24.6.24
"Yes, Madam" Puts the "POW!" in Female Empowerment
Directed by Corey Yuen
Written by Barry Wong
Produced by Samo Hung
Starring
Michelle Yeoh
Cynthia Rothrock
John Shum
Mang Hoi
Release date (Hong Kong): November 30, 1985
Synopsis
17.6.24
Beyond the Bombs: Supercop 2 - An Action-Packed Exploration of Love, Loss, and Redemption
Directed and written by Stanley Tong
Written by Sandy Shaw
Produced by
Barbie Tung
So Haau Leung
Starring
Michelle Yeoh
Yu Rong Guang
Emil Chau
Jackie Chan
Release date: December 22, 1999
Synopsis
As a crime wave sweeps through Hong Kong, the police call on Jessica Yang, a rising star in their ranks, to help stop a notorious gang of thieves.
Review
I will admit, for my first Michelle Yeoh movie where SHE is in the spotlight, this did not dissapoint.
The movie has subtle comedy at times, especially with scenes between Guang and Yeoh. It doesn't have a lot, trust me, but when it does it is pretty funny.
The movie has a very great casting choice, a good score, and good voice dubbing for 1998.
The action may not be as eye catching as you see in the first 3 other Police Story movies, but it still doesn't dissapoint.
And for the people who were expecting a one by one film to Supercop, ehmmm... no. But there are some subtle references, in the dialogue, and even during the fights!
Oh, and yeah, there is a lot of glass breaking in this movie, as is with the first 2 Police Story films with Jackie Chan.
But one thing that does annoy me is the opening credits. The way it goes is this - action scene, credit, action scene, credit, and it goes ON AND ON for 3 minutes. I mean, if you're GOING to put credits in between an action scene, place them as text on the bottom of the screen, or at least dedicate 2 minutes to the opening credits!
Anyways, the film is pretty good, fight scenes are good, dubbing is good.
Oh, yeah, that Chackie Jan guy is good as well.
Rating: 6.3/10
Watch Supercop 2 on
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKV6xjtS2r0 (Dimension Films cut from 1999)
10.6.24
From Legal Eagle to Eco Warrior: Dragons Forever - Jackie Chan & Samo Hung take on Toxic Tyrants and Fall for Love
Directed by and starring Sammo Hung
Directed by
Corey Yuen
Screenplay by Roy Szeto
Story by
Gordon Chan
Leung Yiu-ming
Produced by Leonard Ho
Starring Jackie Chan
Yuen Biao
Deannie Yip
Pauline Yeung
Crystal Kwok
Distributed by Golden Harvest
Release date
11 February 1988
Synopsis
Three successful Hong Kong lawyers are hired by a chemical company of questionable ethics and must eventually make a difficult decision when their employer's motives become clear.
Review
Petaia's Entertainment World, a channel ran by an action fan who uploads clips from movies starring Jackie Chan, Michelle Khan and Bruce Lee in 4K uploaded the English dub of the extended Japanese release of "Dragons Forever". Knowing this would make for a good review (and it's a goddamn Jackie Chan movie), I watched the film and did not regret it
Normally, whenever I watch a movie, it annoys me when there's more of something in the film - like more drama then action, or more comedy then drama. In Dragons Forever, there are 22 minutes worth of fight scenes, and I'm not complaining.
The romantic scenes in this movie were actually heart warming and when Johnny and Mei-ling got back together I was super happy.
The fight scenes were super intense and my heart was beating the whole time.
And, I admit, I gasped when everyone in the factory was looking at Luke. I knew blud was walking out with 5 black eyes after that one (he didn't).
The choreography is clean, timed out, and it actually was better then I thought it'd be.
I thought it would be a bit of a boring flick, but nooo, the fight scenes start 3 minutes and 55 seconds in the Japanese release (also, it's a 2 v 4 fight, which is slightly more realistic then most JC fights).
Nobody ever comes to a Jackie Chan film wanting Romeo and Juliet. Then after watching this film, they actually do.
Rating: 10/10
Watch Dragons Forever on
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtF0zLUpXO0
(Extended Japanese cut, English audio)
3.6.24
Game, Set, Match, Mayhem: Dragon Lord Takes Sports and Action to the Extreme
Jackie at his best!
Directed, written by and starring Jackie Chan
Directed by
Edward Tang
Barry Wong
Produced by
Raymond Chow
Leonard Ho
Starring
Mars
Hwang In-Shik
Tien Feng
Synopsis
Dragon is the son of a Chinese aristocrat who is always getting in trouble, and likes to skip his lessons. Dragon tries to send a love note to the girl he likes via a kite, but the kite gets away. Dragon tries to get the kite and letter back which have landed on the roof of the headquarters of a gang of thieves who are planning to steal artifacts from the towns temple. Dragon interferes with the gang's plans and is forced to fight off the gang.
Jackie doing a jump!
Review
Some legend on YouTube put the Australian English dub of this film from 1983 onto their channel. Being the mega Jackie fan I am [and because of the fact I literally own a blog dedicated to action films), I took time to watch the movie and ultimately enjoyed it.
There are a lot of reasons I love this movie.
It's very different. This film has Jackie playing.. not as a cop, but the lacking son of a rich businessman. Wow. Not only is Jackie's character different, but one of the major things in the films is different.
Jackie and his village boys do sports! This is an action sports film. SPORTS. While you might not be used to sports in Jackie's films (considering this is 1 out of 2 of them), you should be because this is amazing. Speaking of the sports, the movie starts off with all the people in Dragon's village CLIMBING UP THE TOP of a goddamn pyramid to get a rugby ball. 3 minutes in the film and we already get an amazing sequence. A seven minute sequence. Then 5 minutes after the end of the sequence, we get a fight scene between Dragon and Cowboy.. over a girl. For 2 minutes. Until everyone starts freaking out because Dragon's father comes in the scene right after Dragon says he's not scared of his dad. Then 15 minutes later we get ANOTHER sports scene. FOR TEN MINUTES. Ever see that in Jackie Chan films? NO. And DON'T bring up Dragons Forever. That's not a sports movie. Still, I kinda feel bad for anyone who got the version of the movie where the rugby match is at the end.
The film was a combo of Mars and Chan. You rarely see Mars fight in films, but when he does, he does an amazing job. Mars is the best stuntman of Jackie and I wish we saw him in more films. Mars plays Cowboy and Chan plays Dragon. They are best friends in this movie and are probably the best duo ever seen in a Jackie Chan film. In the final fight, Dragon falls from the top floor and Cowboy literally breaks his fall by making sure Dragon landed on him. Didn't go too well the first time in shooting.
(Jackie is in the black. You can guess who Mars is.)
The subtle comedy was perfectly placed at times and was not too pushy. Some of the comedy is put in during life-defying fight scenes as well. Just goes to show that Dragon really doesn't care. Speaking of the fights, Hwang in-Shik and Jackie fight again, two years after The Young Master (which Dragon Lord was supposed to serve as a sequel to, except Jackie doesn't win by drinking any tobacco water. He wins.. by piling him up in a sack of potatos. Wow. Jackie Chan really got a beating back in the 80s. (Dragon Lord, Police Story 2, Wheels on Meals..) Anyways, back to the comedy, the English adaption writers did a great job. That's sometimes why I prefer the dub over the sub.
The stunt-work on the film was actually amazing and impressed so much for Jackie's third directed film only. Jackie's stunt team did a wild amazing job on this. This is the first film where Jackie started expirementing with stunt sequences. This is the start of the Jacky Chan that we ALL KNOW and love. Just imagine if he didn't like stunt sequences. Just imagine if he never even did them! This blog would only have like 10 reviews.
The American in Jackie & Mars keep showing.
The soundtrack is a bit repetitive, but it is a great soundtrack song and I hate that I can't find it anywhere.
The old 80s dubbing makes the film more enjoyable. It might be horrible, but it sure has that charm. It is way better then the new 21st century dubs of foreign films, which unfortunately was used in the 88 Films trailer for the new Blu-Ray release of Dragon Lord.
Dragon Lord is definetly a great pick, and shows resemblance to the Young Master which I reviewed December of 2023. Just a spolier: no real dragons (or lords) appear in the film.
Rating: 9.5/10
Watch Dragon Lord on
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98x3Eh8By-g (Australian English VHS dub from 1985)
https://watch.plex.tv/movie/dragon-lord (Miramax 1996 release)
27.5.24
Thor III: Ragnarok - This movie RagnaROCKS!!
Directed by Taika Waititi
Written by Eric Pearson
Craig Kyle
Christopher L. Yost
Produced by Kevin Feige
Starring
Chris Hemsworth
Tom Hiddleston
Cate Blanchett
Idris Elba
Jeff Goldblum
Tessa Thompson
Karl Urban
Mark Ruffalo
Anthony Hopkins
Release date: November 3, 2017
October 13: 2017 (Australia)
Synopsis
Imprisoned on the other side of the universe, the mighty Thor finds himself in a deadly gladiatorial contest that pits him against the Hulk, his former ally and fellow Avenger. Thor's quest for survival leads him in a race against time to prevent the all-powerful Hela from destroying his home world and the Asgardian civilization.
Review
This film is amazing. Trust me. You need to watch it.
First of all - the fight scene between Hulk and Thor was veeery nerve-racking and amazing, because it wasn't eye-candy, it literally added to the plot.
Secondly - The film is amazingly funny, and I can't believe it wasn't promoted as a comedy film. Half of the serious scenes have comedy added to them at inappropriate times and they turn out to be the best part of the film.
Also, Chris Hemsworth.
Rating: 9/10
20.5.24
Stopping Asia From Crime Lords looks easy compared to taking care of kids in "The Spy Next Door"
Directed by Brian Levant
Screenplay and story by Jonathan Bernstein and James Greer
Screenplay by
Jonathan Bernstein
James Greer
Gregory Poirier
Produced by Robert Simonds
Starring
Jackie Chan
Amber Valletta
Madeline Carroll
Will Shadley
Magnús Scheving
Billy Ray Cyrus
George Lopez
Release date: January 15, 2010
25 March, 2010 (Australia)
Synopsis
Bob Ho (Jackie Chan), an undercover operative for the Central Intelligence Agency, decides to give up his career and marry his girlfriend, Gillian (Amber Valletta). First however, he has one more mission to complete: Gain the approval of Gillian's children. Bob volunteers to baby-sit when Gillian is called away, but the operation hits a snag when one of the kids mistakenly downloads a top-secret formula, and Anton Poldark, a Russian terrorist (Magnus Scheving) takes aim at Bob's prospective family.
Review
This film sucks. I can remember a lot from it and have no idea why I liked it.
Firstly,
the kids in this movie hate Bob Ho for no reason. Sure he isn't your
father, but do you have to make life hard for him? That just triggered
me. I always hated seeing the hero hated.
Secondly, the fight scenes in the movie are bombared by childish sound effects that are supposed to be funny. I guess when you're seven it is, but I'm mature [and ten years old] and don't laugh at it at all.
Thirdly, it's a Halloween film. My religion and country prohibit Halloween, but what sucks is that the film doesn't even foreshadow it being October. Once I saw everyone in costumes and trick-or-treating, I was like- 'Huh? It's Halloween?'
Lastly - about 20 or 35 minutes worth of this 94 minute film are actually funny and possible to laugh at. The other are not.
The only thing that makes it good is Jackie Chan's charm and Magnus Scheving's performance. Not to mention the ending credits, which have bloopers funnier then the film.
But when you think of it as a film to have a good time with and not take too seriously, you can find it pretty good, if you have a mental illness.
Watch "The Spy Next Door" at the
https://archive.org/details/l77h4k59 (Along with other action/comedy/Hong Kong films)
Rating: 4/10
13.5.24
Ip Man - The Fists of Fury, A Heart of Gold, and a House of Dirt
Directed by Wilson Yip
Written by
Edmond Wong
Chan Tai-lee
Produced by Raymond Wong
Starring
Donnie Yen
Simon Yam
Lynn Hung
Gordon Lam
Fan Siu-wong
Xing Yu
Chen Zhihui
Hiroyuki Ikeuchi
Tenma Shibuya
Release date: 18 December, 2008
January 2009 (Australia)
Synopsis
In 1930s China, a martial artist loses his home after the
Imperial Japanese Army invades the country. With little means to
survive, he must find a way to sustain his family.
Review
Ip Man is a very serious film about horrible crimes the Japanese commited in the time of WW2. Yeah, sure none of it impacts me mentally, but it's still bad.
Anyways, Ip Man's action scenes might not have any life-threatening over the top stunts, but the film does not dissapoint.
It shows a (kinda) accurate description of the life of Ip Man while mixing it with carefully and perfectly choreographed action scenes for this type of film.
The film makes the biography genre amazing to watch, with amazing writing and great acting. This was the film that introduced me to Donnie Yen and the only reason why Jackie Chan isn't the only action star I watch a lot. His films don't dissapoint to and this is an example of it.
Ip Man is a great film, that might be boring at some times with a dull background score, but the film's contents in itself are amazing.
Yeah, Bruce Lee's amazing.. but do you ever think about who taught him?
This is the film about his life.
Watch Ip Man at the
https://archive.org/details/ip.-man.-2008.lati (Latin version)https://archive.org/details/ipman_1 (Tagalog version)
https://archive.org/details/sdlehongkong1-15 (Along with other Hong Kong action movies)
https://archive.org/details/l62h9k62 (Along with other Hong Kong action movies)
https://archive.org/details/film-list (Along with other movies that some random dude on IA likes named "Sam")
https://archive.org/details/sdhongkon41-50 (Along with other Hong Kong movies)
Rating: 7/10
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