Boss Lee

 

 (imdb)

THE BIG BOSS-1971-Cheng Chao-An (Bruce Lee) and his uncle (Chia Chen-Tu) visit his cousins in Thailand. He had promised his mother he wouldn't fight so he lets cousin Hsu (James Tien) do most of the fighting when they come across bullies and gangsters. They all work at an ice factory. When two cousins discover that the icehouse is really pushing dope, the manager has them killed and dismembered. When Hsu accuses the factory boss (Ying Chien Han) of killing his friends, he's killed by the boss' son (Tony Liu) in a bloody fight. After Cheng is made the foreman, Mei (Maria Yi) and his other cousins think he's sold out. Nearly everyone dies before Cheng and The Boss have their bloody showdown. 

This was Bruce Lee's first starring role and became one of the biggest hits in Hong Kong film history. Ironically, James Tien was originally cast in the Lee role but when the director left the project and writer Wei Lo became director, the actors' roles were reversed. In the US, it was confusingly called “Fists of Fury” (the title of Lee's next Hong Kong based movie). 

Lo went on to make many more movies including early Jackie Chan productions. A Golden Harvest release, Raymond Chow was the executive producer.

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Chuck Power

 

 (imdb)

AN EYE FOR AN EYE-1981-After his partner Pierce (Terry Kiser) is killed in a shootout, undercover cop Sean Kane (Chuck Norris) resigns under pressure from his boss (Richard Roundtree). Pierce's widow Linda (Rosalind Chao) is a reporter who discovers a secret operation. Unfortunately, she's killed by a club foot Asian strongman (Prof. Toru Tanaka). Morgan Canfield (Christopher Lee), the head of a TV station seems helpful but acts suspiciously. Another reporter Heather (Maggie Cooper) helps Kane track down suspect Montoya (Mel Novak). Later Kane teams with Linda's father James (Mako). After he and Heather have sex, it's revealed that the whole drug shebang is headed by Canfield, helped out by Kane's corrupt cop friend McCoy (Matt Clark).

 Director Steve Carver (BIG BAD MAMA (1974), DRUM (1976)) worked with Norris again on probably his best movie LONE WOLF MCQUADE (1983). EYE isn't bad but what it needs more emotion from Norris.

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Thailand

 

(imdb)

CANNIBAL MERCENARY-2-1989-Leu (director Bin Banleurit) is once again coerced into leading a group of mercenaries against a drug lord named Bad Dog. He doesn't have a good record as everyone from his last mission died. Along the way, they pick up some strays including a woman with a baby. There's a lot of talking and one guy has a tongue session with a monkey. Everybody dies in the big shootout finale. What a bummer.

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Not The Famous Monster

THE ISLAND MONSTER-1954-Critics go on and on about how bad this movie is. True, it's boring and one of Karloff's worst. His real voice isn't even used. A bad imitator dubs him. 

06-13THE ISLAND MONSTER isn't very good. The story drags and the dubbing is terrible but the film was never meant to be viewed outside of Italian speaking countries. This wasn't that uncommon (it happened to Christopher Lee in the German made Sherlock Holmes and would again effect Karloff in THE SNAKE PEOPLE). In the mid-fifties Boris wasn't making a lot of movies. He concentrated his career on TV (he started the “Col. March” TV series the same year) and the stage. Still he felt if someone wanted him for a film he was usually willing to take it. And getting a free trip to Italy for his wife and himself couldn't hurt. He was also probably under the assumption that it wouldn't be shown outside of Italy. It wasn't a pleasant experience for him being the only English speaking cast member and he didn't like the fact that his character was totally unsympathetic in the end. Personally I was glad to see it when it showed up once on WOR’s “Fright Night” in NYC.

Mario (Renato Vicario), an undercover cop in Naples investigates the smuggling of heroin. He meets Guy Gaetano (King Karloff), the island’s “benefactor”, who has built a hospital for sick babies. He goes to a club where everyone acts suspiciously and he pretends to romance D'Auro (Franca Marzi), a singer there. Trouble of another kind brews when Mario's wife Fiorella and little daughter (and their dog) come to visit and wife sees Mario talking to D'Auro. She meets with a smuggler named Foster (Carlo Duse) because they are all in the dope ring and take their orders from an unseen boss (gee...I wonder who that is?). Foster wants the singer to kill Mario. I guess she refuses because later Fiorella is lured from her hotel room with a phony phone call and leaves their daughter alone in an unlocked room. The girl is kidnapped and taken to a secluded island. Of course later it's revealed Gaetano is the ring leader and is also the “monster” of the title, an evil guy who pushes dope and kidnaps a child. 

I guess the producers thought a movie with Karloff in it with monster in the title would deceive many film-goers into thinking it was some kind of horror movie. Eventually the daughter is rescued but not before D'Auro is shot. Mario kills Gaetano. From what some of the characters say it seems this drawn out potboiler was longer but scenes were edited out. Director Roberto Bianchi Montero went on to make many more films in his native country.

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Jackie Chan is Back

THE ACCIDENTAL SPY-2001-A fitness equipment salesman in China named Buck (Jackie Chan) inherits a fortune from his biological Korean father but becomes involved with the search for a powerful new drug and a war between Turkish and Chinese drug lords. This has the usual great semi-comic fights but is a lot more serious and violent than most of Chan's earlier US releases. A real crazy but kind of typical scene (at least for a Jackie Chan movie) has him fighting nude in a mall! The superb climactic ending features a flaming gas truck. Director Teddy Chan (no relation to the star) had been an actor, production assistant and wrote BLACK MASK with Jet Li.

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Daring Drug Expose'

MARIHUANA-1936-More REEFER MADNESS influenced anti drug mania with two sleazy grass peddlers who recruit a woman (Harley Wood) to help them push weed after the boyfriend who impregnated her is killed in a drug smuggling operation. Later they kidnap her sister's child and hold her for ransom until she learns it's actually her child! Another badly acted morality tale from exploitation master Dwain Esper, the director of MANIAC and HOW TO UNDRESS IN FRONT OF YOUR HUSBAND.

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Mean Mess

MEAN MOTHER-1974-Inane confused story about 2 Vietnam AWOLs (Singer Dobie Gray under the pseudonym Clifton Brown and Dennis Safren) trying to get to Canada. They separate and each becomes involved with gangsters, drugs and smuggling. It's pretty boring despite fights and shootouts. 

This was actually a European production shot in 1971 in Spain by Leon Klimovsky (who directed many great Paul Naschy movies in the '70's) called RUN FOR YOUR LIFE. Independent International picked it up and as usual producer Sam Sherman had paste up genius Al Adamson (under the name Albert Victor) shoot new scenes with American actors. It's a mess. Marilyn Joi and Luciana Paluzzi are also in it. Independent International released most of Adamson's notorious '70's horror and exploitation films.

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Williamson/Arnold

BLACK EYE-1974-A former cop named Stone (Fred Williamson) who was kicked off the force for killing a pusher after his sister died from an overdose, gets involved in the search for the cane of a dead old actor (it kind of looks like the one in THE WOLFMAN). After a hooker is killed his ex-boss (Richard X Slattery) puts him on the case. Meanwhile his kind of girlfriend Cynthia (Teresa Graves; also in THAT MAN BOLT with Williamson) is having an affair with a female fashion designer (Rosemary Forsyth). While helping a father (Richard Anderson) rescue his daughter from Jesus freaks, a search leads to porno flicks and drug dealing. Stone (who frequently eats while talking) is usually hostile to whites (good or bad) and is actually res-ponsible for the death of an old man (Cyril Delevanti). It all has to do with heroin hidden in the cane and using old actors as drug mules! 

It's pretty sub-standard but Jack Arnold though a busy TV director at the time managed to direct Williamson the next year in BOSS NIGGER.

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Phillippines

BLACK MAMA WHITE MAMA-1973-In a Philippines jail “black mama” Lee Daniels (Pam Grier), a hooker and “white mama” Karen Brent (Margaret Markov), a revolutionary fight for survival and try to avoid the lesbian guards. When they are chained together and transferred to a maximum security prison Karen's guerrilla boyfriend and his pals try to rescue her. That fails but the women escape. Chained together they argue and fight. Karen wants to go back to her revolution while Lee wants to catch a boat and get away. They mug two nuns and put on their habits. They get a ride from a friendly drunken truck driver and steal his truck. A drug dealer (Vic Diaz) is also looking for Lee and some money she stole from him. A local police captain (Eddie Garcia) hires a local pool shooting pimp (Sid Haig) to find the girls too. Meanwhile the “female defiant ones” kill the blacksmith who could have unchained them and beat up an innocent guy and steal his boat. They are rescued by Karen's boyfriend (until then it seems like they are in two separate movies). An all out battle between the revolutionaries and the drug dealer's gang caps the finale where Karen is killed and Daniels escapes on a boat with the drug dealer's money (he's killed in the battle). 

AIP released this Philippines shot adventure movie in the US during the big boom period for this kind of production. It was directed by Eddie Romero who had previously made several notorious horror movies with John Ashley (including MAD DOCTOR OF BLOOD ISLAND) and THE TWILIGHT PEOPLE (also with Pam Grier). A few years after this was made co-star Margaret Markov retired from acting and married producer/actor Mark Damon.  

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Hong Kong again

INTERPOL CONNECTION-(Zhi zun te jing aka HARD TO KILL)-1992-Nearly an hour goes by and this is a standard cops vs. gangsters drama with Robin Shou as an arrogant Hong Kong government agent tracking a drug smuggler (director Phillip Ko) in Manila. There's shoot-outs, car chases and an annoying comedy relief detective, a real whining buffoon who still acts like a clown even after his partner is gunned down. However late in the story Yukari Oshima (aka Cynthia Luster) shows up as another Interpol agent who teams up with Shou for a decent martial arts finale that almost saves this badly made bore-fest (although Oshima moves are very good).

Stunt coordinator Dion Lam later worked on big Hollywood productions like THE MATRIX and SPIDER-MAN 2.

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Bad Action

24 HOURS TO MIDNIGHT-1985-Cynthia Rothrock is Devon Grady, a martial artist who's husband (Juan Chapa) is killed by gangsters led by "White Powder" Chan (Stack Pierce). Meanwhile two kung-fu cops (one male, one female) ride around beating up thugs. To get revenge Devon dresses as a ninja and bumps off the gang members in various ways. The story line with Rothrock was filmed by writer/director Leo Fong but never finished (several stories abound as to why). A few years later Fong filmed another story featuring the two cops and Brinke Stevens (who also dubbed Rothrock's voice) as Devon's avenging ninja. Scenes of Rothrock crying over her hubby's death and him showing her some martial arts moves are repeated several times. Fong himself shows up un-billed toward the end and is blown up. 

This inept paste up job was only Rothrock's second role (she made many more direct to video) and martial artist/actor/preacher Fong's first as director (he only got slightly better). He and Pierce acted together in LOW BLOW and KILLPOINT.

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Fung!

SHOWDOWN-1993-Some bikers beat up some drug dealers and take their stash. The Mayor assigns police captain/martial arts teacher James Long (producer/writer/director Leo Fung) to do something about it. After a botched up stakeout where an undercover officer is killed Long vows revenge against the crime boss Kincade (top billed Werner Hoetzinger). The bikers invade the small town of Sanctuary, a haven for retired gangsters where Richard Lynch is "The Commander". When an ex-mobster (Frank Marth) who recently reunited with his daughter Mickey (Michelle McCormick) is blow up by the gang The Commander calls in Long to "terminate" their leader, the weird looking kind of effeminate Kincade. (Long doesn't seem surprised when on hearing this) Long beats up three bikers and kills two of them. Later a black female gas station attendant beats up half of the gang! Things really hit a wall when one of the ex-mobsters sings at a seniors meeting. Mickey beats up a biker chick but is later taken captive. Long rescues her while beating up guys much bigger than him. Later Long uses a rocket launcher and teams up with The Commander to wipe out the gangs but Kincade escapes and the story suddenly shifts to micro-chips and 2 comedic smugglers. One of them beats down Long but he gets up, gets in his car and follows them like nothing happened! I thought this movie would never end but Long finally beats up Kincade and arrests him.

Troy Donahue appears in one scene at the beginning. The direction, editing and acting in this is martial arts action drama are all sub-par but it was cool to see Lynch in a cowboy hat. Werner Hoetzinger was a set dresser for some movies and TV shows. Thank the lord this was his only acting role! Sometimes confused with the Billy Blanks movie of the same name (made the same year).

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Inept Action

MANHATTAN CHASE-2000-A hit man named Jason (Loren Avedon) is busted in NYC by Nancy (Cynthia Rothrock), a tough female cop. After spending only 6 years in jail he gets out and wants to live a normal life with his young son. Meanwhile Jason's ex-boss searches for a stolen drug cache. He wipes out a family who's stupid abusive father may have been responsible but his step-daughter escapes and runs smack into Jason. His ex-wife shows up too and as it goes is also Nancy's sister. 

This movie is badly acted and directed and the fights pretty ineptly staged except when Nancy kicks ass which is about the only highlight unless you count the fact that many scenes were shot in NYC and the outer boroughs. A bad movie was shot in my hood!!! 

This was the last film by the incompetent Godfrey Ho (using the alias Godfrey Hall; he's used other names too) who also directed Rothrock in HONOR AND GLORY.

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Ultra Crap

ULTRA-COP 2000-1995-This crazy comedy/fantasy/action film from the Philippines is very hard to follow! A special police team tries to infiltrate a gang called the Black Dragons. Meanwhile 2 Martians (?) have a couple of sword fights. Two cops one male (Ricky Davao) one female (Yukari Oshima aka  Cynthia Luster) search for a drug dealer named Wong. In a very weird comical scene a suicidal gay guy comes on to one of the Martians. He later explains his story to the duo but the male cop says "Maybe he was just the same like you, a queer!". The Martians seem to be sucking the life force from helpless Earthlings. There's several gun battles and a car chase (with explosions) but the movie really descents into stupidity with jokes about the gay character they are trying to protect. The two Martians later fight it out in an airline hangar while the police shoot it out with the drug dealers.

Fortunately it all seems to be a dream. Some movies are based/inspired/ripped off from other movies ULTRA-COP 2000's only inspiration is stupidity. The direction, dubbing and fights are terrible. Director Phillip Ho may have once been married to lead actress Oshima.

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8 or 10...Who's Counting?

10 VIOLENT WOMAN-1982-Ted V. Mikels, the creator of THE DOLL SQUAD and ASTRO-ZOMBIES, returns with his “woman in prison tale”. 

8 women are tired of working for a living so they rob a jewelry store of a million dollars in diamonds. They go to Las Vegas to sell the loot to Leo The Fence (director Mikels). He offers them cocaine in exchange for the diamonds but they don't accept it. One of the woman gets shot (and later dies) and another stomps Leo to death with her high heel. 

After running around in the dark and stealing a guy's clothes they go to a club to sell the coke. The heel stomping woman deals to two narcs and is shot dead. The others are arrested and sent to prison where their section is run by Miss Terry, sadistic lesbian and her hench-woman Madge (“a hypocritical religious old creep”) with a limp, wart and mustache. Once in a while Terry clashes with a social worker but usually abuses the inmates especially one woman (who refused her carnal come-ons) who she tortures with a riding crop and a wet towel while Madge prays loudly. Only the lone African American attendant seems to care. 

After a shower cat fight, the remaining girls escape and some of them become belly dancers for a Sheik (it was his diamonds they stole). 

This a goofy violent movie with some nudity and comedy (intentional and unintentional). The acting isn't the greatest (Mikels himself gives a good performance) but the worst part is most of the night scenes are too dark to see! 

Co-screenwriter James Gordon White wrote both THE INCREDIBLE TWO HEADED TRANSPLANT and THE THING WITH TWO BRAINS! It starts out with only eight women. By the time they get to jail they are only 6 but they meet 2 prisoners who help in their escape so I suppose in reality there were 10 women! Ted V. Mikels, probably the last of the old time '60's-'70's low budget filmmakers (contemporaries like Ray Dennis Steckler, Al Adamson and  Larry Buchanan are all gone) is still going strong at 84 and recently released ASTRO-ZOMBIES:M4.    

This was filmed in 1979 but only released in 1987 (I saw it in the now defunct Drake movie theater on Woodhaven Blvd in Queens, NY!)

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Hash

SINISTER HARVEST-1930-This is an early exploitation short added as a bonus feature on the Alpha Video DVD of MONDO BALORDO. It's suppose to be an examination of drug smuggling in Egypt. It shows how healthy strong Egyptians males become hashish junkies. They are shown in opium dens, smoking then getting caught. Some victims go through cold turkey while others are beggars and outcasts. Some are sent to “the pit”. The narrator's ever bombastic voice mentions that all this could happen in America with the repeal of the 18^th amendment (prohibition)! And just three years later it would be repealed! This version is called SINISTER MENACE (a re-release from 1934) and is presented by Dwain Esper. (MANIAC, MARIHUANA). It's very bleak...

 

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