#hongkong

The Thirteenth Hour Podcast #397: Welcome My Brother, Jeremy, as We Talk About Hard Boiled (1992)

The Thirteenth Hour Podcast #397: Welcome My Brother, Jeremy, as We Talk About Hard Boiled (1992)

https://archive.org/download/podcast-397_202303/Podcast%20397.mp3

This week, my brother and I are watching Hard Boiled (辣手神探), a 1992 Hong Kong action thriller directed by John Woo with Chow Yun-fat, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, and Anthony Wong.  It is one of the most famous examples of the “heroic bloodshed” genre of films (the 1986 Brandon Lee film, Legacy of Rage, that I discussed in episode 287, is an earlier example).   Like the Hong Kong kung fu film industry, these films had similar themes but were generally set in modern times and involved less unarmed martial arts and more gunplay, often with a lot of slow motion diving, rolling, and shooting akimbo (one gun in each hand).  Hard Boiled is one of the best examples, and you can actually watch the whole film online in the original Cantonese with English subtitles:    

Check out Jeremy‘s work over at Pixel Grotto, CBR.com, and Classic Batman Panels on IG.  You can support his work on Ko-fi and get access to in-depth, exclusive Batman content here.   If you are of the DnD persuasion, his articles on DnD Beyond may be right up your alley.  Thanks, Jeremy, for coming on the show!  

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The Thirteenth Hour Podcast #358: Welcome My Brother, Jeremy, as We Talk About The Heroic Trio (東方三俠, 1993)

The Thirteenth Hour Podcast #358: Welcome My Brother, Jeremy, as We Talk About The Heroic Trio (東方三俠, 1993)

https://archive.org/download/podcast-358/Podcast%20358.mp3

The Heroic Trio in 2022 | Jackie chan movies, Martial arts movies, Action movie poster

This week, my brother and I are watching The Heroic Trio (東方三俠 – literally – “Eastern three heroes”), a 1993 film we first saw on cable TV as kids, around the time of the British / Hong Kong handover in 1997.  Whatever network it was (TBS or TNT, I think) showed a bunch of Hong Kong films back to back during that 24 hour period (if I recall correctly).  This was one we watched, and man, or man, what a weird one we sat through.  I’m surprised that it was shown on network TV given some of the stuff that’s in it, but who knows, maybe no one had watched it beforehand.  I recall hoping we’d catch one or two kung fu flicks, and though this one does have some high flying wire-fu martial arts, it’s hard to classify this film, since it has a lot of variety – noir, superhero, action, comedy, and horror, not to mention the particular feel of Hong Kong cinema at the time.  Click on the coverart below to buy your own copy or check here where you can find it streaming.

The Heroic Trio (1993) - IMDb

If you really want to capture the spirit of Hong Kong cinema, you may want to see if you can find the film on VCD.  VCD was a format that never really took off in the States, but in many parts of the world, like in Asia, where VHS had issues (humidity / heat and thin film aren’t a great combo), VCDs were a low cost alternative that was comparable in quality to VHS, especially in the days before DVDs and DVD players were widely available.  Jeremy and I talk on the show about places in NYC where you used to be able to find tons of these discs, but they (probably) are much harder to come by now, though occasionally, you can find copies on eBay.

Here are a few clips – a trailer, another fan made one set to the intro song sung by Anita Mui, one of the leads, and a clips of one of crazy fight scenes from the film.

Jeremy and I will be back next month to discuss the 80s medieval film, Lionheart!  Perhaps in the future we’ll do more Hong Kong cinema of the era.

Check out Jeremy‘s work over at Pixel Grotto, CBR.com, and Classic Batman Panels on IG.  You can support his work on Ko-fi and get access to in-depth, exclusive Batman content here.   If you are of the DnD persuasion, his articles on DnD Beyond may be right up your alley.  Thanks, Jeremy, for coming on the show!  

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The Thirteenth Hour Podcast #287: Watching Legacy of Rage from 1986 – Brandon Lee’s First Lead Role

The Thirteenth Hour Podcast #287: Watching Legacy of Rage from 1986 – Brandon Lee’s First Lead Role

This week’s episode is kind of a continuation of last week’s episode for Brandon Lee’s 56th birthday.   I am watching the first film Brandon Lee starred in, the 1986 Hong Kong production, Legacy of Rage, one of the early heroic bloodshed films (John Woo’s A Better Tomorrow is better known but came out the same year and is usually the one typically credited with being one of the influential films that sparked that genre; however, Legacy of Rage has a lot of the same elements).   I never saw this film before but am glad I finally found it.  Although there is not a ton of pure martial arts action in it (see below for a little cameo with Bolo Yeung), what scenes there are give Brandon Lee a chance to shine not only through showing his martial prowess but also in terms of creating his character, an earnest, somewhat naive everyman who is wrongly accused of murder by a double crossing friend and loses not only eight years of his life in prison but also his livelihood and fiancee.  If it sounds like The Count of Monte Cristo, it kind of is, if, of course, the Count had access to an arsenal befitting a small army, courtesy of his prison buddy, a gun runner played by Mang Hoi, who is frequently found in Hong Kong action and kung fu films.

In the clip above, Brandon Lee and costar Mang Hoi arm up and deliver some large caliber justice, sometimes while driving, sometimes while diving over tables, one gun in each hand. Although that style would later become associated with this genre of Hong Kong films, this is a solid early example of why. 

You can listen to Brandon’s thoughts on this style of Hong Kong action film here (about 9:20 into the interview):

You can also watch the full film free on Daily Motion.

Stay tuned for more Brandon Lee in time for lunar new year!

And, as mentioned last episode, the patches I mentioned a few weeks ago are now ready and available for purchase here!  They come with a high quality mp3 download from Once Upon a Dream, the next Thirteenth Hour soundtrack LP.

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If you still have a cassette player, take advantage of the following deal and be transported to another world!  SALE!  While supplies last, grab Long Ago Not So Far Away on cassette!  Just $1/tape!
https://ko-fi.com/s/5579db9b27

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There are now Thirteenth Hour toys!  If you’d like to pick up one of these glow in the dark figures for yourself, feel free to email me or go to the Etsy store I set up (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThirteenthHourStudio) and get them there.

If the past few months have got you needing a break, you may want to chill out to this 80s synth throwback track for a upcoming LP with the accompanying music video:

Empty Hands, the synth EP soundtrack to the novella, Empty Hands, is now out for streaming on Bandcamp.  

empty hands ep cover_edited-2.jpg

Stay tuned.  Follow along on Spotify!  There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.

Check it out!

As always, thanks for listening!

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