Action Bits - Dynamite Fighters

MAGNIFICENT WARRIORS (1987)

It's time to travel into the past. Not only in terms of the setting for this film, but to revisit an old favourite of mine from years gone by. Like some of the recent Yuen Biao adventures I've reviewed the world of Michelle Yeoh movies is something I've touched on before. Unfortunately without much real detail or discussion and in a brief marathon format. But what's old is new again, particularly when it comes to re-releases that have been restored and put onto a more modern format. Will The Champions and Wing Chun get the same treatment? I can only hope. At any rate it's a good excuse to find out if this is still top tier action cinema, or if the mixture of classic spectacle and not-so classic comedy holds up today.

Review Roundup - The Brotherhood

ELECTION 2 (2006)

There are a few old clichés that might describe this sequel to Johnnie To's previous triad thriller. Perhaps desperate times call for desperate measures? Or maybe that old idea that it's not personal, it's just business. But the dark reality is that the results are much less about a series of expected tropes, and more about the brutal and cold world the characters inhabit. Some of it might go beyond even what fans of the first instalment might be expecting. Ideas about unity, tradition, and honour are still bandied about during the opening history lesson. But by this stage it's clearly all just a cynical veneer being laid over a lot of truly nasty ambitions. The kind of principles discussed last time around are not going to make a come back.

HCF Review - Bound by Blood

THE SEVENTH CURSE (1986)

Blood curses, demonic possession, investigative journalism… yes it’s another example of bonkers cinema from The Cat and The Story of Ricky director Ngai Choi Lam. There’s going to be action, violence and sleaze in this wild ride into the world of Hong Kong Category-III cinema, but in the grand scheme of things it’s generally pretty mild. Which is to say there’s a lot more low budget monster and gore effects than there are nude scenes and things are never taken too far. It’s less Untold Story and more Temple of Doom if you get where I’m coming from. More adventure story than straight up horror, but still a heady mixture of crazy sequences and outrageous spectacle...

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HCF Review - Repossessed

SHADOW MASTER (2022)

Horror and martial arts together? Why those are my two favourite things you might say glancing at this apparent mix of The Crow and Ong Bak. In some ways you’d be correct, as this is a story about ritual killings and demonic possession with some Thai boxing moves thrown in. I’m certainly on board for a wild combination of diabolical deals and bone crunching fight sequences. On the other hand it’s perhaps a story that mixes together too many elements and influences. Which is a problem when it’s busy referencing a whole series of religious figures and forgets to include enough fighting. Without a cohesive narrative to glue any of this together those interesting genre hooks are little more than marketing images designed to get the direct-to-video action hero fans interested...

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Scorecard

JANUARY

Film of the Month: Kids Return ☆☆☆☆