4 comments about Chinese Hercules (Dub).

1. The fight scenes in this movie are totally amazing. The dubbing in the movie is horrible so if you are into movies like that such as godzilla, then this movie is for you.



2. Bolo Yeung, the only skilled fighter in this movie, is not the star of the film as the box would have you believe. The main character is an actor who shows no skill in martial arts. His character flips out in the beginning after killing someone and then runs away. The rest of the plot thereafter is nearly indecipherable. Bolo is the 'Darth Vader' of the movie. The big villain uses him to beat good guys to death. Bolo's Shotokan is excellent in the movie, but that is the works only redeaming value.



3. Well,This movie is about a young man who thinks that he killed his girlfriends brother. In doing so runs off and smashes his hand and swears to never again use his fists. He gets a job at
   a pier working for some bad men. The boss of the bad men sells
   out to the syndicate and in turn has to get rid of the workers
   at the pier any way he can. When his friends start ending up dead the young man must once again raise his fists.The star of the movie is Chan Wai Man who kung fu movie collectors know very well as a common movie villian - but, here he is the good guy. The movie is old and originally had a different title.When they repackaged and changed the title - they capitalized on the fame of Bolo Yeung who plays one of the villians in the movie. The Fighting is solid - I have seen far better and far worse. Their are some minor volume problems in the movie as well. I have given this movie three stars for the simple fact that I have seen hundreds of kung fu movies and martial arts movies and this rates slightly above average to me.



4. If you like kung fu movies, you'll probably get some mild enjoyment (keyword: mild) out of "Chinese Hercules." It's about a guy who kills his fiance's brother. Feeling awful about it, he runs off to start a new life and a new identity, vowing never to kill again. But, this being a kung fu movie, you can be damn sure there's gonna be some serious a$$ whuppin' by the time it's done. Bolo "Enter the Dragon" Yeung is heavily hyped on the box (and the movie's title, "Chinese Hercules," is actually one of his nicknames), but he actually only plays a small role as a henchman.
   The DVD I got is from Front Row Entertainment. The image is pan and scan, heavily cropped from the film's probable 2.35:1 aspect ratio. The image is extremely bad - very, very faded and scratchy. The sound is dubbed. While purists might complain, I sometimes get a kick out goofy dubbed dialogue. Unsurprisingly, there are no extras.

2 comments about Legend of the Devil.

1. This is a funny movie! This movie is inspired by this anime that
   no one has ever seen Sword For Truth! Sword For Truth was this
   Ja-pornime with lots of sex and gruesome ninja and samurai
   action! The story was about this Ronin who is hired by a samurai
   clan to retrieve the kidnapped princess from some ninjas! But
   what was upsetting about that film was it that it never was
   completed! The anime finished with some guy makng a prophecy
   about some white tiger dead and you never hear about a sequel!
   Well for the few of you who ever saw that train wreck of a anime
   and was discouraged about the ending, this movie may fill in the
   blanks of Sword For Truth! This movie was fun! I was laughing so
   hard at the part when this huge black guy (like 800 pounds huge)
   comes walking through a Japanese village and terrorizing people!
   It was so damn funny! I felt a bit dissapointed that this film
   wasn't as gory or sexual like Sword for Truth but still this
   film was fun! Nothing special but fun!
   
   The DVD is released by Asian Pulp Cinema! Just to let you know,
   these guys release mostly independent, b-movie style films! Like
   $500 budget films! As far as I know their DVD's work and aren't
   broken! I also got Ninja Dragon and that worked! Alot of their
   stuff is either erotic, horror, or action! And picture quality
   for Legend of the Devil is tip-top and widescreen!



2. LEGEND OF THE DEVILLegend of the Devil is a live action version of Sword for Truth. It benefits from the extra 30 minutes. The producers use the extra time to explain who the various factions are and how they are intertwined in the storyline. The basic plot is the Hojo clans quest to regain two mystical swords which were taken from the clan after they lost a battle. A demon wants the swords so he can become immortal. A Christian samurai(I know that's a bit of a contradiction in terms) wants them to bring peace to the country to stop persecution of Christians. Go look up the history of Christianity in Japan. Sakaki winds caught between all these people. The actor playing Shuranosuke Sakaki is good. He has to play an extremely calm, almost Vulcan like character. I would like to read the original book or books by Takeshi Namuri.

2 comments about Matayoshi Shinpo s Traditional Okinawan Kobudo.

1. This DVD is a must for every martial artist interested in okinawan kobudo. It presents an impressive series of kata and kumite from the celebrated Matayoshi-ryu featuring the actual late "soke" Matayoshi Shinpo (just before his unfortunate demise) and his most talented pupils. The material presented gives a quite extended overview of the "ryu" covering even the most exotic unusual weapons such as the "kuwa", the "nunti", "san-setsu-kon" and the "timbe".
   This "ryu" is a okinawan familiar tradition with some unique kata. Some of the other mainstream kata are performed slightly differently from the okinawan "standard". This DVD allows to evaluate some of those features. However, there is always the risk of some homemade "sensei" learning from this DVD, borrowing techniques to cheat others!
   
   Negative note: A DVD menu indexing every kata and technique would have bee easy to implement, enhancing enormously the usefulness of this DVD. For this only I don't give 5 stars.



2. The kata work on this DVD is exceptional. Be warned, however, that if you are looking for a basic 'how to' or 'step by step' guide on kobuto, this is not the best tool. That is the only reason I gave it a 4 instead of a 5 [so novices would know its value may be limited for them since it is advanced in technique and form].
   
   I have been studing kobudo for over a dozen years and at times I have a hard time picking up the nuance of the movement on this DVD. That said, I use this as a reference weekly. I first purchased it on video and wore it out. I'm glad to have in on DVD now. The katas are done quickly so individual movement can sometimes be difficult to discern. I am lucky enough to have an excellent teacher [Sensei] for instruction and I use this as a reference manual, of sorts, when I forget a move or simply need to check my form. It is an exceptional resourse for that purpose.
   
   Highly recommended for all -- those who already know some basic kobudo will get even more out of it.
   
   Thank you.

2 comments about Hood Angels.

1. I LOVE A MOVIE WITH SUSPENSE!
   I LIKE THE ENDING!
   JUVENILE DID GOOD, TO ME!
   I REALLY ENJOYED IT!
   I LIKE THE MOVIE!



2. "Hood Angels" is the kind of movie you can only fully appreciate when you are with at least three other people, and you all are completely and totally trashed. A poor script, bad actors, and horrible editing create a piece of art that, if not totally intoxicated, would make you want to gouge your eyes out.
   
   Rated two stars for the fantastically quotable lines.
   "Whatchu in here for, hookin'?"

No comments about Return of Red Tiger.

2 comments about Ironheart.

1. The Beginning Part of the Movie Is Going To Make you Laugh Your Ass OFF! First Movie with Bolo Yeung To Use a Gun!



2. Bolo Yeung is about the only thing that makes this movie even worth checking out. This is not one of his better outings, but he does play the villain, as usual. Ironheart is a pretty boring movie that moves slowly. Britton K. Lee plays a cop whose mission is to discover who killed his partner and who is behind a kidnapping of young women at a local night club. There are few fights in the movie and most are unimpressive, even the final fight with Bolo Yeung could have been much more exciting. Most of the movie consists of going from place to place, trying to unravel the mystery. Britton K. Lee is nothing spectacular. Though he shows a few martial arts skills, his character is very bland. The cheesiness and acting in Ironheart is just as bad as any poor martial arts movie and the night club scene at the beginning is about the silliest thing ever.
   
   If not for Bolo Yeung, this movie would be about the most boring of its kind. Bolo fans might be disapointed, but he's had worse roles (Fearless Tiger).

5 comments about Blood of the Dragon.

1. A MAN NAMED THE WHITE DRAGON MUST FIGHT TO SAVE HIS COUNTRY FROM TYRANNICAL RULE. GOOD FIGHTS BUT THIN STORY. IT'S A GOOD MARTIAL ARTS MOVIE OVERALL. YOU SHOULD ENJOY IT. THAT DUBBING IS HILLARIOUS, THOUGH.



2. I was torn between a 3 and 4 star on this film (It is worth noting that I have the Platinum version rather than this version- so I will not speak of DVD quality). Ultimately the ending convinced me of the need for a 4 star review. The final 20 minutes are the sort of stand off you expect from a classic picture. Unfortunately, the build up could've used a bit of comic relief and/or more character development of the general. Well now I am getting technical for an otherwise entertaining movie. No one can strike a pose like Wang Yu! See more great selections at "Kung Fu for the Sole" Listmania.



3. The main gimmick is that the main character uses a silver spear; to stab, poke and slash with great aplomb.
   Most of the grainy film is pretty boring and it has been directly transferred to DVD with no clean up, BUT there are some good fight scenes to be found here. Fast forward to the last 20 minutes of the film, lots of bloody action.



4. The main gimmick is that the main character uses a silver spear; to stab, poke and slash with great aplomb.
   Most of the grainy film is pretty boring and it has been directly transferred to DVD with no clean up, BUT there are some good fight scenes to be found here. Fast forward to the last 20 minutes of the film, lots of bloody action.



5. This is truly one of Jimmy Wang's best performance using weaponery. Definately a classical ending to be remembered. I too was torn on a 3 or 4 star, it was the ending which really impressed me.

5 comments about Best of the Best 2.

1. I really love this one, glad I bought it.



2. I liked too much this movie. I compare this movie and I say that is much better than the first one. The scenes where Tommy Lee (Philip Rhee) excuted Hapkido techniques to the thugs is awesome. In the other hand, I didn't like the performance of Eric Roberts. It seems that he excuted the same techniques from the first one of the series(Best of the Best 1). The movie has a great plot story and the final scene where Tommy fought the big guy "Bracus" has too much to tell. In general..I give 5 stars to the DVD. I recommended to those who never had the chance to see it on DVD.



3. The problem is that part 1 is one of my top 20 or 30 favorite movies of all time and it had a story that felt very real. Part 2 doesn't even try to act like it takes place in the real world. The story is good, but gets interrupted by too much overacting by the villains and the main henchman. Luckily, there is plenty of action. The story is about underground cage fighting with no rules and the fights in the ring at the end are fantastic. While the fights are completely stupid, Phillip Rhee is definitely one of the better martial arts actors to ever hit the movie screen. There are also plenty of fights outside of the ring. Phillip Rhee gets to show off all his moves. Even a guy like Steven Seagal looks like a joke compared to Rhee in arm locking and throwing skills. And his Taekwondo kicks are perfect in technique. I actually think part 4 is better than this, but its not a total loss. My favorite part of the movie is that Phillip Rhee's real life brother Simon Rhee is back as Dae Han. Part 1 has an unbelievably amazing ending, and it was nice to see Dae Han on the side of good after what happened at the end of part 1. The tears always start to well up when I think about part 1, so it was nice to have a smile on my face when Dae Han is on the screen this time around. There is one scene where he kicks a guy so hard it made me scream out insanely with laughter. It is mainly the stuntman's acting that sells it, but Simon Rhee's kicks are amazing. He also has one other eye popping kick. Simon Rhee is a little flashier than his brother, but just as good in technique if not better. Both of these guys are truly on another level.
   
   3/5
   
   The picture and sound is remastered to perfection.
   
   While the movie is not memorable, the new DVD from Fox has some great special features. There is a 10 minute making of which is a look back at the movie with interviews from Phillip Rhee, Wayne Newton and others. There is also a magnificent audio commentary with Phillip Rhee and director Robert Radler. The last special feature is a 6 minute promotional featurette from 1993. Although not overloaded with special features, this is one of the better special edition DVDs I have seen in recent years. Commentaries on martial arts movies are very rare, so they are always greedily accepted by me.



4. It's sad that it took so long for one of the all-time best American martial arts movies to be released on DVD, but here it is, in all it's glory.
   
   Picking up several years after BEST OF THE BEST left off, BEST OF THE BEST 2 begins with Alex (Eric Roberts) Tommy Lee (Phillip Rhee), and Travis (the late Chris Penn) running a Tae Kwon Do/Hapkido school in Las Vegas. Travis has been competing in The Coliseum, and illegal kickboxing circuit in the city owned by the fearsome, appropriately named Brackus (Former Mr. Universe Ralph Moeller). After winning the tournament, Travis earns the right to challenge Brackus, with the winner taking ownership of the Coliseum, but Travis badly underestimates Brackus and is killed in the match. Alex's son Walter (Edan Gross) witnesses the murder, and Alex and Tommy confront Brackus. Brackus orders Alex and Wlter killed, but Tommy has cut Brackus' face, wounding his pride, so Brackus wants Tommy alive. Meanwhile, Tommy, Alex, and Walter take refuge with Tommy's "Grandma" (Betty Carvalho), where they prepare to take on Brackus under the tutelage of James (Sonny Landham), who had previously fought Brackus.
   
   Phillip Rhee is definitely the star of the film. Holding a 6th Dan in Tae Kwon Do, a 3rd dan in Hapkido, and a 1st dan in Kendo, as well as being an expert in Wing Chun and boxing, he is a one man wrecking crew. When Tommy is captured by Brackus, he first forced to fight three preliminary matches, and this is truly a sight to behold, but the lenghty, climactic David vs. Goliath duel between Tommy and Brackus is one for the books.
   
   BEST OF THE BEST 2 may not have won any Oscars, but it is never the less, an undying classic of martial arts cinema.



5. Berst of the best 2 is a great martial arts cult flick. not great acting but who needs it when all you want to see are some great martial artists doing what they do best.

1 comments about Grapplers Quest - 6th West Coast Submission Grappling and Wrestling Championships (Gracie -vs- Laimon).

1. This DVD features many top participants from Ralph Gracie's BJJ school, including the head instructor at the Mountain View academy - Sandro Santiago.

3 comments about Ghost Warrior.

1. oh, this is a great film from Charles Band and his Empire Picture. I Can only wach it, it is great fun.
   His Brother Richard did the score for it and it is quit wounderfull. wish I had the soundtrack.



2. A samurai rescues a lady, but in the process, is stabbed and thrown into freezing water when he fails to kill a defeated foe. He is frozen until the 20th century, when he is thawed out by scientists. He winds up in modern-day Los Angeles with a young and beautiful female expert in Japanese culture. There are the expected "fish-out-of-water" scenarios, and a few more interesting ones, such as the sushi chef who tries to speak with him and says he speaks with a strange dialect, and must be nuts. conflits of interest regarding the samurai bring the story to a climax where he is forced to make a similar choice as he had in the past.

   The technical production quality is not first-rate, as if this was done on a low budget with low-end equipment. But the sincerity of the production comes through and makes the film surprisingly watchable.




3. Ghost Warrior is one of those movies I purchased expecting it to be absolutely dreadful, and comedic for that reason. It had all the signs of being a terrible movie. Proudly emblazoned on the video case is "By the makers of Troll." That alone makes it look awful. The plot synopsis cements this belief. It's about a Samurai from the 1500s who runs amok in 1980s California.
   
   Astonishingly enough, the movie is very good. Sure, there's a whole buttload of suspension of disbelief, but the acting is strong, especially on the part of Hiroshi Fujioka. Watching him makes it easy to suspend disbelief. He is very skilled with his weapons, and his demeanor is redolent with bushido. I'd like to watch more of his films, even though they look uniformly awful. Maybe he's the Japanese version of Rutger Hauer--a good actor with undiscriminating taste when it comes to acting gigs.