Thriller

This film - and it's central character of Harry Palmer, is almost like the flipside of cinema's other famous spy, James Bond. Despite the presence of many the production team who worked on the early Bonds - Ken Adam, Peter Hunt, 007 producer Harry Saltzman, and composer John Barry, in many ways this seemed like an antithesis to Ian Fleming's creation.

The film takes place in rainy London which looks decidedly dreary next to any of 007's exotic locations. The performances of the cast are very good, particularly Michael Caine as Palmer. Our main character is really a rather ordinary guy, and un-glamorous - indeed, when we first see him he is just waking himself up in his flat, and making coffee. In fact I often got the feeling that he didn't really want to be a spy anyway, as his job mainly appears to involve mundane paperwork.

While the overall tone of the film is darker and more serious than the Bond oeuvre. it has its own wry sense of humour which I liked. One memorable line is "Don't come slouching into my office like a pregnant camel!"

There is a feeling of paranoia and unease present in the film, not surprising since the plot concerns the mind control of British scientists, and the search for a traitor. Maybe this ties in with the general feeling of the time in politics as well, considering it was the Cold War. There's some clever suspense and plot twists which can be exciting, and held my interest too.

John Barry's music in the film is excellently atmospheric and suits the mood - in fact the main theme, to my mind recalled the previous year's title song to Goldfinger in places.

The Blu Ray transfer looked impressive for such an old film, even bringing out details like the textures on peoples' skin.

The only extras on offer here are a trailer for the film, and a Photo Gallery, and the main feature is presented with optional English subtitles for the hard of hearing. To be honest, I found the extras disappointing - a commentary or retrospective documentary would have been welcome, given the extra space on Blu Ray discs. In fact, there's a DVD release of this film which has a commentary track, making it's omission here even more puzzling.

In my view this is an interesting, and absorbing film which is certainly worth seeing, even if it may not be as light-hearted or fun as Bond.

Enter the Dragon proved to be the last film which Bruce Lee fully completed before his death. It was his entry into Hollywood and was a huge international hit, a Hong Kong and Hollywood co-production featuring a mix of talent from both countries, and shot in Hong Kong directed by the American Robert Clouse, who would ultimately go on to direct Game of Death in 1978.

Thankfully, this is a much better film overall than Game of Death was and I think it's a classic. It shows Bruce at his best instead of exploiting him. It really made Bruce Lee and martial arts more widely known in the West. While it wasn't the first international martial arts hit, it still broke new ground. Enter was the first kung-fu film produced by a major Hollywood studio, made in association with Warner Brothers, Golden Harvest and Bruce Lee's own production company.

I really enjoy this film for many reasons, and while there are some brilliant fight scenes which I will discuss in due course, it's hard for me not to think of the James Bond film, Dr. No, as both stories are quite similar, with the criminal on a mysterious island base. Han even has an artificial hand.

Interestingly, Shih Kien spoke no English on set and his dialogue was overdubbed by the actor Keye Luke.

Enter the Dragon has the kind of plot that audiences of the time would recognise with the structure of a Hollywood movie.

Two other competitors on the island side with Bruce Lee - Roper (John Saxon) and Williams (Jim Kelly), American fighters on the run from the mob and police.

Sporting a very 70's afro, Jim Kelly (who was a US karate champion) is a good fighter and his scenes are certainly impressive - however it is Bruce Lee himself who is the main attraction in my opinion.

Besides Bruce, the film does feature an impressive cast of Hong Kong stars, including Bolo Yeung as one of Han's guards. Bob Wall (who would later turn up in Game of Death) plays a fighter called O Hara, who fights Bruce at the tournament.

Also watch for appearances by Angela Mao Ying and a very young Sammo Hung, who Bruce faces off against in a tournament bout in the opening scene. It's striking to see how skinny Bruce looks in this scene (he had lost a lot of weight when this scene was shot, actually after the rest of filming was finished) next to Sammo.

The scene in the underground bunker (basically Bruce kicking six shades out of what amounts to almost a whole army of guards by himself) is outstanding, with lightning fast moves - this is a master at work, and our attention is always focused on him. The display of martial arts is terrific. He uses a staff to fight with and - in a brief demonstration, nunchaku again.

I also love the scene where Bruce fights about 100 people in Han's army which is amazing. He is so powerful, and thrilling to watch.

It's actually a real shame that Bruce doesn't fight in the film himself more, but as with his Hong Kong oeuvre, he choreographed all his own fights.

The famous "Hall of Mirrors" fight to the death with Han at the climax, is absolutely fantastic and the filmmakers must have worked very hard on this scene to make sure no equipment was visible. Bruce not only shows he could fight but could also use his brain to outwit an enemy. The mysterious, slightly spooky music and reflections in the mirror build tension.

The music in the film is good, but especially the main theme by Lalo Schifrin, surely one of the iconic themes of cinema. It's a mixture of Lee's familiar fighting yells, and Chinese instruments and then it changes to a funky bassline, maybe showing how the movie itself brings together Asian and Western culture, something that Bruce himself certainly wanted to do through his films.

It is interesting that in this film, as well as being an exciting thriller, Bruce brought gravitas and wanted to educate the audience in some way, by explaining about his philosophy of martial arts and Jeet Kune Do, in a scene with his master, the abbot played by Roy Chiao. This scene was originally missing from the theatrical release but has been restored since 1998.

Annoyingly however, Bruce is dubbed by journalist John Little doing an impersonation which does sound odd to me and definitely stands out.

Bruce did get to see the finished movie before he died, and I'm sure he dubbed the scene, so as to why his real voice wasn't used, sadly I don't know the answer.

There are some good extras on this Blu Ray which were previously on the 2 disc DVD edition of the film - a commentary by producer Paul Heller and writer Michael Allin, documentaries and trailers. The main documentary is called Curse of the Dragon and runs for almost 90 minutes, featuring some interviews with James Coburn, Chuck Norris and Kareem Abdul Jabbar among others, who knew and worked with Bruce.

I recommend not watching the trailers until you've seen the movie. I thought the 1080p transfer was decent, not spectacular but as good as it could be, considering the film is almost 40 years old and quite low budget, with an estimated cost of just $850,000.

Even though the story is a simple one, this is an iconic movie and it's so sad Bruce didn't get to make any more after this one. I'm sure he would have gone on to develop as an actor.

I think this is definitely Bruce Lee's best film, actually one of the best martial arts films ever made and I really enjoyed it.

It is a dark film with some amazing fights, and I think Bruce also shows his range as an actor, delivering a really intense performance, evoking both sympathy and anger.

In the film, Bruce plays the fictional character of Chen Zhen, a student of real life martial arts master Ho Yuan Jia at the Jing Wu martial arts school. In Mandarin, the film's title used in Hong Kong "Jing Wu Men" actually means "the gateway to excellence in martial arts".
The real Ho Yuan Jia only lived to 1910, but the action in the film is shifted to Shanghai of the 1930's in order to make the underlying story of the Jing Wu martial arts students facing prejudice from the occupying Japanese work. Also, some things that actually happened to Ho in real life (as an opening voiceover solemnly explains) now happen to Chen over the course of the movie.

Bruce actually choreographed all of his own fight scenes in the film, but out of respect for an elder, Han Ying Chieh rather than Bruce is given full choreography credit. You can tell who did which scenes as Han's scenes have a kind of "swingy-arm/leg" style (for example, in the scene where the students train outside in the yard) and Bruce's scenes are much more powerful and controlled.
Look closely and you'll see a few other familiar faces from Bruce's other films appear as students at the school, Maria Yi, James Tien and - in an un-credited appearance, a young Jackie Chan, who is clearly visible in the training scene.

There are so many brilliant scenes - two especially are significant in a cultural sense - the one in the Japanese dojo when he forces a student to eat the paper from the insulting "Sick Men of Asia" sign, that was given to Bruce's school as a "present" by the slimy interpreter, Wu (Wei Ping Ao) and snaps "We Chinese are not sick men".

Another one which really stands out is the scene where he struck a literal blow against racism by kicking the prohibitive "No Dogs and Chinese Allowed" sign to pieces. When the film played in theatres in Hong Kong, the local audience were said to have stood up and cheered.
In 1972, some people were still old enough to remember the terrible injustice and racism by the Japanese during their occupation of China. Bruce was standing up for the Chinese people and fighting back.

Like many other films of the period, it has a nationalistic slant, and the Japanese in Fist of Fury are portrayed as nasty as possible, but despite this, this film, and indeed Bruce, became extremely popular in Japan. Even some of the music cues use Japanese instruments.

Interestingly, the nunchaku (perhaps Bruce's most famous weapon, which he is seen using for the first time in a film here) is not Chinese but comes from Okinawa (though some say it was originally used as a rice flail in South East Asia).

It's so difficult to choose a stand out scene as my favourite - Bruce desperately scrabbling at the earth that falls on top of his master's coffin, screaming "Master.... master!" refusing to believe he's dead, and the one where he takes on a dojo of Japanese karate students singlehandedly, showing an excellent use of brutal, unarmed combat.

I love the fight with the Japanese master (Riki Hashimoto) at the film's climax.

Jackie Chan actually doubled for him in the part when Bruce kicks him through the window.

Bruce disguises himself a number of times in the film, as an old man and newspaper vendor to fool the Japanese school. This knack for dressing up was referenced in a later film, Game of Death. In a way there is a balancing act going on here - Bruce had to be disguised but at the same time, not disguised so well that the audience didn't recognise him!

I watched the film in Mandarin, which was the original language when the film was released in 1972. Though Bruce spoke Cantonese on set, the rest of the cast spoke Mandarin which was the accepted language for films at that time.

Bruce shows he can really act in this film, as well as showing astonishing power and rage when fighting, he also shows a different side, tenderness and even vulnerability in scenes with a fellow student, whom he is in love with, played by the beautiful Nora Miao. This is the only film in which Bruce ever kissed a girl.

The way those scenes are shot is intriguing, we see tight close ups of their eyes and the pair sitting back to back as they talk, but not looking directly at one another.
Bruce is very focused on his goal of getting revenge for his master's death, almost driven to the end of his rope, and only his girlfriend is able to find a weak point in his armour.

While I said earlier that the nature of good and evil in the film is quite clear with the Japanese being the obvious villains, Bruce has to accept punishment for his deeds too. In the 1970's and 1980's, Hong Kong cinema demanded that if the hero killed anyone, they must be shown being arrested or punished. Even though both sets of characters commit murder, Bruce's character is shown in a much braver and nobler light, as the closing theme song intones.

The music in the film is impressive - particularly the repeated use of the main title theme which really adds to the atmosphere. In different situations, this music can be upright and stirring, yet also touching and romantic when played in its instrumental variation.

This 2 disc Platinum Edition of Fist of Fury has some excellent extras, including an entertaining commentary track by Bey Logan, featurettes (in one, Bey revisits one of the film's locations), interviews with some of the cast, and Hong Kong and UK trailers. The DVD transfer (at the time of release) was made from a new HD master, which has much better colours than the previous Collector's Edition release and looks much sharper.

This is a very important film in the martial arts genre which I love, and essential viewing for fans of Hong Kong cinema in my opinion.

What would prove to be Bruce Lee's last film is a patchy affair, with only a handful of good scenes. This is because between 1972 (when Bruce shot initial scenes) and the eventual release in 1978, not only had Bruce left production to make Enter The Dragon (in 1973) for Warner Brothers, but the proposed storyline Bruce had in mind underwent drastic changes resulting in a film that is mostly an exploitative mess. The film had already been pre-sold to the Japanese market on the basis of existing footage, so the makers had to come up with a complete Game of Death somehow.

Because Bruce was no longer alive, filming was completed using a variety of doubles, including Yuen Biao (for the more acrobatic stunts) and Korean actor Kim Tae Jung. The film also uses shots from some of Bruce's older films.
In Bruce's original storyline, a martial artist (Bruce) was to fight his way to the top of a pagoda, each floor guarded by a master of a different martial arts style. However, the complete film bears little resemblance to this.

Kim Tae Jung is certainly a decent screen fighter in his scenes, but he doesn't have the super fast speed or sheer power of Bruce.

The music and score, however, is excellent and very classy. The title music sounds like it came from a James Bond movie (John Barry composed the music for the film, after all). Even the title sequence itself, with images of the cast appearing on playing cards, dominoes and chess pieces feels rather Bond-like. I liked the repeated use of the score, it added to the atmosphere of the film.
But as a whole the film doesn't feel like a Hong Kong martial arts movie because of its story and structure, its' much more like an international film.

I didn't find the acting very strong. Despite being an Oscar winner (apparently), Dean Jagger doesn't look convincing at all playing the mob boss Dr. Land, looking much too old. Colleen Camp looks nice but is hardly stretched in the role of Billy Lo's girlfriend Ann, a local singer. Maybe I'm more critical of ropey acting here as the film is in English, and Hong Kong cinema shows a different style of acting.

The film can be rather tasteless in places, particularly in a scene showing a supposed "fake" funeral of Billy Lo (Bruce/Kim Tae Jung) - the filmmakers actually used footage of the real Bruce Lee's actual funeral. With newspapers declaring "Billy Lo Is Dead" and mourners lining the streets, this unfortunately mirrors exactly what happened in real life with Bruce Lee's death. I feel this is in very poor taste and insensitive to the Lee family.

Having said that, beneath the mediocrity and rather naff acting, there is still some excitement to be had. My favourite scene not involving the real Bruce, is the fight in the locker room between Kim Tae Jung and karate champion Bob Wall. This is a fantastic fight, and very well choreographed by Sammo Hung. Apparently, when director Robert Clouse was finished shooting for the day, Sammo was allowed to come back and shoot the action to his standard, which is why he shares directing credit on the Asian prints of Game of Death.

Another couple of scenes are quite interesting, in which the Billy Lo character disguises himself first with a beard and dark glasses, and then as an old man to stay one step ahead of the mafia. In one of his earlier films, Fist of Fury (1972), Bruce Lee disguises himself as an old man and a telephone repair man when he tries to find out who killed his master.

The last act of Game of Death is definitely the best, in which we see Bruce's original vision for the film and his scenes (originally shot in 1972) are brilliant and worth waiting for.

On one floor of the pagoda, we see the real Bruce Lee (in the famous yellow tracksuit) fight his student Dan Inosanto in an amazing one-on-one nanchuku fight, Korean Grandmaster Ji Han Jae on the ascending floor (who was using Korean martial arts), and then finally above him, Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

As well as being another of Bruce's own students, he was a former basketball player and towered over Bruce at 7' 2". In the film, Kareem plays a fighter who has no specific style of his own (similar to Bruce's own philosophy of Jeet Kune Do). This fight is amazing, if a bit unusual. Bruce had to think "outside the box" to defeat a much larger, taller opponent, and it's surprising how he does it!

This section of footage shows, to my mind, how Game of Death would have been a far better film had Bruce been alive. I loved the real Bruce's scenes. It's just such a shame that most of the rest of the film is quite poor.
As the credits roll, Colleen Camp sings Will This Be the song I'll Be Singing Tomorrow? (also composed by John Barry), over a montage of clips of Bruce in action from earlier classic films. I have to say, the juxtaposition of melancholy music, and images showing him in his prime felt tinged with sadness and tragedy. There will never be another Bruce Lee.

There are lots of extras on this 2 disc DVD set - the main extra on the first disc is a commentary by Hong Kong cinema writer Bey Logan, which is an interesting, and at times even funny listen.

The second has interviews with cast members and people involved with the film, theatrical trailers (the Cantonese and American trailers) and promo spots for other Bruce Lee films, but the most interesting extra is a feature called "Game of Death Revisited".

It's a 40 minute edit of the pagoda fight sequence, put together in the way Bruce intended (according to his original script notes). It has scenes not shown in the 1978 version of the movie - the fights are longer, with extra dialogue (Bey Logan doing an uncanny impression of the Little Dragon), and characters, and this footage was thought lost for over 20 years in the Golden Harvest vaults. It's great to watch and gives new insight into what the film might have been like. I love the rock version of the Game of Death theme.

I feel this is an overlooked gem, and I've only just seen it for the first time -and loved it! It's got everything! Great sets; amazing make up; an all-star cast; intriguing plot; Danny Elfman music... what more could anyone ask for?
Beatty has managed to capture the old ‘40's comics perfectly and the movie oozes class and charm from every scene. Dustin Hoffman and Al Pacino deserve special mention as both manage to deliver career highs (Hoffman, miraculously so as he only communicates through barely legible mumbles.. hence his name!) and even Madonna is damn fine!

This is one of the best comic adaptations, since Superman: The Movie (the others seem to lose something in translation to me) and definitely deserves to be given a second chance. More people need to see this film just for it's entertainment value!!

I loved this film, which surprised me! I'm not Guy Richie's biggest fan -actually hated Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels - so was extremely sceptical when I heard that he was directing the new Sherlock Holmes film - but it just goes to show what happens when the story's right and the actors are spot on.

And weren't they just!! Robert Downey Jr was superb! Perfectly cast as Holmes and it was refreshing to see Watson played as more of a clued in & active participant -rather than a fumbling oaf as in previous regenerations - which was down to Jude Law.

In some ways, they've reduced Holmes down to a Victorian version of James Bond - and I should be really incensed at that. But the trouble is they've done such a damn fine job!!! Holmes is ever the enigma -here we see a man who can not function without Watson, and the relationship between the two is so hazy and although it's never stressed or hinted, there's a frisson between the two that is unmistakable (the phrase, like an old married couple, springs to mind.)

The action and fight scenes are well staged and nicely break up the film without being too distracting or erroneous. There are also lots of in-jokes for those people that have actually read some of the books, without being at the expense of those who haven't.

In short, I couldn't find anything about this film that I didn't like. There will be a sequel - one that the arch-fiend Moriatey will no doubt appear in. And I must admit... I can't wait!!

There is one scene in particular which sums up the entire movie for me -and it's not the obvious one either... Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro in his best performance) is in "conversation" with another cabbie in an all night diner and he's just put two alka-seltzer in a glass of water. The camera moves into an extreme close up on the seltzer as they bubble and froth in the glass. This is a mirror to Travis's own breed of madness and alienation.

This is a brilliant film and certainly one of a kind - Taxi Driver summed up a whole generation and firmly entrenched itself into popular culture with the immortal lines "you talkin' to me?"

The dialogue is sparse and direct, especially in the case of De Niro who has to be able to convey Travis's growing estrangement without making it seem too overt, and Scorcese's direction is inspired. There are several scenes where the camera moves in unexpected ways constantly keeping the viewer off guard, making it impossible to figure out what's going to happen next.
The conclusion of the film is shocking and unavoidable -there have been forebodings throughout the entire film, as if Travis Bickle becomes the city's voice box - amplifying the violence, fear and paranoid hatred until it has no choice but to explode.

The music, by complete contrast, is chilled and jazzy - courtesy of Bernad Herrman who died soon after completing the score- but also strangely disassociated as well and it acts as a perfect counterpoint to the story sometimes accentuating the mood whilst other times softening it ready for the next burst.

This is one of the most important films of the seventies - and although both De Niro and Scorcese would work together several times to me this is their best collaboration.

This is the benchmark for all detective thrillers should be based against. Razor sharp script & plot; honed and polished acting with exemplary performances by Jack Nicholson; Faye Dunaway and John Huston. This film keeps you guessing with its many winding turns - the final twist of the knife is devastating and the last line of dialog just hangs in the air: "Forget it, Jake - it's Chinatown." This film was made during the Sharon Tate / Charles Manson massacre and there is a feeling of creeping darkness and despair perpetuating the narrative. It's about the corruption of innocence where the truth is just another murky grey area and the final truth is often too much to bare.

There is a feeling of detachment as well, as if the audience are just observers in the drama, just like the private eye Jake Gittes so we are actually implicated in the murder and intrigue and, at the end, are just as helpless to make things right as Gittes.

This is a fascinating film, one of the few thrillers that can be called brilliant and is certainly one of the films you need to see before you die!

A poignant look at the heartbreak following the loss of a child; The haunted streets of Venice provide the perfect backdrop for this moving and unforgettable film.
Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie give beautiful and moving performances as the parents of little Christine, who drowns at the start of the film in a red mac. They move to Venice to escape the pain -the film is filled with tragic ironies like this, and is one of the reasons why I love it so much; it works on so many different levels!- but tragedy seems to follow them as John Baxter (Donald Sutherland) is constantly haunted by images of a small girl running round in a red mac. He's told that all the time he is in Venice he is in danger, but he ignores the warnings until it becomes too late.
This film is an exercise in mood and is so subtle that most of what is happening is just below the surface, barely tangible. The opening scenes of the film are just an example of this - never have I seen such deliberate editing that encapsulates the entire film -and that mirrors so perfectly the sense shattering conclusion.

The question is, can Don't Look Now really be called a horror movie? Yes, it does have a serial killer and there is a death (well, two deaths...) but it's more about the relationship between the Baxters. The horror element is secondary -until the end and then it's inescapable - so it's not a horror film in modern parlance, but I', not sure what category or genre it comfortably sits in.
This film haunted me for weeks and is an emotionally powerful film, as well as being bleakly beautiful -mainly due to it's watery setting. This is a definite must and, to me, really highlights everything that is missing from modern film.

This was the first foreign language film I remember watching and I was held spellbound by it. It's so subtle and the sense of menace and atmosphere is palpable. Watching it again recently I loved the almost Hitchcockian attention to the mood, but where Hitchcock focused on the more technical aspects of directing Chabrol, to me, focuses on the human psychology. This was what enthralled me as a teenager.

In a bulk standard Hollywood murder film there would have the suspense of the chase; the murder and intrigue, but when the thrill of the chase is over so is the film... When Le Boucher ends the viewer is left with a lot of questions with some uneasy answers and s/he has to provide his / her own interpretation on what has just happened. I never realised films could do that - most films I'd seen had big concepts and only one resolution. This films looks at how the murders affect the town itself, and in particular the local teacher, is far more subtle and, therefore, rewarding when the story is resolved (and boy, is it resolved!).

This is a hauntingly brilliant film, one that certainly deserves to be re-watched!