HEROES SHED NO TEARS -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

 Originally posted on 6/21/19

 

John Woo had already been directing films for 12 years before making HEROES SHED NO TEARS, aka "Ying xiong wu lei" (Film Movement Classics, 1986), but it's the earliest of his films that I've seen which already makes it an interesting watch for a fan of his dazzling, flamboyant directing style.

It was actually completed in 1984 but shelved until Woo's subsequent film A BETTER TOMORROW became a hit.  Sort of a contractual obligation film for Golden Harvest, Woo's heart wasn't completely in it, yet he packed this blazing war thriller with as much bloody, bone-crushing action and tearful sentiment as it would hold.

The story is simple: a group of seasoned Chinese mercenaries are hired by the Thai government to attack the jungle lair of a powerful, loathsome drug lord, destroy it, capture him, and make their way through Thailand, Cambodia, and Viet Nam to the coast and their pickup point.

But once they have him (after the film's first explosive action sequence gets things off to a rousing start), everything goes wrong. The next thrilling scene occurs when the group's leader Chan Chung (Eddy Ko) stops off at his home to check on his family (his son, sister-in-law, and her father), only to find them already taken hostage.

The tense, bullet-riddled mayhem that follows sets the tone for the rest of the film, which will consist of action scene after action scene connected by interludes of both sticky sentiment (Chan Chung and his son have many touching father-son moments) and out-and-out comedy relief supplied by two very gregarious young battle chums.

This is in addition to instances of shocking sadism supplied by an evil Vietnamese colonel with whom the group runs afoul when they rescue a female French journalist from being executed, during which the colonel loses an eye.

He not only orders his own men to go after the group, but also terrorizes a local tribe of villagers into tracking them down as well. With the Thai drug soldiers, the Chinese soldiers, and the native spear-carrying trackers all after our heroes, the film becomes sort of a jungle variation of Walter Hill's THE WARRIORS.

The aforementioned drastic shifts in tone are pretty much all over the place (a quality Woo was aware of while filming), but one hardly has time to take note of this before the next battle fills the air with bullets, blood, and fiery explosions.

At one point Chan Chung runs into an old American friend, one of those "never went home" ex-soldiers whose hut is rigged with about a ton of explosives, all of which will eventually go off when the bad guys find their way there.

Stylistically, the film has little or none of Woo's usual finesse, that certain artistic blend of slow-motion, creative camera angles, and meticulous rapid-fire editing to create a heady visual experience that goes beyond simply recording events.  Here, he uses more of a sledgehammer approach, well-staged but boisterous and bombastic. 

Along the way to their pickup point, our heroic mercenaries go through hell and have their number violently reduced one by one.  It's almost painful to watch when characters we care about are killed and situations go dreadfully wrong, but this is a testament to the relatively crude (by Woo standards) yet viscerally effective HEROES SHED NO TEARS, which is an absolute must-see for John Woo fans.  

Film Movement Classics
1986
99 Minutes
Hong Kong
Cantonese, English, Thai, Vietnamese (English subtitles)
Action, Drama
NR

Blu-ray Features

Interview with star Eddy Ko
New Essay by Grady Hendrix
Sound: 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo

DVD Features

Interview with star Eddy Ko
New Essay by Grady Hendrix
 

HEROES SHED NO TEARS -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

Presenting -- The JOHN WAYNE/ "GREEN BERETS" Lunchbox!

Okay, this isn't a real lunchbox--we were just having a bit of fun with one of the goofier characters from John Wayne's controversial 1968 Viet Nam epic, THE GREEN BERETS. Namely, the doggedly "cute" little Vietnamese kid named "Ham Chunk" (Craig Jue) who's intended to make our heartstrings go all a-flutter.  (Click pics to enlarge.)

In the movie, Ham Chunk is an orphan who hangs around a U.S. military base deep in the combat zone and likes to play pranks on the soldiers (after which he points and utters his catchphrase, "Ha ha, you funny!")

He gets adopted by--or rather, adopts--an unconventional lieutenant named Peterson, played by Jim Hutton, who becomes his father figure.  The cuteness factor is cranked up to eleven during their scenes, especially when accompanied by film composer Miklos Rozsa's bathos-enriched "Ham Chunk" theme music.



[SPOILER] When Peterson fails to return from a dangerous mission, the kid loses it.  "Peter-san!  Peter-san!" he wails, searching desperately amongst the empty helicopters to no avail. 

It's up to the Duke to step up, take the poor kid by the hand, and lead him into the sunset (which, famously, sets in the East). [/SPOILER]

Anyway, the lunchbox may be fictitious, but we'd love to have one.  Whether in the lunchroom at school or the breakroom at work, it would make a dandy conversation piece!

[MORE SPOILERS:]

Presenting -- The JOHN WAYNE/ "GREEN BERETS" Lunchbox!

CHINA BEACH: THE COMPLETE SERIES -- DVD Review by Porfle

 Originally posted on 11/9/2019

 

I was never a fan of "China Beach", but after taking a long look at Time-Life's CHINA BEACH: THE COMPLETE SERIES (1988-1991), I can only conclude that those who are fans will have a field day with this lavish 19-disc collection of 62 episodes, including the original pilot movie and over five hours of bonus features.

The show's premise, of course, is the odyssey of U.S. Army Nurse Colleen McMurphy (Dana Delany, TOMBSTONE) serving a frantic tour of duty at a combination evac hospital and R&R facility set on a picturesque beach near Da Nang in Viet Nam.

Thus we observe the daily dramas of all the nurses, doctors, soldiers, Red Cross volunteers, and various civilian personnel, most of which are based on the real-life experiences of actual people.  (Not the least of these being former nurse Lynda Van Devanter, whose book "Home Before Morning" was the inspiration for the McMurphy character and her story.)

The show's setting is richly authentic, managing to give those of us with no such experience whatsoever an idea of what life was like there. McMurphy's days and nights are filled with the blood, horror, and tragedy of war, yet she must try to keep herself grounded by maintaining some semblance of normality in her personal life and dealings with friends and coworkers.

We also meet a widely-diverse cast of characters including Dr. Dick Richards (Robert Picardo, "Star Trek: Voyager"), whose playboy lifestyle helps him deal with a deteriorating marriage; SP4 Samuel Beckett (Michael Boatman), who processes dead bodies and thus has a unique perspective on mortality; and Red Cross volunteer Cherry White (Nan Woods), a painfully naive young woman searching for her MIA brother, Rick.

Local prostitute K.C (a stunning Marg Helgenberger, "CSI") is basically there to leech off the servicemen but eventually forms a meaningful relationship with Corporal "Boonie" Boonwell (Brian Wimmer), China Beach's lifeguard and recreation manager.  We also get to know enigmatic recon operative Sgt. Evan "Dodger" Winslow (Jeff Kober, THE BABY DOLL MURDERS), trying to hold onto his humanity after having served in the jungle for too long.

Like "M*A*S*H" before it, everyday moments of happiness or strife are often interrupted by either a sudden influx of wounded G.I.s or harrowing enemy attacks, the worst being an intense episode which occurs during the TET offensive. 

For me, these segments represent "China Beach" at its most compelling. I find it least interesting when it lapses into soap opera, concentrates too much on characters such as USO singer Laurette Barber (Chloe Webb), whom I found obnoxious, or borders on the morally ambiguous, as when McMurphy allows a Viet Cong patient who blew up several G.I.s in a bar to go free and perhaps kill again simply because she feels sorry for her.

The show also tends, in my opinion, to come off as rather sanctimonious, as though basking in its own nobility for being so lavishly well-intentioned. Other viewers, I happily concede, may not get this impression at all.

Indeed, being quite aware of the immense and generally well-deserved popularity of the show, I can heartily recommend CHINA BEACH: THE COMPLETE SERIES to those devoted fans who will fully appreciate having all 62 episodes (not to mention the wealth of featurettes, commentaries, interviews, and bonus booklets) in their DVD collection.

CHINA BEACH: THE COMPLETE SERIES -- DVD Review by Porfle

COMBAT SHOCK, aka "American Nightmares" -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

 Originally posted on 7/21/2018

 

Sometimes you discover a film by an indie first-timer that's so earnestly conceived and fiercely original that it transcends its rock-bottom budget to become something fascinating. The PTSD nightmare COMBAT SHOCK, aka "American Nightmares" (Severin Films, 1984), is one of those movies, capable of keeping us transfixed whether we like it or not.

Not that this story of a Viet Nam vet named Frankie (Rick Giovinazzo), still haunted by the jungles of Southeast Asia while trying to fit back into the urban jungle of New York, isn't derivative, because even the writer director Buddy Giovinazzo (Rick's brother) admits he was heavily influenced by both "Taxi Driver" and "Eraserhead."

The "Taxi Driver" influence is most pronounced in the depiction of the city's most rancid, sordid underside, a hideous ruin filled with drooling junkies, cruel pushers and loan sharks, violent pimps, and other lowlifes.

This is the world through which Frankie trudges in his neverending search for a job or some other means of paying off his crushing debts to keep from being evicted or having his legs broken, or both.
His home life is no better, with a claustrophobic's nightmare of a filthy apartment that should be in the dictionary under "squalor."  His wife Cathy (Veronica Stork) nags incessantly, but I don't blame her because her life is a living hell as well.

This is especially true since she's stuck taking care of their mutant year-old baby, an Agent Orange casualty that looks like an infant Cropsy from "The Burning" only worse and is constantly screeching in an otherworldly voice.  (The puppetry used to create this eye-curdling monstrosity is a marvel.)  Taken as a whole, Frankie's home life makes "Eraserhead" look like a musical comedy.

Frankie's also haunted by war flashbacks involving some horrific massacre of villagers which he was powerless to stop, as well as being hunted until captured and then subjected to agonizing prolonged torture.

In his state of mind, the past and present keep overlapping until he sometimes doesn't know where he is, or when. Coupled with his incredible bad luck, this takes a toll on his sanity that eventually has him acting in dangerously irrational ways.

The film is impressively directed for someone who was pretty much a neophyte, always capably transcending its extremely meager budget and often showing flashes of brilliance.  Yet the overwhelming squalor is unrelenting, almost soul-crushing, not just for Frankie but also the desperate junkies and other hard luck cases we see begging for dope, begging for food or a second chance to repay a debt, or dying like starving rats on the street.

Buddy G. pulls no punches here, and the film is graphically gory and violent as well as brimming with disturbing images (people eating from garbage cans, little girls being sold as prostitutes, staggering inhumanity and despair, and, always, that utterly repellant baby).  As he states himself, he made the film with no regard for its commercial appeal, instead simply following his artistic instincts wherever they might lead.

They lead, finally, to a shocking (an understatement, to be sure) conclusion in which Frankie's burgeoning psychosis inevitably reaches full fruition. The last segment of the film enters a realm of dementia that's rendered in such twisted visual terms that it might have you questioning the sanity of the filmmakers themselves.

Filmed in dribs and drabs over a long period of time with uncertain finances and mostly amateur talent, COMBAT SHOCK is almost better than it has a right to be.  The cast is mostly unpolished but intense and filled with conviction.

The chintzy sets and sometimes unconvincing exteriors (Staten Island fills in for Viet Nam) create a world of their own which is augmented by several great authentic locations.  Rick Giovinazzo contributes a terrific original musical score.

The 2-disc Blu-ray edition from Severin Films contains this score on a CD as well as the uncensored, fully remastered director's cut on another disc which is also brimming with special features (listed below) including an engaging commentary from the Giovinazzo brothers and special makeup FX artist Ed Varuolo.

The version I reviewed is a special limited edition of 2000 that's autographed by Buddy Giovinazzo and comes with a fully illustrated book containing the daily shooting diary, shooting script with notations, and publicity materials, plus a piece of film from the movie itself.  

I once thought "Taxi Driver" was a downer, but compared to COMBAT SHOCK it's a Miyazaki film.  It's as though some celebrated auteur suddenly went insane and made a movie using whatever cash he had in his pockets at the time, and watching it is an experience which is both stunningly nightmarish and utterly freaky-deaky.


Buy It From Severin Films
 

Special Features:
American Nightmares Director’s Cut (new 4k scan from 35mm Inter-negative with 2k inserts from the Director’s personal 16mm answer print. Mono audio remaster from original mag tracks. New color correction supervised by Director Buddy Giovinazzo)
Audio Commentary with Writer/Producer/Director Buddy Giovinazzo, Actor/Composer Rick Giovinazzo and Special Makeup Effects Artist Ed Varuolo
The Brothers G: Interview with Buddy & Rick Giovinazzo
Nightmare Effects: Interview with Special Makeup Effects Artist Ed Varuolo
Combat Shots: Interview with Director of Photography Stella Varveris
Playing Paco: Interview with Actor Mitch Maglio
Mike the Junkie Memories: Interview with Actor Michael Tierno
American Deep Red: Interview with Artist/Critic Stephen Bissette
Shock Xpression: Interview with International Film Journalist Alan Jones
Outtakes and Tests
Post Traumatic: An American Nightmare Featurette
Hellscapes: Locations Then and Now
Buddy Giovinazzo and Jörg Buttgereit at 2009 Berlin Film Festival
Combat Shock Trailer
16mm Short Films:
Mr. Robbie: Maniac II Promo (New 2k scan from Answer Print)
Audio Commentary with Director Buddy Giovinazzo and Composer Rick Giovinazzo
Outtakes
Jonathan of the Night Promo (New 2k Scan from Workprint)
The Lobotomy (16mm Version)
A Christmas Album
Leave This World (Music Video) [New 2k scan from Workprint)
8mm Short Films:
The Lobotomy (8mm Version)
More Than a Mouthful
Paranoiac
Maniac Drummer
The Combat Shock Limited Edition Blu-ray Package also includes:
FIRST EVER CD Soundtrack of the film
American Nightmares Scrapbook:  96-page booklet with Director’s Diary, Shooting Script, Rare Photos, Storyboards, & More
Individual Actual Frames of the Director’s Workprint
Limited Edition Numbered Slipcover Autographed by Director Buddy Giovinazzo

COMBAT SHOCK, aka "American Nightmares" -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

Saban Films Closes in on “DANGER CLOSE: THE BATTLE OF LONG TAN”

SABAN FILMS CLOSES IN ON KRIV STENDERS’ “DANGER CLOSE: THE BATTLE OF LONG TAN”

Vietnam War Drama will be Slated for Theatrical Release

LOS ANGELES (May 15, 2019) – Saban Films is closing in on the North American rights to Kriv Stenders’ (Red Dog, Boxing Day) Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan starring Travis Fimmel (Warcraft: The Beginning, “Vikings”) and Daniel Webber (The Dirt, “The Punisher”).  The biggest budget Australian movie for a decade, the film is based on an unbelievable true story.  The Vietnam war drama was written by Stuart Beattie (Pirates of the Caribbean franchise), and James Nicholas, Karel Segers, Paul Sullivan and Jack Brislee.  The film was produced by John Schwarz and Michael Schwarz for Deeper Waters Productions, alongside Martin Walsh for Red Dune Films, Stuart Beattie, Tony H. Noun, Silvio Salom for SunJive Studios, and Andrew Mann.  The film will be slated for a theatrical release.

Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan takes place late afternoon August 18, 1966, in South Vietnam.  For three and a half hours, in the pouring rain, amid the mud and shattered trees of a rubber plantation called Long Tan, Major Harry Smith and his dispersed company of 108 young and mostly inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers fight for their lives, holding off an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 battle-hardened Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers.

Saban Films’ Bill Bromiley said, ““It’s an honor to represent the epic feature that is Danger Close. This film commemorates such a remarkable story of heroism, ready to be brought to the forefront. We look forward to sharing it with the American audience.”

“We are thrilled to have Saban Films as our North American distributor,” stated Saboteur Media’s Mark Lindsay.  “Danger Close pays tribute to all Vietnam war veterans and brings to light the incredible sacrifices these young men endured.”

Bill Bromiley and Jonathan Saba negotiated the deal for Saban Films along with Mark Lindsay, David Kennedy and Claire Warnes for Saboteur Media and Nic Cole on behalf of the filmmakers.  Saboteur Media is handling worldwide sales.

During Cannes, Saban Films acquired I See You starring Helen Hunt and Bottom of the 9th with Joe Manganiello and Sofía Vergara.

Saban Films remains active in the acquisition and distribution space, and recently announced their partnership with Kevin Smith’s highly-anticipated Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, coming on board from script stage for the sequel to the 2001 comedy Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.  Its upcoming slate includes: Casey Affleck’s directorial debut Light of My Life; The Professor starring Johnny Depp; Brian De Palma’s Domino starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau; and Derrick Borte’s American Dreamer starring Jim Gaffigan. 

Saban Films continues to grow its presence in the industry, with successes that have run the gamut from critically acclaimed theatrical films such as The Homesman starring Hilary Swank, to one of the biggest Fathom events in 2016 with Rob Zombie’s horror thriller 31.  Recent titles include: The Haunting of Sharon Tate starring Hilary Duff; Sarah Daggar-Nickson’s A Vigilante starring Olivia Wilde; James Marsh’s King of Thieves starring Michael Caine, Jim Broadbent, Tom Courtenay and Michael Gambon; the anthology Berlin, I Love You with Helen Mirren, Keira Knightley and Jim Sturgess; the Gerard Butler starrer The Vanishing; Alexandre Moors’ The Yellow Birds starring Tye Sheridan, Alden Ehrenreich, Toni Collette, Jason Patric, Jack Huston and Jennifer Aniston; Eshom and Ian Nelms’ lauded feature Small Town Crime starring John Hawkes and Octavia Spencer; and Ivan Kavanagh’s Never Grow Old starring John Cusack and Emile Hirsch.

About Saban Films
Saban Films, an affiliate of Saban Capital Group (“SCG”), is a film acquisition and distribution company which acquires high-quality, feature films to distribute in North America.  Focusing on commercial, talent driven films, the company looks at projects in all stages of production for release across multiple platforms, including a day and date theatrical/VOD release strategy. Based in Los Angeles, Saban Films was established by Haim Saban, SCG Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and is led by Bill Bromiley who serves as President, Shanan Becker, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer and Ness Saban, Vice President of Business Development.

About Saboteur Media
Saboteur Media is a fully integrated filmed entertainment company based in New York City, and is part of the Goldcrest group of companies. Along with producing and financing feature films and television, Saboteur has built one of the premiere documentary companies in the United States, while also running an international sales company using their infrastructure and expertise to sell titles on a territory-by-territory basis worldwide.

Saboteur is responsible for producing over 30 feature films including Love Thy Keepers (AKA Life Like), Rubble Kings, Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives, Stolen Seas, Tell Spring Not to Come This Year, Doin’ it in the Park: Pick-up Basketball, NYC, Being George Clooney and The Iconoclast.

Saboteur is headquartered in the West Village in New York, where they operate a full-service post production facility under the Goldcrest Post New York banner.  Goldcrest Post New York has worked on feature films including Carol, Still Alice, Love is Strange, Beach Rats and Juliet Naked, along with television properties such as Billions, Hap and Leonard, Blue Bloods, and The Girlfriend Experience.

www.saboteurmedia.com

Saban Films Closes in on “DANGER CLOSE: THE BATTLE OF LONG TAN”

"The Green Berets" Ending: Corrected (John Wayne, 1968) (video)

This film is often criticized for its ending...

...in which the sun appears to set in the East.

This is the corrected version.

Actually, my flipping the final shot didn't work like I thought it would.

The sun still appears to set in the East.

Oh well, at least I tried.

Or, maybe the sun's rising? Yeah...that's the ticket.  It's rising.


I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it.  Thanks for watching!

"The Green Berets" Ending: Corrected (John Wayne, 1968) (video)

Saboteur Media Brings Epic Vietnam War Story "DANGER CLOSE" To Cannes

                                   Luke Bracey, "Danger Close"

SABOTEUR MEDIA BRINGS EPIC VIETNAM WAR STORY, DANGER CLOSE TO CANNES

New York, NY, May 2, 2018 – Saboteur Media (Saboteur) President of Distribution Mark Lindsay announced today that the company will be selling worldwide rights on the upcoming epic war movie, Danger Close, starring Travis Fimmel (Vikings, Warcraft), Luke Bracey (Hacksaw Ridge, Point Break, G.I. Joe: Retaliation), Richard Roxburgh (Breath, Hacksaw Ridge, Moulin Rouge) and Daniel Webber (The Dirt, The Punisher), beginning at the Marché du Film in Cannes.

The epic and dramatic exploration of war, was written by Stuart Beattie (Collateral, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Australia), and will be directed by Kriv Stenders (Red Dog, Kill Me Three Times, Australia Day). The picture is being produced by John Schwarz (The Hunter’s Prayer, Killerman, Deadline Gallipoli), Michael Schwarz (The Hunter’s Prayer, Killerman, Deadline Gallipoli), and Martin Walsh (The Battle of Long Tan).

Richard Roxburgh, "Danger Close"

The Australian production, with backing from the Federal Government and the Queensland Government through Screen Queensland, commences principal photography in May in Queensland, Australia, and will be distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Transmission Films.

Danger Close tells the incredible true story of when in the late afternoon on August 18, 1966 in South Vietnam, for three and a half hours, in torrential rain, amid the mud and shattered trees of a rubber plantation called Long Tan, Major Harry Smith and his dispersed company of 108 young and mostly inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers fought for their lives, holding off an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 battle hardened North Vietnamese and Main Force Viet Cong soldiers. With their ammunition running out, their casualties mounting and the enemy massing for a final assault, amid non-stop artillery barrages, each man braced themselves for the fight of their lives.

Mark Lindsay, President of Distribution for Saboteur notes: “We are extremely honored and excited to help bring this epic story of heroism, courage and honor to the marketplace. With the full support of the Australian film community, as well as the Australian military services, there is a great deal of goodwill behind this project, and with Kriv Stenders directing a high profile cast with an amazing script from Stuart Beattie, we are confident the movie will appeal to audiences worldwide.”

Kriv Stenders, Director, said: “I knew immediately when I finished the last page that this is a film I had to make, a story I needed to tell, and a project I absolutely had to be involved with. This is the most ambitious film I have ever directed, and one of the most ambitious films coming out of Australia in the last 30 years.”

Travis Fimmel, "Danger Close"

About Saboteur Media
Saboteur Media is a fully integrated filmed entertainment company based in New York City, and is part of the Goldcrest group of companies. Along with producing and financing feature films and television, Saboteur has built one of the premiere documentary companies in the United States, while also running an international sales company using their infrastructure and expertise to sell titles on a territory-by-territory basis worldwide.

Saboteur is responsible for producing over 30 feature films including Love Thy Keepers, Rubble Kings, Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives, Stolen Seas, Tell Spring Not to Come This Year, Doin’ it in the Park: Pick-up Basketball, NYC, Being George Clooney and The Iconoclast.
Saboteur is headquartered in the West Village in New York, where they operate a full service post production facility under the Goldcrest Post New York banner. Goldcrest Post New York has worked on feature films including Carol, Still Alice, Love is Strange, Beach Rats and Juliet Naked, along with television properties such as Billions, Hap and Leonard, Blue Bloods, and The Girlfriend Experience.

www.saboteurmedia.com

(Photo credit: Saboteur)

Saboteur Media Brings Epic Vietnam War Story "DANGER CLOSE" To Cannes