On January 14th 2015, a very good friend, British actor and martial arts hero, Darren Shahlavi, passed away and left behind a legacy of work and great memories with so many people.
Unfortunately, the tabloid press, led by scum like TMZ – and sadly followed by various magazines, newspapers, websites and far too many “oh we know it all” internet trolls implied it was by a drug overdose. They were all happy to make unfounded statements that severely hurt his family, his friends and his memory.
Darren’s family recently received a coroner’s report from the Los Angeles County Department of Coroner, and would like to share the results with his friends, colleagues and fans.
Darren died on January 14, 2015 of natural causes: a sudden and fatal heart attack. He was found to have Atherosclerosis (also known as arteriosclerotic vascular disease or ASVD) His left anterior descending artery was 95% blocked, which must have been worsening for several years.
Darren had no drugs or medications in his body, and only 0.02% BAC (Blood Alcohol Concentration); to put this into context 0.08% is the BAC Driving Limit for both he US & UK. There are no other medical factors linked to his death.
It seems unlikely that someone as fit as Darren – who was so dedicated to exercise and fitness and had such a healthy low fat/dairy diet – should have heart disease, but we have been told that a genetic predisposition resulted in the development of heart disease and is not uncommon in otherwise healthy young men, including athletes and other professional sportsmen and women*.
Evidence for Darren’s level of physical fitness at the time of his death can be seen in his recent work. Darren had just finished filming Pound of Flesh and Kickboxer: Vengeance, both with Jean-Claude Van Damme – not to mention Tomorrowland with George Clooney. He was, as far as physical fitness goes, at the top of his game.
Darren’s family is devastated that his underlying heart condition was never diagnosed to allow him the opportunity of treatment. Typically, Atherosclerosis begins in childhood, and Darren showed no apparent symptoms prior to death. Who would have thought that Darren who was regarded as very fit would die so suddenly as a result of this ‘silent killer’!
We have all been in shock for the past 11 weeks with so many unanswered questions, but would now like to focus on the lessons that can be learned from Darren’s untimely death. We do feel that Darren would be the first to join us in sending warnings and advice to the friends and colleagues that he loved that regular health screening can save lives.
This is our message and we do hope that somehow positive publicity in Darren’s name can be made available to other young men and women, that may help them to take seriously the possibility that their body holds terrible secrets that can be revealed if they are tested routinely throughout life.
We hope that no other family has to go through the grief and pain that we are experiencing and that their loved ones get screening and subsequent treatment if necessary, that could prevent the tragic outcome that all who loved Darren are trying to come to terms with.
The Shahlavi family is raising funds to build a permanent memorial to Darren in Hollywood. Click here for more information.
AKA: The Postman Fights Back
Director: Ronny Yu
Cast: Leung Kar Yan, Chow Yun Fat, Yuen Yat Chor, Fan Mei Sheng, Cherie Chung, Eddie Ko Hung, Brandy Yuen Jan Yeung, Chiang Cheng, Lee Fat Yuen
Running Time: 88 min.
By Paul Bramhall
Postman Strikes Back is a unique entry in the Hong Kong action genre for a number of reasons. Set in 1913, it’s a movie which brings together elements of the old-school and the new-wave which can only be appreciated in retrospect. An early directorial effort from Ronny Yu, with the exception of his 1986 production with Brandon Lee, Legacy of Rage, it wouldn’t be until over a decade later when he’d receive full recognition for his talents, when he helmed the iconic tale of doomed lovers in The Bride with White Hair.
Without the presence of Yu in the director’s chair, it could easily be mistaken for a Yuen clan movie. Yuen Woo Ping takes the rare position of sitting in the producers chair, Brandy Yuen is on action direction duties, as well as playing a bit part, and Sunny Yuen takes a substantial supporting role. Taking the lead role of the postman in question is Beardy himself, Leung Kar Yan, although it should be noted here he’s only sporting stubble. All four of these guys would work together again on 2 more movies in the same year – The Miracle Fighters and Legend of a Fighter – both of which would be directed by Woo Ping, which may explain why he chose to sit this one out.
If the members of the Yuen clan represent the old school, then co-stars Chow Yun Fat and Cherry Chung represent the new-wave. Chow was still a full 4 years from chewing on a tooth pick for his influential turn as Mark Gor in A Better Tomorrow, however his leading man charisma is very much already in place, often threatening to steal the show from Kar Yan whenever they’re onscreen together. Chow and Chung had worked well together the year prior for Ann Hui’s The Story of Woo Viet, and they’d work together several more times over the course of their career’s, including An Autumn’s Tale, Wild Search, and Chung’s last movie before retirement, Once a Thief.
The story of Postman Strikes Back sees Kar Yan playing a courier in a rapidly modernizing China. On his latest delivery, the village elder confesses that they don’t have enough money to pay him. However, Kar Yan, being the nice guy that he is, instead of getting mad decides to look for another way to make money. It seems he’s in luck when a shady character played by Eddie Ko (who also turns up in the previously mentioned The Miracle Fighters), offers to pay him handsomely to deliver a number of boxes to a recipient several days journey away.
Kar Yan takes the job, and enlists a few men to help with the journey. The group comes in the form of a con man with ties to the underworld, played by Chow Yun Fat, an explosives expert played by Fan Mei Sheng, and an acquaintance played by Sunny Yuen (most recognizable as the witness from In the Line of Duty 4). Much to his chagrin, he’s also soon joined by a female villager, played by Cherrie Chung, who wants to help so that she can be paid to find her sister in Shanghai, who was sold off due to her family having no money.
Of course the job isn’t as simple as it first seems, Ko advises that they’re not to open the boxes under any circumstances, and if need be destroy them rather than let them fall into enemy hands, and soon the group find themselves under attack from unknown assailants at various stages in their journey. Another aspect that makes Postman Strikes Back unique is that it was entirely shot in Korea, so their journey takes them through a variety of beautiful landscapes, from tree covered mountains to frozen lakes, the scenery is frequently stunning.
It was often said that Korea would allow Hong Kong productions to film in the country, as long as they included a few Korean actors or crew. This appears to be the case here, as Korean actress Kuk Jeong-suk takes a significant role as a mysterious character that becomes a potential love interest for Chow. Also making memorable appearances are regular faces from the Korean kung fu movie scene – Jack Lam, Kwon Il-soo, and Jang Il-do. Lam and Il-soo play a pair of assassins that kick off what can be considered the first fight scene at the 45 minute mark. It’s a fun fight, with Il-soo literally hiding Lam by piggybacking him, to make a kind of tag team tandem fight against Chow.
Surprisingly, Chow performs well in the fight scenes, and actually seems to be given more than Kar Yan. Utilizing his scarf against opponents, the choreography and editing serve to make him look like a competent screen fighter, much to Brandy Yuen’s credit. The piggyback fight scene isn’t the only creative action sequence, with another entertaining scene having Kar Yan and his cohorts traveling across a frozen lake, only to be attacked by a group of spear wielding attackers on ice-skates! I would question the historical accuracy of this scene, but then again this is from the same guys who had Donnie Yen doing tricks on a BMX in Drunken Tai Chi.
Of course the shadiness of Eddie Ko’s character in the early stages make it a no-brainer that he turns out to be the villain of the piece. Ko has made a career of playing villains, from taking on Hwang Jang Lee in Hitman in the Hand of Buddha in the previous year, to a remarkably similar role which he’d play in Duel to the Death a year later. When you see his roles in both movies, you’ll know exactly what I mean. Ko goes on a take no prisoners rampage in the final third of the movie, which also involves a nicely staged one-on-one against Chow, and by the end of it, it’s safe to say that the postman has all the reasons he needs to strike back.
The final showdown pits Kar Yan against Ko in a forest, with Ko decked out as a ninja and employing all of the tricks we’ve come to expect from a ninja action scene. Again, there are signs of the new-wave at play here, with Kar Yan’s creative way of being able to locate Ko being particularly innovative. That being said, those looking to watch Postman Strikes Back purely to check out Beardy in action may be left disappointed. Ronny Yu has never been a director to make straight forward kung fu flicks, with perhaps the exception of 2005’s Fearless, and here is no exception. For the most part Postman Strikes Back plays out as an adventure movie, interspersed with some creative action and fight scenes.
As a director, Postman Strikes Back was only Yu’s third movie, and his inexperience shows most in the non-action periods when it’s all down to him to keep things moving. This is no more evident that in the first third of the movie when we’re being introduced to the main characters. None of it is particularly engaging, and it’s only once the action kicks in that things get interesting. Thankfully, once it does, it comes regularly, and while not top tier stuff, the creativity and picturesque settings adequately compensate. While there are arguably a few shortcomings in its execution, at the end of the day Postman Strikes Back gives us 2 generations of bad-ass cool onscreen together in the form of Leung Kar Yan and Chow Yun Fat, and that alone warrants it as worth a look. Oh, and did I mention the exploding rats?
Cheezy Flicks presents the DVD for 1983’s Escape from Hellhole, directed by Maman Firmansyah.
This cult-classic Indonesian film is about a Punjabi girl getting tricked into living with a big time pimp. Uncle MG as they call him, abducts virgins, and forces them to submit to his hymen bustin ways. The not so attractive gals get several chances to marry Uncle MG, or it’s into his private jail.
The film stars Gudi Sintara, Dicky Zulkarnaen, Siska Widowat and Ramli Ivar. Watch the trailer.
Admiral: Roaring Currents | Blu-ray & DVD (CJ Entertainment)
Cityonfire.com and CJ Entertainment are giving away 2 Blu-ray copies of Admiral: Roaring Currents 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 Admiral: Roaring Currents will be officially released on April 28, 2015. We will announce the 3 winners on April 29, 2015 and ship out the prizes immediately.
CONTEST DISCLAIMER: You must enter by April 28, 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.
1989’s Kickboxer was just another stepping stone on a young Jean-Claude Van Damme’s path to stardom. The movie was little more than a remake of Bloodsport, this time transported to the world of Thai kickboxing, but the film was successful enough to spawn a number of sequels, and an upcoming reboot in 2015 by John Stockwell (In the Blood).
The first sequel saw Cyborg director Albert Pyun team up with actor Sasha Mitchell for Kickboxer 2: The Road Back. This film actually received a limited theatrical release in 1991. Mitchell, who would later achieve fame as a co-star on the 90’s TV sitcom Step by Step, was supposedly playing the brother of Van Damme’s character from the original.
The formula must have worked as Sasha Mitchell stuck around for two direct-to-video sequels, Kickboxer 3: The Art of War and Kickboxer 4: The Aggressor, before domestic problems temporarily derailed his career.
Now, looks like Pyun is bringing Mitchell back for a new Kickboxer project (not to be confused with Kickboxer: Vengeance with Alain Moussi). Here’s the scoop from Pyun himself (via Facebook): I was committed to making the Algiers screenplay in January/February. Our foreign distributor took the project out at the American Film Market, which is going on right now, until tomorrow. Well, a couple of shifts in the project. Turns out they would really prefer a Kickboxing film starring Sasha more than an Algiers. So quickly, Algiers became The Kickboxer and that shoots for 6 weeks in January and February… The plan is too shoot 3 weeks in LA and 3 weeks in Nevada.” Click here to see the promotional artwork for Pyun’s upcoming The Kickboxer, which also stars Michael Tushaus, Kevin Sorbo, Norbert Weisser and Scott Paulin.
Updates: Pyun announced that Dennis Chan (Kickboxer 1-3) is reprising his role as mentor, Xian Chow. Also, Michel Qissi (Kickboxer 1-2, Bloodsport), who played the original Tong Po in the series, will be appearing as a different character named Said Ali. In addition – and this should be taken with a grain of salt – there is also some talk about Mark Dacascos (Drive) and Michael Dudikoff (Americna Ninja) joining…
From the words of Pyun himself regarding the newly titled Kickboxer: City of Blood: “Its the biggest action movie I’ve ever attempted. Bigger than Nemesis or Cyborg.” In addition, Mike Leeder (Pound of Flesh) is now co-producing an will be handling casting in Guangzhou, China, where the film starts shooting on February 26th 2015.
According to Albert Pyun’s Facebook (via FCS), producer Mike Leeder has connected the director with Indonesian actress Julie Estelle (Macabre), who’s mostly known for playing Hammer Girl in The Raid 2. She’ll be appearing in Kickboxer: City of Blood as Tun, a secret police agent.
BREAKING NEWS: Because of Pyun’s declining health, as well as casting complications, the shoot date for City of Blood has been pushed back until the fall. Originally, the film had a planned production date on February 26th 2015. Additionally, Pyun is also developing a project called Cyborg Knights, a cyberpunk-style film – co-written by his wife Cynthia – that’s heavily influenced by the filmmaker’s health and brain disorder (via Pyun’s Facebook).
Tai Chi Hero | aka Tai Chi Zero 2 | Blu-ray & DVD (Well Go USA)
Today’s Deal on Fire is the Blu-ray for Tai Chi Hero, directed by Stephen Fung (The Avenging Fist). After the box office success of Stephen Fung’s steampunk martial arts film Tai Chi 0, it was inevitable that Well Go USA would release the sequel. Tai Chi Hero pick ups where the first movie left off.
AKA: Roaring Currents
Director: Kim Han-min
Cast: Choi Min-Sik, Ryu Seung-Ryong, Jo Jin-Woong, Kim Myung-Gon, Jin Gu, Lee Jung-Hyun, Kwon Yul, Ryohei Otani, Lee Seung-Jun, Kim Gang-Il, Jo Ha-Suk
Running Time: 127 min.
By Kelly Warner
Admiral Yi Sun-shin is remembered as one of Korea’s greatest heroes. In the 1590s, Japan invaded Korea with the intention of conquering the country and expanding its empire. By 1597, the Japanese were winning the war and were marching north towards the capital. Admiral Yi only had a dozen remaining ships by which to defend his waters, so he was ordered to retreat and defend the capital. However, Admiral Yi disobeyed his orders and led his dozen ships against hundreds of Japanese ships in a desperate last stand in the treacherous Myeongnyang Strait. Apparently until recently it was believed that Korean filming techniques and special effects would be unable to recreate the famed Battle of Myeongyang. And perhaps it was a good thing they waited. For while I found The Admiral: Roaring Currents to be a deeply flawed film, the naval battles are thrilling and technically impressive, calling to mind the great action sequences of Peter Weir’s Master and Commander.
The Admiral: Roaring Currents is a film split into two distinct halves. The first half is all preparation, posturing, and historical melodrama. Those unfamiliar with the time and place may be a little lost in this section of the film, as writer/director Kim Han-min (War of the Arrows) does little to make sense of the conflict for the uninitiated. Many of the finer details about the war and Admiral Yi’s battle plan are left unsaid or undeveloped. As a result, I only got a general idea of the conflict, and Admiral Yi’s genius appeared more like good luck and stubbornness. I thought the characters were lacking definition. Other than Admiral Yi (played by Choi Min-sik) and a few of the Japanese generals (all played by Korean actors), no one here stands out enough to be memorable, which leads to some confusion about who’s who later on in the picture. Worst of all, we also get some silly melodrama.
The second half of the film is essentially one long naval battle sequence. Admiral Yi leads his dozen ships against hundreds of Japanese and puts up one hell of a fight. The special effects are impressive, and it’s easy to get caught up in the action. These scenes are often thrilling — sometimes a little beyond belief, but still thrilling nonetheless. Coupled with the visuals is a strong musical score and sound design. Watching The Admiral in 5.1 surround sound on the biggest screen possible makes for a pretty epic film experience. Unfortunately, the sappy character drama is still present in the second half, which weakens the action instead of bolstering it.
Ryu Seung-ryong (The Target) plays the Pirate King Kurushima, who leads the attack against Admiral Yi. Ryu isn’t so much playing an enemy general as he is playing a supervillain trapped in historical dress. Around his glaring eyes is thick, black eye shadow. Other Japanese characters get eye shadow, too, but Ryu’s Kurushima definitely has the most. Because in The Admiral, the more evil you are, the more eye shadow you get. Kurushima’s personal guard, an androgynous ninja (No Min-woo), is always tilting his head to the side like a lizard, and others under Kurushima’s command are basic barbarians. Just in case you forget they’re supposed to be the bad guys.
The only female character of note is a soldier’s deaf wife (played by pop star Lee Jung-hyun). She’s not a complete character, though, as she only shows up to enhance the drama of her husband’s struggle in the war. When she attempts to communicate via sign language, Lee looks so awkward and frenzied it’s like she’s having a fit. But again, anything for more drama! Later on in the film, Lee and other peasants rise to assist Admiral Yi’s soldiers. I think it’s meant to be a tearjerker moment, but it’s just so over-the-top that I found it silly. Scenes like this are just cheap ways to go for the emotions. After The Admiral and War of the Arrows (a film I enjoyed more, though it suffered some of the same issues), I think that Kim is impressive when it comes to filming action, but he needs to rethink how he’s directing drama. There were scenes in The Admiral that required a gentle hand but it’s like Kim showed up with a sledgehammer and figured, what’s the difference?
Choi Min-sik was good. Choi Min-sik is always good. While everyone else is yelling and screaming, Choi gives us a performance of controlled stillness. Admiral Yi is a larger than life character, and I think a lesser actor would’ve either frozen or overacted in the role. The film gets a little better every time he’s on screen.
So, is a strong performance from one of Asia’s finest actors and some well-done action enough to overcome a poorly written screenplay and some questionable direction? Not in this viewer’s opinion. That being said, Choi Min-sik and the epic action are likely the reason you’re interested in the film in the first place. Considering this, I think you could say that The Admiral gives you exactly what you came for, but never manages to give you much else.
The Admiral: Roaring Currents arrives on Blu-ray from CJ Entertainment. We get both Korean and English language tracks. The sound is exceptional, I thought. The picture presents great color and fine detail. In fact, the picture is so good it shows the flaws in the poor makeup and hair. You can’t unsee all those fake mustaches. As for special features, the only one of note is a 5 minute “making of” featurette. 5 minutes isn’t much time to cover such an epic production, but one point that’s made repeatedly clear is how proud the actors and crew are to be involved in the telling of this story.
When The Admiral: Roaring Currents was released in South Korea it made some Avatar money, going on to become the country’s biggest box office hit of all time. Now that I know a little bit more about Admiral Yi and the importance of the Battle of Myeongnyang, I can understand why the film registered with so many viewers in Korea. However, as an American filmgoer, I can only view The Admiral as a film. And as a film, I found it heavily flawed, thanks mostly to a complete lack of subtlety on behalf of the film’s director. If there had been less sappy melodrama and some better character development before we got to the action in the second half, The Admiral might’ve been a historical epic that the whole world connected with. As it is, I think The Admiral is likely to appeal to its domestic audience and some history buffs, but will leave many of the rest of us only mildly entertained.
Production has wrapped on Jarhead: The Siege, the third chapter in the unrelated, modern-day, military trilogy that began with Sam Mendes’ Jarhead (2005) and Don Michael Paul’s Jarhead 2: Field of Fire (2014).
The upcoming Jarhead: The Siege is directed by William Kaufman (One in the Chamber) and stars Charlie Weber (How to Get Away with Murder), Scott Adkins (Wolf Warrior), Tom Ainsley (The Royals), Dennis Haysbert (Jarhead) and Dante Basco (Blood and Bone).
Synopsis: Corporal Albright (Weber) joined the elite Marine Corp Security Guards to save the world and see some action — not necessarily in that order. But his first assignment, protecting a U.S. Embassy in a seemingly safe Middle Eastern capitol, relegates his unit to wrangling “gate groupies” protesting outside the compound and honing their marksmanship by playing video games. So Albright and his team are caught off guard when well-armed and well-trained militants launch a surprise attack aimed at killing an informant in the embassy.
Hopefully, a trailer for Jarhead: The Siege will pop up soon. Until then, here’s a set photo, courtesy of The official Scott Adkins website. Look for the film in 2016! The film is now available for pre-order!
Shooting has started on Neon Grindhouse: Hong Kong, an upcoming documentary that will explore lesser known aspects of Hong Kong Cinema, such as: the sex and sadism of the Cat III film, the wacky Bruceploitation sub-genre and Godfrey Ho’s unbelievable cut-and-paste adventures.
In addition, the femme fatale genre and the high impact, bone-crunching work of the Hong Kong Stunt Community will also be covered.The project will also include interviews with stars like Godfrey Ho, Huang Kin Long (aka Bruce Le) and many more!
Neon Grindhouse: Hong Kong is being produced by an expert team that includes Mike Leeder (Pound of Flesh), Dan Findley, Arne Venema, Sophia Shek and Ivy Lam. For more information, visit the official site and/or follow on Twitter – stay tuned!
Updates: One of the film’s producers, Mike Leeder, has informed COF that he has just completed an in-depth interview with cult director Godfrey Ho (The Dragon, The Hero). Click here for a photo of Ho with the Neon Grindhouse crew: Dan Findlay, Arne Venema and Leeder himself.
Director: Wu Jing
Cast: Wu Jing, Yu Nan, Scott Adkins, Kyle Shapiro, Ni Dahong, Zhou Xiaoou, Shi Zhaoqi, Deng Ziyi, Tian Miaomiao, Ma Qiang, Chris Collins, Shan Jiachen
Running Time: 90 min.
By Paul Bramhall
After the lukewarm reception of Wu Jing’s 2008 directorial debut Legendary Assassin, 7 years on and 2015 sees him returning to the directors chair for his second feature, Wolf Warrior. While Legendary Assassin was very much a Hong Kong movie, the publicity posters for Wolf Warrior gave us a clear indication of what to expect, displaying Jing in a variety of heroic poses set against the backdrop of the Chinese flag. It left people with little doubt that his latest effort was essentially going to be a 90 minute commercial for the Chinese army, the question was, would it be a good one?
With a cast led by Jing himself, starring alongside British martial arts sensation Scott Adkins (credited as Scott Edward Adkins for some reason), the potential was there for greatness. At one point it was even speculated that Vincent Zhao had joined the cast, but in the second film in as many years (the first being 2014’sSpecial ID), in the final product he was nowhere to be found. Nevertheless, the prospect of Jing vs. Adkins was enough to wet any action movie fans appetite, and rightly so.
It may come as no surprise to hear that those expecting a 2015 version of Sammo Hung’s masterpieceEastern Condors will be sourly disappointed. It becomes apparent very quickly that the budget of Wolf Warrior dictates that, if you must make a comparison to a similarly themed movie, then the 1991 Moon Lee action flick Angel Force would be a much more favorable effort. It may be shot in 3D and feature some worthy explosions and pyrotechnics, but there’s no denying that Wolf Warrior is a far cry from the budget of other mainland-centric productions such as Switch. Still, when you have talent in front of the camera like they do here, who cares!?
The story itself opens with Wu Jing’s character, who’s an expert sniper, skillfully taking our a terrorist from ‘somewhere in South East Asia’, who’s threatening to put a bullet in the head of a hostage. Jing’s actions are considered risky, but ultimately he’s promoted to the Wolf Division, a team which is “the special force of special forces.” Trouble comes though when the brother of the terrorist Jing killed discovers his whereabouts, and sends a team of elite foreign mercenaries, led by Adkins, to have him killed. Mid-way through, the script seems to realize it needs to give the terrorists some reason for doing what they’re doing, so it’s explained in a throwaway comment that they’re planning to make a virus using Chinese DNA which will only kill Chinese people. Ok.
Wolf Warriors opens strongly, the first 15 minutes being filled with some impressive action sequences. There are plenty of explosions, all of them real, and several of which utilize some unique POV reaction shots when they go off, thanks to all the soldiers seemingly wearing cameras somewhere on their person (it’s never clear exactly where). Likewise Scott Adkins and his posse also make an impressive entrance, blowing a house to smithereens, and unleashing a minigun against several police cars to devastating effect.
While there’s not a single kick or punch thrown by either Jing or Adkins, the quality of what’s on display means you don’t even notice. Unfortunately, after such a strong opening, things take a turn for the worse. Jing is soon recruited to Wolf Division, and dropped in the jungle close to the border in which he has to take part in a training excercise. The game pits his team, led my mainland actor Shi Zhao Qi, against another, led by the leader of the Wolf Division played by Yu Nan, who you may recognize as the only good thing about Expendables II.
Their training is interrupted however by the arrival of Scott Adkins and his gang, who do terribly intimidating things like spray paint a rock with Chinese characters which read ‘Chinese Boy Scouts’, even though none of the mercenaries can speak Chinese, let alone write it. But wait, before any of that, in one very confusing scene Jing and his team suddenly fall quiet, before whispering that there are wolves on the way. The whole time various characters have been referring to themselves as wolves, so I was expecting the other team to show up and for some action to take place. Instead, a group of CGI wolves make themselves known, and we have to watch the brave Chinese soldiers fight against said wolves via rather awkward actor vs. sub-par CGI animal trickery.
We know the soldiers are brave by the way, because when Adkins and Jing do face off, even though Adkins has been a merciless bastard throughout, he takes a moment to tell him – “You may not be the smartest soldier I’ve ever met, but you’re definitely the bravest.” Talk about breaking character. These constant gushings about how great and beautiful China is happen with overwhelming regularity throughout the movie. To a large degree, they’re forgivable. Unlike many movies which awkwardly shoehorn in the ‘China is great!’ message, Wolf Warrior was about how great China was from the very beginning, so it comes as expected. That said, it still manages to grate at certain points, especially with one of the closing lines being, “Those who threaten China’s resolve will have no place to hide!”
From the moment Jing is recruited to the Wolf Division the movie is essentially limited to just two locations – the jungle, and the division base which has Yu Nan communicating with Jing via a headset and a nifty CGI map of the landscape. With Jing’s team mates isolated against Adkins and his crew, it should be time for some fists and feet action in the jungle, but sadly, this never comes to be. Instead, almost 99% of the movies action consists of rather dull gunplay. Hardly any of it is particularly bloody, but most disappointingly, the promise of the first 15 minutes is quickly forgotten, as the vast majority of the shootouts are instantly forgettable.
When Jing and Adkins finally do run out of bullets and face off, at last there’s a moment of tension in the air as they both get their knives out and confront each other. Less than a minute and several moments of wirework later, it’s over. Adkins barely gets to throw a single kick, and worse of all, is dispatched in a horrendously cheesy way – with Jing getting himself all riled up by looking at his arm patch that Adkins tore off: a Chinese flag which has written in English ‘I Fight for China’. It pains me to say that Jing didn’t learn from his experience on Legendary Assassin, on which he also worked with fight chorographer Nicky Li, as it seems that while both are talented, they don’t appear to be a good match for each others styles. Jing vs. Adkins should have been epic, but instead, it’s hardly worth a mention.
Jing also hasn’t improved much as a director in 7 years. Some parts are laughably bad. In one scene a grenade goes off which is shown in slow motion, it then cuts to Yu Nan watching the explosion on the monitor inside the base, but ridiculously the scene on the monitor is also playing in slow motion. He also doesn’t understand how to engage the audience, as in another scene one of his team members shows him a photo of his daughter that he keeps inside his helmet. Less than 5 minutes later, the character is killed, and it flashes back to him showing Jing the photo inside his helmet, even though we just watched it a couple of minutes ago. The soaring score wants us to get emotional, but the emotions aren’t earned.
Proceedings come to a close with a Jackie Chan style outtakes reel over the final credits, complete with fight scene accidents, line blunders, and general onset shenanigans. Normally I show a lot of goodwill towards outtakes, but in this case, it simply felt like it was prolonging the inevitable, when all I wanted it to do was end. Indeed those who threaten China may have no place to hide, but if those making the threats are faced with the prospect of having to watch Wolf Warrior, I’m sure they’ll try pretty damn hard.
Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 4.5/10
Disclaimer: I watched Wolf Warrior in the cinema in 3D. While not normally a fan of 3D, here in Australia there was no option to view it any other way. Apart from a few explosions which sent splinters hurtling towards the screen in the beginning and end, I’m unsure why the decision was made to film in the 3D format, as it was barely utilized.
During their CinemaCon presentation, Sony announced that The Equalizer 2 is currently in the works. There are no other details at this time, other than it has a release date scheduled for September 29, 2017.
2014’s The Equalizer was directed by Antoine Fuqua (Replacement Killers) and starred Denzel Washington, Marton Csokas, Chloë Grace Moretz, David Harbour, Bill Pullman, Melissa Leo and Haley Bennett.
The film, which was loosely based on the 1980’s TV show of the same name, was about a sophisticated former government agent atoning for the sins of his past by righting the wrongs of a flawed legal system.
While few would dispute Donnie Yen’s position as one of action cinema’s reigning champs, there’s no denying that the reception to his more recent output has been rather lackluster. Films such as Special ID and Icemanhave disappointed for a number of reasons, but mostly for the fact that they lacked the hard-hitting action fans had come to expect after movies like Ip Manand Flash Point. Thankfully, Donnie Yen’s upcoming effort Kung Fu Killer represents a startling return to form and we’re here to tell you why.
1.) Donnie Yen gets to stretch his acting chops for a change
After Icemansaw Donnie Yen strolling around Hong Kong with a goofy grin and a wig, it’s refreshing that Kung Fu Killer affords him the chance to act again. When a fearsome serial killer begins targeting the best martial artists in their field, the police turn to Donnie Yen’s character for help – the twist is, he’s already behind bars himself. It’s been awhile since we’ve seen Yen play a character with this much of a dark side; here he’s a bit closer to Hannibal Lecter than he is Ip Man, and it’s a nice change of pace.
2.) Wang Baoqiang may be Donnie Yen’s toughest opponent yet
Okay, considering that Donnie Yen faced off against Jet Li back in Once Upon a Time in China II, that statement might not be entirely accurate. But the point is that actor Wang Baoqiang brings to Kung Fu Killer exactly what a Donnie Yen movie needs: a formidable villain. Thanks to his surprisingly solid martial arts skills and a manic, over-the-top performance, Wang Baoqiang electrifies the film every moment he’s onscreen.
3.) The filmmakers incorporate elements of other genres
Nobody would mistake Kung Fu Killer for anything other than what it is – a pulse-pounding action/thriller – but the fact that our villain is a serial killer gives the movie a unique feel. This allows the filmmakers to incorporate at various times the look and feel of other genres, particularly those of the police procedural and horror movie. The result is that Kung Fu Killer‘s premise and aesthetic alone help set it apart from other Donnie Yen movies.
4.) Teddy Chan is back behind the camera
Not familiar with Teddy Chan? He’s the same director who worked with Donnie Yen on the excellent Bodyguards & Assassins. While that movie was more of an ensemble film than a showcase for Yen in particular, Teddy Chan made sure the movie’s action sequences were delivered with the same flair and finesse Donnie Yen’s fans have come to expect. In Kung Fu Killer, the focus is squarely on Yen and Teddy Chan delivers the goods when it comes to the movie’s numerous fights and kinetic setpieces.
5.) The film pays homage to the action legends who have come before
It’s impossible to forge ahead in a genre without paying respects to the innovators and trailblazers who have come before. Donnie Yen clearly knows this better than anyone as Kung Fu Killer is stuffed to the brim with cameos and knowing nods to the legends of Hong Kong cinema. We dare say you won’t be able to catch them all on a first watch, but eagle-eyed viewers will be sure to notice appearances from Shaw Brothers players David Chiang and studio boss Raymond Chow, not to mention a tribute to the recently departed Lau Kar-leung.
Watch the U.S. trailer for Kung Fu Killer, which hits theaters on April 24, 2015, followed by a Blu-ray & DVD release on July 21, 2015. Read our full review here.
“Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” Teaser Poster
THE MOVIE:Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is an upcoming movie intended to be a sequel to 2013’s Man of Steel. Zack Snyder is directing the film, written by Chris Terrio, from a story by Snyder and David S. Goyer. The film releases on March 25, 2016.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice stars Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne, Diane Lane, Jesse Eisenberg, Jeremy Irons and Holly Hunter.
Updates: Collider reports that Zack Snyder will shoot Batman vs. Superman back-to-back with JLA, which means a 2017 release for JLA. | Here’s the first look at Ben Affleck as Batman. Also, a peak at the new Batmobile in Batman vs. Superman, courtesy of Collider. | Collider reports that Batman vs. Superman (aka Man of Steel 2) is officially titled Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Also, the new logo has been revealed. | Variety reports that Jason Momoa (Game of Thrones) has signed up for the role of Aquaman in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. | First image of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman. | First photo of Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor, courtesy of Collider (via EW). | 1st teaser trailer.
THE MOVIE: The fourth installment in the Jurassic Park franchise is titled Jurassic World. Directing the film will be Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed). There are no plot details, but the film has a release date for June 12, 2015. So far, the cast includes Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jake Johnson, Nick Robinson, Ty Simpkins and Irrfan Khan.
Chances are his script will bear no resemblance to an earlier one from The Departed‘s Willian Monahan that floated around the web back in 2007. That draft had a soldier of fortune returning to Jurassic Park with the help of some genetically engineered mini-T-Rexes who obeyed his commands like domesticated dogs. We’re not even making this up!
Updates: Here’s a new pack of cast photos, featuring Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Nick Robinson and Ty Simpkins, courtesy of Collider. | First official poster. | First Jurassic Worldteaser. | First full trailer. | Big Game trailer. | New TV spot.
Part of director Takashi Miike’s Triad society trilogy, Rainy Dog is a revelation; a quiet, slow moving meditation on innocence and the consequences of violence. Miike is of course synonymous with extreme cinema, especially his masterpieces Ichi The Killer and Audition. As much as I love those movies, Rainy Dog proves his ability to work on a serious level with real clarity and attention to detail. Shot in Taiwan with mostly a Taiwanese cast and crew, Miike does not speak Mandarin meaning that he was not able to communicate directly with either of them, but still manages to elicit wonderful performances.
Sho Aikawa stars as an ex-Yakuza hitman who has relocated to Taiwan, and lives in a modest apartment. One day a girl he slept with arrives with his supposed son, saying he has to look after the child. He takes on a job he shouldn’t have, and is pursued by Yakuza. He falls in with a prostitute and the three of them hideout from the gangsters. Despite a slight plotline everything falls in to place beautifully, and even minor characters are memorable. Tomorowo Taguchi has a small part, playing a strange guy that sleeps rough and wears a sharp suit who is obsessive in his pursuit of Aikawa, despite his motives never being explained. This was one of the many movies Taguchi appeared in that year, and he is one of the best character actors ever to come out of Japan. One of his first roles was in Tetsuo: The Iron Man, one of the greatest Cyberpunk horror movies ever made. I first watched that movie at the age of about 14, and its insane visuals made a huge impression on me. A couple of years ago I managed to catch it on the big screen in the Edinburgh Film Festival, and its impression was just as vital. Anyone that knows their Hong Kong cinema will notice Blackie Ko appearing as a brothel owner very briefly in Rainy Dog. Aikawa puts in perhaps his strongest performance in a Miike film, coming just before his deranged turn in Dead or Alive, another Miike classic that couldn’t be more different in tone from Rainy Dog.
The shooting style of the film is a marked departure for Miike; maybe this is partly due to the crew being Taiwanese, who mainly worked on the films of Hou Hsiao- Hsien, the maverick arthouse director. There are a lot of static shots in Rainy Dog, with characters framed through the pouring rain. The aesthetic is a lot more low key and quietly observed, with a slowly burning atmosphere. The films influences are a lot more plain to see than in other Miike films also. Wong Kar Wai’s films of the time such as Fallen Angels (one of my all-time favourites) with their late night ambience inform Rainy Dog, with even use of the stop printing technique so synonymous with Wong used in one scene. John Woo’s The Killer with Chow Yun Fat as the hitman with a heart of gold and dark city feel is echoed and incorporated with a much more grimy style. The violence is filmed in short bursts with one or two angles, worlds away from Woo’s elaborate dance. Aikawa’s monosyllabic performance and other characters recall classic Westerns, such as Sergio Leone’s masterful Dollars Trilogy. The blues slide guitar soundtrack reinforces this, and reminds me of Jim Jarmusch’s brilliant revisionist Western Dead Man that has a soundtrack by the genius Neil Young, my favourite musician. The look and feel of Takeshi Kitano’s gangster films, especiallySonatine, are reference points also, with their deliberately slow and symbolic style. All of these film makers inform the style of Rainy Dog, but Miike manages to rise above them and deliver a film very much his own.
In terms of pure film making Rainy Dog is definitely one of Miike’s best; every aspect combines to create an immersive experience and leave a lasting impression. The cinematography is clean and concise with no intrusive angles, and there are some beautiful tracking shots especially at the end of the film. The look is consistent and even in tone, no matter the location.
The characters in the film are incredibly well drawn and you really care for them, and Aikawa’s character really develops as he goes on from a violent, drug-taking loner to a man full of heart. Jianqin He as Aikawa’s supposed son Chen is a really hear wrenching character, and communicates complex emotions despite being a mute. Some of the scenes with He are particularly touching, one being when he is sleeping rough outside of Aikawa’s apartment and befriends a stray dog.
There are some minor problems with the picture overall, such as the lack of gunfights that would satisfy the action fan and an air of detachment in the first half. Also the persistent rain creates an aesthetic that can at times be over cooked. However those seeking a different kind of film from Miike will not be disappointed with Rainy Dog.
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