March is one hot month for Asian and Martial Arts movie releases!

For those of you looking to beef up your Asian cinema or martial arts Blu-ray/DVD collection, it’s going to be one hell of a month!

Since March is filled with so many high profile releases, we decided to put together a list of movies that every cityonfire.com visitor should know about: Wong Kar Wai, Van Damme, Korean remakes/originals, Jackie Chan, Akira Kurosawa, Cung Le, Dolph Lundgren, Takeshi Kitano, Exploitation, B-movies, Indie martial arts films and much, much more!

For your convenience, we listed them by day of release. If you’re interested in purchasing the titles, we’re hoping you’ll click on our links to show your support towards cityonfire.com. As always, we’ll appreciate it!

The Grandmaster: March 4th
Anchor Bay presents the Blu-ray & DVD for Wong Kar Wai’s The Grandmaster, an epic action feature inspired by the life and times of the legendary Kung Fu master, Ip Man, who mentored Bruce Lee. The Grandmaster stars Tony Leung Chiu Wai and Zhang Ziyi.

Spike Lee’s Old Boy: March 4th
Sony presents the Blu-ray & DVD for Spike Lee’s Oldboy. Obsessed with vengeance, a man (Josh Brolin) sets out to find out why he was kidnapped and locked into solitary confinement for 20 years without reason. It’s not the most loved remake, but hey, someone out there likes it!

Kingdom of Conquerors: March 8th
Lionsgate presents the DVD for Wang Ping’s Kingdom of Conquerors (aka An End to Killing). In the early 13th century, when all the nomadic clans of Mongolia were at war, one man was able to conquer them all and unite them under one banner: his own. Genghis Khan, known for his ruthlessness and barbarism, built an empire that covered nearly all of Asia and cemented his place as one of history’s greatest emperors.

Death Grip: March 11th
Osiris Entertainment presents the DVD for Death Grip. This 2012 martial arts picture stars Johnny Yong Bosch, a former star of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, as well as Contour director Eric Jacobus and various Stunt People members. Indie martial arts flicks don’t get better than this!

Puncture Wounds: March 11th
Lionsgate presents the DVD for Puncture Wounds (aka A Certain Justice). After returning home from a traumatic tour of duty in Iraq, John (Cung Le) finds himself at war with the criminals of the underworld. Also starring Dolph Lundgren, Sean O’Bryan and Vinnie Jones.

Enemies Closer: March 11th
Lionsgate presents the Blu-ray & DVD for Enemies Closer, directed by Peter Hyams (Timecop) and starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, as a maniacal drug cartel lord. Two mortal enemies (Orlando Jones and Tom Everett Scott) must make a choice: put aside their past and work together, or die alone at the hands of a ruthless gang (headed by Van Damme) who will stop at nothing to retrieve their lost cargo

Commitment: March 11
Well Go USA presents the Blu-ray & DVD for Park Hong-Soo’s Commitment. After his father’s botched espionage mission, North Korean Myung-Hoon (Choi Seung-Hyun) and his young sister Hye-In (Han Ye-Ri) are sent to a labor prison camp. In order to save his sister’s life, Myung-Hoon volunteers to become a spy and infiltrates the South as a teenage defector.

Beyond Outrage: March 11th
Magnet presents the Blu-ray & DVD for Beyond Outrage, written, directed and starring Takeshi Kitano. As the police launch a full-scale crackdown on organized crime, it ignites a national yakuza struggle between the Sanno of the East and Hanabishi of the West. What started as an internal strife in Outrage has now become a nationwide war!

The Hidden Fortress: March 18th
Criterion presents the Blu-ray & DVD for 1958′s The Hidden Fortress. Akira Kurosawa directs this spirited period action-adventure in which two conniving peasants are tasked with smuggling a general, a princess and the remains of her family’s wealth through mountainous, hostile territory in feudal Japan. This rip-roaring ride is among the director’s most beloved films and was a primary influence on George Lucas’s Star Wars.

The Wrath of Vajra: March 18th
Well Go USA presents the Blu-ray & DVD for The Wrath of Vajra, directed by Law Ching Cheong (The Iceman Cometh). In The Wrath of Vajra, a top Chinese martial artist (Yu Xing) sets his sights on a Japanese death cult after they abduct innocent Chinese children and train them to be assassins.

A Touch of Sin: March 18th
Kino Lorber presents the Blu-ray & DVD for A Touch of Sin. Both acclaimed and controversial, Jia Zhangke’s A Touch of Sin (a nod to King Hu’s 1969 action classic, A Touch of Zen) has been compared to the works of Sergio Leone and Quentin Tarantino. This ultra-violent film stars Wu Jiang (Dragon), Vivien Li (The Guillotines) and Lanshan Luo.

The Flu: March 18th
CJ Entertainment presents the DVD for The Flu (aka Flu), directed by Kim Sung-su (Musa the Warrior). This Korean blockbuster is about an outbreak of a deadly disease that throws a city into chaos. It stars Jang Hyuk (Volcano High) and Soo Ae (Athena, Goddess of War), as a couple who race against time as they try to save themselves and find a cure.

Chinese Zodiac: March 25th
Universal presents the Blu-ray & DVD for Chinese Zodiac. Jackie Chan returns as Asian Hawk (his character from Armour of God and Operation Condor), this time scouring the globe for the bronze head statues of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals, which were sacked by the French and British armies!

Girls, Gangsters & Zombies: March 25th
Switchblade Pictures presents the DVD for Masahiro Assou’s Girls, Gangsters & Zombies. It would have been the perfect crime except for those darn meddling zombies! Well, with that said, the title says it all in this Japanese splatter fest. Starring AV superstar Laura Aoyama, Ichiro Nishikoshi, Yu Minami, Ryuhei Kawana and Ken-ichi Takada.

Welcome to the Jungle: March 25th
Universal presents the Blu-ray & DVD Welcome to the Jungle. A group of office workers find themselves stranded on a desert island when a corporate retreat, led by unhinged former Marine (Jean-Claude Van Damme), goes horribly wrong. Now Chris (Adam Brody) and his co-workers must battle nature – and each other – to survive!

Countdown: March 25th
Action Slate presents the DVD for Countdown, a 2012 thriller from Thailand! Set in New York City on New Years Eve. At a time when most people start with a clean slate, three Thai roommates are at the mercy of a mysterious psychotic, house-crashing drug dealer, who forces them to face horrors from their past and to make amends, or die trying!

Killing American Style: March 25th
Cinema Epoch presents the DVD for 1990′s Killing American Style: Special Edition, directed by Amir Shervan (Samurai Cop). Looking for some cheesy action? This 1990s exploitation film will deliver. It stars Harold Diamond (stick fighter from Rambo III), Jim Brown (Three the Hard Way) and Robert Z’Dar (Maniac Cop).

If you’re looking for a new import release, please visit DDDhouse.com. The trusted retailer carries new and upcoming releases that are not available in North America, such as Firestorm, The White Storm, Out of Inferno or Unbeatable.

Also, be sure to enter our current Blu-ray and DVD contests! Your chances of winning are pretty darn good!

"Zomboobies!" Promotional Poster

Zomboobies! is an upcoming boobs-to-the-walls horror-comedy. It combines a love for insane Japanese horror movies with traditional creature FX, modern digital FX, comedy, action, drama, gore and of course boobies! Zomboobies! stars Cathy Shim (Oishi High School Battle), Marisa Tayui (Balls of Fury), Diana Toshiko (Bad Milo) and Greg Watanabe (Only the Brave).

In conjunction with the new full length trailer, Mike L. Taylor, the film’s director and creator, launched a Kickstarter to raise the funds to transform the insane trailer into a fully developed movie. To find out how you can partake in making it happen, visit Zomboobies!’ Kickstarter site.

Warning: The trailer lives up to its title. Don’t say we didn’t warn ya.

"The Matrix" Japanese Theatrical Poster

There’s a new rumor going around that The Wachowski siblings – the duo behind The Matrix, Cloud Atlas and the upcoming Jupiter Ascending – are in the process of developing a new trilogy of Matrix films.

Latino Review broke the news with this information: We’ve been told that the Wachowski’s have already started the writing process with early treatments and outlines already turned into the studio. No word if they will want to direct but my money says “Claro que Si!”.

So, will Keanu Reeves be back? Will Yuen Woo Ping be handling the fighting choreography? For all we know, the new set of films may be a set of remakes. Whatever the case, cityonfire.com will keep you updated. Stay tuned!

"Firestorm" Chinese Theatrical Poster

Despite hitting the ripe age of 51 years-old, Hong Kong superstar Andy Lau is showing no signs of slowing down. After headlining Tsui Hark’s Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame and making a cameo appearance in Cold War, Andy Lau is, once again, throwing himself back into the action. His next film is a high-octane action/thriller set in modern day Hong Kong. Titled Firestorm, the movie follows Lau as a senior police inspector out to bring a vicious gang of thieves to justice.

Firestorm arrives from screenwriter-turned-director Alan Yuen, whose previous script credits include such titles as New Police Story and Shaolin. Just in case you needed more incentive to see the film, the producers are promising “all out war” on the streets of Hong Kong. A trailer for Firestorm is online now for your viewing pleasure. | Expect to hear more about this promising movie as we near its December 2013 Chinese release. | Updated trailer. | New trailer.

Updates: The Andy Lau actioner Firestorm is receiving plenty of internet buzz ahead of its December 12th release in China. Says first-time director Alan Yuen: “Firestorm maintains the original flavor of the Hong Kong cop films that everybody used to love so much.” | Latest trailer. | Newest trailer.

BREAKING NEWS: DDDHouse.com now has Firestorm, available for March 5th pre-order on Blu-ray & DVD. Keep in mind that the DVD version is Region 3 coded, so you will need a multi-region DVD player to view the movie. Fortunately, the Blu-ray version is coded for region A, so it’s good to go on your current North American Blu-ray hardware.

"Dredd" Japanese Theatrical Poster

Despite Dredd’s dreadful box office reception, Blu-ray and DVD sales for violent comic book adaptation have been sky rocketing. So now, Lionsgate has been having conversations about a Dredd sequel with Karl Urban, screenwriter Alex Garland and director Peter Travis – who are all reprising their talents, if the sequel happens.

From Screen Rant: Urban said what we’ve been saying since the film first released: that the studio completely fumbled its marketing and theatrical arrival. Urban went on to say that despite an underwhelming box office take that had seemed to kill any chance of a sequel, the DVD sales have continued to impress – and Lionsgate has taken notice.

We’ll keep you updated. Until then, the first Dredd is a click away.

"Lady Vengeance" DVD Cover

If you’ve been a connoisseur of Asian cinema as far back as 2005, you’re likely to recall the glory days of Palisade Tartan’s ‘Asia Extreme’ label. The beloved DVD series helped introduce a number of now-classic Asian titles – including Oldboy and A Tale of Two Sisters – to the North American market.

Fans were understandably upset when Tartan closed their doors in the States back in 2008. Although the company has issued a few titles on Blu-ray in recent years, including Kim Ki-duk’s The Coast Guard, it’s been nothing like Tartan’s initial deluge, which also gave Shinya Tsukamoto’s 1989 cyber-punk classic Tetsuo: The Iron Man its first proper Stateside release.

Fortunately, it looks like Tartan’s ‘Asia Extreme’ label will be making something of a comeback.

Via Variety, distributor Kino Lorber announced they have acquired North American home entertainment rights to Tartan’s massive library of films, which includes the popular ‘Asia Extreme’ catalog. Lorber plans to exhibit select films theatrically, in addition to proper Blu-ray releases for most titles. Lorber’s deal also includes digital distribution rights, so we may see more ‘Asia Extreme’ titles popping up on Netflix or Amazon. Considering Kino Lorber’s long history of treating genre films with the respect they deserve, this acquisition can only be good news for us Asian film buffs.