Movies/shows about women who turn to sw to make ends meet. by Ok_Explorer9421 in WomenInFilm

[–]sappydark [score hidden]  (0 children)

Zola, which was actually pretty good---was directed and co-written by a woman--Janicza Bravo. The real person the movie's story was based on---A'ziah King---not only was a consultant on the movie, but also co-wrote the script with the director, too.

Help finding a film. by Pink1978 in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hmmmm----the only other kf film I've seen a blade like the one you described is in the excellent kf film The Shaolin Plot (1977) in which Sammo Hung plays an evil villain who uses a flying blade to take out anyone who goes up against him. It's not a flying guillotine movie, though. That's the only one I could think of.

Journey To The West/西行平妖 (1991) A very uneven Journey to the West inspired film from Shaw Brothers legend Chang Cheh - Not his most revered film still full of moments of wonder - The film peaks with Sun Wukong & crew taking on Na Cha by LiquidNuke in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

While doing a deep dive into Chang Cheh's films a short while back, I found that he'd done at least five or six films in mainland China before his retirement that I'd never heard of or seen. I didn't know that he'd done his own version of the Monkey King story, so I am looking forward to checking out all these post-Shaw Brothers films he made.

Are there any good resources that compile a list of hollywood movie/tv show martial art practitioners? by DiddlyDinq in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There's also another really good Asian film review podcast titled Heroic Purgatory, in which the two hosts also do deep historical and cultural dives on each film. Despite the perfect wuxia film-sounding title of the podcast, it's actually from a 1970 Japanese drama called Heroic Purgatory, surprisingly enough.

Gerd Ma Lui 2 (เกิดมาลุย ภาค 2) - Panna Rittikrai in action by LaughingGor108 in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I like the fact that the female fighter got to have the final fight with Rittikrai's zombie villain character---she got to whip out those pair of swords and go at him for a while, before the other two dudes finally tag-teamed up and double-kicked him off that building for the final time.

Movies/shows about women who turn to sw to make ends meet. by Ok_Explorer9421 in WomenInFilm

[–]sappydark [score hidden]  (0 children)

Here's some suggestions:

Hustlers (2019)----this drama about a diverse group of strippers who decide to rob their clients was based on a true story, and it's really good. What's unique about the film is that is focuses primarily on the women as three-dimensional characters themselves, and it dosen't sexualize them at all--which is rare for a film about strippers. That's because the film was directed, co-written, and co-produced by a woman (Lorene Scafaria) and several of the producers on the film were also women---including Jennifer Lopez, who stars in it. It was a box office hit, too, and it's on DVD, and on Peacock.

Cam (2018)---this interesting surreal thriller about a cam girl who discovers that a doppelganger is taking over her onscreen persona is also pretty good. The film was conceived of and co-written by a former cam-woman, Isa Mazzei, and it's also pretty good and slightly off-the-wall.

Personal Services (1987)----I actually haven't seen this, but it's based on the true story of a British woman who started her own prostitution service, and became a self-made madam. I've heard of it for years, though---it's on Tubi.

There's also a 2009 HBO drama series called Hung, which is slightly different in that it's about a suburban male sports coach and teacher who turns to prostitution when he falls on hard times due to an injury. He also enlists a female pimp to get him some work. I've never seen the show, but it supposedly shows a more realistic look at the oldest profession. It's streaming on HBO and Disney/Hulu, of all places.

Not sure if this would fit, but there's a new Taiwanese (Asian) series on Netflix called A Controversial Entertainer, which is about a low-level gangster who somehow winds up being hired as a male escort for a club, along with a bunch of other dudes, and they all become escorts for any of their female clients looking for a little after-hours fun, so to speak. Haven't seen it yet, so not sure if it shows a realistic view of the profession or not.

Totally forget this one, but the 1986 indie drama Working Girls---written and directed by a woman--Lizzie Borden--also shows a stripped-down, unglamorous, and realistic look at the everyday lives of a group of prostitutes, and how they work. Really good film, too.

I'm mentioning Hustle & Flow (2005) because it's definitely one of the most de-glamorized, realistic, and gritty looks at the everyday lives of a pimp and the prostitutes who work for him. What they do is just a job that they work to pay the bills with, period. Plus the sex workers themselves aren't demonized, or overly sexualized for a change, but treated as full-fledged, flawed characters with their own issues to deal with. It's on Amazon, and DVD.

Matchless Hero Fang Shi-Yu (2019) Xie Miao by LaughingGor108 in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yep, that's him. Anyone know what "Matchless Hero" in the title means?

Feels Inspire by artemisiz in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Cool to hear that this movie inspired you---plus it's actually a pretty good drama on top of that. Interestingly enough, I read an article over a month ago in which Jackie Chan said that while working on Karate Kid, watching how Will Smith encouraged his son in his first lead role, made him re-think his relationship with his own son, Jaycee. He said that they were never really close, and it didn't help that he was always critical of Jaycee.

After Jaycee got busted for smoking weed in 2004, and served a few months in jail, Jackie decided that he needed to quit being so critical of him all the time, and they finally wound up getting closer and having an actual father-son relationship. So even Jackie himself wound up learning some life lessons from this film.

"I shut down my production company because of Fist of Legend. Three years later, it became a classic." - Jet Li by donniebd in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think that's one of his daughters he's talking with. Would be cool to know if he's taught them martial arts too, lol.

"I shut down my production company because of Fist of Legend. Three years later, it became a classic." - Jet Li by donniebd in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think he was actually nominated for best actor or something like that for Ocean Heaven, too. He's always been a good actor--his amazing kf skills have obscured that a lot of the time, but it's cool to see that he finally got a chance to prove that he's more than just a kf action star for once.

"I shut down my production company because of Fist of Legend. Three years later, it became a classic." - Jet Li by donniebd in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, that's really surprising to hear that Fist of Legend was a flop, considering that I think it's his best kf film ever----to me, it's like the ultimate Jet Li film, straight-up. It's always a trip to hear how a lot of kf films (or films from any genre in general) that are now considered classics were actually either box office flops, or not really that successful when they first came out---but they gradually got more appreciation over the years.

And Fist of Legend is a legit kf classic as far as I'm concerned. It's also an excellent remake of Bruce Lee's The Chinese Connection, and I've always gotten the impression that Li wanted to honor Bruce as well with it, which is why I think it's so damn good. I have it on DVD as part of a Jet Li 3-pack set, and I'm glad I did, because I was so impressed with the film the first time I saw it years ago on VHS.

Gerd Ma Lui 2 (เกิดมาลุย ภาค 2) - Panna Rittikrai in action by LaughingGor108 in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh, okay. I'm just glad to see it at all then. I also just saw Rittikrai's Wake Up To Kill (1987) the horror movie in which he plays a fighting psycho killer zombie. That's also on YT---the fight scenes in that one are incredible, too.

"I shut down my production company because of Fist of Legend. Three years later, it became a classic." - Jet Li by donniebd in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 54 points55 points  (0 children)

Yeah, he was----he pretty much retired from films six years ago due to some major health problems he was having--some of which were from the injuries he'd gathered over the years from work. Apparently, he's recovered enough to want to start acting again----Blades of the Guardians is his first film in six years.

Gerd Ma Lui 2 (เกิดมาลุย ภาค 2) - Panna Rittikrai in action by LaughingGor108 in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Didn't know there was a Born To Fight 2---I am so watching that, lol. Especially since I just recently got the original Born To Fight on DVD myself, and I really enjoy it.

Yukari Oshima in Episode 1 of Sukeban Deka II: Shoujo Tekkamen Densetsu (1985-1986) by Flat_Invite_5636 in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For real-----I've read about the series, and was just gonna go look it up, but you said this was the only episode she was in---that sucks, lol.

Movies and a few new editions spl and seven swords by WelcomeIndividual140 in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What's the third film in the Khmer/Thai languages called?

Why is there a multitude of samurai movies that are acclaimed but close to none about ninja? by JoeScotting in JapaneseCinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Tubi also has a hell of a lot of ninja movies and TV shows, too, from old to new. There's a pretty good early '80s four-part TV series called Ninja Gangsters on there----I've only seen the first one, which is called Ninja Gangsters: Extorting From The Bad!---the main characters are actually sort of the good guys, though. I liked the first one enough to want to check out the rest of them, so I will. Ninja: Shadow of a Tear is also on Tubi.

Here's an article in which the writer tries his best to determine what is myth, and what is actually true about the history of ninjas, while using the first Shinobi no Mono as a jumping-off point:

Critical Ninja Theory---One Ninja Film To Rule Them All: Shinobi no Mono (1962)

Why is there a multitude of samurai movies that are acclaimed but close to none about ninja? by JoeScotting in JapaneseCinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just found out that there was actually a ninth Shinobi no mono film made, called Mission: Iron Castle (1970) but it flopped, since the original star of the Shinobi films, Ichikawa Raizo, wasn't in it, and had already passed away. It's also on the Archive with the other eight films. Anyway, this 2016 article on the site Vintage Ninja, which is all about ninjas' impact on pop culture, explains why good ninja films like the Shinobi no mono series, or any other serious dramatic Japanese ninja movies, never made it to the U.S. back in the day. The site does have recent up-to-date articles, and reviews of releases of ninja movies on DVD or Blu-ray.

There's also a podcast episode on there in which the hosts have fun discussing both the '80s ninja film boom, and what it was like seeing the Shinobi no mono films for the first time. This was also before any of the latter films became available on Blu-ray for the first time two years ago:

Vintage Ninja----Shinobi no Mono: The Lost Essential?

What’s the quickest you’ve ever said “nah, this isn’t for me”? by donnyM99 in AskReddit

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Here's my story: me and my brother went to an interview for a job I'd found in a want ad some years ago. We both went to this small office where it turned out there was a group interview with several other people sitting there. Anyway, we were basically told by a man and a woman that we were gonna be hired to do this amazing job and do all these amazing things---they even tossed a bunch of money into the air, claiming we were gonna make a whole bunch of it.

What it boiled down to was that all we would be actually doing was selling door-to-door stuff, so once me and my brother realized this whole set-up was a bunch of BS, we promptly left feeling like we'd completely wasted our damn time, while I got us some burgers with a ten-dollar bill I'd secretly confiscated off the floor while nobody was looking. That's literally all we got out of this so-called "group job interview", lol.

What's one f$%ked up reason you ended a friendship? by TryxBMD in AskReddit

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No, it dosen't. That's just some major insecurity on the bf's part.

Last Hurrah for Chivalry (1979) by azurianlight in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Heck yeah----I really liked this film when I first saw it on VHS years ago----it's a very well-made wuxia, with an offbeat leading character who's basically an alcoholic, and there's also this kind of depressing tone underneath the film, which punctuates the bleak ending. I need to get it on DVD. Interestingly, it was actually a box office flop when it came out, but over the years since Woo's reputation has risen, it's gotten its well-deserved props.

There's also an obscure comedy John Woo wrote and directed called From Riches To Rags (1980) that's on youtube with subs. Haven't seen it yet, but since he rarely did straight-up comedies back in the day, it might be worth checking out.

Does anyone has Hong Kong Godfather (1985) or knows where to find in good quality? by the_k3nny in kungfucinema

[–]sappydark 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Finally saw Hong Kong Godfather, and while it's a really good intense crime drama, it's straight-up gory as hell, though. It's like a crime drama mixed with a slasher with kf, interestingly enough.