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Jim H
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« Reply #30 on: July 13, 2005, 09:50:51 PM »

Yeah, Detonator is pretty decent.  Better than I expected.  Isn't it a straight-to-video release as well?  There's also a sequel, but I haven't seen it.
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Dolph Lundgren
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« Reply #31 on: July 14, 2005, 07:50:07 AM »

Scott,

Out of all of the titles listed, Death Hunt is certainly a great one to have seen.  I don't know how overlooked it is, but it shouldn't be!

At any rate, DVD prices have varied for me, and unfortunately, some of the titles I've listed aren't even on DVD as far as I know.  I know I was able to get Bridge of Dragons, U.S. Seals 2, Special Forces, High Voltage, Bulletproof, Blood of Heroes, Edge of Honor, Eye of the Tiger, the Wraith, Runaway Train, Shakedown, Wanted: Dead or Alive, Johnny Handsome, Dead Bang, Back to Back, Trapper County War, Bloodmoon, and a Better Way to Die for $10 or under, sometimes easily.  Band of the Hand was a bit more last time I checked, but that was when it was first released on DVD, so the price might've gone down since then.  Same with the Hidden.  But none of these DVDs will get too much more than that.  I found some in the Wal-Mart bins, while others I got off of DeepDiscountDVD.com, or in used stores, places like that.  Might want to try Amazon too, they might have some good prices.

I'll post some more titles later today.
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AndyC
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« Reply #32 on: July 14, 2005, 10:15:45 AM »

It was either straight to video or a TV movie. I rented it on VHS shortly after it came out, and haven't seen it since. Think I might go looking for it in the bargain bins and see if I can find it again.



Post Edited (07-14-05 10:16)
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Dolph Lundgren
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« Reply #33 on: July 14, 2005, 11:16:32 AM »

Andy,

If I remember correctly, Wal-Mart has it (or had it) in their $5 bin.  I'll have to start looking for it with you!

Today I’m going to tackle Sho Kosugi movies.  Not the usual heavy-hitters, and not Journey of Honor, since I’ve already babbled about that one.  Instead we’ll take a look at some of the movies Kosugi’s done that all action fans might not have seen, as well as one of Kosugi’s sons making a most impressive debut.  Here goes:

Rage of Honor – starring Sho Kosugi.  So many fans of Sho Kosugi have heard of and loved Revenge of the Ninja, Blind Fury, and Pray for Death.  I’ll go ahead and say they’re some of the finest action movies to come out of the 80s, and even rival most made in the 90s and today.  But there are other movies Kosugi did during that time period that might not be held in the same regard, like Rage of Honor.  I suppose there’s a reason this movie is lesser-known that the other Kosugi classics; it’s been argued that this movie simply isn’t as good as his other ones.  While I’d have to agree somewhat, I still think Rage of Honor is a decent cheesy b-action movie in its own right.  In my eyes, when Kosugi suits up as a ninja, nine times out of ten you’re going to be in for a treat.  Those looking for their fix of Kosugi ninja action will get it in this movie.  Quality-wise it’s not up there with Revenge of the Ninja, but quantity-wise it betters Revenge of the Ninja in that there are tons of fights and action scenes.  Personally, although cheesy, I didn’t think they did a bad job with the action in this movie at all.  I’ve certainly seen a lot worse, and I think that when Kosugi’s behind the action, like he is in this, that he does a good job of crafting action scenes, especially ones involving ninjas running around and kicking ass.  I think if he were given a shot at directing this one would’ve turned out better, but as is, it’s fine – if you don’t compare it to his other, better movies.

Enter the Ninja – starring Franco Nero and Sho Kosugi.  Franco Nero and Sho Kosugi in a ninja action movie?  It’s a strange combo, but it certainly ends up working.  Nero plays the “good” ninja, always clad in white, always kicking ass.  Kosugi plays the “evil” ninja, always clad in black, always jealous of Nero and his skills, and always trying to kill him in various ninja ways.  Basically Kosugi is jealous of the fact that Nero has learned the ways of the ninja and makes it his personal duty to try and kill Nero with his pals when hired to do so.  There’s your story in a nutshell.  I really, really liked this movie a lot.  Kosugi plays a great bad guy for a change and the ninja action is front and foremost.  It’s very cheesy and very 70s looking at times, but it’s certainly not awful, which is what I’ve heard several people say.  The action carries this one to a recommendation, as it’s done well, in Kosugi fashion.

Sadly, I have not seen Ninja III: the Domination.  I want to badly, and I will at some point.  Anyone have any thoughts on this one?

I would talk about 9 Deaths of the Ninja, but Andrew did a phenomenal job tackling that one, and said everything about it that really needs to be said perfectly.  I must admit though that the beginning with Kosugi and the dancers is one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen.

Muscle Heat – starring Kane Kosugi.  Who the hell is Kane Kosugi, and why does his name seem familiar?  You might have recognized him from playing the role of one of Sho Kosugi’s kids in nearly every flick he’s ever made (or so it seems).  You might remember the fact that Kosugi’s kids, although small, could probably have kicked our asses in a fight despite being 4 feet tall and under 10 years old.  Well, they’ve obviously grown up since then.  And one of them, Kane, is doing his part in carrying the torch that his father held proudly in the 80s – sort of.  I say sort of because Kane’s branching out from the ways of the ninja and doing his own thing.  And with that we have Muscle Heat.  Although the title is questionable and sounds more like something you’d pick up in a porno shop, believe me, this movie DELIVERS.  I believe that it was entirely a Japanese production and was recently released here in the states on DVD.  If that’s the case, then please go out right now and buy this.  I beg of you.  Although Sho’s nowhere to be seen, in some ways, Kane puts him to shame (yes, I actually said it).  Kane might not have his father’s charisma, but he makes up for it in sheer ass-kickery.  Kane is much faster than his father was in his heyday and could very easily be the next action star.  Anyway, on with the movie.  Kane plays a court-martialed Navy SEAL sent to Japan to help another cop who is investigating an illegal fighting ring where many deaths have been occurring.  It turns out that some of the fighters in this ring are using an illegal drug called blood heat.  Ah, yes.  The illegal fighting ring premise.  So many times this has been done very well (Bloodsport, anyone?) but so many times it has somehow managed to fail me (Shootfighter II, ugh).  This movie gets it right because it doesn’t just focus on just the fighting ring so that all of the action is confined to one area.  Oh no.  We also get violent shootouts in John Woo mode, Kane going around and kicking ass outside of the ring, throwing and knocking people through several plates of glass (you have to see this to believe it) and it simply delivers action on top of more action.  I loved this movie.  I loved every cheesy minute of it.  It almost made me shed a tear that Kane was not only out there kicking ass like his old man, but that he was doing it oh-so-well.  This movie is very 80s in its execution because it has your typical meathead fighters in the ring, hammy bad guys, bad acting, and, most importantly, it focuses on the ACTION and doesn’t really give a damn about anything else.  The fight choreography is extremely well done.  It’s FAST, crisp, crazy at some points, just plain great.  Easily one of the best action movies I’ve seen in quite some time, definitely a king among newer action movies, just below Ong-Bak.  Action movie fans need this.
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Neville
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« Reply #34 on: July 14, 2005, 12:37:32 PM »

I saw "Ninja III - The Domination" many years ago on TV, and I remember it was a damn weird ninja movie.

(SPOILERS WARNING)

It starts with some decent 80s ninja action as a ninja is seen killing several people on a golf course and later being killed by the police. And here's where the weirdness begins: the spirit of the ninja enters a young woman who starts feeling strange. Her boyfriend starts investigating and the whole thing ends up with Sho Kosugi helping him exorcise the girl and obtaining revenge on the ninja spirit or something like that.

(END SPOILERS)

It has some decent 80s action at the beginning and ending, but behaves most of the time like a possession horror film, and a pretty lame one. You can even see cables when the woman discobers she can "teleport" stuff through the airs.

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Dolph Lundgren
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« Reply #35 on: July 14, 2005, 06:35:27 PM »

Neville,

I don't know what's worse: how bad Ninja III sounds or how much your review makes me want to see it even more.  I really am attracted to crap when it comes down to it.

A mixed bag of flicks tonight:

P.O.W. the Escape - starring David Carradine and Steve James. In case you're wondering, yes, Steve James did seemingly co-star in every b-action movie released in the 80s. This movie was decent. A pretty generic word to use, but the movie itself is pretty generic too, so they cancel each other out. Carradine plays a Vietnam Colonel who has to go behind enemy lines to save a bunch of American P.O.W.'s from the clutches of the EVIL Vietcong. Sound familiar? Of course it does; Chuck did it before, and he did it better, IMO. That's not to say P.O.W. isn't a good time; it can be, depending on the amount of people you're watching it with, and the amount of beers you've consumed. Without these vices it's a watchable flick, but with them, it's fun MST3K type fodder. The action is typical of a mid 80s Cannon film, in other words, lots of people die by gunfire. Pure 80s "America rules!" movie mentality. Recommended with a group of pals.

Full Eclipse - starring Mario Van Peebles. This is an interesting movie, to say the least. Van Peebles plays a detective who joins a special force team after the death of his partner. This team, however, is pretty unconventional in that they're a bunch of werewolves. Yes, werewolf cops. Of course Van Peebles ends up becoming part of the vigilante werewolf cop squad by taking a serum that allows him to shift into one. So we have a bunch of werewolf cops who prey on the scum of the city. An interesting premise, to say the least, and a surprisingly good movie as well. Director Anthony Hickox blends together a bunch of genres successfully; he incorporates John Woo type gunfights, werewolf action, gore, a little of the softcore, drama, horror, double-crosses, you name it. It's a crazy blend of genres but it's also a fun movie to watch. I say check it out if you can!

Circle of Iron - starring David Carradine. Supposedly this movie was based on the philosophies/writings of the legend, Bruce Lee, with additional help from James Coburn. I guess this movie could be referred to as more of a philosophic approach to kung fu, with some action tossed in for good measure. I think it was more the fact that Bruce Lee was unable to make the film, so any attempts to have the movie rely purely on action were squashed. The movie stars some guy as a martial artist who wins a fighting tournament that allows him to go on a journey to find the Book of All Knowledge. David Carradine plays four different roles in the movie, but mostly as a blind man who the main guy runs into along the way. There are several other unique people the guy meets on his journey that either befriend him or try to kick his ass. Confused? Try watching the movie; it's pretty out there at times. The martial arts choreography is obviously not up to what we're used to today, but it's standard for a late 70s movie. So while the action might not light the world on fire, it's good for what it is. It sounds like I'm pretty borderline on this movie, but to be honest, there's something about it that I really, really like. I think it's the fact that the main character's journey is completely out there and memorable, as are the characters he meets. I was able to snag this on DVD for cheap recently; I suggest those of you who like surreal action movies to do the same.
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Dolph Lundgren
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« Reply #36 on: July 15, 2005, 11:06:48 AM »

My update for the weekend:

The Last Samurai – starring Lance Henriksen and John Saxon.  Don’t confuse this movie with the Tom Cruise flick the Last Samurai – they couldn’t be more different.  This is a really cheap movie released sometime in the early 90s.  But, when I came across it at a local DVD store, saw the price ($4.99), saw that the title had samurai in it, and saw the fact that Lance Henriksen was in it (one of my favorites), I jumped all over it without hesitation.  Who wouldn’t?  Someone was smart by advertising all three of those at the same time while enticing suckers like me who will pay $5 to see Henriksen paint a freaking house just as long as it has a cool title.  “Lance Henriksen in … House Painting Ninjas from Hell.”  So I leapt at the offer, came home, and popped the DVD in … and was promptly met with boredom the first half hour of the movie.  Not a good sign.  Never a good sign.  The whole movie has a whole “shot in two days with a camcorder from Rent-a-Center” look to it, or maybe that was just the DVD, which I’m thinking might be some kind of HK bootleg.  At any rate, at first, I wasn’t too impressed.  But I’m a forgiving guy when it comes to these kinds of movies, so unless they’re completely and totally botched and have absolutely no redeeming value, I can at least come up with something that I enjoyed.  And while the movie does get better, it never really rises above “watchable.”  I didn’t hate the movie by any stretch of the imagination, but it didn’t wow me, either.  This movie is a strange mixture of samurai action and philosophies, fantasy, adventure, guns, and more.  It sounds cool, but the end result is average.  Worth a rainy day watch.

Warriors – starring Michael Pare and THE MAN, Gary Busey.  “Warriors, come out to PLAAAAAAAY!”  Not those Warriors.  These ones are stuck in a less-than-mediocre b-movie filmed in Canada.  Again, never a good sign.  Michael Pare plays the typical good guy, which means Busey is left to play the bad guy.  So far, so good.  I’m a fan of both and sometimes their presence can make a movie rise above total badness.  Not this time.  This movie is boring.  The cardinal sin that an action movie can be is boring.  It’s an ACTION MOVIE.  It’s called WARRIORS.  It’s got a scene chewing b-movie legend and a guy who’s more than capable of being a good action lead.  So how do things go completely wrong here?  In every area conceivable.  Busey is subdued in this one to the point that you ask yourself, “why did they even cast him?”  If you cast Busey in a movie, you have to let him run wild.  If you do, the movie’s much better off for it, i.e. Surviving the Game, Bulletproof, etc.  But in this movie he comes off as bored and tired, maybe because he realized even he couldn’t breathe any life into this one.  I wish I could say it’s even worth watching to make fun of.  But it takes itself so seriously that you can’t even do that.  Pare’s character is so boring and cliché that he can’t do much either.  The movie basically boils down to Pare being a trained killer and having to use his skills to go against his squad leader, Busey.  It sounds like a primo recipe for an action movie, but nothing happens.  Everyone in this acts like they’re in a coma and the movie will put you into one.  NOT recommended.

The Junkman – starring H.B. Halicki.  The story behind Mr. Halicki is legendary and is one that should be heard for any movie lover.  For those of you who don’t know it, I’ll describe it briefly: Halicki was an every day car enthusiast who had a dream.  That dream?  To make a movie with the mother of all car chases in it.  A car chase so spectacular that people will remember it years from now.  So Halicki realized this dream by shooting a little movie that you might have heard of called Gone in Sixty Seconds.  He did this with bunch of his friends, a bunch of cars, and a bunch of people willing to lend their time and make his dream come true.  The movie turned out to fulfill what Halicki wanted and had a phenomenal number of cars crashed (I think it was somewhere in the 90 cars range) during the nearly 40 minute car chase at the end of the movie.  Yes, that’s right, 40 minutes.  It truly is something to see and is refreshing from today’s CGI laden chases with special effects.  Halicki did all of the stunt driving and all of the dangerous maneuvers on his own.  Unfortunately, when filming a sequel to Gone in Sixty Seconds, he died while performing a big stunt.  It’s a sad ending to what seemed to be a fascinating guy.  The movie was later remade with Nic Cage and was a big success, overshadowing the fact that the older movie did it 25 years earlier, and did it better.  

After filming Gone in Sixty Seconds, Halicki worked on a really bizarre movie called the Junkman.  It’s bizarre in that it sort of plays out like a movie within a movie: Halicki plays a movie-maker much like himself in real life, only in this movie, a bunch of hitmen are hired to kill him, forcing him to go on the run.  There’s your complex plot in a nutshell.  I’ll be honest, this is a dumb movie.  But you can tell that Halicki and the people involved are having fun with it, because the movie rarely seems to take itself seriously at all.  There’s a sense that the Junkman is basically a bunch of friends who got together to make a movie.  Don’t mistake this for thinking the movie’s amateurish (well, the acting is, but nobody ever accused Halicki of being Robert freaking DeNiro) because when it comes to the car chases, it is anything but.  The plot is pretty much an excuse to show several cars tearing it up, so for those of you who enjoy a good old fashioned car chase, it’s worth seeing based on that alone.  That being said, it’s dumb, the acting sucks, and the plot is pretty much filler, but if you’re a fan of cars in any way, shape, or form, and love seeing them being driven fast and crashing into everything in sight, you’ll get a kick out of the Junkman.  Watching this movie is like watching a porno with all of the sex scenes replaced with car chases.  You couldn’t care less about anything else, but when it comes down to the goods, you’re paying attention.
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Yaddo 42
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« Reply #37 on: July 16, 2005, 11:58:12 AM »

I love "Circle of Iron" because it is so odd. I have the DVD as well, the extras go along way toward explaining some things. Carradine says that any of the humorous bits were added to the script by Stanley Mann. And the original story was set on then contemporary Earth with the seeker (Cord) to be played by Coburn and Lee as the guide. Coburn, Lee, and Silliphant were all friends and had an interest in showcasing Zen Buddhist ideals in a film. Hence the quirky character of the film, but if you read a little Zen you can see where they were coming from. Jeff Cooper, the lead, was a stunt man and minor actor (He had a small role in one of the BIlly Jack films and I've seen him in a corny David Niven comedy on Turner South also) at the time, but he seems to have vanished, they tried to contact him for the extras for the Blue Underground DVD, but had no luck.

"Death Hunt" is a fun favorite. Some great lines like "Your daddy said the best part of you ran down your mama's leg." There's a link in the Ruthless Reviews review of this to a website of obscure Canadian history about the real Albert Johnson. From the story there, he was even more of a badass than in the movie, but he probably was the Mad Trapper if there ever was one.

Another recommendation: "Target X" starring David Heavener. Cheesy 90s action chase film, about an innocent man selected to be the prey for a secret pay-per-view bloodsport, that manages to ripoff: The Most Deadly Game,The Running Man,The 10th Victim, Surviving the Game, and even a scene from Pulp Fiction. Look for cheesy movie favorite Robert Z'Dar in that scene.
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BeyondTheGrave
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« Reply #38 on: July 18, 2005, 02:44:26 AM »

I just rented a movie I think that belongs in this thread and might have been mentioned:

Fist of the Northstar- I think everyone know the story by now. Kenshrio looks for his girlfriend and seeks some revenge using the bad-ass Hodshiensken(sp?) moves.The gory was ok so was the fighting. Chris Penn was in it a delievers a funny line "It ain't easy being sleaze".


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Post Edited (07-18-05 02:48)
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Dolph Lundgren
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« Reply #39 on: July 18, 2005, 11:01:57 AM »

Yaddo,

Good stuff on Circle of Iron ... I haven't had the chance to check out the extras yet, but they sound like they're worth watching.  I'm with you though, I think the fact that the movie's so strange plays in its favor, IMO.

Target X sounds like a bonafide b-movie classic the way you described it.  Great recommendation, I'm all over it.

Rich,

Ah yes, Fist of the North Star.  Probably one of the most hated b-movies that I've come across, simply because a majority of the fans remember the gory anime so fondly and the live action movie has such heavy hitting stars as Downtown Julie Brown and that Rufio from Hook.  That being said, I liked it.  I didn't think it was THAT bad and it certainly could've been worse.  I too thought the fighting was actually pretty decent.  Chris Penn was an odd choice but he did okay.  Interestingly enough IMDB says there's an uncut print of this movie ... I'm wondering if that's true or just BS.  Anyone know?
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Dolph Lundgren
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« Reply #40 on: July 19, 2005, 10:57:42 AM »

A variety of action today:

The Driver – starring Ryan O’Neal and Bruce Dern.  This is one of those criminally overlooked films that somehow got lost in the shuffle.  Walter Hill delivers another classic that combines his talent for writing great dialogue and some awesome car chases.  Hill’s probably one of my favorite directors ever; if anyone could helm the perfect “guy movie,” it’d be him. .  The thing I like about Hill is that he can do so many different kinds of action movies, and he does them all well.  He’s made so many classic flicks over the years, a lot of them in the 80s.  While this one came out in the late 70s, clothing aside, it does have some 80s sensibilities.  O’Neal plays a man known only as “the Driver.”  This is appropriate, because he’s the best wheelman around.  Bruce Dern plays the detective, who’s hell bent on putting an end to the driver’s reign.  There’s your plot.  Admittedly, Ryan O’Neal is a strange choice to play the leading man in this movie; there are times in which the character of the driver is supposed to come off as a hard ass, but O’Neal looks so much like a pretty boy movie star that sometimes it takes away from the movie somewhat.  But he does an okay job, since he really doesn’t talk much, and the reason we’re watching is to see some nice car chases.  Hill doesn’t disappoint.  He often lets the cars do the talking, and as an action movie audience, we’re better off because of that.  The chases have a sense of realism to them, so you won’t see two cars jumping off of buildings or anything like that, which is refreshing.  See this movie.

Highwaymen – starring Jim Caviezel and Rhona Mitra.  At the time this movie was made, Jim Caviezel was known by some as “that guy who starred in Frequency and the Count of Monte Cristo.”  It probably would’ve been tough to pick him out from a guy you’d see on the street.  But after a little movie called the Passion of the Christ was released, Caviezel was suddenly a household name and the smart execs saw little light bulbs sparkle in their heads.  “Let’s release Highwaymen after Passion comes out, people will surely see it!”  Yeah, because those who enjoyed Caviezel as Jesus Christ will just love seeing him flying around in a Barricuda serving up some vintage vigilante justice.  What we have here is a little under the radar flick that was released by Robert Harmon.  You might (or might not) have heard of another flick he directed, which also took place primarily on the opens roads: the Hitcher, an 80s classic with C. Thomas Howell and Rutger Hauer.  I guess Harmon wanted another crack at the open road so he made this movie, which admittedly, we don’t really see too much of anymore.  I think it plays like a somewhat modern version of Mad Max in a way; Caviezel plays a man who witnesses his wife get run over by some madman racing down the highway who loves committing hit-and-run murders with his El Dorado.  This enrages Caviezel, who then becomes the Mad Max type who tools around in a rigged up Barricuda that includes police frequencies and a cb radio, all the while looking for the man who killed his wife.  Along the way, Caviezel befriends a VERY easy on the eyes Rhona Mitra after saving her from the madman after he kills her friend using his El Dorado as a weapon.  From then on it’s a cat-and-mouse chase between Caviezel and Mitra and the maniac.  A cool little movie that harkens back to the basics and doesn’t rely on a lot of flash or CGI effects.  The pace of the movie never lets up and the fact that it’s so short leads me to believe some things were cut out.  At any rate, check it out if you get the chance.

Nighthawks – starring Sylvester Stallone, Billy Dee Williams, and Rutger Hauer.  I have a friend who’s a Stallone fan.  He owns all of the Rocky movies, all of the Rambo movies, you know, the Stallone classics.  One day he saw Nighthawks in my collection and started laughing.  It’s an old VHS tape and shows half of Stallone’s bearded face on the cover, and the other half of Rutger Hauer’s.  He says Stallone looks like he should be in a porno.  I say he actually was in one, but that’s another conversation entirely.  Anyway, there’s no denying this, as he looks totally different in this movie.  I try to convince him that the movie is actually pretty good, to which he dismisses once I tell him it’s nothing like Rambo, Cobra, etc.  I guess what I’m getting at is once upon a time Stallone was actually known for his acting.  After Rocky I and II were released, he was sort of in this in-between phase of his career, and thus, starred in Nighthawks.  But you know what?  Him and Hauer do a damn good job in this movie.  Sly stars as Deke DaSilva (love the name), an undercover cop who, along with Billy Dee, his partner, are suddenly transferred to an anti-terrorist unit after years of baiting muggers.  They soon find themselves chasing after Hauer, who plays Wulfgar, a German terrorist, after he decides to make the good ol’ US of A his next target.  The rest of the movie plays out with Stallone and Williams chasing after Hauer, trying to stop him before commits more atrocities.  Good performances and some solid action give this film a slight boost.  It won’t blow you away, but you could find much worse ways to spend your time.  A rainy day flick for sure.

The Park is Mine – starring Tommy Lee Jones.  This movie plagued another friend of mine for years.  “You like crappy action movies,” he says.  Guilty as charged.  “There’s this movie my dad used to love, he says it’s about some guy who decides one day he’s going to take over New York City’s Central Park.  The movie’s pretty much him running around and shooting people that try to come into his park.”  Thanks to the Internet, we were able to find and watch this movie.  It’s a little-known 80s flick starring, of all people, Tommy Lee Jones.  My friend’s description was somewhat correct: Jones plays a war vet who becomes fed up with how Vietnam vets are treated.  So what does he do?  He decides to take over Central Park so that he can be heard.  Obviously this works and soon the police are after Jones and his crusade not only to remember those who fell in Vietnam, but also to rid NYC of the “thugs, perverts, and weirdos.”  Doesn’t sound like too bad of a plan to me.  Basically the rest of the movie is an off-the-wall Jones running around in his Yankees hat, war paint, and weaponry wreaking havoc on those who try to enter his park.  It’s actually a pretty cool, if not cheesy and contrived, little movie.  Jones does a nice job of getting you to emphasize with his character.  It’s hard to root against him in this movie.  Some nice action and neat ideas (for an action movie) make this movie worth seeing.  80s action at it’s “finest.”
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BeyondTheGrave
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Punks not Ded sez Rich


« Reply #41 on: July 19, 2005, 12:25:36 PM »

The Night Hawks looks interesting I going to get it on Netflick, "The park is mine" sounds like it mirrors the classic "Taxi Driver" is some ways.


-------------------------------------
Ray,when some asks you if your a God you say YES! - Ghostbusters
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LH-C
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« Reply #42 on: July 19, 2005, 04:28:29 PM »

There are two releases of 'Nighthawks' on DVD. The first release is in pan-and-scan with the original score, and the second is letterboxed with the music replaced with a generic score. Whoever screwed up on these releases is an idiot. Just wanted to warn you guys.

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Dolph Lundgren
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« Reply #43 on: July 20, 2005, 11:17:27 AM »

Rich,

Give Nighthawks a shot ... even though the DVDs were screwed up, as LH-C pointed out, it's worth checking out.

As for The Park is Mine mirroring Taxi Driver, you could say that.  Taxi Driver takes a more character-oriented approach, while The Park is Mine opts for action instead.  

A small update today:

The Ostermann Weekend – starring Rutger Hauer and Craig T. Nelson.  By the time this film was released, Sam Peckinpah, a legend in filmmaking, was on his last legs as a director.  In the eyes of many people, he hardly went out with a bang.  The Ostermann Weekend would end up being his last film before his death in 1984.  Needless to say, the reactions to the film were and still are extremely mixed – and with good reason.  The Ostermann Weekend is a very strange film at times, and the whole premise is based on paranoia – something Peckinpah himself was probably plagued with at the time he was filming.  I happened to like the Ostermann Weekend quite a bit, and despite its flaws, thought it was an interesting movie to watch.  It shouldn’t be compared to Peckinpah films of old, and while there is a good amount of Peckinpah-flavored action in the film, it’s not the slam-bang action movie type.  The film is based around Hauer, who plays an investigative news show host, who’s told by the CIA that his friends are traitors to the US.  This causes a lot of tension and anger when Hauer, his friends, and his friends’ wives get together at his house to have a fun weekend, as Hauer believes they’re traitors, and they believe they’re under scrutiny from Hauer.  Hauer’s house is bugged and mic’d by the CIA to spy on them, adding to the sense of paranoia.  This sets the stage for a Peckinpah-esque finale, which will satisfy action fans.  This movie is more of a thriller than an action movie, but the action it does have is done in typical Peckinpah fashion, which makes this movie at least worth watching once.  I thought the movie was pretty good, but with that being said, I can’t recommend it to everyone.  I think it’s a love-it-or-hate-it type movie.

Opposing Force - starring Lisa Eichhorn (who?) and Tom Skerritt.  Here is your prototypical under the radar 80s action movie that very few people have heard of, and even fewer have seen.  It stars Eichhorn as Casey, the only woman among a bunch of soldiers who sign up for a training mission that leaves them on an island where they have to reach a specific zone before the opposing force captures them.  As I’m sure you can predict, things go wrong quickly and the training mission turns out to be the real.  I thought this movie had a cool premise and that it delivered on the action front.  After the setup, things play out in a Rambo-like fashion where it’s survival of the fittest.  Eichhorn does an adequate job and is a nice change of pace from your usual ripped male action hero.  If you’re paying attention for the action, you should be satisfied.  Check it out.
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« Reply #44 on: July 20, 2005, 12:13:40 PM »

Being that there has been a focus on a few Rutger Hauer movies in the last few posts (and why not; is there a better action movie star?), I have an inclusion.


A BREED APART (1984): Rutger Hauer, Powers, Booth, Kathleen Turner, Donald Pleasence - Powers Booth plays a mountain climber who is looking to finance an expedition. He is called upon by a reclusive millionaire (Donald Pleasence) who collects rare bird eggs, mostly from endangered species, to obtain an egg from a mountain top on a small island. The problem is that this small island is owned and controlled by a vet (Rutger Hauer) who is a conservationist and will protect the wildlife on the island with a vengeance. Add to this a widow (Kathleen Turner) with a child who owns the general store/dock where Hauer get his supplies; she wants him while the child looks at him as a hero figure; but Hauer's character needs a good slap in the face to realize he might feel the same way. Booth's and Hauer's characters also gain a confidence in each other which complicates Booth's mission. And, if that were not enough, there is a group of hicks who have it in mind that they want to teach Hauer a lesson. Overall a well done character driven story about trust and self-realization which has just enough action to move it along while not getting in the way of the story.



Post Edited (07-20-05 12:16)
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