Yutaka Kohira’s “Sonny Chiba’s Dragon Princess” (Or “Dragon Princess,” or “Lady Karate,” or “Assassin Woman’s Fist”) is a misleading title often being boasted as a Sonny Chiba film, even though he has nothing more than a glorified cameo. The actual star, Etsuko Shiomi headlines as a girl whose father Agaki (Chiba) is confronted by two martial arts masters who challenge him to a fight, intent on taking his position as top karate master.
#Alive [#Saraitda] (2020)
It’s hard to re-imagine or re-think the zombie movie, especially in the times where just about everyone has thought of everything. Director Il Cho’s “#Alive” is basically the sequel that “Train to Busan,” should have been, “#Alive” is such a great mix of “28 Days Later,” “The Night Eats the World,” and “Dawn of the Dead ’04.” While it doesn’t re-invent the wheel it manages to offer a fun, exciting, and creepy movie about the pros and cons of modern technology and the value of human contact.
Scare Me (2019)
I rather enjoyed Josh Ruben’s horror comedy mainly for the fact that it’s a unique look at writing and the creative process. Would I see it again? No. Would I add it to my collection? No. Is it one of the best films of the year? Goodness, no. But I can’t say that I was bored while watching it. I definitely enjoyed the meta-horror comedy, and the looks in to how some writers can make anything out of nothing. Especially horror writers, and their ability to take the seemingly mundane and turn it in to a twisted nightmare.
The Bootleg Files: To Die in Madrid
BOOTLEG FILES 745: “To Die in Madrid” (1963 Oscar-nominated documentary by Frédéric Rossif).
LAST SEEN: On YouTube, albeit without English subtitles.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Most likely due to a problem with rights clearance.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Unlikely at this time.
In March 1962, the Spanish government of Generalissimo Francisco Franco received a request from French producer Nicole Stephane for permission to shoot a travelogue-style documentary called “Eternal Spain.” Stephane identified French director Frédéric Rossif as the creative talent behind the camera.
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Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990): Collector’s Edition [Blu-Ray]
1990’s “Tales from the Darkside: The Movie” has a lot in its corner with me. It’s a childhood favorite, has a ton of sentimental value, and it’s a damn good anthology horror film. It almost feels like the lost “Creepshow” movie that we never got in theaters, which is a shame as the movie is very well produced and directed. It’s creepy, darkly humorous, and has a great pair of wraparound segments that hearkens back to the vicious violence of the Brothers Grimm.
Noise In The Middle (2019)
Marcus McCollum’s horror drama is a film teeming with potential that never fully realizes it. Even with the somewhat tense finale, a lot of “Noise in the Middle” is mixed up, half baked ideas about mysticism, the supernatural, the afterlife and the toll that grief can have on us. It’s “The Shining” meets “The Babadook” without any of the heavy emotional weight or substance. The writers MCollum and Mark Conley throw so much in the air and none of it ever lands with considerable resonance.
Haunt (2019) [Blu-Ray]
Scott Beck and Bryan Woods’ horror film is like one big Halloween treat that comes at just the right time. It’s a novelty, it’s occasionally silly, but it’s also extra creepy in that it takes much of its menace from the inherent dangers of Halloween that lurk in every corner of the holiday. “Haunt” isn’t particularly original, but when you get down to the meat and potatoes, it’s surely a lot of fun and garners shockingly empathetic protagonists, all of whom are never let off the hook from the moment they enter the danger of this enigmatic haunt.