All Film Reviews

A few fight scenes pull one back from catatonia, but mostly this is a failure without the luxury of budget constraints to blame its incompetence on.

Competently directed by the legendary Yuen Woo-Ping and utilising a decent budget, ‘Master Z’ is pleasingly straight-forward, action soaked entertainment.

Though historical events tend to be notoriously difficult to translate to the screen and despite needless contrivances, ‘May 18’ is an unforgettable two hours that deserves many of the plaudits it has received.

Groovy, gory, good time from ‘The Night Comes for Us’ director Timo Tjahjanto, ‘May the Devil Take You’ ramps up the craziness when the devil decides to collect his dues.

With dashes of humour ably mixing with scenes of contemplative pathos, ‘Mayonnaise’ is another excellent Korean film that tackles everyday stresses in a way nearly all of its viewers empathise with.

The high standards of satire and sentimentality that had previously been attained have been sacrificed in a bid to be ’more accessible’ – a double-edged sword if ever there was one.

With musings on death, love, nostalgia and responsibility, ‘McDull, Prince De La Bun’ is a mature work that provides entertainment with enough substance to appeal to every generation.

Samson Chiu can be congratulated for taking a bold step in a new direction while still retaining much of the gentle punch that is associated with the brand.

‘Pork Of Music’ is probably the best of the series, full of beautiful moments, delicate satire and heart-warming artwork.

It’s always good to see a film about children with enough depth and maturity to appeal to everyone.

Chang Cheh delivers a multi-layered kung-fu drama that is ripe with excellent characterisation and well-choreographed action.

Inspired, ‘Men in White’ most certainly is, but its overall structure proves somewhat erratic as it’s more a series of loosely-related comedy vignettes than a completely cohesive narrative success.

Each of the protagonists has their own trial to overcome, each has a solid character arc, and each contributes to the infectious enthusiasm created herein.

‘Merantau’ is a good-looking film, but in every other department it is just a touch too average to stand out from the crowd.

Despite a few hints of quality from the action/stunt team, the film is a shambolically constructed mess that is rarely fun to watch.

Though director Norman Law sets up a few interesting rivalries between the characters, the film tends to get too bogged down in its teen romance sub-plot.

It’s not a perfect film – the quirky moments are sometimes a bit too overdone and the pace is slightly inconsistent – but it is a nice surprise.

Buoyed by Fukasaku’s energetic direction, copious action, and some still to this day impressive special effects, ‘Message from Space’ delights in being two hours of ambitious infectious fun.

‘Messengers’ takes time to gain momentum, but when it does the two-hour running time flies by effortlessly.

A seemingly simple set-up is given verve, Hitchcockian tension, and extra depth via nerve shredding direction and having the two leads both deaf and mute.

Definitely a film of two halves, ‘Midnight Fly’ is a brave, uncompromising, yet not always successful Jacob Cheung feature.

Fresh, funny, exciting and full of snappy action, ‘Midnight Runners’ is a joyous ride, rarely missing a beat from first frame until last.

If nothing else, this film goes to show how a lack of good material can sometimes be covered over by an excellent cast.

Newcomers will enjoy the fight action, the slightly more experienced will also appreciate the comedy and the veteran viewer will be entertained by the great cast.