Scott Adkins's "The Expendables 2" Character Poster

THR reports that Scott Adkins (Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning) and UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture (The Expendables) are set to star in Distant Shore, an action thriller from veteran indie producers Joseph and Jack Nasser.

The Nasser Brothers have previously produced a string of straight-to-video action movies, including Tactical Force (Steve Austin, Michael Jai White) and Dawn Rider (Christian Slater).

Distant Shore is being described as Phillip Noyce’s Dead Calm meets Joe Carnahan’s The Grey.

According to THR, the story centers around a couple who sails into the ocean to commit suicide but are interrupted by the arrival of another mysterious vessel. Before long these two people who were ready to die are fighting to stay alive.

Scott Adkins and Randy Couture recently worked together in The Expendables 2. They are both currently wrapping up their individual projects, Tomb of the Dragon and Rush, respectively (both co-starring Dolph Lundgren). Filming for Distant Shore will start this year.

Update: A Scott Adkins fan site reports that plans for Distant Shore have been cancelled. More details to come.

"Saving General Yang" Chinese Character Poster

Acclaimed director Ronny Yu was at the Hong Kong FilMart, promoting his forthcoming film Saving General Yang. A press conference occurred with most of the cast and crew, followed by a private screening of the trailer. The film is a historical action epic focusing on “the well-known story of four generations of warriors from a Northern Han family.” The budget is set at a whopping $31.7 million, making it one of this year’s biggest films in the Asian market.

The pedigree behind Saving General Yang is just as impressive: Ronny Yu (The Bride With White Hair) directs while Raymond Wong (Flash Point) produces and Stephen Tung (A Better Tomorrow) handles action choreography. The film stars Adam Cheng, Yu Bo, Vic Chou, Raymond Lam, Wu Chun, and Fu Xinbo.

Update: Seems like it’s been forever since we heard about this film – but the bloody and action-packed first trailer is here! | Don’t miss the new action-packed Taiwanese trailer for the movie. | Check out the multitude of character posters released to promote the film’s April 4th release in China.

After declining the offer to direct the sequel to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, director Ronny Yu has set his sights on his next project. He wants to reunite the ‘Seven Brothers’ of his Saving General Yang cast for a spiritual sequel of sorts. Set in modern times with plenty of globe-hopping locations, the movie would be China’s answer to Ocean’s 11 (or perhaps The Thieves!).

BREAKING NEWS: Website JayneStars reports that Ronny Yu’s Saving General Yang bombed at the box office, despite the presence of big name stars like Ekin Cheng, earning just 56 million RMB (about 9 million US dollars) after one week. That’s well behind Johnnie To’s recent crime thriller Drug War, which earned about US$16 million in its first week. This has led some to suggest that Chinese audiences are growing tired of period pieces. We can’t help but wonder if this will put an end to Ronny Yu’s plans for a ‘spiritual sequel’ to Yang.

Captain America Blu-ray (Shout! Factory)

On May 21, 2013, Shout! Factory will unleash the long-awaited 1990 action sci-fi movie classic Captain America, starring Matt Salinger (What Dreams May Come), Ronny Cox (Total Recall), Ned Beatty (Superman), Darren McGavin (The X-Files), Michael Nouri (Damages) and Scott Paulin (JAG), in a special Collector’s Edition Blu-ray™.

Available for the first time on Blu-ray™, Captain America: Collector’s Edition features widescreen movie presentation in astonishing high-definition and insightful new interview with director Albert Pyun and actor Matt Salinger. A must-have for movie collectors, comic book enthusiasts and young aspiring heroes to complete their pop culture library, this definitive collector’s edition release of Captain America: Collector’s Edition Blu-ray has a suggested retail price of $14.97. Pre-order is now available at Amazon.com.

Bonus Content: Brand New Interviews: Looking Back At Captain America with Director Albert Pyun and actor Matt Salinger

Features: 1080p-High Definition Widescreen (1.78:1)/Stereo/1990/Color/97 minutes

Update: The release trailer for Shout! Factory’s Collector’s Edition of Albert Pyun’s Captain America Blu-ray is now online.

Jackie Chan Double Feature: Police Story 1 & 2 (Shout! Factory)

It’s a busy week with plenty of Asian film love to offer, so let’s get started.

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Here are your Blu-ray and DVD releases for the week of 4/16/13:

ASIAN CINEMA

Jackie Chan: Police Story / Police Story II (Blu-ray/DVD) – two of Jackie Chan’s most beloved action films are now in hi-def, thanks to distributor Shout! Factory

Dragon (Blu-ray/DVD) – the Weinstein Company is behind this release of the celebrated 2011 Donnie Yen martial arts film, also known as “Wuxia.” Beware that this 98min version has been cut compared to the 115min Chinese version. Co-starring Takeshi Kaneshiro (“Chunking Express,” “Red Cliff”)

Message From Space (DVD) – this campy 1978 science fiction movie from “Battle Royale” director Kinji Fukasaku has long had a reputation for being one of the best “Star Wars” rip-offs. Co-starring Sonny Chiba and Vic Morrow

Eclipse Series 38: Masaki Kobayashi Against the System (DVD) – the Criterion Collection’s Eclipse series continues with this selection of films from Japanese director Masaki Kobayashi. Look forward to the titles “The Thick-Walled Room,” “I Will Buy You,” “Black River,” and “The Inheritance,” dating from the 50’s to the early 60’s.

Girl$ (Blu-ray + DVD combo) – in modern day Hong Kong, several young girls have taken to performing “paid dates” for salary men as a way of making money. This 2010 film explores their risky lifestyle

Going By the Book (DVD) – this 2007 Korean comedy, on DVD courtesy of distributor 5 Points Pictures, follows a straight-laced cop who is forced to stage a bank robbery as a police training exercise

At the Gate of the Ghost (Blu-ray/DVD) – this 2011 Thai film is an adaption of the Akira Kurosawa classic “Rashomon”

Summer Wars (Blu-ray) – Funimation presents a 3-disc version of this popular 2009 anime feature film, which is something like a “Wizard of Oz” for the digital age. From the director of “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time”

Empire of Silver (DVD) – Hong Kong actor Aaron Kwok headlines this 2009 film, a sweeping drama and love story about a powerful bank heir during the end of 19th century China

MARTIAL ARTS/ACTION

Top Action Stars – 8 Movie Collection (DVD) – Jean-Claude Van Damme, Steven Seagal, and Dolph Lundgren share the spotlight in this 8 film collection that includes titles like “Knock Off,” “Universal Soldier: The Return,” and “Into the Sun” for only $12.99

Explosive Cinema – 8 Exhilarating Movies (DVD) – a diverse collection of genre entertainment is offered in this $12.99 set, including Tony Scott’s “The Fan,” Bruce Willis in “Hudson Hawk,” and Jamie Foxx in “Stealth”

Pulse-Pounding Flicks – 8 Intense Features (DVD) – see Chow Yun-fat in “The Replacement Killers,” Christopher Lambert in “The Point Men,” Wesley Snipes in “The Contractor,” and much more for $12.99

MAINSTREAM

Django Unchained (Blu-ray/DVD) – Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 Western – set in a slavery-era South – was a massive success at the box office when it opened last December

Iron Man: Rise of the Technovore (Blu-ray/DVD) – presenting a 2013 direct-to-video Marvel Comics animated adventure, featuring Iron man and the Punisher, done in an anime style

Spies of Warsaw (Blu-ray/DVD) – former Doctor Who David Tennant stars in this 2013 BBC production set in Poland, Paris, and Berlin in the years leading up to World War II

The Colombian Connection (DVD) – Robert Thorne and Tim Sizemore star in this 2013 direct-to-video actioner about a special missions team trying to escape the jungles of Colombia.

CULT

Repo Man (Blu-ray/DVD) – the Criterion Collection offers a new lease on life for this 1984 cult classic, starring Emilio Estevez and Harry Dean Stanton and featuring plenty of nihilistic punk attitude

Quentin Tarantino’s Rolling Thunder Pictures Triple Feature (DVD) – you can’t go wrong with this DVD collection of 3 films previously released by Tarantino’s Rolling Thunder label. The set includes: “The Mighty Peking Man,” “Detroit 9000,” and “Switchblade Sisters”

Samurai Cop (DVD) – the man with the chin that just won’t quit, Robert Z’Dar (“Maniac Cop”), stars in this 1989 cult favorite

The Indestructible Man (DVD) – horror icon Lon Chaney headlines this 1956 feature about a man who realizes he’s invincible after surviving the electric chair

HORROR

Bay of Blood (Blu-ray/DVD) – Kino Lorber has Mario Bava’s influential 1971 horror film, considered the prototype for the slasher genre, scheduled for a hi-def release. However, there’s no cover art available yet so it seems this title might be delayed. AKA “Twitch of the Death Nerve”

A Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia (Blu-ray/DVD) – this 2013 direct-to-video chiller is a sequel to the 2009 theatrical release “The Haunting in Connecticut”

H.P. Lovecraft’s The Dark Sleep (DVD) – this 2012 horror film is said to be an adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s “Dreams in the Witch House,” featuring stop-motion animation for the creatures

Escapee (Blu-ray/DVD) – Dominic Purcell of TV’s “Prison Break” plays a killer on the loose from prison in this 2011 slasher

Jacob: Director’s Cut (Blu-ray/DVD) – in this 2011 horror flick, a crazed hillbilly goes in a killing spree to avenge his little sister

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"Death Trance" DVD Artwork

Twitch reports on the possible retirement of Japanese action star Tak Sakaguchi. Sakaguchi rose to fame with the 2001 cult favorite Versus, a movie that managed to combine the low-budget charms of Evil Dead-like horror with blistering martial arts and gunplay. The actor later scored another cult hit with Battlefield Baseball, but has most recently hitched his wagon to the Sushi Typhoon production company.

He’s been behind and in front of the camera, serving as fight choreographer on movies like Tokyo Gore Police and Vampire Girl Vs. Frankenstein Girl. A retrospective on Sakaguchi’s career will be playing at a cinema in Tokyo in early April; the event was announced via a press release that also mentions Tak Sakaguchi retiring from the world of acting.

Sakaguchi’s own management company denies his retirement but it seems likely that Sakaguchi will at least continue to work behind the camera on future projects, whether it’s as a director or fight choreographer. Time will tell if we’ve seen the last of the man as an action star.

Update: Looks like rumors of Tak Sakaguchi’s early retirement were highly exaggerated. Recently, the actor let it be known that he is working on Death Trance II. The original Death Trance was released in 2005 and served as an off-the-wall blend of a fantasy setting with martial arts and gunplay. It wasn’t quite up to Versus standards but the film is still generally well-regarded by action fans, so a sequel is definitely something to get excited about!

BREAKING NEWS: The magazine Monster Attack Team broke the news via Facebook that Tak Sakaguchi is indeed retiring from acting. It’s unsure what this means for the fate of his recently announced role in Death Trance II.

"The Man With the Iron Fists" Theatrical Poster

You won’t see The Man with the Iron Fists on any London, Manchester or Edinburgh cinema listings now, but it’s worth catching on DVD for martial arts fans. That said; it’s not without its problems.

Development of this movie first began way back in 2005 and after close to two years of development RZA and Eli Roth managed to get financial backing in May 2010.

Filming of the movie was finally able to begin in in December of that year with a $20m budget. It was finished in March the following year.

The story centres around a 19th century village in the Chinese Jungle, where rival clans are fighting one another. When one of the leaders of a clan called the Lion Clan agrees to watch over a shipment of imperial gold, he falls victim to the betrayal of two of his underlings; the so-called Silver and Bronze Lions – played by Byron Mann and Cung Le respectively.

The Lion clan then attacks its rival Hyena clan whilst making a deal with Madam Blossom, the local brothel owner and whilst all this is happening, the leader’s son Zen-Yi is hurrying back into town. And if all that wasn’t confusing enough, there’s Thaddeus the blacksmith, played by RZA, who supplies everyone with weapons as he saves up to elope with his girlfriend.

There are so many things about this movie that are great – the plot is interesting and the action is set against a backdrop of rap music which always works well. On the other hand, most of us go to martial arts movies for the fight scenes. But with The Man with the Iron Fists, the fight scenes are decidedly average. It all depends on how much realism and plot you’re after versus unbelievable fight scenes we’ve become increasingly used to in the latest movies in the genre.

Perhaps The Man with the Iron Fists is indicative of the way things are heading – perhaps not. If you’re a real martial arts aficionado, you probably won’t like it. But if you like a great story and aren’t overly bothered about the fight scenes – be sure to watch it.