Up first this week is Man of War. It’s a solid straight-to-video action flick from director William Kaufman who’s becoming a go-to director for the genre. LaMonica Garrett stars as a retired special forces type who heads to Ukraine when the war with Russia escalates to save his adopted niece who was taken. The plot isn’t something we haven’t seen before, but what I like most is that Kaufman doesn’t take sides. The events between the two countries are happening, Garrett is there with a Ukrainian guide to find the woman, but at no point does the film say who ultimately is the bad guy or good guy. The war is simply the backdrop to the action. Because of that, the audience isn’t pandered to or beaten over the head with a message. It’s simply this is what’s happening and here’s this man going in to save a loved one. It could be Ukraine, Iraq, Afghanistan, an African country or even in the States, the events cause the kidnapping, but the movie isn’t about the war itself. The action is very good. I’ve seen a few of Kaufman’s previous films and grown to respect his action takes. He’s a veteran and likes to make the action look realistic and I dig that. Garrett is a beast of a human being and handles the work with ease. There is plenty of bullets, blood and explosions and Daniel Bernhardt makes for a good bad guy to root against. If you liked Warhorse One, The Channel or other Kaufman films, definitely check this one out. I look forward to seeing more and more of his work.
Second we have The Guyver 2: Dark Hero. I watched The Guyver for the first time two years ago and thought it was quite bad. It was enjoyable in that so bad it’s good way, but I thought the lead actor was terrible. The good news for the sequel is that they replaced the lead who’s somewhat better. The dialogue and story are still pretty bad, but like the first film, the special effects are very cool for the era (the 1990s).The pros of the film are the effects and costuming. The Guyver wears a suit instead of CGI junk we expect today. This is a 2 disc set with the regular theatrical cut and a second cut with enhanced effects which is what I watched. The cons are the acting and cheesy dialogue. Now if you have a soft spot for movies like these, which I tend to, you can at least get some fun entertainment out of it. There’s a cave that leads to more creatures and gives some back story on The Guyver, Zoanoids and what not which leads to some great special effects scenes. The sequel is also Rated R compared to the PG-13 original so it’s better with the gore and action. It’s definitely miles better than the first movie to me and I can see why they have a cult following.
Third we have Roaring Fire, an early 80s Japanese film starring Hiroyuki Sanada and Sonny Chiba. I recently watched Shogun’s Ninja starring both so I was into this one as well. Sanada plays a young man who finds out he was kidnapped as a child and goes back to Japan to find his family. They are a rich family, but his parents have died in a plane crash, his twin brother has gone missing and his sister is blind. His uncle runs the family estate, but he slowly puts together that the uncle isn’t who he claims to be. It has some great fight choreography with Chiba playing an Interpol type helping Sanada put the pieces together. Former professional wrestler Abdullah the Butcher has a couple of fight scenes especially one involving Sanada in a pool (where you can see the wires pulling him in and out of the water). If you’re a Sanada fan you’ll want to add this to your collection. In the bonus features there is a very cool look at the career of Sonny Chiba which was a great watch.
Next we have Passenger, a supernatural horror flick others will enjoy a lot more than I did. This subgenre of horror doesn’t work for me, but I can see why others will like it. It’s about a couple who give up their apartment, jump in a van and hit the road to live off the road. A car behind them is acting crazy and crashes so they stop to see if he’s ok. They broke one of the rules of the road, never stop so now the supernatural element is on them and the movie is about them trying to exercise it away. Oscar winner Melissa Leo somehow plays a role in it (as a woman trying to teach them the rules and how to escape). It’s full of jumpscares and things appearing and disappearing and all the supernatural gimmicks that I don’t like. The acting is fine, but I’d rather rewatch Jeepers Creepers than this.
MobLand Season One hits DVD this week. The series stars Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan, Paddy Considine, Helen Mirren and more and comes from Guy Ritchie. Hardy plays the fixer for Brosnan’s gangster family with Mirren as the wife and Considine as one of the sons. The series kicks off when the son of a rival gangster family goes missing and Hardy is tasked at finding him because Brosnan’s grandson is rumored to be the last person he was with. After the son is found brutally killed, a war between the rivals kicks off as the authorities are trying to follow everyone and everything happening. Ritchie brings authenticity to the series as does Brosnan and Hardy. I’m not sure if it’s based on real people, but it does reference The Twins a few times which I’m assuming is an homage to the Kray brothers. Season One is ten episodes ranging from about 40 to 60 minutes each. I binged it over 3 nights and now look forward to Season 2. If you haven’t caught it yet and like Guy Ritchie projects and/or Tom Hardy I highly recommend it.
Sticking with TV, Tulsa King Season 3 is out this week as well. The Sylvester Stallone series is a sleeper show to me. Those who watch it seem to enjoy it yet a lot of people seem to pass over it. Stallone plays a Mafia capo who gets out of prison and is sent to Oklahoma to set up shop. He’s a fish-out-of-water not only in a Big City Guy Goes to the Country way, but also as a man who was in prison for so long he doesn’t know the current world and how half of the stuff that he used to do is now legal. Season 3 reveals who took Dwight and how it’s connected to his past and why he went to prison. The Feds play a major role throughout the season as does a whiskey distillery rivalry. Neal McDonough continues his character from Season 2 as does Frank Grillo. Season 3 introduces Bella Heathcote, Robert Patrick, Kevin Pollak and Beau Knapp to the series. Season 3 also introduces us to Samuel L. Jackson’s character who is getting his own spinoff series. If you’ve watched the first 2 seasons definitely pick up season 3. If you haven’t watched the show, but watch things like Landman, Yellowstone and similar series then give it a try.
Last we have Star Trek: The Original Series 60th Anniversary Edition. There are two versions of this available, one is what I have featured here and has a 60 logo on it for the sixty years of Star Trek. And there is also an Amazon exclusive collection that is a yellow box that comes with collectible lobby cards and a 4 inch vinyl figure. I’m sure there have been countless releases of the Original Series in box set form, but these are out for its 60th Anniversary. I’ve always been a fan of the OG series with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, and more so I’m always interested in seeing what they add in these new collections. I’m sure at this point you know whether or not you’re a Trekkie and if you are, these are very cool to add to your collection. This non-Amazon version features all 79 episodes, previously enhanced visual effects and 60th Anniversary packaging. It’s highly recommended for fans.
The Nerds Templar 