cityonfire.com | Movie News & Developments |
- Dragon Blade (2015) Review
- Martial arts flick ‘Time Rush’ warps its way onto DVD!
- Park Chan-wook looks to ‘Metal Gear Solid’ author for film adaptation of ‘Genocidal Organ’
- ‘Hard Target 2′ director goes historical for ‘Admiral’
| Posted: 30 Jan 2016 11:33 AM PST  "Dragon Blade" Korean Theatrical Poster Director: Daniel Lee By Kyle Warner The casting lineup of Jackie Chan, John Cusack, and Adrien Brody for a historical action movie sounds downright crazy – and also, I must admit, rather intriguing. Just ten years ago a movie headlined by those stars would've sounded even weirder, but the fall from their A-list status has thrown them together in that very particular level of Hell known as the Daniel Lee Historical Epic. Because of the silly trailers and bad vibes, I wasn't expecting much from Dragon Blade. However, decent word-of-mouth praise and an appreciation for the three actors made me just curious enough to check it out. I regretted my decision almost immediately. It's very clear early on that Dragon Blade is a tone-deaf, ham-fisted movie. Inspired by a true story, Dragon Blade follows a Roman legion that's traveling the Silk Road in China. They're tired and starving, so they require a place to rest. Their general (John Cusack) seeks to sack a city, but the defender of that city (Jackie Chan) convinces both sides to set aside their differences and share the city. In order to earn their keep, the Romans help rebuild the city's defenses, promising to do so in 15 days. Of course during this time of rushed construction the men take time to dance, spar, and engage in general male bonding that crosses the cultural divide. But not everything is fun and games! An evil Roman Consul (Adrien Brody) is taking his army in pursuit of Cusack, which leads to a confrontation on the Silk Road. Why are Cusack's Romans hiding out with Jackie Chan? Why does Adrien Brody want to kill everybody? Well, are you a fan of exposition? Half-way through the film John Cusack sits down to explain his backstory and motivations: "I served under Consul Marcus Licinius Crassus Dives. He moved his troops to the Parthian Empire, formed an alliance with the Queen, who is the sister of our Lady Crassus. Consul Marcus' elder son, Tiberius, is a vicious and treacherous man. The Consul was planning on naming his youngest son Publius to be his heir and successor. He entrusted me to keep the child alive. The young lord started having problems with his eyes. The Parthian Queen kindly sent medicine to heal his vision. Tiberius laced it with poison, blinding his brother so that he could never become Consul…" and it goes on and on from there, giving us more information than necessary. During the dialogue we get flashbacks to some characters that we never see again and are treated to the first glimpse of a Queen who will become important later on (but only after we've almost totally forgotten about her). Cusack reads the lines with about the same enthusiasm that I felt when I went back to rewatch the scene so that I could quote the dialogue. (Which is to say: very little.) That scene, I think, best explains what's wrong with the movie: the screenplay sucks. Writer/director Daniel Lee (White Vengeance) shows no understanding of pacing, eloquence, or editing dramatic tension. Info dumps are dropped on the audience like a load of bricks. Characters we don't bother to know the names of are killed with tearjerker melodrama. And the dialogue, OHHH the dialogue! Later in the film, Cusack begs Brody to spare the young Roman lord's life, saying that he's committed no crime and poses no threat. Brody responds, "Of course he's committed a crime! His crime… his crime is that he took the place in your hearts that belonged to me." In the words of Harrison Ford, "You can type this shit, but you sure can't say it." Daniel Lee, who is no friend to fans to historical epics, deserves a harsh talking-to. (To be fair: I watched the US cut which apparently trims approx. 20 minutes from the film. Whether some of the film's editing and choppy storytelling is any better in the original cut is unknown to me.) While the film is often very violent, the central theme is one of togetherness and acceptance. At the center of the story is the city which Chan is defending and it is made up of people from many different nations, cultures, and races. That they all work together to fight evil is something I thought deserved some credit, especially in days like these. However, good intentions only get you so far. Jackie Chan is probably the best part of the movie. In the role of Huo An, Chan gets to play a bit of his Greatest Hits: he fights, sings, provides slapstick humor, and he gets to play his new favorite sort of role, that of the self-sacrificing savior. Chan also serves as the film's action director and the action scenes are more exciting and better filmed than much the rest of Dragon Blade. Some of the action beats are overly familiar (has Chan ever fought a female opponent without tripping her and supporting her fall by putting his hands on her breasts?), but there is some entertainment to be had. I'm not sure what John Cusack's doing in the film counts as acting… it's more like he's just conveniently standing in front of the camera while it's rolling. Cusack has hit a bit of a rough patch in recent years (though his work in Love & Mercy was excellent). He appears half-asleep in Dragon Blade, giving the character of Lucius just enough life to remain standing. I don't necessarily blame him. The film is total shit and he's smart enough to know it, wisely saving battery life for better film projects. On the flip side of the coin, Adrien Brody goes all-out playing the outrageously evil Tiberius. Brody, the youngest actor to ever win the Oscar for Best Actor (The Pianist), is also at a strange point in his career. This isn't the role he's been looking for. Tiberius is evil and… that's pretty much all there is to the character. Brody's over-the-top in the part, so much so that I think he's either in on the joke with the audience or he's potentially going mad onscreen, I'm not sure which. At least he provides the film with some laughs. So yeah, Dragon Blade is not the John Cusack/Jackie Chan action movie we've all been waiting for. The movie is made with good intentions, strong production values, and decent action, but a cheesy script and lame performances sink the film into oblivion. I'm still interested in the future films of Chan, Brody, and Cusack; they've done enough good work in years past to deserve a pass for this mess of a movie. But as for director Daniel Lee, well, he remains on my Shit List. Kyle Warner’s Rating: 3/10 |
| Martial arts flick ‘Time Rush’ warps its way onto DVD! Posted: 29 Jan 2016 10:57 PM PST  "Time Rush" Promotional Poster Stunt Power Films presents Time Rush (aka Reflex), an upcoming thriller that fuzes martial arts with Edge of Tomorrow! Helmed by Daniel Zirilli (director of Steven Seagal’s upcoming thriller, Asian Connection), Time Rush is about a man who is stuck in a repeating loop of time, and must navigate his way through an Asian metropolis (in this case, Thailand). Time Rush stars Dean Alexandrou (Blunt Force), Selina Lo (The Scorpion King 3), Ron Smoorenburg (Who Am I?, Tekken 2), Ammara Siripong (Chocolate), Byron Gibson (Only God Forgives) and Kecha Khamphakdee (Asian Connection). The DVD for Time Rush releases on April 5, 2016. Until then, don’t miss the film’s trailer. |
| Park Chan-wook looks to ‘Metal Gear Solid’ author for film adaptation of ‘Genocidal Organ’ Posted: 29 Jan 2016 10:00 PM PST  "Oldboy" Japanese Theatrical Poster According to TTB, visionary director Park Chan-wook (Old Boy, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance) is attached to direct a film adaptation of Project Itoh's (Metal Gear Solid: Guns of the Patriots) science fiction novel, Genocidal Organ. Here’s what you can expect from the plot (via Amazon): The war on terror exploded, literally, the day Sarajevo was destroyed by a homemade nuclear device. The leading democracies transformed into total surveillance states, and the developing world has drowned under a wave of genocides. The mysterious American John Paul seems to be behind the collapse of the world system, and it's up to intelligence agent Clavis Shepherd to track John Paul across the wreckage of civilizations, and to find the true heart of darkness—a genocidal organ. We’ll keep you updated on Genocidal Organ as we hear more. Until then, Park Chan-wook is currently putting finishing touches on his forthcoming film, The Handmaid. Stay tuned! |
| ‘Hard Target 2′ director goes historical for ‘Admiral’ Posted: 27 Jan 2016 12:00 AM PST  "Admiral" Theatrical Poster Netherlands-based filmmaker Roel Reiné is primarily known for making straight-to-DVD sequels to theatrical hits like, Death Race 2, The Man with the Iron Fists 2 and The Scorpion King 3. Considering budget constraints, Reiné is one of the very few B movie directors who manages to pump ‘em out with quality in mind. We’ve gotten word from XLrator Media that Reiné’s newest film, titled Admiral (no relation to the Korean film of the same name), will be available on VOD and iTunes on February 23, 2016, in theaters (limited release) on March 11, and on Blu-ray and DVD on April 5th. Here’s what you can expect from Admiral: When the young republic of The Netherlands is attacked by England, France and Germany and the country itself is on the brink of civil war, only one man can lead the county’s strongest weapon, the Dutch fleet: Michiel de Ruyter. The film stars Frank Lammers, Sanne Langelaar, Barry Atsma, Egbert Jan-Weeber, Rutger Hauer and Charles Dance. Judging from the Admiral’s impressive trailer, it’ll be interesting to see how Reiné’s Hard Target 2 (with Scott Adkins taking over for Van Damme) comes out. It’s no wonder why producers keep coming back to this guy for more sequels. |
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