Game of Death - promotional documentary

I've just discovered Bey Logan posted this on Facebook. It's his own upload to YouTube and what it is is a very rare early short documentary film that was made to promote Bruce Lee's GAME OF DEATH - but made after he had passed away.

A Book of Heroes - Yukari Oshima

After having waited much too long for my recent parcel from Hong Kong to turn up (the bloody customs kept it for two weeks!!) I've finally just got it, opened it, and marvelled at the wonderful VCD beauties! Yes, bloody VCD!! None of the four films are out on DVD anywhere so this was the only option. But, hey, I'm not complaining and if anything I am grateful that at least Fortune Star have released these films is any format at all.

One of the films is A BOOK OF HEROES (Taiwan, 1986) starring cutie & tough ass kicker YUKARI OSHIMA. Woo-hoo! Any new Yukari Oshima film is welcome in this house not matter the qualities (or non-qualities) of the film otherwise.

I haven't watched it yet (like I said, I've literally just new received the parcel) but it's directed by the same guy who made the highly entertaining FANTASY MISSION FORCE, PINK FORCE COMMANDO and GOLDEN QUEEN'S COMMANDO. Here's the description from Yesasia (big kudos to Yesasia for actually hiring a HK film aficionado to do their film descriptions!! The writer is Ross Chen from Love Hong Kong Film.

From director Kevin Chu, the madman behind such entertainingly incomprehensible oddities as Fantasy Mission Force and Golden Queen's Commando, comes A Book of Heroes (1986). Chu's talent as filmmaker may be highly suspect, but his "best" movies are tremendous fun despite (or because of) their thematic and technical shortcomings. A Book of Heroes has all the usual Chu earmarks: an impossibly convoluted plot, confusing editing, cartoonish humor uncomfortably coexisting with visceral violence, and a bevy of butt-kicking beauties (including Oshima Yukari in one of her earliest roles). This is one movie not to be missed by Mystery Science Theater fans, or those who like their action movies highly fortified with corn.

Rival underworld gangs from all over Asia are waging war for a treasure map and a bunch of gold, and it's Officer Hu Pai's job to intercept the loot. After failing miserably at his assignment, Hu finds himself demoted to directing traffic. But the down-on-his-luck policeman gets a shot at redemption when he crosses paths with a Japanese agent (Oshima) on the treasure's trail. Joining forces with a ragtag group of mercenaries - including Hu's wannabe-cop sister and the owner of the local gas station - the heroes pit themselves against a wild assortment of underworld fighters in a bid to recapture the gold.

Hmm, that YouTube upload does have a great picture quality but I haven't been able to find any info about any DVD releases. Meaybe it's from a laserdisc.

Oh Nina

I taped this song off the air sometime in the mid to late 80s. The difference is it was David Bowie's cover version. The same programme played an early Martin Hall track as well. Taped them both. Man, I must have played and re-played that cassette tape over and over again. Now some 20 odd years later I finally hear the original version. It's probably good it took so long, I wouldn't have liked Nina Simone's version back then. Now I love it.

Nina Hagen - Ziggy Stardust

The East German queen of punk doing Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust" on Swedish TV in 1980. Awesome! Me and my cousin Ronny were big Nina Hagen fans back then. Unfortunately it seems she's had too many smokes in the years in-between. Oh well, we'll always have Rio, ehh, YouTube. ^_^

Rammstein - Das Modell

Here's RAMMSTEIN with a cover of that old KRAFTWERK fave "Das Modell" (aka The Model). The video is pretty cool! xD

La Muerte Incierta (Jose Ramon Larraz ,1973) - trailer

La Muerte Incierta (José Ramón Larraz) - Funny bloopers R us

Another movie that was believed to be lost but isn't. However, as of now it makes no difference as it's still unreleased. Boo-hoo! Would love to see it.

You seem to mind your own business ... but you don't miss a thing

I watched Joe D'Amato's DURI A MORIRE (aka Tough to Kill/Dødspatruljen) last night on a wobbly Greek VHS. Great stuff indeed! Why isn't this out on a proper DVD!?!? There is a reg. 1 DVD out but it's got fake lbx. The trailer I'm posting here is a rare one from a Danish VHS. It's a really cool trailer that I must have watched 10 times. Thanks to Diabolik for the upload.

The confusing Turkish / Italian SUPERGUYS series

There's THE FLYING SUPERBOY film, and there's the SUPERGUYS series, and then there's the 3 FANTASTIC SUPERMEN films ... have you ever tossed and turned because you couldn't quite make the connection between the dots? No need to worry any longer! My friend Henrik Larsen, supreme editor of OBSKURIØST magazine, spent some time sorting out these films a while back and this is the info he came up with:

Henrik reckons THE FLYING SUPERBOY isn't a stand alone film but is related to the THREE SUPERGUYS series as Robert Widmark plays the same kind of character as in that series:

There are three official SUPERGUYS films + two unofficial entries. The first unofficial film precedes the series (and do notice that via the German title the film is actually related to the series on the German market! "Teufelskerle" = Superguys)

1. ZWEI TEUFELSKERLE AUF DEM WEG ZUR GRÜNEN HÖLLE (1974). Aka AMAZONS FOR TWO ADVENTURERS
-No Turkish involvement but Ernst Hofbauer who co-directed the film also co-directed the three official films. And "Robert Widmark" and Wolf Goldan play almost the same characters as they do in the first Superguys film. Widmark is in ALL the films so there's a connection.

2. ZWEI TEUFELSKERLE AUF DEM WEG INS KLOSTER (1975). Aka THE THREE SUPERGUYS
-German-Turkish production. Hofbauer is co-director and Widmark & Goldan play the main-characters.

3. THE FLYING SUPERBOY (1975) aka BAS BELASI
-Turkish production. Widmark plays the same kind of character again.

4. ZWEI TEUFELSKERLE AUF DEM WEG NACH ISTANBUL (1976). Aka THE THREE SUPERGUYS STRIKE AGAIN
-Cuneyt Arkin is in this one.

5. DREI TEUFELSKERLE MACHEN ALLES NIEDER (1977). Aka THREE SUPERGUYS IN THE SNOW


- Arkin was also in one of the THREE FANTASTIC SUPERMEN films (SUPERMENLER/3 SUPERMEN AGAINST GODFATHER) but other than that there's no connection between the two series.

aka Three Superguys in the Snow

German trailer for THE THREE SUPERGUYS STRIKE AGAIN:






Thanks to Henrik Larsen for the info and to the nice members of Cinehound forum whose cover scans I used.

Darkness befell the land

...or at least my computer!

I've been off line for two days... and I'm STILL off line... as my computer has decided to switch off and now all I can get is a dark screen with a line that says the computer is missing some abbreviation which I don't know what is and that I need to re-boot with my cd boot disc. My computer is a laptop ... one of those that come WITHOUT a bloody cd boot disc!!! I'm on someone else's computer and won't be online until I figure out what the hell is wrong with it and what to do about it. I've got 2 billion tons of stuff on that computer I SOOO do not wanna lose. Later (maybe!!!)

The Knife (featuring Jenny Wilson) - "You Take my Breath Away"

This is the fabulous Swedish indie band THE KNIFE. On this track they're joined by guest vocalist Jenny Wilson (on the right). I quite like this. :D