If you enjoyed Japanese high school delinquent films like Takashi Miike’s Crows: Episode Zero and the Funimation released Drop, you might want to keep an eye on the upcoming film Furyou Shounen: 3000-nin no Atama. The movie, which lands in Japanese theaters in March, is based on an autobiographical novel by Endo Natsuki and stars Saito Takumi (Takashi Miike’s upcoming Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney flick) as a youth who sets … Continue reading →

This week is notable for bringing us Ryan Gosling in Drive on blu-ray and Takeshi Kitano’s Outrage, as well as some Italian exploitation flicks on blu-ray. All in all, not too shabby. So here are your Asian and genre movie releases for the week of 1/31/12: ASIAN CINEMA Outrage (blu-ray/DVD) – Magnet Releasing presents Takeshi ‘Beat’ Kitano’s 2010 bloody Yakuza epic. A must-see for fans of gangster flicks and extreme … Continue reading →

“Donnie Yen and Jackie Chan Blow Up the Screen in an Epic Battle.” – RedCarpetCrash.com BLADE OF KINGS Donnie Yen, Jackie Chan and Bing Bing Fan Star in an Epic Tale Combining Romance, Fantasy, Comedy and Cutting Edge Hong Kong Style Martial Arts on Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack and DVD March 6th Bonus Materials Include a Making-Of Featurette and a Music Video Donnie Yen (IP Man), Jackie Chan (Shaolin, … Continue reading →

We’re not even a month into 2012 and already two gruesome, blood-splattered horror films are slated for release in…Mainland China?! Sure, Hong Kong has always be known for their goofy horror comedies and supernatural-tinged romances, but I for one never expected to see full-on “this is comparable to Saw“-style horror flicks coming out of the Mainland. Over at Beyond Hollywood, you can check out the two posters and the Not … Continue reading →

Can you believe that January is almost over? Well, there are plenty of great titles to choose from this week, whether you want to see Donnie Yen kick ass in Flash Point or witness Johnnie To’s next crime movie masterpiece with Punished. So let’s get started. Here are your blu-ray and DVD releases for the week of 1/24/12: ASIAN CINEMA Punished (DVD) – this 2011 Hong Kong thriller about a … Continue reading →

United Red Army, the 2007 Japanese-language film that Sight & Sound magazine called “one of the best films of the decade” is now streaming on Netflix Instant in HD. Director Koji Wakamatsu’s (Caterpillar) epic docudrama explores the political unrest of 1960′s Japan, when mass student uprisings coincided with the beginnings of the far-left United Red Army group, which tortured and murdered its ”deviant” members during a 1972 training session. An … Continue reading →

This week leaves us with plenty to talk about so I’ll cut my speech short and get started. Here are your Asian and genre movie blu-ray and DVD releases for the week of 1/17/12: Gantz II: Perfect Answer (blu-ray/DVD) – Viz Media presents the final installment in the live-action Gantz series! This 2011 film is based off the popular – and very dark and violent – anime The Coast Guard … Continue reading →

Looking to add a little excitement to your life? Well, you know that producer extraordinaire Luc Besson always has you covered in that regard. As of today, his 2010 film “District 13: Ultimatum” has been added to the Netflix Instant catalog and is available in HD. Like it’s predecessor it’s another mix of high-octane martial arts and death-defying parkour, set in a near-future Paris that’s not unlike the world of … Continue reading →

“… one helluva chase movie.” – Kirk Honeycutt, The Hollywood Reporter “… nonstop action and excitement.” – Richard Kuipers, Variety “Character development in writer-director Kim Han-Min’s thrilling War of the Arrows … is economic, precise and efficient, grounding whirlwind action sequences in an emotional connection to the characters. “ – Ernest Hardy, LA Weekly A Hero is Born. The Legend Begins. WAR OF THE ARROWS The $40MM International Box Office … Continue reading →

It’s a sad sign of the times: Anime News Network posted the exclusive report that Media Blasters has laid off 60% of their full-time staff. This means they’re down from fifteen to 5 or 6 full-time employees. Some of the fired staff will be asked to work for the company on a freelance basis, if they are so inclined. CEO John Sirabella says: “All of the small publishers are going … Continue reading →