Did we need a prequel to the A Better Tomorrow series that shows us how Mark (Chow Yun-Fat) became the man he was in the first film? Were we wondering where he got his aim, his sunglasses and duster from? I wasn’t but apparently someone thought we were. Hark Tsui takes over as director after…
Tag: hong kong
A Better Tomorrow (1986) – John Woo
A Better Tomorrow was a hole in my John Woo and Hong Kong cinema that I wanted to fill, People have raved about it for years, that it helped define a generation of HKers and became a cult classic among North American film lovers. It features melodrama and lots of gunplay. It also has a…
Rush Hour (1998) – Brett Ratner
I wasn’t a big fan of Rush Hour when it first came out. I didn’t see it in theatres or take it home on video (despite the countless free rentals we got working in a video store) and I was a little bothered to hear that Chris Tucker got paid more than Jackie Chan did…
Zero Minus Ten (1997) – Raymond Benson
While I may not have cared for Raymond Benson’s 007 short story, Blast From the Past (to be clear I liked everything but for the Penthouse Forum ending of the story) I was more than ready to return to the world of James Bond, and see what Benson could deliver with his first novel featuring…
Fortune (2020) -Ian Hamilton
I discovered the writings of Ian Hamilton in April 2015. Before that, I had seen his books in a variety of bookstores and I kind of innately knew that I was going to read them sooner or later. So when I came across the first six books in one go, I picked them up in…
Peninsula (2020) – Sang-ho Yeon
I remember seeing Train to Busan back in 2016, at my fave film fest, Toronto After Dark, and was excited to see it just from the buzz around it at the festival. I was completely wowed,and have since recommended it constantly. I loved what Yeon did with the film, the way the story played out,…
The Departed (2006) – Martin Scorsese
I come to a rather interesting list in the Ten Bad Dates With De Niro book that has a couple of films that I haven’t previously covered for the blog. It’s a list of remakes that are arguably better than the original. And the critical reception, not to mention that of the audience, would seem…
Hard Boiled (1992) – John Woo
The Directory, filling out the last section of DK Canada’s marvellous The Movie Book, brings me a 90s action classic. One that set the standard for Honk Kong cinema, and found fans all over the world with its style of balletic violence, beautifully crafted shots, and fantastic set pieces. Not to mention, the exemplary Chow…
Infernal Affairs (2002) – Andrew Lau Wai-Keung, and Alan Mak
DK Canada’s The Movie Book rolls out the What Else to Watch list following my screening of Oldboy. Infernal Affairs is up for viewing, and served as the basis for the North American adaptation, The Departed. Yes, The Departed is a solid film, the original is so much better. Tightly edited, fantastically crafted the film…
The Mountain Master of Sha Tin (2019) – Ian Hamilton
I’ve been hooked on Ian Hamilton’s Ava Lee books since I first discovered them. I devour them voraciously as I follow the brilliant, and brave young woman on her adventures. She continues to work, somewhat, as a forensic accountant, but her life has changed a lot since I first met her, and she has become…
The Mind Reels 