Reviews
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Legend Of The Eight Samurai
It just takes a while to get going with too much wandering around, the leads randomly and conveniently bumping into everyone, and their romance clogging up too much of the runtime.
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Black Dragon River
There is a degree of drama in this story of redemption but it’s not constructed with any great care and can hardly make up for the lack of sparkle in the choreography.
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Ghost Punting
Mercifully the ghost busting escapades do provide some laughter and come the final run Sammo Hung and Corey Yuen unleash some wicked fight action.
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Everything Under Control
‘Everything Under Control’ brings together a few members of popular Cantopop group Mirror and the ever quirky Ivana Wong for a suitably amusing and defiantly odd Hong Kong comedy.
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Kill ‘Em All 2
The original ‘Kill ‘Em All’ was no great shakes, and this belated sequel only slightly improves on the first film thanks to some nice location work and a modicum of half decent action.
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Panda Plan
The fight action is apologetic, the comedy forced and the complete package a grave disservice to the young audience it was obviously intended for.
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Black Cat II
While the original was essentially a remake of Luc Besson’s ‘La Femme Nikita’, ‘Black Cat II’ is more a straightforward action flick, with a little bit of ‘Terminator’ thrown in.
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A Legend
‘A Legend’ was a sequel nobody asked for, a follow-up to the woeful ‘Kung Fu Yoga’ which I only now realise was intended as a sequel to ‘The Myth’.
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Black Cat
Jade Leung’s impressively committed performance and the always dependable Simon Yam elevate the low budget nature of the flick making it an entertaining romp.
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Tai Chi Chun
There are some excellent action scenes here and though the choreography gets a little too familiar, it does throw in a few unusual moves.
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Undiscovered Tomb
There’s much silliness, a lot that doesn’t make sense, some dodgy CGI, but mercifully a boatload of wicked fight action.
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Rashomon
Based on a pre-war short story, it tackles a major crime in a sober, yet discreet way and plays with the idea that even an obvious crime has many layers hidden beneath the surface.
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Silent Night
Bogged down with a little too much cliché and oppressive doom, ‘Silent Night’ may not be what you’re expecting but it is Woo still flexing both his artistic and action muscles to deliver a ‘Death Wish’ style action flick.
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Kung Fu Chefs
‘Kung Fu Chefs’ slipped through the cracks on its initial release, but with its star getting more attention than ever before, it might be worth revisiting.
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Eye For An Eye
Watchable, slickly made, potboiler with a dash of decent action, ‘Eye for an Eye’ may not set the genre on fire but is an unfussy and mostly entertaining quick fix of blind warrior swordplay action.
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The Tai Chi Master
‘The Tai Chi Master’ has all the components you expect – an impressive budget, a handful of beautiful actresses, and plenty of action – but never quite convinces.
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Broken Oath
With choreography by the great Yuen Woo-Ping and Hsu Hsia, ‘Broken Oath’ lets its female star showcase her considerable skill in a multitude of crisply choreographed set-pieces
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Black Rain
‘Black Rain’ excels in its examination of Japanese society, especially in the post-Atomic age. The bomb almost becomes the end of a civilisation as the traditional customs and expectations change forever.
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Stuntman
A fantastic mix of drama and action, ‘Stuntman’ is at once an ode to the action giants of yesteryear and how the modern movie-making world has changed drastically since their heyday, and a touching family drama about redemption.
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Yellow Fangs
‘Yellow Fangs’ is an excellent creature feature that may have slipped under the radar for many audiences. Hopefully, Sanada’s burgeoning reputation worldwide might mean that this changes soon.
Best New Films
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Everything Under Control
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Black Cat II
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Rashomon
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Broken Oath
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Black Rain
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Stuntman
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Yellow Fangs
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Taoism Drunkard
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A Light Never Goes Out
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The Valiant Ones
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Message From Space
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Chilli Laugh Story
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Twilight Of The Warriors: Walled In
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The Swordsman Of All Swordsmen
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Badland Hunters
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The Boy And The Heron
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A Guilty Conscience
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Yakuza Wolf
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Long Arm Of The Law II
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Perfect Days
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Virus
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Godzilla Minus One
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Casino Raiders
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The Wandering Earth II
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Ballerina
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Beach Of The War Gods
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Kill Boksoon
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Cop Image
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The Seventh Curse
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Baby Assassins
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Project Wolf Hunting
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Dreams