By the time 1986 arrived, Yuen Biao, one Hong Kong’s “Three Dragons,” had appeared in the Sammo Hung-co-directed Warrior’s Two (1978), lead Brandy Yuen Jan-Yeung’s The Champions (1983), and co-starred in Jackie Chan’s Project A (1983) and Sammo Hung’s My… Read More ›
Jean-Luc Goddard’s King Lear (1987) is a great movie for nobody and is available on Blu-ray through Criterion on February 11th, 2025. Almost nobody, actually. It’s certainly a film for me, and for legendary film critic Richard Brody of the… Read More ›
It’s very common for members of Hong Kong (HK) cinema to take on multiple career paths through their lifetime. Many start as stunt people, working their way up to actor and then, often, to the position of writing and/or directing,… Read More ›
Despite living in an age where thousands of films are available at the touch of a button, there’re still far too many films that are either difficult-bordering-on-impossible to stream, thereby making physical media the best way to access what you… Read More ›
Home releases bring with them a certain weight of expectation for cinephiles and film fans. For newer ones, it’s the promise that they’ll always be available, safe from a distributor or studio’s license dissolution or server deletion. For older films,… Read More ›
Before writer/director Ronny Yu would direct the extraordinary Fearless (2006), the hilarious Freddy vs. Jason (2003), and (arguably) franchise rejuvenating Bride of Chucky (1998), Yu released various Hong Kong (HK) pictures, including The Postman Fights Back for Golden Harvest in… Read More ›
For every general genre in storytelling, there’s a subgenre within it that enables a storyteller to narrow their focus, thereby utilizing specific tools to explore their themes. It’s the difference between a chiller or thriller in horror, slapstick or screwball… Read More ›
In the world of martial arts cinema, one of the greats is Hung Kam-bo, known more commonly as Sammo Hung. His resume includes acting, stunt choreography, writing, producing, and directing in films released by Cathay Asia, Bo Bo Films, Shaw… Read More ›
My first true introduction to Jackie Chan was in the summer of 1995. 15-year-old me witnessed Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction) give an enthusiastic speech about the infectious manner Jackie’s films had in the theater. Before presenting him with his lifetime… Read More ›
Martial artist. Stuntman. Action director. Comedic Actor. Romantic lead? The first four absolutely describe world-renowned physical performer Jackie Chan, but the last? Certainly during his time making films with studio/distributor Golden Harvest, that’s not something the actor dared pursue as… Read More ›
Before Oscar-nominee Michelle Yeoh (about damn time) traveled everywhere all at once, before she was a rich Asian, before she played a Chinese agent alongside 007, Yeoh was part of a heroic trio, a royal warrior, and, for the Hot… Read More ›
Content warning: Irreversible contains extreme depictions of violence, rape, racism, homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, strobe effects, disorienting cinematography and soundtrack, and whatever else you can think of. If you could be negatively affected by something, it’s most likely on full display… Read More ›
Art imitates life when it comes to timing. One can never predict how something will be received and, even things prognosticators think is a shoe-in, could fall flat. Sometimes the politics of the day get in the way, other times… Read More ›
When it comes to martial arts films, there are many great current actors who can pull off the action, but uncommon is the actor who can do so without the aid of a stunt double. Conversely, there are great martial… Read More ›
There was a time when the transition away from physical media to digital seemed like a gift as largely hard-to-find media became accessible. Without getting into the larger economic issues within their respective areas, the shift toward digital acquisition with… Read More ›
As an adolescent, I heard about director Ang Lee’s films — Eat Drink Man Woman (1994), Sense and Sensibility (1995), The Ice Storm (1997) — but it was Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) that would be my entry point into… Read More ›
Director Ang Lee’s filmography includes such greats as Eat Drink Man Woman (1994), Sense and Sensibility (1995), Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), and Brokeback Mountain (2005). Coming to home video from Film Movement on May 10th is a 2K restoration of Lee’s feature-length directorial… Read More ›
There are some films that one sees in their youth and then remembers nothing about them (save for a few pieces here and there) in their adulthood. It could be a film they saw on home video or cable. It… Read More ›
Spine #1084 of The Criterion Collection is writer/director Andrei Tarkovsky’s Mirror, the fifth of his films to be added to the collection. A Russian filmmaker, Tarkovsky helmed 12 projects over his lifetime, including one short and one made-for-TV movie. Upon… Read More ›
Death Has Blue Eyes (To koritsi vomva) is an easy film to summarize but a difficult one to describe. It’s a science fiction thriller in a sexploitation package. Beyond this, though, is where the film gets tricky due to a… Read More ›