Wednesday, January 25

Movie review: The Magnificent Trio

An early effort from legendary Shaw Brothers director Chang Cheh, 1966's martial arts epic The Magnificent Trio won't bring anything new to long-time fans of the genre, but everything here is done extremely well, making this highly recommended viewing fare for aficionados of old school kung fu.

Full review here

Sale: Year of the Dragon

What better way for Hong Kong film fans to celebrate the Year of the Dragon than buying some authentic Bruce Lee swag from our friends at Reel East? From posters to lobby cards to press books to shirts and jewelry, there's something on the site for every fan of The Little Dragon.

Click here to visit the site. If you're into that whole social networking thing, you can point your browser over to Reel East's Facebook page to connect with other Bruceophiles from all over the world.

Upcoming DVD/Blu-ray release: Mandrill

Reuniting the director and star of Mirageman, Ernesto Diaz Espinoza and Marko Zaror, the international hit Mandrill is headed to DVD and Blu-ray on February 28 courtesy of Magnet. The film centers on Antonio (Zaror), who is on a quest to avenge the murder of his parents. Working as a ruthless bounty hunter, Antonio’s only weakness is women. Therefore, he enlists his uncle, an expert in the art of seduction, to give him the necessary skills to bewitch every female he meets.

The DVD and Blu-ray are available for pre-order at Amazon.

Friday, January 20

Movie review: Outrage

Marking his first directorial effort in the crime genre since 2000's Brother, Takeshi Kitano's Outrage was highly anticipated by fans of Asian cinema from all over the world. While Outrage isn't mind-blowing or genre-defining, it's an extremely solid and well-made movie.

Full review here

Movie review: The Fist That Kills

Released by Crash Cinema under the name Ninja Fist of Fire and mis-labeled (perhaps intentionally) as a Godfrey Ho picture, The Fist That Kills, doesn't feature one singular ninja during the entirety of its' running time. It's actually a decent period martial arts film directed by Wong Tin-Lam, the recently deceased director who helmed 129 movies during his life and is probably better known to modern audiences for his cameo appearances in Johnnie To films and being the father of the controversial film-maker Wong Jing.

Full review here

Friday, January 13

Movie review: Martial Arts Master Wong Fei Hung

With appearances in well over one hundred films, the folk hero character Wong Fei Hung is one of the most iconic in Hong Kong cinema history. The 1992 cheapie Martial Arts Master Wong Fei Hung doesn't add anything new to the mix, but fans of wire-fu should still be able to enjoy the proceedings.

Full review here

Thursday, January 12

Movie review: Claustrophobia

Ivy Ho made her directorial debut with Claustrophobia, a unique take on the romance drama that seems to divide viewers, who either seem to love or hate it. This reviewer, one to never like the traditional schmaltzy and sugary methods the genre applies, appreciated Ho's methods.

Full review here

Saturday, January 7

Movie review: Hooked On You

A romantic comedy can be bad enough. One starring Miriam Yeung is an even more dicey proposition, as she can be one of the most annoying actresses to screech her way across the jade screen. Shockingly, even through this jaded and grizzled reviewer's eyes, Hooked On You is an enjoyable movie.

Full review here

Thursday, January 5

Movie review: Kung-Fu Master

Continuing from the release of Empire of Assassins, this is another edit of the TV series Legend of Shaolin Kung Fu. With a similar emphasis on average fight sequences strung together with a series of haphazard, almost random exposition scenes, the results are again less than stellar.

Full review here