What ELSE (other than KUNG FU) has everyone been watching?

[Guest Firecrane]

Whats up everyone, it's been awhile.

Shaws:

The Duel

The Angry Guest

Marco Polo

Judgement Of An Assassin

Shaolin Intruders

Casino

Japanese:

Sword Of Doom

Anime:

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children

Baseball:

Watched the all Yankee games as they won the AL East Division

Watched the Yankees get eliminated again >:

[Guest kenichiku]

Just watched during my travels:

Double Bliss (VCD) ***.5/5 w/Liang Sing Po, Ching Li, Wei Ping Ao; It's his trademark voice so Canto legend Liang Sing Po did do his role in Mandarin; deserved DVD treatment.

Deadly Duo (VCD) **** (5 stars if DVD was perfect) w/DC, Ti Lung; Couldn't hold out anymore; a true classic.

Chinese Boxer (VCD) **** w/Jimmy Wang Yu, Lo Lieh, Wang Ping; no bad audio to distract the fantastic visuals especially in the 2nd half.

others:

Kim Ki Duk, Samaritan Girl (r3 DVD) ***

2nd 1/2 of Tsui Hark's 'Seven Swords' (DVD) ***.5; he's been watching his Shaw films...also nouveau Korean ones.

Theatrical splurging:

'Flight Plan' (the Mongkok UA at Midnite) *** w/Jodie in her lioness protecting her cubs mode again, Sean Bean, Peter Skaarsgard's role way under-developed; coulda been way better.

Nick Park, 'Wallace & Grommit: Curse of the WereRabbit' (at the Tung Chung Crescent UA matinee)****; A 100 screaming & laughing little kids can't be wrong, fun cheese. Nice to see old friends like Grommit over here!

TV:

a 'Get Smart' rerun on Pearl TV!

'So Close' w/Shu Qi, Karen, Vicky & Kurata on Pearl tonite!

[Guest GwaiLoMoFo]

Have recently seen:

Unleashed (2nd viewing) 4.5/5 (Jets best in a looong time)

Judgement Of An Assassin 4.5/5 (excellent on every level)

Godzilla: Final Wars 4/5 (very fun movie)

Hong Kong Godfather 5/5 (Good film, with a ripper ending)

The Himalayan 4/5 (good finale, a little slow fist half)

Haute Tension 4/5 (yeah it was gory, sometimes its what you dont see that scares you.)

Death Games 3.5/5 (great fight scenes, ok film)

Goyokin 5/5 (Masterpiece Samurai film!!)

Crash 4/5 (bottom line, everybody is racist)

Havent seen any stinkers in a while.

[Guest Chen Zhen]

i just got the unleashed dvd, i like it a lot more than i already did upon 2nd viewing.

[Guest kenichiku]

Spinning my HK splurge:

The Duel (IVL) ****.5/5 - A near perfect package w/original trailer & except for minor forgivable audio intervention midway thru, still damn near the best of the year. This is young hot-blooded Ti Lung's flick all the way through.

The Brave Archer & His Mate (r3) ***.5 – Having admit to not knowing the books, watching this as a stand alone before revisiting the originals was a challenge but great Venoms influenced fights helped to cap off this Chang series. Capable Kuo Chui & Gigi Wong chemistry helped me forget the switch in the Kid’s role and watching Lung Tien Sheng go berserk was the bomb.

The Angry Guest (IVL) ***.5 - Loved it as a teen, plays quite dated now. Chang's no Fukusaku or Suzuki as this DC/Ti Lung vehicle is upstaged by the colorful villians. Although Kurata was underused during fights, his conquest was with the ladies. Korean actress Fang Im Ha shines as his Japanese colleague. Bug eyed Bolo is quite amusing with his speaking parts.

Raw Passions (IVL) ** - an excrutiating static mystery thriller with plot holes & rotton herrings. Ivy Ling Po was more interesting in 'Cause to Kill'. I wanted more of the volumptuous Meng Li.

Spring Blossoms (IVL r3) ***.5 - w/Shu Pei Pei, Essie Lin Chia, Lily Li, Fang Yan, Chin Feng, Fang Mien, I'm a sucker for geeky maudlin 60s Shaw comedies; pretty sisters, med-student tenants & coke bottle glasses, what's not to like?

[Guest lacali]

Just finished watching Seven Swords. I don't like it that much since the fighting is kind of weak for a Donnie Yen movie.

[Guest Iron Boat]

All of you watch too much T.V.

[Guest kenichiku]

Nah...probably just me.

[Guest kenichiku]

Shaw reruns:

Ti Lung, Young Rebel (IVL r3) ***.5/5; w/DC, Ti Lung, Lu Ti; Surprisingly refreshing now after dismissing this basher decades ago.

Li Han Hsiang, Illicit Desire (IVL r3) ***.5; w/Hu Chin, Tanny, Yang Chun, Yueh Hua; thought provoking coffee table erotica.

Hsu Teng Hung, The Silver Fox (vhs) ***.5; w/Lily Ho, Chang Yi, a fave classic; remastered IVL next.

non-Shaw

Niki Caro, North Country (theatrical) ***.5; w/Theron, Harrelson; 'Norma Rae' & 'Silkwood' for the new millenium; New Zealander Caro has a good feel for the Northern Midwest.

Bartkowiak, Doom (theatrical) ***; not into flicks based on video games but forget 'Being Cool', the Rock w/a 'Semper Fi' tattoo returns to form.

Reiner, This Is Spinal Tap (r1) ****; never get tired of this one, brilliant.

Besson, Wasabi **.5, 'Leon' in translation; good looking but shallow.

[Guest kenichiku]

just reruns...

Shaolin Mantis ****.5/5

Sweet Is Revenge **.5

Disciples of the 36th Chamber ***.5

Last Woman of Shang ***.5

The Swordsmates ***

non-Shaw:

Mendes, Jarhead (theatrical) ***.5 - even w/snipers, don't expect a 'Full Metal Jacket'

Campbell, Legend of Zorro (theatrical) **.5 - mostly for the kids

Dickerson, Juice (r1) ***.5 - Wow, almost a decade since Tupac left

Annaud, Enemy at the Gates (r1) ***.5 - needed my sniper fill.

[Guest lacali]

Just finished watching The Myth with Jackie Chan & Tony Leung Ka Fai (3/5), Seven Swords with Donnie Yen (3/5), and Shaw Brothers' Hong Kong Hong Kong with Cherie Cheung & Alex Man (4/5).

[Guest jmungus]

OFFENSIVE SHAOLIN LONGFIST (1983)

liked it for what it is- chop socky of the decent standard type. sure a lot more fun (at least to me) than 80% of anything 'action' that comes out of hk or hollywood lately (stealth, fantastic four, huada chronicles.... all with less entertainment value than stuff like the LONGFIST)

6.5

ANGRY GUEST (1972)

duel of fists never really appealed to me (3 viewings over the course of 10, 12 years) and its sequel, the angry guest (never watched before) doesnt either, tho i liked it slightly better. lung & dave in thailand just dont cut it for me. dave solo in thailand (shaolin handlock) was a lot more fun.

5.5

THE BLADE (1995)

tsui brings it intense and authentic. good remake, keeping some of the old and giving it new perspectives.

8.5

ELF (2003)

i generally dig the will ferrell comedy angle. in "elf" it works lovely. the best new millenium x-mas comedy.

8/10

SHAOLIN TEMPLE (1976)

whos the "best" director in town for the shaolin temple theme ?

anyone ever cared to compare ? aside from chang cheh im thinking in the likes of joseph kuo, LKL (duh!) etc

who seems to be the most authentic, who wreaks temple havoc the best, who is the most original and creative ?

anyhow, this one scores 7.5

IRON MONKEY STRIKES BACK (1978)

my man chen kuan tai delivers once again.

the lenghty adventurous finale takes the classic "progress to the next chamber/level"-route (like bruce in game of death or wu jing in the tai chi master series to feature film).

ps: its only a "sequel" to iron monkey by name, not by content !!

7.5

LAND OF THE DEAD (2005)

not so much of a zombie fanatic or romero fan for that matter.

i heard this was a mixed bag, and im right in the middle of the mix with my opinion on this one.

to me this was a time killer of the bearable type, with nothing that would stand out in any way and no flaws i couldnt forgive.

6.5

[Guest teako170]

Shaw Brothers....

The Boxer From Shantung: If you have yet to see this film, get a copy. Great film!

Challenge of the Masters: One of those films I saw on Black Belt Theater back-in-the-day but didn't realize it until I started watching it again. Its quite a rush when your memory kicks in.

Non-Shaws....

Gaslight (1944): Classic film starring Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman, Joseph Cotten and a 17-year-old Angela Lansbury. Big fan of Bergman - one of the greats.

Paparazzi: Not bad. Dennis Farina was the standout as was Tom Sizemore who played a real prick.

Theatrical....

Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit: Gotta love these guys (though the film felt a bit long). Prefer their shorts more.

Regular TV....

Steelers ... Steelers ... and dare I say it, yes .... more Steelers! (Nothing stops Big Ben this season). :b

[Guest sevenhooks]

Gaslight (1944): Classic film starring Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman, Joseph Cotten and a 17-year-old Angela Lansbury. Big fan of Bergman - one of the greats.

Yeah, man. Good stuff.

Been getting back into a lot of film noir and trying to catch good ones I've yet to see.

CLASH BY NIGHT w/Barbara Stanwyck, Robert Ryan and a young Marilyn Monroe was excellent.

As was OUT OF THE PAST w/my favorite, Robert Mitchum.

Last week I finally bought a copy Orson Welle's TOUCH OF EVIL.

If you have the SLIGHTEST interest in this genre you NEED to see this movie. The opening shot alone is worth it (plus where else are you gonna see Charlton Heston as a Mexican!) Brilliant.

Also just picked up the Val Lewton "horror noir" box set with Cat People, The 7th Victim, I Walked With a Zombie, etc.

Incredible stuff.

Not exactly noir, but definitely dark was THE BAD SEED, about an unassuming murderous 8 year-old girl. The concept might not be so shocking these days, but keep in mind this was made in 1956!

Excellent performances all around. The flick is so gripping that it never drags, even when clocking in at just under 130 minutes.

Okay enough with the old films...

I'm just about to sit down and watch FRAZETTA: PAINTING WITH FIRE, a documentary about Frank Frazetta (you've seen his work even if you think you haven't - Molly Hatchet album covers, Conan The Barbarian art, Heavy Metal mag, etc.).

I'm also in the middle of the massive documentary from the early 70's called THE WORLD AT WAR.

Narrated by none other than Sir Lawrence Olivier, it's the definitive account of the Second World War.

What's fascinating to me is that it was made less than 30 years after the War ended, so many of the subjects were still alive and still relatively young enough to provide gripping accounts.

Oh, yeah... on the kung fu tip, I've recently thrown in the following...

TIGRESS OF SHAOLIN - would've liked to have seen Liu Chia-Liang's sister in more stuff during this period. She was a riot.

THE POSTMAN STRIKES BACK - pretty damn good. not at all what I expected.

18 FATAL STRIKES - SHAKEY EAGLE!! SHAKEY EAGLE!!

I know this ain't kung fu, but man, DON'T PLAY WITH FIRE was on some OTHER sh#t altogether!!!

All I gotta say is.... Lin Chien Chi.

If you think you've seen her in any number of Shaw joints, wow.

Guess again. What a performance.

Interesting that she stopped working after this one.

[Guest Ivy Ling Po]

Surprisingly strong coming-of-age drama. Tien Niu falls in love with dashing uncle Ling Yun. Father Chin Han dies of lung infection with mistress (famous TVB actress) by his side while wife Hsia Ping raves and rants. When rejected by Ling Yun, Tien Niu sleeps with rich kid Wong Yue and becomes pregnant. Always fascinating, buoyed by a strong performance by Tien Niu and Ling Yun, this comes highly recommended. Get the HK version. My Malaysian vcd was butchered but the censors overlooked Tien Niu's tits in one scene. Hilarious!

[Guest kenichiku]

Agreed, good film. Not Kung Fu film but 'Thirteen' is definitely a Shaw sleeper (just remade as '2 Young' by Derek Yee).

[Guest kenichiku]

More reruns

The Roving Swordsman (r3) ***/5 - one of Chu Yuan's better late wuxias

Killer's Five (r3) *** - Aldrich would be proud

Lost Souls (IVL vcd) *** - This nasty little bugger's growing on me.

Two Champions of Shaolin (r3) ***.5- superb Venoms action

[Guest kngfu]

THE TRANSPORTER 2-NOT as entertasining as the original, but it's great to see a new Hollywood (by way of England) action hero franchise again.

40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN-The entire cast in this movie were right on the money. Not a gut buster, but really enjoyable. i watched a bootleg copy that had audience laughter audible, and that made it like watching a 90 minute sitcom.

[Guest Isfahani]

This past two weeks of viewing:

Japanese:

SWORD DEVIL (Misume)

SWORD OF THE BEAST

EKO EKO AZARAK

GODZILLA vs KING GHIDORAH

GODZILLA vs MEGALON

TANGE SAZEN: THE MYSTERIOUS SWORD (1960)

TANGE SAZEN AND THE POT WORTH ONE MILLION RYO (1935)

KILL!

UNDER THE BLOSSOMING CHERRY TREES

KARATE BEARFIGHTER and KARATE BULLFIGHTER

HK/Taiwan:

MARTIAL ARTS MASTER WONG FEI HUNG

NINJA THE FINAL DUEL

BOXER'S ADVENTURE

WHERE'S OFFICER TUBA

PRODIGAL BOXER

THE BUTTERFLY MURDERS

SEVEN SWORDS

BRIDE WITH WHITE HAIR TWO

DUEL WITH THE DEVILS

Shaws:

EMPEROR CHIEN LUNG

ADVENTURES OF THE EMPEROR CHIEN LUNG

THE JADE FACED ASSASSIN

TWINKLE TWINKLE LITTLE STAR

SHAOLIN INTRUDERS

THE CASINO

THE SWORDMATES

TWIN BLADES OF DOOM

annnnd...HOGAN'S HEROES season one, discs 1-4

Alice Cooper's WELCOME TO MY NIGHTMARE

Renoir's THE RIVER

and Raj Kapoor starring in DIL HI TO HAI (1963)

Surprisingly strong coming-of-age drama. Tien Niu falls in love with dashing uncle Ling Yun. Father Chin Han dies of lung infection with mistress (famous TVB actress) by his side while wife Hsia Ping raves and rants. When rejected by Ling Yun, Tien Niu sleeps with rich kid Wong Yue and becomes pregnant. Always fascinating, buoyed by a strong performance by Tien Niu and Ling Yun, this comes highly recommended. Get the HK version. My Malaysian vcd was butchered but the censors overlooked Tien Niu's tits in one scene. Hilarious!

Uhhhhhh Tien Niu's tits? <runs out to buy DVD> omg.

[Guest ironfistedmonk2003]

This week, I have mostly been watching

Wandering Swordsman

Flying Daggers

Pai Yu Ching

Fist of Unicorn

Bruce Lee True Story

and Red Dwarf Series 7

Ow yeah, and England beating the Argies 3-2, well done lads!

[Guest Tangowind]

Hey ironfistedmonk, what's your opinion of Wandering Swordsman and Flying Dagger?

For the last week, I've seen:

Looney Tunes cartoon classics and The Return of Condor Heroes starring Andy Lau and Idy Chan (TVB series)

[Guest sevenhooks]

Looney Tunes cartoon classics

Yes!! The last volume was the best collection yet.

The one where Bugs gets the two hillbilly's doing the square dance cracks me up every time.

[Guest Tangowind]

sevenhooks, do you mean the Looney Tunes Golden Collection vol. 3? I haven't got it yet. Here in Australia we need to wait for a while. Still no word about this release.

[Guest Ivy Ling Po]

Now I know why Shaw studio went down the hill in the mid-80s......with mindless crap like this. With Celestial remastering this and releasing it over so many treasures in the Shaw vault, I may also know the reason why if Celestial goes bust.

No star.....shame on all those who participated in this turkey.

[Guest kenichiku]

That's why I'm still spinning r3 reruns & leaving the house, Ivy:

Kuei Chih Hung, The Rat Catcher **.5 – Location rich Central HK enhance this Shaws ‘Harry in your Pocket’; Yes, Tanny would of been more striking w/a more charismatic leading man other than Liu Lu Hua.

Li Han Hsiang, Love Swindlers ***.5 – Appreciating Episode #1 more w/boastful acupuncturist Ku Feng & his hapless apprentice (& little fortune) Ng Ming Choi carrying his boss’ quackster burdens. BTW, clueless Liu Lu Hua does carry episode #2 though.

Hua Shan, To Kill A Jaguar ** – Nora’s gorgeous (so’s her body double). Pity the rest of this film promising on paper didn’t jell onscreen; any restored cuts for this disjointed version would of mattered.

Chu Yuan, Sentimental Swordsman ***.5 – Ti Lung, Derek Erh & Fang Mei Sheng proves that character can carry this atmospheric martial arts tale in the hunt for the Plum Blossom Bandit. Chu Yuan at his height.

Non-Shaw:

Kurosawa, Kôrei aka Séance (r3) ***.5 – w/Koji Yakusho, this J-TV movie of a creepy mop haired little girl first trapped in a trunk & haunts now strikes as redundant with all those other Nakata films.

Johnnie To, Too Many Ways to Be Number One (DVD) ***.5 w/Lau Ching Wan, Carmen Lee, Francis Ng, Elvis Tsui; In my prelude to watching ‘Election’, this on-the-cusp 97 Milky Way transitional must be the most oblique HK triad film ever shot. Like ‘The Odd One Dies’, his bottom feeding cretins seem to collide with the overall wistfulness of the film but the lowly fly-on-the-wall camera are all part of the appeal.

Theatrical:

Tucker, Shopgirl **** - Martin’s fairy tale lovingly caresses his Mirabelle in this middle aged fantasy of an updated ‘LA Story’; Claire Dane's ordinary ingénue is hard to resist.

Verbinski, Weather Man ***.5 – like the city of Chicago, the new American family is soberly portrayed in this refreshingly tapestry. Sad sack Cage is perfect for this type of role and NO, you consumers of the Blockbuster contingency, the rehab counselor IS essential to the story.

Get Rich, Die Tryin’ *** - Mr Sheridan’s Irish eyes do see what’s it like to be East Coast Black ‘In America’ & 50 Cent’s a likeable rapper. I’d like to think that those 9 real-life gunshot slugs didn’t paralyze his freshman performance though.

Shane Black, Kiss, Kiss Bang, Bang ***.5 – Downey Jr. perfectly cast as contemporary LA film noir shmoe, Kilmer plays his flaming gumshoe partner. 50s retro-noir seem to be the flavor of the month but whether the filmmakers knew it or not, we’re all tasting 90s QT redux.

Hollywood's year-end crop is improving though…

[add, spel]