2017
Clan of the White Lotus
This is a strange Gordon Liu movie in which he wants to avenge the friends who died at the... more
2016
Rogue One
My first thought after walking out of the theater was, “huh, I don’t know a single character’s name from... more
The Suspicious Death of a Minor
A forgettable Italian police drama starring a guy who looks like a young Victor Davis Hansen. Plot was something... more
Shaolin Tamo Systique
This was a strange disjointed kung-fu movie about a female wannabe Shaolin disciple who is taken under the tutelage... more
The Witch
This movie felt like a Hans Baldung woodcut brought to life. Set in a dark New England forest in the 1600’s,... more
Inglorious Basterds
I was expecting something a bit more action packed. Instead this movie is just a series of scenes of... more
Mascots
Christopher Guest has created another fake documentary about a bunch of characters trying to win a contest. This time... more
Dracula 3-D
I have finally gotten around to watching Dario Argento’s most recent movie—his 3-D take on the Dracula story. Everything... more
Across 110th Street
Having blunted the needle on my iTunes from playing Bobby Womack’s title song so much I thought it was... more
Tremors
For years I have heard about the cult status of this movie and I could have sworn I have... more
Police Assassins
Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Rothrock’s debut film is corny and very dated but it was everything I expected (meaning,... more
The Mermaid
Apparently, The Mermaid was the highest grossing movie in China last year. The 40 different conglomerates listed in the opening credits... more
Ant-Man
Bleh, these super hero movies need to end. While can’t say I was bored by Ant-Man, it just felt ho-hum... more
Satan Met a Lady
This early version of The Maltese Falcon is played as a comedy. The basics of the story are still there (it’s... more
Ong Bak
Fantastic Thai martial arts movie about a monk’s apprentice going to the big city to retrieve his small village’s... more
Tricky Brains
Having seen the horrible Fight back to School I wasn’t expecting much from this early Stephen Chow comedy. This one at... more
The Maltese Falcon (1931)
This early version of the Hammet novel hits most of the same plot points of the later version but the acting... more
The House on Haunted Hill
While it had one or two actual jump scares in it (a rarity for American films of this vintage),... more
Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter
Amazon recommended this movie to me probably because I have watched a lot of Kung-Fu movies lately? I think... more
The Mist
I knew most of the story of The Mist from an abridged book an tape that we listened to as kids... more
Red Queen Kills Seven Times
This is the follow up to Emilio Miraglia’s The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave. Red Queen sits more firmly in the... more
The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave
This one’s a strange Gothic horror and giallo hybrid. Meaning, lot’s of cool 70’s décor within an ancient castle.... more
The Flying Guillotine
A reasonably good martial arts movie that borrows a lot of its plot structure directly from The One-Armed Swordsman. The... more
Fight Back to School
Stephen Chow could not save this tone deaf action/comedy. Made in the late eighties, there are maybe two or... more
The Hateful Eight
This was my least favorite of all the Tarantino films I’ve watched (I still haven’t seen Inglorious Basterds). Even Death Proof, which... more
A Chinese Odyssey (Parts 1 & 2)
Long before he directed Journey to the West, Stephen Chow starred in this version of the Monkey King’s story. The... more
8 Diagram Pole Fighter
This is a gorgeous martial arts film which features an all-star cast of Hong Kong action heroes (most of... more
The New One-Armed Swordsman
The One-Armed Swordsman was a good, arty swordplay epic with a lot of character focus. The sequel ditched the character stuff and focused... more
The Five Deadly Venoms
Master is worried that his five former students are too powerful and may do evil so he sends his... more
Five Fingers of Death
A rather brutal kung-fu flick centered around competing schools in the lead up to a fighting competition. Lot of... more
Return of the One-Armed Swordsman
The sequel to the memorable One-Armed Swordsman is less about character development and more about action (Duh… you could say that... more
Shaolin Intruders
Finally, a Shaw Bros. martial arts film that hits all the right buttons: interesting characters, plot twists, colorful design... more
The Deadly Breaking Sword
I wasn’t sure if he was supposed to be a good guy, but the title character is a swordsman... more
The Shadow Whip
This was a decent martial arts film notable for four things: a snowy, wintertime setting; exciting fights with many,... more
Legendary Weapons of China
This is a weird one. It starts off with a display of magical cloaked fighters in which two are... more
A LEGO Brickumentary
I’ve written before on this Web site how there is a standard documentary being produced these days that shows the “community” that... more
Dragon Gate Inn
Looking back over the string of martial arts films that I have viewed over the past few months, I’d... more
The One-Armed Swordsman
When I started my immersion into Shaw Brothers kung-fu, I knew I would eventually see this film. It apparently... more
Painted Faces
I recognized most of the story here from having read Jackie Chan’s memoir, I Am Jackie Chan. It’s the story... more
Return to the 36th Chamber
The first follow-up to The 36th Chamber still features Gordon Liu in the lead role, but it’s mostly a parody of... more
Patema Inverted
I decided to watch this anime on a whim after revisiting The Girl Who Leapt Through Time the other night. The... more
Tiger and Crane Fists
I assume most of the people who seek this movie out come to it the same way I did.... more
Time Traveller: The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
This live action adaptation of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time bears little resemblance to the original anime version. The cartoon... more
Disciples of the 36th Chamber
The third film in the 36th Chambers series changes the tone to comedy (apparently the second sequel is also a parody, but I... more
House of Flying Daggers
This movie made it to America in the wake of Crouching Tiger and has much of the same stylishness. Doesn’t quite... more
2015
The 36th Chamber of Shaolin
This is a classic Kung-Fu film from the Shaw Brothers that doesn’t quite have the artistic flair that I look for in... more
The Force Awakens
An excellent and worthy sequel to the original series of films. It’s probably better than Return of the Jedi or at... more
The Omega Man
This classic sets itself up as a last man on Earth drama, but within five minutes kills that premise.... more
The Scar
A year ago a watched the other half of this double feature film noir DVD. This second movie is much better... more
The Sound of Music
Ok, my wife wanted the entire family to watch this and I fully expected to be bored by it,... more
Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman
My Adam Carolla film fest continues with this documentary about Paul Newman’s racing career. There are no amazing revelations... more
Road Hard
I used to listen to Adam Carolla’s podcast pretty regularly but stopped around the time Alison Rosen was unceremoniously... more
Star Trek into Darkness
The second Star Track reboot film was mindless fun. I was never bored despite the lame retread story, excessive attempts at... more
Spasmo
This giallo has been on my must see list for a very long time. Scored by Ennio Morricone, the... more
The Giant of Marathon
The Amazon prime version of this movie looks like crap. I watched it anyways as part of my Mario... more
Caltiki, the Immortal Monster
I have been slowly working my way through Tim Lucas’s All the Colors of the Dark mega-book about Mario Bava. Whenever... more
One Million Years B.C.
This movie is precisely as cheesy as one would expect for a low budget, mid-sixties film about bikini clad... more
Martial Arts of Shaolin
The final movie in the Dragon Dynasty Volume 1 DVD pack is probably the best of this set. The film banks... more
The Plainsman
Gary Cooper stars in this black and white western about Buffalo Bill and Wild Bill Hickok. It’s a very... more
Mad Monkey Kung Fu
Mad Monkey Kung Fu is all about the acrobatic fight choreography and feel a lot like a Nineties Jackie Chan... more
Executioners from Shaolin
A Shaolin monk on the run vows to avenge the death of a friend and, over the course of... more
Five Shaolin Masters
I just bought another Shaw Brothers box set and am watching the films in chronological order. This one has... more
Come Drink with Me
Come Drink with Me is heralded as the film that defined the kung-fu genre in the early sixties. I am... more
Golden Swallow
Of all the films in this DVD set, this one features the best fight choreography. I guess it’s a... more
Killer Clans
Another Shaw Brothers kung-fu extravaganza. This one was quite good with lots of blood, a complicated (in a good... more
Blood Brothers
Disc two in this Shaw Brothers set is the weakest of the lot. A pair of bandits join with... more
Rock Around the Clock
This film is really just a showcase for Bill Haley and his Comets. The plot and characters are tacked... more
The Avenging Eagle
The first film in the Shaw Brothers four-pack DVD I just bought. I loved USA Network’s Kung Fu Theater when I... more
World War Z
Well, the book wasn’t great, but at least it was a new twist on the zombie genre. The movie... more
Mad Max: Fury Road
This movie was essentially one continuous car chase, but, as terrible as that sounds, it works perfectly. Back when... more
A Bullet for the General
The story of a finely attired gringo mercenary who falls in with a group of banditos in a scheme... more
Edge of Tomorrow
This Tom Cruise action film is basically Groundhog’s Day meets Starship Troopers. Since Groundhog’s Day there must have been half-a-dozen rip-offs on various TV... more
Guardians of the Galaxy
Probably my favorite of the recent Marvel to film movie productions. It helps that it wasn’t an idiotic superhero... more
Jodorowsky’s Dune
Although the subject matter is interesting, I didn’t get much out of the documentary that I didn’t already know... more
Hell’s Ground
Mondo Macabro has been pretty consistent in their DVD releases. Lots of trashy and weird genre films from outside... more
O.K. Connery
This mediocre Eurospy movie is based entirely around the stunt casting of Sean Connery’s younger brother Neil in the... more
Deadlier Than the Male
Besides maybe Danger Diabolik, I haven’t seen many “Eurospy” movies—cheap, Bond knock-offs produced in Europe in the sixties. Surprising, this... more
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
The final film in of The Hobbit trilogy is an improvement over the second movie. While it is still a bit... more
Cold Sweat
This is an hour and a half of Charles Bronson being an unflinching tough guy. Seems Charles’ old war-prison... more
Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons
This is a Stephen Chow kung-fu film through and through. There’s the standard wire-fu action and stunts, lots of... more
2014
The Limping Man
Lloyd Bridges stars in this 1950’s film noir about an American returning to England after the war who becomes... more
Dead Space: Downfall
The creators of the Dead Space series must be really proud of the little story they came up with because it... more
The Reincarnation of Isabel
This is a confusing mess of a movie. Somewhere a midst the toplessness is a plot involving vampires, witches... more
Look
I am a crowd supporter for Penn Jillette’s upcoming Director’s Cut movie and the story goes that Penn watched this movie... more
Zero Charisma
I rather enjoyed this comedy about an angry tabletop gaming nerd who loses what little social standing he had... more
Hercules in the Haunted World
Mario Bava directed this early sixties Italian Hercules film and his colorful style is all over the place. It’s... more
Day of Anger
A goofy but entertaining spaghetti western featuring Lee Van Cleef as a gunslinger who inspires the town garbage collector... more
Godzilla [2014]
Well, like everyone else who saw this movie, I think the first quarter is very good, mostly because Brian... more
Silent Running
A dated and preachy science fiction story from the seventies about the last forest of earth being preserved in... more
Tim’s Vermeer
This a nice little documentary produced and directed by Penn & Teller, respectively. This is a documentary for people... more
Night Train Murders
An Italian thriller (aka L’ultimo treno della notte) that leaves you feeling a bit icky not because of gore, but... more
2013
Bloody Pit of Horror
A ridiculous Gothic horror from 1965 that features a crazed executioner in crimson wresting tights who tortures and kills... more
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy and I am glad that they are making these Hobbit movies, I wish... more
Road House
An eighties “classic” which I never got around to watching because I always thought the video box looked dull... more
Pacific Rim
Mindless popcorn fair that manages to be entertaining without getting too annoying. The story and characters are really, REALLY... more
Decoy
A mediocre crime film from the forties with lots of hammy acting and a thoroughly ridiculous plot involving reviving... more
Crime Wave
A noir crime film from 1954 that features a young Charles Bronson (credited as Charles Buchinsky) as the heavy... more
Videodrome
Videodrome always seems to turn up on lists of the best horror films of all time. While it was visually... more
Evil Dead (2013)
This was a movie that did not need to be made. That said, it’s reasonably entertaining but not at... more
The Raid: Redemption
This was a good Indonesian action film that has a minimal plot and zero character development. A bunch of... more