Mifune looks really pissed on hearning the news for this remake..

Toho to remake Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress

Not looking forward to this, especially the director's "permission from Kurosawa Productions to create a single, younger character (Jun Matsumoto, the youngest member of popular boy band Arashi) to reflect the aimless youth of today."

"The announcement is the latest in a string of completed and announced Kurosawa remakes, including recently broadcast made-for-TV versions of Ikiru and High And Low and producer Haruki Kadokawa's big-budget remake of Sanjuro, starring Bayside Shakedown's Yuji Oda.

Sanjuro , which stays faithful to the original screenplay, makes its market debut at this week's AFM on Toho's slate. An animated series of Kurosawa's Yojimbo was produced in 2001."

Belated Kung Fu Halloween BOO!

Been going through my posters and lobbies for a special "performance" project and thought I would throw these up. Blurb!!! Directed by Lo Lieh!

The Streetfighter calls it quits!

Old news as Sonny Chiba announced his retirement in July, but my blogging was on hiatus for the summer, hence the belated notice. At 68, Chiba is still possibly the most recognized Japanese actor world-wide. Any other takers?

Chiba-san has always been proactive in helping new talent with his Japan Action Club (JAC), which was responsible for training Hiroyuki Sanada (THE LAST SAMURAI, SUNSHINE, RUSH HOUR 3, NINJA IN THE DRAGON'S DEN, ROYAL WARRIORS, MESSAGE FROM SPACE) and taking applications for a Japanese branch of his LA-based acting school, as well as join with Hong Kong action legend Jackie Chan to launch schools for future action stars in Beijing and Shanghai.

In 2001 I was lucky to serve on the jury of the Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival which was chaired by Sonny Chiba, with fellow jury members, OLDBOY star Choi Min-sik, GAMERA and DEATH NOTE director Shusuke Kaneko, and Tchéky Karyo, star of LA FEMME NIKITA and KISS OF THE DRAGON) and he was a gracious man who exuded a powerful charisma. Quentin Tarantino visited the Fest a number of years before, hence the name of Chiaki Kuriyama's character Gogo Yubari in KILL BILL. Below are some pics from the Fest as some Chiba Youtube selections.

Yubari 2001 Jury: Choi Min-sik, Tchéky Karyo, Sonny Chiba, Colin Geddes and Shusuke Kaneko

An audience with the master: Sonny Chiba and VERSUS star Tak Sakaguchi,
director Ryuhei Kitamura and Colin Geddes

VERSUS director Ryuhei Kitamura, Colin Geddes and Sonny Chiba

Jonathan Ross interviews Chiba-san



VIVA CHIBA! The Bodyguard!

CURSE!!!

Italian Gore fans waiting to see DEMONS 2 at a screening in London, Ontario, got the surprise of their lives as CURSE hit the screen during the trailer portion of the evening. A hidden security camera caught all the insanity on MiniDV. Does ANYONE have a video of this film? I know where there is a full 35mm feature of it, but sadly the reels won't fit in my dvd/vhs player...

fists of fire!!!

Big thanks to Magicpoe for posting this BBC doc from 1975 on the Shaw Brothers from around the time of the Shaw/Hammer coproduction Legend of the 7 Golden Vampire. Only watched part one of three, but it has AMAZING footage of the soundstages and sets at the studio. Also, an interview with David Chiang! Not able to paste in the embedded html, but the links are here:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

got nostalgic

Yes, been away from the temple of Kung Fu Friday for almost two months. As usual, things got busy with my job doing the Midnight Madness selection at the Toronto International Film Festival. Of course, this did involve pimping the Fu as I screened FLASH POINT. For Midnight Madness I ran a blog with some intrepid contributers and will shortly post the video for the Intro and Q&A with Wilson Yip for FLASH POINT. I'll be sure to add a link here.


On the weekend I attended a course on letterpress printing out east on Gerrard Street, where the 2nd of our three or four Toronto Chinatowns exist. This brought back memories as there used to be an AMAZING video store that I would make the trek to so to rent VHS tapes back when I was learning about the wild world of HK cinema. Saldy, the dvd/vcd selection pales when compared to what they had on VHS. And they are selling off bags of randomly grouped tapes in lots of ten for only $5. Ahhhh, the memories. To cheer everyone up, here is a behind the scenes video from 8 DIAGRAM POLE FIGHTER that my buddy King sent me some time ago.

plus extra clippage!

when the Moon shone bright...

Been so busy with my film fest work the past month that I have neglected this blog. Still trying to post on Popcorn & Sticky Floors, plus just started a blog for Midnight Madness, but have felt guilty not posting here more. Just got into my office and have a large number of tasks to accomplish before I run off to the cottage on Tuesday, when this newspaper ad sticking out from a stack of paper caught my eye. No real reason to pick it, it just presented itself. And no, the title of the film, FATAL TERMINATION is not a secret clue that I am closing up shop. Hardly! I have a wealth of stuff that I just need to scan and post and share. Thats what fall and winter are for. Meanwhile, enjoy this newsprint antique:

Th Sparks - Tsui Hark

Quirky pop new wave band Sparks and their "hit" song Tsui Hark performed on German TV.

mamet in a cage

Sony Classics to Finance Mamet's "Red Belt"

Sony Pictures Classics will fully finance "Redbelt," the latest project for writer and director David Mamet ("The Spanish Prisoner," "State and Main") and will handle worldwide distribution for the film, the company announced Friday. Production will begin in Los Angeles in May with Mamet directing from his original script. "Redbelt" is described by SPC as an "American samurai film, set in the Westside Los Angeles fight world" inhabited by bouncers, cage-fighters, cops and special forces types. The story revolves around Mike Terry (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a Jiu-jitsu master who has avoided the prize fighting circuit, choosing to instead pursue a life of honor and education by operating a self-defense studio in Los Angeles. Terry's life is dramatically changed however when he is conned by a cabal of movie stars and promoters, and in order to pay off his debts and regain his honor Terry must step into the ring for the first time in his life. [Brian Brooks]

added on June 20th - just found this article with way more info on the production.

INFERNAL AFFAIRS 2 & 3 FRENCH DOCUMENTARIES (OPENINGS)

From the master of HK extras for those swank French dvd releases, Fred Ambroisine, come these juicy glimpses...

lady avenger

Was asked by Fantasia to scan in pics I had from the 1981 Taiwanese "black film" LADY AVENGER as they will be screening it along with the doc, TAIWANESE BLACK MOVIES on the genre of "black" films - racy and violent films that had heavy social and political undertones, LADY AVENGER being one of these.

Documentary filmmaker Hou Chi-jan takes an illuminating look at the wave of lurid female avenger flicks that flooded Asian screens in the early 1980s while simultaneously exploring just how the sociopolitical climate of Taiwan at the time proved the perfect catalyst for such subversively political films. As the youthful romance films of the 1970s began to lose their appeal, filmgoers flocked to such exploitative crime films as The First Error Step and On the Society File of Shanghai - the former of which was purported to be based on a true story, and the later of which cashed in on the increased interest in communist-critical Mainland literature (casually known as "scar literature). Violent, sexy, and often overtly political, these films drew record crowds as the KMT's grip on Taiwan slowly began to slip and the commercial Taiwanese film industry fell prey to government influence. As the so-called Taiwan New-Wave began to emerge in 1982, such over-the-top trash classics as The Lady Avenger, Queen Bee, and Girl with a Gun would gradually lapse into obscurity. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

this is no joke

Big sorry for being away from my blogging duties for so long. I am breaking my silence with this hot news that I first read over on Variety and then learned more about thanks to JackieChan.com:

Chan, Foreman team for grill endorsement Take a great idea and build on it. That's been the story of entertainment attorney Sam Perlmutter and his partnership with heavyweight champ George Foreman and the Lean Mean Fat-Reducing Grilling Machine. Perlmutter's clients include producers Avi Lerner and Moshe Diamant, and he has acted as exec producer on several films, including "The Fourth War," "No Good Deed" and "Redline." But it's his 17-year partnership with Foreman on those ubiquitous grills that continues to grow in new directions. Hoping to spread the magic to Asia, Foreman and Jackie Chan just finished shooting an East-meets-West infomercial in Hong Kong. "The Asian market doesn't know George well, but they know hamburgers and they know Jackie," says Perlmutter, who came up with the pairing of the grill and the boxing champ in 1994. Back then, instead of paying Foreman a salary, appliance manufacturer Salton made an unprecedented deal with Foreman for 45% of the profits. Perlmutter, as Foreman's partner, also got a share. In 1999, with the grill at iconic status, Salton bought out the partnership, paying Foreman and Perlmutter almost $140 million for rights to Foreman's name in perpetuity. "Most of it went to George," says Perlmutter, "But I did very well, too." Flash forward to 2006. The only market the grill has not penetrated is Asia. Chan was looking for endorsement opportunities, and after months ironing out conflicting schedules, the filming of the infomercial came together. The launch of the ad campaign in China is planned for August, with Japanese and Korean versions to follow.

Over at Jackie's website, there is an interview with the two champions about life, boxing, business and the George Foreman Comfort Zone line of clothing. Poke around further and you can find Jackie's scrapbook that serves as a lovely reminder of the happy time that he and George had in Beijing shooting their infomerical.

And no, this is not a late April Fool's Day joke...

inside the world of dub...

Wow! What other treasures taped off of HK tv are there lurking on youtube???

one of my fave fights...

Donnie Yen kickin' shit up

A behind the scenes look at FLASHPOINT by director Wilson Tip (SPL) and starring Donnie Yen.



And here are even more scenes at a press conference for the film.

sorry I missed this...

Being based in Toronto I am quite upset that they didn't send me the press release for this event...

STEVEN SEAGAL IN CANADA TO PRESENT A BRAND NEW APPROACH TO SKINCARE AND NUTRITION

PRESS CONFERENCE
ROOFTOP LOUNGE AT THE PARK HYATT HOTEL - 18TH FLOOR - SOUTH TOWER FRIDAY JANUARY 12TH AT 12 PM

Toronto embraces the spiritual servant of common good.

Commonly perceived as aikido master and action movie hero, Mr. Steven Seagal is in Toronto to entertain your other senses and stimulate further your imagination. To those who do not know, the Action Lama, Steven Seagal Rinpoche reveals yet another image of his reincarnations – a humble and kind-hearted poet, composer and a Grammy nominated musician, he is here in the wake of his “2007 Mantra World Peace Tour” for a purpose larger than life:

Under the auspices of The American Catechin Research Institute (“the Institute”), Mr. Seagal is in Canada to present a brand new approach to skincare and nutrition - the Concept of the Catechins (K-A-T-E-K-I-N-S) - or the key to Wellness, Fitness & Anti-Aging.

Mr. Seagal, among other things will discuss with the press his involvement with the Institute, his research of the most potent age-stopping compounds known to science today and his association with the World’s finest experts in anti-aging, including the “the Father of the Antioxidant Theory”, Dr. David M. Vesco, M.D.

Mr. Seagal and The American Catechin Research Institute will hold a press conference at the Rooftop Lounge at the Park Hyatt and introduce a brand new skincare line, “L’ACRIMA Dermal Density Factor” based on the latest dermatological advances and utilization of this unique ingredient - catechin.

Come and receive knowledge from the source – “L’ACRIMA – Giving Back What living Takes Away”. Learn what is the celebrities secret to beautiful appearance!

And go to this page to hear the man talk about this miracle wonder cream.

A big kung fu chop goes to Jesse over at The Telekino Times-Picayune for pointing this out.

kung fu comic book fun: "Going To Different Paths" pt 2

Finally got some action going on in this installment of our Chinese comic. Any translation help???

pleasure vs pain

Thanks to Bruce for sending over this image!

kung fu comic book fun: "Going To Different Paths" pt 1

Last year when I was in HK, I visited this little anitque/junk/ephemera store on Hollywood road and bought a few "comics". The were little books with illustrations and captions of the story below. I am bee slowly scanning them in with the plan to post them in sequence on the blog. No idea what the chinese text is about, but glad to get any feedback. I have been able to figure out the title of this one however. I love the style of this comic. The panels look like pen and ink reproductions from films still, which they very well could be. This white boy certainly doesn't know, but he grooves on the artwork! Get ready for the first installment of:

"Fun Do Yeung Biu"
Which means
"Going To Different Paths"
By martial artist Fok Dong Kok