2008: The Digital Rummage

[Brian Thibodeau]

Oh, I LOVED that! I'll concede that the humour (little old ladies getting flying kicked, etc) is probably a little TOO English for it to travel, but I even thought the story was quite gripping for a comedy. Me and a friend even travelled to the city (believe it or not it IS a city) it was filmed in and visited the locations. Lovely place!

I actually thought it was excellent in every way except for its length of two hours, which is hardly a reason to unload it, I know. I guess I kinda "got" where it was headed mid-film or so, but they kept putting off the inevitable confrontation with just a few too many sequences designed solely so those snippets of dialogue could all "pay off" later when Simon Pegg stumbles across the townspeople having their nighttime "meeting". That climax was a blast, though. The film didn't do too badly over here, all things considered, but having grown up on British comedy imports, often set in small towns, I was quite taken by all the scenery and characters, so there was probably an inherent bias on my part. Who knows, maybe I'll keep it after all. I just wish it was about 15 minutes shorter. It almost felt like the filmmakers were too confident to lose anything whatsoever.

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

^ I also enjoyed Hot Fuzz (though I don't think I'll get the multi-disk set of it though unless I could find that cheap), though growing up with Monty Python and Peter Sellers, I'm apt for certain styles of humour. Of course, I also liked Shaun of the Dead.

Tokyo Raiders (2000) HK
Twilight Samurai (2002) Japan -- have already seen, but really liked this film.
A Tale of Two Sisters (2003) South Korea
Charisma (1999) Japan
Gonin (1995) Japan
Deadful Melody (1993) HK
Volcano High (2001) South Korea -- replaced boot; already seen
Come Drink With Me (1966) HK Dragon Dynasty -- already watched with all extras except commentary
Porco Rosso (1992) Japan -- The only Miyazaki Hayao directed film I have not seen.

and also bought tons of non Asian movies

[Brian Thibodeau]

Come Drink With Me (1966) HK Dragon Dynasty -- already watched with all extras except commentary

Keep your hand on the volume button when listening to this commentary! I've heard it's got the same issues as the IVL version, which drove me batty: when Bey Logan and Cheng Pei-Pei speak, they're kinda low. When Cheng's daughter pipes in, the levels are off the scale! Very annoying.

[Chungking_Cash]

Keep your hand on the volume button when listening to this commentary! I've heard it's got the same issues as the IVL version, which drove me batty: when Bey Logan and Cheng Pei-Pei speak, they're kinda low. When Cheng's daughter pipes in, the levels are off the scale! Very annoying.

I have the IVL DVD and while I don't immediately recall audio complications I remember distinctly my hearing being complicated by Marsha Yuen's obnoxious laugh.

I couldn't fathom it magnified.

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

Come Drink With Me (1966) HK Dragon Dynasty -- already watched with all extras except commentary

Keep your hand on the volume button when listening to this commentary! I've heard it's got the same issues as the IVL version, which drove me batty: when Bey Logan and Cheng Pei-Pei speak, they're kinda low. When Cheng's daughter pipes in, the levels are off the scale! Very annoying.

Seems to be a different commentary. Here are my notes for anyone's amusement [my own comments in brackets]:

Come Drink With Me (1966) Hong Kong commentary with Bey Logan and Cheng Pei Pei

[this is a normal Bey Logan commentary with much discussion on who people are, but not much on mise-en-scene or cinematic type discussion; more information is gleaned from the additional extras on the DD release; will post notes if anyone is interested on those]
"Big Drunken Hero" is Chinese title.
Talked about woman being lead, changed when Bruce Lee came [wrong; see Stephen Tao's book for better discussion of this]
Inspired by chambara [no kidding]
Sammo Hung was rumored to be action director, this is not true.
Shaw Brother's uses three shifts (morning, evening, night) for shoots.
One of the first fights in an Inn [I would really like to see if this is true]
Pei Pei constantly corrects Bey Logan's Cantonese speaking throughout the commentary [both Mandarin and Cantonese]
Cheng talks about having to buy bootleg to see this film [not complete story, see other extras for better explanation]
10 Days to shoot Inn scene, 50-60 days in total for whole shoot
[BL confuses Peking Opera percussion with Noh inspired chambara percussion]
[BL's knowledge of Shaw Brother's is a bit weak, he digresses too much]
Pei Pei's real hair in film.
Lots of talk about Clearwater Bay shots.
BL mentions Mars in beggar kids [his head is so noticeable even as a kid]
Pei Pei could not star in Dragon Inn because of Shaw contract.
King Hu talk actors about film, editing, packing bags.
Pei Pei is Buddist.
Always used real swords which caused injuries.
Pei Pei speculates that Run Run kept library so long for smart fiscal reasons.
Pei Pei cut actor around 50.25 in film (Chen Hung-Lieh)
Regina is English name her English teacher gave her. She used Frida for awhile but did not like it.
BL trying to get Painted Faces (1988) for Dragon Dynasty
BL, not a big fan of Critical analysis [that would explain your commentaries], then he goes over possible meanings of drunkenness in this film.
Pei Pei born 1931, came to HK in 1949, King Hu drank a lot, Pei Pei had to help carry him on her birthday because he was so inebriated [story wasn't fully told]
King Hu does not normally show romantic feelings in his film.
BL thinks this is his masterpiece.
Run Run wanted more girls fighting (got that at the end)
Pei Pei talks of missing fight footage in the penultimate fight scene.
BL states it is hard to get rights to the Taiwanese King Hu films.

[cal42]

Thanks for that, Shawn. I'm not a great commentary fan (unless Bruce Campbell's involved) so I found that recap very useful.

This reminds me of something else I forgot to put in my review of Teo's book on A TOUCH OF ZEN. I don't know if it's common knowledge (I certainly didn't know it) but Hu left Shaw Brothers after having an argument with Run Run over his (Hu's) fastidiousness on this film. Apparently, Run Run allocated ten days to finish COME DRINK WITH ME, but then changed his mind and said he wanted it finished in three days. Hu bargained for a week, was refused, and so Hu snapped: "In that case, I'll finish the film in two days!"

It's a bit sad that they effectively rushed it and Hu left under a cloud. Mind you, there's NO WAY he could have done A TOUCH OF ZEN at Shaw Brothers .

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

Thanks for that, Shawn. I'm not a great commentary fan (unless Bruce Campbell's involved) so I found that recap very useful.

This reminds me of something else I forgot to put in my review of Teo's book on A TOUCH OF ZEN. I don't know if it's common knowledge (I certainly didn't know it) but Hu left Shaw Brothers after having an argument with Run Run over his (Hu's) fastidiousness on this film. Apparently, Run Run allocated ten days to finish COME DRINK WITH ME, but then changed his mind and said he wanted it finished in three days. Hu bargained for a week, was refused, and so Hu snapped: "In that case, I'll finish the film in two days!"

It's a bit sad that they effectively rushed it and Hu left under a cloud. Mind you, there's NO WAY he could have done A TOUCH OF ZEN at Shaw Brothers .

Thanks cal (I too love Bruce Campbell commentaries -- though I think the least one I liked was his Elvis commentary on Bubba Ho Tep which did not quite work for me, but heck I liked his commentaries on even The Man with The Screaming Brain ).

That makes sense on the finished product of COME DRINK WITH ME. Pei Pei wasn't involved with the ending editing (that was mentioned in one of the extras which I'll put down here soon, well as soon as I can finish some work ; I do not think that is common knowledge though, but it makes sense in Hu leaving Shaw because of issues like that).

On a side note: for particular DVDs I decided to take more notes of extras/commentaries because certain references have come up and I have not quite been able to remember where I got particular information. Plus this allows me to go back to these notes if I ever need/want to do a full length review. Now only if I had more time .

You were right about no Touch of Zen new release coming out. I could have sworn that was going to come out but oh well .

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

More notes on Come Drink With Me Dragon Dynasty release:

14m English (subtitles are also available, which are a great feature for extras)
The King and I: Acclaimed Director Tsui Hark remembers King Hu
First time seen Wu Xia (like novels) on screen.
Tsui Hark worked with King Hu on Swordsman
Second half of CDWM different than first half; apparently Shaw had problems with the film and interfered.
Discussion of Cheng Pei Pei and how her type is different than females in Chang Cheh films.
Movie had Peking Opera influence.
Strong in Art Direction like Li Han-Hsiang [I don't think I've seen any film by this director]
King Hu was detail oriented especially in costume [many have stated this]
King Hu stated that he invented the term "Action choreographer"
Stated that King Hu helped Cheng Pei Pei how to fight.

16m English (subtitles are also available, which are a great feature for extras)
Come Speak with Me: Interview with Leading Lady Cheng Pei Pei
Born in Shanghai; she uses her real name; immigrated to HK in 61, started training with Shaw Brothers in 62; 1963 started 7-year contract.
Dance is her life; since 8 studying ballet and Chinese dance.
King Hu saw her dance; Han Yan Chieh (Han Ying-Chieh ) was her Sifu, also stunt double.
States that drum rhythm was more like jazz than traditional.
Talks about Simon Yuen Siu-Tin being Yuen Woo-ping's father [without the Simon].
States that new type of Martial art films follow CDWM [I really need to see the Chang Cheh films before this]
Talks how Yueh got hurt with CO2 pump doing Qi Gong.
The Kids belonged to two groups: Yuan Jia Ban, Tang Jia Ban.
Says she does not remember Jackie Chan in movie; states that King Hu says he was there [this is a weird statement]
Only did 1 film with King Hu because he went to Taiwan after; Run Run would not let her go. She was supposed to be the lead in Dragon Gate Inn instead of Polly Kuan (she uses Shang Guam Fingfeng name)
States King Hu was not happy with Shaw Brothers.
Shaws were not happy with her dress in film (nor lack of women; which is why 10 women were put in later).
She spent $35 to get bootleg of film in LA.

17m English (subtitles are also available, which are a great feature for extras)
A Retrospective with Hong Kong Cinema Expert Bey Logan
King Hu had fine art background in Beijing; also wrote articles; was actor and set designer. Mentions attention to detail [states this Ad Nausuem]
Peking Opera Influence
States Inn as microcosm of life
Cheng's cheekbones could cut glass [well so could Fung Hak-On]
Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Ziyi both have dance background which helps with martial arts.
Talks about King Hu wanting to make a movie depicting Chinese Migrant workers at beginning of 20th century.
States no one knows why KH left Shaw brothers [he is wrong on this].
"I actually believe art is born of constraint and dies of freedom." BL quote on why he feels this is his best film and the Taiwanese films were not as good.
Compares King Hu to Peckingpah and Sergio Leone – more because of smaller output.

17m English (subtitles are also available, which are a great feature for extras)
Return of the Drunken Master: An exclusive interview with leading man Yueh HuaGrew up in Shanghai; 1962 moved to HK; 1963 joined Shaw Brothers.
No air conditioning; worked 12 hours per day.
First film as Monkey King [this is Princess Iron Fan (1966), but I noticed he did a few films before that in small roles aka The Warlord and the Actress (1964) and The Lark (1965), I have not seen these so I cannot comment on them]
King Hu used storyboards; one of the first (also one of the first to use trampolines). King Hu English was very good; King Hu had a hand in everything [seems like a true auteur].
His beard was not real.
King Hu kept telling him "No monkey, no monkey" when Yueh went into Monkey King mode.
King Hu used to work for Voice of America [would have been nice to hear more about this]
[possible mistake in subtitles stating this was Cantonese for a few words, sounds Mandarin]
This film made him famous (in Hong Kong).
Quick talk on how CO2 hurt his hands.
Quick talk on Rumble in the Bronx part.
Sir Run Run helped push to get him this part (initially King Hu wanted an older man to play this)

[Brian Thibodeau]

Seems to be a different commentary

Nope, it's the same (especially upon reading your excellent notations), but perhaps they found a way to turn down Marsha Yuan's contributions (which are admittedly minor). On the IVL disc, those unexpected earfucks are brutal.

"I actually believe art is born of constraint and dies of freedom." BL quote on why he feels this is his best film and the Taiwanese films were not as good.

Based on this, I have to assume that many of the film projects Bey Logan has been associated in the past have had too much freedom. Comments like these from people like him (fan boys as scholars) are the reason I never stop hoping for the likes of Stephen Teo et. al. to one day give us commentaries for some of these fantastic films.

[Brian Thibodeau]

By the way, in case anyone's not already aware of it, Deep Discount and DVD Planet are now having their semi-annual 20% off sales.

Code for DVD Planet is "20offsale" and can be used as often as necessary.

Codes for Deep Discount can be used once each, and are:
DVDTALK
USATODAY
NYTIMES
SUPERSALE
PRICESEARCH
SUMMERSALE
YAHOO
ESPN
LATIMES
XM
SOUTHSIDE
WGN
JIM
DEALNEWS

[cal42]

More notes on Come Drink With Me Dragon Dynasty release

More great stuff. Thanks for that. I have the IVL release from the day of release and it really gets on my nerves. Sometimes the subtitles vanish after you're read them and then, when you think there's going to be more subtitles, the SAME line comes up again. Aaaarrgh! It's really off-putting, and occurs in my ANNONYMOUS HEROES DVD as well. I understand IVL corrected the problem, but it's too late for me. I may get this release after all.

By the way, this made me smile:

Discussion of Cheng Pei Pei and how her type is different than females in Chang Cheh films.

There was a FEMALE in a Chang Cheh film?? That must be one that I've failed to pick up!

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

Seems to be a different commentary

Nope, it's the same (especially upon reading your excellent notations), but perhaps they found a way to turn down Marsha Yuan's contributions (which are admittedly minor). ...

"I actually believe art is born of constraint and dies of freedom." BL quote on why he feels this is his best film and the Taiwanese films were not as good.

Based on this, I have to assume that many of the film projects Bey Logan has been associated in the past have had too much freedom. Comments like these from people like him (fan boys as scholars) are the reason I never stop hoping for the likes of Stephen Teo et. al. to one day give us commentaries for some of these fantastic films.

Weird, I did not hear her -- Marsha Yuan. Interesting notes about the IVL disc (from you and cal).

Brian, I found that a strange quotation as well (though I've heard that same idea paralleled many times by different people). I thought it was weird (well not that weird since his influence is quite big there) for Bey to be on this commentary since his knowledge is better with 80s, 90s and Golden Harvest than Shaw Brothers. I think Stephen Teo would give an interesting commentary (one full of homoerotic observations too ) on Come Drink with Me especially since his Shaw Brother's knowledge is quite good (quick note about Teo, his favorite Wu Xia from that time is Golden Swallow, he prefers that to Come Drink WIth Me). I wonder how Dave Kehr would do on a HK commentary? (besides the ones where I've heard like Hardboiled)

What is weird is that most do not agree that this is King's best movie (I can't state since I've only seen this one; cal states that the Tai Seng is OK, but not better of Touch of Zen).

The biggest complaint I have about Bey is that he is a huge name dropper and would rather state every person's name than discuss the mise-en-scene. For CDWM this is especially problematic since King Hu has great placement of camera and use of color, set design, costume and frame (BL does state this, but never in detail).

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

...By the way, this made me smile:

Discussion of Cheng Pei Pei and how her type is different than females in Chang Cheh films.

There was a FEMALE in a Chang Cheh film?? That must be one that I've failed to pick up!

Yea, this one threw me off a bit too

By the Way has anyone here seen Golden Swallow and can comment on it?

[cal42]

By the Way has anyone here seen Golden Swallow and can comment on it?

Yeah. Given my liking for Chang Cheh films, my liking for kung fu bloodbaths, my liking for Cheng Pei-Pei etc etc, it's really surprising even to me how much I hated it. Some films (like SPL) I might change opinions on, but I don't think I'm ever going to change my opinion of this. I re-read my review on here and it's not one of my best, so I can't exactly pinpoint why I disliked it so much, but it's such a run-of-the-mill affair that it really takes away the "special-ness" of CDWM.

Talking of Hu, obviously A TOUCH OF ZEN gets a lot of "talking up" (and I'm one of the biggest culprits) but some love has also got to go to DRAGON (GATE) INN, which is also a great movie (and I see it as a kind of companion film to CDWM). But even on his full debut SONS OF GOOD EARTH he's still making good dramatic cinema. His Taiwanese films are in bad shape for the most part (I still haven't watched VALLIANT ONES, but it's supposed to be good according to Teo). The "MOUNTAIN" films are pretty good, as well, but are NOT wuxia - they're more like supernatural dramas.

One more word on A TOUCH OF ZEN - you've GOT TO be in the right mood when you're watching that!

On Bey Logan - I'm the guy's biggest supporter, obviously, but even I had to raise an eyebrow when I see his name attached to 60's and 70's productions. He's even on the commentary for THE HEROIC ONES - weird!

[Chungking_Cash]

By the Way has anyone here seen Golden Swallow and can comment on it?

My review:

Chang Cheh, renown for male chauvinism, tilts the focus away from actress Cheng Pei Pei in "Golden Swallow" a disappointing, mediocre follow-up to the excellent "Come Drink with Me" one of the first martial arts films to feature a female protagonist. Chang is no King Hu and as such the ambience is not there and neither is the narrative. The actors are fine and the martial arts, while inferior to the original's ballet-style choreography, are square with other Shaw Brothers productions of this period. The script is a featherweight romance that cannot anchor the film and Chang succumbs to his lust for cruel torture and visceral executions multiple times. Even with the finale looming which promises to bring together Jimmy Wang Yu, Cheng Pei Pei, and Lo Lieh in an orgy of bright red syrup -- boredom, unfortunately -- has already taken hold.

6/10

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

Thank you for both replies on Golden Swallow (weird that Stephen Teo is so enamored by it). And thanks cal for the additional King Hu talk (I need to find copies of all of those,so much so little time a common lament ). At least I saw Heroes of the East this weekend .

[cal42]

Yeah, it's odd that Teo likes Golden Swallow (Golden Swallow and Come Drink With Me - two great porn titles if ever I've heard them!) as it's definitely not high-brow (it's more mono-brow). Having said that, the film DOES have its fans - even if there doesn't seem to be too many of them on here. The best advise is to have a look yourself, I suppose.

Now HEROES OF THE EAST, that's a great film!

[Brian Thibodeau]

It would appear that BCI/Navarre finally released that Rarescope box set that was put on hiatus many months back. Now it's called the 5-disc "Advantage Collection: Flicks With Kicks 10 Movie Set." I picked it up for $10 at a U.S. Best Buy over the weekend, although I could have purchased it at Deep Discount for only $7.18 PLUS an additional 20% off because of the ongoing sale they're having. D'oh!! So in case anybody's interested, you know where to go!

Thanks to their recent 8-film repackagings of the titles they hold from the Crown International catalogue (the SCHOOL DAZED set, the MAXIMUM ACTION set, etc.), I've learned by now that with BCI, it's almost always good to wait. Same goes for Shriek Show/Tokyo Shock/Media Blasters as well, since they inevitably repackage their individual releases into 3-packs for a far cheaper price.

I think these Rarescopes were all previously released in standalone editions, but not certain as I never did get around to picking them all up (which is why this set's a bit of a blessing).

Anyways, titles in the set are:

SHAOLIN VS. NINJA
SHAOLIN VS. TAI CHI
SHOWDOWN AT THE COTTON MILL
CHINESE GODGATHER
DUEL OF KARATE
A SWORD NAMED REVENGE
THE LOST SWORDSHIP
NINJAS & DRAGONS
FACE BEHIND THE MASK
THE DREAM SWORD

At Deep Discount:
http://www.deepdiscount.com/viewproduct ... d=44518669

At Amazon (with picture of case)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0016LHH80/

There's actually a whole bunch of these Advantage Collections available, including a couple with other Asian titles mixed in:

ADVANTAGE COLLECTION: EASTERN HORROR (features Robo Vampire, Devil's Dynamite, Magic of the Universe, Counter Destroyer, Satan's Slave, Corpse Master, Vampire Resurrection, Devil Shadow, Calamity of Snakes, Devil's Box)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00186YSR6/

ADVANTAGE COLLECTION: LETHAL LADIES (features Sister Streetfigher, Women In Cell Block 7, Hustler Squad, Velvet Smooth [a z-grade Blackspoitation classic that must be seen to be believed], Escape From Women's Prison, Lady Cocoa, High Kicks, Deported Women of the SS Special Edition, Hit Lady)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0019CFCGU/

ADVANTAGE COLLECTION: THE MASTERS OF THE MARTIAL ARTS (features Young Tiger, Fantasy Mission Force, Karate Warriors, The Bodyguard, Fist of Fear Touch of Death, Cub Tiger from Kwang Tung [would this be the Rarescope version?], The Heroine, Golgo 13, Chinese Hercules, Sister Streetfighter)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00186YSQW/

Other sets, for the drive-in trash curious:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_d?url ... ge&x=0&y=0


.

[Brian Thibodeau]

A few more purchases, these are from the 20% off sale at DVD Planet, where I had a lot of credit to use thanks to all the stuff I've been selling to them in recent months:

PLAYTIME: Criterion
4 FILM FAVOURITES: DRACULA (this set brings together four beautiful Hammer Dracula films previously released invidivually)
THE CAR (sold the Anchor Bay version of this for about $75 last year, but I guess I couldn't live without it after all.)
MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 THE MOVIE (sold the old Image DVD of this one for $150+ a few years back; nice to finally have it back home)
THEM/THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS double feature
MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER VOL. 11


And from Deep Discount's recent "Buy One Get One Free" sale of Anchor Bay titles, got these six for just $18:
DEAD END DRIVE-IN/CUT & RUN double feature
DEAD HEAT
WINTER KILLS
THE DAY THE EARTH CAUGHT FIRE
NUNS ON THE RUN
xxxxxxx

Some of these will probably be resold to DVDPlanet at around what I paid for them (especially the last one, which is too lame to even mention here) but I figured at that price I could at least add them to my mental list of "watched" titles before shuffling the off!


Finally, found these two for $6.99 each in a local bargain store during a visit to my hometown:

DRACULA: 75th ANNIVERSARY EDITION
FRANKENSTEIN: 75th ANNIVERSARY EDITION

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

It would appear that BCI/Navarre finally released that Rarescope box set that was put on hiatus many months back. Now it's called the 5-disc "Advantage Collection: Flicks With Kicks 10 Movie Set." I picked it up for $10 at a U.S. Best Buy over the weekend, although I could have purchased it at Deep Discount for only $7.18 PLUS an additional 20% off because of the ongoing sale they're having. D'oh!! So in case anybody's interested, you know where to go!
...
I think these Rarescopes were all previously released in standalone editions, but not certain as I never did get around to picking them all up (which is why this set's a bit of a blessing).
...

Yes, there were sold separately (though several were sold in two parts like (A Sword Named Revenge / Dream Sword), Rarescope Double Feature Shaolin vs. Ninja & Shaolin vs. Tai Chi, The Rarescope Double Feature: The Chinese Godfather /Duel of Karate. The rest were sold in single editions. I almost picked that up though I have all of those films. I'm not quite happy about that set. Is the extras on that set that are on the single/double disc editions?

[Brian Thibodeau]

Is the extras on that set that are on the single/double disc editions?

Not sure. I'll try and check a couple of the discs tonight. Sometimes BCI just ports over whatever was on the previous releases for these boxed sets, but other times they remove the extras, such as the "drive-in" extras that were on some of the Crown "Starlite Drive-In" double features they released. I'll let you know. I have a few of the first-run DVDs of Rarescopes in this set as well, so I'll probably unload a few things to save space.

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

Is the extras on that set that are on the single/double disc editions?

Not sure. I'll try and check a couple of the discs tonight. Sometimes BCI just ports over whatever was on the previous releases for these boxed sets, but other times they remove the extras, such as the "drive-in" extras that were on some of the Crown "Starlite Drive-In" double features they released. I'll let you know. I have a few of the first-run DVDs of Rarescopes in this set as well, so I'll probably unload a few things to save space.

PM me where you sell your stuff (I would like to get an RSS feed on your merchandise ).

...
Finally, found these two for $6.99 each in a local bargain store during a visit to my hometown:

DRACULA: 75th ANNIVERSARY EDITION
FRANKENSTEIN: 75th ANNIVERSARY EDITION

Dammit; good price (I do have the Dracula one); neat to see you get Playtime (which I really need to get since I love Mon Oncle and M Hulots Holiday so much).

[Brian Thibodeau]

I'm not quite happy about that set. Is the extras on that set that are on the single/double disc editions?

This probably won't make you any happier Masterpunch, but I just checked the Rarescope discs and all the special features have indeed been brought over to the new set: interviews, clips, trailers, Last Days of Bruce Lee documentary, Rarescope promo (set to the score from the Robert Shaw pirate movie Swashbbuckler; I'd love to know where they found that!). And so on . . .

I'd imagine there will probably be a second volume at some point, so if you don't have all the regular Rarescopes just yet, there might be some hope? Don't feel too bad, though. I'm stuck with duplicates now, too!

[Brian Thibodeau]

A few more titles I forgot to list earlier because I didn't unpack them when I got home last night. Found these, factory sealed, for $3 each at a U.S. closeout store called Big Lots (are these places always in the "poor" part of town? Yeeesh!).

LEWIS BLACK: BLACK ON BROADWAY
ANACONDAS: HUNT FOR THE BLOOD ORCHID
BILL MAHER: VICTORY BEGINS AT HOME

and, the only one I'll be keeping for certain since I've already seen it and loved it:
STEAMBOY: DIRECTOR'S CUT.

Apparently these Big Lot stores routinely get in DVDs for this price, and the one I was in had quite a large selection of older MGM, HBO and Sony discs, so if any of you American members have one nearby, there might be some cheap views to be had. Even better, DVD Planet is currently paying $6 for each of the concerts listed above and STEAMBOY, and $4.49 for ANACONDAS, so a small profit can be made unloading some of them. Not too shabby!


EDIT: Found this thread at DVDTalk that lists the titles available through these stores. More than I thought!
http://forum.dvdtalk.com/showthread.php?t=533552



.

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

I'm not quite happy about that set. Is the extras on that set that are on the single/double disc editions?

This probably won't make you any happier Masterpunch, but I just checked the Rarescope discs and all the special features have indeed been brought over to the new set: interviews, clips, trailers, Last Days of Bruce Lee documentary, Rarescope promo (set to the score from the Robert Shaw pirate movie Swashbbuckler; I'd love to know where they found that!). And so on . . .

I'd imagine there will probably be a second volume at some point, so if you don't have all the regular Rarescopes just yet, there might be some hope? Don't feel too bad, though. I'm stuck with duplicates now, too!

Damn bastards (you too Toby).

Yea, I got Steamboy also at Big Lots. That list is crazy (I have picked up about 20 there and several others for gifts). Holy crap I would have loved to pick up Spaceballs CE (2-disc).

Recent purchases:
The Puppetmaster (1993: Taiwan)
Invisible Target (2007 : Hong Kong) Dragon Dynasty
Brother (2000 : Japan)
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000 : Hong Kong) Superbit, yes at Big Lots .
Machine Girl (2008 : Japan)
Human Lanterns (1982 : Hong Kong)
Heroes of the East (already watched, etc...)

[Brian Thibodeau]

Recent purchases:
Machine Girl (2008 : Japan)

I've been contemplating getting this at the 20% off sales for a week now. I enjoyed the director's SUKEBAN BOY in an odd, shameful way (there's a review at my blog), and I can only imagine this would probably top it. Looks like the enigmatically named "Asami" might carve a new career for herself in stuff like this. I remember looking up listings for a couple of her previous endeavours after I watched SUKEBAN BOY and being rather at some of her . . . skills

[Brian Thibodeau]

As the 20% off sales near their end, I still haven't sprung for MACHINE GIRL, but I did spring for the seemingly similar-minded THE GIRLS REBEL FORCE OF COMPETITIVE SWIMMERS (aka Undead Pool) via Hong Kong, as well as a few other DVDs that showed up today:

LOVE IS ELSEWHERE (2008)
RUN PAPA RUN (2008)
L FOR LOVE L FOR LIES (2008)
LOVE STORY (2006; Singapore)
SCARE 2 DIE (2008)
IT'S A MAD MAD WORLD TOO (1992) (had to complete the set! )


.

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

As the 20% off sales near their end, I still haven't sprung for MACHINE GIRL, but I did spring for the seemingly similar-minded THE GIRLS REBEL FORCE OF COMPETITIVE SWIMMERS (aka Undead Pool) via Hong Kong, as well as a few other DVDs that showed up today:
...

That Undead Pool sounds interesting . I wonder how good MACHINE GIRL is actually.

I ended up springing for The Art of Buster Keaton (and several Criterion like Thief of Baghdad, Breathless and an out of place purchase Paper Moon) which put my purchase a little higher than I would have liked

[cal42]

I haven't been rummaging much lately - I'm trying to save up for another NY trip this year. However, when dleedlee put me on to sensasian for Postman Blues, I had a little look around and found they had a version of Fantasy Mission Force with English subs. It arrived today and I had to laugh when I saw the cover:



Methinks someone's been at the Photoshop . That pic of Wang Yu's face (can't identify the body) MUST be from the late 60s. And it was bugging me about Adam Cheng's body until I realised I recognised it - unless I'm very much mistaken that's JC himself from Armour of God.

I've had a quick squint through the disc, and the quality of the disc is actually pretty good, which surprised me. Seeing this gonzo cover has actually put me in the mood to watch this most gozo film!

[ewaffle]

This is a classic "photoshop disaster" methinks.

In addition to the head transplants, the revolver that Brigitte Lin is holding is a lot bigger than any of Dirty Harry's hand cannons and would weigh about 40 pounds.