Category Archives: Reviews

White Storm, The | aka Cartel War (2013) Review

January 5, 2016 Z Ravas
"The White Storm" Theatrical Poster

AKA: Metamorphosis Director: Benny Chan Cast: Louis Koo, Nick Cheung, Lau Ching Wan, Yolanda Yuan Quan, Lo Hoi Pang, Alex Fong Lik Sun, Berg Ng Ting Yip, Hou Yong, Elanne Kong, Ken Lo Running Time: 140 min. By HKFanatic It might sound hard to believe now, but there was a time when director Benny Chan was considered a great hope for Hong Kong cinema. Halfway through the Nineties, when other … Continue reading →

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Battles Without Honor and Humanity Vol. 5: Final Episode (1974) Review

January 3, 2016 Kelly Warner

Director: Kinji Fukasaku Writer: Koichi Iiboshi, Koji Takada Producer: Goro Kusakabe Cast: Bunta Sugawara, Akira Kobayashi, Kinya Kitaoji, Joe Shishido, Junkichi Orimoto, Kunie Tanaka, Shingo Yamashirom Hiroki Matsukata, Goichi Yamada, Goro Ibuki, Nobuo Kaneko, Asao Uchida, Isao Konami Running Time: 98 min. By Kyle Warner The Battles Without Honor and Humanity series was hugely successful when they were first released in the early 1970’s and the films remain highly regarded … Continue reading →

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Tiger: An Old Hunter’s Tale, The (2015) Review

December 31, 2015 Paul Bramhall

AKA: The Tiger Director: Park Hoon-Jung Cast: Choi Min-Sik, Jeong Man-Sik, Kim Sang-Ho, Sung Yoo-Bin, Ren Osugi, Jung Suk-Won, Ra Mi-Ran, Yoo Jae-Myung, Kim Hong-Fa, Woo Jung-Kook Running Time: 139 min. By Paul Bramhall In 2015 Korean history was a hot topic, mainly due to President Park Geun-hye’s hugely unpopular decision to replace all high school history text books, currently produced by private publishers, with anonymously written government-issued ones by … Continue reading →

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Attack on Titan: Part 2 – End of the World (2015) Review

December 29, 2015 Paul Bramhall

Director: Shinji Higuchi Writer: Yusuke Watanabe, Tomohiro Machiyama Based on Manga by Hajime Isayama Cast: Haruma Miura, Hiroki Hasegawa, Kiko Mizuhara, Kanata Hongo, Takahiro Miura, Nanami Sakuraba, Satoru Matsuo, Shu Watanabe, Ayame Misaki, Rina Takeda Running Time: 90 min. By Paul Bramhall The second installment of Shinji Higuchi’s adaptation of the Attack on Titan manga reached Japanese cinema screens just a month after the first one came to the end … Continue reading →

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Battles Without Honor and Humanity Vol. 4: Police Tactics (1974) Review

December 23, 2015 Kelly Warner

Director: Kinji Fukasaku Writer: Koichi Iiboshi, Kazuo Kasahara Cast: Bunta Sugawara, Akira Kobayashi, Takeshi Kato, Tatsuo Umemiya, Hiroki Matsukata, Nobuo Kaneko, Hideo Murota, Shingo Yamashiro, Kunie Tanaka, Shinichiro Mikami, Ichiro Ogura, Asao Koike, Asao Uchida, Harumi Sone, Tatsuo Endo Running Time: 101 min. By Kyle Warner The Battles Without Honor and Humanity series is best viewed back-to-back and never is that more true than with Proxy War and Police Tactics. … Continue reading →

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Shaolin: The Blood Mission | aka The Fourth Largest Shaolin Temple (1984) Review

December 20, 2015 Paul Bramhall
"Shaolin: The Blood Mission" Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Park Woo-sang Writer: Hong Chi-Yun Cast: Hwang Jang Lee, Ho Kei Cheong, Suen Kwok Ming, Poon Cheung, Luo Hua-Sheng, Olivia Hung, Park Dong-yeol, Lee Jin-Yeong, Kim Ki-Bum Running Time: 85 min. By Paul Bramhall The name of Korean director Park Woo-sang may not be immediately familiar to many, and understandably so. However once the filmmaker immigrated to America, he continued to direct under a different name – Richard Park – … Continue reading →

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Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) Review

December 17, 2015 Paul Bramhall
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens" Chinese Theatrical Poster

AKA: Star Wars: Episode VII Director: J. J. Abrams Cast: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, Max von Sydow, Joonas Suotamo, Iko Uwais, Yayan Ruhian Running Time: 135 min. By Paul Bramhall As the latest installment of the much loved Star Wars franchise hits cinemas in December 2015, the first under the … Continue reading →

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Battles Without Honor and Humanity Vol. 3: Proxy War (1973) Review

December 16, 2015 Kelly Warner
"Battles Without Honor and Humanity Vol. 3" Blu-ray Cover

Director: Kinji Fukasaku Cast: Bunta Sugawara, Akira Kobayashi, Takeshi Kato, Mikio Narita, Kunie Tanaka, Nobuo Kaneko, Shingo Yamashiro, Nobuo Kaneko, Tsunehiko Watase, Hideo Murota, Tatsuo Umemiya, Asao Uchida, Tatsuo Endo Running Time: 102 min. By Kelly Warner Hiroshima Death Match is a strong film and a fine example of the yakuza film genre. However, it was little more than a side-story in the Battles Without Honor and Humanity series and … Continue reading →

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Enter the Invincible Hero | aka Secret Bandit of Black Leopard (1981) Review

December 14, 2015 Paul Bramhall
"Enter the Invincible Hero" Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Kim Si-hyun Cast: Dragon Lee (Mun Kyong-sok), Casanova Wong, Chui Man Fooi, Lee Ye Min, Cheung Ching Kwok, Gam Hei Wang, Seo Jeong Ah, Chen Shao Lung Running Time: 100 min. By Paul Bramhall Deciphering who directed what and when in the old school Korean kung fu genre is a head scratching exercise at the best of times. It’s common knowledge that many of the countries’ contributions to the … Continue reading →

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Battles Without Honor and Humanity Vol. 2: Hiroshima Death Match (1973) Review

December 10, 2015 Kelly Warner
"Battles Without Honor and Humanity Vol. 2" Blu-ray Cover

AKA: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima Director: Kinji Fukasaku Cast: Kinya Kitaoji, Sonny Chiba, Bunta Sugawara, Meiko Kaji, Mikio Narita, Hiroshi Nawa, Asao Koike, Shingo Yamashiro, Hideo Murota, Tatsuo Endo, Yoshi Kato, Kinji Nakamura, Gin Maeda, Nobuo Kaneko, Toshie Kimura Running Time: 100 min. By Kelly Warner After the huge financial success of Battles Without Honor and Humanity in January 1973, two sequels were fast-tracked and released that same year. Based … Continue reading →

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Battles Without Honor and Humanity Vol. 1 (1973) Review

December 9, 2015 Kelly Warner
"Battles Without Honor and Humanity Vol. 1" Blu-ray Cover

AKA: The Yakuza Papers Vol. 1 Director: Kinji Fukasaku Cast: Bunta Sugawara, Hiroki Matsukata, Kunie Tanaka, Eiko Nakamura, Tsunehiko Watase, Goro Ibuki, Nobuo Kaneko, Toshie Kimura, Tamio Kawaji, Mayumi Nagisa, Asao Uchida, Shinichiro Mikami, Hiroshi Nawa Running Time: 99 min. By Kelly Warner Throughout the 1960s, yakuza were typically depicted as honorable outlaws in Ninkyo eiga, or “chivalry films.” Often starring fan-favorites like Ken Takakura or Koji Tsuruta, these films … Continue reading →

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Yakuza Apocalypse (2015) Review

December 7, 2015 Kelly Warner
Yakuza Apocalypse | Blu-ray & DVD (Entertainment One)

Director: Takashi Miike Cast: Hayato Ichihara, Riko Narumi, Lily Franky, Reiko Takashima, Sho Aoyagi, Kiyohiko Shibukawa, Yayan Ruhian, Mio Yuki, Masanori Mimoto Running Time: 125 min. By Kelly Warner Even in the wild and diverse filmography of director Takashi Miike, Yakuza Apocalypse is one weird movie. What’s interesting is how it keeps its lunacy hidden away like a dirty secret until you feel like you’re settled in for a crime/horror … Continue reading →

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King of Fists and Dollars, The (1979) Review

December 3, 2015 Martin Sandison

AKA: Challenge of the Shaolin Disciples Director: Chen Ming-Hua Writer: Chen Ming-Hua Cast: Michael Chan Wai Man, Pearl Chang Ling, Cheng Lui, David Chiang Da Wei, Chiu Hung, Choi Wang, Fang Mien, Danny Lee Sau Yin, Li Chao, Mark Long Kwan Wu, Ma Cheung, Siu Foo Dau, Weng Hsiao Hu, Kong Yeung Running Time: 97 min. By Martin Sandison In the late 70’s Taiwanese kung fu movies were going strong, … Continue reading →

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Wild Panther | aka The Pursuit (1984) Review

December 1, 2015 Paul Bramhall
"Wild Panther" Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Lee Tso Nam Writer: Cheung San Yee Producer: Lim Kee Chye Cast: Chen Shan, Don Wong Tao, Eagle Han Ying, Ching Kuo Chung, Peng Kang, Ho Hing Nam Running Time: 90 min. By Paul Bramhall Taiwanese director Lee Tso Nam should be a name recognizable to anyone who considers themselves a fan of kung fu cinema. Active in the industry since the early 70’s, and still active today, he’s … Continue reading →

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Seoul (2002) Review

November 30, 2015 Paul Bramhall
"Seoul" Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: Masahiko Nagasawa Cast: Tomoya Nagase, Choi Min-Soo, Hoon Jang, Sung Choi, Jin-myung Go, Shim-young Hahm, Hun-suk Jung, Ki-won Kang, Dong-wook Kim, Ji-youn Kim, Chan-young Lee, Do-hyung Lee, Kyung-hwan Park Running Time: 110 min. By Paul Bramhall Seoul is an interesting curiosity of a movie. It looks, feels, and sounds like an early 2000’s Korean action flick, however it is in fact a Japanese production. Distributed by the legendary Toho … Continue reading →

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