Author Archives: JJ Bona

Deng Chao and Wu Jing to face off in ‘Ping-pong of China’?

"Ping-pong of China" Teaser Poster

Actor/filmmaker Deng Chao – who is perhaps best known for his roles in Shadow, The Mermaid and Assembly – will direct and star in Ping-Pong of China, an upcoming sports drama that will also star Wu Jing (Wolf Warrior 2, SPL II: A Time for Consequences). According to AFS, the movie will center on the Chinese national ping-pong team’s victory in 1995. Here’s hoping Ping-Pong of China will be as fun … Continue reading

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Versus + Ultimate Versus: 2-Disc Special Edition | Blu-ray (Arrow Video)

RELEASE DATE: December 8, 2020 On December 8, 2020, Arrow Video is releasing a 2-Disc Special Edition Blu-ray for Ryuhei Kitamura’s Versus, which will include the original 2000 and expanded 2004 Ultimate Versus iterations, in a brand new, director-approved restoration. Read the official details below: A relentless one-of-a-kind sensory assault chock full of hyper-kinetic fight scenes, gangster shootouts, sword-slashing violence and gory zombie horror, Versus was a key title amongst the … Continue reading

Posted in Asian Titles, DVD/Blu-ray New Releases, Martial Arts Titles, News |

Netflix to release Takeshi Kitano biopic ‘Asakusa Kid’ in 2021

Director/actor/comedian Gekidan Hitori (A Bolt from the Blue) is set to direct and write Asakusa Kid, an upcoming biopic that follows the early years of the legendary, multi-talented Japanese celebrity Takeshi Kitano (Outrage Coda, Battle Royale, Hana-Bi). Asakusa Kid will star Yagira Yuya (Gintama) as Kitano. Also starring is Oizumi Yo (I Am a Hero), who will play Fukami Senzaburo, a comedian who is also known as Kitano’s mentor. The film will … Continue reading

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Max Cloud | Blu-ray & DVD (Well Go USA)

RELEASE DATE: January 19, 2021 Martial arts star Scott Adkins (Ip Man 4, Seized, The Debt Collector, Incoming) is taking a second trip to space in Well Go USA’s Max Cloud (aka The Intergalactic Adventures of Max Cloud) a sci-fi actioner that hits VOD on December 18, 2020, then arrives on Blu-ray and DVD on January 19, 2021. Directed by Martin Owens (Let’s Be Evil) and written by Sally Collet (Twist), Max Cloud centers on Sarah, … Continue reading

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Wu Jing may yet again go balls deep into sci-fi territory with ‘Ball Lightning’ from ‘The Wandering Earth’ author

"The Wandering Earth" Teaser Poster

Another live-action adaptation of Liu Cixin’s (writer of The Wandering Earth) sci-fi novel, titled Ball Lightning, is currently in-the-works from actor/writer/director Chen Sicheng, who is perhaps best known for the Detective Chinatown franchise. The novel follows the experiences of a first-person protagonist, Chen, whose family was killed by a ball lightning while he was in high school. Both traumatized and inspired by that experience, he makes the investigation of ball lightning his … Continue reading

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The ‘Storm’ stops for director David Lam with ‘The Tipping Point’

"The Tipping Point" Teaser Poster

Veteran Hong Kong filmmaker David Lam (Street Angels) is finally putting a cork on his ever-growing crime franchise (2014’s Z-Storm, 2016’s S-Storm, 2018’s L-Storm, 2019’s P-Storm and this year’s G-Storm – all of which were produced consecutively) with The Tipping Point. As you probably would have guessed, its plot bracket is within the crime/thriller territory. The upcoming film will star Qin Hailu (Tale of Three Cities), Julian Cheung (Extreme Crisis), Eric Tsang (Golden Job), Ray … Continue reading

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The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone | Blu-ray (Paramount)

RELEASE DATE: December 8, 2020 On December 8, 2020, Paramount Home Media will release the Blu-ray for Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone. The film is described as a re-working of The Godfather III, that has been re-edited with new scenes and re-arranged music cues. Read the official details below: Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone is an acknowledgement of Mario’s and my … Continue reading

Posted in DVD/Blu-ray New Releases, News, Other Notable Titles |

Tony Leung Chiu-wai and former James Bond girl Olga Kurylenko go on a ‘Fox Hunt’ in this New Trailer

Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai (Bullet in the Head, Europe Raiders) and French actress/model Olga Kurylenko (former Bond girl from Quantum of Solace) are teaming up for Fox Hunt (aka The Hunting), an upcoming spy-thriller from director Leo Zhang, who is perhaps best-known for helming the 2017 Jackie Chan flick, Bleeding Steel. Fox Hunt takes place in Paris and follows a pair of cops going up against an international money trafficking … Continue reading

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Can this be South Korea’s answer to Tak Sakaguchi’s Re:Born? Watch the Trailer for ‘Special Agent’ and find out…

"Special Agent" Theatrical Poster

Stuntman-turned-director Shin Jae-myung (who worked on the action for Gangnam 1970) is getting ready to unleash his first film, Special Agent. The trailer for this upcoming actioner has just been released and begs the question: Has South Korea found its take on Tak Sakaguchi’s Re:Born? Special Agent tells the story of Won-cheol (Lee Jae-yoon), an agent of the National Intelligence Service of the Republic of Korea, who is in charge of removing VIPs who … Continue reading

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Chris Pratt and Wu Jing team up for ‘Saigon Bodyguards’ remake

An English-language remake of Ken Ochiai’s Vietnamese-made, 2016 action-comedy film, Saigon Bodyguards, is brewing at Universal Pictures with Hollywood A-lister Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy, Jurassic World) and martial arts star Wu Jing (Wolf Warrior 2, SPL II: A Time for Consequences) leading the cast. Saigon Bodyguards focuses on two pals, one a straight arrow and the other a doof, who try to find a corporate heir who got kidnapped right … Continue reading

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There’s some infernal affairs-type action going on in the Trailer for ‘The Infernal Walker’ starring Michael Tse and Ray Lui

"The Infernal Walker" Theatrical Poster

If you’re into crime films like Infernal Affairs and The Line Walker, then chances are, you’ll want to check out The Infernal Walker (sorry, we couldn’t resist!), an upcoming crime-thriller directed by Wong Ka Fai (The Redeemers) and produced by Billy Chung (From Vegas to Macau). It’s a story of triad vs. anti-triad where real identities are not what they seem – and – undercover agents are not as “good” as … Continue reading

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Zoom Up: Murder Site | Blu-ray & DVD (Impulse)

Zoom Up: Murder Site | Blu-ray & DVD (Impulse)

RELEASE DATE: February 9, 2021 On February 9, 2021, Impulse Pictures is releasing the Blu-ray & DVD for 1979’s Zoom Up: Murder Site. The film is the first entry in Nikkatsu’s famous Zoom Up adult series, Zoom Up: Murder Site is a dark, violent film that’s described as …a collection of staggeringly repulsive murders, perhaps the most sadistic ever generated on film…The words misogynist and mean-spirited can barely describe the atrocities on … Continue reading

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Milla Jovovich and Tony Jaa take center in the New Japanese Poster for Paul W.S. Anderson’s ‘Monster Hunter’

"Monster Hunter" Tony Jaa Poster

Director Paul W.S. Anderson (Mortal Kombat) is back with Monster Hunter, a film adaptation of the popular Capcom video game of the same name. Milla Jovovich (Resident Evil) stars alongside martial arts star Tony Jaa (Paradox, xXx: The Return of Xander Cage), Ron Perlman (Hellboy), Diego Boneta (Rock of Ages) and recording artist, T.I. Harris (aka T.I.). When an unexpected sandstorm transports Lt. Artemis (Jovovich) and her unit to a new world, the … Continue reading

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Flower and Snake | Blu-ray (Impulse)

Flower and Snake | Blu-ray (Impulse)

RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021 On March 16, 2021, Impulse Pictures is releasing the Blu-ray & DVD for 1974’s Flower and Snake. Based on Oniroku Dan’s famous Japanese novel, the film is the first Nikkatsu erotic film to deal with the subject of sadomasochism (Sir Paul Bramhall recently reviewed a newer rendition of the film). Makoto (Yasuhiko Ishizu) is a sexually suppressed man living with his mother Miyo (Hiroko Fuji) who owns … Continue reading

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Cobra Kai: Seasons 1 and 2 | DVD (Sony)

Cobra Kai: Seasons 1 and 2 | DVD (Sony)

RELEASE DATE: November 24, 2020 On November 24, 2020, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is releasing Cobra Kai: Seasons 1 and 2 on DVD, which includes Seasons 1 and Season 2 of the Cobra Kai saga. Read the official press release below: In Cobra Kai, the highly-anticipated return of two iconic characters, the arch-rivals from the legendary The Karate Kid film series reunite over 30 years after the events of the 1984 … Continue reading

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