THE NEXT KARATE KID (1994, TUBI) THE KARATE KID (2010, TUBI) THE KARATE KID: LEGENDS (2025, AMC DOLBY CINEMA)
A huge critical/financial bomb upon release 31 years ago (Christ, I'm old), rewatching "The Next Karate Kid" now benefits from things that were perceived as weaknesses back then. Switching to a female student might lower the stakes (no fighting tournament final act) but it allows young Hilary Swank's falcon-loving Julie an innocence and discovery of emotions/feelings presence missing from the boy's club mindset of the rest of the franchise. Not gonna lie, at times Swank's too-girly attitude annoyed me ("I want a belt!") but I grew to tolerate it. By the end I liked Julie just fine, especially after she learns to let go of his co-dependence to Angel. Since TV's "Cobra Kai" and the new "Legends" movie have practically turned Pat Morita's Mr. Miyagi into a deity you can enjoy spending more time hanging out with him (and his gang of audience-pleasing blind bowling monk friends :-P) than in any other feature. Since he's in Boston babysitting Julie its two lead protagonists out of their comfort zone, making some of their interactions genuinely touching. The scene where Miyagi teaches Julie to dance for her prom using karate moves had me in tears. :'(
Shame the finale shits the bed by going full "Rocky V" with the Michael Ironside-led gang of bungie-jumping prom crashers (a high school police force?) and bad fight choreography that doesn't do Morita or Swank's already-unconvincing fighting scenes any favors. And since all the high school students except then-18 year-old Hilary look thirtysomething it's creepy when a gang of thugs chases Julie through the school hallways. Alas, as a middle-aged cinephile that didn't appreciate the treasure that Miyagi was when the actor was alive, I give this "KK" unicorn a rather generous 4 MONKS DANCING TO THE BEAT OF THE CRANBERRIES' 'DREAMS' (out of five). I'm as surprised about this as you are.
There's nothing wrong with it the 2010 "Karate Kid" remake other that it often feels/looks like a Chinese Tourism Board propaganda highlight reel. I sincerely doubt little black boy Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) and his poor martial arts teacher Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) would be allowed to train for a big fighting tournament by running up and down the steps of The Great Wall... but it looks cool (excellent cinematography throughout) and makes for a nice trailer/montage image. Being set in China makes the (American?) audience feel out of its element rather than the bullied student at first, but the familiarity with the formula carries the narrative past easily-avoidable racial/cultural differences. Jackie Chan was born to play a Miyagi-type mentor role ("Legends" opening goes out of its way to retroactively tie together Han and Miyagi's lineage), a nice physically impressive alternative to Pat Morita's talk-heavy teachings. Jaden Smith's fine the same way I love Lindsay Lohan's "Parent Trap" remake; love to movie role, ignore the adult person these then-child performers grew to become. It's fine, but at 140 minutes it's way too long and almost outstays its welcome. 3 SKINNY TARAJI P. HENSONS (out of five).
Since I've never seen the "Cobra Kai" streaming series I'm at a disadvantage identifying callbacks or any Easter Egg during "Karate Kid: Legends." Luckily this newest "KK" feature (the first made without supervision by OG producer Jerry Weintraub) sticks to the basics while changing the formula just enough to deliver an entertaining nostalgia bomb with wide appeal. The first half feels like a direct sequel to Jackie Chan's branch of the franchise tree, and then at the hour mark Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso joins the trunk. This time Han's nephew Li Phong (Ben Wang) has to go through the new city (The Big Apple), overprotective parent who disapproves of confrontation (Ming-Na Wen's relocated-from-China doctor), raging bully opponent (Aramis Knight's Conor), cute understanding girlfriend (Sadie Stanley's Mia), etc. routine. Phong already has good fighting skills and a relationship with a sensei/shifu, so much so that early on he becomes trainer to his girlfriend's father (Joshua Jackson, a comic-relief audience surrogate) as he enters a boxing tournament to earn enough money to keep his struggling pizza business afloat. But Li's repressed memories of his dead brother (ala 1995's "Mortal Kombat") haunts him as he sets his sights on defeating Conor in a local karate competition to help Mia and her dad keep their pizza joint.
Despite some intrusive graphic overlays, an obnoxious 'bro' attitude (gotta appeal to the youngsters somehow) and the series' trademark raging bullies being extremely violent for no reason, "Legends" feels like a celebration of the unlikely circumstances teaming an Eastern legend like Jackie Chan (doing his own fight/stunt moves at 71) with beloved Western crowd favorite Macchio (youngest-looking 60-something action star this side of Tom Cruise) into a timeless franchise formula with universal appeal. Even when it falls flat (anything involving Wyatt Oleff's Alan), watching Han and LaRusso training Li atop a NYC rooftop dojo is worth the admission fee. 3.5 WILLIAM ZABKA CAMEOS (out of five).
Awesome thumbnail for the day! Almost watched it!!
Dirty Ho (1979).
First up...no the title is not what you think. It refers to one of the two leads, Ho Ching, aka Dirty Ho. Second up, building on Patricks review from Giallo day, i adore that junesploitation helps shine a light on the boutique label amazing restorations for physical releases of so much sploitation goodness!! Growing up watching shitty transfers of these movies on obscure UHF stations (ch44?) I couldnt imagine that some day id get to see them on high quality bluray! In this case the amazing Shawscope box sets. As for the movie...i didnt really connect with the meandering plot. I did dig that it stars Gordon Liu, a fav and huge star for early kung fu classics. I also liked some of the setpieces, a highpoint being this elaborate dance/passive-fight during a muli-course wine tasting.
Ballerina (2025)
Obviously more gun-fu than kung-fu but great timing for the day. Im a HUGE Wick fan but also one who thinks 4 is enough wasnt really looking for more from this universe. That being said, i had a bunch of fun with this one. It relies heavily on peppering in cameos from Wick 3 cast members to remind us we're in that universe (including the awesome Lance Reddick..RIP). De Armas does a great job stoically navigating her path of revenge. The fight scenes are plentiful and she does very well with each of them. Additionally the movie found a few fun new ideas for fight sequences which fit wonderfully into the Wickverse. Absolute suggestion for Wick/action fans!
A duo of bumbling thieves unwittingly steal a valuable microfilm and get both the Triad and two no-nonsense female cops on their tail. Wackiness and kung fu ensue.
The plot is unimportant, the comedy is rarely funny, and there's too much of both, but when the action kicks into gear (mostly in the last 15 minutes), it's suberb. The fights and stunts are top notch, and Michelle Yeoh shines in only her second movie role. Cynthia Rothrock's great too, but her role as a tough cop who'll beat a suspect (or witness) until they talk rubbed me the wrong way a little bit. For some reason, Sammo Hung has a cameo in old age makeup and doesn't get to take part in any of the action.
A karate team travels to an island where they encounter a cannibal cult who have the ability to create zombie ghosts to battle their enemies. One of the best premises ever. This movie is insane, sleazy and hilarious, my only complaint is the fighting (especially the endless finale) is terribly choreographed and executed, with sometimes hilarious results. Highly recommended.
I snagged this as a complete blind buy from Vinegar Syndrome a couple years ago and watched for Junesploitation that year. LOVED IT. Its kind of a perfect Junesploitation title.
NINJA THE VIOLENT SORCERER (1982) Vampires are summoned from the grave to defeat an evil gambler known as the “King of Gamblers.” It’s the usual low-budget yet flashy nonsense from producer-director Godfrey Ho. The movie can’t decide if it’s tongue in cheek ninja action or if it’s a dark n’ gritty revenge flick. The vampires are the hopping vampires of legend, but this movie does a good job of making them look threatening rather than silly. Did I like this movie? Uh… it’s more of a curiosity than anything.
30 days of Georges Melies, day 7: UNDER THE SEAS (1907) A young man goes off on a solo submarine voyage to the bottom of the ocean, encountering mermaids, sea monsters, and the like. Big steampunk vibes to this one, as expected when adapting Jules Verne. But, also a lot of time spent on the dancing girls. This was cute, but it lacked the wow factor of the other Melies flicks on the list.
The One-Armed Swordsman (1967): This is the perfect time to finally crack open my Shawscope Vol.3 set, which I never did since I got it a while ago. And well, as with any other movies from the other sets, it's very cool. I also did the unspeakable (but clearly 'writable') and listened to the english dub, because I felt like it. There's a couple of sequels that I can't wait to watch.
Dub club here! I appreciate very much that the blu rays include the original audio track which many have never had access to, and alot of folks prefer. That being said, old school kung fu is just fun dubbed!
Speaking of dubs, I just got The Golden Child from Vinegar Syndrome. The movie had a fantastic french dub, but that's one thing we lost when movies are distributed by smaller companies, like VS or Arrow, because they won't pay for the track to save a couple of bucks. I get it, most of their clients won't care about it, so why bother.
Fun as heck, with a good sense of humor. It's got Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, and Yuen Woo-Ping choreography, so no surprise, the fight sequences rule. I actually don't know if I'd seen Li in a leading role before (maybe just supporting in The Expendables and Lethal Weapon 4?). My impression of him was based mostly on trailers for his early 2000s flicks, which painted a picture of a more serious persona, so it was a pleasant surprise to see him leaning into some of the more comedic elements here. I definitely need to check out more of his movies.
I kept hearing about this one over the years from fellow Junesploitation enthusiasts, and boy oh boy, did it live up to the hype. In the dystopian future of 2001, a young kung fu warrior is thrown in a prison where he must face a succession of increasingly ridiculous and overpowered enemies. The action is filled to the brim with insane practical gore effects, and the movie feels essentially like a live-action video game - a bone-crunchingly awesome video game.
The Golden Child (1986): This could've gone in the magic day, but it's been so long, I actually forgot that detail of the movie. So, I'm watching it today because there's a teeny-tiny bit of martial arts in there. Look, it's just an excuse to talk about the awesome and overpriced 4k set that Vinegar Syndrome just released. The kind of set that's almost overwhelming with the number of extras and sports a great picture quality. The production of the movie has the classic behind-the-scene shenanigans where the studios got scared of making a good movie and fudged around to make it 'safer'. The movie is still good 80s action-comedy, and I don't know much about the book it's based on, but you can kinda see where it was 'hollywood-ised'. Murphy's on top of the world, doing his own Big Trouble In Little China type movie (ah the mysteries of the orient. TGC being released about 5 months after). Charlotte Lewis is super cute, and I wish I'd seen her in more good stuff. Also, does Charles Dance ever played good guys in movies?
Kung Fu movies are a huge blind spot for me. I haven't seen very many, and I know very little about any of them. But, every time I see a movie like this one, I have an absolute blast. I figure I need to do some research to find out which ones I should be watching and do this more often.
It strikes me that these 70s martial arts films were the superhero movies of the day, with the hero(ine) being opposed by a assortment of foes with different powers and abilities. This one’s a spin-off from Sonny Chiba’s Street Fighter flicks, with Etsuko Shihomi in the title role, and it features plenty of action and the patented arterial spray and gruesome gore that made the previous SF films iconic. I loved the array of villains (the nunchaku dude, the blow gun guy, the amazing Amazon Seven(!!)), Shihomi makes for a charismatic lead, and the film was well directed and featured plenty of excellent widescreen cinematography. I've read comparisons between SFF and Kill Bill, which I found to be accurate. I had a good time with this, and I’ll probably check out the other movies in the Sister series.
Pretty good kung-fu flick, mainly because of the kung-fu. I didn't really dig when the tone was too goofy at times or too crude, nor that Jackie Chan was mostly not his lovable self. But the fight scenes were routinely entertaining, with a good variety of characters getting into it. I also dig elaborate training techniques in movies like this! 😆
KUNG FU CULT MASTER (1993, Wong Jing) First-time watch, Eureka! Blu-ray, 8/10. Jet Li isn't "one of my guys", but I attribute that mostly to my preference for '70s & '80s kung fu flicks. But still. I continue to explore & enjoy. Old master Sammo Hung killed the guy who might cure Jet Li's crippling injury. Various factions are united or against other factions. At 10 minutes I was pretty certain I had no idea what was going on, but that didn't matter one bit. Wong Jing, as one might hope, keeps the dull-moments quotient at zero using a monk imbedded in a boulder, special powers, secret weapons, White Eagle, Green Bat, other stuff, deadly foam, large-scale battles, booby traps, carnage in the temple & other topics. Solid blast of Kung Fun!
A Franco-phile suggests: EUGENIE (1970) One of Franco's Sadean journeys, this one has Maria Rohm, Jack Taylor, Paul Muller & Christopher Lee along with those fancy Harry Alan Towers production levels. Available on Digital Versatile Disc, Blu-ray Disc & even 4K from Blue Underground.
This is the good stuff. Disgraced and disfigured master trains a street urchin with a heart of gold and some possible mental issues everyone calls Little Monkey in the way of Monkey Kung Fu. Much Fu and monkey business abounds. The perfect flick for a Saturday after noon.
Master of the Flying Guillotine (1976, dir. Jimmy Wang Yu)
Martial arts movies are a blind spot for me, though I tend to enjoy them. So I went with one that has a good reputation. Found it streaming on Plex, with an English dub that would occaisonally drop back to original language. Was bonkers, and this is going to encourage me to watch more Kung Fu. Loved the guy with the extendable arms. Only complaint, wanted ever more Flying Guillotine.
The Heroic Trio (1993, dir. Johnnie To) I knew nothing about this movie when I started it and assumed it was a martial arts movie. It's much more a straightforward action movie, albeit one that is insane. It will have to count, though, as I won't have time to watch another movie. It's nutty and very entertaining, one of my better first-time watches so far this month. Michelle Yeoh tho.
'THE MIYAGI-VERSE OUTLIERS' TRIPLE THREAT!
ReplyDeleteTHE NEXT KARATE KID (1994, TUBI)
THE KARATE KID (2010, TUBI)
THE KARATE KID: LEGENDS (2025, AMC DOLBY CINEMA)
A huge critical/financial bomb upon release 31 years ago (Christ, I'm old), rewatching "The Next Karate Kid" now benefits from things that were perceived as weaknesses back then. Switching to a female student might lower the stakes (no fighting tournament final act) but it allows young Hilary Swank's falcon-loving Julie an innocence and discovery of emotions/feelings presence missing from the boy's club mindset of the rest of the franchise. Not gonna lie, at times Swank's too-girly attitude annoyed me ("I want a belt!") but I grew to tolerate it. By the end I liked Julie just fine, especially after she learns to let go of his co-dependence to Angel. Since TV's "Cobra Kai" and the new "Legends" movie have practically turned Pat Morita's Mr. Miyagi into a deity you can enjoy spending more time hanging out with him (and his gang of audience-pleasing blind bowling monk friends :-P) than in any other feature. Since he's in Boston babysitting Julie its two lead protagonists out of their comfort zone, making some of their interactions genuinely touching. The scene where Miyagi teaches Julie to dance for her prom using karate moves had me in tears. :'(
Shame the finale shits the bed by going full "Rocky V" with the Michael Ironside-led gang of bungie-jumping prom crashers (a high school police force?) and bad fight choreography that doesn't do Morita or Swank's already-unconvincing fighting scenes any favors. And since all the high school students except then-18 year-old Hilary look thirtysomething it's creepy when a gang of thugs chases Julie through the school hallways. Alas, as a middle-aged cinephile that didn't appreciate the treasure that Miyagi was when the actor was alive, I give this "KK" unicorn a rather generous 4 MONKS DANCING TO THE BEAT OF THE CRANBERRIES' 'DREAMS' (out of five). I'm as surprised about this as you are.
There's nothing wrong with it the 2010 "Karate Kid" remake other that it often feels/looks like a Chinese Tourism Board propaganda highlight reel. I sincerely doubt little black boy Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) and his poor martial arts teacher Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) would be allowed to train for a big fighting tournament by running up and down the steps of The Great Wall... but it looks cool (excellent cinematography throughout) and makes for a nice trailer/montage image. Being set in China makes the (American?) audience feel out of its element rather than the bullied student at first, but the familiarity with the formula carries the narrative past easily-avoidable racial/cultural differences. Jackie Chan was born to play a Miyagi-type mentor role ("Legends" opening goes out of its way to retroactively tie together Han and Miyagi's lineage), a nice physically impressive alternative to Pat Morita's talk-heavy teachings. Jaden Smith's fine the same way I love Lindsay Lohan's "Parent Trap" remake; love to movie role, ignore the adult person these then-child performers grew to become. It's fine, but at 140 minutes it's way too long and almost outstays its welcome. 3 SKINNY TARAJI P. HENSONS (out of five).
[CONTINUED FROM ABOVE]
ReplyDeleteSince I've never seen the "Cobra Kai" streaming series I'm at a disadvantage identifying callbacks or any Easter Egg during "Karate Kid: Legends." Luckily this newest "KK" feature (the first made without supervision by OG producer Jerry Weintraub) sticks to the basics while changing the formula just enough to deliver an entertaining nostalgia bomb with wide appeal. The first half feels like a direct sequel to Jackie Chan's branch of the franchise tree, and then at the hour mark Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso joins the trunk. This time Han's nephew Li Phong (Ben Wang) has to go through the new city (The Big Apple), overprotective parent who disapproves of confrontation (Ming-Na Wen's relocated-from-China doctor), raging bully opponent (Aramis Knight's Conor), cute understanding girlfriend (Sadie Stanley's Mia), etc. routine. Phong already has good fighting skills and a relationship with a sensei/shifu, so much so that early on he becomes trainer to his girlfriend's father (Joshua Jackson, a comic-relief audience surrogate) as he enters a boxing tournament to earn enough money to keep his struggling pizza business afloat. But Li's repressed memories of his dead brother (ala 1995's "Mortal Kombat") haunts him as he sets his sights on defeating Conor in a local karate competition to help Mia and her dad keep their pizza joint.
Despite some intrusive graphic overlays, an obnoxious 'bro' attitude (gotta appeal to the youngsters somehow) and the series' trademark raging bullies being extremely violent for no reason, "Legends" feels like a celebration of the unlikely circumstances teaming an Eastern legend like Jackie Chan (doing his own fight/stunt moves at 71) with beloved Western crowd favorite Macchio (youngest-looking 60-something action star this side of Tom Cruise) into a timeless franchise formula with universal appeal. Even when it falls flat (anything involving Wyatt Oleff's Alan), watching Han and LaRusso training Li atop a NYC rooftop dojo is worth the admission fee. 3.5 WILLIAM ZABKA CAMEOS (out of five).
Awesome thumbnail for the day! Almost watched it!!
ReplyDeleteDirty Ho (1979).
First up...no the title is not what you think. It refers to one of the two leads, Ho Ching, aka Dirty Ho. Second up, building on Patricks review from Giallo day, i adore that junesploitation helps shine a light on the boutique label amazing restorations for physical releases of so much sploitation goodness!! Growing up watching shitty transfers of these movies on obscure UHF stations (ch44?) I couldnt imagine that some day id get to see them on high quality bluray! In this case the amazing Shawscope box sets. As for the movie...i didnt really connect with the meandering plot. I did dig that it stars Gordon Liu, a fav and huge star for early kung fu classics. I also liked some of the setpieces, a highpoint being this elaborate dance/passive-fight during a muli-course wine tasting.
Ballerina (2025)
Obviously more gun-fu than kung-fu but great timing for the day. Im a HUGE Wick fan but also one who thinks 4 is enough wasnt really looking for more from this universe. That being said, i had a bunch of fun with this one. It relies heavily on peppering in cameos from Wick 3 cast members to remind us we're in that universe (including the awesome Lance Reddick..RIP). De Armas does a great job stoically navigating her path of revenge. The fight scenes are plentiful and she does very well with each of them. Additionally the movie found a few fun new ideas for fight sequences which fit wonderfully into the Wickverse. Absolute suggestion for Wick/action fans!
Yes, Madam! (1985, dir. Corey Yuen)
ReplyDeleteA duo of bumbling thieves unwittingly steal a valuable microfilm and get both the Triad and two no-nonsense female cops on their tail. Wackiness and kung fu ensue.
The plot is unimportant, the comedy is rarely funny, and there's too much of both, but when the action kicks into gear (mostly in the last 15 minutes), it's suberb. The fights and stunts are top notch, and Michelle Yeoh shines in only her second movie role. Cynthia Rothrock's great too, but her role as a tough cop who'll beat a suspect (or witness) until they talk rubbed me the wrong way a little bit. For some reason, Sammo Hung has a cameo in old age makeup and doesn't get to take part in any of the action.
I watched this a couple years ago for Cynthia Rothrock day. Sammo produced!
DeleteRaw Force (1982, dir. Edward D. Murphy)
ReplyDeleteA karate team travels to an island where they encounter a cannibal cult who have the ability to create zombie ghosts to battle their enemies. One of the best premises ever. This movie is insane, sleazy and hilarious, my only complaint is the fighting (especially the endless finale) is terribly choreographed and executed, with sometimes hilarious results. Highly recommended.
I snagged this as a complete blind buy from Vinegar Syndrome a couple years ago and watched for Junesploitation that year. LOVED IT. Its kind of a perfect Junesploitation title.
DeleteCrazy flick! Qualifies under so many Junesploitation categories!
DeleteNINJA THE VIOLENT SORCERER (1982)
ReplyDeleteVampires are summoned from the grave to defeat an evil gambler known as the “King of Gamblers.” It’s the usual low-budget yet flashy nonsense from producer-director Godfrey Ho. The movie can’t decide if it’s tongue in cheek ninja action or if it’s a dark n’ gritty revenge flick. The vampires are the hopping vampires of legend, but this movie does a good job of making them look threatening rather than silly. Did I like this movie? Uh… it’s more of a curiosity than anything.
30 days of Georges Melies, day 7: UNDER THE SEAS (1907)
A young man goes off on a solo submarine voyage to the bottom of the ocean, encountering mermaids, sea monsters, and the like. Big steampunk vibes to this one, as expected when adapting Jules Verne. But, also a lot of time spent on the dancing girls. This was cute, but it lacked the wow factor of the other Melies flicks on the list.
The One-Armed Swordsman (1967): This is the perfect time to finally crack open my Shawscope Vol.3 set, which I never did since I got it a while ago. And well, as with any other movies from the other sets, it's very cool. I also did the unspeakable (but clearly 'writable') and listened to the english dub, because I felt like it. There's a couple of sequels that I can't wait to watch.
ReplyDeleteA, this movie is amazing! B, I prefer watching 60s n 70s kung fu movies with English dubbing. It’s part of the charm.
DeleteAgreed. Sometimes the dub is just better. I'm from french Canada, and there's a ton of movies that I prefer watching the french dub
DeleteDub club here! I appreciate very much that the blu rays include the original audio track which many have never had access to, and alot of folks prefer. That being said, old school kung fu is just fun dubbed!
DeleteSpeaking of dubs, I just got The Golden Child from Vinegar Syndrome. The movie had a fantastic french dub, but that's one thing we lost when movies are distributed by smaller companies, like VS or Arrow, because they won't pay for the track to save a couple of bucks. I get it, most of their clients won't care about it, so why bother.
DeleteTai-Chi Master (1993)
ReplyDeleteFun as heck, with a good sense of humor. It's got Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, and Yuen Woo-Ping choreography, so no surprise, the fight sequences rule. I actually don't know if I'd seen Li in a leading role before (maybe just supporting in The Expendables and Lethal Weapon 4?). My impression of him was based mostly on trailers for his early 2000s flicks, which painted a picture of a more serious persona, so it was a pleasant surprise to see him leaning into some of the more comedic elements here. I definitely need to check out more of his movies.
Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky (1991)
ReplyDeleteI kept hearing about this one over the years from fellow Junesploitation enthusiasts, and boy oh boy, did it live up to the hype. In the dystopian future of 2001, a young kung fu warrior is thrown in a prison where he must face a succession of increasingly ridiculous and overpowered enemies. The action is filled to the brim with insane practical gore effects, and the movie feels essentially like a live-action video game - a bone-crunchingly awesome video game.
I really should watch it too
DeleteI'm watching this for Hong Kong action day!
DeleteThe Golden Child (1986): This could've gone in the magic day, but it's been so long, I actually forgot that detail of the movie. So, I'm watching it today because there's a teeny-tiny bit of martial arts in there. Look, it's just an excuse to talk about the awesome and overpriced 4k set that Vinegar Syndrome just released. The kind of set that's almost overwhelming with the number of extras and sports a great picture quality. The production of the movie has the classic behind-the-scene shenanigans where the studios got scared of making a good movie and fudged around to make it 'safer'. The movie is still good 80s action-comedy, and I don't know much about the book it's based on, but you can kinda see where it was 'hollywood-ised'. Murphy's on top of the world, doing his own Big Trouble In Little China type movie (ah the mysteries of the orient. TGC being released about 5 months after). Charlotte Lewis is super cute, and I wish I'd seen her in more good stuff. Also, does Charles Dance ever played good guys in movies?
ReplyDeleteFist of Fury (1972)
ReplyDeleteKung Fu movies are a huge blind spot for me. I haven't seen very many, and I know very little about any of them. But, every time I see a movie like this one, I have an absolute blast. I figure I need to do some research to find out which ones I should be watching and do this more often.
SISTER STREET FIGHTER (1974, Kazuhiko Yamaguchi)
ReplyDeleteIt strikes me that these 70s martial arts films were the superhero movies of the day, with the hero(ine) being opposed by a assortment of foes with different powers and abilities. This one’s a spin-off from Sonny Chiba’s Street Fighter flicks, with Etsuko Shihomi in the title role, and it features plenty of action and the patented arterial spray and gruesome gore that made the previous SF films iconic. I loved the array of villains (the nunchaku dude, the blow gun guy, the amazing Amazon Seven(!!)), Shihomi makes for a charismatic lead, and the film was well directed and featured plenty of excellent widescreen cinematography. I've read comparisons between SFF and Kill Bill, which I found to be accurate. I had a good time with this, and I’ll probably check out the other movies in the Sister series.
I have the Arrow set, but only ever watch the first movie. Another set I really should dive into
DeleteMaybe next year!
DeleteDrunken Master (1978) Directed by Yuen Woo-Ping
ReplyDeletePretty good kung-fu flick, mainly because of the kung-fu. I didn't really dig when the tone was too goofy at times or too crude, nor that Jackie Chan was mostly not his lovable self. But the fight scenes were routinely entertaining, with a good variety of characters getting into it. I also dig elaborate training techniques in movies like this! 😆
KUNG FU CULT MASTER (1993, Wong Jing)
ReplyDeleteFirst-time watch, Eureka! Blu-ray, 8/10.
Jet Li isn't "one of my guys", but I attribute that mostly to my preference for '70s & '80s kung fu flicks. But still. I continue to explore & enjoy.
Old master Sammo Hung killed the guy who might cure Jet Li's crippling injury. Various factions are united or against other factions. At 10 minutes I was pretty certain I had no idea what was going on, but that didn't matter one bit. Wong Jing, as one might hope, keeps the dull-moments quotient at zero using a monk imbedded in a boulder, special powers, secret weapons, White Eagle, Green Bat, other stuff, deadly foam, large-scale battles, booby traps, carnage in the temple & other topics. Solid blast of Kung Fun!
A Franco-phile suggests:
EUGENIE (1970)
One of Franco's Sadean journeys, this one has Maria Rohm, Jack Taylor, Paul Muller & Christopher Lee along with those fancy Harry Alan Towers production levels.
Available on Digital Versatile Disc, Blu-ray Disc & even 4K from Blue Underground.
Mad Monkey Kung Fu (1979 Dir Lau Kar-leung)
ReplyDeleteThis is the good stuff. Disgraced and disfigured master trains a street urchin with a heart of gold and some possible mental issues everyone calls Little Monkey in the way of Monkey Kung Fu. Much Fu and monkey business abounds. The perfect flick for a Saturday after noon.
Master of the Flying Guillotine (1976, dir. Jimmy Wang Yu)
ReplyDeleteMartial arts movies are a blind spot for me, though I tend to enjoy them. So I went with one that has a good reputation. Found it streaming on Plex, with an English dub that would occaisonally drop back to original language. Was bonkers, and this is going to encourage me to watch more Kung Fu. Loved the guy with the extendable arms. Only complaint, wanted ever more Flying Guillotine.
The Heroic Trio (1993, dir. Johnnie To)
ReplyDeleteI knew nothing about this movie when I started it and assumed it was a martial arts movie. It's much more a straightforward action movie, albeit one that is insane. It will have to count, though, as I won't have time to watch another movie. It's nutty and very entertaining, one of my better first-time watches so far this month. Michelle Yeoh tho.