Nam Nai-choi's Shaw Brothers actioner MEN FROM THE GUTTER is coming soon from Vinegar Syndrome. He wasn't just goo and gore in the vein Story Of Ricky. He knew genres, and this demonstrates it well. vinegarsyndrome.com/collections/...

Good option for US customers while Europeans should wait for Arrow to announce theirs. That’s the beauty of the Cinema City/Golden Princess deal going global.

Goo and gore in Volume 4!

Actually two commentaries on the go, at the same time. We sure can multitask.

What if there was a Dean Shek movie where you didn’t want to throttle him, where you actually rooted for him as a battle-scarred hero? That’s The Raid (1991), from Tsui Hark & Ching Siu-tung. Hear why Shek is the right fit as Uncle Choi in the latest episode of Podcast On Fire.

Howdy neighbour from across the sea. Things are looking bleak.

🎧 New Podcast On Fire! Tsui Hark & Ching Siu-tung bring comic book chaos to 1930s Manchuria in THE RAID (1991), an adaptation of the Uncle Choi manhua. With Kenny B @sogoodreviews.bsky.social & Michael Scott @a4epodcast.bsky.social. Listen: podcastonfire.com | Apple | Spotify etc🔥

It starts... again.

A veteran of dramas & huangmei operas, Yueh Feng brings fresh eyes to wuxia’s revenge cycle in The Bells of Death (1968). Primal, bloody, and raw and proof that even in the twilight of his career he could match, even outdo, the new wave of wuxia films.

Doing the thing with the research and the podcast.

May I just say, Podcast on Fire is one of the best podcasts out there, maybe the best podcast about Hong Kong film. Comfort food for the soul. Sometimes I skip episodes because I want to see the movie first, but I am eternally grateful for Kenny and the crew of contributors. Get it in your ears.

Shout! Studios have announced the full specs for their Hard Boiled 4K UHD + Blu-ray, out November 4, 2025. Full details in the pics.

The Sword and the Lute closes Shaw’s early wuxia trilogy with familiar faces but diminishing returns. Wang Yu and Chin Ping are sidelined, action is competent but less gory, and only the titular lute and and its effects really stand out. A respectable wrap-up, but wisely the end.

A swift sequel to Temple of the Red Lotus, The Twin Swords expands Shaw’s new wuxia vision with faster swordplay, grisly violence, and the Red Lotus Temple’s ingenious trap-lair. Operatic melodrama dates it, but the mix of spectacle and gore keeps the trilogy’s momentum.

✅ Playback issues fixed! Podcast On Fire Network is fully playable again on Apple Podcasts iOS, Spotify, Podbay, Audible & more. Catch our latest ep: a John Woo triple bill (Money Crazy, Follow the Star, Last Hurrah for Chivalry). 🎧 podcastonfire.com

Shaw Brothers’ first color wuxia, TEMPLE OF THE RED LOTUS (1965), blends high production values, family-centered conflict, and gory swordplay staged by an uncredited Lau Kar-leung & Tang Chia. A mature launch that feels fresh even after thousands of wuxia films followed.

NEW Podcast On Fire! 🔥 Back to the early days of John Woo, with a triple bill! First up, quick takes on his comedies MONEY CRAZY and FOLLOW THE STAR. Then we dive into the centerpiece: LAST HURRAH FOR CHIVALRY. 🎧 Listen now on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you get podcasts.

So Celestial puts out Temple of the Red Lotus, the first color wuxia from Shaw Brothers, on a non-anamorphic restored DVD. Fine. Then The Twin Swords and The Sword and the Lute get digital HD releases but not Temple. Way to sideline the film that started the whole trilogy.

Three John Woo-movies. One podcast (on fire). Tomorrow. Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you find podcasts.

Chang Cheh’s first surviving wuxia, THE MAGNIFICENT TRIO (1966), doesn’t go for the jugular, but the Chang Cheh we know starts here: bloody brotherhood alongside a still female-centric story. Largely a remake of Three Outlaw Samurai.

Revisiting Chang Cheh means revisiting Hideo Gosha. If you know you know.

DOCTOR VAMPIRE (1990, dir. Jamie Luk) Hong Kong horror-comedy as East meets West: jiangshi lore collides with Dracula tropes, AIDS gags and all. Low-brow but inventive, with sharp visual jokes and a manic finale that shows just how fast and loose HK cinema of the era could play.

From the pen of Chang Cheh comes THE FEMALE PRINCE (1964). After an early stabbing, it shifts into lighthearted Huangmei opera mode. Songs, disguises, and Ivy Ling Po excelling in male guise, her comic panic peaking when the Emperor orders “him” to wed a princess.

Eureka catchup. All rewatches except the Shaw revenge double pack. Looking forward to revisiting Doctor Vampire.

NEW Podcast On Fire! 🎙️ Part 2 of our Lee Rock deep dive, with Lee Rock II. The rise is over. The reckoning begins. Aaron Kwok joins the fray, with politics, family drama, and Andy Lau’s aged turn. Listen now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get podcasts.

And if you want to go back to the original episode covering Il Mare, you can find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify etc under "What's Korean Cinema? 60 – Il Mare" podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/w...

LEGEND OF THE MOUNTAIN (1979) – Now at full 190 minutes, we see King Hu’s intentions in full, spectral force. Elegant and unsettling, it drifts from serene landscapes to supernatural dread, turning a simple ghost tale into an atmospheric battle of spirits, beauty, and terror.

Too Many Ways To Be No.1 splits into two timelines: one frantic, one tense, where triads spiral toward ruin. With upside-down shots, long takes, and zero respect for genre rules, it’s Milkyway’s mission statement realized. Twisted, darkly funny, and razor-sharp.

Revisiting Wai Ka-fai’s Too Many Ways To Be No.1. No, the picture’s not upside down by accident. If you know, you know.

MAD MONKEY KUNG FU (1979) - Lau Kar-Leung would be the right person to respond to the kung fu comedy-trend and make a Master-pupil story. We've got incredible choreography, Hsiao Ho is wonderful but less so when goofing off on his own. 115 minutes tests your patience as well.

THE HOUSE OF 72 TENANTS (1973, dir. Chor Yuen) Still a tough nut to fully crack for a non-Cantonese speaker, but as a landmark film, the starter pistol for the Cantonese revival, its cultural weight makes it essential viewing. Despite that local specificity.

Woah!

Thought on being creative, and pushing product:

Director Taylor Wong has reportedly passed away. A former TV director who transitioned into film, Wong leaves behind a significant mark on Hong Kong cinema. His credits include Buddha’s Palm, Rich and Famous, Tragic Hero, Triads: The Inside Story, Sentenced to Hang.

A TIME FOR LOVE (1970, dir. Kuei Chih-Hung) Musical fantasy, robot chaos, split-screen comedy, and a touch of class tension. Kuei Chih-Hung may be playing by studio rules here, but he’s already bending tone and style with a grin. You can feel the leash loosening, and he’s having fun with it.

Some of you like the Venoms and Fu Sheng. I like the Bloody Frog from Curse Of Evil. That’s Shaw Brothers to me.

DEAD END (1969) - Chang Cheh's portrayal of disillusioned, angry youth set in modern day Hong Kong takes a while to get going but coming from the era where he was such a character driven storyteller, it comes as no surprise that DEAD END excels in the long run. Ti Lung's tragic is worth following.

Marketing like this works on me.

At @podcastonfire.bsky.social, @sogoodreviews.bsky.social and Phil G. watch Tiger On The Beat (Hong Kong, 1988)! culturalgutter.com/2025/07/12/p...

THE VALIANT ONES (1975) Mostly business as usual coming from King Hu and friends. Grand scenery and costumes but Sammo Hung elevates and gets King Hu’s style up to an equivalent of modern times. Swordplay and kung-fu has never looked as powerful in a King Hu film as it does here.

BOXER REBELLION (1976) blends patriotic spectacle with martial arts drama. But despite its scale and Chang Cheh’s restored full cut, it buckles under the weight. Ambitious in scope, but not affecting enough to land. Chi Kuan-Chun leads with quiet strength. Fu Sheng struggles.

Part 1 of our Lee Rock special is out now! Hong Kong’s most iconic corruption saga starring Andy Lau. This is our last show before the summer break, but we’ve got a bonus episode coming soon. 🎧 Listen on podcastonfire.com, Apple, Spotify & more.

A tight, efficient one from Chang Cheh. MARCO POLO isn’t a heavy history lesson, despite the setting. Richard Harrison plays the famed explorer, but it’s really about rebels, awesome training montages, and Gordon Liu as a villain (!). Familiar structure, but it still plays well.

Ti Lung plays real-life pirate Cheung Po Tsai in this co-directed Chang Cheh film that stays landlocked and limp. The righteous outlaw angle had promise, but weak drama, scattered vision, and minimal action sink it. THE PIRATE remains a studio product, not a creative push.

Soy in hand, snacks at the ready? Because you'd want to be as cool as Andy. Settle in for part 1 of our deep dive into the life and films of Lee Rock. Now streaming at podcastonfire.com, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.

FOUR RIDERS (1972, dir. Chang Cheh) leans into a post–Korean War story and bloody brotherhood but fumbles its Four Horsemen metaphor. The gymnasium brawl is visceral, the scalp-ripping is special, but it’s ultimately just another watchable product from the team and the Shaw Brothers film factory.

Shaw Brothers go full tilt in The Boxer’s Omen. Black magic, a regurgitation relay race, vomiting of snakes, and unlikely lead Phillip Ko holding it all together. It won’t enlighten you, but it’ll punch you in the face, puke on your shoes, and ask if you want more. Viva Kuei Chih-hung!

CENTIPEDE HORROR (1982, dir. Keith Lee) - The film uses its meagre means well, a lot of this is done physically. Crude SFX make up, centipedes crawling on top of game actors, all star Margaret Lee regurgitating them, it’s a good, gross-out time. Not every black magic film had this energy.

RED SPELL SPELLS RED (1983, dir. Titus Ho) - As with Centipede Horror, a lot of the same positives can be found here. Physical, creative manifestations of the black magic and a good amount of gross sights. The cinematography is decently creative as well, especially during the frenzied finale.