Shadow: Dead Riot (product link) Action/Adventure / Horror I was very disappointed in this film. It wasn't scary in the least. All the special effects were cheesy and unrealistic looking, and the Martial Arts choreography was very poor. I only give it 1/2 star because of the cool keychain that came with [the special edition DVD I purchased].
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What did the keychain look like? Can I buy it anywhere?...That is.....without having to buy a 2nd copy of the movie? lol
Contour (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Umm...no...sorry this doesn't do it for me. Sure, it's good enough if you don't mind a few athletic people who were sitting around at home who decided to make a movie using their old camcorder and a couple of trampolines, but that's not what I pay to see. A cool piece of footage if they made it for free viewing on YouTube, but not to sell on DVD.
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N
With the limited budget this project had, the stunts and martial arts action still rivals anything hollywood pushes on us- like editing thats so bad you can't comprehend any of the fighting techniques on screen-image what they can do with a mega budget
I actually just watched this film again last night and was even more impressed this time around. The fights and camerawork are truly incredible, whether you consider the budgetary constraints or not. It's a phenomenal achievement in martial arts cinema.
The Great Challenge (product link) Action/Adventure / Martial Arts I didn't care much for this one. Director Julien Seri and action directors Kawee Sirikhaneerut and Xin Xin Xiong focused too much on roof climbing and wall scaling and not enough on real martial arts to entertain the audience. This wouldn't be so bad if the actors had the acrobatic skills of Jackie Chan, who has plenty of creativity and variety, but unfortunately they did not. The opening scene is decent, but the repetitive movements throughout the movie are monotonous.
Death Trance (product link) Action/Adventure / Thriller I've often wondered why some movies get wide distribution, dubbing and the royal DVD treatment. This is one of those movies that makes me wonder, because it's not that good! There's decent acting, but action-wise it's a bit slow, and very forgettable.
Superfights (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure This is a cheesy, low budget movie with a humdrum storyline. The only reason I even give it 2 stars is because of the amount of fighting. The Martial Arts is okay if you enjoy movies like "No Retreat, No Surrender".
Wind And Cloud: The Storm Riders (product link) TV Shows/Movies / Martial Arts Originally a TV show that crammed all the action from an entire series into a movie length feature. If you like great fights every few seconds but not much else, then this is for you.
Dog Bite Dog (product link) Crime / Drama I'll start by saying the action scenes were realistic and some even brutal, but they were too far and few between, and much too short. I found myself struggling through scene after scene of uninteresting drama to get to the "good parts". The few minutes of hard hitting action just don't make up for a generally boring movie. I'll give 2 1/2 stars because you can tell that they tried really hard to make a decent flick.
Fatal Contact (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure A few decent fight scenes but could've used a couple more. The story has a little twist which helpes make it a bit more enjoyable.
Wu Tang Magic Kick [Crash Cinema 2-Disc Set] (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure A great movie if you're a kicking fanatic and don't care for much variety. Three stars because there's plenty of action though.
The Kid With The Golden Arm (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Not quite as good as the usual "Venom" flicks, but not bad at all. If you're a Venoms fan then you need to add this to your collection.
Boxer From The Temple (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Not a Shaw Bros. all-star cast, and most of the fight scenes are just average [by Shaw standards], but a good finale.
Dragon In Fury (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Eh...another Bruce Lee clone flick...nothing special because you didn't get enough "Gordon Liu". Not a bad movie, but it could've been so much more.
U.S. Seals 2: The Ultimate Force (product link) Action/Adventure / Martial Arts Over acting, low budget American example of Asian action cinema, BUT, they do a fair enough job with Martial Arts scenes to make it worth viewing.
Samourais (product link) Action/Adventure / Martial Arts A rather "silly" movie with plenty of great action. I'd rather have seen this without the grown-up language and had it geared more for kids. I would've rated it higher.
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I wish the filmmakers had made the movie you described. The language and violence didn't match the level of this film's wit.
B13: Banlieue 13 (product link) Action/Adventure / Martial Arts This isn't the masterpiece that many think it is. It's a decent movie with decent action and story, but not one of the best. Perhaps it's groundbreaking in France, but in Asia this type of action is just average.
Fearless [2006] (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure As another viewer commented, "the martial arts in this movies isn't anything new". Not saying thats it's poor action--in fact, if you're new to Martial Arts films or Jet Li, the action might blow your mind--but for a veteran of martial arts movie viewing of over 30 years I found Yuen Wo Ping's choreography "dated". It's the same kind of thing he was doing 15 years ago. I also found the sped-up camera action and editing a bit too obvious. Perhaps if this movie didn't receive the kind of perfect reviews it's been getting then maybe I wouldn't be so hard on it, but I expected more.
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I stand by my 5 rating and I am neither a trend monger nor am I new to martial arts or martial art films. I do know when a film is good.
Good for you, man. People around here seem to be trend mongers with very little exposure to Asian cinema. I applaud your bold honesty and agree whole-heartedly. Thank you for keeping it real.
Five Fingers Of Steel (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure You can't go wrong with a Hwang Jang Lee flick. Not too high budget but has good action.
Executioners From Shaolin (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Started out fantastic but dragged a bit in the middle, followed by corny humor. But the action was really good, for what its worth.
Born To Fight [2004] (product link) Action/Adventure / Martial Arts This movie is a good start if you want the Tony Jaa style action, but it's the first in the bunch and not nearly as sophisticated as the later movies in terms of story or action.
Mantis Boxer / Tiger From Canton [DOUBLE FEATURE] (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Two quality movies for the price of one. That works for me.
The Martial Club (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Nice fight choreography from Liu Chia Liang, but not enough of it and a bit too light hearted for my taste. Still a fun ride.
Three Evil Masters (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure This movie wasn't sure if it wanted to be serious or a silly comedy, but it contains good fight scenes so it's worth a look.
Dragon Tiger Gate (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure I remember reading the comic books that this movie is based on. This is as good as any comic book-adapted movie. It doesn't have to win awards, just be enjoyable.
Flash Point (product link) Action/Adventure / Martial Arts A decent action flick with some good mixed martial arts choreography from Donnie Yen. It's not as good as "SPL" ("Kill Zone"), but then again that flick is a hard act to follow. A few slow parts but overall a decent movie, and if you're a Donnie Yen fan then you wont want to miss this.
The Chinese Stuntman (product link) Action/Adventure / Martial Arts Not a bad movie from the usual "cheesy" Bruce Li. This is probably one of his best, although that isn't saying very much from someone who isnt a very big fan of "Bruce Lee Clones". However if you like Bruce clones, then I suspect you'll really like this.
Dragonball: The Magic Begins (product link) Fantasy / Action/Adventure Nice family oriented off the wall action without too much in the way of violence. Perfect for younger kids who like Martial Arts Flavor! Most Martial Arts movies that are geared towards a younger audiance I find to be too soft and too boring. They are usually lacking in quality action. This is one of the few movies thats "ok" for my kids to view that they actually like.
Equilibrium (product link) Action/Adventure / Science Fiction Hey, I like this movie. Yes, it's a low budget "Matrix" rip off, but check out the finale fight when the two characters are doing "Gun-Fu". The combination of gun play while using martial arts at the same time was very original. I haven't seen this done quite this way before, and makes the movie well worth watching for this scene alone...
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I have to agree with both you and aardvarks on this movie. Sure, it's a matrix rip-off of sorts, but the film truly stands out, artistically and stylistically, as one of the coolest action films ever made, despite the bad timing of its theatrical release.
Iron Fist [SE 2-Disc Set] (product link) TV Shows/Movies / Martial Arts You won't get bored watching this. More than enough action for any martial arts fan.
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I agree. This was very entertaining and it was nice to see Wang Lung Wei play the role of the good guy. I definitely recommend this movie.
Invincible Pole Fighter (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Gordon Liu and Alexander Fu Sheng are good of course, and the weaponry was great, but I would've preferred to see a little more hand-hand combat. If you enjoy all-weapon style fighting then you'll love this.
Eagle's Claw / Challenge Of Death [DOUBLE FEATURE] (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Two quality flicks for the price of one. Ya' can't go wrong with this double pack.
Chinese Super Ninja (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Half of the Venoms are featured in this, so you can't go wrong. Lots of cool Shaw Bros. style action.
The Machine Girl (product link) Action/Adventure / Girls With Guns This is a bloody good time. It's not quite "Story Of Ricky" in terms of over-the-top gore, but it does have more than enough. A thoroughly enjoyable flick if you just want to have fun.
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