Author Archives: JJ Bona

Ninja III: The Domination (1984) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"Ninja III: The Domination" Blu-ray Cover

AKA: Ninja 3 Director: Sam Firstenberg Writer: James R. Silke Cast: Sho Kosugi, Lucinda Dickey, Jordan Bennett, David Chung, Dale Ishimoto, James Hong, Ron Foster, Bob Craig, Charly Harroway, Lem Cook Running Time: 92 min By Owlman Ninja III: The Domination was released in 1984 and directed by Sam Firstenberg (Revenge of the Ninja, American Ninja). The film stars Lucinda Dickey (Breakin’) as Christie, a telephone maintenance technician and part-time … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian Related, Ninja, Reviews | Tagged , , , |

Knock-Off (1998) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"Knock-Off" American Theatrical Poster

AKA: Knock Off Director: Tsui Hark Writer: Steven E. De Souza Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Rob Schneider, Lela Rochon, Paul Sorvino, Carman Lee Yeuk-tung, Wyman Wong, Glen Chin, Michael Wong, Moses Chan Running Time: 90 min. By Alexander Usually when I answer the phone in the other room I quickly press pause on the remote fearful I’ll miss a vital piece of dialogue or important plot twist in whatever movie … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian Related, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , |

In Hell | aka The Savage (2003) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"In Hell" Japanese DVD Cover

AKA: The Shu Director: Ringo Lam Cast: Michael Bailey Smith, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Marnie Alton, Assen Blatechki Running Time: 96 min. By Reefer Holding a copy of Ringo Lam/Jean-claude Van Damme’s straight to video In Hell in my hand at the video store, I had the same thought that most action movie fans had who wasted money, time, and brain cells on their previous collaborations. Why has Ringo Lam subjected … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Asian Related, Reviews | Tagged , |

Kids Return (1996) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona

Director: Takeshi Kitano Writer: Takeshi Kitano Producers: Masayuki Mori, Yasushi Tsuge, Takio Yoshida Cast: Masanobu Ando, Ken Kaneko, Leo Morimoto, Hatsuo Yamaya, Mitsuko Oka, Ryo Ishibashi, Susumu Terajima, Koichi Shigehisa, Michisuke Kashiwaya, Yuko Daike, Atsuki Ueda, Ren Osugi, Masami Shimojoe Running Time: 108 min. By Equinox21 Kids Return was not even close to being my favorite Takeshi Kitano movie, but it wasn’t bad in the least. It didn’t really even … Continue reading →

Posted in Japanese, Reviews | Tagged , , |

Crows Zero | aka Crows 0 (2007) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona

AKA: Crows: Episode 0 Director: Takashi Miike Producer: Mataichiro Yamamoto Cast: Shun Oguri, Kyosuke Yabe, Takayuki Yamada, Shunsuke Daito, Meisa Kuroki, Tsutomu Takahashi, Goro Kishitani Running Time: 131 min. By Ningen A new kid in town named Genji enrolls in a “bad” school where he meets a thug named Tamao who runs the place. Aspiring to head his own yanki[Japanese JD] empire, in order to impress his yakuza pop, Genji … Continue reading →

Posted in Japanese, Reviews | Tagged , |

City of Lost Souls, The | aka The Hazard City (2000) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona

AKA: The City of Strangers Director: Takashi Miike Cast: Teah, Michelle Reis, Patricia Manterola, Mitsuhiro Oikawa, Koji Kikkawa, Ren Osugi, Akaji Maro, Anatoli Krasnov, Sebastian DeVicente, Terence Yin, Atsushi Okuno, Akira Emoto, Eugene Nomura Running Time: 99 min. By Joe909 Tarantino haters take note: Asian cinema is now ripping-off your whipping boy. QT is always scorned for “lifting” scenes, images, and plots from Asian action movies; now that same scorn … Continue reading →

Posted in Japanese, Reviews | Tagged , , , |

Audition (1999) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"Audition" Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: Takashi Miike Cast: Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina, Miyuki Matsuda, Renji Ishibashi, Tetsu Sawaki, Jun Kunimura, Toshie Negishi, Ken Mitsuishi, Ren Ohsugi Running Time: 115 min. By Alexander Takashi Miike’s Audition scared the hell out of me. Even though I figured out the “twist” early in the film, and I knew exactly where the story was headed, I was still unprepared for a handful of its shocking scenes and revelations. … Continue reading →

Posted in Japanese, Reviews | Tagged , |

Brother (2000) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"Brother" International Theatrical Poster

Director: Takeshi Kitano Cast: Takeshi Kitano, Omar Epps, Kuroudo Maki, Masaya Kato, Susumu Terajima, Royale Watkins, Lombardo Boyar, Ren Osugi, Ryo Ishibashi, James Shigeta Running Time: 114 min. By Woody Ignore the critics, this is a great flick. One of Kitano’s best? That’s hard to say. Almost any film pales in comparison to classics like “Hana-bi” and “Sonatine”. Maybe it was my lowered expectations, but I really loved this one. … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian Related, Japanese, Reviews | Tagged , |

No Blood No Tears (2002) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"No Blood No Tears" Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Ryoo Seung-wan Cast: Jeon Do-Yeon, Lee Hye-Young, Jung Jae-Young, Shin Goo, Jung Doo-Hong, Kim Yeong-In, Baek Chan-Ki, Lee Yeoung-Hu, Ryoo Seung-Bum, Kim Soo-Hyun Running Time: 116 min. By Dragon Ma I managed to watch this last night and and it came as complete surprise, I’d heard good things about this film, although mostly people compared it to films like ‘Snatch’ and ‘Pulp Fiction’. The film definitely retains the same … Continue reading →

Posted in Korean, Reviews | Tagged , , , , |

Boiling Point (1990) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"Boiling Point" Spanish Theatrical Poster

Director: Takeshi Kitano Cast: Masahiko Ono, Yuriko Ishida, Takahito Iguchi, Minoru Iizuka, Makoto Ashikawa, Hisashi Igawa, Bengal, Johnny Ohkura, Katsuo Tokashiki, Takeshi Kitano Running Time: 98 min. By The Reviewer With No Name Boiling Point seems to be one of the lesser liked/known of films in Kitano’s filmography (It’s actually the last Kitano film I’ve seen so far besides Dolls and Zatoichi), that I can’t really understand. Most people just … Continue reading →

Posted in Japanese, Reviews | Tagged |

Brotherhood of the Wolf (2001) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona

AKA: Le Pacte des Loups Director: Christophe Gans Cast: Samuel Le Bihan, Vincent Cassel, Emilie Dequenne, Monica Bellucci, Jérémie Rénier, Mark Dacascos, Jean Yanne, Jean-François Stévenin Running Time: 143 min. By Numskull Gregoire du Fronsac, royal naturalist, is sent to the rural county of Gevaudan to investigate a series of murders blamed on a rampaging, wolf-like beast. His assistants are Mani, his Iroquois blood brother, and Thomas d’Apcher, the grandson … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian Related, Other Movies, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , |

Big Hit, The (1998) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"The Big Hit" Japanese DVD Cover

Director: Kirk Wong Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Lou Diamond Phillips, Christina Applegate, Avery Brooks, Bokeem Woodbine, China Chow, Antonio Sabato Jr., Lainie Kazan, Elliott Gould, Sab Shimono, Robin Dunne, Lela Rochon, Danny Smith Running Time: 91 min. By Numskull If I really hated this movie, I wouldn’t be able to resist the urge to call it “The Big Shit”. Fortunately I don’t hate it, so you need never fear hearing that … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian Related, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , |

American Ninja (1985) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"American Ninja" Theatrical Poster

Director: Sam Firstenberg Cast: Michael Dudikoff, Steve James, Judie Aronson, Tadashi Yamashita, Guich Koock, John Fujioka, Don Stewart, John LaMotta, Tony Carreon Running Time: 95 min. By Owlman Directed by Sam Firstenberg (Revenge of the Ninja, Ninja III: The Domination), this 1985 film starred Michael Dudikoff as Joe Armstrong, an American soldier who has been trained well in the martial arts and uses those skills to fight a band of … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian Related, Ninja, Reviews | Tagged , , , , |

Bullet in the Head (1990) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona
"Bullet in the Head" Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: John Woo Cast: Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Jacky Cheung, Waise Lee, Yolinda Yan, Simon Yam, Fennie Yuen, Lam Chung, Yee Tin Hung, Chang Gan Wing, Ernest Mauser Running Time: 118/136 min. By Joseph Kuby The Second Best Film of All Time! (behind Citizen Kane) Many words can describe Bullet in the Head: Excellent! Brilliant! Superb! Splendid! Wonderful! Marvelous! Magnificent! Fantastic! Spectacular! It really is that great! This film is a … Continue reading →

Posted in Chinese, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , |

Dragons Forever | aka Cyclone Z (1988) Review

January 16, 2011 JJ Bona

Director: Sammo Hung Co-director: Corey Yuen Cast: Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, Pauline Yeung, Deannie Yip, Yuen Wah, Benny Urquidez, Philip Ko, Billy Chow, Crystal Kwok, Peter Chan, Roy Chiao, Chin Kar Lok, David Lam, Lo Lieh, Shum Wai, Siu Tak Foo, Tai Bo, James Tien, Dick Wei, Stanley Fung Running Time: 94 min. By Numskull Superb action comedy from the greatest trio of performers ever to grace the … Continue reading →

Posted in Chinese, Golden Harvest, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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