LEGEND OF THE FIST: As I stated in my last Week in Dork post, I managed to snag a copy of this blu ray a couple weeks ago. And I as much as I love Bruce Lee's Fist of Fury and Jet Li's Fist of Legend, this is easily my favorite take on the Chen Zen story. The opening WWI German Kung Fu fight is awesomely epic, but this flick is really all about the Shanghai Gangster shenanigans. And yes, The Final Fight is properly Badass.
Buy!
GORDON'S WAR/OFF LIMITS ACTION PACK DOUBLE FEATURE: Another stellar release from the mad minds over at Shout Factory, this double feature came very close to taking the Must Buy DVD of the Week, but I couldn't give it the slot cuz I've never actually seen Gordon's War. It's definitely the film I'm most interested in watching this week but I've got to wait for it to hit my mailbox. Paul Winfield (Star Trek II, White Dog) stars as a Nam Vet returning to drug war Harlem. Much ass kicking ensues. I have seen Off Limits but it's been over a decade and even though I remember enjoying it I don't remember much else.
POINT BREAK BLU: This has been a Best Buy exclusive for a while and it's been released in a number of standard def dvds, but if you haven't picked it up already than now is the time. The saga of Johnny Utah's surfing education is perfectly 90s machismo and contains one of Patrick Swayze's last great roles. Total cheese from The Hurt Locker's Kathryn Bigelow.
CHARLES BRONSON MAN WITH A CAMERA COLLECTION and the CHARLES BRONSON COLLECTION: The first set contains 19 episodes from the forgotten 50s television show starring the mustacheless Bronson. The story of a freelance photographer who inevitably winds up in some scumbag tough spots involving cops & robbers. Never seen it but am looking forward to my introduction. The second set contains the films Cold Sweat, Someone Behind the Door, Lola, and 29 more episodes of Man with a Camera. Of the films I've seen the so-so Cold Sweat, but again I just want those Man with a Camera eps.
Rent!
BATTLE LA: Saw it in the theater and it was okay. I've been waiting a long time for The Great Alien Invasion film and even though this is not as disappointing as Independence Day (it has it's charm, but come on) or War of the Worlds or the shockingly terrible Skyline, it still doesn't quite reach the epic level I'm looking for. Aaron Eckhart, as usual, is a solid lead and Michelle Rodriguez does not infuriate like expected. Wish the world of the film had a wider view but Battle: LA will satisfy us until we get The Great Alien Invasion.
RED RIDING HOOD: Call me a masochist, but I'm curious to see this Twilight-helmer trainwreck. Gary Oldman will put my butt in the seat every time. Plus, I'm sure my wife and her bad tastes will require a viewing anyway so I might as well look forward tot the experience.
HALL PASS: I've enjoyed some of The Farrelly Brothers movies (There's Something About Mary, Me Myself & Irene, Kingpin) but I've really hated some of their other flicks (Shallow Hal, Stuck On You). And I do like Owen Wilson. But after watching this trailer over and over and over again in various theaters I'm guessing this is gonna be one of the haters. Still, I'll check it out.
KILL THE IRISHMAN: By all accounts this is the first great Ray Stevenson film (what, no else love Punisher War Zone as much as me?) and I adore the trailer below. Plus, Christopher Walken, Val Kilmer, Vincent D'Onofrio, Robert Davi, Vinnie Jones, Paul Sorvino? I'm there.
Avoid!
JOHNNY MNEMONIC (BLU): I really want to like this movie, but every time I give it a try I'm disappointed. Loosely (and I mean LOOSELY) based on the William Gibson short story, Keanu Reeves is all kinds of wrong as the data courier on the run from cyberpunk yakuza. Talking Dolphins, Ice T, and Dolph Lundgren's psychotic warrior monk. It has its moments, but it's underwhelming at best.
--Brad
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