Top 5 American Martial Arts Movies Ever Made

Posted on February 14, 2018 by Retter

Top 5 American Martial Arts Movies Ever Made

A large slice of every video shop was once dedicated to shirtless, blood-dripping men, striking clenched poses and displaying great fighting skills. Taking their key from Hong Kong cinema, the films of Jean-Claude Van Damme (perhaps the man who personifies video more than anyone) and the various sub-Van Dammes was a vibrant and varied industry of fighting tournaments programmers, bar room brawls and cops who knew chop-socky. They were born in a pre-CGI age, when audiences could trust the images as being true. At their best, these films were among America’s most cinematic, visually exciting and occasionally sublime.

Not since Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch was violence glorified so operatically. The “action-move” became part of film language, where time would stand still and a physical action, such as an aerial kick romanticised in slow-motion. But some of these films also represented the most authentic film noir of their time, B-movies about underground kick-boxing, gangsters and gamblers in seedy, neon-lit nightclubs. And like film noir, this genre was a meat and potatoes “people’s cinema”, dropping the hyferlutened for universal myths everyday people could relate to.

The time is right for retrospective, it was after all the American B-grindhouse pictures of the 30s, 40s and 50s that inspired the French New Wave. These films, with their strong style and aesthetics can be inspirational to a new generation…

"No Retreat No Surrender" VHS Cover

“No Retreat No Surrender” VHS Cover

No Retreat No Surrender (1986)

Perhaps the most successful invasion of another country’s film form/style into the American market since German expressionism’s distillation into film noir, this Hong Kong-produced American grindhouse picture brought Chinese cinema sensibilities to American soil for the first time.

Produced by legendary Hong Kong figure Ng See Yuen, directed by Corey Yuen (The Transporter) and inspired by the commercial success of The Karate Kid, Seasonal Pictures went overboard trying to make an “American” film; filled with breakdancing, parties, cold war jingoism and an all-American kid taking revenge on a criminal karate syndicate and Russian-hulk who crippled his father.

The fantastic villain of the picture was an unknown and over-zealous Jean Claude Van Damme, credited as playing “Ivan The Russian”, who actually injured many of the actors by not pulling his kicks and punches. But the broken noses and bones he inflicted resulted in a B-masterpiece, a strange mix of 80’s nostalgia at surface level with its routes found in Chinese Peking opera. How does the teenage all-American take on the muscles from Brussels? – by meeting the ghost of Bruce Lee in an abandoned house for training! Known in Germany with the equally cool title of Karate Tiger.

"Bloodsport" VHS Cover

“Bloodsport” VHS Cover

Bloodsport (1988)

Would you like to better understand the leader of the free world? President Trump has sighted this Cannon classic as one of his favourite films. Shot on location in Hong Kong in the dangerous, lawless “walled city”, Bloodsport stars Jean Claude Van Damme, who enters the infamous underground “Kumite” martial art tournament to avenge the death of his Master’s son.

High-ish production values and a rare perfectionist streak in the genre made this picture reach transcendent heights of poetic violence through the use of Van Damme’s physical performance in slow-motion.

Bloodsport is supported by an international cast of martial arts performers, each with their own distinct styles, such as sumo and monkey kung fu. Partly inspired by the international tournament within Enter the Dragon and even sharing one of its villains: the humongous and frightening Bolo Yung. Legend has it that the fight scenes were not working until Van Damme stepped into the editing suite and helped craft what we see so operatically today.

Bloodsport was a global smash hit that gave JCVD instant stardom and provided cinemas and video shops with a new viable take on the martial arts genre.

"No Retreat No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers" VHS Cover

“No Retreat No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers” VHS Cover

No Retreat No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers (1990)

The most insane martial arts film shot in America incorporates an albino terrorist leader’s plot to kill president George H. W. Bush. In classical Hong Kong-style, Blood Brothers bares no connection to previous NRNS-series instalments, apart from sheer wackiness, creative dance-like use of violence and a tacked-on cold-war nationalism verging on parody.

One of the great screen fighters, Loren Avedon, was brought into the series to replace Kurt McKiney, who broke his contract to return in the sequels. But these mishaps didn’t stop the strange phenomena of this movie series getting better with every sequel.

Seasonal film’s Hong Kong-style production on American soil brought truly daring and dangerous fight sequences to VHS. The other “blood brother” and truly joyous cinematic presence Keith Vitali, had a plaster-cast on his arm for the first few scenes because he genuinely broke it during filming.

Scenery is chewed and successfully digested by bleached blond and English-accented Rion Hunter as the leader of a strange gang of kung fu fighting communist terrorists. This all leads to the assassination plot of George Bush senior, incorporating real footage of the president, which along with strange moments of text used on a blank screen, constitutes the most unlikely tribute to Jean-Luc Godard in cinema.

Cheesy quotable dialogue and severe bone-crunching where it counts, NRNS 3: Blood Brothers is among the very cream of B-cinema and wildly enjoyable.

"Deadly Bet" VHS Cover

“Deadly Bet” VHS Cover

Deadly Bet (1992)

Deadly Bet came out of a wonderful straight-to-video company called PM entertainment, whose philosophy was to put all the money on the screen. Later on they would master the use of multiple flipping cars and pyrotechnic explosions to rival Hollywood, but in their early era, they would focus on smaller kickboxing noir pictures.

Within the world of sub-Van Dammes, Jeff Wincott has always been considered the greatest dramatic actor. This allowed the film more dramatic flexibility as Wincott’s gambling in Vegas gets out of control. The pivotal dramatic moment is when he uses his actual Wife as collateral but loses the bet, something that could only be done in straight to video B-movies. His wife is then forced to stay with Jeff’s nemesis(!) while money owed is somehow recouped.

The rest of the film is spent with Jeff working with gangsters, fighting in underground tournaments and trying to redeem himself . As ridiculous as the film sounds, it’s executed in a sincere way; the standard training montage given a really melancholic twist of moral and not just physical improvement. PM used real Vegas locations and casino interiors, giving this B-picture effective atmosphere. This is a rare treatment of the subject matter, which although still cracking various jaw-breaking punches and kicks, has superior lead actor and genre bit-players to have a noir film’s dramatic impact.

"Drive" VHS Cover

“Drive” VHS Cover

Drive (1997)

Drive is the last truly great American martial arts film, perhaps constituting its very high point before decline. With a medium budget big enough to allow tremendous visual scope and sci-fi themes, but small enough to prevent them from using CGI, Steve Wang’s passion project is the most balletic martial arts picture shot in America.

Hawaiian gymnastic B-Movie star Mark Dacascos stars as a Billion dollar man with a futuristic “power cell” embedded in his chest that makes him super-human. Problem is, that gives him a billion dollar price on his head. It’s a sci-fi road movie with comic relief from co-stars Kadeem Hardison and Brittany Murphy.

Wang’s ambition with this project was to create the most authentic tribute to the great Hong Kong martial arts films, specifically those of Jackie Chan and Dacascos’s amazing screen fighting abilities made him the perfect accomplice. Rather than the intended gun-play and explosions in the original script, Wang rewrote the action scenes to feature wall to wall physical martial arts combat. He warned Dacascos “I want my actors really hitting each other, you will be bruised from head to toe!”. The choreography is thus frenetic, often involving 3 or 4 people kicking and punching a back-flipping and swerving Dacascos at one time.

It’s an action film made with tremendous visual integrity. A confused studio butchered the film by 16min on release, but presented in the DVD is the full directors cut in all its actioned-packed glory.

Posted in Features, News |

Cold Harvest (1999) Review

Posted on February 13, 2018 by Paul Bramhall
"Cold Harvest" Chinese Theatrical Poster

“Cold Harvest” Chinese Theatrical Poster

Director: Isaac Florentine
Cast: Gary Daniels, Bryan Genesse, Barbara Crampton, David Sherwood, Isaac Mavimbela, Chris Buchanan, Greg Melvill-Smith, Rohan Coll, Ian Roussouw
Running Time: 89 min.

By Paul Bramhall

Reviewing movies retrospectively is always an interesting exercise. Depending on how much time has passed, what was once considered cool may now be terribly dated, and what was once considered a train wreck may have aged like a fine wine. Just check out the opinions on some Lo Wei directed Jackie Chan movies now compared to 20 years ago. Which brings me to Cold Harvest, a movie I wasn’t aware existed, until I stumbled across it while researching a review for director Isaac Florentine’s (at the time of writing) latest, Acts of Vengeance.

Perhaps like many others, Florentine first appeared on my radar with the 2003 DTV action flick Special Forces, which showcased the talents of a certain fledging British martial arts star by the name of Scott Adkins. While the talent on display led me to seek out Florentine’s previous effort, the 2001 Michael Worth starring U.S. Seals II: The Ultimate Force, I never bothered to venture into his pre-2000 filmography. As it turned out, if I had decided to check out more of his earlier work, I would no doubt have seen Cold Harvest much sooner, as it acts as an action vehicle for another British martial arts star, Gary Daniels.

Daniels was already a solid B-movie star by the time he worked with Florentine, and Cold Harvest would mark his last movie of the 90’s (Florentine on the other hand still had one left in him, with the Dolph Lundgren starring Bridge of Dragons). I confess that my lack of enthusiasm towards 90’s American martial arts movies means that my exposure to Daniels has been limited to his work with Hong Kong studios. He puts in a commendable performance fighting against Jackie Chan in 1993’s City Hunter (despite Chan’s own contempt for the movie itself), and would headline the Seasonal Films U.S. set Blood Moon in 1997, which pitted him against Darren Shahlavi.

While his HK collaborations provided the opportunity to work with the likes of Jackie Chan and Tony Leung Siu-Hung, Cold Harvest comes with a similar draw. Both Florentine and the Alpha Stunts team, a group of martial artists and stuntmen known for their high impact choreography, spent most of the 90’s honing their skills on the Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers TV series and its various spin-offs. While the founder of Alpha Stunts, Koichi Sakamoto, had worked wonders with Mark Dacascos in Drive, just a couple of years prior, Cold Harvest brought in its co-founder, Akihiro Noguchi, to handle the martial arts sequences. Providing Noguchi with his first credit as Martial Arts Choreographer, in the preceding years he’d notch up several more as either a stunt, action, or martial arts chorographer on the likes of Black Belt, Ninja, and Everly, to name but a few.

So the million dollar question you’re likely thinking is – is Cold Harvest to Gary Daniels what Drive is to Mark Dacascos? Well, not quite. Arguably the biggest advantage Drive has is that it had most of the Alpha Stunts crew on-board (including Noguchi), however that’s not to say that Cold Harvest is a slouch in any way. Taking place in the not-too-distant future of 2010 (well, if we look at it from the time of production), the world has been hit by a comet plunging it into perpetual darkness, and if that wasn’t bad enough, a plague is wiping out large swatches of the population as well. Rising up from this post-apocalyptic world is a no-nonsense bounty hunter, played by Daniels, who makes his living hunting down wanted criminals and delivering them to law enforcement for a tidy reward.

Florentine shows his first affinity here for employing the twins plot device, one which he’d also use in U.S. Seals II with the late Karen Kim, with Daniels taking on a double role. Far from being a tough guy though, the twin role sees Daniels playing a normal civilian (he has glasses!) en route to the ‘Safe Zone’ with his pregnant wife. His wife is one of only 6 people carrying a gene which could cure the plague, and together they exchange loving glances while talking about their dream of opening a mushroom farm (mushrooms don’t require much light see). Daniels acting in the role of the average Joe twin is laughably horrendous, with every line spoken in a tone that implies he’s yet to hit puberty, and sporting an accent that’s all over the place. Thankfully, as in any action movie that employs such a setup (see also Maximum Risk), it isn’t long before a bullet lands between his eyes.

This leads to the crux of the plot, which has Daniels the bounty hunter team up with his brothers widow (played by Barbara Crampton), and go on the run from a group of mercenaries who plan to ransom her (well, her genes anyway) to the government. A post-apocalyptic world. A widow on the run. A bounty hunter looking to avenge his brother. It’s solid B-movie stuff. It’s also worth noting Florentine appears to have believed that, by 2010, wild-west fashion would have made a massive come-back. It may be a post-apocalyptic world, but if you didn’t know any better you’d think the comet struck in the late 1800’s. Florentine’s fondness for the western genre, despite it not being given any explanation whatsoever, does give Cold Harvest a distinct look, with six shooters (capable of unloading much more than 6) and Stetsons featured liberally.

Of course being a post-apocalyptic tale, amidst the wild west themes we still get the prerequisite dune buggies, motorbikes, and dwarves, showing that Florentine was clearly paying attention to all of those Cirio H. Santiago 80’s post-apocalyptic flicks with Richard Norton. Despite most of Cold Harvest playing out on what are obviously the same small number of streets (re: sets – there’s a reason why its permanently dark), being re-arranged a little for each change in location, there’s a charm present that’s sadly lacking in many of the same calibre productions today. No doubt this is due to the zero reliance on CGI that today’s action B-movies come with, instead relying on actual explosions (impressive ones at that), blood squibs, and set design. Going back to my first paragraph, I miss real in-camera effects, which today have been replaced by cheap CGI created in post.

The action occurs frequently, a mix of vehicular (mostly motorbike) stunt work that we have Stunt Coordinator Tyrone Stevenson (Mad Max: Fury Road) to thank for, and the aforementioned fights choreographed by Noguchi. The fights have the Alpha Stunts stamp all over them – a mix of hard hitting blows usually finished off by a kung fu power pose, Daniels is more than up for performing the choreography, and does so with aplomb. Just as much as Daniels though, the stuntmen on the receiving end also deserve equal credit, as Cold Harvest delivers some truly painful looking falls. Bodies go crashing through tables, thrown into walls, and are knocked off elevated platforms while crashing into inanimate objects on the way down. As a showcase of how to perform a wince inducing fall, Cold Harvest is a masterclass, usually captured in sparingly used slow motion.

The head mercenary is played by Bryan Genesse, another action B-movie stalwart best known for his kung fu fighting role in the Street Justice TV series, which ran from 1991 to 1993. Here he keeps his martial arts chops hidden, saving them for a final confrontation with Daniels that has them busting out the ‘shoot at each other from opposite sides of a wall’ move, lifted wholesale from John Woo’s Hard Target and Face/Off, before agreeing to go at it “man to man”. It’s a satisfying fight with plenty of high impact blows and falls, and one which makes you wish they’d had the opportunity to go at it a couple more times throughout the movie. As it is though, their throwdown provides a worthy exclamation mark to proceedings.

While Cold Harvest is a lot of fun, it’s also far from perfect. Florentine knows how to film action, but he’s never been a strong director, and in his earlier efforts those weaknesses especially show through. There are moments of unintentional comedy which could have been avoided, such as a scene which has Daniels suggestively cleaning the barrel of his shotgun while watching Crampton bathe topless (non-gratuitous, for those wondering). I also realized that any name which needs to be yelled in slow motion should only be 1 syllable, otherwise it sounds ridiculous, like when Crampton has to yell the name Oliver (“Ohhhhh…..leeeee……verrrrrrr!”). But these gripes are overall forgivable, and for those that want to see Daniels unleashing some high impact choreography, this is definitely the right place. Now I just need to know exactly what Cold Harvest is referring to.

Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 6.5/10

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

Blade of the Immortal (2017) Review

Posted on February 12, 2018 by Kelly Warner
Blade of the Immortal | Blu-ray & DVD (Magnet Releasing)

Blade of the Immortal | Blu-ray & DVD (Magnet Releasing)

Director: Takashi Miike
Cast: Takuya Kimura, Hana Sugisaki, Sota Fukushi, Hayato Ichihara, Erika Toda, Kazuki Kitamura, Chiaki Kuriyama, Shinnosuke Mitsushima, Ken Kaneko, Yoko Yamamoto, Ebizo Ichikawa
Running Time: 140 min.

By Kyle Warner

Takashi Miike, one of today’s most prolific filmmakers, celebrated his 100th film as a director with Blade of the Immortal. And it’s tough to imagine a more perfect film for Miike by which to hit that amazing 100. Because the definition of ‘what is a Miike film’ has changed somewhat as he’s journeyed into mainstream filmmaking, Blade of the Immortal is a bit of a sampler platter of Takashi Miike. While we used to think of Ichi the Killer sort of extremes when we thought of Takashi Miike, now we must recognize that historical epics like 13 Assassins, manga or game adaptations like Ace Attorney, and bizarre family-friendly stuff like The Great Yokai War are just as common a Miike film today as any other. In Blade of the Immortal, there’s extreme violence, there’s epic costume drama, there are over-the-top manga influences, and there’s a pretty badass child actor all in one package. It’s a film made by a man who wears many hats. And for most of its 140-minute running time, the movie is a total blast.

Blade of the Immortal begins with guttural screams and sprays of blood. We open with a black and white prologue as a lone samurai named Manji (Takuya Kimura) fights to avenge the death of his sister, Machi. In a scene that calls to mind Sword of Doom, Manji slaughters dozens of men all by himself. Only when he begins to tire do they get in mortal wounds; he loses an eye, a hand, and is sliced across the face. When finally every enemy is dead, Manji is ready to join his sister in death. But a mystical old woman (Yoko Yamamoto) visits Manji in his final moments, judges that allowing him to die would be too merciful, and instead fills his cuts with holy bloodworms (?!) in order to heal his wounds and stop the bleeding. He will now be forced to live forever as an immortal (but not invincible) monster.

Fast-forward fifty years and Japan is now enjoying a time of relative peace, with martial arts dojos carrying on the tradition of the warrior but rarely testing their abilities in mortal combat. This void gives rise to the Itto-ryu clan of samurai, upstarts, madmen, and outlaws. The Itto-ryu travels around the country converting dojos to their line of thinking (mainly that tradition is worthless and that martial arts superiority is the only thing that matters) and killing those who resist. After the little girl Rin (Hana Sugisaki) is left as the only survivor of one obliterated dojo, Rin seeks out the mythical samurai who cannot die to be her avenger. And though Manji is initially reluctant to assist Rin, he sees in her the likeness of his dead sister (it helps that they’re played by the same actress) and sees this as a way to potentially redeem himself. Failing that, it may just be a good way to die.

And so Manji and Rin set out to kill the Itto-ryu swordsmen responsible for the death of Rin’s family and clan. Each Itto-ryu clan member is strange in his or her own way, making each encounter memorable. Kazuki Kitamura (Killers) plays a sadistic burn victim who wears the heads of his victims as ornamentation, Shinnosuke Mitsushima (The Third Murder) plays a masked assassin, Erika Toda (Death Note) plays a musician with special skills, and Ebizo Ichikawa (Harakiri: Death of a Samurai) stars as a killer monk with strange abilities of his own. With every bloody battle, Manji and Rin work their way closer to the Itto-ryu master played by Sota Fukushi (As the Gods Will).

Most of the movie is bloody mayhem. But there’s a decent amount of strong drama here, too. What I didn’t expect from Blade of the Immortal was such a nuanced take on what vengeance means. Rin, really quite wonderfully played by Sugisaki, is a character we’re automatically behind after she is witness to her father’s murder. But her quest results in so much bloodshed that she (and the audience) begins to question its cost. Sota Fukushi’s villain begins as irreprehensible, but the film also goes to unexpected depths to find what makes his character tick. It’s good stuff.

Japanese superstar Takuya Kimura (Space Battleship Yamato) may have found his best action hero lead in Manji, the horrifically scarred samurai who cannot die. What I liked is that Manji is not depicted as some sort of god figure but rather as something horrific and monstrous. He feels every cut just the same as any mortal man, but his trick is that he can stay in the fight longer with his horror show regenerative abilities (oh yeah, and this movie has a subplot about his weakening sacred bloodworms that splatter beneath the skin. It’s gross and I loved it). Kimura makes a strong impression in both the action and dramatic scenes.

You don’t have to be told going in that it’s based on a manga or anime, and therein lies my only major beef with the film. The story’s original format hasn’t been changed enough for film. Blade of the Immortal is very episodic. Manji dispatches one colorful villain and then is onto the next one. You can sense where the manga issue/anime episode ended and the next one began. In addition to the structure, one wishes that perhaps Miike had toned down the look of the film just a bit. When you take away the fantastical elements of Manji’s healing abilities, the samurai world and the violence are actually pretty realistic for a swordplay action movie. As such, the characters with crazy hairstyles and wacky costumes stand out in an odd way. There is also a subplot involving a Manji imposter that doesn’t resonate as well as the rest of the film, but at least that subplot results in a few good moments with Hayato Ichihara (Yakuza Apocalypse) and Chiaki Kuriyama (Battle Royale).

Overall this movie is just a whole lot of fun. There is a moment in the big finale action sequence where people are slipping in blood as they battle beneath a bridge, meanwhile bodies are falling into view because more people are fighting atop the bridge. It’s very cool. In Miike’s filmography, the film it most resembles is 13 Assassins, but with Blade of the Immortal I sense that Miike felt freer to follow his instincts; which is to say, this can be a pretty weird and nasty movie. Bloody corpses and severed limbs are the most common props for stage backgrounds. It’s like a crazy combo of Lone Wolf & Cub and Logan – but with bloodworms! Blade of the Immortal is one of the best action films of 2017.

Kyle Warner’s Rating: 8/10

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

Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds (2017) Review

Posted on February 9, 2018 by Paul Bramhall
"Along with the Gods" Theatrical Poster

“Along with the Gods” Theatrical Poster

Director: Kim Yong-Hwa
Cast: Cha Tae-hyun, Ha Jung-Woo, Ju Ji-Hoon, Kim Hyang-Gi, Kim Dong-Wook, Do Kyung-Soo, Lee Joon-Hyuk, Lee Jung-Jae, Ma Dong-Seok, Jung Hae-Kyun
Running Time: 139 min. 

By Paul Bramhall

It’s been a while since Korea delivered a full-blown fantasy spectacle, with perhaps the last time being Jo Dong-oh’s The Restless, way back in 2006. However with the current trend of webtoon (online comic) adaptations that are dominating both Korean dramas and movies, it’s perhaps not surprising that the time is rife for the genre to make a return to the countries cinema screens. Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds has taken the same approach Japan opted for with manga adaptations like Assassination Classroom and Parasyte, filming two instalments back-to-back, a first for Korea. It’s a gamble for sure, with no production before (or I’d daresay after) relying so much on visual effects as its selling point, to the tune of roughly $36 million.

However the Korean peninsula has come a long way in its CGI capabilities in a short period of time. As recently as Bong Joon-ho’s The Host, the creation of the titular monster was offshored to San Francisco based visual effects outfit The Orphanage, rather than done locally. However director Kim Yong-hwa had lofty ambitions, and for his 2012 feature Mr. Go, a Korea-China co-production about a baseball playing gorilla (don’t ask) that failed to set the box office alight, he founded the visual effects company Dexter. While Mr. Go may have been a misfire, Dexter has become the go-to effects house in Asia, with the likes of Tsui Hark (for The Taking of Tiger Mountain) and Soi Cheang (for The Monkey King 2) becoming regular clients, both of which heralded award winning results.

Without doubt AWTG:TTW (as I’ll refer to it from here on in) wouldn’t exist without Dexter, and while Yong-hwa has sat in the directors chair before for the likes of Take Off and 200 Pounds Beauty, this can be considered his sophomore effort with the title of Dexter Founder on his resume. The original webtoon by Joo Ho-min ran from 2010 – 2012, and in many ways its cinematic incarnation represents somewhat of a family friendly version of Chang Cheh’s Heaven and Hell, although thankfully Yong-hwa’s version didn’t take 5 years to complete. The story focuses on a firefighter that dies in the line of duty, played by My Sassy Girl lead Cha Tae-hyun, who is promptly met by a trio of guardians whose job it is to guide him through seven trials, presided over by various Gods, which he has to pass in order to be reincarnated.

Fail any one of them, and he’s damned to an eternity in hell, custom made to whichever trial is being judged. Thankfully the trio of guardians are played by the ever cool Ha Jung-woo (last seen on the big screen in Tunnel), ably assisted by Joo Ji-hoon (Asura: City of Madness) and new guardian on the block Kim Hyang-gi (A Werewolf Boy). When viewing a production like AWTG:TTW, it’s important to remember that this is Korean filmmaking at its most commercial (re: crowd pleasing), designed as a bring the whole family along blockbuster in the same vein as Ode to My Father. Its intention is to make us laugh, gasp, and in true Korean style, ensure we have a box of tissues close to hand. While such productions aim to appeal to as wider an audience as possible, there’s a distinct feeling with Yong-hwa’s latest that the biggest demographic they’re going for is teenagers.

The afterlife is given plenty of quirky design traits that sometimes fall just the wrong side of juvenile. The entrance is presented as a turnstile, which you have to put a valid ticket through to enter, and perhaps most bizarrely, one of the shortcuts between trials takes the form of a theme park styled log flume. I was half expecting a staff member to be selling them a photo at the end of it. Pop culture references are also thrown about liberally, regardless of if they really fit the scenario, with mentions of The Avengers and Saving Private Ryan drawing more of a grimace than the desired laugh. However even those pale in comparison to the more blatantly preachy elements of the script, such as a line Ji-hoon is lumbered with when discussing examples of ‘indirect murder’, which has him declare “So don’t post mean comments online hastily.” Ok, we won’t!

While some elements of AWTG:TTW are decidedly Korean, such as the whole finale revolving around the trail of filial piety, a notion deep rooted in the countries Confucian society, the message it delivers is a universal one. Similarly the frequent onscreen text, telling us which realm is currently being trudged through, provide plenty of cultural pointers. The text can also never be accused of being dull, with references to the likes of Murder Hell and the Mirror of Karma ensuring a suitably dramatic tone. While neither the text nor visuals are able to completely immerse the viewer in the world being portrayed, it’s also worth noting that there are no glaring moments of poorly rendered green screen. The issue is more rooted in the fact it’s never clearly established how the quartet are travelling from realm to realm, they just kind of arrive there once the previous trial is done with.

Despite these less than subtle elements of AWTG:TTW, at almost 140 minutes long, at some point the unabashed heart on its sleeve nature of it all gets under your skin. Amongst the colourful visuals and elaborate costume design, there’s a story which keeps a few surprisingly dark revelations up its sleeve. With an opening scene which has Tae-hyun’s fireman smashing through a high level window of an ablaze building, sheltering a child in his arms, the time he spends plummeting through the air is literally all we see of him alive. His honourable death grants him plenty of goodwill with the guardians, who feel assured his journey through the trials should be a painless one, and considering we’re 2 trials down before the half hour mark, initially it seems they may be right. But as the plot progresses, so details of his life slowly begin to reveal a more tragic fate.

The appearance of a vengeful spirit from the world of the living puts a significant spanner in the works for Tae-hyun having a smooth journey, and it’s this revelation which comes to play a crucial part in keeping AWTG:TTW an engaging experience, rather than the trials themselves. Similar to the world skewering of Inception, whatever havoc the spirit wreaks in the land of the living has a ripple effect in the afterlife, resulting in our quartet being forced to outrun avalanches, or fend off legions of hell ghouls. The latter allows for some eye catching fantasy action sequences, as Jung-woo gets to unleash with a glowing sword, and Ji-hoon wields two oversized blades, which have the ability to connect and form a double bladed staff. My favorite action sequences though belonged to Jung-woo’s perusal of the spirit in the real world, which have him flying through the Seoul cityscape, sword in hand, as the spirit utilises power lines to travel at incredible speeds.

Another element that works in AWTG:TTW’s favour is its all-star cast. For fans of Korean cinema, the sheer amount of talent in front of the camera makes for enjoyable viewing. From Oh Dal-soo (Tunnel) and Im Won-hee (The Advocate: A Missing Body), who play a pair of judges in the afterlife, to the likes of Kim Su-an (Coin Locker Girl), Kim Hae-sook (The Handmaiden), Lee Kyung-yung (The Prison), Kim Ha-neul (Misbehavior), and Lee Jung-jae (Assassination), all of whom play various Gods. It could be argued that there’s never been a more fitting production for Jung-jae to showcase his booming voice than this one, in which he plays the King of the Underworld. Even actors like Yoo Joon-sang (The Target) and Ma Dong-seok (Train to Busan) show up as cameo appearances, the latter of whom promises to have a significantly larger role in the second instalment.

AWTG:TTW wraps proceedings up surprisingly neatly considering we know another round is on the way. Far from ending on a dramatic cliff-hanger, Tae-hyun’s journey appears to come to its conclusion, implying that whatever is coming next will turn its focus to a different character. While Yong-hwa is painting with incredibly broad brushstrokes in AWTG:TTW, both literally onscreen and with its tonal shifts, the ‘something for everyone’ appeal it’s clearly aiming for is largely achieved. While the more serious filmgoer will rightfully turn their nose up at such an approach to filmmaking, as a commercial blockbuster credit can be given for striking that precarious balance of knowing when to dial it up, and when to reign it in. As for the question of if I had to reach for that box of tissues, well, as the expression goes – some questions are best left unanswered.

Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 7/10

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

Boy Who Came Back, The (1958) Review

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Kelly Warner
"The Boy Who Came Back" Japanese Theatrical Poster

“The Boy Who Came Back” Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: Seijun Suzuki
Cast: Sachiko Hidari, Akira Kobayashi, Ruriko Asaoka, Toru Abe, Makiko Aoi, Akemi Ebata, Shoki Fukae, Ayako Fukuda, Akinori Hanamura, Ikuhiro Hashiguchi,Eiko Higashitani, Kaoru Higuchi, Akira Hisamatsu, Kyoko Hori
Running Time: 99 min.

By Kelly Warner

Famed director Seijun Suzuki was fond of saying that his films “made no sense and made no money” and indeed we know him best for the bizarre action movies that led to his fractured relationship with his home studio, Nikkatsu. Today, the movies that made no sense/no money are revered as cult classics and have made him a celebrated filmmaker all across the world. But in the early years of his career, Suzuki was viewed by Nikkatsu as one of the studio’s brightest young filmmakers. Those early movies have never been available on home video outside of Japan until now. This month, Arrow Video begins releasing the first volume (in what this reviewer hopes is a long line) of Suzuki’s early films in a new deluxe box set. The volumes appear to be separated by theme, with Vol. 1 being ‘Youth Movies’ and the upcoming Vol. 2 being a few of the earliest examples of Suzuki’s ‘Borderless Action’ movies.

The first of these ‘Youth Movies’ is the 1958 romantic crime drama The Boy Who Came Back (aka The Spring That Didn’t Come or Spring Never Came). Suzuki had only graduated from assistant director to director just two years before and already he had a pretty sizable portfolio of films to his name. The Boy Who Came Back would be only one of four Suzuki films released in 1958, showing Nikkatsu was already putting a heavy workload of B-movie projects on the young director’s schedule. And perhaps it was because Suzuki was still young and trying to prove himself, or maybe because he did not yet think he’d been wronged by the studio bosses, but The Boy Who Came Back is lacking in the rebellious, weirdo spirit we tend to see when we watch a Suzuki film.

In the movie, Akira Kobayashi (The Rambling Guitarist) plays Nobuo, a delinquent hood who is just getting out of reform school after a two year stint for violence (it’s his second stint at reform school after previously being sentenced for attempting to strangle his father). A new volunteer program called BBS (Big Brothers & Sisters) is set up to help troubled youth like Nobuo return to society once they’re on the outside. Sachiko Hidari (The Insect Woman) plays Keiko, a new volunteer at BBS, who is given Nobuo’s case file as her first assignment. Nobuo doesn’t make it easy for her; he’s rude, he’s prone to sudden violence, and he has a dangerous mix of pride and low self-worth. Despite this, Keiko pulls out all the stops in order to help Nobuo along, including getting him a job and reintroducing him to his mother, but the thing that seems to be really holding him back is a difficult romance with the girl he left behind.

Ruriko Asaoka (Tokyo Mighty Guy) plays Kazue, the girl who once owned Nobuo’s heart but now remains distant from him since he went away. Keiko has to resort to some trickery to get the two reunited, because she really does care about seeing Nobuo happy. But in doing so, she comes to realize that maybe she feels more deeply for the troubled young man than she is supposed to, igniting a (one-sided?) love triangle romance. All throughout this, Nobuo is tempted to return to a life of crime and violence. His old nemesis, the young gangster/wannabe yakuza Kajita (Jo Shishido, Branded to Kill) makes matters worse by targeting Kazue and putting Nobuo in a precarious position.

The film plays like a troubled youth take on the themes seen in Akira Kurosawa’s 1948 film Drunken Angel, which saw a drunken doctor played by Takashi Shimura trying to save the life of the self-destructive yakuza played by Toshiro Mifune. And like that film, Suzuki also depicts the yakuza in a bad light here, with Jo Shishido’s Kajita dressing in suits way too large for his frame and looking like a joke for most the movie.

Though I found the characters well written, I cannot say I thought much of Akira Kobayashi’s performance – he’d become a better actor as the years went on. The leading ladies are more impressive, with Sachiko Hidari in particular delivering a great dramatic performance. Her character’s conflicts are the most interesting in the film, as she has to deal with the difficult Nobuo and a volunteer program that her friends and family don’t believe in (“What’s BBS?” one friend asks, “Brigitte Bardot Style?”). She evokes so much emotion with her face alone. It’s one of my favorite roles from the celebrated actress.

Teen melodrama Suzuki is not my favorite Suzuki but I must say that this is a well-made film. When thinking about the film afterwards, I realized I felt disappointed it had not been wilder somehow, but that if it had been directed by any other filmmaker I likely wouldn’t have felt that way. Suzuki comes with certain expectations, but at this point in the director’s career he was still coming into his own as an artist. The Boy Who Came Back is an actor’s movie most of all, and Suzuki gives his actors plenty of opportunities to show their stuff. Come at it expecting a different sort of film from the Suzuki norm and you shouldn’t be disappointed. (As for the new Blu-ray, it looks really good for an obscure 60-year-old film. There are maybe three moments that looked like damaged frames of film, but otherwise it’s almost remarkably clean.)

Kelly Warner’s Rating: 7/10

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

Mapado – The Ultimate Feel Good Lottery Movie

Posted on February 8, 2018 by JJ Bona

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll notice that there is an increased fascination with everything Asian. Whether it’s music, TV drama or other forms of entertainment, South Korean pop culture in particular has captured the imagination of the Western world and, as a result, we’re seeing more and more Korean movies playing in our theaters. While they are well known for their gripping action movies, the Koreans are also pretty good when it comes to oddball comedy and Mapado is a perfect blend of slapstick, action, and feel good humor, which is bound to provide you with a couple of hours of entertainment when you’re stuck for something to watch.

Synopsis

After a young woman steals their lottery ticket worth around $16m, gangster Jae-choel and bent cop Chung-su find themselves on the remote island of Mapado. What they’re not aware of, however, is the fact that the only inhabitants of the island are five elderly women who haven’t come across a man in over 20 years.

Source: Pexels

Source: Pexels

As you can imagine, the women can’t believe their luck and, as a result, the two men have to negotiate a cattle market-type environment while still trying to track the young woman who’s in possession of their small fortune. As if things couldn’t get any worse for Chung-su and Jae-choel, the boat off the island is a week away and so the situation becomes more about whether they’ll lose their minds rather than whether they’ll find their lottery ticket.

So… is it any good?

As you can probably gauge from the premise, this isn’t your typical rags to riches lottery winning movie. The fact that the island of Mapado is solely inhabited by a group of fairly unfriendly grannies means that you’re never too far away from innuendo and amusing antics. While the concept sounds fairly unbelievable, it pales in comparison to some of the things that have happened to a lucky lottery winner in the past.

According to the real-life gaming site, Lottoland, Nova Scotia resident Peter McCathie has both won the lottery AND been struck by lightning. With the odds of this happening around 1.26 trillion to one, the island of Mapado doesn’t seem all that farfetched after all. Nevertheless, the story does somehow work and the five grumpy women really do become the stars of the show by livening up every single scene they’re in.

Of course, with no real plot to speak of, this kind of movies can become predictable after a while. However, there are a few scenes which make good use of the beautiful scenery and, with thought-provoking lines such as “Everyone has a story to tell” and “This is life”, it’s easy to break out into a pleasant smile and appreciate that you’re watching a feel-good comedy that certainly ticks all the right boxes in terms of entertainment.

You Could Do Much Worse!

While the movie certainly won’t ever win any awards to speak of, it did prove to be a huge success in Korea and sat atop the box-office charts for three consecutive weeks. If you’re looking for a movie which doesn’t require much concentration and yet can make you both laugh and cringe in equal measure, then there’s no doubt that Mapado should be on your watch list. We just sincerely hope that the island of Mapado really is a figment of someone’s imagination and not a real place.

Posted in News |

Solo (1996) Review

Posted on February 7, 2018 by Kelly Warner
"Solo" Theatrical Poster

“Solo” Theatrical Poster

Director: Norberto Barba
Cast: Mario Van Peebles, William Sadler, Adrien Brody, Barry Corbin, Demian Bichir, Jaime Gomez, Seidy Lopez, Abraham Verduzco, Joaquín Garrido
Running Time: 94 min.

By Kyle Warner

Browsing for the new movie to watch in your free time used to be different. I mean, obviously. We’re swamped with choices now, with thousands available to stream at the touch of a button. And it’s awesome, it really is. But I must admit I miss the days of aimlessly browsing the aisles of Blockbuster (RIP), picking up the box of a movie I’ve never heard of before, and making decisions based entirely on cast listings, cool art, and blurbs alone. Our decision to watch/not watch a movie today is often an informed decision based on the streaming website’s average rating for a title, websites dedicated to film reviews, and social media word of mouth. As such, I think we have fewer ‘happy accidents’ when we pick an unknown movie and have it become a new favorite. I bring this up, because I can still remember films that I made mental notes of wanting to see one day based on Blockbuster browsing, but upon remembering those films in the internet age I realize that I might’ve dodged a bullet by picking a different movie on that particular Blockbuster visit. 1996’s Solo is one such movie, a sci-fi action flick starring Mario Van Peebles as a cyborg soldier being hunted in the jungle.

The art is simple but effective; tough guy holding a pistol just so with foliage over one half his face and techno chip art over the other. The tagline: “Part Man, Part Machine, Total Weapon.” Dude. That’s like, purpose-made for a young American male. Of course, being older now, I’m pickier about what qualifies as entertainment, so the numerous negative Solo reviews have put it on the backburner for a while. However, I was reminded of it again with the upcoming (unrelated!) Star Wars film Solo coming soon to theatres, so I decided to bite the bullet and hit play (I watched it via on-demand streaming, of all things. It all comes circling back around).

Solo, the character at the center of the film, is combination of man and machine. Solo the movie is also a combination of sorts. There is a lot of Terminator and Predator in this movie. (Solo also resembles Universal Soldier. However, Solo is based on a 1989 novel titled Weapon, which came out before Universal Soldier hit theatres in 92, so comparing it to the JCVD/Lundgren film may be unfair.) This is one incredibly unoriginal film. Thing is, a copycat can still be entertaining. And Solo starts off decent enough.

Mario Van Peebles (New Jack City) plays Solo as a detached, logic driven ultimate soldier. He is presented to US military leaders as the perfect weapon and a disposable killing machine. Solo is sent on mission to topple a warlord (Demian Bichir, Machete Kills) who threatens a South American government friendly to the US. Solo is prepping bombs around the warlord’s camp, marking enemy soldiers with advanced tech that reminds us both of Predator and of videogames of today. It’s when he begins mark civilians that Solo has a crisis of conscience and pulls the plug on the operation, believing it goes against his mission protocol. William Sadler (Die Hard 2) — playing one of the cheesiest military villains of all time — orders the bombs to explode anyway, despite the risk to civilians and Solo. With the mission a wash, Solo is recalled and his creator (Adrien Brody, Dragon Blade) is commanded to explain why the cyborg didn’t follow orders. What Solo saw as a contradiction of mission protocol the military sees as proof that the machine is developing a conscience. He is to be wiped and reprogrammed. When Solo catches wind of this, he sees it as a threat, and steals a helicopter to escape from his military masters.

That’s a strong start. It’s nothing especially new, but the action and the implications of where it could go next are promising enough. From there, however, things start to bog down. Solo crashes his helicopter in the jungle, where he is recovered by the very civilians he failed his mission to save. Solo, close to the end of his battery life, becomes a hero for the oppressed people as the warlord threatens their village once again. Meanwhile, William Sadler’s crazy colonel is still hunting Solo, and is willing to disobey orders to bring the machine in alive. That sounds like an entertaining set up for a movie. At the very least, you wouldn’t expect it to be boring. And yet, Solo finds a way. At the half-way point, the movie becomes a complete bore. He helps the underdogs fight back against warlords in a battle reminiscent of the Ewoks attacking the Empire, complete with logs on ropes. It should not be boring. But it is.

Imagine Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Data in his own action movie and then take away all the heart, humor, and deep questions and you have a pretty good idea of what kind of movie Solo is. It repeats all the ‘what is laughter?’ ‘why do humans lie?’ ‘why would you put yourself in harm’s way for another person?’ horseshit that we’ve seen done better a hundred times before in other sci-fi. Solo seems like a story made for asking the question about a disposable fighting force but it never goes there. There would seem to be some interest in talking about how American conflicts impact Native peoples in underdeveloped regions, but that’s probably just me looking for purpose. Truth is, I don’t think Solo has anything going on in that artificial brain. It’s a cheesy action movie made with borrowed parts and is probably best enjoyed drunk and with friends willing to laugh at all the bad dialogue.

The movie makes some attempts to humanize Solo by making him interested in spiders and insects. He admires their design. He hangs out with tarantulas and puts drawings of bugs all over his room. But this interest must’ve been a passing phase because it goes away around the second act. It’s just another example of how undercooked the movie is.

However, the insect stuff does at least give us one weird line of dialogue as William Sadler remarks, “’Welcome to the jungle,’ said the spider to the fly.” I laughed. Actually, there’s a lot of unintentionally funny dialogue (“Droids don’t bluff!” shouted with complete seriousness is another winner) but I was too bored to get much joy out of it. One peculiar line has the cyborg creator played by Adrien Brody complaining, “I should’ve stayed in college,” which only begs the question, how or why is a billion-dollar Pentagon science experiment being operated by a college dropout? (In all fairness, there is one line which I did like. Solo is explaining that his brain resides in his chest. He is asked, “What about your heart?” He says he doesn’t have one. Only living things have a heart. To which the other person points out that he is a living thing. And Solo simply remarks, “No. I exist.” I mean, it’s not like, whoa. But it’s not bad.)

I wish I could say something good about the action sequences, but it would go against my programming. Though Mario Van Peebles makes for a capable hero lead, the action editing is scattershot. Solo drops upside down from a tree branch to crack a guy’s neck, then we cut and he’s throwing a tree, and then cut to bullets flying his way as he runs. One amazing moment has the dude doing some Olympic gymnastics to avoid getting hit by explosive rounds.

Only Mario Van Peebles and Adrien Brody get away from the movie not embarrassing themselves (I felt bad for Sadler). Mario Van Peebles shows that maybe he should’ve been given more opportunities as an action hero leading man with better material. And though Brody’s character is not well written either, the young actor does show a good bit of range in this early role.

Solo is, sad to say, best left remembered as the movie you put back on the Blockbuster shelf when you decided to rent The Terminator for the fifth time instead. It’s too silly, cheap, and dull to stand on its own next to similar (and better) movies.

Kyle Warner’s Rating: 3/10

Posted in All, News, Other Movies, Reviews |

An Accident Waiting to Happen: COF Speaks to Scott Adkins

Posted on February 6, 2018 by Paul Bramhall

Scott Adkins interview accident manScott Adkins is a name that likely needs no introduction to fans of action cinema. After getting his start in Hong Kong featuring alongside the likes of Jackie Chan and Stephen Tung Wai, Adkins really found his footing once he collaborated with director Isaac Florentine on Special Forces in 2003. It was a partnership which led to him taking on the iconic character of Uri Boyka, in the 2006 unrelated sequel Undisputed 2: Last Man Standing, a character which for many of his fans has become inseparable from the man himself. While those same fans are constantly clamoring for more Boyka action (and got some, in both 2010 and 2016), the British star has always harbored a desire to bring one of his favorite comic books, Accident Man, to the screen, and in 2018 he fulfils his wish, headlining Jesse V. Johnson’s movie of the same name.

In January we had the chance to briefly catch up with Adkins over the phone to discuss his latest project. While these press junkets are always frustratingly short, Adkins was as amiable as ever, and provided plenty of insight into both his own career and tales from the set of Accident Man. Next time we’ll hopefully be able to offer up a full-length interview, but for now, enjoy our chat below –

"Accident Man" Blu-ray Cover

“Accident Man” Blu-ray Cover

Paul Bramhall: Hi Scott, first of all thanks for taking the time out to chat with COF, are you still in China at the moment?

Scott Adkins: Hi Paul, well let me thank you for your review of Accident Man as well, it’s great to see that you enjoyed it. Yes, I’m still in China and currently working on a new movie called Twilight Zodiac with Ernie Barbarash and Andy On, which should be a good one. I’m actually carrying a few injuries at the moment, but am working through them and looking forward to seeing what we can put together.

PB: An aspect of your career trajectory which has always interested me is that, if we look at many other ‘gweilo’ stars that started off in Hong Kong, such as Cynthia Rothrock and Loren Avendon, once they returned to western shores their output never really matched what they did in Asia. For yourself though, it’s been the opposite, with your work in the likes of the Undisputed and Ninja series far surpassing the roles you took in movies like The Accidental Spy, Extreme Challenge, and Black Mask 2. What are your own thoughts around this?

Scott Adkins with Yuen Woo Ping and Andy On in Black Mask 2: City of Masks.

Scott Adkins with Yuen Woo Ping and Andy On in Black Mask 2: City of Masks.

SA: It’s an interesting point you make, and to a degree I think timing plays a part in it, but for myself personally I’d say it comes down to me being a student of the craft. My time working in Hong Kong offered many opportunities to learn from the best, working alongside Stephen Tung Wai, Jackie Chan, and Yuen Wo Ping, so I’d always be studying how they would create the choreography and film it, what made it work. I brought that back when I left Hong Kong, and have always looked to incorporate those learnings into whatever movie I’m working on, alongside the action choreographer.

The difference from the 80’s is that the level of choreography on show in the US was nowhere near that of what was going on in Hong Kong, which was the home of top level action cinema, and to a large degree still is, so even if you had the moves, there wouldn’t be choreographers on the same level to utilize them. I feel that now America has really caught up, sure, the Bourne movies put fight action several steps back with the dreaded shaky cam, but if we look at action cinema now, there are choreographers working who are on the same level as what’s going on in Hong Kong.

Adkins with director Jesse V. Johnson.

Adkins with director Jesse V. Johnson.

PB: One of the earliest roles you took after leaving Hong Kong was as Nathan in the 2005 movie Pit Fighter, which was directed by Jesse V. Johnson. Now over 10 years later you’ve reunited and are working on a number of movies together – Savage Dog, Accident Man, Triple Threat, and The Debt Collector – what led to you working together again after all these years?

SA: Well myself and Jesse have been trying to work together again for a long time, but he kind of went his direction and did his own thing and I did mine in the intervening years. It was Savage Dog that brought us back together, which came out last year, and while a few things didn’t go according to plan during that production, they weren’t Jesse’s fault and it felt good to work together again. When the opportunity came to make Accident Man, I really wanted it to be a British director so they’d understand the look and feel I wanted to go for, and Jesse, even though he’s living in America now, was the perfect fit.

"The Pay Up" Teaser Poster

“The Debt Collector” Teaser Poster (aka “The Pay Up”)

So now we’re working on a few movies together, next up will be The Debt Collector and Triple Threat. The script for The Debt Collector has been knocking around since 2001, which Jesse wrote himself, so now felt like the right time to make it, and we’ve developed a good working relationship.

PB: Let’s talk about your new movie Accident Man. One of my favorite scenes has you delivering a flying kick to the rider of a motorbike. I remember a similar scene Donnie Yen performs in In the Line of Duty 4, and in the making of it was revealed that the rider was assisted to be pulled off the bike by a wire. In your scene it looks like it’s all you, was it a difficult stunt to perform?

SA: Oh yeah! And that’s interesting about the Donnie Yen movie, I know the scene you’re referring to and I wasn’t aware that the rider was pulled off with a wire, but it makes sense since Yen’s kick approached the bike side on. In Accident Man, I was thinking of the scene with Jackie Chan from Wheels on Meals when he faces off against Blackie Ko and his motorbike gang in the square, and does a similar move.

This was the last scene we filmed, when we’d wrapped up the fight with Tim Man. Being a producer I had more freedom on this movie, so I said “I really want to kick someone off a motorbike”, I just really wanted to do it, and a lot of the crew were wondering how we could make it happen. Thankfully we found a stuntman who could do it, and I hope he forgives me as it was a very busy shoot, but right now his name escapes me, he was a top-class stuntman. These guys don’t get anywhere near enough recognition as they should, and I mean, come on Oscars, when are the stuntmen finally going to get a category which recognizes their talents?

So anyway, we brought the bike in, and everyone was surprised, myself included, at how high the handlebars were. I mean, they were really high! So I had the crew trying to put the fear in me and asking if I could really do it, but it was the very last day of the shoot, so if there was any day to get injured, I guess this would be the best one. I measured it up, and came to the conclusion that yeah, I was confident I could jump the handlebars and wouldn’t find myself mauled in the spokes or something, so we went ahead with it and were able to get it in one take.

"Accident Man" Theatrical Poster

“Accident Man” Theatrical Poster

PB: Good to hear it went off without a hitch, and in terms of the fight scenes, particularly the finale with Amy Johnston, how long did they take on average to film?

SA: Ohhh, I need to remember now, but that took between 2 to 3 days to complete in total. The original fight sequence that we had planned out lasted longer than what we were able to film, but we just couldn’t cover everything we’d choreographed in the time that we had. This is why I always take these opportunities to ask the fans to please not pirate my movies, you know I’d also like to make a sequel to Accident Man just as much as hopefully everyone else will once they check it out, however to do so the movie needs to turn a profit, it’s as simple as that.

Working on the types of movie that I do, you know, I’d love for them to be shown on the cinema, but that’s not where I’m at and that’s the way it is. So the movies go straight to Blu-ray, and if people choose to pirate them instead of buying or renting, then ask when are they going to see more of me in action, it’s not going to happen. If you want to support the independent action movie industry, please do the right thing and pay to see the movies, otherwise they’ll no longer be made, or they’ll be made in a ridiculously tight timeframe.

The Complete Accident Man Cover

The Complete Accident Man Book Cover.

PB: Definitely, and speaking on the business side of things, this was the first time for you to play the role of producer. Did you find it made a difference to the filming experience?

SA: Absolutely, being one of the producers on Accident Man I was lucky in that I could have my say in the sequence we shot the movie. So shoot a fight scene over a couple of days, then a few days dialogue or scenes with other characters, and then shoot another fight scene a few days later. You know on some of these movies, you have 4 weeks to film, and they schedule all the action to be shot over a solid 2 week block. So you have 2 weeks of fighting and 2 weeks of talking, and then they wonder why we get injured or exhausted, I mean come on. That’s why I like to work with directors who understand how to make an action movie.

PB: Great to hear, and with that I can see we’re out of time, so let me wish you well for the rest of your shoot on Twilight Zodiac, and hope there’ll be another chance to catch up in the future.

SA: Thanks Paul, it was a pleasure, and look forward to the next time we have a chance to speak.

Accident Man is now available on Blu-ray and DVD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

Posted in Interviews, News |

Black Panther, by Ryan Coogler, is a milestone movie event

Posted on February 6, 2018 by JJ Bona
"Black Panther" Theatrical Poster

“Black Panther” Theatrical Poster

Black Panther (2018) Review
Director: Ryan Cooler
Producer: Kevin Feige,
Cast: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira, Martin Freeman, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke, Sterling K. Brown
Running Time 135 minutes

By JJ Bona

I am not a fan of superhero movies particularly, even Marvel films, but Black Panther doesn’t feel like either one. It is a daring undertaking that provides a fresh take on the superhero origin story, a narrative that has been done to death.

King T’Challa of Wakanda is played by Chadwick Boseman. His country is a fictional nation in Africa which is housing untold amounts of sci-fi tech, and the King needs to step up and take on the weighty responsibility demanded by his birthright after his father is assassinated.

Rather than constructing a new identity and experimenting with his newfound power, T’Challa’s task is becoming a better ruler than his father was, and changing the direction of Wakanda. This country takes isolationism to an entirely new level, keeping its magical technology and precious metals closely guarded as its borders keep all foreigners out.

The residents of Wakanda would no doubt not even be able to enjoy the kind of fun and relaxation online betting NZ allows, as it is linked to the world outside its borders!

Michael B. Jordan shines particularly in Black Panther’s villain role, and Killmonger, his character must be the greatest bad guy Marvel ever thought up. He is criminally underused, however. Jordan’s magnetism is evident from the moment he first appears, and we understand his anger. He is such a good villain that he steals all the scenes he’s in, and calls attention to how basically boring King T’Challa actually is.

Black Panther is akin to Captain America in that he is as straight as an arrow, and almost unbelievably righteous. He does, however, get humanised by the relationship he shares with his younger sister, Shuri, played wonderfully by Letitia Wright. Their sibling squabbles make the pair very relatable, and this brings the mighty king a little closer to earth. Shuri’s character is very strong and spirited, too, and she is as unforgettable as Killmonger.

Killmonger has the perfect name, and is very, very good at killing. Wakanda unfortunately picks their leaders based on combative talent, and, interestingly, this is why Killmonger makes for such a fascinating character. His challenge to T’Challa isn’t just a physical one, but extends into the realm of philosophy.

Killmonger’s attack on Wakanda highlights that country’s biggest flaws, and strips the illusion of a shiny tech Utopia away at once. The fact that Wakanda is so weak in so many ways is what makes it so real, as well -the striking costume design and breathtaking world-building do the rest. I particularly enjoyed the rituals outlined in the film, along with the very real sense of history related to the Black Panther role. This is a primeval, vital tradition, not a decision that the world needs protecting made on a whim, as is generally the case in superhero stories.

The themes of military intervention, isolationism, and the perils of advanced tech are rather sophisticated for a superhero film, and very appropriate in the here and now we are facing, but never get too heavy. Black Panther is a finely balanced blend of enjoyable adventure and insightful political commentary.

Posted in News |

Gavin O’Connor has created a layered fight film in ‘Warrior’

Posted on February 6, 2018 by JJ Bona
"Warrior" Theatrical Poster

“Warrior” Theatrical Poster

Warrior (2011) Review
Director: Gavin O’Connor
Producers: Gavin and Greg O’Connor
Cast: Joel Edgerton, Tom Hardy, Nick Nolte, Jennifer Morrison, Frank Grillo, Kevin Dunn, Maximiliano Hernandez, Vanessa Martinez, Kurt Angle
Running Time: 140 minutes

By JJ Bona

Warrior is a fight movie that arrives with flawless logic at a climax which involves not one but three main bouts, and the coincidence that provides not one protagonist but two is forgiven. The screenplay makes use of these devices to merge the structure of a rags-to-riches sparring story similar to Rocky with the intense, sometimes sordid drama of a problematic family.

For the first hour there are scenes which establish two brothers separately, Brendan and Tommy Conlon, played by Joel Edgerton and Tom Hardy respectively. Brendan teaches science at a high school, and is married with children. Tommy is a Marine back from serving in the Middle East. They were boxers or wrestlers at high school, trained by their dad, Paddy, Nick Nolte. Now, various circumstances have brought them both independently to the same conclusion. They need to fight to make money.

The online betting NZ has to offer is not an option for them!

Once this premise has been established, it is 100% sure that Brendan is going to meet Tommy in the ring for the championship fight. This accounts for the three final rounds, because each will have to advance through a semifinal.

What I found intriguing about this movie was that there isn’t a favourite. The audience understands and enjoys both of the characters, and so does the film itself. Gavin O’Connor, director and co-writer for the movie, arrives at the stand-off foreshadowed at the film’s start fair and square. Both of the fighters have motives, they have been estranged for a long time after an unhappy childhood incident, and, in many ways, the brothers loathe each other.

When their mom left their alcoholic dad, Tommy went with her to California, where she finally died. Brendan stayed with his father. When we meet Paddy, he is coming up to 1000 days of sobriety and embodies, in only the way Nolte can, the shaggy heroism of a man who is giving getting himself together one more shot.

Tommy has always blamed his dad for abandoning his mom, but things are more complicated than that. Now Tommy returns from the war, with a secret, and asks his dad to train him for the upcoming MMA championship, and neither father nor son knows Brendan is signing up as well. Brendan is facing foreclosure on his house, and winning the purse at a low-level amateur fight has worsened things by getting him fired from his job.

There are subplots to the movie, all enjoyable, and these include Paddy’s, Brendan’s wife’s, played by Jennifer Morrison, and his trainer’s, in a role played by Frank Grillo, and these are intercut with the action scenes. O’Connor may not be shy about exploiting the action, but he makes full use of the force of the characters of the film in order to render that action meaningful.

I liked the movie for a number of reasons, the main one being that, by the end of it, I didn’t want to see either fighter lose. This reaction brings an incredible complexity to the last showdown and I thought nothing could top it -but I was wrong. Highly recommended watching and a film that should get a good review from everyone.

Posted in News |

The classic film of Jake LaMotta’s self-destructive spiral

Posted on February 6, 2018 by JJ Bona
"Raging Bull" Japanese Theatrical Poster

“Raging Bull” Japanese Theatrical Poster

Raging Bull (1980) Review
Director: Martin Scorsese
Producers: Robert Chartoff and Irwin Winkler
Cast: Robert de Niro, Martin Scorsese, Joe Pesci, Cathy Moriarty, Frank Vincent, Theresa Saldana, Nicholas Colasanto, Charles Scorsese, Frank Adonis
Running Time: 129 minutes

By JJ Bona

There can be no questions or even any real discussion regarding how good a movie Raging Bull is -and it is everything you have heard it to be, and more. The contrast of documentary-drab with dreamy black and white shots framed to perfection make for classic Scorsese. The genius dimensions of character, grim and bleak to the bitter end, reducing us to a wreckage, shocked by the sheer depravity that the human spirit is capable of, is all the De Niro we know. And the chocolate velvet of Jake LaMotta’s blood, draining away like so much rainwater, is the story of a boxer we have been waiting for.

Raging Bull is about so much more than boxing! For all the words that have been written on the extraordinary recreation of LaMotta’s most famous fights, which give the movie its rhythm and beat, it is plain to see that Scorsese has no interest in prowess or strategy. In the same way that the horse racing tips NZ has to offer cannot begin to give you the thrills and spills the sport itself does, Raging Bull has a lot more to offer than just an evocation of a great boxer. Pugilism was rendered merely contextual. What brought Scorsese to this movie was the heart of darkness it explores.

The much-lauded Method acting De Niro is so famous for is very much in evidence in Raging Bull. The actor actually entered real fights in order to brush up on his boxing skills, and it took two months for him to swell up, with the Italian actor managing to do so thanks to piles of pasta and mountains of ice-cream. It is in the character’s quietest moments that De Niro’s performance reveals its mastery, allowing us to watch as the threads of self-control loosen to allow for the unavoidable rupture we dread as much as LaMotta actively seeks it.

Raging Bull was a film made during a time when the undiluted block of commercialism was thrusting aside the wide-eyed opportunism of American 1970s cinema. Scorsese witnessed the strain mounting up around him, and this goes a long way towards explaining the unusual tension between spectacle and authenticity, and art and pleasure evident in Raging Bull. As LaMotta pitifully intones in to the sordid reflection of his own face as the film limps to its inevitable ending, So gimme a stage where this bull here can rage. And though I can fight, I’d much rather recite – that’s entertainment.

Raging Bull is entertainment, to be sure, but it is also an exploration of the human condition, and, in my opinion, remains one of the finest films to ever be made. No serious movie fan can rightfully call themselves one without having given this movie at least one screening -preferably more.

Posted in News |

Deal on Fire! Legend of the Black Scorpion | Blu-ray | Only $7 – Expires soon!

Posted on February 6, 2018 by JJ Bona
"Legend of the Black Scorpion" Blu-ray Cover

“Legend of the Black Scorpion” Blu-ray Cover

Today’s Deal on Fire is the Blu-ray for Legend of the Black Scorpion (aka The Banquet), directed by Feng Xiaogang (Aftershock).

Hailed as a cross between Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Tarantino’s Kill Bill, scheming royals and other officials attempt to consolidate power in a empire in chaos.

Legend of the Black Scorpion (read our review) stars Zhang Ziyi (Hero), Ge You (Let the Bullets Fly), Daniel Wu (Sky on Fire) and Zhou Xun (Painted Skin: The Resurrection). It also features fight choreography by Yuen Woo Ping (Dance of the Drunken Mantis).

Order Legend of the Black Scorpion from Amazon.com today! 

Posted in Deals on Fire!, News |

Kickboxers retaliate in the Trailer for Johnson Lu’s ‘Blood Fist’

Posted on February 5, 2018 by JJ Bona
"Blood Fist" Chinese Theatrical Poster

“Blood Fist” Chinese Theatrical Poster

When kickboxing legend Don “The Dragon” Wilson hinted a Bloodfist reboot last month, we didn’t realize we’d get one this quick! Okay, we’re kidding, but like the 1989 Wilson flick, there is some ‘kickboxing’ in this film.

This Blood Fist (note: Two words, not one) is directed by Johnson Lu Zhe-Hao (Let Go of the Girl) and stars Kenny Kwan Chi-Bun (As the Lights Goes Out), Li Mao (The Fatal Mission), Pavarit Mongkolpisit (Operation Mekong), Rachel Liu (Tomb Guardians) and Jason Chung Yat-Hin (Gods Must Be Juicy).

We’re not sure what to make of the film’s plot, but judging from the Trailer below, it takes place in Thailand, involves a martial arts tournament and people are doing bad things. Enjoy!

Posted in News |

A Crouching Tiger, Hidden ‘Cloverfield’ treat from Netflix

Posted on February 4, 2018 by JJ Bona
"The Cloverfield Paradox" Poster

“The Cloverfield Paradox” Poster

You gotta love Netflix. The streaming company made a surprise announcement during Super Bowl LII on February 4th, 2018 that The Cloverfield Paradox (aka Cloverfield 3) would be available on Netflix, immediately after the game.

Official Plot: In the near future, a group of international astronauts on a space station are working to solve a massive energy crisis on Earth. The experimental technology aboard the station has an unexpected result, leaving the team isolated and fighting for their survival.

The Cloverfield Paradox stars David Oyelowo (A Most Violent Year), Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Beyond the Lights), Zhang Ziyi (The Grandmaster, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), Elizabeth Debicki (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2), Daniel Brühl (Rush), and Chris O’Dowd (Bridesmaids).

The Cloverfield Paradox is produced by J. J. Abrams (Cloverfield, 10 Cloverfield Lane) and directed by acclaimed independent/festival filmmaker Julius Onah. Watch the film’s Trailer below:

Posted in News |

RV: Resurrected Victims (2017) Review

Posted on February 4, 2018 by Paul Bramhall
"RV: Resurrected Victims" Theatrical Poster

“RV: Resurrected Victims” Theatrical Poster

Director: Kwak Kyung-Taek
Cast: Kim Rae-Won, Kim Hae-Sook, Sung Dong-Il, Jeon Hye-Jin, Jang Young-Nam, Baek Bong-Ki, Oh Dae-Hwan, Kim Min-Jun, Lee Joon-Hyuk, Lee Ji-Won, Ha-Min 
Running Time: 91 min.

By Paul Bramhall

It’s rare that a movie throws me off-guard before the opening credits have even started, but RV: Resurrected Victims did exactly that. The source of my raised eyebrows came in the form of the production company backing it. Having seen hundreds of Korean movies, there’s a kind of unconscious familiarity with the various logos that pop up onscreen before the opening credits, so when the logo for Story is God graced the screen, something about it stuck out. A few taps later confirmed my instincts – RV: Resurrected Victims was made by a Christian production outfit.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that of course, if we live in a world were Nicolas Cage can star in a Vic Armstrong directed Christian flick (Left Behind), then I guess Kim Rae-won can star in director Kwak Gyeong-taek’s latest as well. My apprehension really came from the perspective of, there’s usually a significant difference between a movie which features Christianity as a theme (Jang Jae-hyon’s The Priests), to a movie which is made by Christians (Yoo Young-jin’s Boss). With that being said though, I’m a guy with an open mind, so I cast my apprehension aside and looked forward to checking out Gyeong-taek’s latest.

As a director Gyeong-taek’s filmography makes for interesting viewing. When your debut becomes one of the classics of the Korean new-wave, with his 2001 semi-autobiographical tale Friend, it understandably makes for a hard act to follow. Indeed in the preceding years his output has failed to recapture the magic that seemed so effortless in Friend, with action misfires like Typhoon, unremarkable thrillers like An Eye for an Eye, and pedestrian procedurals like The Classified File. His frequent attempts to fall back on the success of Friend, first with the TV spin-off series Friend, Our Story in 2009, and then with a direct sequel in 2013 with Friend 2, were also largely considered to miss the mark.

Despite his patchy track record, he remains a busy director, and for RV: Resurrected Victims has Kim Rae-won to headline proceedings, last seen on the big screen in The Prison. Rae-won plays a prosecutor whose mother (played by Park Chan-wook regular Kim Hae-sook) was murdered 7 years ago. Even though the murderer was convicted, Rae-won has always felt it was the wrong guy, and his suspicions are confirmed when, well, when his mother turns up in his living room watching TV. As you’ve likely guessed, she returns as a Resurrected Victim, a global phenomena that doesn’t seem to be generating as much surprise as it should. It’s explained that these RV’s (as they’re referred to) are always murder victims in which the murderer, for whatever reason, managed to escape punishment. So they return, kill (re: murder) the murderer, and then go up in smoke like a vampire.

It’s fair to say that RV: Resurrected Victims comes with an alarming amount of plot holes, and the RV’s themselves are never competently explained. When the intelligence agency is giving a debrief of the phenomena, they show a video of 5 female victims that returned in Macau, all murdered by the same serial killer. The footage shows them tearing apart the killer by apparently eating him alive like an outtake from Dawn of the Dead, however no other RV ever acts like this. In another clip, a young American girl amusingly announces “I came back to make justice. There’ll be more people like me, coming back for the same reason.” However much like the time travel plot device in The Phone, here the concept of murder victims returning to life is basically just a novelty, one used to frame a fairly standard tale of an unpunished death.

To go into every major plot hole would unfortunately involve also giving away several spoilers, not to mention take up the remainder of the review, however the crux of the plot comes down to when Hae-sook sees Rae-won for the first time after her return, she apparently tries to kill him. With the RV behaviour established that they only return to exact divine retribution (re: brutally murder) the one responsible for their own death, suspicions are raised as to why she targets her own son. When it’s revealed he’s the sole inheritor of her life insurance policy, soon an investigator played by Jeon Hye-jin gets on his case, to find out exactly what happened 7 years ago.

For a Korean movie, RV: Resurrected Victims comes with a remarkably short runtime of 85 minutes. However despite this, it feels considerably longer, as Gyeong-taek’s direction is so terminally dull and lifeless that minutes feel like they’re stretched into hours. It was only 30 minutes in when I began to impatiently look at my watch, and the realization that there was still almost an hour to go didn’t exactly fill me with happiness. Not helping matters is that almost everyone involved looks chronically bored. Hae-sook in particular looks embarrassed to be there, and rightly so, while Rae-won looks like he’s slumming it, likely wondering how he could go from starring in a production like Gangnam Blues to something like this.

Then of course, let’s get it out of the way, there’s the Christian element. From the moment Hae-sook’s church group visit her once she returns, excitedly asking if she met Jesus or what heaven was like, you know subtlety is not going to be an option. As the plot progresses crucifixes start frequently appearing in shots, with just enough regularity to make even the most tolerable viewer audibly groan “We get it.” It should be no spoiler to say that, considering how much time the script spends hitting us over the head with the fact RV’s come back to exact their vengeance, the closing scenes of RV: Resurrected Victims present us with an entirely predictable message about forgiveness.

The story itself is based on a novel by Park Ha-ik called It is Over. While I’m not familiar with the source material, one would hope it more clearly defines the logic and narrative around the RV’s better than Geyong-taek adapts for the screen. Perhaps it was due to budgetary constraints that so many important details are glazed over (ultimately the question of why Hae-sook has returned in the first place is never clearly addressed), however RV: Resurrected Victims builds up so many unresolved plot threads it ends up hanging itself with them. This is Gyeong-taek’s first (and hopefully last) foray into the supernatural genre, and it at times feels like we’re watching an extended version of The X-Files, complete with special effects that hark back to late 90’s fare like Blade and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

By the time RV: Resurrected Victims decides to puts its cards on the table, viewers will likely be so numb it’ll be easy to miss that Gyeong-taek has lifted wholesale from Bong Joon-ho’s vastly superior Mother, delivering a twist telegraphed far too early to remain interesting. This is perhaps the biggest issue with Gyeong-taek’s latest, in that it seems to have a belief that it’s interesting, but once you figure out the angle the story is coming from, its direction (including the turns along the way) becomes painfully obvious.

There’s an inescapable feeling throughout RV: Resurrected Victims that everyone involved should be in a far better movie than what it actually is. Constantly dull, endlessly predictable, and frequently nonsensical, the finished product is a mercifully short but uninspired and monotonous mess. In the closing line, we’re told how important it is to realize our own sins and ask to pay the price for them. For Gyeong-taek, hopefully that realization starts with just how much of a misguided effort RV: Resurrected Victims is, and hope he doesn’t repeat it.

Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 2/10

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