Author Archives: Paul Bramhall

Challenge of the Lady Ninja (1983) Review

"Challenge of the Lady Ninja" Theatrical Poster

AKA: Chinese Super Ninja 2 Director: Lee Tso Nam Cast: Elsa Yeung Wai San, Chen Kuan Tai, Cho Kin, Kam Yin Fei, Kon Tak Mun, Peng Kang, Sit Hon, Sun Jung Chi, Robert Tai Chi Hsien, Yin Su Li Running Time: 90 min. By Paul Bramhall For many, 1983 will be the year that Taiwanese director Lee Tso Nam is associated with creating the kung fu masterpiece Shaolin Vs Lama, a slice … Continue reading

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Railroad Tigers (2016) Review

"Railroad Tigers" Theatrical Poster

AKA: Railway Asylum Director: Ding Sheng Cast: Jackie Chan, Xu Fan, Edison Huang, Nick Wang, Darren Wang, Yano Koji, Sang Ping, Wu Yonglun, Zhang Yishang, Jaycee Chan, Ikeuchi Hiroyuki, Asano Nagahide Running Time: 123 min. By Paul Bramhall The pairing of director Ding Sheng and ageing action superstar Jackie Chan has been one of the more intriguing partnerships of recent years. In 2009, Little Big Soldier was released, and provided a welcome … Continue reading

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Zombies, Giant Frogs & Hunchbacks: The Pinoy ‘Supergirl’

Living in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, always brings plenty of surprises, and so it was one evening in early November 2016, I received the following text message: “Hi everyone! 7pm tomorrow I am introducing a secret Makati screening of the super-rare, super-strange 1973 Pinoy SUPERGIRL! Interested? txt me for details!” The number identified the sender as a certain Andrew Leavold, the Australian filmmaker behind the Filipino cinema documentaries … Continue reading

Posted in Features, News |

Contract to Kill (2016) Review

Contract to Kill | Blu-ray & DVD (Lionsgate)

Director: Keoni Waxman Cast: Steven Seagal, Russell Wong, Jemma Dallender, Mircea Drambareanu, Sergiu Costache, Ghassan Bouz, Toma Danila, Andrei Stanciu, Camillo Aviles Running Time: 90 min. By Paul Bramhall Steven Seagal. What can you say? In 1990 he was Hard to Kill, in 2003 he was Out for a Kill, in 2008 he flipped the Kill Switch, a year later he was Driven to Kill, he started off 2016 by Killing Salazar, … Continue reading

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Sword Master (2016) Review

Director: Derek Yee Producer: Tsui Hark Cast: Kenny Lin Geng-Xin, Peter Ho Yun-Tung, Jiang Yi-Yan, Jiang Meng-Jie, Norman Chu, Edward Ku, Ng Yuen-Jun, Wang De-Shun, Guo Jiu-Long Running Time: 105 min. By Paul Bramhall There have been a handful of Shaw Brothers re-makes over recent years. Some of them have resulted in successful reinterpretations of the source material, such as Daniel Lee’s 2010 production 14 Blades, a pulpy re-imagining of Secret Service of … Continue reading

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Bounty Hunters (2016) Review

Director: Shin Tae-Ra Producer: Raymond Wong Cast: Lee Min-ho, Wallace Chung, Tiffany Tang, Jeremy Xu, Karena Ng, Fan Siu-Wong, Yang Mi Running Time: 105 min. By Paul Bramhall In 2016 China continued its mission to create a watchable Hollywood style action blockbuster, and this time they’ve called in some help to back them up. Bounty Hunters is produced by Hong Kong based Raymond Wong, and perhaps sensing that leaving such a … Continue reading

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League of Gods (2016) Review

League of Gods | Blu-ray & DVD (Sony)

AKA: Legend of the Gods Director: Koan Hui Co-director: Vernie Yeung Cast: Jet Li, Tony Leung Ka-Fai, Fan Bing-Bing, AngelaBaby, Huang Xiao-Ming, Louis Koo, Wen Zhang, Kristy Yeung, Jacky Heung Cho, Andy On, Zu Feng Running Time: 109 min.  By Paul Bramhall In the last 10 years China has gradually become one of the world’s box office juggernauts, and with a potential cinema going audience of over a billion, naturally … Continue reading

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Rocky Handsome (2016) Review

Director: Nishikant Kamat Cast: John Abraham, Diya Chalwad, Nishikant Kamat, Sharad Kelkar, Nathalia Kaur, Yash Tonk, Nishikant Kamat, Sharad Kelkar, Shiv Kumar Subramaniam, Suhasini Mulay, Teddy Maurya, Kazu Patrick Tang Running Time: 119 min. By Paul Bramhall I’ll be straight up and confess – I’ve never seen a Bollywood movie from start to finish, not one. While I’m being frank, I’ll also confess that if someone had told me that … Continue reading

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Sky on Fire (2016) Review

"Sky on Fire" Theatrical Poster

AKA: Battle of Life Director: Ringo Lam Cast: Daniel Wu, Amber Kuo, Joseph Chang, Zhang Jingchu, Philip Keung, Eddie Cheung Running Time: 90 min.  By Paul Bramhall The return of Ringo Lam to the director’s chair for 2015’s Wild City was big news for many Hong Kong cinema fans, and for good reason, with Lam the force behind so many of the territories classics. Proving that his come-back isn’t just … Continue reading

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Samurai, Spirits & Splatter: An interview with ‘Nilalang’ director Pedring Lopez

It was a particularly humid day in October when I found myself strolling through the streets of Makati in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, to meet with up and coming director Pedring Lopez at his post-production house located in Legaspi Village. It was a public holiday, so the normally bustling streets, filled with honking jeepneys and exhaust fumes, were eerily quiet for a Monday. It struck me that it … Continue reading

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Insane (2015) Review

"Insane" Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Lee Chul-Ha Cast: Gang Ye-Won, Lee Sang-Yoon, Choi Jin-Ho, Ji Dae-Han, Chun Min-Hee, Lee Hak-Joo, Choi Yoon-So, Jo Jae-Yun, Kim Jong-Soo, Jang Tae-Seong Running Time: 91 min. By Paul Bramhall Mainstream Korean horror has always been a tricky beast, dating back to when the new wave really put Korean cinema on the map in the early 2000’s, the one constant seemed to be over promise and under deliver. Posters … Continue reading

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Nilalang | aka The Entity (2015) Review

"Nilalang" Theatrical Poster

AKA: Creature Director: Pedring Lopez Cast: Cesar Montano, Maria Ozawa, Meg Imperial, Yam Concepcion, Cholo Barretto, Dido de la Paz, Kiko Matos, Aubrey Miles, Alexandre Charlet, Sonny Sison Running Time: 90 min.  By Paul Bramhall After a long absence out of the spotlight, Filipino cinema has been making a quiet but assured comeback in recent years. Movies like Erik Matti’s On the Job, Sean Ellis’s Metro Manila, and Khavn de la … Continue reading

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Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016) Review

“Jack Reacher” Korean Theatrical Poster

AKA: Jack Reacher 2 Director: Edward Zwick Cast: Tom Cruise, Cobie Smulders, Aldis Hodge, Danika Yarosh, Patrick Heusinger, Holt McCallany, Austin Hebert, Robert Catrini, Robert Knepper, Talbott Lin Running Time: 118 min. By Paul Bramhall The announcement that Tom Cruise was going to be playing Jack Reacher, the character of author Lee Child’s ongoing series of novels about an ex-military drifter that has an uncanny ability for finding trouble, was … Continue reading

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Men Behind the Sun (1988) Review

"Men Behind the Sun" Theatrical Poster

AKA: Camp 731 Director: T. F. Mou Producer: Fu Chi, Hung Chu Cast: Gang Wang, Hsu Gou, Tie Long Jin, Zhao Hua Mei, Zhe Quan, Run Sheng Wang Running Time: 105 min. By Paul Bramhall Men Behind the Sun comes with the reputation of being one of the most controversial movies ever made, often mentioned in the same sentence as the likes of Ruggero Deodato’s Cannibal Holocaust, and Japan’s Guinea Pig … Continue reading

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Evil Hits Evil | aka Three Dark Spirits (1983) Review

"Evil Hits Evil" Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Lucifer Lai Wen-Hsiang Cast: Kwan Yung-moon, Chan Sing, Robert Tai, Doris Lung, Alan Lau, Peng Kang, Yeung Hung, Cheung Ching Fung, Gam Wing Cheung, Kim Yu-Haeng Running Time: 85 min. By Paul Bramhall If you’re going to watch a horror movie, then one which credits its director as Lucifer Lai Wen-Hsiang is as good a place to start as any. In what appears to be his first and last time in … Continue reading

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