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In the Action / Thrillers category...

20th Century Boys

Monday, February 16th, 2009

Get ready for the next phenomenon as Nakoi Urasawa’s hit manga finally hits our screens as a live-action trilogy… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Anime, Films, Japan, Sci Fi / Fantasy | No Comments »

A Better Tomorrow II

Monday, August 28th, 2006

It’s John Woo all right, but turned all the way up to 11!… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Hong Kong, Hong Kong classics, Reviews | No Comments »

A Bittersweet Life

Thursday, March 3rd, 2005

The latest from Kim Ji-woon (A Tale of Two Sisters, The Quiet Family), a slick tale of that revenge resounds with amazing style and wit, but ultimately do we really care?… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Reviews, South Korea | No Comments »

Accident

Friday, March 5th, 2010

It’s no accident this has been causing such a stir! Intelligent with a fantastic premise, surely this one of the finest Hong Kong films of the last decade… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Hong Kong, Hong Kong classics, Reviews, _Clips and trailers | No Comments »

Ashes Of Time Redux

Monday, March 30th, 2009

Wong Kar-wai returns to his 1994 classic to produce a definite version – but is it really any better…? (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Drama, Films, Hong Kong, Hong Kong classics, Reviews, UK, Wuxia / Swordplay | No Comments »

Bangkok Dangerous

Wednesday, December 1st, 2004

This impressive debut by the Pang brothers is a heady mix of dazzling imagery and a violent tale of love, betrayal and redemption… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Reviews, Thai classics, Thailand | No Comments »

Blood: The Last Vampire – the original Anime

Thursday, June 25th, 2009

With the upcoming release of the live-action version, what better time to revisit the original that started it all… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Anime, Films, Horror, Japan, Reviews, _Clips and trailers | No Comments »

Chocolate: UK preview

Saturday, August 16th, 2008

Director Prachya Pinkaew brings us a whole new female fighting sensation in the making, JeeJa Yanin, but is it another Ong-Bak or an overly earnest disappointment like Warrior King? (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Martial arts, Reviews, Thailand | 1 Comment »

Cutie Honey

Monday, May 11th, 2009

A(nother) 21st century take on an anime fave from the past, former model Eriko Sato gets a flimsy excuse to run around in her underwear and skintight cat suit… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Anime, Comedy, Films, Japan, Reviews, Sci Fi / Fantasy | No Comments »

Death Duel

Monday, May 7th, 2007

Chor Yuan directs Derek Yee in this classic Wuxia tale from Shaw Brothers… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Hong Kong, Hong Kong classics, Japan, Releases, Reviews, Wuxia / Swordplay | No Comments »

Death Note

Monday, July 28th, 2008

A solid live-action version of a manga starring Battle Royale’s Tatsuya Fujiwara that thankfully doesn’t quite replicate the amoral tone of the original manga – but be prepared to wait for the sequel! (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Anime, Films, Horror, Japan, Reviews, Sci Fi / Fantasy | No Comments »

Divergence

Thursday, December 29th, 2005

A super slick thriller from Benny Chan (Heroic Duo, Gen-X Cops, A Moment of Romance) – but easy on the melodrama!… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews | No Comments »

DVD: An Empress And The Warriors

Saturday, January 24th, 2009

Veteran Hong Kong director Tony Siu-Tung Ching (director of classic “A Chinese Ghost Story” and the “Swordsman” trilogy and the action choreographer for “Curse Of The Golden Flower”, “Hero” and “House Of Flying Daggers”) makes a dazzling return to vintage form with the epic, AN EMPRESS AND THE WARRIORS, starring Donnie Yen (Flashpoint; Dragon Tiger Gate; Seven Swords; Hero), Kelly Chen (the Infernal Affairs trilogy; Tokyo Raiders) and Leon Lai (Seven Swords; Infernal Affairs 3). You can read our review here »

AN EMPRESS AND THE WARRIORS (cert. 15) will be released on DVD (£15.99) and Blu-ray (£19.99) by Cine Asia on 23rd March 2009. Special Features include: Making Of featurette; Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 Stereo audio options; theatrical trailer.

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Calendar, Hong Kong, Japan, News, Releases, South Korea, UK | No Comments »

Election

Thursday, November 10th, 2005

Johnnie To’s triad epic may not offer anything new to the gangster genre, but his ensemble cast are a delight to watch… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews | No Comments »

Election 2

Wednesday, October 17th, 2007

It’s time for another Election, but can there really be any winners in Johnnie To’s vision of Hong Kong turbulent and violent underworld?… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews | No Comments »

Exiled

Saturday, September 29th, 2007

Another rather convincing slice of the Hong Kong triad gang world from Election director Johnnie To – with an ensemble cast to die for!… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Hong Kong, Hong Kong classics, Reviews | No Comments »

Fatal Contact

Friday, July 18th, 2008

Just a small town boy trying to make it big – oh, why have I got Bronski Beat playing in my head, it’s not like that at all!… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Martial arts, Reviews | No Comments »

Fireball

Monday, December 28th, 2009

Dodgeball meets Rollerball in this violent bloodsport flick, but before you go thinking we’re back to the excesses of 80s martial arts films, think again… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Martial arts, Reviews, Thailand, UK | No Comments »

Flash Point

Saturday, March 29th, 2008

The latest teaming of director Wilson Yip and star/action choreographer Donnie Yen (Dragon Tiger Gate, S.P.L.) brings the sort of top-notch martial arts we’ve come to expect – so why is it so light on action? (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Martial arts, Reviews | No Comments »

Full Alert

Monday, October 6th, 2008

Lau Ching Wan (Mad Detective, The Longest Nite) and Francis Ng (The Bride With White Hair, 2000 AD) star in this superbly paced thriller from writer/director Ringo Lam (Full Contact, City On Fire)… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews, _Lost classics | No Comments »

Heroes Shed No Tears

Monday, July 10th, 2006

It’s John Woo at his most brutal and explosive, but Woo fans beware – there was a reason this film originally stayed on the shelf for a couple of years… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews | No Comments »

High Risk aka Meltdown

Wednesday, December 1st, 2004

A martial arts movie star famous for his stunts? Now who could Wong Jing be lampooning in this Jet Li vehicle?… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Martial arts, Reviews | No Comments »

Ichi

Tuesday, July 7th, 2009

Novelist Kan Shimozawa’s famous blind swordsman Zatoichi, recently brought to the screen by Beat Takeshi, gets a feminine makeover courtesy Fumihiko Sori, director of Ping Pong and the Anime Vexille… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Japan, Martial arts, Reviews, Wuxia / Swordplay | No Comments »

Infernal Affairs

Wednesday, December 1st, 2004

They don’t come much slicker than this – Tony Leung and Andy Lau shine in this classy thriller… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Hong Kong, Hong Kong classics, Reviews | No Comments »

Infernal Affairs 2

Wednesday, December 1st, 2004

The beginnings of Superintendent Wong and Sam’s feud are revealed in this solid, enjoyable prequel to a modern classic. It’s far more than just a re-run of the original… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Hong Kong, Hong Kong classics, Reviews | No Comments »

Infernal Affairs 3

Friday, September 30th, 2005

Hong Kong’s most successful trilogy finally runs out of steam with a disappointing (and frankly rather pointless) finale – those Godfather comparisons continue… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews | No Comments »

Initial D: Driftracer

Tuesday, June 28th, 2005

The Fast and The Furious gets the Hong Kong treatment, but will this appeal to anyone other than boy racers?… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, China, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews | No Comments »

Invisible Target

Monday, April 14th, 2008

Heralded as something of a return to heyday of Hong Kong action movies, Invisible Target isn’t quite that, but it sure ain’t half bad. (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Martial arts, News, Reviews | No Comments »

Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade

Monday, March 17th, 2008

Little Red Riding Hood retold as a psychological thriller from the director of Ghost In The Shell and Patlabor – but just who exactly is the wolf? (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Anime, Anime classics, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Japan, Reviews | No Comments »

Lady Vengeance

Friday, June 23rd, 2006

Bound to become a flawed, beautiful classic, Park Chan-wook’s final instalment in his revenge trilogy is a master class in the making… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Korean classics, Reviews, South Korea | No Comments »

Law with Two Phases

Wednesday, December 1st, 2004

Danny Lee (The Killer, City On Fire) in the film that made him a star… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews | No Comments »

LFF: City Of Life And Death

Wednesday, January 13th, 2010

Lu Chuan’s latest film about the rape of Nanjing may be in black and white, but his characters most definitely are not… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, China, Drama, Films, Hong Kong, Reviews | No Comments »

LFF: Quick Gun Murugan

Tuesday, October 21st, 2008

‘I am Quick Gun Murugan. Mind it.’ Fast and silly, Shashanka Ghosh’s Tamil Nadu western spoof is a whole lot of fun… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Comedy, Festivals, Filmmakers, Films, India, Japan, News, Releases, Reviews | 7 Comments »

LFF: The Good, The Bad, The Weird

Monday, November 3rd, 2008

Sergio Leone meets The Wacky Races in Kim Jee-woon’s Asian Western – it’s a real blast!… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Festivals, Films, Releases, Reviews, South Korea | No Comments »

Love Exposure

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Director Sion Sono follows up Exte: Hair Extensions with an equally unpredictable (nearly) four-hour epic love story… of sorts… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Comedy, Drama, Films, Japan, Reviews | No Comments »

Mad Detective

Monday, July 14th, 2008

An inventively twisted tale from directors Johnnie To and Wong Ka-Fai (Fulltime Killer, Running On Karma, My Left Eye Sees Ghosts). Finally the Hong Kong thriller is back on form – Korea watch out!… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Category III, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Films, Hong Kong, Hong Kong classics, Releases, Reviews | 1 Comment »

Magnificent Bodyguards / The Protector

Thursday, March 15th, 2007

Yet more Jackie Chan films from the archives, but do we really need them in ‘Ultra-bit’ quality?… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Martial arts, Reviews, USA, Wuxia / Swordplay | No Comments »

Murderer

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

Two/thirds effective, efficient thriller starring Aaron Kwok, one/third bizarre (and near ridiculous) revelation – you will never guess this twist!… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Horror, Reviews | No Comments »

My Wife Is A Gangster

Sunday, January 21st, 2007

Some six years after it was originally released this Korean classic has finally been made available in the UK – but has it been worth the wait?… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Cinema Club – The finest in Asian film, Comedy, Films, Korean classics, Reviews, South Korea | No Comments »

New Police Story

Sunday, January 21st, 2007

A return to form for Jackie, but this could be way too sentimental for Western action audiences… (more…)

Posted in Action / Thrillers, Films, Hong Kong, Martial arts, Reviews | No Comments »
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