Thrillers | Cagey Films

Recent Asian releases from Eureka

Posted on August 2, 2023July 29, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

Disillusioned Christians Shiro Amakusa (Kenji Sawada) and Hosokawa Gracia (Akiko Kana) return from the dead to seek revenge in Kenji Fukasaku's Samurai Reincarnation (1981)

Eureka, and their specialty label Masters of Cinema, continue to release a range of Asian films, from pulp action to classical tragedy. Among recent releases are a two-disk set of four sequels to Rickay Lau’s Mr. Vampire (1985), Cynthia Rothrock’s first lead role in Mang Hoi & Corey Yuen’s Lady Reporter (1989), and a pair of very different samurai epics: Tadashi Imai’s bleak dissection of the Bushido code in Revenge (1964) and Kenji Fukasaku’s mix of history and supernatural horror in Samurao Reincarnation (1981).

More recent Indicator releases

Posted on July 22, 2023July 22, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

Arthur Welt (Frank Wolff) seeks revenge for what he believes was an injustice in Enzo G. Castellari's Cold Eyes of Fear (1971)

A pair of colourful Robin Hood adventures from Hammer Films and an atypical home-invasion thriller from action specialist Enzo G. Castellari are showcased in two recent releases from Indicator.

The amateur passion of Michael J. Murphy

Posted on July 12, 2023July 11, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

Director Alistair (Patrick Oliver) assumes the identity of the killer in his own movie in Michael J. Murphy's Bloodstream (1985)

Although I’ve so far only watched four of the ten disks in Indicators monumental Magic, Myth & Mutilation: The Micro-Budget Cinema of Michael J. Murphy 1967-2015, it’s time to say a few words about this remarkable English outsider artist whose ambition consistently outpaced limited resources; the set is an amazing act of recovery and preservation of a body of work which has survived only in compromised form, covering multiple genres and displaying the development of a genuine filmmaking talent. The most impressive release yet from one of the world’s finest companies.

Comedy, disasters, crime and horror: more new releases

Posted on June 14, 2023June 12, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

The Bowler (Janeane Garofalo) has issues with her father's skull in Kinka Usher's Mystery Men (1999)

I’ve been revisiting some familiar movies in upgraded editions, with new transfers and extras; some I haven’t seen in years, even decades, They run the gamut from horror to comedy, thrillers to superheroes, zombies and monsters.

Action and politics in ’70s thrillers

Posted on May 31, 2023May 30, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

Nice large-scale miniatures in Andrew V. McLaglen's North Sea Hijack (1980)

Thrillers may exploit real-world issues for story material, but often distort and trivialize reality in their quest to entertain. The terrorism which erupted and spread during the 1970s is used in quite different ways in Otto Preminger’s Rosebud (1975), John Frankenheimer’s Black Sunday (1976) and Andrew V. McLaglen’s North Sea Hijack (1980).

Seijun Suzuki’s Branded to Kill (1967): Criterion Blu-ray review

Posted on May 20, 2023May 19, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

Misako (Annu Mari) lures Hanada (Joe Shishido) into danger in Seijun Suzuki's Branded to Kill (1967)

Criterion’s new dual-format release of Seijun Suzuki’s Branded to Kill (1967) showcases a 4K transfer of this radical deconstruction of the yakuza genre starring the idiosyncratic Joe Shishido as hit man who finds himself disappearing down a rabbit hole of paranoia and violence.

Asian action and fantasy from 88 Films and Eureka

Posted on February 22, 2023February 21, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

Ricky (Fan Siu-wong) with the warden's severed head at the climax of Lam Ngai-Choi’s Riki-Oh (1991)

Asian genre movies often contain a dizzying mix of exhilarating action, slapstick comedy, graphic violence and gore, and wild supernatural horror – all of which are on display in recent releases from 88 Films and Eureka.

Political thrillers, horror and metaphor

Posted on February 1, 2023April 8, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

Three recent releases blend reality and fiction to explore political themes, with varying success. Alain Jessua’s Les Chiens (1978) is an allegory of Fascism, while Jean-Claude Lord’s Mindfield (1989) and Jayro Bustamante’s La llorona (2019) are both rooted in real crimes, the former turning history into pulp entertainment, the latter into a haunting exploration of national trauma.

Memories of monochrome England

Posted on January 25, 2023April 29, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

The visit of a friendly policeman causes stress in John Kruse's October Moth (1960)

Network and the BFI deliver a potent mix of wartime propaganda and post-war crime in atmospheric black-and-white with Blu-ray releases of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s One of Our Aircraft Is Missing (1942) and Lewis Gilbert’s The Good Die Young (1954), and a massive 20-disk DVD set of B-movie thrillers from the early 1960s mostly adapted from the novels of Edgar Wallace.

Wrapping up 2022

Posted on January 4, 2023January 4, 2023 by Kenneth George Godwin

Countess Erzebeth Bathory (Lucia Bosé) discovers that virgin's blood will keep her young in Jorge Grau's Blood Ceremony (1973)

Hunkered down in the depths of winter, I spent a lot of December immersed in genre movies from around the world – it’s a dizzying mix of violence, perversion and unexpected cinematic delights.

Tag: Thrillers