Iron Warrior (1987)

I can’t imagine the Italian filmmakers directing Conan knock-offs in the 1980s really gave a shit about the mythology or the lore in their movies. They weren’t sketching maps of the various realms or had a bible of notes about the kingdoms and tribes living in this fantasy world. Whatever worked in Conan, or any […]

L.A. Bounty (1989)

I had to rewind Sybil Danning’s introduction scene in L.A. Bounty (1989) to enjoy it all over again. Rocking up to the middle of a nighttime kidnapping at a mansion – in a blue turtleneck, leather jacket and Mum-jeans – to cut some goons in half with a bulky super-shotgun. If you check out the […]

Ator: The Fighting Eagle (1982)

I’ve seen Ator: The Fighting Eagle (1982) before, the Mystery Science Theatre 3000 version from the Netflix revival awhile back, but I decided to watch it without the commentary, inspired by it being on Tubi (naturally) and it being on this excellent Bong Hit/Van Mural list. Ator is a Conan The Barbarian knock-off by Italian […]

The Hunted (2003)

“I never had to kill anyone myself… just taught people how.” I felt like The Hunted (2003) received a muted reaction upon its release, because it looked too much like US Marshals, or Tommy Lee Jones in “catch ‘em” Fugitive mode. Also, that he and Benicio Del Toro – their Academy Award Winning status touted […]

Breaking News (2004)

Director Johnnie To and his Milky Way production company set themselves a challenge with Breaking News (2004): How to restage the street shoot-out from Heat but introduce it with an unbroken seven minute shot? Opening with a showdown conveyed in that one-shot take between a heist crew (led by Richie Jen) and a squad of […]