thanks to Madman Entertainment to win one of the three prize packs listed above you need to either like and share/ retweet this post on Facebook/Twitter/ Google+/ Pinterest/ LinkedIn/ Flipboard or Instagram (all the links to follow us are on the top right of homepage). Further to this you then need to leave a comment below stating the answer/s to the following questions:
This is a grand prize so you have to answer three questions oooooooooo :).
- What is the greatest anime movie of all time and why? I am stuck on three I cannot decide on – AKIRA, CASTLE IN THE SKY and GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES.
- What is Nicholas Cage’s greatest performance and why? This will never change for me – BRINGING OUT THE DEAD – one of the most underrated movies ever made.
- Where did Nicholas Cage go wrong in life? I am going with partying, gambling and a complete inability to pick decent scripts – he just seems to make anything these days – the sad part is I really like him.
I MUST STRESS ORIGINALITY WILL WIN THE PRIZES – YOU NEED TO STAND OUT – IMPRESS THE JUDGES.
If you do not have social media then you can still enter, leave your entry below in the comments and then email me at jking@saltypopcorn.com.au telling me you don’t have social media (you still need to enter on the website).
This is a game of skill and selected purely on the thoughts of the judges.
The prizes will be drawn on or before October 15th. Good luck! Oh, and minor housekeeping – huge apologies for overseas readers, this competition is only available to Australian residents.
BRINGING OUT THE DEAD – I must look that one up, Salty Popcorn! Entered on Facebook. You rock, by the way. Cheers!
Spirited Away was amazing in its originality, beauty and incredible characters
Bad Lieutenant: Port Of Call—New Orleans was brilliant. Cage’s drug induced rages and paranoia was so over the top it was truly frightening
Owing the taxman a ridiculous amount of money and going broke which forced him to undertake a plethora of really bad films truly put a huge stain on his “wantability” but like the Phoenix Nic will rise again
My favourite anime movie of all time is Arrietty as its magical between two worlds learning things together. My favourite Nicholas Cage movie is Face/off as he was disturbing as Castor Troy as well as creative as Sean Archer, such a intriguing movie to watch. I think Nicholas Cage in life has got Hollywood to his head at times and doesn’t know that its the simple things that matter!!
1. Spirited Away. One of the greatest Studio Ghibli film made. Although every time I watch the scene with the food I start to get the munchies. NO DRUGS NEEDED!
2. Face/Off is one of my guilty pleasure films. Put it on and escape to some mindless hardcore action. Watching Cage and Travolta go head to head is one of cinemas greatest parings. I still remember watching this on VHS with dad and thing WOW. Seeing Cage go from being the scary and perverted psycho to a helpless and struggling man trapped in this killer’s body is acting at its finest.
3. Where did it go wrong? He should have starred in Superman Lives (not the other horrible Marvel film Ghost Rider and its abysmal sequel) I recently watched the documentary on Superman Lives and still believe it would have been one of the greatest Burton films ever. I want to see that neon suit on the big screen. The Wicker Man remake was also a REALLY poor choice. It’s one film that didn’t need to be remade (and this was before remakes became the new Hollywood commodity)
1.grave of the fireflies is an eye opening adventure, its so sad but heartbreakingly real , the bond , love and the will to live these kids have made me realize I should stop whinging about shit and toughen the hell up, life isnt easy
2.wickerman he died , enough said
3.im thinking when he made ghost rider that just really sucked and I felt embarressed I even liked the dude, you gotta have some morals ,seriously hes a movie whore and a cheap do anything one at that
1. The Place Promised in Our Early Days (2004), Makoto Shinkai did a beautiful job with this film considering it was his directional debut for a full length feature. The drama surrounding the tower, the sci-fi/fantasy theme all blended in perfectly. My favourite and best anime movie EVER!!!
2. Con-Air (1997), I watch this a few times a year and never tire of it. I love Nicholas as Cameron Poe and his attitude to Cyrus was just sublime. He owned that role. “He’s got the whole world, in his hands…”
3. Nicholas, Nicholas, Nicholas, where do I start. Okay, first off, I think he is a wonderful actor and gifted at catching diapers (think Raising Arizona). Having an uncle like Francis Ford Coppola has placed a heavy burden on Nicholas’ shoulders and I feel like he is always trying to prove himself to everyone. He needs to relax more and be happy with his own role choices and maybe have a break from marriage (separated again!). Either way, I love him!!!! 🙂
I shared this on Facebook, is that how I enter? I’m not too sure. Anyways;
1. I’m going to say My Neighbour Totoro because I cannot answer with any other film. The only anime film I’ve seen is Totoro. But I did love it for it’s maturity and steady pace along with the creativity of a bus with eyes.
2. If by greatest you mean most enjoyable, then it’s easily Vampire’s Kiss for the over-abundance of over-acting. But if you mean greatest as in best-performed, Adaptation because I actively believed he was himself and his twin.
3. He went wrong when he went though to himself “My fans must love it when I’m acting seriously in action”. If he kept up with the insane Cage performances he’s now bagged on for, I’d consider him a favourite.
Find the time Tim and watch every Miyazaki movie ever made. If u win start with Princess Mononoke :).
Q1. My autistic son is Anime mad – we bond over Hayao Miyazaki movies. Our favourite is ‘Laputa: Castle in the Sky’. The storyline and graphics are incredible, but the clincher for me (and Nick) is the fantasy of a floating castle existing inside a hurricane (another autism box ticked, weather is a big interest for most)… and the possibility that our world is not just on one realm.
Q2. I’ve watched it a gazillion times, ‘Guarding Tess’ is my go to feel good movie. Nic and Shirley are at their best in this flick. Their repartee is funny, their antagonism towards each other brilliant, their relationship long suffering, and it makes me laugh from my belly, and sook a little at the end!
Q3. Nic Cage didn’t age well. The hair plugs, the dollars over decent in choosing scripts, and his string of younger gals made him a parody of himself. I’m with you, I watch everything that he is in, knowing it is going to be mediocre, but I really like him too!
1. What is the greatest anime movie of all time and why?
My Neighbor Totoro – that’s T O T O R O !!!!!!!!! A bundle of anime cuteness from start to finish. Who doesn’t want to cuddle in to Totoro?
2. What is Nicholas Cage’s greatest performance and why?
Face/Off, without a doubt. John Travolta was off his face during the movie! No, hang on. That was Cage. I’m confused! Lol.
3Where did Nicholas Cage go wrong in life?
His obsession with Elvis Presley, even marrying into the dynasty, was not his best performance. It was all downhill from there. ‘Thank you. Thank you very much!’
1…My Nieghbor Totoro, it was the first anime film I ever saw and still is the best.
2…Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, loved watching this film, it had a good story line, not the usually Nicholas Cage ‘blow everything up’ type film.
3… He made too many ‘Hollywood, blow everything up’ type movies, he should of stuck to mandolin playing.
Grave of the Fireflies gets my vote, not a film one could enjoy as such but it is a thinking film and truly shows the futility and absolute senselessness of war. I defy anyone to watch this without a tissue in hand when a happy Seita and Setsuko are surrounded by fireflies at the end.
The Rock! Nicolas was great in this and even with such amazing co-performers he shone very brightly and made the film his own.
I don’t think Nicolas Cage did go wrong, he has always had individualistic tendencies and was out to prove himself on his own merits, hence the name change from Coppola. Perhaps his marriage to Lisa Marie was a bit dodgy but I think he has stepped on and upwards from his Elvis fixation and his path nowadays, although a bit curvy in spots, is interesting!
1. Sailor Moon my sisters and I used to sit and watch this all the time over 20 years ago. I loved their facial expressions, but also because it was a girl show to watch I looked up to them. ThIs was the first ever Japanese anime I watched and I loved it so much!
2. City of Angels, when I see an angel I see one in Nicolas Cage, he’s mysterious, sensitive, fly between the scenes, brings tears to my eyes and just makes this film stand out him and Meg Ryan blow us to heaven with love.
3. The bigger name he became the more ego grew ‘ I love him as an actor’ but he’s personal life he must have thought he had great Powers -first he wanted to become The King – Marrying Lisa Marie and secondly he seriously wants to be the hero all the time. I wonder if ever he will wear a cape ?
1) Personally there’s no such thing as great, let alone greatest anime film of all time. But for some reason, that hubby lacks the ability to put into words, he loves anime & I love that anime gives him so much pleasure, gluing his backside to the couch rather than being out and about with the boys. He says that ‘Ninja Scroll’ is right up there in his top ten.
2) Face Off, great story and for me brilliant pairing with Travolta, but The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is also an awesome performance by Nicholas, I think a Disney fantasy suited him well………..as did the long locks, totally sexy if you ask me. So for me he has two best performances, I can’t choose one over the other.
3) I think he went wrong in life taking the ‘Coppola’ fame as a given, expecting great roles to fall in his lap and the name to bring him great success, rather than his acting ability. Yes not generally known by the general public, his viewing audience, but in tinsel town you’d have thought it would have gotten him further, like Drew Barrymore and the Barrymore clan fame (but yes, she has more talent). Shame, because I really find Nicolas great on the eye, he has movie star good looks, clearly an inability to choose great scripts put to him in the ‘C’ grade film basket. Shame, damn shame. This is a point I ponder often, fancying him as I do 😉
1. I only recently watched Only Yesterday and it is my favourite for the week, it changes pretty often cause Anime is Sweeeeeet. The final scene in Only Yesterday with the children from her memories encouraging her was amazing and gave me goosebumps.
2. City of Angels cause he acted the shit out of a brooding, love struck, torn Angel and devastated me with his passion and loss. Then the beach scene, Nicolas Cage’s bare butt in the ocean. 🙂
3. Hair plugs – go bald or go home.
Spirited Away is awesome and I love the characters.
Gone in 60 Seconds – oh yeah! He was so cool in that movie.
He still is cool!
I have to go with Spirited Away also it truly was amazing, Nicholas Cage best movie for me was Leaving Las Vegas a brilliant 1996 drama that kept me so focus on the screen the whole movie.
I would say Nicholas Cage’s biggest down fall would be he’s gambling because that can create such a viscous spiral of events.
What is the greatest anime movie of all time and why? I am stuck on three I cannot decide on – AKIRA, CASTLE IN THE SKY and GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES.
What is Nicholas Cage’s greatest performance and why? This will never change for me – BRINGING OUT THE DEAD – one of the most underrated movies ever made.
Where did Nicholas Cage go wrong in life? I am going with partying, gambling and a complete inability to pick decent scripts – he just seems to make anything these days – the sad part is I really like him.
1. Akira is the greatest anime of all time in my humble opinion. In 1988 the world blew up over the craze of anime in a huge way thanks to this film. It was a huge hit that sadly only got a limited release in western cinemas years later. It’s stunning beautiful and a cult classic. They turned a classic manga into the greatest anime of all time. Just writing this makes me want to watch it over and over!
2. I think his greatest performance is one that I am surprised has not come up yet, Adaptation. Adaptation has a great performance by Cage where he is shown to be a vulnerable screenwriter who has insecurities in his life and his work. He even plays his twin brother Donald! Criminally underrated performance and movie. The least crazy Nicolas Cage acts, the more interesting he is in a captivating unique performance.
3. I think Nicholas Cage went wrong in a lot of ways. I can only imagine he felt immense pressure from being in a showbiz family. He is the nephew of Francis Ford Coppola and cousin of Sophia Coppola. He even changed his name to Nicholas Cage to fit one of favourite comic book characters ‘Luke Cage’ so he could drop the family name. I think striving to be set apart from his family was the start of his road to ruin. I think he made a lot of poor choices in his films, this could be related to his money troubles related to extravagant spending or just simply the wrong choice in his roles. I suspect he does have problems with substance abuse that plague him and maybe hinder his performances. Sadly I get the idea that studios do not bank on him for good projects anymore. I hope he can be cast in the right role soon. At the time, he is sadly viewed as a meme and a joke when he deserves better.
1) Spirited Away is simply an amazing film and by far my favourite anime. It is a film filled with heart and emotion and just breathtaking visuals. I have probably watched this more than twenty times and my kids love it too.
2) My favourite Nicolas Cage performance is actually two performances as he plays Charlie and Donald Kaufman in Adaptation. He is brilliant in his duel role in what is a superb movie.
3) Cage has gone wrong in life by choosing certain roles by how he will look in the end product. For example Season of the Witch he did simply because he wanted to have cool hair! I am sure living the party life has had some influence on these decisions, but hey, when you have earned as much as he has from his roles then why not go off the rails a little bit!
1 ponyo is my favourite love the story and the actors who voiced them 2 nicholas cage best movie is drive angry good pace good story line 3 is still very good actor
Spirited Away- Great storyline about the spirit world.
The family man- A softer side to his acting profile.
He just didn’t listen to the right people.
so many Japanese ones you can reel off I use to sneak to a mates house an watch them during lunch time at school I learnt a lot that year not at school but just how good other countrys stuff is given time
1. Arrietty, a sweet yet strong character and loved watching the special friendship develop between her and Shawn.
2. Face Off. I had a love hate relationship with him in this for obvious reasons but his performance was stellar!
3. I feel like he panicked and got desperate taking roles that should never made a tv screen let alone a cinema screen
Sailor moon promise of the rose who doesn’t love sailor moon I had the hots for tuxedo mask as a child. Con Air was Nicholas cages best performance my options in the only one that matters. His downfall was probably anger issues drugs and whatever else he’s into
1. Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem, aka the Daft Punk musical anime- the best use of house music in film. Creates a masterful musical that is out of this world.
2. There are so many fantastic films that the Cage has been in- but his best performance is probably Con Air or the Rock.
3. His career went downhill after doing too many straight to television films.
Cowboy Bebop certainly rates.
Honeymoon in Vegas was just great.
Cage as Elvis, should have gained weight.
Whole lot of nutcase, served on your plate.
Greatest Anime Movie – Howl’s Moving Castle – it’s Magic all the way
Nic Cage’s greatest role/movie – Birdy – at a time of a glut of Vietnam movies, this one stood out from the pack – a classic Lest We Forget
Where he went wrong – enrolling and graduating from the Drama School of Overacting – every time you see him U know he’s acting, thinking about acting, not being natural or convincing. UNDERPLAY IT NIC!
Jaws for it’s bite and the fear it gave me as a kid at night,
Goodspeed!! is that The Rock?? partnering Sean had to be a winner of a move,
TOTAL downfall??? well tax evasion and accepting every script will bring on a hole lot of crap times.
1/ What is the greatest anime movie of all time and why? A: Howl’s Moving Castle — that movie is magical and the storyline is magnificent.
2/ What is Nicholas Cage’s greatest performance and why? A: Con Air was his best performance, he really brought that character to life.
3/ Where did Nicholas Cage go wrong in life? A: Oh gosh, where didn’t he go wrong? From the drugs, partying, to the financial downfall. Maybe he is trying to drown his sorrows for picking shit roles in crappy movies. Oh cage, you had your time and now he’s become un-caged!
‘Howl’s Moving Castle’ is my fave anime. ‘Wild at Heart’ is my fave Cage movie – David Lynch beautifully tapped into his weirdness that lurks beneath. Where did it go wrong for Cage? Choosing bloated budget films like Face/Off rather than off beat character films.
Spirited Away: a ‘Spook’tacular movie which certainly Raised my Spirits – a ‘Spirited Sequel’ in the offing?
Vampire’s Kiss: if only for the fact we get the real ‘Loew’ down on Nic’s weirdness when we see him eating a live cockroach on screen. Dedication to his art or just plain hungry… you decide!
Where Nicolas Cage went wrong – he obviously has a controlling interest in Blockbuster and VideoEzy as all his movies for the last 20 years have been straight to DVD Atrocities…. Bankrupt from a film-making and acting perspective, but rolling in Moolah thanks to dvd rentals!
on twitter @jnw62
**Grave of the Fireflies made me cry so beautiful so sad.
**Nicholas Cage was fab in Driving Miss Daisy where he actually showed some emotion.
**His worse mistake was marrying his idols’ daughter Lisa Marie Presley, instead of loving her, he loved Elvis Presley Instead.
1) Ponyo! I never thought a cartoon would make a grown man cry!
2) Nicholas Cage in a Con Air blew me away! A truly explosive film!
3) Nicholas Cage went wrong celebrating birthdays……….he simply let age get away!
What is the greatest anime movie of all time and why? I have to say Akira. It was the first anime I saw. It was so unlike anything I’d seen before, it just blew me away.
What is Nicholas Cage’s greatest performance and why? Face/Off. Many people say that Nicolas Cage always plays Nicolas Cage. In this movie he proved them wrong, by also playing John Travolta.
Where did Nicholas Cage go wrong in life? Not having a “H” in his name. Seriously dude, EVERYONE spells your name wrong!
1 Spirited Away – A stirring and memorable adventure of poetry, color, tones and narrative all in the vividness of animation.
2 Bringing Out the Dead – not sure whether this is scorsese genius or cage’s great acting but great performance
3 Trespass – the acting makes me want to throw up in my stomach
-Howl’s Moving Castle
-Kick Ass, not his usual role which was refreshing, Cage out of the box!
-Filming “Season of the Witch” bad bad movie as I struggles to stay awake, nor be frightened in a witch movie.
Aah, three choices, when there are so many!
1. Akira, Castle in the Sky was my first, my intro to anime and like other firsts it is still my favourite anime, beats the others hands down high in the sky (yep it doesn’t make sense, but neither does a castle in the sky (chuckle)
2. Not fashionable to, but I think Nicholas Cage can provide great performances, like Bringing Out the Dead of his films I think he showed how good he can be at creating suspense and delivering a great performance
3. Have to agree career-wise on this one, he hasn’t had the best choices for advancing his career and showing the world how great an actor he can be! Maybe if he’d been more secure he would have had a solid foundation to make better or more informed choices from rather than drinking and partying and getting in over his head tax wise. No judgements here, but wish he could make a great comeback like Travolta did! Wouldn’t he be great in a new suspense/thriller franchise, bring on a good franchise to bring in box office returns and give him the muscle to pick great avant garde acting choices!
Where did Nicholas Cage go wrong in life? I am going with partying, gambling and a complete inability to pick decent scripts – he just seems to make anything these days – the sad part is I really like him.
1. Princess Mononoke- true story… First Ghibli movie I ever watched, bought the special collectors edition VHS the day it was released in Japan. I still love the strong female lead, the ageless themes and the Miyazaki touch of whimsy… Perfect!
2. Leaving Las Vegas. A truly stellar performance in a movie that still makes me cry.
3. Life imitating art? Did he try to become a hopeless alcoholic? Actually I think he just started phoning it in- when the job becomes about the payday rather than the passion, it’s time to start chasing a new career- even superstars are not immune from the workplace doldrums perhaps…
1) Wolf Children – I absolutely LOVE Ghibli and it was so tough going against those amazing movies, but this is one of the most under appreciated and amazing movies I’ve ever seen. The art is beautiful. Tokyo feels so warm and homely, the countryside is bright and peaceful, and it feels like so many shots could be their own painting.
The story is incredibly touching and heart-warming, and covers so many relatable moments in life in a brilliant way. There is one of the most poetic and sweet depictions of love in any movie, the family moments feel far too real and there is also a fair share of tragedy, causing such a great emotional response in the viewer. Emotionally, I can occasionally be like a stone wall during movies, but this movie just hit the right spots and connected with me in a way few others can. The ending also had me thinking for weeks after watching the movie, which is quite a rare accomplishment. The soundtrack is also one you will be listening to long after the movie has finished, and the use of silence in this movie is so effective. Definitely my favourite anime movie and could not recommend it more to movie lovers.
2) Kick-Ass – Takes what should be a supporting role, and absolutely blows it out of the park, becoming the most intriguing and watchable character. Gives the perfect amount of over the top and campiness to an odd role (father to a younger vigilante daughter who murders people), and is so ridiculously entertaining but endearing at the same time. Without spoiling anything, the scene with the lighter is my personal highlight of the film, and his ability to act so well under the circumstances, and behind his mask, is an absolute credit to his talents.
3) I love Nicolas Cage, but definitely the wasteful spending (Dinosaur skulls?? why??) put him on a path which would greatly hurt his career. To pay off his debt he had to take roles in movies which wouldn’t fully show his talent, and earned him a reputation of being a goofy b-movie actor. Studios would then avoid casting him in major roles due to the fear that he would not attract a large audience, despite his talents at playing eccentric characters. Maybe turning down Aragorn and Neo wasn’t the best idea for him career wise either.
PS I watched From up on Poppy Hill this week. Aside from the Bold and the Beautiful style plot twist I really liked it. It makes then top ten.
*the*
Winner winner chicken dinner!!!
Gratz to…………………
Jade O’Shea
Matthew Woods – need your email address please – have emailed you to request also
John Burgundy
Great answers from all – thanks for entering everyone – another competition just launched today and a bunch more coming.
All the best
JK