Mike Leeder brings another round-up of the news-stories from the world of eastern action that you may have overlooked in the last few weeks…
DOLPH LUNDGREN HAS HIS FINGER ON ‘DEAD TRIGGER’…
The video game Dead Trigger makes the jump to the big screen and in doing so pits Dolph Lundgren against the walking, running and biting dead for the second time in his career (fans will know he previously battled zombies and killer robots in Battle of the Damned). The game and movie are set in a world where a mystery plague has killed billions and turned many into zombie-like creatures that, as ever,prey on human flesh. Lundgren plays Kyle the hero of the game, who forms an uneasy alliance with a group of survivors who have created a colony known as ‘New Hope’. The group also finds a government-run bunker and uncovers the truth about those responsible for the plague…
The films cast also includes former UFC champion Oleg Taktarov (Predators) and Lundgren’s long time stunt double, Tony Messenger (Fatal Match). Form the first stills released, it appears as if Lundgren is channeling his take on a certain Frank Castle, from back in the days when he portrayed the first screen incarnation of Marvel‘s Punisher.
WILSON YIP TO DIRECT ‘STORM RIDERS 3’…
It’s nearly 20 years since Andrew Lau’s live action adaptation of Ma Wing-shing’s comic book series Fung Wan hit the big screen as The Storm Riders, with a blend of Wuxia and some very impressive digital special effects… and a star-studded cast lead by Aaron Kwok, Ekin Cheng and Sonny Chiba. Many of the cast and crew returned for another big budget comic book adaptation, A Man Called Hero, and while there was a lot of talk about another adventure for The Storm Riders it took until 2009, when the Pang Brothers delivered The Storm Warriors. Sadly it didn’t hit anywhere near the box office or charm of the original. But the announcement that a third Storm Riders movie is in the works – with Ip Man franchise director Wilson Yip in the director’s chair and Louis Koo heading up the cast – does have us hoping for the best.
Storm Riders trailer:
SEAGAL’S PERFECT WEAPON..
Our obligatory Steven Seagal news-story begins here. Although the idea of a current-incarnation of Steven Seagal jumping around performing a bare chested form to the beats of Snap’s I’ve got the Power! MIGHT make a hell of an amusing opening, the new Steven Seagal movie The Perfect Weapon is not a remake of Jeff Speakman’s Kenpo classic from the early 1990s. Although Seagal gets top billing, the lead is actually Johnny Messner from Kill ‘Em All and the supporting cast includes Richard Tyson and Wez from the Road Warrior himself Vernon Wells. Titus Paar is the director.
The pitch: In a not too distant future, a totalitarian state run by ‘The Director” (Seagal) controls all aspects of life. All enemies of the state are dealt in the harshest way. Most of them are executed by the secret government’s assassins. The best operative is code-named “Condor” (Messner) – an elite agent and hit man for the government. However, in his latest assignment, “Condor” fails to kill an opposition leader, and finds himself on the run from the very same government agency that he works for. This sets in motion a chain of events with unforeseen consequences for all involved. But “Condor” just might survive the hunt because he is… (drum-roll) The Perfect Weapon.
You can see more here:
WARRIORS GATE: LUC BESSON HITS CHINA…
Luc Besson’s Europa Corp is unleashing the time-traveling China-set fantasy Warriors Gate, directed by Matthias Hoene (Cockneys Vs Zombies), and starring Mark Chao (Young Detective Dee), Ni Ni (Flowers of War), Uriah Shelton (Girl Meets World), Dave Bautista from Guardians of the Galaxy, Spectre and the upcoming Kickboxer: Vengeance, Sienna Guillory (Resident Evil: Apocalypse), Francis Ng (The Mission) and Dutch super-kicker Ron Smoorenburg.
Here’s a first look…
‘FEAR IS THE KEY’ AS STUDIO CANAL UNLOCKS A REMAKE…
Based on Alexander McClean’s 1961 novel of the same name, Michael Tuchner’s 1972 adaptation hit the screen with Barry Newman (Vanishing Point) playing a deep sea salvage diver who is forced to kidnap an heiress in an attempt to infiltrate the gang that murdered his family. It was a big hit across Europe but not so much in America. Now, thanks to producer Cassian Elwes – whose stepfather served as a producer on the original, a remake is in the works with Andre Gaines and Elwes serving as producers and Terrell Garrett writing the script.
“I’ve loved this movie ever since I was a kid,” Elwes said. “It was one of my stepfather’s favorite movies, and my hope is to remake it even better than he did.”
“I’m happy to help Cassian breathe new life into Fear is the Key,” Gaines said. “The film takes the revenge thriller to the next level, and it is the type of movie you want to watch over and over again…”
There’s no word yet on any cast and crew, but the idea of an update of a classic Euro-Thriller gets us quite excited…
