Movies you've just watched

[DEL]

Thanks amdiggywhut, I was gonna avoid Dallas Buyer's Club anyway, but now I'm sure I will. I'm not a fan of shameless Oscar-bids by actors shedding or adding masses of weight purely for the purpose of an ego-trophy. It was fine the first time around by De Niro, but a cheap shot after that.

[replayme]

I liked Dallas Buyers Club...

[GaijinPunch]

I liked Dallas Buyers Club...

I've heard nothing but good things. MM is on a tear anyway, so I'll be iTunes-ing this one on my next night at home.

[DaneSaga]

Just got done with The Young Master.
Ignoring most of the throwaway plot, the lion dance competition was a great opener and while not as spectacular as what Jet Li produced in Once Upon a Time in China, it still showcases some great footwork and exaggerated lion-like movements.

Yuen Biao almost steals the show, playing the part of the marshal’s arrogant son superbly, with his and Chan’s bench sequences a real standout. The bench was not the only weapon to get a work out in The Young Master as poles, swords, ropes, fans and dresses all are utilized to great effect. The fan sequence in particular must have taken some serious rehearsal to get down pat.
The numerous back and forths be it comedic or physical between the police marshal, his aforementioned son, good natured daughter and Chan are absolutely golden with some first-rate choreography to go along with them. In fact the film has a charming happy-go-lucky ambiance to it for the majority of its run time.

The finale against the main villain is truly excellent and where the stakes are dramatically risen. A highly aggressive mano e mano duel that devolves into nothing but a near quarter of an hour street fight in which Chan’s character repeatedly gets beaten in every single exchange. Slowly but surely Chan finds small cracks in the antagonists armour (along with some help from a swig of tobacco spit), resulting in a turning of the tides that culminates into one of the best stand alone fights in a Jackie Chan film ever.

I love that all the fight scenes are interwoven into the plot with actual purpose, not just existing as two separate entities that clash for a brief period like so many other martial arts flicks.
This is easily one of my favorite early Chan outings.

Dragon Lord is next. Have only seen snippets of the film on VCD before so am looking forward to it.

oh and Chan in full body cast at the end is priceless. Can't remember seeing that last time I watched it.

[eatdogs]

Back to school

[replayme]

Just got done with The Young Master.
Ignoring most of the throwaway plot, the lion dance competition was a great opener and while not as spectacular as what Jet Li produced in Once Upon a Time in China, it still showcases some great footwork and exaggerated lion-like movements.

Yuen Biao almost steals the show, playing the part of the marshal’s arrogant son superbly, with his and Chan’s bench sequences a real standout. The bench was not the only weapon to get a work out in The Young Master as poles, swords, ropes, fans and dresses all are utilized to great effect. The fan sequence in particular must have taken some serious rehearsal to get down pat.
The numerous back and forths be it comedic or physical between the police marshal, his aforementioned son, good natured daughter and Chan are absolutely golden with some first-rate choreography to go along with them. In fact the film has a charming happy-go-lucky ambiance to it for the majority of its run time.

The finale against the main villain is truly excellent and where the stakes are dramatically risen. A highly aggressive mano e mano duel that devolves into nothing but a near quarter of an hour street fight in which Chan’s character repeatedly gets beaten in every single exchange. Slowly but surely Chan finds small cracks in the antagonists armour (along with some help from a swig of tobacco spit), resulting in a turning of the tides that culminates into one of the best stand alone fights in a Jackie Chan film ever.

I love that all the fight scenes are interwoven into the plot with actual purpose, not just existing as two separate entities that clash for a brief period like so many other martial arts flicks.
This is easily one of my favorite early Chan outings.

Dragon Lord is next. Have only seen snippets of the film on VCD before so am looking forward to it.

oh and Chan in full body cast at the end is priceless. Can't remember seeing that last time I watched it.

Yuen Biao was AMAZING in Above The Law - which is an infinitely more serious alternative to Jackie Chan's Police Story. That actor definitely deserved better...

[replayme]

I liked Dallas Buyers Club...

I've heard nothing but good things. MM is on a tear anyway, so I'll be iTunes-ing this one on my next night at home.

It's a bit slow, and takes some time to get into. Not everyone's cup of tea - but another reason for why MM is revered as an "actor" now. He's not just a pretty face. Guy's got style AND substance.

I thought the film deserved a 4.5/5. Or at least a 4/5 (depending on mood).

[DaneSaga]

Yuen Biao was AMAZING in Above The Law - which is an infinitely more serious alternative to Jackie Chan's Police Story. That actor definitely deserved better...

Don’t know what you mean by “deserved better”. Do you mean he deserved more credit as an actor or that he was never highly regarded as some of his peers as a stuntman & choreographer?

Anyway I really like Yuen, he was also great in Sammo Hung’s The Prodigal Son, and has some serious kicking expertise.
I was quite mad when they replaced him for Max Mok in the Once Upon a Time in China sequels.


I'll be watching Dragon Lord soon so I'll post again in several hours.

[replayme]

As an actor...

Yuen just never got anywhere near same level of recognition as peers like Jackie Chan. Personally, I think Yuen deserved a higher profile on the basis of his fighting ability alone. And the guy has/had charisma.

Above The Law is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo good. And I'm not talking about its plot.

[Sly Cherry Chunks]

Attack the Block via netflix. Really great! Like the scariest episode of Casualty ever.

[PAPER/ARTILLERY]

Attack the Block via netflix. Really great! Like the scariest episode of Casualty ever.

Man I love that film. I'm a massive fan of anything Joe Cornish does though, Adam Buxton too.

[drauch]

As an actor...

Yuen just never got anywhere near same level of recognition as peers like Jackie Chan. Personally, I think Yuen deserved a higher profile on the basis of his fighting ability alone. And the guy has/had charisma.

Above The Law is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo good. And I'm not talking about its plot.

Yuen does rule, no doubt there. Never made it big in the states, and his career kinda dropped, but he still had plenty of great films. It's not like Sammo and Jackie have been making anything good since the mid-90s...

Above the Law is awesome, but there is far better out there in HK action cinema.

[replayme]

Above the Law is awesome, but there is far better out there in HK action cinema.

Such as? I'm genuinely intrigued...

[drauch]

Above the Law is awesome, but there is far better out there in HK action cinema.

Such as? I'm genuinely intrigued...

Well, before we get crazy here with lists, and to eliminate redundancy, what have you seen at this point?

[DaneSaga]

Such as? I'm genuinely intrigued...

any film Godfrey Ho came up with that has the word "Ninja" in it. There you'l find your answer.

[drauch]

Such as? I'm genuinely intrigued...

any film Godfrey Ho came up with that has the word "Ninja" in it. There you'l find your answer.

My favorite thing ever is Richard Harrison's mid to late 80s career:

Ninja Terminator (1985)
Ninja Holocaust (1985)
Ninja Champion (1985)
Ninja Thunderbolt (1985)
Diamond Ninja Force (1986)
Ninja Hunt (1986)
Ninja Dragon (1986)
Golden Ninja Warrior (1986)
Ninja Squad (1986)
Ninja the Protector (1986)
Cobra vs. Ninja (1987)
Ninja Kill (1987)
Ninja Commandments (1987)
Ninja Operation: Licensed to Terminate (1987)
Ninja: Silent Assassin (1987)
Ninja Avengers (1987)
Ninja Strike Force (1988)
Ninja Powerforce (1988)
Ninja: The Bootlace Philosophy (1988)

[DaneSaga]

My favorite thing ever is Richard Harrison's mid to late 80s career

I'm not so sure Harrison himself looks back so fondly on his Silver Star days.

[drauch]

My favorite thing ever is Richard Harrison's mid to late 80s career

I'm not so sure Harrison himself looks back so fondly on his Silver Star days.

Haha, yeah... if I recall, he was quite upset he was cut and pasted into so many films, despite only signing on to make a few with Ho.

[blackoak]

for reasons I can't entirely account for, I decided to watch almost every jason statham movie, excluding those where he's a minor/side role. a brief rundown:

transporter - the best, up there with crank
transporter 2 - pretty bad and charmless
transporter 3 - awful
war - confusingly bad
blitz - probably the worst statham movie, wins award for "most unconnected subplot in a movie." +carcetti
parker - pretty good actually, +vic mackey
homefront - middling, but gold compared to some others
crank - the second best, surprisingly funny and not exactly in the way you'd expect
crank 2 - bad, replaces lowbrow-but-sophisticated humor of first with constant genital mutilation. juvenile
the bank job - not bad
redemption - pretty good for a dramatic statham role
safe - mediocre, in the homefront/parker tier
the mechanic - really bad. they're making a sequel?

still got cellular, revolver, and deathrace to see...

[drauch]

You masochist!

[Some-Mist]

for reasons I can't entirely account for, I decided to watch almost every jason statham movie, excluding those where he's a minor/side role. a brief rundown:

transporter - the best, up there with crank
transporter 2 - pretty bad and charmless
transporter 3 - awful
war - confusingly bad
blitz - probably the worst statham movie, wins award for "most unconnected subplot in a movie." +carcetti
parker - pretty good actually, +vic mackey
homefront - middling, but gold compared to some others
crank - the second best, surprisingly funny and not exactly in the way you'd expect
crank 2 - bad, replaces lowbrow-but-sophisticated humor of first with constant genital mutilation. juvenile
the bank job - not bad
redemption - pretty good for a dramatic statham role
safe - mediocre, in the homefront/parker tier
the mechanic - really bad. they're making a sequel?

still got cellular, revolver, and deathrace to see...

lock, stock, and two smoking barrels is another fantastic film to follow revolver with. It's actually my favorite Guy Ritchie film

[Moniker]

lock, stock, and two smoking barrels is another fantastic film to follow revolver with. It's actually my favorite Guy Ritchie film

I actually quite liked Revolver. Has some philosophical weight to it, but not necessarily *good* psychological weight. Light-years ahead of Rock'n'Rolla, in any case. Statham's acquits himself pretty damn well, even if the message boils down to the pop culture equivalent of Emerson's 'Self-Reliance.'

It reminds me, on a purely visual level, of the elevator suicide in 'Old Boy.'

[GaijinPunch]

His performance in Collateral was amazing.

[Skykid]

for reasons I can't entirely account for, I decided to watch almost every jason statham movie, excluding those where he's a minor/side role. a brief rundown:

transporter - the best, up there with crank
transporter 2 - pretty bad and charmless
transporter 3 - awful
war - confusingly bad
blitz - probably the worst statham movie, wins award for "most unconnected subplot in a movie." +carcetti
parker - pretty good actually, +vic mackey
homefront - middling, but gold compared to some others
crank - the second best, surprisingly funny and not exactly in the way you'd expect
crank 2 - bad, replaces lowbrow-but-sophisticated humor of first with constant genital mutilation. juvenile
the bank job - not bad
redemption - pretty good for a dramatic statham role
safe - mediocre, in the homefront/parker tier
the mechanic - really bad. they're making a sequel?

still got cellular, revolver, and deathrace to see...

Jesus, call your therapist.

The girl and I only had to catch the Homefront poster in the theatre with his big neanderthal moolah on it and broke down laughing.

Actor.

His performance in Collateral was amazing.

Ha ha! Best of his career.

[lilmanjs]

Project A2. May only be an mpeg-2 dvd, but still the original cut and still an awesome movie! The fight scene in which the navy shows up to save Jackie was quite good. Better than the first? I think of it as a movie that showcases his stunt team(at that time) as actors that are good.

[DaneSaga]

Project A2. May only be an mpeg-2 dvd, but still the original cut and still an awesome movie! The fight scene in which the navy shows up to save Jackie was quite good. Better than the first? I think of it as a movie that showcases his stunt team(at that time) as actors that are good.

Project A II is good but I much prefer the first. Pacing is very lopsided in part 2 as Chan leaves everything for the final act with all the scaffolding shenanigans. The Jackie Chan Stunt Team do get some more fleshed out roles, and it’s a great follow up to what could arguably be Chan’s best film but I don’t think it lives up to the original.
I’ll be up to the Project A series soon enough and I’ll go a little more in depth then.

[lilmanjs]

Project A2. May only be an mpeg-2 dvd, but still the original cut and still an awesome movie! The fight scene in which the navy shows up to save Jackie was quite good. Better than the first? I think of it as a movie that showcases his stunt team(at that time) as actors that are good.

Project A II is good but I much prefer the first. Pacing is very lopsided in part 2 as Chan leaves everything for the final act with all the scaffolding shenanigans. The Jackie Chan Stunt Team do get some more fleshed out roles, and it’s a great follow up to what could arguably be Chan’s best film but I don’t think it lives up to the original.
I’ll be up to the Project A series soon enough and I’ll go a little more in depth then.

Project A2 I think(if I heard correctly) was only made at the request of the Japanese emperor. Still one of his better movies. It is more serious than the first, but not hard to do.

[DaneSaga]

Was hoping to watch this yesterday but got distracted. Here is Dragon Lord.

More pure entertainment than hardcore action from Chan this time, Dragon Lord was to be a direct sequel to the brilliant Young Master but for some reason was made into a stand alone film. It was pretty obvious it was going to serve as a sequel with several cast returning in almost identical roles. Tien Feng again plays Chan’s father (he played Chan’s adopted father in the previous film), so I don’t know what happened.

In spite of what it was initially going to be, what it is I gotta say feels beyond disjointed.
Story goes Chan and his best friend (played by Mars) are burden free rich kids who like hunting and neglect their studies.
We see them both fall for and then try to win the affections of the prettiest girl in town. In an attempt to woo the girl through a display of macho-ness, Chan gets inadvertently involved with crooks in a scheme to smuggle ancient artefacts and treasures outside China. Unbeknownst to them the father of Chan’s best buddy is also involved.
That is the gist of the plot and whilst not bad in of itself the film revolves heavily around the two friends meandering about for far too long with little to no action until the end (though a scene where Chan must dodge an array of pointy spears as they are thrust toward him, in an attempt to retrieve his wayward kite as he scrambles on a tiled roof was very cleverly done).

What we do get in Dragon Lord are these lengthy sporting events that seemingly come out of nowhere and appear to have been included for no other reason outside they were probably thought to be good ideas at the time, relevance to the story be damned. (Completely the opposite of the expertly coupled plot and action of The Young Master)
Regardless these parts don’t hurt the film in the least, may make it a little less cohesive as a whole but they’re tremendous to watch. Particularly the shuttle-cock soccer match (which I have since learned is called “Jianzi”), which I understand holds the record for the most takes of a scene in a Jackie Chan film, is really a true joy to behold.

The eventual payoff is there of course with another killer end game where Chan must encounter the boss of the smuggling ring in Korean Hapkido expert Whang In Sik.
Similar (though a little less brutal) to the finale of Young Master, Chan has an out-and-out with someone considerably stronger than him, again with bone crunching results.

After watching it in full, Dragon Lord isn’t one of Chan’s action classics unfortunately, but it is highly entertaining and to me it feels more of a guilty pleasure than a top of the list favourite.

Winners and Sinners next. A Sammo film with Chan only having a very minor role, but alas I’ll include it anyway.

[DaneSaga]

Was planning on watching Winners and Sinners but the girlfriend came over and insisted upon watching something with me. She didn’t want to read so we settled on an english speaking Chan role in the Hollywood made The Protector.
Now I know this is not a good film, but the last time I watched this I was just 15 years of age (almost 10 years ago). Given I’m older now and the slightest bit wiser I thought I may be able to appreciate it in some way I just wasn’t capable of doing so at the time.
Well seems like regardless of your age or mental maturity, The Protector is just plain and utter shit.
There is so much wrong with this film I can’t begin to fathom how all beings associated haven’t committed suicide in shame.

First off, direction if you can call it as such is woeful.
Choreography is flat, uninspired (from what I understand is due James Glickenhaus’s meddling) , and can barely stay in frame.
Every single actor is completely wooden, empty shells and dead inside.
Chan’s role could have been played by anyone with functioning arms and legs, his abilities going to total waste.
Despite being a buddy cop film, there is little in the way of anything that remotely resembles humour.
Danny Aiello’s flabby pasty body is unsightly.
Plot and characters are laughable and paper thin, plus about another 50+ things that just piss me off

The Protector has almost no redeeming features whatsoever (maybe just the presence of Moon Lee’s luscious lips and the odd bit of gratuitous nudity), and I’m disappointed in myself for actually paying $13 for this crap.
As an extra indicator of its quality, my girlfriend lost interest half an hour in and started playing with her phone while I went and got my barbell and started doing some curls to pass the time

Winners and Sinners next, hopefully.

[Some-Mist]

Light-years ahead of Rock'n'Rolla

It reminds me, on a purely visual level, of the elevator suicide in 'Old Boy.'

I agree, and imo there are only a few worthwhile scenes in rock'n'rolla.

also - never considered the old boy comparison which is pretty interesting... also, I think Statham should bring back that badass handlebar.