Triple Threat: Chuck Norris | DVD (Shout! Factory)
RELEASE DATE: October 10, 2017
Who needs Tony Jaa, Tiger Chen and Iko Uwais when you’ve got Chuck Norris? Shout! Factory presents the DVD for Chuck Norris: Triple Threat, which contains Missing in Action (1984), directed by Joseph Zito (Invasion U.S.A.); Missing in Action II: The Beginning (1985), directed by Lance Hool (Steel Dawn); and Braddock: Missing in Action III (1988), directed by Aaron Norris (The Hitman).
The Missing in Action Trilogy revolves around Colonel Braddock (Norris) and his many adventures in the jungles of Vietnam. Whether it’s rescuing American POWs or saving his wife and son from Vietcong, there’s no stopping this one-man army.
Australian-born, Hong Kong-based filmmaker Antony Szeto (Wushu), who worked with Juju Chan (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny) on both Palace of the Damned and Fist of the Dragon, may be teaming up with the female action star for a third time in Pepper, a thriller written by Janice Eymann (The Farmer).
Chan is currently in negotiations for the title role of “Pepper” in this Chinese-Australian co-production, which producers are hoping to shoot next year.
According to IF, Pepper is the saga of a secret agent who comes to Far North Queensland in search of her missing brother, a fellow agent.
Other Juju Chan projects to look forward to include V-Force: New Dawn of V.I.C.T.O.R.Y. (with Don “The Dragon” Wilson) and Invincible Dragon (with Max Zhang). You can catch her next in Savage Dog(read our review), a soon-to-be released martial arts film starring Scott Adkins.
Cartels | aka Killing Salazar | Blu-ray & DVD (Lionsgate)
Director: Keoni Waxman Cast: Steven Seagal, Georges St. Pierre, Luke Goss, Darren E. Scott, Florin Piersic Jr., Martine Argent, Lauro Chartrand, Bruce Crawford, Claudiu Bleont, Howard Dell, George Ramos, Adina Galupa Running Time: 93 min.
By Paul Bramhall
In Cartels the not-so-dynamic duo of director Keoni Waxman, and his muse Steven Seagal, collaborate once again on one of their countless direct-to-DVD titles. Interestingly Cartels was originally due for release in 2016, however perhaps realising that it would have been the 7th Seagal movie to hit the shelves that particular year, distributor Lionsgate wisely decided to push it back to 2017. Not only did they decide to push the release date back, but they also made the decision to change its title. Originally set to be called Killing Salazar, perhaps sensing that Seagal’s filmography is overly littered with titles that have the word ‘kill’ in them, it was eventually changed to the more simplistic Cartels. That’s fine, with the only detrimental effect being that it ruins the first paragraph of my Contract to Kill review. It’s a legitimate gripe.
Cartels, as if to set expectations from the word go, opens with an abysmally thought out title sequence. After some pretentious onscreen text about how feared Salazar is and the usual mumbo jumbo, the names of the cast play over various characters that appear onscreen. The issue is, for some reason onscreen text also appears mixed in with this sequence, telling us the name of who the character is we’re looking at. The result is, we have a sequence which reads – Martine Argent. U.S. Marshal Tom Jensen. Darren E. Scott. Figuring out which names are the actual actors, and which names are characters in the movie, makes for a fun game, and while it doesn’t take a genius, the fact is that it’s a sloppily constructed sequence.
Soon we’re introduced to Seagal, adorned in his usual orange tinted shades, continuing with his current flavour of the month were he plays a kind of Special Ops agent. I confess part of my enjoyment of watching Seagal movies is waiting for the part in the script when his character (and therefore, himself) will be described as some kind of legendary operative/agent/military man etc. If I could pinpoint it, I’d say it started with Under Siege, when Gary Busey first discovers who Casey Ryback really is, and built to a climatic epiphany of sorts with Michael Caine’s speech in On Deadly Ground. However in 2016 he’s still going strong, and Cartels has Seagal delivering plenty of self-praise. At one point he declares himself as “the guy they should have brought in when sh*t went sideways.” In another he makes a series of unintentionally hilarious clarifications, my favorite of which was “I was not born in night, I was born on a bright f*cking sunny day man.”
For what it’s worth, Seagal spends almost the whole of Cartels sat down. In terms of the energy he exerts, it surprisingly doesn’t feel a whole lot different to the movies where he’s more upwardly mobile. Cartels is structured in such a way that has Seagal interrogating a Major, played by Luke Goss, as the story plays out through flashbacks as to how Salazar managed to escape their grasp. In this regard you can say that Goss is actually the star of the show, and he brings a welcome presence to proceedings in terms of both his physicality, and his charisma. Goss was a member of a boyband in the UK during the 80’s with his twin, Matt Goss, and re-invented himself as an actor during the oughts. While he’s never made the A-list (probably an obvious statement considering he’s in Cartels), he has built an impressive body of work as an action star, with notable roles in the likes of Blade II, Silver Hawk, and Tekken.
The reason behind the interrogation is because Goss and a group of his military colleagues are assigned to transport Salazar, an infamous drug lord, from Romania to the U.S., in which he’ll be the star witness in a trial against various cartels. However they soon find themselves holed up in a hotel, as various enemies of Salazar look to seize their opportunity to take him out for good, all of which leads to his mysterious disappearance. Events lead to Goss being separated from the rest of the group, which gives proceedings a kind of ‘Die Hard in Romania’ vibe, and his separation results in suspicions being raised into how much he actually knows about what went down. This is the sideways sh*t that Seagal was referring to, and is why he’s brought in.
As per so many of Seagal’s direct-to-DVD movies, Cartels is shot on location in Romania. At this point in his career you could probably take the majority of his post-2000 work, and make a tourist video for Eastern Europe out of them. Cartels fits in nicely with this theory, as while the majority of shots focus on the World Trade Center signage on top of the hotel they’re holed up in, one shot (I’m sure unintentionally) allows us to see that it is in fact the Bucharest branch of the Pullman Hotels chain. Salazar himself is played by Romanian actor Florin Piersic Jr., and he does a good job of hamming up his role as the drug lord everyone has to reluctantly protect, laying on a thick Russian accent. The real villain of the piece though comes in the form of former UFC star George St-Pierre, and after minor appearances in the likes of Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Kickboxer: Vengeance, Cartels provides him with a decent amount of screen time.
Admittedly all he has to do is look intimidating and pull off some of his trademark MMA moves, but he brings a level of intensity to the role that, potentially, indicates he could well make a worthy transition to the world of filmmaking. The rest of the cast bring an equal amount of action talent to the table, consisting almost entirely of stuntmen or martial artists. The leader of the military unit assigned to protect Salazar is played by Darren E. Scott, a black belt in Goju-Ryu Karate who can also be seen facing off against Philip Ng in Birth of the Dragon. He’s joined by the likes of Lauro Chartrand, who aside from acting as the movies action coordinator, also directed the Seagal vehicle Driven to Kill. Other roles are filled by such respected members of the stunt community as Bruce Crawford, Howard Dell, and Sharlene Royer.
No doubt because of the involvement of such experienced professionals, and a lack of Seagal, the action in Cartels is surprisingly enjoyable. It doesn’t break any new ground, but for a direct-to-DVD U.S. production, there’s certainly a lot worse out there. Apart from some worthy pyrotechnics, we also get Goss facing off against a pair of motorbike riding assailants, and a one-on-one against Howard Dell (that pays its dues to The Raid 2’s Hammer Girl), plus Darren E. Scott also gets a one-on-one against St-Pierre. For those that like their dose of butt kicking females, Martine Argent and Sharlene Royer also have a chance to go at it, which deserves special mention for the fact it quickly becomes apparent Argent forgot to use an antiperspirant that morning. However sure enough, Seagal comes dawdling in for the finale, and naturally gets his own one-on-one against St-Pierre.
As per standard for Seagal’s recent fight scenes, he just kind of stands there, and is able to throw St-Pierre everywhere by doing little more than uncomfortably shuffling on the spot. The fight is unique in that St-Pierre does actually get a few licks in, a rare sight hardly seen since Seagal received a double nose bleed in The Glimmer Man. Although technically, the person that St-Pierre hits is actually Seagal’s double, visibly slimmer and filmed from the back. I have a theory that Seagal was probably kept in the dark regarding the fact his character was going to take a hit, so I daresay the scenes with the double were probably filmed without him knowing. Because heaven forbid the idea that someone is able to penetrate the man’s mighty girth and get a punch in.
With a lean 90 minutes runtime, Cartels certainly doesn’t outstay its welcome, and the closing scene even throws in a twist, which in a smart piece of scriptwriting gives significance to a throwaway line that’s spoken earlier. It’s also a twist which could potentially mean we get a Cartels 2, so let’s see if it emerges from the 20 or so movies Seagal will likely release over the next few years. As it stands though, while fans of Seagal may not appreciate his supporting role, he’s still around enough to deliver all his usual trademarks – the self-glorification, the ability to speak every language under the sun with no explanation, and incomprehensibly edited fight scenes. For everyone else, Cartels is a modestly budgeted action flick starring Luke Goss and George St-Pierre, one that happens to also be modestly entertaining for most of the right reasons.
Filipino martial arts instructor Dan Inosanto, who is perhaps best known for being the protege of Bruce Lee, will be the subject of an upcoming biopic that’s currently in development.
The untitled film will be based on a story by Jeremy Gough. Mark Gordon (Murder on the Orient Express) and Matt Jackson (End of Watch) will produce along with Diana Lee Inosanto (The Sensei), Inosanto’s daughter and Lee’s goddaughter.
Although the movie will most likely document Inosanto’s rise to being one of the highest authoritative figures in Jeet Kune Do and various styles of Filipino martial arts, the story will also spotlight his lesser-known successes. As THR reports, “In the mid-1970s, a conditioning coach named Dr. Bob Ward created a stealth program that involved then up-and-coming linesman Randy White, with Inosanto being the key ingredient in the training. Inosanto’s involvement is said to have been key to the Cowboys’ success on the road to the Super Bowl.”
In addition to his affiliation/training with Lee, Inosanto starred alongside Lee in 1972’s Game of Death (due to Lee’s untimely death, the film was completed in 1978 using body doubles for Lee). Other notable film appearances include The Chinese Stuntman (with Bruce Li), Out for Justice (with Steven Seagal), and David Mamet’s highly underrated Redbelt.
We’ll keep you posted on this story as more news arrives. Until then, here’s a scene from The Chinese Stuntman, featuring Insosanto, Bruce Li and the late John Ladalski:
Writer/director Lee Jung-Sub, the filmmaker perhaps best known for co-writing Romantic Island and Perfect Couple, is opening his directorial debut with a bang in Real(read our review), an upcoming neo noirish actioner starring Kim Soo-hyun (The Thieves).
Real is the story about a colorful city controlled by the underworld, where a troubleshooter, Jang Tae-yeong (Kim), who is good at dealing with “dark business,” solves all requests, but things change for him after he meets a former detective reporter (via WP).
L.O.R.D: Legend of Ravaging Dynasties | DVD (Lionsgate)
RELEASE DATE: September 26, 2017
On September 26th, 2017, Lionsgate Home Entertainment is releasing L.O.R.D: Legend of Ravaging Dynasties on DVD, Digital HD and On Demand.
From the visual effects team behind James Cameron’s Avatar and Warcraft, this computer-animated, motion-capture, action-adventure odyssey “stars” Kris Wu (xXx: Return of Xander Cage) and Fan Bingbing (League of Gods) as sorcerers battling an evil traitor in order to restore peace to the kingdom.
Supernatural warriors clash with dark forces of evil in this electrifying fantasy-adventure. In a distant time, seven lords who wield powers beyond imagination share dominion over a world. But when one lord falls from grace, the others summon all their magic to stop an epic war that is ravaging the land — and threatening the order of the universe. Based on the fantastic and epic novels by Guo Jingming
L.O.R.D: Legend of Ravaging Dynasties is directed by Guo Jing-Ming (Tiny Times film series) and also “stars” Cheney Chen (The Great Wall), Lin Yun (Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons 2), Yan Yikuan (The White Haired Witch of Lunar Kingdom), William Chan (Overheard), Amber Kuo (Sky on Fire), Yang Mi (Wu Dang) and Aarif Rahman (Kung Fu Yoga). Note: Lionsgate will release the film with an English (dubbed) track only.
Director: Jesse V. Johnson Writer: Jesse V. Johnson Cast: Scott Adkins, Marko Zaror, Cung Le, JuJu Chan, Vladimir Kulich, Keith David, Charles Fathy, Matthew Marsden, Sheena Chou, Luke Massy, Aki Aleong Runnning Time: 94 min.
By Paul Bramhall
The transition from stuntman to director should, by nature, not be an easy one. However recently guys like Chad Stahelski and David Leitch, the pair of stuntmen turned directors behind John Wick, have been making it seem like a walk in the park. One name who many may not be familiar with though, but has been treading the path of being a stuntman, writer, and director for close to 20 years, is Jesse V. Johnson. The talent that Johnson has worked with over the last 10 years is enough to make any Expendables casting agent envious, with the likes of Mark Dacascos, Don ‘The Dragon’ Wilson, Dolph Lundgren, Darren Shahlavi, Jerry Trimble, and Eric Roberts all featuring in his movies. Despite the names he’s able to attract though, Johnson’s directorial efforts have remained an example of how difficult such a transition is, with movies like The Last Sentinel and Alien Agent largely considered a waste of the talents involved.
In 2017 though Johnson seems to have found a new muse in the form of Scott Adkins. While Adkins forged a hugely successful working relationship with director Isaac Florentine, which saw them work on 7 movies together between 2003 – 2015, in 2017 alone the new pair have already collaborated together on 3 titles. The first one to hit screens is Savage Dog, and at the time of writing Triple Threat and Accident Man are soon to follow. Interestingly Savage Dog is not the first time Johnson and Adkins have worked together, with Adkins playing a small part as a fighter in the movie that brought Johnson to people’s attention, with 2005’s Pit Fighter. Here though he’s no longer a bit player, with a starring role alongside fellow martial arts luminaries Marko Zaror, Cung Le, and Juju Chan.
Savage Dog earns points immediately for taking the chance to set an action movie in a period that’s never really been used before within the genre. Taking place in Indochina in 1959, despite the low budget there’s a nice level of period detail on display that gives the visuals an authentic feel. Adkins plays an Irish prisoner being held by a well off Nazi (played by Vladimir Kulich) and his cronies, which include a sharp suited Marko Zaror, and military man Cung Le. They run an illegal fighting tournament, however when the British government come looking for Adkins to extradite him, Kulich decides to set him free so as not to bring any unnecessary trouble. Adkins doesn’t enjoy his freedom for long though, as Kulich and his crew soon set their sights on acquiring a bar he’s taken a job at. The bar is run by Keith David (yes, Childs from The Thing) and Juju Chan, and the acquisition leads to tragic consequences that see budding lovers Adkins and Chan left for dead.
While the plot of Savage Dog has plenty of potential for intrigue, mystery, and even romance, with his 10th feature length production Johnson unfortunately still hasn’t learnt anything about building up dramatic tension. Important plot points that should have a huge bearing on the events that unfold, such as Juju Chan being revealed to be the daughter of the Nazi, are delivered in a frustratingly clunky manner with zero tension. The whole movie is also distractingly narrated by Keith David, being told in retrospect from beyond the grave of all places, when the plot would have benefitted more from allowing the visuals and actors to tell the story. Instead, the narration frequently delves into pretentiousness, ranging from stating the obvious (when Adkins sneaks into an enemy base, David tells us he’s sneaking in because it’s better than walking in the front door), to channelling Richard Crenna’s colonel from the Rambo movies.
The direction remains painfully pedestrian during this setup, often teetering into boredom, and is only broken up by sub-par 90’s Van Damme style fight scenes, that see Adkins being coerced into bare knuckle matches for Kulich and co.’s entertainment. Much like in Hard Target 2, the fighters Adkins goes up against in these matches are the real deal, from kickboxing champions like Dennis Keiffer, to Muay Thai fighters like Kaden Vu, however the fights themselves lack any kind of thrill factor to pull the audience in. The over reliance on slow motion also detracts from the impact, and again reflects a painfully 90’s aesthetic towards the action, reflecting an era when it was acceptable to have every flying kick take place in slow motion. In 2017 though, we’ve seen it too many times before.
After such a rocky start, at precisely half way through, the tone takes a surprising 180 degree turn, and having been left for dead, Adkins rises up to seek his revenge with an angry looking beard. After 45 minutes of Hallmark TV movie of the week styled plotting, the last 45 minutes of Savage Dog become an ultra-violent blood soaked revenge flick, which almost makes most of what came before seem like another movie. From the moment Adkins strolls up to the bar he used to work at, and proceeds to hack the head off of the guard on the door with a machete, you know that a certain something just got real. For the remainder of the runtime Savage Dog doesn’t let up, as Adkins becomes a one-man army with a machete, shotgun, and a string of grenades for company. For fans that wanted another Rambo movie, this should be the place to check in.
The second half of Savage Dog is a joy to behold, and sees Adkins go on his most entertainingly violent one-man rampage since the finale of Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning. The brutality (or should that be ‘savageness’?) of it is fantastic fun to watch, admittedly perhaps enhanced due to the dullness of the first half, however when you have Adkins shooting people point blank in the face with a shotgun, and hacking off limbs left, right, and center, what’s not to enjoy? Adkins is in his element here, because as much as I find him a decent actor (his Irish accent is on the money), like a 90’s era Donnie Yen I find him most enjoyable when he’s in angry mode. That’s what makes Ninja: Shadow of a Tear such a masterpiece, as he’s basically angry for 95% of the runtime, but thankfully in Savage Dog 50% is equally as entertaining.
Frequent Johnson collaborator Luke LaFontaine is on fight choreography duty, a veteran stuntman who also choreographed Johnson’s The Last Sentinel and Alien Agent, and in the latter half of Savage Dog he restrains Adkins in the fight department to great effect. Instead we’re treated to a barrage of Commando level gunplay, with Adkins having countless pistol wielding legionnaires dispatched against him, as well as a pair of semi-mounted machine guns. Savage Dog may well hold the record for the number of bullets that can be fired at someone without them getting hit, but far from being a detriment, the excessive nature of it all means it’s never anything less than entertaining to watch. Such a setup also means that, when he suddenly finds himself alone in a room with Cung Le, the fight that follows has the desired impact.
Indeed for the lack of understanding that Johnson has when handling dramatic material, what can’t be argued is that he knows his stuff when it comes to constructing an action scene, including how to work a level of tension into it. The prospect of an Adkins vs. Le showdown isn’t wasted, and the pair go furiously at it for a couple of minutes, that sees plenty of collateral damage and some nice falls. Hardcore martial arts fans may take issue with the way the fight ends, however it fits within the context that it’s taking place in, and for those that were waiting to see Adkins let loose, it doesn’t disappoint. However Savage Dog also holds another treat for action fans, and that’s the promise of a rematch of the finale from Undisputed III: Redemption, with Adkins facing off against Marko Zaror outside of the ring this time.
Personally this rematch was one of the elements I was most looking forward to in Savage Dog, while as much as I enjoyed their fight in Undisputed III: Redemption, I confess to not being a fan of ring-set tournament fight flicks. So to see them facing off in a setting such as the one Savage Dog provides was a thrilling prospect. Thankfully the promise delivers, and while the fight is neither as stylistic nor lengthy as their last encounter, there should be little to leave fans unhappy. Beginning with a blade wielding Zaror squaring off against a spanner wielding Adkins, the fight eventually segues into a raw empty handed slug fest, with Adkins finishing things off in a way that takes a leaf, or more specifically, a bite out of Leung Kar Yan’s performance in Thundering Mantis.
While Savage Dog has plenty of negatives against it, and will likely remain unseen by anyone who’s not a fan of either Scott Adkins or Marko Zaror, it does eventually find its way, and once there never deviates from it. Bearing this in mind, and considering its budget, from such a perspective it’s an admirable effort. It’s baffling that an action talent like Juju Chan was cast in a non-action role, and considering what she’s capable of, it would have been nice to see her be something more than just a damsel in distress. If Johnson can just crack how to effectively direct the dramatic material as well as he directs the action, there’s little doubt that Savage Dog would have been an action masterpiece. As it is, the first Johnson and Adkins collaboration remains a rewarding experience for those that stick with it, so for now, here’s hoping both Triple Threat and Accident Man bring us half the fun Savage Dog delivers, but for the whole of their runtime.
Filmmaker Denis Villeneuve (Sicario, Arrival) is currently putting finishing touches on Blade Runner 2049 (aka Blade Runner 2), which has a theatrical release date set for October 6, 2017.
This sequel to Ridley Scott’s ground-breaking 1982 science fiction classic, which will take place some years after the first film concluded, has Harrison Ford returning as Rick Deckard.
Blade Runner 2049 also stars Ryan Gosling (Drive), Dave Bautista (Kickboxer: Vengeance), Robin Wright (State of Grace), Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips), Jared Leto (Suicide Squad) and last, but not least, Edward James Olmos will be reprising his role as Gaff.
Ridley Scott, director of the original, is serving as one of the film’s producers and writers. Hampton Fancher, who also worked on the original, is back on board as screenwriter. Michael Green (Green Lantern) is co-writing.
Warner Brothers latest foray into superhero movies is finally a raging success. Wonder Woman is a reboot of one of the lesser-known, modern-day heroines. The world was reintroduced to Diana, Princess of the Amazons in Batman versus Superman: Dawn of Justice back in 2016. But nothing could have prepared us for her go-it-alone caper in Wonder Woman.
Smart, strong, sexy, and sassy – Diana Prince is everything we’ve come to expect from a superhero. Her gallantry and noble attitude separates her from the rest of us. She fights for the underdog and does so with every ounce of her being. The movie’s production budget was $149 million, and from that, Gal Gadot received just $300,000. But it will do for her what Iron Man did for Robert Downey Jr. and make her a superstar of epic proportions.
A Step Up: Wonder Woman Re-invents Cool
The movie is a sharp contrast from the cheesy-style acting and effects of its predecessors. This Diana is fierce, bold and ready to unleash fury like the best of them. She puts her acting prowess against the rather comical antics of Chris Pine (of Star Trek fame) who is Captain Steve Trevor. Her and her family of God-like protectors are huddled away on an unseen island until a World War I fighter pilot crashes into the ocean. What follows is a search for Aries – the God of War, whom Diana believes is responsible for causing World War I and the immeasurable suffering that is going on.
So, she decides to leave the picturesque and tranquil island of Themyscira to help Steve defeat Aries. Little does she know that what she’s about to encounter is a pervasive evil in society. Our hero will not be deterred from unleashing the full force of her powers. The choreography of fight sequences is breathtaking and Gadot admitted to being bruised and battered while she was filming this epic blockbuster. Overall, the movie created yet another superhero, and is a fitting tribute to the 1975 classic TV series starring Lynda Carter as the inimitable Wonder Woman.
An Entertainment Goddess Comes to Your Screen
The film has spurred a massive secondary industry in figurines and Wonder Woman merchandise. When asked how much the Wonder Woman figurine should cost, Gal Gadot replied – ‘Argh… how much do you think? I dunno.’ Her name and likeness are emblazoned on girls’ toys, clothing, and at arcades around the world. Not surprisingly, the popularity of Wonder Woman has spread far and wide into the online entertainment arena. Video slots games about this dazzling superhero are already available, and players are lapping it up in their droves. A classic example is Wonder Woman Gold slot and Wonder Woman Jackpot slot where players get to push all the right buttons to get Wonder Woman to hit super-sized jackpots. With so much fanfare and hundreds of millions of dollars already racked up, it comes as no surprise that Wonder Woman is the hottest video slot game at casinos around the world.
On September 19, 2017, Well Go USA will release the Blu-ray & DVD for Na Hyeon’s South Korean thriller Prison (read our review), starring Han Suk-Kyu (Tell Me Something) and Kim Rae-Won (Gangnam Blues).
After a fatal accident, Yu-gon, a former police inspector, is sentenced to a prison he once helped fill. Once inside, he discovers the entire penitentiary is no longer controlled by the guards, but by a crime syndicate that breaks out at night, using their prison sentences as the perfect alibi to commit intricate heists. Looking for revenge against the system that placed him inside, Yu-gon joins the syndicate…
Kara Hui (Wu Xia, Mrs K), the martial arts icon famous for appearing in Shaw Brothers films like My Young Auntieand Eight Diagram Pole Fighter, is back in action with Stained, an upcoming Fox mini-series directed by Patrick Kong (72 Tenants of Prosperity).
According to Variety, Stained is filmed entirely in Hong Kong. It features five one-hour episodes each inspired by real-life crimes that happened in the territory over the past five years and which had caused a sensation in the city.
Stained is scheduled to be broadcast globally later this year on SCM, Fox Networks’ Asia-wide Chinese movie channel. It will also be available to subscribers on Fox+. Until then, don’t miss the Trailer for Hui’s latest, Mrs K (read our review):
This creamy, The Cannon Group-filled Blu-ray package contains some of Norris’ best titles of the 80s: 1984’s Missing in Action, 1985’s Missing in Action 2, 1986’s The Delta Force, 1983’s Lone Wolf McQuade and 1985’s Code of Silence.
Works out to be about $7.79 a movie – only thing on earth who can top this deal is Chuck Norris himself!
In Cartels, (read our review), an elite team of DEA agents are assigned to protect a drug lord and take refuge in a luxury hotel while they await extraction. They soon find themselves at the center of an ambush as the drug lord’s former associates launch an explosive assault on the hotel.
Director: Sang-il Lee Cast: Gou Ayano, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Mitsuki Takahata, Hideko Hara, Ken Watanabe, Kenichi Matsuyama, Aoi Miyazaki, Chizuru Ikewaki, Mirai Moriyama, Suzu Hirose Running Time: 142 min.
By Martin Sandison
As I settled down to watch Rage, my second last film of this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival, I had no idea what to expect. Director Sang Il Lee’s previous films I had heard of, but had yet to catch. The film I saw was perhaps all the better for it, as I had no frame of reference for the masterful narrative that unfolded before my eyes. Now I can’t wait to see his other films, especially the remake of Unforgiven, as the original is one of my favourite Westerns. Lee attended the festival, and despite my best efforts I couldn’t secure an interview with him. I did, however, have a chat to him at a party and we discussed our favourite Japanese and Korean directors. My introduction was: “I loved your movie”. Now let me tell you why…
A serial killer is on the loose, having perpetrated a double murder. Three seemingly unrelated storylines revolve around this central narrative. In Chiba, Maki (Watanabe, The Last Samurai) is down on his luck, but has helped his daughter Aoki (Aoi Miyazaki, Eureka) get away from a life as a sex worker. She falls for a local man Tashiro (Kenichi Matsuyama, Death Note), but suspects him as being the killer because he is going under a fake name. In Tokyo, in-the-closet businessman Yuma (Satoshi Tsumabuki, The World of Kanako) meets Naoto (Go Ayano, Lupin the 3rd), and the two have a close relationship. But Yuma suspects Naoto as being the killer as he has three moles on his cheek, as the killer does. In Okinawa, Izumi (Suzu Hirose, Chihayafaru) and her sensitive boyfriend-to-be Tatsuya (Takara Sakimoto) stumble upon drifter Tanaka (Mirai Moriyama, Fish Story), and the three become close.
The last paragraph is possibly the longest I have ever written for a plot description, and let me tell you, this film warrants it. So complex, yet so involving, the narrative had me enraptured from start to finish. Although the strands don’t intersect until the end, there is no sense that they really need to, as the themes of the film are so prevalent. These involve the nature of trust in the modern world (none of the characters trust their new friends or partners) and what leads a human to kill. While keeping the viewer guessing as to who is the serial killer, each story is in and of itself very interesting.
Director Lee is himself Zainichi Korean-Japanese, and he has lived and worked in Japan his whole life. This gives him a unique slant on life in Japan, one which is different from his contemporaries such as Kiyoshi Kurosawa (whose film Creepy contains some similarities to Rage). In fact, Lee’s first film Chong was about third generation Koreans living in Japan. He obviously has vested interest in his roots and what it means to be Zainichi, and this creates a very immersive cinematic world. Influences ranging from classic Japanese cinema such as Masaki Kobayashi to the Korean new wave are evident, but Lee rises above them with an original voice.
The acting across the board is nothing less than absolutely fantastic. Watanabe is cast against type as a man with a lot of failings, but who is a very kind hearted soul. Of course, he nails it and proves again he is one of the best actors in world cinema. Tsumabuki is superb as Yuma, a man with swaggering confidence whose laissez faire attitude can get him in trouble. His relationship with Tashiro is wonderfully drawn, with a vast depth of emotion. Izumi suffers the most in the film, and Hirose captures this loss of innocence brilliantly.
Style-wise Rage is strong but not flashy; this serves the themes and storylines of the film and never detracts from them. There are some stand out shots that deserve to be seen on the big screen, but this movie is not about visuals. At times it is a little basically shot, but this actually enhances the performances of the actors.
Both my friend and I commented afterwards that the rape scene in the middle of the film is too long and drawn out, and perhaps didn’t need to be there at all. However, director Lee said in the Q & A afterwards that he wanted to comment on the incidents of rape by American GI’s in Okinawa, which has become a big issue in recent times. After hearing this and considering the rest of the film, I believe it is necessary to appreciate the point the film is making.
Overall, Rage is one of the best films I’ve seen in the last year, and I would urge anyone who is into the drama genre to catch it. There are moments of abuse and violence, but these are few and far between when becoming glued to the screen with the film’s great narratives. A special mention goes to the soundtrack by the legendary Ryuichi Sakamoto (Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence), that builds to a masterful crescendo come the emotionally fraught ending of the film. Highly recommended.
Park Hoon-jung – the director of New World,Tiger: An Old Hunter’s Tale and writer of I Saw the Devil – returns to the dark world of sadistic killers in V.I.P, an upcoming South Korean noir/thriller about the son of a high-ranking North Korean official who is suspected of committing serial murders around the world.
V.I.P. stars Jang Dong-Gun (No Tears for the Dead), Kim Myung-Min (Man of Vendetta), Park Hee-Soon (The Age of Shadows), Lee Jong-Suk (Hot Young Bloods) and a supporting role by Swedish actor, Peter Stormare (John Wick: Chapter 2, Kill ‘Em All).
V.I.P. will see a domestic release in August of 2017. Don’t miss the film’s Trailer below:
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