cityonfire.com | Movie News & Developments |
- The Hunted Hunter (1997) Review
- Chow Yun-Fat’s ‘Shanghai’ to hit DVD & Digital HD in January
- ‘Birth of the Dragon’ biopic has found its new ‘Bruce Lee’
- Criterion is sentenced to ‘Death by Hanging’ on Blu-ray
- Ridley Scott’s ‘Prometheus 2’ now titled ‘Alien: Covenant’
- Ryan Gosling joins Harrison Ford in ‘Blade Runner 2’
| The Hunted Hunter (1997) Review Posted: 17 Nov 2015 01:21 AM PST  "The Hunted Hunter" Chinese Theatrical Poster Director: Ricky Lau By Paul Bramhall During the 90's, it was considered an unspoken rule that the Philippines was the place were the careers of Hong Kong action stars go to die. Philip Ko Fei, Cynthia Khan, and Yukari Oshima all made several movies there, with Yukari Oshima even going so far as to adopt a new Filipino stage name – Cynthia Luster. Few who made a movie in the Philippines ever made it back to Hong Kong to recapture their former glory, with perhaps the exception of Donnie Yen, who after making High Voltage in 1994, went on to become the most bankable action star in China. That's some turnaround. Yuen Biao wasn't quite so lucky, and Hunted Hunter could in many ways be considered the last movie that cast him as the headlining star, and yes it's made in the Philippines. At the helm is director Ricky Lau, here teaming up with Biao for a second time, having previously made Mr. Vampire 2 together 12 years prior. Lau directed all of the Mr. Vampire movies, along with several other supernatural themed kung fu flicks, such as Where's Officer Tuba?, Encounters of the Spooky Kind 2, and Ghost Punting, all of which starred Sammo Hung. Much like Biao, a look at Lau's filmography post-1997 shows hardly any titles of note, a sign of both their careers being on a downward spiral at the time. It's worth mentioning that Biao himself had already worked in the Philippines at this point, having made Tough Beauty and the Sloppy Slop (alongside the previously mentioned Cynthia Khan) a couple of years earlier. However Hunted Hunter seems to be an even lower budget production, with the look and feel being the very definition of 'cheap'. The language issues don't help, with the audio transitioning awkwardly between Mandarin (note: the original Chinese audio is Cantonese, however the only DVD release is Mandarin only) and heavily accented Filipino English. If you thought the gwai lo performances found in many an 80's Hong Kong movie were bad, what's on display here makes them look almost Oscar worthy in comparison. The plot itself is essentially a rehash of The Fugitive, with Biao playing the head of security for a corporate building (which I guess makes him a hunter?) that discovers the murdered body of a female office worker. After the murderer escapes, leaving Biao as the only person in the building, he's found guilty of murder and sentenced to death. Cue the entrance of a pair of Filipino cops, played by locally popular Filipino action star Roi Vinzon, and an incredibly annoying Karen Timbol. Vinzon and Timbol are clearly speaking English, but they bizarrely seem to have been over dubbed in heavily accented Chinese English. Things get stranger once the action moves to Hong Kong, where they're accompanied by a translator, but then without any explanation begin speaking perfect Chinese. There's logic in there somewhere, as it becomes clear that the person dubbing them in English, is now the same person dubbing them in Chinese. It's amazing that the one piece of coherency the filmmakers seemed to pay any attention to was the voices of the two Filipino actors. Most humorously though, is that the move back to Hong Kong is quite clearly just Chinatown in Manila. Even for a viewer who has never been to Hong Kong or Manila, I somehow doubt many people would mistake the filming locations for Hong Kong, but it's a commendable attempt at some globe trotting. Really though, with almost any Yuen Biao movie, we're checking in for the action. Hunted Hunter has it, although the quality of it varies greatly, most of which I'd hesitate to add is no fault of Biao's himself, nor choreographer Yuen Bo. The plot moves along quickly, and a little over 10 minutes in Biao launches an exciting escape attempt from prison, while being pursued by several guards. It's surprisingly violent, with Biao at one point wielding a police baton in each hand and putting the beat down on one of the guards, as well as unleashing with a shotgun. However a number of his other action sequences are frustratingly filmed using the step-printing technique that was so popular in the mid-90's. For those unfamiliar, it's a technique which basically makes the image move in a kind of blurred semi-slow motion. In short, not the best technique for filming action. Mid-way through Biao has a chase sequence up against multiple attackers in a shopping mall, that contains a great stunt in which he literally jumps from one floor of the mall to the other. Later on he also faces off one-on-one against a knife wielding Michael Lam, however both of these sequences are filmed using the technique, which seriously impairs the impact and sense of movement the action should deliver. What's more frustrating is that at one point Roi Vinzon storms into a drug lab, and single handedly throws down against the melee of workers inside – and it's filmed perfectly, with some nice angles to capture the impact. So the internationally unknown Filipino star has his fight scene competently filmed, but one of the greatest physical talents to ever grace the screen has his action obscured by blurred frame rates. It's not all bad though, despite being shot at night there's a great stunt that sees Biao jump out of a 5th floor window, and there's a rooftop chase sequence which is filmed well, despite the landing mats being in plain view in a couple of shots. Vinzon and Biao also get a chance to have a one on one fight, which is free of any slow motion, and it contains some good impacts. Outside of the action, there's some notable Hong Kong talent surrounding Biao. Wu Ma shows up as a pony tail sporting bad guy (perhaps inspired by Vinzon, who also sports one), and Jessica Suen plays Biao's estranged wife who does her best to help him out. Zhang Feng Yi plays the HK cop on Biao's trail in 'Hong Kong', and Chung Fat turns up as one of Ma's henchmen. The bad guys in Hunted Hunter definitely earn their villain status, as there's a couple of scenes when things get particularly nasty. One scene has Michael Lam beating the living daylights out of Jessica Suen, which culminates in him pushing a needle down one of her finger nails, and another scene has Biao having a live drill being pushed into his mouth. Thankfully both Biao and Suen survive their respective ordeals, and Hunted Hunter culminates in what's ultimately an entertaining 15 minute finale. Most of it consists of what can only be classed as an equally epic and hilarious shootout. The cops storm the ship were the bad guys are hiding out, and unleash a never ending stream of bullets, into an endlessly regenerating stream of identically suited lackeys. It's completely goofy, however the kinetic energy of it makes the complete lack of logic behind it forgivable. At the same time Biao takes on both Chung Fat and Levy Ignacio, before the fight segues into a 2 on 2 once Vinzon joins in, with Biao left to take on Ignaco and Vinzon against Fat. The fight is thankfully free of any camera trickery, and contains plenty of collateral damage in the form of broken tables and boxes. It's a worthy enough final showdown, although not one that anybody is likely to mistake for Biao's best work. In the same year as Hunted Hunter Biao would also star as a villain in the Shaw Brothers movie Hero, a role which he's fondly remembered for. Put side by side, the 2 movies look like they're from completely different era's, and while both have Biao showing that physically he still had it, increasingly there seemed to be a shortage of movies that could be tailored to show them off. On the bright side, with a recent resurgence in the Filipino film industry, it's no longer considered to be the place were HK action stars go when the offers have dried up locally, it's just a shame that the same resurgence can't be applied to Biao's career. Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 6/10 |
| Chow Yun-Fat’s ‘Shanghai’ to hit DVD & Digital HD in January Posted: 17 Nov 2015 12:00 AM PST  "Shanghai" Chinese Theatrical Poster From Director Mikael Hafstrom (1408) and Screenwriter Hossein Amini (Drive) comes Shanghai, a gripping and intense espionage thriller set in 1940's China during World War II. This long-awaited film’s U.S. release is finally making its arrival on DVD and Digital HD on January 5th from Anchor Bay Entertainment. Shanghai stars John Cusack (Love and Mercy), Gong Li (2046), Chow Yun-Fat (From Vegas to Macau II), Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Watchmen) and Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai). Nothing is what it seems in this Casablanca-style international thriller set in the ancient Chinese city a week before the attack on Pearl Harbor. U.S. Secret Agent Soames (Cusack) has just arrived to investigate the murder of his friend (Morgan), only to become quickly immersed in a web of conspiracy and that beset the city. Shadowed by a Japanese intelligence officer Tanaka (Ken Watanabe), Soames' investigation quickly centers on a local gangster, Anthony Lan-Ting (Fat) – and Lan-Ting's beautiful wife, Anna (Li). Before long, Soames and Anna are involved in an affair that will put everything they have at stake. As national loyalties are traded fast-and-loose for those of the heart, Soames and Anna must race to solve the mystery and make it out of occupied China before the city's collapse. | Watch the trailer. Pre-order Shanghai from Amazon.com today! |
| ‘Birth of the Dragon’ biopic has found its new ‘Bruce Lee’ Posted: 16 Nov 2015 03:00 AM PST  "Fist of Fury" Chinese Theatrical Poster A new Hollywood film about Bruce Lee titled Birth of the Dragon is in the works. The movie will take a look at the life of legendary martial artist and movie star Bruce Lee, using Lee’s disputed bout with Master Wong Jack-Man as the centerpiece of the story. At the helm of the project is George Nolfi (The Adjustment Bureau) with a screenplay by Christopher Wilkinson (Ali) and Stephen J. Rivele (Nixon). There’s some speculation that this could lead to a Rashomon-like structure to Birth of the Dragon since there are so many varying accounts of how the fight between Bruce Lee and Master Wong went down. This isn’t the first time Hollywood has explored the legend of Bruce Lee. Perhaps the most well known example is 1993′s Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, a heavily dramatized biopic from The Fast and the Furious director Rob Cohen that featured Jason Scott Lee (Time Cop 2) in the lead role. Updates: According to YVRShoots (via Banana Monkey), Birth of the Dragon will film for a month in Vancouver this Fall, starting in late October. BREAKING NEWS: Variety reports that Philip Ng (Wild City, Sifu vs Vampire, Zombie Fight Club) will portray Bruce Lee in Birth of the Dragon. Additional casting includes Yu Xia (Dragon Squad) as Wong Jack-Man, Billy Magnussen as Steve McKee, and Jinging Qu (Journey Through China), who’ll be playing Steve’s love interest. Ron Yuan (Blood and Bone) and King Lau (Kick Ass 2) are also attached. The legendary Corey Yuen (Kiss of the Dragon, No Retreat, No Surrender II) will be handling the fight choreography. |
| Criterion is sentenced to ‘Death by Hanging’ on Blu-ray Posted: 16 Nov 2015 12:01 AM PST  "Death by Hanging" Blu-ray Cover On February 16, 2016, the prestigious distribution company, Criterion Collection, will be releasing Nagisa Oshima’s Death by Hanging on Blu-ray and DVD! Read on for the all the details: Genius provocateur Nagisa Oshima (In the Realm of the Senses), an influential figure in the Japanese New Wave of the 1960s, made one of his most startling political statements with the compelling pitch-black satire Death by Hanging. In this macabre farce, a Korean man is sentenced to death in Japan but survives his execution, sending the authorities into a panic about what to do next. At once disturbing and oddly amusing, Oshima's constantly surprising film is a subversive and surreal indictment of both capital punishment and the treatment of Korean immigrants in his country. - New 4K digital transfer, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray Stay tuned for pre-order details! Until then, watch the film’s trailer. |
| Ridley Scott’s ‘Prometheus 2’ now titled ‘Alien: Covenant’ Posted: 16 Nov 2015 12:00 AM PST  "Prometheus" Japanese Theatrical Poster Whether Ridley Scott’s Prometheus (2012) was an Alien (1979) spin-off, prequel – or a little of both – there’s no question that it ties to the Alien franchise. A sequel, simply titled Paradise, has been in development for a couple of years (Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender are returning), but just today, in an interview with Scott himself, the film’s new title is apparently Alien: Paradise Lost. Scott obviously enjoys stirring up public speculation – or – could it be that he’s getting a head start to paint a true Alien(s) connection before someone else *cough* gets their hands on his creation? Expect Alien: Paradise Lost in 2017. Until then, we’ll fill you in on any developments. Updates: Alien: Paradise Lost will now be called Alien: Covenant. Production starts in February 2016. Here’s the film’s official synopsis: Ridley Scott returns to the universe he created in Alien with Alien: Covenant, the second chapter in a prequel trilogy that began with Prometheus — and connects directly to Scott's 1979 seminal work of science fiction. Bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, the crew of the colony ship Covenant discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world — whose sole inhabitant is the "synthetic" David (Michael Fassbender), survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition. |
| Ryan Gosling joins Harrison Ford in ‘Blade Runner 2’ Posted: 15 Nov 2015 12:00 AM PST  "Blade Runner" Japanese Promotional Poster Ridley Scott and Hampton Fancher, director and writer, respectively, of the original Blade Runner, are currently working on the follow up to the ground-breaking 1982 science fiction classic, which will take place some years after the first film concluded. Harrison Ford is officially returning as Rick Deckard and filmmaker Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners, Enemy) is taking over directing duties for Scott. Updates: In a recent interview, Empire asked Ridley Scott about Blade Runner 2, and this is what he had to say: “Yeah, we’re working on [Blade Runner 2] right now – that will happen sooner or later.” According to Variety (via MTV), Ridley Scott says the screenplay is not only "written and ready to go," but that Harrison Ford loves it: "I sent him this (script) and he said, 'Wow, this is the best thing I've ever read,' so it's very relevant to what happened (in) the first one," Scott told MTV News. "I'm not just doing a sequel with lots of action and see how far we can go with the special effects because you can't really. 'Blade Runner' kind of landed on a somehow very credible future. And it's very difficult to change that because it's been so influential with everything else." Updates: Sources report that ace cinematographer, Roger Deakins (Skyfall), will be re-joining director Denis Villeneuve for Blade Runner 2. The two collaborated on 2013′s Prisoners. BREAKING NEWS: Ryan Gosling (Drive) himself confirms his role in Blade Runner 2. No other details about his potential character are available. |
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