Actually, they restore old movies.  But how? I can't even get my VHS copy of 'Drop Dead Fred' to play without kicking the VCR halfway across the room.

Well, Gizmodo is here to tell you! Check out the article while you wait for the Criterion version of Hard Target.

'Ow does it feeeeel...TO BE HUNTEDDD???

 

We've hit the local news, and not just for that unfortunate corpse incident of which we are not allowed to speak. Thanks to Suzanne Ellis and Brian McKechnie for making it out to this year's Madness!



Check out the article here.

This is J.T. Petty, Director of The Burrowers holding a large dog. Not only has he made one great film that landed in Midnight Madness and we are highly anticipating his next film The Burrowers but he is also a friend to all animals great and small!

Check out his official website here link to official website. Not only is J.T. a director but he has written for video games such as Splinter Cell and Batman Begins, written books, graphic novels and on and on. Truly an artist I cannot wait to see his latest film.



Robert Mitchell

What we have with Martyrs is what I'm going to call the '2 Girls 1 Cup Effect'. 

If you don't know what I'm talking about when I say that, I'm not going to explain what 2g1c actually is because that would probably assure me not being allowed to post here anymore.  I'll let you figure it out on your own (bring a barf bag). But the gist of it is a viral video that's essentally a game you can play with your friends or on your own.  A game called 'how long can you last'.

You sit down to watch it and you know you're not going to make it all the way through. Maybe you psych yourself up a little. Maybe someone's prepared you for it (or tried) by telling you 'this is the worst thing you've ever seen'. Either way, it doesn't work.  What you end up seeing is worse than you can imagine. It is so truly disturbing that it provokes an actual physical reaction. Your gag reflex kicks in, your face starts to turn red, and you can't breathe. This describes Martyrs to a T.

For a Midnight Madness film, that's saying a lot.  I mean, this is a programme where I've seen people walk out, aghast, from Black Sheep. I'm pretty sure that at least one person puked in the Ryerson during Isolation. I'm fairly sure I even saw a tear-filled face or two during last year's L'Interieur (Inside) - most likely the hapless dates of the type of horrorphiles that frequent that type of flick.  Did they think they were coming to Juno?! We may never know.

But Martyrs is different. In the three aforementioned movies (discluding Juno), you can sort of laugh nervously after the disturbing or gory scenes. Here, Pascal puts you right in the minds of our two victims.  You feel what they feel and it is visceral. When they are afraid, you are afraid.  When they are defeated, you feel the same. Truly a remarkable achievement.

I can already tell that this film will skyrocket into maybe the top three horror movies I've seen in my life. Martyrs affected me in ways I never thought possible.  Ways, I am surprised to say, that were not altogether pleasant. But at least I lasted all the way through.

I am sure that there may be some folks sitting in Ryerson Theater in early September that may not have seen or even remember one of JCVD's greatest films, BloodSport.    (Spolier Alert By clicking here you will see the final fight in Bloodsport)

Well this film has it all. Forrest Witaker, exotic locales, intrigue, Bolo Yeung, a cool martial arts tournament named "The Kumite", that big guy from Revenge of the Nerds and it was directed by a guy by the name of Newt.

 Van Damme   plays Frank Dux, who is based on a real dude who happens to be named Frank Dux yeah that's right as in "put up your dux" who is quite an accomplished martial artist. Mr. Dux wants to enter the kumite to prove to himself that he is indeed a Master of the Martial Arts but is currently serving in the U.S. Army. Not letting that stop him he goes AWOL and flies to Hong Kong to participate in the tournament.

What follows is a film that is rife with cliche, yet is a perfect Sunday afternoon while sitting on the couch and flipping channels looking for something/anything to watch movie. I don't care when you stumble upon it on television but you will stop and watch. No matter how many commercials they throw at you, you will watch the movie until you see how the film ends even though you know how the movies ends.

This film is one of those late eighties films that is rewatchable no matter how many times you see it. Call it nostalgia, call it what you will but Bloodsport is a highly entertaining film that features some great martial arts action.

I would venture a guess as to why it is so entertaining and that would be it's lead actor Jean-Claude Van Damme. Charismatic,  flexible  and a guy you can root for to over come all the odds.

Oh and if they ever make an X-Men movie with Gambit the first and only choice is JCVD

Robert Mitchell

Director Arthur Dong and actress Nancy Kwan (pictured here) presented the first screening of Hollywood Chinese on Thursday night.  The film depicts the various roles of Asian Americans in Hollywood films since 1916!

The documentary focuses on the roles of Asian Americans throughout Hollywood history.  Dong includes interviews with several Asian actors and filmmakers, as well as archived footage of many films.  The film mentions the several stereotype roles created for Asians and how during a certain period, Caucasians played these roles. 

In the question and answer session afterwards, Dong mentioned finding a copy of the silent film 1916 film The Curse of Quon Gwon, which to him was "one of the biggest discoveries" through the making of the documentary.  When asked why he made this film, Dong's answer was simple yet succint: "I've been a film lover all my life... I created a documentary about a period of film I loved."

Nancy Kwan addressed the lack of roles for Asian Americans, especially in the earlier Hollywood days.  She did mentioned that she is glad that Hollywood now offers more varied roles that all Americans can play. 

The film shows again Friday, September 14 at the Varsity theatre.

Director Arthur Dong and actress Nancy Kwan (pictured here) presented the first screening of Hollywood Chinese on Thursday night.  The film depicts the various roles of Asian Americans in Hollywood films since 1916!

The documentary focuses on the roles of Asian Americans throughout Hollywood history.  Dong includes interviews with several Asian actors and filmmakers, as well as archived footage of many films.  The film mentions the several stereotype roles created for Asians and how during a certain period, Caucasians played these roles. 

In the question and answer session afterwards, Dong mentioned finding a copy of the silent film 1916 film The Curse of Quon Gwon, which to him was "one of the biggest discoveries" through the making of the documentary.  When asked why he made this film, Dong's answer was simple yet succint: "I've been a film lover all my life... I created a documentary about a period of film I loved."

Nancy Kwan addressed the lack of roles for Asian Americans, especially in the earlier Hollywood days.  She did mentioned that she is glad that Hollywood now offers more varied roles that all Americans can play. 

The film shows again Friday, September 14 at the Varsity theatre.

do not publish - keep as draft