Moon Lee double bill: Devil Hunters & Kickboxer's Tears

I bought these two on eBay UK today: DEVIL HUNTERS and KICKBOXER'S TEARS. Both films are Hong Kong flicks and they star the lovely (and ass kicking) Moon Lee (who was of course also in ANGEL 3 which I posted about yesterday) and she's joined by the equally lovely (and mucho ass kicking) Sibelle Hu (in DEVIL) and Yukari Oshima (in KICKBOXER'S). Both tapes are US releases and quite hard to get hold of these days. DEVIL HUNTERS is even a brand new, never opened copy! The seller had only listed them for sale within the UK but I wrote and asked him to sell them to me (apparently I'm his first non UK buyer, LOL).

ANGEL 3 fully letterboxed & longest version finally released!

aka IRON ANGELS 3 / RETURN OF THE IRON ANGELS / MIDNITE ANGELS 3







Check this scene from ANGEL 3! Argh, awesome. I have two versions of this (reg. 1 DVD and Japanese VHS) and they both suffer from being dubbed into English and fullscreen (and apparently missing scenes). Wauw, this Cantonese language, 2.35 anamorphic print looks just awesome! And fortunately for you and me it's been released without any English subs what-so-ever over in the Czech Republic. No, wait, haaay! Haha. No, not good at all. No subs and difficult to get hold of but AT LEAST IT'S FINALLY OUT THERE! I'm sure it's only a matter of time before someone puts fan subs on it.


Japanese VHS


Oh, and talking 'about Angel ripoffs that followed in the footsteps of the original series, I've just got hold of this COOL Greek VHS which sports an English dubbed print of the TRULY AWESOME film KILLER ANGELS (which also stars Moon Lee). I must have watched that un-subbed Hong Kong VCD (in Cantonese/Mandarin) at least 15 times!



KILLER ANGELS was retitled Ultra Force for some of the European markets. Very confusing as the same title was also used in some other Euroland territories (like Denmark and Germany) for another "girls with guns" flick called ROYAL WARRIORS (aka In the Line of Duty). The sequel to Ultra Force (in the "Greek" series) was not surprisingly Ultra Force 2 which was actually a retitle of DEVIL HUNTERS. The Danish/German Ultra Force 2 was YES, MADAM! (aka In the Line of Duty 2). At least all movies star Moon Lee!! :D

Party at casa Nicholson

Annie Nicholson just posted an update on Nick Nicholson's blog. If you follow the Filipino section on Dvdmaniacs you'll know that Andrew Leavold is once again back in the Philippines to do what it is he does in regards to Filipino cinema (basically everything to scoop up more info!). And over on Annie & Nick's blog you can read an account of their meeting, party and check the pix. It's been about thee months since Nick Nicholson passed away and it's definitely weird not to see any more of his blog updates, sometimes on films, sometimes on life in general, and sometimes wild posts about stuff that pissed him off. Good to see Jim Gaines was there too (I'm sure you're aware he was in tons of trashy Filipino Vietnam War movies and action movies like THE LAST HUNTER, STRIKE COMMANDO 2, ONE ARMED EXECUTIONER, and he's kept doing films when everyone else had chucked in the towel; He was in Mattei's ZOMBIE THE BEGINNING from 2007). For the update and photos go here. Thanks to Annie for keeping us updated.

I'm not sure if I should post this on my Lejemorder blog or the Filipino blog, so sod it I'll post it on both!

Please come back... I didn't mean what I said!!! Honestly!!!

I just checked Google Analytics and yesterday I had ZERO visitors! Not just on this blog but on all my blogs!!! Gee, what happened. O_O
Obviously a malfunction with Google but still an obscure reading, LOL.

Screw Xmas, here's Halloween (part 2)

Do yourself a favour and check out this mighty cool Halloween tune!

New Swamp of the Ravens dvd

VCI in the States have just released Manuel Cano's SWAMP OF THE RAVENS on DVD sourced from a spiffy 35mm uncut print. The DVD also includes an equally uncut version of I EAT YOUR SKIN (aka Zombie) taken from a widescreen print. This certainly sounds good. SWAMP was released a few years back from Something Weird Video but apparently that DVD was missing some footage at the end. I should point out I have no idea of how much is missing from the SWV print as I haven't seen that print. I look forward to this new DVD though and have just ordered it today (well, yesterday I guess as this is 3 in the morning, LOL). I do own the other film, I EAT YOUR SKIN, which was also released on a SWV DVD (in their DVD-R line actually) and that version certainly needs an improved release.

Here's some info from DVDManiacs by poster Ethan Christian Seiler, I sincerely hope he doesn't mind my reprint here. You'll find the thread here.

Odd the talk gets diverted to Bava's BLOOD AND BLACK LACE as there is a solid connection unto SWAMP OF THE RAVENS. Manuel Cano produced Mario's very personal HATCHET FOR THE HONEYMOON as well as SWAMP writer Santiago Moncada co-writing that film as well! SWAMP is grossly underrated, a highly unusual, evocative, very enigmatic film with a singularly unique atmosphere....Hands down it possesses the most abstract and unorthodox "zombies" I can recall in any film. The Ecuadorean locales, particularly the swamp wherein Dr. Frosta's abode and ramshackle laboratory are located is a masterpiece of a natural location, so rich in depth of ambient dimension, the film is quite morbid within its fetishism, contains one of the best necrophilia sequences I have ever seen, but the necro-medical fetishism exuding throughout the film is, as well, quite unparalleled and of much power, including the very effective utilization of an actual human post mortem dissection (as effective and jarring in its smaller scale manner as anything in MEN BEHIND THE SUN, particularly since it just comes at you very fast, like a rock pelted directly into your head, from left field, you do not expect it, there is no ceremony culminating within it, it just cuts to it and it starts!). The English dubbing could be better, but Moncada's dialogue is full of caustic wit, character idiosyncratic dimension, even a type of brilliance to its narrative structure, he is in top form here. I think the recently deceased Aldo Sambrell referred to director Cano as, (to paraphrase) "..completely insane...".......haha......

Great new for fans of this film, I contacted VCI to ask specifics, firstly, I got them to correct their mistake for citing co-feature on the disc, Del Tenney's ZOMBIES, as running 148 minutes (!!!!)....Though I am disappointed that there will not be a two and a half hour ZOMBIES/I EAT YOUR SKIN....lol.....The print is still longer than many at 93 minutes.......

Anyway, here's what they wrote, it sounds very promising for both films!:

SWAMP OF THE RAVENS - was mastered from a 35mm negative. The video transfer was done 16x9 anamorphic widescreen with an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 (the original aspect ratio of the film) and is enhanced for 16x9 monitors. The film was produced in Spain but the version we are releasing has an English soundtrack.

ZOMBIE - the running time is really 93 minutes. The video transfer was also also done 16x9 anamorphic widescreen with an aspect ratio of 1.77:1 with enhancement for 16x9 monitors.

Screw Xmas, Halloween is here!

Check out this way kool Halloween toon by Bill Buchanan from 1962. It's pretty awesome and I wish that were my 7"! Check out this cat's YouTube channel, he's uploaded tons of cool tracks. Thanks to Armando for making me aware of this channel.

Best Sort Sol / C.V. Jørgensen track on a Saturday

The Legacy (1978)

I just watched Richard Marquand's THE LEGACY (aka The Legacy of Maggie Walsh / De Fordømte) for the second time. The first time was a few years back when I slept my way thru the movie, LOL. Not that it's a bad film mind you I guess I must've been tired. :D

The plot is the old tried (and tired) "couple can't escape from English manor and get sucked into occult dabblings". The story is basic and would've sunk the film to the bottom of the horror movie ocean had it not been for the good cast. The Danish cheapo DVD is presented in terrible fullscreen and the print is scratched but serviceable.


Trailer:


Aussie trailer:

I shall use my devisualiser and vanish!

THE PHANTOM CREEPS (12 chapter serial, 1939)

Needless to say Bela Lugosi is Dracula! I'm not gonna try and debate whether the "real" Dracula is DRACULA from 1931 starring Bela Lugosi or Hammer Studio's DRACULA from 1958 starring Christoper Lee (and retitled Horror of Dracula in America). I love them both so I'm not gonna pour any petrol on the feud bonfire between Lugosi and Lee fans. Haha.



I won't take part, I choose them both. Anyway, I'm babbling. What else can you do after 12 chapters of this cool Bela Lugosi serial from 1939. Dinner in half an hour so no incisive plot description, sufficient to know this: The world and The United States of America was a peaceful place in '39, well except for the emergence of that madman Hitl... eh, doctor Zorka. Bela Lugosi is doctor Zorka, a mad scientist whose goal is to conquer the world ("...but I shall conquer the world with my army of atomic supermen", but, hey, that's a different Lugosi movie - same goal though!).



Our hero is an FBI man and his annoying (but very pretty) female sidekick (a journalist, obviously!). Lugosi has invented a box with an heinous content; with it he can DESTROY THE WORLD. Or conquer it, whatever he chooses. Unfortunately, other (non American, obviously) players are in the game too. Wauw, what a concept; not ONE but TWO bad parties fighting for world domination and our hero (and the pretty journo) are having a hard time saving said world. Oh, and did I forget to mention doctor Zorka also has a DEVISUALISER to go invisible with (a nifty devise not least if you want to use footage from THE INVISIBLE RAY from 1936, LOL).

They have betrayed me, but I will take the world with me!

Oh, and did I forget to mention he also has an amazing killer robot. So deadly it'll kill anybody who doesn't walk any faster than your everyday SNAIL. Argh. THE PHANTOM CREEPS is awesome!! Bela Lugosi is the bad guy but he totally steals the show, who is the good guy even? Forget the other actors except the pretty journalist and (incidentally!) the OTHER bad guy played by Edward van Sloan (who was also in DRACULA and FRANKENSTEIN). But then again, would anybody think otherwise? How could Bela Lugosi as a mad scientist with a devisualiser, ray gun, killer robot, explosive robot spiders (!!!), and awesome one-liners, not steal the show!



The DVD from VCI is great! The picture has been restored and looks like it was filmed recently (I'm obviously exaggerating there). Yes, there's a few scratches here and there but you'll soon forget about that. There's no extra material apart from an old cartoon ("Porky's Midnight Matinee") but screw that, the 12 chapters are more than enough! Running time is approximately 4 hours.



PS: If you want to watch THE PHANTOM CREEPS, make sure you get the VCI DVD. There are releases from other companies but apparently they're terrible TV prints. It's around 10 bucks from Amazon.