Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead is Netflix’s latest 2023 foray into live-action-ime, adapting Haro Aso’s Manga and anime of the same name. We at the Asian Action Cast could not help but compare it to the (better) anime but still found sparks of joy to warm our zombie hearts. The perpetually optimistic and effervescent Akira Tendo (played by an equally diabetically sweet Eiji Akaso) revels in a zombie apocalypse, giving him a much needed break from his toxic workplace. We discuss everything from...
Oct 14, 2023•1 hr 19 min
The Crippled Avengers (also known as Return of the Five Deadly Venoms and Mortal Combat!) smashes its iron limbs into your brain this week on the Asian Action Cast, ironically spreading the crippling they received. This 1978 Shaw Brothers. martial arts schlock action fest is exactly what the Kung Fu movie genre needed to get it back on its legs.
Sep 30, 2023•1 hr 5 min
Bastard Swordsman! This Shaw Bro’s 1983 Wuxia extravaganza packs it all in, epic sword fights, trademark jaw dropping sets, costumes and unforgettable cast of characters. But this is not a drill, this is a movie imbued with love, care and the iron will to deliver a fatal fist of wonder straight into your cerebral cortex. Rarely well-paced for a Wuxia epic ‘Bastard’ has truly wondrous and plentiful choreography. Norman Chiu storms his way onto the screen and secretly into your hearts as the acces...
Sep 17, 2023•1 hr 14 min
Grasshopper Power – Activate! The Shin Kamen Rider returns in Hideaki Anno’s 2023 love letter to the original Kamen/Masked Rider, starring pouty Sosuke Ikematsu as titular rider, Takeshi Hongo. Take a journey through visceral action and ambiguous self loathing as the Grasshopper avenger tears apart his enemies as much as he tears apart his soul.
Sep 03, 2023•1 hr 2 min
What happens when Triads and Organised Crime run rampant on the mean streets of 90’s Hong Kong? You call the ORGANISED CRIME AND TRIAD BUREAU! No nonsense hard-boiled, grizzled cliché tough-as-nails Cop-Man Danny Lee leads a semi-shirtless Fan Siu-Wong on a crusade to catch…an even harder, wily, ice-cold Anthony Wong! Kirk Wong’s cat-and-mouse caper is hardly cerebral with contrived stand-offs, convenient escapes and manufactured machismo in almost every frame. But damn me if Anthony Wong can’t ...
Aug 19, 2023•1 hr 9 min
The Asian Action Cast Punishes Evil with Colin Chou’s 2022 crime thriller from director Jiang Xiaotong. A violent cat and mouse with Chou’s unhinged thief leading Zhao Da’s Detective Song Hai on an increasingly frustrating and violent goose chase. The tension builds but the action is sparse and spaced out, don’t expect Colin Chou’s trademark crisp martial arts choreography here. Where fists fly it is a drawn out dog fight between ragged breaths, with tired arms and swollen ankles. The star of th...
Aug 06, 2023•1 hr 11 min
Sonny “The StreetFighter” Chiba? Hiroyuki “Duke” Sanada? Ninja’s, swords, magic, samurais and exploitations? AN EYEPATCH?!?!! Yes folks, take our money indeed. We revelled in this gem from the 1981 SHOUT! Sonny Chiba Collection from Director Kinji Fukasaku starring an impossibly young Duke Sanada and his mentor Sonny Chiba, grizzled one eyed samurai Jubei. No question this film was ‘homaged’ almost wholesale in modern samurai and ninja cinema and anime with more than one scene being recreated in...
Jul 23, 2023•1 hr 3 min
Mang Hoi’s 1989 Action Adventure Thriller BLONDE FURY (plenty blonde, not so much fury) kicks a lot of ass, and with style! Cynthia Rothrock’s she-devil (sporting hilariously unflattering nicknames throughout the movie) demonstrates why she is the foreign queen of the Hong Kong Action Box Office. Rounding out her F.R.I.E.N.D’s are Chin Siu Ho’s less capable sex pest, Elizabeth Lee’s sweet but window dressing Judy and the director Mang Hoi’s bumbling comic relief journalist. Together they take on...
Jul 08, 2023•1 hr 16 min
The criminally unknown film, Dreadnaught, is one of Master Yuen Woo Ping’s most underrated films. An ensemble cast with a young Yuen Biao taking the everyman role, everyone from Bryan Leung’s Foon to Yuen Shun-Yi’s truly unhinged villain White Tiger just chew up every scene they’re in. The legendary Kwan Tak-Hing’s Wong Fei Hung delights in all the right ways and very wisely and sparingly used for great effect, around which the simmering slasher type thriller on the loose story revolves. The fil...
Jun 24, 2023•1 hr 4 min
The Young Master (1981) is the genesis of Jackie Chan in what in hindsight is the prototypical seed of kinetic action cinema he’s known for today. Dragon (Jackie naturally) leads an all-star cast including Yuen Biao (The Biao!), Shih Kien (Mr Han!) and Pai Wei and one of the best bad ass villain introductions in Master Hwang In-Shik, western showdown style. Jackie’s gold standard action choreography here is light years ahead of the competition at the time, punctuated with his trademark comedy an...
Jun 11, 2023•1 hr 9 min
What has 36 legs, is covered in paint and will beat you half to death in your quest to become a monk? 18 Bronzemen! In this episode we journey back to 1976 to watch the story of 3 (potential) monks in a 70 minute training montage. The tragic story of Shao Long (masterfully played by Tien Peng) being sent to a Shaolin monastery safehouse as his family is brutally murdered is completely upstaged by no nonsense, no shirt Brother Wan (angry Carter Wong). Joined by Chiang Nan, we watch the 3 students...
May 27, 2023•1 hr 13 min
In honour of the great Richard Ng, we dive in to one of his most popular roles as Sandy in Sammo Hung’s sketchy 1985 comedy, Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars. Richard’s trademark expressive face and physical comedy are sprinkled throughout this uneven action comedy. With more stars than the milky way, it somehow still delivers on all fronts for kinetic action putting behemoths Jackie Chan, Yuen Biao, Sammo Hung, Dick Wei, Andy Lau, Richard Norton, Yasuaki Kurata, Chung Fat, Sibelle Hu and many others...
May 14, 2023•1 hr 11 min
If Donnie Yen is the good cop in Raging Fire, bad cop Nicholas Tse is so cool you’ll want to start a fan club. Director Benny Chan’s last film is a blaze of good and evil tropes, gun fights and lingering shots of Donnie Yen waterworks. Holier than thou cop Bong (Yen) set off a chain of events that led to ex-cop Ngo (Tse) to swear revenge on him and the police force. Making a great case for perms, Ngo sneers and slashes through his enemies. Meanwhile Bong has police business to attend to, includi...
Apr 29, 2023•1 hr 28 min
Michelle Yeoh's character from the original Supercop kicked so hard, that when the studio recovered they ordered this 1993 spinoff. Supercop 2 is stuffed to the brim with plotlines, but we 'aint complaining! Inspector Yang (Yeoh) has boy problems but has a new crime to solve in Hong Kong. Trash boyfriend Chang Fung (Yu Rongguang) just so happens to be making his new life there, and HK cop Emil Chau is knocking on the door of this love triangle. Cringe at the casting but get ready for the never e...
Apr 15, 2023•1 hr 28 min
Jackie Chan goes all Armour of God on us twenty-six years later in Chinese Zodiac, also known as CZ12. Jackie's now with some younger pals to make him feel cooler on his European vacation. Not just content on stealing and returning relics, the film also attempts to lecture us on ethics. At least there's one genuinely funny sequence once we've finished cringing at the green screen action. Ken Lo makes an appearance as a hilarious Thai pirate and Oliver Platt chews the screen whenever he appears. ...
Apr 01, 2023•1 hr 9 min
Rise! Roar!! Revolt!!! The AAC takes a look a S.S. Rajamouli's epic fantasy blockbuster, *loosely* based on historical Indian revolutionaries. Terminator cop Raju (Ram Charan) and humble Gond tribal leader Bheem (N.T Rama Rao) meet through a chance encounter, well actually saving a child from an exploding train wreck. Through this encounter they forge a friendship to die for. However both men have a hidden agenda that will drive a wedge between them. Oscar award winning, motorcycle throwing, Tig...
Mar 18, 2023•1 hr 6 min
The Asian Action Cast presents: Brandon Lee's greatest (and only) Hong Kong martial arts movie of all time, Legacy of Rage! This 1986 tragic-heroic-violence-romanti-buddy-prison flick showcases the strength of Brandon's emo acting range that would go on to make him the best Crow. Bolo Yeung is criminally underused in this film and director Ronny Yu shows his horror chops in turning a bumbling good looking Anthony Wong into a lethal sex pest chucky doll.
Mar 05, 2023•1 hr 25 min
The Asian Action Cast dives into Artis Chow’s 1978 Taiwanese Martial Arts odyssey REVENGEFUL SWORDSWOMAN. It is as literal as it is accurate a title, there is indeed a woman Ling Chia, played by spunky Hsiang Yang, who indeed has a sword and is very much revengeful. Whether it’s avenging her fathers death, or misuse of her name, she is revengeful. Incredibly schlocky effects with some decent martial arts, if you can put up with some dark scenery check this out!
Feb 18, 2023•56 min
Oscar nominated Michelle Yeoh has proved she can do it all. And in 1986's Royal Warriors, she does her own stunts, fights and even turns down Michael Wong's advances! Hiroyuki Sanada is a great partner in crime fighting, and his stunts are unbelievable. There are more bullets flying in this film and glass breaking than you thought could be possible. A goldfish also gives the performance of a lifetime acting with Wong. Surprisingly shot well (2nd Unit Director Johnnie To, is that you?), and with ...
Feb 11, 2023•1 hr 4 min
The Asian Action Cast casually strolls into Wira - Adrian Teh's 2019 Malaysian action-drama which shows how crime, corruption and safe sex can tear families and communities apart. The only cure for such evil is carefully manicured facial hair, incredible chiselled abs and unbending sense of righteousness. Starring Malaysian action eye-candy Hairul Azreen and featuring the Raid's Mad Dog himself, Yayan Ruhian, the martial arts action does not dissapoint. It doesn't quite hit hard enough to break ...
Jan 28, 2023•1 hr 3 min
One of the biggest fun, most bombastic martial arts action extravaganza's in recent memory explodes its way into our brains. Asian Action Cast takes on Timo Tjahjanto's 2022 Netflix foreign language juggernaut 'The Big Four', and after our last episode on Timo's 'The Night Comes For Us', we were not dissapointed. Just as brutal, visceral and violent, but now with a massive dollop of marshmallow, brownie and assorts chunks of comedy and fun to make this a delicious rocky road deluxe. This movie i...
Jan 14, 2023•1 hr 3 min
The Asian Action Cast wraps up another year of the best (and worst) of Asian and Hong Kong action cinema. All movies reviewed go into a tournament, and only one movie can be crowned number one. Which movie will reign supreme? Which island does our favourite character come from? Thanks listeners, for your support this year. As always, stay for the remix!
Dec 10, 2022•1 hr 25 min
Welcome to the 100 Swords Mansion, where Qin Wu-Xin (Jason Pai Piao) stores his huge wardrobe and the swords of the 99 swordsmen slain. The 100th sword currently belongs to the Black Magic clan, but not if Yan Bei (Derek Yee) can stop him! Get ready for lots of evil laughs, sped up fights and great characters too, including Colonel Sanders (Lung Tien Hsiang), the man who knew too much (Yuen Bun) and coffin man (Wong Lik) in this epic 1984 Shaw Brothers film.
Nov 26, 2022•1 hr 5 min
Your number one source for Asian Action films and jokes about the perils of Hong Kong stuntmen!
Nov 15, 2022•22 sec
Sammo Hung and Karl Maka star as pair of incompetent cops in this 1990 comedy where nobody escapes a beating. Gangsters, women, cops and robbers all get a slapping from the long arm of the law. Your ears will also cop a beating from Karl Maka's original karaoke tune! Props to Lau Kar Wing as a gangster boss, setting up for a great final fight. It's patchy and inconsistent, but it's the 90s, baby!
Nov 13, 2022•1 hr 12 min
If you know the writer Ni Kuang then you know his prolific works on the Wisely and Dr. Yuen series have long been adapted into Hong Kong action adventure films. The Seventh Curse is the 1986 star studded Golden Harvest entry leaving nothing on the table in terms of action, dangerous stunts and horror special effects. Chin Siu-Ho stars as the hero Dr. Yuen with Chow Yun-Fat as Wisely in a Frankenstein meets the Wolfman type crossover. With Maggie Cheung, Dick Wei, Sibelle Hu, Elvis Tsui and too m...
Oct 30, 2022•1 hr 13 min
Mr Vampire II is Ricky Lau’s 1986 follow up to the incredibly successful Mr Vampire capitalising on the massive Jiangshi chinese horror movement in the 80’s. Bringing in some incredible names like Yuen Biao, Moon Lee and of course the super star of the series Lam-Ching Ying, it is a star studded comedy horror affair. Part 2 of our October Halloween series!
Oct 15, 2022•41 min
It's time for Hong Kong Zombie fun as we watch the 1998 horror/comedy Bio-Zombie. Jordan Chan and Sam Lee are the bumbling, wannabe gangsters that lead our trope ridden flick set in (of course) a small shopping mall. The world is ending but there's still plenty of time for people to freak out and show their true colours right? Listen and find out.
Oct 01, 2022•54 min
John Woo's 1989 heroic bloodshed masterpiece, The Killer, sits at the pinnacle of the genre. Danny Lee's grizzled cop Li vs. Chow Yun-Fat's equally grizzed assassin Ah Jong exemplify the deeply unique kinship only men who live in violence share. Beautifully shot, written and executed by all involved - this movie is all Killer no Filler.
Sep 17, 2022•1 hr 11 min
Netflix’s 2022 international Korean spy-with-amnesia thriller CARTER is a non-stop chase sequence escort mission. Jung Byung-gil helms the fighty flick as a showcase for Joo Won’s physical abilities as a martial artist as he stumbles his way through an odyssey of action and realisation.
Sep 04, 2022•59 min
