Category Archives: All

War of the God Monsters | aka The Flying Monster (1985) Review

February 21, 2023 Paul Bramhall

AKA: The Flying Monster Director: Kim Jung-yong Cast: Kim Ki-ju, Nam Hye-gyeong, Kim Da-hye, Moon Tae-Seon, Kim Uk, Jang Cheol Running Time: 85 min.  By Paul Bramhall Korean cinema was in a strange place during the mid-80’s. After military strongman Chun Doo-hwan essentially elected himself as the country’s president in September 1980 following months of martial law and the infamous Gwangju Massacre in May, filmmakers needed to be extra cautious not … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Japanese, Korean, News, Reviews |

Slate (2021) Review

February 14, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Jo Bareun Cast: Ahn Ji-hye, Lee Min Ji, Park Tae San, Jung Jin-woo, Lee Se-ho, Nam I-seul, Jo Sun-ki Running Time: 100 min.  By Paul Bramhall It could be argued that the swordplay movie has never really fallen out of fashion in Asian cinema, with each decade bringing about a reinvention of the genre in one way or another. Be it Patrick Tam’s The Sword in the 1980’s, Tsui … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Korean, News, Reviews |

Deep Trap (2015) Review

February 7, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Kwon Hyung-Jin Cast: Ma Dong-Seok, Jo Han-Sun, Kim Min-Kyung, Ji An, Yoon Joo, Kwon Bum-Taek, Kim Dong-Hyun, Min Kyung-Jin, Jeong Gi-Seop, Kang Seung-Wan Running Time: 96 min. By Paul Bramhall In the Korean film industry the mid-budget genre piece has become increasingly rare in recent years, with the international success of 2019’s Parasite and the 2021 Netflix series Squid Game seemingly widening the gap when it comes to production … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Korean, News, Reviews | Tagged |

Geochilmaru: The Showdown (2005) Review

February 3, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Kim Jin-sung Cast: Jang Tae-sik, Sung Hong-il, Kwon Min-gi, Yu Rang-rae, Hong Seung-hun, Mi-jeong Oh Running Time: 86 min.  By Paul Bramhall My memory of Geochilmaru – The Showdown being released in 2005 is one of it being dragged over the coals in almost every review it received. Now, with the benefit of hindsight 18 years later, I would theorise there are a couple of contributing factors to the … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Korean, News, Reviews |

Death Promise (1977) Review

January 30, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Robert Warmflash Cast: Charles Bonet, Speedy Leacock, Bill Louie, Thompson Kao Kang, Vincent Van Lynn, Thom Kendell, Abe Hendy, Tony Liu, Bob O’Connell, Tony De Caprio Running Time: 95 min.  By Paul Bramhall While the grindhouse cinemas that lined New York’s 42nd street during the 70’s were filled with a steady stream of kung-fu flicks from Hong Kong and Taiwan, occasionally a more local product also populated the screens. … Continue reading →

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

Double Threat (2022) Review

January 26, 2023 Henry McKeand

Director: Shane Stanley Cast: Danielle C. Ryan, Dawn Olivieri, Matthew Lawrence, Kevin Joy, Andrea Logan, Mo Gallini, David Castro, Aimey Beer, Val Barri, Dmitriy Karas Running Time: 92 min. By Henry McKeand “What do you think this is? A Hallmark movie?” This line from last year’s Double Threat, spoken by a cynical mob fixer, is supposed to indicate that, no, this is not a Hallmark movie. But with middle-of-the-road digital … Continue reading →

Posted in All, News, Other Movies, Reviews |

Legend of Gatotkaca (2022) Review

January 24, 2023 Paul Bramhall

AKA: Satria Dewa: Gatotkaca Director: Hanung Bramantyo Cast: Rizky Nazar, Omar Daniel, Yatie Surachman, Ali Fikry, Yasmin Napper, Zsazsa Utari, Cecep Arif Rahman, Yayan Ruhian, Jerome Kurnia, Apuk Misdafie Running Time: 129 min.  By Paul Bramhall In the west Indonesia’s popular superhero comics may be relatively unknown, but on local shores they’ve been making a resurgence in recent years through a number of big screen adaptations, no doubt inspired by the … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Indonesian, News, Reviews | Tagged , |

Jung_E (2023) Review

January 22, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Yeon Sang-Ho Cast: Kang Soo-Yeon, Kim Hyun-Joo, Ryoo Kyung-Soo, Lee Dong-Hee, Uhm Ji-Won, Han Woo-Yul, Yun Ki-Chang, Lee Ga-Kyung, Ki Hwan Cha Hee Running Time: 100 min. By Paul Bramhall Watching the journey of director and screenwriter Yeon Sang-ho has been an interesting one. Originally making a name for himself through animated features like King of Pigs and The Fake, stories which were grounded in reality and tackled a … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Korean, News, Reviews | Tagged |

Kingmaker (2022) Review

January 20, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Byun Sung-Hyun Cast: Sol Kyung-Gu, Lee Sun-Kyun, Yoo Jae-Myung, Jo Woo-Jin, Park In-Hwan, Lee Hae-Young, Kim Sung-Oh, Jeon Bae-Su, Seo Eun-Su, Kim Jong-Soo Running Time: 123 min. By Paul Bramhall Most Korean audiences will be familiar with the name Kim Dae-jung, the former president who held office between 1998 and 2003. The culmination of a career in politics spanning over 40 years, Dae-jung had led an eventful life. He … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Korean, News, Reviews | Tagged , |

Detective vs. Sleuths (2022) Review

January 17, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Wai Ka-fai Cast: Lau Ching-Wan, Charlene Choi, Raymond Lam, Carman Lee, Tan Kai, Carlos Chan, Kathy Yuen Running Time: 102 min.  By Paul Bramhall  Practically everything about Detective vs. Sleuths on paper indicates it’s a sequel to the 2007 Milkyway classic Mad Detective. Wai Ka-Fai back in the director’s chair? Check. Lau Ching-Wan playing a mentally unbalanced but brilliant detective? Check. Mostly set at night on the streets of Hong … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Chinese, News, Reviews | Tagged , , , , |

Silencers, The (1996) Review

January 13, 2023 Henry McKeand

Director: Richard Pepin Cast: Jack Scalia, Dennis Christopher, Carlos Lauchu, Lucinda Weist, Clarence Williams III, Stephen Rowe, Lance LeGault, Madison Mason, Terri Poch Running Time: 103 min.  By Henry McKeand PM Entertainment always understood how to borrow the most successful elements of mainstream action cinema and synthesize them into sweaty, single-minded B-movies that somehow delivered more fireworks than tentpole films with three times their budget. If the composition of your average … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Other Movies, Reviews | Tagged , |

Megaforce (1982) Review

January 11, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Hal Needham Cast: Barry Bostwick, Michael Beck, Persis Khambatta, Edward Mulhare, George Furth, Henry Silva, Mike Kulcsar, Ralph Wilcox, Evan C. Kim, Anthony Pena Running Time: 99 min. By Paul Bramhall Ask anyone which studio first springs to mind when thinking about Hong Kong cinema’s golden age from the 1970’s – 1990’s, and it’ll likely be Golden Harvest. The likes of Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan’s best-known works are … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Asian Related, Golden Harvest, News, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , |

Sex and Fury (1973) Review

January 8, 2023 Henry McKeand

Director: Norifumi Suzuki Cast: Reiko Ike, Akemi Negishi, Ryoko Ema, Yoko Hori, Naomi Oka, Katsumasa Uchida, Rena Ichinose, Tatsuo Endō, Yōko Mihara, Christina Lindberg Running Time: 88 min. By Henry McKeand While action cinema has long been criticized as pornographic in its depictions of bloodshed and weaponry, the ‘pinky violence’ films released in Japan during the 60s and 70s are early examples of filmmakers pushing that pornographic label past the … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Japanese, News, Reviews | Tagged |

Last Resort (2023) Review

January 4, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Jean-Marc Minéo Cast: Jon Foo, Clayton Norcross, Alex Santi, Julaluck Ismalone, Angelina Ismalone, Armin Parvin Running Time: 108 min.  By Paul Bramhall Back in the 2000’s there was a sense that Thailand was going to be the new epicentre for Asian action cinema following the success of Ong Bak, with action talent from around the globe heading to the Land of Smiles to try their hand in the local … Continue reading →

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

Decision to Leave (2022) Review

January 3, 2023 Paul Bramhall

Director: Park Chan-wook Cast: Park Hae-il, Tang Wei, Lee Jung-hyun, Park Yong-Woo, Ko Kyoung-Pyo, Kim Shin-Young, Yoo Seung-Mok, Park Jung-Min, Seo Hyun-Woo, Lee Hak-Joo Running Time: 138 min. By Paul Bramhall Take a look at the filmography of director Park Chan-wook and it’s almost impossible to pin him down to any one genre. Whether he’s dealing with a murder mystery in the JSA, the quest for vengeance after being held … Continue reading →

Posted in All, Korean, News, Reviews | Tagged , |
  1. Pages:
  3. 1
  4. ...
  5. 16
  6. 17
  7. 18
  8. 19
  9. 20
  10. 21
  11. 22
  12. 23
  13. 24
  14. 25
  15. 26
  16. ...
  17. 77