"A Better Tomorrow" Korean Theatrical Poster

“A remake that’s on the money.” – The Hollywood Reporter

“A classic unto itself.” – Film Critics United

Brothers.  Enemies.  Killers.

A BETTER TOMORROW

From Executive Producer John Woo Comes the Stylish Action Drama Starring Jin-mo Ju and Seung-heon Song.

The accent is on action when Jin-mo Ju (A Frozen Flower, The Warrior) and Seung-heon Song (So Close, Ghost) star in the remake of John Woo’s 1986 cult classic A Better Tomorrow, debuting on Blu-ray^™ + DVD Combo Pack and DVD November 8 from Well Go USA. Double-dealing among rival Thai and Korean mob syndicates provide the fuel for this fast-paced crime thriller that also stars Kang-woo Kim (Marine Boy) and Han Sun Jo. Bonus materials include deleted scenes, a photo gallery, behind-the-scenes interviews with director Hae-sung Song and the film’s actors, and a 30-minute interview with executive producer John Woo. A Better Tomorrow will be available in a Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack for $29.98 SRP and on DVD for $24.98 SRP.

Synopsis:

Kim Hyuk (Joo Jin-Mo) lives the fast life as a high ranking mobster in the port city of Busan, South Korea. His closet friend is fellow mobster Lee Young-Choon (Song Seung-Heon). Even though Kim Hyuk seems to be on top of the world, he is haunted by the memory of leaving behind his younger brother Kim Chul (Kim Kang-Woo) and mother as they attempted to flee into South Korea from North Korea. Kim Hyuk’s mother was beaten to death and Kim Chul imprisoned after they were caught by North Korean authorities.

Kim Hyuk then travels to Thailand with new gang recruit Jung Tae-Min (Jo Han-Seon) for a meeting with Thai gangsters. The meeting turns out to be a set-up, planned in part by Jung Tae-Min. Kim Hyuk is able to shoot his way out the meeting, but he is later caught by the Thai police and imprisoned. When good friend Lee Young-Choon hears of what happened to Kim Hyuk in Thailand, he goes to the Thai gang’s holdout in Pusan to kill their boss. During the shootout Jung Tae-Min is shot in the leg.

Three years later, Kim Hyuk is finally released from prison and travels back to Busan. He finds his close friend Lee Young-Choon washing cars now and has a limp leg. Jung Tae-Min, the man that betrayed him, has climbed up the mob ranks and is now a feared crime boss. Furthermore, Kim Hyuk’s younger brother Kim Chul has arrived in Busan and works for the Busan Police Department. Meanwhile, Kim Chul keeps close tabs on Jung Tae-Min as he attempts to take down their gang.

Bonus Features Include:

– 30 minute interview with John Woo
– Deleted Scenes
– Actor and Director interviews
– Theatrical Trailer
– Photo Gallery

A Better Tomorrow has a runtime of approximately 124 minutes and is not rated.

"Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl" Japanese Theatrical Poster

Looking for a bloody good time? In the spirit of the Halloween season, we spotlight a few Asian horror movies now streaming on Netflix Instant:

Thirst (2009) – the director of “Oldboy,” Chan Wook-Park, presents his unconventional take on the vampire myth

Retribution (2006) – arguably the master of Asian horror, director Kiyoshi Kurosawa, weaves a bleak ghost story with apocalyptic ramifications

Infection (2005) – a fan-praised Japanese horror film set in a hospital where something is not quite right

Meatball Machine (2005) – a gruesome Japanese splatterpunk film in the tradition of “Tetsuo: The Iron Man” and “Versus”; a must-see for those who like their horror movies with a healthy heaping of gore

Noriko’s Dinner Table (2005) – acclaimed Japanese director Sion Sono presents this nearly three hour long prequel to his own “Suicide Club”

Three…Extremes (2005) – an Asian horror anthology featuring three distinct tales from Hong Kong director Fruit Chan, “Oldboy” filmmaker Chan Wook-Park, and the legendary Takashi Miike

Dumplings (2004) – Fruit Chan expands his “Three…Extremes” piece into a macabre full-length film

Tokyo Zombie (2005) – a zany zombie comedy based off the manga and starring Tadanobu Asano of “Ichi the Killer” fame

Ab-Normal Beauty (2004) – one half of the Pang Brothers directs this creepy Hong Kong horror movie starring Ekin Cheng

Spider Forest (2004) – this unsettling Korean horror film deals with the notion of a fractured mind a la “Fight Club” or “Memento”

Doppleganger (2003) – Kiyoshi Kurosawa directs this decidedly offbeat tale of a man who meets his evil double

Ju-On 2 (2003) – internationally acclaimed director Takashi Shimizu continues the “Ju-On” saga that made him famous

Visible Secret (2001) – Hong Kong critical darling Ann Hiu directs this rare horror outing, starring Eason Chan, Shu Qi, Anthony Wong, and Sam Lee

Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000) – a pitch black Korean comedy from Joon Ho Bong, the world-renown director of “The Host” and “Mother”

Demon Warriors (2007) – this dark Thai thriller is more of an action movie than a horror flick but it features plenty of blood ‘n gore. Imagine Clive Barker directing an X-Men movie and you’re halfway there

Hellavator: The Bottled Fools (2005) – an ultra low-budget sci-fi horror movie made by Japanese film students. What’s not to love?

Epitaph (2007) – a Korean horror anthology centered around a haunted, war-time hospital

Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl (2009) – from the director of “Tokyo Gore Police” comes this Japanese splatterfest that probably explains itself from the title [dubbed]

Goth (2008) – based on a popular manga, this Japanese horror movie follows two death-obsessed high school girls trying to track down a serial killer

The Machine Girl (2008) – the movie that started it all for the “Tokyo Gore Police” team and arguably still their best, it follows a teenage girl with a machine gun attachment looking to get revenge on the Yakuza [dubbed]

Robogeisha (2009) – another ultra-violent Japanese treat from the makers of “Tokyo Gore Police” [dubbed]

Tokyo Gore Police (2008) – a blood-splattered Japanese film set in a near future where mutants and other societal outcasts have run amok [dubbed]

Machete Maidens Unleashed DVD (MPI)

Not a whole lot for Asian film buffs to choose from this week but martial arts fans will probably want to check out “Bunraku” and perhaps there’s an older catalog title you’d like to upgrade to blu-ray on. Alright, let’s get cracking!

ASIAN CINEMA

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (blu-ray/DVD) – from Wayne Wang, the director of “Joy Luck Club,” comes this tale of lifelong friendship starring Li Bingbing, Gianna Jun, Vivian Wu, and Russell Wong

FOREIGN CINEMA

Going Places (blu-ray/DVD) – this 1974 French comedy features plenty of wanton sexuality and amoral living, and made an overnight star of actor Gerard Depardiu

CULT

Bunraku (blu-ray/DVD) – director Guy Moshe presents a dizzying blend of influences in this 2009 genre mash-up starring Josh Hartnett and Japanese rock god Gackt. Fans of martial arts movies and weird cult flicks should find plenty to enjoy here but, chances are, the average viewer will be left scratching their head

The Adventures of Prince Achmed (DVD) – this movie from 1926 is considered the oldest remaining animated film, made by Lotte Reiniger using her innovative silhouette technique

Survive! (DVD) – Amazon has this 1976 survivalist film arriving on DVD this week, delayed from several weeks ago

Machete Maidens Unleashed (DVD) – this documentary examines the crazy world of Filipino genre cinema in the 70’s and 80’s. Also streaming on Netflix Instant!

Darkening Sky (DVD) – an extremely low-budget alien abduction film starring Rider Strong of “Boy Meets World” and “Cabin Fever” fame

MAINSTREAM

Hook (blu-ray) – if you grew up with this 1991 Steven Spielberg film like I did, you probably love it. Anyone who saw this when they were older seems to hate it. Either way, it’s now on blu-ray!

Cop Land (blu-ray) – before he reinvented himself as a post-millennial action god, Sly Stallone stretched his acting chops for one last time in this 1997 dark cop drama. Now in hi-def!

Scrooged (blu-ray) – everybody loves Bill Muarry, so why not upgrade to the blu-ray version of his 1988 take on “A Christmas Carol”?

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (blu-ray) – before “Moon” made him a household name, Sam Rockwell starred in this dark drama loosely based on a true story. Now on blu-ray

Trespass (blu-ray/DVD) – there are some who will tell you this 2011 Joel Schumacher film received a limited theatrical release but I still say this is Nicole Kidman’s first true direct-to-video flick. Hey, it happens to everyone. Nicolas Cage is also here for the paycheck

The Philadelphia Experiment (DVD) – this 1984 sci-fi adventure film starring Michael Pare (“Streets of Fire”) and Nancy Allen (“Dressed to Kill”) gets a DVD re-release, which is probably a good thing since the transfer on the previous DVD was supposedly terrible

Black Moon Rising (DVD) – a DVD re-release for this 1986 science fiction film, written by John Carpenter and starring Tommy Lee Jones and Linda Hamilton

HORROR

Phantom of the Opera (blu-ray) – the classic 1925 silent film starring Lon Chaney, still full of terror and awe, arrives on blu-ray for the first time

Interested in any of these movies? If so, we hope that you’ll consider ordering from our affiliate to help support this site. Thank you!

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings has issued an apology for the handling of a recent price hike that had Netflix subscribers in a lather and led to a number of subscriber cancellations and a drop in stock price. And he’s also announced that Netflix will split into two companies: Netflix for streaming and “Qwikster” for DVDs by mail. To read the full story and watch Hastings’ video statement, please click here.

UPDATE 1: In a shocking development, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings announced today that, well, there will be no Qwikster. Netflix will remain one service from which you can rent DVDs and stream movies, with only one charge to your credit card. Surely this kind of flip-flopping isn’t typically seen outside the political realm?

UPDATE 2: A company rep told the New York Times that it is still  “to be determined” if Netflix will move forward with a plan to rent out video games, a move that would provide serious competition for the games-by-mail service GameFly.

UPDATE 3: The Hollywood Reporter notes that several Hollywood studios are debating an extension on the 28-day delay that some new movie releases face before arriving Netflix and Redbox. This could mean that Netflix and Redbox users would have to wait up to 60 days after street date in order to rent new movies. All of this is an attempt from the major studios to increase flagging sales on retail DVDs.

The Stool Pigeon Blu-ray/DVD (Well Go USA)

The Stool Pigeon is 2010 Hong Kong police thriller directed by Dante Lam (The Beast Stalker, Fire of Conscience) and starring Nicholas Tse, Nick Cheung and Kwai Lun-mei. The film explores the dangerous world of police informants and the lengths they must go to in order to maintain their cover. The Stool Pigeon is now streaming on Netflix Instant in HD. Watch it, then check out our review!