We here at The Nerds Templar are big Donnie Yen fans. We know he’s aging and can’t be the great martial artist he’s been for decades now and some of his newer films are less action based. His latest film, Polar Rescue, is one of those lesser action based flicks. Don’t let the Blu-ray cover art fool you, the movie isn’t an Asian remake of Cliffhanger. Yen plays the father of two children and his son goes missing while on a family vacation. He had gotten into an argument with the boy and the son disappears. Yen, the wife and daughter need help finding him and the authorities do what they can in the cold climate. As a Yen fan, he’s really not necessary in the film. There is very little fighting and in one scene he gets his butt whooped so someone of lesser talent would have made more sense. I also hated the one police officer who instead of doing everything to rescue the son, doesn’t want to do anything and blames Yen from the get-go. It’s an ok watch, but it won’t be one of the many Yen movies I rewatch through the years. It relies heavily on CGI and VFX and it looks it especially the avalanche scene. Diehard Yen fans should check it out, but keep your expectations low.
Next we have Born to Fly which does feel like a remake, of Top Gun: Maverick. It’s about China trying to develop the next generation of stealth fighters after an incident in their airspace makes them realize they are behind other countries. They recruit a pilot to join their testing program and it feels like Maverick because of it. There’s the new pilot, the one pilot who thinks he’s the best and the other characters you expect to be at this testing program. The flying sequences are solid, but like the previous movie relies heavily on CGI/VFX. It’s an easy and fun watch if you like these types of action flicks. I grew up on them with movies like Top Gun and Iron Eagle so it feels like a throwback to my youth. Sure it might feel a bit propaganda-ish, but I’m fine with that because I was at least entertained with it and the story made sense.
Third we have When Evil Lurks. I had heard some amazing things about this movie and I understand why those who did like it enjoyed it, but I was a bit disappointed in it. It has some great effects and it did feel like a throwback to earlier horror films, but I’m just not a possession/supernatural horror fan. I will give it credit for bringing in its local folklore and having some fun practical effects, but by the end I thought it was just ok. I also appreciate the use of an Autistic character (the son) and being able to play with the folklore of the demon inside him. That’s probably what I will remember the most about the film, the Autistic character serving a major point in the story. I don’t believe in supernatural/paranormal activity so that stuff never works for me, but it’s well made with a great setting and believable characters at least.
Last we have Midsomer Murders: Series 24. I have enjoyed this show for years and always look forward to its home video release so I can catch up on it. You have consistent characters solving murders in the quaint county of Midsomer with each mystery being solved in an episode with character arcs continuing through the episodes and seasons. Series 24 gives us 4 mysteries. The Devil’s Work is about the death of a family patriarch and the family finding out the estate will be changed thanks to the son. He wants to convert it to an artists retreat, but soon more bodies start piling up and family secrets will be clues to the killer. Book of the Dead is about the murder of an author who was adding a page to his mystery book, but he had a secret criminal past. More bodies pile up and clues from his criminal past and a nickname are keys to solving the murders. Claws Out involves missing dogs and murders from dog training equipment. A Climate of Death involves an eco-friendly village in Midsomer and the deaths of a father and son and a chili competition gets deadly. If like me you are a fan, pick this one up.
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