Category Archives: Reviews

Stray Dog (1949) Review

Director: Akira Kurosawa Writer: Akira Kurosawa, Ryuzo Kikushima Producer: Sojiro Motoki Cast: Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Awaji, Eiko Miyoshi, Noriko Honma, Isao Kimura, Minoru Chiaki, Ichiro Sugai, Gen Shimizu, Noriko Sengoku Running Time: 122 min. By Matthew Le-feuvre At a time when social or political ambivalence wasn’t an option to explore or express through art – or by any other visual medium – acclaimed Japanese filmmaker, Akira Kurosawa, then … Continue reading

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Master Killers | aka The Master Avenger (1980) Review

"Master Killers" Theatrical Poster

AKA: The Master Avenger Director: Wong Hung Cheung Cast: Casanova Wong, Blacky Ko, Philip Ko Fei, Bolo Yeung, Chiang Kam, Suen Kwok Ming Running Time: 92 min. By Paul Bramhall There’s an old romantic cliché that goes something along the lines of everyone has that someone out there who’s ‘the one’, and what a tragedy it would be if they never realize it. Comparatively, for a kung fu fan like myself, … Continue reading

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Happiness of the Katakuris, The (2001) Review

The Happiness of the Katakuris | Blu-ray & DVD (Arrow Video)

Director: Takashi Miike Cast: Kenji Sawada, Keiko Matsuzaka, Shinji Takeda, Naomi Nishida, Kiyoshiro Imawano, Tetsuro Tamba, Naoto Takenaka, Tamaki Miyazaki, Takashi Matsuzaki Running Time: 113 min. By Kelly Warner When Takashi Miike agreed to do a remake of Kim Jee-woon’s directorial debut The Quiet Family, he wanted to give the story his own “personal stamp” to make his version worthwhile. And Miike did exactly that, turning the dark comedy into … Continue reading

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Daisy (2006) Review

"Daisy" Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Andrew Lau Writer: Felix Chong Producer: Hoon-tak Jung Cast: Jeong Woo-Sung, Jun Ji-Hyun (Gianna Jun), Lee Sung-jae, Cheon Ho-Jin, Simon Yam Tat Wah, David Chiang Da Wei, Yu Sun-Cheol, Dion Lam Running Time: 110 min. By Paul Bramhall On paper Daisy reads like an Asian action thriller fan’s dream. A Korea and Hong Kong co-production (which translates to Korea being in-front of the camera and Hong Kong being behind … Continue reading

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Outcast (2014) Review

Director: Nick Powell Writer: James Dormer Cast: Hayden Christensen, Nicolas Cage, Liu Yifei, Ji Ke Jun Yi, Andy On, Wang Bozhao, Fernando Chien Running Time: 99 min. By Kyle Warner When a successful Hollywood star decides to star in a Chinese production, I see it as an interesting career choice. Maybe the script drew them in, maybe it was the chance to work on a new sort of film set, … Continue reading

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Shadowless Sword (2005) Review

"Shadowless Sword" Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Kim Young-Jun Cast: Yun So-Yi, Lee Seo-Jin, Shin Hyun-Joon, Lee Gi-Yong, Jeong Ho-Bin, Park Seong-Woong Running Time: 98 min. By Paul Bramhall The words ‘Korean’ and ‘wuxia’ are not really two which you’d immediately think of putting together. The Korean film industry has gained a reputation for producing high quality entries in the likes of the gangster, revenge thriller, and melodrama genres. On the other hand, the wuxia genre … Continue reading

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Crank 2: High Voltage (2009) Review

"Crank: High Voltage" Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: Mark Neveldine Co-director: Brian Taylor Cast: Jason Statham, Amy Smart, Clifton Collins, Jr., Efren Ramirez, Bai Ling, David Carradine, Dwight Yoakam, Corey Haim, Keone Young, Art Hsu Running Time: 95 min. By HKFanatic I used to wonder what a film directed by video game auteur Suda51 (No More Heroes) would look like. Then I saw Crank 2: High Voltage and wondered no more. With High Voltage, writer/director team Mark … Continue reading

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Eight Escorts, The (1980) Review

AKA: Eight Peerless Treasures Director: Pao Hsueh Lieh Writer: Katy Chin, Ni Kuang Cast: Hsu Feng, Au Lap Bo, Michael Chan Wai Man, Choi Wang, Fang Mien, Goo Chang, Ko Keung, Danny Lee Sau Yin, Lily Li Li Li, Ling Yun, Mau Ging Shun, Stewart Tam Tin, Dorian Tan Tao Liang, Wong Ching, Wang Chung, Wu Ma Running Time: 90 min. By Martin Sandison In 1972 director Pao Hsieh Li and … Continue reading

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Rage | aka Tokarev (2014) Review

Director: Paco Cabezas Cast: Nicolas Cage, Rachel Nichols, Peter Stormare, Danny Glover, Max Ryan, Michael McGrady, Judd Lormand, Max Fowler, Pasha D. Lychnikoff Running Time: 92 min. By Paul Bramhall For several years now Nicolas Cage seems to have had a ‘say yes to everything’ policy in place when it comes to accepting movie roles. It’s a policy which has taken him to some odd places – in 2014 alone … Continue reading

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Zebraman (2004) Review

Director: Takashi Miike Writer: Kankuro Kudo Cast: Sho Aikawa, Kyoka Suzuki, Teruyoshi Uchimura, Yui Ichikawa, Koen Kondo, Naoki Yasukochi, Makiko Watanabe, Keisuke Mishima, Yu Tokui, Yoji Tanaka Running Time: 115 min. By HKFanatic With the massive success of 2010’s 13 Assassins it’s easy to forget that, oh, just a year ago director Takashi Miike was more well known for his typically surreal cinema efforts, which have included such feats as … Continue reading

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20th Century Boys: Chapter 1: The Beginning of the End (2008) Review

Director: Yukihiko Tsutsumi Producer: Nobuyuki Iinuma Cast: Toshiaki Karasawa, Etsushi Toyokawa, Takako Tokiwa, Teruyuki Kagawa, Takashi Ukaji, Kuranosuke Sasaki Running Time: 142 min. By HKFanatic 20th Century Boys is a live-action film based off the immensely popular and award-winning manga by Naoki Urasawa, who also created Monster. I’m not familiar with the source material but it must be pretty damn epic – it’s taken three movies, each over 2 hours … Continue reading

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Master Strikes, The (1980) Review

Director: Kao Pao Shu Writer: Kao Pao Shu Cast: Meng Yuen Man, Tony Ching Siu Tung, Casanova Wong, Yen Shi Kwan, Eddie Ko Hung, Wong Mei Mei, Max Lee Chiu Jun, Meg Lam Kin Ming, Sham Chin Bo Running Time: 85/91 min. By Paul Bramhall The Master Strikes is one of those movies that seems to split audiences down the middle. Some fans praise it as being the movie in … Continue reading

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Colombiana (2011) Review

Director: Olivier Megaton Cast: Zoe Saldana, Michael Vartan, Cliff Curtis, Lennie James, Callum Blue, Graham McTavish Running Time: 108 min. By HKFanatic During the past few years, Luc Besson has made the transition from writer/director to writer/producer, creating a stable of Eurotrash action flicks with a rotating set of directors. He’s helped launch the careers of guys like Louis Letterier, who made the transition from The Transporter to big time … Continue reading

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Taking of Tiger Mountain, The (2014) Review

"The Taking of Tiger Mountain" Chinese Theatrical Poster

Director: Tsui Hark Cast: Zhang Hanyu, Tony Leung Ka-fai, Lin Gengxin, Yu Nan, Tong Liya, Kenny Lin, Gao Hu, Zhou Dong Yu, Han Geng, Chen Xiao, Mo Tse, Zha Ka, Li Bing-Yuan Running Time: 141 min. By Kelly Warner Adapted from Qu Bo’s 1957 novel Tracks in the Snowy Forest, which is itself based on a true story, Tsui Hark’s The Taking of Tiger Mountain takes what sounds like another drama … Continue reading

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Chocolate | aka Fury (2008) Review

"Chocolate" Japanese DVD Cover

Director: Prachya Pinkaew Cast: Yanin Vismitananda, Hiroshi Abe, Pongpat Wachirabunjong, Taphon Phopwandee, Ammara Siripong, Dechawut Chuntakaro, Hirokazu “Hero” Sano, Sirimongkol Singwangcha, Su Jeong Lim Running Time: 92/100 min. By HKFanatic I thoroughly enjoyed the Thai action movie Chocolate when it first came out in 2008, but revisiting it a few weeks ago on blu-ray – with the sound cranked – I think I loved it even more. This is a … Continue reading

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