Jack Nicholson's portrayal of the Joker should have earned him an Oscar nomination at the time, however screen academy officials were stodgy then as they are now. Any actor could wear clown make up and any stuntman could wear a bat costume. What made this movie good was the performances of Keaton and Nicholson. Keaton was an excellent Bruce Wayne, portraying him as an eccentric man with hidden psychological problems stemming from his parents' death. Nicholson of course will always be the Joker! His performance of a psycho gangster to an incurable mad man was outstanding.

Though some may think this movie is dated. I say Tim Burton's depiction of Gotham and its characters are forever frozen in a timeless world to be viewed over and over!

This feature has comedy, gunplay, cheesy spaghetti sound effects, and dubbing. We also get some kung fu action from Lo Lieh, but not enough to qualify as a kung fu movie. Instead it qualifies as an episode of the series "Kung Fu", only made in Italy! An enjoyable feature which I recommend only for spaghetti western fans and hardcore Lo Lieh fans.

If the producers could have found a better actor, I believe the film would have been better. Not by much, because fans were expecting Jet and Jackie to be the main focus and not supporting characters on a mission of destiny for Michael Angarino. On the plus side, I thought the cinematography, costumes, and supporting cast in the fantasy world were good. The real world scenes left a lot to be desired due again to Angarino's personality. The plot was ambitous, about a teen transported to a land of immortals and tasked with freeing the imprisoned Monkey King. He is helped by a misfit group of companions in his quest and learns about not only kung fu but also friendship, loyalty, and life.

The Hollywood influence is clearly felt on this film. It was not what I expected, but it did keep my interest. As others have pointed out, if I saw this back in my sense-of-wonder days as a child, I would have loved it. Upon seeing it as a jaded adult, I expected more, but I did manage to enjoy what was there.

Jet Li stars as a Taiwanese agent charged with recovering some stolen black diamonds that are actually tiny plutonium-charged weapons of mass destruction. They were illegally brought to the U.S. by Mark Dacascos's go between, but were soon stolen in a diamond robbery by DMX and his gang of specialists. What ensues is a double cross, kidnapping, and mayhem as all principal players chase after the black diamonds.

like "Romeo Must Die", the great supporting cast makes the movie. Tom Arnold and Anthony Anderson provide the comic relief. Gabrielle "Bring It On" Union and Kelly Hu supply the looks, and a good cat fight. Jet Li goes up against a midget emcee and some Ultimate Fighters such as T. Ortiz, R. Coulture, and C. Liddell in a great cage match. DMX has a great car chase scene, and of course Jet and Mark Dacascos square off in the grand finale.

Like all movies, there are things that do not work. My main complaint is that Jet Li and Mark Dacascos are limited by the script when it comes to showing off their fighting skills. However, this is a Joel Silver action movie and not an HK production showcasing martial arts. If you view this movie without expectations of martial arts action around every corner you may like it.

Recommended for Joel Silver action fans, Jet Li completists only, and hip-hop/blaxploitation fans!

I actually enjoyed the film as a whole. Some of what Silver was shooting for worked and some things didn't. I thought the talented supporting cast did an excellent job in this film. Aaliyah in her first acting role was cute and funny. Isaiah "Drum Line" Washington turned in a convincing portrayal as Delroy Lindo's right hand man. Anthony Anderson was the comic relief, and Russell Wong was an excellent gang lieutenant for the Asian gang headed by Jet's father. I even liked DMX's line about guns don't kill, people do. What did not work was the limited use of Jet Li's fighting ability in the film. The x-ray sequences of breaking bones were annoying, but I guess if it worked in Sonny Chiba's "Street Fighter", why not here? I also thought the growing relationship between Jet and Aaliyah could have developed more. They could have at least let the man kiss her! Jet did his best in his second English-speaking role but he did seem limited by the script and his command of the English language at the time of this film.

With all this said, the total package for the script was entertaining in this mix of hip-hop stars and martial arts. Recommended for hip-hop fans, Joel Silver action fans, and Jet Li completists only.

Main star and choreographer Marko Zaror has some nice moves! For his first starring role I thought he did a good job. Even Jean Claude Van Damme shouted "No Retreat No Surrender" before he moved on to better screen projects. The plot has many holes and the pacing is slow at first, but there is a certain charm as you learn the crux of the story through flashbacks from Zammy (Zaror), and the villain of the story, Max Alba. Not an action extravaganza, but if you take into account the total package, you might like it.

Where else can you see a beautiful Korean schoolgirl, a dwarf leading a secret sect, a cane-wielding villain, and some good bad acting?

Liu Chia Liang is framed by local gangster Lo Lieh. His sister Kara Hui becomes Lieh's concubine in exchange for his freedom. Lieh also has Liu Chia Liang's hands crippled so revenge would be hard to follow. Lieh did not count on local roustabout Hsiao Hou becoming Liu's student and getting revenge for his master!

The action is good and there are many comedic moments showing that Hsiao Hou is a pretty good comedic actor. Great film and highly recommended for Liu Chia Liang fans. If you like this feature, I recommend you check out "Stroke Of Death". This is another great film focusing on monkey style and starring Tony Ching Siu-Tung and the always underrated Hau Chiu Sing!

This is a period film of revenge set in a turbulent time of Thailand/Siam's history. Tony Jaa watches his parents die on order from the King's mad heir, in order to secure his power. Tony escapes and is taken in and trained by a community of pirate mercenaries from childhood. When Tony comes of age he leaves the adoptive father and leader of the pirates for revenge! Along the way is plenty of action and a good plot twist leaving the viewer wanting more!

The cinematography was excellent! The stunts and action outstanding. Tony Jaa shows that he is more than just a Muay-Thai expert by using various forms and weapons! The story was straightforward and simple with a great supporting cast portraying the villains, fighters, and family! I think many overlook the acting in favor of the action. The actor portraying Cher Nung, the pirate leader, was excellent. The ending is not what you expect but sets you up for a sequel, kind of like the ending of " The Empire Strikes Back ". All in all this is a must-see film for action lovers. The stunts are fantastic!

In this sequel to the classic "One Armed Boxer", Jimmy squares off against the great Kam Kong in one of his best villainous performances as the master of the flying guillotine. Kong seeks to avenge his two students (llamas) that died fighting Jimmy in the first film, where our hero becomes the famous one armed boxer. The film has some well choreographed fight sequences by the Lau brothers and plenty of action. You have to suspend your disbelief here as the characters in this movie do amazing things, with the special effects technology of the seventies!

In all the total package is fun to watch! Recommended to Jimmy Wang Yu fans and old school fans.

What made this film good to me were the acting performances of Anita Mui, and Xie Miao who portrays Jet Li's son. Yu Rong Guang also turns in a great performance as the coniving leader of the gang targeted by Jet Li. The fight sequences are good, especially the finale where Jet li and Xie Miao square off against, Yu Rong Guang, Ken Lo, and Ngai Sing.

Corey Yuen does a great job with the choreography though there are a couple of scenes where you can see the dummy substituted for Xie Miao. The Dragon Dynasty version also is full of good extras such as an interview with Xie miao and commentary by Bey Logan! Recommended for Jet li fans.

In "Chinese Hercules", Chan Wai-Man thinks that he accidently killed his girlfriend's brother in self-defense. He runs away, swearing to never fight again. However he soon has to fight the local mob, with Bolo Yeung as their main enforcer, in order to stop them from taking control of the local docks.

The problem with this is that the whole movie is a build-up waiting for Chan Wai-Man to finally fight.

In "The Black Dragon", Jason Pai-Piao portrays a naive country bumpkin that lands a job working for some opium dealers. It takes Ron Van Clief (in his first screen role) to show him that the people he works for are the bad guys!

I am partial to both films for nostalgic reasons, however make no mistake, they are both average and cheesy. The action is okay, and both films do tend to drag in places. Again, this is a bargain for both.

Recommended for hard core old school lovers!

To add to it, a government agency wants Kelly to break in and steal some incriminating evidence hidden at the mafia don's estate. Naturally Jim Kelly completes both tasks with lots of action and fun involved!

I loved the seventies feel and campiness of this film. Where else can you see Scatman Crothers in a karate fight, and the beautiful Gloria Hendry holding her own against the bad guys? Bob Wall choreographs the fight sequences and also appears in the grand finale fight staged at a car wash. This film holds the dubious distinction of mixing Blaxploitation with the martial arts genre. In other words, it's a Black Karate film!

Highly recommended for Blaxploitation fans!

Carter Wong is an invincible white-haired superman doing bad deeds along with fellow bad guy Lo Lieh. After killing a heroic teacher portrayed by Lung Fei, the remnants of his school seek revenge in the forms of Mark Long and Jack Long. Eventually an old schoolmate sick of Carter's evil deeds clues our heroes in on how to defeat him!

Carter Wong's character was strange, as is the mythological origin on how he became so powerful. The action was plenty, the choreography above average, the plot easy to follow, which adds up to an enjoyable old school classic--if, and I say again if, you can suspend your disbelief in some areas. This film is bizarre but in a good way.

Highly recommended for action lovers, and lovers of the weird!

Our hero, ignorant of the ways of life, is soon framed for a murder committed by the lookalike brother he never knew. This is all orchestrated by his evil rich father who in fact raped a maid that turned out to be his mother. The father is willing to sacrifice his bastard son in order to save his favorite son at all costs!

With this said, I thought the story, direction, and acting were good, especially Lily Li. Tsung Hua was just a little too naive for me, but that's how his character was scripted. There are some fight scenes, but you mainly get most of the action in the last twenty minutes of the film. Overall a good feature but I thought it could have been better. A nice drama for some, action lovers beware unless you fast forward to the end.