Today’s Deal on Fire is the Blu-ray for The Guillotines, directed by Andrew Lau (Infernal Affairs).
In The Guillotines, an elite crime-fighting unit that relies on flying swords to defeat their enemies. The film is a homage to the classic Guillotine movies of the 70s (i.e. The Flying Guillotine, Master of the Flying Guillotine).
Director: Muk Baak-Ji Producer: Chow Pei Hok Cast: Fan Siu Wong, Leung Kar-Yan, Carisa Yan Wing-San, Ricky Ng Kwok-Sing, Hoh Hung-Kwan Running Time: 93 min.
By Paul Bramhall
Director Lam Nai-Choi’s 1991 splatter fest, The Story of Ricky, is one of the movies that got me into the wilder side of Hong Kong cinema. An almost relentless barrage of eye ball popping, intestine strangling, stomach exploding goodness, it quickly achieved cult status in the west, and understandably so. However its native audience wasn’t so impressed. Adapted from a hyper-violent Japanese manga, it was a flop in Hong Kong upon release, and effectively marked an end to Nai-Choi’s career. Even more of a shame though, was that Nai-Choi’s unintended swansong was planned to be a launching vehicle for Louis Fan Siu-Wong, the son of Fan Mei-Sheng. Having been a child actor in the likes of Descendant of the Sun and Righting Wrongs, The Story of Ricky should have been an explosive debut for the buffed up 18 year old, but instead it left him blowing in the wind.
Siu-Wong is good natured about his role in The Story of Ricky, and talked candidly in an interview contained on the Hong Kong Legends DVD, released in 2002, of its impact on his career. While his profile never reached the heights of contemporaries like Jet Li and Wu Jing, Siu-Wong came to be a reliable presence in whatever he appeared in, with a particularly memorable role as a bandit in 2008’s Ip Man. It’s interesting then, that tucked away in the darkest recesses of his filmography, is an unofficial sequel to The Story of Ricky. Coming 13 years after the original, Super Powerful Man takes the form of a direct-to-video Taiwanese production, and is so far off the radar I imagine even the most avid fans of Siu-Wong and The Story of Ricky may not be aware of its existence.
Taking place in 2200, Super Powerful Man opens to a disjointed sequence of stock footage and bland onscreen text (that rambles on for a whopping 2:30 mins), explaining how in the 100 years prior the earth was ravaged and clean water has now become a sought after commodity. So far, so post-apocalyptic Filipino flick. Most of the water supply is controlled by an evil general (the legendary Leung Kar-Yan) and his trio of color coordinated spandex wearing henchmen (think a less intimidating version of The Wiggles). A morally upright professor (Ricky Ng Kwok-Sing) has been studying water purification techniques in a secret factory, but when its location is discovered, Kar-Yan and his lackeys ruthlessly kill everyone. Thankfully the baby Ricky is hidden away, however his brother is taken by Kar-Yan and raised to be his ruthless right hand man (Hoh Hung-Kwan). Several years later, and I’m pretty sure you can guess the rest.
Story wise Super Powerful Man is actually closer to the original manga than Story of Ricky, however that’s the only compliment I can give it (and it’s arguably more of an observation at that). Apart from Ong Bak, there wasn’t a whole lot going on for martial arts cinema back in the early 00’s, and in 2004 we were still a year away from the genre reinvigorating Sha Po Lang. The expression “the night is darkest before the dawn” constantly sprung to mind as I suffered through each of its torturously long 80 minutes, because make no mistake about it, Super Powerful Man is bottom of the barrel filmmaking in every respect. Marking the debut for director Muk Baak-Ji, he’d go onto make one other movie the following year called Game With a Rich Lady, and then fade into obscurity. Unfortunately by then he’d already inflicted the world with 2 productions.
Super Powerful Man looks like it was made with some leftover pesos from whatever production Philip Ko had most recently wrapped in the Philippines. It’s that bad. Filming is restricted to a handful of limited locations – there’s a reservoir, a gravel pit, and some deserted buildings, all chosen most likely because there weren’t any other people around. The camera constantly wobbles in such a way to make everything look like it was filmed by a kid with a smart phone, only smart phones weren’t around in 2004 (and had they been, honestly it would probably look a little less cheap). Flashbacks are shown in strange color choices like sepia and purple, and frequently shown more than once. One flashback of Siu-Wong meeting his girlfriend for the first time is repeated three times, and during the second and third, the scene in which the first flashback occurred is also played as a flashback. Seriously.
Siu-Wong himself looks like he hasn’t aged a day since starring in the original, and let’s face it, when you have a physique like his all you need to do is switch the camera on and he’ll look the part. But such is the incompetence of everyone involved that even this can’t be done right. His characters iconic camouflage poncho is the wardrobe of choice for most of the runtime, however careless oversights, like having the poncho’s label blatantly on show in a couple of shots, only serve to take the viewer out of the story. Actually, I guess that’s a merciful positive. Anyway, nobody wants to see the Walmart laundry instructions in a post-apocalyptic movie about some guy that can punch right through people.
At least, he could in the original. Here he doesn’t do much of anything. The fight scenes are horrendously filmed, almost entirely in slow motion, with the only requirement being for Siu-Wong’s opponents to have a mouthful of water to spit out once they receive a light tap from his fist. Hoh Hung-Kwan, who plays Kar-Yan’s head henchman, would also choreograph the action (although it’s a stretch to call it that), and much like director Baak-Ji, Super Powerful Man and Game With a Rich Lady are the only productions he’d choreograph himself. Characters flip from kicks which make no contact, have cuts painted on them before they’re inflicted, and generally look hesitant to commit. For fans of grounded kung fu, the best I can say is that there’s no wirework, but then, that’s likely because they couldn’t afford them.
The rest of Super Powerful Man manages to draw occasional smiles, more out of pity than anything else. Kar-Yan’s experiments on Hung-Kwan consist of a kitchen sieve being lowered onto his head by someone just off-screen, complimented by some early-90’s special effects. Meanwhile, Siu-Wong takes inspiration from Sonny Chiba in Soul of Chiba, with electrodes attached to his chest as he attempts to pull a bulldozer uphill in the gravel pit. For some reason while he’s doing this, an effect is awkwardly overlaid onto his body that looks like circular ripples in the water. My personal favorite part though has Kar-Yan and Hung-Kwan talking to each other via small metallic rings stuck to their foreheads. A somewhat jarring reminder that proceedings are supposed to be taking place in 2200, this futuristic piece of telecommunication will hopefully be introduced with the iPhone 20, but don’t hold your breath.
Baak-Ji isn’t just content with offending an already broad audience with Super Powerful Man, so even takes aim at anime fans, with a soundtrack blatantly lifted from the Macross and Gundam franchises. The themes frequently feature quietly in the background of many scenes, almost as if they’re embarrassed to be there. Frankly Super Powerful Man’s existence is a mystery to me, and plays more like a Chinese telenovela than a legitimate feature film. Thankfully we’ll always have the original Story of Ricky, and much like the warden’s fate in the finale of Nai-Choi’s classic, the best place for it would involve a particularly zealous meat grinder.
With the exception of Kung Fu Hustle, 2004 was a barren wilderness for many of yesteryears kung-fu stars, and any look at the other titles in Siu-Wong and Kar-Yan’s filmographies from the same year will surely draw plenty of blank expressions (Fairy Legend anyone?). But we all do what we can when bills need to be paid, and this is as good of an explanation as any for their appearance in this atrocity. Perhaps the biggest elephant in the room though, is Super Powerful Man’s other English title – Dint King Inside King. Ranking up there as one of the more nonsensical translations, if anyone can explain it, I’m all ears. For the rest of us, regardless of how curious you may be to see Siu-Wong reprise his role as Riki Oh, the best advice I can give is to resist at all costs.
Director: Chang Cheh
Producer: Runme Shaw
Cast: David Chiang, Ti Lung, Cheng Lee, Guk Fung, Chan Sing, Cheng Miu, Wong Chung, Yeung Chi Hing, Yuen Wo Ping, Yen Shi-Kwan, Yuen Shun-Yi, Yuen Cheung Yan, Chan Chuen, Lau Laan Ying, Tong Dik
Running Time: 102 min.
By JJ Hatfield
In 1971 Chang Cheh took Ti Lung and David Chiang to Thailand to film a Muay Thai boxing tournament movie/travelogue. That may not be the Shaw Brothers description, but it’s accurate. It might have worked as one or the other, but the mix is annoying, tiresome, and a waste of talent.
A young up and coming engineer and martial arts expert learns a long-hidden secret at his father’s deathbed. Before he passes father informs son he once had an affair with a woman in Thailand which produced a male child. With only vague clues to follow the loyal son sets off to find his Muay Thai fighting brother as it was his father’s dying wish. By the time the long-lost brother is discovered, he is in a fight for his life.
David Chiang (The New One-Armed Swordsman) is Fan Ke, the dutiful son who exchanges his suit, tie, and glasses for brightly colored early 70’s polyester threads while he searches for his brother Wen Lieh played by Ti Lung (The Pirate). Fan Ke finds a ditzy date (Pawana Chanajit), and they promptly forget about searching for his brother and go sightseeing around Bangkok instead. Meanwhile, Wen Lieh is discovering the reality of being a Muay Thai fighter with less than ethical associates. He has risen to a position of being a top fighter in Thailand only to learn his talent and skills in the ring may not be enough to win the tournament or keep him alive. When Wen Lieh is not fighting, he spends time with his girlfriend, Yu Lan (Ching Li) who is teary-eyed for most of the movie.
The primary cause of Yu Lan’s weeping is Cannon the killer Muay Thai boxer. Cannon (Ku Feng) will fight Wen Lieh for the championship. Despite Yu Lan’s pleas Wen Lieh has no intention of quitting because this is a Chang Cheh movie and real men never back down even if they are about to be served their heads. That and Wen Lieh must fight because he needs the money for… well it is such an original idea I don’t want to give it away.
Too often the camera is trained on Chiang and his hyper-happy girlfriend pretending to look at a well-known tourist spot. I could understand if Chang wanted to include the brothers going to a temple to offer incense for their deceased father, but the travelogue episodes were like having to watch your neighbor’s home movies of their summer vacation. Momentum was lost, and so was the film.
Muay Thai boxing received respectful treatment by Lau Kar Leung and Tong Gaai when the fighting was in the squared circle. Ti Lung and Ku Feng are passable as Muay Thai boxers. Editing creates the illusion that the actors are performing extensive Muay Thai boxing pre-fight rituals and bouts. However, the two are on-screen less than it appears. In contrast to the two men ‘dueling’, the fights that occur outside the ring are chaotic brawling with multiple opponents. Neither style produces much in the way of memorable matches.
Duel of Fists should have focused on Muay Thai boxing and the search for the brother story. The two female characters were wasted (and Chanajit may have been wasted on something). The travelogue should never have been used in an action film. The two stars do not exert themselves acting, and I think Chang was off enjoying the sites as there is little sign of his direction.
The only reason I ranked Duel of Fists as high as I did was that it is one of the first movies to have a tournament as the focus of the film as well as being one of the first to showcase Muay Thai boxing.
There are many excellent movies with the “Iron Triangle,” and most offer better action than Duel of Fists. If you are working your way through Chang Cheh, Ti Lung or David Chiang movies save Duel of Fists for later. This one barely kicks a 6/10.
On October 2, 2018, Switchblade Pictures will be releasing the Blu-ray for 2017’s Corpse Prison: Part 1, the first of a two part movie series directed by Hideo Jojo (Siren X).
Corpse Prison: Part 1 stars Moemi Katayamax (Gun), Anna Tachibana (Skirt Gang), Shin’ichi Wago (Lady Ninja: A Blue Shadow), Nagomi, Reimi Fujishiro and Ren Fukusaki.
From the moment she and her fellow students arrive in the mountain village of Yasaka, Mikoto knows that there is something very wrong with this tiny town. Can it really be true that, for 50 years, not a single girl has been born in this isolated community?
Despite the fact that Mayor Amano and the other all male residents have enthusiastically welcomed her and the other three coeds attending Professor Ashihara’s overnight seminar, Mikoto can’t shake the sense of increasing dread that consumes her. Something horrible has happened here. Something that is about to happen again. Because the town has been waiting for her. And the other girls. From the pages of the hit online manga published in Web Comic Gamma, the nightmare is about to begin!
Brace yourself for some exciting news from CJ Entertainment. In a nutshell, expect a number of “Elevated Thrillers and Supernatural Horror Films” with the launch of their new subsidiary. Check out the official Press Release below:
July 30, 2018 – Los Angeles, CA / Seoul, South Korea –CJ Entertainment, Korea’s leading entertainment conglomerate, today announced the launch of a new specialty genre label – 413 Pictures.
All CJ Entertainment genre films, both English-language, as well as local-language Asian movies, will be released under 413 Pictures going forward. The label will have a broad appeal to both Asia and Western markets as its contents will incorporate horror elements from both cultures.
The name ‘413 Pictures’ is derived from ‘4’ being an unlucky number in Asia and ‘13’ being an unlucky number in the U.S.
The first films to be released under the 413 Pictures label in the U.S. will be Hide and Seek (going into production this fall – read cityonfire.com’s review for the original here) and The Housemaid (going into production next year). CJ Entertainment is developing, financing and producing both films.
Joel David Moore (Avatar franchise) is directing Hide and Seek – a remake of the hit Korean social horror-thriller written and directed by Huh Jung and released to wide critical and commercial success in 2013. The movie builds upon themes related to the widening gap between the upper 1% and the lower class. As population in urban areas balloon and real estate prices skyrocket, lower-income segments of society are finding themselves continually getting pushed out. This film explores the question of “what if” when those left marginalized decide to take matters into their own hands.
The Housemaid is an English language remake of Vietnam’s highest grossing horror film of all time. Academy Award® winner Geoffrey Fletcher is writing the adapted screenplay for CJ and 413 Pictures. The original “Housemaid,” directed by Derek Nguyen, was a massive hit with a story that explores racial and social themes through a period/romance/horror film. The remake stays true to this concept, taking place in the deep South during the Reconstruction Era.
The movie pipeline for 413 Pictures will be fully loaded as parent CJ Entertainment plans to develop, produce and finance 2-4 English-language genre films a year, along with 4-5 local-language Asian genre films a year for the label. The label is working on both original projects and remake projects and is interested in working closely with talents who have original ideas for genre films. The focus will be on elevated thriller and supernatural horror films.
CJ has been expanding mightily in Southeast Asia, making local-language films that have connected with local audiences and spurred strong box office performance. Given the success of this tailored business model, CJ has remained aggressive in pursuing local-language productions and currently has a number of films in development across territories throughout Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam, that will be released over the course of the next two years. These include the Thai horror film A Portrait of a Beauty.
Portrait of a Beauty, which will go into production at the end of this year and be released in 2019, is being financed and produced by CJ Major Entertainment, a joint venture between CJ ENM and Major Cineplex Group, Thailand’s largest cinema company. The adapted version will be written by Eakasit Thairaat, one of the most prominent horror screenwriters in Thailand (4BIA, 13 Beloved). It will mark the feature debut of Surapong Ploensang, one of the top commercial directors in Thailand.
The company’s move to launch the standalone genre label 413 Pictures comes at a time when horror films, in particular, are drawing audiences to theaters in record numbers worldwide, and reinforces CJ Entertainment’s commitment to strengthening its leadership position in global feature film productions and targeted local-language films.
Said Francis Chung, “Our vision for 413 Pictures is to produce unique and original genre films, globally and locally, as well as identifying and evaluating IP that can be remade in other territories around the world.”
Francis Chung added, “Beyond the tremendous commercial upsides to having a dedicated, branded genre label, an important aspect of 413 Pictures will be to discover and nurture emerging genre voices in Asia for both local and US markets.”
2018 has been a very active year for CJ Entertainment. In addition to closing the aforementioned deals with Geoffrey Fletcher for The Housemaid and Joel David Moore for Hide and Seek, the company optioned rights to the haunting, non-fiction best-selling book, The Vanished and signed Academy Award® nominee Phyllis Nagy to direct and write; and closed a deal with Drake Doremus to direct the internally developed Aurora – a sweeping romantic drama with a supernatural element and a big “what if” question at its core, which Salvador Paskowitz is writing.
“Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days” Teaser Poster
Director: Kim Yong-Hwa Writer: Kim Yong-Hwa Cast: Ha Jung-Woo, Ju Ji-Hoon, Kim Hyang-Gi, Ma Dong-Seok, Kim Dong-Wook, Lee Jung-Jae, Jo Han-Chul, Kim Myung-Gon, Il-woo Nam Running Time: 141 min.
By Paul Bramhall
It’s been less than a year since Along With the Gods: The Two Worlds hit cinema screens, and already the second part of the consecutively filmed pair is upon us with Along With the Gods: The Last 49 Days. Director Kim Yong-hwa took a huge gamble to plough so much money into what’s easily Korea’s most ambitious CGI heavy production, and it was one which paid off, with The Two Worlds becoming a box office success domestically. However the second instalment hit some decidedly unexpected bumps in the road on the lead up to its release. At the beginning of 2018 the #metoo movement, which saw actresses coming forward with their experiences of sexual harassment, hit Korea hard, and two of the productions cast members found themselves embroiled in the allegations.
First up was returning cast member Oh Dal-soo, an actor who’s practically come to embody the bumbling everyman role that’s a fixture of many a Korean production, and a new character play by Choi Il-hwa (The New World). Knowing that it wouldn’t sit well to have such actors (who both admitted their guilt) feature in a morally upright blockbuster, the decision was taken to re-film their scenes with new actors, with Jo Han-chul (Heart Blackened) replacing Dal-soo, and Kim Myung-gon (Steel Rain) replacing Il-hwa. While it was a decision that no doubt added a few extra zeros to the franchises already lofty budget, onscreen the modifications are for the most part seamless, a credit to the technical expertise of those working behind the scenes.
The plot of AWTG:TL49D (as I’ll refer to it from here on in) is significantly broader than its predecessor, fitting in 3 parallel storylines into its equally epic 140 minute runtime. Having secured the reincarnation of Cha Tae-hyun’s firefighter at the end of ATWG:TTW, the leader of the trio of guardians, played by the returning Ha Jung-woo, turns his focus to Kim Dong-wook (The Concubine), also returning as Tae-hyun’s murdered brother. Despite being the vengeful spirit that caused so much chaos in ATWG:TTW, Jung-woo believes he’s deserving of reincarnation, so pitches his case to King of the Underworld (Lee Jung-jae) to allow him to stand trial. Permission is eventually given, with various conditions attached, one of which takes the form of the second storyline.
A Household God has been causing trouble in the real world, by keeping an old man alive far longer than he should be, and even making himself visible to the point of being a part of the old mans daily life, which has him taking care of his abandoned grandson. The God is played my Ma Dong-seok (Champion), and one of the conditions is for Jung-woo and his fellow guardians to ascend the old man within the next 49 days, and ensure the Household God is duly punished. The roles of the guardian trio are somewhat reversed from what we saw in AWTG:TTW, with this time Jung-woo left to navigate the afterlife, and returning guardians Joo Ji-hoon and Kim Hyang-gi sent to the real world to deal with Dong-seok. However when Dong-seok reveals his connection to the pair when they were alive a millennium ago, we also get to witness the trios backstory (cue the third storyline!), and how it came to be that they’re bound to each other.
Credit has to be given to Yong-hwa for juggling so many elements with such a skilled hand. If you want a fantasy adventure filled with monsters and spectacle, you got it. If you want a modern day melodrama that pulls on the heartstrings, you got it. Not satisfied? Well how about a period piece battlefield epic? You get that as well. The talent in Yong-hwa’s handling of each of the 3 storylines lies in the way he’s able to keep each one relevant to each other for the entire duration, never allowing one to overshadow the other or to feel like unnecessary padding, all of them play an integral part to the other. This structure allows plenty of space for us to get to know the trio of guardians. While in ATWG:TTW they were defined more by their personality traits than anything else, this time we get to know their histories and who they really are, making them an integral part of the narrative rather than just enablers of it.
After a final scene tease in AWTG:TTW, here Ma Dong-seok makes for a welcome addition in an extended supporting role. As the kind hearted Household God, he’s been keeping the old man alive so that his young grandson isn’t left alone, taking on the role of the friendly uncle and keeping the loan sharks at bay. The setup is a literal tick box list of Korean melodrama tropes: House set to be demolished for new apartments – check. Father heavily in gambling debt and has run off to the Philippines – check. Mother died at birth – check. If a Korean mainstream movie wants you to know that life is tough, trust me, you’re going to get it. However for the most part it works, and Dong-seok is his usual endearing self as the protective (literal) guardian of the family. He also gets some of the biggest laughs, with his failed attempts to raise money through the stock market leaving him as possibly the only God committed to film who has debt worries.
Another element that the expanded scope of the story allows for is a greater variety of action. From Ji-hoon and Dong-seok’s hyper-speed face off when they first meet, that takes place while various plates and vases fall to the floor in slow motion, to the epic battlefield scenes set in the past, to Jung-woo’s one man rampage against a legion of hell ghouls made of lava and rock. While it was disappointing to see Ji-hoon’s oversized blades teased but never utilised this time around, the fact that AWTG:TL49D feels like a more well-rounded effort than its predecessor more than makes up for it.
Indeed as bombastic as these movies are by nature, AWTG:TL49D feels much more reigned in and mature. There’s a genuine sense of world building, and aspects like the onscreen text appearing every few minutes are utilised more sparingly. There’s also less focus on the many cameos by various familiar faces from the Korean film industry, with the appearance of Sung Dong-il being the only obvious nod at the audience. The downside of this is when a scene does appear which throws in velociraptors, a T-Rex, and a mosasaurus, it sticks out like a sore thumb. Such a scene may have belonged in Jurassic World, but even with the context it takes place in here it seems out of place, feeling more like a calling card for Yong-hwa’s visual effects company Dexter than a necessary part of the plot. However if you want to see a meaningful conversation take place in the stomach of a mosasaurus, you’re in the right place.
Interestingly, as the subject who has his reincarnation on the line, Dong-wook feels like a very different beast from the first instalments embattled firefighter. Rather than being overwhelmed, Dong-wook’s approach is one of curiosity, with his interest laying more in why Jung-woo is so determined for him to be reincarnated than if he actually succeeds or not. It makes for a very different dynamic, allowing for Jung-woo’s seemingly cool exterior that we took as a given from the previous outing to be constantly challenged and questioned, pushing some unexpected millennium old truths to the surface. The focus in the afterlife stays very much with the relationship between Jung-woo and Dong-wook, moving away from the trial structure of AWTG:TTW (here the first doesn’t get underway until 80 minutes in), further subverting expectations.
While still every bit the commercial blockbuster it was intended to be, AWTG:TF49D is a sequel that clearly has big ambitions, expanding and building on the characters we’re introduced to in AWTG:TTW via some bold and unexpected ways. What seemed like throwaway details in the previous instalment, like Ji-hoon and Hyang-gi having no memory of their past, here carry significant weight, which shows signs of a skilled storyteller at work. With another pair of Along With the Gods movies greenlit, it looks like we’ll be seeing more of Jung-woo and co. in the near future, and as long as we don’t get any more dinosaurs, I’ll be there.
Director: Jeong Ji-woo Cast: Choi Min-Sik, Park Shin-Hye, Ryoo Joon-Yeol, Lee Honey, Park Hae-Joon, Lee Soo-Kyung Running Time: 125 min.
By Paul Bramhall
The current trend of Asian movies being remade within the region shows no signs of slowing down, with most recently China remaking the Korean movie A Hard Day into Peace Breaker, and Korea returning the favour by remaking Drug War into Believer. In Believer, Korean actor Choi Jin-woong stepped into the role that Sun Hong-Lei played in the Johnnie To original, and Heart Blackened finds another of Hong-Lei’s leading turns receive a Korean makeover. This time it’s his other 2013 production, Silent Witness, and filling his shoes is another Choi, but this time it’s one of the most respected names in Korean cinema, in the form of Choi Min-sik.
Much like Fei Xing both directed and wrote the original, the remake goes for the same approach, with Jeong Ji-woo also sitting in the director’s chair and penning the screenplay. Ji-woo and Min-sik have worked together before, when Min-sik headlined his debut Happy End back in 1999, so to see them collaborating again after almost 20 years is a welcome sight. As a leading man, Min-sik is one of those actors seemingly incapable of putting in a bad performance, even if recently the material he’s been working with doesn’t necessarily match his own talents (The Mayor and The Tiger: An Old Hunter’s Tale both spring to mind).
I confess at this point that I haven’t seen Silent Witness, so in terms of passing judgement based on how it compares to the original, this won’t be the review to do it. With that being said, I’m certainly curious to check out the source material in the near future. The plot concerns the difficult relationship that exists between Min-sik’s wealthy businessman, his new partner who’s a famous singer (Lee Honey, Tazza: The Hidden Card), and his daughter (Lee Soo-kyung, Coin Locker Girl). After a leaked sex tape from one of Honey’s previous relationships goes viral, she gets into an alcohol fuelled argument with Soo-kyung, and the following morning is found dead in a parking lot. With his daughter insisting she can’t remember anything of what happened, Min-sik digs deep to hire a lawyer (Park Shin-hye, My Annoying Brother) capable of clearing her name, and get to the bottom of what took place on the fateful night.
Matters get messy when it’s revealed one of Honey’s diehard fans (Ryu Jun-yeol, A Taxi Driver) was able to download CCTV footage from the parking lot before it got destroyed, capturing the moment of her death, resulting in an increasingly frantic Min-sik attempting to get his hands on the files before anyone else. In many ways I found the story of Heart Blackened to remind me of Bong Joon-ho’s murder mystery Mother. Both tales concern a parent attempting to clear their child’s name of a murder they’re the main suspect of committing, without knowing the full truth of if they are indeed innocent or not. However while the events in Mother unravelled against the backdrop of a rural Korean town, Heart Blackened sets itself against the backdrop of the affluent Gangnam neighbourhood, its skyscrapers and office suites captured in cool blue and grey tones thanks to being filmed in winter.
Despite the strong potential for intrigue and mystery in its storyline though, Heart Blackened feels remarkably one dimensional. Its biggest weakness comes in the decision to have the limelight somewhat shared by Shin-hye, as the lawyer Min-sik hires, and the rival prosecutor (Park Hae-joon, Believer). Shin-hye fails to convince as an authoritative lawyer, and the role would likely have benefitted from casting someone a little older. What begins to feel like a terminal number of shots watching people looking at computer screens gives a lethargic feel to the pacing, and when we’re already an hour in its randomly revealed that Shin-hye and Hae-joon used to be in a relationship. While this most likely seemed like a sub-plot that added extra layers of characterisation on paper, onscreen it comes across as an unnecessary detail that detracts from the actual story at hand.
Min-sik also finds himself working with a script that does little to endear his character to the audience. He doesn’t even bother grieving over the fact that the woman he was going to marry was discovered dead, instead only showing interest in getting to the bottom of what happened. With a seeming unlimited bank roll, he’s soon attempting to bribe Hae-joon into dropping the case against his daughter, and hiring heavies to intimidate Jun-yeol into handing over the footage. He even jets off to Thailand on a business trip in the middle of the case (which has about 20 seconds of screen time dedicated to it), and insists on more than one occasion that “money is everything.” Indeed the more proceedings progress, the more it feels like his real concern is saving his own face as someone in a position of power, rather than caring about if his daughter was involved in the death or not.
The courtroom scenes fail to add anything that we haven’t already seen countless times before. Twists and reveals bubble to the surface, however they all feel like they’re there just to get us to the big one, which we assume will be the actual footage of Honey’s death. Unsurprisingly, this is exactly how things play out, and while it would certainly be a spoiler to go into any details of what the footage shows, needless to say it attempts to provide a moment of truth that will leave the audience in shock. What did turn out to be a surprise though, was that after laying the truth on the table and finally having justice prevail, I realised the movie was only 90 minutes into its 2 hour runtime. Where we really going to have an extended epilogue drag on for another half an hour?
As it happens, the answer was thankfully no, in that it certainly wasn’t an extended epilogue. Rarely has a movie I’ve resigned myself to writing off been able redeem itself so late in the game, but Heart Blackened did just that. Much like the final verdict in the courtroom, to go into any kind of details would be a spoiler, but needless to say Ji-woo does a daring bait and switch which he just about pulls off. With the guilty party now serving time behind bars, the last quarter of Heart Blackened allows the audience an insight into exactly what Min-sik got up to on that business trip to Thailand, showing just how deep his pockets really are. It’s a bold move that likely not everyone will buy into, but for myself at least, the final scenes give a new context to everything that’s gone before, which will no doubt be a rewarding experience on a re-watch.
As redemptive as the finale is, there can be no doubting some of the criticisms still hold true. The relationship between Shin-hye and Hae-joon remains a needless add on, and the runtime could have done with a bit less of spending time with them, and more time with Soo-kyung. Despite playing the accused daughter, she often feels more like a peripheral character rather than one who is central to the plot. As the morally ambiguous lead though, Min-sik once again puts in another outstanding performance, one which anchors the movie in a way which can’t fully be appreciated until the end credits are rolling.
With Heart Blackened Ji-woo has crafted a tale which operates in increasingly murky shades of grey, one which feels distinctly Korean despite its source material, which is a testament to his own talents. The tale goes into some dark places, which I’ll be interested to see are also present in Silent Witness, considering the level of censorship Chinese movies are subject to. However as a standalone tale, Ji-woo’s decision to play with the audience for so much of the runtime was certainly a risky one, but in this case, it was one which paid off.
Later this year, U.S. label Massacre Video will release the 4K restoration Blu-ray for The Devil (aka Devil’s Express), a 1981 cult classic directed by Cheung Yan-Git (The Idiot Swordsman).
If the following plot for this film doesn’t strike your interest, you’re not human: In The Devil, a hideously ugly witch casts spells on her victims which turns their insides into snakes and worms.
The Devil stars Au Da (Kung Fu Kids Break Away), Sherman Chow Shiu-Dung (Monkey War), Chen Hung-Lieh (Cloud of Romance), and Wang Pao-Yu (The Prodigal Boxer).
We’ll keep you updated on this release as we learn more. Until then, enjoy the Trailer for another cult classic we love – Human Lanterns:
The Trailer for Devin Hume’s Making a Killing, starring martial arts sensation Michael Jai White (Accident Man), has been released.
Making a Killing involves three morticians who get caught in a web of greed and deceit, involving buried treasure and a tangled love affair, in this modern day crime mystery that is based on a true story.
The film also stars Mike Starr (The Last Dragon), Sally Kirkland (Best of the Best) and Christopher Lloyd (Back to the Future Trilogy).
From the looks of it, White is “Making a Killing” doing nothing – in other words, don’t expect the ass-kickery White is known for, unless the final product proves otherwise. Regardless, there’s always Triple Threat, which promises to make up for any lack of action in this one.
Look out for Making a Killingin 2019. Who knows? It might be a good movie.
Today’s Deal on Fire is the Blu-ray for Sky on Fire (read our review), by Hong Kong’s legendary action director, Ringo Lam.
In this driving, non-stop action thriller, the chief security officer at a top-secret medical facility (Daniel Wu) finds himself caught in an explosive battle when a young thief and his accomplices steal a groundbreaking curative medicine. After discovering the true origins of the medicine, the officer must decide who he can trust to protect the cure from falling into the wrong hands and prevent an all-out war from bringing the city to its knees.
Wu (That Demon Within), the film’s leading star, is describing it as City on Fire 2: “I said yes without even reading the script because John Woo, Ringo Lam and Tsui Hark are the guys who have initiated this new wave of classic Hong Kong and I always wanted to work with them. The movie is called Sky on Fire, but it could just as well be described as City on Fire 2,” said Wu, in reference to Lam’s seminal 1987 classic, City on Fire.
As one of the most significant film festivals in Asia the Busan International film Festival which was previously known as the Pusan International Film Festival is held annually in Haeundae-gu Busan in South Korea.
The very first was held way back in September of 1996 and this year (2018) will be the 23rd Busan International Film Festival taking place on the 4th October through to the 13th. In all 401 projects applied for APM (Asian Project Market) 2018 which is approximately a 30% increase over the previous year and those 401-project covered 69 countries.
The successful newly selected 29 projects include Asian directors and producers who are currently working in the industry as well as those filmmakers that are thought talented enough to attract positive attention.
Directors like Zhang Lu who gained an international reputation with the award-winning film Grain in Ear and whose film A Quiet Dream was the one selected to be the opening film of the Busan International Film Festival 2016 as well as the director Kim Ulseok who was the winner of last year’s New Currents Award winning film After My Death are both to visit APM 2018 with their projects The Martyrdom and Yanagawa.
Other new Asian projects that can be seen at this year’s Busan International Film Festival include; The Final Print by director Jang Woo-jn who is the winner of Vision-Directors Award 2016 with the film Autumn, Autumn and In the Water by director Shin Dongseok whose film Last Child was selected by New Currents 2017 and Berlin International film Festival 2018.
Other projects have been selected from China and Japan as well as new projects from the southwest of Asia where the Busan International Film Festival still provides support to directors like Antoinette Jadaone and director Dechen Roder from Bhutan who have had success with their films Fan Girl and I, the Song.
The Busan International Film Festival specialises in introducing and promoting new films and up-coming first-time directors attracting a great number of young people, especially in the audiences as well as its efforts to develop young talent.
Interestingly, it was in an inconspicuous picture house tucked away at the back of a south Korean shopping mall that saw Oscar-winning director Martin Scorsese’s film The Audition shown for the first time after it was pulled from the programme in Venice due to complaints about it be too commercial.
Starring performances by Robert De Niro, Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio made sure that there was a full house at the 10am screening of the Busan International Film Festivals short film showcases programme, especially after all of the mystery that has surrounded the project due to the rumours that circulated about it origins.
The whole idea for the film was conceived by the billionaire, James Packer along with his partner in business Larence Ho, and the concept was to promote Studio City which is a $3.2 billion Hollywood-inspired casino which is being built within the Chinese enclave of Macau.
Unfortunately, a visit to Macau is simply not on the cards for many of us who instead turn to online games and gaming to get our casino thrills. Today online gambling is a multi-billion industry in its own right with all forms of casino games, slots and bingo sites that accept PayPal proving to be popular with all ages and cultures.
We love to gamble, we enjoy everything to do with gambling, the glitz and glamour and the high life associated with casinos has always drawn us, and film-makers to the whole casino environment and The Audition was included in the Busan International Film Festival on its merits, and not surprisingly so when you consider what talent was packed into those 16 minutes of film.
David Leitch (John Wick, Atomic Blonde) is in early talks to direct a remake of Enter the Dragon, the 1973 kung fu classic about a martial artist (Bruce Lee) who agrees to spy on a reclusive crime lord (Shih Kien) using his invitation to a tournament there as cover.
Brett Ratner (Rush Hour 1-3) was originally attached to the remake, but producers most likely distanced themselves from the director due to sexual misconduct allegations against him.
What do you think of this news? Who would you like to see play Bruce, Shih, John Saxon, Jim Kelly, Bob Wall, Angela Mao and Bolo’s role? Share your thoughts in the comments section! Also, don’t forget to read why Enter the Dragon may be the most overrated kung fu movie ever.
More “woman” than Gal Gadot. As much Filipino firepower as BuyBust. On August 28, 2018, Vinegar Syndrome is releasing the Blu-ray/DVD for Robert Vincent O’Neill’s Wonder Women, a 1973 Filipino exploitation flick starring Nancy Kwan (The World of Suzie Wong), Ross Hagen (Angel), and Maria De Aragon (Blood Mania).
Martial arts madness, dangerous chase scenes, insult-heavy dialogue, vague sci-fi twists, and a whole lot more nudity and violence than its very misleading PG rating would imply. Wonder Women is a quintessential slice of early 70s drive-in craziness, featuring supporting performances from Roberta Collins (Death Race 2000), Sid Haig (The Devil’s Rejects) and Filipino exploitation stalwart Vic Diaz (Bloodfist).
Region free Blu-ray/DVD combo
Newly scanned and restored in 2k from 35mm camera negative
Commentary track with director Robert Vincent O’Neill
Extended European version (90min)
Q&A from a 2007 screening at The New Beverly Cinema in Los Angeles with Robert Vincent O’Neill, Nancy Kwan, Ross Hagen, Roberta Collins and Sid Haig.
Zatoichi: Darkness is His Ally | Blu-ray (Tokyo Shock)
RELEASE DATE: August 28, 2018
On August 28, 2018, Tokyo Shock will be releasing the Blu-ray & DVD for 1989’s Zatoichi: Darkness is His Ally (known in Japan as Zatoichi 26 or Zatoichi ’89) directed by and starring Shintaro Katsu.
Zatoichi: Darkness is His Ally is the twenty-sixth and final chapter in the iconic samurai film franchise that starred Katsu and spanned nearly three decades. This lavish production was the last to star Katsu, who originated the title role of “the Blind Swordsman” in 1962 and the only entry where he served as writer and director.
Older, wiser but still a wandering loner, the blind, peace-loving masseur Ichi seeks a peaceful life in a rural village. When he’s caught in the middle of a power struggle between two rival Yakuza clans, his reputation as a deadly defender of the innocent is put to the ultimate test in a series of sword-slashing showdowns.
For those who’ve become jaded when faced with the endless superhero franchises that have come to dominate Hollywood in recent years, then chances are they haven’t had to suffer through any of Japan’s big screen manga adaptations. While such adaptations have occasionally brought to the surface the odd gem (I Am a Hero), more often than not the usual form they take are money spinning 2-part ‘events’, frequently with all the fun crammed into the first (Attack on Titan: Part 1). More broadly speaking, manga’s in general tend to be adapted until they can be bled dry no more. The standard routine will usually follow an anime adaptation coming first (sometimes both an anime movie and TV series), and then a live action adaptation arrives to top things off.
This is the exact format Japan’s latest manga adaptation has followed to a T. Ajin: Demi Human was a 2013 manga, that eventually spawned a trilogy of anime movies which hit screens between November 2015 and September 2016. The movies were, in turn, complimented by an anime TV series which ran for 2 seasons, airing in April and October 2016 respectively. You’d think that the intensive bombardment of Ajin antics on both the big and small screen would be enough for most audiences, but we’re talking mainstream Japanese cinema here. Who needs creativity when there’s money to be made? So, less than one year after the second season hit TV screens, a big screen live action adaptation was released in September 2017.
The title refers to the name given to people who are, knowingly or not, immortal. Although frankly, if we now assume that the source material has been milked dry as much as it can, I doubt even the strongest of them would have much will to keep on living. The plot focuses on one particular Ajin, a medical student played by Rurouni Kenshin lead Takeru Satoh, who realises he’s one after miraculously surviving being hit by a truck. The Japanese government are keen to learn more about these Ajin, so while they insist their facilities provide a safe haven for the immortals, in reality Satoh finds himself being subjected to a never-ending cycle of being killed and regenerated, as the authorities look to figure out the secret to their powers.
Eventually Satoh is rescued by another Ajin, played by Go Ayano (Lupin the Third), and his wingman, played by Yu Shirota (Black Butler), who themselves were once also held captive in the same facility. Initially thankful to the pair, when Ayano reveals his plan to cover Tokyo in nerve gas unless it’s declared an autonomous area for Ajin (despite there being, you know, only 3 of them in Japan), Satoh begins to realise just how dangerous Ayano really is. Unable to accept his rescuers extreme views that Ajin have a right to mass murder, as revenge for the experiments that humanity inflicted upon them, ultimately the showdown is set for some immortal vs. immortal action.
While I’m sure many of the audience for Ajin: Demi Human will be those who are fans of either the original manga, its anime adaptation, or both, for myself the live action version is my first exposure to the tale. From the perspective of a newcomer, many of the themes being explored are reminiscent of the X-Men franchise (the irony isn’t lost that they’re also based on a comic). Satoh comes to represent the ideals embodied by Charles Xavier, only instead of mutants and humans peacefully co-existing together, its Ajin and humans. Then on the flip side of the coin you have Ayano in the role of Magneto, who believes that Ajin are genetically superior to humans, and feels no remorse at wiping out large swathes of them as revenge for the how he was treated by them in the past.
The live action adaptation is helmed by director Katsuyuki Motohiro, whose work is perhaps representative of just how nondescript and visionless it is to be a part of Japan’s mainstream film industry. The man behind the Bayside Shakedown series of movies, as well as the ill-conceived Shaolin Girl, a Stephen Chow produced spin-off of his own Shaolin Soccer, Motohiro’s output is defined by its unremarkable and pedestrian approach. The ace up his sleeve for Ajin: Demi Human comes in the form of Takahito Ouchi, the stunt coordinator on the Rurouni Kenshin trilogy, who’s worked with both Satoh and Ayano (who has a role in the first Rurouni Kenshin) before.
It is indeed the action that serves as the saving grace of Ajin: Demi Human, which thankfully comes at frequent enough intervals to forget about everything else (which we’ll get to later). The opening 20 minutes are essentially one extended action sequence, which shows just how much fun it’s possible to have with protagonists that can’t be killed. Ayano’s raid on the government facility is particularly entertaining. If you’re an Ajin and find yourself shot in the arm with a tranquilizer, what do you do? Simply lop it off with a machete, it’s going to grow back. Severed limbs are also amusingly used as bait to misdirect and ambush groups of attackers, and if an Ajin finds themselves riddled with bullets, there’s no need to think twice about raising a gun to your head and pulling the trigger. You’ll be back in a few seconds.
With that being said, there’s at least one scene in Ajin: Demi Human that stands out as an “only in Japan” moment. When Ayano threatens to take over a government building at a specific date and time, a media frenzy (as well as the Japanese Defence Force) gathers outside to witness how he’s going to do it. Expecting him to show up as some sort of one-man army, instead it’s revealed that he’s commandeered a plane, to which he flies straight into the side of the building. Indeed it may be almost 15 years since the controversial twin tower bombings witnessed in 2003’s Battle Royale 2: Requiem, but the thought of such a scene ever appearing in a Hollywood movie is still one that seems very far away. Whether it would still be considered controversial for an American audience is a question I can’t answer, but it will raise a few eyebrows I’m sure.
Outside of the action, there are several instances where the strain of attempting to compress a 50+ part series into 110 minutes shows through. What I assume to be developed plot threads in the manga, in live action form come across as bewildering and nonsensical. A kind old lady takes Satoh in when he first escapes from the facility with no reason or explanation (other than, well, she’s kind and old). When Ayano looks for other Ajin to join him in his cause, the only recruits he attracts are a small bunch of emo-looking teens, and their base (and home?) appears to consist of hanging out on a series of elevated walkways in an old factory. Most head scratching for newcomers though, will be the oversized humanoid figures that Ajin are able to call from their body, seemingly made up of black particles, which are able to fight on behalf of their host. They’re given zero explanation, although in all fairness, they are kind of cool.
Other parts simply feel derivative of more original works. We get a floor by floor assault of a building that displays the progress onscreen a la The Raid, cutaways to news footage like Paul Verhoeven-lite, and even a nod to Demolition Man. Despite its many detractors though, Ajin: Demi Human moves along at a quick pace, and never feels like its straying from its colourful manga roots. Every action scene is kicked off by a techno track that energetically announces “3 2 1 go!” (you’ll either be annoyed or become numb to it), and Ayano makes for a suitably ruthless villain in a genre that’s known for not having any teeth. There’s also former AKB48 member Rina Kawaei, who will no doubt be a plus for some (I decline to comment). For everyone else, Ajin: Demi Human is a pleasantly diverting but quickly forgettable slice of manga inspired action.
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