Exclusive: Enter the ’36 Styles’ T-Shirt & Poster Giveaway! – WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

Shaolin Chamber 36 is giving away 2 T-Shirts (of your choice, size, etc) and 2 Kung Fu Bob 11×17 prints (of your choice) to four lucky Cityonfire visitors. To enter, simply add a comment to this post and describe, in your own words, this video.

We will be selecting a winner at random. Be sure to include your email address in the appropriate field so we can contact you for your home address. Will ship prizes worldwide!

CONTEST DISCLAIMER: You must enter by October 27th, 2015 to qualify. Winners must respond with their mailing address within 48 hours, otherwise you will automatically be disqualified. No exceptions. Contest is subject to change without notice.

WINNERS: Joey David (T-Shirt), Brenda King (T-Shirt), Chad Harry (Print) and QualityChimp (PRINT).

Posted in News | Tagged |

Deal on Fire! First Strike | Blu-ray | Only $7.49 – Expires soon!

Jackie Chan’s First Strike | Blu-ray (Warner)

Jackie Chan’s First Strike | Blu-ray (Warner)

Today’s Deal on Fire is the Blu-ray for Jackie Chan’s First Strike, (aka Police Story IV) directed by Stanley Tong (Police Story 3: Supercop). Please note that this Blu-ray is most-likely the English-dubbed, U.S. edited version of the film.

In post-soviet Russia nothing is as it seems. When members of the Russian mafia pose as KGB agents to steal a nuclear missile, the CIA calls on martial arts master Jackie Chan to stop them. Also starring Jackson Lou (The Last Blood), Annie Wu (Ballistic Kiss) and Bill Tung (Rumble in the Bronx).

Order First Strike from Amazon.com today!

Posted in Deals on Fire!, News |

Watch the action-packed IMAX trailer for ‘Jack Reacher 2’

"Jack Reacher" Japanese Theatrical Poster

“Jack Reacher” Japanese Theatrical Poster

Back in 2012, actor Tom Cruise drew plenty of criticism when he was cast in Christopher McQuarrie’s Jack Reacher as Jack Reacher, the popular character created by novelist Lee Child.

However, the proof, as they say, is in the movie. Jack Reacher grossed over $80.1 million in North America and $138.3 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $218.3 million, against a budget of $60 million. To top it all off, the film met with a mostly positive reception.

With that said, it should be no surprise that a sequel, titled Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (read our review) is hitting theaters on October 21, 2016. This time around, Cruise is teaming up with his Last Samurai filmmaker Edward Zwick, who is taking over directing duties for McQuarrie.

In the sequel, Jack Reacher returns to the headquarters of his old unit, only to find out he’s now accused of a 16-year-old homicide. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back also stars Cobie Smulders, Robert Knepper, Aldis Hodge, Danika Yarosh, Patrick Heusinger, Holt McCallany, Jason Douglas and Sue-Lynn Ansari.

Media: 1st Trailer. | 2nd trailer. | 1st TV spot. | 2nd TV spot.

Updates: Watch the film’s new IMAX trailer below. And don’t forget to read our review.

Posted in News | Tagged , |

Full Strike (2015) Review

"Full Strike" Chinese Theatrical Poster

“Full Strike” Chinese Theatrical Poster

Director: Derek Kwok
Co-director: Henry Wong
Cast: Ronald Cheng Chung-kei, Josie Ho Chiu Yee, Ekin Cheng, Tse Kwan Ho, Edmond Leung, Shaw Yum Yum, Wilfred Lau, Andrew Lam, Grace Yip Pui Man
Running Time: 108 min.

By Paul Bramhall

Movies about racquet sports hardly have the most successful track record, either at the box office or critically. Even thinking of one seems liken an unnecessarily difficult struggle. It took me a whole minute before I dragged the 2004 romantic comedy Wimbledon from the depths of my memory, and I was just as happy to return it there. That was a movie about tennis, which you can at least imagine the potential to appear dynamic on the big screen – the speed of the ball, the size of the court, the gracefulness of the players movements. Ok I’ll confess, I’m clutching at straws, but my point is, if it sounds difficult to make a movie about tennis, why even bother attempting to make one about badminton!?

However that’s exactly what directors Derek Kwok and Henri Wong have done with 2015’s Full Strike. If anything, the production had the odds stacked against it even more, thanks to the release of a title during the same year which revolved around another cinematically dull sport, Dante Lam’s To the Fore, which focused on bicycle racing. Having Dante Lam’s name behind To the Fore saw most fans of Hong Kong cinema keeping their gaze firmly locked on his latest effort, and ultimately its failure to exceed anyone’s already low expectations, seemed to result in Full Strike barely registering.

This is a shame, because Kwok and Wong’s effort is one of the most energetically insane and funny Hong Kong movies to come out of recent years, hardly stopping to catch its breath during the entire run time. Kwok is best known for his 2010 kung fu throwback Gallants, co-directed with Clement Cheng, which displayed a keen sense of awareness of what made Hong Kong cinema so great in the past. Full Strike marks Wong’s second time as a director, having both written and directed 2013’s Hardcore Comedy. However the pair have collaborated before, firstly on Kwok’s fire-fighting drama As the Lights Goes Out, in which he was a member of the special effects team, and also on a stop-motion short using Batman action figures. Go figure.

Bringing both of their talents to the directors chair, as well as writing the script, for a full length feature should be a winning combination, and within the first few minutes it becomes apparent that it is. Opening like an old-school kung fu movie, complete with a stern voiced narration tracing the origins of the sport from India to England, there’s no doubt we’re not going to be watching a normal sports drama. Soon we’re introduced to Beast Ng, played by Josie Ho, a lowly worker at her brother’s restaurant who, 10 years ago, used to be the ‘Queen of Hong Kong Badminton’. However thanks to her violent temper, her reign was short-lived.

All that changes though, and bear with me here, when she witnesses a large shuttlecock shaped meteorite fall to earth. Soon she’s being chased by an alien, or it could be a homeless person, and ends up in a run-down badminton school, which happens to be home to a trio of former ex-criminals. All three have some kind of physical impairment, the leader, played by Ekin Cheng (of the Young and Dangerous series fame), is hard of hearing. His two cohorts, one of which is played by Edmond Leong, only has one hand, and the other, played by Wilfred Lau, has poor eyesight. All three of them want to put their life of crime behind them, and redeem themselves through playing badminton. The question is, can Josie Ho rekindle her passion for the sport in time to get them in shape and compete in the Fantastic 5 Badminton Championship?

If the plot outline sounds like a completely random concept for a movie, you’d be right, and the above events also all take place in the first 10 minutes alone. Josie Ho holds the whole thing together though as a likeable anchor to which the craziness revolves around. Ho has been in the Hong Kong movie industry for over 20 years, a highlight of which was her lead role in 2010’s Dream Home (she also had a role in Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, but we’ll forgive her), and Full Strike adds another highlight to her filmography. Paired with Ekin Cheng, fresh from starring alongside Jean Claude Van Damme in Jian Bing Man made the same year, they have a good chemistry with each other, with both characters serving to motivate the other to better themselves.

At its heart that’s really what Full Strike is about, bettering yourself regardless of the outcome, however it’s wrapped up in a Looney Tunes paced package that, to some degree, sometimes feels reminiscent of Stephen Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle. Kwok and Wong throw in plenty of subtle kung fu references, with characters names splashed onscreen in Chinese calligraphy to introduce them, nicknames like the Flying Devil, and a team logo that looks remarkably similar to the Shaw Brothers shield. There’s also a drunken master type character, who used to be a former badminton champion, but has fallen on hard times. Played by Andrew Lam, recognizable from Sammo Hung movies like Pantyhose Hero and Encounters of the Spooky Kind 2, some of Full Strike’s biggest laughs belong to him. From teaching badminton strokes using a couple of giant meat cleavers, to his random outbursts of English, to a fantastic projectile vomit scene.

Full Strike is very much reminiscent of the Hong Kong movies from the 80’s and early 90’s, especially Stephen Chow’s mo lei tau style of wordplay. Some of the interactions are no doubt lost in translation, however just as many hit the mark, with an expletive filled script that doesn’t shy from some hilariously foul language. Also just like those Hong Kong movies of old, it doesn’t shy from bad taste rape jokes either. I guess you have to take the bad with the good. However with such an anything goes approach, proceedings move on so quickly that nothing dwells in the mind too long before another left of field joke comes along, and reminds you it’s just a movie.

Throw in some nice references to kung fu movies of old, from a sequence which has Andrew Lam training the trio of ex-criminals Crippled Avengers style, to a match played with a steel capped shuttlecock. Full Strike could well be the badminton movie that fans of classic Hong Kong cinema never knew they wanted. Much like Gallants, from the music through to the set design and camera work, Kwok and Wong have constructed a movie that captures the essence of why we love watching these productions in the first place. The energy, the action, and most importantly, the heart that seems to have been missing from many of the Hong Kong film industries recent output, is here very much alive and well. For that alone, Full Strike warrants a watch.

Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 7.5/10

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

Nick Cheung’s new thriller proves he’s a ‘Keeper of Darkness’

"Keeper of Darkness" Teaser Poster

"Keeper of Darkness" Teaser Poster

Looks like a certain someone feels right at home on the dark side: Nick Cheung’s (Helios) new thriller, Keeper of Darkness. In the film, Cheung plays a streetwise exorcist (Cheung) who becomes an overnight sensation when his extraordinary exorcism goes viral online.

Keeper of Darkness is Cheung’s sophomore directorial follow-up to last year’s Hungry Ghost Ritual. The movie is written by Sin Ling Yeung (The Bullet Vanishes) and stars Amber Kuo (Triumph in the Skies), Louis Cheung (The Legend is Born – Ip Man) and Sisley Choi (Overachievers).

Updates: The film’s trailer has just arrived. It is not only full of darkness but also special effects. Check it out here.

Posted in News |

Untold Story, The | aka Bunman (1993) Review

"The Untold Story" Japanese Theatrical Poster

“The Untold Story” Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: Herman Yau
Cast: Anthony Wong, Danny Lee, Emily Kwan, Lau Siu-Ming, Shing Fui-On, Parkman Wong Pak-Man, Yee Ka-Fat, Lam King-Kong, Julie Lee, Leung Hung-Wah
Running Time: 96 min.

By Martin Sandison

One of the most notorious Category 3 Hong Kong films ever made, Bunman (what a title!) features everything that makes extreme HK cinema so unique: brutality, seriously dark comedy and insane energy that spills off the screen. Only in Hong Kong in the 90’s would an actor as great as Anthony Wong star in such a disturbing film, and then win the Hong Kong film award for best actor for it! At the time Wong was making a name for himself, having appeared in amongst numerous others Ringo Lam’s bizarrely demented and uber stylish Full Contact and John Woo’s utter masterclass in action (and my favourite movie) Hard Boiled. 1993 was a very busy year for Wong, with his stand out roles in The Heroic Trio and another Category 3 thriller Taxi Hunter (also directed by Herman Yau) – only the tip of the iceberg.

Bunman gained a reputation for being nihilistic yet darkly comic, and it’s a testament to the idea and Wong’s performance that the film rises above its exploitative base to deliver a serious message about the nature of man and the realities of modern society. The very premise – purportedly based on a true story – is profoundly sick but humorous like the rest of the film. Wong plays Wong Chi-Hang, a restaurant owner who has inherited it from a gambling friend. As body parts start to pile up on the beach and Wong’s behaviour becomes increasingly psychotic, the police start to move in.

The film manages to maintain an edgy, dark atmosphere that is punctuated by silly comedy (what more would you expect of a 90’s HK film?) and Yau must be given credit for this. Without Wong’s performance the film would suffer however, and what a towering one it is. Wong constantly looks like a real psychotic throughout, a real nasty piece of work. Later in the film I grew to feel sorry for him though, despite his despicable actions. He gives shades of humanity to a real monster of a human being, deserving all the accolades he received. Subsequent Wong performances in everything from Category 3 shockers like Ebola Syndrome or gangster flicks like Johnnie To’s Exiled have proven his range, but none come close to the intensity on show in Bunman.

The film is produced by and co-starring Danny Lee, that legend of HK cinema. The previous year he had directed another Category 3 classic Dr. Lamb, the subject matter of which is similar to Bunman. Other than these two instantly recognisable faces, most of the cast are second or third tier HK actors. Emily Kwan Bo Wai features as Bo, the female officer who is the butt of most of the (sexist) jokes. She appeared in Dr. Lamb and Ringo Lam’s Full Alert among others. Lau Siu Ming has a small part as Cheng Lam, the friend of Wong’s who suffers greatly in his only scene. He is a veteran HK bit part actor, having been in Tsui Hark’s new wave fantasy extravaganza Butterfly Murders and Corey Yuen’s pure 80’s actioner (and the first HK film I ever bought on VHS) Righting Wrongs. Shing Fui On (Big Sillyhead to his fans) has a very small part as Lau’s brother, making Wong’s short spell in prison pretty horrible.

The catalogue of horrors that are depicted in the film are seriously twisted, and test even the strongest stomach. The worst of them comes midway through, with the murder of Cheng Lam and his family (including his three very young daughters). This scene is up there with the most harrowing moments of all cinema. Other ones feature Wong’s torture by the police – wherein a nurse who Wong had previously tried to use as a hostage injects him with water that creates blisters all over his skin – and his suicide attempt that culminates in him biting the artery on his wrist.

Despite not being for everyone, Bunman is a very engaging and intense film that anyone with a penchant for extreme cinema must check out. Obvious faults are the lack of a consistent style and the limitations of a low budget, but these can be overlooked. After watching Wong take on the role with so much gusto, I would be slightly worried if I met him! By all accounts he is one seriously cool and relaxed guy in person, giving credence to his unbelievable depiction of Wong Chi-Hang.

Martin Sandison’s Rating: 8/10


By Numskull

“We seem to be the only species who truly goes crazy without benefit of disease or a sharp blow to the head.” -Jessica Horsting, MIDNIGHT GRAFFITI (copyright 1992, Warner Books)

“Masterpiece” is not a word that I throw around lightly. Pardon me for saying so, but there are certain “critics” on the net who dole out perfect ratings way too easily. It’s feast or famine with some people; either a movie is “flawless,” “perfect,” and “tied with (72 other films) for Greatest Movie Ever Made,” OR, it’s “worthless,” “dog shit,” and “enjoyable only by those with I.Q.s of lower numerical value than their shoe sizes.” No middle ground? Bollocks.

If you ask me, there’s no such thing as a perfect movie, but there are a select few that are so impressive that I can forgive their shortcomings unconditionally. Like what? There’s BRAINDEAD (Yours Truly’s all-time favorite flick), POLICE STORY (Jackie Chan has yet to top it and probably never will), SEVEN (yeah, that’s right, a Hollywood movie…you got a problem with that?!?), and now, THE UNTOLD STORY (which, by the way, is only the second film I’ve ever reviewed on this site and given a 10/10 rating).

How about music? Can you think of any albums (do they still make those? I guess I should just say “CDs”) where you can listen to the whole thing through and not be even remotely tempted to skip a song or fast forward through a small part of one? I can…VEREHRT UND ANGESPIEN by In Extremo, and Kreator’s brilliant ENDORAMA (which, by the way, includes “Chosen Few,” a song I am going to insist, come Hell or waters high, be played at my wedding reception, in the unlikely event that I ever have one). Not even Skyclad…the greatest band ever to walk the Earth…has such a CD in their discography (which, by the way, has been growing steadily since 1991).

Books (you know, those things with words in them)? Well, the “masterpieces” I had to read in school bored the living shit out of me, and served as a solid basis for my theory that English teachers want to turn kids off of literature in general to prevent them from wanting to become English teachers themselves, thus ensuring their own job security via lack of competition (except for Alexander, of course). So what would I happily slap the “M” word on? Definitely TITUS GROAN and GORMENGHAST by Mervyn Peake, and maybe SURVIVOR (which, by the way, has nothing to do with that crappy TV show) by Chuck Palahniuk, author of FIGHT CLUB (which, by the way, has a much cooler ending than the movie).

Now that I’ve lost about 70% of my audience by talking about books and the other 30% by shamelessly plugging stuff, I can get on with THE UNTOLD STORY. It’s a deliberately nasty, brutal film based on a tragic, real-life story (which, by the way, means it is no longer “untold”). How accurately the events are presented…how much fiction is mixed in with the facts…I do not know. Perhaps it doesn’t even matter, because there’s so much senseless violence in the real world anyway; the movie painfully drives home the reminder that all sorts of terrible things can happen to anyone at anytime…especially at the hands of another human being.

Anthony Wong is brilliant as the psychotic Wong Chi Hang. He strikes a perfect balance between ultra-violent dementia and false normalcy. The most dangerous sort of lunatic is the one who gives an outward appearance of being a mentally stable, unremarkable (if a little obnoxious, in Wong’s case) member of society, letting their insanity out to play only when it is safe to do so (or when they’re going to kill all the witnesses…). That’s what you can expect to see in this movie. A lesser actor probably would have played the role like an obscene Saturday morning cartoon super-villain, mindlessly slobbering over child pornography and laughing hysterically while beating people to death in public. Wong resists the temptation to play a Satanic Jim Carrey on crack and instead gives us a thoroughly impressive and utterly plausible performance. Small wonder he won the 1993 Hong Kong Best Actor award for it.

Meanwhile, Danny Lee plays a cop for about the 847th time. He regularly picks up prostitutes (or at least loose women) and he bosses around a few men who alternately try to please him, try to score with his chicks, and needle their female colleague about her lack of ladylike characteristics. They get slapped a lot. The darkly comic aspects of The Untold Story revolve around these decidedly UN-Supercops; witness their childish “Eww, gross” reaction to the human body parts that wash up on a beach at the beginning of the movie.

Too much has been made of the whole “people getting chopped up and fed to restaurant patrons in the form of meat buns” business (which, by the way, is somewhat perpetuated by the restaurant-style DVD menus…nice touch). Yeah, it happens, but to say that that’s what the movie is “about” would be doing it a great disservice.

There can be no argument that the Category III rating is warranted. Little is held back in terms of raw brutality. Two scenes in particular stand out for being shockingly explicit. I don’t want to give too much away; you’ll know which scenes I’m talking about when you see them. After reading EXQUISITE CORPSE by Poppy Z. Brite and AMERICAN PSYCHO by Bret Easton Ellis (which, by the way, is so gruesome it makes the movie look like a Disney cartoon by comparison), you can handle pretty much anything, so I wasn’t bothered too deeply. YOU might be. And I wouldn’t blame you. Watching women get raped and children get butchered ain’t for everyone. Remember, though: stuff like this happens to somebody, somewhere, every single day.

The script is very well-done. It would have been easy to throw together a cheesy teen slasher flick-type flow of events where Wong remains on the loose until the very end, when the last fine officer of the law finally brings him down. Mercifully, a much more realistic and satisfying road gets taken. I find it a little hard to believe that the cops would have found the evidence in the garbage truck THAT quickly (and in the dark, no less), but, when my first and foremost quibble is something as minor as that, I’m perfectly willing to look the other way.

I’ll definitely be checking out the other Herman Yau/Anthony Wong collaborations, such as TAXI HUNTER and NEW TENANT (which, by the way…oh, shit, I haven’t seen it yet so I guess I’ve got nothing to add here). I’ll be one deliriously happy camper if I enjoy them half as much as I enjoyed The Untold Story.

Which, by the way, was one hell of a lot.

Numskull’s Rating: 10/10

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

‘Legend is Born – Ip Man’ star forms a new film company

"The Legend Is Born – Ip Man" Japanese Theatrical Poster

"The Legend Is Born – Ip Man" Japanese Theatrical Poster

If you are a fan of The Legend is Born: Ip Man, you may be wondering where main actor Dennis To Yu-Hang is up to these days. Since The Legend is Born, he has appeared in a number of films but hasn’t had many opportunities to really show off his skills as a martial artist again. His last film appearance was in Wong Jing’s 2013 film Princess & Seven Gongfu Masters.

But it looks like To may be making a major comeback soon. Hong Kong media has just reported that he has formed a new film company and the company’s first projects will include a horror film and an action movie. To will be starring in both films and it will certainly be interesting to see whether he can really shine in his own productions.

We’ll keep you updated on this story as we hear more!

Posted in News |

Cityonfire.com’s ‘Northern Limit Line’ Blu-ray Giveaway! – WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

Northern Limit Line | Blu-ray & DVD (Well Go USA)

Northern Limit Line | Blu-ray & DVD (Well Go USA)

Cityonfire.com and Well Go USA are giving away 3 Blu-ray copies of Northern Limit Line to three lucky Cityonfire visitors. To enter, simply add a comment to this post and describe, in your own words, this video.

We will be selecting a winner at random. Be sure to include your email address in the appropriate field so we can contact you for your home address. Additionally, you must ‘Like Us‘ on cityonfire.com’s Facebook by clicking here.

The Blu-ray & DVD for Northern Limit Line will be officially released on October 20, 2015. We will announce the 3 winners on October 21st.

CONTEST DISCLAIMER: You must enter by October 20, 2015 to qualify. U.S. residents only please. We sincerely apologize to our non-U.S. visitors. Winners must respond with their mailing address within 48 hours, otherwise you will automatically be disqualified. No exceptions. Contest is subject to change without notice.

WINNERS: Alan Tan, Sito and Bernie W.

Posted in News | Tagged |

Advocate: A Missing Body, The (2015) Review

"The Advocate: A Missing Body" Korean Theatrical Poster

“The Advocate: A Missing Body” Theatrical Poster

Director: Huh Jong-Ho
Cast: Lee Sun-Kyun, Kim Go-Eun, Lim Won-Hee, Jang Hyun-Sung, Hong Sung-Duk, Kim Yoon-hye, Kwak In-joon, Choi Jae-woong, Park Ji-yeong
Running Time: 117 min.

By Paul Bramhall

Korean cinema has a habit of churning out inferior copycats to the movies that make an impact both on home soil and overseas. That’s why for every The Man from Nowhere we have a Man of Vendetta, and for every Masquerade we have a Memories of the Sword. Whether it be a suspiciously similar story, or the casting of a certain actor in an almost identical role, the copycats rarely stand up on their own two feet, and tend to become quickly forgotten. Part of this comes down to the fact that, regardless of the quality of the production, there’s no escaping the obvious fact that the movies in question would never have been given the green light, if not for the success of the title they’ve been inspired by

A Hard Day was one of the surprise hits of 2013, directed and written by Kim Seong-hoon, the movie has Lee Seon-gyoon playing a cop frantically trying to cover up the body of a man he accidentally kills in a hit and run incident. As much as it’s a thriller, A Hard Day also works just as effectively as a dark comedy, punctuated with some brief bursts of entertaining action. A couple of years later, and we have The Advocate: A Missing Body, which gives us Lee Seon-gyoon playing an incredibly confident lawyer, who’s frantically trying to find the body of a female that’s been the victim of a brutal murder. It just so happens that he’s the lawyer of the number one suspect. So in 2 years Seon-gyoon has gone from being a cop trying to hide a body, to a lawyer trying to find a body.

The Advocate: A Missing Body is directed by Heo Jong-ho, and the movie marks his sophomore effort after 2011’s thriller Countdown. Working from a script by Choi Kwan-yeong and Lee Gong-joo, the pair have put together an effective piece of crime storytelling. Kwan-yeong was himself involved in adapting the previously mentioned A Hard Day, and was also responsible for scripting the fantastic 2009 effort Bedevilled. Gong-joo on the other hand is clearly the less experienced of the pair, having only previously scripted the average horror Death Bell 2: Bloody Camp, and the Ryoo Seung-beom starring Suspect X. Regardless of this though, the pair have crafted a nicely constructed tale of blind sides and double crosses.

Where The Advocate: A Missing Body really goes wrong then, is in the execution. When we’re first introduced to Seon-gyoon’s lawyer character, for the first 30 minutes he’s almost insufferable. Overly confident to the point of arrogance, swaggering about, and clicking finger guns to the female staff at his office, it’s difficult to describe him as anything other than annoying. He’s paired with Im Won-hee, a familiar face of mid-budget Korean productions and favorite of director Ryoo Seung-wan (most notably he played the title role in Dachimawa Lee), however as performers they don’t really seem to gel, and never become entirely convincing as partners.

Seon-gyoon’s lawyer thankfully has a serious blow delivered to his confidence when, at the 30 minute mark, the suspect he’s worked so hard to try and convince the courtroom of is innocent, stands up and confesses to the murder. Having convinced a pair of the suspects friends to lie in court about the suspects relationship with the victim, when this revelation also comes to light his reputation is left in tatters. The only catch is that the body of the victim was never located, which remains Seon-gyoon’s sole piece of information to try and piece together exactly what’s going on and redeem himself as an upholder of justice.

While his reputation has been tarnished, his wits certainly haven’t been, and part of the appeal of The Advocate: A Missing Body comes down to watching Seon-gyoon smartly figure his way out of various conundrums he finds himself in. He has a capable match in actress Kim Go-eun, who goes from initially playing the prosecutor in the case, to someone that comes around to Seon-gyoon’s feeling that everything may not be as clear cut as it seems. Go-eun is one of Korea’s best up and coming actresses. After making her debut in 2012’s erotically charged drama A Muse, she turned in an equally impressive performance in Coin Locker Girl, and does so again here. While she’s made a couple of missteps along the way, notably with roles in flops like Monster, and most recently Memories of the Sword, there’s no denying Go-eun has a lot of talent.

Despite the caliber of the performers involved, and the quality of the script, there’s no escaping the pedestrian direction that the production suffers from. In many ways it’s easy to draw comparisons to Chronicles of Evil, also released in 2015, which similarly draws on the success of A Hard Day, crafting a tale of a cop trying to cover up the accidental killing of a random stranger. Both productions seems to suffer from the fact that neither have the same budget behind them as the movie that inspired them, and more importantly, neither seem to have the same passion. Despite the various predicaments that Seon-gyoon finds himself in, and there are many, there’s a distinct lack of urgency that surrounds any of the action taken as a result of circumstance. Even when he has to resort to chasing a motorcycle on foot, the lack of any excitement or danger sticks out like a sore thumb. As an audience we’re watching it, but we’re far from being involved in it.

During the final third, Jong-ho also makes a fatal error that perhaps points to his lack of experience as a director. By this time it’s been well and truly established how smart Seon-gyoon is, and his ability to stay one step ahead of those wanting to tarnish his name. However when a plot revelation is revealed which sees him deciding to side with the villains, there’s no way on earth any self respecting audience member would believe he’s truly become a bad guy. Jong-ho should be aware of this, so at the very least could have delivered a visual wink to the audience, assuring us that we’re along for the ride. However it seems he also presumes we should fall for his act of siding with the villains, making the whole episode a chore to get through, as we’re simply left waiting for it to be revealed that he’s still a good guy, rather than being told the obvious from the beginning.

Ultimately The Advocate: A Missing Body is difficult to review precisely because of how average it is. It’s not that bad, but at the same time it’s far from being good. Both here and with Chronicles of Evil, I was left with the distinct impression that both productions would have benefited from being made in the TV drama format, rather than a feature length production. There’s nothing decidedly cinematic about Jong-ho’s movie, and it’s mostly strung together with scenes that consist of characters talking to each other to propel the plot forward, in other words – perfect Korean TV drama material. As it stands though, judging The Advocate: A Missing Body as a mid-budget crime thriller, it passes the time much the same way as an episode of Columbo or Ironside. Whether that’s a compliment or not, is for the audience to decide.

Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 6/10

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

Deal on Fire! The Last Dragon | Blu-ray | Only $9.99 – Expires soon!

The Last Dragon | Blu-ray (Sony)

The Last Dragon | Blu-ray (Sony)

Today’s Deal on Fire is the Blu-ray for 1985’s The Last Dragon, starring Taimak, Vanity (Action Jackson), Christopher Murney, Julius Carry, Glen Eaton and Ernie Reyes Jr. (Red Sonja).

An enjoyable pastiche of martial arts, romance, music, and video, The Last Dragon presents a likable young hero, Leroy (Taimak), who aspires to become a kung fu master. Though black and living in Harlem with his family, Leroy lives like a Chinese. Trouble arises in the form of a huge black man who calls himself “Sho’ Nuff, who is determined to prove himself the kung fu master of the neighborhood. Watch the trailer!

Order The Last Dragon from Amazon.com today!

Posted in Deals on Fire!, News |

Tran Quoc Bao delivers kung fu action in ‘The Challenger’

"The Challenger" Promotional Poster

“The Challenger” Promotional Poster

Here’s an awesome short film (below) for all of you kung fu fans to enjoy. Titled The Challenger, the short is the prequel for an upcoming feature film from Vietnamese-American filmmaker Tran Quoc Bao. Tran is writing, directing and editing the film, which stars Martial Club’s Andy Le and Ken Quitugua of ZeroGravity Stunts.

Tran says he wants his film’s audience to rush out of the theater screaming and punching the air. The film is slated for production in North America, late 2016. Trans is currently looking for additional investors, sales partners, and production collaborators.

For more information on The Challenger, visit the film’s official site.

Posted in News |

Simon Yam is either ‘Inside or Outside’ the action!

"Inside or Outside" Chinese Theatrical Poster

"Inside or Outside" Chinese Theatrical Poster

Simon Yam (Cross, Wild City) is back to doing what he does best in Inside or Outside, an upcoming action-thriller helmed by Mak Wing-Lun (SDU: Sex Duties Unit), a filmmaker prominently known for being the assistant director for Bodyguards and Assassins (2009) and The Grandmaster (2013).

Yam stars alongside Wallace Huo (Sound of Colors) and South Korean star, Jang Hyuk (Windstruck, The Flu). According to soompi.com, Inside or Outside follows a man with a mysterious past who gets caught up in a series of accidents and becomes the target of an assassinator.

Inside or Outside hits Chinese theaters on November 10, 2015. Don’t miss the film’s trailer!

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Lau Ching Wan gets derailed in ‘The Murderer Vanishes’

"The Murderer Vanishes" Chinese Theatrical Poster

"The Murderer Vanishes" Chinese Theatrical Poster

Director Law Chi Leung re-teams with Lau Ching Wan (Too Many Ways to Be Number One) for The Murderer Vanishes, the highly-anticipated sequel to 2012’s The Bullet Vanishes.

This time around, inspector Song Donglu (Lau) is summoned to investigate Fu (Jiang Yiyan), a woman who brilliantly escapes a prison by digging her way out with nothing but a silver spoon.

The Murderer Vanishes also stars Gordon Lam (Z Storm), Jacqueline Li Xiaolu (2007’s Blood Brothers) and Rhydian Vaughan (Crazy New Year’s Eve).

The Murderer Vanishes hits Chinese theaters on November 27, 2015. Don’t miss the trailer!

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‘The Advocate’ hits North American theaters in October!

"The Advocate: A Missing Body" Korean Theatrical Poster

"The Advocate: A Missing Body" Korean Theatrical Poster

CJ Entertainment is releasing South Korean legal crime comedy, The Advocate: A Missing Body in North American theaters October 23. The film stars Lee Sun-kyun (A Hard Day), Kim Go-Eun (Memories of the Sword), Lim Won-Hee (No Blood, No Tears), Jang Hyun-Sung (Shiri) and Hong Sung-Duk (Assassination). The dark comedic twists in this sensational crime thriller are sure to take North American audiences on a wild ride.

Byun Ho-sung (Lee Sun-kyun) is a stylish lawyer with a penchant for “creatively” winning cases for his wealthy clients. His latest case is defending a corporate employee accused of murdering his girlfriend, but of course there is a catch: there’s no body to be found.

The Advocate: A Missing Body is directed by Heo Jong-ho, who made his directorial debut with 2011’s Countdown, which gained acclaim at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. Director HEO brings his sophomore film to life with an incredibly talented cast and intriguing plot turns, promising to be his most ambitious and memorable film to date.

Catch The Advocate: A Missing Body on October 23. Until then, watch the trailer.

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Maria Ozawa and Robin Padilla unite for action in ‘Nilalang’

"Erotibot" Japanese DVD Cover

"Erotibot" Japanese DVD Cover

Former Japanese adult video star, Maria Ozawa (Erotibot), will be making her Filipino film debut in Nilalang (meaning “creature” in Tagalog), an upcoming action/horror movie starring the “Bad Boy” of Philippine cinema, Robin Padilla (Grease Gun Gang).

Nilalang will also feature martial arts and gangster-related themes. According to GMA, the film will tackle corrupt Philippine cops, Japanese Yakuza, and a centuries-old, evil curse. Ozawa, who is learning both Tagalog and martial arts for the film, will play the Yakuza’s heiress.

Nilalang will make its premiere in the Metro Manila Film Festival Parade in December. Stay tuned!

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